Patent Application
20230322143
The present disclosure relates to a cupholder liner. More particularly, and not by way of limitation, the present disclosure is directed to an inexpensive, easily manufactured, disposable cupholder liner for absorbing spilled liquids and protecting the surface of a cupholder.
This background section is intended to provide a discussion of related aspects of the art that could be helpful to understanding the embodiments discussed in this disclosure. It is not intended that anything contained herein be an admission of what is or is not prior art, and accordingly, this section should be considered in that light.
Cupholders are ubiquitous devices designed to securely maintain cups or other forms of drink-containing vessels. Cupholders can be integrated into furniture, such as couches located in homes and seats located at entertainment venues. Cupholders are also commonly found dispersed throughout a vehicle, such as in the center console and/or along the interior doors. By virtue of the fact that cupholders are frequently utilized for securing liquid-filled vessels in moving vehicles or furniture subject to inadvertent movement, spillage is inevitable. Spilled beverages create sticky messes in the bottom of the cupholder that are often difficult to clean. Additionally, condensation on the exterior of the liquid-filled vessels can pool in the cupholder.
This summary provides a discussion of aspects of certain embodiments of the invention. It is not intended to limit the claimed invention or any of the terms in the claims. The summary provides some aspects but there are aspects and embodiments of the invention that are not discussed here.
A first embodiment of the present disclosure concerns a cupholder liner that includes at least one absorbing body formed from an absorbent layer and a barrier layer. When the cupholder liner includes two absorbing bodies, the cupholder liner includes a first absorbing body connected to a second absorbing body by a narrow bridge.
A second embodiment of the present disclosure concerns a method of manufacturing a cupholder liner. Steps of the method include applying a barrier layer to form a layered sheet and partitioning the layered sheet into a plurality of the cup holder liners. In a non-limiting embodiment, each of the plurality of cup holder liners includes a first absorbing body connected to a second absorbing body by a narrow bridge.
The novel features believed characteristic of the disclosure are set forth in the appended claims. The disclosure itself, however, as well as a preferred mode of use, further objectives and advantages thereof, will be best understood by reference to the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
While the novel cupholder liner can be used in numerous applications, such as in cupholders integrated into couches, chairs, recliners, and tables, the discussion of the cupholder liner herein will be limited to vehicular applications for the sake of consistency. In view of the foregoing, one type of conventional cupholder liner is a disc-shaped insert sized the bottom surface of a cupholder. While disc-shaped inserts can protect the bottom surface of the cupholder, they are ineffective against containing messes resulting from spilled liquids because the liquids inevitably end up trapped between the cupholder and the insert. The subsequent cleaning process requires removal of the insert and cleaning of not only the insert, but also the cupholder.
Another type of conventional cupholder liner is a cup-shaped insert that is sized to precisely fit inside a cupholder. The cup-shaped insert can contain messes, obviating the need to clean the cupholder. However, the cleaning process of the cup-shaped insert generally involves manually scrubbing the insert in much the same way that the cupholder would have been cleaned, or washing the insert in a dishwasher, which is easier but more time consuming. Novel aspects of the present disclosure provide for an improved cupholder liner that is inexpensive, disposable, and universally applicable to most cupholders. The improved cupholder liner is designed to absorb spilled liquids to help contain the resultant mess while preventing the absorbed liquid from penetrating through the entirety of the liner and to the cupholder below. Thus, the improved cupholder liner eliminates the burdensome and/or time-consuming cleaning process associated with conventional cupholder liners.
A second layer of the plurality of layers is a barrier layer 104, which is configured to prevent moisture trapped within the absorbent layer 102 from contacting a supporting surface, like the interior surface of a cupholder. The barrier layer 104 can be formed primarily from rubber, plastic, waterproof fabrics, polyurethane laminate, thermoplastic polyurethane, waxed cotton, nylon, polyester, vinyl, pleather, composite materials or any water resistant and waterproof material known to one of ordinary skill in the art. In the illustrative embodiment featured in
The exemplary cupholder liner 100 depicted in
The exemplary cupholder liner 100 is generally formed from a first absorbing body 106 connected to a second absorbing body 108 by a narrow bridge 110 formed from a pair of opposing concavities 112 and 114. In addition, the first absorbing body 106 and the second absorbing body 108 are substantially circular. In some embodiments, the first absorbing body 106 and the second absorbing body 108 can include a pull tab extending outwardly to facilitate grasping and removal of the cupholder liner 100 from a cupholder. For example, cupholder liner 100 includes a first pull tab 116 extending outwardly from the first absorbing body 106 and a second pull tab 118 extending outwardly from the second absorbing body 108. In the depicted embodiment, the pull tabs 116 and 118 are generally rectangular but other shapes can be substituted.
