Field of invention
[0001] The present invention relates to a device to be used for lowering an urn containing
cremated remains into a grave.
Background of the invention
[0002] Due to the depth of a normal urn grave, which is typically in the order of one meter,
manual placement of the urn in the grave without using any device for assisting the
lowering of the urn requires that the person placing the urn has to kneel down very
deeply or even lay flat on the ground in order to reach down far enough to place the
urn safely at the bottom of the grave. Such a lowering procedure would be considered
by most people to be most undignified and not befitting a solemn funeral ceremony.
[0003] Different types of devices have been developed in order to solve this problem. A
well-known solution is to use a large pair of tongs to hold the urn while lowering
it into the grave. However, handling the urn with such pair of tongs is related to
some insecurity due to the risk of losing the grip on the urn and dropping it either
on the ground or down into the open grave. Most people feel rather nervous using such
a device for lowering an urn. Especially if, for instance, a relative of the deceased
who has typically no experience with using such a pair of tongs, would like to perform
the lowering of the urn, a more secure solution would be desirable.
[0004] Canadian patent application No.
CA 2,069,121 discloses an urn lowering device including a platform to support the urn, which platform
is suspended in a horizontal direction from a ring in two loops of cord passing through
the ring. A second, retaining ring surrounds the cords above the urn and may slide
down the cords towards the urn to further assist in retaining the urn on the platform.
[0005] Some drawbacks of this device, however, are that the urn is only supported by the
cords when the platform is hanging down from the ring, and that there is no simple
way of decorating the urn, a possibility which would, in many cases, be appreciated
highly by the relatives of the deceased person in order to improve the solemnity of
the funeral ceremony.
[0006] It is an object of the present invention to provide an urn lowering device, which
overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages of the known devices within the art.
Brief description of the invention
[0007] The present invention relates to an urn lowering device for suspending and lowering
an urn, comprising at least one handle for holding the device when an urn is suspended
therein, a weaved mesh made for enclosing tightly an urn, a handle connection part
for each handle, connecting the weaved mesh to the handle, and a locking mechanism
for keeping the weaved mesh in a tight relation to the urn, even when the urn is not
suspended from the one or more handles of the device.
[0008] The present invention can also be used for transportation of an urn being suspended
in the device from the one or more handles. When the device is used for this purpose,
the shock-absorbing properties of the material, from which the weaved mesh is produced,
provides a certain protection of the urn suspended therein.
[0009] The possibility of keeping the weaved mesh in a tight relation to the urn, even when
the urn is not suspended from the handles of the urn lowering device, allows for placing
the urn in an upright position within the weaved mesh on a horizontal surface, such
as a table, for decorating the urn before the funeral, for instance by placing flowers
and the like between the weaved mesh and the outer surface on the sides of the urn.
[0010] By the expression "tight" is to be understood a relation between the weaved mesh
and the urn tight enough to keep flowers and/or other decorating items placed there
between in fixed positions, but not too tight to allow lifting up the strings of the
mesh and place the flowers there under, and not so tight that flowers placed under
the weaved mesh will be destroyed or damaged by the pressure.
[0011] In an embodiment of the invention, the locking mechanism is adaptable allowing the
same device to be used for accommodation of urns of different sizes and allowing for
adjustment of the tightness of the relation between the weaved mesh and the urn.
[0012] The use of an adaptable locking mechanism reduces the number of different types and
sizes of urn lowering devices needed to accommodate the different sizes and types
of urns available on the market. It should be noted that an urn lowering device according
to the present invention can also be used with urns containing the cremated remains
of pets.
[0013] In an embodiment of the invention, the urn lowering device comprises two handle connection
parts extending, when an urn is suspended in the device, upwards from opposite sides
of the urn towards their respective handles.
[0014] The use of two handles has shown to be advantageous in relation to the production
and user-friendliness of the invention.
[0015] In an embodiment of the invention, the locking mechanism holds and keeps the two
handle connection parts fixed together at a point above an urn placed in the weaved
mesh.
[0016] Fixing the two handle connection parts to each other at a point just above the urn
is an advantageous way to assure that the weaved mesh is kept in a tight relationship
with the urn.
[0017] In an embodiment of the invention, the locking mechanism consists of one or more
apertures in the handle connection parts, through which apertures the handle connection
parts can be interlaced with each other, so as to hold and keep the handle connection
parts fixed together in the point of interlacing.
[0018] Locking the two handle connection parts together by means of interlacing has shown
to be a simple and yet very effective solution, requiring no additional parts for
achieving the locking mechanism.
[0019] In an embodiment of the invention, both the weaved mesh and the handle connection
parts are made from a biologically degradable material.
[0020] In an embodiment of the invention, one or more strings used for the weaved mesh and
the handle connection parts are made from a paper material.
[0021] In an embodiment of the invention, all parts of the device are made from biologically
degradable materials, such as wood, bone, horn, mother-of-pearl or paper materials.
