Abstract:
A fruit harvesting belt and bucket system provides for the redistribution of weight from the wearer&#39;s shoulders to the wearer&#39;s hips. The belt includes a padded back support and a front support. There is an extrusion on the front support that is used to connect to a bucket, which is strapped to a person wearing the belt. The belt is adjustable, and may be made of a variety of materials, such as nylon. The bucket may hook onto the extrusion on the belt, and the bucket has a closeable opening at the bottom, which is used to release the harvested fruit.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to personal harvesting equipment, and more specifically to a weight redistribution belt system for transferring the weight of a harvesting bucket from the user&#39;s shoulders to the user&#39;s hips. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Some fruit harvest workers wear a picking bucket, which is situated around the wearer&#39;s shoulders with straps. As the bucket becomes filled with the harvested fruit, the bucket&#39;s weight increases. A bucket is considerably heavy when it is filled with fruit, which places excessive strain upon the wearer&#39;s shoulders, back, and neck. The fruit harvest workers repeatedly fill these buckets over the course of the day, and with each filled bucket, the strained worker is apt to suffer physical injury. During a worker&#39;s lifetime, the repeated stress can cause significant disabilities. When a worker is injured, not only is there lost time and manpower, but the worker may also suffer permanent damage that could prevent the worker from participating in any type of physical activity or trade. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    An improved weight redistribution fruit harvesting belt and bucket system is disclosed, which in one embodiment, may include an improved fruit harvesting belt which includes an extrusion along the front of the belt for support and carriage of a fruit bucket. 
         [0004]    Another embodiment of the present invention is directed to provide an improved fruit harvesting belt which includes an adjustable strap for providing sizing capabilities. 
         [0005]    Yet another embodiment of the present invention is directed to provide an improved fruit harvesting belt which includes a padded back support to assist with the wearer&#39;s stabilization and to provide for the wearer&#39;s comfort. 
         [0006]    A further embodiment of the present invention is directed to provide an improved fruit harvesting belt which includes a padded front strap to assist with the wearer&#39;s comfort. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of a belt according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is a plan view of a belt according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  shows the interior of a back support according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the exterior of a front support according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  shows a harvester support belt and a fruit harvesting bucket in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0012]    It is noted that although the following description is given in terms of an illustrative example, such as using the belt in conjunction with a bucket, the present invention can be used with a variety of buckets or receptacles to which a connector as described herein can be coupled, the connector being received by the belt. 
         [0013]    Referring now to the drawings, the present invention will be seen to relate to a fruit harvester&#39;s support belt  10  providing for the carriage of a fruit harvesting bucket  70  and the redistribution of weight to the fruit harvester&#39;s hips from the fruit harvester&#39;s shoulders and back. The fruit harvester&#39;s support belt  10  generally comprises a belt portion  20  and a fastener  30 , which fastener  30  connects to a distal end and a proximal end of the belt portion  20 . The fruit harvester&#39;s support belt also generally comprises a front support  60 , which may be attached to the interior side of the belt portion  20 . The fruit harvester&#39;s support belt also generally comprises a receptacle support member  40 , which may be attached to the upper edge of the belt portion  20 . The fruit harvester&#39;s support belt also generally comprises a back support  50 , which, in embodiments of the invention, is configured to slide onto the belt portion  20 . 
         [0014]      FIGS. 1 and 2  of the drawings disclose further details of the present invention. The fastener  30  connects to itself, and can be engaged easily by the user, and may be disengaged easily with one hand; however, the present invention is not limited to this particular type of fastener, as alternative types of fasteners may be used. The fastener  30  also allows for the belt portion  20  to be pulled through, which allows the user to shorten and lengthen the length of the belt portion  20  surrounding the user.  FIG. 1  of the drawings discloses an embodiment of the present invention wherein the fastener  30  is situated so as to allow the user to tighten the fruit harvester&#39;s support belt by pulling the excess belt portion  12  towards the front of the user. This technique for adjusting the length of the belt portion  20  may be preferable as it is easier for the user to adjust the belt portion  20  by pulling the excess belt portion  12  forward than it is for the user to pull the excess belt portion  12  rearward. Nevertheless, as shown in  FIG. 2 , embodiments of the invention are also directed to a configuration in which there may be situations when it is preferable for the user to adjust the belt portion  20  by pulling the excess belt portion  12  rearward. 
