The present disclosure relates to illuminable articles and more particularly (but not exclusively) to an illuminable accessory device that can be used with bottles, cups and/or other vessels.
This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Novelty products are frequently used for entertainment purposes and also may serve as media for advertising. Such products include various vessels for use in eating and drinking, e.g., souvenir glasses, bottles and cups commemorating a special event, destination, or holiday. Coasters and other food- and/or beverage-related accessories are frequently distributed as promotional items bearing slogans, advertisements, and/or logos. Many novelty products are functional yet imaginative and eye-catching.
This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.
The present disclosure, in one configuration, is directed to an illuminable accessory device for use with a vessel. A pliable, generally cylindrical sidewall is configured to slidingly receive and hold a bottom portion of a vessel. The received vessel bottom portion is slidingly removable from the sidewall. An electrically powered light source is surrounded by the sidewall and configured to lie beneath the received vessel bottom portion. The light source is enclosed in a light disk through at least a portion of which light from the light source is transmissible. The light disk is configured to support the received vessel.
In another configuration, the disclosure is directed to a illuminable accessory device for use with a vessel. The device includes a pliable, generally cylindrical sidewall. A bottom ledge extends radially inwardly from a bottom end of the sidewall. A light disk is supported on the ledge inside the sidewall. The disk includes an electrically powered light source capable of emitting light through at least a portion of the disk. The sidewall is configured to slidingly receive and adhere to a bottom portion of a vessel. The disk is configured to lie beneath the received vessel bottom portion. The sidewall is further configured to allow the received vessel bottom portion to be slidingly removed from the device.
In yet another configuration, the disclosure is directed to a illuminable accessory device for use with a vessel. A pliable, generally cylindrical sidewall is configured to slidingly receive and hold a bottom portion of a vessel. The received vessel bottom portion is slidingly removable from the sidewall. An electrically powered light source is surrounded by the sidewall and configured to lie beneath the received vessel bottom portion. The light source is enclosed in a liquid-resistant and at least partially translucent light disk configured to support the received vessel. The disk is removable from the accessory device through a top of the sidewall.
Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough, and will fully convey the scope to those who are skilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that specific details need not be employed, that example embodiments may be embodied in many different forms and that neither should be construed to limit the scope of the disclosure. In some example embodiments, well-known processes, well-known device structures, and well-known technologies are not described in detail.
Spatially relative terms, such as “inner,” “outer,” “beneath”, “below”, “lower”, “above”, “upper” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. Spatially relative terms may be intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the example term “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.
In various implementations the disclosure is directed to an illuminable device for accessorizing a vessel such as a bottle, cup, glass or can. Such an accessory device may be at least partially translucent and/or transparent and can provide an area on which to imprint promotional logos, pictures, and/or information. When, e.g., a beverage bottle is placed in an accessory device in accordance with the disclosure, light may be transmitted from and through the device into the bottle and liquid contained in the bottle. Various lighting effects can be achieved dependent on the device and vessel configurations. It should be understood that the term “vessel” is used in the present disclosure and claims to refer to any of a wide variety of containers, including but not limited to bottles, cans, cups, glasses, mugs, flasks, jars, etc. Vessels can vary in shape, size, and coloration, and may be partially or completely transparent, translucent, opaque, or any combination of the foregoing. Vessels may be partially or completely sealed, covered and/or open when held by an illuminable device in accordance with the disclosure.
An elevational cross-sectional view of one configuration of an illuminable device is indicated generally in
A retaining device 40 molded in the sidewall 24 serves to retain the light disk 36 in the sidewall 24. Although the device 40 shown in
Another configuration of an illuminable device with a light disk removed is indicated generally in
Referring again to
The circuit board 64 includes one or more batteries 76 (one being shown in
The sidewall 24 includes a substantially smooth inner surface 88 relative to which the bottom portion of the vessel 84 is slidingly receivable and slidingly removable. Accordingly, when the vessel 84 is placed into the device 20, the sidewall 24 slidingly receives and adheres to a bottom portion 92 of the vessel 84. The light disk 36 lies beneath, and in many configurations supportively contacts, the bottom portion 92 of the vessel. When the vessel 84 is removed from the device 20, the sidewall 24 allows the bottom portion 92 of the vessel to be slidingly removed from the device 20.
