Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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FOLDABLE TENT
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a tent, more particularly
to a foldable tent.
2. Description of the Related Art
Tents are generally used in outdoor activities for
protection against rain and the sun. A conventional tent
usually comprises a supporting frame unit, a tent cover
covering on the supporting frame unit, and a plurality
of fastening ropes for securing the tent cover on the
supporting frame unit. When assembling the conventional
tent, the supporting frame unit has to be erected first.
Then, the tent cover is placed on the supporting frame
unit. Finally, the fastening ropes are applied
individually to secure the tent cover on the supporting
frame unit. After use, the fastening ropes and the tent
cover have to be removed from the supporting frame unit,
and the supporting frame unit has to be disassembled,
so as to facilitate storage and transport of the
conventional tent. However, the assembling and
disassembling processes are relatively time-consuming
and inconvenient.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, the object of the present invention is
to provide a foldable tent that is relatively easy to
fold and unfold.
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Accordingly, a foldable tent of the present invention
comprises a frame unit, a driven mechanism, and a driving
mechanism. The frame unit includes a first upright post,
a second upright post spaced apart from the first upright
post, and a connecting rod extending in a first
horizontal direction and rotatably interconnecting top
ends of the first and second upright posts. The driven
mechanism includes first and second movable seats, a
pair of elongate, flexible connecting components, a pair
of supporting units, and a pair of tent covers. The first
and second movable seats are disposed on and movable
along the first and second upright posts, respectively.
Each of the connecting components interconnects a
respective one of the first and second movable seats
and the connecting rod of the frame unit. The supporting
units are spaced apart from each other in a second
horizontal direction transverse to the first horizontal
direction. Each of the supporting units includes a first
side rod that has a pivot end connected pivotally to
the first movable seat and a connecting end opposite
to the pivot end of the first side rod, a second side
rod that is parallel to the first side rod and that has
a pivot end connected pivotally to the second movable
seat and a connecting end opposite to the pivot end of
the second side rod, and a linking rod that is parallel
to the connecting rod of the frame unit and that
interconnects the connecting ends of the first and second
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side rods. The tent covers are disposed on the frame
unit. Each of the tent covers has a first securing portion
that is connected fixedly to the connecting rod of the
frame unit, and a second securing portion that is
connected fixedly to the linking rod of a respective
one of the supporting units. The driven mechanism is
convertible between an unfolded state, where the first
and second movable seats are proximate to the connecting
rod of the frame unit and where the connecting ends of
the first and second side rods of the supporting units
are far away from the connecting rod of the frame unit
so as to unwind the tent covers, and a folded state,
where the first and second movable seats are distal from
the connecting rod of the frame unit and where the
connecting ends of the first and second side rods are
adjacent to the connecting rod of the frame unit so as
to wind the tent covers on the connecting rod of the
frame unit. The driving mechanism is mounted on the frame
unit for driving the connecting rod of the frame unit
to rotate, thereby resulting in conversion of the driven
mechanism between the unfolded and folded states.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Other features and advantages of the present
invention will become apparent in the following detailed
description of the preferred embodiment with reference
to the accompanying drawings, of which:
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment
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of a foldable tent according to the invention;
Fig. 2 is a side view of the preferred embodiment,
illustrating a driven mechanism in an unfolded state;
Fig. 3 is another side view of the preferred
embodiment, illustrating the driven mechanism in a
folded state;
Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view of the
preferred embodiment, illustrating a driving mechanism
thereof;
Fig. 5 is a fragmentary perspective view of the
preferred embodiment; and
Fig. 6 is a fragmentary side view of the preferred
embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
As shown in Figures 1 to 4, the preferred embodiment
of a foldable tent according to the present invention
comprises a frame unit 1, a driven mechanism 2, and a
driving mechanism 3.
The frame unit 1 includes a first upright post 11,
a second upright post 12 that is spaced apart from the
first upright post 11, a connecting rod 15 that extends
in a first horizontal direction (Xl) and that rotatably
interconnects top ends of the first and second upright
posts 11, 12, a pair of bottom rods 13 that are connected
respectively to bottom ends of the first and second
upright posts 11, 12 and that extend in a second
horizontal direction (X2) transverse to the first
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horizontal direction (Xl) , and a pair of extending rods
14 that are connected respectively to bottom ends of
the first and second upright posts 11, 12 and that extend
in the first horizontal direction (Xl). In this
5 embodiment, each of the first and second upright posts
11, 12 includes a hollow post body 111 that has a
rectangular cross-section and that defines a receiving
space 110 therein. The connecting rod 15 has opposite
rod ends 155 (only one is visible in Figure 4) connected
rotatably and respectively to the top ends of the first
and second upright posts 11, 12, and a main rod portion
151 disposed between the first and second upright posts
11, 12. Each of the rod ends 155 extends rotatably into
the receiving space 110 in a respective one of the first
and second upright posts 11, 12. The connecting rod 15
further has a pair of engaging portions 152, each of
which is disposed between the main rod portion 151 and
a respective one of the rod ends 155, and is disposed
proximate to the respective one of the rod ends 155.
