Patent Publication Number: US-2021172190-A1

Title: Swimming pool over-the-edge mounted equipment

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS 
     This is a U.S. Non-Provisional patent application which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/946,095 filed Dec. 10, 2019 and U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/945,551 filed Dec. 9, 2019, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD 
     This application relates generally to the mounting of furniture and equipment in and around swimming pools. 
     DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART INCLUDING INFORMATION DISCLOSED UNDER 37 CFR 1.97 AND 1.98 
     Most known pool furniture is designed either to remain on dry land outside a swimming pool, i.e., on a pool deck, or to float on water contained in a pool. Also, some swimming pools are known to have seating areas or other furniture structures formed into the pool&#39;s walls as an integral installation. 
     SUMMARY 
     A swimming pool accessory assembly may comprise a personal support device, a frame carrying the personal support device, and a first arm connected to the frame. The first arm may be configured to engage a first socket in a pool deck adjacent a swimming pool such that the first arm, frame, and personal support device are at least partially supported by engagement of the arm in the socket, and the personal support device is positioned to support an occupant partially-submerged in the swimming pool. 
    
    
     
       DRAWING DESCRIPTIONS 
       These and other features and advantages will become apparent to those skilled in the art in connection with the following detailed description and appended drawings of one or more embodiments of the invention, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a swimming pool accessory assembly partially submerged in a pool and secured to sockets in an adjacent pool deck; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a top-down view of the assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a side view of the assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5  is a 90-degree laterally rotated side view of the assembly of  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective exploded view of the assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a perspective view of an alternate bar embodiment of a swimming pool accessory assembly; 
         FIG. 8  is a top-down view of the embodiment of  FIG. 7 ; 
         FIG. 9  is a side view of the assembly of  FIG. 7 ; 
         FIG. 10  is a 90-degree laterally rotated side view of the assembly of  FIG. 7 ; 
         FIG. 11  is a close-up perspective view of an arm of the assembly before engagement with a socket in a pool deck adjacent a pool; 
         FIG. 12  is a close-up perspective view of a frame of the assembly carrying adjustable bumpers; 
         FIG. 13  is a close-up perspective view of one of the bumpers of  FIG. 12 ; 
         FIG. 14  is an exploded perspective view of the embodiment of  FIG. 7 ; and 
         FIG. 15  shows a longer  5 -person bar embodiment of the assembly. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A swimming pool accessory assembly securable to a pool deck adjacent a swimming pool is generally indicated at  10  in the figures. Alternate embodiments of the assembly are also generally indicated at  10 ′ and  10 ″. Parts common to multiple embodiments share the same number, while the presence and quantity of prime symbols indicates which embodiment they belong to. For example, a component labeled  42  may belong to a first embodiment, while an analogous part belonging to a second embodiment would be labeled  42 ′. Unless otherwise contradicted, description that applies to component  42  may be assumed to apply to  42 ′. 
     The assembly  10  may comprise a pool accessory  12  that may be supported by standard pool ladder receptacle sockets  14  via arms  16  extending from and connected to the accessory  12  and (as best shown in  FIG. 11 ) configured to engage sockets  14  installed in a pool deck  18  adjacent a swimming pool  20 . The pool accessory  12  may comprise one or more articles of sporting equipment, recreational equipment, or personal support devices including, but not limited to, seats  22 , counters or bars  24 , tables  26 , and umbrellas  28 . These elements may be combined into various embodiments, as shown in the Figures. For example, the embodiment of  FIGS. 1-6  comprises two seats  22 , a table  26 , and an umbrella  28 . 
     The pool ladder receptacle sockets  14  may be at least partially recessed or formed into a pool deck  18 , or may be secured to a pool deck  18  surface by any suitable means known in the art. As best shown in  FIG. 4 , the pool accessory  12  may be supported in a partially or fully submerged position within the pool  20 , so that an occupant  21 , i.e., a person using a seat  22 , would be at least partially submerged in the pool  20 , e.g., with the water level  23  at approximately the occupant&#39;s waist level, when the arms  16  engage the sockets  14 . 
