Self-Cooling Beverage Can

Abstract

A self-cooling beverage container comprising a space between outer and inner walls, the space containing a liquid that is mixed with a chemical contained within a compartment within the base of the beverage container. The compartment within the base of the beverage container has a rupture portion located within the space between the outer and inner walls, and pressure on the base of the beverage container causes the rupture portion to open, allowing mixing of the chemical and the liquid. The chemical and the liquid react in an endothermic reaction, cooling the contents of the beverage container.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of beverage containers. More particularly, it relates to a beverage container that is self-cooling, allowing a beverage to be made cold without the necessity of an external cooling source.

2. Background and Description of the Prior Art

Commercial beverage can production is a large enterprise. Canned beverages range from soda to juice to beer and mixed drinks. Canned beverages are dispensed by machines and sold by stores and venues such as baseball and football stadiums. People carry canned beverages to parks, beaches, or simply to work for lunch. However, canned beverages require cooling. This is accomplished either by using a refrigerator or ice. When going to a park or the beach, this requires taking a cooler filled with ice and beverages, adding to the amount of material that a person has to carry with them.

Prior designs have been used to create containers that are intended to chill beverages and/or keep beverages cold. U.S. Pat. No. 5,325,680 to Baroso-Lujan for a “Self-Cooling Beverage Container With Evacuated Refrigerant Receiving Chamber” teaches a beverage can that cools a beverage within the can through a liquid refrigerant. However, the '680 patent has several drawbacks. First, it is a complex design that would make the manufacture of the can expensive and potentially not cost effective given the relatively low cost of canned beverages. Secondly, the can in the '680 patent requires the refrigerant to be pressurized in compartment of the can, while a second chamber holds a vacuum, so that when the partition between the compartments is mechanically broken, the refrigerant expands into the second chamber. Because the can requires both a pressurized chamber and a chamber that is under vacuum, the cost of manufacture increases and the can must have enough structural strength to hold the pressure and the vacuum. Finally, any potential leakage could be dangerous as the design relies upon refrigerant products that may not be safe for human consumption.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,485,636 to Hilado for a “Container With Cooling Capability” teaches a double-walled structure with a refrigerant compartment to contain water or some other fluid that can be frozen so as to keep the container, and the beverage within it, cold. The container has a diaphragm that expands when the liquid freezes, allowing the refrigerant liquid to be frozen without rupturing the container. There are several drawbacks to this design, however. First, the container must be placed in a freezer prior to use so that the refrigerant liquid can be frozen. Second, the design cannot be adapted for use in cans that are shipped with a beverage already in them; the beverage needs to be poured into the container after the container is prepared by being frozen. In adapting such a design for sealed beverage cans from a bottling/canning company, the end user would have to freeze the container with the beverage in it—making the design unusable for such a purpose.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,741 to Oakley for a “Self-Cooling Fluid Container With Internal Refrigerant Chamber” teaches a beverage can with a refrigerant chamber integral to the base of the can. The can has a second chamber and, as with the '680 to Baroso-Lujan, the second chamber contains a vacuum and the refrigerant chamber is manufactured with the refrigerant liquid under pressure. By puncturing the bottom of the vacuum chamber, the refrigerant is allowed to expand into the vacuum chamber, cooling the beverage in the same manner as the '680 patent. The '741 patent is therefore subject to the same drawbacks as the '680 patent as they relate to manufacturing a beverage container that has a pressurized compartment and a compartment that is required to hold a vacuum. In addition, the design of the '741 invention provides cooling for the beverage in a localized manner; i.e., only at the base of the container.

