U.S. patent application number 12/150245 was filed with the patent office on 2009-10-29 for disposable foam enhancing espresso drink lid.
Invention is credited to Craig Bailey.
Application Number | 20090266829 12/150245 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41213989 |
Filed Date | 2009-10-29 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090266829 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Bailey; Craig |
October 29, 2009 |
Disposable foam enhancing espresso drink lid
Abstract
Applicant provides a disposable foam enhancing espresso drink
lid which enhances the coffee and espresso drinking experience, and
includes a curved dome having a drinking hole with a top and bottom
in a top surface and a curved face, wherein said curved dome is
formed out of said lid, a lip depression at the bottom of said
curved face, wherein said lip depression is formed out of said lid,
a nose depression separated from said lip depression by a support
structure, wherein said nose depression and said support structure
are formed out of said lid, a smell slit provided in said support
structure, a rim encircling said curved dome, lip depression, nose
depression, and support structure. In use a drinker's lips curve
around said dome curved face and into said lip depression, and
drinker's nose extends into said nose depression with nostrils in
proximity to said smell slit. The lid may be formed from a
contiguous plasticized material. The lid can include an annular
mounting portion beneath and connected to said rim for sealingly
engaging the lid of the beverage container having a circular edge
with a bead thereon.
Inventors: |
Bailey; Craig; (Camas,
WA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
RYLANDER & ASSOCIATES PC
406 West 12th Street
Vancouver
WA
98660
US
|
Family ID: |
41213989 |
Appl. No.: |
12/150245 |
Filed: |
April 24, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/713 ;
220/367.1; 220/717 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 2543/00046
20130101; B65D 43/0202 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
220/713 ;
220/717; 220/367.1 |
International
Class: |
B65D 43/08 20060101
B65D043/08; B65D 43/04 20060101 B65D043/04; A47G 19/22 20060101
A47G019/22 |
Claims
1. A disposable foam enhancing espresso drink lid, comprising: a
curved dome having a drinking hole with a top and bottom in a top
surface and a curved face, wherein said curved dome is formed out
of said lid; a lip depression at the bottom of said curved face,
wherein said lip depression is formed out of said lid; a nose
depression separated from said lip depression by a support
structure, wherein said nose depression and said support structure
are formed out of said lid; a smell slit provided in said support
structure; and a rim encircling said curved dome, lip depression,
nose depression, and support structure; and wherein a drinker's
lips curve around said dome curved face and into said lip
depression, and a drinker's nose extends into said nose depression
with nostrils in proximity to said smell slit.
2. The lid of claim 1, wherein said lid is formed from a contiguous
plasticized material.
3. The lid of claims 1 or 2, an annular mounting portion beneath
and connected to said rim for sealingly engaging the lid of the
beverage container having a circular edge with a bead thereon.
4. A disposable foam enhancing espresso drink lid, comprising: a
curved dome having a drinking hole with a top and bottom in a top
surface and a curved face, wherein said curved dome is formed out
of said lid; a lip depression at the bottom of said curved face,
wherein said lid depression is formed out of said lid; a nose
depression separated from said lip depression by a support
structure, wherein said nose depression and said support structure
are formed out of said lid; a smell slit provided in said support
structure; and a rim encircling said curved dome, lip depression,
nose depression, and support structure; an annular mounting portion
beneath and connected to said rim for sealingly engaging the lid of
the beverage container having a circular edge with a bead thereon;
and wherein a consumer's lips curve around said dome curved face
and into said lip depression, and a consumer's nose extends into
said nose depression with nostrils in proximity to said smell slit;
and wherein said lid is formed from a contiguous plasticized
material.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to disposable plasticized
"to-go" cup lids. More particularly, the present invention relates
to disposable plasticized "to-go" coffee or espresso cup lids.
BACKGROUND
[0002] Coffee and espresso drink imbibers frequently drink from
either paper product based coffee cups with plasticized lids, or,
for more pleasure, from un-lidded coffee mugs, frequently ceramic.
Drinking from a mug provides an enhanced experience. The smell,
foam, and ability to control the temperature, all combine to
enhance the drinking experience. Drinking from a mug is an
experience many times better than from a "to go" cup and lid.
