U.S. patent application number 12/144230 was filed with the patent office on 2009-12-24 for bottle cap with internal brush.
Invention is credited to James P. Siacunco, Tami O. White.
Application Number | 20090314738 12/144230 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41430159 |
Filed Date | 2009-12-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090314738 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Siacunco; James P. ; et
al. |
December 24, 2009 |
Bottle cap with internal brush
Abstract
Described is a bottle cap having one or more internal brushes
included thereon. The internal brushes may be useful for scrubbing
a cleaning liquid, such as laundry detergent, dispensed from a
bottle into the bottle cap. Unlike conventional methods, wherein
detergent is scrubbed by hand or with a separate brush, the present
invention provides a built-in internal brush on a cap of the
detergent bottle. After use, liquid left in the cap and on the
brushes may return to the bottle through a conventional drainback
mechanism.
Inventors: |
Siacunco; James P.; (Dublin,
CA) ; White; Tami O.; (Pleasanton, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
THE CLOROX COMPANY
P.O. BOX 24305
OAKLAND
CA
94623-1305
US
|
Family ID: |
41430159 |
Appl. No.: |
12/144230 |
Filed: |
June 23, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
215/228 ;
206/223; 222/566 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 47/42 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
215/228 ;
222/566; 206/223 |
International
Class: |
B65D 51/00 20060101
B65D051/00; B65D 25/40 20060101 B65D025/40; B65D 69/00 20060101
B65D069/00 |
Claims
1. A bottle cap comprising: a liquid receiving section; and at
least one brush disposed along at least a portion of the liquid
receiving section, the brush extending beyond a lip of the liquid
receiving section.
2. The bottle cap of claim 1, wherein the brush is formed along
about 20% to about 80% of the liquid receiving section.
3. The bottle cap of claim 1, further comprising a pouring lip for
pouring a liquid from the liquid receiving section out of the
bottle cap.
4. The bottle cap of claim 1, wherein at least one brush is
disposed within the liquid receiving section.
5. The bottle cap of claim 1, further comprising an attachment
means for attaching the bottle cap onto a bottle.
6. The bottle cap of claim 5, wherein at least one brush is encased
within an external structure defined by the bottle and bottle cap
when the bottle cap is in place on the bottle.
7. The bottle cap of claim 6, wherein the bottle has a drainback
feature allowing liquid from at least one of the liquid receiving
section and the brush to flow back into the bottle when the bottle
cap is in place on the bottle.
8. The bottle cap of claim 7, wherein wherein at least one brush is
positioned along the top edge of the liquid receiving portion.
9. The bottle cap of claim 1, wherein at least one brush is
attached to an inner ring disposed circumferentially inside of the
liquid receiving section.
10. The bottle cap of claim 9, wherein a pouring lip is formed
integrally with the inner ring.
11. The bottle cap of claim 9, wherein the inner ring is formed
integrally with the bottle cap.
12. The bottle cap of claim 1, wherein: at least one brush is
attached to a flexible base having a slit therein;and the slit fits
over a lip of the liquid receiving portion.
13. A container for a liquid, the container comprising: a bottle;
and a bottle cap fitting on the bottle, wherein the bottle cap has
a liquid receiving section and at least one brush disposed along at
least a portion of the liquid receiving section, the brush
extending beyond a lip of the liquid receiving section.
14. The container of claim 13, wherein: the bottle has a pouring
spout, a pump spray mechanism, a pop-up squirt top or a flip-up
squirt top for delivering liquid from the bottle; and the bottle
cap fits over the pouring spout, the pump spray mechanism, the
pop-up squirt top or the flip-up squirt top.
15. The container of claim 13, wherein the bottle has a drainback
feature allowing liquid from at least one of the liquid receiving
section and the brush to flow back into the bottle when the bottle
cap is replaced on the bottle after use.
16. The container of claim 13, wherein: the drainback feature
includes a drainback reservoir for receiving liquid from at least
one of the bottle cap and the brush when the bottle cap is replaced
on the bottle after use; and the brush is disposed within the
drainback reservoir when the bottle cap is on the bottle.
