U.S. patent application number 12/741874 was filed with the patent office on 2011-05-19 for bottle.
Invention is credited to Kyung Il Jung.
Application Number | 20110114596 12/741874 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 44010532 |
Filed Date | 2011-05-19 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110114596 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Jung; Kyung Il |
May 19, 2011 |
BOTTLE
Abstract
Disclosed herein is a bottle having a neck portion and a body
portion for containing liquid contents therein. The body portion
includes a plurality of guides which are formed around at least a
partial area or an entire area of the body portion in a spiral
pattern. The guides protrude inwards from the inner surface of the
body portion to have convex shapes, so that the liquid contents are
guided towards an opening of the neck portion while spirally
revolving inside the body portion, and the body portion is able to
be compressed by compression force with respect to a longitudinal
direction. A cross-section of each of the plurality of guides has
an angled shape of ">" or "<", and an outermost midpoint (c)
of a horizontal medial line of the guide has a round shape, a
pointed shape or a vertically angled shape. An upper bent point (a)
is formed in an upper portion extending upwards from the outermost
midpoint (c) of each of the guides, and a lower bent point (c) is
formed in a lower portion extending downwards from the outermost
midpoint (c), so that an upright strength of the body portion is
maintained even when the liquid contents contained in the body
portion move.
Inventors: |
Jung; Kyung Il; (Seoul,
KR) |
Family ID: |
44010532 |
Appl. No.: |
12/741874 |
Filed: |
January 17, 2010 |
PCT Filed: |
January 17, 2010 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/KR10/00284 |
371 Date: |
May 7, 2010 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
215/382 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 2501/0018 20130101;
B65D 1/0246 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
215/382 |
International
Class: |
B65D 90/02 20060101
B65D090/02 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Mar 19, 2009 |
KR |
10-2009-0023624 |
Jul 28, 2009 |
KR |
10-2009-0068860 |
Oct 1, 2009 |
KR |
10-2009-0094150 |
Claims
1. A bottle having a neck portion and a body portion for containing
liquid contents therein, the body portion comprising: a plurality
of guides formed around at least a partial area or an entire area
of the body portion in a spiral pattern, the guides protruding
inwards from an inner surface of the body portion to have convex
shapes, so that the liquid contents are guided towards an opening
of the neck portion while spirally revolving inside the body
portion, and the body portion is able to be compressed by
compression force with respect to a longitudinal direction, wherein
a cross-section of each of the plurality of guides has an angled
shape of ">" or "<", and an outermost midpoint (c) of a
horizontal medial line of the guide has a round shape, a pointed
shape or a vertically angled shape.
2. The bottle as set forth in claim 1, wherein an upper bent point
(a) is formed in an upper portion extending upwards from the
outermost midpoint (c) of each of the guides, and a lower bent
point (c) is formed in a lower portion extending downwards from the
outermost midpoint (c), so that an upright strength of the body
portion is maintained even when the liquid contents contained in
the body portion move.
3. The bottle as set forth in claim 2, wherein a distance between
the outermost midpoint (c) and the upper bent point (a) differs
from a distance between the outermost midpoint (c) and the lower
bent point (b) so that the upper bent point (a) and the lower bent
point (b) are misaligned from each other, and a length (ac) of a
portion connecting the outermost midpoint (c) to the upper bent
point (a) is greater than a length (bc) of a portion connecting the
outermost midpoint (c) to the lower bent point (b), and an interior
angle of the lower bent point (b) is greater than an interior angle
of the upper bent point (a), so that when the bottle is crushed by
compressing, the guides are compressed in such a way that the lower
bent point (b) having the larger interior angle is bent towards and
folded into the upper bent point (a) having the smaller interior
angle, thus minimizing restoring force of the guides after the
guides are compressed.
4. The bottle as set forth in claim 1, wherein a cross-section of
an inner junction between the adjacent guides has a round shape, a
vertically angled shape or a pointed shape.
5. The bottle as set forth in claim 1, wherein the plurality of
guides comprises at least four or more even number of spiral lines,
and the guides spiral in either of the clockwise or
counterclockwise directions.
6. The bottle as set forth in claim 5, comprising a paper bottle, a
PET bottle, a metal bottle or a glass bottle.
