Abstract:
A solar powered flagpole including a stationary base and a rotatably attached pole carrying a banner or flag illuminated by a plurality of light emitting diode (LED) lights in the pole powered by an annular array of photocells carried by the rotatable pole so the photocells are powered by sun power regardless of the rotational position of the banner and pole.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Sports fans, business owners, governments, and other use solar powered banner and flagpole assemblies to show team pride, advertising products and brands or promoting fairs, holidays, special events, etc. Having lights inside or attached to the flagpole illuminates the flags and/or banners which draws attention and allows them to be seen at night. The invention allows for an energy efficient and inexpensive way of illuminating flags and banners. The way the flags and banners are placed over the solar powered banner and flagpole assembly allows very little to no light pollution, just an appealing visual of an illuminated flag or banner. Another benefit is that they can be changed easily. This is ideal for companies that change advertising campaigns often, and for seasonal holiday decorating and sports that change throughout the year. 
     SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
     According to the present invention, a solar powered flagpole is provided that includes a stationary base and a rotatably attached pole carrying a banner or flag illuminated by a plurality of light emitting diode (LED) lights in the pole powered by an annular array of photocells carried by the rotatable pole so the photocells are powered by sun power regardless of the rotational position of the banner and pole. 
     Furthermore, the flagpole assembly is provided with a plurality of bearings to promote swiveling and spacers are provided to fasten the banner for better illumination. 
     The flagpole assembly can also be mounted horizontally on a fixed vertical support. 
     Other aspects of the present invention will appear more clearly from the following detailed description. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows two sections of a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly. 
         FIG. 2  shows the inside of a section of a solar flagpole and two views of a connector. 
         FIG. 3  shows a section of a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly and a strip of plastic made for attaching the LED lights to the inside of the flagpole. 
         FIG. 4  shows a section of a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly with stick-on light emitting diode (LED) lights that come on a roll and have adhesive on them like a roll of tape. 
         FIG. 5  shows a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly with a swooper/banner flag on it. 
         FIG. 6  shows a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly assembled and displaying a flag/banner. 
         FIG. 7  shows a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly on a flagpole spike/base with a four-legged stabilizing support stand. 
         FIG. 8  shows three views of a rotating solar unit (top, bottom, side). 
         FIG. 9  shows a plastic spacer for keeping a space in between the two faces of a flag or banner. 
         FIG. 10  shows a side view of a section of a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly with a plastic spacer. 
         FIG. 11  shows a front view of a section of a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly. 
         FIG. 12  shows a flag or banner with snaps. 
         FIG. 13  shows a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly with a frame that goes all the way around the inside of the flag/banner and a flag/banner with two faces made to slide over the flag/banner flagpole. 
         FIG. 14  shows a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly with a rotating solar unit and is wall-mounted. 
         FIG. 15  shows a bottom of a flag/banner flagpole with a wall-mounted base. 
         FIG. 16  shows a wall-mount base for a solar powered banner and flagpole assembly. 
         FIG. 17  shows the corner of a wall-mounted solar flagpole with a flagpole topper that can be illuminated and match/complement the theme of the flag or banner. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     As noted above, the present invention relates to a banner or flagpole assembly that has certain rotatable elements to facilitate the illumination of the banner or flag. 
     While the display item; i.e., the banner or the flag, is defined herein as a flexible display item that may be either a flag or a banner. A flag is generally a flexible graphic material that designates a place of origin, such as a country, county, city, or neighborhood, while a banner is usually a graphic display to advertise a particular event or product, such as an automobile dealer&#39;s offerings or rock band events. 
     Referring to  FIG. 4 , # 20  shows light emitting diode (LED) lights that come on a roll (like tape) with adhesive on the back for attaching to other material. See # 20  attached to # 2  and see # 22  a hole where the plug ends of # 20  the (LED) tape/adhesive strip goes into the inside of # 2  and the female clip # 23  and the male clip # 24  come out at the ends of the banner-flagpole section so when they are connected, they are protected from being pulled apart or damaged. # 21  shows a clear plastic film/shrink wrap that can be put over # 2  to secure the attachment of # 20  (LED tape) and seal the holes # 22 . The plastic film/shrink wrap can be heated for a tight seal. This method of sealing could be used with the other type of Led light insertion into the flagpole as shown in  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 5 , # 25  is a solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly that has female snaps # 26  that are attached to # 27  the border/edge of the banner-flag which is made to slip over a banner-flagpole and snap onto # 31  the male snaps running the length of the banner-flagpole. # 29  shows the bottom opening of # 25  where it slips over the banner-flagpole. # 30  is a spacer made to keep a space inside the banner-flag for illumination. # 32  is a rotating solar unit attached to the bottom section of a banner-flagpole. 