In one embodiment, the first absorbing body 106 and the second absorbing body 108 are dimensioned so that each can be received into a cupholder so that at least some of the periphery of each of the first absorbing body 106 and second absorbing body 108 folds upwardly. As a result, the effective lateral dimension D of the cupholder can be reduced, which can help to secure a cup within the cupholder 500. For example, when the cupholder liner 100 is inserted into a cupholder 500, the second absorbing body 108 is shown with a folded region 120 that can reduce the effective lateral dimension D. Once fully inserted, the absorbent cupholder liner 100 can then be readjusted such that both the pull tabs 116, 118 are easily accessible. It is also important to note that the illustrative embodiment of the absorbent cupholder liner 100 featured in
In other embodiments, one or both of the absorbing bodies 106, 108 are sized to fit inside the receiving chambers 504, 506 such that the sides of the receiving chambers are engaged but the lateral dimension D is not reduced as there is no need for the cupholder liner 100 to fold along the fold region 120 due to the snug fit of the absorbing bodies 106, 108 in the bottom of the receiving chambers 504, 506. In yet another embodiment, one or both of the absorbing bodies 106, 108 are sized to fit inside the receiving chambers 504, 506 such that none of the sides of the receiving chambers 504, 506 are engaged due to the fact that the circumference of the absorbing bodies 106, 108 is smaller than the circumference of the bottom of the receiving chambers 504, 506.
The concavities 112 and 114 that define the bridge 110 are dimensioned to allow the cupholder liner 100 to line the connecting void space 502 between the pair of receiving chambers 504 and 506 in cupholder 500. In the depicted embodiment, the bridge 110 is divided into two equal parts by a perforation 128, which allows the first absorbing body 106 to be separated from the second absorbing body 108. The illustrative embodiment featured in
The separation of the cupholder liner 100 allows the cupholder liner 100 to be used in single chamber cupholders. Further, separation of the cupholder liner 100 along the perforation 128 results in the formation of two identically shaped pieces, each of which are bilaterally symmetrical. Because the pull tabs 116 and 118 are generally rectangular, the bridge 100 has a pair of opposing, parallel and linear edges 130 and 132, which result in the formation of pull tabs that are the same as pull tabs 116 and 118 upon separation along the perforation 128.
In some embodiments, the cupholder liner 100 can be scented so that the cupholder liner 100 can reduce messes from spilled liquids while also masking at least some of the unpleasant smells associated with vehicles, particularly older vehicles. In one embodiment, the cupholder liner 100 can include a scented layer on top of the absorbent layer 102, between the absorbent layer 102 and the barrier layer 104, or below the barrier layer. The scented layer can be formed from an absorbent material or from a non-absorbent material, like a plastic or polymeric substrate. In the event that scented layer is a non-absorbent material, the scented layer can include a plurality of apertures disposed throughout to permit liquids to pass through the scented layer. In this manner, application of the scented layer to the exposed surface of the absorbent layer 102 allows liquid to pass through the scented layer and to the absorbent layer 102 below. In another embodiment, the scent can be imparted to the cupholder liner 100 by application of a fragrant compound sprayed onto a surface or perimeter of the cupholder liner 100. With particular reference to
The bridge 110 is situated between the first absorbing body 106 and the second absorbing body 108, which places the bridge 110 roughly in the middle of the cupholder 500, lining the void space 132 between the pair of receiving chambers 504, 506. In the embodiment featured in
Flowchart 600 begins at step 602 by applying the barrier layer to the absorbent layer to form a layered sheet.
In a non-limiting embodiment, where the barrier layer is a rubber-based layer, applying the barrier layer includes the additional steps of applying the rubber layer to the absorbent layer. The rubber layer can be applied to the absorbent layer by spraying a liquid rubber solution onto the absorbent layer. The rubber layer can be optionally cured to form a vulcanized rubber layer. In one or more embodiments, the rubber layer can be cured by exposure to an external source of heat.