7. A bottle having a neck portion and a body portion for containing
liquid contents therein, the body portion comprising: a plurality
of guides formed around at least partial area or an entire area of
the body portion in a spiral pattern, the guides protruding inwards
from an inner surface of the body portion to have convex shapes, so
that the liquid contents are guided towards an opening of the neck
portion while spirally revolving inside the body portion, wherein a
cross-section of each of the plurality of guides has an angled
shape of ">" or "<", and an outermost midpoint (c) of a
horizontal medial line of the guide has a round shape, a pointed
shape or a vertically angled shape, and a lower bent point (c) is
formed in a lower portion extending downwards from the outermost
midpoint (c) of the guide, the guide is configured such that an
upper interior angle (x) of the upper portion with respect to the
horizontal medial line of the outermost midpoint (c) is greater
than a lower interior angle (y) of the lower portion below the
lower bent point (b) with respect to the horizontal line, and a
horizontal length (AC) of a portion connecting the outermost
midpoint (c) to the inner junction between the adjacent guides is
greater than a horizontal length (AB) of a portion connecting the
lower bent point (b) to the inner junction between the guides, so
that when the bottle is crushed by compressing, each of the guides
is compressed in such a way that the lower bent point (b) is bent
upwards and folded onto the upper portion of the guide, thus
minimizing restoring force of the guides after the guides are
compressed, and maintaining an upright strength of the body portion
even when the liquid contents contained in the body portion
move.
8. The bottle as set forth in claim 7, wherein a cross-section of
an inner junction between the adjacent guides has a round shape, a
vertically angled shape or a pointed shape, and the plurality of
guides comprises at least four or more even number of spiral lines,
and the guides spiral in either of the clockwise or
counterclockwise directions.
9. The bottle as set forth in claim 7, comprising a paper bottle, a
PET bottle, a metal bottle or a glass bottle.
10. The bottle as set forth in claim 8, comprising a paper bottle,
a PET bottle, a metal bottle or a glass bottle.
11. The bottle as set forth in claim 2, wherein the plurality of
guides comprises at least four or more even number of spiral lines,
and the guides spiral in either of the clockwise or
counterclockwise directions.
12. The bottle as set forth in claim 3, wherein the plurality of
guides comprises at least four or more even number of spiral lines,
and the guides spiral in either of the clockwise or
counterclockwise directions.
13. The bottle as set forth in claim 4, wherein the plurality of
guides comprises at least four or more even number of spiral lines,
and the guides spiral in either of the clockwise or
counterclockwise directions.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a bottle for containing
liquid contents therein, and more particularly to a bottle which
includes a plurality of guides which have angled structures
provided with bent points and are arranged in a spiral pattern, so
that liquid contents can be smoothly discharged from the bottle,
the upright strength of the bottle can be maintained even though
the liquid contents move excessively, and when the bottle is
crushed by compressing, the guides are compressed in such a way
that lower bent points are bent towards and folded into upper bent
points, thus minimizing the restoring force of the guides after the
bottle has been crushed.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] At present, beverages, such as water and colas, liquors, or
liquid-type food, are contained in various kinds of containers.
Examples of such liquid containers are paper bottles, PET bottles,
glass bottles, and metal bottles (aluminum cans).
[0005] Of these containers, the PET bottle is the most popular
liquid container thanks to its many advantages, such as that it can
contain contents for a relatively long time, i.e. contents in the
PET bottle barely decay after a long time of storage because gas
transmittance of the PET bottle is very low compared with other
kinds of containers, it hardly breaks when it is dropped in a state
in which it is filled with contents, it does not produce broken
pieces even when it is ruptured, and it is convenient to carry and
keep the PET bottle because the PET bottle is lighter than a glass
bottle.
[0006] The known PET bottle having the above advantages is
generally composed of a neck portion which has an opening at an end
and threads on an outer surface thereof for sealing when the neck
portion is combined with a cover, and a body portion extending from
the neck portion and containing contents therein. The body portion
may be of various sizes and forms according to the type of
contents.
