The present invention generally relates to a holder for supporting a beverage container for receiving air from an automobile heating and cooling system and more particularly directed to a positionable beverage holder for enabling convenient positioning of the beverage holder with respect to and in front of an automobile dashboard vent for enabling optimal cooling and heating of a beverage container supported by the holder and supporting/holding a cell phone in a convenient location with the automobile.
Beverage holders for mounting on the dashboard or other positions within an automobile are generally well known.
For example, U.S. Patent No. Des. 226,623, 2,289,701, and 2,294,151 show a holder for a beverage container for use against a door panel or the like. U.S. Des. 338,138 discloses a container holder for securing to the dashboard vent of an automobile as do U.S. Des. 342,192 and U.S. Des. 342,869.
The various beverage holders developed have the common purpose of supporting a beverage container in a stationary position, preferably for receiving heating or cooling from the dashboard, while freeing both hands of the driver and passengers in order to not only to enable safe operation of the automobile, but minimizing the possibility of spillage during vehicle maneuvers. See for example U.S. Pat. No. 6,560,983 to Schimmeyer.
While these designs are useful for providing beverage container support, they do not optimize or facilitate positioning of the beverage holder in front of the dashboard air conditioning/heating vents in order to provide optimum heating and/or cooling of the beverage container supported by the holder.
Heretofore, designed holders required reattachment of the holder to the vent in order to reposition the holder in front of the vent. In this regard, optimum positioning may not be attainable because of discrete positioning of vent ribs that is necessary for coupling the beverage holder to the grill.
Other devices provide for permanently attaching supporting alms to the vent and means for adjusting the position of the beverage holder in front of the vent. However, each of these devices require positioning and coupling of the holder with attached arms in order to effect a proper position. Further, most of these devices enable only discrete positions against the grill, or vent, and this does not optimize the positioning of the holder in front of the dashboard vent.
The present invention provides for a holder for supporting a beverage container that provides for support a beverage container in a general vertical position against either vertically oriented grill vanes and horizontally oriented grill vanes.
A holder for supporting a beverage container against an automobile air conditioner/heater grill and also supporting a cell phone, generally includes a housing with a beverage container bottom holding base, an open top surrounding the beverage container sides, an open back and upstanding walls connecting the base of the open top.
The sidewalls include an open front for enabling passage of air therethrough and circulation of air around the container sides.
A plurality of adjustable pins protrude from the housing back and adjustment of the protrusion of the pins from the housing back enables abutment with non-vertical grills with the housing top in a generally horizontal plane and the beverage being held in a generally vertical orientation.
An elastic member interconnects the upstanding sidewalls and spans the open back and at least one grill engagement member is provided which has adjustable length portion. The member includes a grill hook at a distal end and an elastic band engagement fitting at a proximal end.
The adjustable length portion increases the compatibility of the holder in accordance with the present invention for various grill designs and further enables control over engagement pressure between the grill and the holder.
A plurality of grill engagement members may be provided, for example, two, and each of the engagement member fittings is slidably fixed to the elastic member for adjusting spacing between the engagement members along the elastic member. This structure further facilitates the compatibility of the holder in accordance with the present invention with grills of practically any size, shape, and orientation as will be hereinafter described in greater detail.
The adjustable length portion of the engagement member is provided by a threaded shaft and a threaded nut engaging the shaft at the fitting end of the member. Rotation of the nut causes adjustment of the length of the member portion.
An elongate nut engaging toot is provided for coupling with the nut and rotation thereof through the housing open face thus providing insitu adjustment of the member portion length and engagement force between the holder and the grill.
The tool also enables orientation of the hook for facilitating engagement with either a horizontal grill vane or a vertical grill vane.
A sidewall opening enables the detachable engagement of a cell phone.
The advantages and features of the present invention will be better understood by the following description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
With reference to
As will be hereinafter described in greater detail, a cell phone holder 24 may be detachably disposed on a holder housing 30 for cradling a cell phone 34 also at a position for convenient access by the driver 22.
An elastic member 38 surrounding the housing engages the grill 16 via grill engagement hooks 42.
As more clearly shown in
A plurality of protruding pins 64, 66, 68 extending from the housing back 48 enable abutment of the housing 12 with a non-vertical grill 16 by adjustment of protrusion of the pins 64, 66, 68 as illustrated in
The open back 48 and a front opening 72 enable passage of air through the housing 12 and encircling a beverage container 12 as illustrated by the arrows 76 in
Each of the pins 64, 66, 68 include threaded shanks 80, 82, 84 which are received by threaded bores 90, 92, 94 respectively in the housing back 48.
Preferably, each pin 64, 66, 68 includes a non-slip head 98, 100, 102 disposed at a protruding end of each pin 64, 66, 68 respectively. The heads 98, 100, 102 are sized to prevent intrusion into the grill 16 and to stabilize the housing 12 there against.
The housing is stabilized or held against the grill by the elastic member 38 as best illustrated in
As best shown in
As illustrated in
With reference now to
In his embodiment, an elastic member 154, supported by posts 156, 158, spans the housing open back 48 and includes a pair of spaced apart grill attachment hooks 162, 164 attached to the elastic member 154.
More particularly shown in
As also shown in
Other structural features of the holder 150 are described hereinbefore with regard to the holder 10.
With reference now to
The holder 200, which may be formed from any suitable material, generally includes a housing 210 which includes a beverage container bottom 212 holding base 214, an open top 216 surrounding beverage container sides 218 along with a front 222 having an opening 224 which enables passage of air therethrough and circulation of air around the container sides 218.
A plurality of adjustable pins 228 protruding from an open back 230. The pins 228, being threaded, enable adjustment of the protrusion thereof from the housing back 230 which, in turn, enables abutment with a non-vertical grill with the housing top 216 in a general horizontal orientation as illustrated in
An elastic member 232 interconnects the sidewalls 234 by attachment to pins 238 with the elastic member 232 spanning the open back 230 as shown in
The fittings 248 slidably engage the elastic member 232 for enabling the adjustment of spacing indicated by the arrow 252 in
With particular reference to
Importantly, rotation of the tool 256 along with the nut 254 and member 240 enables orientation of the hook 244 horizontally as shown in
Although there has been hereinabove described a specific holder for a beverage container in accordance with the present invention for the purpose of illustrating the manner in which the invention may be used to advantage, it should be appreciated that the invention is not limited thereto. That is, the present invention may suitably comprise, consist of, or consist essentially of the recited elements. Further, the invention illustratively disclosed herein suitably may be practiced in the absence of any element which is not specifically disclosed herein. Accordingly, any and all modifications, variations or equivalent arrangements which may occur to those skilled in the art, should be considered to be within the scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims.
The present application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 12/419,224 filed Apr. 6, 2009, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 11/732,791 filed Apr. 4, 2007 and these referenced patent applications are to be incorporated herein in their entirety by this specific reference thereto.
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
Parent | 12419224 | Apr 2009 | US |
Child | 12573826 | US | |
Parent | 11732791 | Apr 2007 | US |
Child | 12419224 | US |