U.S. patent application number 12/576573 was filed with the patent office on 2010-02-04 for drinking cup tethering device.
This patent application is currently assigned to SMART IDEAS INTERNATIONAL, LLC. Invention is credited to Michael Blaney.
Application Number | 20100025441 12/576573 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41607306 |
Filed Date | 2010-02-04 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100025441 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Blaney; Michael |
February 4, 2010 |
Drinking Cup Tethering Device
Abstract
A drinking cup tethering device includes a strap, a first end
and a mid-portion of the strap being connected to a releasable
two-part connector forming a first loop of the strap. The other end
of the strap is connected to a slide connector, another mid-portion
of the strap passing through aligned slots through both parts of
the slide connector forming a second loop which fits around the
cup. A spring between the base and a release button in the base
produces a gripping force between the slots in the base and
aperture in the bottom to grip the strap which is manually
releasable to tighten the second loop securely around the bottle. A
rubberized strip on the inward facing side of the second loop helps
insure that the cup remains securely tethered.
Inventors: |
Blaney; Michael; (Rotonda
West, FL) |
Correspondence
Address: |
CHARLES J. PRESCOTT, P.A.
SUITE 115, 2033 WOOD STREET
SARASOTA
FL
34237
US
|
Assignee: |
SMART IDEAS INTERNATIONAL,
LLC
Rotonda West
FL
|
Family ID: |
41607306 |
Appl. No.: |
12/576573 |
Filed: |
October 9, 2009 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11890716 |
Aug 7, 2007 |
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12576573 |
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60835916 |
Aug 7, 2006 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
224/148.6 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A45F 5/00 20130101; A45F
2200/0583 20130101; A45F 5/02 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
224/148.6 |
International
Class: |
A45F 5/00 20060101
A45F005/00 |
Claims
1-3. (canceled)
4. A drinking cup tethering device comprising: an elongated flat
flexible, substantially non-elastic strap having a first end and a
second end; said first end connected to a first part of a two-part
releasably separable connector, a second part of said releasable
connector attached to, and slidably adjustable along a mid-portion
of said strap, said first and second parts forming an object
engaging loop when said first and second parts are releasably
connected together; a slide connector including a base, a strap
locking button and a compression spring; said base having a bottom
and upstanding side walls extending from said bottom to define an
open upper end of said base; said locking button sized for closely
fit sliding movement through said open upper end within said base;
said base also having laterally aligned orthogonally opposing
elongated corner slots formed through one end of said bottom and a
lower end of a first of said side walls; an elongated side wall
slot formed through each of said first and second side walls, said
side wall slots opposing one another and positioned in close
proximity to the open upper end above and laterally aligned with,
and parallel to, said corner slots; said second end connected by a
sewn loop to said corner slots, another mid-portion of said strap
closer to said second end passing through said side wall slots and
extending orthogonally from said side wall generally parallel to
said second end and forming a drinking cup engaging loop generally
sized in girth to fit around the cup; said button having an
elongated aperture formed therethrough and longitudinally of said
strap, said elongated aperture being in general alignment with said
side wall slots, said slots and said aperture each being sized to
slidably receive said strap passing therethrough; said compression
spring positioned between said bottom and a lower surface of said
button, said button being biased outwardly from said bottom through
said open end by said spring, one edge of each end of said
elongated aperture and said side wall slots being urged by said
spring tightly gripping against said strap to prevent relative
movement of said strip, which gripping of said strap is releasable
by manual pressure against an exposed surface of said button to
depress said button firstly into said hollow interior said button;
said corner slots and said aligned slots being arranged in close
proximity and alignment one to another for enhanced tightening of
said drinking cup engaging loop around the cup; a non-slip
elastomeric strap attached to an inward facing side of said
drinking cup engaging loop to insure that the cup remains securely
tethered to an object around which said object engaging loop is
secured when the cup is thrown or dropped by a child.