     The assembly  10  may include one or more frames  30  carrying one or more pool accessories  12  and connecting the pool accessories  12  to the one or more arms  16 . The frame  30  and/or the arms  16  may comprise  304  stainless steel tubing. And as best shown in  FIGS. 2-4 , the frames  30  may comprise rectangular tubing. However, any shape or size of frame  30  may be used to attach accessories  12  to arms  16 . 
     Depending on the embodiment, the arms  16  may comprise distal ends  32  sized and shaped to engage standard pool ladder receptacle sockets  14  (sockets of approximately 1.5-inch diameter). And where two arms  16  are used, their respective distal ends  32  may be spaced to match any common spacing between pool ladder receptacle sockets  14  (usually approximately 20 inches on-center). However, some embodiments may require custom spacing, for example, a wider socket  14  spacing is used by the embodiment shown in  FIG. 15 , which comprises a long line of parallel seats  22 ″ and a bar  24 ″ which would benefit from the extra stability of wide socket  14  spacing, especially under asymmetric distributions of occupants. Smaller embodiments with a similar seat  22  and bar  24  configuration (as shown in  FIGS. 7-10 and 14 ) may retain the 20-inch arm spacing. 
     If only one arm  16  is used, the assembly  10  may include an anti-rotation feature  34  that prevents rotation between the distal end of the arm  16  and the pool ladder receptacle socket  14  when the distal end  32  of the arm  16  is engaged in the socket  14 . The anti-rotation feature  34  may be configured to releasably secure the arm  16  against rotation relative to the ladder receptacle socket  14 . The anti-rotation feature  34  may preferably be an anchor socket of the type produced by Perma-Cast LLC, but any anti-rotation feature that will fit in a standard pool ladder receptacle socket  14  should be acceptable. As best shown in  FIG. 11  the anchor socket  14  may be at least partially received in a hole or recess  36  formed in a pool deck  18 . 
     Due to the weight that may be carried by some configurations of the assembly  10 , (for example five people seated on  FIG. 15 &#39;s embodiment of the apparatus  10 ″), the assembly  10  may be configured to rest against a pool wall  38  adjacent the assembly  10  (as best shown in  FIG. 1 ), and may include at least one bumper  40  (best shown in  FIG. 12 ) that may comprise rubber (or any other suitably resilient substance) and may be configured to rest against the pool wall  38  to prevent pressure from the assembly  10  from causing damage to the pool wall  38 . By configuring the assembly  10  to rest against the pool wall  38 , some of the load that would otherwise apply significant torsional force at the interface of the arm  16  and socket  14 , is instead applied to the pool wall  38  through the bumper(s)  40 . The bumper(s)  40  may be attached to the assembly frame  30 , and may be adjustable to support the assembly  10  against the pool wall  38  at different angles relative to the pool wall  38 . For example, and as best shown in  FIG. 13 , the bumper  40  may be mounted to the frame  30  via an adjustment feature  42  such as a threaded shaft that permits the bumper  40  to be screwed in or out to change the distance between the frame  30  and the pool wall  38 . This adjustment feature  42  may also be used to level the assembly  10  to compensate for variations in the spacing between the ladder sockets  14  and the pool wall  38 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1 and 11 , an annular protective ring or gasket  44  may be carried on each of the arms  16 . This ring may be shaped to cover the socket  14  when it is engaged by the arm  16 . This ring  44  may cover the socket  14  for aesthetic effect, and/or to prevent debris or other contaminants from entering the socket  14 , or the hole  36  around the socket. For similar reasons, another protective ring  44  may be received by the umbrella  28  to cover an accessory hole  46  formed or cut in the table  26 , as shown in  FIG. 6 . These rings or gaskets  44  may be formed from any suitable material for aesthetic effect or protective value. 
     This description, rather than describing limitations of an invention, only illustrates an embodiment of the invention recited in the claims. The language of this description is therefore exclusively descriptive and is non-limiting. Obviously, it&#39;s possible to modify this invention from what the description teaches. Within the scope of the claims, one may practice the invention other than as described above.