[0022] For environmental reasons, it is very advantageous to use only biologically degradable
materials for the urn lowering device, assuring that after a suitable time, no non-natural
foreign objects or remains are left in the grave. For the strings making up the weaved
mesh and the handle connection parts of the urn lowering device, it has shown to be
very advantageous to use a paper material, which is a highly processible and at the
same time biologically degradable and non-expensive material.
The drawings
[0023] In the following, a few embodiments of the invention are described and explained
in more detail with reference to the drawings, where
- fig. 1
- illustrates an urn suspended in an urn lowering device according to an embodiment
of the invention,
- fig. 2
- illustrates schematically how two handle connection parts may be locked to each other
according to an embodiment of the invention,
- fig. 3
- illustrates schematically a ring structure at the bottom of an urn lowering device
according to an embodiment of the invention,
- fig. 4
- illustrates a knot in the weaved mesh of an urn lowering device according to an embodiment
of the invention,
- fig. 5a
- illustrates one type of handles of an urn lowering device according to an embodiment
of the invention, and
- fig. 5b
- illustrates another type of handles of an urn lowering device according to an embodiment
of the invention.
Detailed description
[0024] Fig. 1 illustrates an urn 2 suspended in an urn lowering device 1 according to an
embodiment of the invention. The device 1 comprises two handles 4 and a weaved mesh
7 and two handle connection parts 5 connecting the handles 4 to the weaved mesh 7.
[0025] The two handle connection parts 5 are interlaced together in a point of interlacing
6 just above the lid 3 of the urn 2. The interlacing holds and keeps the two handle
connection parts 5 fixed together in the point of interlacing 6, thus assuring that
the weaved mesh 7 is kept in a tight relation to the urn 2, even when the urn 2 is
not suspended from the handles 4.
[0026] The pearls 9 integrated in the weaved mesh 7 serve two purposes. Apart from being
decorative, the pearls 9 also facilitate the decoration of the urn 2 in the device
1 by lifting the strings of the weaved mesh 7 from the surface of the urn 2, thus
enabling for the placement of flowers and other forms of decoration between the weaved
mesh 7 and the urn 2.
[0027] The thickness of the strings used for the handle connection parts 5 and the weaved
mesh 7 of urn lowering devices 1 according to the invention is selected depending
on the strength of the material from which the string is made, and on the aesthetic
expression and appearance of the device 1 desired by the designer.
[0028] The total length of urn lowering devices 1 according to the invention as measured
from the handle 4 to the bottom of an urn 7 suspended therein, preferably falls within
the range between 50 cm and 150 cm, most preferably between 80 cm and 120 cm.
[0029] The weaved mesh 7 can contain meshes of many different geometrical shapes, such as
circles, triangles and polygons with different number of sides. Like the string thickness,
the dimensions of the meshes in the weaved mesh 7 of an urn lowering device according
to the invention, when the weaved mesh 7 is mounted tightly around an urn 2, depends
on the aesthetic expression and appearance of the device 1 desired by the designer.
The maximum dimension of each of the meshes preferably is in the range between 5 mm
and 450 mm, most preferably between 10 mm and 150 mm.
[0030] Apart from the pearls 9 integrated in the weaved mesh 7 illustrated in fig. 1, the
urn lowering device 1 may further be decorated with charms of different kinds (not
shown). These charms may be formed as hearts, angels, crosses, doves, stars or other
suitable figures and may typically be attached to the device 1 be sewing or be being
clipped tightly around one or more strings of the weaved mesh 7.
[0031] Like the rest of the device 1, the charms will be made from biologically degradable
materials, such as wood, bone, horn, mother-of-pearl or paper materials. The strings
used for the handle connection parts 5 and the weaved mesh 6 are typically made from
a 100 % biologically degradable paper material.
[0032] Urn lowering devices 1 according to the invention can be made in different forms
and sizes in order to fit different sizes of round as well as square urns 2. The devices
1 may be designed to fit existing types of urns 2, or a device 1 and an urn 2 may
be designed together to fit each other and to be marketed and sold as a single unit
comprising the urn 2 as well as the urn lowering device 1.
[0033] Fig. 2 illustrates schematically how two handle connection parts 5 may be locked
to each other according to an embodiment of the invention. Both of the handle connection
parts 5 are provided with one or more apertures 10 placed in a sequence at the lower
part of the handle connection part 5. In order to keep the weaved mesh 7 in a tight
relation to the urn 2, the two handle connection parts 5 may be held and kept in a
fixed position relative to each other at a point of interlacing 6.
[0034] The interlacing is obtained by first pulling the one handle 4 and corresponding handle
connection part 5 through an aperture 10 of the other handle connection part 5, and
subsequently pulling the other handle 4 and the other handle connection part 5 through
the corresponding aperture 10 of the first handle connection part 5. When the two
handle connection parts 5 are tightened, they will be kept firmly together in the
point of interlacing 6.