[0007] There are ways of discharging the contents of the PET
bottle. For example, when a user tilts the PET bottle to pour the
contents into a vessel, such as a cup, or to directly drink the
contents from the PET bottle, the contents are discharged from the
PET bottle.
[0008] In such a case, there is a possibility that the contents
contained in the body portion of the PET bottle are not smoothly
discharged but are abruptly discharged at excessive pressure, so
that the contents are likely to gush out of the PET bottle and to
splatter on a user's clothes or the surrounding area.
[0009] In particular, when the user directly drinks the contents
from the bottle, the user may choke or his or her clothes or body
may get splashed.
[0010] Further, since the bottles have large volumes even when they
are empty, it is difficult to deal with the empty bottles or it is
required to install additional equipment in households to reduce
the volume of the empty bottles.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in
mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and an object
of the present invention is to provide a bottle which is configured
such that liquid contents can be smoothly discharged from the
bottle and the volume of the bottle can be minimized after it has
been empty, thus facilitating the handling of empty bottles, for
example, facilitating collection or transportation of the empty
bottles.
[0012] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
bottle which is provided with angled guides having bent points, so
that the upright strength of the bottle can be maintained despite
movement of the liquid contents contained in the bottle, and when
the bottle is crushed by compressing, the guides are compressed in
such a way that lower bent points are bent towards and folded into
upper bent points, thus minimizing the restoring force of the
guides after the bottle has been crushed.
[0013] In order to accomplish the above object, the present
invention provides a bottle having a neck portion and a body
portion for containing liquid contents therein, the body portion
including: a plurality of guides formed around at least a partial
area or an entire area of the body portion in a spiral pattern, the
guides protruding inwards from an inner surface of the body portion
to have convex shapes, so that the liquid contents are guided
towards an opening of the neck portion while spirally revolving
inside the body portion, and the body portion is able to be
compressed by compression force with respect to a longitudinal
direction. A cross-section of each of the plurality of guides has
an angled shape of ">" or "<", and an outermost midpoint (c)
of a horizontal medial line of the guide has a round shape, a
pointed shape or a vertically angled shape.
[0014] Preferably, an upper bent point (a) may be formed in an
upper portion extending upwards from the outermost midpoint (c) of
each of the guides, and a lower bent point (c) may be formed in a
lower portion extending downwards from the outermost midpoint (c),
so that an upright strength of the body portion is maintained even
when the liquid contents contained in the body portion move.
[0015] Furthermore, a distance between the outermost midpoint (c)
and the upper bent point (a) may differ from a distance between the
outermost midpoint (c) and the lower bent point (b) so that the
upper bent point (a) and the lower bent point (b) are misaligned
from each other, and a length (ac) of a portion connecting the
outermost midpoint (c) to the upper bent point (a) may be greater
than a length (bc) of a portion connecting the outermost midpoint
(c) to the lower bent point (b), and an interior angle of the lower
bent point (b) may be greater than an interior angle of the upper
bent point (a), so that when the bottle is crushed by compressing,
the guides are compressed in such a way that the lower bent point
(b) having the larger interior angle is bent towards and folded
into the upper bent point (a) having the smaller interior angle,
thus minimizing restoring force of the guides after the guides are
compressed.
[0016] In addition, a cross-section of an inner junction between
the adjacent guides may have a round shape, a vertically angled
shape or a pointed shape.
[0017] The plurality of guides may comprise at least four or more
even number of spiral lines, and the guides spiral in either of the
clockwise or counterclockwise directions.
[0018] The bottle may comprise a paper bottle, a PET bottle, a
metal bottle or a glass bottle.
