Catch-free safety umbrella

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As shown in

FIG. 31

, a conventional umbrella includes: a central shaft C having a plurality of top ribs T pivotally secured to an upper notch N on the shaft, a plurality of stretcher ribs S each pivotally connected between each top rib T and a runner R slidably held on the shaft; whereby upon opening of the umbrella, the runner R will be retained on an upper portion of the shaft by an upper spring catch C

1

resiliently held on the shaft; and upon closing of the umbrella, the runner R will be retained on a lower portion of the shaft by engaging a slot R′ formed in the runner with a lower catch C

2

resiliently held on a lower portion of the shaft.

Since either upper catch C

1

or lower catch C

2

has an acute corner portion formed on the catch, it may easily injure an umbrella user when depressing the catch for closing or opening the umbrella.

The present inventor has found the drawbacks of the conventional umbrella and invented the present safety umbrella without spring catch.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide a safety umbrella including: a central shaft; a rib assembly having a plurality of top ribs pivotally secured to an upper notch on the shaft each top rib pulled by a pulling rope to be tensioned towards an upper portion on the shaft, and a plurality of stretcher ribs each pivotally connected between each top rib and a runner slidably held on the shaft, with each stretcher rib forming an acute angle between the stretcher rib and the shaft; whereby upon opening of the umbrella, the tension force as effected by the pulling rope and acting upon each top rib will be transferred to each stretcher rib to form an upwardly orienting fraction force to lift the stretcher rib along the shaft to stably hold the rib assembly at an opening state; and a ball resiliently held in a lower portion of the shaft, whereby upon closing of the umbrella, the runner will be engaged with the ball for stably retracting the rib assembly at a folded condition, thereby eliminating the acute spring catches as found in a conventional umbrella and preventing from injury to the umbrella user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1

is an illustration showing an opening umbrella of the present invention.

FIG. 2

is a partially enlarged illustration of FIG.

1

.

FIG. 3

is an illustration showing a closed umbrella of the present invention.

FIG. 4

is a partially enlarged illustration of FIG.

3

.

FIG. 5

is an illustration showing a stably folded umbrella of the present invention.

FIG. 6

is an illustration showing a lowering of the runner to approximate the ball resiliently held in the shaft.

FIG. 7

shows a depression of the ball by the lowered runner, following FIG.

6

.

FIG. 8

shows an engagement between the ball and the runner for stably closing the umbrella of the present invention.

FIG. 9

is a front view of FIG.

8

.

FIG. 10

shows a connection between the pulling rope and the top rib.

FIG. 11

shows the connection of the pulling ropes on the collar disposed on the shaft of the present invention.

FIG. 12

shows another connection of the ropes on the collar.

FIG. 13

shows further connection of the ropes with the collar.

FIG. 14

shows another modification of the ball and the runner of the present invention.

FIG. 15

shows still another modification of the ball with the runner of this invention.

FIG. 16

shows further modification of the ball with the runner of this invention.

FIG. 17

is an illustration of another preferred embodiment of the present invention when opened.

FIG. 18

is a partially enlarged illustration of FIG.

17

.

FIG. 19

shows a closed umbrella as folded from FIG.

17

.

FIG. 20

is a partially enlarged view of FIG.

19

.

FIG. 21

shows a stably closed umbrella as further folded from FIG.

19

.

FIG. 22

is an exploded view of the runner of the umbrella as shown in FIG.

18

.

FIG. 23

is a sectional drawing of the runner as assembled from FIG.

22

.

FIG. 24

is a cross sectional drawing when the runner is lowered to initially touch a ball on the shaft when closing the umbrella.

FIG. 25

is a longitudinal sectional drawing as viewed from

25

—

25

direction of FIG.

24

.

FIG. 26

shows a sloping block on the runner when separating from the ball, following FIG.

24

.

FIG. 27

is a longitudinal sectional drawing as viewed from

27

—

27

direction of FIG.

26

.

FIG. 28

is a cross sectional drawing when the runner is engaged and locked by the ball of the present invention.