As best shown in Figure 4, each of the engaging portions
152 includes a pair of outward flanges 153 that are spaced
apart from each other in the first horizontal direction
(Xl), and that cooperatively define an annular groove
154 therebetween.
With further reference to Figure 5, the driven
mechanism 2 includes first and second movable seats 21,
20, a pair of elongate, flexible connecting components
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22, a pair of supporting units 23, and a pair of tent
covers 24.
The first and second movable seats 21, 20 are disposed
on and movable along the first and second upright posts
11, 12 of the frame unit 1, respectively. The first
movable seat 21 has a sleeve portion 211 sleeved movably
on the first upright post 11, and a pair of pivot lug
portions 212 projecting respectively from opposite
sides of the sleeve portion 211 in the second horizontal
direction (X2) . Similarly, the second movable seat 20
has a sleeve portion 201 sleeved movably on the second
upright post 12, and a pair of pivot lug portions 202
projecting respectively from opposite sides of the
sleeve portion 201 in the second horizontal direction
(X2).
Each of the connecting components 22 interconnects
a respective one of the first and second movable seats
21, 20 and the connecting rod 15 of the frame unit. In
this embodiment, each of the connecting components 22
is a wire rope, and has a first section 221 that is
connected to the respective one of the first and second
movable seats 21, 20, and a second section 222 that is
retained in the annular groove 154 in a respective one
of the engaging portions 152 of the connecting rod 15
of the frame unit 1.
The supporting units 23 are connected pivotally and
respectively to opposite sides of the frame unit 1 and
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are spaced apart from each other in the second horizontal
direction (X2) . Each of the supporting units 23 includes
a first side rod 231 having a pivot end 233 that is
connected pivotally to a respective one of the pivot
lug portions 212 of the first movable seat 21, and a
connecting end 234 that is opposite to the pivot end
233, a second side rod 230 parallel to the first side
rod 231 and having a pivot end 235 that is connected
pivotally to a respective one of the pivot lug portions
202 of the second movable seat 20, and a connecting end
236 that is opposite to the pivot end 235, and a linking
rod 232 parallel to the connecting rod 15 of the frame
unit 1 and interconnecting the connecting ends 234, 236
of the first and second side rods 231, 230. As such,
the pivot lug portions 212 of the first movable seat
21 are connected pivotally and respectively to the pivot
ends 233 of the first side rods 231 of the supporting
units 23, and the pivot lug portions 202 of the second
movable seat 20 are connected pivotally and respectively
to the pivot ends 235 of the second side rods 230 of
the supporting units 23.
The tent covers 24 are disposed on the frame unit
1. In this embodiment, each of the tent covers 24 is
made of waterproof material, is in a form of a rectangular
sheet, and has a first securing portion 241 that is
connected fixedly to the connecting rod 15 of the frame
unit 1, and a second securing portion 242 that is
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connected fixedly to the linking rod 232 of a respective
one of the supporting units 23.
The driven mechanism 2 is convertible between an
unfolded state (see Figures 1 and 2) , where the first
and second movable seats 21, 20 are proximate to the
connecting rod 15 of the frame unit 1 and where the
connecting ends 234, 236 of the first and second side
rods 231, 230 of the supporting units 23 are far away
from the connecting rod 15 so as to unwind the tent covers
24, and a folded state (see Figures 5 and 6) , where the
first and second movable seats 21, 20 are distal from
the connecting rod 15 and where the connecting ends 234,
236 of the first and second side rods 231, 230 of the
supporting units 23 are adjacent to the connecting rod
15 so as to wind the tent covers 24 on the connecting
rod 15.
As best shown in Figure 4, the driving mechanism 3
is mounted on the frame unit 1 for driving the connecting
rod 15 of the frame unit 1 to rotate, thereby resulting
in conversion of the driven mechanism 2 between the
unfolded and folded states. The driving mechanism 3
includes a mounting seat 31 mounted on the post body
111 of the first upright post 11 of the frame unit 1,
a driving member 32 mounted on the mounting seat 31 and
extending rotatably into the receiving space 110 in the
first upright post 11, a transmission shaft 33 disposed
uprightly and rotatably in the receiving space 110, a
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first gear unit 34 connecting co-rotatably the driving
member 32 to a bottom end of the transmission shaft 33,
and a second gear unit 35 connecting co-rotatably a top
end of the transmission shaft 33 to a corresponding one
of the rod ends 155 of the connecting rod 15 of the frame
unit 1.
