Supporting structure for uprights

0001The present invention relates to supporting structures for uprights.

0002The term "upright" is herein used to designate in general any element having the configuration of a rod or bar (whether hollow or full) with a cross section of various shapes (circular, polygonal, mixtilinear, etc.), designed to be used in a position that is prevalently erect: it may, for example, be a supporting shaft for a beach-umbrella or sunshade, a pole or upright for supporting a net for sports such as volleyball or beach volley or else for supporting the basket in basketball, etc.

0003To install and maintain said uprights in an erect or substantially erect position, for example on balconies, terraces, or beaches, it is known practice to use supporting bases of various kinds (as an alternative to the solution, which is not always practicable, of driving the upright into the ground). For example, it is known practice to resort to stone or cement blocks provided with a hole for insertion of the upright or to hollow bodies made of moulded material (for example, plastic), which are provided with a hole for insertion of the upright and can be ballasted for example by being filled with sand, gravel, water, etc.

0004The main functional drawback linked to the use of said known solutions is represented by the weight (which often renders displacement of the supporting structure inconvenient when it is not in use) and/or by the overall dimensions (which can be somewhat troublesome both in the case where the structure is left in place after the upright has been removed and in the case where it is desirable to stow it away somewhere). In any case, the weight and/or overall dimensions render transportation of the structure inconvenient.

0005To overcome this drawback in some cases (for example for supporting sunshades in market areas) recourse is had to collapsible structures provided with legs. The chief drawback of these structures is, however, represented by the fact that, if they are of small dimensions, they exert an insufficient supporting action, whereas, if they are made with dimensions sufficient to ensure a proper supporting action, they end up having legs of considerable length, such as to render difficult or, at the very least inconvenient, use of or access to the area surrounding the base of the upright.

0006The purpose of the present invention is to provide an improved solution which will enable the drawbacks linked to known solutions to be overcome. The purpose of the present invention is hence to provide a supporting structure for uprights which can be readily displaced and/or set in conditions of reduced encumbrance. Added to this is the capability of providing a really effective supporting action without this involving excessive dimensions.

0007The above advantages are particularly appreciated in the case of supporting structures for uprights used for example in sports facilities, such as facilities for beach games. For example, in the case of beach volley, in order to support the net adequately, it is necessary to provide two uprights, each of which has a base of its own, in the case where it is desirable to have available equipment that can be readily assembled and disassembled and that is easy to transport.

0008According to the present invention, said purpose is achieved thanks to a structure having the characteristics referred to specifically in the claims that follow.

0009The present invention hence enables a supporting structure for uprights to be provided which can be readily displaced and/or set in conditions of reduced encumbrance. At the same time, the solution according to the invention is able to provide an effective supporting action, without this involving excessive dimensions.

0010The above applies in particular to its application in sports facilities, such as facilities for beach games. For example, in the case of beach volley, one or two structures according to the invention, which are able to support one or both of the side uprights of the net, can be readily inserted in a kit comprising other accessories (such as the net, one or more balls, etc.), it being possible for the kit to be contained in a small rigid case, having for example the shape of a small suitcase, which facilitates transportation and storage thereof.

0011Possibly, even the case itself can serve as supporting base for one of the uprights, the case being provided for this purpose with a hole for insertion of the upright, said case being able to receive within it an amount of ballast such as gravel, sand, water, etc. In this case, the two side uprights that support the net are designed to be supported one by the case and the other by a structure according to the invention, which is originally contained inside the case and is then opened out and filled with ballast.

0012Otherwise, the two side uprights that support the net are both supported by structures according to the invention, which are originally contained in the case and are then opened out and filled with ballast.

0013The invention will now be described, purely by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the annexed plate of drawings, in which: <ul id="ul0001" list-style="dash" compact="compact"><li>Figure 1 is a general view of a structure according to the invention;</li><li>Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of the structure according to the invention;</li><li>Figure 3 is a view in vertical cross section of a structure according to the invention in its condition of use; and</li><li>Figure 4 illustrates the structure according to the invention in the typical condition where it is not in use, i.e., in the condition in which it can be stored away.</li></ul>

0014The structure according to the invention, designated as a whole by the reference number 1, is designed to be used for supporting, in a vertical or substantially vertical position, an upright M.

0015In the sequel of the present description, reference will be made to an upright M constituted, for example, by a tubular upright made of a light metal material or of plastic, which can be used for example as upright for supporting at one of its ends a net for volleyball or beach volley.

0016In any case, as has already been said in the introductory part of the present description, the solution according to the invention can be used for uprights of any type, nature, structure, and function.

0017The structure according to the invention is basically made up of two parts, namely, a base 2 and a bag 3, which can be filled with material functioning as ballast.

0018The base 2 essentially consists of a plate having a generally plane shape and made, for example, of moulded plastic material.

0019In the exemplary embodiment illustrated herein, the base 2 is generally disk-shaped, i.e., circular, and has a diameter of, for instance, about 30 cm.

0020The above indications are, of course, given purely by way of example.

0021Provided that the conformation of the base 2 is as a whole flattened so as to enable the latter to rest firmly on the ground S, said base 2 may be of any shape and size.

0022Just to provide some examples (without, of course, exhausting the range of possibilities), the base 2 can have a general square, polygonal, or mixtilinear configuration (for example, a general cross-shaped or lobed configuration).

