U.S. patent application number 10/651369 was filed with the patent office on 2005-03-03 for cigarette extinguishing system.
This patent application is currently assigned to Adams Apple Distibuting L.P.. Invention is credited to Robertson, Alexander B..
Application Number | 20050045194 10/651369 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 34217375 |
Filed Date | 2005-03-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050045194 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Robertson, Alexander B. |
March 3, 2005 |
Cigarette extinguishing system
Abstract
A cigarette extinguishing device including a body having a
generally flat bottom surface, a top surface, and a frustoconical
bore extending between the top and bottom surfaces, and an interest
feature on the exterior of the body, where the bore is sufficiently
long to support a cigarette which is axially inserted therein.
Inventors: |
Robertson, Alexander B.;
(Highland Park, IL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
MICHAEL BEST & FRIEDRICH LLC
401 NORTH MICHIGAN AVENUE
SUITE 1900
CHICAGO
IL
60611-4212
US
|
Assignee: |
Adams Apple Distibuting
L.P.
Glenview
IL
|
Family ID: |
34217375 |
Appl. No.: |
10/651369 |
Filed: |
August 29, 2003 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
131/235.1 ;
131/256 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A24F 13/18 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
131/235.1 ;
131/256 |
International
Class: |
A24F 013/18 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A cigarette extinguishing device comprising: a body having a
generally flat bottom surface, a top surface, and a frustoconical
bore extending between the top and bottom surfaces.
2. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 1 including an
interest feature on the exterior of the body.
3. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 1 in which the
interest feature is chosen from the group consisting of a
recognizable utilitarian object, an imaginary object, a human,
animal or insect, or a cartoon, movie, or other imaginary
character.
4. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 1 in which the body
is made of a material chosen from the group consisting of metal,
wood, and plastic.
5. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 1 in which the bore
is sufficiently long to support a cigarette which is axially
inserted therein.
6. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 1 in which the bore
includes a circular top opening and the diameter of the top opening
is sized to allow a cigarette to be freely moved axially into the
bore while limiting air flow while the cigarette is disposed
therein.
7. A cigarette extinguishing system including a body having a
generally flat bottom surface, a top surface, and a frustoconical
bore extending between the top and bottom surfaces; and an ashtray
including an upstanding member of a height and diameter sufficient
to extend part way into the bore when the body member is placed
thereon.
8. The cigarette extinguishing system of claim 7 in which the
upstanding member includes a top generally flat extinguishing
surface.
9. The cigarette extinguishing system of claim 7 in which the
upstanding member is frustoconical in shape.
10. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 7 including an
interest feature on the exterior of the body.
11. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 7 in which the
interest feature is chosen from the group consisting of a
recognizable utilitarian object, an imaginary object, a human,
animal or insect, or a cartoon, movie, or other imaginary
character.
12. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 7 in which the bore
is sufficiently long to support a cigarette which is axially
inserted therein.
13. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 7 in which the bore
includes a circular top opening and the diameter of the top opening
is sized to allow a cigarette to be freely moved axially into the
bore while limiting air flow while the cigarette is disposed
therein.
14. A cigarette extinguishing system including an ashtray including
an upstanding member; and a plurality of bodies having a variety of
different interest features which may be interchangeably mounted on
the upstanding mounting member, each body having a generally flat
bottom surface, a top surface, and a frustoconical bore extending
between the top and bottom surfaces.
15. The cigarette extinguishing system of claim 14 in which the
upstanding member includes a top generally flat extinguishing
surface.
16. The cigarette extinguishing system of claim 14 in which the
upstanding member is frustoconical in shape.
17. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 14 including an
interest feature on the exterior of the body.
18. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 14 in which the
interest feature is chosen from the group consisting of a
recognizable utilitarian object, an imaginary object, a human,
animal or insect, or a cartoon, movie, or other imaginary
character.
19. The cigarette extinguishing device of claim 14 in which the
bore is sufficiently long to support a cigarette which is axially
inserted therein.
