BEVERAGE CONTAINER WITH REMOVABLE SLEEVE OR BOOT

FIELD

[0001]Aspects provided herein relate to portable beverage accessories, such as insulated travel cups, shaker cups, and the like.

BACKGROUND

[0002]Travel beverage accessories often include insulated cups and non-insulated cups, double wall cups, or any other suitable beverage container that includes a fitted lid to prevent accidental spills. The lids can be simple screw on lids, or press-on lids, and may not always be leak-proof.

SUMMARY

[0003]At a high level, a beverage container may include a lid structure coupled to a base structure to define an interior volume for holding and/or dispensing a beverage held within the beverage container. The base structure can be a cup shaped beverage container that may optionally be insulating to keep drinks cold/hot for extended periods of time (e.g., between 4 hours and 48 hours). The lid structure may have a spout portion or a straw mechanism for dispensing the contents of the beverage container when the lid structure and the base structure are engaged with one another.

[0004]Aspects herein are generally further directed to a beverage container, the beverage container being comprised of a base structure and a lid structure. The base structure in accordance with aspects herein includes an outer wall and an inner wall. The inner wall of the base structure includes a threaded portion proximal to the opening edge of the base structure. A step edge is provided in the inner wall of the base structure that defines the end of the threaded portion and the start of a non-threaded portion of the inner wall, where the non-threaded portion of the inner wall extends inward toward a relative center of the container further than the internal threaded section of the base structure. The inner wall may optionally include volume markings configured to signal a volume quantity contained within the base structure as the base structure is filled with a beverage. The volume of the base structure may be sized and shaped to hold between 14 oz. and 100 oz. of a beverage.

[0005]The base structure may be formed from various materials such as plastic, glass, metal, such as, for example, stainless steel, aluminum, copper, and similar materials. During handling and use of the beverage container, it is contemplated that the base structure thereof may encounter sliding, rolling, and impact from falling and/or bumping. Therefore, a protective sleeve or boot in accordance with aspects herein may be provided to protect the base structure, especially at base end of the base structure, which is more susceptible to impact. As mentioned earlier, some base structures may be insulated, typically through a double-wall construction. To reduce the overall weight of the base structure, each wall in a double-wall construction of the base structure may be thinner than a wall of a single wall base structure, especially when metal is used. These thinner walls of the insulated base structure may benefit from the added protection of the sleeve or boot in accordance with aspects herein, especially for metal insulated base structures, which may be more susceptible to denting.

[0006]A protective sleeve or boot for a beverage container in accordance with aspects herein may be formed from a variety of suitable elastic materials such as, for example, natural rubber, synthetic rubber, silicone, rubberized silicone, thermoplastic elastomers including thermoplastic polyurethane, thermoplastic polyamide, polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, neoprene, nitrile, and the like, or any combination thereof.

[0007]In accordance with aspects disclosed hereinafter, the term “about” should be understood as the given value ±2% in accordance with aspects described herein. The sleeve or boot may be configured to fit snuggly onto and around a base portion, covering anywhere up to about 95% of a height of a base structure. For example, the sleeve or boot may be configured to snuggly fit onto and cover the base portion encompassing the beverage container bottom in a variety of depths, such as up to about 90%, up to about 85%, up to about 80%, up to about 75%, up to about 70%, up to about 65%, up to about 60%, up to about 55%, up to about 50%, up to about 45%, up to about 40%, up to about 35%, up to about 30%, up to about 25%, up to about 20%, up to about 15%, or up to about 10% of the height of the base structure.

[0008]In accordance with aspects herein, in addition to offering protection to the base structure as described above, the sleeve or boot may also provide a frictional surface and cushioning surface to offer a comfortable gripping surface to a user. The frictional surface may also provide anti-slip or anti-skid properties so that the beverage system in accordance with aspects herein has an improved stability against sliding or tipping over when placed on a table top or other surface. Additionally, based on an amount of coverage of the base structure by the sleeve or boot, the sleeve or boot may also provide additional insulation to the beverage system. In other words, the sleeve or boot can add an additional layer of insulation to the beverage stored within the beverage container. For instance, when the sleeve or boot covers at least about 35% of the height of the base structure, the sleeve or boot will serve as an additional insulative layer to a liquid stored in the beverage container.