         [0015]    The receptacle support member  40  overlaps the upper edge of the belt portion  20  to provide a support for a receptacle. In embodiments of the invention, the receptacle support member  40  overlaps about 50% of the upper edge of the belt portion  20 . In the one embodiment, the receptacle support member  40  is attached with rivets  42  to the upper edge of the belt portion  20 . However, the present invention is not limited to using rivets to attach the receptacle support member, as any other method of securely attaching the receptacle support member  40  to the belt portion  20  may be used. The receptacle support member  40  lends itself to construction from a variety of materials, such as nylon. 
         [0016]    The back support  50  slides over the belt portion  20 , and comprises loops  54  that are attached to the back support edging  52  and the back side of the back support  50 . The back support  50  is circumscribed by the back support edging  52  and are sewn together with stitches  57 . The loops  54  are also attached with stitches  56 , which stitches  56  are placed across the loops  54  on either side of the belt portion  20 . 
         [0017]      FIG. 3  shows a view of the interior of the back support  50 , which back support  50  has pads  58  sewn into the interior side of the back support  50  for supplying further support and comfort for the wearer. The back support  50  lends itself to construction from a variety of materials, such as, e.g., molded foam and synthetic materials like nylon fabric work well for the back support  50 . The back support edging  52  may also be constructed from a variety of materials, and nylon works well for the back support edging  52 . Likewise, the loops  54  lend themselves to construction from a variety of materials as well, including synthetic materials like polypropylene. 
         [0018]    In  FIG. 4  of the drawings, the belt portion  20  is sewn to the front support  60  with stitching  66 , which front support  60  is circumscribed by front support edging  62  and sewn together with stitching  67 . The front support  60  lends itself to construction from a variety of materials, and synthetic materials like nylon fabric work well for the front support  60 . The front support edging  62  may also be constructed from a variety of materials, such as nylon.  FIG. 4  also shows another view of the receptacle support member  40  as it may be attached to the belt portion  20  with rivets  42 . 
         [0019]    As shown in  FIG. 5 , the harvest bucket  70  comprises generally a receptacle portion  76  with an open top and an open bottom, which receptacle portion  76  may be connected to receptacle support straps  72  at the top edge of the receptacle portion  76 . The harvest bucket  70  further comprises generally a closeable chute  78 , which surrounds the bottom portion of the receptacle portion  76 . The harvest bucket  70  further comprises generally a hook  74 , which connects to a back side of the receptacle portion  76 . The harvester support belt  10  connects to the receptacle portion  76  by attaching the hook  74  onto the top of the receptacle support member  40 . The receptacle portion  76  lends itself to construction from a variety of materials, such as plastics, metals, canvas, etc. The closeable chute  78  may have, e.g., a drawstring for closing and opening. The closeable chute  78  lends itself to construction from a variety of materials, such as canvas. The hook  74  may be made from a variety of rigid materials, such as metal, which is inexpensive and abundant. The receptacle support straps  72  may be two parallel straps, i.e., they don&#39;t need to be criss-crossed. The receptacle support straps  72  may be made from a variety of materials, including synthetic materials such as nylon fabric. 
         [0020]    In practice, a fruit harvest worker wears the harvest bucket  70  by placing his or her arms through the receptacle support straps  72 , with the receptacle support straps  72  hanging from the worker&#39;s shoulders, and the receptacle portion  76  hanging by the receptacle support straps  72  in front of the worker. The worker wraps the harvester support belt  10  around his or her hips, with the back support  50  positioned at the worker&#39;s back, and with the front support  60  positioned in front of the worker. The worker then attaches the two ends of the fastener  30  to secure the harvester support belt  10 . To adjust the tightness of the support belt  10 , the worker pulls the excess belt portion  12  until the support belt  10  is the desired tightness. The worker engages the hook  74  with the receptacle support member  40  on the front of the front portion  60 . With the hook  74  engaged with the receptacle support member  40 , the system is ready for the worker to begin placing fruit into the receptacle portion  76 . Thereby, the harvest bucket  70  is latched onto the harvester support belt  10 , and the weight of the harvest bucket  70  as it is filled is then transferred away from the receptacle support straps  72  to the harvester support belt  10 . As the weight of the harvest bucket  70  increases from the accumulation of fruit, the weight is redistributed to the hips of the worker away from the worker&#39;s back. When the bucket  70  is full, the chute is opened and the contents of the bucket  70  are emptied from the bucket  70 . It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.