Abstract:
A system for displaying a strand of lights on a residence or building using an elongated member which attaches to a standard gutter or an eave of the building. The member can be made of metal and has a number of spaced apart hooks for securing a portion of the strand of lights. The system can include a plurality of vertically spaced clips located on a downspout or other structure of the building which secure a portion of the strand of lights or an electric wire such as an extension cord. Additionally, a mesh gutter guard can be utilized with the system and attached to the elongated member. The guard spans the width of the gutter and can be tucked under the drip edge of the roof or under shingles.

Description:
This application claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/103,751 filed May 9, 2011, which is incorporated by reference herein. 
     BACKGROUND 
     The ability to efficiently and effectively hang and remove holiday lights is important, particularly in the northern states where the elements of snow and ice make the practice hazardous. Typically a person must utilize a ladder and/or climb on the roof to hang holiday lights. This is the case even when some type of attachment mechanisms are already on some structure of the house. Moreover, current attachment mechanisms only provide support in the horizontal direction. 
     Additionally, a variety of gutter protection systems have been utilized to minimize the amount of debris entering the body of gutters on a house. These systems often include a covering for the gutter. The current systems, however, do little to protect the edge of the gutter from discoloration. Furthermore, the covers are inefficient at directing water into the body of the gutter. 
     It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a system for hanging and supporting a strand of lights on a house in both the vertical and horizontal directions. 
     It is a further object of the invention to provide a system or preventing debris from entering the body of a gutter. 
     It is yet another object of the invention to protect the gutter from discoloration. 
     It is still another object of the invention to provide a tool for hanging and removing a strand of lights while remaining on the ground. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A system for effectively positioning, maintaining and organizing a strand of lights in conjunction with a gutter of a typical borne allows a user from the ground to construct or remove the strand of lights from the ground. The system utilizes an elongated member made of metal in conjunction with a mesh gutter guard. The elongated member rests over a portion of a typical gutter of a house, creating a drip edge. The guard covers the open portion of the gutter and keeps debris from entering the gutters and downspouts. 
     The elongated member includes attachment members such as hooks on one edge of the elongated member. The hooks allow a wire or strand of lights to be held in place horizontally for the length of the gutter. The lights can be holiday lights which are typically hung during the winter holiday season. The hooks include an opening with a sufficient space to easily insert and remove the strand of lights. 
     In order to control the wire or strand of lights in the vertical direction, the system uses a series of clips. The clips have a flat, first portion which can be attached to a downspout or other structure of the house. A number of segments extend from the first portion, which creates a space for the strand of lights. Each clip can be attached to the house in a first configuration or a second configuration. A clip can be manipulated from the first configuration to the second configuration, and vice versa, by rotating the clip one hundred and eighty degrees. For best control of the strand of lights, an alternating pattern of first and second configurations is used for the length of the downspout. 
     A tool can be used with the system to hang the strand of lights in both the vertical and horizontal directions. Additionally, the tool can be connected to a pole which allows the user to reach the roof line of a house while remaining on the ground. The user manipulates the strand with the tool and places the strand of lights within the openings of the hooks and/or clips. Furthermore, the tool is shaped such that it can be utilized to manipulate the size of the opening of the hooks. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a top view of the present invention showing the elongated member, gutter guard and attachment mechanisms; 
         FIG. 2  is side view of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is perspective view of a clip; 
         FIG. 4  shows the system on a house; 
         FIG. 5  is a front view of a tool to position a wire or trend of lights. 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Now referring to the drawings,  FIGS. 1 and 2  show a portion of a system  10  for displaying a strand of lights from a structure such as a residential or commercial building. The system  10  includes an elongated member  12  preferably made of a metal such as aluminum or steel, although a variety of materials can be utilized. As seen in  FIG. 4 , the elongated member  12  can be attached or connected to the gutter system of a new or existing house. 
     The elongated member  12  preferably includes a first section  14  and a second section  16 . The first section  14  is substantially planar. The second section  16  extends from the first section  14 . The second section  16  forms an angle in relation to the first section  14 . Generally the first section  16  has a more horizontal position than the second section  16 . This positioning allows rain water or other liquids to drain from the elongated member  12  and not puddle or remain on the member  12 . 
     The elongated member  12  includes a flange  20  depending from the elongated member  12 . Preferably, the flange  20  is located beneath the first section  14  and is substantially perpendicular to the first section  14 . The flange  20  has a first side  22  and a second side  24  with a space  38  formed between the first side  22  and second side  24 . When the elongated member  12  is positioned on a gutter or another structure of a roof, such as a gable, soffit or fascia board, the second side  24  of the flange  20  abuts against the gutter or other roof structure. If the elongated member  12  is attached to a gutter, the flange  20  makes contact with a surface of the gutter facing the building. Such contact will at least partially secure the elongated member  12  to the gutter and building. Alternatively, if the elongated member is to be attached directly to a structure such as an eave or fascia board, the first side  20  can be positioned against the eave or fascia. A portion of the first section  14  of the elongated member  12  shown as a lip  30  will extend over the depending flange  20 . 
