ALEXANDRIA, Va., Feb. 12 -- United States Patent no. 12,221,799, issued on Feb. 11.
"Combination leash and umbrella holder device" was invented by Alan Horovitz (Cranston, R.I.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A device for anchoring an object to a ground surface includes a hollow tubular member having respective upper end and lower end; a spiral screw piece that is supported from the lower end and that extends away from the lower end of the hollow tubular member, the spiral screw piece being for engagement with the ground surface, the upper end of the hollow tubular piece having an opening for receiving the object, a rotatable center piece supported about the hollow tubular member and disposed ...