GB2342279A - Drinking vessels - Google Patents

Abstract

A drinking vessel in the form of a plastics tumbler 2 is provided with a base 4 having an externally convex surface to ensure drainage therefrom when the tumbler is inverted following washing. The base is provided with projections formed by a concentric circular rib 14 to ensure that the base can rest in a stable manner on a flat surface when upright. The rib 14 is provided with a series of gaps or interruptions 16 which define drainage channels through which water can drain when running off the convex base. Such vessels can be stacked in a nested arrangement, Figure 3.

Description

DRINKING VESSELS The present invention relates to drinking vessels.

Tumblers of glass or plastics have been long used for the purpose of drinking cold drinks such as water, soft drinks, beer or other beverages.

With the advent of dishwashers, such tumblers have been placed in an inverted attitude on a rack for washing and draining. The problem with this arrangement is that because the base of such tumblers must sit in a stable manner when upright on a flat surface, the base is made concave (when viewed externally). The result is that when inverted, and following washing, the concave base collects a puddle of water. The tumbler is thus not completely dry when removed from the dishwasher and the collected water is dislodged and splashed which may cause considerable inconvenience.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved drinking vessel.

According to the present invention there is provided a drinking vessel comprising a container having a peripheral wall, a base at one end and an open mouth at the other end, the outer surface of the base being convex and being provided with projections which allow the base to be supported in a stable manner on a flat surface.

A drinking vessel embodying the present invention, will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through the vessel; Figure 2 is an underneath view of the vessel of Figure 1; and Figure 3 is a front elevation of a plurality of vessels in a stacked array.

The tumbler 2 shown in Figures 1 and 2 is generally cylindrical with a circular base 4 and a circular mouth 6.

The tumbler 2 is of plastics but can be of other materials such as glass.

The cylindrical wall 8 of the tumbler 2 has a progressively increasing diameter from the base 4 towards the mouth 6 with an intermediate section increasing at a greater rate to define a shoulder 10. The wall 8 at the mouth 6 is enlarged to define an outwardly directed lip 12.

The external surface of the base 4 is generally convex and supports an interrupted circular rib 14 concentric with the base. The height of the rib 14 extends above the peak point of the base (when the tumbler is inverted) so that when the tumbler is stood in an upright manner on a flat surface, the base is held above the flat surface. This ensures that the tumbler will sit in a stable manner on the flat surface.

When inverted, any water collecting on the outer surface of the base will, because the base is convex, flow off the base and through the gaps 16 in the interrupted rib.

Although six gaps 14 are shown, there can be as few as three. The gaps collectively define at least 10% of the perimeter defined by the interrupted rim but preferably at least 20% to ensure good drainage channels from the outer surface of the base. The interrupted rib 14 lies substantially adjacent the outer perimeter of the base 4.

Because the cylindrical wall 8 of the tumbler is divergent, this allows a plurality of tumblers to be stacked on one another (see Figure 3). However, in order to ensure that the tumblers do not jam into one another, the inner diameter of the lip 12 is made to lie within the range of the outer diameter of the shoulder 10 so that the lip 12 of each tumbler will support on the outer surface of the shoulder of the tumbler above to make a line contact therewith.

In a modification, the outer surface of the shoulder is provided with a circular array of parallel grooves (not shown) to provide a series of drainage/ventilation channels along the line of contact between adjacent stacked tumblers. This allows a stack of washed (but not dried) tumblers to drain and drip when placed in an inverted attitude on a flat surface. The same effect can be produced by providing grooves on the inner surface of the lip or by making one of the shoulders or lips to have a slight undulating perimeter along the line of contact with an adjacent stacked tumbler.

Claims (11)

1. CLAIMS 1. A drinking vessel comprising a container having a peripheral wall, a base at one end and an open mouth at the other end, the outer surface of the base being convex and being provided with projections which allow the base to be supported in a stable manner on a flat surface.
2. 2. A vessel according to Claim 1, wherein the base is generally circular and the projections are defined by an interrupted circular rib.
3. 3. A vessel according to Claim 2, wherein the interrupted rib lies substantially adjacent the outer perimeter of the base.
4. 4. A vessel according to Claim 2 or to Claim 3, wherein the rib has at least three equiangularly spaced gaps defining interruptions in the rib.
5. 5. A vessel according to Claim 4, wherein the gaps define at least 10% of the circumference of the rib.
6. 6. A vessel according to Claim 4, wherein the gaps define at least 20% of the circumference of the rib.
7. 7. A vessel according to any preceding claim, wherein the peripheral wall is generally cylindrical but progressively increases in diameter with distance from the base.
8. 8. A vessel according to Claim 7, wherein an intermediate portion of the wall between the base and the mouth increases in diameter at a greater rate than the remainder to define a shoulder.
9. 9. A vessel according to Claim 8, wherein the mouth of the container has an enlarged radially outwardly directed lip, the inner diameter of the lip lying in the range of the outer diameter of the shoulder to define line contact with a similar vessel when stacked therewith.
10. 10. A vessel according to Claim 9, wherein one of said internal surface of said lip and said external surface of said shoulder is profile to provide an interrupted line of contact with an adjacent stacked vessel.
11. 11. A drinking vessel substantially as hereinbefore described, with reference to the accompanying drawings.