     The preferred embodiment also includes a gutter guard  32  with a first end  34  and a second end  36 , although the gutter guard can be omitted in other embodiments as shown in  FIG. 6 . The gutter guard  32  is made of a material which will allow liquid to enter into a standard gutter of a house or other structure. The preferred embodiment has a gutter guard  32  made of a wire mesh. The mesh contains opening which allow liquids to pass through it and into the gutter, while preventing solids such as leaves and other debris from entering the gutter. The first end  34  can be positioned within the space  38 . As the flange  20  is preferably made of a malleable metal, the flange  20  can be adjusted such that the first end  34  is held securely in place by the first side  22  and second side  24  of the flange  20 . The second end  36  can be secured to a part of a house, preferably under a portion of a shingle or a drip edge of the house. This configuration allows water to better flow into and over the gutter guard  32  and into the gutter of the house. 
     Additionally, the gutter guard  32  includes two ridges  40  and  42  which create a channel  44  between them. Additional ridges can be used to form additional channels and/or used to assist in connecting the guard to structure of the system or house. A portion of the top back edge of the gutter can be fitted in or under the channel  40  such that water from the roof will first enter through the channel  44 . The second ridge  42  keeps a greater amount of water within the channel  44  as the water exits from the roof. This increases the probability that water enters the body of the gutter and does not roll over the edge of the system  10 . In addition to the ridges  40  and  42  directing the water, the elongated member  12  is positioned such that it overhangs the front wall of the gutter. The positioning of member  12  allows any water that rolls off of the member  12  to clear the front edge of the gutter. Since the water does not hit the front wall of the gutter, the chance of uneven discoloration on the gutter is prevented along with increasing the life of the gutter. 
     The system  10  also includes plurality of attachment members  50  on the elongated member  12 , preferably on the second section  16 . The attachment members  50  can be a variety of shapes and sizes, preferably the attachment members  50  are hooks that have an opening  52 . The opening  52  is a size which allows a person to manipulate a portion of an insulated wire  54  within the opening  52  of each attachment member  50 . The process is repeated such that the wire  54  hangs the length of the system  10 . The wire  54  is preferably a strand of lights  56  used for decoration of a house or similar structure. 
     The attachment members  50  secure the strand of lights  56  in the horizontal direction, while a series of clips  60  secure the wire  54  or strand  56  in the vertical direction. Each clip  60  is shaped such that the clip  60  forms a cavity  62  in which a portion of the strand  56  or wire  54  is found. The preferred embodiment of the clip  60  has a first segment  64  which is substantially planar, a second segment  66  extending at an angle to the first segment  64 , and a third segment  68  extending from the second segment  66 . The third segment  68  is substantially parallel to the first segment  64 . The first segment  64  also includes at least one hole  70 . A fastening device (not shown) can be inserted through each hole  70  to secure the clip to a structure of a house or similar structure. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , a first clip  61  is secured to the structure in a first configuration wherein the first segment  64  is flush with a structure of the house, which can be a downspout  72 . The first configuration is such that the second segment  66  and third segment  68  are positioned to the left of the first segment  64 . A second clip  63  is secured to the structure in a second configuration wherein the first segment  64  is flush with the structure. The second configuration is such that the second segment  66  and the third segment  68  are positioned to the right of the first segment  64 . The second configuration can be achieved from the first configuration, and vice versa, simply by rotating the clip one-hundred and eighty degrees. The second clip  63  is spaced a distance vertically apart from the first clip  61 . Additional clips can be added in the vertical direction up and down the structure. The wire  54  or strand of lights  56  can be manipulated to fit within the cavities  62  of the clips  60  as seen in  FIG. 4 . The preferred alternating arrangement of the clips  60  between the first configuration and second configuration minimize the chances that forces such as the wind will dislodge the wire  54  or strand of lights  56  from the cavities  62 . The size of the cavities  62  along with the shape of the clips  60  allow for easy installation and removal of the wire  54  or strand of lights  56 . 
     Now referring to  FIG. 5 , a tool  110  is shown which allows a user to effectively position the wire  54  or strand of lights  56  within the openings  52  and the cavities  62  while remaining on the ground. The tool  110  includes prongs  111  which form a Y-shaped structure at a first end  114 . The two prongs  111  converge and narrow to form a slot  116 . The wire  54  or strand of lights can be positioned within the slot  116 . An extension pole  112  allows the user to elevate the tool  110  until reaching one of the openings  52 . The wire  54  or strand of lights  56  is positioned and the process can then be repeated for additional openings  52  until the entire wire  54  or strand of lights  56  is positioned. The tool  110  can also be used to remove the wire  54  or strand of lights  56  from the openings  52  and strand of lights  56 . A user manipulates the tool  110  such that the slot  116  makes contact with one of the attachment members  50  in a closed position. Once the member  50  is secured in slot  116 , the user can then pry open the attachment member  50 , allowing the wire  54  or strand of lights  56  to be removed from the attachment member  50 . The process can be repeated for other closed attachment members  50 . Furthermore, the overall shape of the tool  110  allows a user standing on the ground to manipulate the attachment members  50  such that the size of the openings  52  can be reduced to further secure the wire  54  or strand of lights  56 . The user can then use the tool  110  to further manipulate the members  50  to increase the size of the openings  52  when the wire  54  or strand of lights  56  needs to be removed. 
     Having thus described the invention in connection with the several embodiments thereof, it will be evident to those skilled in the art that various revisions can be made to the several er embodiments described herein with out departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is my intention, however, that all such revisions and modifications that are evident to those skilled in the art will be included with in the scope of the following claims. Any elements of any embodiments disclosed herein can be used in combination with any elements of other embodiments disclosed herein in any manner to create different embodiments.