5. A method of tethering a child's drinking cup to an object,
comprising: providing a drinking cup tethering device including: an
elongated flat textured flexible strap having a first end and a
second end; said first end connected to a first part of a two-part
releasably separable connector, a second part of said releasable
connector attached to, and slidably adjustable along a mid-portion
of said strap, said first and second parts forming an object
engaging loop when said first and second parts are releasably
connected together; said second end connected to a base of a spring
biased slide connector, another mid-portion of said strap closer to
said second end passing through aligned slots formed through spaced
side walls of said base and permanently forming a drinking cup
engaging loop generally sized in girth to fit around the cup, said
base open on a top thereof and having a hollow interior; a strap
locking button separate from said base and slidably movable in and
out through said open top within said hollow interior; said button
having an elongated aperture formed therethrough and longitudinally
of said strap, said elongated aperture being in general alignment
with said aligned slots formed through side walls of said base,
said slots and said aperture each being sized to slidably receive
said strap passing therethrough; a compression spring positioned
between a bottom panel of said base and a lower surface of said
button within the hollow interior, said button being biased
outwardly from said bottom through said opening by said spring, one
edge of each end of said elongated aperture and said side wall
slots as urged by said spring tightly gripping against said strap
to prevent relative movement of said strip, which gripping of said
strap is releasable by manual pressure against an exposed surface
of said button to depress said button firstly into said hollow
interior wherein said drinking cup engaging loop may be tightened
around the cup; a non-slip elastomeric strap attached to an inward
facing side of said drinking cup engaging loop which acts in
cooperation with lockably tightening said drinking cup engaging
loop around the cup to insure that the cup remains securely
tethered to an object around which said object engaging loop is
secured when the cup is thrown or dropped by a child; releasibly
engaging said first and second parts together around a selected
object; engaging said drinking cup engaging loop around the
drinking cup; grippingly tightening said drinking cup engaging loop
around the drinking cup by applying manual pressure against said
button and said base and restraining said slide connector while
pulling on the mid-portion of said strap; releasing manual pressure
from said slide connector.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Not applicable
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
[0002] Not applicable
INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT
DISC
[0003] Not applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0004] 1. Field of the Invention
[0005] This invention relates generally to tethers, and more
particularly to a drinking cup tethering device which tethers a
child's "sippy cup" to an object in which the child is seated and
which limits the distance the cup may be thrown or dropped and
easily retrieved without concern for inadvertent detachment
therebetween.
[0006] 2. Description of Related Art
[0007] The use of liquid containing drinking cups which have a
sealable drinking lid attached thereto have become well known for
feeding liquids to small children. These cups, typically known as
"sippy cups" are placed into the hands of small children who are
seated in a high chair, booster seat, stroller, car seat and the
like to facilitate unattended dispensing of the liquid from the
drinking cup.
[0008] However, these small children are well known to throw or
drop the sippy cup which has to be retrieved by the adult or parent
attending to the child. If the lid of the drinking cup does not
break loose, the only inconvenience is that of retrieval. However,
liquid clean up can also be aggravatingly involved if violent
throwing of the partially filled beverage cup causes the lid to
become detached.
[0009] A number of prior art tethering devices are known which
attempt to address this issue by limiting the distance the drinking
cup may be thrown by the child. However, inadvertent detachment of
the drinking cup when thrown sufficiently violently by the child
appears still to be a need not yet satisfied by these prior art
devices as follows.
[0010] Published patent application US 2006/0163301 to Rhodes, et
al. discloses a tethering device for bottles, cups, and the like
composed of three adjustable integrated straps and self-locking
buckle connectors, the use of which will increase frictional
engagement upon the held item and provide enhanced child-proofing.
Kaplan, et al. teaches a tether device for a child's cup in
published application US2006/0289713. The tether comprises an
elastic strap and childproof fastener forming a loop.
[0011] A bottle tote is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 6,131,780 to
Becker, the device for carrying a bottle of liquid having a belt
with nylon cord and spring-loaded toggle clip attached thereto.
Similar to the Kaplan reference, Deike teaches a cup leash
comprising an elastic strap having two ends and childproof fastener
in published application US2005/0115996. A bottled drink carrier
for wearing around the neck or on the shoulder of a user is taught
in U.S. Pat. No. 6,036,066 to Giancona, Ill.
[0012] Barville, et al. teaches a device for anchoring a baby
bottle to a harness in U.S. Pat. No. 4,096,977 and a band for a
child's water bottle is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,413,261 to Wu.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,032,841 to Johnson teaches a holder of resilient
sheet material for holding a fluid-containing bottle by VELCRO.RTM.
around a bicycle frame. Smith, et al. discloses a flexible device
with a clamp and bottle support in U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,486 and an
accessory holder is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,464,183 to
McConnell, et al. for removable attachment to a stroller.
[0013] A carrier device for plastic bottles with releasable
connectors is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 5,147,079 to Heather, and
Ragner, et al. teaches a beverage holder for attachment to
bicycles, lawn mowers and the like in U.S. Pat. No. 6,264,153. A
strap attachable to a beverage container and an article of clothing
is disclosed in published application US 2002/0046984 invented by
Cheatwood.
[0014] Published application 2002/0005418 to Levesque, et al.
teaches a device for connecting a bottle to an individual,
back-pack or article of clothing comprising resilient o-rings and
bottle-neck receiving loops and U.S. Pat. No. 4,564,957 to Scharf
teaches a baby bottle securing garment.
