Patent Application
20210045614
The present invention relates generally to the field of automatic washing machines. Specifically, the present invention describes a novel assembly for retaining and sanitizing the interior and exterior of many reusable drinking straws simultaneously. Further consideration is given to the capacity to process multiple individual batches of reusable drinking straws concurrently.
In present times, non-biodegradable drinking straws are a common utensil sold and offered freely by commercial restaurants and grocers. These conventional drinking straws are generally accepted to be single-use, disposable items by most users, however the materials used to produce such straws are known to persist long after the straws have been disposed of. The environmental impact of this cumulative mass of plastics is a recognized hazard that has recently been addressed by public legislation banning the use of such single-use straws or mandating their manufacture from more eco-friendly materials such as plant fibers or paper. In response, durable straws formed from denser polymers, plastics, or metallic materials have become increasingly available on the market. Reusable straws enable a customer to condense costs for drinking straws into a one-time, upfront purchase to avoid both the cost and hassle of acquiring biodegradable straws.
Avoidance of excessive waste may also be a priority for the environmentally minded consumer, encouraging those individuals to seek a means to minimize their impact by foregoing recurring wasteful practices. However, with the repeated use of such utensils consumers are now required to cleanse their reusable straws—a requirement that had not been commonplace prior to the recognition and banning of conventional disposable straws. It is therefore contemplated that a means of effectively cleaning and sanitizing a large volume of reusable straws simultaneously is presently absent from, yet desirable to a segment of the market today.
Some of the embodiments will be described in detail, with reference to the following figures, wherein like designations denote like members, wherein:
Unless otherwise specifically noted, articles depicted in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.
As a preliminary matter, it will readily be understood by one having ordinary skill in the relevant art that the present disclosure has broad utility and application. As should be understood, any embodiment may incorporate only one or a plurality of the above-disclosed aspects of the disclosure and may further incorporate only one or a plurality of the above-disclosed features. Furthermore, any embodiment discussed and identified as being “preferred” is considered to be part of a best mode contemplated for carrying out the embodiments of the present disclosure. Other embodiments also may be discussed for additional illustrative purposes in providing a full and enabling disclosure. Moreover, many embodiments, such as adaptations, variations, modifications, and equivalent arrangements, will be implicitly disclosed by the embodiments described herein and fall within the scope of the present disclosure.
Accordingly, while embodiments are described herein in detail in relation to one or more embodiments, it is to be understood that this disclosure is illustrative and exemplary of the present disclosure, and are made merely for the purposes of providing a full and enabling disclosure. The detailed disclosure herein of one or more embodiments is not intended, nor is to be construed, to limit the scope of patent protection afforded in any claim of a patent issuing here from, which scope is to be defined by the claims and the equivalents thereof. It is not intended that the scope of patent protection be defined by reading into any claim a limitation found herein that does not explicitly appear in the claim itself.
Thus, for example, any sequence(s) and/or temporal order of steps of various processes or methods that are described herein are illustrative and not restrictive. Accordingly, it should be understood that, although steps of various processes or methods may be shown and described as being in a sequence or temporal order, the steps of any such processes or methods are not limited to being carried out in any particular sequence or order, absent an indication otherwise. Indeed, the steps in such processes or methods generally may be carried out in various different sequences and orders while still falling within the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it is intended that the scope of patent protection is to be defined by the issued claim(s) rather than the description set forth herein.
Additionally, it is important to note that each term used herein refers to that which an ordinary artisan would understand such term to mean based on the contextual use of such term herein. To the extent that the meaning of a term used herein—as understood by the ordinary artisan based on the contextual use of such term—differs in any way from any particular dictionary definition of such term, it is intended that the meaning of the term as understood by the ordinary artisan should prevail.
Furthermore, it is important to note that, as used herein, “a” and “an” each generally denotes “at least one,” but does not exclude a plurality unless the contextual use dictates otherwise. When used herein to join a list of items, “or” denotes “at least one of the items,” but does not exclude a plurality of items of the list. Finally, when used herein to join a list of items, “and” denotes “all of the items of the list.”
The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the following description to refer to the same or similar elements. While many embodiments of the disclosure may be described, modifications, adaptations, and other implementations are possible. For example, substitutions, additions, or modifications may be made to the elements illustrated in the drawings, and the methods described herein may be modified by substituting, reordering, or adding stages to the disclosed methods. Accordingly, the following detailed description does not limit the disclosure. Instead, the proper scope of the disclosure is defined by the appended claims. The present disclosure contains headers. It should be understood that these headers are used as references and are not to be construed as limiting upon the subjected matter disclosed under the header.