17. The container of claim 13, further comprising: a pouring lip
for pouring a liquid from the liquid receiving section out of the
bottle cap, wherein the brush is formed along about 20% to about
80% of the liquid receiving section; and the pouring lip is located
along at least a portion of the liquid receiving section without
the brush formed therealong.
18. A kit comprising: a bottle; a bottle cap fitting onto the
bottle; and instructions for use of the kit, wherein the bottle cap
has a liquid receiving section and a brush disposed along at least
a portion of the liquid receiving section, the brush extending
beyond a lip of the liquid receiving section.
19. The kit of claim 18, wherein the instructions include
pre-treatment instructions.
20. The kit of claim 18, wherein: the bottle has a drainback
feature allowing liquid from at least one of the liquid receiving
section and the brushes to flow back into the bottle when the
bottle cap is replaced on the bottle after use; the drainback
feature includes a drainback reservoir for receiving liquid from at
least one of the bottle cap and the brushes when the bottle cap is
replaced on the bottle after use; and the brushes are disposed
within the drainback reservoir when the bottle cap is on the
bottle.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] This invention relates generally to a bottle cap having an
internal brush and more specifically to an internal brush or brush
insert that can be used with the pouring spout of a drainback
bottle.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] Laundry detergent bottles often include a drainback
dispensing opening for delivering the detergent from the bottle.
The drainback dispensing opening allows for detergent that remains
on the bottle's spout to drainback into the bottle. Laundry
detergent bottles also often include a measuring cup which may
threadably attach over the bottle's spout. After detergent is
measured and placed into the clothes washer, the measuring cup may
be screwed back over the bottle's spout thereby permitting
detergent remaining in the measuring cup to flow back into the
bottle through the drainback dispensing opening.
[0005] Typical drainback bottles are well-known in the art. For
example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,706,819 issued to Li; U.S. Pat. No.
4,993,605 issued to Del Re; U.S. Pat. No. 5,108,009 issued to
Davidson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,462,202 issued to Haffner et al.;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,862 issued to Hafflier; U.S. Pat. No. 6,123,231
issued to Geisinger; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,945 issued to Giblin
et al. each describe various types of drainback bottles. None of
these designs, however, address the delivery and application of a
liquid to a substrate, such as the delivery and application of
laundry detergent to clothing.
[0006] For stain removal from clothing, it is often useful to apply
a cleaning agent, such as laundry detergent, directly onto the
stain. It is further often useful to scrub the detergent into the
stain. Conventionally, this may be accomplished by folding the
clothing at the stain location and rubbing the detergent into the
stain from each side. This method, however, may be messy and may
cause detergent to spill out from the stain location before
penetrating the clothing fabric.
[0007] Another conventional method for scrubbing detergent into a
stain may include the use of a separate scrubbing brush. While this
method may avoid the mess of detergent run-off, as described above,
this method requires the use of a separate brush. Furthermore, once
the brush is used, detergent in the brush bristles may result in a
detergent spill when the detergent eventually runs off the
bristles. Alternatively, the brush requires rinsing after use,
thereby providing an additional step for the user and wasting the
detergent that is rinsed off the brush bristles.
[0008] There are several conventional brushes known in the art. For
example, cosmetic products, such as nail polish and mascara,
typically have a brush attached at the end of a shaft which fits
into the cosmetic product bottle. U.S. Pat. No. 6,966,716 issued to
Pink and U.S. Pat. No. 6,237,609 issued to Vasas describe such
brush assemblies. These brushes are typically designed for
application of the cosmetic to a user and are generally not
designed or suitable for the delivery and application of a consumer
cleaning product to a substrate, such as a laundry detergent to a
stain on clothing.
