GB2349066A - Ground-engaging support for bottle - Google Patents

Abstract

A stand for a bottle is made of plastic-coated metal rod having an elongate lower end 8 sufficiently pointed for insertion in the ground. An upper collar (eg open ring) part 5, 14 or 19 receives a bottle as it rests on a hook-shaped lower part 4 or 18, both these parts being integral with (Figure 1) or attached to (Figure 3) the stem of the stand. Alternatively, where the bottle is to be held close to the ground, the lower part can instead be another collar 15. The plastic coating may be plastic paint of a colour selected from a range to indicate the nature of the drink in a bottle. For extra support, a number of additional spikes (21, Figure 5) can extend from the lower part of the stand into the ground or a rigid base block (25, Figure 5) with through-holes (26) for the stems of respective stands can be placed on the ground.

Description

PORTABLE'WINE-BOTTLE STEMS'FOR OUTDOOR USE AT GARDEN PARTIES, PICNICS, OPEN-AIR SPORTING/THEATRE/MUSICAL EVENTS This invention relates to devices that may be stuck into grass, soil or sand, to provide an upright stand capable of supporting a bottle at a convenient height for people sitting on the ground or using a deck-chair or lying down sunbathing.

Typically the bottles will be champagne or wine type, but the devices also cater for liqueur/spirits bottles and beer containers.

For parties going on a picnic, folding chairs and a blanket or groundsheet are the usual accessories. Although seated comfortably enough, containers and glasses of drinks are easily knocked over, particularly when children are running about and the bottles and glasses are not highly visible, being at ground level. It can be extremely annoying when anyone, adult or child, knocks over a bottle of expensive alcohol. Being short of beverage prematurely can ruin an event for the host. Also, the aggravation of having wine stains on clothing is stressful. In the event the party are using fold-up chairs it is often the case that reaching to the ground for the glass or bottle is done from a quite inconvenient position. In the case of seated individuals, drink containers and glasses both need to be at convenient hand height, without having to lever oneself out of the chair. At this height it is equally easy to return the containers to their original position. Conversely, individuals who are lying or sitting on the ground, need the drink containers at their arm height (not for convenience of reaching), since at this height containers are very conspicuous and unlikely to be disturbed accidentally. People moving about cannot miss seeing them, they are at eye-level for children anyway.

With increasing leisure time available to people, it is becoming part of life to attend outdoor functions, picnics and barbecues never go out of fashion, garden parties are no longer only an upper class event, spectator sports such as golf, motor-racing and horse-racing attract large crowds.

Recently outdoor operatic performances draw huge numbers.

Not to mention the sunday bandstand, rock concerts, beach parties and seaside activities. It is evident that devices providing a greater convenience when drinking at leisure outdoors are long overdue.

Thus there is a need for rods that stick into the ground, which have rings and supports at suitable heights on them, such that bottles of different types or glasses of several types can be positioned at a convenient height for visibility and usage. and some simple way of reminding one which container contains which kind of alcohol. Naturally the devices must be lightweight for carrying from the vehicle, and a carrying case is a requirement. The width of family car trunks/boots would limit the length of rods. since no product for this purpose is available on the market it is necessary to have a descriptive term for them, the term'Wine-Bottle Stems', is deemed appropriate and is used from here on, mainly as stems or bottle-stems.

According to the present invention there is provided a set of metal stems with pointed lower ends, for ease of sticking into the ground, the entire stem being plastic coated for a smooth finish and ease of cleaning. Each stem has one or more attachments at a suitable height, to permit a range of bottles to be held in place on the stem, loosely but secure.

There are refinements permitting different means of sticking into the grass/soil/sand, and for extending length in certain cases. A lightweight container into which the set of stems fit easily is a necessary safety measure, and the carrier length must easily fit into boots/trunks of family cars. Individual stems may be colour coded for instant association with white versus red wine, champagne, cider, beer and such. Each stem has only one item to support.

A specific representation of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:- Figure 1 illustrates the basic stem designs for a bottle support.

Figure 2 illustrates bottle-stems with two common types of bottle in position on the supports.

Figure 3 indicates a variety of alternative attachments to provide supports for bottles.

Figure 4 illustrates the different methods of making a bottle-stem, by either shaping a metal rod or welding on the upper ring. Diagrams represent views of a stem made by either method, from above and the side.

Figure 5 illustrates alternative means of securing the stems to the ground and providing additional base support.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 illustrates a single example of a bottle stem 1, stuck into the soil 7, the ground level 6 is indicated and parts of the stems below ground shown 8. Each stem utilises a metal rod which is plastic coated throughout. The bottle-stem is shaped such that the top of a U-bend 3 provides a base for the bottle to rest on and the distance 4 between this support and the higher upright section of the rod 2 is intended to allow for the width of bottles likely to be in the support frame.