[0003] Drinking from existing paper product "to-go" cups with
plasticized lids does not give the same experience. Currently,
enjoyability from drinking from a paper product "to-go" cup with
plasticized lid is limited by several factors. Foam, with tight and
tiny air bubbles and a creamy texture, is a differentiator (besides
the quality of the raw materials and technique) to the fast food
versions of coffee shops. The problem with the "to go" cups is that
the hole does not allow the foam to pass through. With the cup
tilted, the hole is below the floating layer of foam. Plus, with
existing "to go" lids, the depression in the lid skims off the top
layer of foam while drinking. Temperature is another factor. Most
"to go" coffee lids have a small hole forcing the consumer to
ingest 100% coffee. With this design it is very difficult to slurp
air with the hot liquid to cool it down. Smell is also a factor.
Smell is a contributor to the overall sensory experience. Yet it is
difficult to smell the coffee with existing "to go" lids. Nose fit
is another factor. Existing "to go" lids have a top surface at the
location where the drinker's nose hits which forces the drinker to
tilt their head back quite far to reach the last drop. This can be
quite dangerous while driving a car. Upper lip fit is yet another
factor. Existing "to go" lid designs force the consumer to match
their upper lip (shaped to a frown) to the rim of the lid (shaped
to a smile).
[0004] Thus, there is a need for a disposable foam enhancing
espresso lid usable with "to go" cups for either coffee or coffee
like drinks such as espresso that addresses these limiting factors,
foam, temperature, smell, nose fit, and upper lip fit.
[0005] Presently known art has not solved the problem. The
following represents a list of known related art:
TABLE-US-00001 Date of Reference: Issued to: Issue/Publication: US
Pat App Pub. 2008/0000921 Leon Jan. 3, 2008 US Pat. 7,185,781 Pitts
Mar. 6, 2007 US Pat. 7,134,570 Heath et al. Nov. 14, 2006 US Pat.
6,431,390 Waller Aug. 13, 2002 US Pat. 6,419,112 Bruce Jul. 16,
2002 US Pat. 5,553,731 Schuyler Sep. 10, 1996 US Pat. 5,509,568
Warden et al. Apr. 23, 1996 US Pat. 4,619,372 McFarland Oct. 28,
1986 US Pat. 4,503,992 Sitko et al. Mar. 12, 1985 US Des. Pat.
D437,223 Coy Feb. 6, 2001
[0006] The teachings of each of the above-listed citations (which
does not itself incorporate essential material by reference) are
herein incorporated by reference. None of the above inventions and
patents, taken either singularly or in combination, is seen to
describe the instant invention as claimed.
[0007] Thus, while the foregoing body of art indicates it to be
well known to have a "to go" cup disposable lid, the art described
above does not teach or suggest a disposable foam enhancing
espresso lid which has the following combination of desirable
features: (1) addressing the limiting factors of foam, temperature,
smell, nose fit, and upper lip fit; (2) ingesting more foam and
leaving less foam after consuming the drink; (3) reducing or
eliminating occurrence of tongue burning; (4) providing a degree of
temperature control; (5) allowing the experience of drinking coffee
with the foam and smelling the aroma of the drink; (6) optimally
placing a smell aperture in proximity to a drinker's nostrils; and
(7) providing a curved surface to which a drinker's lip can
seal.
SUMMARY AND ADVANTAGES
[0008] A disposable foam enhancing espresso drink lid which
enhances the coffee and espresso drinking experience The disposable
foam enhancing espresso drink lid includes a curved dome having a
drinking hole with a top and bottom in a top surface and a curved
face, wherein said curved dome is formed out of said lid, a lip
depression at the bottom of said curved face, wherein said lip
depression is formed out of said lid, a nose depression separated
from said lip depression by a support structure, wherein said nose
depression and said support structure are formed out of said lid, a
smell slit provided in said support structure, and a rim encircling
said curved dome, lip depression, nose depression, and support
structure. In use, the consumer's lips curve around said dome
curved face and into said lip depression, and the consumer's nose
extends into said nose depression with nostrils in proximity to
said smell slit. The lid may be formed from a contiguous
plasticized material. The lid can include an annular mounting
portion beneath and connected to said rim for sealingly engaging
the lid of the beverage container having a circular edge with a
bead thereon.
[0009] Applicant's lid addresses the problem with foam by extending
the horizontal oval hole into a vertical triangular slot. This
allows enjoyment of the foam while drinking coffee. The foam
remains available to the hole at all angles of tilting of the cup.