20. A cigarette extinguishing device comprising: a body having a
generally flat bottom surface, a top surface, and a frustoconical
bore extending between the top and bottom surfaces; and mounting
means for removably attaching the body to a surface.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates generally to devices for
extinguishing burning cigarettes and, more particularly, to devices
and systems for extinguishing burning cigarettes which are
particularly convenient, effective, and economical.
[0002] Cigarettes are conventionally snubbed out or extinguished in
an ashtray by crushing the burning tip of the cigarette to break up
and scatter the ashes and burning cigarette embers while smothering
the remaining burning residue. This often involves repeated tamping
to achieve complete extinguishing.
[0003] Various devices have been developed to snub out burning
cigarettes. Among these, there have been a number of devices in
which a confined cavity is provided for receiving the burning tip
of the cigarette. Oxygen flow into the confined cavity is limited,
so that as the cigarette tip is pressed home, the crushing action
along with the restricted oxygen flow tends to produce a simpler
and more certain extinguishing effect.
[0004] Such devices often nevertheless permit undesirable
smoldering as the cigarette is extinguished. Additionally, these
prior art snubbing devices have not been generally convenient to
use and oftentimes are not as effective as may be desired.
Therefore, a need exists for a new and improved cigarette
extinguisher which overcomes the problems and shortcomings of the
prior art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] In accordance with the present invention, a cigarette
extinguishing device is provided with a body having a generally
flat bottom surface, a top surface, and a frustoconical bore
extending between the top and bottom surfaces. Preferably, the
cigarette extinguishing device includes an interest feature on the
exterior of the body such as a recognizable utilitarian object, an
imaginary object, a human, animal or insect, or a cartoon, movie,
or other imaginary character. Also, the bore should be sufficiently
long to support a cigarette which is axially inserted therein.
Finally, the body of the device may be provided with means for
removable attachment to a surface, such as the dashboard of a
car.
[0006] In one important alternate embodiment, the invention
comprises a cigarette extinguishing system including a cigarette
extinguishing device as described above and an ashtray with an
upstanding member of a height and diameter sufficient to extend
part way into the bore of the cigarette extinguishing device when
it is placed on the ashtray.
[0007] In another important embodiment of the invention, a single
ashtray with an upstanding member of a height and diameter
sufficient to extend part way into the bore of the cigarette
extinguishing device is provided along with a collection of
cigarette extinguishing device bodies having a variety of different
interest features. These bodies may be interchangeably mounted on
the upstanding mounting member.
[0008] Finally, the body of the cigarette extinguishing device may
be provided with means for removable attachment to a surface such
as the dashboard of a car.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cigarette extinguishing
device in accordance with the present invention;
[0010] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the bottom of the cigarette
extinguishing device of FIG. 1.
[0011] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a cigarette extinguishing
device in accordance with the present invention in a conventional
ashtray;
[0012] FIGS. 4 and 5 are, respectively, perspective views of a
specially adapted ashtray cigarette extinguishing device and a
system including the specially adapted ashtray and a cigarette
extinguishing device mounted thereon, all in accordance with the
present invention;
[0013] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a collection of cigarette
device bodies in accordance with the present invention, having a
plurality of different interest features; and
[0014] FIGS. 7, 8A and 8B are, respectively, a perspective view of
a bayonet mountable cigarette extinguishing device, a bottom view
of the bayonet mountable cigarette extinguishing device showing the
mounting lugs, and the bayonet mount receptacle.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION
[0015] Referring first to FIGS. 1 and 2, a cigarette extinguishing
device in accordance with the present invention is indicated by
reference number 10. Extinguisher 10 includes a body 12 having an
exterior configuration in the form of a recognizable utilitarian
object, an imaginary object, a human, animal or insect, or a
cartoon, movie, or other imaginary character. In the illustrated
embodiment, the exterior body 12 is in the form of a frog. I refer
to this exterior configuration as the "interest feature," with the
frog interest feature designated 13 in FIG. 1.
[0016] Body 12 includes a generally flat bottom surface 14 and a
top surface 16. A bore 18 extends between the top and bottom
surfaces.
