The present invention relates to a compartmentalized dispensing lid for a beverage container to contain and selectively dispense ingredients placed within the lid.
Many people consume dietary supplements as part of their regular exercise workout. These supplements are typically provided in powder or pill format, and are intended to be mixed with a liquid, such as water, immediately before consumption. Some of these supplements are specifically formulated to be taken before exercise, during exercise, and after exercise. This requires users to carry multiple containers, plastic bags, or the like along with liquid containers to mix such products at the proper time. Such mixing, shaking, and consumption regiments take time away from the exercise routine, and may even lead to consumption errors and a loss of the supplement benefits. Accordingly, there exists a need for a means by which powder and pill supplements can be easily stored, mixed, and consumed without the disadvantages as described above. The development of the present invention fulfills this need.
The apparatus is a system for adding powdered or pill-style additives to a liquid immediately before ingestion. The lid of a beverage container is provided with a plurality of separate compartments. Each compartment is accessed from the top to place supplement powder or a pill, which are designed to be ingested as a solution when mixed with a liquid. At the desired time, the lid is rotated by the user to drop the supplement into the liquid below, without removing the lid. The beverage container can then be shaken, creating the mixture solution, and the resultant mixture is consumed from the beverage container from a drink aperture of the lid. The liquid is then refilled as needed. This process is repeated as necessary for various phases of the exercise routine such as before, during, and after.
Prior art in this field consists of lids for beverage containers that have a compartment with a means to dispense the contents of the compartment into the beverage container via a lever-activated draw door, or otherwise require removal of the lid and manual manipulation to pour the contents of the compartment into the beverage container. Nothing within the prior art enables selective disposition of contents within a compartment of a plurality of compartments by mere rotation of the lid.
Other prior art related devices have lids with a storage compartment leading to a nozzle that selectively permits infiltration of the compartment by liquid of the beverage container to create the mixture while drinking from the nozzle. Additional prior art related devices incorporate a rotating apertured-platform assembly within the beverage container that creates isolated segments of the beverage container when apertures are not aligned, but permits fluid communication between the segments when aligned. Neither the prior art nor a combination of prior art related devices achieve the utility that the current invention achieves.
It is an object of the current invention to enable storage of a plurality of different ingredients within separate compartments of a lid portion of a beverage container, and prevent mixing of any ingredient with any liquid contained within the beverage container, unless a user operates the device to do so.
It is a further object of this invention to enable storage and transport of a plurality of different ingredients within separate compartment of a lid portion of a beverage container without disruption, contamination, or mixing of any of the ingredients contained within each compartment of the lid.
It is a further object of this invention to enable drinking from the lid portion without disruption, contamination, or mixing of any of the ingredients contained within each compartment of the lid.
It is a further object of this invention to enable drinking from the lid portion without mixing of the liquid being consumed from the beverage container with any of the ingredients contained within each compartment, unless a user operates the device to do so.
It is a further object of this invention to selectively dispense an ingredient from any one compartment into an interior space of a beverage container and create a mixture of the ingredient with liquid held in the beverage container by agitation of the mixture without further disruption, contamination, or mixing of any of the remaining ingredients contained within each compartment of the lid.
It is a further object of this invention to enable selective deposition of an ingredient from any one compartment by mere rotation of the lid in a preferred direction.
It is a further object of this invention to enable filling the beverage container and each compartment, as well as discharging the beverage container and each compartment, without the need to remove the lid; however, the lid is removable.
An added benefit of this invention is to provide a specific configuration of the lid so that translucent material of the lid may be exploited to enable a user to quickly ascertain which supplement has been consumed without the need to open the various compartments.
An additional benefit of this invention is to provide a double-shelled beverage container for added insulation.
The apparatus comprises a lid having a plurality of compartments to be used with a beverage container. The compartments provide a means to store and transport ingredients that will be selectively dispensed within the interior of the container at a user's discretion. The lid has a dome pivotally affixed to a platform. Extending from the platform is an apron, which enables removably coupling the lid to a beverage container. The dome is provided with the plurality of compartments, and it rotates with respect to the platform. One (1) compartment is reserved for drinking liquid contents from the beverage container, whereas the other compartments are used to contain ingredients that will be dispensed into the liquid contents of the beverage container. A fill tube with a covering cap is disposed on each fill tube, except for the one reserved for drinking, which facilitates deposition of ingredients into each compartment. A separate cap is further provided for the compartment reserved for drinking liquids from the beverage container.
The platform is a solid planer member with a single aperture, which grants the only access into an interior of the beverage container when the platform is attached to the beverage container. An upper surface of the platform forms the lower containment surface for each compartment of the dome. As ingredients are deposed into the compartments, they are contained by the volume defined by an interior of each compartment and the upper surface of the platform. As the dome is rotated, each compartment rotates and any deposed ingredients are carried along with the compartment containing it. As a compartment is position over the single aperture of the platform, the ingredients are allowed to fall into the interior of the beverage container. The dome is then rotated in an opposite direction to position the drinking compartment over the single aperture. In this position, a user may drink the mixture comprising the liquid and ingredient through the drinking compartment.
The apron comprises an annular ring extending from a perimeter edge of the platform. An inside surface of the apron is provided with a fastening mechanism to facilitate removable coupling of the lid to a beverage container. The apron is further provided with a seal to enable proper and adequate containment of fluids within the beverage container by the lid.
Furthermore, the described features and advantages of the disclosure may be combined in various manners and embodiments as one skilled in the relevant art will recognize. The disclosure can be practiced without one (1) or more of the features and advantages described in a particular embodiment.
Further advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from a consideration of the drawings and ensuing description.
The advantages and features of the present disclosure will become better understood with reference to the following more detailed description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like elements are identified with like symbols, and in which:
In accordance with the invention, the best mode is presented in terms of a preferred embodiment, herein depicted within
The terms “a” and “an” herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced items.
The present invention describes a compartmentalized dispensing lid for a beverage container (herein referred to as the “apparatus”) 10, which provides a means to transport a plurality of ingredients, in a powder or pill form, within the separated compartments 32-37 of the compartmentalized lid 20 of a container 70 and disperse those ingredients individually into said container 70, and the liquid therein, for consumption as a solution.
Referring now to
Disposed in the center of the bottom of the dome 22 is a circular channel into which the pivot pin 50 (see
The platform 46 (see
The shell 71 portion of the container 70 of the device 10 preferably comprises a molded thermoplastic material and as such may be presented in a wide variety of colors and surface finish textures. However, it is understood that other materials such as stainless steel, or drawn aluminum, may be utilized without limiting the scope of the apparatus 10. Additionally, it is envisioned that some surface portions of the container 70 may comprise various indicia 77, which may provide script or logos based upon a user's preference and may include images such as, but not limited to, business names/logos, personal names, symbols, lines, pictures, and the like, in various colors and patterns, to further customize and personalize the apparatus 10.
Referring now to
Referring now to
It is envisioned that other styles and configurations of the present invention can be easily incorporated into the teachings of the present invention, and only one particular configuration shall be shown and described for purposes of clarity and disclosure and not by way of limitation of scope.
The preferred embodiment of the present invention can be utilized in a simple and straightforward manner with little or no training. After initial purchase or acquisition of the apparatus 10, it would be configured as indicated in
The method of utilizing the apparatus 10 may be achieved by performing the following steps: acquiring a model of the apparatus 10 having a desired style to suit the taste of a user; placing the dome 22 as shown in
The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit to the precise forms disclosed and many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain principles and practical application to enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.
The present invention was first described in and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/880,388, filed Sep. 20, 2013, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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61880388 | Sep 2013 | US |