STEM DISC
A disc for supporting a stem of a stemmed container may include a disc body defined by a periphery. The body may define a center opening and a slot extending from the center opening to the periphery. The slot may be configured to receive the stem of the stemmed container and the periphery may be configured to maintain the stemmed container within a receptacle.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/813,861; filed Apr. 19, 2013, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference herein.
BACKGROUNDTraditionally cup holders are configured to receive beverage containers such as cups, bottles, cans, etc. However, glasses, such as wine glasses, may tip when being held by traditional cup holders.
With regard to the processes, systems, methods, heuristics, etc. described herein, it should be understood that, although the steps of such processes, etc. have been described as occurring according to a certain ordered sequence, such processes could be practiced with the described steps performed in an order other than the order described herein. It further should be understood that certain steps could be performed simultaneously, that other steps could be added, or that certain steps described herein could be omitted. In other words, the descriptions of processes herein are provided for the purpose of illustrating certain embodiments, and should in no way be construed so as to limit the claims.
Cup holders or receptacles may be found in and on numerous items in order to prevent beverages from spilling. In some examples, vehicles such as cars, trucks, vans, boats, etc. may include cup holders. The cup holders may be configured to receive cans and cups containing liquids such as soda, water, juice, alcoholic beverages such as beer and wine, etc. While these receptacles may be configured to receive certain cups or bottles, they are often not designed to receive stemmed glassware, such as wine glasses, martini glasses, etc. While the base of a wine glass may fit within these receptacles, the stem of the wine glass may not be secured therein. The wine glass may thus be subject to tipping, which may lead to a spill of the contents therein. Wine drinkers often prefer a wine glass to other type of containers (e.g., cups, cans bottles, etc.). However, due to the inconvenience provided by current cup holders, wine drinkers are either forced to continuously hold their glasses, or use alternative drink ware such as a cup (e.g., Solo™, cup). Furthermore, recreational vehicles such as pontoon boats, campers, etc., are often a venue for wine drinking but lack an appropriate receptacle for preventing spills.
Disclosed herein is a stem disc configured to receive the stem of a wine glass or other stemmed glassware and be received within a cup holder. At least a portion of the outer periphery of the stem disc may abut an interior of the cup holder, thus maintaining the wine glass within the cup holder and preventing tipping thereof. Thus, a single wine disc may be configured to work in multiple cup holders in various objects and vehicles and offers a simple and economical solution for those preferring to drink out of a stemmed glass.
The cup holder 110 may be configured to retain beverage containers such as cans, bottles and cups, but may not be suitable for retaining certain types of beverage containers 104 having stems 106. These containers 104 may easily tip within the cup holder 110. The disclosed stem disc 102 may be configured to encircle the stem 106 of a container 104 and be received within the cup holder 110 to prevent the container 104 from tipping and thus preventing the liquid within the container 104 from spilling. The disc 102 may be placed at any location on the stem 106 including at the top of the stem near the beverage, or at the bottom, abutting the base 108, depending on the depth of the cup holder 110.
Referring to
The disc may have a thickness of approximately 1.0 inch (2.54 cm). The first slot 122 may be a cut extending from the outer periphery 118 to the center opening 120 and may have opposite slot faces whereby during placement on the stem 106 within the center opening 120, the slot faces may be selectively parted from one another. Once the stem 106 is placed within the center opening 120, the faces may be biased to return to a normal configuration and abut one another, as shown in
The disc 102 may have a first diameter D1. This diameter may be slightly smaller than the diameter of the cup holder 110, shown and referred to herein as the second diameter D2. The disc 102 is configured to fit within the cup holder 110 and generally abut the sides of the cup holder 110 so as to stabilize the container 104 therein.
The disc 102 may be made of any number of materials, including but not limited to Ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) foam, polymers, elastomers, plastics, metals, rubber, vinyl, or any combination thereof. For exemplary purposes only, the disc may be made of two pound (2#) crosslinked polyethylene. The disc 102 may have frictional properties so as to frictionally engage with the sides of the cup holder 110.
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While the disc 102 may be generally cylindrical, the disc 102 may also have other shapes and forms.
The diameter D1 of the disc 102 may be the diameter measured from protrusion 140 to protrusion, as shown in
A plurality of second slots 124 may extend radially from the center opening 120.