FIG. 29

is a longitudinal sectional drawing as viewed from

29

—

29

direction of FIG.

28

.

FIG. 30

is a partial sectional drawing showing an anti-slipping tip of the shaft and an anti-slipping end of the grip in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 31

shows a conventional umbrella.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As shown in FIGS.

1

˜

16

, the safety umbrella of the present invention comprises: a central shaft

1

; a rib assembly

2

having a plurality of top ribs

21

each pivotally secured to an upper notch

20

formed on top end portion

11

of the shaft

1

, and a plurality of stretcher ribs

22

each pivotally connected between each top rib

21

and a runner

23

slidably held on the shaft

1

; a plurality of pulling ropes

24

each pulling each top rib

21

towards a collar

25

disposed around the shaft

1

; and a ball

13

resiliently held in the shaft

1

adjacent to a grip

12

secured to a lower portion of the shaft

1

. Each stretcher rib

22

defines an acute angle A (or a right angle) between the stretcher rib

22

and the shaft

1

(from the runner towards the grip

12

) when the umbrella is opened. A longitudinal axis X is defined at a longitudinal center of the shaft

1

.

Each pulling rope

24

may be made of Nylon, or other materials light in weight and durable in strength. The rope

24

may also be substituted with wire, string, or threads.

Each pulling rope

24

includes: an inner rope end

241

secured on a collar

25

disposed around the shaft

1

(FIGS.

11

˜

13

), and an outer rope end

242

secured with an outer portion of the top rib

21

by means of a retainer

27

fixed on the top rib as shown in FIG.

10

.

The collar

25

is resiliently tensioned on a tension spring

26

retained on fixing ring or pin

261

fixed on an upper portion of the shaft

1

to tension the rope between the top rib

21

and the collar

25

.

When the umbrella is opened as shown in

FIG. 1

, the top rib

21

is pulled and bent by the pulling rope

24

towards the upper portion of the shaft. A tension force on the top rib

21

as pulled by the rope

24

will act upon each stretcher rib

22

which in turn transfers the tension force F towards the runner to form a force fraction Fr to lift the stretcher rib

22

upwardly to prevent from a gravitational descending of the runner

23

and the rib assembly

2

, thereby stably keeping the umbrella at an opening condition.

When subjected to an upwardly blowing strong wind, the pulling ropes

24

will pull the top ribs

21

and the stretcher ribs

22

centripetally towards the axis X to help stabilize the rib assembly

2

at their opening condition and to prevent from inversion of the umbrella cloth as secured on the rib assembly.

Even when the umbrella is closed to retract the rib assembly towards the shaft, the pulling ropes

24

may still be tensioned by the tension spring

26

which urges the collar

25

upwardly, thereby preventing from the loosening or tangling of the ropes

24

with one another.

The inner rope end

241

of the pulling rope

24

may be formed as a loop

241

a

to be retained in two neighboring rope holes

251

formed in the collar

25

as shown in FIG.

11

. The rope

24

may also be individually secured to the collar

25

as shown in

FIG. 12

; or the inner rope end

241

of each rope is embedded into a rope slot

252

formed in the collar

25

as shown in FIG.

13

.

The ball

13

having a spherical or arcuate surface is resiliently held in the central shaft

1

adjacent to the grip

12

. The ball

13

is linked with a spring

15

retained in a ball holder

14

fixed in the central shaft

1

so that the ball

13

is urged outwardly by the spring

15

beyond a tube surface of the central shaft

1

to be engaged with a ball hole

233

formed in runner

23

when closing the umbrella.

The runner

23

includes a ferrule

231

circumferentially formed on the runner for pivotally connecting the stretcher ribs

22

on the ferrule, a lower rim

232

formed on a bottom portion of the runner

23

having the ball hole

233

formed in the runner adjacent the lower rim

232

; whereby when lowering the runner

23

when closing the umbrella, the lower rim

232

will depress the ball

13

inwardly into the holder

14

as shown in

FIGS. 6

,

7

; and the ball

13

will be urged outwardly as restored by the spring

15

to engage the hole

233

for stably locking the runner

23

on a folded or closed state as shown in

FIGS. 8

,

9

and

5

.

