FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates to signs and banners, and more particularly to a banner wielded by hand.

BACKGROUND

Participants at sports events and other events attended by relatively large crowds frequently desire to display signs of identification with a sports team or other featured participant of the event. This may take the form of hand held banners bearing indicia such as mascots, logos, and team name abbreviations.

A hand held banner may be difficult to display to advantage, due to flaccidity of the constituent material. There remains room in the art for flexible banners which are conducive to being wielded and displayed to advantage.

SUMMARY

The disclosed concepts address the above stated situation by providing a hand-held banner particularly adapted to being waved and otherwise wielded at large gatherings. Notably, the banner, made from a flexible fabric, includes a rigid handle removable from the fabric, and an iUumination source.

It is an object to provide improved elements and arrangements thereof by apparatus for the purposes described which is inexpensive, dependable, and fully effective in accomplishing its intended purposes.

These and other objects will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various objects, features, and attendant advantages of the disclosed concepts will become more fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a banner, according to at least one aspect of the disclosure; and

Fig. 2 is a plan view of an illumination source entrapped within the banner of Fig.

1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring first to Fig. 1, according to at least one aspect of the disclosure, there is shown a banner 100 for displaying while cheering at an event venue (not shown). Banner 100 may comprise a flexible panel 102 bearing indicia 104 related to a partisan of an event taking place at the event venue. Flexible panel 102 includes an opening 106 and an illumination source which may be an integral part of an inclusion 108 integrated into flexible panel 102. A handle 110 is engageable with flexible panel 102 by penetrating opening 106 of flexible panel 102.

Flexible panel 102 is polygonal and includes corners 112, 114, 116, 118 between adjacent sides. Opening 106 is proximate one of the corners (e.g., corner 112) of flexible panel 102.

The inclusion 108 may comprise a wafer of synthetic material serving both as structural support for the illurnination source and associated electrical components, and also as a weight enabling a person to swing banner 100 by shaft 122 while causing fabric panel 102 to be spread flat due to inertial or centrifugal forces enhanced by weight or mass of inclusion 108. To the latter end, inclusion 108 is located at an upper corner 114 of fabric panel 102 other than first upper corner 112. The synthetic material of the wafer may be silicone rubber for example, of thickness and mass sufficient to cause fabric panel 102 to spread when banner 100 is swung.

Flexible panel 102 may include a compartment 120, and the illumination source may be contained within compartment 120. Compartment 120 may be stitched closed. The illumination source may be permanently retained within compartment 120.

Compartment 120 may be at a corner (e.g., corner 114) of flexible panel 102 other than that including opening 106 of flexible panel 102.

Handle 110 may comprise a shaft 122 terminating in an enlarged head 124, and a washer 126 slidably engaging shaft 122 by friction such that washer 126 can be slid over shaft 122 after shaft 122 has been passed through opening 106 of flexible panel 102, thereby entrapping flexible panel 102 between enlarged head 124 and washer 126.

Flexible panel 102 may be fabricated from a woven fabric. Hole 106 of flexible panel 102 may comprise a reinforced border. The reinforced border may comprise a metal or plastic eyelet 128, may comprise stitching (not shown), or may take any other suitable form.

Referring also to Fig.2, the illumination source may be a unitary device combining a battery 130, a light emitting element 132, and a switch 134 controlling light emitting element 132. Switch 134 may protrude from a housing of the illumination source, and be operable by pressure from squeezing. Light emitting element 132 may comprise a light emitting diode.

The illumination source may include a controller 136 controlling timing of light emitting element 132 after switch 134 has been operated. Controller 136 may comprise a microprocessor causing light emitting element 132 to flash or to remain on constantly after switch 134 has been operated, and to extinguish light emitting element 132 when switch 134 is operated a subsequent time.

In use, with handle 110 fully inserted through hole 106, and with washer 126 clamping flexible panel 102 against head 124, the user may grasp handle 110 and swing fabric panel 102 in circles or in any other desired trajectory. The illumination source may be activated by squeezing compartment 120 between two fingers, with one finger against switch 134. Switch 134 may be sensed by feel through fabric forming compartment 120.

It should be noted that mass of the iUumination source is sufficient to cause flexible panel 102 to spread away from handle 110 by centrifugal and other inertial forces when the user swings flexible panel 102 via handle 110.

Some venues forbid light sources such as the illumination source. It is still desirable to wave a banner while cheering at an event venue. The banner 100 may therefore omit the the iUumination source and substitute therefor a weight integrated into flexible panel 102 proximate second upper corner 114 of flexible panel 102. The weight may comprise a wafer of synthetic material similar to that used as a structural support for the illumination source.

Banner 100 may be provided by the manufacturer or by a retailer with a bag for storage. The bag may be for example a fabric bag having a hem and drawstring (these items are not shown).

Indicia 104 may be made in a color matching a color representative of a sports team or other participant in the event. The storage bag may also be made in a color representative of the sports team or other participant

It is to be understood that the present disclosure is not to be limited to the specific examples presented and that modifications and other examples are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, although the foregoing description and the associated drawings describe examples of the present disclosure in the context of certain illustrative combinations of elements and/or functions, it should be appreciated that different combinations of elements and/or functions may be provided by alternative implementations without departing from the scope of the appended claims.