U.S. patent application number 14/727288 was filed with the patent office on 2016-02-11 for bottle assembly.
The applicant listed for this patent is SNUGZ/USA INCORPORATED. Invention is credited to Cade Andersen, C. Michael Facer.
Application Number | 20160037892 14/727288 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 55266437 |
Filed Date | 2016-02-11 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160037892 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Facer; C. Michael ; et
al. |
February 11, 2016 |
BOTTLE ASSEMBLY
Abstract
A bottle assembly comprises a bottle having an end wall having a
U-shaped compartment for receiving a lip balm container and a
coupling assembly for removably grasping the lip balm container as
the lip balm container rests within the U-shaped compartment, the
coupling assembly removably coupling the lip balm container to the
bottle.
Inventors: |
Facer; C. Michael;
(Syracuse, UT) ; Andersen; Cade; (Kaysville,
UT) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
SNUGZ/USA INCORPORATED |
West Jordan |
UT |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
55266437 |
Appl. No.: |
14/727288 |
Filed: |
June 1, 2015 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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29498657 |
Aug 6, 2014 |
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14727288 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
206/581 ;
206/216; 29/453 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A45D 2200/25 20130101;
A45D 34/00 20130101; A45D 34/06 20130101; B65D 23/12 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A45D 34/06 20060101
A45D034/06; B65D 43/02 20060101 B65D043/02; B65D 1/02 20060101
B65D001/02; B65D 23/12 20060101 B65D023/12 |
Claims
1. A bottle assembly for storing a liquid material and a balm
material in separate portions of the assembly for convenient
storage of the materials without co-mingling the materials, the
bottle assembly comprising: a bottle, a container configured to fit
within the outer wall of the bottle, such that the bottle can be
used separately from the container and such that the container can
be used separately from the bottle and such that the container can
be selectively mounted onto the bottle and selectively removed
therefrom; and a coupling assembly mounted to the bottle for
removably coupling the container to the bottle.
2. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein the bottle comprises
a sunscreen bottle.
3. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein the container
comprises an elongate lip balm container.
4. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein the container is an
elongate container that fits within the horizontal footprint of the
bottle.
5. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein the bottle has a
U-shaped compartment for receiving the container.
6. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein the bottle has a
U-shaped compartment for receiving the container, the U-shaped
compartment having a rounded protuberance upon which the container
rests.
7. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein the coupling assembly
is configured to couple an upper portion of the lip balm container
to the bottle while a lower portion of the lip balm container rests
on a rounded protuberance of a ledge of the bottle.
8. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein the container
contains a lip balm material.
9. A container as recited in claim 1, further comprising a lid on a
bottle.
10. A container as recited in claim 1, wherein the container
comprises a lip balm container having a lid on the top portion
thereof and wherein the container has a concave surface on the
bottom portion thereof for receiving a rounded protuberance of the
bottle.
11. A bottle assembly configured to maintain two different
materials within different portions of the bottle assembly for
selective use by a user, the bottle assembly comprising: a bottle
having an end wall having a U-shaped compartment; an elongate
container configured to fit within the U-shaped compartment; and a
coupling assembly for removably grasping the container as the
container rests within the U-shaped compartment, the coupling
assembly configured to enable a user to selectively insert the
container into the U-shaped compartment and to selectively remove
the container for the U-shaped compartment.
12. An assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein the elongate
container fits within the horizontal footprint of the bottle.
13. An assembly as recited in claim 11, wherein the bottle
comprises a bottle body having a recessed wall having an upper
ledge and a lower ledge connected thereto, the elongate container
fitting within the U-shaped compartment between the upper and lower
ledges.
