The present disclosure is in the field of containers for consumer products. More particularly, systems and methods are provided for joining two containers at their respective ends and enabling one container to turn and cause contents to be extruded from the other container.
Consumers seek convenience and ease of access in their use of personal care products, whether at home or while traveling. Particularly with skin care products, persons seek to have all their various care products at easy access. Consumers want the products they use to be within reach and easy to open and use. Too often, a user's deodorant and skin care liquids get lost in different parts of the bathroom or in different bathrooms.
When a person is traveling, the opportunity for confusion is greater, with the risk that the traveler will forget to pack an item or accidentally leave an item in a hotel room, perhaps when in a hurry to leave for a business or social event or to depart for the airport. What is needed are systems and methods to promote greater organization and simplicity in gathering and maintaining skin care and other personal care products.
Two containers of personal care products are attached with their bottom surfaces joined in back-to-back fashion. The containers are positioned upright with one on top of the other such that the container on the bottom is upside down. The lower container, which may contain lotion or moisturizer, is connected to the upper container which contains stick deodorant movable by an internal spindle. The lower container functions as a wheel such that turning the lower container while holding the upper container stationary causes the stick deodorant in the upper container to move upward or downward. Likewise, the lower container may be held in place while the upper container is rotated, which still causes the stick deodorant in the upper container to move upward or downward.
Systems and methods described herein provide two containers of personal care products, the bottom ends, also referred to as the proximal ends, of which are connected to each other. The top or dispensing ends, also referred to the distal ends, face away from each other in opposite directions. When in normal upright standing position, one container is on top of the other. The upper container is itself upright with its dispensing end at the top and pointing upward. The lower container is directly below the upper container with its dispensing component facing downward.
The lower container is upside down with its bottom surface pointing upward and attached to the bottom of the upper container. The dispensing end of the lower container, which when upright is at the top and pointing upward, in this case is at the bottom and points downward as noted. The two containers have a divider between them that allows the containers to remain attached and be rotated relative to each other.
In some embodiments, the upper container is stick deodorant or solid deodorant container comprising an inner portion and an outer portion, wherein the fragrant wax-like deodorant substance contained within the inner portion of the container is pushed out by an internal spindle threaded with a lift. In well-known containers of such stick deodorant, a wheel is at the bottom of the container. Turning the wheel turns the spindle, thereby translating the lift along the spindle which slowly forces the deodorant substance up and out of the container for application in the user's underarms.
The present disclosure provides that an attached and upside-down bottle containing lotion or other liquid care product performs the function of the wheel. The bottoms of the two containers are attached in the aforementioned back-to-back fashion. The bottom of the lotion container is attached as a wheel or turning mechanism of the deodorant container.
In some embodiments, a user may grasp the upright deodorant container with one hand and hold it steady. The user may then grasp the downward-pointing lotion container and turn it. Depending on the direction of the turning, this action will cause the deodorant substance to either protrude/extend from or recess/retract back into the deodorant container. As noted, this is because the lotion container is connected to the turning function of the deodorant container and is effectively a turning handle for the deodorant container.
In some embodiments, a user may likewise grasp the downward-pointing lotion container with one hand and hold it steady. The user may then grasp the upward-pointing deodorant container and turn it. These actions will cause the deodorant to protrude/extend from or recess/retract back into the deodorant container depending on the direction of the turning since these actions cause rotation of the spindle, which in turns translates the lift.
Turning to the figures,
In some embodiments, the divider comprises the proximal end of the lotion container. In these embodiments, the divider is fixed to the lotion container in a manner that does not allow the divider to rotate relative to the lotion container. The deodorant container may be connected to the lotion container by means of the divider in a manner that allows the deodorant container to rotate relative to the lotion container, hence also rotate relative to the divider. The spindle may be fixed to the divider in a manner that does not allow the spindle to rotate relative to the divider, hence does not allow the spindle to rotate relative to the lotion container. In these embodiments, the deodorant container may rotate relative to the spindle. The rotation of the deodorant container relative to the spindle, divider, and lotion container or the rotation of the spindle, divider, and lotion container relative to the deodorant container is what causes the extension or retraction of the solid deodorant within the inner portion of the deodorant container.
The lotion container 4 may be wider than the deodorant container 2, may contain more physical volume that the deodorant container, and may be heavier than the deodorant container. Consequently, the view in
In contrast to
While discussion herein has described the lotion container 4 as containing lotion or moisturizer, in embodiments the lotion container 4 may contain other substances. For example, the lotion container could contain shampoo, shaving solution, after-shave liquid, or any other liquid that serves as a skincare or personal care product. Furthermore, the solid deodorant container my contain any variety of solid deodorant, including antiperspirant. The solid deodorant is described herein as being fragrant and wax-like. However, this is not to be interpreted as limiting the solid deodorant to having a fragrance or having physical or chemical properties similar to those of wax.
In some embodiments, the lotion container 4 would need to be squeezed by the user to cause contents to be dispensed. The deodorant container 2 also can be rotated to allow the deodorant to move up and down.
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
62939558 | Nov 2019 | US |