U.S. patent application number 14/218172 was filed with the patent office on 2015-09-24 for drinking glass aid.
This patent application is currently assigned to Goosman Design Concepts, LLC. The applicant listed for this patent is Goosman Design Concepts, LLC. Invention is credited to Karen E. Goosman.
Application Number | 20150265078 14/218172 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 54140879 |
Filed Date | 2015-09-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150265078 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Goosman; Karen E. |
September 24, 2015 |
DRINKING GLASS AID
Abstract
A drinking glass aid (10) is disclosed having a drinking glass
(11), a lid (12), a weighted disc (13) and an elongated, hollow
drinking straw (14). The drinking straw is generally cylindrical
along its entire shaft (17) and includes a stop or collar (21)
extending outwardly from the shaft in a position closely adjacent
the bottom end (18) of the straw shaft. The disc is generally
circular with an perimeter (23) and a central hole (24) configured
to receive the straw shaft yet small enough to prevent the passage
of the straw collar therethrough. The disc also includes a series
of fluid passage channels (26) therethrough. The disc has a
composition which allows it to force the ice into the bottom of the
glass as the disc slides down the drinking straw within the
glass.
Inventors: |
Goosman; Karen E.; (Stone
Mountain, GA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Goosman Design Concepts, LLC |
Stone Mountain |
GA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Goosman Design Concepts,
LLC
Stone Mountain
GA
|
Family ID: |
54140879 |
Appl. No.: |
14/218172 |
Filed: |
March 18, 2014 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/707 ;
220/705 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47G 21/18 20130101;
A47G 19/2222 20130101; A47G 19/2272 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A47G 19/22 20060101
A47G019/22 |
Claims
1. A drinking glass aid comprising: a drinking glass having an
interior width, a plate having a straw hole therethrough, said
plate having a size and shape less than at least the majority of
the widths of the interior of the drinking glass along the height
of the drinking glass, and a straw having an elongated shaft and a
projection extending outwardly from said elongated shaft, said
plate straw hole being sized and shaped to allow the passage of
said straw shaft therethrough yet being sized and shaped to prevent
the passage of said shaft and said projection therethrough.
2. The drinking glass aid of claim 1 wherein said plate is made of
a material having a specific gravity greater than the specific
gravity of water.
3. The drinking glass aid of claim 1 wherein said plate has a
material composition which enables said plate to sink in water.
4. The drinking glass aid of claim 1 wherein said projection is an
annular projection extending from said shaft.
5. The drinking glass aid of claim 4 wherein said projection is
slidable along said shaft to different locations along said
shaft.
6. The drinking glass aid of claim 1 wherein said plate is a metal
plate.
7. The drinking glass aid of claim 1 wherein said plate includes
fluid passages extending through said plate.
8. The drinking glass aid of claim 7 wherein said fluid passages
extend inwardly from a peripheral edge of said plate.
9. The drinking glass aid of claim 7 wherein said fluid passages
extend through said plate at a location between said straw hole and
a peripheral edge of said plate.
10. The drinking glass aid of claim 1 further comprising a lid
adapted to be coupled to a top edge of said drinking glass, said
lid including a lid straw opening therethrough.
11. A drinking glass aid to be used in conjunction with a drinking
glass, the drink aid comprising: an ice sinking device having a
straw opening therethrough, and a straw having an elongated shaft
and an ice sinking device stop extending outwardly from said
elongated shaft, said ice sinking device straw opening being sized
and shaped to allow the passage of the straw shaft therethrough yet
being sized and shaped to prevent the passage of said ice sinking
device stop therethrough.
12. The drinking glass aid of claim 1 wherein said ice sinking
device is a plate having a physical composition which enables said
ice sinking device to sink in water.
13. The drinking glass aid of claim 11 wherein said straw stop is
an annular projection extending from said shaft.
14. The drinking glass aid of claim 11 wherein said stop is
slidable along said shaft to different locations along said
shaft.
15. The drinking glass aid of claim 11 wherein said ice sinking
device is a metal plate.
16. The drinking glass aid of claim 12 wherein said plate includes
fluid passages extending through said plate.
17. The drinking glass aid of claim 16 wherein said fluid passages
extend inwardly from a peripheral edge of said plate.
18. The drinking glass aid of claim 16 wherein said fluid passages
extend through said plate at a location between said straw opening
and a peripheral edge of said plate.
19. The drinking glass aid of claim 11 further comprising a
drinking glass.
