Patent Application
20120267400
1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to a replacement cap for water bottles that includes a drinking spout and a mist sprayer. More particularly it discloses a unique flexible thread arrangement to allow it to fit on both US and European standard bottle threads.
2. Prior Art
Spray tops for bottles have been on the market for many years. Pull-up and flip-up drinking spouts have also been available on several different brands of bottled drinking water. Most US bottled water brands have a standard cap with a standard thread design. European water bottles have a slightly different thread design. Thus a one size cap to fit both designs has been heretofore unavailable.
Bottled water is sold at many venues such as sporting events, concerts, beaches or pools and other competitive endeavors. It would be beneficial after purchasing a bottle of water to replace its sealed cap with one that could be used for either hydration by drinking from its sealable spout or used for spraying water onto the skin in a fine mist, allowing evaporation to cool the user. Parents of children may also find it useful for minor clean ups as well. It is an object of this invention to fit both United States and European threads and thus work on almost all plastic disposable water bottles by having flexible thread sections on the inside diameter of this new invention.
In order that the invention is fully understood it will now be described with reference to the following drawings in which:
Bottles, bottle caps, nozzles and pump assemblies are shown in broken lines in
The same reference numbers will be used throughout this application for the same and like features.
In order that Mister Water Cap 10 is fully understood it will now be described by way of the following example. This new invention is a convenient and easily adaptable apparatus for use as a replacement for the sealed cap 74 on refillable liquid containers and purchased water bottles 56. Mister Water Cap 10 mounts on refillable liquid containers and water bottles 56 after sealed caps 74 are removed. It can be used to either drink from spout 32 or to spray a fine mist with pump and nozzle assembly 16. Standard bottles 56 have a very similar top opening, approximately 1-inch diameter, and a common thread dimension so that they can use a standard cap regardless of the volume of the bottle itself. Typically standard bottles 56 also have a concentric ledge 48 around the outside diameter of the neck, approximately ½ inch below the top of the bottleneck. Unfortunately U.S. and European standards for plastic bottle cap threads 58 are slightly different. Typically caps 74 have a bottom section separated by serration 92 that fits between ledge 48 and separator edge 90. When cap 74 is twisted in a counterclockwise direction it separates along serration 92 as cap 74 moves axially upward and is removed from bottle 56, leaving serrated section attached to bottle 56.
Mister Water Cap 10 consists of housing 12 with the general shape of cap 74. It is further disclosed that it has bottom 60 and upper surface 62 with cylindrical sidewall 70 descending from upper surface 62 to bottom 60. It also disclosed that it has two twist assist arms 30 extending radially outward from the base of body of housing 12. Twist assist arms 30 can be straight or curved. Depending from the bottom side of upper surface 62 are two concentric cylindrical walls 66 and 68. Wall 68 depends approximately 0.2 inches below bottom side of top surface 62. Upstanding from upper surface 62 is drinking spout 32. A preferred embodiment has drinking spout 32 upstanding from upper surface 62 approximately 1¾ inches to avoid interference with nozzle and pump assembly 16 while drinking. It contains water passage 18 that runs from the bottom side of upper surface 62 within the inside diameter of cylindrical wall 66 to external opening 64 at its distal end. Opening 64 is sealed with cap 14. Cap 14 may remain attached to Mister Water Cap 10 when it is removed for drinking by means of thin plastic strap 34 with cap retainer ring 36 slidingly engaging the perimeter of drinking spout 32 as shown in
Internal cylindrical wall 66 slips inside the internal diameter of bottle 56 top opening. Shorter external cylindrical wall 68 slips over the external diameter of bottle 56 top opening, stopping before it reaches bottle 56 top's male threads 58 at approximately 1/16 inches. On opposing sides of cylindrical sidewall 70 at approximately 90 degrees from the attachment center of twist assist arms 30 are flexible thread 58 and ledge 48 engaging tabs 72. Flex notches 54 on either side of thread and ledge engagement tabs 72 start at bottom 60 and end approximately 0.4 inches up sidewall 70. Tabs 72 deflect when pulled out by release tangs 46 or are cammed away by the slope of lower clip 40 being forced over separator edge 90 and ledge 48. Flex notches 54 are approximately 1/16 inches wide and have radiused tops so as to not create stress risers. Thread and ledge engagement tabs 72 are approximately % inch wide continuing on the same arc as sidewall 70. Thread engaging details 42 on the internal surfaces of d tabs 72 are running at a compromise angle approximately half way between the U.S. and European standard thread angle. At the bottom end of tabs 72 are ledge 48 retaining lower clips 40. They have sloped bottom surfaces such that when Mister Water Cap 10 is pushed down on the top of open bottle 56, tabs 72 spring outward over ledge 48 and snap back into place below ledge 48 providing retention but not sealing. The tips of upper clip 42 drop in between threads 58 on bottle 56 when tabs 72 snap back into place. A small, approximately ¼ turn twist of Mister Water Cap 10, using twist assist arms 30, will draw the bottom side of top surface 62 tightly against the top of bottle 56, between depending walls 66 and 68 providing the required sealing action.
