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EP-4734787-A1 - HANDS-FREE UMBRELLA EQUIPMENT

EP4734787A1EP 4734787 A1EP4734787 A1EP 4734787A1EP-4734787-A1

Abstract

A harness for hands-free use of personal umbrellas uses a cross-body strap circling a user from one shoulder to the opposite waist and a lop clip to hold the umbrella at the shoulder. The harness may have one or more side straps passing around the torso under the shoulder, a base clip holding the umbrella at a waist level and/or a bag for holding the umbrella, the straps, the clips, and or personal items of the user. The top clip and/or base clip may be on mounts and/or booms. The clips may be adjustable in angle relative to the torso. Booms may be adjustable in length. A mount may include an adjustable truss assembly for positioning the umbrella. The bag may have compartments made with different materials for different moisture performance. The harness may be adapted for use with full-size umbrellas and or compact umbrellas with collapsible shafts.

Inventors

  • SINGLETON, ANGELA
  • GRZANKA, Andrew, Devin
  • VERZI, Samantha, Louise
  • KUDERNATSCH, SIMON
  • GUTIERREZ, Amie, Jene
  • KEELE, Sophie Elizabeth
  • ROCKS, Laura, Kathleen
  • BELSINGER, Jr., Harry, Edward

Assignees

  • Reynbo, LLC

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20240626

Claims (20)

  1. 1. A harness for hands-free use of a personal umbrella, the harness comprising: a cross-body strap ending a torso of a user, the cross-body strap passtag from a shoulder of the user to a waist of the user, the waist of the user being on aside of the torso opposite from the shoulder, and a top clip connected directly or indirectly to the cross-body strap at a shoulder level of the user, the top clipbeing adapted to detachably connect to a shaft of the umbrella at a top mount point, the top mount point being located along the shaft of the umbrella between a base of the umbrella and a canopy extension hub of the umbrella, wherein the extension hub, viamotion along the shaft, foldsand unfolds a canopy of the umbrella.
  2. 2. The harness of claim 1, further comprising a first side strap connecting a first strap point of the harness on the front of the torso to a second strap point of the harness on the back of the torso, the first side strap passing along the torso under the shoulder of the user.
  3. 3. The harness of claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising abase clip connected directly of indirectly to the cross-body strap at a waist level of the user, the base clip being adapted detachably to connect to a base point that is along the shaft of the personal umbrella at or adjacent to the base of the umbrella.
  4. 4. The harness of claim 3, wherein the base clip is rotatable to permit the umbrella to be held at various angles from the torso when the base clip is attached to the umbrella and the top clip is detached from the umbrella.
  5. 5. The harness of claim 4, wherein the base clip is hinged.
  6. 6. The harness of claim 4, wherein the base clip comprises a universal joint
  7. 7. The harness of any of claims 3-6, further comprising a base mount connecting the base clip to the cross-body strap.
  8. 8, The harness of claim 7, wherein: the base mount is a truss assembly comprising a base bar, a clip bar, and an adjustment bar; the base bar is affixed at waist level to the cross-body strap; the base bar is rotatably connected at a first end of the base bar to a first end of the clip bar, the base bar is rotatably connected at a second end of the base bar to a first end of the adjustment bar; a second end of the clip bar is connected to the base clip; and an adjustable midpoint of the clip bar is connected to an adjustable midpoint of the adjustment bar, such that a position of the base clip may be adjusted within a plane relative to the cross-body strap via selection of the adjustable midpoints of the adjustment bar and the clip bar.
  9. 9. The harness of any of claims 1-8 wherein the harness fiurther comprises a bag affixed to toe cross-body strap.
  10. 10. The harness of any of claims 1-9, wherein the shaft of the umbrella is a collapsible shaft for compact storage of the umbrella.
  11. 11. The harness of 10, wherein: the harness further comprises the bag; and the bag is of sufficient size to store the umbrella when the umbrella is folded for storage.
  12. 12. The harness of claim 11, wherein the base clip remains attached to the umbrella when the umbrella is stored in the bag, such that the umbrella may be deployed from storage in the bag by first raising the umbrella extension hub to unfold the canopy and then attaching the top clip, wittout adjustment of the base clip.
  13. 13. The harness of claim 11 or 12, wherein the bag comprises: a front compartment comprising a closure facing away from foe torso to permit removal of the umbrella via amotion away from the body; and a middle compartment with a closure on the top of the bag to permit removal of items stored in the middle compartment via a motion substantially parallel to a surface of the torso.
  14. 14. The harness of claim 13, wherein the middle compartment comprises a water-proof material to prevent moisture entering the middle compartment.
  15. 15. The harness of claim 14, wherein the front compartment comprises a water-proof or water-resistant material that prevents dripping of water from the front compartment of the bag, wherein the water-resistant material is gas-permeable to allow evaporation of moisture from an interior of the front compartment
  16. 16. The harness of claim 15, wherein the water-resistant material comprises fibers that promote wicking of moisture along the fibers to promote evaporati ve drying of the front compartment
  17. 17. The harness of any of claims 11 -16, wherein the top clip is connected to the cross- body strap via the bag.
  18. 18. The harness of any of claims 11-17 wherein the base clip is connected to the cross- body strap via thebag.
  19. 19. The harness of any of claims 9-18, wherein the bag is moveable from a first bag position to a second bag position, the first bag position being along the cross-body strap on the front of the torso between the base clip and the top clip, and the second beg position being elewhere along the strap.
  20. 20. The harness of claim 19, wherein the second bag position is along a selected side strap.

