EP1338225A1

EP1338225A1 - Method and product for the identification of drinking glasses or containers used to contain beverages or foodstuff for human consumption

Info

Publication number: EP1338225A1
Application number: EP02028366A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Dino Moschini; Francesco Moschini
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2001-12-24
Filing date: 2002-12-18
Publication date: 2003-08-27
Also published as: ITTV20010171A1

Abstract

Method and consequent product for the identification of drinking glasses or more in general containers or cutlery, particularly one-time usage type, used to contain or to come into contact with beverages or foodstuffs for human consumption, and that once used by a person and, for example, come into contact with parts of the body, in particular lips, it is necessary or at least appropriate that they are not confused and used by other persons.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention regards the field of the containers / recipients / appliances used for containing liquid or solid foodstuffs destined to human consumption, it regards especially one-time usage containers and cutlery, i.e. fabricated with very cheap materials, such as the plastic substances, for example polyethylene, by pressing or forming.

STATE OF THE ART AND RELATIVE PROBLEMS

It is common that such containers / recipients / appliances (typically drinking glasses, plates and cutlery) are fabricated in either transparent, white, coloured or decorated plastic material, but all having the characteristic of not being distinguishable one from the other, at least when belonging to the same lot or to the same sale packing. Generally, due to the really low cost and due to the permitted use as "one-time usage", such containers (drinking glasses and plates particularly) and appliances (cutlery particularly) are sold in packages containing several pieces, by hundreds, and in the same packages are all identical as shape, dimension and colour and therefore are not identifiable or recognisable one from the other.
Nowadays the problem is known, frequently that during "parties", especially when the guests do not have a fixed position, the need to move with difficulty or retaining with difficulty or anyhow survey with difficulty the position of foodstuffs containers or cutlery, particularly or at least the location of the drinking glass, to avoid that others use the same or, even if the use by others does not occur, to be sure of always re-using the same container or appliances and to be sure that others have not used the same. Reciprocally it is also important to avoid the embarrassment of having used the container belonging to other guests inadvertently.
Another problem, relative to the state of the art, is that, other than the embarrassing situation caused by the confusion of containers or of appliances in general or of drinking glasses in particular, almost always, to avoid the embarrassment of the confusion which has already occurred or to eliminate the doubt of the confusion, the remedy is that one of the substitution of the container or of the appliances or of the drinking glass which have already been used or only suspiciously used with a new container or appliances or drinking glass. This remedy involves waste.
Another problem, relative to the state of the art, is that together with the discarded container or tool or drinking glass also the contents is discarded, with the consequence of further waste.
Another problem, relative to the state of the art, is that throwing away the drinking glass and the contents the waste production is increased, and this aspect is particularly heavy both on the economy and for the environment to which nowadays a lot of sensitiveness and efforts are dedicated.
The search of the state of the art in the specified field has disclosed the only invention WO8805586 with application dated 22.01.1988 which has Italian priority dated 23.01.1987, applicant and inventor Falchi Ennio of Italian nationality. Such invention deals with the same problem but solves it inventing a product completely different from the object of the present invention and anyhow of poor practical applicability or anyhow poor applicability in the most number of situations of the everyday life. The solution in fact, even if in itself inventive, applies the use of an accessory to be set to the container with the following disadvantages: need that such accessory is hygienically cleaned as one of its parts concerns the inside of the container and therefore, even if indirectly the foodstuffs; modification of the simple design of the container, compromising the handling and the stability when the container is fabricated with light material; an additional cost not to be neglected if compared with that of the container, cost that, in the case of the drinking glass in plastic material is several times higher than the cost of the same container; managing of an additional accessory (particularly uncomfortable if the accessory is not a one-time usage type).
The search of the state of the art in similar fields or in contiguous fields did not disclose similar inventions, excluding the external field of the packing, where the use is known of various types of markings to identify the envelope and/or the contained product, these types of marking being carried out with one or more of the following methods: ink jet printing, stamping, punching, labelling, etc.. Such methods do not teach anything on the solution of identifying the containers equal to each other, particularly containers or cutlery or drinking glasses employed in contact with foodstuffs and with parts of the body, immediately before their use, by the same users.
The main task of the object of this application is therefore that of solving the displayed technical problems, eliminating the disadvantages of the mentioned state of the art and then contriving a method and a product able to avoid the confusion of the containers or of the appliances that may be confused between them, particularly of the drinking glasses equal to each other.
An equally important task is that one of carrying out the invention in a simple and therefore cheap manner in order to gain a vast diffusion of the product. As well it is important that, at least in the majority of the solutions, the use of hands or better of fingers is sufficient to activate the identification.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

