APPARATUS FOR GETTING AN UMBRELLA RECEIVED INTO AN UMBRELLA COVER

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide an apparatus which is simple in construction without the need of a motor and the like and is capable of easily and positively getting an umbrella received into an umbrella cover. To this end, the apparatus for getting an umbrella received into an umbrella cover according to the invention comprises a body (1) for receiving a number of umbrella covers, a movable support member (11) vertically movably provided in the body (1), a foot-operated pedal (16) for moving the movable support member downward, and an opening operating lever (22) for opening the opening portion of the umbrella cover by interlocking with the downward movement of the movable support. As a result, it is possible according to the invention to easily get an umbrella received into an umbrella cover. Also, since any motor and the like are not used unlike usual cases, it is possible to reduce manufacturing cost and to use the present apparatus even in a place where any power supply is not available. Besides, the present apparatus is quite practical because any power cable does not interfere with our movements and there is no fear of leakage of electricity.

Description: This invention relates to a storage device for wet umbrellas that automatically wraps an umbrella and places it in a sack. It can be used, for example, at entrances of hotels, shops and department stores, so that when it is raining, wet umbrellas can be adequately handled and stored. When it is raining, synthetic resin sacks (plastic sacks) have traditionally been used to wrap wet umbrellas in order to avoid wetting clothes, floors or goods, while customers walk around inside hotels, shops or department stores with their wet umbrellas A wide variety of devices, which can open the openings of storage sacks automatically and store umbrellas by just inserting them into the openings, have been proposed to ease their smooth storage. For example, such devices are proposed in Japanese Patent Application No. JP-A-60-134817, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 62-125708 and Japanese Patent Application No. JP-A-4-31222. In the prior art mentioned above, it has been necessary to include suction means and a number of links and/or cam mechanism in order to provide a means for opening each storage sack, and therefore, the prior art constructions were generally complex. At the same time, since a vacuum pump or a motor is used, the production cost is high, and such devices cannot be used where a power source is not positioned near the installed devices. Furthermore, power cords are a hindrance and there is a danger of a short circuit occurring when these devices are operated when it is raining. Furthermore, since in the prior art, a number of storage sacks are simply piled up to fill them in the storage device, it is often difficult to store them due to them becoming disordered. Consequently, extra labour or other connected costs are involved in carrying or retaining such storage sacks before they are used in the storage device. It is known from JP-A-4-31229 to provide a storage device for umbrella sacks in accordance with the preamble of claim 1 and comprising a device body for storing a plurality of storage sacks. The present invention is characterised by a vertically movable support member arranged in the device body; a foot pedal which is connected to said movable support member in order to lower it when the foot pedal is depressed; and opening levers pivotally mounted to said support member for insertion into and subsequent opening of said opening in said foremost sack upon downward movement of the movable support member. In accordance with the present invention, a number of storage sacks may be stored in a box and the box fitted into the device's body. The storage sacks are preferably suspended by means of a hanger in said box. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the opening levers are separate so as to move and rotate independently relative to the movable support member. Means for moving and rotating each opening lever in a direction to contact said storage sacks, is preferably provided separately e.g. by a spring. In another preferred embodiment, the opening levers are formed on a substantially 'C'-shaped member made from a slippery material (e.g. resin material such as plastic) to make the insertion of umbrellas easier and achievable with greater certainty. The device body need not be a case. It may comprise pillars and transparent members arranged between the pillars. When the foot pedal is pressed, the movable support member is lowered and the opening levers open the storage sacks as a result. Then, a wet umbrella may be stored in a storage sack by inserting it into the opening of the storage sack. If, as is preferred, the