Patent Publication Number: US-9849940-B2

Title: Recreational canopy

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/869,385 filed on Sep. 29, 2015. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to canopies and, more particularly, is concerned with a canopy for recreational use on a watercraft, however, the canopy could be mounted on other separate structures, e.g., a chair or in the ground. 
     Description of the Related Art 
     Devices relevant to the present invention have been described in the related art, however, none of the related art devices disclose the unique features of the present invention. 
     While these devices may be suitable for the purposes for which they were designed, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention as hereinafter described. As will be shown by way of explanation and drawings, the present invention works in a novel manner and differently from the related art. 
     SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
     The present invention discloses a canopy for recreational use including a watercraft wherein the canopy is constructed by using a pair of flexible, fiberglass rod-like members wherein one end of each of the flexible members is inserted through mating apertures in an upright member or stanchion mounted onto the watercraft so that the rod-like members are bowed outwardly and frictionally held in the stanchion. The canopy may be attached between the rod members by using rings or similar devices placed through eyelets in the canopy so that the canopy generally appears to be in an elongated, somewhat V-shaped structure which stretches across a portion of the watercraft between the flexible members. The canopy may also be disposed on the rod members by inserted the rods through sleeves disposed on the edges of the canopy. The canopy is rotatable around the stanchion and the height of the canopy can be adjusted up and down using apertures or the like in the stanchion. Also shown is a cross member running between the flexible rod members so as to provide support underneath the canopy near the middle of the flexible rods. The canopy may be entirely or partially constructed of solar cell fabric. Additionally, there is shown a line attached to a rear end of the canopy so that a hand of a user can grasp the line or the canopy directly and rotate the canopy around the upright member or stanchion so that the canopy can be positioned in a favorable position suitable to the user and so that the user can freely cast a rod and reel from underneath the canopy of the present invention without hitting the canopy support. 
     An object of the present invention is to provide a recreational canopy for various uses such as for use on a watercraft. A further object of the present invention is to provide a recreational canopy which can be easily assembled and disassembled and which can be packaged and sold as a kit. A further object of the present invention is to provide a canopy on a watercraft which can be easily adjusted by a user. A further object of the present invention is to provide a canopy on a watercraft which allows a user to cast a rod and reel from underneath the canopy without hitting a canopy support. A further object of the present invention is to provide a canopy for a watercraft which can be raised and lowered and rotated about an upright member used to mount the canopy on the watercraft. A further object of the present invention is to provide a canopy for a watercraft which can be easily operated by a user. A further object of the present is to provide a canopy for a watercraft which can be relatively inexpensively manufactured. 
     The foregoing and other objects and advantages will appear from the description to follow. In the description reference is made to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. These embodiments will be described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention, and it is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. In the accompanying drawings, like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views. 
     The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present invention is best defined by the appended claims. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In order that the invention may be more fully understood, it will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the present invention shown in operative connection. 
         FIG. 2  is an enlarged perspective view of portions of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of an exemplary mounting bracket for the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is an elevation view of an exemplary structure for mounting of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of portions of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  is a plan view of portions of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  is an exploded perspective view of a typical marine mount for the present invention. 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of an exemplary structure for mounting of the present invention. 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view of an exemplary structure for mounting of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS 
     With regard to reference numerals used, the following numbering is used throughout the drawings.
