Patent Application
20070240581
Referring to
With reference to
The basket seat 10 may be made by plastic injection, is mounted on the pad 20 and comprises a base and a handle 11. The base has a through hole 12, a sliding guide 13, a plurality of first protrusions 14 and two snaps 15. The sliding guide 13 is formed on the base inside the through hole 12. The first protrusions 14 are formed on the sliding guide 13 inside the through hole 12. The snaps 15 are symmetrically mounted on the base inside the through hole 12. The handle 11 is connected to the base of the basket seat 10. The pad 20 may be made of rubber and is used for positioning the brewing apparatus on a surface.
The latch member 30 is rotatably mounted and held in the through hole 12 of the base and comprises an outer ring, a plurality of second protrusions 31, an inner ring 33, a rod 34 and a plug head 35. The latch member 30 may be made by plastic injection. The outer ring has multiple guide surfaces or ramps 32 that are respectively corresponding to the first protrusions 14 of the base so that the guide surfaces 32 will abut respectively on the first protrusions 14 when the latch member 30 is mounted in the through hole 12. The second protrusions 31 are mounted outside this outer ring. The inner ring 33 is mounted inside the outer ring and has a center. The rod 34 is mounted upwardly at the center of the inner ring 33 and has a top end to connect to the plug head 35. It should be appreciated that the guide surfaces or ramps 32 can be on the base rather than the outer ring, in which case the outer ring would have the protrusions 14 to engage with the guide surfaces.
With further reference to
The rod 34 of the latch member 30 is movably mounted and held in the center through hole 42 of the downward conical bottom 41. The top end of the rod extends out of the center through hole 42. The plug head 35 is mounted on the top end of the rod over the center through hole 42 and seals the hole 42 in a normal state because of the resilient member 70. The plug head 35 may be made of silicone rubber or silica gel.
The resilient member 70 is mounted between the downward conical bottom 41 of the cup basket 40 and the latch member 30, and has a conical shape. The resilient member 70 is hollow and connects the downward conical bottom 41 of the cup basket 40 to the inner ring 33 of the latch member 30 to collect the hot beverage bled out of the cup basket 40 through the center through hole 42. The resilient member 70 may be made of silicone rubber or silica gel.
The filter 60 is mounted inside the cup basket 40 over the bottom 41 by threads. The filter 60 will separates the hot beverage from the tea leaves or medicinal herbs when a person pours the hot beverage out of the cup basket 40.
With reference to
When the user needs to bleed out the hot beverage, the apparatus is connected to a water reservoir 80 such as a cup. The user simply rotates the cup basket 40 relative to the basket seat 10 by pushing the joint 44 with the user's thumb. The rotation of the cup basket 40 rotates simultaneously the latch member 30 relative to the basket seat 10 because the notches 43 engage respectively the second protrusions 31. Since the outer ring of the latch member 30 has the guide surfaces 32, the latch member 30 will be simultaneously moved upward relative to the basket seat 10 when the latch member 30 is rotated. The rotation of the latch member 30 causes the first protrusions 14 of the basket seat 10 slide respectively along the guide surfaces 32, which renders the upward movement of the latch member 30 and deforms simultaneously the resilient member 70 to produce a resilient force.
The plug head 35 is simultaneously moves upward relative to the basket seat 10, which opens the center through hole 42 of the downward conical bottom 41 of the cup basket 40. The hot beverage will be bled by gravity through the center through hole 42, the resilient member 70, the inner ring 33 and the basket seat 10, and is eventually collected in the water reservoir 80 for drinking.
When the user releases the joint 44 of the cup basket 40, the resilient force of the resilient member 70 moves the latch member 30 back to its original position. Also, the weight of the cup basket 40 renders downward movement of the latch member 30 relative to the basket seat 10 until the plug head 35 abuts on the downward conical bottom 41 of the cup basket 40. Thus, the plug head 35 closes and seals the center through hole 42 again to stop bleeding. Therefore, the bleeding operation of the hot beverage is automatically stopped.
When the user needs to clean and wash the brewing apparatus, simply pushing the snaps 15 will separate the cup basket 40 from the basket seat 10. Turning the filter 60 will separate the filter 60 from the cup basket 40. The components of the brewing apparatus are easy and convenient to assemble or disassemble so that each component will be completely cleaned. Consequently, either using or cleaning the brewing apparatus in accordance with the present invention is easy and convenient.
While the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to the particular form set forth, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 95206130 | Apr 2006 | TW | national |
The present application claims priority to the Taiwanese (Republic of China) Patent Application having application number 95206130, entitled “Hot Beverage Brewing Apparatus” and filed Apr. 12, 2006 which is incorporated herein by reference. The present application also claims priority to the U.S. provisional application having Ser. No. 60/820,255 entitled “Hot Beverage Brewing Apparatus” and filed Jun. 25, 2006, which is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60820255 | Jul 2006 | US |
