The present invention relates to an ashtray and, more particularly, to an ashtray that can put out a cigarette after smoking.
There are still many smokers although it is well known that smoking is detrimental to health. Ashtrays can receive butts to keep the environment clean.
Although a temporarily placed burning cigarette can not be immediately put out, it is still helpful to reduce pollution to the environment and to reduce injury to human bodies if the burning cigarette can be put out immediately after smoking. An approach to put out the cigarette is water, but it is inconvenient. Another approach is to press the burning end of the cigarette with fingers with disadvantages of dirtying the fingers and unsatisfactory effect. Particularly, the cigarette may not be put out on the first try, and the fingers of the person putting out the cigarette may be injured on the second try.
An ashtray according to the preferred teachings of the present invention includes a peripheral wall and a bottom wall together defining a compartment. A sealing plate having a melting point below 200° C. is mounted to an inner periphery of the peripheral wall and separates the compartment into an open space and a sealed space. A burning cigarette can burn through the sealing plate such that a burning end of the cigarette can enter the sealed space that lacks oxygen. Thus, the cigarette can be put out immediately to avoid injury to the human body.
In the most preferred form, the inner periphery of the peripheral wall includes a ledge extending radially inward for supporting the sealing plate.
The present invention will become clearer in light of the following detailed description of illustrative embodiments of this invention described in connection with the drawings.
The illustrative embodiments may best be described by reference to the accompanying drawings where:
All figures are drawn for ease of explanation of the basic teachings of the present invention only; the extensions of the Figures with respect to number, position, relationship, and dimensions of the parts to form the preferred embodiment will be explained or will be within the skill of the art after the following teachings of the present invention have been read and understood. Further, the exact dimensions and dimensional proportions to conform to specific force, weight, strength, and similar requirements will likewise be within the skill of the art after the following teachings of the present invention have been read and understood.
An ashtray 3 of an example according to the preferred teachings of the present invention is shown in
The sealing plate 33 is mounted to the inner periphery of the peripheral wall 31 at a level in a range from one half (½) to one-third (⅓) of a height from a bottom to a top of the peripheral wall 31. The sealing plate 33 separates the compartment 32 into an open space 321 in communication with the environment and a sealed space 322 (
The peripheral wall 31 and the bottom wall 34 can be made of paper and foldable to allow easy carriage and disposal after use. However, the peripheral wall 31 and the bottom wall 34 can be made of plastic materials to reduce the costs while allowing disposal after use.
According to the preferred form shown, the inner periphery of the peripheral wall 31 includes a ledge 311 extending radially inward for supporting the sealing plate 33. It can be appreciated that the sealing plate 33 can be glued or bonded to the inner periphery of the peripheral wall 31 and/or the ledge 311. Nevertheless, the ashtray 1 can be integrally formed as a single continuous monolithic piece without the ledge 311. Namely, the ashtray 1 is formed with the sealing plate 33 as an integral part thereof.
The sealed space 322 has an oxygen concentration lower than that in the open space 321. Air can be pumped out of the sealed space 322 to reduce the oxygen concentration in the sealed space 322.
With reference to
Thus since the invention disclosed herein may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or general characteristics thereof, some of which forms have been indicated, the embodiments described herein are to be considered in all respects illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is to be indicated by the appended claims, rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are intended to be embraced therein.