[0009]This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010]Illustrative embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the attached drawing figures, which are incorporated by reference herein and wherein:

[0011]FIG. 1A depicts a perspective view of an assembled beverage system with a sleeve or boot, in accordance with aspects herein;

[0012]FIG. 1B depicts a different perspective view of the beverage system shown in FIG. 1 in accordance with aspects herein;

[0013]FIG. 1C depicts a perspective view of a sleeve for a beverage system in accordance with aspects herein;

[0014]FIG. 1D depicts a perspective view of a boot for a beverage system, in accordance with aspects herein;

[0015]FIG. 2 depicts a perspective view of the beverage system shown in FIG. 1 with the sleeve or boot removed, in accordance with aspects herein;

[0016]FIG. 3 depicts a cross-sectional view of the beverage system shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with aspects herein;

[0017]FIG. 4 depicts a cross-sectional view taken along the line 4-4 in FIG. 1B of a portion of the beverage system shown in FIG. 1, in accordance with aspects herein; and

[0018]FIG. 5 depicts beverage system in FIG. 1 with a cut-out on the sleeve or boot, in accordance with aspects herein.

[0019]An overview of the features, functions and/or configurations of the components depicted in the various figures will now be presented. It should be appreciated that not all of the features of the components of the figures are necessarily described. Some of these non-discussed features, such as various couplers, etc., as well as discussed features are inherent from the figures themselves. Other non-discussed features may be inherent in component geometry and/or configuration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020]The subject matter of embodiments of the present invention is described with specificity herein to meet statutory requirements. However, the description itself is not intended to limit the scope of this patent. Rather, the inventor(s) have contemplated that the claimed subject matter might also be embodied in other ways, to include different features or combinations of features similar to the ones described in this document, in conjunction with other present or future technologies. Further, it should be appreciated that the figures do not necessarily represent an all-inclusive representation of the embodiments herein and may have various components hidden to aid in the written description thereof.

[0021]At a high level, an exemplary beverage system 100 is shown in FIG. 1A. Although the beverage system 100 is shown as having a certain shape, it is contemplated that aspects herein are applicable to any shape suitable for a beverage container having a height 111. For example, as shown in FIG. 1B, although the beverage system 100 is shown to have an upper portion 110 having a uniform diameter and a base portion having a tapering shape from a top margin 122 to a bottom margin 124, aspects herein are also applicable to beverage containers that have a uniform diameter from a top margin 112 to a bottom margin 114 of the base structure 104, a uniform diameter throughout at least a portion of a top margin 112 and/or a bottom margin 114, a rounded shape (as in wine glasses or wine tumblers), or the like. In general, the beverage system 100 in accordance with aspects herein comprises a lid structure 102 and a base structure 104 as the main components. The beverage system 100 may optionally further include a handle 106 to facilitate carrying of the beverage system 100, which may extend from the base structure 104 (as shown), or from the lid structure 102.

[0022]As further shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the beverage system 100 further includes a sleeve or boot 108 to be slidably fitted over and fit snuggly onto a base portion 118 of the base structure 104 encompassing the beverage container's bottom margin 114 up to about 95% of a height 111 of the base structure 104. For example, the sleeve or boot 108 may be configured to snuggly slidably fit onto and cover the base portion 118 encompassing the beverage container's bottom margin 114 up to about 90%, up to about 85%, up to about 80%, up to about 75%, up to about 70%, up to about 65%, up to about 60%, up to about 55%, up to about 50%, up to about 45%, up to about 40%, up to about 35%, up to about 30%, up to about 25%, up to about 20%, up to about 15%, up to about 10% of the height 111 of the base structure 104.

[0023]In accordance with some aspects herein, the sleeve or boot 108 can be bottomless (i.e., tubular or having an open top and bottom), as shown in FIG. 1C. To this end, the base structure 104 of the beverage system 100 may comprise an anti-slip pad (not shown) directly affixed to the bottom 201 (shown in FIG. 2) of the base structure 104, which helps add stability (i.e. by adding a frictional surface) to the beverage system to keep the beverage system 100 from sliding across a flat surface such as a counter, a table top, and the like. Exemplary materials that can be used for the anti-slip pad can include elastic materials, for example, natural rubber, synthetic rubber, silicone, rubberized silicone, thermoplastic elastomers such as, for example, thermoplastic polyurethane, thermoplastic polyamide, polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, neoprene, nitrile, and the like, or any combination thereof, that is found to be suitable having desirable properties for the anti-slip pad.

