COOLER ATTACHMENT FOR STORING INSULATED BEVERAGE SLEEVES
A system stores one or more insulated beverage sleeves. The system includes a cooler including one or more cooler walls, and an attachment including a pair of sidewalls extending from a first cooler wall of the cooler walls, a body extending laterally between the sidewalls and spaced from the first cooler wall to define a cavity sized to house the insulated beverage sleeves, and a support extending laterally between the sidewalls and disposed at or adjacent to a lower portion of the body opposite the upper portion. The body has an upper portion that defines a mouth in fluid communication with the cavity.
Insulated chests or coolers are used to store a variety of items, such as food and drink products, in a temperature-controlled environment. Known coolers can accommodate beverages coming in a variety of forms, including cans and bottles. However, beyond providing the temperature-controlled environment, at least some known coolers have generally limited capabilities, particularly for items other than food and drink products.
SUMMARYIn one aspect, a system is provided for storing one or more insulated beverage sleeves. The system includes a cooler including one or more cooler walls, and an attachment including a pair of sidewalls extending from a first cooler wall of the cooler walls, a body extending laterally between the sidewalls and spaced from the first cooler wall to define a cavity sized to house the insulated beverage sleeves, and a support extending laterally between the sidewalls and disposed at or adjacent to a lower portion of the body opposite the upper portion. The body has an upper portion that defines a mouth in fluid communication with the cavity.
In another aspect, an attachment is provided for use with a cooler for storing one or more insulated beverage sleeves. The attachment includes a body, a pair of sidewalls, and a support. The body includes a first side, a second side opposite the first side, a lower portion extending between the first side and the second side, and an upper portion opposite the lower portion and extending between the first side and the second side. The sidewalls include a first sidewall coupled to the first side and a second sidewall coupled to the second side. Each sidewall includes a flange coupleable to the cooler such that a cavity sized to house the one or more insulated beverage sleeves is defined between the body and the cooler. The support extends laterally between the first sidewall and the second sidewall. The support is disposed at or adjacent to the lower portion of the body.
In yet another aspect, a method is provided for providing storage for one or more insulated beverage sleeves. The method includes providing a cooler including one or more cooler walls, extending a pair of sidewalls from a first cooler wall of the one or more cooler walls, extending a body laterally between the pair of sidewalls such that the body is spaced from the first cooler wall to define a cavity sized to house the one or more insulated beverage sleeves, and extending a support laterally between the pair of sidewalls. The body has an upper portion that defines a mouth in fluid communication with the cavity. The support is at or adjacent to a lower portion of the body opposite the upper portion.
Various refinements exist of the features noted in relation to the above-mentioned aspects. Further features may also be incorporated in the above-mentioned aspects as well. These refinements and additional features may exist individually or in any combination. For instance, various features discussed below in relation to any of the illustrated examples may be incorporated into any of the above-described aspects, alone or in any combination.
Features, aspects, and advantages of the present disclosure will become better understood when the following Detailed Description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters represent like elements throughout, wherein:
Although specific features of various examples may be shown in some drawings and not in others, this is for convenience only. Any feature of any drawing may be referenced and/or claimed in combination with any feature of any other drawing.
DETAILED DESCRIPTIONThe present disclosure relates to portable containers and, more particularly, to a cooler attachment that may be used to store one or more insulated beverage sleeves. Attachments described herein are coupled to a cooler wall to provide a space in which one or more insulated beverage sleeves may be stored. Example attachments include a pair of sidewalls extending from the cooler wall and a body extending laterally between the pair of sidewalls to define a cavity sized to house the insulated beverage sleeves. An upper portion of the body defines a mouth that provides access to the cavity, and a lower portion of the body includes a support extending laterally between the sidewalls. Accordingly, examples described herein provide cooler users with a convenient, user-friendly place to store insulated beverage sleeves.
