GB2465363A

GB2465363A - A cup with a conduit and a mouthpiece

Info

Publication number: GB2465363A
Application number: GB0820792A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Emma Clark
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2008-11-13
Filing date: 2008-11-13
Publication date: 2010-05-19
Also published as: GB0820792D0

Abstract

A drinking cup comprising a cup body 12 for containing liquid, the cup body having a base 14; a mouthpiece 28; and a conduit 24 arranged between the mouthpiece 28 and an opening 22 proximate the base 14 of the cup body 12 enabling the transfer of liquid from the proximity of the base 14 to the mouthpiece 28. The cup may have a cover 18 and handles 20. Independent claims are also provided for a cup with means for releasably attaching a mouthpiece to the cup and also for a cup with handles provided at an angle to the vertical axis of the upright cup. The invention seeks to provide a cup which is easy to drink from for the young, elderly or disabled.

Description

Drinking CUD This invention relates to a drinking cup. In particular, such a drinking cup may be suitable for infants, i.e. for babies or toddlers, or as a medical or convalescent cup.

There is a wide variety of drinking cups available for infants, which are designed to ease the transition between breastfeeding / bottle feeding and drinking from an adult cup.

Such cups are commonly known as training cups. Such cups are generally provided with means to prevent spillages if the cup is dropped or turned upside down, a spout through which liquid can be sucked or poured, and handles to assist grasping by an infant. A typical training cup 1 is shown in Fig. 1. It can be seen that this cup comprises a cup body 2, which acts to contain liquid. A cover 3 is provided which fits onto the cup body 2, and helps to prevent spillage of the liquid. The cover 3 is provided with a spout 4 through which liquid may be sucked by an infant. The spout 4 may be provided with closure means, not shown, to prevent unwanted egress of liquid from the cup. Handles 5 are typically provided on the cup body 2, The infant is unable to draw liquid from the spout, unless the cup is tipped sufficiently so that liquid enters the spout.

Such training cups suffer from a number of problems. These include: i) In order to obtain the liquid near the bottom of the cup, it is necessary for the infant to tip the cup very far forward -in fact to fully drain the cup it may be necessary to almost tip the cup upside down. This action may be difficult for an infant to perform.

ii) Generally, infants require cups with faster flowrates as they get older. With a typical cup, only one flowrate is possible, dictated by the design of spout aperture, and so it is necessary to replace the cup regularly.

Similar problems exist with medical or convalescent cups, used by, for example, the elderly or disabled, who may not be able to achieve the necessary tipping angle to drink from known cups.

It is an aim of the present invention to provide a drinking cup which addresses these problems.

In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a drinking cup comprising a cup body for containing liquid, the cup body having a base; a mouthpiece; and a conduit arranged between the mouthpiece and an opening proximate the base of the cup body enabling the transfer of liquid from the proximity of the base to the mouthpiece.

In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a drinking cup comprising a cup body for containing liquid and means for releasably attaching a mouthpiece to the cup.

In accordance with a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a mouthpiece adapted for releasable attachment to a cup according to the second aspect.

In accordance with a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided a cup kit comprising the cup according to the second aspect and a mouthpiece according to the third aspect.

In accordance with a fifth aspect of the present invention there is provided a drinking cup comprising a cup body for containing liquid, the cup body having an axis which is substantially vertical when the cup is upright, the cup body further comprising a handle with a section adapted for grasping by a user, wherein the grasping section is provided substantially in a plane at an angle to the cup body axis to facilitate the tipping of the cup by a user grasping the section for drinking.

Other features of the present invention are set out in the accompanying claims.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-Figure 1 schematically shows a cross-sectional view of a known drinking cup for infants; Figure 2 schematically shows a part-sectional view of a drinking cup in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 schematically shows a front view of the drinking cup of Fig. 2; Figure 4a schematically shows a part-sectional view of a drinking cup in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 4b is a sectional view taken along A-A of Fig. 4a; Figure 5 schematically shows a part-sectional view of a drinking cup in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; and Figures 6a and 6b schematically show mouthpieces in accordance with the present invention.

