Abstract:
A Christmas tree stand, a method for affixing a Christmas tree to a Christmas tree stand, and a drill bit for forming a groove in the bottom of a Christmas tree are provided. The Christmas tree stand includes a base having a male member extending upwardly therefrom with at least a portion of the male member received in the groove in the bottom of the Christmas tree. Preferably an insert in the form of a cylinder is received within the groove. Upon the receipt of the male member in the groove, the Christmas tree is stabilized on the base.

Description:
RELATIONSHIP TO PRIOR APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This is a U.S. non-provisional application relating to and claiming the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/063,252, filed Jan. 31, 2008. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    This invention relates to Christmas tree stands and methods and apparatus for attaching Christmas trees to Christmas tree stands. There are many designs of Christmas tree stands currently on the market. Many Christmas tree stands include a basin which is adapted to be partially filled with water. The basin receives the lower portion of the trunk of the Christmas tree. Various devices have been provided to hold the Christmas tree in an upright position in the Christmas tree stand, such as elongated screws mounted in the stand which make contact with the trunk of the Christmas tree around its periphery. It is often difficult for the consumer to make adjustments to these holding devices, such as the aforementioned elongated screws, so as to hold the Christmas tree substantially vertical. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    In accordance with one form of this invention there is provided a Christmas tree stand assembly including a base for supporting a Christmas tree having a trunk which has a preformed groove in the bottom of the trunk. The base has an inside surface adapted to face the Christmas tree. A male member extends upwardly from the inside surface of the base. At least a portion of the male member is adapted to be received in the groove formed in the bottom of the trunk of the Christmas tree so that the Christmas tree may be substantially stabilized on the base. Preferably, the male member is a hollow form and is cylindrical in shape. Also preferably, an insert is provided to be received in the groove in the bottom of the trunk of the Christmas tree. Preferably, the insert is in the form of a single cylinder or the combination of a small diameter cylinder received within a larger diameter cylinder with the single cylinder or the small diameter cylinder receiving the male member. 
         [0004]    In accordance with another form of this invention there is provided the combination of a Christmas tree and a Christmas tree stand. The Christmas tree has a trunk with a bottom. A groove is formed in the bottom of the trunk. A base is provided for supporting the Christmas tree. The base has an inside surface facing the Christmas tree. A male member extends upwardly from the inside surface of the base. At least a portion of the male member is received in the groove formed in the bottom of the trunk of the Christmas tree so that the Christmas tree may be substantially stabilized on the base. 
         [0005]    In accordance with another form of this invention there is provided a method for affixing a Christmas tree to a Christmas tree stand having a base for supporting the Christmas tree which has a trunk. The base has an inside surface adapted to face the Christmas tree. A male member extends upwardly from the inside surface of the base. The method includes forming a groove in the bottom of the trunk of the Christmas tree and inserting at least a portion of the male member into the groove. 
         [0006]    In accordance with yet another form of this invention there is provided a drill bit, including a drill body and a drive rod. The drill body has first and second ends. The first end of the drill body is connected to the drive rod. The drill body has a set of teeth projecting away from the second end. A set of tines projectis outwardly from the drill body. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]    The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, together with further objects and advantages thereof may be better understood in reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
           [0008]      FIG. 1  is an exploded pictorial view of Christmas tree stand base and adaptor in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is an exploded pictorial view of the adaptor and basin of  FIG. 1  as well as a trunk of a Christmas tree which has been drilled out in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of the trunk of the Christmas tree of  FIG. 2  taken through section line  3 - 3 . 
           [0011]      FIG. 4  is a sectional view showing the adaptor inserted into the drilled out portion of the trunk of the Christmas tree and with the adaptor received on the upright tube attached to the bottom of the base. 
           [0012]      FIG. 5  is a pictorial view of a drill bit which may be used to form the drilled out portion shown in  FIG. 4 . 
           [0013]      FIG. 6  is a pictorial view of an adaptor in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 7  is another pictorial view of an adaptor of  FIG. 6 . 
           [0015]      FIG. 8  is yet another pictorial view of an adaptor of  FIG. 6 . 
           [0016]      FIG. 9  is a pictorial view of an adaptor being placed on the tube extending upwardly from the base in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. 
           [0017]      FIG. 10  is a pictorial view of an adaptor received on the tube extending upwardly from the base in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. 
           [0018]      FIG. 11  is a pictorial view of a Christmas tree stand base in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. 
           [0019]      FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional view of the Christmas tree stand base of  FIG. 11  showing a portion of a trunk of a Christmas tree received on the base taken through section line  12 - 12 . 
           [0020]      FIG. 13  is a pictorial view of an alternative embodiment of an adaptor. 
