Nail polish bottle grips

Abstract

The present invention comprises several variants of means for facilitating hand removal of a nail polish cap from a nail polish bottle. One variant of the present invention comprises a free-standing, reusable grip placed over at least a portion of the cap of a nail polish bottle to assist in opening said bottle when it would otherwise be difficult to do so by hand without a grip. A kit containing several of these grips can be provided by my invention. The present invention further comprises a cap made of one material with grips of a different material integrated therein. The present invention further comprises a cap made either entirely or mostly of grip material. The present invention still further comprises a nail polish bottle having either a cap with integrated grips or a cap made of grip material.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

None.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

None.

NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT

None.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to grips used to open nail polish bottles.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention comprises several variants of means for facilitating hand removal of a nail polish cap from a nail polish bottle. One variant of the present invention comprises a free-standing, reusable grip placed over at least a portion of the cap of a nail polish bottle to assist in opening said bottle when it would otherwise be difficult to do so by hand without a grip. A kit containing several of these grips can be provided by my invention. The present invention further comprises a cap made of one material with grips of a different material integrated therein. The present invention further comprises a cap made either entirely or mostly of grip material. The present invention still further comprises a nail polish bottle having either a cap with integrated grips or a cap made of grip material.

There are a wide variety of nail polish products available on the market. Many of these products come in a container that typically consists of a small glass bottle having a threaded neck portion near its top, which mates with an elongated cap having corresponding threads on its underside. While the cap serves the typical function of a cap of keeping liquid (in this case, polish) inside the bottle, the cap also usually performs the additional function of being the hand piece for a brush emanating perpendicularly from the underside of the cap, which brush projects into the cavity of the bottle when the cap is set or secured on the bottle. The brush collects polish, and then is used to apply the nail polish to one's finger and/or toe nails.

While there are certain recurring designs used for the shape/appearance of nail polish bottles, there are also occasions when manufacturers or suppliers of nail polish utilize a more highly stylized design and aesthetically unique bottle and cap shape. Many caps used for nail polish bottles are made of either a polymeric or synthetic material, or some other highly finished material, that is smooth to the touch and is therefore of low friction when in contact with a human hand. In describing and claiming my invention, I refer to the term enhanced grip as meaning that one or more of the embodiments of my invention provides superior gripping of the bottle cap as compared to commonly available nail polish bottle caps that do not use my invention and are therefore generally smooth and of low friction. Regardless of cap and/or bottle design and material, a common problem with most nail polish bottle and cap combination is that some of the nail polish spills out of the bottle and over the threads located at the top or neck of the of the bottle. Since these threads are usually on the outside of the bottle's neck and mate with corresponding threads on the underside of the cap, this in turn causes pressure on the polish spillage and thereby distributes the spillage over an even greater surface area of the threaded portions of the bottle and cap than before the cap is secured to the bottle.

Due to the viscous nature of nail polish, such spillage frequently makes it difficult to open a bottle of nail polish after some time has passed and the spillage turns more solid by drying to some degree by forming in effect an adhesive bond between the top threaded neck portion of the bottle and the threads on the underside of the cap. This problem can be acute in certain circumstances. One example of such a circumstance is in the operation of a nail salon, where numerous bottles of polish can be located near each person who services manicure or pedicure customers. As is apparent, if a salon has ten such individuals, for example, the number of bottles of polish, considering the differing interests of the customers, can be substantial.

Since a busy salon typically schedules appointments for customers seeking a manicure or a pedicure, then the number of customers who can be serviced in a day can be affected by any repeating stoppages of work occasioned by the inability of the salon worker to remove caps that have become stuck on their respective bottles. When a salon worker, for example, must take several minutes to open a bottle, this reduces efficiency of the worker, and in turn costs the salon revenue. Added up over the course of a year, these losses can be relatively substantial, depending on the size of the operation. In addition, workers can hurt their hands in trying to pry off of a bottle a cap that is tightly secured to the bottle.

