Reusable cup identification clip
A clip for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup is disclosed. The cup includes an opening that is defined by an enlarged, annular peripheral rim. The clip includes a body having an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup. The clip can be supported on the cup without applying continuous resilient biasing forces to the cup.
The present invention relates generally to drinking vessels and, more particularly, to an apparatus removably engageable with a drinking vessel for distinguishing that drinking vessel from other drinking vessels. The phrases drinking vessel, beverage container and cup may be used interchangeably and are intended to refer to any one of a variety of containers such as, but not limited to, disposable foam, plastic and paper cups.
A large variety of disposable drinking vessels are readily available on the market today. The ubiquity, light weight and low cost of disposable cups make these disposable drinking vessels ideal for use at venues where drinks are served to a large number of people such as, for instance, cafeterias, parties and cook-outs.
However, disposable beverage containers have a disadvantage in that a given batch of these beverage containers are virtually identical so that, especially at large gatherings, it may be difficult for an individual user to distinguish his or her cup from that of another user. For example, at a birthday party at which fruit punch is served to all of the guests in blue plastic cups, one guest may easily confuse his or her cup with that of another guest during the course of the party. As a result, each guest may request a beverage refill in a new container every time he or she loses track of his or her original cup, thereby leading to excess waste and as well as extra cost to the event host.
A number of ways to personalize disposable beverage containers have been devised in order to prevent the aforementioned problems. One possibility is to use some type of pen or marker to make an identifying mark on the beverage container. For instance, a user may write his or her name on a plastic cup using a pen. This approach is disadvantageous in that such marks may be rubbed off during handling of the cup and, if the beverage container is damaged, the process must be repeated on a new cup.
In another approach, a clothespin-type clip may be attached to the rim of the drinking vessel to provide a visual cue for identifying the cup of a particular user. Such clips may be ornamented with designs or shapes and, additionally, they may readily be transferred from one cup to another. Various designs of these clothespin-type clips are produced, for example, by That Wine Is Mine®. However, these clothespin-type clips have a disadvantage in that they protrude above the rim of the drinking vessels when attached thereto, thereby possibly tipping these lightweight containers, particularly when the contents are low or a user accidentally brushes against the clip.
Attention is now directed to the figures, in which like components are indicated by like reference numerals. First referring to
The present invention provides an identification clip and associated method which serves to reduce or eliminate the foregoing problems in a highly advantageous and heretofore unseen way and which provides still further advantages.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAs will be disclosed in more detail hereinafter, there is disclosed herein an apparatus for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup, which cup having an opening that is defined by an enlarged, annular peripheral rim. In one aspect of the invention, the apparatus includes a body including an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup.
In another aspect of the invention, the apparatus includes a body including an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim without application of a continuous, resilient biasing force to the enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup.
In yet another aspect of the invention, the apparatus includes an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup. The attachment portion includes at least one tab configured to at least partially surround the engaged part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim, and at least one protrusion configured to cooperate with the tab such that the attachment portion is engaged with the engaged part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim. The apparatus further includes an identification portion, connected with the attachment portion, such that the identification portion is positioned adjacent to the sidewall when the attachment portion is in engagement with the enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
In still another aspect of the invention, a method for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup, which cup having an opening that is defined by an enlarged, annular peripheral rim, is disclosed. The method includes attaching a body to the cup, where the body includes an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup.
In a further aspect of the invention, the method includes attaching a body to the cup, where the body includes an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim without application of a continuous, resilient biasing force to the enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup.
In a still further aspect of the invention, the method includes attaching an apparatus to the cup, where the apparatus includes an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part the enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup. The attachment portion includes at least one tab configured to at least partially surround the engaged part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim, and at least one protrusion configured to cooperate with the tab such that the attachment portion is engaged with the engaged part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim. The body further includes an identification portion, connected with the attachment portion, such that the identification portion is positioned adjacent to the sidewall when the attachment portion is in engagement with the enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGSThe present invention may be understood by reference to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings briefly described below.
The following description is presented to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to make and use the invention and is provided in the context of a patent application and its requirements. Various modifications to the described embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and the generic principles herein may be applied to other embodiments. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiment shown but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features described herein.
Turning again to the drawings, attention is now directed to
Continuing to refer to
The positioning of ID clip 100 when engaged with a cup 200 is illustrated in
The details of the attachment configuration of ID clip 100 onto cup 200 are shown in
Curved tab 106′ and protrusion 108 are disposed so as to prevent unintentional removal of ID clip 100 from cup 200. In fact, although a continuous biasing force between curved tab 106′ and protrusion 108 may be applied to resiliently capture cup 200 therebetween, such a biasing force is not required because the design of the curved tabs and the protrusion may be such that lip 202 is loosely or slidingly captured within apertures 111′ and 111″ of the inverted “J” without a need for additional biasing force. That is, the annular rim of cup 200 can rest in apertures 111′ and 111″ of ID clip 100 without a need for the application of continuous biasing forces. The diameter of apertures 111′ and 111″ may be (i) less than, (ii) equal to, or (iii) greater than thickness t of lip 202 and still allow ID clip 100 to be engaged with cup 200. Tabs 106′ and 106″ and tag portion 102 may be configured in any suitable way so long as they cooperate to define gap 112 and at least one receiving aperture for receiving the rim of the cup therein in a manner consistent with the teachings set forth above. For example, a single curved tab, in cooperation with protrusion 108, may be sufficient to hold ID clip 100 onto cup 200. Alternatively, protrusion 108 may be eliminated for simplicity of manufacture if, for example, the curvature of tabs 106′ and 106″ and the size of apertures 111′ and 111″ are adjusted accordingly.