Figs. 2 and 3 schematically show a drinking cup 10 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The cup 10 comprises a cup body 12 which acts as a container for liquid, which may be formed from a plastics material for example. The cup body may be of substantially circular cross-section for example. The cup body has a base 14 on which the cup may rest upright. The cup body has a main axis (not shown) which is substantially vertical when the cup is at rest upright on the base 14. A cover 16 is provided to fit over the mouth of the cup body 12, to prevent unwanted spillage of liquid, and which may be formed from plastics material for example. The cover may be releasably attached to cup body 12 by a frictional fit, screw-connection, or by a snap-fitting connection for example, as is known in the art. Cover 16 includes a small air-hole 18, which enables air to be drawn into the cup as liquid is removed, to prevent a vacuum building up in the cup. The cover 16 also includes a filling aperture 19 through which liquid may be poured into the cup body 12. The filling aperture may optionally include a one-directional valve (not shown) to permit liquid flow into the cup, but prevent liquid egress. In use, the filling aperture 19 may be closed by a closure member (not shown), such as a flexible plastic closure, which may engage with the aperture 19 via a frictional fit or the like. This closure member may also act to close air-hole 18. Handles 20 are provided at diametrically opposite positions on the outside of the cup body 12 to enable a user, such as an infant, to grasp the cup. The form of handle 20 will be described in greater detail below, but is shown as comprising a loop of material, which may be integrally formed with the cup body 12.

The cup body 12 includes an opening 22 in its sidewall proximate the base 14. A conduit 24 taking the form of a cylinder is provided in fluid communication with the interior of the cup body 12 via the opening 22 and extends externally and outwardly from the cup body 12. The distal end of the conduit 24 is provided with means 26 for releasably attaching a mouthpiece 28. The attachment means 26 may comprise, for example, a screw thread for co-operating with a complementary screw thread provided on the mouthpiece 28, or means for enabling a clip fit, so that the mouthpiece 28 may be snap-fitted onto the conduit 24. The mouthpiece 28 is adapted for use in a user's mouth, such that the user may draw liquid from an aperture 30 in the mouthpiece 24 by sucking. The mouthpiece 28 may optionally comprise a valve (not shown) to prevent liquid escaping through the mouthpiece unless negative pressure is applied to the mouthpiece, i.e. by sucking. The form of mouthpiece will be described in more detail below.

The conduit 24 therefore enables the transfer of liquid from the proximity of the base 14 to the mouthpiece 24. A relatively small cup tipping angle will cause any liquid proximate the base to enter the conduit 24 through opening 22 and thus to mouthpiece 28.

This means that the user may draw liquid from the vicinity of the base easily, without having to tip the cup excessively. In addition, the user may more easily suck liquid to the mouthpiece through the conduit.

Handles 20 comprise respective sections adapted for grasping by a user. These may take the form of, for example, loops, lugs or spurs which are provided substantially in a plane at an angle to the cup body axis. As shown in Fig. 2, handles 20 are inclined relative to the main axis of the cup body, such that the upper portions of the handles are positioned at a greater horizontal distance from the mouthpiece 28 than the lower portions during normal use of the cup. This arrangement facilitates the tipping of the cup by a user grasping the sections for drinking.

A second embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown in Figs. 4a and 4b.

For convenience, like components have been given the same reference numerals as in Fig. 2.

In this embodiment, a conduit 34 is provided which is internal to the cup body 32. The outer boundary portion of the conduit is formed by a portion of the cup body wall. The inner boundary portion of the conduit 36 is formed by an inner wall connected to the cup body, as shown more clearly in Fig. 4b. At the lower end of conduit 34 is an opening 38 communicating with the interior of the cup body 32 proximate base 14. Cover 40 includes a projection 42 which co-operates with wall 36, preventing liquid flow therebetween, when the cover 40 is in place. An aperture 44 is provided in cover 40 in the region above conduit 34 for allowing liquid flow theretbrough, Mouthpiece 28 is releasably attached to cover 40 via attachment means 26 provided on the top of cover 40.

With the apparatus of this embodiment, a somewhat greater tipping angle is required than that of the first embodiment to cause liquid to flow to the mouthpiece, however the provision of the conduit facilitates sucking of the liquid up to the mouthpiece.

Furthermore, it benefits from a reduced footprint, since the conduit is internal to the cup body.

A third embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown in Fig. 5. Again, reference numerals have been retained where appropriate. Here, cup body 52 is of a relatively simple form, i.e. a closed cylinder. Conduit 54 is located internal to the cup body 52 in use, and takes the form of a tube with a lower opening 56 that communicates with the interior of cup body 52 proximate base 14. The conduit tube 54 is attached to, and suspended from, cover 58. The attachment between tube 54 and cover 58 may be permanent, for example tube 54 and cover 58 may be integrally formed, or welded together, or alternatively tube 54 may be releasably retained by cover 58, for example by way of a friction fit. In the latter case, it is important that the cover may grip the tube in place so as to guarantee that opening 56 is located correctly proximate base 14. The top of tube 54 is provided with attachment means 26, by which mouthpiece 28 may be attached to the tube 54.

