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Obscure Patent of the Week
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Pet umbrella and combined pet leash
and umbrella
US Patent No. 6,871,616 [ HTML
] [ PDF ]
Issued October 28, 2003 |
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Before I start getting to deep, allow me to point out that I am a
animal lover and dog person. That being said, I think this takes
things just a little bit too far. Dog lovers always spoil their pets.
In my home our dog - Daisy - has become something of a "treat
snob," now only liking certain treats and not others. What a
life?!?! Anyway, I digress. A dog to a dog person is much more than a
pet I suppose, but a personal umbrella for the dog? Now I think that
goes just a little too far, or perhaps just farther than I am willing
to personally go.
Let's face it, umbrellas are a pain in the neck in and of themselves.
Even a small gust of wind can wreak havoc upon an umbrella.
Furthermore, this dog umbrella is connected to a leash assembly.
Maybe there are dogs out there that could pull off walking calmly
below an umbrella, but every dog I have ever had pulls on the leash
and is just excited to be outside walking. Call me crazy, but I can't
imagine that would be good for a dog-umbrella-leash-assembly.
Presumably, if the dog walker is concerned enough to provide Rover
with protection from the rain then the dog walker will also seek
protection themselves, which means that we have added a second
umbrella to the equation! Myself, I am willing to get wet sometimes
just to not have to deal with an umbrella, so I am afraid that Daisy
will just need to cope!
In any event, for those interested in the details of this particular
patent, the Background of the Invention nicely explains what
the present invention relates to and the problem that is attempting
to be solved. As you read what is below you will notice that this is
not a first of its kind invention, but an improvement upon other dog
umbrellas of the past. The Background reads:
The present invention relates to an umbrella for a pet, such as a
dog, and particularly relates to a combined pet leash and umbrella
which in an open position of the umbrella canopy overlies the pet to
protect the pet from inclement weather conditions while also serving
as a leash for the pet in both umbrella canopy opened and closed positions.
While umbrellas have been conventionally provided individuals to
protect them from inclement weather conditions, animals likewise
require protection from inclement conditions, e.g. when they are
being walked. Obviously the protection afforded by the protective
envelope or spread of a conventional umbrella useful to protect
individuals from inclement weather conditions is insufficient to
protect the pet from such conditions. The pet obviously would walk
beyond the envelope of protection afforded by the individual's umbrella.
Umbrellas for pets are per se not new and a number of umbrella type
devices have been adapted to protect pets from inclement weather
conditions. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,546,970 and 5,918,611
disclose umbrellas for pets which are secured to conventional pet
harnesses and the pet collars. These umbrellas are independent of any
leash for the pet whereby the individual may retain control of the
pet. Also the movement of the pet relative to the harness, collar
and/or umbrella as can be discerned from those patents may cause the
umbrella to be skewed from its intended protective position overlying
the pet to a partially unprotecting position. See also U.S. design
patents D324,117; D324,943; and D325,296. It will be appreciated
therefore that there is a need for an umbrella to protect a pet from
inclement weather conditions and which umbrella is under control of
the individual walking the pet as well as enabling the pet to be
under control of the individual via the umbrella and a leash in both
umbrella opened and closed positions.
To see other obscure patents go to the Museum
of Obscure Patents
See also:
Crazy
Patents - For the USPTO to issue a patent, the invention
must be novel, non-obvious, and "useful." The standard for
usefulness is certainly the weakest of the three -- any possible
utility, no matter how small, will suffice. And, useful does not
necessarily mean commercially viable. In other words, you can get a
patent on some crazy things that will never make it to the shelves of
your local store.
Patently Silly -
The Humor of Invention - presented by Daniel Wright. Daniel is a New
York City based stand up comedian. He has performed at Stand Up NY,
the Boston Comedy Club, Ha!, and Gotham Comedy Club. An engineering
major in college, he now prefers to make fun of them.
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