U.S. patent application number 12/002341 was filed with the patent office on 2009-01-08 for portable weather shielding canopy.
Invention is credited to Angela Spangenberg.
Application Number | 20090007947 12/002341 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39310003 |
Filed Date | 2009-01-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090007947 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Spangenberg; Angela |
January 8, 2009 |
Portable weather shielding canopy
Abstract
A weather shielding canopy apparatus for shielding a chair is
presented. The apparatus includes a canopy that has a surface area
that is sufficient to substantially cover a seating area of the
chair. A tension rod frame embedded in the fabric material,
maintains the canopy in an open position for covering the seating
area and a closed position where the canopy retracts to fold neatly
into a carrying case for portability. Side panels extending
downward from a bottom side of the canopy when the canopy is in the
open position at least partially shelter sides of the chair from
weather. A vertical support attaches the apparatus to the chair
where the top and sides of the volume are at least partially
shielded from weather.
Inventors: |
Spangenberg; Angela;
(Villisca, IA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Jim Montgomery
8th Floor, 5201 Blue Lagoon Drive
Miami
FL
33126
US
|
Family ID: |
39310003 |
Appl. No.: |
12/002341 |
Filed: |
December 14, 2007 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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60876477 |
Dec 22, 2006 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
135/96 ;
135/124 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C12Q 1/001 20130101;
G01N 27/3272 20130101; G01N 33/5438 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
135/96 ;
135/124 |
International
Class: |
E04H 15/36 20060101
E04H015/36 |
Claims
1. A weather shielding canopy apparatus for shielding a chair, the
apparatus comprising: a canopy comprising a fabric material that
has a surface area that is sufficient to substantially cover a
seating area that is greater than an area of a top surface of a
volume defined by a width and depth of the chair; a tension rod
frame embedded in said fabric material, said frame maintaining said
canopy in an open position for covering said seating area and a
closed position where said canopy retracts to fold neatly into a
carrying case for portability; side panels extending downward from
a bottom side of said canopy when said canopy is in said open
position to at least partially shelter sides of said volume from
weather; and a vertical support extending downward from said bottom
side of said canopy for removably attaching the apparatus to the
chair where said top and sides of said volume are at least
partially shielded from weather.
2. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said side panels
comprises windows.
3. The apparatus as recited in claim 2, wherein said windows
comprises means for opening and closing.
4. The apparatus as recited in claim 2, wherein said windows
comprises a screen.
5. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said vertical
support comprises means for adjusting a height of the apparatus
above the chair.
6. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein when the apparatus
is attached to the chair, said side panels extend to the
ground.
7. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein the chair is a lawn
chair and said vertical support comprises means for attaching to a
backside of the lawn chair.
8. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said vertical
support is a flat rigid element.
9. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said canopy is
constructed from a durable lightweight material that is
weatherproof.
10. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said canopy
further comprises a dome shape in said open position.
11. The apparatus as recited in claim 1, wherein said seating area
is sufficient to cover a plurality of chairs.
12. The apparatus as recited in claim 11, wherein said vertical
support removably attaches to said chairs.
13. A weather shielding canopy apparatus for shielding a chair, the
apparatus comprising: means for substantially covering a seating
area of the chair; means for providing an open position and a
closed position for said covering means where, in said closed
position, said covering means retracts to fold neatly into a
carrying case for portability; means for at least partially
sheltering sides of the chair from weather; and means for removably
attaching the apparatus to the chair where said top and sides of
the chair are at least partially shielded from weather.
14. The apparatus as recited in claim 13, further comprising means
for windows.
15. The apparatus as recited in claim 13, further comprising means
for adjusting a height of the apparatus above the chair.
16. The apparatus as recited in claim 13, wherein said seating area
is sufficient to cover a plurality of chairs.
17. The apparatus as recited in claim 16, wherein said attaching
means further comprises means for attaching to said chairs.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present Utility patent application claims priority
benefit of the U.S. provisional application for patent Ser. No.
60/976,477 filed on Oct. 1, 2007 under 35 U.S.C. 119(e). The
contents of this related provisional application are incorporated
herein by reference for all purposes.
FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
[0002] Not applicable.
REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER LISTING
APPENDIX
[0003] Not applicable.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
[0004] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains
material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright
owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of
the patent document or patent disclosure as it appears in the
Patent and Trademark Office, patent file or records, but otherwise
reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0005] The present invention relates generally to sporting goods.
More particularly, the invention relates to a portable canopy for
shielding a user from weather conditions.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0006] While participating in or watching outdoor activities, a
person is exposed to various weather conditions such as, but not
limited to, rain, wind and sun. In many of these instances the
person is seated and may wish to be shielded from the weather, for
example, without limitation, while camping, fishing, enjoying the
beach, or watching a sporting event. A method for shielding the
person from the weather involves incorporating a canopy into
outdoor furniture. However, current portable chair canopies
incorporate cumbersome poles into the design, making assembly and
transportation difficult.
[0007] In view of the foregoing, there is a need for improved
techniques for providing a portable canopy for shielding an
individual from various weather conditions while enjoying outdoor
activities.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] The present invention is illustrated by way of example, and
not by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying
drawings and in which like reference numerals refer to similar
elements and in which:
[0009] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an exemplary portable
canopy attached to a standard lawn chair, in accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention; and
[0010] FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of an exemplary portable
canopy attached to two lawn chairs, in accordance with an
embodiment of the preset invention.
[0011] Unless otherwise indicated illustrations in the figures are
not necessarily drawn to scale.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] To achieve the forgoing and other objects and in accordance
with the purpose of the invention, portable weather shielding
canopy is presented.
[0013] In one embodiment, a weather shielding canopy apparatus for
shielding a chair is presented. The apparatus includes a canopy
including a fabric material that has a surface area that is
sufficient to substantially cover a seating area that is greater
than an area of a top surface of a volume defined by a width and
depth of the chair. A tension rod frame embedded in the fabric
material, maintains the canopy in an open position for covering the
seating area and a closed position where the canopy retracts to
fold neatly into a carrying case for portability. Side panels
extending downward from a bottom side of the canopy when the canopy
is in the open position at least partially shelter sides of the
volume from weather. And, a vertical support extends downward from
the bottom side of the canopy for removably attaching the apparatus
to the chair where the top and sides of the volume are at least
partially shielded from weather. In other embodiments the side
panels include windows, the windows include means for opening and
closing and the windows include a screen. In further embodiments
the vertical support includes means for adjusting a height of the
apparatus above the chair and when the apparatus is attached to the
chair, the side panels extend to the ground. In yet other
embodiments, the chair is a lawn chair and the vertical support
includes means for attaching to a backside of the lawn chair and
the vertical support is a flat rigid element. In still other
embodiments, the canopy is constructed from a durable lightweight
material that is weatherproof and the canopy further includes a
dome shape in the open position. In still other embodiments, the
seating area is sufficient to cover a plurality of chairs and the
vertical support removably attaches to the chairs.
[0014] In another embodiment a weather shielding canopy apparatus
for shielding a chair is presented. The apparatus includes means
for substantially covering a seating area of the chair, means for
providing an open position and a closed position for the covering
means where, in the closed position, the covering means retracts to
fold neatly into a carrying case for portability, means for at
least partially sheltering sides of the chair from weather and
means for removably attaching the apparatus to the chair where the
top and sides of the chair are at least partially shielded from
weather. Further embodiments include means for windows and means
for adjusting a height of the apparatus above the chair. In still
other embodiments the seating area is sufficient to cover a
plurality of chairs and the attaching means further includes means
for attaching to the chairs.
[0015] Other features, advantages, and object of the present
invention will become more apparent and be more readily understood
from the following detailed description, which should be read in
conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0016] The present invention is best understood by reference to the
detailed figures and description set forth herein.
[0017] Embodiments of the invention are discussed below with
reference to the Figures. However, those skilled in the art will
readily appreciate that the detailed description given herein with
respect to these figures is for explanatory purposes as the
invention extends beyond these limited embodiments. For example, it
should be appreciated that those skilled in the art will, in light
of the teachings of the present invention, recognize a multiplicity
of alternate and suitable approaches, depending upon the needs of
the particular application, to implement the functionality of any
given detail described herein, beyond the particular implementation
choices in the following embodiments described and shown. That is,
there are numerous modifications and variations of the invention
that are too numerous to be listed but that all fit within the
scope of the invention. Also, singular words should be read as
plural and vice versa and masculine as feminine and vice versa,
where appropriate, and alternative embodiments do not necessarily
imply that the two are mutually exclusive.