Other technical advantages may become readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art after review of the following figures and description. It should be understood at the outset that, although exemplary embodiments are illustrated in the figures and described below, the principles of the present disclosure may be implemented using any number of techniques, whether currently known or not. The present disclosure should in no way be limited to the exemplary implementations and techniques illustrated in the drawings and described below.
Unless otherwise indicated, the drawings are intended to be read together with the specification and are to be considered a portion of the entire written description of this invention. As used in the following description, the terms “horizontal”, “vertical”, “left”, “right”, “up”, “down” and the like, as well as adjectival and adverbial derivatives thereof (e.g., “horizontally”, “rightwardly”, “upwardly”, “radially”, etc.), simply refer to the orientation of the illustrated structure as the particular drawing figure faces the reader. Similarly, the terms “inwardly,” “outwardly” and “radially” generally refer to the orientation of a surface relative to its axis of elongation, or axis of rotation, as appropriate. As used herein, the term “dorsal” refers to positions that are located near, on, or towards the upper or top side of a structure.
The present disclosure includes many aspects and features. Moreover, while many aspects and features relate to, and are described in the context of reusable drinking straw washing apparatuses, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to use only in this context.
In present times, non-biodegradable drinking straws are a common utensil sold and offered freely by commercial restaurants and grocers. These conventional drinking straws are generally accepted to be single-use, disposable items by most users, however the materials used to produce such straws are known to persist long after the straws have been disposed of. The environmental impact of this cumulative mass of plastics is a recognized hazard that has recently been addressed by public legislation banning the use of such single-use straws or mandating their manufacture from more eco-friendly materials such as plant fibers or paper. In response, durable straws formed from denser polymers, plastics, or metallic materials have become increasingly available on the market. Reusable straws enable a customer to condense costs for drinking straws into a one-time, upfront purchase to avoid both the cost and hassle of acquiring biodegradable straws.
Avoidance of excessive waste may also be a priority for the environmentally minded consumer, encouraging those individuals to seek a means to minimize their impact by foregoing recurring wasteful practices. However, with the repeated use of such utensils consumers are now required to cleanse their reusable straws—a requirement that had not been commonplace prior to the recognition and banning of conventional disposable straws. It is therefore contemplated that a means of effectively cleaning and sanitizing a large volume of reusable straws simultaneously is presently absent from, yet desirable to a segment of the market today.
The present invention aims to provide a means of sanitizing a plurality of reusable straws simultaneously to a superior standard than that offered by conventional flatware washing machines. Mechanisms and arrangements are contemplated herein to wash the exterior of the straws by means which may be recognized by a reasonably skilled individual, in addition to specific structures and functions intended to flood and clear the interior of said straws during a single process cycle. Further consideration is given to packaging and supporting multiple instances of such a washing apparatus within a single installation of the present invention in consideration of the need to cleanse multiple loads or batches of straws simultaneously, said loads to be cycled continuously in at least one conceivable application of the present disclosure.
In reference to
In reference to
At least one control module 112 constitutes a digitized monitoring and command-executing system instantiated within the apparatus 100 such that all ongoing cleaning operations and statuses may be monitored and facilitated by a centralized logical operator. As used herein, “control module” and “control circuit” are used interchangeably. At least one control module 112 is further contemplated to comprise various human interface devices including both inputs and outputs as may be necessary for a user or operator to monitor or manage the functions of the apparatus 100. The control module 112 is specifically contemplated to be suitable to manage and report the cleaning processes of multiple independent washing mechanisms supported within a single instance of the apparatus 100. The plurality of applicators 110 define a varying series of mechanisms mounted within the casing 102 intended to soak and sanitize the exterior of the reusable straws 706.
Specific consideration is given to processes and methods to simultaneously apply water and cleaning solution in an effective, randomized pattern to ensure effective breakdown of debris adhered to the surface of any soiled utensils (e.g., the reusable straws 706) within the plurality of drawers 108. The plurality of drawers 108 define a series of removable carriers containing internal structures specifically suitable for retaining and sanitizing a plurality of the reusable straws 706, in accordance with preferred embodiments. In at least one conceivable application, an individual drawer 108 may be fully removed from the apparatus 100 after completing a cleaning cycle and a replacement drawer 108 that contains dirty utensils may be inserted to minimize downtime of the apparatus 100 and thereby facilitate more efficient loading and unloading of the straws 706. In other words, the plurality of drawers 108 are each hot swappable. The plurality of drawers 108 are each slidably and demountably positioned within one of the cavities 106.