The consumer can control the amount of foam and coffee with the
positioning of the lips on the dome and hole. Moreover, because
foam is mostly air, with the ability to control the amount of foam
in the sip, the consumer will be able to control the temperature of
the drink. The dome on Applicant's lid creates a top surface shaped
to a frown like the upper lip making it easier to seal between the
lid and lip.
[0010] Applicant's lid also enhances the drinking experience by
making available to the user the smell of the coffee vapors by
incorporating a slit positioned under the nose in the optimum
location for proximity to the user's nostrils to allow a minimal
amount of coffee vapors to escape and be smelled. In conjunction
and to allow this optimum location, a depression in Applicant's lid
provides a space for the nose allowing the consumer to fully tilt
the cup with less tilting of the head.
[0011] The disposable foam enhancing espresso drink lid of the
present invention presents numerous advantages, including: (1)
addressing the limiting factors of foam, temperature, smell, nose
fit, and upper lip fit; (2) ingesting more foam and leaving less
foam after consuming the drink; (3) reducing or eliminating
occurrence of tongue burning; (4) providing a degree of temperature
control; (5) allowing the experience of drinking coffee with the
foam and smelling the aroma of the drink; (6) optimally placing a
smell aperture in proximity to a drinker's nostrils; and (7)
providing a curved surface to which a drinker's lip can seal, among
others.
[0012] Additional advantages of the invention will be set forth in
part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious
from the description, or may be learned by practice of the
invention. The advantages of the invention may be realized and
attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations
particularly pointed out in the appended claims. Further benefits
and advantages of the embodiments of the invention will become
apparent from consideration of the following detailed description
given with reference to the accompanying drawings, which specify
and show preferred embodiments of the present invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated into and
constitute a part of this specification, illustrate one or more
embodiments of the present invention and, together with the
detailed description, serve to explain the principles and
implementations of the invention.
[0014] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of Applicant's Disposable Foam
Enhancing Espresso Drink Lid.
[0015] FIG. 2 shows a view of the lid of FIG. 1.
[0016] FIG. 3 shows another view of the lid of FIG. 1.
[0017] FIG. 4 shows another view of the lid of FIG. 1.
[0018] FIG. 5 shows another view of the lid of FIG. 1.
[0019] FIG. 6 shows a view of the lid of FIG. 1 in use.
[0020] FIG. 7 shows a A-A' cross section view of the lid of FIG.
3
REFERENCE NUMERALS IN DRAWINGS
[0021] 10 Disposable Foam Enhancing Espresso Drink Lid [0022] 12
Dome [0023] 12a Dome Curved Face [0024] 12b Dome Top Surface [0025]
14 Drinking Hole [0026] 14a Drinking Hole Top [0027] 14b Drinking
Hole Bottom [0028] 16 Nose Depression [0029] 18 Lip Depression
[0030] 20 Smell Slit [0031] 22 Support Structure [0032] 24 Rim
[0033] 26 Annular Mounting Portion [0034] N Nose [0035] C Cup
[0036] L Lips [0037] O Nostrils
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0038] Before beginning a detailed description of the subject
invention, mention of the following is in order. When appropriate,
like reference materials and characters are used to designate
identical, corresponding, or similar components in differing figure
drawings. The figure drawings associated with this disclosure
typically are not drawn with dimensional accuracy to scale, i.e.,
such drawings have been drafted with a focus on clarity of viewing
and understanding rather than dimensional accuracy.
[0039] In the interest of clarity, not all of the routine features
of the implementations described herein are shown and described. It
will, of course, be appreciated that in the development of any such
actual implementation, numerous implementation-specific decisions
must be made in order to achieve the developer's specific goals,
such as compliance with application and business-related
constraints, and that these specific goals will vary from one
implementation to another and from one developer to another.
Moreover, it will be appreciated that such a development effort
might be complex and time-consuming, but would nevertheless be a
routine undertaking of engineering for those of ordinary skill in
the art having the benefit of this disclosure.
