Detachable Handle For Cylindrical Containers

Abstract

A flat sheet of low-cost, limp material, such as plastic, is die cut to form a plurality of individual, limp compressible, non-self-supporting handles separable by perforated lines. The sheet forms a carrier for cylindrical containers and the handles are attachable on the containers to convert, for example, beer cans to beer mugs. Each handle includes a pair of flat annular elements each having an inner circular edge, the elements being distorted from a flat plane to form hollow cylindrical loops sleeved on a can, in parallelism with the cylindrical can wall, wholly within the cylinder outlined by the projecting can rims, and separated by an annular element forming a doubled hand grip. The doubled handle is limp and crushable against the can for storage.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It has heretofore been proposed to provide detachable means for converting a beverage container, usually of the type having a wide mouth, into a mug, cup, or stein having a handle. It is mandatory, by reason of local sanitary ordinances, for barrooms, taverns and drugstores to have automatic dishwashers which provide long exposure of drinking receptacles to boiling water to thereby destroy germs. The public, however, because of the spread of hepatitis and other diseases, has become increasingly suspicious of the actual germ-free condition of such publicly used drinking receptacles. The problem has long since been solved at soda fountains in that there are few in this country which do not provide a disposable paper cup, in a conical holder, for soft drinks.

Unfortunately, alcoholic beverages, and especially beer, do not seem to taste as well when served in paper, as when served in a stein or in a metal can, but cans without handles are cold, difficult to hold for long, and otherwise unsatisfactory.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

There is a line of patents disclosing detachable handles, often of relatively high cost metal, and having snap latches, grooves, or the like, intended to grip the upper and lower rim of a beer can, to form a detachable handle. Exemplary thereof is U.S. Pat. No. 2,707,827, of May 10, 1955, to Petram, wherein the handle is also a sharp-pointed beer can opener, or U.S. Pat. No. 3,261,633, of July 19, 1906, to Sakuta wherein the handle is of stiff, but resilient plastic and projects above the can.

Another line of patents teaches detachable handles for use with tapered containers, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,486,967 of Mar. 8, 1924, to Kaufman, there being no problem of "fall-through" with a tapered container as occurs with a cylindrical can or bottle.

Still another line of patents discloses elements which encircle a cylindrical can, but solve the "fall-through" problem by using expensive coil springs, as in U.S. Pat. No. 2,922,558 to Harvey of Jan. 26, 1960, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,073,493 to Pfaffenberger of Jan. 15, 1963, or by using a suction cup as in U.S. Pat. No. 2,484,531, to Simmons of Oct. 11, 1949.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In this invention, the detachable handle is intended to support a cylindrical container, such as a smooth-walled, probably moist, beer can, but without resorting to suction cups, coil springs, rim clamps, or the like of the prior art. Instead, the device of this invention more closely resembles the flat handle of U.S. Pat. No. 2,617,676 to Kinney, of Nov. 11, 1952, in that it can be die cut from limp sheet plastic, or even formed by a tape, ribbon, or elongated strand, and requires no metal moving parts, no extruded rigid plastic parts, and no other other costly and space-taking elements. The device of the invention also avoids the use of stiff cardboard, as in Kinney, or the use of self-supporting resilient polyethylene as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,116,947 to Brownrigg of Jan. 7, 1964, and avoids forming a seat for the can bottom, it having been discovered herein that a pair of limp annular loops integrally connected by a limp handle loop, spaced from the can, each loop of the pair being distorted into a sleeve parallel to the can wall efficiently, positively, and inexpensively convert the can into a mug.

In addition, the one-piece, limp, non-self-supporting handle of the invention, with its pair of annular loops separated by a limp hand grip, when formed in a sheet with separable perforated lines, becomes a unique six-pack carrier, with a handle for each can of the six pack.

Thus, for example, beer cans can be shipped, refrigerated, and sold in corrugated cartons, each with a limp, detachable handle thereon which is crushed into the spaces between the cans. Similarly, a six-pack carrier having six handgrip strips or areas, can have six cans held in the two center strips while the opposite two pairs of outer strips are bent up to form a convenient handle. In practice, the user may prefer to simply attach his own three-apertured handle of the invention to his refrigerated beverage can by sleeving it over the rims prior to opening the pull tab and thereby assure himself that the receptacle is uncontaminated with germs, lipstick, or the like.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a cylindrical, rimmed, beer can with an individual, detachable handle of the invention sleeved thereon;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation showing another embodiment of the invention, in which the handle is of strand material and the can supported therein by snubbing and friction;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the device shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a preferred form of the individual handgrip of the invention prior to application to a can;

FIG. 5 is a plan view similar to FIG. 4, showing the limp detachable handles of the invention, crushed into the spaces between cans shipped in a carton;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a six-pack carrier sheet divided into six handle strips; and

FIG. 7 is an end elevation of the carrier of FIG. 6, showing the opposite outer pairs of handles extending upwardly to form a carrier handle.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In the drawing, a typical cylindrical beverage container 20 is shown, such as an aluminum beer can with a pull tab opener 21, a pair of projecting rims 22 and 23, each of predetermined diameter, and a cylindrical wall 24 of reduced diameter. As shown in FIG. 5, when the beer cans 20 are juxtaposed in shipment, the upper and lower rims 22 and 23 are in contact with each other, and the rims define a circumferential plane 25 which is the thickness of a rim outside the plane 26 of the wall 24. Most of the can-encircling handles of the prior art extend outside the plane 25, with a rigid or non-crushable portion which would prevent the cans from touching and require more packing space.

