ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 31 -- United States Patent no. 12,590,462, issued on March 31.
"Convertible shade system" was invented by Joseph Batten (Sims, N.C.), William Jenkins (Sims, N.C.), Randy Jenkins (Lucama, N.C.) and Alan Ray Howard (Wilson, N.C.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "The invention is a portable sunshade used in conjunction with and supported by a vehicle or other object (e.g., tree) to produce shade. The shade system includes a protective bag that houses a canopy that can be extended to provide shade from the sun. The system also includes a plurality of collapsible poles that cooperate to form frames that support the canopy during use. The bag can be releasably attached to a vehi...