For a better understanding of the content and the importance of the invention, the requirements of the user have already been described and above all the universality and the up-to-dateness of the matter have been shown, only to illustrate and to explain the validity and the originality of the inventive concept.
Let us now see the content and the way how to obtain such a method and the consequent product, both from the technical point of view as well as industrially and business-wise.
The field of interest is above all the field of the plastic injection moulding of containers or appliances (for example drinking glasses, trays, small basins, plates, cutlery, etc.) but particularly of drinking glasses.
The most used material is required to have characteristics for human contact (foodstuffs containers), a low cost as raw material, therefore the most used material is alimentary polyethylene, without excluding the use of equivalent materials, for example aluminium; a low transforming cost, typical of the extrusion materials or the injection moulding materials as in the case of thermoplastic materials.
The inventive step simple but important from the innovative point of view, is that one to be able to attribute to the container or to appliances in general and to drinking glasses in particular a versatile identification, that is "adaptable to the person", but using a component or a variant always standard and therefore of low cost. This is obtained providing the same container or appliances in general or drinking glasses in particular with an accessory, incorporated in the same or, in some solution, supplied separately (in this case preferably in multiple array or cumulative array) or using a marker, in such a way to transform the base product from "anonymous" to "attributed to a person, i.e. personalised". The more logic way to personalise the base product is that of selecting, as already placed in the base product in multiple and differentiated array, a letter of the alphabet or a number or a character more in general or another symbol (icon) selectable according to a criteria activated by the user. As anticipated in the abstract it is important that the user have to carry out a simple, useful and fast operation, using preferably only hands or better fingers, without excluding other operations using a simple accessory anyhow comprised in the same inventive step.

WAYS FOR THE EXECUTION OF THE INVENTION

For better understanding of the characteristics of the principle and the ways how to carry out the invention, herewith figures regarding some possible configurations are commented, without excluding all equivalent solutions, that are not drawn to avoid annoying of the essential description of the invention. For convenience and uniform treatment the case of the drinking glass (in certain figures transparent) is mainly represented and one way of implementing of the invention is described.
Naturally the same inventive concept is applicable to other containers or appliances in general or to plates (for which two examples are shown), to small basins, trays, cutlery, etc., in particular.
The FIGURE 1 shows the identification obtained by means of the application of adhesive markers, for example shaped as a ring, (or other marker, for example shaped as a clip) in correspondence with one or more alphanumeric characters.
The FIGURE 2 shows the identification obtained by means of marking with pen of one or more symbolic characters (icons).
The FIGURE 3 shows the identification obtained by means of the abrasion of one or more alphanumeric characters (which therefore change appearance becoming identifiable) or by means of the abrasion of one or more markers located in correspondence of the alphanumeric characters.
The FIGURE 4 shows the identification obtained by means of pressure carried out with the fingers against one or more symbolic characters (icons) which therefore commute their condition of protrusion to the condition of indentation or vice versa.
The FIGURE 5 shows the same solution of the figure 4 but applied to braille® characters so that to carry out a solution for the blind people, much more sensitive to the touch recognition.
The FIGURE 6 shows the identification obtained by means of bending or removal of one or more small flaps, incorporated in the container, corresponding with the alphanumeric or symbolic characters.
The FIGURES 7, 8 and 9 show solutions as above described but carried out not directly on the container but indirectly on a band or on a bottom, set to the container, either fixed or rotating.
The FIGURES 10 and 11 show the identification obtained by means of punching in proximity of or on one or more alphanumeric or symbolic characters.
The FIGURE 12 shows the identification obtained by means of pinching or bending of the material constituent the container or appliances in proximity or coincidence with one or more alphanumeric or symbolic characters, the material memorising such a plastic deformation due to mechanical effect or due to colour change or due to photo-sensitivity.
In all the cases the identification "marking" can regard a combination of characters in such a way to involve a combination of characters so that to constitute a mutual relation, for example, with the user's initials (in the figure 3 abraded letters are initials of Carlo Rossi).
Every identification solution, as per various figures, is applicable both to alphanumeric characters and to symbolic characters (icons). NOTE: in order to be synthetic and to make examples, in various descriptions, products like container, appliances, drinking glass have been mentioned. The more general casuistry might be the following, in order of diffusion and interest for the product's personification: drinking glass, cup, coffee-cup, plate, small basin, tray, cutlery, clothes, etc..
The present invention is susceptible of numerous variants of realization all within the content of the inventive concept, as for example the type of used materials not limited to the typical polyethylene but using for example also the membrane of aluminium, shape and dimension of used characters or symbols, colours of the same, flat or in relief execution, artifices for the blind people or to avoid the use of glasses for presbyopic people, etc.. Last but not last, an important variant is constituted by the solution of attributing to containers (drinking glasses, plates and cutlery in particular) one or more alphanumeric characters or one or more icons different for each container so that to attribute (once the item is selected) a distinctive individuality to each container, which therefore will be associated to a determinate user.
Moreover the field of interest can regard not only the field of foodstuffs containers, even if the main property right is asked in this field, but any field where the problem is that one of identifying a product destined to the personal use (example masks for filtration of breathing air).
As no anteriorities have been found in contiguous fields as that of clothing, at least some claims are applicable also in clothing field. Some claims, even if with less importance, can be applied also to garments when these, if without an easy method for identification, are liable to be confused.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICATION

The method and the product object of this application, if from the practical point of view and with a preliminary evaluation look to request additional operations in comparison with the habit, are really very simple and useful, at least in various solutions here-above described and in those which are equivalent, the same are therefore susceptible of important developments.
This matter involving those aspects like the healthiness even if minor from the physical and physiological point of view but not secondary from the psychological point of view, especially nowadays this matter has such an importance so that a solution, though simple or banal, is destined to have such a diffusion to interest all the world in a capillary as well whole manner.
Moreover, a solution, just as simple and banal, should not have limits on the diffusion as the cost increasing of the base component (container or appliances in general and drinking glass in particular) should be so non-influential so that the innovative product can be offered in the market at the same price of the traditional product or at a lower price, thanks to sale increasing and therefore using production increasing to contain costs (especially when the invention is protected by a patent right).

Claims

Method to identify: drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances, particularly one-time usage type, used to contain (or to come into contact with) beverages or foodstuffs for human consumption; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air; and that once used by a person and, for example, come into contact with lips, it is necessary or at least appropriate that they are not confused or used by other persons characterised by the fact that the identification is achievable out with means that are possible to be carried out by the same user by using only hands or fingers or very simple means.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3], placed with any arrangement regular or irregular, on one or more of them the user being able to place an adhesive marker [4] or a mechanic marker [4] which circumscribe or anyhow mark such characters, so that one or more marked characters obtain the result of the identification.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3], placed with any arrangement regular or irregular, on one or more of them the user being able to mark an identifying mark [5] by means of an ink marker, so that one or more marked characters obtain the result of the identification.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3], placed with any arrangement regular or irregular, so that with an easy abrasion carried out on same characters or on labels [6] placed in proximity of same characters, the abrasion being possible to be activated with the nail or similar means, one or more characters become different from others, due to the lighter or darker contrast or due to the colour's change or different light's reflection / absorption or due to the lining's removal, in such a way to obtain the result of the identification.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3], placed with any arrangement regular or irregular, so that with an easy action of fingers one or more characters commute their condition of protrusion to the condition of indentation or vice versa or anyhow modify its encumbrance so that to obtain the identification.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of braille® characters [7], placed with any arrangement regular or irregular, so that with an easy action of fingers one or more characters commute their condition of protrusion to the condition of indentation or vice versa or anyhow modify their encumbrance so that to obtain the identification specifically for blind people.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3], placed with any arrangement regular or irregular on the visible face of small flaps [8] or in proximity of such small flaps, in such a way that, by bending or by removal of one or more of such small flaps, the relative object is identified.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, are equipped with a small band [9] in plastic material as a film of polyethylene, adherent to the object, on which a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3] are placed with any arrangement regular or irregular and such characters being easily and individually put in evidence with methods described in the previous claims, so that to obtain the identification.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, are equipped with a small revolving band [10] in plastic material as a film of polyethylene, comprising a small window [11] which can be placed in correspondence of the desired character marked on the object under the band [10], so that to obtain the identification.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, are equipped with a small revolving bottom [12] or with a revolving disk [12] comprising a small window [11] or an index which can be placed in correspondence of the desired character marked on the object on which the bottom [12] or the disk [12] interact, so that to obtain the identification.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3], placed with any arrangement regular or irregular, placed in a portion where the beverage / foodstuffs cannot exit in the case of drinking glasses [1] or plates [13], in one or more of which the user can, with the action of a simple punching or indenting tool [14], produce a perforation [15] or an indentation [15], so that to obtain the identification.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3], placed with any arrangement regular or irregular, in one or more of which the user can, with the action of pinching or bending, obtain the identification as such objects are fabricated with materials like low thickness aluminium or colour changing plastic by mechanical action, so that pinching or bending give the evidence [16] of the carried out selection.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, have on a set of alphanumeric characters [2] or symbolic characters [3] or groups of characters assembled in such a way to create names, pre-printed in different arrangement for each container or appliances or clothing (in a random way), so that each object has its individuality and therefore the user can recognise it as own object.
Product corresponding to the method of the claim 1 characterised by the fact that drinking glasses [1]; or more in general containers; or appliances; or clothing; or masks for filtration of breathing air, are each one, even if with the same shape, fabricated in a different colour or a different aspect, so that each container or appliances or clothing has its own individuality and the user can recognise it as own object.