[0009] Accordingly, what is needed is a simple, easy-to-use device
for delivery and application of a liquid that provides the ease and
less mess of a brush applicator with the convenience of a drainback
design.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0010] In accordance with the principles of the present invention,
in one embodiment, a bottle cap comprises a liquid receiving
section; and a brush formed along at least a portion of the liquid
receiving section, the brush extending beyond a lip of the liquid
receiving section.
[0011] According to another embodiment of the present invention, a
container for a liquid comprises a bottle; and a bottle cap fitting
on the bottle, wherein the bottle cap has a liquid receiving
section and a brush formed along at least a portion of the liquid
receiving section, the brush extending beyond a lip of the liquid
receiving section. In one embodiment, the brush may be positioned
adjacent to the interior or the exterior portion of the liquid
receiving section or there may be one or more brushes or groups of
brush bristles positioned on either side of the liquid receiving
section. In another embodiment, the brush or groups of brush
bristles may be positioned on top of the liquid receiving section,
as an extension of the liquid receiving section.
[0012] In another embodiment of the invention, one or more brushes
may be attached to the bottle cap in a manner so that they can be
in a recessed position when the bottle cap is in a closed position
on the container and in an extended position when the bottle cap is
separated from the container. In this embodiment, the brush or
brushes do not have to extend beyond the lip of the liquid
receiving section when the brush is in a recessed position, but in
an extended position the brushes must extend beyond the lip of the
liquid receiving section. The brushes may have a tab, pull, button
or other suitable means for moving the brush or brushes between a
recessed position and an extended position.
[0013] According to a further embodiment of the present invention,
a kit comprises a bottle; a bottle cap fitting onto the bottle; and
instructions for use of the kit, wherein the bottle cap has a
liquid receiving section and a brush or groups of brush bristles
formed along at least a portion of the liquid receiving section,
the brush extending beyond a lip of the liquid receiving
section.
[0014] To use the bottle cap with internal brush according to the
present invention, a user may pour a small amount of a liquid
(e.g., laundry detergent, stain pre-treatment, whitening or
bleaching compositions) from a bottle either directly on the
substrate (e.g., a stain on clothing) or into the bottle cap. When
poured directly on the substrate, the user may use the brushes
built into the bottle cap to scrub the liquid into the substrate,
for example, as for stain pretreatment. In the case that the liquid
is first poured into the bottle cap, the liquid may be allowed to
flow down the side of the bottle cap and into the brushes. The
brushes built into the bottle cap can then be used to scrub the
liquid into the substrate. After use, the bottle cap may be
returned to the bottle, allowing any liquid remaining on the
brushes or in the bottle cap itself to flow back into the
bottle.
[0015] In one embodiment, the brushes may be formed integrally with
the bottle cap. In another embodiment, the brushes may be a
separate component adapted to fit on conventional detergent bottle
caps, thereby allowing retrofit of internal brushes onto
conventional drainback bottles. These features are described in
greater detail below.
[0016] Further features and advantages of the present invention
will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view
of the detailed description of embodiments below, when considered
together with the attached drawings and claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] The foregoing aspects and others will be readily appreciated
by the skilled artisan from the following description of
illustrative embodiments when read in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings, in which:
[0018] FIG. 1 shows a perspective front view of a bottle cap in
accordance with the principles of the present invention;
[0019] FIG. 2 shows a side perspective view of the bottle cap of
FIG. 1;
[0020] FIG. 3 shows a plan view of the bottle cap of FIG. 1;
[0021] FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of a bottle cap retrofitted
to become a bottle cap with internal brushes according to one
aspect of the present invention;
[0022] FIG. 5 shows a front perspective view of a bottle and bottle
cap in accordance with the principles of the present invention, the
bottle receiving the bottle cap of the present invention;
[0023] FIG. 6 shows a plan perspective view of bottle and bottle
cap of FIG. 5; and
[0024] FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of the bottle and bottle cap
of FIG. 5 being fit together.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] Reference will now be made to the drawings wherein like
numerals refer to like parts throughout. Exemplary embodiments of
the present invention are illustrated in the context of a bottle
cap having an internal brush included thereon, fitting on a
consumer cleaning product bottle, such as a laundry detergent
bottle. The skilled artisan will readily appreciate, however, that
the materials and methods disclosed herein will have application in
a number of other contexts where a bottle cap having an internal
brush may be advantageous, such as carpet cleaners, tire cleaners,
other professional and institutional products, personal care
products and the like.