[0015] The foregoing examples of the related art and limitations
related therewith are intended to be illustrative and not
exclusive. Other limitations of the related art will become
apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the
specification and a study of the drawings.
[0016] The present invention provides a drinking cup tethering
device which, when properly installed onto a drinking cup for
children, virtually insures against inadvertent slippage or
detachment of the drinking cup from the tethering device regardless
of the violence of the throw achieved by the child when the
attention span for drinking has ended.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0017] This invention is directed to a drinking cup tethering
device includes a strap, a first end and a mid-portion of the strap
being connected to a releasable two-part connector forming a first
loop of the strap. The other end of the strap is connected to a
slide connector, another mid-portion of the strap passing through
aligned slots through both parts of the slide connector forming a
second loop which fits around the cup. A spring between the base
and a release button in the base produces a gripping force between
the slots in the base and aperture in the bottom to grip the strap
which is manually releasable to tighten the second loop securely
around the bottle. A rubberized strip on the inward facing side of
the second loop helps insure that the cup remains securely
tethered.
[0018] It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a
drinking cup tethering device which virtually insures that the
tethered drinking cup will not become disengaged from the device
regardless of the strength or violence of the thrown drinking
cup.
[0019] It is another object of this invention to provide a drinking
cup tethering device which greatly improves gripability to secure
the drinking cup to the tethering device to insure that proper
engagement is maintained.
[0020] Still another object of this invention is to provide a
drinking cup tethering device which incorporates a unique
spring-biased slide connector in combination with a rubberized
strap surface against the bottle to insure that maximum gripability
is achieved and maintained around the drinking cup.
[0021] The following embodiments and aspects thereof are described
and illustrated in conjunction with systems, tools and methods
which are meant to be exemplary and illustrative and not limiting
in scope. In various embodiments one or more of the above-described
problems have been reduced or eliminated while other embodiments
are directed to other improvements. In addition to the exemplary
aspects and embodiments described above, further aspects and
embodiments will become apparent by reference of the drawings and
by study of the following descriptions.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)
[0022] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred
embodiment.
[0023] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of FIG. 1 with the drinking cup
loop tightly secured around a drinking cup and the object engaging
loop open.
[0024] FIG. 3 demonstrates two-handed tightening of the drinking
cup loop around a drinking cup.
[0025] FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the slide connector of FIG.
1.
[0026] FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of FIG. 4.
[0027] FIG. 6 is an opposite side elevation view of FIG. 4.
[0028] FIG. 7 is a bottom plan view of FIG. 4.
[0029] FIG. 8 is an end elevation view of FIG. 4.
[0030] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of FIG. 4.
[0031] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 4.
[0032] FIG. 11 is a side elevation section view of FIG. 4 showing
the strap.
[0033] FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment in
use.
[0034] Exemplary embodiments are illustrated in reference figures
of the drawings. It is intended that the embodiments and figures
disclosed herein are to be considered to illustrative rather than
limiting.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0035] Referring now to the drawings, the preferred embodiment is
there shown generally at numeral 10 and includes an elongated
flexible fabric strap 12 preferably formed of polypropylene webbing
material and adapted to be sewn or heat-sealed together as required
and described herebelow. The drinking cup tethering device 10 also
includes a molded plastic two-part releasably separable connector
16, a first part 32 of which is permanently connected at 30 to a
sewn loop at the first end of the flexible strap 12. As best seen
in FIG. 2, the second part 16b of the releasable connector 16 is
slidably engagable along a mid-portion 36 of the flexible strap 12
such that, when the connector parts 16a and 16b are connected
together as shown in FIG. 1, an object engaging loop 20 is thereby
formed which is readily attachable around any stationary or
substantially stationary portion to which the device 10 is
tethered.
[0036] The other end of the flexible strap 12 is permanently
attached by sewn loop 28 to a lower edge margin of a molded plastic
slide connector 14. The slide connector 14 includes a molded
plastic base 15 and a molded plastic actuator button 24. As best
seen in FIGS. 4 to 10, the molded plastic base 15 includes a bottom
48 and upstanding side walls which define an open upper end 17 of
the base 15. One of the sides of the base 15 includes a slot 44
which mates and generally orthogonally aligns with slot 46 formed
into the corner of the bottom 48. These opposing, aligned slots 44
and 46 receive and secure a looped and stitched end 28 of the strap
12 as best seen in FIG. 11.
[0037] The base 15 also includes aligned slots 40 and 42 formed
through opposing side walls which are also sized to slidably
receive another mid-portion 34 of the strap 12 slidably engaged
therethrough as best seen in FIG. 11. This arrangement of the strap
12 with respect to the slide connector 14 creates a permanent
drinking cup-engaging loop 18 which is uniquely adjustable in size
as will be described herebelow.