       FIG. 6  shows # 25  a banner-flag snapped and displayed on a fully assembled solar-powered banner-flagpole. 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , # 34  shows a common two-prong spike for a banner-flagpole. # 39  shows a four-legged base stand that slips over # 34  to help stabilize and secure it in place in the ground. # 37  shows a sleeve that slips over # 33  the bottom section of a solar-powered banner-flagpole. # 37  can have bearings in it with the inside being the race side. # 36  shows one of the four legs that attach with screws or rivots to the outside of # 37  and are secured to the ground with # 35  ground spikes. # 38  is a bearing sleeve with # 33  resting on top of # 38  which is the race end of # 38  allowing # 33  to spin freely. When referring to # 37  and # 38 , they could be made with or without bearings. # 38  could be replaced by just a couple of smooth washers. # 40  is the wire that comes out of the rotating solar unit # 32  which goes on the outside of # 33  until it gets near the top and passes where # 34  reaches inside of # 33 . Then # 40  goes inside of # 33  and through # 6  the connector at the top end of # 33  and is attached to # 4  the male wire connector that attaches the light emitting diode (LED) lights to the rest of the solar-powered banner-flagpole. # 41  is a thin sleeve that can go over # 33  and # 40  from the top of # 32  the solar unit until a short distance past where # 40  goes back into # 33  so that # 41  can protect # 40 . Another option would be that # 40  could have a thin plastic tube that goes over it for protection. There are many types of base/stands on the market that could work with a solar-powered banner-flagpole. Since solar-powered banner-flagpoles have slight extra weight, some stands and bases may need to be a bit larger or reinforced with a four-legged support stand/sleeve. See # 37  and # 36 . A minimum diameter of a solar-powered banner-flagpole should be approximately 2 inches, for which some stands may require an additional sleeve or to be made slightly larger. 
     As seen in  FIG. 8 , the solar cell array  32  contains a plurality of trapezoidal solar cells  43  extending completely around the angular array  32  also as seen in the exploded  FIG. 8 . 
       FIG. 9  includes an aluminum extrusion  30  over which the flag or banner extends so that the interior of the flag assembly may be illuminated. 
     In  FIG. 10 , the pole assembly  33  is shown in two pieces with screws  30  and  31  attaching the pieces together and light elements  5  and  21  shown. 
     In  FIGS. 11 and 12 , flag or banner no is shown wrapped around pole assembly  33  so that the LEDs  11 ,  12  and  31  illuminate the interior of the dual layered flag no. 
     As seen in  FIG. 2 , the LEDs  5 ,  12 , and  14  are shown positioned to illuminate the interior of the flag and are directed to the distal end of the flag or banner for more complete illumination. 
     Referring to  FIG. 9 , # 30  is a plastic spacer for keeping a space inside a banner or flag for illumination. # 53  shows a screw and hole for attaching # 30  to the sections of a solar-powered banner-flagpole. 
       FIG. 10  shows a side view of # 2  a section of a solar-powered banner-flagpole with # 30  attached with # 53  the screw and # 31  a male snap attached also with a screw. # 21  shows plastic film/shrink wrap attached to cover the outside of the flagpole. 
       FIG. 11  shows a front view of # 2  a section of a solar-powered banner-flagpole with # 11  and # 12  light emitting diode (LED) lights and reflectors directed outward toward where a banner or flag are secured for illumination. 
       FIG. 12  shows # 25  a side view of a banner-flag with # 27  the border and # 26  the female snaps. 
       FIG. 13  shows a solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly with a frame connecting sections # 2  on four sides with the use # 59  corner couplings and # 60  T-couplings. # 54  shows clear thin plastic tubes being used for spacers. They go into # 60  and keep the space inside # 55  a banner/flag. # 58  shows stitching for attaching two banners or flags together for sliding over a solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly. # 56  are male snaps. # 57  are female snaps. Snapping # 56  and # 57  together secures the banner/flag on the solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly. Using 8 mil. or 13 mil. Commonly used polyethylene or vinyl banner material with the inside or back of it being high gloss white enhances the reflectability and illumination. The banners/flags can be made of commonly used materials such as polyethylene, vinyl, nylon, cotton, polyester, etc. They all must be somewhat or very translucent. 
       FIG. 14  shows a solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly that is wall-mounted or horizontally displayed. It is made using # 59  and # 60  to attach the # 2  sections together. # 54  is thin clear spacer for keeping space inside the banner/flag. The snaps on a banner or flag can be put on different sides to accommodate the style of the solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly. # 61  is a corner coupling with # 63  a flagpole attached/screwed on. # 61  would be similar to # 59  but have a male screw end or a small piece made to receive # 63 . # 62  is a screw that goes through # 33  and into a slot/groove in # 64  the base for wall mounting or horizontal mounting. As with all solar products, having them in an area that gets plenty of sun is necessary. Walls facing north in the U.S. may not work well. 
       FIG. 15  shows a close-up view of a solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly on # 64  a base with # 62  holding it from sliding off. 
       FIG. 16  shows a side view and a front view of # 64  a wall-mounted/horizontal mount for a solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly. # 63  is a slot/groove that # 62  goes in, but # 62  is made to still allow the solar-powered banner and flagpole assembly the ability to spin on # 64  the base. # 65  shows holes in # 64  for attaching to a wall or post. # 66  shows screws that attach # 64  to a wall. 
       FIG. 17  shows # 63  a flagpole topper that can be made of translucent plastic and have # 70  and LED lights inside for illuminating it. # 63  can attach by screwing it onto # 61  and held in place with # 67  a screw that goes through # 68  a hole in # 63  and into # 69  a hole in # 61 . # 4  a male wire connector and # 3  a female wire connector connects # 70  to the solar unit. # 71  shows a translucent football that can be attached to # 61 . # 72  shows a translucent ball that could be made to look like a sports ball of different types by changing its colors. The toppers could have a large variety of shapes and themes to complement or enhance a banner or flag being displayed. 
     While the present invention has been described with respect to several different styles or options, it will be appreciated that many modifications and variations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is, therefore, the intent of the appended claims to cover all such modifications and variations which fall within the spirit and scope of the invention.