[0024]In accordance with some other aspects herein, the sleeve or boot 108 can have an open end and a closed end, or in other words a bottom 116 (i.e. boot) as shown in FIG. 1D. The base structure 104 may or may not have an anti-slip pad since the bottom 116 of the boot 108, could offer the same advantages of an anti-slip pad (i.e. stability and anti-skid), based on the material(s) from which the boot 108 is comprised. As discussed above, the sleeve or boot 108 in accordance with aspects herein may be formed from resilient elastic materials such as, for example, natural rubber, synthetic rubber, silicone, rubberized silicone, thermoplastic elastomers such as, for example, thermoplastic polyurethane, thermoplastic polyamide, polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, neoprene, nitrile, and the like, or any combination thereof, that is found to be suitable.

[0025]Additionally because the sleeve or boot 108 is configured to cover a base portion 118 of the base structure 104, the sleeve may provide added insulative properties to the beverage system 100. In other words, the sleeve or boot 108 could help the beverage system 100 further mitigate the gradual warming of a cold beverage or the gradual cooling of a hot beverage. Furthermore, the sleeve or boot 108 may also provide protection to the base structure 104 (e.g., acting as a bumper) to protect the base structure 104 from impact (e.g., bumping, bouncing, clashing, contacting) when handling the beverage system 100. As such, the sleeve or boot 108 protects the integrity of the base structure 104, adding to the longevity of the beverage system 100 regardless of the material composition (e.g., suitable plastic, glass, suitable metals such as copper, stainless steel, aluminum, and the like) of the base structure 104, but particularly when the base structure 104 is formed from more fragile materials such as glasses, plastics, or metals that may be prone to breaking or denting. Another advantage of the sleeve or boot 108 is that it provides a soft gripping surface for the beverage system 100, one that is also anti-slip when held by a user of the beverage system 100.

[0026]Referring back to FIG. 1C, the sleeve 108 has a first opening 126 coinciding with a top margin 122 of the sleeve 108 and a second opening 128 coinciding with a bottom margin 124 of the sleeve 108, with a body 130 extending between the top margin 122 and the bottom margin 124. Based on the shape of the base portion 118 of the base structure 104 that the sleeve 108 is configured to cover, a diameter 132 of the first opening 126 may be the same as a diameter 134 of the second opening 128 (i.e., the base structure 104 has a uniform diameter along the height of the base portion 118), or the diameter 132 of the first opening 126 may be greater than the diameter 134 of the second opening 128 (i.e., base portion 118 of the base structure 104 has a tapering shape).

[0027]Similarly, referring back to FIG. 1D, the boot 108 has a first opening 136 coinciding with a top margin 138 of the boot 108 and a bottom 116 coinciding with a bottom margin 140 of the boot 108, with a body 142 extending between the top margin 138 and the bottom margin 140. Based on the shape of the base portion 118 of the base structure 104 that the sleeve 108 is configured to cover, a diameter 144 of the first opening 136 may be the same as a diameter 146 of the bottom 116 (i.e., the base structure 104 has a uniform diameter along the height of the base portion 118), or the diameter 144 of the first opening 136 may be greater than the diameter 146 of the bottom 116 (i.e., base portion 118 of the base structure 104 has a tapering shape). Furthermore, in order to ease installation (i.e. donning) of the boot 108 onto the base portion 118 of the base structure 104, the boot 108 may comprise one or more vent holes 148 located at the bottom 116.

[0028]FIG. 2 illustrates the beverage system 100 with the sleeve or boot 108 removed from the base portion 118 of the base structure 104. As shown, the base structure 104 can have an engagement depression 200 extending along a top margin 202 of an outer surface 204 of the base portion 118. In some embodiments, the engagement depression 200 may have a depth of about 1 mm to about 5 mm, though depths narrower (e.g., from 0.1 mm) or deeper (e.g., to 10 mm) than such are certainly within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0029]Depending on a thickness of a wall of the base structure 104, the engagement depression 200 may or may not show up as a ridge on an interior surface of the base structure 104. For example, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, for a base structure 104 that has a double wall configuration, the engagement depression 200 may only affect the outer wall 300. In other words, a depth 203 of the engagement depression 200 may be less than a distance 304 between the inner wall 302 and the outer wall 300. As a result, an inner surface of the base structure 104 may be smooth and uniform. Further, in order to accommodate the sleeve or boot 108, the outer wall 300 may have a first portion 310 offset from a second portion 312 by a distance “x” labeled as 314, such that, when the sleeve or boot 108, having a thickness “y” labeled as 306, is installed on the base portion 118 of the base structure 104, the outer surface 212 of the sleeve or boot 108 is flush or level with the outer surface 214 of the second portion 312 of the outer wall 300 of the base structure 104, as shown in FIG. 3. In other words, the thickness “y” of the sleeve or boot 108 is complementary to the offset distance “x” so that the outer surface 212 of the sleeve or boot 108 transitions smoothly to the outer surface 214 of the outer wall 300 of the base structure 104 when the sleeve or boot 108 is installed onto the base structure 104.