Mister Water Cap 10 has cylindrical wall 78 upstanding approximately 0.4 inches from upper surface 62 with an internal concentric wall 80 upstanding approximately 0.3 inches from upper surface 62. A further internal concentric cylindrical wall 82 depending approximately 0.2 inches provides tubular opening 52 through to the bottom side of top surface 62. The space between walls 78 and 80 provides the guide for standard spray nozzle and plunger button 28.
Nozzle and pump assembly 16 is not a part of this invention as there are many in the current art. A typical pump assembly 16 is disclosed here for illustrative purposes only. A typical nozzle and pump assembly 16 is comprised of standard spray nozzle and plunger button 28 with a concave surface on its top side and a piston retaining cylindrical wall 86 on its underside, concentric with the external wall of standard spray nozzle and plunger button 28. It contains a small channel leading to misting nozzle orifice 88.
A hollow piston 26 is typically fed up through tubular opening 52 and press fit into piston retaining cylindrical wall 86 in standard spray nozzle and plunger button 28. Piston 26 slides smoothly inside spring retainer 22. Axially beneath piston 26 is pump seal 24 that has a shoulder abutting the top of coil spring 20. Piston 26 and seal 24 are biased upward by spring 20. The space between upstanding wall 80 and depending wall 82 has a small spring retainer bump 44 protruding from the inside of wall 80. It locks spring retainer 22 into this space when spring retainer 22 is pushed into place as the top outside surface of spring retainer 22 has a matching bump 84 that pops over bump 44 and provides minimum retention of pump assembly 16 to Mister Water Cap 10. Spring retainer 22 has feed tube 18 inserted into its proximal end.
In use, cap 74 is replaced on bottle 56 with Mister Water Cap 10 with standard nozzle and pump assembly 16 installed. Cap 14 can be removed by upward pressure on cap removal lip 38 and liquid can be obtained through distal opening 64 from drinking spout 32. Pressing standard spray nozzle and plunger button 28 causes liquid to be drawn into proximal end of feed tube 18, through pump assembly 16 and to be forced through misting orifice 88 to dispensing a fine mist of cooling spray. Flexible thread and ledge engagement tabs 72 allow for lower clips 40 to be forced over ledge 48. When they snap back into at rest positions beneath ledge 48 they bring the internal threads 42 into contact with the external threads 58 on the bottle top. The flexibility of these tabs 72 allows upper clips 42 to engage either United States or European standard bottle top threads 58. A small twist of arms 30, approximately % turn, draws Mister Water Cap 10 firmly against the distal opening of liquid container 56 preventing leakage around interface.
The descriptions in the above specification are not intended to limit this invention to the particular pump assembly disclosed here. Nor is it intended to only work with purchased disposable water bottles. It also works well with various forms of refillable beverage containers such as the refillable sports drink type. Rather, they are shown for illustration purposes only as one skilled in these arts could easily scale the invention's dimensions and materials to work with any size liquid container.