           10  present invention     12  watercraft     14  upright support     15  tip of upright support     16  canopy     18  first flexible rod     20  second flexible rod     22  ferrule     24  cross member     26  T connector     27  connector pin     28  ring     30  eyelet     32  end of rod     33  member     34  aperture     36  aperture     38  aperture     40  aperture     42  surface of watercraft     44  base     45  fastener     46  rotatable portion     47  rod holder     48  mount for upright support     49  pole mounting portion     50  aperture     52  pin     54  line     56  hardware or cleat     58  ground     60  fisherman/user     62  rod and reel     64  lure and line     66  sleeve     68  hole for rod     70  solar cell fabric     72  photovoltaic cells     74  positive polarity electrical output     76  negative polarity electrical output     77  exemplary electrical connector     78  hand of user     80  angle     82  electrical interconnections     84  criss-cross     86  line     88  clip     90  pedestal mounting assembly     92  seat plate     94  shaft of pedestal     96  pin of pedestal     98  deck of watercraft     100  deck mounting plate     102  socket for pin or shaft     104  receiver tube of trailer hitch     106  vehicle     108  draw bar insert portion     110  table     112  clamp     114  lower end of upright support and ground       

     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The following discussion describes in detail at least one embodiment of the present invention. This discussion should not be construed, however, as limiting the present invention to the particular embodiments described herein since practitioners skilled in the art will recognize numerous other embodiments as well. For a definition of the complete scope of the invention the reader is directed to the appended claims.  FIGS. 1 through 9  illustrate the present invention wherein a canopy for recreational use is disclosed and which is generally indicated by reference number  10 . 
     Turning to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , therein is shown the present invention  10  showing a watercraft  12  to which is attached an upright support post or stanchion  14  having a canopy  16  disposed thereon. The canopy  16  is supported between a first and second  18 ,  20  side frame members or rods which are flexible and resilient in nature similar to what a fiberglass or graphite composition rod would exhibit and the front tip of canopy  16  may be attached to upright support  14  using a piece of material or member  33 . Each rod  18 ,  20  may be made of one piece or two pieces and a two piece unit would require a conventional ferrule or the like shown at  22  with connector pins  27  or the like in order to connect the pieces of the rod  18 ,  20  to each other. Also, a cross member  24  is shown underneath the canopy  16  so as to provide vertical support for the canopy in order to keep it from ripping or tearing as would be caused by wind or movement of the boat or watercraft  12  and T-connectors  26  or the like are shown on each side for connecting an end of the cross bar  24  to each of the flexible rods  18 ,  20 . The canopy  16  is connected to the rods  18 ,  20  using a plurality of rings  28  passing through multiple eyelets  30  disposed near the edge of the canopy. An alternative embodiment for attaching the canopy  16  to rods  18 ,  20  is shown in  FIG. 5 . The flexible rods  18 ,  20  are attached to an upper end of the upright support or stanchion  14  by having an end  32  of each rod pass through respective apertures  34 ,  36 ,  38 ,  40  of the upright support  14 . An end of rod  18  extends or passes through aperture  34 ,  36  and an end of rod  20  passes through aperture  38 ,  40  as best shown in  FIG. 2 . This very simple construction technique reduces the cost and time of manufacturing the present invention  10 . The ends of the rod  18 ,  20  being under inherent resilience force are frictionally held firmly in the aperture pairs  34 ,  36 ,  38   40  as the ends  32  of the rods  18 ,  20  pass completely through the mating opposing walls of the upright support  14 . Also shown is an up and down height adjustment mechanism for the upright member  14  wherein a plurality of apertures  50  are shown passing through the inner and outer upright support  14  so that the inner upright support is telescopically connected to the outer upright support using a plurality of apertures  50  having a pin  52  pass through a selected aperture pair as would be done in the standard manner by one skilled in the art so as to make the canopy  16  of the present invention  10  height adjustable in an up-down direction. Also shown is a line  54  which provides means to rotate the canopy  16 , connected to an end of canopy  16  and having an end tied to cleat  56  which line can be used to control and thereby to reposition, move or rotate the canopy  16  about the watercraft  12  to a user selected position. Also shown is a fisherman or user  60  in boat  12  holding a rod and reel  62  in his hand with a lure and line  64  thereon illustrating how a user can cast from underneath the canopy  16  so that the rod does not hit anything during the cast. An alternate mounting means for the upright support post  14  is shown by rod holder  47  disposed on an inside wall of the boat  12  with a lower end of the post  14  inserted in the rod holder so that the post is rotatable in the rod holder. Also shown is an exemplary mounting device  48  for connecting the upright support  14  to a surface  42  of the watercraft  12  or the like wherein the mounting device has a base  44  for receiving fasteners  45  extending into the surface  42  so as to be fixed in place and a middle portion  46  which is generally pivotable and/or rotatable and a pole mounting portion  49  to which the upright support  14  is connected. Generally, it is expected that the upright support  14  would be removably fixed in place on a supporting structure, such as a watercraft  12  or rod holder  47 , so that the upright support is disposed in substantially the upright position although the upright support may be permanently mounted on the supporting structure. 