The driving member 32 has a driving section 321, a
connecting section 322, and a handle section 323. The
driving section 321 has a first end 3211 that extends
rotatably and horizontally into the receiving space 110
in the post body 111 of the first upright post 11 of
the frame unit 1, and that is connected to the first
gear unit 34, and a second end 3212 that is exposed from
the mounting seat 31. The connecting section 322 extends
uprightly from the second end 3212 of the driving section
321 and has a distal end 3221 that is opposite to the
driving section 321. The handle section 323 extends
horizontally from the distal end 3221 of the connecting
section 322 in a direction away from the driving section
321, and is operable for driving the driving member 32
to rotate.
The first gear unit 34 includes a first gear 341
connected fixedly to the driving member 32, and a second
gear 342 connected fixedly to the bottom end of the
transmission shaft 33 and meshing with the first gear
341. The second gear unit 35 includes a third gear 351
connected fixedly to the top end of the transmission
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shaft 33, and a fourth gear 352 connected fixedly to
the corresponding one of the rod ends 155 of the
connecting rod 15 of the frame unit 1. In this embodiment,
each of the first, second, third, and fourth gears 341,
5 342, 351, 352 is a bevel gear, the speed ratio of the
first gear 341 to the second gear 342 is 0.8, and the
speed ratio of the third gear 351 to the fourth gear
352 is 0.5, such that rotation of the driving member
32 will adequately drive the connecting rod 15 of the
10 frame unit 1 to rotate.
In use, referring to Figures 3, 4, and 6, when the
handle section 323 of the driving member 32 of the driving
mechanism 3 is operated to rotate clockwise, the driving
member 32 is rotated clockwise along with the handle
section 323, thereby driving the connecting rod 15 of
the frame rod 1 to rotate in a first rotating direction
41 via engagement between the transmission shaft 33 and
the first and second gear units 34, 35 of the driving
mechanism 3. During the rotation of the connecting rod
15, the connecting components 22 of the driven mechanism
2 are wound and respectively on the engaging portions
152 of the connecting rod 15, such that the first and
second movable seats 21, 20 of the driven mechanism 2
are drawn to move upwardly and respectively along the
first and second upright posts 11, 12 of the frame unit
1. As the first and second movable seats 21, 20 move,
the pivot ends 233, 235 of the first and second side
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rods 231, 230 of the supporting units 23 of the driven
mechanism 2 move uprightly and respectively along with
the first and second movable seats 21, 20 so as to drive
the supporting units 23 to pivot relative to the first
and second movable seats 21, 20 while the linking rods
232 are moved away from the connecting rod 15. Finally,
the first and second side rods 231, 230 of the supporting
units 23 are pivoted to positions transverse to the first
and second upright posts 11, 12, thereby changing the
driven mechanism 2 to the unfolded state. At this time,
the tent covers 24 are unwound due to the rotation of
the connecting rod 15 and the pivoting movement of the
supporting units 23.
After use, the handle section 323 of the driving
member 32 of the driving mechanism 3 is rotated
counterclockwise to drive the connecting rod 15 to rotate
in a second rotating direction 42 (see Figure 2) opposite
to the first rotating direction 41, such that the
connecting components 22 of the driven mechanism 2 are
unwound respectively from the engaging portions 152 of
the connecting rod 15, thereby allowing the first and
second movable seats 21, 20 to move downwardly. The
downward movement of the first and second movable seats
21, 20 then causes the supporting units 23 to pivot
reversely while the linking rods 232 are pivoted to
positions adjacent to the connecting rod 15, thereby
converting the driven mechanism 2 to the folded state.
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Simultaneously, the tent covers 24 are wound on the
connecting rod 15 due to rotation of the connecting rod
15 and the pivoting movement of the supporting units
23.
To sum up, the foldable tent of this invention can
be unfolded and folded by simply rotating the driving
member 32 of the driving mechanism 3 without
disassembling the frame unit 1 and the tent covers 24.
Therefore, the foldable tent of this invention is easier
and more convenient to use than the aforementioned prior
art.
It should be noted that, while the driving mechanism
3 is exemplified to be actuated manually, an electric
driving mechanism may be employed in other embodiments
of this invention.
While the present invention has been described in
connection with what is considered the most practical
and preferred embodiment, it is understood that this
invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment
but is intended to cover various arrangements included
within the spirit and scope of the broadest
interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications
and equivalent arrangements.