[0026] All publications, patents and patent applications cited
herein, whether supra or infra, are hereby incorporated by
reference in their entirety to the same extent as if each
individual publication, patent or patent application was
specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by
reference.
[0027] It must be noted that, as used in this specification and the
appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an" and "the" include
plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise.
Thus, for example, reference to a "surfactant" includes two or more
such surfactants.
[0028] Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms
used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of
ordinary skill in the art to which the invention pertains. Although
a number of methods and materials similar or equivalent to those
described herein can be used in the practice of the present
invention, the preferred materials and methods are described
herein.
[0029] As used herein, the term "drainback" when referring to a
"drainback feature", "drainback mechanism", "drainback bottle" and
the like, refers to a bottle allowing for the flow of residual
liquid back from the cap back into the bottle when the cap is
replaced on the bottle. Examples of drainback bottles may include
those described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,706,819 issued to Li; U.S. Pat.
No. 4,993,605 issued to Del Re; U.S. Pat. No. 5,108,009 issued to
Davidson et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 5,462,202 issued to Haffner et al.;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,862 issued to Haffner; U.S. Pat. No. 6,123,231
issued to Geisinger; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,945 issued to Giblin
et al. as well as others known in the art.
[0030] As used herein, the term "internal" when referring to an
"internal brush" refers to the position of the brush when a bottle
cap is in place on a bottle. For example, an internal brush on a
bottle cap would be encased within an external structure defined by
the bottle and bottle cap when the bottle cap is in place on the
bottle.
[0031] As used herein, the term "substrate" refers to an item to
which a liquid may be applied. For example, when the liquid is a
laundry detergent, the substrate may be a piece of clothing; when
the liquid is a tire cleaner, the substrate may be a tire; when the
liquid is a carpet cleaner, the substrate may be carpet.
[0032] Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown a bottle cap 10
having an internal brush 12 according to one embodiment of the
present invention. The bottle cap 10 may include a liquid receiving
section 14 for dispensing liquid from a bottle (not shown) therein.
A pouring lip 16 may be included to assist in the delivery of the
liquid from the bottle cap 10 to a substrate. The brush 12 may be
formed along at least a portion of the liquid receiving section 14.
The brush 12 may extend, as shown in FIG. 1, beyond a lip 16a of
the liquid receiving section 14. The bottle cap 10 may also include
an attachment means 18, such as threads, to attach the bottle cap
10 to a bottle.
[0033] Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, there are shown side and
plan views, respectively, of the bottle cap 10 of FIG. 1. The
brushes 12 may be formed in an inner ring 20 formed
circumferentially and fitting within the liquid receiving section
14 of the bottle cap 10. The brushes 12 may be in a continuous line
or arch shape around the interior of exterior of the liquid
receiving section 14. The brushes 12 may be in the form of groups
of brush bristles or a combination of one or more brushes in lines
or bunches. The inner ring 20 may be a separate component inserted
into the receiving section 14 via, for example, a friction fit or
with glue, epoxy or the like. This embodiment may allow retrofit of
conventional bottle caps to be upgraded to the bottle cap 10 of the
present invention. Alternatively, the inner ring 20 may be formed
integrally with the bottle cap 10.
[0034] The brushes 12 may attach to the inner ring 20 by any
conventional means. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the
brushes may form bunches 22 that may be attached to holes 24 in the
inner ring 20. The brushes 12 may be included in from about 10% to
about 90%, more preferably from about 20% to 80% of the
circumference of the inner ring 20. Typically, the brushes 12 are
included in from about 40% to about 70% of the circumference of the
inner ring 20. In another embodiment, the brush may cover the
entire circumference of the inner ring 20 or extend all the way
around the liquid receiving section 14. In this embodiment where
the brush or brushes extend around the entire circumference the cap
may include a spout or funnel or other suitable configurations for
pouring liquids which are positioned closer to the interior of the
liquid receiving section. This allows the liquids to be poured onto
a substrate being treated or back into the bottle without being
poured over or into the brushes.
