Bottle Lid

Abstract

A bottle lid for use with a bottle having an opening includes an intermediate lid having a configuration for selectively coupling the intermediate lid to the bottle. The intermediate lid includes a barrier presenting upper and lower faces, the barrier enclosing the bottle opening when the intermediate lid is coupled to the bottle. The bottle lid includes a secondary bottle defining a cavity. The secondary bottle has an upper end open to the cavity and includes a configuration complementary to a configuration of the barrier lower face for selectively coupling the secondary bottle upper end to the barrier lower face. The bottle lid includes a top lid having a configuration complementary to a configuration of the intermediate lid for selectively coupling the top lid to the intermediate lid. The top lid and the intermediate lid collectively define a sealed compartment when the top lid is coupled to the intermediate lid.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to storage containers and, more particularly, to a bottle lid attachable to the open top of a bottle and having multiple storage compartments and configurations for storing different materials.

It is typical for a person to carry multiple food items along with a drink to locations where a snack or lunch will be desired at a later time. For example, a worker or a student may take a bottle of water, snack crackers, vegetables, and even a dip to work or school, respectively, to be enjoyed at an appropriate time. Each of these items is typically stored in a separate container and the containers are carried in a sack, lunch box, or other container.

Further, it is desirable to store different but related items in close relationship to each other. More particularly, it may be desired to store nuts, bolts, screws, and the like in close proximity but in organized and separate containers. It is further desirable that these containers be easily transportable.

Various devices have been proposed in the art for storing an item in the cap of a bottle so that the materials may either be combined or used together at a later time. Although assumably effective for their intended purposes, the existing devices do not provide both an intermediate lid with compartment, a secondary bottle, or the capability to combine additional intermediate lids as needed.

Therefore, it would be desirable to have a bottle lid that is removably attachable to a traditional bottle that includes a cavity for containing a selected material, such as a food item. Further, it would be desirable to have a bottle lid having a secondary bottle for holding another material, such as a liquid. In addition, it would be desirable to have a bottle in which multiple intermediate lids may be coupled and then attached to the traditional bottle for carrying and transporting multiple items.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A bottle lid for use with a bottle having an opening according to the present invention includes an intermediate lid having a configuration complementary to a configuration of the bottle for selectively coupling the intermediate lid to the bottle. The intermediate lid includes a barrier presenting upper and lower faces, the barrier enclosing the bottle opening when the intermediate lid is coupled to the bottle. The bottle lid further includes a secondary bottle having upper and lower ends and defining a cavity therebetween. The secondary bottle upper end is open to the cavity and includes a configuration complementary to a configuration of the barrier lower face for selectively coupling the secondary bottle upper end to the barrier lower face. In addition, the bottle lid includes a top lid having a configuration complementary to a configuration of the intermediate lid for selectively coupling the top lid to the intermediate lid. The top lid and the intermediate lid collectively define a sealed compartment when the top lid is coupled to the intermediate lid.

The bottle lid may include multiple intermediate lids that may be removably coupled together. In this embodiment, multiple cavities are formed between the coupled intermediate lids. The secondary bottle may still be coupled to the lowermost intermediate lid and extend down into the mouth of the traditional bottle. The top lid may cover the uppermost intermediate lid.

Therefore, a general object of this invention is to provide a bottle lid for storing and carrying selected items in relation to an open top bottle.

Another object of this invention is to provide a bottle lid, as aforesaid, having an intermediate lid and top cap attachable to the bottle that defines a cavity for storing items.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a bottle lid, as aforesaid, having a secondary bottle attachable to an underside of the intermediate cap for storing a liquid or other item.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a bottle lid, as aforesaid, in which the secondary bottle extends into the cavity of the traditional bottle when the intermediate lid is coupled to the bottle.

A further object of this invention is to provide a bottle lid, as aforesaid, in which the intermediate lid has a modular construction such that multiple intermediate lids may be coupled together so as to increase the number of different items that may be stored or carried.