[0019] In order to accomplish the above object, the present
invention provides a bottle having a neck portion and a body
portion for containing liquid contents therein, the body portion
including: a plurality of guides formed around at least partial
area or an entire area of the body portion in a spiral pattern, the
guides protruding inwards from an inner surface of the body portion
to have convex shapes, so that the liquid contents are guided
towards an opening of the neck portion while spirally revolving
inside the body portion. A cross-section of each of the plurality
of guides has an angled shape of ">" or "<", and an outermost
midpoint (c) of a horizontal medial line of the guide has a round
shape, a pointed shape or a vertically angled shape, and a lower
bent point (c) is formed in a lower portion extending downwards
from the outermost midpoint (c) of the guide. The guide is
configured such that an upper interior angle (x) of the upper
portion with respect to the horizontal medial line of the outermost
midpoint (c) is greater than a lower interior angle (y) of the
lower portion below the lower bent point (b) with respect to the
horizontal line. A horizontal length (AC) of a portion connecting
the outermost midpoint (c) to the inner junction between the
adjacent guides is greater than a horizontal length (AB) of a
portion connecting the lower bent point (b) to the inner junction
between the guides, so that when the bottle is crushed by
compressing, each of the guides is compressed in such a way that
the lower bent point (b) is bent upwards and folded onto the upper
portion of the guide, thus minimizing restoring force of the guides
after the guides are compressed, and maintaining an upright
strength of the body portion even when the liquid contents
contained in the body portion move.
[0020] As described above, the bottle according to the present
invention is configured such that liquid contents in the bottle can
be smoothly discharged from the bottle while spirally revolving
inside the bottle, thus preventing the liquid contents from being
abruptly discharged. Furthermore, when the bottle is crushed by
compressing, it is twisted along a spiral pattern and compressed,
so that the volume of the bottle can be markedly reduced, thus
facilitating the collection or handling of empty bottles.
[0021] Furthermore, the bottle of the present invention includes a
plurality of angled guides which have bent points at upper and
lower portions thereof, so that the upright strength of the bottle
can be maintained despite movement of the liquid contents contained
in the bottle. In addition, when the bottle is crushed by
compressing, the guides are compressed in such a way that the lower
bent point is bent towards and folded into the upper bent point.
Thereby, after the bottle has been crushed, the restoring force is
removed, so that the volume of the bottle can be maintained in the
minimized state.
[0022] Moreover, in the present invention, the liquid contents in
the bottle can be smoothly guided toward and discharged through the
opening of the bottle while spirally revolving inside the bottle.
Therefore, the abrupt gushing of the liquid content is prevented,
so that it is possible to smoothly pour and drive the liquid
contents from the bottle and to prevent splattering of the liquid
contents attributable to the abrupt discharge of the liquid
contents from occurring.
[0023] In the case in which the bottle is used to contain a
beverage, such as water, cola, or juice, since the flow of the
beverage is moderate, it is possible to prevent accidents such as
the user choking.
[0024] Furthermore, in the present invention, the guides are
tightly compressed in multi-steps, and the restoring force is
removed after the guides have been compressed, so that the volume
of the bottle can be maintained in the minimized state, thus
facilitating the collection and handling of empty bottles.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0025] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the
present invention will be more clearly understood from the
following detailed description taken in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings, in which:
[0026] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a bottle,
according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0027] FIGS. 2a and 2b are sectional views taken along line A-A of
FIG. 1;
[0028] FIGS. 3a through 3d are views showing examples of guides of
the bottle according to the present invention;
[0029] FIG. 4 is a front view illustrating the shape of the guide
of the bottle according to the present invention;
[0030] FIG. 5 is a detailed sectional view showing the shape of the
guide of the bottle according to the present invention;
[0031] FIGS. 6 and 7 are views showing various shapes of the inner
junctions between the guides according to the present
invention;
[0032] FIG. 8 is a view illustrating a process of compressing the
guides according to the present invention;
[0033] FIG. 9 a sectional view showing another example of the shape
of the guide according to the present invention;
[0034] FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a process of compressing the
guides of FIG. 9; and
[0035] FIG. 11 is of views illustrating a process of crushing a
bottle made of PET according to the present invention.
TABLE-US-00001 <Description of the elements in the drawings>
100: bottle (PET bottle) 110: neck portion 111: opening 112: thread
113: cover 120: body portion 121: guide a: upper bent point b:
lower bent point c: outermost midpoint ac: upper length bc: lower
length a': interior angle of upper bent point b': interior angle of
lower bent point x: upper interior angle y: lower interior angle
AC: upper horizontal length AB: lower horizontal length
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0036] Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention
will be described in detail with reference to the attached
drawings.
