Patent Application
20110240589
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1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to bottle seals, and more particularly to secondary wine bottle seals, and still more particularly to a resilient wine bottle capsule that may be reused after the bottle has been uncorked.
2. Discussion of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR §§1.97, 1.98
Wine bottles are the most well known of bottles sealed with corks, though several other products also employ cork seals, including olive oils, vinegars, beer, spirits, perfumes, and so forth. The industry standard for sealing wine bottles is to insert a standard or synthetic cork in the bottle mouth and then to provide a secondary seal with a bottle capsule, typically fabricated from tin, polylaminate, or polyvinyl chloride. Until the 1990s, capsules were generally made from lead. Wine producers have also used wax as a secondary seal, as this provides significant enhanced protection from inadvertent oxygen contact with the wine.
However, once a wine bottle has been opened, the quality of the wine quickly degrades due to exposure to oxygen. To retard the degradation, especially in the case of white wines, consumers will frequently reinsert the removed cork into the bottle and place it in a temperature controlled wine closet or a refrigerator. The problem with this approach is that the seal is imperfect and leaks are common, particularly when the bottle is laid on its side.
Other solutions include the production of a vacuum and the insertion of a specialized stoppers using a system such as the VACU VIN® wine saver and bottle resealing system by Vacu-Products of As Delft Netherlands. Another solution is to introduce a blanket of inert gas over an open wine by squirting it into the bottle though an elongate tube connected to the nozzle of a pressurized can of nitrogen or argon, such as the WINE SAVER PRO® by Wine Gadgets, LLC of Allentown, Pa. The former has not held up well in tests (that is, the contained product suffers considerable oxidation), and the latter is prohibitively expensive for the ordinary consumer. [VACUVIN is a registered trademark of Vacu-Products B.V., of Delft, Netherlands; WINE SAVER PRO is a registered trademark of Timothy S. Fallon, of Center Valley, Pa.]
The need remains for an inexpensive and easy-to-use device for resealing and temporarily preserving and preventing evaporation or spillage of products from open wine bottles, or from bottles containing other perishable or messy products, such as olive oil, soap, vinegar, and the like. The instant invention is directed to this objective and provides a resilient bottle capsule, installed contemporaneously or nearly contemporaneously with the initial cork insertion at bottling. This is especially well-suited for use as a wine bottle capsule, though use as a cap for preserving other perishable products is clearly contemplated. The resilient capsule is fabricated from silicon or synthetic rubber and is provided with interior dimensions, internal surface features and a cross-sectional profile that combine to make placement of the capsule over the open mouth of an open bottle easy and removal of the capsule also easy, while at the same time providing effective resealing of the bottle so as to prevent further exposure to oxygen from the atmosphere outside the bottle. When a bottle is resealed with the inventive capsule, spills are entirely prevented.
The invention will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
Referring to
The capsule further includes a medial portion 22, which tightly circumscribes the upper portion banded collar or top flange 20, and a lower sleeve portion 24 which tightly circumscribes the bottle neck 26 immediately below the banded collar 20.
From the capsule rim 14 to the bottom edge 28 of the lower sleeve portion 24, the exterior surface 30 of the capsule preferably tapers gently inward. The capsule is divided interiorly into three distinct portions, including an upper, medial, and lower portion, each defined by the surface configuration of the interior wall 32 of the capsule. The interior wall thus includes a generally cylindrical lower portion 34 having a first diameter that defines the lower sleeve portion; an annular medial channel 36 has a second diameter larger than the first diameter and defines the medial portion that accommodates the top flange 20; and a small upper cylindrical portion 38, having a third diameter substantially the same as that of the first diameter, defines the upper portion and closely surrounds and engages the pouring spout portion 18 of the bottle.
As shown in
The resilient capsule of the present invention is preferably fabricated from pure gum rubber, synthetic rubber, or food grade silicone, and are sized such that they can be gently stretched to cover the top of the bottle when first installed, and gently peeled from the top of the bottle when the consumer wishes to remove the cork. The capsule is preferably fabricated from a resilient material having a shore durometer of approximately Shore A-50 (+/−5 points) under the ASTM D2240 testing standard. With appropriate sizing, a capsule fabricated from this material is sufficiently resilient to accept the stretch needed for removal and also the stretch required for replacement after cork removal. When so replaced, the resilient material again conforms to the surface features of the bottle to provide an airtight and watertight seal, such that liquid cannot escape from the bottle and air cannot get back in to the bottle. Thus, the open but resealed bottle may be laid on its side in a refrigerator for storage. Accordingly, the capsule may supplement the initial seal and thus replace it after the bottle is uncorked, or it may be employed exclusively as a seal for an opened bottle that is kept ready-at-hand for use as needed.
Finally, the resilient capsule of the present invention lends itself to product branding and promotional programs. Whereas conventional capsules are generally discarded as rubbish after removal (thrown away and never to be used again), the inventive capsule may be reused nearly indefinitely. This provides producers with the motivation to mark the capsules with names 44, either of goods, or services, or events, special occasions, product and company graphics, colors, logos, and the like, and such indicia will provide an enduring brand statement that will continue to complement labels on their own resealed bottles, and may even eclipse or compete with brand elements on other producer bottles resealed with the resilient capsule by consumers who keep them for future use after the original product is consumed.
As will be appreciated from the foregoing, in its most essential aspect, the resilient bottle capsule of the present invention includes a top cap portion, a medial portion that extends downwardly from and is integral with the top cap portion. Next, a lower sleeve portion extends downwardly from and is integral with said medial portion. Interiorly, the capsule includes an interior wall having a surface configuration that divides the interior wall into three regions, including a generally cylindrical lower portion with a first diameter that tightly conforms to the neck of a bottle below the banded collar of a bottle. It next includes an annular medial channel with a second diameter, larger than that of the first diameter and that permits the medial channel to straddle and accommodate the banded collar of a bottle of a predetermined size. Finally, the capsule includes an upper cylindrical portion with a third diameter substantially the same as that of the first diameter and which tightly surrounds and engages the pouring spout portion of the bottle. The resilient material with a carefully selected Shore rating allows the capsule to be installed and removed repeatedly without losing its efficacy in preventing oxidation and spillage of bottle contents, even when the bottle is laid on its side or inverted.
The above disclosure is sufficient to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the invention, and provides the best mode of practicing the invention presently contemplated by the inventor. While there is provided herein a full and complete disclosure of the preferred embodiments of this invention, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction, dimensional relationships, and operation shown and described. Various modifications, alternative constructions, changes and equivalents will readily occur to those skilled in the art and may be employed, as suitable, without departing from the true spirit and scope of the invention. Such changes might involve alternative materials, components, structural arrangements, sizes, shapes, forms, functions, operational features or the like.
Therefore, the above description and illustrations should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, which is defined by the appended claims.
The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/320,672, filed Apr. 2, 2010.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61320672 | Apr 2010 | US |