opening levers are separate, when the pair of levers enter into the opening of a storage sack to open it, positive opening can be ensured despite possible misregistration occurring around the opening. In this case separate means are provided for each lever to move and rotate it in such a direction as make contact with the storage sacks. By storing a number of storage sacks in a box which is then fitted into the device body, or suspending them from a hanger, a large number of storage sacks can be easily and rapidly stored in the device body at once. Additionally, since they are packed in one box, it is easy to carry or store many sacks before they are fitted in the storage device. Furthermore, the cost can be minimized. If the opening levers are formed on a 'C'-shaped member it is preferably made of slippery materials such as resin material (e.g.) plastic, integrally, to make the insertion of umbrellas easier and achievable with greater certainty. Certain preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of the storage device for umbrella sacks of the present invention; Figure 2 is an enlarged plan view showing the embodiment of Figure 1 with the upper cover open; Figure 3 is a longitudinal front sectional view of the embodiment shown in Figure 1; Figure 4 is a longitudinal side sectional view of the embodiment shown in Figure 1; Figure 5 is an exploded view of a pivot; Figures 6(a) and 6(b) are a front view and a section view of a storage sack, respectively; Figures 7(a) to 7(c) are explanatory drawings of the storing operation; Figures 8(a) and 8(b) are a front view and a section view of a storage sack, respectively; Figure 9 is a perspective view of a sack storage box; Figure 10 is a perspective view of the member for suspending the storage sacks and for retaining them in a box; Figure 11 is a perspective view showing a box being fitted in the storage device; Figure 12 is a sectional plan view of the device body shown in Figure 11; Figure 13 is a perspective view of another embodiment; Figure 14 is a cross-sectional view of a further embodiment of the present invention; Figure 15 is a front cross-sectional view of the embodiment shown in Figure 14; Figure 16 is a side cross-sectional view of the device of Figures 13 and 14; Figure 17 is a partial side view showing a state of anchoring; Figures 18(a) and 18(b) are a plan view and a side view respectively of a 'C'-shaped member. Figure 19 and Figure 20 are explanatory drawings showing different phases of the storing process. In Figure 1 to Figure 4, the numeral 1 is a quadratic prism-shaped device body or case situated on a bed plate 2; closing cover 3 is installed on top of the device body 1. As shown in Figure 2 and Figure 4, a fixed support 4 is mounted inside the upper device body 1; a hanger 6, which is suspended to retain storage sacks 5, is set on the fixed support base 4. As shown in Figure 2, the hanger 6 is comprised of a bar or the like in the form of a box (top-open rectangle-shaped). The base 6a is anchored to a hook (not illustrated) and then mounted on the fixed support base 4. The hanger 6 is installed by attaching both arms 6b to the anchor holes 8a of a support member 8 which is fixed to the fixed support base 4 for easy removal. As shown in Figure 6, the top part of the storage sack 5 has an opening 5a. The upper end 51a of the front side 51 of the opening is folded forward in a U-shape; the upper end 52a of the rear side 52 extends above of the front side 51; and a pair of locking holes 5b are provided at the upper end of the extended portion. As shown in Figure 2 and Figure 4, a number of storage sacks are suspended and are held by inserting the opposing arms of the hanger 6 into the locking hole 5b of the storage sacks. A movable pressure plate 9 is located along a pair of guide bars 10,10 on the rear face of the storage sacks 5; and the pressure plate 9 is urged against the rear face of the storage sacks 5 by a coil spring 10a around each guide bar. As shown in Figure 3 and Figure 5, the guide members 14, 15 are mounted to the front of the fixed support base 4. A movable support member 11 having an inverted L-shape (front view) is constrained to move vertically in holes 14b,15b formed on the horizontal arms 14a,15a of the guide members 14,15. A roller 12 is provided at the upper end of the movable support member 11 to rotate freely. The roller 12 is arranged along with a box type guide rail 13 mounted at the front of the fixed support base 4, to move it vertically. A foot pedal 16 is provided on the bed plate 2 to lower the movable support member 11. As shown in Figure 4, the foot pedal 16 is mounted on a hinge 17 on the bed plate 2 so as to move vertically. A lever 18 is integrally mounted to the pedal 16 and is connected to the lower end of the movable support member 11 through a link 19. In Figure 4, the numeral 20 