[0037] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a bottle,
according to an embodiment of the invention. FIGS. 2a and 2b are
sectional views taken along line A-A of FIG. 1. FIGS. 3a through 3d
are views showing examples of guides of the bottle according to the
present invention. FIG. 4 is a front view illustrating the shape of
the guide of the bottle according to the present invention.
[0038] As shown in FIGS. 1 through 4, the bottle according to the
embodiment of the present invention includes a neck portion 110 and
a body portion 120.
[0039] The neck portion 110 has an opening 111 and a thread 112 to
be combined with a cover 113 in a screwed manner. Alternatively,
the neck portion 110 may be combined with the cover 113 in manners
different from the screwed manner for ensuring sealing of the
bottle. For example, the cover 113 may be combined with the neck
portion 110 in a manner such that the cover 113 is removably fitted
over the neck portion 110.
[0040] The body portion 120 extends from the neck portion 110 and
contains liquid contents therein.
[0041] The bottle 100 having the above-mentioned structure can
contain a beverage, such as water or cola, liquor, saline solution,
or a liquid-type food, and can be made of various materials.
[0042] According to the kind of material, the bottle 100 can be one
of a paper bottle, a PET bottle, a metal (aluminum) bottle or a
glass bottle.
[0043] Hereinafter, the case where the bottle 100 according to the
preferred embodiment of the present invention is a PET
(polyethylene terephthalate resin) bottle will be explained as one
example.
[0044] The body portion 120 includes a plurality of guides 121
which protrude inwards from a partial area or entirety of the
circumferential inner surface of the body portion 120 to have
convex shapes and are formed in a spiral pattern, so that the
liquid contents proceed towards the opening 111 of the neck portion
110 while spirally revolving inside the bottle 100 and are then
discharged out of the bottle 100.
[0045] Here, when seen by the longitudinal cross-section of the
body portion 120 having the guides 121, as shown in FIG. 5, each
guide 121 has an angled shape of ">" or "<." As shown in FIG.
6, an outermost midpoint (c) of a horizontal medial line of each
guide 121 has one of a round shape, a pointed shape or a vertically
angled shape.
[0046] In the present invention, when compression force is applied
to the bottle, the midpoint of each spiral guide is folded over
along the length thereof and the bottle can be thus compressed with
respect to the longitudinal direction of the bottle. This is the
critical characteristic of the present invention. The pitch angle
of the spiral guide is determined in consideration of a degree with
which the length of the bottle is varied by compressing.
[0047] In detail, as shown in FIG. 5, in each of the plurality of
guides 121, an upper bent point (a) is formed in an upper portion
extending upwards from the outermost midpoint (c) of the guide 121,
and a lower bent point (c) is formed in a lower portion extending
downwards from the outermost midpoint (c).
[0048] The bottle 100 provided with the plurality of guides 121
having the angled shapes can maintain the upright strength despite
movement of the liquid contents contained in the bottle 100.
[0049] Furthermore, in each guide 121, a distance between the
outermost midpoint (c) and the upper bent point (a) differs from a
distance between the outermost midpoint (c) and the lower bent
point (b), such that the upper bent point (a) and the lower bent
point (b) are misaligned from each other.
[0050] In other words, a length (ac) of a portion connecting the
outermost midpoint (c) to the upper bent point (a) is greater than
a length (bc) of a portion connecting the outermost midpoint (c) to
the lower bent point (b). An interior angle (b') of the lower bent
point (b) is greater than an interior angle (a') of the upper bent
point (a).
[0051] Thanks to this structure, as shown in FIG. 8, when the
bottle 100 is crushed by compressing, the guides 121 are compressed
in such a way that the lower bent point (b) having the large
interior angle is bent towards and folded into the upper bent point
(a) having the small interior angle. Thereby, after the guides 121
have been compressed, the restoring force is removed, so that the
volume of the bottle 100 can be maintained in the minimized state,
thus facilitating collection of empty bottles.
[0052] Furthermore, inner junctions between the guides 121 which
form the inner surface of the bottle can have various shapes.
[0053] FIGS. 7a through 7c are views showing various
cross-sectional shapes of the inner junctions between the guides
121 according to the present invention. FIG. 7a illustrates a
pointed shape of the cross-section of the inner junction between
the guides 121, FIG. 7b illustrates a round shape, and FIG. 7c
illustrates a vertically angled shape.
