DRINKING CUP THAT ROTATABLY ATTACHES TO A PLASTIC BOTTLE FOR CLOSURE AND PROTECTION

Abstract

A drinking cup with a tubular protrusion molded to the bottom and having an internal thread that allows it to be rotatably attached to and detached from a bottle with a small cylindrical neck. The internal thread cooperates with an external thread that is molded on the small cylindrical neck of the bottle so that the drinking cup can function as a cap to close and seal the bottle when it is inverted and placed over the neck of the bottle.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

Several beverages that are widely sold in the marketplace are packaged in thin-walled bottles made of plastic. The plastic bottles have a frusto-conical neck that terminates in a small cylindrical neck with an outer thread molded thereon. A plastic cap with an internal thread molded thereon is then used to close and seal the plastic bottle. The internal thread on the plastic cap is designed to cooperate with the external thread on the bottle to allow the plastic cap to be rotatably-removable so as to open and close the plastic bottle.

Once the plastic cap is removed, the beverage in the plastic bottle can be poured into a glass for consumption. Often, the bottles are too large and heavy for the user to drink the beverage straight out of the bottle, using a glass or cup is preferred. However, under many circumstances, a glass or a cup is not readily available. This is specially the case when the user is outdoors at a picnic, sporting event, hiking, etc. The lack of a cup available can be the source of major inconvenience or frustration. Users of the plastic bottles must always remember to transport cups along with the plastic bottle of beverage when leaving the house.

The placing of a cup in inverted position over the top of the plastic bottle is a stopgap measure if both items are transported together. However, a regular cup placed in inverted position over the plastic bottle does not lock or grab on to the bottle. Therefore, the cup can easily fall off during transport. Furthermore, the shape of a regular cup does not follow the contours of a plastic bottle so that when it is placed over the bottle, it is loose and may have a tendency to shift around significantly. Various products have been designed over the years to address this problem. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,761 teaches a cup with a plurality of inwardly projecting ribs which force-fit into engagement with the outer surface of the plastic cap. This allows the cup to be securely attached to the plastic cap which is surely attached to the bottle. Such secure attachments allow the cup to be transported attached to the bottle. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 2,584,522 teaches another cup that securely attaches to the cap of the bottle. In both cases, the cup and the cap are two separate items that cannot be removed together in a single operation. When it is desired to open the bottle in these assemblies, the cup must be removed first, and then the bottle cap may be removed.

On the other hand, U.S. Pat. No. 4,273,247 teaches a cup assembly that is securely attached to the cap so that both the cup and the cap may be rotatably removed from the s bottle as a unit. As the abovementioned prior art, this assembly includes a cup and a cap that are separate and independent of each other.

What is needed is a cup that can rotatably be attached to the plastic bottle for closing and sealing purposes. Such cup would eliminate the need of a separate and independent cap.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned disadvantages occurring in the prior art, and it is the object of the present invention to provide a drinking cup that can rotatably attach to the neck of a typical plastic bottle for closure and protection of the beverage inside the bottle.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a drinking cup that when attached to the neck of a plastic bottle serves to stabilize and support another plastic bottle that is stacked on top of it for easy and stable transport and storage.

To accomplish the above objects, the present invention is embodied in a drinking cup comprising a tubular protrusion molded to the bottom of the cup and having an internal thread molded on the inner surface of its sidewall. The size of the tubular protrusion is such that, when the drinking cup is inverted and placed over a plastic bottle, the tubular protrusion fits over the small cylindrical neck of the bottle. Then as the drinking cup is twisted or rotated about the bottle, the internal thread of the tubular protrusion mates and cooperates with the external thread molded on the outer surface of the neck of the bottle until the bottle is fully closed and sealed. Furthermore, the drinking cup has a base that is used primarily to stabilize and support the cup as it rests on a flat surface. But, secondarily, when a bottle is closed with the drinking cup of the present invention, the cup is in the inverted position with the bottom of the base facing upward. Thus, the bottom of the base serves to stabilize and support another plastic bottle that is stacked on top of it for easy transport and storage.

Another embodiment of the present invention is a drinking cup that can rotatably attach to the neck of a plastic bottle and having a radial bead on the top rim to allow a smooth rounded surface which the user's lips touch as he/she drinks the beverage.

The above and other features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of the various embodiments of the present invention, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and from part of the specification, illustrate various embodiments of the present invention and, together with the description, further serve to explain the principles of the invention and to enable a person skilled in the pertinent art to make and use the invention. In the drawings, like reference numbers indicate identical or functional similar elements. A more complete appreciation of the invention and many of the attendant advantages thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a drinking cup that can rotatably attach to the neck of a bottle for closure according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a sectional view of a drinking cup that can rotatably attach to the neck of a bottle for closure according the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows a sectional view of a drinking cup of the present invention that is attached to the neck of a bottle for closure.

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of a beverage bottle stacked on top of a drinking cup according to the present invention that is attached to the neck of another bottle.

