Patent Application
20170251850
The disclosure relates generally to a lid assembly for liquid containers, and more particularly, to a re-closable lid assembly for liquid containers, the re-closable lid assembly allowing a consumer to drink through a straw from the liquid container while preventing accidental spills.
Refillable beverage containers, such as commuter coffee mugs, for example, typically include a removable lid that includes a fluid aperture or drink hole, and a consumer typically fills the interior of the container (e.g., an insulated container) with a beverage (e.g., coffee) when the lid is removed. To drink the beverage, the consumer typically tips the container to allow the beverage to pass through the drink hole, and the consumer sips the beverage as the beverage exits the drink hole.
In some cases, a simple drink hole may be undesirable as a consumer (such as a young child or toddler) may not be sufficiently skilled to drink from the hole while not spilling. To address this problem, beverage containers with spouts were developed. Such containers include a flip out spout with a ball joint element. When the spout is flipped out in a drinking position, the ball joint is open, allowing liquid to flow out of the container through the spout. When drinking is no longer desired, the spout must be flipped to a closed position, thereby closing the ball joint and preventing liquid from flowing out of the container. Thus, such beverage containers for children are either in the drink mode or the non-spill mode.
Other drink containers may include a straw that is manually stored in a crimped position when not in use to prevent spills. Similar to the ball joint products described above, these containers are either in the drink configuration, in which the straw is not crimped, or in the no-spill configuration, in which the straw is crimped. In any event, the user must manipulate some portion of known drink containers to transition the container between the drink configuration and the no-spill configuration.
A liquid container lid assembly includes a straw having an internal one-way valve and a grommet seal for sealing against the straw. As a result, the disclosed liquid container lid assembly allows a consumer (such as a child) to drink from the straw while preventing accidental spillage without the need for the child to manipulate any part of the lid assembly (such as a lock or valve release). In other words, the liquid container lid assembly is always in a no-spill configuration while simultaneously allowing a consumer to drink from the straw.
Turning now to
Generally, the lid assembly 12 includes a no-spill mechanism that prevents accidental spillage from the container 10 while allowing a consumer (e.g., a child) to drink from the straw without the need to manipulate any part of the lid assembly 12. In other words, the lid assembly 12 simultaneously allows fluid to flow in one direction from the container 10 out of the straw 16 when a child is drinking and the lid assembly 12 prevents accidental spillage by preventing fluid flow out of the straw 16 (or out of the opening 18) when the child is not drinking with no manipulation of the lid assembly 12 required.
Turning now to
The cap 24 may also be substantially funnel-shaped, generally mirroring the center portion 28 of the base 22. The cap 24 may include a series of peaks and valleys on a bottom surface (as illustrated in
The base 22 may include an annular space 50 between the skirt 26 and the center portion 28. A seal, such as an o-ring 52, may be disposed in the annular space 50 so that the o-ring 52 provides a seal against an upper rim 54 of the container 10 when the cover 14 is attached to the container 10. Thus, the lid assembly 12 provides a liquid seal between the base 22 and the container 10 (via the o-ring 52) and between the base 22 and the straw 16 (via the grommet 48).
The straw 16 may be constructed as a two-piece straw 16 having a first or lower portion 56 and a second or upper portion 58. The first portion 56 and the second portion 58 may be removably connected to one another by, for example, a threaded connection 60. A straw valve 62 may be located between the first portion 56 and the second portion 58. In one embodiment, the straw valve 62 is a one-way cross-slit valve made of flexible silicone. In one aspect, the straw valve 62 may be removable when the first portion 56 and the second portion 58 are separated from one another for easy cleaning. In another aspect, the straw valve 62 is permanently coupled to the first portion 56 or the second portion 58. The straw valve 62 allows fluid to flow from the interior 20 of the container 10 through the straw 16 and out of an upper end 64 of the straw 16 when a consumer sucks on the upper end 64 of the straw 16. This creates a sufficient pressure differential (i.e., a pressure differential in excess of a predetermined opening pressure differential) across the straw valve 62 to deform the flexible silicone, thereby opening a slit in the silicone and allowing fluid to flow through the straw valve 62. However, if the container 10 is tipped over, liquid pressure alone within the straw 16 is not sufficient to deform the flexible silicone and thus to open the slit. As a result, liquid is prevented from flowing through the straw 16 in this case.
The base 22 may include a gripping ring 64 surrounding the skirt 26. The gripping ring 64 may provide a gripping surface for a consumer to grasp. Similarly, the container 10 may include a bottom cap 66 and a gripping cup 68 surrounding the bottom cap 66. The bottom cap 66 and the gripping cup 68 may improve stability of the container 10 when the container 10 is placed upright on a surface.
Turning now to
In the illustrated embodiment, the straw valve 62 includes an annular valve holder 72, a control element 74, a valve retainer 76, and a seal, such as an o-ring 78. The control element 74 includes a center control portion 79 and an annular flange 80. The center control portion 79 may be a pliable disk with a slit, a pliable disk with a cross-cut, or another structure capable of allowing fluid flow in one direction when a sufficient pressure differential is applied. In the exemplified embodiment, the pliable disk is deformable around the slit to produce an opening through the pliable disk when the pressure differential across the pliable disk exceeds the predetermined value. The control element 74 is secured to the valve holder 72 by the valve retainer 76. More specifically, the valve retainer 76 compresses the annular flange 80 of the control element 74 against a recess 82 in the valve holder 72. A locking element, such as a ledge 84, cooperates with a shelf 86 in the valve holder 72 to form a secured connection. In other embodiments, the valve holder 72, the control element 74, and the valve retainer 76 may be separable for easy cleaning. Similarly, the valve holder 72 is releasably secured to the first portion 56 with a securing element, such as a recess 88 that cooperates with a ring 90 on an inner surface of the first portion 56.
Assembling the straw valve 62 may be accomplished first by inserting the control element 74 into the valve holder 72 and thereafter inserting the valve retainer 76 into the valve holder 72 and securing the valve retainer 76 to the valve holder 72 by pushing the ledge 84 into the shelf 86. After the straw valve 62 is assembled, the straw valve 62 may be inserted into the valve chamber 70 of the first portion 56 of the straw 16. The straw valve 62 may be pushed down, into the valve chamber 70 until the ring 90 slides into the recess 88. Finally, once the straw valve 62 is secured to the first portion 56, the second portion 58 may be secured to the first portion 56 twisting one relative to the other, thereby engaging the threaded connection.
The disclosed lid assembly advantageously maintains a drinkable configuration and a no-spill configuration simultaneously so that a user does not need to manipulate any part of the lid assembly. This is especially advantageous for young consumers, such as children and toddlers.
While various embodiments have been described above, this disclosure is not intended to be limited thereto. Variations can be made to the disclosed embodiments that are still within the scope of the appended claims.
