Patent Application
20060070534
This invention generally relates to devices for handling a tea bag at the conclusion of the brewing process. More particularly, this invention relates to devices for use in an elegant setting.
Tea bags are widely used in both formal and informal settings, from fine dining establishments to fast food restaurants as well as in the home. Brewing tea requires the use of very hot or boiling water. The brewing process can last anywhere from a few seconds to approximately five (5) minutes to suit individual tastes. At the end of the brewing process, the tea bag is removed from the brewing container and is still exceedingly hot. Tea bag holders are used to hold the hot tea bags so that the tea drinker does not burn his hand on the hot tea bag.
Known devices exist for holding a tea bag after the brewing process and for squeezing the tea from the bag. Because a tea drinker is considered to have poor manners if he leaves the bag in the cup while consuming the tea, the tea drinker should dispose of the tea bag in a practical and aesthetically pleasing manner prior to drinking the tea. There are no known devices, however, which efficiently, and in an aesthetically pleasing manner, squeeze the final essence of flavor from the tea bag into a cup and also completely hides the unsightly, soggy tea bag from view during the tea bag draining process and afterward.
Examples of such prior art devices include tongs used to hold and press tea bags, as well as spoons and other types of holders and presses. Many of the known devices, however, primarily consist of metal or plastic, which are more appropriate for the kitchen, a buffet table or a very casual dining atmosphere than for a formal table setting. Secondly, while prior art tongs, spoons, squeezers, holders and pressers can effectively remove the bag from the liquid and squeeze out the remaining tea, the prior art devices do nothing to remove the unsightly tea bag from view.
The present invention provides a tea holder and press which effectively hides the tea bag from view while a draining aperture in the press drains the tea from the tea bag. Furthermore, the inventive tea bag holder and press contains decorative designs that make the holder aesthetically pleasing to the human eye and suitable for use in an elegant and formal setting.
In one form of the present invention a tea bag holder is provided, the tea bag holder including a top section defining a top tea bag accommodating area; a bottom section defining a bottom tea-bag accommodating area, at least one of the top and bottom sections defining an aperture therein; and a connection member connecting the top and bottom sections and enabling the top and bottom sections to close together such that the top and bottom tea bag accommodating areas form a cavity suitably sized to hide the tea bag from view.
In another form of the present invention, a tea press includes a first section, and a second section movably attached to the first section, thereby enabling the first and second sections to be closed together, wherein at least one of the first and second sections defines a tea draining aperture and has a tea bag accommodating area such that the first and second sections create a cavity suitably sized to hide a tea bag from view when the sections are closed together.
In yet another form of the present invention, the tea press includes a top section having a top outer surface including a first design, and a bottom section movably attached to the top section, the bottom section having an inner bottom surface and an outer bottom surface, wherein the inner bottom surface includes a second design and the outer bottom surface includes a third design.
The above-mentioned and other features and objects of this invention, and the manner of attaining them, will become more apparent and the invention itself will be better understood by reference to the following description of an embodiment of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. Although the drawings represent embodiments of the present invention, the drawings are not necessarily to scale and certain features may be exaggerated in order to better illustrate and explain the present invention. The exemplifications set out herein illustrate embodiments of the invention in several forms and such exemplification is not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention in any manner.
The embodiments disclosed below are not intended to be exhaustive or limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed in the following detailed description. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and described so that others skilled in the art may utilize their teachings.
The use of the term “religious symbol” hereinafter refers to any symbol that may be used to identify a product with a particular religious group or occasion. Such religious symbols include, but are not limited to, a dove, a cross, a fish, an anchor, a triangle, a circle, a peacock, a phoenix, a palm leaf and a lamp.
The tea holder and press (“tea press”) of the present invention is shown in
Top section 110 of tea press 100 also defines aperture 130 in the backend of top section 110 to the left of hinge 115. Aperture 130 is used to drain a tea bag when tea press 100 is in its closed position. In other embodiments of the present invention, aperture 130 may be formed in bottom section 120 or in both top and bottom sections 110, 120.
Bottom section 120 includes hinge 115. Hinge 115 includes hinge member 116 and hinge pin 118, which extends through hinge member 116 and into hinge pin receptacles located in bottom section 120 on each side of hinge pin 118. Hinge 115 enables top section 110 and bottom section 120 to open and close between an open position (as shown in
The tea press of the present invention is shown in greater detail and in an open position in
Bottom section 220 also includes indentation 224. Indentation 224 is useful to assist one in gripping and opening top section 210 when top and bottom sections 210, 220 are closed together and tea press 200 is in a closed position. Bottom section 220 also has inner bottom surface 226, which includes decorative designs 228. While decorative designs 228 are shown in
As described supra, the hinge includes hinge member 216 and hinge pin 218. Hinge pin 218 extends through hinge member 216 and is positioned in apertures 222 (one of which is not shown) in hinge receptacle 217 of bottom section 220. The top portion of the hinge member 216 does not permit top section 210 to fully open, allowing the user of tea press 200 to hold open press 200 in one hand while lifting a tea bag with the other hand. In other embodiments of the present invention, the hinge feature may be replaced with a seam of flexible material between top section 210 and bottom section 220 which enables top and bottom sections 210, 220 to alternate between an open and a closed position.
Now referring to
The function of the tea press is demonstrated in
In one embodiment of the inventive tea press, the tea press is made from a high quality porcelain, is square in shape, has outer dimensions of approximately 7.5 cm×7.5 cm×1.3 cm, and accommodates both common tea bags with strings and tags as well as square or round herbal tea bags with no strings or tags. In other embodiments of the present invention, it is contemplated that the tea press may be made of a lesser quality porcelain, tempered glass, ceramic, wood, plastic, metal or a specially treated cardboard product to make it disposable for restaurant use. The tea press may also be formed into other geometric shapes (e.g., oval, round, or rectangular) and sized to accommodate common tea bags and/or herbal tea bags of either one or multiple shapes and sizes.
While this invention has been described as having an exemplary design, the present invention may be further modified within the spirit and scope of this disclosure. This application is therefore intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the invention using its general principles. Further, this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which this invention pertains.