[0054] In addition, the guides 121 basically have four spiral lines
or more even number of spiral lines. The guides 221 spiral in
either of the clockwise or counterclockwise directions.
[0055] FIG. 2a shows the case in which the number of guides 121 is
eight, and FIG. 2b shows the case in which the number of guides 121
is four.
[0056] FIGS. 3a through 3d are views showing examples of the guides
121 of the bottle according to the present invention. FIG. 3a
illustrates an example in which a plurality of guides 121 is formed
only on the upper area of the body portion 120. FIG. 3b illustrates
an example in which a plurality of guides 121 is formed on the
entirety of the body portion 120. FIG. 3c illustrates an example in
which a plurality of guides 121 is formed on only a portion or
entirety of the lower area of the body portion 120. FIG. 3d
illustrates an example in which a plurality of guides 121 is formed
on the entirety of the body portion 120 but the inner surface of
the lower area thereof is planar.
[0057] FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing another example of the
shape of the guide. FIG. 10 is a view illustrating a process of
compressing the guides 121 of FIG. 9.
[0058] The general construction of the bottle of FIGS. 9 and 10
remains the same as that of the bottle 100 shown in FIGS. 1 through
8, but the shape of each guide 121 of FIGS. 9 and 10 differs from
that of the guide 121 of FIGS. 1 through 8.
[0059] In the description of the guides 121 of FIGS. 9 and 10, the
guides 121 can be applied to the bottle 100 shown in FIGS. 1
through 8, and repetitive description of the same structure of the
guide 121 of FIGS. 9 and 10 as that of FIGS. 1 through 8 will be
omitted and only the differences therebetween will be
described.
[0060] When seen by the longitudinal cross-section of the body
portion 120, each guide 121 has an angled shape of ">" or
"<." Furthermore, an outermost midpoint (c) of a horizontal
medial line of each guide 121 has one of a round shape, a pointed
shape or a vertically angled shape. Here, unlike the guide of FIGS.
1 through 8, in the guide 121 of FIGS. 9 and 10, only a lower bent
point (b) is formed in a lower portion extending downwards from the
outermost midpoint (c).
[0061] In addition, the guide 121 is configured such that an upper
interior angle (x) of the upper portion with respect to the
horizontal medial line of the outermost midpoint (c) is greater
than a lower interior angle (y) of the lower portion below the
lower bent point (b) with respect to the horizontal line.
[0062] Furthermore, a horizontal length (AC) of a portion
connecting the outermost midpoint (c) to the inner junction between
the guides 121 is greater than a horizontal length (AB) of a
portion connecting the lower bent point (b) to the inner junction
between the guides 121.
[0063] When the guides 121 having the above-mentioned structure are
compressed, in the same manner as the guides 121 of the bottle 100
of FIGS. 1 through 8, the lower bent point (b) is bent upwards and
folded onto the upper portion of the guide. Of course, after the
guides 121 have been compressed, the restoring force thereof is
minimized. In addition, the bottle having the guides 121 of FIGS. 1
through 8 can maintain the upright strength despite movement of the
liquid contents contained in the bottle.
[0064] As shown in FIG. 11, when the bottle 100 is crushed and
distorted by twisting and compressing along the guides 121 formed
in the body portion 120, in the case of FIG. 8, each guide 121 is
compressed in such a way that the lower bent point (b) having the
large interior angle is bent towards and folded into the upper bent
point (a) having the small interior angle. After the guide 121 has
been compressed, the restoring force thereof is completely
removed.
[0065] In the case of the guide 121 of FIG. 10 having no upper bent
point, each guide 121 is compressed in such a way that the lower
bent point (b) is bent upwards and folded onto the upper portion of
the guide 121. After the guide 121 has been compressed, the
restoring force thereof is completely removed in the same manner as
that of FIG. 8.
[0066] Hence, if no force is applied to the crushed bottle, it is
maintained in the crushed state having the minimized volume. Thus,
collection of empty bottles can be facilitated.
[0067] Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention
has been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the
art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and
substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and
spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying
claims.
* * * * *