denotes a return spring provided to return the movable support member 11. The return spring 20 is arranged at a position between a spring bearing 21 and a horizontal arm 14a of the guide member 14 in a contracted condition. Said spring bearing is comprised of a clip or similar and is mounted to the movable support member 11. In addition, a pair of opening levers 22,22 are rotatably provided on the upper central portion of the movable support member 11. Said levers 22,22 enter into the openings 5a of storage sacks 5 to open them. Both ends of said levers 22,22 are integrally connected in a bottom-open rectangle-shape. An arm 23 is integrally provided on one end of the levers 22,22 to rotate them. A contact plate 24 integral with the guide rail 13 is provided under the arm 23. The contact plate 24 moves to rotate both levers 22,22 in a clockwise direction as seen from Figure 4 by contacting with said arm 23. The numeral 25 represents a coil spring set as a tension coil spring between the moving control arm 23 and the spring bearing 26 which is connected vertically to one end of the movable support member 11 so as to be freely rotatable. The lower ends of the opening levers 22,22 are urged in a direction towards the storage sacks 5. This is achieved by attaching one end of a helical spring to the movable support member 11 and attaching the other end of the spring to the opening lever 22. The helical spring or the like can be arranged around the movable support member 11 close to the opening lever 22. According to the aforementioned structure, as shown in Figure 7(a), the movable support member 11 and the pedal 16 are pushed up by the return spring 20 to the position shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4. As a result, the lower ends of the opening levers 22,22 are placed above the openings 5a of the storage sacks 5. When the pedal 16 is pushed in the manner mentioned above, the movable support member (11) is lowered against the action of the return spring 20. Then, as shown in Figure 7(b), the ends 22a of the opening levers 22 enter the opening 5a of a storage sack (5). In this case, as illustrated, the ends 22a of said levers 22 can accurately enter the opening 5a by virtue of the upper end 51a of the front side 51 of the opening 5a being folded. When the ends 22a of the opening levers 22 have entered opening 5a up to a specified depth, as shown in Figure 7(b), the aforementioned moving control arm 23 will contact the upper end of the contacting plate 24. In the same state, when the opening lever 22 moves downward together with the movable support member 11, each opening lever 22,22 rotates in a clockwise direction, against the rotating spring 25, around its point of contact with said contact plate 24 in order to open the opening 5a of the storage sack 5. Furthermore, the upper part 51a of the storage sack 5 may be prevented from coming away from the lever 22 when it is rotated by a concave area 22b [See Figure 7(c)] formed close to the end of the opening lever 22. When the opening 5a of the storage sack 5 is open, an umbrella may be inserted into the storage sack 5, between the opening levers 22,22, to store it. The sack 5 in which the umbrella is stored can be removed from the hanger 6, by pushing the sack out and down from the device body 1 thus tearing the upper locking holes 5b of the storage sack 5. Thus the sack containing an umbrella can easily be removed from the device body 1. When the user's foot is released from the foot pedal 16 after the wrapped umbrella is removed, the movable support member 11 and the pedal 16 will returned by the return spring 20 to the state shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4; and simultaneously the opening lever 22 will be returned by the rotating spring 25 to the state shown in Figure 7(a) leaving the device ready to receive the next umbrella. As described above, according to the embodiment shown in Figure 1 to Figure 7, umbrellas can easily be stored in a storage sack without needing to use a motor or a vacuum pump or the like in order to ensure proper opening of the storage sacks. Another embodiment will now be described with reference to Figures 8 to 12. According to the embodiment shown in Figure 8 to Figure 12, a number of storage sacks 104 are firstly stored in a box 105; and the box is charged in a device body 101. A storage sack which is used in the present embodiment is shown in Figures 8(a) and 8(b). The storage sack 104 comprises a plastic film or the like, and as shown in Figure 8, it is formed in a flat tubular shape. The upper part of the storage sack has an opening 104a. The upper end 141a of the front side 141 of the opening 104a is folded in a U-shape toward the rear side 142; and the upper end 142a of the rear side 142 extends beyond the front side 141. A pair of locking holes 104b are provided in the extended