U.S. patent application number 11/109049 was filed with the patent office on 2006-10-26 for one piece plastic tether.
This patent application is currently assigned to NATIONAL POLYMERS INC.. Invention is credited to Dennis C. Anderson.
Application Number | 20060237467 11/109049 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37185792 |
Filed Date | 2006-10-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060237467 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Anderson; Dennis C. |
October 26, 2006 |
One piece plastic tether
Abstract
A tether that is formed from plastic resin is used for securing
a captive article, e.g., a scoop to a container such as a bottle or
the like. The tether comprises a ring-shaped body portion defining
a collar that is constructed and dimensioned to fit around the neck
of the container. An integral arcuate leash encircles the collar
and is concentric exteriorly of the collar so as to at least
partially surround the collar. An integral radially extending
connecting ligament also formed from the same plastic resin is
located between the collar and a proximal end of the leash. A
fastener is provided on the free end of the leash for securing the
tether to the captive article.
Inventors: |
Anderson; Dennis C.;
(Northfield, MN) |
Correspondence
Address: |
James V. Harmon;U.S. Bank Plaza
Suite 2000
220 South Sixth Street
Minneapolis
MN
55402
US
|
Assignee: |
NATIONAL POLYMERS INC.
|
Family ID: |
37185792 |
Appl. No.: |
11/109049 |
Filed: |
April 20, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/735 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 77/245
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
220/735 |
International
Class: |
B65D 25/00 20060101
B65D025/00 |
Claims
1. A tether formed from plastic resin for securing a captive
article to a container, said tether comprising, a ring-shaped body
portion defining a collar that is constructed and dimensioned to
fit around said container, an arcuate leash encircling the collar
so as to be concentric exteriorly thereof for at least partially
surrounding the collar, an integral plastic ligament extending
between the collar and a proximal end of the leash and, a fastener
at the free end of the leash for securing the tether to a captive
article.
2. The tether of claim 1 wherein the leash, the collar and the
connecting ligament are composed flat sheet plastic material and
are formed coplanar with each other.
3. The tether of claim 1 wherein a handle extends from the tether
as an aid for grasping the tether.
4. The tether of claim 3 wherein the handle is a tab that extends
radially outwardly from the collar between the plastic ligament and
the fastener.
5. A tether formed from plastic resin for securing an article to a
container, said tether comprising, a ring-shaped body portion that
is formed from plastic resin and defines a collar for attachment to
said container, an arcuate leash that is constructed to curve
toward the collar, said leash being integrally connected to said
collar at a proximal end of said leash and the free end of the
leash being adapted to be attached to a captive article.
6. The tether of claim 5 wherein the leash and the collar are each
formed as a flat plastic sheet of material and are coplanar with
each other.
7. The leash of claim 5 wherein a handle extends from the tether as
an aid for grasping the tether.
8. The tether of claim 5 wherein the handle extends radially
outwardly from the collar adjacent a proximal end of the leash.
9. The tether of claim 5 wherein the tether is formed from
injection molded plastic resin.
10. A one-piece tether formed from flat of plastic resinous strip
material comprising, a centrally located ring defining a collar
portion, a leash that is formed coplanar with the collar and
exteriorly encircles the collar, a proximal end of the leash is
integrally connected to the collar and a fastener is located at a
free end of the leash for securing the tether to a captive
article.
11. The tether of claim 10 wherein the fastener comprises a
flattened enlargement in the form of an arrowhead for facilitating
the insertion of the free end of the leash into an opening in said
article.
12. The tether of claim 10 wherein a handle comprising a tab
extends radially outwardly from the collar.
13. The tether of claim 5 in combination with a bottle that extends
through the collar and a scoop attached to the free end of the
leash.
14. The device of claim 13 and a fastener at the free end of the
leash connected to the scoop.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates to plastic items and more
particularly to a plastic tether for securing an article to a
container or other object.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Many devices have been produced for connecting articles to
one another. U.S. Pat. No. 5,593,026, for example, describes a
carrier formed from flat plastic sheet stock with six openings for
carrying bottles. U.S. Pat. No. 3,504,790 shows another plastic
carrier holding six bottles. It includes an upper carrier with six
openings and a lower carrier with six openings so as to encircle
the bottles at two levels. U.S. Pat. No. 2,970,729 describes a
carrier that includes thongs, each consisting of a flat plastic
strip with identical ears at each end. Each ear has an eye that is
centered so that the strip can be formed into a loop or noose 14
for placement around the neck of a bottle. The noose must be formed
by hand which is time consuming and labor intensive.