The detachable handles 28 of this invention are formed of limp, non-self-supporting material 29, which is preferably a thin sheet plastic 30, not easily tearable, but otherwise of about the bendability of a sheet of writing paper. The material 29 is slightly yieldable and stretchable, and is preferably the sheet plastic now much used as a six-pack carrier having six rings in a flat sheet, each ring being stretchable over a can rim to receive and tightly encircle the can wall.

As shown in FIG. 6, the six-pack carrier 31, may comprise a sheet 30, of plastic 29, having at least two identical strips, 32 and 33, each strip including three annular elements, 34, 35 and 36, plus at least two, and preferably at least four, additional such strips, 37, 38 39 and 40, the strips being separated by perforated lines, such as 43, 44, 45, 46 and 47, which are in parallelism with the longitudinal center line 48 of the aligned rings.

As shown in FIG. 7, six cylindrical cans 20 may be received in the annular elements 34, 35 and 36 of the two central strips 32 and 33. The two opposite pairs of strips 37 and 38, and 39 and 40, may be folded downwardly, as shown in dotted lines on lines 44 and 46, to protect the cans during shipment, while displaying the trademark through the apertures. Upon sale, the said pairs of outer strips are upfolded as shown in FIG. 7, on lines 44 and 46, to provide a convenient handle, with finger apertures for carrying the six-pack.

It will be seen that each strip 32, 33, 37, 38, 39 and 40, of the six-pack carrier 31 is separable on a perforated line to each form an individual handle, or handgrip, 28, of the invention, as best shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4. Each handle 28 includes a body 50 of the low-cost, non-self-supporting disposable material 29. The body 50 is normally flat and planar and includes a pair of substantially identical, integral, annular elements 51 and 52, each having a circular inner edge with an inside diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the cylindrical wall 24 and each spaced from the other by the integral handle, or handgrip element 53. As shown, the elements 51, 52 and 53 are preferably identical rings, adapted to serve as a carrier for three cans or as a handle for one can, the annular handgrip 53 forming a doubled, or bifurcated, grip which is most convenient for the fingers 54 of the user.

The annular elements 51 and 52 are slightly stretched to slide over the rim 22 and are distorted, or twisted, out of their normal flat plane to take the form of a hollow cylinder tightly sleeved on the wall 24, in parallelism with the cylindrical surface 26 thereof and wholly within the confines of the cylindrical surface 25 defined by upper and lower rims 22 and 23. It will be seen that the junctions 41 and 42 of each handle 28 hang rather limply outwardly and downwardly when the handle is applied to a cylindrical can. The handgrip portion 53 can be freely crushed or compressed against the wall 24 within the palm of the user's hand, to provide friction and prevent "fall-through" even though the user does not desire to use the handle. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 5, the annular, hollow cylindrical elements 51 and 52 do not prevent the cans from being closely packed, and the limp handles 53 are easily crushed, or compressed, into the space 55 between the cans when packed in a carton 56, or carton type, can carrier.

The annular, hollow cylindrical elements 51 and 52 are normally flatwise and tightly engaged with the cylindrical wall 24 to provide friction, and it will be noted that the fingers 54 of the user, when within the double loops 58 and 59 of handgrip element 53, tend to pull the annular elements horizontally into even tighter engagement, while the little finger 57 tends to push the can away to increase the snubbing action.

Handgrip element 53, preferably, normally forms the doubled loops 58 and 59, which curve away from each other while hanging limply, at a spaced distance from the can wall and is easily distorted, or deformed, against the wall, but the handle 61, shown in FIG. 2, is formed of material of even less inherent strength, such as a flat, narrow, tape, ribbon, or strand 62. Such a handle does not lend itself to combined use as part of a six-pack carrier, but does compress within the confines of the cylindrical plane 25 of the rims to take up no excess space and add little to the cost of the beverage. The annular elements 63 and 64 of handle 60 loosely encircle can 20 and are knotted, or otherwise fastened, to a single handgrip strand 65 as at 66 and 67, so that the can 20 is held in place by the snubbing action of the strand loops together with the friction of the fingers 54 against the can and the wedging effect of inserting the fingers 54 between the limp handgrip loop 65 and the can 20.