portion. The aforementioned box 105 is made of corrugated fibreboard. As shown in Figure 9, it is formed in the shape of a longitudinal rectangular parallelepiped. As shown in Figure 10, a pair of bar-shaped hangers 107, 107 are provided inside the upper part of said box 105 and said hangers 107,107 penetrate the locking holes 104b of the storage sacks 104. The hanger 107 is attached to support plates 108a,108b fixed to the upper inner surface of the box 105. Thus a number of storage sacks 104 can be suspended such that their front sides 141 face the left-hand side as shown in Figure 10. A pressure plate (see 109, Figure 12) is arranged on the rear face of the storage sacks 104 to apply pressure to the storage sacks using an elastic means. In Figure 10, a rubber band 110 is used as the elastic means; both ends of the rubber band 110 being anchored to hooks 181 provided on either side of the supporting plate 108a. As shown in Figure 9, a panel 151 which is removable along perforations 105a, is provided on the front face of the box 105. The box 105 and its contents are transferred and stored before they are used without removing the panel 151. When they are to be used, as shown in Figure 11, the panel 151 is removed along the perforations 105a, the door 106 provided on the rear side of the device body 101 is opened to fit the box 105 into the device body 101. As shown in Figure 12, a box type fixed support member is integrally provided inside the device body 101 to support the upper part of the box 105 placed in the device body. It is so positioned as to contact the front side of the fixed support member 111 with the front face of the box 105. According to the present embodiment, the box 105 containing storage sacks for umbrellas is fitted to the device body 101 from the rear side thereof. However, the box can be fitted from the top of the device body 101 by arranging, for example, for cover 103 to be openable. Also, as is shown in Figure 13, a frame body 101b could form part of the device body in order to locate and retain the box 105 in the frame 101b without all the faces of the box 105 being covered by the device body 101. A further embodiment will now be explained by referring to Figure 14 through Figure 16. According to this embodiment, a pair of horizontal opening levers are constructed so as to move and rotate independently. In Figures 14 and 15, a left-hand side tension coil spring 224 is employed between a left-hand side rotation control arm 223 and the guide rail 216; a right-hand side tension coil spring is arranged between a right-hand side rotation control arm 223 and the guide member 212. As shown in Figures 14 and 16, contacting plates 225,225 are integrally provided on the guide rail 216 and guide member 212. The contacting plates cause each opening lever 222 to rotate in the reverse direction towards a storage sack 204 through contact with the rotation control arm 223 when the opening levers 222 move downward together with a movable support member 214. Although a tension coil spring is shown as the means of making each opening lever 222,222 rotate towards the storage sacks 204, other helical springs could be used. With regard to the mechanism for opening the storage sacks 204, explanation will be omitted where it is the same as the explanation of Figure 7. According to the embodiment shown in Figure 14 to 16, when the foot pedal 217 is depressed and the movable support member 214 moves downward against a return spring 220 through a link 219, the opening levers 222 move and rotate independently with respect to the movable support member 214. Since the springs 224, which move and rotate to urge the opening levers 222,222 towards the storage sacks, operate horizontally independently, each opening lever 222 can be inserted into the opening 204a by lowering it whilst it is in contact with the front face of the upper rear side 242a of the foremost storage sack 204 even if there is some longitudinal misregistration of the opening 204a in a transverse direction relative to the foremost storage sack 204. In the aforementioned embodiment, the foot pedal is pressed until the umbrella and its storage sack are removed from the device body. When the foot pedal is released after the storage sack is taken out, the device is returned to its original condition by the return spring working to raise the movable support member. Furthermore, the device may be so constructed that the foremost storage sack is held open by employing anchoring means to keep the movable support member in its lower position, even when the foot pedal is released until the stored umbrella is taken away from the device. For example, as shown in Figure 16, a plurality of locking grooves 226 may be formed on the movable support member 214 and an anchoring claw 227 which engages with said grooves can be integrally formed on the