During consumption of a beverage from a drinking vessel, such as a cup, glass, mug, open soda can, open beer can, stein, and such like, holding the vessel can sometimes be uncomfortable or otherwise problematic. If the beverage is warm or cold, the vessel can become uncomfortably warm or cold to the touch. In addition, a cold beverage can cause a drinking vessel to condense moisture on its outer surface, thereby making the vessel slippery and causing the hand of a consumer to become uncomfortably wet.
One solution to this problem is to provide a handle to facilitate grasping of a drinking vessel. For example, a reusable tea cup, coffee mug, or beer stein typically includes a handle that is permanently attached thereto. The handle provides for easy grasping of the drinking vessel without exposing a user's hand to uncomfortable temperatures or condensed moisture.
Handles are also sometimes included with disposable paper beverage cups. Typically, the handle is split into two flat halves that are initially aligned against the outer surface of the cup, so as to allow for easy stacking and storage of a plurality of cups. At time of use, the two halves are bent away from the cup and held together by the hand of a user. While providing the basic benefits of a handle, this approach can be inconvenient and uncomfortable, since the halves of the handle can be difficult to separate from the surface of the cup, and are typically uncomfortable to grasp. Also, the need to provide a handle with each disposable cup results in significant added cost, due to the extra handle pieces and gluing thereof that must be included in the manufacture of each disposable vessel. Other types of disposable drinking vessel, such as open beer and open soda cans, typically do not include a handle of any sort.
A convenient and comfortable approach for holding a drinking vessel, such as a disposable drinking vessel, that does not include a permanent handle, is to provide a reusable, detachable handle that can be attached to the drinking vessel during use, and then detached for reuse once the beverage has been consumed. One type of reusable, detachable handle includes one or more rings that can surround the drinking vessel. However, this approach can typically be used only with drinking vessels that fall within a narrow range of diameters, and are either tapered in shape or have a pronounced lip near the upper rim. Otherwise, handles of this type can slip in location, causing the drinking vessel to become unstable or even to slip away from the handle. Also, handles of this type are generally bulky in size, and therefore inconvenient to carry and store.
Another type of reusable, detachable handle includes a clamping mechanism that attaches firmly to the upper rim of a drinking vessel, and a bumper that rests against the lower side of the vessel. While this approach is compact and adaptable to a wide range of drinking vessel sizes and shapes, attachment of this style of handle to a drinking vessel can be uncertain and unreliable, especially if the vessel is made from a flexible material such as paper or thin aluminum, since the handle only grips the vessel at the rim. Also, the cost of such a handle can be high, due to the complexity of the clamping mechanism.
Yet another type of reusable, detachable handle attaches to the top and bottom of a drinking vessel. This type of handle is typically somewhat flexible, and includes shaping with notches and/or tabs at each end so as to couple with the upper and lower rims of the vessel. The handle is flexed so as to position the two ends over the upper and lower rims of the drinking vessel, and then released so as to cause the ends of the handle to press against the upper and lower rims and thereby firmly grasp the vessel. While this approach is adaptable to a wide variety of vessel shapes and diameters, each handle can be used with only a narrow range of vessel heights. Also, the handle must be at least as long as the vessel, and so tends to be somewhat bulky in size, and therefore inconvenient to carry and store.
In particular there is a need to provide a hinge that can be simply manufactured, have robust function, and does not require unnecessary parts or tools for assembly. Other technologies require separate parts that do not allow for quick manual assembly without tools or addition of other parts.
A reusable, detachable handle is claimed that attaches to both the upper and lower rims of a drinking vessel, so as to provide stable and reliable attachment thereto. The claimed handle can be folded when not in use, so as to provide for convenient and compact carrying and storage. Preferred embodiments of the claimed handle are adjustable in length, and/or provide a plurality of base-gripping features, so as to be adaptable to vessels of different heights. Some preferred embodiments include a fixed or slideable gripping spike that enhances gripping security by pressing against the upper rim in opposition to the upper end of the reusable handle. Further preferred embodiments include a bottle opener, and some preferred embodiments are attachable to a key ring or include a key ring.