[0035] The choice of which apertures 10 of the handle connection parts 5 to use for the
interlacing depends on the size of the urn 2 to be lowered by the device 1 and on
the desired tightness of the relation between the urn 2 and the weaved mesh 7 of the
device 1.
[0036] Fig. 3 illustrates schematically a ring structure 11 at the bottom of an urn lowering
device 1 according to an embodiment of the invention. The figure illustrates the bottom
of an urn 2, under which the weaved mesh 7 surrounding the urn 2 is assembled in a
ring shaped structure 11. In this way, it is assured that the thickness of the weaved
mesh 7 does not substantially exceed the thickness of the knots 8 of the weaved mesh
7. Thereby a substantially flat weaved mesh 7 is obtained under the urn 2, allowing
the urn 2 to rest safely and securely in an upright position when placed on a horizontal
surface within the weaved mesh 7.
[0037] Fig. 4 illustrates a knot 8 in the weaved mesh 7 of an urn lowering device 1 according
to an embodiment of the invention. The knots 8 may be made in many different ways.
Fig. 4 illustrates an example of a preferred way to make a knot 8, in which the strands
of each of the two strings are separated from each other in two groups, thus forming
an aperture in each of the strings. Subsequently, the knot 8 is made by interlacing
the two strings in a way similar to the interlacing of the two handle connection parts
5 described above, i.e. by first pulling the one string through the aperture of the
other string and then pulling the other string through the aperture of the first string.
[0038] Fig. 5a illustrates one type of handles 4 of an urn lowering device 1 according to
an embodiment of the invention. In the shown example, each of the two handles 4 consists
of a ring in a size and thickness suitable for giving the user of the device 1 a firm
and secure grip when suspending the urn 2 in the device 1. The attachments 12 of the
handles 4 to the handle connection parts 5 consist of a simple tying of the rings
4 to the handle connection parts.
[0039] Depending on the material from which the handle ring 4 is made, the internal diameter
and the thickness of the ring 4 is chosen to give a good and comfortable grip and
to ensure that the ring 4 is strong enough not to break, even when a large and heavy
urn 7 is dispended in the device 1.
[0040] Like the rest of the device 1, the handle rings 4 will be made from biologically
degradable materials, such as wood, bone, horn, mother-of-pearl or paper materials.
[0041] Fig. 5b illustrates another type of handles 4 of an urn lowering device 1 according
to an embodiment of the invention. In this case, the handles 4 are made from the same
paper material as the handle connection parts 5. Even further, the handles 4 are integrated
parts of the handle connection parts 5 being made from the same strings making up
the handle connection parts 5 and manufactured in the same process as the handle connection
parts 5.
List of reference numbers
[0042]
- 1.
- Urn lowering device
- 2.
- Urn
- 3.
- Urn lid
- 4.
- Handle
- 5.
- Handle connection part
- 6.
- Point of interlacing of handle connection parts
- 7.
- Weaved mesh
- 8.
- Knot in weaved mesh
- 9.
- Pearl integrated in weaved mesh
- 10.
- Aperture in handle connection part
- 11.
- Bottom ring structure of weaved mesh
- 12.
- Attachment of handle to handle connection part
1. An urn lowering device for suspending and lowering an urn, comprising at least one
handle for holding the device when an urn is suspended therein,
a weaved mesh made for enclosing tightly an urn,
a handle connection part for each handle, connecting the weaved mesh to the handle,
and
a locking mechanism for keeping the weaved mesh in a tight relation to the urn, even
when the urn is not suspended from the one or more handles of the device.
2. An urn lowering device according to claim 1, wherein the locking mechanism is adaptable
allowing the same device to be used for accommodation of urns of different sizes and
allowing for adjustment of the tightness of the relation between the weaved mesh and
the urn.
3. An urn lowering device according to claim 1 or 2, comprising two handle connection
parts extending, when an urn is suspended in the device, upwards from opposite sides
of the urn towards their respective handles.
4. An urn lowering device according claim 3, wherein the locking mechanism holds and
keeps the two handle connection parts fixed together at a point above an urn placed
in the weaved mesh.
5. An urn lowering device according to claim 4, wherein the locking mechanism consists
of one or more apertures in the handle connection parts, through which apertures the
handle connection parts can be interlaced with each other, so as to hold and keep
the handle connection parts fixed together in the point of interlacing.
6. An urn lowering device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein both the
weaved mesh and the handle connection parts are made from a biologically degradable
material.
7. An urn lowering device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein one or more
strings used for the weaved mesh and the handle connection parts are made from a paper
material.
8. An urn lowering device according to any of the preceding claims, wherein all parts
of the device are made from biologically degradable materials, such as wood, bone,
horn, mother-of-pearl or paper materials.