Patent Application
20150246738
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to emergency supplies and, more particularly, to a freestanding sack holder adapted to hold a sack or bag and enable it to be filled with material.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Every corner of the planet may be subjected to, or otherwise be affected by a natural disaster. Natural disasters, such as, including tornadoes, earthquakes, tropical cyclones, and floods, are well known for their capacity to cause damage, serious social disruption, and/or a loss of life.
Flooding is a relatively common natural disaster, and is typically caused by extensive precipitation. When flooding strikes an area, sandbags are typically used by the thousands to create an artificial barrier in effort to block or redirect water and prevent damage therefrom. These sandbags are often assembled at the site, with sand or other packing material provided and a plurality of bags provided in bulk, with the bags then being filled with the packing material sequentially. A problem which still exists, however, is that because the process of filling such bags typically requires the bags be stood or held upright with the mouth open, a second or third (or fourth) person to hold the bag open is often necessary in addition to the a person who is placing material in the bag. Thus, there remains a need for a freestanding sack holder which would eliminate the need for a second person to hold a sack while being filled with packing material. It would be helpful if such a freestanding sack holder included a plurality of clips to enable a sack to be releasably attached thereto. It would be additionally desirable for such a freestanding sack holder to be adjustable in height and horizontal orientation.
The Applicant's invention described herein provides for a sack holding apparatus adapted to releasably hold a sack open and in place, enabling it to be filled with packing material. The primary components of Applicant's freestanding sack holder are a modified funnel, a plurality of legs, and a plurality of clip assemblies. When in operation, the freestanding sack holder allows a user to erect a structure on demand to which a plurality of sacks can be sequentially attached, filled, and detached, to be subsequently deployed together as an artificial water barrier. As a result, many of the limitations present in the prior art are removed.
A freestanding sack holder for allowing a sack to be mounted and filled with sand or other packing material. The freestanding sack holder comprises is a hollow modified funnel disposed on three independently resizable telescoping legs. When assembled, the freestanding sack holder is adapted to hold a sack that is underneath and extends downward from the bottom of the modified funnel through a plurality of spring loaded clips, which thereby releasably attach the sack to the modified funnel. In this regard, the modified funnel provides a funnel means for directing sand into a sack and the telescoping legs collecting provide a holding means adapted to support the funnel means.
The modified funnel additionally includes a pair of strap knockouts. The strap knockouts provide an alternate assembly option for the modified funnel, enabling the modified funnel to be attached to and suspended between two steps of a ladder. In either scenario, the freestanding sack holder enables bags to be filled with only the efforts of one person—the person who is moving the sand or packing material.
It is an object of this invention to provide a freestanding sack holder which would eliminate the need for a second person to hold a sack while being filled with packing material.
It is another object of this invention to provide a freestanding sack holder having a plurality of clips to enable a sack to be releasably attached thereto.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a freestanding sack holder that is adjustable in height and horizontal orientation.
These and other objects will be apparent to one of skill in the art.
Referring now to the drawings and in particular
When assembled the freestanding sack holder 10 is adapted to hold a sack 13 that is underneath and extends downward from the bottom end 11a of the modified funnel 11a through a plurality of clip assemblies 14, which thereby attach the sack 13 to the modified funnel 11. In this regard, when a sack 13 is held in place by the freestanding sack holder 10, sand or other packing material which is dropped into the top end of the is funneled into the sack 13.
Referring now to
Each clip assembly 14 is defined by a spring loaded clip in the preferred embodiment. In an alternate embodiment, the clip assembly may be defined by an aperture in the surface of the modified funnel and an accompanying clip, defined in one embodiment as clip having two interlocking plastic or wooden prongs, in between which is wedged a small spring.
The instant invention has been shown and described herein in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art.