14. A method for providing an assembly for storing two different
materials, the method comprising: providing a bottle having an end
wall having U-shaped compartment; providing a separate container
configured to fit within the U-shaped compartment; providing a
coupling assembly for removably grasping the container as the
container rests within the U-shaped compartment, the coupling
assembly configured to enable a user to selectively insert the
container into the U-shaped compartment and to selectively remove
the container from the U-shaped compartment; and placing the
container within the U-shaped compartment of the bottle such that
the container is conveniently coupled to the bottle within the
U-shaped compartment of the bottle by the coupling assembly and can
be selectively removed therefrom.
15. A method as recited in claim 14 wherein the bottle is
configured to hold a liquid material, and wherein the container is
configured to hold a lip balm material therein.
16. A method as recited in claim 15 further comprising mounting the
lip balm container on a protuberance of the bottle.
17. A method as recited in claim 16, wherein the container fits
within the horizontal footprint of the bottle.
18. A method as recited in claim 17, wherein the bottle comprises a
bottle body having a recessed wall having an upper ledge and a
lower ledge connected thereto, the elongate container fitting
within the U-shaped compartment between the upper and lower
ledges.
19. A method recited in claim 18, wherein the coupling assembly is
configured to couple an upper portion of the lip balm container to
the bottle while a lower portion of the lip balm container rests on
the rounded protuberance of a ledge of the bottle.
20. A method as recited in claim 19, wherein the container
comprises a lip balm container having a lid on the top portion
thereof and wherein the container has a concave surface on the
bottom portion thereof for receiving a rounded protuberance of the
bottle.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This nonprovisional patent application is a
continuation-in-part of design patent application Ser. No.
29/498,657, filed on Aug. 6, 2014, entitled "Bottle Assembly," to
Facer, et al, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by
reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. The Field of the Invention
[0003] This invention is in the fields of: (i) sunscreen
containers; and (ii) lip balm containers.
[0004] 2. The Relevant Technology
[0005] This invention relates to sunscreen containers and lip balm
containers and materials used and produced in connection with the
protection of an individual's skin and lips from the adverse
effects of the sun. For centuries, people have struggled with the
ability to be outside while at the same time preserving their skin
and health from the damaging effects of the sun. It is common to
use sunscreen to protect the user's skin and to use lip balm to
protect a user's lips. However, these products are typically sold
separately and users often forget one or the other. Users might
remember to bring sunscreen, but may often forget to bring lip balm
when going outdoors, or vice versa. There is therefore a need in
the art for a convenient way to purchase, store, ship and use
sunscreen and lip balm simultaneously.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] An example of a bottle assembly of the present invention
comprises a bottle having an end wall having a compartment for
receiving a lip balm container and a coupling assembly for
removably grasping the lip balm container as the lip balm container
rests within the U-shaped compartment. The coupling assembly
removably couples the lip balm container to the bottle. The
coupling assembly may be comprised of a plastic material, for
example, that has sufficient resilience such that (i) the coupling
assembly has sufficient flexibility that the lip balm container can
be placed within the U-shaped compartment by being pressed into the
coupling assembly, which maintains the lip balm container within
the U-shaped compartment in the absence of a removing force; and
such that (ii) the coupling assembly has sufficient flexibility
such that the coupling assembly releases the lip balm container
when a force is generated pulling the lip balm container out of the
coupling assembly and out of the U-shaped compartment.