Finally at the top of the vertical part of the bottle-stem 2 is a circular metal ring 5.

Figure 2 contains two illustrations of bottle stems 1 in use with different common bottle shapes, such as a champagne bottle 9 having a bottom with a hollow 10 in which the support 3 position provides firm support. The other example depicts a more common wine or spirits bottle shape 11 which although having a flat bottom 12 is nevertheless given secure support. In the case of the champagne bottle there is a relatively upright seating with little sideways movement.

In the case of the thinner common wine bottle there is some sideways movement, thus the bottle is shown slanting but still unable to slide through any of the gaps. In both cases the bottles are merely dropped into the cradle provided by the ring and the support rod curve beneath.

Figure 3 depicts several alternative approaches to controlling the exact height of supports on the stems.

In some cases such as adults sunbathing on a beach without fear of children racing about, a bottle-stem 13 has two supports 14 and 15, both being circular rings, the lower and larger ring being attached to the rod at the level anticipated as ground level or just above, the higher and smaller ring needs to be only further above enough to permit pushing the bottle neck up through it and then lowering it into the base support. The basic stem design involves the rings welded onto the stem, however it is also feasible to have the ring-clamps adjustable in height since the bar clamps 16 may be moved and then locked with the screws 17.

Another variant is a bottle-stem 13 in which the lower support 18 and the circular ring 19 are not integral with the rod, i. e., welded on, but are detachable type with a movable clamp device 16 that enables the support to slide up and down the stem to a suitable position and the screw 17 tightened to lock it into position, such clamp devices being common in laboratories.

Figure 4 illustrates the simple differences between a bottle-stem formed by welding on the top circle (as in A), and creating the circle purely by metal-shaping techniques (as in B). Appearance is almost identical from both perspectives, the locations 29 and 30 emphasizing the different construction but practical similarity.

Referring to Figure 5, illustrations of alternative designs for achieving more secure attachment of a stem to the ground/soil/sand. In this figure the bottle supports are not shown, but would be present. A stem 20 for bottles may need extra fixtures to guarantee a firm vertical position in soft ground or sand, a series of spikes 21 are attached to the main rod 20 near the bottom and are able to move away from the stem within the constraints of a lock 22, the attached spikes are not as long as the underground portion of the main stem 23. Upon plunging the stem into the soft ground the spikes are pushed sideways at first but then take a semi-vertical support position once the stop comes into play. The multiple points of contact and deeper positioned main-stem gives better support in sandy or beach conditions than a basic stem alone.

In the second example in Figure 5, a number of stems 24 are shown attached to a block of wood 25 (or heavy-duty plastic) sitting on the ground. The block may be a rectangular, square or circular, block of suitable weight, drilled such that the stems 24 pass through the holes 26 with a tight fit but are able to penetrate the ground as far as necessary.

The combination of the heavy base and ground penetration 27 make for very firm and vertical positioning. However, a block 28 may be built to hold one unit, a bottle-stem.

Considering the basic design for a bottle-stem as portrayed in Figures 1 and 2, although the dimensions are not to scale, there are many dimensional ratios and factors that determine whether the device is practical or not.

The rod itself is made of metal, iron, steel or alloy, and is coated with plastic paint, including the portion inserted into the ground. The plastic coat makes it easy to clean, safer to handle, prevents rusting and is weatherproof (so the stems could be left in one's lawn permanently). An additional benefit of the plastic coating is that when a glass or bottle is dropped into the support rather carelessly there is far less chance of breakage with the plastic coating than there would be with glass meeting bare metal roughly. Rod of 5mm diameter is sufficiently strong, the plastic coating is 0. 5mm thick, making a final diameter of 6mm. The part of the rod intended to be sunk into the ground is at least 100mm long, preferably 125mm or more.

This section (also coated) may be tapered at the bottom but works well enough without a point anyway. In the basic design for bottle-stems and glass-stems the attachments and supports are all welded on or achieved by shaping the rod.

Concerning the basic bottle-stem particularly, total length from top to bottom (including the below ground rod) is 500mm. The rod should be inserted 100-125mm deep into the ground, which results in about 300mm height of the rod from the ground to the top of the U-bend support for bottle bottoms. The distance from the top of the U-bend horizontally to the inside wall of the rod is 45-46mm.

Distance from the top ring-support to the low point of the U-bend, on the upper portion of the rod is 102mm. The inner diameter of the ring-support is 92mm. As depicted earlier a typical champagne bottle with a maximum diameter of 85-90mm fits snugly into this diameter ring and the hollowed base of the bottle (recessed 25mm or more) seats firmly on the rod support centrally. However, a typical wine bottle may be only 75-80mm diameter and have a straight bottom or only mild recess of 5mm or so. Given the 10-15mm difference between ring and bottle diameters there is some lateral movement and the bottle is tilted slightly. But with the dimensions quoted for the height of the'cradle', in which the bottle sits, there is no possibility of the bottle sliding out of the gap next to the supportive bend in the rod.