My invention overcomes these and other problems by providing various grip means to allow for enhanced ease of removal of caps from nail polish bottles. These grip means are disclosed in several forms, all of which will work for the common purpose of my invention, namely providing combinations of nail polish bottles and caps that are easier to open when there is polish stuck between the exterior surface of the bottle and the interior surface of the cap.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of the present invention comprising a nail polish bottle with one embodiment of the cap of the present invention wherein said cap has projecting ribs on its exterior.

FIG. 2 shows an end view of the underside of the cap of the nail polish bottle shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 shows a section view cut along 3-3 in FIG. 2, depicting one possible internal structure of the cap and grip combination.

FIG. 4 depicts a second embodiment of the present invention comprising a nail polish bottle with a plurality of non-linear grips placed on the exterior of the cap, where such grips can take many shapes including, but not limited to, the sunshine design shown on FIG. 4.

FIG. 5 shows an end view of underside of the nail polish bottle cap shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 shows a section view cut along 6-6 in FIG. 5, depicting a second possible internal structure of the cap and grip combination.

FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment of the present invention comprising a nail polish bottle with a third embodiment of the cap of the present invention, wherein said cap has a reusable, free-standing grip that is placed over it like a sleeve.

FIG. 8 shows an end view of the cap and grip combination of the nail polish bottle shown in FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 depicts a cross-section view cut along 9-9 in FIG. 8 of the combination cap and reusable free-standing grip.

FIG. 10 shows another embodiment of the present invention comprising a nail polish bottle where the entire exterior of cap 12 is covered by grip material 19.

FIG. 11 shows an end view of the underside of the cap/grip combination shown in FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 shows a section view cut along 12-12 in FIG. 11, depicting another possible internal structure of the cap and grip combination.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1, a capped nail polish bottle and cap combination 10 with a cap 12 that is selectively gripped is shown attached to bottle 11, wherein said selectively grip cap 12 has a plurality of protruding grips 13 integrated therein. Except for grips 13, the exterior of cap 12 is generally a smooth plastic surface. The shape of protruding grips 13 can vary, although my preferred embodiment is in the shape of a strip running generally parallel to the central axis of cap 12. Protruding grips 13, as well as all grips of my invention, can be made of different materials, although a rubber or rubber-like material is my preferred embodiment since it provides a comparatively high degree of frictional contact with the human hand. By arranging said protruding grips 13 in a parallel orientation, it enhances the frictional forces created when a human hand is applying twisting force around the central axis of cap 12, thereby improving the prospect of opening the nail polish bottle. Other shapes, such as ovals, flowers or any number of variants from a linear strip can be used as protruding grips 13, so long as protruding grips 13 are sufficiently elevated above cap 12's surface to a degree that provides for tactile detection and a friction force generating point for applying a lateral force to the cap to separate it from the neck of the bottle when dried nail polish is causing resistance to turning. The cap can be made of hard plastic, or it too (like protruding grips 12) can be made of silicon rubber or some other friction-causing texture.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the relative position of the protruding strips 13 on the exterior of cap 12, and the internal threads 14 on the inside of the cap, can be seen clearly.

FIG. 4 shows an alternative embodiment of my invention where the protruding grips 15 are flower shaped. Protruding grips 15 of FIG. 4 perform a similar function to protruding strips 13 of FIG. 1. FIGS. 4 and 5 show the flower shaped protruding grips 15 of the cap 12 in an underside view and a section view, where section 6-6 in FIG. 5 is depicted in FIG. 6.

FIG. 7 shows a free-standing reusable grip 16 in the form of a sleeve made of silicon or some similar elastic, friction-creating material, where there is a first or top open end 17 and a second or bottom open end 18. Those skilled in the art will recognize that grip 16 and the other grip means disclosed herein can be made of various colors and, to some degree, various shapes and sizes. The material to be used should have elastic properties in that it can be stretched and will largely return to its original shape. Rubber or silicon serves this purpose well. The diameter of at least one end of grip 16 needs to be large enough to slide over a nail bottle cap and yet small enough to allow for frictional gripping of such grip in conjunction with gripping of the bottle cap. The grip 16 slides over the cap of a nail polish bottle by having either first open end 17 or second open end 18 slide over the bottle cap. By having both ends open, and by allowing the grip to be slid over the bottle cap, the grip 1 can be used with multiple bottles by removing it after use on a single bottle and reusing it with another one. FIGS. 8 and 9 are similar to FIGS. 2 and 3, and FIGS. 5 and 6, in that they show the combination of cap and grip from the underside of the cap and from a section, in this case 9-9, of the combination.