[0003] In view of these and other shortcomings of the prior art, it
is one object of the present invention to provide a tether that can
be attached to a container, e.g., by placing it over the neck of a
bottle with a single movement and without requiring the tether to
be manipulated in order to attach it to the bottle.
[0004] Another object of the invention is to provide a tether that
is formed from a single piece of plastic material.
[0005] Still another object is to provide a tether that can be used
for securing a captive article such as a scoop to a container,
e.g., a bottle in a manner that will help the scoop to enter a
carton as the bottle is placed therein.
[0006] A more specific object of the invention is to provide a
tether that is preformed so as to automatically hold an article in
close proximity with a container to facilitate packaging the
container and article.
[0007] Another object is to enable a scoop to be used for removing
material from a bottle while remaining attached by the tether.
[0008] These and other more detailed and specific objects of the
present invention will be better understood by reference to the
following figures and detailed description which illustrate by way
of example but a few of the various forms of the invention within
the scope of the appended claims.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] A tether that is formed from plastic resin is provided for
securing a captive article, e.g., a scoop to a container such as a
bottle or the like. The tether comprises a ring-shaped body portion
defining a collar that is constructed and dimensioned to fit around
the neck of the container. An integral arcuate leash encircles the
collar and is concentric exteriorly of the collar so as to at least
partially surround the collar. An integral radially extending
connecting ligament also formed from the same plastic resin is
located between the collar and a proximal end of the leash. A
fastener is provided on the free end of the leash for securing the
tether to the captive article.
THE FIGURES
[0010] FIG. 1 is a plan view of one preferred form of tether
according to the present invention.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the tether of FIG. 1 on a
slightly smaller scale.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the tether as it appears
while in use for securing a spoon to a bottle just before being
placed into a carton.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0013] As shown in the Figures, the invention comprises a tether
indicated generally by the numeral 10. The tether includes a
ring-shaped body portion 12 which defines a collar that is
constructed and dimensioned to fit around the neck of a container
such as a bottle 14 (FIG. 3). The entire tether 10 is formed from
flat plastic strip material, e.g., injection molded polyethylene
which can be, for example, 0.02 inches thickness. The body portion
12 is typically about 1/8 of an inch in width. In one application
the body 12 had an internal diameter of 1.42 inches and can be
placed around the neck of a bottle 14 with a single downward
movement, i.e., without requiring manipulation of the tether 10 as
it is snapped onto the bottle.
[0014] An integral arcuate leash 16 encircles the collar and is
concentric with the collar 12 exteriorly thereof. The leash 16 at
least partially encircles the collar 12 and typically extends
around the entire circumference of the collar 12. The leash can,
for example, have a thickness of about 0.02 inches and a width of
about 0.093 inches. The collar and the leash 16 are connected by
means of an integral radially extending plastic ligament 18 best
shown in FIG. 1 at the proximal end of the leash 16. At the free
end of the leash 16 is a fastener, in this case an arrowhead 18 for
securing the tether 10 to a captive article such as a measuring
scoop 20 (FIG. 3). Attachment can be easily accomplished by
inserting the arrowhead through a hole in the handle of the scoop
20. The fastener 18 can have other shapes if desired. For example,
it could comprise a knob or a hook or other configuration. An
arrowhead is highly preferred because it was found to be secure and
can be quickly attached.
[0015] It can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2 that the leash 16 completely
encircles the collar 12 and is coplanar therewith in a flat plane
17. Both the body 12 and the leash 16 are flat flexible strips of
plastic material which when formed, i.e., before use lie in plane
17. It was found that providing the leash with a preformed arcuate
shape helped to hold the scoop 20 close to the wall of a container
12 so that the leash itself would naturally tend to lie close to
the outside surface of the container 14. This facilitates insertion
of the bottle 14 and scoop 20 into a shipping carton 21 or other
package.
[0016] Integral with the collar 12 and extending outwardly
therefrom is a flat tab or handle 22. The handle is positioned
between the ligament 18 and the fastener 19 and extends from the
tether 10 as an aid for grasping the tether when it is to be
snapped over the neck of the bottle 14.
[0017] In a commercial application, the invention proved to be
inexpensive, easy to mount, and rugged in construction. In
addition, the fastener 19 allowed the leash 16 to be quickly
connected to an article such as the scoop 20 by placing the
arrow-shaped fastener 19 through an opening at the end of the
scoop. Once attached to the bottle, the preformed curved
configuration of the leash 16 automatically placed the leash in a
position encircling the bottle and thus held it close to the outer
surface of the bottle so as to facilitate placing the bottle 14 and
the scoop 20 into the carton 21.
[0018] Many variations of the present invention within the scope of
the appended claims will be apparent to those skilled in the art
once the principles described herein are understood.
* * * * *