0023Also as regards the dimensions, the value given previously is purely indicative, the dimensions usually being commensurate with the application envisaged. Evidently, as the size of the base 2 increases, also the performance of the structure in terms of stability of the upright M increases accordingly. The specific applications will hence suggest to the person skilled in the branch an ideal compromise between the requirement of providing a stable structure and the requirement of containing the overall dimensions thereof within reasonable limits.

0024The reference number 4 designates an attachment formation provided, usually in a central or substantially central position with respect to the base 2, for enabling it to be coupled to the upright M and in particular to the bottom end thereof.

0025In the exemplary embodiment illustrated herein, which, it is emphasized, is merely an example, the attachment formation 4 is made in the form of a sort of tenon provided on the outside with axial ribbings so as to enable penetration with a certain degree of interference in the bottom end, which is hollow, of the upright M.

0026Of course, the example illustrated above is just one of the possibilities - which are practically infinite - for providing the desired coupling. Just to cite some examples of possible alternatives (and of course without any intention of exhausting in any way the range of the possible solutions), the formation 4 may have the shape of a cylindrical collar, inserted in which is the bottom end of the upright M, or else may comprise a prismatic structure, which can be connected in a relationship of shape fit to the bottom end of the upright M. Without any loss of effectiveness in the function pursued, the person skilled in the branch will hence be able to devise, also according to the specific requirements of use, quite a high number of equivalent solutions.

0027The bag part 3 is made, in the example of embodiment illustrated, of a structure of laminar plastic material (for example polyethylene).

0028The bag can thus be kept in a "deflated" condition, in which the bag 3 is in practice a sheet which can be folded and rolled up, as illustrated schematically in Figure 2.

0029The aim of the above solution is to enable ease of transportation and/or storage together with the base 2, for example inside the case referred to in the introductory part of the present description.

0030The bag 3 can then be unrolled and unfolded, and hence brought into an extended position, in order to enable it to be filled with an amount of ballast.

0031Also in this case, the choices are multiple.

0032From the practical standpoint, the currently preferred solution is to make the bag in such a way that it can be filled (in practice, "inflated") with water, or else filled with a "flowable" material, such as, typically, sand, using two filler pipes 5, 6 of the type commonly provided in air mattresses, life-belts, inflatable balls, etc.

0033When the fillers 5, 6 are opened for filling the bag 3 with water or some other liquid, they are designed to carry out, respectively, the function of filler for introduction of the ballast liquid and the function of vent pipe.

0034Once the bag 3 is filled with ballast material (hereinafter, constant reference will be made to water, even though - it is once again emphasized - this is just one of the possible choices), the fillers 5 and 6 can be conveniently closed so as to prevent outflow of the water.

0035Given its specific weight, a fairly small amount of water will be sufficient to provide quite a large amount of ballast, without this entailing the need for bags 3 that become quite sizeable when they are completely filled.

0036In the exemplary embodiment illustrated, the bag 3 is made in such a way that, when it is opened out for filling, it assumes a shape that is as a whole pyramidal, with a side approximately 30 cm long and with approximately the same height.

0037Also the above measurements are evidently purely indicative.

0038Preferably, the bag 3 is traversed by a through cavity 7, which defines, when the bag 3 is unfolded, a vertical hole for passage of the upright M and which extends from the centre of the base to the vertex of the pyramid.

0039As illustrated in Figure 3, the upright M can thus be fitted into the cavity 7 (made in the bag 3 so as to preserve the characteristics of tightness of the bag itself) to be coupled to the formation 4 of the base 3.

0040In the above conditions of assembly of the structure, a series of advantageous effects are obtained simultaneously.

0041Thanks to its general flattened conformation, the base 2 can rest firmly on the ground S, at the same time keeping the bottom end of the upright M in a firm position of anchorage - without any risk of lateral slipping - on account of the coupling with the formation 4.

0042The bag 3 "presses" the base 2 against the ground S, on account of its weight, which can be considerable even for a bag 3 that is not particularly big.

0043The base 2 (and the upright M connected thereto) are hence withheld firmly against the ground, with the added advantage of benefiting from a general pendulum effect, which, when the upright M is displaced from its vertical position, causes the upright itself to be recalled to said position owing to the force of gravity exerted by the bag 3 on the base 2.

0044Furthermore, the bag 3, which surrounds with the cavity 7 the bottom end of the upright M, forms a sort of collar about said bottom end of the upright M, rendering fitting thereof to the base 2 even firmer.

0045The choice of a general pyramidal conformation for the bag 3 is evidently not imperative.

0046Normal technologies for moulding elastic materials in the form of sheets enable the bag to be made, for example, with a conical or parallelepipedal conformation, maintaining the possibility of envisaging the presence of the cavity 7, which does not need to have a circular cross section and can hence have a cross section suited to the cross section of the bottom end of the upright M. At the same time, the cavity 7, together with its wall, makes for a tight grip with the bottom and the side walls of the bag 3. This can thus be filled and kept filled with the ballast irrespective of the presence of the upright M.

0047The pyramidal shape illustrated (or a pyramidal shape with a number of different faces) is currently considered preferential, both on account of the effectiveness in the supporting action that can be achieved and on account of the possibility of applying, on the faces of the pyramid, decorative patterns or wordings.

0048Of course, the scope of the present invention also extends to models that enable the same utility to be achieved, applying the same innovative idea.