     Turning to  FIG. 3 , therein is shown an enlarged exemplary mounting device  48  for connecting the lower end of upright support  14  to a surface  42  of the watercraft  12  or the like wherein the mounting device has a base  44  for receiving fasteners  45  and a middle portion  46  which is generally pivotable and/or rotatable and a pole mounting portion  49  to which the upright support  14  is connected. Many different types of mounting devices  48  could be used with upright support  14  for connection to many types of separate structures such as chairs or the like. 
     Turning to  FIG. 4 , therein is shown an enlarged view showing the lower end of the upright support  14  having a tip  15  thereon for insertion into a different support structure such as the ground  58  as would occur with sand at a beach. 
     Turning to  FIG. 5 , therein is shown an alternative embodiment of the present invention  10  showing the canopy  16  being extended or stretched between rods  18 ,  20  wherein the rods are each inserted into conventional sleeves  66  disposed on and extending along first and second sides or edges of the sheet of material of the canopy. Each sleeves  66  has a hole or rodhole  68  therein through which the rod  18 ,  20  is inserted into or removed from the sleeve and the sleeve extends substantially entirely along the edge of the canopy  16  from a front to rear end thereof. The rods  18 ,  20  could be one piece or two piece for easier folding and storage. Also shown on the canopy  16  is at least a portion of the sheet of material making up the canopy including solar cell fabric  70 , wherein as used in this specification, the solar cell fabric  70  includes photovoltaic cells  72  attached to a surface thereof, or embedded therein, or stitched into the fabric, or built into the layers around the fiber of the fabric, or otherwise included as a part of canopy  16 . The entire canopy  16  could be made of solar cell fabric  70  if so desired or the canopy could also be made so that part of the canopy has no solar cell fabric and part of the canopy has solar cell fabric. As used in this specification, photovoltaic cells are generally considered to be specialized electrical devices that convert visible light from the sun into some form of direct current electricity. Also, some photovoltaic cells can convert infrared or ultraviolet radiation into direct current electricity. Direct current electrical output wires  74 ,  76  from solar cell fabric  70  are also shown wherein  74  is a positive polarity output and  76  is a negative polarity output which could be approximately 12 volt however the operating current and voltage would be determined by the load. Electrical energy output from all photovoltaic cells  72  of the solar cell fabric  70  would be connected to and thereby delivered to the direct current electrical output wires  74 ,  76  as indicated by electrical interconnections  82 . The direct current output  74 ,  76  could terminate in an exemplary electrical connector  77  and could be used for all purposes, for example, providing power for a USB charger to recharge cell phones, all other wireless and wired communication devices, or watercraft  12  batteries. Wires  74 ,  76  could be connected to all types of electrical connectors  77  including DC connectors and plugs, cylindrical and snap and lock connectors, all IEC connectors, cigar sockets and plugs, USB and HDMI connectors, pin plugs and many other types of connectors and plugs as commonly used by society and the marine industry and could be converted to AC current by using a converter so as to power all AC type electrical devices. Further, wires  74 ,  76  could be connected at  77  to many types of electrical circuits for all purposes including powering all types of electrical devices including wireless or wired devices including radios, GPS and radar systems or storing electrical energy in batteries or related devices. In short, the electrical output from wires  74 ,  76  could be used for any and all known purposes. Also shown is a hand  78  of a user to illustrate that a hand of a user can be used to provide means to rotate the canopy  16  and the upright support post  14  along with line  54 . Also, the rear ends of the flexible, fiberglass rods  18 ,  20  may be squeezed inwardly toward each other and tied to each other for securement using line  86 . Other previously disclosed items are also shown. 