The spaced-apart loops 58 and 59 of handgrip element 53, are quite flexible and conform to the configuration of the user's hand without danger of cutting, or chafing the skin. A single handle could be provided, but the can tends to sway on the fingers as a fulcrum so that the widely spaced loops 58 and 59 are much preferable.

The spaced-apart annular elements 51 and 52 are of predetermined diameter when resiliently distorted into a plane normal to the flat plane of the sheet 30, the diameter being substantially equal to the diameter of the wall 24 and slightly less than the diameter of the rims 22 and 23. The term limp is used herein in its dictionary meaning to imply lack of stiffness, drooping, inelastic, and to not mean materials which are stiff, rigid, firm, strong, unyielding or self supporting. The degree of limpness, crushability, compressabitity resilience and self support denoted by the term "limp" herein, is that of a sheet of writing paper.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A detachable handle for cylindrical containers, of the beer can type having projecting rims at each opposite end which outline a cylinder of greater diameter than the diameter of the cylindrical wall of said can, said handle comprising:

a one-piece body of low-cost, limp, disposable, normally flat material, said body having:

a pair of substantially identical, integral, annular elements, each having a circular inner edge, each encircling said cylindrical container at a spaced distance from the other and each distorted into a hollow, cylindrical loop sleeved around, and closely fitting around said container to extend in parallelism with said can wall entirely within the confines of the cylinder outlined by said can rims, and

a limp, crushable handgrip element integrally formed of said material and connecting said annular elements, said handgrip element normally forming a limp, downward-hanging loop spaced from said container but being freely and non-resiliently compressible against said container to permit adjacent containers to touch in storage or shipment.

2. A detachable handle as specified in claim 1, wherein:

said integral handgrip element is an annular element identical with said pair of annular elements and forming a pair of spaced-apart handle loops each curved away from the other and adapted to receive the fingers of the human hand while yieldably conforming to the configuration thereof without cutting or chafing the skin.

3. A detachable handle as specified in claim 1, wherein:

said body is formed of sheet material and normally lies in a plane but said annular elements are distorted from said plane to each assume a hollow, cylindrical configuration normal to said plane, in parallelism with and in intimate frictional engagement with, and substantially sleeved around the cylindrical wall of said container and

the inside diameter of said distorted, hollow, cylindrical, annular elements is substantially equal to the outside diameter of said cylindrical can wall.

4. A detachable handle as specified in claim 1, wherein:

the material of said body is a limp, non-self-supporting, elongated strand, and

said annular elements are integral, closed circular loops of said strand, each of predetermined diameter relative to the diameter of said container, to be attachable over any projecting rims on said container while supporting said container against "fall-through" while in parallelism by an angular snubbing tension from the direction of the handgrip element of said body.

5. A detachable handle as specified in claim 1, wherein:

said body is formed of stretchable retractive material, and

said annular elements are hollow, cylindrical in configuration with a normal diameter substantially equal to the reduced diameter of said wall, but stretchable for application over said rims.

6. A detachable handle as specified in claim 1, wherein:

said integral upper and lower annular elements of said handle snugly encompass the cylindrical wall of said container, flatwise thereagainst,

and said handgrip element normally hangs limply therebetween but extends outwardly from said annular elements to exert a horizontal pull on said annular elements when serving as a handgrip,

whereby said handgrip, when under tension, tends to bind said annular elements in position to prevent accidental downward movement of the container within said handle.

7. In combination with a beverage container of the type having an upper and lower projecting circular rim of predetermined diameter outlining a cylinder of said diameter therebetween separated by a generally cylindrical side wall of reduced diameter;

a detachable, crushable handle formed of a single piece of normally flat planar, low-cost, limp, disposable material;

said handle having integral upper and lower annular portions each having a circular inner edge, each encircling said cylindrical side wall, between said rims, and each distorted from said flat planar body into a hollow cylindrical sleeve substantially equal in diameter to the said reduced diameter of said side wall and in parallelism therewith wholly within the confines of the said cylinder outlined by said projecting rims, and

said handle having an integral, limp, portion connecting said annular portions and spaced from said side wall, said limp portion normally hanging limply but being extensible to form a handgrip for supporting said container as a drinking cup, and being freely crushable and yieldable against said side wall for storage and shipment.

8. In combination with a beverage container of the type having a projecting upper and lower circular rim outlining a cylinder of predetermined diameter separated by a generally cylindrical side wall of reduced diameter

a detachable handle formed of a single piece of low-cost, disposable material which normally lies in a plane;

said handle having at least one integral, substantially annular portion having a circular inner edge, distorted from said plane into a cylindrical sleeve encircling said cylindrical side wall, between said rims and in parallelism therewith, and supporting said container therein, said sleeve having an inside diameter and an outside diameter less than the diameter of said rims and entirely within the confines of said cylinder outlined by said rims;

said handle having at least one integral, limp handgrip portion connected to said annular portion and normally hanging limply downwardly therefrom, said limp portion being adapted to form a handgrip for supporting said container as a drinking cup, but being freely crushable against said side wall for storage and shipment.