           [0021]      FIG. 14  is a sectional view showing a portion of the trunk of a Christmas tree with the adaptor of  FIG. 13  being received in a groove formed in the trunk of the Christmas tree and further showing a portion of a male member which projects upwardly from the base of the Christmas tree stand. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0022]    Referring now to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , there is provided a Christmas tree stand assembly  10 , including base  12  which in this embodiment is in the form of a basin which is adapted to receive water. Male member  14 , which in this embodiment is a hollow upright tube, is attached to the bottom or inside surface  15  of the basin which is adapted to face the Christmas tree. Adaptor  16  is removably received over hollow tube  14 . Adaptor  16  is placed in groove  19  in the bottom  17  of the trunk of the tree  18  after the tree has been cut and groove  19  has been formed in the bottom  17 . 
         [0023]    In order to place adaptor  16  into the bottom  17  of the trunk of tree  18 , the bottom of the trunk of tree  18  must be drilled out to form groove  19  which, in this embodiment as shown in  FIG. 3 , are carved cavities or slots described below.  FIG. 3  shows a cross-section of the trunk of the tree after it has been drilled out. 
         [0024]    In order to form the cavities shown in  FIG. 3  in the trunk of the tree, a specially constructed drill bit, such as drill bit  13  shown in  FIG. 5 , may be used. Drill bit  13  includes drill body  21  having a first end attached to drive rod  23 . Drill body  21  includes a set of teeth  25  extending or projecting away from the second end or front thereof. The center  27  of drill bit  13  is hollow so that when that portion of the drill bit cuts the wood, it only removes a ring in the bottom of the tree. The set of teeth  25  of drill bit  13  are used to form a narrow deep ring, which appears as narrow slots  20  and  22  in  FIG. 3  because of the cross-section, in the bottom  17  of the trunk of the Christmas tree. 
         [0025]    Drill bit  13  also includes a set of outer cutting tines  29  which are attached to and project outwardly from drill body  21 . The set of tines  29  are used to form a wide shallow ring, which appears as wide slots  24  and  26  in  FIG. 3  because of the cross-section, in the trunk of the Christmas tree. Thus, tines  29  effectively form a counter-bore. Tines  29  include leading edges and trailing edges. The leading edges are located a predetermined distance from the set of teeth  25 . The cross-sections of the set of teeth and the set of tines form circles. The diameter of the circle formed by the set of teeth is smaller than the diameter of the circle formed by the set of tines. 
         [0026]    Using drill bit  13 , both the deep ring cut, i.e., slots  20 / 22  and shallow counter-bore  24 / 26  are formed in the same operation. The bit may also be fluted to help remove wood chips. When discussing slots  20  and  22  and slots  24  and  26  below, it should be noted that those slots are actually ring-shaped as shown in  FIG. 2  as generally shown as groove  19 . The ring-shaped grooves appear as slots in cross-section as shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . 
         [0027]    As can be seen in  FIG. 3 , narrow slots  20  and  22  are drilled deeper into the trunk of the tree than wide slots  24  and  26 . 
         [0028]    Adaptor  16 , as shown in  FIGS. 6 through 8 , preferably includes small hollow tube  28  and large hollow tube  30 . Small hollow tube  28  passes through the center of large hollow tube  30  and is attached to large hollow tube  30  by circular web  36 . The walls of the upper portion of small hollow tube  28  of adaptor  16  are received in the deeper ring shown as narrow slots  20  and  22  in the trunk of the Christmas tree and the walls of large hollow tube  30  are received in shallower ring shown as wide slots  24  and  26 . The web  36  of large hollow tube  30  abuts against the tops  32  and  34  of wide slots  24  and  26 . 
         [0029]    Alternatively, the adaptor could be a single hollow tube such as tube  35  shown in  FIG. 13 . In that case, either the deep ring cut  20 / 22  or the shallow counter-bore  24 / 26  in the trunk of the tree may be eliminated. As can be seen in  FIG. 14 , when using adaptor  35 , a single ring cut  37  is preferably made in the bottom of the trunk of the Christmas tree. The ring cut  37  is wide enough to accommodate both the adaptor  35  and the walls  39  of hollow upright tube  14  which is attached to inside surface  15  of basin  12 . To eliminate deep ring cut  20 / 22 , the portion of the drill body  21  which extends above tines  29  shown in  FIG. 5  could be removed. To eliminate the counter-bore  24 / 26 , tines  29  of drill bit  19  could be removed. An additional alternative design for the adaptor could be the same as adaptor  16  except that the portion of small hollow tube  28  which extends above web  36  is removed. In that embodiment, deep ring cut  20 / 22  in the trunk of the tree is not needed and drill bit  19  may be modified accordingly. 