FIG. 5 shows a sectional view of a drinking cup that can be rotatably attached to the neck of a bottle for closure according to an alternate embodiment of the present invention where the stem is replaced by a tubular protrusion extending from the base.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made to the drawings in which various elements of the present invention will be given numerical designations and in which the invention will be discussed so as to enable one skilled in the art to make and use the invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the preferred embodiment of the present invention is designed and engineered to be a non-collapsible drinking cup 100 with a stem 10 that can rotatably attach to the neck of a plastic bottle so as to close and seal its contents. The drinking cup 100 is preferably molded out of plastic material and has at least one sidewall 20, a top opening 21, a top rim 22, a stem 10, and a base 50. Much like any drinking cup, the top rim 22 is formed by the top edge of the sidewall 20 and defines the periphery of the top opening 21. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, the sidewall 20 is a dome-like shape and the top opening 21 is circular.

As shown in FIG. 2, the stem 10 is a tubular protrusion with a bottom face 11, a top opening 12, and a sidewall 13 that has an inner surface 13a. The inside diameter of the stem 10 is such that, when the drinking cup 100 is inverted, the stem can be placed over the small cylindrical neck of a typical plastic bottle used for beverages. In addition, the inner surface 13a of the stem 10 has an internal thread 14 molded thereon. The internal thread 14 is designed to mate and cooperate with the external thread molded on the outer surface of the small cylindrical neck of a typical plastic bottle used for beverages. Therefore, the stem 10 is a tubular protrusion extending from the bottom of the drinking cup 100 and having an inner surface with an internal thread 14 molded thereon.

When the drinking cup 100 is inverted and placed over a plastic bottle, the domed sidewall 20 of the preferred embodiment of the present invention aids in directing the small cylindrical neck of the plastic bottle into the stem 10, as shown in FIG. 3. Clockwise rotation of the drinking cup 100 while it sits with the stem 10 placed over the small cylindrical neck of the bottle, allows the internal threads 14 on the inner surface 13a of the stem 10 to mate and cooperate with the external threads on the outside surface of the small cylindrical neck of the bottle. As the drinking cup 100 is rotated, the stem 10 is rotatably attached to the small cylindrical neck of the bottle until the bottle is fully closed and sealed. Similarly, when the drinking cup 100 is rotated counterclockwise, the stem 10 is rotatably detached from the small cylindrical neck of the bottle until the bottle is removed. In essence, the stem 10 is designed with similar features and functionality as a cap that is typically used to close and seal a plastic bottle.

As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the drinking cup 100 of the preferred embodiment of the present invention is also designed with a base 50 molded underneath the stem 10. The base 50 is shaped to be slightly concave with a flat edge 51 at the perimeter. The concavity adds strength while the flat edge 51 allows better stability when the drinking cup 100 is rested on a flat surface. The outer edge 55 of the base 50 is used to grip the inverted drinking cup 100 as it is rotated or twisted about the small cylindrical neck of the bottle to open or close the bottle. In the embodiment depicted in

FIGS. 1 to 3, the base 50 has a circular shape. However, it is understood that the base 50 can have any shape, such as triangular, rectangular, oval, hexagonal, etc.

The base 50 is also designed with sufficient strength to support the weight of another beverage plastic bottle during storage and transport. A plastic bottle can be closed and sealed with the inverted drinking cup 100 of the present invention. Hence, the bottom of the base 50 would face upward to provide a surface on which another plastic bottle can be rested during storage and/or transport, as shown in FIG. 4.

An alternative embodiment of the drinking cup 100 of the present invention has a round annular bead 60 molded on to the top rim 22. The round annular bead 60 creates a smooth and comfortable surface for when the consumer's lips make contact to drink the beverage. The annular bead 60 has a circular cross-section with a diameter that is thicker than the sidewall 20.

FIG. 5 shows another alternative embodiment of the drinking cup 200 of the present invention where the sidewall 220 is not domed but rather mostly cylindrical with the base 250 attached at to the bottom of the sidewall 220, much like a typical cup. Since the base 250 is attached directly to the sidewall 220, there is no stem 10 as shown in the preferred embodiment. Instead, the tubular protrusion 210 that was the stern 10 now extends from the base 250 with an inner surface 213a that has the internal thread 214 molded thereon.

It is to be understood that the described embodiments of the invention is illustrative only and that modifications thereof may occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, this invention is not to be regarded as limited to the embodiments disclosed, but is to be limited only as defined by the appended claims herein.

Claims

1. A drinking cup for use with a bottle having a cylindrical neck with an external thread thereon and comprising:

a top opening;

a top rim that defines said top opening;

a base;

a tubular protrusion extending from said base and having an inner surface with an internal thread thereon; and

wherein said internal thread cooperates with said external thread of said bottle so that said drinking cup can be rotatably attached to and detached from said cylindrical neck to open and close said bottle, respectively.

2. The drinking cup according to claim 1, further comprising a bead that radially extends throughout said top rim.

3. A drinking cup for use with a bottle having a cylindrical neck with an external thread thereon and comprising:

a top opening;

a top rim that defines said top opening;

a sidewall with a dome-like shape;

a stem extending downward from said sidewall and having an inner surface with an internal thread thereon;

wherein said internal thread cooperates with said external thread of said bottle so that said drinking cup can be rotatably attached to and detached from said cylindrical neck to open and close said bottle, respectively; and

a base attached to said stem for stability and support when said drinking cup rests on a flat surface.

4. The drinking cup according to claim 3, further comprising a bead that radially extends throughout said top rim.