GB2367276A

GB2367276A - A Composite Drinks Bottle

Info

Publication number: GB2367276A
Application number: GB0022984A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Martin Glascoe
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2000-09-19
Filing date: 2000-09-19
Publication date: 2002-04-03
Also published as: GB0022984D0

Abstract

A composite drinks bottle is described which is able to separately contain a concentrate, and a drink made by diluting the concentrate. The composite bottle is formed from an upper container for storing the drink, and a lower container which is separable from the upper container, for storing the concentrate. The upper and lower containers have substantially the same cross-sectional shape and are adapted such that the lower container can be releasably secured to the upper container. When secured in this fashion, the upper and lower containers are aligned to form a composite body, which in preferred embodiments resembles a standard sports drinks bottle, as carried on a cycle for example.

Description

A COMPOSITE DRINKS BOTTLE The present invention relates to drinks bottles, and in particular, although not exclusively, to sports drinks bottles as carried by cyclists for example.

Sports drinks bottles are well known and are referred to by many names. These include: sports bottles; sports water bottles; water bottles; plastic bottles; gym bottles; bicycle or cycle bottles; exercise bottles or activity bottles. In the following description the term"sports drinks bottle" will be used predominantly.

A sports drinks bottle is usually made of plastic, although aluminium models do exist. Their capacity is typically 16-32oz. Sports drinks bottles are part of everyday life. They are used by cyclists (often stowed in frame-attached bottle cages), in gyms, by athletes, and indeed by anyone involved in any activity where hydration is an important factor.

Sports drinks bottles are used either by filling them with water or by mixing water with a concentrate in order to make a flavoured drink. However, once the bottle is empty, it is typically refilled with water and as no concentrate is available (unless carried separately).

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a composite drinks bottle for separately containing a concentrate and a drink made by diluting the concentrate, the composite bottle having a composite body having a substantially uniform cross-sectional shape along at least part of its length, and comprising: an upper container for storing the drink; and a lower container, separable from the upper container, for storing the concentrate, the upper and lower containers each comprising a respective body portion, the body portions of the

upper and lower containers having substantially the same cross sectional shape as the composite body, and being adapted to permit arrangement of the lower container in a first position with respect to the upper container such that the body portions of the upper and lower containers are adjacent each other and axially aligned to form the composite body, the bottle further comprising means for releasably securing the lower container to the upper container in the first position.

This composite drinks bottle provides the advantage that a quantity of concentrate may be conveniently carried by the user for making up further quantities of the drink when away from the user's base (e. g. home). The user need only find a supply of water.

The means for releasably securing the lower container to the upper container locks the two containers together to further facilitate the carrying of the drinks concentrate. Only when the upper and lower containers are arranged together in the first position do they form the complete body of the composite drinks bottle. Thus, as a result of this composite construction, it is immediately apparent when the lower container is missing, i. e. separated from the upper container, and so acts as a reminder to the user to carry the container of concentrate together with the main, upper container for storing the drink.

It will be apparent that there are many different configurations for the means for releasably securing the lower to the upper container. For example, straps may be used, but preferably the upper and lower containers themselves are formed so as to lock together in the first position without requiring further components. For example, a neck of the lower container may be adapted to slide into a

correspondingly formed slot in a base of the upper container, forming a generally dovetail-like joint between the two. The slot may run perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the bottle, or alternatively may extend at some other angle.

The cross section of the composite body may be of one of the following shapes: circular; elliptical; oval; triangular ; rectangular ; square; pentagonal; hexagonal; heptagonal; octagonal; nonagonal; decagonal.

The size of the cross section of the composite body (i. e. the cross-sectional area) may vary along its length. For example, it may increase linearly such that the body is conical or pyramidal. It may vary in other ways, and may, for example, include a narrow waist portion. Alternatively, the cross section may have uniform size along the length such that the body is straight sided (e. g. a cylinder).

Advantageously, the composite bottle may have the overall dimensions of a conventional sports drinks bottle and so can be accommodated in a standard bicycle-mounted frame, for example, without necessitating any modification.

