ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 10 -- United States Patent no. 12,291,873, issued on May 6, was assigned to Vermont Slate & Copper Services Inc. (Morrisville, Vt.).
"Snowguard" was invented by Brian Cecil Stearns (Tucson, Ariz.), Kris Michaud (Morristown, Vt.) and Crystal Fletcher (Morristown, Vt.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A snowguard comprises a shaft, an attachment point, a support member, and a snow catcher. The shaft has a first end and a second end. The shaft has a first body disposed between the first end and the second end. The attachment point is disposed at the first end of the shaft. The support member has a third end and a fourth end. The support member has a second body defined between...