Referring to FIG. 10, a gripped cap 19, made entirely of grip materials, such as silicon, rubber or other similar friction causing textures, is disclosed. In this embodiment, assistance in opening nail polish bottles is provided by the friction-causing surface of the cap as a whole, as opposed to individually placed protruding grips as shown, for example, in FIG. 1 providing most of the assistance. Gripped cap 19 is a sleeve-like molded shape meant to slide over, and cover, the hard plastic cap 12 that has the threads 14 on its underside for securing the cap to the neck of bottle 11. FIGS. 11 and 12 show an end view of the underside of gripped cap 19 and a section view 12-12 respectively.

While I have disclosed several variations of my invention herein, these are presently the preferred embodiments of my invention and in no way are these the only manners of carrying out my invention. The claims of this patent are specifically intended to embrace other variations of my invention that are within the scope and spirit and my invention.

Claims

1. A nail polish bottle grip comprising a body portion with a central opening, said grip having a first end and a second end, wherein either of said first end or said second end is of a diameter sufficiently large to allow said grip to be slid over at least a portion of a cap to a nail polish bottle and sufficiently small to allow for frictional pinching of said grip and said cap for assistance in removing said cap from said bottle.

2. A combination nail polish bottle and cap, and grip for assistance in removing said cap from said bottle, comprising:

a nail polish bottle having an opening therein,

a cap for covering said opening of said bottle, and

a grip for assisting in the removal of said cap from said bottle, said grip having a body portion with a central opening and a first end and a second end, wherein either of said first end or said second end is sufficiently large to allow said grip to be slid over at least a portion of said cap and is sufficiently small to allow for frictional pinching of said grip and said cap for assistance in removing said cap from said bottle.

3. A kit comprising a plurality of grips of claim 1.

4. An enhanced-grip nail polish bottle comprising:

a rigid cap having an exterior surface and a threaded interior surface, wherein a grip having a central opening and an interior surface can be secured over at least a portion of the exterior of said cap, and a bottle to which said cap is secured.

5. A nail polish bottle and cap combination comprising wherein said cap further comprises one or more protruding grip contact areas on said exterior surface of said cap.

a bottle having threads on the exterior of a neck portion,

a cap having a threaded underside for mating with said bottle threads,

6. The invention of claim 5, wherein said one or more protruding grip contact areas is a linear strip shape.

7. A combination nail polish bottle and cap comprising:

a nail polish cap comprising a rigid polymeric portion having an exterior surface and a threaded interior surface, and a grip secured over at least a portion of said exterior surface of said rigid polymeric portion, and

a bottle for containing liquid polish, said bottle having a threaded neck portion for mating to said threaded interior surface of said cap.

8. An enhanced grip nail polish cap comprising a body portion having an interior surface and an exterior surface, with one or more grips protruding from said exterior surface of said cap.

9. The invention of claim 8, wherein one or more protruding grip contact areas is linear in shape.

10. The invention of claim 8, wherein one or more protruding grip contact areas is non-linear in shape.

11. A combination enhanced-grip nail polish cap and bottle comprising:

a cap body portion having an interior surface and an exterior surface, said body portion further comprising one or more grips protruding from said exterior surface of said cap and threads on said interior surface of said cap, and

a bottle for containing liquid polish, said bottle having a threaded neck portion for mating to said threaded interior surface of said cap.

12. The invention of claim 11, wherein said one or more protruding grip contact areas is a linear strip shape.

13. The invention of claim 11, wherein said one or more protruding grip contact areas is non-linear in shape.

14. A combination nail polish bottle and cap comprising a bottle having a threaded neck portion and an enhanced-grip nail polish cap, said cap comprising a body portion comprising an interior surface and an exterior surface, wherein said interior surface is threaded to mate with the threaded neck of said bottle and wherein said exterior surface includes one or more grips protruding from said surface.

15. A combination nail polish bottle and cap comprising a bottle for holding polish and a selectively gripped cap.