Patent Application
20190145617
This present invention relates to an illuminated novelty display for an item, such as a pumpkin.
Traditional novelty displays for decorating and/or lighting pumpkins (e.g., jack-o-lanterns) require human interaction with sharp, bladed instruments, a significant investment of time and energy, and can be quite messy as small shards and scraps of carved pumpkin accumulate throughout the process.
One known device, shown in U.S. Pat. No. 8,496,346 to Zinox, illuminates the inside of a pumpkin, gourd or the like, by introducing an electric lighting device, formed in the shape of a hat, into a cavity at the top of pumpkin that has been cut into a jack-o-lantern configuration. This technique requires a digging out of a large portion of the interior of the pumpkin to insert the lighting portion of the device, and any decoration is by the hat itself, and/or a traditional carving, with the disadvantages mentioned above.
In addition to the above-mentioned difficulties, while such a device provides a lighting feature to the pumpkin, it is very clear to a viewer that it is simply a hat-shaped lantern inserted into the top of the pumpkin. Thus, while the device provides lighting, it does not provide any mesmerizing effect; it simply appears as a device attached to the pumpkin.
The present invention is directed to a novelty display that provides the illusion of a levitating decoration position positioned above an illuminated top of a pumpkin.
In accordance with an aspect of the invention, a novelty display for use with a housing having a bottom, a top, a front face for viewing by a viewer of the display and a rear race opposite the front face, the housing having a light source arranged in relation to the housing so that light from the light source emanates through the top, includes: a support member having: an anchoring end configured to affix to the rear face of the housing along an anchor axis, the anchoring end being structured so as to limit rotation of the support about the anchor axis when the anchoring end is affixed to the housing; a display end to be illuminated by the light source through the top; and a middle section extending between the anchoring end and the display end, the middle section extending from the anchoring end away from the rear face of the housing to which the anchor is affixed and back toward the rear face of the housing, towards the display end at a location above the top, the support being configured so that a first portion of the middle section is obscured when viewing the display from the direction of the front face, and a second portion of the middle section that is not obscured by the housing or the display end is configured to minimize visibility of the second portion in the dark, to provide the illusion of the display end levitating above the open top of the housing.
In another aspect, the display end includes a support surface configured to support an object to be illuminated, the support surface arranged at a forward-most end of the support member, the support surface configured to receive the object to be illuminated; and the middle section includes: a first horizontal extension, extending, along the anchor axis, away from the location of the rear face of the housing at which the anchoring end is affixed, a first vertical extension extending upwardly in relation to the anchor axis from the first horizontal extension, and a second horizontal extension, extending horizontally from a top portion of the first vertical extension, towards the location above the top.
In another aspect, the first vertical extension extends upwardly from the second horizontal portion in the following order: a first oblique portion, a vertically oriented portion, and a second oblique portion.
In another aspect, the object to be illuminated is decorated with a holiday-themed indicia.
In another aspect, the support member comprises a spring portion, having sufficient rigidity to maintain an overall shape of the support member, and which is springingly flexible.
In another aspect, the support member is made of spring steel.
In another aspect, the housing comprises a pumpkin.
In another aspect, the anchoring end includes tines configured to affix to the rear face of the housing.
In another aspect, the anchoring end has a non-circular cross section.
In another aspect, the spring portion has a flat cross-sectional profile with a width greater than its height.
In another aspect, the support surface supports the object to be illuminated by adhesive attachment with the object.
In another aspect, the adhesive attachment uses hook and loop attachment.
In another aspect, the support surface supports the object to be illuminated with a clip attachment.
Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It is to be understood, however, that the drawings are designed solely for purposes of illustration and not as a definition of the limits of the invention, which is defined by the claims appended hereto. It should be further understood that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and that, unless otherwise indicated, they are merely intended to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described herein. In the drawings:
As will be discussed in detail below, the novelty display of the present invention permits a user to decorate a housing, such as a pumpkin/jack-o-lantern, and wherein the object to be illuminated is maintained in a position in relation the housing so that it appears, from a viewing direction, that the object is levitating unsupported above the housing, with the components of the novelty display not visible to the viewer, at least at night, or in a darkened enclosure such as a dark room. The object would typically be a cardboard cutout or plastic member, with a holiday-themed indicia, e.g., a decoration, such as a skull for Halloween.
