Obscure Patent: The Beerbrella
Posted: Thursday, Apr 10, 2008 @ 12:15 pm | Written by Gene Quinn | 1 Comment »|
Posted in: IPWatchdog.com Articles, Museum of Obscure Patents
Beerbrella
US Patent No. 6,637,447
Issued October 28, 2003
Here is a great invention, and one that is particularly appropriate to profile now that the heat of the summer has arrived. This device gets included here as an obscure patent because it is rather simple, something you don’t see every day, and completely ingenious. An umbrella for your beer! How awesome is this? If the price is right who wouldn’t buy this as a gag gift for their favorite beer drinker? It would seem that this invention would have to be in every Spencer Gift store across the country. Think of the possibilities with respect to the umbrella portion. Who could resist the opportunity to buy a beerbrella with the logo of your favorite sports team? This invention reminds us that frequently simple inventions, or inventions that make people smile or laugh, can be quite lucrative.
The US Constitution says that Congress can provide for the issuance of patents to further the progress of science and the useful arts. That is the goal, but there is no requirement that every invention be a scientific breakthrough. Almost anything that is useful can be patented in the US, and what is more useful than keeping the sun off your beer on a hot summer afternoon?