[0007] An embodiment of the bottle assembly comprises a bottle
having a recessed end wall having a U-shaped compartment for
receiving a lip balm container and a coupling assembly for
removably grasping the lip balm container as the lip balm container
rests on a rounded protuberance within the U-shaped compartment,
the coupling assembly removably coupling the lip balm container to
the bottle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] To further clarify the above and other advantages and
features of the present invention, a more particular description of
the invention will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments
thereof which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is
appreciated that these drawings depict only illustrated embodiments
of the invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of
its scope. The invention will be described and explained with
additional specificity and detail through the use of the
accompanying drawings in which:
[0009] FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a Bottle Assembly of the
present invention for convenient storage of both liquid and lip
balm materials without co-mingling the materials;
[0010] FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the Bottle Assembly
of FIG. 1;
[0011] FIGS. 3-4 are right and left side views, respectively of the
Bottle Assembly of FIG. 1;
[0012] FIGS. 5-6 are back and front views, respectively of the
Bottle Assembly of FIG. 1;
[0013] FIGS. 7-8 are top and bottom views, respectively of the
Bottle Assembly of FIG. 1;
[0014] FIGS. 9 and 10 are top and bottom perspective views,
respectively, of the bottle of the Bottle Assembly of FIGS. 1-8
without the lip balm container;
[0015] FIGS. 11-12 are right and left side views, respectively of
the bottle of FIGS. 9-10;
[0016] FIGS. 13-14 are top and bottom perspective views of the
Bottle Assembly of FIGS. 1-8 of the present invention with the
coupling assembly and lip balm container shown in broken, phantom
lines.
[0017] Other views of the bottle assembly of the present invention
are shown in the parent Design Application No. 29/498,657 which is
incorporated herein by reference.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0018] As shown in FIG. 1, a bottle assembly 10 of the present
invention comprises a bottle 12 and a lip balm container 14, the
bottle 12 having a recessed end wall 16 having a U-shaped
compartment 18 for receiving lip balm container 14 and a coupling
assembly 19 for removably grasping lip balm container 14 as lip
balm container 14 rests on a rounded protuberance 66 (see FIG. 9)
within the U-shaped compartment 18. Coupling assembly 19 removably
couples lip balm container 14 to bottle 12. Coupling assembly 19
may be comprised of a plastic material, for example, that has
sufficient flexibility and resilience such that (i) lip balm
container 14 can be placed within U-shaped compartment 18 by being
pressed into the coupling assembly 19, which maintains lip balm
container 14 within U-shaped compartment 18 in the absence of a
removing force; and such that (ii) coupling assembly 19 has
sufficient flexibility such that the coupling assembly 19 releases
lip balm container 14 when a force is generated pulling lip balm
container 14 out of coupling assembly 19 and out of U-shaped
compartment 18.
[0019] Bottle 12 has a bottle body 26 having, on at least one side
thereof, as shown in FIG. 1, an upper ledge 22 and a lower ledge 24
that extend outwardly from the bottle body 26 laterally so as to
form U-shaped compartment 18. Upper ledge 22 has a lower surface 30
(FIG. 2) and lower ledge 20 has an upper surface 32 (FIG. 3)
between which the lip balm container 14 is mounted within U-shaped
compartment 18. Upper ledge 22 is connected to lower ledge 24 by
recessed end wall 16, forming U-shaped compartment 18.
[0020] As further shown in FIGS. 1-2 and in FIGS. 9-12, connected
to bottle body 26 is coupling assembly 19. Coupling assembly 19,
which can be a separate piece or can be integrally formed with body
26, comprises (i) first and second proximal latches 42, 44 (FIG. 4)
which connect to curved body 50 (FIG. 2) of coupling assembly 19
and which connect to bottle body 26, and (ii) first and second
distal latches 46, 48 which connect to curved body 50 of coupling
assembly 19 and which are resiliently movable with respect to body
50 of coupling assembly such that the lip balm container 14 can be
selectively, removably mounted within distal latches 46, 48 of
assembly 19 to thereby removably maintain lip balm container 14
within assembly 19 while lip balm container 14 rests within
compartment 18 on the lower ledge 24 of body 26 (e.g., on
protuberance 66 of ledge 24).
[0021] Coupling assembly 19 thus selectively, removably maintains
container 14 within the compartment 18 of bottle 12 for convenient
accessibility. Since container 14 is removably connected to bottle
12, it is convenient to purchase, store, ship, and use assembly 10
as a unit. Users are much less likely to forget their sunscreen
and/or lip balm because they are in a single assembly, as shown in
FIG. 1. Bottle 12 may be a plastic bottle which contains a
sunscreen having an spf selected from a variety of different spfs,
for example. Container 14 is an elongate container which may be one
of a variety of different types of lip balm containers, such as a
CHAPSTICK lip balm container, for example.