[0030]Referring back to FIG. 2, in some alternative embodiments the sleeve or boot 108 can have a lip 210 on an inner surface 208 along the top margin 122. The lip 210 of the sleeve or boot 108 can extend from the inner surface 208 a height “z” labeled as 308 (see FIG. 4) to complement and engage with the engagement depression 200 of the base structure 104. The height “z” may be about 0.5 mm to about 4.8 mm, though heights shorter (e.g., from 0.1 mm) or taller (e.g., to 10 mm) than such are certainly within the scope of the present disclosure. The lip 210 can provide a securement function that prevents the sleeve or boot 108 from sliding off of the base structure 104, as shown in FIG. 5, where a portion of the sleeve 108 is cut-off to show the engagement of the sleeve 108 with the base structure 104.

[0031]For the securement function of the lip 210, in accordance with some embodiments, the engagement depression 200 can be configured to engage the lip 210, providing resistance to sliding (i.e. between sleeve or boot 108 and base structure 104) by providing a catch mechanism between the lip 210 and the engagement depression 200. Additionally, based on the elastically resilient material of sleeve or boot 108, the lip 210 provides additional surface area for a frictional engagement between the outer surface 204 of the base structure 104 at the engagement depression 200 and the inner surface 208 of the sleeve or boot 108 at the lip 210. Thus, sliding off of the sleeve or boot 108 is mitigated to a certain extent, even if the beverage system 100 were not held right side up (i.e., with the lid structure 102 being above the bottom 201 of the base structure 104). Said differently, the sleeve or boot 108 is prevented from sliding off of the base structure 104 even when the beverage system 100 is held upside down or sideways. In other words, removal of the sleeve or boot 108 requires an additional force that is additional to a force required to overcome a frictional engagement between the outer surface 204 of the base structure 104 and the inner surface 208 of the sleeve or boot 108. The securement function of the lip 210, when provided, may help secure the sleeve or boot 108 to the base structure 104, while also maintaining the characteristic of slidable removability for cleaning or interchangeability, among other things.

[0032]In accordance with aspects herein, the sleeve or boot 108 may be configured to stretch (i.e. diameter of the sleeve or boot 108 being about 0.1 to about 5% smaller than a diameter of the base structure 104), thereby at least in part, relying on resilient properties of the material of the sleeve or boot 108 to keep the sleeve or boot 108 secured onto the base structure 104. The outer surface 204 of the base structure 104 may, in some embodiments, be provided with a non-glossy or non-polished finish to reduce the gripping effect of the sleeve or boot 108, though a base structure 104 having a glossy and/or polished finish is still considered to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0033]It is also contemplated that the elastically resilient materials that the sleeve or boot 108 is comprised of, may be provided with more slick or silky finishes (i.e., nonstick finish) rather than “sticky” or “grippy” finishes (i.e., having a high frictional resistance to movement, or the ability to temporarily adhere to a surface) to facilitate donning and doffing of the sleeve or boot 108 onto the base structure 104. Thus, in some embodiments where the lip 210 is provided, the lip 210 may contribute added securement to furnish a catch of sorts, which engages with the engagement depression 200 of the base structure 104, regardless on the finish provided on the outer surface 204 of the base structure 104.

[0034]In other aspects, to facilitate the donning and doffing of the sleeve or boot 108, a diameter of the sleeve or boot 108 may be about 0% to about 5% greater than a diameter of the base structure 104 onto which the sleeve or boot 108 is to be fitted on. In this configuration, the finishes given on the outer surface 204 of the base structure 104 and/or at least the inner surface 208 of the sleeve or boot 108 may not have a significant impact on the donning and doffing. In this configuration, in such embodiments where lip 210 is provided, the securement function of the lip 210 with the engagement depression 200 may be more exaggerated to provide the desired securement of the sleeve or boot 108 to the base structure 104.

[0035]Many different arrangements of the various components depicted, as well as components not shown, are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Embodiments of the present invention have been described with the intent to be illustrative rather than restrictive. Alternative embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art that do not depart from its scope. A skilled artisan may develop alternative means of implementing the aforementioned improvements without departing from the scope of the present invention.