Preferably the lower container comprises a top portion which is arranged to seal an upper end of its body, the top portion comprising a neck, which may extend from the lower container's body, the neck having a mouth, and a removable cap for sealing the mouth, and the upper container may comprise a base portion which seals (i. e. closes) a lower end of its body, the base portion being adapted to form a recess inside the upper container's body, the recess accommodating the neck and cap of the lower container when the lower container is in the first position.

Thus, the top portion of the lower container may nest inside the base of the upper container such that when in the first position the neck and cap are generally inside the body of the upper container and

are thus at least partially shielded. This can prevent ingress of dirt and other contaminants into the lower container, and also provides the advantage that undesirable loosening of the cap of the lower container is inhibited.

Preferably the recess and top portion are arranged such that when the lower container is in the first position the cap cannot loosen, i. e. it is maintained in position (sealing the mouth of the lower container) by contact with the surface of the base portion which bounds the recess.

Preferably, the neck of the lower container is adapted to lock into the recess to releasably secure the lower container to the upper container in the first position. For example, the neck may comprise a screw thread on an external surface, and the recess may include a correspondingly screw threaded portion such that the lower and upper containers may be screwed together.

Advantageously, the base portion may comprise a first formation and the top portion may comprise a second formation, where the first and second formations are arranged to releasably lock together when the lower container is in the first position to releasably secure the lower container to the upper container. For example, the first and second formations may be respective halves of a snap-fit arrangement, or may be screw threads.

Preferably the first formation is provided on a surface of the base portion which bounds the recess, and the second formation is provided on the neck such that the attachment between the two containers is achieved by locking the neck into the recess.

Preferably, the base portion comprises a slot and the top portion comprises a correspondingly formed protrusion, the protrusion being slidable in the slot to bring the lower container into the first position.

Advantageously, the slot may extend across the body of the upper container (for example it may extend radially across a container having a generally circular cross section) and is open at least one of its ends, and tapers (i. e. becomes more narrow) in a direction axially downwards relative to the body of the upper container, the protrusion being slidably insertable into the slot from the at least one end and being formed such that once so inserted, separation of the upper and lower containers in the axial direction is inhibited.

Preferably, the slot and protrusion are arranged to form a dovetail joint between the upper and lower containers.

The slot may also be termed a mortise and the protrusion may be termed a tenon.

Advantageously, the protrusion may have a Tshaped cross section and the slot may have a corresponding cross section.

By securing the upper and lower containers together using the above-mentioned protrusion-in-slot joints, separation of the two containers is prevented when the composite bottle is mounted in a carrying frame such as those used on a bicycle. Typically these frames will inhibit any relative radial displacement of the two containers, and axial separation is prevented by the joint.

Advantageously, the protrusion is part of the neck of the lower container, and the slot is part of the recess which accommodates the neck and cap of the lower container.

Preferably, the slot is open at both ends, and the recess in the base of the upper container comprises a shoulder portion against which the cap of the lower container abuts when the lower container is in the first position. Thus, the protrusion must be inserted from one end of the slot only, and once the

first position is attained, further sliding of the protrusion along the slot is inhibited by the contact between the cap and the shoulder portion.

Preferably, each of the upper and lower containers, except for their removable caps, is formed as a one piece moulding or casting, and preferably is plastic.

The bodies of the upper and lower containers may be cylindrical, of any cross sectional shape, but in preferred embodiments their cross sections are circular. In preferred embodiments these bodies are right circular cylinders, but this form is not essential. The composite body of the drinks bottle need not be divided simply at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the cylinder.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings of which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a sports drinks bottle embodying the present invention; Fig. 2 is a side view of the separated upper and lower containers of the embodiment shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a side view of the lower container of the embodiment shown in Figs. 1 and 2, at 900 relative to the view of the same container in Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is the top view of a lower container of a second embodiment ; Fig. 5 is a bottom view of the upper container of the second embodiment; Fig. 6 is a side view of the joint between the top and bottom containers in the second embodiment; Fig. 7 is an opposite side view of the joint shown in Fig. 6; Fig. 8 is another side view of the joint shown in Figs. 6 and 7; Fig. 9 is a schematic cross section of a third embodiment ; and

Fig. 10 is a schematic view of part of a fourth embodiment.

