A twist lock mechanism for easily achieving a secure locking relationship between an outer member and an inner member is provided for use on an umbrella with a ball-joint based for adaptive orientation, and a spike receiving base or anchoring base mechanism.

Disclosed is an electrically folding and unfolding multi-fold umbrella, which includes a handle, a pull cord, and an intermediate shaft, the handle is defined at one end of the intermediate shaft, an upper nest and a lower nest are defined at two sides of the intermediate shaft respectively, and the lower nest is adjacent to the handle, a motor, a first gear, and at least one pulley are all located in the upper nest, the first gear is coaxial with one pulley, a side of the motor defines a lead screw, an axis of the pulley is connected to an inner surface of the upper nest, a fixed pulley is defined at a side of an inner surface of the lower nest, one end of the pull cord is fixed in the end of the intermediate shaft, the other end of the pull cord is fixed on the upper nest.

A shade canopy tensioning assembly for keeping the fabric of a shade canopy (which includes umbrellas and other shade structures) taut, allowing the shade canopy to maintain its intended appearance, better withstand the elements, and ensure adequate shade provision. The assembly has distinct adjustment assemblies, coupled with at least one length manipulating rod and at least one threaded adjustment nut. These components can work together to tighten or loosen the fabric of a shade canopy when the fabric is attached to the assembly. Also, these components can be seamlessly integrated into shade canopy designs, allowing such designs to maintain their intended aesthetics. Further, these components allow the assembly to be easily adjusted, allowing the fabric of a shade canopy to be tightened or loosened with ease.

A shade canopy tensioning assembly for keeping the fabric of a shade canopy (which includes umbrellas and other shade structures) taut, allowing the shade canopy to maintain its intended appearance, better withstand the elements, and ensure adequate shade provision. The assembly has distinct adjustment assemblies, coupled with at least one length manipulating rod and at least one threaded adjustment nut. These components can work together to tighten or loosen the fabric of a shade canopy when the fabric is attached to the assembly. Also, these components can be seamlessly integrated into shade canopy designs, allowing such designs to maintain their intended aesthetics. Further, these components allow the assembly to be easily adjusted, allowing the fabric of a shade canopy to be tightened or loosened with ease.

An umbrella and a method for controlling the same are provided. The umbrella comprises a canopy; a support assembly configured to support the canopy; a driving mechanism configured to drive the support assembly; a photographing assembly configured to take a photograph of user's head(s) and output the photograph of user's head(s); and a control assembly configured to acquire a user information according to outputted photograph of user's head(s), and to process the user information to generate an adjustment signal, and to control the driving mechanism according to the adjustment signal, so as to adjust a coverage of the canopy.

An umbrella and a method for controlling the same are provided. The umbrella comprises a canopy; a support assembly configured to support the canopy; a driving mechanism configured to drive the support assembly; a photographing assembly configured to take a photograph of user's head(s) and output the photograph of user's head(s); and a control assembly configured to acquire a user information according to outputted photograph of user's head(s), and to process the user information to generate an adjustment signal, and to control the driving mechanism according to the adjustment signal, so as to adjust a coverage of the canopy.

An extendable umbrella is described herein which has a shaft, where the outside of the shaft serves as a guide for an umbrella runner which allows for the opening and closing of a canopy and the inside of the shaft contains multiple lockable adjustable height telescoping tubes that can be extended from the shaft and all the way to the ground if desired to provide support to the umbrella while it is being held by a person in a standing position.

An extendable umbrella is described herein which has a shaft, where the outside of the shaft serves as a guide for an umbrella runner which allows for the opening and closing of a canopy and the inside of the shaft contains multiple lockable adjustable height telescoping tubes that can be extended from the shaft and all the way to the ground if desired to provide support to the umbrella while it is being held by a person in a standing position.

Some umbrellas include a support assembly, canopy assembly, and a toroidal air bladder. The support assembly includes a pump and a handle. The canopy assembly includes a plurality of support ribs attached to the handle, and a sheet attached to each of the support ribs. The toroidal air bladder is coupled to the air pump, and the air bladder disposed about the handle and engages the support ribs.

Some umbrellas include a support assembly, canopy assembly, and a toroidal air bladder. The support assembly includes a pump and a handle. The canopy assembly includes a plurality of support ribs attached to the handle, and a sheet attached to each of the support ribs. The toroidal air bladder is coupled to the air pump, and the air bladder disposed about the handle and engages the support ribs.