In reference to
The plurality of locks 114, in various applications and embodiments, may be utilized to ensure the proper insertion of the plurality of drawers 108 via a physical block inserted into both the casing 102 and an individual drawer 108. The plurality of locks 114 may, in this arrangement, offer both physical assurance of proper configuration and serve as a lockout-safety device preventing the removal of an individual drawer 108 mid-cycle. The plurality of applicators 110 are contemplated to be suspended above each of the cavity 106, such that the interior of the individual drawers 108 is exposed to the plurality of applicators 110 during a cleaning cycle. The primary conduit 302 defines a fluid transporting pipe network that preferably connects the reservoir 104 to each instance of the plurality of applicators 110 and to each of the plurality of cavities 106 via the plurality of first ports 304. The primary conduit 302 is preferably positioned proximate to the casing 102 and operationally coupled to the reservoir 104.
The primary ports 304 are contemplated to automatically engage with an individual drawer 108 when inserted into an individual cavity 106, or to automatically interrupt fluid flow when disconnected. The reservoir 104 is contemplated to be a source of pressurized water and cleaning solution, either separately or in combination, without limitation as to source of materials or pressurization. The reservoir 104 is preferably positioned proximate to the casing 102 and configured to comprise a cleaning solution. The power supply 126 is, likewise, contemplated to define any known solution for introducing and dispersing electrical energy throughout the various electrical components of the apparatus 100 to permit full functionality as described herein.
In reference to
For example, such data is contemplated to include time elapsed in a process, time remaining, temperature, remaining cleaning solution volume, type of process applied, maintenance interval warnings, malfunction notices, or any other information that may be useful to a user. The displays 118 is preferably configured to report metrics related to ongoing operations of each individual component associated with the drawer 108. The plurality of controls offers a user a means to interact and edit any digitized metrics or executable commands related to the function of the straw washing apparatus in general or the plurality of drawers 108 individually.
In reference to
For example, in
The primary inlet 404 defines a fluid connection between the interior volume of the shell 602 and the apparatus 100, ideally forming an operable connection with the reservoir 104 such that water and cleaning solution may be introduced into the shell 602a at elevated pressure the enable the described functions of the plurality of jets 608a and the axle 604. Further alternate embodiments of the plurality of applications may include dispersed sprayers, nozzles, showers, or other structures generally recognized within the field of automatic washing machines. The specifically contemplated iterations, including any more generalized or specialized mechanisms, are contemplated to be employed in conjunction with multiple dislike embodiments in at least one conceivable embodiment of the apparatus 100 without departing from the original scope of the instant disclosure.
In reference to
The second conduit is extensible to the second inlet 710, traversing between the lateral width 805 of the container 402 several times beneath a lower interior panel 714 of the container. The plurality of perforations 716 defines a series of clearance gaps traversing the width of this lower interior panel 714 adjacent to the secondary conduit 702. The secondary conduit 702 is preferably positioned in each drawer 108 (e.g., in container 402) and operationally coupled to each of the nipples 704. The second conduit 702 is preferably positioned beneath the lower internal panel 714 of the container 402. The lower internal panel 714 includes a plurality of perforations 716. The plurality of nipples 704 are positioned within each of the drawers 108. The plurality of secondary ports 712 ideally extends outward from the secondary conduit 702, individually traversing the plurality of perforations 716 such that the distal ends of the plurality of secondary ports 712 are exposed to the interior of the container 108. The secondary conduit 702 preferably includes the plurality of secondary ports 712 operationally coupled thereto. The secondary conduit 702 is operationally and demountably coupled to the primary conduit 302 when a drawer 108 is positioned within the cavity 106. The plurality of nipples 704 are each operationally coupled to the plurality of secondary ports 712 such that water and cleaning solution may flow from the reservoir 104, through the second inlet 710, through the secondary conduit 702, through the plurality of secondary ports 712, and outward from the plurality of nipples 704 to clean the interior of a number of reusable straws 706 temporarily fixed to the plurality of nipples 704.
The plurality of nipples 704 is specifically contemplated to individually comprise hollow, flared, deformable bodies. Each nipple 704 is configured to engage a straw end 708. In preferred embodiments, an individual straw 706 may be temporarily fixed to an individual nipple 704 for the duration of a cleaning cycle by forcing one end of the straw (e.g., straw end 708) down and over the protruding head of the nipple, said straw to be removed by simple manual extraction from the nipple after completion of the cycle. In preferred embodiments, each nipple 704 comprises a body 905 and a head 910 that is flared, deformable and protrudes from the body 905.
Although the invention has been explained in relation to various embodiments, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62887818 | Aug 2019 | US |