     Turning to  FIG. 6 , therein is shown the top of the upright support post  14  showing the criss-crossed rods  18 ,  20  and apertures  34 - 40  showing the angle  80  between the rods which is expected to be in the range of about 30 to 120 degrees with respect to each other. The size of the angle  80  depends on the diameter, stiffness and resilience of rods  18 ,  20  wherein a larger diameter rod would require less stiffness and a smaller diameter rod would require greater stiffness to maintain the canopy in a stretched out disposition between the rods. Thus rods  18 ,  20  need to be effectively sized so that the rods become bowed enough to provide an effective amount of lateral tension to support the canopy in a stretched out disposition. The cross-cross portion  84  of rods  18 ,  20  is also shown. An optional clip  88  may be used to removably secure the front ends of rods  18 ,  20  in apertures  36 ,  40  so the rods cannot accidently become dislodged or disassembled wherein the clip has a first end removably attached to rod  18  and a second end removably attached to rod  20 . In order to disassemble the present invention  10 , the optional clip  88  would first be removed. 
     Turning to  FIG. 7 , therein is shown an alternative exemplary mounting device (somewhat similar to mounting device  48  of  FIG. 3 ) using a conventional marine seat pedestal assembly  90  having a fixed or rotatable seat plate  92  on its upper end suitable for having a marine seat mounted thereon, pedestal shaft  94  and pin  96  on its lower end wherein the seat pedestal  90  is to be mounted into a receiving unit in the form of a receiving aperture or socket  102  centrally mounted in a flush mount deck or socket plate  100  which is mounted on the deck  98  of a watercraft or the like. These type mounting devices are widely used in the marine industry. Upright support  14  could be connected directly to seat plate  92  or by using base  44  or to a pole mounting portion  49  as illustrated or the like. Many different types of similar mounting devices could be used with upright support  14  for connection to many types of other separate structures including watercraft, chairs, tables or the like as mentioned elsewhere herein. 
     Turning to  FIG. 8 , therein is shown an alternative exemplary mounting structure for the present invention  10  using a conventional vehicle  106 , e.g., a pickup truck as shown, wherein the upright support  14  is supported by a conventional receiver tube  104  of a trailer hitch using a draw bar insert portion  108  so that a user  60  can be shaded by canopy  16  of the present invention  10 . Also shown are rods  18 ,  20  of the present invention  10 . The lower end of the upright support  14  would be adapted to be supported on the vehicle  106  and in this example would include adapting the lower end of upright support  14  to connect to the draw bar insert portion  108 . 
     Turning to  FIG. 9 , therein is shown an alternative exemplary mounting structure for the present invention  10  using a conventional table  110 , e.g., a picnic table as shown, wherein the upright support  14  is supported by the table by using a convention clamp  112  so that users could be shaded by the canopy  16  of the present invention  10 . Also shown are rods  18 ,  20  of the present invention  10 . The upright support  14  would be adapted to be supported by the table  110  and in this example would include adapting the upright support  14  to connect to the table by using a clamp  112  or the like, or by having the lower end of the upright support be inserted into the ground as illustrated at  114  or by both. 