[0038] Attached to the inner surface of the drinking cup-engaging
loop 18 is an elastomeric or rubberized fabric layer 22 attached
thereto. This elastomeric layer 22 has a texturized surface and is
highly slip resistant with respect to other surfaces placed
thereagainst. Particularly with respect to the outer surface of a
cup C, this rubberized layer 22 is uniquely adapted to resist
slippage or loosening of the drinking cup engaging loop 18 after
being tightened around the cup C as will be described herebelow
more fully.
[0039] The strap locking button 24 is separate from the base 15 and
is slidably engagable in close alignment within the inner surfaces
of the side walls of the base 15. The exposed outer surface 50 of
the locking button 24 includes a finger indent configured to
facilitate both quick release of the cup-engaging loop 18 as well
as the quick strap tightening thereof around the cup C. As best
seen in FIG. 11, the locking button 24 is preferably formed of
generally solid molded plastic material having a transverse
aperture or passage 52 formed therethrough which is in general
alignment with the slots 40 and 42 formed through the side walls of
the base 15 for positioning of the mid-portion 34 of strap 12
therethrough as shown.
[0040] As best seen in FIGS. 10 and 11, a compression spring 54 is
positioned between the inner surface of bottom 18 and a molded
cavity 56 formed in the interior surface of the locking button 24.
Spring cavities 56 and 58 serve to maintain proper lateral
alignment of the compression spring 54. When the locking button 24
is moved downwardly by finger pressure in the direction of arrow B
in FIG. 11, the compression spring 54 is further compressed upon
assembly so that one of the ends of the strap may be inserted
through the now-aligned slots 40 and 42 and aperture 52.
Thereafter, when the locking button 24 is released, the compression
spring 54 exerts separating pressure in the direction of arrow D to
move the locking button 24 outwardly with respect to the base 15 a
small distance until squeezing contact is made at 62 and 64 between
the upper surfaces of slots 40 and 42 and the bottom surface 60 of
aperture 52. At this point, a squeezing pressure is thereby exerted
against the mid-portion 34 of strap 12 such that the strap 12 is
secured from lateral movement in the direction of arrow A with
respect to the base 15.
[0041] However, when the locking button 24 is pushed downwardly in
the direction of arrow B, the mid-portion 34 of strap 12 will be
released allowing for manual pulling adjustment of the strap 12 as
best depicted in FIG. 3. A most important aspect of the invention
is depicted in FIG. 3 wherein the device 10 is virtually lockably
engageable around the cup C by the cup-engaging loop 18. Once the
position of this cup-engaging loop 18 is achieved as shown in FIG.
2, the user grabs the slide connector 14 in one hand while pulling
against the flexible strap 12 in the direction of arrow A with the
other hand. By this action, virtually all lash or excess strap
material is pulled through the slide connector 14 after which
release of the locking button 24 secures this arrangement as shown.
Preferably aided by the non-slip elastomeric inner material
attached to the drinking cup-engaging loop 18, virtually any
aggressive movement of the cup C by the child after drinking the
desired fluid from the cup C will not cause any loosening or
disengagement of the cup C from the drinking cup-engaging loop
18.
[0042] As best seen in FIG. 12, one typical embodiment of the use
of the invention 10 is there shown wherein the infant is placed
within a stroller E after the drinking cup C has been filled with a
liquid and the drinking cup-engaging loop 18 has been tightened
around the cup C as previously described. The object-engaging loop
20 is shown connected around the center strap portion F of the
safety belt G so that a tethering effect is achieved. Thus, when
the child chooses to disregard, hurl or otherwise throw or drop the
cup C, the cup-engaging loop 18 securely maintains a tethered
relationship so that the cup C cannot move very far, generally to
the length of the device 10 as adjusted in length by the two-part
releasable connector 16.
[0043] Note that the object-engaging loop 20 may be engaged around
any other suitable stationary object with respect to the infant,
depending upon the modality of infant support, including high
chairs, car seats, strollers and the like. Note further that the
slide connector may alone be utilized to derive benefits of
drinking cup securement. Moreover, the uniqueness of the slide
connector may be applied to a broad range of flexible strap or
webbing devices, the overall benefit being the ability to one or
two-handedly tighten the strap around any object and have that
tightness fully maintained.
[0044] While a number of exemplary aspects and embodiments have
been discussed above, those of skill in the art will recognize
certain modifications, permeations and additions and
subcombinations thereof. It is therefore intended that the
following appended claims and claims hereinafter introduced are
interpreted to include all such modifications, permeations,
additions and subcombinations that are within their true spirit and
scope.
* * * * *