[0040] As shown in FIGS. 1-7, Applicant provides a disposable foam
enhancing espresso drink lid 10 to enhance the coffee and espresso
drinking experience. Applicant's disposable foam enhancing espresso
drink lid 10 includes a curved dome 12 having a drinking hole 14
with a top 14a and bottom 14b in a top surface 12b and a curved
face 12a, wherein said curved dome 12 is formed out of said lid 10,
a lip depression 18 at the bottom of said curved face 12a, wherein
said lip depression 18 is formed out of said lid 10, an nose
depression 16 separated from said lip depression 18 by a support
structure 22, wherein said nose depression 16 and said support
structure 22 are formed out of said lid 10, a smell slit 20
provided in said support structure 22, a rim 24 encircling said
curved dome 12, lip depression 18, nose depression 16, and support
structure 22. In use, a consumer's lips L curve around said dome
curved face 12a and into said lip depression 18, and a consumer's
nose N extends into said nose depression 16 with nostrils O in
proximity to said smell slit 20. The lid 10 may be formed from a
contiguous plasticized material. The lid can include an annular
mounting portion 26 beneath and connected to said rim 24 for
sealingly engaging a cup C having a circular edge with a bead
thereon (not shown).
[0041] The upper circumference of the dome 12 fits the curvature of
the upper lip L. The user can adapt to the surface of the lid 10
with less pressure and lip manipulation. Compared to the existing
lids, Applicant's lid 10 does not skim off foam while drinking. The
dome 12 helps to funnel foam to the drinking hole 14 and provides
the proper angled surface for the hole 14 to be effective at all
tilting angles. It is possible that with the dome 12, the female
user can drink with less damage to lipstick coverage.
[0042] The purpose of the dome 12 is to create a funnel effect to
channel the foam to the drinking hole 14 and to present a curved
surface to match with the drinker's upper lip. The dome 12 is in
effect a portion of the surface of a sphere. The top surface 12b of
the dome 12 is flush to the top surface of the rim 24 of the lid.
The top curved edge of the dome has a large radius bend to the
downward sloping face 12a. The dome 12 is the same size for all
sizes of lids.
[0043] The drinking hole 14, preferably an inverted isosceles
triangular rectangle, is designed to present a wide opening to the
foam at the top 14a which reduces the restriction to flow of the
foam, with a narrow opening to the liquid at the bottom 14b for the
dense coffee fluid resulting in more restriction to fluid flow.
Preferably, all corners are rounded. Preferably, the drinking hole
14 is offset from the out edge of the lid 10 by 2/10''. The result
is the ability to ingest a satisfying higher ratio of foam to
coffee. The bottom 14b of the inverted triangle is raised off the
outer edge of the lid 10. This allows the consumer to tilt the cup
and not be forced to drink liquid coffee. Foam can be sucked
through the drinking hole 14 without liquid.
[0044] The nose depression 16 in the lid 10 has been placed to
receive the average consumer's nose N and place the consumer's
nostrils O in optimum proximity to the smell slit 20. The nose
depression 16 is separated from the lip depression 18 by the
support bar 22. The support bar 22 provides rigid support for the
lid 10. The smell slit 20 is positioned on the side of the support
bar 22 right beneath the average consumer's nostril's O allowing
the consumer to smell the coffee. Preferably, the smell slit 20 is
1/2''.times. 5/100'' and centered on the sloping surface of the
support bar 22. The coffee aroma can be sensed if the user gently
squeezes the cup to expel air from the cup and inhales through the
nose N just before drinking.
[0045] In operation in one embodiment, with lid 10 mounted on a cup
C, user drinks and placement of nose depression 16 and smell slit
20 on support structure 22 places smell slit in optimum proximity
to user's nostrils O so smell of coffee drink can be enhanced,
user's upper lip L curves around dome curved surface 12a and seals
to drink with lip depression 18 providing an area where lip L can
be inserted. Drinking hole 14 allows user to drink liquid through
bottom narrow width 14b leaving the top 14a broader width for the
foam.
[0046] Those skilled in the art will recognize that numerous
modifications and changes may be made to the preferred embodiment
without departing from the scope of the claimed invention. It will,
of course, be understood that modifications of the invention, in
its various aspects, will be apparent to those skilled in the art,
some being apparent only after study, others being matters of
routine mechanical, chemical and electronic design. No single
feature, function or property of the preferred embodiment is
essential. Other embodiments are possible, their specific designs
depending upon the particular application. As such, the scope of
the invention should not be limited by the particular embodiments
herein described but should be defined only by the appended claims
and equivalents thereof.
* * * * *