Description

HANDS-FREE UMBRELLA EQUIPMENT CROSS REFERENCE TO OTHER APPLICATIONS [001] This application claims benefit of priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Number 63/523,415, filed June 27th, 2023, titled “Umbrella carrier-mount assembly.” TECHNICAL FIELD [002] This disclosure relates to techniques for hands-free use of personal umbrellas, including adaptations to straps, fittings, cases, and umbrellas. BACKGROUND [003] Umbrellas for personal use against sun and rain come in a variety of forms and are available with a variety of accessories. Compact umbrellas, also referred to as folding, travel, or mini umbrellas generally have a folding frame which supports a fabric canopy, and a collapsing/telescoping shaft capable of folding down to a compact size. Compact umbrellas come in a wide range of sizes, varying generally when folded for storage to have a length from roughly 5 inches to over 18 inches and a width between 1.5 inches and 3 inches. [004] Stick umbrellas tend to be larger. Also called walking or golf umbrellas, these frill-sized umbrellas generally have a folding frame and continuous, non-collapsing shaft. Stick umbrellas usually have a length between 30 inches to over 42 inches and a width of around 2 to 3 inches in the closed position. [005] A key advantage of a compact umbrella is portability, Compared to astick Umbrella, a compact umbrella may be more easily carried in a tote bag, handbag, backpack, luggage, etc, Compact umbrellas are more popular than stick umbrellas due to their comparatively small size and light weight SUMMARY [006] A harness for hands-free use of a personal umbrella uses a cross-body strap cirding the torso of a user from one shoulder of the user to the opposite waist The harness has a top clip connected to the cross-body strap at a level at or near the shoulder. The top clip detachably grips the umbrella shaft. [007] The harness may be stabilized by one or more side straps running under the shoulder to connect points on the cross-body strap on the back and front of the torso. [008] The harness may be fitted with abase clip at a level at or near the waist of the user, the base clip clasps an umbrella at its base, e.g., at a handle of the umbrella or at a point on the shaft near the bottom ofthe umbrella. The base clip may be adapted for rapid connection to the umbrella. Additionally or alternatively, the base clip may be rotatable, e.g., via a hinge, universal joint, gooseneck, and/or other flexible canhector. [009] The base clip may be connected to the cross-body strap directly dr indirectly via, e.g., a bag, amount, and/or a side strap. A mount for the base clip may be a truss assembly. For example, the mount may be an adjustable three-bar truss assembly. [010] The harness may include a bag at a fixed or moveable location on the harness. For example, where the umbrella is a compact umbrella with a collapsible shaft* the bag may have a compartment for storing the umbrella when hot in use. The bag may be arranged such that the base clip remains attached to the umbrella both when the umbrella is stored in the bag and when the umbrella is taken out and raised, without adjustment of the base clip. [011] the bag may include a number of specialized compartments. Far example* the bag may have a front compartment with a closure facing away from the torso to permit removal of the umbrella via a motion away from the body of the user. The bag may also include additional compartments, such as eg., middle, inner, and/or rear compartments. For example, a huddle compartment may have a closure on the top of tihe bag to permit removal of items stored in the other compartment via a motion substantially parallel to asurface ofthe torso. [012] Various compartments of the bag may be made of different materials which react differently to moisture. For example, the middle and/or rear compartment may be made of a water-proof material to prevent moisture for a wet umbrella entering those compartments. [013] The umbrella storage compartment may be waterproof. Alternatively, the umbrella compartment may use a water-resistant material that prevents dripping of water from tihe bag but is gas-permeable to allow evaporation of moisture from the compartment. The drip-resistant material may promote wicki ng of moisture along the its fibers to promote evaporative drying. [014] The harness may include a top boom to hold the top clip at a distance from the shoulder. The boom may have a flexible angle setting and/or be adjustable in length. The boom, or the top clip itself, may rest on a shoulder mount The shoulder mount may have a curved member fitting around a bend of the shoulder and be conformable to the shoulder of the user. [015] The straps of the harness may be assembled and/or adjusted via various clips and/or buckles, and some or all of the straps may be arranged to be stowable in the bag, with or without the umbrella, when the harness is not in use. For example, the side straps may be stowable