US20080314914A1

US20080314914A1 - Beverage Cup or Lid with Combined Built-In Drinking Straw and Blow Toy

Info

Publication number: US20080314914A1
Application number: US11/768,185
Authority: US
Inventors: James Scott Hacsi
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2007-06-25
Filing date: 2007-06-25
Publication date: 2008-12-25

Abstract

A cup or lid with a combined built-in drinking straw and blow toy that allows a person to either suck in liquid from a container through the straw or else blow into the straw to cause an object located on the cup or lid which is to be promoted or advertised to spin or otherwise move, and where the cup or lid can be used as a toy, a drinking apparatus, a promotional item, or an item of memorabilia.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

Not applicable

SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM

Not applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to beverage cups or lids with attached or built-in drinking straws combined with a blow toy.
2. Description of Prior Art
Drinking cups with attached straws called “sipper cups” have been available for many years. Lids for beverage containers have also incorporated drinking straws into their composition. There are also inventions that utilize the sucking or siphon-action available from drawing liquid through a straw to drive a liquid-activated motor which in turn drives or imparts spinning motion or momentum to another object or device. Blow toys are devices that either result in imparting a spinning-action or movement to a rotatable or moveable object by first driving an air motor with human-exhausted air or else they are intended to make noise through a whistle. When drinking liquid through a straw, children occasionally tend to blow out to create bubbles and sounds in the cup for the purpose of having fun. This usually results in a sticky mess and understandable scorn by the parent. There are no drinking cups or lids available that combine a built-in drinking straw with a blow toy.

OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES

It would therefore be advantageous to provide a device or apparatus that would incorporate a regular drinking straw for drawing a beverage from a container as is normally done, in combination with a blow toy for having fun. Such a device would allow the person to draw or suck liquid from a container, but will be provided with one-way flow valves that would divert the air when a person blows out for driving an air motor which in turn can drive a variety of other promotional objects or memorabilia items, such as cartoon characters or toy action-figures.

SUMMARY

In accordance with the present invention, a device or apparatus is provided comprised of a cup or lid used for drinking or holding a liquid that has an attached, built-in straw for sucking, combined with a blow toy and associated one-way flow valves for the purposes of having fun, increasing the lung-capacity of a person, or else promoting or increasing the popularity of an item with the public.

DRAWING FIGURE

In FIG. 1 of the drawing, a cup or lid is shown comprised of an attached or built-in drinking straw combined with a blow toy and associated one-way flow valves.

DRAWING—REFERENCE NUMERALS

1. Attached or built-in drinking straw
2. One-way flow valve for allowing liquid to freely flow and inhibit air flow
3. One-way flow valve for allowing air to freely flow and inhibit liquid flow
4. Air-operated motor
5. Rotatable object or depicted item to be promoted or advertised

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawing. The drinking cup or lid is comprised of a separate channel, also known as a drinking straw 1, for allowing liquid to be drawn or sucked from the container. A one-way flow valve 2 allows liquid to be drawn through the drinking straw 1 while inhibiting air flow in the reverse direction into the container. A second channel is also included for directing air exhausted or blown out by the person through an air-motor 4 that drives a rotatable object 5 located on the outer surface of the cup or lid. Another one-way flow valve 3 is utilized in the second channel that works in conjunction with the first one-way flow 2 valve to allow air to flow through the air-motor 4 while the first one-way flow valve 2 inhibits flow into the container

OPERATION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 of the drawing, when a person sucks on the extended portion of the drinking straw 1, liquid will be drawn from the container through the straw 1 and through the opened first one-way flow valve 2 into the person's mouth. The second one-way flow valve 3 will be closed to prevent air from flowing or being sucked back through the air-motor 4 which would lessen flow of the liquid from the container through the drinking straw 1. On the other hand, when the person exhausts air or blows out and into the extended portion of the drinking straw 1, the first one-way flow valve 2 will be closed to prevent air from entering the beverage container. The air will instead flow through the opened second one-way flow valve 3 and through the second channel entering a cavity that houses the air-motor impeller 4 before it is exhausted to the atmosphere. Momentum will be imparted to the air-motor's impeller and/or vanes 4 causing the externally-attached rotatable object 5 to spin or otherwise move.

CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE

Accordingly, the reader will understand the present invention to be a drinking cup or lid with attached or built-in straw combined with a blow toy. Furthermore, the present invention provides the additional advantages of:

- 1. permitting a person drinking a liquid from a container to also have fun when blowing air out;
- 2. permitting a person having satisfaction in seeing a physical result from blowing air into a straw that can also be used for drinking liquid from a container;
- 3. allowing a person to exercise the lungs and increase breathing capacity by repeatedly blowing air into a cup or lid that also acts as a blow toy;
- 4. combining a cup or lid with a blow toy that is a powerful and effective tool for promoting, advertising, or otherwise increasing the popularity of items or objects that rotate and move.

