Patent Application
20180244464
The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present disclosure. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art nor material to the presently described or claimed inventions, nor that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
The present invention relates generally to the field of receptacles and more specifically relates to a receptacle for a beverage infusion pouch.
Tea bags and beverage pouches are well known in the art. A tea bag is a small, porous, sealed bag containing dried plant material, which is immersed in boiling water to make a hot drink. At restaurants and public catering establishments tea would be prepared by the customers themselves. The waiter serves the guest a cup of hot water into which the customer immerses the teabag to brew their tea. However, when the teabag is discarded and put aside, there appears a problem with its consequent placement.
The customer may only dispose of the tea bag if a trash can be nearby. Due to this, a customer may attempt to deal with the problem in another way, such as placing the tea bag on a saucer or in a bundle of tissue. However, there are problems with these approaches. If the tea bag containing water is placed onto a saucer, moisture accumulates in the recess of the saucer which then poses a risk of soiling clothing and tablecloths when the saucer is moved. If a tea bag is placed in tissue, the moisture seeps through the tissue and soils the table underneath. A further problem with these methods is that it ruins the aesthetic quality of the table. Thus, there is a need for an improved means of disposal of a beverage infusion pouch.
U.S. Publication No. 2005/0031738 to Christensen et al. relates to a tea bag package. The described tea bag package includes a triangular envelope having first and second opposite flaps connected to each other along first and second sides of the triangle but not along the third side and furthermore having a third flap connected at the third side to the first flap and via a folding line foldable between a first position in which the third side is open and a second position in which the third side is closed so that the three flaps together define a closed chamber. The tea bag package includes a tea bag disposed in the chamber and a string attached to a corner of this tea bag and running through a slit or eye in the point in which the two closed sides join each other.
In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known receptacle art, the present disclosure provides a novel beverage infusion pouch receptacle device. The general purpose of the present disclosure, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a beverage infusion pouch receptacle device useful for receiving and disposing a sodden beverage infusion pouch (such as a used tea bag).
A receptacle for a sodden beverage infusion pouch is disclosed herein. The receptacle for a sodden beverage infusion pouch may comprise a disposable sheet having a substantially flat surface with a mid-section and at least 3 corners. The disposable sheet may further include a pliability configured to constrict around and retain the sodden beverage infusion pouch in a closed position when the sodden beverage infusion pouch is seated about the mid-section of the flat surface. The receptacle may further comprise a disposable absorbent-barrier fixedly attached to the mid-section of the disposable sheet, the disposable absorbent-barrier may have an opening and an inner volume configured to receive the sodden beverage infusion pouch, and the absorbent-barrier may be structured to absorb a liquid from the sodden beverage infusion pouch.
According to another embodiment, the receptacle for a sodden tea bag may include a disposable sheet that may include a substantially flat surface having a mid-section and 4 corners, and a disposable absorbent-barrier fixedly attached to the mid-section of the disposable sheet. According to this embodiment, the receptacle may be structured and configured to store and dispose of the sodden tea bag, while absorbing leakage from the sodden tea bag. According to this embodiment, the disposable sheet and the disposable absorbent-barrier may comprise a heat-resistant material and a bio-degradable material and may include at least two layers and have a thickness configured to provide durability.
According to another embodiment, a method of using the receptacle for the sodden beverage infusion pouch is also disclosed. The method of using the receptacle for the sodden beverage infusion pouch may include holding the receptacle in an open-condition, placing the sodden beverage infusion pouch at the mid-section of the disposable sheet, folding the disposable sheet to constrict around and retain the sodden beverage infusion pouch and disposing of the receptacle containing the sodden beverage infusion pouch.
For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages, and novel features of the invention have been described herein. It is to be understood that not necessarily all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any one particular embodiment of the invention. Thus, the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other advantages as may be taught or suggested herein. The features of the invention which are believed to be novel are particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings and detailed description.
The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments and methods of use for the present disclosure, a beverage infusion pouch receptacle device and method, constructed and operative according to the teachings of the present disclosure.
The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like designations denote like elements.