A still further object of this invention is to provide a bottle lid, as aforesaid, that is cost effective to manufacture and user-friendly to use.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein is set forth by way of illustration and example, embodiments of this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a bottle lid according to one embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the bottle lid as in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3a is a top view of the intermediate lid as in FIG. 2; FIG. 3b is a side view of the intermediate lid as in FIG. 2;

FIG. 3c is a sectional view taken along line 3c-3c of FIG. 3a;

FIG. 4a is a top view of the top lid as in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4b is a side view of the top lid as in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4c is a sectional view taken along line 4c-4c of FIG. 4a;

FIG. 5a is a top view of the bottle lid as in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5b is a sectional view taken along line 5b-5b of FIG. 5a;

FIG. 6 is an isolated view on an enlarged scale taken from FIG. 5b;

FIG. 7a is an exploded view of a bottle lid according to the present invention illustrating use with multiple intermediate lids;

FIG. 7b is a top view of the bottle lid as in FIG. 7a;

FIG. 7c is a sectional view taken along line 7c-7c of FIG. 7b;

FIG. 8 is an isolated view on an enlarged scale taken from FIG. 7c;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of another exemplary arrangement of the bottle lid components according to the present invention;

FIG. 10a is an exploded view of the bottle lid as in FIG. 9;

FIG. 10b is a top view of the bottle lid as in FIG. 10a;

FIG. 10c is a sectional view taken along line 10c-10c of FIG. 10b; and

FIG. 11 is an isolated view on an enlarged scale taken from FIG. 10c.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A bottle lid 100 according to the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 through 11 of the accompanying drawings. More particularly, according to the current invention, a bottle lid 100 for use with a bottle 10 having an opening 12 (i.e., an open end) includes at least one intermediate lid 110, a top lid 120, and a secondary bottle 130. “Bottle” as used herein refers to any appropriate container, such as a bottle, ajar, etc., regardless of the container's specific shape or composition.

As shown in FIGS. 1 through 3c and FIG. 6, the intermediate lid 110 has a configuration 112 complementary to a configuration 14 of the bottle 10 to selectively couple the intermediate lid 110 to the bottle 10. The configuration 112 may include threads, clamps, or any other appropriate fastener. The accompanying figures show the bottle opening 12 having external threads 14a and the configuration 112 of the intermediate lid 110 including complementary internal threads 112a, though other arrangements are also appropriate. The intermediate lid 110 has a barrier 113 with upper and lower faces 113a, 113b that encloses the bottle opening 12 when the intermediate lid 110 is coupled to the bottle 10, as shown in FIG. 6. The barrier upper face 113a may be generally planar or may be shaped as desired for particular applications.

The intermediate lid 110 may further include a configuration 114 (FIG. 3c) complementary to a configuration 122 (FIG. 4c) of the top lid 120 to selectively couple the intermediate lid 110 to the top lid 120 (FIG. 6). The configuration 114 may include threads, clamps, or any other appropriate fastener. For example, the configuration 114 of the intermediate lid 110 may include external threads 114a (FIGS. 3b and 3c) and the configuration 122 of the top lid 120 may include complementary internal threads 122a (FIG. 4c). As shown in FIG. 6, the external threads 114a of the intermediate lid 110 may be configured to approximate the external threads 14a of the bottle 10. When the top lid 120 is coupled to the intermediate lid 110, the top lid 120 and the intermediate lid 110 collectively define a sealed compartment 125 that may or may not be airtight, depending on the intended use of the bottle lid 100. As shown in FIG. 1, both the intermediate lid 110 and the top lid 120 may be cylindrical, such as to match a diameter of the bottle 10. It should be understood that other shapes are also appropriate, however.

