Patent Application
20140116586
The present invention relates to containers for storing nail polish and other cosmetic products, and in particular to a device that covers glass containers that store nail polish and other cosmetic products.
Nail polish, cosmetic gels, UV products, and cuticle oils are typically sold in small glass containers, which are sufficiently durable for light use by individual consumers, but become problematic in the context of a professional nail salon or other cosmetology establishment. In professional cosmetology establishments, particularly nail salons, many bottles of nail polish are stored together, often on open counters, and are used constantly throughout the day. The high level of use and concentration of products greatly increases both the likelihood that a bottle may be dropped and the likelihood that any individual bottle will be dropped. While such bottles are often thick-walled and able to withstand a fall, this is not always the case. The nail polish reservoir, as well as the neck and cap, are frequently damaged from falling. Often the contents is spilled or rendered unusable (for example, if the cap or applicator is damaged, it may not be possible to store and apply any product remaining in the bottle). A single consumer may easily absorb and ignore this loss, but in the context of a commercial nail salon, the loss represents a continual waste of inventory and contributes to the establishment's costs. A beneficial invention therefore would provide a low-cost way to reduce lost nail polish and other cosmetic products to dropped bottles.
Accordingly, the invention is a sleeve and cover for small glass bottles of the kind used to distribute and store nail polish and similar cosmetic products. A thin silicone sleeve is fitted to a particular size of nail polish bottle. The sleeve features a hole that may be positioned over the product label and through which the product label may be read. The sleeve further features a widened portion at the base of the bottle neck where the cap is inserted. The sleeve further features a concave tab that may be pulled up over the container cap. The result is that a shock-absorbing sleeve covers the whole bottle, including the fragile neck and cap, reducing the risk of breakage if the bottle is dropped.
In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a nail polish protector sleeve for protecting at least one of a reservoir portion and a neck portion of a nail polish bottle is disclosed. The protector sleeve comprises an elastic deformable body having a reservoir protection portion. The elastic deformable body has a deformable first aperture. The deformable first aperture is configured to deform, which allows entry of the nail polish bottle.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the elastic deformable body further has a neck protection portion.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, the deformable first aperture is located at a distal end of said neck protection portion.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, at least one viewing aperture is formed in a side of the deformable body.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, one of the viewing apertures is configurable to allow a user to view at least one of a label of the nail polish bottle and contents held in a reservoir portion of the nail polish bottle.
According to yet a further embodiment of the present invention, the protector sleeve further includes two opposing viewing apertures.
According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, the deformable first aperture reforms snuggly against the nail polish bottle following entry of the nail polish bottle through said first aperture.
According to yet another embodiment of the invention, a protector body for protecting a nail polish bottle is described. The protector body comprises a deformable shell has a shell upper portion and a shell lower portion, the shell upper portion includes a first deformable aperture for accepting the nail polish bottle.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the deformable shell is configurable to fit snuggly around a reservoir portion of the nail polish bottle.
According to yet another embodiment, the protector further comprises a viewing aperture formed in a side of the deformable shell. The viewing aperture allows a user to view at least one of a portion of a label of the nail polish bottle and the contents held in the reservoir portion.
According to yet another embodiment, the deformable shell is configured to fit snuggly around a neck portion of the nail polish bottle.
According to yet another embodiment, the deformable shell has a thickness of approximately 1.5 millimeters.
According to yet a further embodiment, the shell lower portion has a concaved portion.
According to yet a further embodiment, the shell lower portion has a textured portion.
According to an embodiment of the invention, a method of inserting a nail polish bottle into a protector sleeve is described. The method comprises deforming the protector sleeve and inserting a reservoir portion of the nail polish bottle through a deformable aperture of the protector sleeve.
According to yet another embodiment, the method further comprises pulling a tab portion of the protector sleeve around a neck portion of the nail polish bottle.
According to yet a further embodiment, the protector sleeve includes an aperture sized to allow a user to view at least one of a label of the nail polish bottle and contents held in the reservoir portion of the nail polish bottle.
According to yet a further embodiment, the method includes forming the protector sleeve of a material, the material includes one of at least rubber and silicone.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, the method includes forming the protector sleeve of unitary body.
Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention.
Other objects will become evident as the present invention is described in detail below.
Embodiments of the present application are described herein in which similar elements are given similar reference characters, and a more complete understanding of the present invention, and the attendant advantages and features thereof, will be more readily understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:
The present invention advantageously provides a nail polish bottle sleeve for protecting the reservoir and/or neck portion of a nail polish both.
Accordingly, the system and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present invention so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.
Referring now to the invention in more detail in which like reference designators refer to like elements, the invention is directed to a protective sleeve cover for a nail polish bottle or other small cosmetic bottle. The sleeve is presently envisioned as a monolithic piece of silicone or other shock absorbing plastic or rubber material. The sleeve may be thin, only a few millimeters in depth, or other thickness. The portions surrounding the fragile neck and cap of the bottle may be thicker.
Referring now to
The sleeve 1000 fits snugly over a cosmetic bottle (not shown). The sleeve 1000 is sized to stretch over any sized nail polish bottle. In an embodiment, the sleeve is configured without limitation to fit around nail polish bottles having any of a cylindrical reservoir portion, a square reservoir portion and/or a spherical reservoir portion.
In an embodiment, the sleeve is configured to fit only around nail polish bottles having a cylindrical reservoir for providing a snug fit to the cylindrical reservoir type nail polish bottle.
Referring to
The protector sleeve 1000 includes an elastic deformable body 1002 having a reservoir protection portion. In an embodiment, the deformable body 1002 includes an upper portion 1010, a lower portion 1012, and a middle portion 1014.
The thickness of the upper portion 1010 and the lower portion 1012 is greater than the middle portion 1014. In operation, the edges of upper portion 1010 and/or the lower portion 102 will contact the ground when the nail polish bottle falls, which reduces the forces against the weakest portion of the nail polish bottle, thereby reducing breakage of the nail polish bottle and spillage of its contents.
In an embodiment, the edges 1014, 1016 are beveled, or otherwise rounded for spreading contact forces.
Referring now to
Referring now to
While the foregoing written description of the invention enables one of ordinary skill to make and use what is presently considered to be the best mode thereof, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand and appreciate the existence of variations, combinations, and equivalents of the specific embodiment, method, and examples herein. The invention should, therefore, not be limited by the above described embodiment, method, and examples, but by all embodiments and methods within the scope and spirit of the invention.
It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to what has been particularly shown and described herein above. In addition, unless mention was made above to the contrary, it should be noted that all of the accompanying drawings are not to scale. A variety of modifications and variations are contemplated in light of the above teachings without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. It will be readily apparent that various changes may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure or sacrificing all of its material advantages. The examples and embodiments described herein are merely exemplary of the instant disclosure.
The terminology used herein is for the purposes of describing exemplary embodiments only. Such terminology is not intended to be limiting in any regard.
As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” may be intended to include the plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
As used herein, when the term “and/or” is used, it shall include all combinations of one or more of the associated described items.
As used herein, spatially relative terms may be intended to encompass the orientation of the different orientations of the system or device as it relates to the orientations depicted in the Figures. Such terms may include “inner”, “outer”, “above”, “upper”, “beneath”, “below”, “lower”, and the like.
As used herein, the terms “comprises”, “comprising”, “including”, and “having” are inclusive and therefore specifically the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, or groups, or a combination thereof.
This application is related to and claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/720,115, filed Oct. 30, 2012, entitled Nail Polish Protector Sleeve, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61720115 | Oct 2012 | US |