As shown in
The housing has a top 12, which, in one embodiment, comprises a hole cut out at the stem portion of the pumpkin. The light source 20 illuminates light out through the top 12.
The housing 10 also includes a front face 14, facing in the direction of intended viewers, a rear face 16 opposite the front face 14, and a bottom 18.
To achieve the desired display effect, in the illustrated embodiments the object 2 is suspended above the cutout portion 12 such that the illumination light from the light source 20 illuminates the object 2. This is achieved by the use of the novelty display support 100 in accordance with the present invention, as will described in further detail below.
The support 100 includes a member 21, such as a bent or malleable wire, an anchoring end (“anchor”) 22 and a display end forming an object support 30, which itself has a support surface 32. While
The member 21 has a first horizontal extension 24, extending horizontally away from the anchor 22, that is, horizontally away from the portion of the housing 10 in which the anchor 22 is attached to the housing 10.
The member 21 has a vertical extension 26 that extends upwardly, either straight upwardly, with two diagonal sections 26a and 26c surrounding a strictly vertical section 26b, as shown in the exemplary figures, or in an arcuate fashion, such as a “C-shape” formation.
In the illustrated embodiment, the vertical extension 26 extends upwardly until it reaches a level approximately level with the height level at which the object is to be displayed, at which point the vertical extension 26 ends and the member 21 bends again to form a second horizontal extension 28. As can be seen from the figures, the second horizontal extension 28 extends in a forward horizontal direction, that is, in the direction of the intended viewer, until it meets, or becomes, the object support 30.
It is important that the second horizontal extension 28 extends such that when viewing the object from the front, i.e., the intended direction of the viewer, the extension 28 is hidden, i.e., obscured by, the object. It is also important that the member 21 be finished with a dark matte finish, so that even the vertical extension 26, which is not obscured by the object 2, is difficult to see from the front of the housing 10, particularly in the dark.
Once the anchor 22 is attached to the housing 10, and the object 2 is attached to the object support 30, the display is ready for use. Of course, the decoration forming the object to be illuminated can be integrally formed with the object support 30.
In the second embodiment, shown in
The same is true of the object support 30 and the second horizontal extension 28, which extension, if not integrally formed together with the object support 30, would have to mate, via soldering, welding, adhesive, or the like, with the object support 30 to produce the other end of the support 100, proximate the object 2.
Preferably, the object 2, when affixed to the object support 30, is positioned with a clearance above the top cutout 20, by virtue of the dimensions of the member 21. That is, the member is dimensioned and configured such that, when the anchor 22 is engaged in the housing 10, and the object support 30 is engaged with the object 2, the object 2 is positioned above the top 20 such that light from the light source 20 illuminates the object.
The member 21 is preferably made of a metal that is rigid enough to maintain its shape under quiescent conditions, but which is springy enough to slightly move up and down if tapped, or in reaction to a breeze, for example. Thus, the member should preferably be formed from spring steel or a similar metal. Alternatively, the member could be made of a plastic or other synthetic material that has the same characteristics described above.
The member 21 would typically be a relatively flat profiled wire, i.e., having a cross-sectional width greater than its height, although a wire of a different, for example oval or circular, cross section can be utilized as well if has sufficient stiffness.
By virtue of the embodiments discussed above, a mesmerizing and fun novelty display can be created that provides the illusion of a levitating, illuminated, face or other decoration above a housing, such as a jack-o-lantern.
Thus, while there have been shown and described and pointed out fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and details of the devices illustrated, and in their operation, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. For example, it is expressly intended that all combinations of those elements and/or method steps which perform substantially the same function in substantially the same way to achieve the same results are within the scope of the invention. Moreover, it should be recognized that structures and/or elements and/or method steps shown and/or described in connection with any disclosed form or embodiment of the invention may be incorporated in any other disclosed or described or suggested form or embodiment as a general matter of design choice.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62584567 | Nov 2017 | US | national |
This application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent application No. 62/584,567, filed Nov. 10, 2017, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