It is emphasized that, while the prior art drink clips discussed in the Background section require continuous biasing force to hold the drink clips in place on the cup, the ID clip of the present invention does not require the application of such a continuous biasing force since the curvature of tabs 106′ and 106″ and the size of apertures 111′ and 111″ as well as the location of protrusion 108 cooperate to capture lip 202 within apertures 111′ and 111″ . Since most disposable beverage containers available today include some sort of an enlarged, annular peripheral rim for strength and stability, the design of the ID clip of the present invention is considered particularly advantageous.
Although each of the aforedescribed embodiments have been illustrated with various components having particular respective orientations, it should be understood that the present invention may take on a variety of specific configurations with the various components being located in a wide variety of positions and mutual orientations and still remain within the spirit and scope of the present invention. Furthermore, suitable equivalents may be used in place of or in addition to the various components, the function and use of such substitute or additional components being held to be familiar to those skilled in the art and are therefore regarded as falling within the scope of the present invention. For example, the ID clip of the present invention may be formed or molded out of a variety of materials such as, but not limited to, metal such as stainless steel, non-toxic plastic, polypropylene, carbon or composite thereof as long as the material provides sufficient resilience and shape memory so as to securely but removably attach to the drinking vessel. The ID clip of the present invention may be formed, for example, by injection molding, if made of plastic, or by stamping, if made of metal. The ID clip may be integrally formed as a single piece, or, for instance, the clip portion may be formed separately from tag portion 102 then joined together in an appropriate way. As another example, although the ID clip of the present invention is shown to be in the shape of an inverted “J” in
Therefore, the present examples are to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the invention is not to be limited to the details given herein, but may be modified within the scope of the appended claims.
Claims
1. An apparatus for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup, said cup having an opening that is defined by an enlarged, annular peripheral rim, said apparatus comprising:
- a body including an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said attachment portion defines at least one rim receiving aperture for capturing an engaged part of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said cup includes a sidewall extending to said rim, said sidewall including a sidewall thickness, wherein said enlarged, annular peripheral rim includes a rim thickness which is greater than the sidewall thickness, and wherein said attachment portion defines an entrance opening leading into said rim receiving aperture having an entrance opening width that is less than the rim thickness of the enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said attachment portion is further configured to resiliently deform upon passing the rim thickness through the entrance opening of the rim receiving aperture.
5. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said attachment portion is further configured to resiliently deform when said enlarged, annular peripheral rim is flexed.
6. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said attachment portion includes at least one tab configured to at least partially surround said engaged part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said tab is arcuate in shape.
8. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said tab is angular in shape.
9. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein said tab includes a distal end and wherein said attachment portion further includes at least one protrusion configured to extend at least generally toward said distal end in a way which cooperates with the distal end to define said entrance opening.
10. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said attachment portion is configured for slidingly engaging said enlarged, annular peripheral rim without a need for a continuous biasing force on said enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said enlarged, annular peripheral rim includes a rim curvature, and wherein said attachment portion is arcuately configured to at least approximately conform to said rim curvature.
12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said body further includes an identification portion that is connected with said attachment portion.
13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein said attachment portion and said identification portion are integrally formed.
14. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein said cup includes a sidewall connected with said enlarged, annular peripheral rim, and wherein said identification portion is disposed adjacent to the sidewall when the attachment portion is in engagement with the enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
15. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein said identification portion is customizable to aid said user in identifying the cup.
16. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said body is formed of plastic.
17. An apparatus for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup, said cup having an enlarged, annular peripheral rim which defines an opening, said apparatus comprising:
- a body including an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim without application of a continuous, resilient biasing force to said enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup.
18. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein said attachment portion is configured for slidingly engaging said part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
19. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein said cup includes a sidewall connected with said enlarged, annular peripheral rim, and wherein said body further includes an identification portion that is connected with said attachment portion, said identification portion being configured such that said identification portion is disposed adjacent to said sidewall when the attachment region is in engagement with said enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
20. An apparatus for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup, said cup having a sidewall connected with an enlarged, annular peripheral rim which defines an opening, said apparatus comprising:
- an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup, said attachment portion including at least one tab configured to at least partially surround said engaged part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim, and at least one protrusion configured to cooperate with said tab such that said attachment portion is engaged with said engaged part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim; and
- an identification portion, connected with the attachment portion, such that the identification portion is positioned adjacent to the sidewall when the attachment portion is in engagement with the enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
21. A method for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup, said cup having an opening that is defined by an enlarged, annular peripheral rim, said method comprising:
- attaching a body to said cup, said body including an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup.
22. A method for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup, said cup having an enlarged, annular peripheral rim which defines an opening, said method comprising:
- attaching a body to said cup, said body including an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim without application of a continuous, resilient biasing force to said enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup.
23. A method for use in association with a cup for aiding a user in identifying that cup, said cup having a sidewall connected with an enlarged, annular peripheral rim which defines an opening, said method comprising:
- attaching an apparatus to said cup, said apparatus including an attachment portion configured for engaging at least a part said enlarged, annular peripheral rim in a way which supports the body on the cup, said attachment portion including at least one tab configured to at least partially surround said engaged part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim, and at least one protrusion configured to cooperate with said tab such that said attachment portion is engaged with said engaged part of said enlarged, annular peripheral rim, and an identification portion, connected with the attachment portion, such that the identification portion is positioned adjacent to the sidewall when the attachment portion is in engagement with the enlarged, annular peripheral rim.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 22, 2004
Publication Date: Jul 28, 2005
Inventor: Scott Shelstad (Longmont, CO)
Application Number: 10/763,675