As discussed above, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a receptacle and more particularly to a beverage infusion pouch receptacle device and method as used to improve the disposal of a beverage infusion pouch useful for receiving and disposing a sodden beverage infusion pouch (such as a used tea bag).
Generally, a receptacle for a used tea bag may allow for easier and cleaner disposal of the used tea bag. The receptacle may comprise a flat sheet and an absorbent barrier composed of a bio-degradable and heat-resistant material. The receptacle may retain the used tea bag after the tea bag is ready for disposal. The receptacle may store the tea bag temporarily on a table and prevent leakage from the tea bag seeping through to the table and soiling a tablecloth or clothing. The receptacle containing the used tea bag may then be disposed of.
Referring now more specifically to the drawings by numerals of reference, there is shown in
The receptacle 100 may further comprise a disposable absorbent-barrier 120 fixedly attached to the mid-section 114 of the disposable sheet 110, the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 having an opening 122 and an inner volume 124 configured to receive the sodden beverage infusion pouch 5, and the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 structured to absorb a liquid 15 from the sodden beverage infusion pouch 5. The sodden beverage infusion pouch 5 may be a tea bag 5. The receptacle may be structured and configured to store and dispose of the sodden beverage infusion pouch 5, while absorbing leakage from the sodden beverage infusion pouch 5.
The disposable sheet 110 may be configured to sit in the palm of the hand of the user 140 when the receptacle is in an open-position 130. In addition, the disposable sheet 110 may be greater in length than the disposable absorbent-barrier 120, and the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may cover no more than 40% of the flat surface 112 of the disposable sheet 110. Further, the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may sufficient absorbency to prevent leakage from the sodden tea bag 5 when the sodden tea bag 5 is seated within the inner volume 124 of the disposal 10 absorbent-barrier. For example, the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may have the ability to absorb up to 1 oz of liquid 15. In a further example, the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may absorb up to 50 times its mass. Additionally, the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may comprise a superabsorbent polymer.
The disposable sheet 110 may include at least two layers and formed to a thickness configured to provide durability. In addition, the disposable sheet 110 may comprise a bio-degradable material, a heat-resistant material, a paper material, or a cotton material. Similarly, the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may comprise a heat-resistant material and a bio-degradable material and include at least two layers. The disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may further have a thickness configured to provide durability. The disposable sheet 110 may be configured to sit in the palm of the hand of a user 140 when the receptacle 100 is in an open-position 130.
In one embodiment, the flat surface 112 of the disposable sheet 110 may have exactly four corners 116 and may comprise a square-shaped configuration or a generally rectangular-shaped configuration. The disposable sheet 110 may be greater in length than the disposable absorbent-barrier 120, and the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may cover no more than 40% of the flat surface 112 of the disposable sheet 110.
In one embodiment, the disposable sheet 110 may include a substantially flat surface 112 having a mid-section 114 and 4 corners 116. The disposable sheet 110 may further have a pliability configured to constrict around and retain the sodden tea bag when the sodden tea bag is seated about the mid-section 114 of the flat surface 112. The receptacle 100 may further comprise a disposable absorbent-barrier 120 fixedly attached to the mid-section 114 of the disposable sheet 110, the disposable absorbent-barrier 120 may have an opening 122 and an inner volume 124 configured to receive the sodden tea bag, and the absorbent-barrier 120 may be structured to absorb a liquid 15 from the sodden tea bag. The receptacle 100 may be structured and configured to store and dispose of the sodden tea bag, while absorbing leakage from the sodden tea bag.
The disposable sheet 110 may be configured to fold in on its self by manipulating the 4 corners 116 to meet at the mid-section 114 of the disposable sheet 110 when the sodden beverage infusion pouch 5 is seated about the mid-section 114 of the flat surface 112. The disposable sheet 110 may alternatively be rolled up to retain the sodden beverage infusion pouch 5 when the sodden beverage infusion pouch 5 is seated about the mid-section 114 of the flat surface 112.
It should be noted that step 505 is an optional step and may not be implemented in all cases. Optional steps of method of use 500 are illustrated using dotted lines in
The embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary and numerous modifications, variations and rearrangements can be readily envisioned to achieve substantially equivalent results, all of which are intended to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention. Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application.