     Additional explanation of the present invention  10  is hereby provided with reference to all the figures wherein a lightweight canopy  16  for a boat  12  or other structure is disclosed which is fully adjustable up and down and rotatable in a 360 degree arc around the stanchion  14  using a line  54  which would allow a fisherman  60  underneath the canopy to cast while standing or sitting underneath the canopy. The canopy  16  also provides protection from sunrays and rain. The canopy  16  may be made of a sheet of any suitable flexible material such as canvas, or nylon-like material, for example polyethylene, and is supported by a pair of flexible, PVC, fiberglass or graphite rods  18 ,  20  about ½ inch in diameter and the canopy may be attached to the rods using eyelets  30  with simple connectors  28  being run through the eyelets and around the rods. The inherent resilience of the rods  18 ,  20  bias the flexible fiberglass rods away from each other providing an effective amount of tension for maintaining the canopy in a stretched out disposition between the rods wherein the rods are each bowed outwardly away from each other. Front ends  32  of the fiberglass rods  18 ,  20  are each passed through holes  34 - 40  placed in opposite sides of an upright support PVC pipe or post  14  or like type support post or stanchion which support post is mounted onto a boat  12  or the like at its lower end. The canopy  16  would be easy to use and relatively inexpensive to manufacture. Also, the solid flexible, fiberglass rods  18 ,  20  may be jointed at  22  so the system could be broken down and folded for storage. Also, the rear ends of the flexible, fiberglass rods  18 ,  20  may be squeezed inwardly toward each other and tied to each other for securement using line  86  while the boat  12  is being operated at high speed in a forward direction. Also, in addition to watercraft  12 , the canopy  16  could be mounted on many types of separate support structures such as picnic tables, trailers, pickup trucks, rear end of a vehicle, chairs, in the ground, a powered lift for hoisting workmen above the ground, or the like and there are many other applications for the present invention  10 . Canopy  16  may be made of canvas or tarp-like material and may be waterproof. PVC post  14  may have an inner member about 1½ inch in diameter and an outer member about 2 inch in diameter. Ferrules  22  and T-connectors  26  could be made of fiberglass or aluminum or the like. In the event that the rear ends of rods  18 ,  20  droop excessively downwardly due to the weight of the rods and canopy  16 , apertures  34 ,  38  may be placed in upright support  14  so as to be slightly higher than apertures  36 ,  40  so as to place the rods in a slight upward angle relative to the horizontal so that the weight of the rods and canopy pull the rods and canopy downwardly back to the horizontal. 
     A summary of the present invention  10  making reference to  FIGS. 1-9  follows wherein a canopy  16  for being mounted on a separate structure such as a watercraft  12 , in the ground  58 , in a rod holder  47 , on a vehicle  106 , or on a table  110  and includes an upright support post  14  having upper and lower ends; first and second flexible rods  18 ,  20 , each flexible rod having first, front  32  and second, rear ends; a first end of each flexible rod extending through an upper end of said upright support post, wherein each flexible rod is held firmly in apertures adjacent the upper end of the upright support post, wherein the flexible rods are substantially horizontally disposed and extend outwardly and away from the upright support post at an angle to each other in the range of 30 to 120 degrees and terminating at the seconds ends. The lower end of post  14  may be supported fixed in place on a structure with the upper end being rotatable with respect to the lower end, wherein the flexible rods are substantially horizontally disposed; and, a sheet of material having a first edge removably disposed on and attached to the first flexible rod and a second edge removably disposed on and attached to the second flexible rod so that the sheet of material forms a canopy extending between the first and second flexible rods and substantially from the first end of each flexible rod to the second end of each flexible rod. The sheet of material may include a solar cell fabric portion to permit the production of electrical energy on a sunlit day. The flexible rods are constructed or configured so as to bias the rods away from each other providing an effective amount of tension for maintaining the sheet of material in a stretched out disposition. Wherein, the upright support post is adjustable in height using apertures  50  and a pin  52  and is rotatable in a 360 degree arc. Also, shown is a cross member  24  having first and second ends extending underneath the sheet of material  16  having the first end of the cross member connected to the first flexible rod and the second end of the cross member connected to the second flexible rod at  26 . Wherein the first end  32  of each flexible rod  18 ,  20  is frictionally held in the plurality of apertures  34 ,  36 ,  38 ,  40  substantially perpendicular to the upper end of the upright support post  14 . The angle formed between the rods  18 ,  20  (expected to be about 30 to 120 degrees) with respect to each other is effectively sized so that the rods become bowed enough to provide enough lateral tension to support the canopy  16  in a stretched out disposition. 
     Direction arrows are sometimes placed on the figures of this specification to indicate movement of the various parts and structures of the present invention  10 .