20. The drinking glass aid of claim 19 further comprising a lid
adapted to be coupled to a top edge of said drinking glass, said
lid including a lid straw opening therethrough.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0001] This invention relates generally to a device for use with a
drinking glass, and more particularly to a device used in
conjunction with a drinking glass and straw.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Drinking glasses have been used for centuries. To cool a
beverage within a drinking glass or to keep a beverage cold, ice is
typically added to a beverage contained within a drinking glass to
lower the temperature and maintain a low temperature of the
beverage.
[0003] One problem associated with beverage ice is that a portion
of the ice protrudes from the beverage and into the air above it.
This exposure of the ice to air causes it to melt at a faster rate,
thereby decreasing its cooling ability and diluting the beverage
with water.
[0004] Another problem associated with ice is that it floats within
the top portion of a contained beverage. However, a straw utilized
with a drinking glass extends to the bottom of the glass. As such,
the ice is primarily cooling the beverage at the top portion of the
beverage while the person is drinking the beverage located at the
bottom portion of the beverage. It is generally understood that the
temperature difference between the cooled top portion and the
bottom portion may be as much as 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Obviously,
it would be best for a person to drink from the coldest portion of
the contained beverage rather than the warmest portion.
[0005] Accordingly, it is seen that a need remains for a drinking
device that may be used in conjunction with a straw to enable one
to drink the coldest portion of a contained beverage. It is to the
provision of such therefore that the present invention is primarily
directed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] In a preferred form of the invention a drinking glass aid
comprises a drinking glass having an interior width, a plate having
a straw hole therethrough, the plate having a size and shape less
than at least the majority of the widths of the interior of the
drinking glass along the height of the drinking glass, and a straw
having an elongated shaft and a projection extending outwardly from
the elongated shaft. The plate straw hole is sized and shaped to
allow the passage of the straw shaft therethrough yet being sized
and shaped to prevent the passage of the shaft and projection
therethrough.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
[0007] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional side view of a drinking glass
aid embodying principles of the invention in a preferred form,
shown used in conjunction with a drinking glass with a beverage and
ice therein.
[0008] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a drinking glass aid of FIG.
1.
[0009] FIG. 3 is a top view of the disc of the drinking glass aid
of FIG. 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0010] With reference next to the drawings, there is shown a
drinking glass aid 10 in a preferred form of the invention. The
drinking glass aid 10 includes a drinking glass 11, a top or lid
12, a weighted plate or disc 13 and an elongated, hollow drinking
straw 14. The drinking glass 11 may be made of any conventional
material, such as glass, metal, or plastic. The drinking glass 11
has an interior size and shape with a width along at least the
majority of the glass height which is generally greater than the
size and shape of the disc 13, so that the disc may move freely
within the drinking glass along the length of the straw 14. The lid
12 also may be made of any conventional material, such as plastic.
The lid 12 includes a straw hole or opening 16 therethrough
configured to allow the passage of the drinking straw 14.
Preferably, the lid 12 is configured to snap fit or thread onto the
top of the drinking glass 11 to maintain the position of the
lid.
[0011] The drinking straw 14 is generally cylindrical along its
entire shaft 17 from a bottom end or tip 18 to a top end 19. The
straw also includes a swollen, enlarged, bulging or protruding
portion, projection, stop or collar 21 extending outwardly from the
shaft in a position closely adjacent the bottom end 18 of the straw
shaft 17. The straw shaft 17 has a first or shaft diameter while
the straw collar 21 has a second or collar diameter which is
greater than straw shaft diameter. It should be understood that the
collar 21 may be a separate and distinct portion from the straw
shaft or may be integrally made with the straw shaft. Should the
collar 21 be separate from the straw shaft, it may be slidable or
moved along the shaft to provide a degree of adjustment to the
positioning of the collar, and thereby limit the movement of the
disc 13 along the straw shaft 17. The straw may be made of any
conventional material, but is preferably made of a plastic.
[0012] The disc 13 is generally circular with an external
circumference, periphery, or perimeter 23 and a central hole 24
configured to receive the straw shaft 17 yet small enough to
prevent the passage of the straw collar 21 therethrough, i.e., the
central hole 24 has a diameter which is larger than the straw shaft
diameter but smaller than the straw shaft and collar diameter. The
disc 13 also includes a series of fluid passage channels 26
extending from atop surface to a bottom surface of the disc. The
fluid passage channels 26 may extend inwardly from the outside
perimeter 23 of the disc. Alternatively, the fluid passage channels
26 may be in the form of passages, slots or holes 26' extending
through the disc within the disc body between the external
perimeter 23 and the central hole 24, as shown in phantom lines in
FIG. 3.
