GB2232347A

GB2232347A - A carrier

Info

Publication number: GB2232347A
Application number: GB9011166A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Kim Donald Jones
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1989-05-19
Filing date: 1990-05-18
Publication date: 1990-12-12
Anticipated expiration: 2010-05-18
Also published as: GB8911556D0; GB2232347B; GB9011166D0

Abstract

A carrier for carrying glassware eg glasses of beer has a handle area 12 located between and connecting two carrying areas 14, 16. The carrying areas 14, 16 have supports for the glassware. For glasses the supports are in the form of holes which extend wholly through the material of the carrying areas 14, 16. <IMAGE>

Description

A CARRIER The present invention relates to a carrier for carrying articles.

Conventionally, numbers of articles such as glasses, cups, bottles, plates, cutlery and the like are carried by means of trays. However, trays generally need to be carried by use of both hands, and do not support articles stably. Embodiments of the present invention may ameliorate these problems.

Thus the invention provides a carrier which comprises a handle area located between and connecting two carrying areas, wherein such carrying area comprises one or more supports for articles. The carrying areas may be mirror images of each other about the handle area.

The supports may comprise holes or slots extending wholly or partially through the material of the carrying area or projections extending from the carrying areas. The carrier may be made of any suitable rigid material such as nylon or other plastics, metal, or wood. The carrier may be substantially planar. The carrier may be injection moulded, machine pressed or cut from planar sheets of these materials. The carrier may comprise an occlusion member which extends partially or wholly across the supports when in the form of holes or slots. The member may comprise one or more straps. Where two straps are provided, they may extend across a hole of the carrier and they may be arranged so that they cross over each other substantially at right angles to each other.

The occlusion member may be resilient.

One or more trays may be provided for locating in the supports. The trays may have a rim with a lip extending therefrom. The trays may be dimensioned so that they can locate in holes of the carrier with the lips resting on the material of the carrying area peripheral to the holes.

The trays may be made of any suitably rigid material, for example steel.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 shows a plan view of a carrier for glasses; Figure 2 shows a plan view of a carrier incorporating straps and with a tray inserted; and Figure 3 shows a cross-sectional view of a tray suitable for use with a carrier embodying the present invention.

The carrier shown generally at 10 comprises a handle 12 located between and connecting two carrying areas 14 and 16. The carrier 10 is a planar nylon moulding, thick enough to be substantially rigid.

A plurality of holes 18 extend through the material of the carrier in the carrying areas 14 and 16. In the of the carrier in the carrying areas 14!and 16. In the embodiment shown, there are six holes 18 in each of the carrying areas 14, 16. The carrying areas 14 and 16 are mirror images of each other about the central carrying handle 12 so that the carrier is balanced when it is held by the handle 12.

This particular embodiment of the carrier is designed for carrying "straight" (i.e; frustoconical handle-less) beer glasses.

In use, the carrier 10 is placed on a flat surface and the bases of the glasses located within the holes 18.

The carrier 10 is then grasped by the handle 12 and ligted. By virtue of suitable hole dimensions having been chosen, the walls 20 surrounding the holes 18 will come into contact with the walls of the glasses as the carrier 10 is raised, such that the glasses are fully supported when the carrier and glasses are lifted clear from the surface.

The present embodiment shows six glass supports but of course the number, shape and positioning of the supports may be varied, usually in such a way that the two carrying areas 14, 16 will be balanced about the handle 12.

Figure 2 shows various developments of the basic carrier 10 shown in Figure 1. For example, one or more straps 22 may extend across one or more of the holes 18.

Ends of the straps 22 may be attached by attachment means 24 eg pins, rivets, staples or ties to the material of the carrier 10 surrounding the holes 18. The straps 22 increase the carrying capacity of the carrier 10 for eg bottles and the like. The straps 22 may be remeasably securable to the carrier 10.

One or more trays suitably dimensioned can be used with the carrier 10. A suitable tray is shown in Figure 3. The tray 30 has a base portion 32, a peripheral side wall 34 extending upwardly from the edges of the base portion 32, and a lip 36 extending outwardly from the side wall 34 and substantially at a right angle thereto. The tray is dimensioned so that it can slot into the circular holes 18 with the lip 36 resting on the material of the carrier 10 surrounding the holes 18. In this way, the lip 36 supports the tray 30 in the hole 18 of the carrier.

Similar carriers may be for carrying plates, bowls, cutlery, bottles and the like, in which case the holes 18 whose sides provide carrying formations may be modified to slots etc. The slots and holes may pass either wholly or only partially through the material of the carrier 10.

Alternatively the carrying area supports may be provided by projections extending from the carrying area. Cutlery and other small items may be carried in cup-shaped resses or in vessels (e.g; glasses) retained in holes.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A carrier for carrying glassware which comprises a handle area located between and connecting two carrying areas, which carrying areas comprise one or more supports adapted for holding said glassware.

2. A carrier according to claim 1, wherein the two carrying areas are mirror images of each other about the handle area.

3. A carrier according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the supports comprise holes which extend wholly or partially through the material of the carrying area.

4. A carrier according to claim 3, which is substantially planar and which comprises six holes in each of the two carrying areas, which holes extend wholly through the material of the carrying area.

5. A carrier according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which is made from a machine pressed plastics.

6. A carrier according to claim 3 or claim 4, wherein the carrier comprises one or more straps which extend across said holes.

7. A carrier according to claim 3 or claim 4, wherein the carrier comprises one or more trays for supporting in said holes which trays have a lip adapted for resting on said material of the carrying area peripheral to the holes.

8. A carrier substantially as described herein with reference to Figure 1 or Figure 2 and Figure 3.