ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 8 -- United States Patent no. 12,727,697, issued on Sept. 8, was assigned to POLYGROUP MACAU Ltd. (BVI).

"Self-deploying tree system" was invented by Victor Hugo Ocegueda Gallaga (Tijuana, Mexico), Bailin Liang (Shenzhen, China) and Jason Loomis (Decatur, Ga.).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "Apparatuses and methods for a self-deploying tree are disclosed. In an exemplary embodiment, a self-deploying tree system comprises a top tree assembly, a main tree assembly, and a base. The lower end of the top tree assembly may be coupled to the upper end of the main tree assembly, and the lower end of the main tree assembly may be coupled to the base, providing a vertical orientati...