The insulated beverage sleeve 100 is moveable between a closed configuration (shown) and an open configuration (not shown). As shown in
The cooler 200 includes an upper cooler wall or lid 230 at or adjacent to the upper portion 222 of the side cooler walls 220. The lid 230 is moveable to selectively restrict or allow access to the opening and/or insulated enclosure volume defined in the cooler 200. For example, the cooler 200 may include one or more hinges that pivotably attach the lid 230 to one or more side cooler walls 220, such as a front cooler wall 232, a rear cooler wall 234, a right cooler wall 236, and/or a left cooler wall 238. In some examples, the lid 230 is detachable or removeable from the rest of the cooler 200. Although the cooler 200 is shown as a hard-sided chest, any combination of the base 210, lid 230, front cooler wall 232, rear cooler wall 234, right cooler wall 236, and/or left cooler wall 238 may be fabricated from a soft or flexible material. As will be understood, terms such as lower, upper, side, front, rear, right, and/or left are used herein for convenience of description only and are not to be considered limiting of the orientation of the cooler 200 and/or any other feature described herein.
In some examples, the cooler 200 includes one or more attachments 240 that may be used to store one or more objects (e.g., insulated beverage sleeve 100). As shown in
The attachment 300 further includes a pair of sidewalls 320. The sidewalls 320 may include, for example, a first sidewall 322 coupled to the first side 312 of the body 310 and a second sidewall 324 coupled to the second side 314 of the body 310 such that the body 310 extends laterally between the sidewalls 320. In some examples, the first sidewall 322 and/or second sidewall 324 extends a first distance 326 (shown, e.g., in
Each sidewall 320 includes a flange 328 for use in coupling the attachment 300 to the cooler 200. The flanges 328 may be coupled, for example, to a first cooler wall (e.g., lid 230, front cooler wall 232, rear cooler wall 234, right cooler wall 236, left cooler wall 238) such that the sidewalls 320 extend from the first cooler wall and a cavity (e.g., cavity 244) sized to house the insulated beverage sleeve 100 is defined between the body 310 and the first cooler wall. As shown in
Opposite the lip 332 and/or mouth at or adjacent to a lower portion of the attachment 300 (e.g., lower portion 316), a support 340 extends laterally between the sidewalls 320. The support 340 may extend from the body 310, for example, a second distance 342 (shown in
A pair of sidewalls 320 are extended from a first cooler wall of the cooler walls at operation 520. The sidewalls 320 may be extended, for example, from the lid 230, front cooler wall 232, rear cooler wall 234, right cooler wall 236, and/or left cooler wall 238. In some examples, the sidewalls 320 are coupled to the first cooler wall such that the sidewalls 320 are moveable. For example, the sidewalls 320 may be moved to translate the attachment 240 about a surface of the first cooler wall (e.g., upwardly, downwardly, leftwardly, and/or rightwardly) and/or across the surface of the first cooler wall (e.g., inwardly and/or outwardly). In this manner, the attachment 240 may be moveable between an extended position and a retracted position.
A body 310 is extended laterally between the sidewalls 320 at operation 530. The body 310 may be extended, for example, such that the body 310 is spaced from the first cooler wall to define a cavity 244 sized to house one or more insulated beverage sleeves 100. The body 310 has an upper portion 318 that defines a mouth in fluid communication with and/or providing access to the cavity 244. In some examples, the upper portion 318 of the body 310 is formed such that a lip 332 extends radially outward from the cavity 244.
A support 340 or 440 is extended laterally between the sidewalls 320 at operation 540. The support 340 or 440 may be extended, for example, at or adjacent to a lower portion 316 of the body 310 opposite the upper portion 318. In some examples, the support 340 or 440 is positioned such that one or more passages 344 or 444 are defined between the support 340 or 440 and the first cooler wall. As shown in
During use, one or more insulated beverage sleeves 100 may be stored in the cavity 244. In this manner, a user may conveniently access or store one or more insulated beverage sleeves 100 at the cooler 200 in an effective and efficient manner The passages 444 allow fluid to be channeled therethrough (e.g., for cleaning or draining the cavity 244).
The order of execution or performance of the operations in examples of the disclosure illustrated and described herein is not essential, unless otherwise specified. That is, the operations may be performed in any order, unless otherwise specified, and examples of the disclosure may include additional or fewer operations than those disclosed herein. For example, it is contemplated that executing or performing a particular operation before, contemporaneously with, or after another operation is within the scope of aspects of the disclosure.
