Patent Application
20200352291
The present disclosure relates to an umbrella with a pet waste bag disperser, and more particularly to a pet waste bag dispenser deployed in a handle of an umbrella.
It is known in the art to modify conventional umbrellas for various purposes. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,835 discloses a folding umbrella having a water collecting handle and a sheath such that water on a rain dampened umbrella drips into the water collecting handle. In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 8,297,295 is directed to a multi-fold umbrella combined with a writing implement or cosmetic case such that the umbrella can be stored in its own handle. U.S. Pat. No. 5,441,064 is also directed to a combination of an umbrella and a rain cover storage system and discloses an umbrella having pockets for storing leggings. U.S. Pat. No. 7,581,555 is directed to an umbrella with a compartment adapted to hold a planar sheet of material for covering an individual's back. Most recently, U.S. Pat. No. 9,655,415 is directed to a rain protection system with an umbrella and a stored rain gear.
Pet owners often have to walk dogs in a park. It is good manners and often required by law to clean up dog waste after the dogs, which is often much trouble, particularly on a rainy day since the pet owners may also be carrying an umbrella.
Thus, there is a need for an apparatus or device allowing us to carry pet waste bags with an umbrella and dispense them with ease even on a rainy day.
In one aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an umbrella including a canopy mounted to a post, a handle at a lower end of the post, and a bag module having a plurality of bags. The handle includes a first end attached to the post and a second end having a cap member which is a removably attachable on an open bottom of the second end. The handle further defines a cavity therein and an opening formed on a side of the handle. The plurality of bags are in a rolled-up configuration and positionable within the cavity. Each bag of the bag module is accessible through the opening when the bag module is positioned within the cavity.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a bag dispensing system deployed with an umbrella. The bag dispensing system includes a container, an opening forded on a side of the handle for exposing a portion of the container to outside and dispensing each of a plurality of bags, and a cap member. The container is provided in a hollow cavity of a handle of the umbrella for storing a bag module having the plurality of bags. The cap member is removably attachable on an open bottom end of the handle.
In still other aspect of the present disclosure, there is a bag module storing in a casing. The bag module includes a plurality of bags in a rolled-up configuration and positionable within a hollow cavity of a umbrella handle.
In some embodiments, the cap member includes a supporting member provided along with an axial direction of the cap member, and a structure of the supporting member is adapted to mate with a corresponding structure of the bag module to support and hold the bag module.
In some embodiments, the supporting member protrudes from an inner surface of a bottom end of a base of the cap member toward an open top end of the base.
In some embodiments, the umbrella further includes the bag module. The bag module has a ring post with a hollow cavity, and a portion of the protrusion of the supporting member is coupled to the hollow cavity of the ring post of the bag module.
In some embodiments, the bag module is stored in a casing made of a tearable material.
In some embodiments, the handle further includes: a cover configured to be closed or open by a user to prevent the opening of the handle from being exposed, upon the cover being closed.
In some embodiments, the plurality of bags comprise one or more pet waste bags.
In some embodiments, the supporting member has a sectional shape selected from a group consisting of: a circular shape, a cross shape and a quadrilateral shape.
In some embodiments, the base includes a thread formed along a perimeter of a surface of the base to be adapted to mate with a corresponding thread formed on a surface of the cavity of the handle.
In some embodiments, the casing is made of a thin polymeric plastic material.
In some embodiments, the casing is made of a transparent material.
The figures depict embodiments for purposes of illustration only. One skilled in the art will readily recognize from the following description that alternative embodiments of the structures illustrated herein may be employed without departing from the principles described herein, wherein:
The following description and drawings are illustrative and are not to be construed as limiting. Numerous specific details are described to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosure. However, in certain instances, well known or conventional details are not described in order to avoid obscuring the description.
Reference in this specification to “one embodiment,” “some embodiments” or the like means that a particular feature, structure, characteristic, advantage or benefit described in connection with the embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of the disclosure, but may not be exhibited by other embodiments. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Similarly, various requirements are described which may be requirements for some embodiments but not for other embodiments. The specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than a restrictive sense. Various modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope as set forth in the claims.
