Anchorable Umbrella Pole Ground Insertion Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing umbrella anchoring solutions require additional weights, vessels, or stakes, which are inconvenient, limit design, and are not portable or easy to use, especially in challenging ground conditions.
Innovation Solution
A lightweight, portable anchorable umbrella apparatus that uses a tarp filled with materials like sand or dirt for anchoring, without the need for weights or stakes, featuring a cam lock mechanism and butterfly bolts for easy assembly and disassembly, allowing for unidirectional support and easy filling/emptying.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional anchoring devices use weights or vessels filled with water/sand, then anchoring stability is improved, but portability and ease of operation deteriorate due to the need to transport and fill heavy materials
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the anchoring function from traditional weights and vessels by using the ground surface itself as the anchoring medium. The umbrella pole is inserted directly into the ground, eliminating the need to transport and fill heavy materials while maintaining anchoring stability through direct ground engagement.
Solution Approach 2:
The umbrella pole serves multiple functions: it provides structural support for the umbrella canopy and simultaneously acts as an anchoring element by being inserted into the ground. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate weighting systems or anchoring devices.
2Reliability
If stakes or screws are used to anchor the umbrella, then anchoring stability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to difficulty in installation and removal, especially in rocky or sandy ground
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the need for separate anchoring devices like stakes or screws by integrating the anchoring function directly into the umbrella pole itself. The pole is designed to be inserted into the ground, eliminating the complexity of separate anchoring mechanisms and their installation difficulties.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of using protruding stakes or screws that penetrate the ground from above, the patent inverts the approach by having the umbrella pole itself penetrate the ground. This reversal simplifies the anchoring mechanism to a single, intuitive action of pushing the pole into the ground.
3Reliability
If a defined vessel is used to hold anchoring materials, then anchoring stability is improved, but device complexity and ease of operation worsen due to the need for filling and emptying operations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the anchoring function from a defined vessel structure entirely. Instead of using a container to hold anchoring materials, the system uses the ground surface directly, eliminating the vessel and all associated filling and emptying operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The ground surface serves as a self-service anchoring medium that requires no additional structures or materials. The umbrella pole directly engages with the ground, which naturally provides the anchoring function without requiring a vessel or additional components.
Data Source
AI summary
The anchorable umbrella apparatus has a pole having a first section slideably and removably fitted within the second section, a receiver with cam lock disposed atop the first section, an object fitted atop the first section, a pointed tip disposed downwardly on the second section, a visual guide disposed downwardly on the second section, a collar slideably fitted around the pole second section, a plurality of equally spaced apart butterfly bolts radialy and threadably inserted through the collar, a Y end disposed outwardly on each butterfly bolt, a tarp comprising a reinforcement disposed centrally within the tarp, an opening disposed within the reinforcement, and a plurality of spaced apart grommets disposed outwardly within the tarp, each grommet selectively engaged with one of each of the Y ends of one of each of the butterfly bolts.