[0035] The brushes 12 may also be attached over a conventional
bottle cap 10' having a receiving section 14' as shown in FIG. 4.
In this embodiment, the brushes 12 may be formed in a flexible base
30 having a slot 32 cut therein. The slot 32 may frictionally fit
along an upper edge 14a of the receiving section 14'.
Alternatively, the upper edge 14a may contain glue, epoxy or the
like, to affix the base 30 onto the bottle cap 10'.
[0036] In addition to the above embodiments, any means may be used
to form a brush 12 within a bottle cap. In one embodiment of the
present invention, one requirement for the brush 12, among these
various means for forming a brush 12 within a bottle cap, is that
the brush 12 may be required to fit into a dispensing region (as
described below) of a bottle when the bottle cap is placed on the
bottle.
[0037] Referring now to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, there are shown front
and plan views, respectively, of a bottle 40 and a bottle cap 10
according to one embodiment of the present invention. The bottle 40
and bottle cap 10 may be of conventional design, however, the
bottle cap 10 contains internal brushes 12 according to the present
invention. In a typical embodiment of the present invention, the
bottle 40 may include a drainback feature, as described above, for
draining liquid from the bottle cap 10 and the brushes 12 back into
the bottle 40 when the bottle cap 10 is placed onto the bottle 40.
The drainback feature may include a drainback reservoir 42 for
receiving fluid from the bottle cap 10 and/or the brushes 12 and a
drainback hole 44 for communicating fluid in the drainback
reservoir 42 to the inside of the bottle 40. The brushes 12 may be
disposed within the drainback reservoir 42 when the bottle cap 10
is on the bottle 40.
[0038] Referring to FIG. 7, there is shown a perspective view of
the bottle cap 10 being placed on the bottle 40. As mentioned
above, the brushes 12 are so-called internal brushes as they are
internal to the bottle/bottle cap combination when the bottle cap
10 is placed on the bottle 40. In other words, the brushes 12 may
fit into a dispensing region 46 of the bottle 40 when the bottle
cap 10 is placed on the bottle 40 as shown in FIG. 7. The
dispensing region 46 may include a protruding spout 48. As can be
seen, when the bottle cap 10 is placed on the bottle 40, any liquid
that remains on the bottle cap 10 or within the brushes 12 may flow
into the drainback reservoir 42 and back inside the bottle 40.
[0039] While the above description describes a bottle cap 10 having
internal brushes 12 for use with a drainback bottle 40, the present
invention may include any application wherein a bottle cap 10
having internal brushes 12 may be useful. For example, instead of
an open dispensing region 46 being capped by the bottle cap 10, a
spray mechanism or a pop-up or flip-up squirt top, as are known in
the art, may be capped by the bottle cap 10. This spray
mechanism/pop-up squirt top may be used to dispense liquid from the
bottle onto a substrate. In this embodiment, the brushes 12 may
then be used to scrub the liquid into the substrate.
[0040] In one embodiment of the present invention, a kit is
provided. The kit may include the bottle cap 10 and the bottle 40,
as described above, filled with a liquid, along with instructions
for use of the liquid and the bottle 40/bottle cap 10 combination.
The instructions may be, for example, pre-treatment instructions
when the liquid is a cleaner, such as a laundry detergent.
[0041] This invention has been described herein in considerable
detail to provide those skilled in the art with information
relevant to apply the novel principles and to construct and use
such specialized components as are required. However, it is to be
understood that the invention can be carried out by different
equipment, materials and devices, and that various modifications,
both as to the equipment and operating procedures, can be
accomplished without departing from the scope of the invention
itself.
* * * * *