Bottle closure assembly
A closure assembly that connects to a bottle, the closure assembly comprising a cap with a top and a bottom, said cap having an opening that communicates with the top and the bottom; a straw that fits within the cap opening; a cover that removably attaches to one side of the cap top whereby the cover surrounds one end of the straw.
This application claims priority from the U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/026,899, filed Feb. 7, 2008.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to bottle closure assemblies, and more particularly to bottle closure assemblies with an integrated straw or drinking apparatus that provide for enhanced user experience when drinking liquids from a bottle or container.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONBottle closure assemblies of various types are well known in the art. Such devices are typically used in connection with bottles or other containers to seal the liquid within the bottle to prevent contamination of the liquid and to prevent the liquid from spilling out of the bottle when not in use.
However, previous bottle closure assemblies have some inherent disadvantages. One of the disadvantages with existing closure assemblies is that they do not provide the user with a means to hold the bottle in an upright position when drinking the liquid. The present invention overcomes these and other problems inherent in existing water bottle assemblies. The present invention provides a bottle closure assembly that contains a straw or integrated drinking apparatus that provides for a user to drink the liquid from the bottle without removing the closure from the bottle. In some forms of the invention, the bottle can remain in the upright position and the user can drink the liquid without inverting or tilting the bottle.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn one embodiment, a bottle may have a closure assembly that in one form includes a straw, a cover and a cap. In one form, a cap may have a female valve or opening (which can be constructed of rubber, plastic, or some other substantially flexible material), which allows the straw to move freely (or be snuggly fit) within the opening and whereby the opening acts substantially to prevent the water (or other liquid) from escaping the bottle and spilling on a person's clothing, while still allowing the person to easily drink from the bottle using the straw. In one form, a cap may screw onto the top of the bottle and be easily removable, and yet in another form, the cap may snap or otherwise permanently be affixed to the top of the bottle and not be removable. In one embodiment, the cover may fit and connect to the cap attached to the bottle whereby the straw is completely enclosed within the cover and the bottle to maintain a substantially germ free environment when the bottle is in storage. In yet other embodiments the straw may have a safety cover. This cover or other sealing device further provides to prevent liquid from leaving the straw before use. In other forms, the closure assembly may be provided without a bottle.
While the present invention is susceptible of embodiments in various forms, there is shown in the drawings and will hereinafter be described some exemplary and non-limiting embodiments, with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered an exemplification for the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the specific embodiments illustrated. In this disclosure, the use of the disjunctive is intended to include the conjunctive. The use of the definite article or indefinite article is not intended to indicate cardinality. In particular, a reference to “the” object or “a” object is intended to denote also one of a possible plurality of such objects.
In one form, the invention includes a bottle 10 for holding water or any other liquid, fluid or substance. The bottle 10 may be shaped substantially as shown in
As shown in
In one form, straw 16, cap 20 and/or cover 30 may be made out of a variety of different materials, such as, for example, plastic, metal, rubber, composite materials, glass or any other material that will provide for proper operation of the bottle and closure assembly 14 as herein described. It is understood that any of these materials may be used for any of the components or elements described herein.
In yet other forms of the invention, the closure assembly may be provided as a stand-alone invention (or as a set with a container or bottle) that may be used in a variety of applications for removing fluids of all sorts from different containers, bottles and/or vessels.
As shown in
As shown in
Yet another embodiment of a water bottle or bottle for holding fluid is shown in
Another embodiment of closure assembly 62 is shown in
In one form, either of these components may be made out of a variety of different materials, such as, for example, plastic, rubber, metal, glass or any other material that will provide for proper operation of the bottle as herein described. In one form, other types of liners for the interior or exterior of the bottle may also be used. Other features of the herein described embodiment(s) may also be incorporated into bottle 10. In any of the embodiments discussed herein, the straw and cap may be constructed as one piece or two independent components that are joined together.
Specific embodiments of novel methods and apparatus for construction of a bottle and closure assembly according to the present invention have been described for the purpose of illustrating the manner in which the invention is made and used. It should be understood that the implementation of other variations and modifications of the invention and its various aspects will be apparent to one skilled in the art, and that the invention is not limited by the specific embodiments described. Therefore, it is contemplated to cover the present invention any and all modifications, variations, or equivalents that fall within the true spirit and scope of the basic underlying principals disclosed and claimed herein.
Claims
1. A closure assembly that connects to a bottle, the closure assembly comprising:
- a cap with a top and a bottom, said cap having an opening that communicates with the top and the bottom;
- a straw that fits within the cap opening; and
- a cover that removably attaches to the cap top whereby the cover surrounds one end of the straw.
2. The closure assembly of claim 1 wherein the cap has a second opening passing through the cap and travels from the top side to the bottom side to allow air to flow through the second opening.
3. The closure assembly of claim 1 wherein a bottle is further provided and the closure assembly is connected to the bottle at a bottle opening and one end of the straw is positioned in the bottle.
4. The closure assembly of claim 3 wherein the cap is connected to the bottle by a screw-type feature located on the cap and the bottle.
5. The closure assembly of claim 3 wherein the cap opening further comprises a means for sealing so that when the straw passes through the opening, a liquid proof seal is formed around the straw.
6. The closure assembly of claim 1 further comprising a means for covering one end of the straw to prevent liquid from escaping the one end of the straw until the straw is in use.
7. The closure assembly of claim 1 wherein the cover is connected to the cap by a hinge to enable the cover to be connected to the cap when the straw is in use.
8. The closure assembly of claim 1 wherein the hole in the cap is positioned in the cap so that it is offset from the center of the cap.
9. The closure assembly of claim 8 wherein the cover further comprises a tamper-proof seal.
10. A closure assembly that can be connected to a bottle containing fluid, the closure assembly comprising:
- a cap;
- a mouth piece rotatably integrated into the cap; and
- a straw connected to one side of the cap opposite the mouth piece.
11. The bottle closure assembly of claim 10 further comprising a bottle wherein the closure assembly is attached to the bottle.
12. The closure assembly of claim 10 wherein the cap has a second opening passing through the cap and travels from the top side to the bottom side to allow air to flow through the second opening.
13. The closure assembly of claim 10 wherein a bottle is further provided and the closure assembly is connected to the bottle at a bottle opening and one end of the straw is positioned in the bottle.
14. The closure assembly of claim 10 wherein the cap is connected to the bottle by a screw-type feature located on the cap and the bottle.
15. A closure assembly that connects to a container, the closure assembly comprising:
- a cap with a top and a bottom, said cap having an opening;
- a means for removing fluid from the bottle that fits within the cap opening; and
- a cover that removably attaches to the cap top whereby the cover surrounds one end of the means for removing.
16. The closure assembly of claim 15 wherein the cap has a second opening passing through the cap and travels from the top side to the bottom side to allow air to flow through the second opening.
17. The closure assembly of claim 15 wherein a container is further provided and the closure assembly is connected to the container at a container opening and one end of the means for removing fluid is positioned in the container.
18. The closure assembly of claim 15 wherein the cap is connected to the container by a screw-type feature located on the cap and the container.
19. The closure assembly of claim 15 further comprising a means for covering one end of the means for removing fluid to prevent liquid from escaping the one end of the means for removing fluid.
20. The closure assembly of claim 15 wherein the cover is connected to the cap by a hinge to enable the cover to be connected to the cap when the means for removing fluid is in use.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 5, 2009
Publication Date: Aug 13, 2009
Inventor: Jason Durbin (Chicago, IL)
Application Number: 12/322,641
International Classification: B65D 51/00 (20060101); B65D 41/04 (20060101);