It is envisaged that the individual bottle stems would be coated with plastic paint of different colours such that champagne, red-wine, white-wine stems would have obvious representative colours of coating.

The detachable ring supports and other devices shown in Figure 5 involve a single metal locking device with two parts, one can slide up and down the vertical rod, whilst the other at 90 degrees to the column can lock in place a ring-support or other clamp device, such that the distance of the clamp-support ring from the vertical rod may be varied. When both height on the rod and length of horizontal extension of ring or attachment are fixed, the screws are tightened and the fitting is then secured in both directions.

The benefits of this flexible system are self-evident.

The heavy weighted base shown in part of Figure 5 is most relevant for use as a master base for several bottle or wine-stems simultaneously, although as mentioned in the case of the light extension system referred to it could easily be a small block for a single stem. A block of wood 500mm x 200mm x 35mm works well as a master base, with individual stem-holes of 7mm diameter drilled 100mm apart. A stem fits closely in a drilled hole but not so as to impede efforts to penetrate the ground with the rod through the base. But if desired the block-stand can be used on patios/balconies and man-made surfaces, rather than in earth/soil/grass. Height of the block gives sufficient support without stems entering the ground.

All systems described will fit the boot/trunk storage areas of most family cars.

Claims (15)

1. CLAIMS 1. A bottle-support stem consisting of a plastic-coated metal rod, with a pointed base, provides an upright stand when inserted into soil or sand, and which includes two fixed or adjustable attachments such that wine or champagne bottles, and certain beer/cider bottles, may be positioned on the stem at a convenient height above the ground, by lowering the bottle down through the upper support-ring until the bottle's base is blocked by the lower curved hook device, the bottle is held in place by the frame made by these stem attachments, reversing this positioning process releases the bottle from the frame when needed, the entire mechanism being designed for use when drinking outdoors as at a beach or garden party.
2. 2. A bottle-stem as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plastic coat on the metal stem is colour-coded so as to indicate immediately what type of drink is located on that stem, typically coding would be for wine, champagne, cider, or beer.
3. 3. A bottle-support stem as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, but wherein the ring attachments are located much lower on the stem, such that the bottle is at or close to ground level but loosely held in position, the upper bottle support ring is simply attached lower down the stem, but the lowest attachment may be of the hook type as in claim 1 or may alternatively be a large circular support ring with an adjustable connection to the stem such that the ring may lie directly on top of the soil/sand, this ring has to be wide enough to enclose the base of the bottle, this alternative design being of value when only adults are present, sunbathing or at rest and ground level height of bottles is more convenient, and when visibility of the bottle-support stem is not a major consideration.
4. 4. A bottle-support stem as described in claims 1-3, wherein additional attachments are needed to provide adequate support for the stem to remain upright, when in very soft or wet earth, a series of extra metal spikes attached to a fixed or adjustable metal band near the base of the stem, lying flat along the stem for transportation and storage, can be forced to radiate outwards when the stem is inserted into soil/sand, these spikes radiating outwards in umbrella fashion create extra support since the weight of containers held forces the spikes deeper into the earth.
5. 5. A bottle-holder for wine bottles comprising a single piece of material shaped to provide: an elongate section having a first end for insertion into the ground ; a bottom-engaging section extending sideways from a second end of the elongate section; a side section extending from the bottom-engaging section; and an open ring section extending from the side section.
6. 6. A bottle-holder as claimed in claim 5, wherein the bottom-engaging section is spaced from the plane of the open ring section by between 55 mm and 90 mm.
7. 7. A bottle-holder as claimed in claim 6, wherein the bottom-engaging section is spaced from the plane of the open ring section by substantially 70 mm.
8. 8. A bottle-holder as claimed in any one of the claims 5 to 7, wherein the bottom engaging section forms an angle with the elongate section of between 45 and 80 .
9. 9. A bottle-holder as claimed in any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the diameter of the open ring section is substantially 92 mm.
10. 10. A bottle-holder as claimed in any one of claims 5 to 9, wherein the first end of the elongate section is provided with a point.
11. 11. A bottle-holder as claimed in any one of claims 5 to 10, wherein the material from which it is shaped comprises metal wire.
12. 12. A bottle-holder as claimed in any one of claims 5 to 10, wherein the metal wire has a diameter of between 4 mm and 8 mm.
13. 13. A bottle-holder as claimed in any one of claims 5 to 12, wherein the holder is plastics coated.
14. 14. A bottle-holder as claimed in any one of claims 5 to 13, wherein the open ring section is provided with a gap of between substantially 0 and 50 mm.
15. 15. A bottle holder substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.