For opening the umbrella, the runner

23

can be raised upwardly by reversing the foregoing umbrella-closing procedure, namely, from

FIG. 8

back to

FIG. 6

, the ball will be first retracted by the lower rim

232

(FIG.

8

); and the runner

23

will then leap over the ball

13

in order to be unlocked and lifted for opening the umbrella as shown in FIG.

1

.

After opening the umbrella, the rib assembly

2

is stably retained on the upper portion of the shaft by the pulling ropes

24

, thereby eliminating the conventional upper spring catch held on the upper portion of the shaft for preventing injury to the umbrella user.

Upon closing of the umbrella, the runner

23

is lowered to retract the ball which will then be automatically restored for locking the runner, thereby greatly minimizing the chance to touch or injure the user's hand. Meanwhile, the ball is so small and has a smooth spherical ball surface, causing no injury to the umbrella user. So, the present invention also provides a safety umbrella by eliminating the conventional lower spring catch adjacent the grip.

As shown in

FIG. 14

, the lower rim

232

having an annular arcuate groove recessed in the rim

232

of the runner

23

will be engaged with the ball

13

as resiliently urged by the spring

15

and held in the holder

14

fixed in the shaft for stably locking the runner at it folded state.

As shown in

FIG. 15

, the ball

13

is fixed on a V-shaped spring

15

fixed in the shaft

1

for urging the ball

13

outwardly to be engaged with the ball hole

233

formed in the runner

23

for stably locking the runner at a closed state of the umbrella.

As shown in

FIG. 16

, the ball

13

has been modified to be a ball-headed pin

13

a

inserted into the shaft

1

, and the runner

23

is formed with a tab

230

hingedly secured to the runner

23

having the ball hole

233

formed in the tab

230

for engaging the ball-headed pin

13

a

when closing the umbrella. The tab

230

has a bottom rim

230

a

resiliently urged outwardly by the ball-headed pin

13

a

, whereby when the bottom rim

230

a

is leaving from the ball-headed pin

13

a

, the ball-headed pin

13

a

will be engaged with the hole

233

in the tab

230

for stably locking the runner

23

at its folded condition.

Another preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIGS.

17

˜

29

, in which the runner

23

and the ball

13

have been modified to be the runner

23

and a ball

13

b

formed on a pin especially shown in

FIGS. 22

,

23

and

24

˜

29

.

The ball

13

b

slightly protrudes outwardly on the tube surface of the shaft

1

, thereby causing no injury to an umbrella user and ensuring the safety function of this invention.

The runner

23

, defining a central through hole

23

a

as shown in

FIG. 22

, includes: a ferrule

231

for pivotally securing the stretcher ribs

22

thereon; an inner cylinder

234

resiliently connected under the ferrule

231

by a restoring coil spring

235

retained therebetween; an outer cylinder

236

rotatably coupled with and disposed around the inner cylinder

234

allowing a single-direction rotation of one cylinder relative to the other cylinder; a bottom retainer ring

237

secured to the bottom of the inner cylinder

234

for rotatably limiting the outer cylinder

236

for rotatably engaging the outer cylinder

236

about the inner cylinder

234

; and a sloping block

234

a

formed in a bottom portion of the inner cylinder

234

contiguous to the central through hole

23

a

formed through the runner

23

and sloping downwardly concentrically about the axis X for engaging the ball

13

b

which is formed with a pin transversely fixed in the shaft

1

when closing the umbrella; whereby upon lowering (D) of the runner

23

to let the sloping block

234

a

of the inner cylinder

234

to be thrusted by the ball

13

b

(

FIGS. 24

,

25

) to cause a rotation (R

1

) of the inner cylinder

234

to disengage the sloping block

234

a

from the ball

13

b

(

FIGS. 26

,

27

), the coil spring

235

as twisted by the rotating inner cylinder

234

will store a spring energy of the coil spring

235

and then restore (R

2

) the inner cylinder

234

to engage the ball

13

b

on a retarding portion

234

r

formed on a top portion of the sloping block

234

b

(as shown from

FIGS. 26

,

27

to

FIGS. 28

,

29

), thereby stably locking the runner

23

on its folded state.