The term “bag(s)” used herein may refer to any type of bags which are disposable such as plastic bags, dog waste bags, or the like. Similarly, the term “bag module” used herein may refer to a roll of such bag(s), as defined above. Optionally, the bag module may further contain a casing (e.g., casing) for housing the bag(s).
Referring now to
More particularly, the umbrella 1 can be for example, any type of typically used umbrella such as a traditional umbrella (i.e., a stick umbrella optionally with a telescopic shaft or post), pop-up or collapsible folding umbrella such as those which may fit into a handbag or carry case. The umbrella 1 includes an openable canopy 10 mounted to a post 50 (see
The hollow handle 20 may alternatively have an oval or polygonal cross section. The handle 20 can be fabricated from any material suitable for the use described herein such as, for example a rigid plastic material.
Referring now to
Referring further to
In some embodiments, the dog waste bag module 30 may optionally be stored in a casing 35 before the bag module 30 is inserted into the hollow inner cavity 28, such that the dog waste bag module 30 can be secured without being unrolling. The casing 35 may be of a generally tubular (e.g., circular) configuration with one or both ends open. Prior to the bag module 30 being inserted into the hollow inner cavity 28, the casing 35 may be removed. In one aspect, the casing 35 may be fabricated from a tearable thin polymeric plastic material to make it easier to be removed from the bag module 30. In another aspect, the casing 35 may be fabricated from a transparent material to allow a user to visualize the bags contained therein and may also include indicia on a surface thereof such as a logo, text and the like.
Referring further to
Referring now to
In some embodiments, the cap member 21a may be configured to include: a base 211a having a preferably cylindrical shape with a closed bottom end and an open top end; and a supporting member 212a formed on the bottom end (e.g., preferably at a center thereof) of the base 211a. The base 211a may further have a thread (or rim) 222a formed along the perimeter of an inner (or outer) surface of the base to be adapted to mate with a corresponding thread 422 formed on an outer (or inner) surface of the hollow inner cavity 28 of the handle 20, so that the cap member 21a can be coupled to the handle 20 of the umbrella 1a.
The supporting member 212a is provided along with an axial direction of the cap member 21a and is adapted to mate with a corresponding structure at the center of the bag module 30 so as to support or hold the bag module 30, thus preventing it from loosening or moving around.
In some embodiments, the supporting member 212a may be formed to protrude from the base 211a toward the handle 20 when the bag module 30 has a hollow cavity 303 at a center thereof, so that the protruding portion of the supporting member 212a is inserted into the hollow cavity 303 of the bag module 30. The hollow cavity 303 may be an inner cavity of a cylindrical ring post, and the plurality of dog waste bags 301 may be rolled around the post 302, as illustrated in
In some embodiments, the length of the supporting member 212a in a z-axis direction may sufficiently be long to secure supporting or holding the bag module 30. The longest diameter of the supporting member 212a on a x-y plane may be smaller than or approximate to a diameter of the cylindrical post 302 to ensure that the coupling of the bag module 30 to the supporting member 212a is so tight that a dog waste bag is not pulled out well.
Although it is illustrated in
In use, the cap member 21a may be uncapped to open the hollow inner cavity 28 of the handle 20, and the bag module 30 may be inserted into the hollow inner cavity 28. Prior to inserting the bag module 30 into the hollow inner cavity 28, the bottom end of the bag module 30 may be coupled to the supporting member 212a of the cap member 21a to ensure that the bag module 30 is securely mounted on the cap member 21a.
The dog waste bags and/or the casing 35 may be disposable so that each can be discarded after use. For example, a user may replace the dog waste bag module 30 by inserting a new refill module into the hollow inner cavity 28.
Referring now to
It will be understood that various modifications can be made to the embodiments of the present disclosure herein without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Therefore, the above description should not be construed as limiting the disclosure, but merely as embodiments thereof. Those skilled in the art will envision other modifications within the scope and spirit of the invention as defined by the claims appended hereto.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US2018/051410 | 9/18/2018 | WO | 00 |