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a sports drinks bottle embodying the present invention. The sports drinks bottle 1 has a composite construction and is formed by an upper container 2 and a lower container 3. In the Figure the upper and lower containers are shown locked together in a first position. In this position, the generally cylindrical bodies 21,31 of the upper and lower containers are axially aligned and positioned adjacent each other to form the composite generally cylindrical body 11 of the sports drinks bottle 1. A top portion 22 of the upper container comprises a neck portion 221 having a mouth not shown which is sealed by a removable cap 222 which is secured to the neck by means of a collar 223 and a flexible strap 224. The cap 222 includes a pull valve well known in the field of drinks containers.

The upper and lower containers are locked together by means of a generally T-shaped neck 321 on the lower container which is received within a correspondingly shaped groove (slot) in the base of the upper container. This slot forms part of a recess in the base portion of the upper container which accommodates the neck 321 and cap 322 of the lower container when in the first position. In this position it is not possible to remove the cap 322 from the lower container, the cap being shielded inside the recess. The overall dimensions of the sports drinks bottle are the same as a conventional sports drinks bottle having unitary construction except of course for the sealing cap. The capacity of the lower container 3 is approximately one quarter that of the upper container 2, and the lower container is intended to store a quantity of concentrate for making a drink.

Fig. 2 is a side view of the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, with the upper and lower containers separated.

This has been achieved by sliding the T-shaped neck 321 of the lower container out of the slot.

The upper container 2 comprises a base portion 23 which seals (i. e. closes) the lower end of the generally cylindrical body 21. The base portion 23 comprises downward facing shoulder portions 232 on either side of a recess 231. The base portion comprises parallel walls W connected to the shoulder portions 232 and which extend up inside the body 21 defining a slot 231A of constant width. At the upper ends of these walls W the slot widens to form a wider slot portion 231B. The portions 231A and 231B of the slot of the recess 231 extend right through the upper container, i. e. the slot is open at both ends. The recess 231 includes a cap receiving portion 231C which extends upwards from the wider portion of the slot 231B but does not extend fully across the diameter of the upper container. The cap receiving portion 231C terminates at a shoulder 2311 against which the cap 322 of the lower container abuts when in the first position. Thus, the shoulder 2311 prevents further sliding of the neck 321 along the slot 231A, 231B and enables positive location of the lower container in the first position such that the cylindrical bodies 21 and 31 are aligned.

As can be seen from the Figure, the lower container 3 comprises a bottom portion 33 which seals (i. e. closes) the lower end of the body 31, and a top portion 32 which includes upward facing should portions 323 from which the neck portion 321 extends upwards. The lowest portion 321A of the neck 321 has parallel sides S which extend from the upward facing shoulders 323 substantially at right angles. The separation of the sides S is slightly less than the width of the narrow portion 231A of the recess 231 in the base of the upper container. At the top of the side walls S the neck 321 flares outwards to form a

wider portion 321B which is engaged in the wider portion 231B of the slot of the recess 231. The neck 321 ends with a threaded portion 321C to which the cap 322 is screwed to close the lower container.

Thus, the neck 321 of the lower container is in the form of a protrusion which flares outwards (i. e. becomes wider) in the upward direction, and the recess 231 in the base of the upper container comprises a slot which tapers in a corresponding fashion (i. e. with its narrowest portion at the bottom of the container). The neck can thus be slid into the recess to lock the upper and lower containers together, the neck 321 and recess 231 forming a generally dovetaillike joint. In this embodiment the neck 321 and recess 231 are generally T-shaped in cross section.

Other variations on this shape are of course possible.

Also, the protrusion for receiving in the slot may, in other embodiments, be provided on another part of the lower container rather than its neck.

Fig. 3 shows a side view, at 90 to the view shown in Fig. 2, of the lower container of the first embodiment. It can be seen that the side wall S and wider portion 321B of the neck extend across the whole width (i. e. diameter) of the generally cylindrical cross section. The threaded portion 321C of the neck is positioned at one end of the wide portion of the neck 321B.