The secondary bottle 130 has upper and lower ends 132a, 132b (FIG. 2) and defines a cavity 134 (FIGS. 2 and 6) between the upper and lower ends 132a, 132b. The upper end 132a is open to the cavity 134 (FIG. 2) and has a configuration 136 (also referred to herein as a “coupling element”) complementary to a configuration 116 (also referred to herein as a “coupling element”) of the barrier lower face 113b to selectively couple the upper end 132a of the secondary bottle 130 to the intermediate lid 110 (i.e., to the barrier lower face 1 13b). The secondary bottle cavity 134 may be airtight when the secondary bottle upper end 132a is coupled to the barrier lower face 113b, depending on the intended use of the bottle lid 100 and specifically the intended use of the cavity 134. The configuration 136 of the secondary bottle upper end 132a may include threads, clamps, or any other appropriate fastener. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the configuration 136 of the of the secondary bottle upper end 132a may include external threads 136a and the configuration 116 of the barrier lower face 113b may include complementary internal threads 116a. The secondary bottle 130 may extend into the bottle 10, as shown in FIG. 5b, when the secondary bottle 130 is coupled to the intermediate lid 110 and the intermediate lid 110 is coupled to the bottle 10, as discussed above.

FIGS. 7a through 11 show that a plurality of the intermediate lids 110 may be included. Each intermediate lid 110 may have a configuration that approximates a configuration of each other intermediate lid 110, or at least one intermediate lid 110 may have a configuration that is different than a configuration of at least one other intermediate lid 110. In other words, all of the intermediate lids 110 may be copies of one another (FIGS. 7a through 8), or one or more of the intermediate lids 110 may be different from the rest (FIGS. 9 through 11). If the external threads 1 14a of the intermediate lid 110 are configured to approximate the external threads 14a of the bottle 10 as noted above, for example, the intermediate lids 110 may be coupled to each other in addition to the bottle 10, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. Every two intermediate lids 110 coupled together may collectively define a sealed compartment 119 (FIGS. 8 and 10c) between respective barriers 113, and the sealed compartments 119 may or may not be airtight, depending on the intended use of the bottle lid 100 and specifically the compartments 119.

In use, material may be placed in the bottle 10. The material in the bottle 10 may be a liquid (e.g., food, drink, etc.) or a solid (e.g., food, hardware, etc.). The bottle 10 may or may not be sized and constructed specifically for the material to be carried. A different material may be placed in the secondary bottle cavity 134, and the secondary bottle 130 may be attached to an intermediate lid 110 as described in detail above. The material in the secondary bottle cavity 134 could be, for example, mouthwash, cream, sugar, medicine, candy, mints, or different hardware. The intermediate lid 110 coupled to the secondary bottle 130 may be coupled to the bottle 10 (FIG. 6) and/or other intermediate lid(s) 110 (FIGS. 8 and 10c). If the intermediate lid 110 coupled to the secondary bottle 130 is coupled to the bottle 10, the secondary bottle 130 may extend into the bottle 10 (FIGS. 6 and 8); if another intermediate lid 110 separates the bottle 10 and the intermediate lid 110 coupled to the secondary bottle 130, the secondary bottle 130 may extend into the other intermediate lid 110 (FIG. 10c). If multiple intermediate lids 110 are coupled together, still different material may be contained in the compartment(s) 119. Material may also be contained in the compartment 125 defined by the top lid 120 and a respective intermediate lid 110. It should be appreciated that all examples set forth herein are exemplary only and that appropriate materials in particular are seemingly endless.

It is understood that while certain forms of this invention have been illustrated and described, it is not limited thereto except insofar as such limitations are included in the following claims and allowable functional equivalents thereof.

Claims

1. A bottle lid for use with a bottle having an opening, said bottle lid comprising:

an intermediate lid having a configuration complementary to a configuration of said bottle for selectively coupling said intermediate lid to said bottle, said intermediate lid having a barrier presenting upper and lower faces, said barrier enclosing said bottle opening when said intermediate lid is coupled to said bottle;

a secondary bottle having upper and lower ends and defining a cavity therebetween, said secondary bottle upper end being open to said cavity and having a configuration complementary to a configuration of said barrier lower face for selectively coupling said secondary bottle upper end to said barrier lower face; and

a top lid having a configuration complementary to a configuration of said intermediate lid for selectively coupling said top lid to said intermediate lid, said top lid and said intermediate lid collectively defining a sealed compartment when said top lid is coupled to said intermediate lid.

2. The bottle lid as in claim 1, wherein said secondary bottle extends into said bottle when said secondary bottle is coupled to said barrier and said intermediate lid is coupled to said bottle.

