Cover forming apparatus with downward pivoting forming members

Abstract

The present invention is directed to an apparatus and method for covering a flower pot with a sheet of material. The apparatus includes a supporting platform, a pot receiving opening formed through the supporting platform and a plurality of forming members radially arranged around the pot receiving opening. The plurality of forming members are designed and disposed such that upon insertion of the flower pot and the sheet of material into the pot receiving opening the forming members pivot in a downward direction and form the sheet of material around an outer peripheral surface of the flower pot. The forming members are also upwardly biased so as to assist in ejecting the covered flower pot in an upward direction from the pot receiving opening.

What is claimed:  
     
         1 . A cover forming apparatus for forming a decorative cover about a flower pot, the cover forming apparatus comprising: 
 a support platform for supporting a sheet of material over a pot receiving opening formed through the support platform; and    a plurality of forming members arranged around the pot receiving opening, the forming members being downwardly pivoting and upwardly biased such that the forming members cooperate to form the sheet of material about an outer peripheral surface of the flower pot so as to form a decorative cover about the flower pot upon disposing the sheet of material on the support platform over the pot receiving opening and placing the flower pot on the sheet of material and disposing the flower pot and the sheet of material into the pot receiving opening and such that the forming members assist in removing the flower pot having the decorative cover formed about the flower pot from the pot receiving opening.    
     
     
         2 . The apparatus of  claim 1  further including a housing for supporting the support platform.  
     
     
         3 . The apparatus of  claim 2  whenever the housing further includes a material holding chamber for storing a roll of material.  
     
     
         4 . The apparatus of  claim 3  further including a roll of material disposed within the material holding chamber of the housing.  
     
     
         5 . The apparatus of  claim 3  wherein the roll of material has an axle disposed through a passageway in the roll of material and the roll of material is rolling supported by the axial and the housing.  
     
     
         6 . The apparatus of  claim 1  wherein the forming members include a roller provided on a pivoting member of the forming member for rollingly pressing the sheet of material against the outer peripheral surface of the flower pot.  
     
     
         7 . The apparatus of  claim 4  wherein the roll of material includes a detaching element for assisting in separating material from the roll of material to produce the sheet of material.  
     
     
         8 . The apparatus of  claim 3  further comprising a cutting assembly for separating material from the roll of material to produce the sheet of material.  
     
     
         9 . The apparatus of  claim 8  wherein the cutting assembly comprises a slidable cutting edge that slides across the sheet of material dispensed off the roll of material thereby cutting the material, thereby providing a sheet of material from the roll of material.