Fig. 4 shows a schematic top view of the lower container of a second embodiment. In this embodiment the top portion 32 includes a rounded corner portion C joining onto the cylindrical body 31. There are two generally flat upward facing shoulder portions 323, from which the neck 321 extends in the upward direction. The neck 321 includes a ring shaped portion 321C which defines the mouth m of the bottom container. This ring shaped portion is sealed by push-fit cap (not shown). The neck portion 321

includes a protrusion 321B which has a narrow portion defined by side walls S and a wider portion above the narrow portion for slidably engaging in a corresponding slot in the bottom of the upper container.

Fig. 5 is a schematic view of the bottom of the upper container of the second embodiment. The base portion 23 includes a curved portion C which attaches to the generally cylindrical body 21. The base portion includes generally flat shoulder portions 232 which face downwards and adjoin the corresponding shoulder portions of the lower container when the two containers are arranged to form the composite sports drinks bottle. The base portion includes a slot 231 which runs fully across the base of the top container, along a diagonal. The slot 231 is open at both ends and widens in the upward direction from a narrow initial portion defined by two side walls W to a wider portion 231B for receiving the wide portion of the corresponding protrusion on the lower container. The slot also includes a cap-receiving recess 231C which is terminated in the radial direction by a shoulder 2311 against which the cap abuts when the two containers are assembled together.

Fig. 6 is a schematic side view from a nominal zero degrees position of the joint between the upper and lower containers of the second embodiment. The protrusion 321 of the lower container can be seen engaged in the slot of the upper container. The joint is such that the two containers may only be separated by sliding in a radial direction; relative axial movement is prevented.

Fig. 7 is a schematic side view of the joint between the upper and lower containers of the second embodiment from a nominal 180 position, i. e. looking directly at the opposite end of the slot. The cap 322 is in place, sealing the mouth of the lower container.

Fig. 8 is a schematic side view from the nominal 90 position of the joint between the upper and lower containers of the second embodiment. The hidden detail of the joint between the protrusion and slot is shown by broken lines. The cap 322 of the lower container can be seen abutting the shoulder 2311 of the cap receiving recess which forms part of the slot 321 in the upper container. The shoulder 2311 prevents further sliding of the protrusion in the slot in the direction towards the right of the Figure.

Fig. 9 is a schematic cross section of a third embodiment of the present invention. This figure shows the upper and lower containers 2,3 assembled together. The upper container 2 includes a neck portion 221 which is sealed by a push-fit cap 222.

The neck portion is attached to the cylindrical body portion 21 which is closed at its lower end by a base portion having a generally annular shoulder portion 232 facing downwards and a recess 231 extending up into the body 21 defined by side walls 235. The side walls 235 incorporate a screw thread for engaging a corresponding screw thread formed on the neck of the lower container.

The lower container 3 includes a generally cylindrical housing 31 sealed at a lower end by a base portion 33 and closed at the top by a top portion incorporating a generally annular shoulder portion 323 from which a neck 321 extends upwards and is sealed by a push fit cap 322. The outer surface of the neck 321 includes a screw thread 3215 for screw engagement with the thread in the threaded recess in the upper container as described above. When the lower container is fully screwed into the base of the upper container the above-mentioned annular shoulder portions 232,323 abut one another and the end portion of the recess 231E abuts the cap 322 of the lower container, keeping it in place.

Fig. 10 is a schematic side view of part of a fourth embodiment, showing the means by which the lower container is ready to be secured to the upper container. The bodies 21 and 31 of the upper and lower containers are again generally cylindrical, but rather than being terminated at right angles to the longitudinal access of the cylinder are terminated obligely. Thus, the base portion of the upper container 2 and the top portion of the lower container 3 comprise generally annular shoulder portions 232, 323 which are arranged at an angle other than 90'to the longitudinal access of the cylinder. The upper and lower containers fit together by inserting a generally cylindrical neck 321 of the lower container into a correspondingly shaped recess 231 in the base of the upper container. The recess 231 is dimensioned so that the neck 231 is an interference fit inside it.