[0022] Bottle assembly 10 further comprises a cap 60 mounted on
bottle 12 for releasably maintaining a liquid such as sunscreen
within bottle 12. Lip balm container 14 comprises lip balm
container body 62 and lip balm container cap 64 and a rotating lip
balm container adjustment device 65 for adjustably moving the lip
balm within container body 62. Elongate lip balm container 14
contains a lip balm or other medicinal or soothing material
therein. Body 62 of elongate container 14 may have a concave lower
surface configured to receive protuberance 66 therein to assist
with maintaining lip balm container within compartment 18 when an
upper portion of lip balm container 14 is removably mounted within
coupling assembly 19, as shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 9, the
lower ledge 32 of the assembly 10 includes rounded, convex
protuberance 66 extending upwardly from the ledge 32.
[0023] As further shown in FIG. 9, the resiliently movable clasping
latches 46, 48 of coupling assembly 19 are available for a lip balm
container 14 to be removably placed therebetween, such that the
clasping latches 46, 48 will temporarily move apart as the lip balm
container is placed there between, but then will resiliently
maintain lip balm container 14 therebetween when lip balm container
14 is placed on the rounded protuberance 66 and between ledges 22
and 24. Container 14 may then be selectively removed from latches
46, 48.
[0024] Coupling assembly 19 may be a single molded plastic piece
that snaps onto opposing sides of body 26 of bottle 12 (e.g., a
plastic bottle 12) with opposing first and second latching ears 68
(FIG. 9) that extend from respective proximal latches 42, 44 into
mating grooves within opposing sides of bottle body 26.
[0025] Coupling assembly 19 is comprised of a curved body 50 from
which distal curved latches 46, 48 extend outwardly with sufficient
resilient deformability so they can be moved apart to receive lip
balm container 14 therein, yet with sufficient resilience that they
will move back into place once the lip balm container 14 is grasped
between latches 46, 48. Latches 46, 48 can then be moved apart
again when container is pulled away from latches 46, 48.
[0026] In use, the user conveniently mounts the lip balm container
14 onto protuberance 66 of ledge 24 when it is desired to place the
lip balm container 14 within bottle 12 and further snaps lip balm
container between curved latches 46, 48 of coupling assembly 19 and
into curved body 50. In this position, the lip balm container and
the sunscreen or other liquid in bottle 12 can be conveniently
moved, stored and maintained in a singular assembly, such that the
user will have both at the user's ready disposal when needed and
such that the user will not need to remember to obtain separate lip
balm and sunscreen in distinct locations when needed.
[0027] When the user desires to use sunscreen, the user can
maintain both in an assembly and apply the sunscreen by opening the
lid of cap 60, or by removing cap 60, and dispensing sunscreen from
bottle 12. When the user desires to apply lip balm, the user can
remove lip balm container 14 from the grasp of curved latches 46,
48 and readily apply the lip balm from container 14, then return
the lip balm container 14 to the position shown in FIG. 1.
[0028] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 7-8, lip balm container 14 is
configured to fit within the outer wall of bottle 12 such that
container 14 fits within the horizontal footprint of the bottle 12.
By fitting within the horizontal footprint of bottle 12, as shown
in FIGS. 7-8, lip balm container 14 efficiently uses space within
the profile of bottle 12. Assembly is thus a convenient bottle
assembly for storing a liquid material and a balm material in
separate portions of the assembly 10 for convenient storage of the
materials without co-mingling the materials,
[0029] The present invention may be embodied in other specific
forms without departing from its spirit or essential
characteristics. The described embodiments are to be considered in
all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of
the invention is, therefore, indicated by the appended claims
rather than by the foregoing description. All changes which come
within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be
embraced within their scope.
* * * * *