This invention generally relates to covers for drinking containers for beverages and more particularly a cover that can be universally used on a variety of beverage containers having different sizes and brim shapes.
Most beverage containers come with their unique covers adapted to fit the container. Generally, plastic snaps are used for all types of paper or plastic cups. Each type of container comes with its characteristic cover. Further, most applications of beverage covers are used in conjunction with beverage containers that are meant for outdoor usage or usage related to travel. What is needed is a universal type cover that does not depend on the type of beverage container.
Often disposable cups use disposable plastic lids designed for use in connection with paper or plastic containers of various types such as beverage cups. Many such closures have been provided by the prior art with a wide variety of techniques for effecting engagement of the lid with the container.
Notwithstanding the provisions of the prior art, there remains a need for an apparatus that can serve as a cover for non-disposable beverage containers, such as beer mugs, wine glasses, soda cups, for which a complementary cover or a lid is generally not provided. Often there is a need for ladies to cover their drinks as they are slowly nursed so as to keep them free of undesirable contaminants and prevent miscreants from slipping in undesirable chemicals or sedatives into their drinks.
In recent years, there has been a rapid rise in drug induced date-rapes. If a person has had too much to drink or is on drugs they can not consent to sex and having sex with them is legally rape. There are certain date rape drugs that render the victim unconscious and limit memory. Rohypnol, GHB, ActiveSeX, Roofies, Ruffles, Roche, R-2, Rib and Rope are all names describing a date rape drug. These drugs are odorless and tasteless and difficult to detect when in drinks or mixed with other drugs. Date rape is the most common form of rape (78%) with 1 in 4 women expected to fall victim to rape or attempted rape before they reach 25. Although women are more often victims of rape, men can also be victims of rape.
What is needed is a barrier or a cover that prevents the drink from getting compromised as the victim looks away, is distracted, or takes a phone call. Furthermore, what is needed is that cover be decorative, having an ostentatious appeal, and further may have an inscription, or a pithy adage, famous quote, or the mascot of sports team, transcribed on the cover. What is needed is a type of beverage cover that can be easily carried in a ladies' purse and used readily and for covering any type of beverage container so that no matter the setting the universal cover can be pulled out and used to cover the beverage container. What is needed is a beverage cover that allows for the drink to be sipped with a straw without the need for removing the cover.
The design of the universal beverage cover is functional and decorative and as such appealing to taste of women. Furthermore, the beverage cover may include team logos, inspirational quotes, or other transcriptions that further enhance their utility and appeal. Additional details are put forth in the next sections.
It is an object of this invention to provide a universal cover that can be used to cover all types of beverage containers regardless of their shapes and size. The invention is particularly targeted for non-disposable beverage containers, such as beer mugs and wine and juice glasses, or soda cups used inside a restaurant or a bar. Still other objects and advantages of the invention will in part be obvious and will in part be apparent from the specification and drawings.
The present invention is directed to embodiments of the universal beverage cover shown in
By the present invention, a beverage container cover is disclosed and taught whereby the brim of the container is covered by universal cover provided that is held in place by a multiplicity of decorative weights that keep it stretched so as to prevent the cover from falling into the container. Moreover, the weights also help create a tight seal with the brim of the container so as to help maintain the temperature of the beverage in the container by preventing heat exchange through convection. The type of material utilized for making the container further prevents other types of heat exchange through radiation or conduction and therefore maintains the beverage at a desired temperature for longer periods of time. An embodiment of the invention encloses the material in close contact with the container surface through stretchable bands and maintains temperature by creating an insulation layer.
Preferably the shape of the universal cover component is a square since it allows for the decorative weights to be tied to the four corners of a square. However, other shapes are possible as well. Covers can take the shape of a star, a circle, pentagon, a hexagon, or even an arbitrarily shaped mascot. Hooks are provided along the periphery of the cover where the stabilizing weights are detachably or permanently attached. These weights are distributed approximately uniformly along the boundary of the cover so that when the cover is placed on the beverage container the cover will not get pulled to a particular side.
Another object of the invention is to allow the beverage to be sipped without the need to remove the cover. Therefore a central opening is provided in the cover wherein a straw or another sipping device may be inserted to facilitate the consumption of the beverage without the need to remove the cover. The opening can further include gripping tabs to prevent the straw from moving around in the opening. It is preferable that the straw grippers not be too tight since inserting the straw would otherwise cause the stabilizing weights to move and the cover to get undulated.
The universal beverage cover can also include inscriptions including text and graphical logos, or other pithy sayings which can serve as conversation starters or help in marketing a product or an idea. It is an object of the invention to enable dangling weights to also be in the shape of a mascot or similar shapes used for conveying a marketing theme, such as helmet bearing a logo of a sports team. Hanging weights can be designed to be detachable and decorative, or designed to match the decor of an occasion or dress. Logos and inscriptions may also be placed upon the cover itself. Further, the shape of the cover can be made to represent an article, a symbol or a trademark.
The universality of the beverage cover and its decorative and marketing aspects makes it a unique object that individuals may own and carry with them to benefit from the protection of the beverage cover as well as to communicate their position or endorsement. Therefore, a carrying case is integral to the invention since there are somewhat delicate parts and fasteners involved in its construction that would have a tendency of getting entangled when the universal beverage cover is placed in a bag or a purse. The carrying pouch matches with the decorative aspects of the beverage cover and includes a drawstring type closing mechanism with the string running through the neck of the pouch.
The invention accordingly comprises the several steps and the relation of one or more of such steps with respect to each of the others, and the apparatus embodying features of construction, combinations of elements and arrangement of parts that are adapted to affect such steps, all is exemplified in the following detailed disclosure, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.
For a more complete understanding of the invention, reference is made to the following description and accompanying drawings, in which:
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It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above, among those made apparent from the preceding description, are efficiently attained and, because certain changes may be made in carrying out the above method and in the construction(s) set forth without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.
It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall there between.
The application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/637,408, filed on Mar. 2, 2018, by the present inventors which is incorporated herein by reference. The application further claims the benefit of and is a continuation of non-provisional patent application with Ser. No. 16/288,103 filed on Feb. 28, 2019, by the present inventors which is fully incorporated herein by reference.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20210221579 A1 | Jul 2021 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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62637408 | Mar 2018 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 16288103 | Feb 2019 | US |
Child | 17220713 | US |