One general aspect of the present invention is a detachable handle for use with a drinking vessel. The detachable handle includes an upper end that is shaped so as to press against and grip an upper rim of the drinking vessel, a lower end that is shaped so as to press against and grip a lower rim of the drinking vessel, a middle section that connects the upper end to the lower end, the middle section being foldable so as to fold the detachable handle into a storage configuration, and a latching mechanism that is able to fix the middle section in an unfolded configuration.
In preferred embodiments, the detachable handle can be used with a disposable drinking vessel. In some preferred embodiments the unfolded configuration of the middle section is a curved configuration.
In various preferred embodiments, when the middle section is fixed in the unfolded configuration, it can be flexed so as to place the upper and lower ends respectively above and below the upper and lower rims of the drinking vessel, and then released, so as to grip the drinking vessel by pressing the upper and lower ends against the upper and lower rims respectively. And in certain preferred embodiments the middle section includes a hinge that allows the middle section to be folded.
In some preferred embodiments, the latching mechanism includes a rigid sleeve that is slidable over a foldable portion of the middle section so as to prevent folding of the middle section, the rigid sleeve being slidable away from the foldable portion so as to enable folding of the middle section. In other preferred embodiments the latching mechanism includes a flap that is able to bridge a foldable portion of the middle section, a distal end of the flap being attachable to the middle portion by engagement of a protrusion with the flap, thereby fixing the detachable handle in its unfolded configuration.
In preferred embodiments, the middle section is adjustable in length. In some preferred embodiments the middle section includes a telescoping portion that allows adjustment of the length of the middle section. And in some of these embodiments the telescoping portion includes a member with a protrusion and a member with at least one receptacle, each receptacle being one of an indentation and a hole, the members being configured so as to fix the length of the telescoping portion when the protrusion is inserted into a receptacle.
In various preferred embodiments the middle section includes at least one base gripping structure that is able to press against and grip a lower end of a drinking vessel that is too short to be gripped by the lower end of the detachable handle. Some preferred embodiments further include a key ring attachment that enables attachment of the detachable handle to a key ring. And other preferred embodiments further include a key ring attached thereto.
Preferred embodiments further include a gripping spike located near the upper end of the detachable handle, the gripping spike being able to participate in gripping of the upper rim of the drinking vessel by pressing against the upper rim of the drinking vessel in opposition to the upper end of the detachable handle. And in some of these embodiments the gripping spike is movable in location along the detachable handle, so as to be movable into a pressing relationship with the upper rim of the drinking vessel, in opposition to the upper end of the detachable handle.
Certain preferred embodiments further include a bottle opening protrusion that can be used to remove a bottle cap from a bottle.
Another general aspect of the present invention is a detachable handle for use with a drinking vessel. The detachable handle includes an upper end that is shaped so as to press against and grip an upper rim of the drinking vessel, a lower end that is shaped so as to press against and grip a lower rim of the drinking vessel, and a middle section that connects the upper end to the lower end, the middle section being foldable so as to fold the detachable handle into a storage configuration.
The detachable handle further includes a latching mechanism that is able to fix the middle section in a curved, unfolded configuration that can be flexed so as to place the upper and lower ends respectively above and below the upper and lower rims of the drinking vessel, and then released, so as to grip the drinking vessel by pressing the upper and lower ends against the upper and lower rims respectively.
The detachable handle further includes a gripping spike located near the upper end of the detachable handle, the gripping spike being able to participate in gripping of the upper rim of the drinking vessel by pressing against the upper rim of the drinking vessel in opposition to the upper end of the detachable handle, the gripping spike being movable in location along the detachable handle, so as to be movable into a pressing relationship with the upper rim of the drinking vessel, in opposition to the upper end of the detachable handle, and at least one base gripping structure that is able to press against and grip the lower rim of the drinking vessel if the drinking vessel is too short to be gripped by the lower end of the detachable handle.
