This invention relates to potable liquid delivery systems.
The use of a tubular member to deliver a potable liquid into a person's mouth has achieved wide popularity. Such members, commonly referred to as drinking straws, offer a sanitary, clean and easy-to-use alternative to the act of bringing a liquid container to the user's lips, and additionally present a novelty dimension to nutrition, particularly for younger children.
Many drinking straws are made of a plastic material, often with the intention that they are to be discarded after a single use. Single-use discard accords with the goal of having a sanitary delivery system, since it may be difficult to clean thoroughly the interior annulus of the delivery system through which the potable liquid passes. However, the deleterious aspects of discarded plastic drinking straws are becoming increasingly recognized. Plastics are relatively immune to the decay process associated with natural plant matter, and thus can remain in the environment for years. They therefore present a long-term waste problem and moreover a health problem for animals that may attempt to ingest them. Plastic straws therefore can be considered to have adverse societal cost-benefits, particularly when it is realized that the use of the straw is for but a few moments, whereas the adverse environmental impact lasts for years.
The present invention provides a potable liquid delivery system that overcomes the problems described above. It is characterized by being evanescent; i.e., unlike plastic drinking straws, the delivery system of the present invention retains the structural shape that provides its utility for a relatively short period of time, after which it is transformed (typically without need for user intervention) to a state exhibiting no adverse environmental consequences.
In one aspect, the present invention is directed to an environmentally friendly system for delivering a potable liquid to a user, comprising a delivery tube having a cylindrical wall that defines a cylindrical annulus through which a potable liquid can flow, wherein the cylindrical wall consists essentially of a solid potable material that is liquid at room temperature and the cylindrical wall is formed at a temperature below the freezing point of the potable material
In another aspect, the present invention is directed to an assembly for the manufacture of a potable liquid delivery system, comprising a cooling tube having a first end, a second end and an annular bore for retention of a potable material that is liquid at room temperature and solid when cooled to or below the freezing point of the potable material; a base affixed to a first end of the cooling tube for sealing the first end of the cooling tube; a removable draw rod approximately concentrically positioned within the annular bore of the cooling tube; and a removable draw rod positioner secured to the draw rod and the second end of the cooling tube that positions an end of the draw rod approximately concentrically within the annular bore of the cooling tube.
These and other aspects of the present invention are described in the drawings annexed hereto, and in the description of the preferred embodiments and claims set forth below.
In the embodiment of the present invention depicted in
The delivery tube 1 is formed at a temperature at which wall material 6 is in a solid state. After manufacture, delivery tube 1 is delivered to the user. In use, the lower end 4 of delivery tube 1 is placed below the surface 11 of the liquid 10 which the user wishes to draw into his or her mouth, and the user's lips 7 are placed around the upper end 5 of delivery tube 1 to sealingly engage the delivery tube and draw the liquid into the mouth by appropriate breath control.
In one embodiment, wall material 6 of delivery tube 1 is frozen water (with a freezing point of approximately 32 degrees Fahrenheit). In an alternative embodiment for use where liquid 10 is not water, wall material 6 of delivery tube 1 is made of the liquid 10, but in a frozen state. Examples of specific potable liquids suitable for wall material 6 include frozen fruit juices such as orange juice and apple juice, frozen caffeinated beverages such as coffee and tea, etc. This alternative embodiment is of particular utility to avoid dilution of liquid 10 by wall material 6 melting as liquid 10 (which likely is warmer than wall 2) is drawn through annulus 3. In the foregoing embodiments, the wall 2 is given sufficient thickness such that it will retain its structural integrity for a sufficient period of time to allow all or substantial portions of liquid 10 to be drawn into the user's mouth, yet will completely melt following the relatively short period of use, and given its material characteristics generate no long-term waste or animal health problems.
Base 30 shown in
Draw rod 40 in
Draw rod positioner 50 shown in
To manufacture delivery tube 1, cooling tube 20 is secured to base 30 as shown in
After wall material 6 freezes, the assembly can be removed from the cold environment to a room temperature environment. Delivery tube 1 is then released from cooling tube 20 by pulling on draw rod 40. Following release of delivery tube 1, draw rod 40 and draw rod positioner 50 is removed from delivery tube 1, which results in the creation of annulus 3, and delivery tube 1 is ready for use. If the user is in a room temperature environment, tube 1 should be delivered to the user and used before the occurrence of substantial melting of wall material 6. After use, the user simply places or retains delivery tube 1 in a room temperature environment until tube 1 melts away, at which point the melt can be either left to evaporate (in the case where wall material 6 was water) or ingested (in the case where wall material 6 was a potable material other than water, such as juice). Alternatively, the user can ingest tube 1 in its solid state, and allow it to melt in the mouth. Since the melt (the wall material 6 in its liquid state) is both non-solid and environmentally benign (being non-toxic and potable), it presents no long-term waste problem nor any substantial animal health concern.
The foregoing detailed description is for illustration only and is not to be deemed as limiting the inventions, which are defined in the appended claims.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/721,266, filed Aug. 22, 2018.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62721266 | Aug 2018 | US |