The sidewall 24 may be fabricated of thin-wall plastic, e.g., injection-molded polyethylene or polypropylene having a thickness of, e.g., about 0.03 inches. Other dimensions and materials, however, are possible. The sidewall 24 is sufficiently thin, flexible and smooth to allow a disposable cup or other manually crushable vessel to be inserted in and removed from the device 20 without damage to the vessel. The device 20 thus can be used to hold various types of disposable cups and containers, including plastic, paper and/or foam cups. Dependent on cup thickness, opacity and construction, lighting effects produced by the device 20 tend to be more visible through a plastic cup than through paper or foam cup types.
Although the sidewall 24 is configured to receive vessel bottoms having diameters about the same as that of the sidewall, the sidewall 24 is sufficiently soft and pliable to accommodate a vessel slightly larger in diameter. For example, in configurations in which the sidewall 24 has a diameter of about 60 millimeters, it can receive a vessel having a diameter between about 2 and 3 millimeters larger than the sidewall diameter. Pressing a vessel into the accessory device 20 can produce a slight vacuum effect between the vessel bottom and the disk cover 68, thereby contributing to adherence of the accessory device 20 to the vessel bottom. When a user wishes to remove a vessel from the device 20, he/she may flex the sidewall 24 to admit air into the vacuum, thereby facilitating removal of the vessel.
In various configurations the device sidewall 24 may have a substantially constant thickness and may exhibit a profile not substantially wider than that of a vessel held in the device. Where, for example, a bottle is placed in an accessory device configuration having a sidewall about 0.03 inches thick, the accessory device does not occupy a substantially greater amount of counter space than the bottle by itself would occupy.
The LEDs 80 may be activated, for example, via a push-button switch 94 beneath the base 60 and accessible through a central opening 96 defined by the ledge 28. In some configurations, a light source may be activated via motion or liquid, for example, by twisting the disk 36 in the sidewall 24. Additionally or alternatively, a light source 80 could be activated by radiofrequency. Battery(s) 76 may be connected on top of the circuit board 64, as shown in
To assemble the device 20, the circuit board 64 and switch 94 are installed in the base 60. The cover 68 is then placed over and secured to the base 60. The assembled disk 36 is then placed into the sidewall 24 through the sidewall top 98 and pressed against and past the retaining ring 40 to seat and secure the disk 36 on the ledge 28. In the event that it is desired to replace the disk 36, the disk can be removed, i.e., pushed up from the bottom opening 96 through the sidewall 24, and replaced.
In some implementations a single light disk can be used in a plurality of illuminable devices of different sizes. One such disk configuration is included in an illuminable device indicated generally in
An exploded side view of the device 100 is shown in
Several configurations of sizing rings are shown in
Another configuration of an illuminable holding device is indicated generally in
Another configuration of an illuminable holding device is indicated generally in
Another configuration of an illuminable holding device is indicated generally in
Various light disk configurations are contemplated. For example, as shown in
As shown in
Another configuration of an accessory device is indicated generally in
Another configuration of an accessory device is indicated generally in
Another configuration of an accessory device is indicated generally in
Another configuration of a light disk is indicated generally in
Another light disk configuration is indicated generally in
Various lighting effects can be achieved by orienting LEDs in various directions relative to a circuit board, disk cover and/or sidewall of an illuminable device. One configuration of a light disk circuit board is indicated generally in
The LEDs 752 are substantially centered on the circuit board 750. Other or additional LED positionings are contemplated. For example, another configuration of a light disk circuit board is indicated generally in
Light sources could be positioned and angled to project light in many different ways relative to a circuit board and are not necessarily mounted on top of a circuit board. For example, another configuration of a light disk circuit board is indicated generally in
In various configurations of the foregoing accessory device, the light disk is liquid-resistant yet accessible, e.g., so that batteries can be changed or removed. The disk also is easily inserted into and removed from the sidewall. Accordingly, the disk may be reused, e.g., in a different accessory device. The disk and/or sidewall may have various areas of translucency, transparency, and/or opacity. Translucent, transparent, and/or opaque areas could be provided in various colors for various lighting effects. Further, reflective materials, e.g., reflective film, may be included in and/or on various areas of the disk and/or sidewall. LEDs may be provided in various numbers, colors and/or color combinations, including red, blue, green, and/or ultraviolet (UV). UV LEDs could be provided to illuminate luminescent material on the accessory device (or in some instances, on the label of a vessel held by the device) to provide a black-light effect. A light disk could have many different modes of operation, including (without limitation) steady-on, flash-and-blink modes and/or fading and/or slow-fade modes.
The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention. Individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the invention, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20100124048 A1 | May 2010 | US |