In preferred embodiments the latching mechanism includes a flap that is able to bridge a foldable portion of the middle section, a distal end of the flap being attachable to the middle portion by engagement of a protrusion with the flap, thereby fixing the detachable handle in its unfolded configuration.
In some preferred embodiments the middle section includes a hinge that allows the middle section to be folded. And in other preferred embodiments the middle section is adjustable in length.
In preferred embodiments, the hinge is specially designed utilizing a self-limiting cantilevered flexible pinless hinge structure for molded devices. In addition it is an object to securely assemble without the risk of disassembly through cycles of normal use. In addition it is an object to provide intentionally limited range of motion with persistent strength throughout full range of motion. In addition it is an object to manufacture a relatively simple and low cost molded manufacturing process. It is also an object to disassembled and reassembled with the same process and relative ease.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and consideration of the following description of a preferred embodiment and the accompanying drawings.
The invention will be more fully understood by reference to the detailed description, in conjunction with the following figures, wherein:
a is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a self-limiting cantilevered flexible pinless hinge structure in a separated, unassembled position.
b is a close up view of the upper half of the embodiment of
c is a close up view of the lower half of the embodiment of
Referring now to the drawings wherein the showings are for purposes of illustrating a preferred embodiment of the present invention and not for purposes of limiting the same,
The embodiment 900 of
The lower side 500 further comprises stabilizing fins 509 and stabilizing valleys 510. The stabilizing fins 509 and stabilizing valleys 510 are complementary to and interdigitate with stabilizing fins 507 and stabilizing valleys 508 on the upper side 511. In the assembled position the fins and valleys interdigitate and allow a stable platform to guide the hinge from the closed position to the open position and vice versa. The lower side 500 also has abutment 512 that complements upper side 511 abutment receiver surface 513. The abutment 512 and abutment receiver surface 513 can be adjusted in depth to set the maximum angle that the hinge can open. The range of angles is approximately 10 degrees to 350 degrees. In an alternative embodiment the abutment 512 and abutment receiver surface 513 can be reversed such that the abutment 512 can be on the upper side 511 and the abutment receiver surface 513 can be on the lower side 500.
a-c show the hinge in the disassembled configuration. This is a very useful method for assembling hinges because it does not require tools or additional parts. Additionally, the disassembly is just as easy as assembly. This is efficient for packaging products and reducing the overall volume and packaging material for home goods, toys, doors, and tools.
The dimensions of the integrated pins 502 can vary depending on the intended use. In the case of a collapsible beverage holding device the pin 502 need only be 0.5-3.0 millimeter long and 0.5-3.0 millimeter in diameter. The pin 502 may also have a tapered surface to aid in the assembly when the pin 502 must slide over pin lock 515. The ease of assembly and disassembly allows for quick maintenance or access without compromising strength or durability while in use. This invention can be manually assembled by its flexible cantilevered pins which can be flexed to fit around structure containing matching size holes and securely spring and remain in place no matter what direction an opposing force is imparted thereafter in contrast to most other snap hinges.
Other technologies requiring separate parts do not allow for quick manual assembly without tools or addition of other parts; in addition it is securely assembled without risk of disassembly through cycles of normal use; in addition it provides intentionally limited range of motion with persistent strength throughout full range of motion; in addition it is relatively simple and low cost to manufacture as a molded process. It can also be disassembled and reassembled with the same process and relative ease.
Additional modifications and improvements of the present invention may also be apparent to those skilled in the art. Thus, the particular combination of parts described and illustrated herein are intended to represent only one embodiment of the invention, and is not intended to serve as limitations of alternative devices within the spirit and scope of the invention.
Continuation-in-part of U.S. pending patent application Ser. No. 12/463,274 dated May 8, 2009 the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.