Both containers are manufactured in plastic, and the resilience of the material together with the interference fit ensures that once the two containers are assembled together in this fashion a force must be applied to separate them.

Claims

CLAIMS : 1. A composite drinks bottle for separately containing a concentrate and a drink made by diluting the concentrate, the composite bottle including a composite body having a length and a cross section of substantially uniform shape along said length, and comprising: an upper container for storing the drink; and a lower container, separable from the upper container, for storing the concentrate, the upper and lower containers each comprising a respective body portion, the body portions of the upper and lower containers having substantially the same said cross sectional shape, and each being adapted to permit arrangement of the lower container in a first position with respect to the upper container such that the body portions of the upper and lower containers are adjacent each other and axially aligned to form said composite body, the bottle further comprising means for releasably securing the lower container to the upper container in said first position.
2. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with claim 1, wherein said shape is selected from the list: circular; elliptical; oval; triangular; rectangular; square; pentagonal; hexagonal; heptagonal; octagonal; nonagonal; decagonal.
3. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the cross section of the composite body is of substantially constant size along said length.
4. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any preceding claim, wherein the composite body is

substantially a right circular cylinder.
5. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any preceding claim, wherein the upper container comprises a base portion which seals a lower end of its body portion, and the lower container comprises a top portion which is adapted to seal a top end of its body portion, the bottom and top portions being adapted for screw or sliding engagement with each other to provide said releasable securing.
6. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any preceding claim, wherein the lower container comprises a top portion adapted to seal an upper end of its body portion, the top portion comprising a neck having a mouth, and a removable cap for sealing the mouth, and the upper container comprises a base portion sealing a lower end of its body portion, the base portion being adapted to form a recess inside the upper container's body, said recess accommodating said neck and cap when the lower container is in said first position.
7. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with claim 6, wherein said neck extends from the lower container's body portion.
8. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with claim 6 or claim 7 wherein said neck is adapted to lock into said recess to releasably secure the lower container to the upper container in said first position.
9. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein said base portion comprises a first formation and said top portion

comprises a second formation, said first and second formations being arranged to releasably lock together when the lower container is in said first position to releasably secure the lower container to the upper container.
10. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with claim 9 as dependent on any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein said first formation is provided on a surface of the base portion which bounds said recess and said second formation is provided on said neck.
11. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any one of claims 6 to 10, wherein said neck comprises an external screw thread and said recess comprises a corresponding screw thread, whereby the lower container is secured to the upper container by screwing the threaded neck into the threaded recess.
12. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any one of claims 5 to 10, wherein said base portion comprises a slot and said top portion comprises a correspondingly formed protrusion, the protrusion being slidable in said slot to bring the lower container into said first position.
13. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with claim 12 wherein said slot extends across the body portion of the upper container, is open at at least one end, and narrows in a direction axially downwards relative to the body portion of the upper container, the protrusion being slidably insertable into the slot from said at least one end and being formed such that once so inserted separation of the upper and lower containers in the axial direction is inhibited.
14. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with

claim 13 wherein the slot and protrusion are arranged to form a dovetail joint between the upper and lower containers.
15. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with claim 13 or claim 14, wherein said protrusion has a Tshaped cross section and said slot is correspondingly formed.
16. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any one of claims 12 to 15, wherein said protrusion forms at least part of said neck, and said slot forms at least part of said recess.
17. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with claim 16 wherein said slot is open at both ends and the portion of the base portion which bounds said recess comprises a shoulder portion against which the cap abuts when the lower container is in the first position to inhibit further sliding of the protrusion along-the slot.
18. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any one of claims 5 to 17 wherein the body portion and base portion of the upper container are integral, being provided by a single moulding or casting, and the body portion and top portion, except for the cap, of the lower container are integral, being provided by a second single moulding or casting.
19. A composite drinks bottle in accordance with any preceding claim, wherein the body portion of. the upper and lower containers are right circular cylinders.
20. A composite drinks bottle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.