3. The bottle lid as in claim 1, wherein said sealed compartment collectively defined by said top lid and said intermediate lid is airtight.

4. The bottle lid as in claim 3, wherein said secondary bottle cavity is airtight when said secondary bottle upper end is coupled to said barrier lower face.

5. The bottle lid as in claim 1, wherein said secondary bottle cavity is airtight when said secondary bottle upper end is coupled to said barrier lower face.

6. The bottle lid as in claim 1, wherein said configuration of said intermediate lid complementary to a configuration of said bottle includes at least one thread.

7. The bottle lid as in claim 6, wherein said configuration of said secondary bottle upper end complementary to a configuration of said barrier lower face includes at least one thread.

8. The bottle lid as in claim 1, wherein said intermediate lid is cylindrical and said top lid is cylindrical.

9. A bottle lid for use with a bottle having an opening, said bottle lid comprising:

an intermediate lid having a configuration complementary to a configuration of said bottle for selectively coupling said intermediate lid to said bottle, said intermediate lid having a barrier presenting upper and lower faces, said barrier enclosing said bottle opening when said intermediate lid is coupled to said bottle; and

a secondary bottle having upper and lower ends and defining a cavity therebetween, said secondary bottle upper end being open to said cavity and having a configuration complementary to a configuration of said barrier lower face for selectively coupling said secondary bottle upper end to said barrier lower face.

10. The bottle lid as in claim 9, wherein said secondary bottle extends into said bottle when said secondary bottle is coupled to said barrier and said intermediate lid is coupled to said bottle.

11. The bottle lid as in claim 10, wherein said secondary bottle cavity is airtight when said secondary bottle upper end is coupled to said barrier lower face.

12. The bottle lid as in claim 9, wherein said secondary bottle cavity is airtight when said secondary bottle upper end is coupled to said barrier lower face.

13. A bottle lid for use with a bottle having an open end with external threads, said bottle lid comprising:

a plurality of intermediate lids, each intermediate lid having internal threads and external threads, said external threads of said intermediate lids being configured to approximate said external threads of said bottle, said internal threads of said intermediate lids being configured complementary to said external threads of said bottle and said external threads of said intermediate lids for respectively coupling said intermediate lids to said bottle and other said intermediate lids, each intermediate lid having a barrier presenting upper and lower faces and enclosing said bottle open end when said intermediate lid is coupled to said bottle, at least one said barrier lower face having a coupling element;

a secondary bottle having upper and lower ends and defining a cavity therebetween, said secondary bottle upper end being open to said cavity and having a coupling element complementary to said coupling element of said barrier lower face for selectively coupling said secondary bottle upper end to said barrier lower face;

a top lid having internal threads complementary to said external threads of said intermediate lids for respectively coupling said top lid to said intermediate lids;

wherein said top lid and a respective said intermediate lid collectively define a sealed compartment when said top lid is coupled to said intermediate lid; and

wherein every two said intermediate lids coupled together collectively define a sealed compartment between respective said barriers.

14. The bottle lid as in claim 13, wherein at least one said intermediate lid has a configuration different than a configuration of at least one other said intermediate lid.

15. The bottle lid as in claim 13, wherein each said intermediate lid has a configuration approximating a configuration of each other said intermediate lid.

16. The bottle lid as in claim 13, wherein said sealed compartment collectively defined by said top lid and a respective said intermediate lid when said top lid is coupled to said intermediate lid is airtight.

17. The bottle lid as in claim 13, wherein said secondary bottle extends into one of said bottle and another said intermediate lid when said secondary bottle is coupled to a respective said intermediate lid.

18. The bottle lid as in claim 17, wherein:

said sealed compartment collectively defined by said top lid and a respective said intermediate lid when said top lid is coupled to said intermediate lid is airtight;

said secondary bottle coupling element includes at least one thread; and

at least one said barrier upper face is generally planar.

19. The bottle lid as in claim 13, wherein said secondary bottle coupling element includes at least one thread.

20. The bottle lid as in claim 13, wherein at least one said barrier upper face is generally planar.