[0017] Bore 18 is preferably in the frustoconical form of a
truncated cone having a generally annular wall 22 which slopes
outwardly from its top circular opening 24 to its bottom circular
opening 26. This frustoconical shape permits the cigarette tip to
spread out as it is pressed home in the bore. The circumference of
top opening 24 should be slightly larger than the outer
circumference of a cigarette to allow the cigarette to be freely
moved axially into the bore while limiting air flow while the
cigarette is disposed therein. The length of the bore should be
sufficient to support a cigarette which is axially inserted
therein.
[0018] The body of the extinguisher device may be made of any
material capable of being formed into the desired configuration.
For example, it may be formed of metal, wood, etc. In a preferred
embodiment, the device is formed of a suitable plastic, such as
polycarbonate, polyvinylchloride, etc. The material used should
resist burning or melting when exposed to the burning tip of a
cigarette inserted into bore 18. If desired, the bore may be coated
or lined with a fire-resistant material.
[0019] Cigarette extinguishing device 10 may be placed in any
conventional ashtray 30 which has a sufficiently large flat surface
to support body 12, as illustrated in FIG. 3. Alternatively, a
specially adapted ashtray 32 may be provided as illustrated in
FIGS. 3 and 4. Ashtray 32 includes an upstanding member 34 with a
top generally flat extinguishing surface 36 which is of a height
"A" and a diameter sufficient to extend part way into and
substantially close off a bottom portion of bore 18 when body
member 12 is placed thereon. It is preferred that the upstanding
member be of a frustoconical shape corresponding to that of bore
18. Whether the cigarette extinguishing device is used with a
conventional ashtray or with a specially adapted ashtray as
illustrated, the body portion is removable from the ashtray to
clean ash build-up either on the flat surface of the conventional
ashtray or on the extinguishing surface 36 of member 34 in the
specially adapted ashtray.
[0020] The invention also comprises a system including a single
ashtray with upstanding mounting member 34, as illustrated in FIG.
4, and a collection of different bodies 12A-12L, each having a
frustoconical bore 18 and a different interest feature, as shown in
FIG. 6. The interest features add attraction to the use of the
system, encouraging the user to snuff out his or her cigarette more
often, thereby reducing the user's smoking generally and also
reducing second-hand smoke produced by cigarettes that have not
been completely extinguished. Additionally, it has been found that
cigarettes snuffed out in this system can be relit with minimal
after-taste of the sort experienced when cigarettes are snuffed out
in the conventional way. This is believed to result from the
frustoconical shape of bore 18 which facilitates the compacting or
compressing of the ashes at the tip of the cigarette while
maintaining minimal air flow to that area, thereby improving the
extinguishing effectiveness.
[0021] Turning lastly to FIGS. 7, 8A and 8B, a bayonet mountable
cigarette extinguishing device 40 is shown in which the interest
feature 42 is a bearded motorcyclist with helmet and goggles on his
head. The bayonet mountable cigarette extinguishing device includes
a frustoconical bore 44 as described above in connection with FIGS.
1 and 2. The bottom 46 of the device has a bayonet mount device 48
including mounting lugs 50. The bayonet mounting device closes off
the bottom of bore 44 which therefore cannot be seen in this
figure. In a preferred embodiment, a metal insert (not shown) in
interposed between the bottom of the bore and the top of the
bayonet mount device to help dissipate heat from the burning tip of
the cigarette inserted therein. Finally, a bayonet mount receptacle
52 is also provided with a bayonet opening 54 for receiving and
locking bayonet mount device 48 to the bayonet mount receptacle.
The bayonet mount receptacle 52 is intended to be fixed to a
surface such as the dashboard of a car by a self-stick adhesive
strip (not shown) on its bottom 56 or by other mounting means. This
permits cigarette extinguishing devices to be mounted wherever
needed or desired.
[0022] Preferred embodiments of this invention are described
herein, including the best mode known to the inventor for carrying
out the invention. Variations of those preferred embodiments may
become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading
the foregoing description. The inventor expects skilled artisans to
employ such variations as appropriate, and the inventor intends for
the invention to be practiced otherwise than as specifically
described herein. Accordingly, this invention includes all
modifications and equivalents of the subject matter recited in the
claims appended hereto as permitted by applicable law. Moreover,
any combination of the above-described elements in all possible
variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unless otherwise
indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.
* * * * *