[0018] The present invention will now be described in detail with
reference to embodiments thereof as illustrated in the accompanying
drawings.
[0019] Embodiments of the present invention provide portable
canopies that shield a user from weather conditions such as, but
not limited to, rain, wind, snow, and sun. The preferred embodiment
is a lightweight portable mini-dome canopy that easily attaches to
any standard lawn chair to protect an individual from sun, rain,
snow and other adverse weather conditions.
[0020] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an exemplary portable
canopy 100 attached to a standard lawn chair 105, in accordance
with an embodiment of the present invention. In the present
embodiment, portable canopy 100 measures approximately three and
one half feet (31/2') high. However, alternate embodiments may be
larger or smaller depending factors such as, but not limited to,
the intended use and size of the chair to which the canopy is to be
attached. In the present embodiment, portable canopy 100 is made of
a durable lightweight material that is weatherproof and has a
tension rod frame 108 embedded to the fabric lining for easy
opening. Side panels 120 made of a weatherproof material extend
downward from portable canopy 100 toward the ground to further
shelter a user from the elements. Alternate embodiments may not
include side panels. In the present embodiment, portable canopy 100
attaches to standard lawn chair 105 by attaching a vertical support
110 to the frame of lawn chair 105 with means such as, but not
limited to, hook and loop material, snaps, buckles, clips, etc.
Vertical support 110 is a flat rigid element that may be made of
various materials such as, but not limited to, plastic or metal.
Alternate embodiments may use different means for the vertical
support such as, but not limited to, one or more collapsible rods,
non-collapsible rods etc. In some embodiments the vertical support
may be adjustable, for example, without limitation, a telescoping
pole, enabling the user to set the height of the canopy above the
chair. In the present embodiment, portable canopy 100 comprises
side windows 115 in side panels 120. Side windows 115 may be
completely opened, zipped to a screen or closed. Alternate
embodiment may not comprise windows or may comprise windows that
have various different features, for example, without limitation,
windows that do not open and close or windows that do not comprise
screens. Embodiments of the present invention may be customized
with original or licensed logos in a variety of colors.
[0021] In typical use of the present embodiment, a user opens
portable canopy 100 and attaches portable canopy 100 to lawn chair
105 using the provided attachment means. The user may then sit in
lawn chair 105 while being sheltered from the weather. When the
user is finished using portable canopy 100, portable canopy 100 is
removed from lawn chair 105 and retracts to fold neatly into a
carrying case, not shown, for easy portability. In some embodiments
the carrying case unsnaps and expands to double as a small
blanket.
[0022] FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of an exemplary portable
canopy 200 attached to two lawn chairs 205, in accordance with an
embodiment of the preset invention. In the present embodiment,
portable canopy 200 is large enough to shelter both lawn chairs
205. Embodiments of the present invention may be configured in
various sizes to shelter various numbers of chairs and differently
sized chairs, for example, without limitation, child sized chairs
and adult sized chairs.
[0023] Alternate embodiments of the present invention may be
designed to attach to items other than lawn chairs such as, but not
limited to, park benches, bleachers, stadium seats, people, etc.
Other alternate embodiments may incorporate support means into the
portable canopy itself so that the canopy stands without being
attached to a chair. For example, without limitation, the canopy
may comprise extendable poles long enough to reach the ground or a
collapsible frame may be integrated into the vertical side panels
as well as in the canopy.
[0024] Having fully described at least one embodiment of the
present invention, other equivalent or alternative methods of
providing a portable weather shelter according to the present
invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The
invention has been described above by way of illustration, and the
specific embodiments disclosed are not intended to limit the
invention to the particular forms disclosed. For example, the
particular implementation of the canopy may vary depending upon the
particular type of frame used. The canopies described in the
foregoing were directed to dome shaped implementations; however,
similar techniques provide frames and canopies of various shapes,
for example, without limitation, flat canopies, triangular
canopies, etc. Differently shaped implementations of the present
invention are contemplated as within the scope of the present
invention. The invention is thus to cover all modifications,
equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope
of the following claims.
* * * * *