Patent ID: 7665477

Claim:
An outdoor umbrella that closes automatically when acted upon by high winds, said umbrella comprising: (a) a canopy, a canopy support including a fixed collar and pivotally attached primary ribs in cooperation with secondary ribs each secondary rib being pivotally attached at one end to a primary rib and at the other end to a slidable sleeve disposed beneath the collar, a pulley situated above the slidable sleeve, a rotatable horizontal shaft having a first end and a second end situated below the slidable sleeve, a flexible cable a first end of which is affixed to the horizontal shaft and the second end extending upward over the pulley and being affixed to the slidable sleeve, a crank assembly in cooperation with the second end of the horizontal shaft and a support base for supporting the umbrella on a horizontal surface; (b) a main tubular support post divided into two segments, an upper first segment in communication with a lower second segment, each segment having an upper end, a midpoint, and a lower end, the fixed collar being affixed to the upper end of the first segment, the slidable sleeve receiving said first segment and being slidable thereon, the pulley being mounted within said first segment between the collar and the slidable sleeve, an opening in a wall of said first segment adjacent said pulley such that the second end of the flexible cable exits the first segment through said opening to reach said slidable sleeve and said horizontal shaft being rotatably mounted at substantially the midpoint of the first segment and extending outward through opposing walls thereof, said two segments enabling the assembly and maintenance of the contained structures; (c) an expansile member for the exertion of constant pressure on a secondary rib to close the canopy in response to the high winds and for preventing the canopy from reopening in the high winds; (d) a first support assembly supporting one end of the horizontal shaft including means for restricting the free rotation of the horizontal shaft until the umbrella is acted upon by the high winds, and a second support assembly supporting the opposing end of the horizontal shaft and permitting smooth rotation of the horizontal shaft when the umbrella closes in response to the high winds; (e) means for preventing the crank assembly from rotating as the horizontal shaft rotates when the umbrella is acted upon by the high winds; (f) a trigger assembly in communication with the restricting means to release the restricting means when the umbrella is acted upon by the high winds permitting the horizontal shaft to rotate freely; and (g) a reset system to automatically reset the trigger assembly as the umbrella closes in response to the high winds.