Patent Application
20120106130
There is no federally sponsored research or development.
The present invention pertains to the field of insulated personal beverage containers. Insulated personal beverage containers are often referred to as “can coolers, can koozies, bottle coolers, and beverage coolers.” The primary unique addition to this beverage cooler is a light source which exists within the cooler on the top surface of the base of the cooler. This light source, upon activation, results in the glass container that is inserted in the cooler, becoming illuminated or “glowing”.
The addition of the light allows for both a decorative and functional improvement to the prior art. When an individual is consuming a beverage in a dark environment, such as out-of-doors in the evening, the individual is able to easily locate his or her beverage. The illuminated beverage container also acts as a light source which can be utilized while the individual is moving about in the dark environment. In addition, the illuminated base of the cooler can be utilized as a flashlight upon removal of the container.
The prior art includes a variety of beverage coolers, however, none of them are equipped with an illuminated base. U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,645, issued on Jan. 27, 1987, discloses a cooler that was capable of enclosing a cooling material, such as ice, within the inner and outer walls of the cooler.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,745,776, issued May 24, 1988, discloses a beverage cooler wherein the base of that cooler contains a refrigerant element.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,882,914, issued Nov. 28, 1989, discloses a beverage cooler whereby the sidewalls of the cooler are filled with a gel refrigerant for additional cooling properties.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,039,207, issued Mar. 21, 2000, discloses a beverage cooler that adds a hinged insulator lid whereby a can beverage could be completely enclosed with typical insulating material when the lid is closed.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,062,380, issued May 16, 2000, discloses a glow cup system with illumination capabilities. Chemical ampules are inserted within the sidewalls of the cup and are illuminated upon fracturing of those same chemiluminescent fluid ampules.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,206,223, issued on Mar. 27, 2001, discloses a foam can cooler with a hinged mating lid. The base and lid of the cooler are slightly undersized when accommodating a canned beverage, thus the friction developed when the hinged lid is placed over the upper portion of the can results in a spill-resistant cooler.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,550,271, issued Apr. 22, 2003, discloses a neoprene-like tapered bottle insulator having a detachable carrying strap and a bottle opener. A zipper is incorporated into the upper tapered portion of the cooler so that the bottle can be easily inserted and removed from the cooler.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,404,345, issued Jul. 29, 2008, discloses an insulated beverage cooler wherein the inner surface of the base of the cooler accommodates a bottle cap opener.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,614,516, issued on Nov. 10, 2009, discloses an insulated combination bottle and can cooler which provides for insulating material for either a can beverage or a bottle beverage with the unique object of the invention being an invertible inner portion of the cooler which can accommodate either a can or, when inverted, the upper tapered portion of a bottle.
The primary object of the invention is to incorporate a light source into the base of a standard beverage cooler. This new invention is both aesthetically pleasing and functional. It is aesthetically pleasing to the extent that individuals are able to observe a glowing, illuminated, beverage. Various colored beverage bottles and drinks will result in various colors of illumination. The other primary objects are functionality. Individuals can readily locate their beverage when the cooler light is activated. Individuals can also illuminate a walking path either with or without the bottled beverage inserted in the cooler. The cooler light is powered by batteries and it is equipped with a power switch so that battery life can be extended when the illumination effect is not desired, or the cooler is not in use.
The invention significantly improves the existing art by adding an illumination device as the base of the beverage cooler. The illumination base would typically, but not necessarily, consist of light emitting diodes (LEDs) that are powered by, typically, but not necessarily, three AAA batteries. The battery power and illumination is controlled by an on/off switch.
The invention has both aesthetic and functional advantages over the prior art. The functional improvements include the ability to identify the location of a bottled beverage when the beverage is being consumed in an environment that is not illuminated by natural or artificial light. Another functional improvement over the prior art, with the addition of the light, is the ability to illuminate a path of travel while ambulating with the beverage cooler when it contains a bottled beverage. Yet another functional improvement is the ability to utilize the illuminating base as a flashlight when the beverage is removed from the cooler. A typical drinking glass can also be accommodated and illuminated by the cooler. Desired labels, logos, or other indicia may also be placed on the outer surface of the insulating cylindrical sleeve.
The cooler may be dimensioned to accommodate different sized beverage containers ranging from approximately eight to forty ounces. When the beverage bottle container is inserted in the cooler, the cooler insulating cylindrical sleeve will cover approximately forty to sixty percent of the container so that the remaining uncovered portion of the container will be visible when the light emitting diodes are activated. The light emitting diode base may be constructed of any rigid polymeric material. The insulating cylindrical sleeve may be constructed of neoprene, neoprene backed by cloth material, foam rubber, and any other pliable, flexible insulating material. In addition, the base and the sleeve may be enclosed within a rigid metallic shell with the metal being stainless steel, carbon steel, aluminum, brass, bronze, copper, or the like.
The direct current batteries used to power the light emitting diodes may be of any size or style and may also be rechargeable.
It is not intended that the invention be limited to the described embodiments. To the contrary, the invention is intended to cover alternatives, modifications and equivalents which may be reasonably included within the scope of the invention as further defined in the claims. The detailed description is designed to be sufficient so that any person of ordinary skill in the pertinent art, science, or area could make and use the invention without extensive experimentation.
The insulating cylindrical sleeve 101 is made of a soft pliable insulating material such as neoprene, however, any suitable flexible insulating material may be used.
The light emitting diode base 102 is comprised of a hard plastic and functions as a containment structure wherein three standard AAA batteries are contained within the structure and three light emitting diodes are on the surface of the structure so that light will emit upwards from the base of the cooler through the glass bottled beverage, thus, illuminating the glass bottled beverage and giving it a glowing effect.
The thermally insulated beverage cooler provides the user with a number of advantages and improvements over the prior art. The light or lights incorporated in the base of the cooler provides for the introduction and passing of light into and through the glass beverage container such that the container glows. The glowing container provides for both aesthetic appeal to the viewer and it also provides for a means of locating an individual's beverage in a dark environment. The addition of the light in the base of the cooler also provides for illumination of a dark environment so that the user can use the invention to illuminate his or her path while ambulating in a dark environment. The invention also allows for the removal of the glass beverage container, thus, leaving the further exposed light in the bottom of the base to provide illumination in the form of a flashlight.
The preferred embodiments of the invention are intended to be illustrative only and are not intended to limit, the scope of the invention. Those skilled in the art would understand that various modifications and adaptations and alternative embodiments may be contemplated.
The present invention is not so limited to the sole embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.
This application claims benefit of provisional application No. 61/341,501 filed Apr. 1, 2010.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61341501 | Apr 2010 | US |
