AU647042B2 - Name tag - Google Patents

Description

647042 COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA FORM PATENTS ACT 1952 CO M P TL T R RPF. TFT r A T T O FOR OFFICE USE: Class Int.Class Application Number: Lodged: Complete Specification Lodged: Accepted: Published: SPriority: 'Related Art: ,e :Nume of Applicant: Address of Applicant: PATRICIA MARY BROWN 7 THOMAS STREET COOGEE N.S.W. 2034 PATRICIA MARY BROWN 7 THOMAS STREET COOGEE N.S.W. 2034 .Actual Inventor: Address for Service: SHELSTON WATERS, 55 Clarence Street, Sydney -Complete Specification for the Invention entitled: S"NAME

TAG"

The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us:- (Complete of PJ6409 dated 18th September, 1989) 1 41793i 170 9 90'0 This invention relates to name tags such as are used to identify people attending a social function.

It is known to provide persons attending a social function with a label bearing their name and adapted to be secured to the person's clothing by clip, pin or self-adhesive means.

It is also well-known to provide drinking vessels with a distinctive surface decoration to aid in distinguishing one from another, or to provide swizzle sticks in various patterns to identify the content of a drinking vessel.

An object of the present invention is to provide means suitable for use in identifying a person and/oer a drinking vessel and/or for use in associating a s7ecifil 15 drinking vessel with a specific individual.

According to one aspect, the present invention consists in a drinking vessel having a stem and a base in combination with a removable ring adapted to encircle more than half of the circumference of the stem and to be 0 6 20 retained upon the base.

Desirably the ring substantially surrounds the stem. The ring preferably is of paper or cardboard and has a surface on which a person's name can be written.

According to a second aspect, the invention consists in, a ring adapted at least partially to encircle the stem of a drinking vessel and comprising a generally annular disk defining a radially inner edge and a radially outer edge, the inner edge being of a radial dimension greater than that of the stem and less than -2that of the base of the vessel and having a passage extending from the inner to the outer edge whereby the disk is resiliently deformable for encirclement or removal from the vessel stem and wherein said disk has a top face which is adapted to have indicia thereon.

The invention will now be more particularly described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein: Figure 1 is a plan view of a first embodiment of the invention; Figure 2 shows the embodiment of Figure 1 in section when viewed on line 2 2 of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a schematic illustration showing the embodiment of Figures I and 2 in uFc with a wine glass in "i 15 elevation; Figure 4 shows a section taken on line 4 4 of Figure 3 and having the word "David" added to ring 4.

With reference to Figure 3 and 4 there is shown a wine glass comprising a receptacle portion 1, a stem 20 portion 2 and a base portion 3. The glass illustrated has an axially directed elongate stem and a radially extending base.

The glass of Figures 3 and 4 is provided with a removable ring 4 which is of cardboard construction.

As most clearly shown in Figures 1 and 2, ring 4 is an annular disk having a radially inner circular edge 5, a radially outer circular edge 6 and a slit 7 extending from the inner edge to the outer edge. Slit 7 extends at an angle to the radial direction and defines ring ends 8, 9.

3 The cardboard of the ring is of sufficient thickness for the ring to be stiff or at least self-supporting and of sufficient thinness to be resiliently deformable by twisting the disk so that one or both of end edges 8, 9 may be moved out of the disk plane. In the present example, the cardboard has a thickness of approximately 0.25 mm.

The radially inner edge 5 is selected to be of greater diameter than a typical glass stem and to be of smaller diameter than a typical glass base so that the ring can be attached to a stem but retained by the base.

The outer edge 6 has a diameter which for preference g*e is less than the diameter of a glass base, so as not to prevent a glass from being held in comfort.

In the present example, the inner edge has a diameter 0* a of 20mm and the outer circumference has a diameter of ;r 650mm.

Flat surface 10 of ring 4 is adapted to be written upon by means of a pen and preferably by means of a 20 waterproof ink pen so that the name of a person may be s indicated thereupon. For this purpose a sized or non-porous board is preferred.

One or both flat surfaces of ring 4 may be decorated with motifs indicating an occasion such as a Christmas motif, a wedding motif or a 21st birthday motif or the like.

In use, the disk of Figure 2 is resiliently deformed so that stem 2 of the glass passes through the gap between 4 ends 8, 9 of the ring. The disk then recovers its flat form and losely encircles the glass stem, being retained upon the base.

A name written on flat surface 10 is easily legible by a person standing adjacent another holding the glass or is visible when the glass is set upon a table in which case the ring may function as a place card.

Moreover, the disk not only identifies a person, but identifies that person's glass. Glasses can thus be e** "D safely refilled and the time spent in washing glasses at a social function can be reduced. Moreover, the fact that each person at a function can be assured of using his or hTe glass exclusively reduces the risk of contracting diseases, especially saliva-transmitted diseases such as Hepatitis.

It will be understood that apparatus according to the invention need not be made of cardboard but could be made of celluloid or plastics or plastics coated cardboard or from other materials. However, paper and desirably 20 recycled paper, are preferred as an inexpensive, e S light-weight and natural material.

S

Although the article has been described for use with drinking glasses it will be understood that the vessel may be of other material, for example pewter and may have a long or short stem and may be of any suitable shape. The outer edge 6 of ring 4 need not be circular but could, for example, be polygonal. Likewise, the inner edge need not be circular. Ring 4 need not encircle the stem and it 5 would be sufficient for retention of the ring that the ring encircle at least half the circumference of the stem. Complete encirclement is preferred for adequate retention in use. It is not essential that the disk be deformable, and a disc which engaged the stem in the manner of a "circlip" could also be employed within the scope of the inventive concept.

Although it is preferred that the surface of the disk be adapted for accepting waterproof inks, the ring could include an absorbent layer for absorbing condensation or other drips.

0 Embodiments of the invention in forms and/or of materials other than those herein described are deemed to fall within the scope of the invention.

6

Claims (11)

1. A drinking vessel having a stem and a base in combination with a removable ring adapted to encircle more than half of the circumference cf the stem and to be retained upon the base.

2. The combination according to claim 1 wherein said ring substantially surrounds the stem.

3. The combination according to claim 1 or 2 wherein said ring has a top face which is adapted to have indicia thereon.

4. The combination according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the ring has a polygonal outer edge. i:*i

5. The combination according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the ring has a polygonal inner 15 edge.

6. A ring adapted at least partially to encircle the stem of a drinking vessel and comprising a generally annular disk defining a radially inner edge and a radially outer edge, the inner edge being of a radial dimension greater than that of the stem and less than a that of the base of the vessel and having a passage extending from the inner to the outer edge whereby the disk is resiliently deformable for encirclement or removal from the vessel stem and wherein said disk has a top face which is adapted to have indicia thereon.

7. A ring according to claim 6 wherein said disk is constructed from sized or non-porous board. 7

8. A ring according to claim 6 wherein said disk is constructed from plastics material.

9. A ring according to any one of claims 6 to 8 wherein said annular disk is deformable in one plane only.

10. A ring according to claim 6, substantially as hereinbefore descriLbed with reference to the accompanying drawings.

11. A drinking vessel in combination with a ring substantially as herein described with reference to Figure 3 of the accompanying drawings, DATED this 10th day of December 1993 PATRICIA MARY BROWN *Soo** Attorney: IAN T. ERNST Fellow Institute of Patent Attorneys of Australia of SHELSTON WATERS -8- o o *e e ft o *O