When introducing elements of aspects of the disclosure or the examples thereof, the articles “a,” “an,” “the,” and “said” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. Furthermore, references to an “embodiment” or “example” of the present disclosure are not intended to be interpreted as excluding the existence of additional embodiments or examples that also incorporate the recited features. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements. The phrase “one or more of the following: A, B, and C” means “at least one of A and/or at least one of B and/or at least one of C.”
Having described aspects of the disclosure in detail, it will be apparent that modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of aspects of the disclosure as defined in the appended claims As various changes could be made in the above constructions, products, and methods without departing from the scope of aspects of the disclosure, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.
While aspects of the disclosure have been described in terms of various examples with their associated operations, a person skilled in the art would appreciate that a combination of operations from any number of different examples is also within the scope of the aspects of the disclosure.
Claims
1. A system for storing one or more insulated beverage sleeves, the system comprising:
- a cooler including one or more cooler walls; and
- an attachment including a pair of sidewalls extending from a first cooler wall of the one or more cooler walls, a body extending laterally between the pair of sidewalls and spaced from the first cooler wall to define a cavity sized to house the one or more insulated beverage sleeves, the body having an upper portion that defines a mouth in fluid communication with the cavity, and a support extending laterally between the pair of sidewalls and disposed at or adjacent to a lower portion of the body opposite the upper portion.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the first cooler wall is one of a front cooler wall, a rear cooler wall, a right cooler wall, a left cooler wall, or a upper cooler wall.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the attachment is integrally coupled to the first cooler wall.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the attachment is removably coupled to the first cooler wall.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein the attachment is moveable between an extended position and a retracted position.
6. The system of claim 1, wherein the upper portion includes a lip extending radially outward from the cavity.
7. The system of claim 1, wherein the support is spaced from the first cooler wall to define one or more passages.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein the support is spaced from the first cooler wall along a width of the support to define a generally linear passage.
9. The system of claim 1, wherein the support includes a plurality of portions spaced from the first cooler wall to define a plurality of passages.
10. An attachment for use with a cooler for storing one or more insulated beverage sleeves, the attachment comprising:
- a body including a first side, a second side opposite the first side, a lower portion extending between the first side and the second side, and an upper portion opposite the lower portion and extending between the first side and the second side;
- a pair of sidewalls including a first sidewall coupled to the first side and a second sidewall coupled to the second side, each of the pair of sidewalls including a flange coupleable to the cooler such that a cavity sized to house the one or more insulated beverage sleeves is defined between the body and the cooler; and
- a support extending laterally between the first sidewall and the second sidewall, the support disposed at or adjacent to the lower portion of the body.
11. The attachment of claim 10, wherein the upper portion includes a lip.
12. The attachment of claim 10, wherein the pair of sidewalls extend from the body a first distance, and the support extends from the body a second distance less than the first distance.
13. The attachment of claim 10, wherein the support includes a plurality of portions that define a plurality of passages.
14. A method of providing storage for one or more insulated beverage sleeves, the method comprising:
- providing a cooler including one or more cooler walls;
- extending a pair of sidewalls from a first cooler wall of the one or more cooler walls;
- extending a body laterally between the pair of sidewalls such that the body is spaced from the first cooler wall to define a cavity sized to house the one or more insulated beverage sleeves, the body having an upper portion that defines a mouth in fluid communication with the cavity; and
- extending a support laterally between the pair of sidewalls, the support at or adjacent to a lower portion of the body opposite the upper portion.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first cooler wall is one of a front cooler wall, a rear cooler wall, a right cooler wall, a left cooler wall, or a upper cooler wall.
16. The method of claim 14, further comprising coupling the pair of sidewalls to the first cooler wall such that the pair of sidewalls is moveable.
17. The method of claim 14, further comprising forming the upper portion of the body such that a lip extends radially outward from the cavity.
18. The method of claim 14, further comprising positioning the support such that one or more passages are defined between the support and the first cooler wall.
19. The method of claim 14, further comprising spacing the support from the first cooler wall along a width of the support such that a generally linear passage is defined between the support and the first cooler wall.
20. The method of claim 14, further comprising positioning the support such that a plurality of portions of the support are spaced from the first cooler wall to define a plurality of passages.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 22, 2019
Publication Date: Sep 24, 2020
Inventor: Kevin Wilson (Bloomsdale, MO)
Application Number: 16/362,106