During manufacturing, the disc 102 may be formed of any material, as explained above. The disc 102 may be stamped, cut, molded, dyed, etc. The disc 102 may be formed in one step by perforating the outer periphery 118, the center opening 120 and the slot 122 all at once. Alternatively the disc 102 may be formed by multiple steps. The disc may be cut using a steel rule die via a vertical hand press. The disc 102 may include a cover whereby the slot 122 and center opening 120 are still accessible. The disc 102 may be waterproof or at least water resistant. Moreover, the disc 102 may be lightweight and may be configured to float in water. The exterior of the disc 102 may be configured to receive a writing, such as a person's name. This writing may be permanent or erasable for later use. It may also be configured to receive a logo and/or advertisement.
Multiple discs 102 could be used on a single stem 106 to increase stability. The disc 102 may also have thermal properties and may be configured to maintain the temperature of the beverage container 104. It may also include a cooling mechanisms and be configured to cool the container 104.
Accordingly, it is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many embodiments and applications other than the examples provided would be apparent upon reading the above description. The scope should be determined, not with reference to the above description, but should instead be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is anticipated and intended that future developments will occur in the technologies discussed herein, and that the disclosed systems and methods will be incorporated into such future embodiments. In sum, it should be understood that the application is capable of modification and variation.
All terms used in the claims are intended to be given their broadest reasonable constructions and their ordinary meanings as understood by those knowledgeable in the technologies described herein unless an explicit indication to the contrary in made herein. In particular, the use of the words “first,” “second,” etc. may be interchangeable.
Claims
1. A disc for supporting a stem of a stemmed container, comprising:
- a disc body having a defined by a periphery, wherein the body defines a center opening and a slot extending from the center opening to the periphery, the slot configured to receive the stem of the stemmed container and the periphery configured to maintain the stemmed container within a receptacle.
2. The disc of claim 1, wherein the periphery defines a plurality of alternating recesses and protrusions, the protrusions configured to abut a side of the receptacle and maintain the stemmed container therein.
3. The disc of claim 2, wherein the each of the recesses have a same opening length and wherein each of the protrusions have a same protrusion length.
4. The disc of claim 3, wherein each opening length is approximately half of the protrusion length.
5. The disc of claim 2, wherein the slot forms a pair of opposite slot faces biased together.
6. The disc of claim 2, wherein disc body is generally cylindrical.
7. A disc, comprising:
- a disc body defined by a periphery, wherein the body defines a center opening and a first slot extending form the center opening to the periphery, the first slot configured to receive a stem of a beverage container, the disc body further defining at least one second slot extending radially outwardly from the center opening permitting the center opening to have a flexible radius.
8. The disc of claim 7, wherein the at least one second slot extends outwardly from the center opening and has a length of approximately 0.25 inches.
9. The disc of claim 7, wherein the at least one second slot includes at least four second slots.
10. The disc of claim 7, wherein the second slots and the first slot are equidistantly spaced from one another and extending radially outwardly at the center opening.
11. A disc comprising:
- a disc body having a generally cylindrical shape defined by a periphery, wherein the body defines a center opening and a slot extending from the center opening to the periphery.
12. The disc of claim 11, wherein the periphery defines a plurality of alternating recesses and protrusions, the protrusions configured to abut a side of a receptacle and maintain a stemmed container therein.
13. The disc of claim 12, wherein the each of the recesses have a same opening length and wherein each of the protrusions have a same protrusion length.
14. The disc of claim 13, wherein each opening length is approximately half of the protrusion length.
15. The disc of claim 12, wherein the periphery defines five recesses and five protrusions.
16. The disc of claim 12, wherein the slot extends from the center opening to a center of at least one of the recesses.
17. The disc of claim 11, wherein the disc has a first face and a second face, the periphery extending between the first face and second face forming the generally cylindrical shape and further wherein the periphery forms at least one of a concave curve and a convex curve.
18. The disc of claim 11, wherein the periphery includes a plurality of protrusions configured to abut a side of a receptacle.
19. The disc of claim 11, wherein the disc is composed of a foam-like material.
20. The disc of claim 11, wherein the disc may have a thickness of approximately one (1.0) inch.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 24, 2014
Publication Date: Oct 23, 2014
Applicant: WINE WIDGY LLC (Dearborn, MI)
Inventors: Amy KRZYZANIAK (Dearborn, MI), Leonard K. KRZYZANIAK, Jr. (Dearborn, MI)
Application Number: 14/162,968