The inner cylinder

234

has a first ratchet-teeth ring

234

b

annularly formed on an upper periphery of the inner cylinder

234

, and the outer cylinder

236

has a second ratchet-teeth ring

236

a

annularly formed on an upper periphery of the outer cylinder

236

and engageable with the first ratchet-teeth ring

234

b

of the inner cylinder

234

; whereby upon a rotation of the inner cylinder

234

in a counter clockwise direction (R

1

), the first ratchet-teeth ring

234

b

on the inner cylinder

234

will be slipped away from the second ratchet-teeth ring

236

a

on the outer cylinder

236

, allowing a rotation of the inner cylinder

234

counter clockwise relative to the outer cylinder; and upon a rotation of the outer cylinder

236

counter clockwise (R

1

), the outer cylinder

236

will drive the inner cylinder

234

to rotate (R

1

) simultaneously.

The sloping block

234

a

is inclinedly tangential to the ball

13

b

when lowering the runner

23

for closing the umbrella (

FIGS. 25

,

24

), with the sloping block

234

a

sloping concentrically downwardly in a counter clockwise direction (R

1

) about the longitudinal axis X, whereby upon lowering (D) of the runner

23

, the sloping block

234

a

will be obstructed by the ball

13

b

and then thrusted by the ball

13

b

to rotate counter clockwise (R

1

) to separate the sloping block

234

a

from the ball

13

b

and to store the resilience of the coil spring

235

which is twisted by the rotating inner cylinder

234

, the coil spring

235

will in turn restore and rotate the inner cylinder

234

clockwise (R

2

) as shown from

FIG. 27

to

FIG. 29

to engage the ball

13

b

on the retarding portion

234

r

formed on a top portion of the sloping block

234

a

, thereby stably locking the runner at a folded condition.

For opening the umbrella, the outer cylinder

236

is rotated counterclockwise (R

1

) as shown in

FIG. 29

to disengage the sloping block

234

a

from the ball

13

b

, allowing an upward raising (U) of the runner

23

for opening the umbrella.

A bottom coil spring

238

is retained between the outer cylinder

236

and the bottom retainer ring

237

fixed on the inner cylinder

234

; whereby upon lowering of the runner

23

when closing the umbrella by holding the outer cylinder

236

, the second ratchet-teeth ring

236

a

will be disengaged from the first ratchet-teeth ring

234

b

, allowing a free rotation of the inner cylinder

234

clockwise (R

2

) for locking the ball

13

b

on the retarding portion

234

r

from

FIG. 27

to

FIG. 29

when the coil spring

235

automatically restore the inner cylinder

234

clockwise (R

2

).

The ferrule

231

includes a lug

231

a

formed on a lower periphery of the ferrule to be rotated within a groove

234

c

arcuately recessed in an inside wall of the inner cylinder

234

(FIG.

22

), thereby limiting a rotating angle of the cylinders

234

,

236

for easily controlling the engagement or disengagement between the runner

23

and the ball

13

b.

As shown in

FIG. 30

, the top end portion

11

of the central shaft

1

includes an anti-slipping tip plug

113

(which may be made of rubber or the like) inserted in a tip sleeve member

112

(which may be made of plastic material) as jacketed on a tip

111

of the top end portion of the shaft

1

for preventing slippery of the tip on the ground surface; and the grip

12

has a hook end portion formed with a sleeve hole

121

therein, having a sleeve member

122

(which may be made of metal or plastic material) inserted into the sleeve hole

121

and an anti-slipping plug

123

(which may be made of rubber or the like) plugged into the sleeve member

122

for preventing slipping of the umbrella when hung on a supporting surface.

The present invention may be modified without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.