In another non-limiting embodiment, the barrier layer can be applied to the absorbent layer by comprises adhering the barrier layer to the absorbent layer. Adhering can be achieved by conventional adhesives.
In step 604, the layered sheet is partitioned into a plurality of the cupholder liners. In a first embodiment, the layered sheet is partitioned by cutting the layered sheet with a cutting wheel rolled onto the layered sheet. In a second embodiment, the layered sheet is partitioned by cutting the layered sheet with a press plate pressed onto the layered sheet.
In yet another non-limiting embodiment, the partitioning of the layers sheet step 604 can further comprise perforating each of the plurality of cupholder liners along the narrow bridge.
Flowchart 700 begins at step 702 by obtaining a roll of the absorbent layer. In step 704, at least a length of the absorbent cupholder liner is unrolled; and in step 706, the barrier layer is applied to the unrolled length of the absorbent layer.
The cupholder liner 100 in
The method of insertion illustrated in
While the method of insertion in
Positioned above a receiving chamber 1202 of the single chamber cupholder 1200, the first absorbent body 106 is ready to be inserted. Because the first absorbent body 104 is oversized, the edges can fold along the fold region 120 and travel up the sides of the single receiving chamber 1202, facilitating the orientation of the first pull tab 116 and third pull tab 1204 so that they are both pointed upward, away from the bottom of the single chamber cupholder 1202 to allow for easy access. Once fully inserted, the barrier layer 104 can be facing downward, while the absorbent layer 102 can be facing upward. If preferred or if circumstances require, the absorbent layer 102 can be placed adjacent to the bottom of the single receiving chamber 1202 and the barrier layer 104 can be facing upward and away. While the first absorbent body 106 in
Some embodiments of the absorbent cupholder liner may include printed or added self-promoting language on the barrier layer and/or the absorbent layer which can include information such as re-order information, web address, brand name, logo, phone number, discount offers or codes, or rebates, etc. In addition, some embodiments can include cosmetic designs, colors, patterns, images, etc. applied to or overtop of the absorption layer and/or the barrier layer to appeal esthetically to the consumer. In some instances, embodiments may be used to advertise for other companies by including printed or additional messages, logos, web addresses, phone numbers, colors, patterns, images, etc. to or overtop of the absorption layer and/or the barrier layer, but only when contracted directly with the legal operating entity and only under contract to be distributed exclusively to the said company for additional financial compensation purposes.
While this disclosure has been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The investors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventors intend the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically described herein. For example, in some embodiments, the cupholder liners can be formed as singular, generally disc-shaped absorbing body, with or without tabs, rather than the dual-absorbing body embodiments depicted in the figures above. Additionally, the number and configuration of the pull tabs can be modified as desired. Accordingly, this disclosure includes all modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in all possible variations thereof is encompassed by the disclosure unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.
While various embodiments in accordance with the principles disclosed herein have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not limitation. Thus, the breadth and scope of this disclosure should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments but should be defined only in accordance with any claims and their equivalents issuing from this disclosure. Furthermore, the above advantages and features are provided in described embodiments but shall not limit the application of such issued claims to processes and structures accomplishing any or all of the above advantages.
Additionally, the section headings herein are provided for consistency with the suggestions under 37 C.F.R. 1.77 or otherwise to provide organizational cues. These headings shall not limit or characterize the invention(s) set out in any claims that may issue from this disclosure. Specifically, and by way of example, although the headings refer to a “Technical Field,” the claims should not be limited by the language chosen under this heading to describe the so-called filed. Further, a description of a technology as background information is not to be construed as an admission that certain technology is prior art to any embodiments) in this disclosure. Neither is the “Brief Summary” to be considered as a characterization of the embodiments(s) set forth in issued claims. Furthermore, any reference in this disclosure to “invention” in the singular should not be used to argue that there is only a single point of novelty in this disclosure. Multiple embodiments may be set forth according to the limitations of the multiple claims issuing from this disclosure, and such claims accordingly define the embodiment(s), and their equivalents, that are protected thereby. In all instances, the scope of such claims shall be considered on their own merits in light of this disclosure but should not be constrained by the headings set forth herein.