What is needed, therefore, is a new design for a beverage container that is portable, and provides a self-contained cooling means without the need to freeze or chill the container or beverage first. It is also desirable to have such a container efficiently cool a beverage within by surrounding the beverage with a compartment containing a cooling liquid. It is further desirable to have a beverage container that doesn't require either high pressure refrigeration liquids or chambers that must be placed under a vacuum.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is drawn to the cooling of beverages and, more particularly, to providing a self-cooling beverage container.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple, self-contained self-cooling beverage container that doesn't require the use of external cooling means in order to chill a beverage.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a self-cooling beverage container that may be manufactured simply, and be used by beverage companies to contain and ship their beverages in a manner that is similar to the current means of canning and shipping.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a self-cooling beverage container that doesn't require toxic refrigerants to cool beverages.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a view of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2a is a cutaway view of a bottom portion of a can in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2b is a view of a push top container in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a view of an embodiment of a beverage container showing the insertion of a push top container into the bottom portion of the beverage container.

FIG. 4 is a view of an embodiment of the present invention showing an insert with a rupture portion opened between the can and the insert.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to FIG. 1, a diagram of an embodiment of the present system is shown. As shown, this embodiment of the present invention comprises a beverage container 101, the beverage container 101 having an exterior wall 102 and an interior wall 104, the interior wall 104 disposed within the beverage container 101 such that a first space 105 exists between the exterior wall 102 and the interior wall 104. The first space 105 is continuous around the exterior of the inner wall 104 with the exception of the top portion of the inner wall 104; the top portion of the inner wall 104 is joined with the top portion of the exterior wall 102 such that an opening (not shown) may be disposed in the top portion of the beverage container 101 and a beverage drink is contained within the interior space 103 created by the interior wall 104. The exterior wall accepts an insert 108, which is comprised of a hollow cylindrical portion 106 attached to a base 107; the base 107 is attached to the bottom of the beverage container 101. The first space 105 contains a first chemical, and the hollow cylindrical portion 106 contains a second chemical. The insert 108 further comprises a rupture portion 109, which opens when pressure is applied to the bottom of the insert 108, allowing the first chemical to mix with the second chemical. In a preferred embodiment, the first chemical is water and the second chemical is a power form of ammonium nitrate. When mixed, the water and the ammonium nitrate react endothermically, cooling the beverage container 101 and the contents of the interior space 103.

The insert 108 is show in FIG. 1 positioned within an opening 201 (FIG. 2) in the beverage container 101. FIG. 2(a) shows the opening 201 within the beverage container 101,

Referring now to FIG. 2, the beverage container 101 is shown with the opening 201 shown, with the insert 108 shown outside of the beverage container 101.

FIG. 3 shows the invention with the insert 108 in position below the beverage container 101 and oriented to be inserted 301 into the opening 201.

FIG. 4 shows the beverage container 101 with the insert 108 positioned within the opening 201. Pressure 401, usually applied manually, to the bottom portion 107 of the insert 108 causes a rupture 402 in the rupture portion 109. The rupture 402 allows the contents of the insert 108 to mix with the contents of the first space 105, the resulting chemical reaction being endothermic and cooling the contents of the beverage container.

Claims

1. a self-cooling beverage container comprising:

a can having an exterior cylindrical wall with a top and bottom, the top having opening means into a first compartment;

an interior cylindrical wall extending

a first compartment defined by the wall, the top and the bottom, containing a beverage;

a second compartment located between the first compartment and the exterior wall of the beverage container, the second compartment filled with water;

the beverage container further having an opening located in the base of the exterior cylindrical wall;

an insertable portion that is positioned within the opening located in the base of the exterior cylindrical wall, the insertable portion comprising a base, a rupture portion distal to the base, the rupture portion located within the second compartment, and the insertable portion having an interior compartment containing a chemical.

2. The self-cooling beverage container of claim 1, wherein the contents of the interior compartment of the insertable portion mixable with the contents of the second compartment when exterior pressure is applied to the base of the insertable portion in sufficient manner to rupture the rupture portion of the insertable portion.

3. The self cooling beverage container of claim 1, wherein the refrigerant fluid is an ammonium based chemical.

4. The self cooling beverage container of claim 3 wherein the ammonium based chemical is a solid.

5. The self cooling beverage container of claim 3 wherein the ammonium based chemical is a liquid.