         [0030]    Referring again to the embodiment of  FIGS. 1-3 , adaptor  16  is preferably inserted into the bottom of the trunk of the Christmas tree before the tree is placed in basin  12 . This insertion may be done by hand. Thus,  FIGS. 9 and 10  which show adaptor  16  being placed and having been placed onto upright tube  14  inside of stand  12  are for illustrative purposes only because, in reality, the adaptor  16  should be inserted into groove  19  in the bottom  17  of Christmas tree  18  before the adaptor  16  and the upright tube are intermated. The walls  39  of tube  14 , which extend upwardly from the inside of the bottom or inside surface  15  of the basin  12 , are received in space  38  which is formed between large hollow tube  30  and small hollow tube  28 . Small hollow tube  28  is received in opening  41  of upright hollow tube  14 . Thus, one end of adaptor  16  is firmly received in the inside of trunk of Christmas tree  18  while the other end of adaptor  16  is firmly mounted on upright hollow tube  14  within basin  12 . The Christmas tree therefore has been secured to the Christmas tree stand and may be situated in a vertical position without the need to make adjustments to elongated screws or other mounting devices. In addition, since the tree trunk is preferably predrilled shortly after cutting the tree and the adaptor  16  is inserted into the predrilled cavities of the trunk of the tree, the consumer need only align the adaptor  16  with upright tube  14  and place the tree in the stand. 
         [0031]    Preferably, as shown in  FIG. 4 , adaptor  16  is pressed deeply enough into the trunk of the tree so that portion  40  of the bottom  17  of the tree extends below the lower lip  42  of tube  40 . This arrangement enables one to make a fresh cut on the bottom of the tree after the adaptor is installed in the bottom of the tree but before the tree is placed in basin  12 . The fresh cut enables water  45 , as shown in  FIG. 12 , to more readily be absorbed by the tree. 
         [0032]    While an adaptor increases the structural integrity of the connection of the base  12  to the tree, in another embodiment of the invention as illustrated in  FIGS. 11 and 12 , an adaptor, such as adaptors  16  and  35 , are eliminated entirely. As shown in  FIG. 11 , basin  12  is attached to or made integral with stabilizing base  40 . A male member, such as hollow upright tube  14 , is attached to and extends upwardly from inside surface  15  which form the bottom of basin  12 . Thus, basin  12  in  FIG. 11  may be substantially identical to basin  12  shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . As shown in  FIG. 12 , the trunk of Christmas tree  18  includes groove  44  which is a much simpler groove than groove  19  shown in  FIGS. 2 and 3  in that a single ring  44  is cut in the bottom  17  of the trunk of tree  18 . The ring  44  in  FIG. 12  is similar to the ring  37  shown in  FIG. 14  except it is preferably more narrow so as to tightly accommodate walls  39  of male member or hollow upright tube  14 . 
         [0033]    Some of the advantages of the embodiments of the above described invention are as follows.
       1) Both the inner deeper ring cut and the outer shallower counter-bore may be made in a single operation.   2) The solid center core of wood in the trunk of the tree is the primary method of support for the tree on the stand.   3) The Christmas tree is not easily split since the adaptor holds the wood in place.   4) The adaptor can be recessed into the wood to prevent damage and to assure the stand will easily mount.   5) The adaptor can be inserted to any needed depth.   6) By inserting the adaptor deep enough into the trunk so that bark and an outer layer of wood extend below the lower edge of the adaptor, water is more easily absorbed into the tree.   7) With the adaptor being recessed into the tree, a fresh cut can be made on the tree without damage to the adaptor.   8) It is possible to use the drilled out portion of the trunk of the tree as a mounting hole for the stand without using the adaptor. In that case, the tree would be mounted directly on hollow upright tube  14 .   9) The drill out methods set forth above can be used for applications other than for Christmas trees.   10) The adaptor may be made of most any rigid material, such as plastic or metal.   11) The adaptor allows for an unobstructed and dimensionally controlled fit to the tube extending from the bottom of the basin.   12) The adaptor holds the center core of the wood in the trunk of the tree in place to prevent splitting.   13) The adaptor is made to be attached to the basin by interference fit, snap fit, or screw, or other attachment.   14) The adaptor may be made to recess into or protrude from the trunk of the tree, depending on the application.   15) The basin and associated upright tube may be made of a material such as plastic or metal.   16) The basin and upright tube may be made to attach to the adaptor by interference fit, snap fit, or screw-on attachment.   17) The basin may also be made with the adaptor attached to it or built into it for insertion directly into a predrilled tree.   18) The basin is made to hold water.   19) The basin may also have legs mounted to it if needed for larger trees.       
 
         [0053]    From the foregoing description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, it will be apparent that many modifications may be made therein. It should be understood, however, that each of these embodiments of the invention are exemplifications of the invention only and that the invention is not limited thereto. It is to be understood, therefore, that it is intended in the appended claims to cover all modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.