guide member 213. In this structure, when the foot pedal 217 is depressed to lower the movable support member 214, a locking groove 226 formed on the movable support member 214 will engage with the anchoring claw 227 which is inclined towards the movable support member 214. As a result, the opening 204a of the storage sack 204 is kept open since upward movement of the movable support member 214 by the return spring 220 (Figure 17) is prevented. When an umbrella is stored in the opening 204a of a storage sack 204 and the umbrella and sack are removed from the device body, the movable support member 214 will be inclined in such a direction as to release the anchoring claw 227 by the opening lever 222. Hence, the anchoring locking groove 226 and anchoring claw 227 are disengaged and the movable support member 214 is automatically returned to its original upper position by the restoring force of the return spring 220. Figures 18 to 20 show a further embodiment of the present invention. In Figures 18(a) and 18(b), numeral 328 represents a substantially 'C'-shaped member integrally formed from plastic. Umbrellas can be inserted easily and completely due to the shape of this 'C'-shaped member 328. Opening of storage sacks 5 by 'C'-shaped members 328 is shown in Figures 19 and 20, however, a detailed explanation is not given because the states shown in Figure 19 and Figure 20 are almost the same to that in Figures 7(a) to 7(c). Furthermore, the aforementioned embodiment is just an example, therefore structural changes are possible within the scope of the present invention. As described above, in a storage device for umbrella sacks embodying the present invention, the opening of a storage sack can be opened by operating the opening levers in connection with lowering a movable support member by depressing a foot pedal. A wet umbrella may then easily be stored by inserting it into the opening of the storage sack. In addition, since no motor or the like is used in the present invention, production costs can be lower and it can be used in locations where there are no nearby power sources. Furthermore, there is no problem of power cords being a hindrance and there is no danger of short circuits. Thus, this device proposed in the present invention is remarkably practical. Furthermore, in the present invention, when a number of storage sacks are stored in a box to be placed in the device body, many such storage sacks at once can easily and rapidly be stored in the device. Additionally, since the storage sacks are stored all together in a box, it is easy to carry and store them even before the box is placed in the device. In the present invention, when a pair of opening levers are separate so as to move and rotate independently relative to the movable support member, said opening levers can completely enter into and open said opening, although some misregistration of the opening may occur in the longitudinal direction of the storage sack.

Claims: A storage device for umbrella sacks comprising a device body (1) for storing a plurality of storage sacks (5;104) having an opening in their upper part (5a;104a), and means (22;222;328) for opening the opening of the foremost one of said storage sacks characterised by a vertically movable support member (11;114;214) arranged in the device body; a foot pedal (16;217) which is connected to said movable support member in order to lower it when the foot pedal is depressed; and opening levers (22;222;328) pivotally mounted to said support member for insertion into and subsequent opening of said opening (5a;104a) in said foremost sack upon downward movement of the movable support member (11;114;214). A storage device for umbrella sacks according to claim 1 including a plurality of storage sacks (5;104) in a box (105) placed in the device body (1). A storage device for umbrella sacks according to claim 2 wherein said plurality of storage sacks (5;104) are suspended from a hanger (107) in said box. A storage device for umbrella sacks according to claim 1, 2 or 3, comprising a pair of separate opening levers (22;222) to move and rotate independently with respect to said movable support member (11;114;214); and means (25;224) for rotating each of said opening levers in such a direction so as, in use, to contact a storage sack (5;104) stored in the device body (1). A storage device for umbrella sacks according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein said opening levers are integrally formed on a substantially 'C'-shaped member (328).

Inventors: MURAKAMI TOSHIYUKI, MURAKAMI, TOSHIYUKI, MURAKAMI, TOSHIYUKI, 17-19,ONODAI 5-CHOME
Applicants: MURAHARU SEISAKUSHO KK, NIIKURA SCALES CO LTD, YAKULT HONSHA KK, KABUSHIKI KAISHA MURAHARU SEISAKUSHO, KABUSHIKI KAISHA YAKULT HONSHA, NIIKURA SCALES CO., LTD.
Application year: 1993
Main classification: B65B67
IPC codes: B65B43, A45B25