As described above, mouthpiece 28 is releasably attached to the cup. This enables mouthpieces having different, predefined flowrates for liquid therethrough to be used as required, or alternatively for mouthpieces to be replaced without the need to replace the whole cup. Two such mouthpieces 28', 28", having different flowrates, are shown in Figs. 6a and 6b respectively. As shown, differing flowrates are produced by the provision of suitable apertures 30. Mouthpiece 28' includes a number of small apertures 30', which provides a relatively low flowrate. In contrast, mouthpiece 28" includes a single, large aperture 30", which provides a relatively high flowrate. Of course, a suitable choice will enable a wide variety of flowrates to be achieved. In a preferred embodiment, a kit may be provided including a cup and a plurality of mouthpieces, each enabling a different predefined flowrate.

The above-described embodiments are exemplary only, and various alternatives are possible within the scope of the claims.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A drinking cup comprising a cup body for containing liquid, the cup body having a base; a mouthpiece; and a conduit arranged between the mouthpiece and an opening proximate the base of the cup body enabling the transfer of liquid from the proximity of the base to the mouthpiece.
2. A drinking cup according to claim 1, comprising a cover for covering a top portion of the cup body.
3. A drinking cup according to any preceding claim, wherein the conduit comprises a cylinder extending externally to the cup body.
4. A drinking cup according to claim 3. wherein the cylinder extends outwardly from the cup body.
5. A drinking cup according to any preceding claim, wherein the opening is formed in a wall of the cup body proximate the base.
6. A drinking cup according to either of claims 1 and 2, wherein the conduit comprises a channel extending internally to the cup body.
7. A drinking cup according to claim 6, wherein a portion of the wall of the cup body defines a portion of the channel.
8. A drinking cup according to claim 7 when dependent on claim 2, wherein the mouthpiece is provided on the cover.
9. A drinking cup according to claim 6 when dependent on claim 2, wherein the channel comprises a tube suspended from the cover such that in use the tube opens proximate the base of the cup body.
10. A drinking cup according to any preceding claim, wherein the mouthpiece is releasably attached to the cup.
11. A drinking cup according to any preceding claim, the cup body having an axis which is substantially vertical when the cup is upright, wherein the cup body further comprises a handle with a section adapted for grasping by a user, and wherein the grasping section is provided substantially in a plane at an angle to the cup body axis to facilitate the tipping of the cup by a user grasping the section for drinking.
12. A drinking cup according to any preceding claim, comprising a one-directional valve allowing the cup to be filled with liquid, but preventing egress of the liquid.
13. A drinking cup comprising a cup body for containing liquid and means for releasably attaching a mouthpiece to the cup.
14. A drinking cup according to claim 13, wherein the cup comprises a cover for covering the cup body.
15. A drinking cup according to claim 13, wherein the means for attaching the mouthpiece is provided on the cover.
16. A drinking cup according to either of claims 13 and 14, wherein the means for attaching the mouthpiece is provided on the cup body.
17. A drinking cup according to any of claims 13 to 16, wherein the means for attaching the mouthpiece comprises a screw fastening.
18. A drinking cup according to any of claims 13 to 16, wherein the means for attachment comprises a clip fastening.
19. A mouthpiece adapted for releasable attachment to a cup according to any of claimsl3tol8.
20. A cup kit comprising a cup according to any of claims 13 to 18 and at least one mouthpiece according to claim 19.
21. A cup kit according to claim 20, comprising a plurality of mouthpieces according to claim 19, each mouthpiece having an aperture permitting a predefined flowrate for liquid from the cup.
22. A drinking cup comprising a cup body for containing liquid, the cup body having an axis which is substantially vertical when the cup is upright, the cup body further comprising a handle with a section adapted for grasping by a user, wherein the grasping section is provided substantially in a plane at an angle to the cup body axis to facilitate the tipping of the cup by a user grasping the section for drinking.
23. A drinking cup according to claim 22, wherein the cup includes a mouthpiece.
24. A drinking cup according to claim 23, wherein the handle comprises upper and lower portions, and is arranged such that the upper portion is positioned at a greater horizontal distance from the mouthpiece than the lower portion during normal use of the cup.
25. A drinking cup according to any of claims 22 to 24, wherein the cup body comprises a second handle.
26. A drinking cup substantially as herein described with reference to Figs. 2-5.