[0013] The disc 13 is preferably made of food grade stainless steel
with an external diameter of approximately 2.25 inches, a height or
thickness of approximately 0.125 inch, a weight of approximately
3.4 ounces, and a central hole diameter of approximately 0.4 inch.
The stainless steel may be a 11 gauge 304 or 316 food grade
stainless steel. These measurements are provided only as an example
and thus are not a requirement of the present invention. It should
be understood that alternative materials may be utilized for the
disc, such as synthetic materials such as acrylic polymer and
alumina trihydrate, glass, plastics, ceramics, or other metals, so
long as their specific gravity is greater than that of water
(greater than 1) so that the disc sinks in a common beverage such
as water, tea, sodas, etc.
[0014] In use, with the lid 12, straw 14 and disc 13 removed from
the drinking glass 11 a person places ice cubes I within the
drinking glass 11. A beverage B is then poured into the drinking
glass 11 over the ice cubes I. Because of the specific gravity of
ice, the ice I within the drinking glass 11 will naturally float to
the top of the beverage B.
[0015] The drinking straw 14 is then placed within the drinking
glass with the straw 14 extending between the ice cubes I so that
its bottom end or tip 18 is adjacent the bottom of the glass. The
top end 19 of the drinking straw 14 passes through the central hole
24 of the disc 13 and the disc is lowered onto the ice cubes I. The
weight and specific gravity of the disc 13 causes it to push the
ice cubes I to the bottom portion of the drinking glass. The sizing
of the disc prevents the ice cubes I from passing between the disc
and the drinking glass. The fluid passage channels 26 allow the
fluid beverage positioned below the disc 13 to pass through the
disc fluid passage channels 26 to a position above the disc so as
to allow the disc to sink if the spacing between the disc and the
interior of the drinking glass is insufficient to allow the
beverage to pass therebetween in an efficient manner. The straw
shaft 17 is then passed through the straw hole 16 in the lid 12 and
the lid is secured to the top of the drinking glass 11.
[0016] With the disc 13 in this position it forces the ice cubes
Ito the bottom portion of the drinking glass 11, where it
accomplishes the most cooling in the bottom portion of the beverage
B where the bottom end or tip of the straw is located and is
removing the beverage during the drinking process. The collar 21
prevents the disc 13 from falling off or passing completely off the
bottom end of the straw 14 as the ice melts. The collar 21 also
allows one to lift the disc 13 out of the drinking glass and may be
utilized to main the position of the disc while tipping the glass
to drain beverage from ice one wishes to maintain within the
glass.
[0017] It should be understood that there may be as much as an
approximately 20 degree Fahrenheit temperature difference between
the beverage located at the top portion of the drinking glass and
the beverage located at the bottom portion of the drinking glass
due to the location of the ice, which is now completely submerged
and located at the bottom portion of the glass to promote the most
cooling at this location. As such, the forcing of the ice cubes I
to the bottom causes the most cooling of the beverage to be located
in the area at the bottom end or tip of the straw where the
beverage is drawn into the straw. This also provides for a complete
submersion of the ice cubes to prevent pre-maturing melting of the
ice due to its exposure to the warmer air and its resulting
dilution of a beverage other than water.
[0018] It should be understood that the disc central hole 24 is not
actually required to be positioned centrally so long as a straw can
pass therethrough, i.e., it may be positioned closer to one side of
the disc than the other similar to many conventional drink lids. It
should also be understood that the collar is not required or
limited to an annular shape, as shown in the preferred embodiment,
as any outward projection or set of projections that can arrest or
prevent the passage of the disc completely off the straw will
suffice. It should be understood that the very bottom portion of
the drinking glass interior width need not be greater than the
width of the disc as the disc is not intended to move past the
collar. Also, the lid is optional but preferred to maintain cool
air over the beverage. Lastly, it should be understood that as an
alternative to the plate or disc shown in the preferred embodiment,
the plate may be substituted by a device or structure which is
capable of preventing the passage of ice withing a beverage through
the device as the device forces it downwardly into the bottom of
the glass, such as a metal mesh, an arrangement of radially
extending arms or spokes, or the like. As such, the term "ice
sinking device" as used herein is intended to include any structure
described herein or the like.
[0019] It thus is seen that a drinking glass aid is now provided
which completely submerges ice and enables a person to drink from
the coldest portion of the contained beverage within the glass.
Although the drinking glass aid has been illustrated and described
in its preferred form, it should be understood that many
modifications, additions and deletions may be made to that specific
form without departure from the spirit and scope of the invention
as set forth in the following claims.
* * * * *