Patent Application
20190216246
The invention relates generally to an apparatus for providing illumination to a liquid in a transparent receptacle. In particular, the invention relates to a coaster with a pressure sensitive switch.
Drink coasters are small mats that are placed under a receptacle containing liquid to protect the surface below the mat from damage. Because of their wide spread use, they are often provided as promotional materials in many different establishments. Typically they are a circular or rectangular piece of inexpensive material that is printed with a logo or other message. Most promotional coasters are intended to be single use and disposable, although they may also be resusable.
One of the main uses of promotional coasters is in clubs, bars and lounges. These are places that are typically frequented at night and dimly lit. Unfortunately, these conditions have a negative impact on the visibility of brandings on drink ware, whether bottles or printed glasses.
Thus, a need exists for brand promotions that provide greater visibility to logos and other messages in a variety of environments. There is a further need for a device that is inexpensive, easy to use and attracts the attention of consumers.
The invention in one implementation encompasses a coaster. The coaster includes a light and a mechanism for activating the light when a glass or cup placed on the coaster so as to illuminate the glass and its contents.
Features of example implementations of the invention will become apparent from the description, the claims, and the accompanying drawings in which:
Reference will now be made in detail to one or more embodiments of the invention. While the invention will be described with respect to these embodiments, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to any particular embodiment. On the contrary, the invention includes alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may come within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Furthermore, in the following description, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. The invention may be practiced without some or all of these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and principles of operation have not been described in detail to avoid obscuring the invention.
Top and bottom views of a coaster body according to the present invention are shown in
In an embodiment, the combined upper and lower bodies have a thickness of no more than 3.5 mm in order to provide the pressure sensitive switching functionality described in more detail below. In one embodiment, upper body 10 and lower body 14 are made of two separate pieces of a desired material as shown in
In a further embodiment, a coaster body may be made from a single block of material with holes 14 and 16 drilled in from either side. In this embodiment, 4 mm hole 12 would be drilled to a depth of approximately 1 mm. In either embodiment, the upper surface of the coaster body has a completely flat surface so that the LED does not extend above the upper surface. The thickness of upper body 10 and the depth of hole 14 are selected to match the thickness of an inserted LED.
For either of the above embodiments, a thin sheet of paper or similar material is adhered over hole 16 after insertion of the electronic device so as to retain the device within the coaster, although other methods may be used to retain the device within the coaster, for example, directly gluing the device.
The coaster body in either of the above embodiments may be made from a variety of materials such as cardboard, foam or other lightweight materials. At least the upper surface of the body should present a printable surface capable of bearing text and/or images. Although the body of
The upper conductive metal layer 33 is exposed in the areas 26 and 28 on the outer strips of board 20, on either side of the center strip holding LED 24, to allow contact to the negative pole of battery 36. The bottom conductive metal layer 34 is exposed in areas 40 and 42 (see
The bottom side of board 20 opposite the upper side is shown in
Flexible circuit board 20 is manufactured to have enough flexibility to allow the insertion of battery 36 as described above. However, board 20 also has enough stiffness so that when battery 36 is inserted through cuts 22, the edges of battery 36 cause the strips of the circuit board to bend, creating a small hemispheric gap of approximately half a millimeter between battery 36 and the exposed areas on board 20, which prevents the LED from generating light. When a glass or bottle is placed on the coaster, the strips of board 20 are compressed causing areas 26 and 28 to contact the negative pole of battery 36, areas 40 and 42 to contact the positive pole of battery thus completing the circuit and causing LED 24 to generate light.
Flexible circuit board 20 and battery 36 are sized so that they fit into the approximately 25 mm diameter hole in the lower body of
If used and unless otherwise stated, the terms “upper,” “lower,” “front,” “back,” “over,” “under,” and similar such terms are not to be construed as limiting the invention to a particular orientation. Instead, these terms are used only on a relative basis.
The apparatus in one example comprises a plurality of components such as one or more of electronic components or hardware components. A number of such components can be combined or divided in the apparatus. The apparatus in one example comprises any (e.g., horizontal, oblique, or vertical) orientation, with the description and figures herein illustrating one example orientation of the apparatus, for explanatory purposes.
The steps or operations described herein are just for example. There may be many variations to these steps or operations without departing from the spirit of the invention. For instance, the steps may be performed in a differing order, or steps may be added, deleted, or modified.
Although example implementations of the invention have been depicted and described in detail herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the relevant art that various modifications, additions, substitutions, and the like can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and these are therefore considered to be within the scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.