ADDITIONAL EMBODIMENTS

Although the description above contains much specificity, this should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, but as merely providing illustrations of the presently preferred embodiment of this invention. For example, a reader skilled in the art will know one-way flow valves used in the present invention can be of any type with any composition that effectively limit air or liquid flow in a single direction through a channel or straw. The valves may be comprised of a flap, a reed, or a ball, or any object comprised of any material or composition and in any valve configuration that acts to stop liquid or air from flowing in one direction through a channel or straw, but also acts to allow air or liquid to flow in the opposite direction through the channel or straw.
A reader skilled in the art will also know there are a variety of air-motors and configurations of air-motors that will work effectively in the present invention and where human-exhausted air is used to drive vanes, teeth, or an impeller of a motor to cause a circular or other motion of an object to be promoted or advertised while having fun. In other words, any means for converting the linear flow of air to a circular motion for rotating or driving an object would be construed to be an air-motor as used in this application.
The location of the driven or rotated object to be promoted or advertised can be anywhere on the cup or lid whether it be the inside of the lid, container, or cup that contains the liquid to be sipped, inside a cavity in the container, cup, or lid, or else on the outside surface of the container or lid. It is also conceivable that the air-motor and driven object to be promoted can be separated from the lid or cup and included on an entirely separate platform, but connected to the cup or lid through an extended channel comprised of tubing or other flexible material. In words, the person can blow into the straw located on the cup or lid while holding the platform with the air-motor and rotating object to be promoted in the hands and where the platform containing the rotating object and air-motor is connected to the cup or lid by an extended air-tube that receives air from the person blowing into the cup or lid.
It should also be obvious to a reader skilled in the art that any type of object or item capable of being rotated or otherwise moved by air moving through the air-motor of the present invention will be construed as being an object of the present invention. Furthermore, any object such as a carousel, a rotating figure, a cartoon figure, a heroic action-figure, or any item or object to be promoted or advertised can be used to provide a physical result of laboriously exhaling air with pressure into the cup or lid. Multiple independent rotating or moving objects can be included on the same cup or lid, just as multiple or different types of air-motors can be included on the same cup or lid.
It is also conceivable that lids can be devised and constructed that would fit on many different types and sizes of drinking containers for dispensing hot or cold liquids, or any other type of icy or frozen drinks. A prime consideration for such cups or lids with numerous components is that they can easily be disassembled for cleaning and sanitation purposes. They should also be designed to prevent a child from swallowing or choking on any single component of the cup or lid if it should ever become unexpectedly removed from the larger assembly of components.
A whistle or some means for converting air flow through a channel or straw can be incorporated in the present invention to make sounds and increase the enjoyment level of the person. There is also the possibility of designing the object to be rotated at a high speed to emit or give off sounds when it rotates for indicating how fast the object is spinning. Such a design would give added incentive and reward to the user to blow as hard as possible for making the rotating object move as fast as possible. A person can then get a quantitative and direct result or reward for the amount of air they are expelling.
Finally, a person of any age or in any condition of health can benefit from the present invention by either having fun or for use in increasing the breathing capacity or lung capacity such as when recovering from surgery, influenza, the common cold, or other respiratory ailments requiring breathing exercises. The item will be promoted, sold, or otherwise known as the “AIR-GO” cup or lid.
Thus, the scope of this invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.

Claims

1. A cup or lid, comprising:

(a) a built-in channel or drinking straw for sipping or sucking a liquid or frozen drink; and

(b) a blow toy comprised of a second channel with an air-motor capable of being spun by air moving rapidly through said second channel; and

(c) matter that depicts an object or item to be promoted or publicly advertised capable of spinning or otherwise moving and physically connected to said air-motor for receiving energy or momentum from said air-motor; and

(d) means for allowing liquid to freely flow in one direction through said first channel or said drinking straw while inhibiting air from flowing in the opposite direction through said channel or said drinking straw; and

(e) means for allowing air to freely flow through said blow toy with said second channel and said air-motor in one direction while inhibiting air from flowing in the opposite direction through said blow toy with said second channel and said air-motor,

whereby a person can use said cup or said lid for sipping said liquid or frozen drink or for receiving enjoyment or exercise by causing said item or object to be promoted or advertised to rotate or otherwise be moved by blowing into said built-in channel or said drinking straw with expelled air moving through said air-motor in said blow toy in said cup or said lid.

2. The cup or lid in claim 1 wherein said means for allowing liquid or air to flow in only one direction is comprised of a flap, a reed, a check-ball, or any other object in any valve of any size, composition, or configuration capable of restricting or inhibiting the flow of matter in one direction through a channel of any sort while also allowing the matter to freely flow in the opposite direction through same said channel.

3. The cup or lid in claim 1 wherein said air-motor is comprised of an impeller or rotor with vanes, blades, or other protrusions of any size, shape, or composition where rapidly-moving air can impart momentum to or for driving a shaft or otherwise imparting momentum to another said object of any size, design, or configuration that is to be promoted or advertised, whereby the person using said cup or said lid with combined said built-in drinking straw and said blow toy can receive enjoyment or exercise.

4. The cup or lid in claim 1 wherein said blow toy is comprised of a whistle or some other sound-producing means.

5. The cup or lid in claim 1 wherein said components are comprised of plastic, metal, or any combination thereof.

6. The cup or lid in claim 1 wherein said blow toy has no one-way flow valve and where single said one-way flow valve located in said built-in drinking straw is sufficient to allow sucking and blowing activities of a person to accomplish their objectives.

7. A method of operating a cup or lid with built-in drinking straw and blow toy, comprising:

(a) providing a cup or lid comprising a built-in channel or drinking straw for sipping or sucking a liquid or frozen drink, and a blow toy comprised of a second channel with an air-motor capable of being spun by air moving through said second channel, and matter that depicts an object or item to be promoted or publicly advertised capable of spinning or otherwise moving and physically connected to said air-motor for receiving energy or momentum from said air-motor, and means for allowing liquid to freely flow in one direction through said first channel or said drinking straw while inhibiting air from flowing in the opposite direction through said channel or said drinking straw, and means for allowing air to freely flow through said blow toy with said second channel and said air-motor in one direction while inhibiting air from flowing in the opposite direction through said blow toy with said second channel and said air-motor, then

(b) allowing a person to suck in or sip said liquid or said frozen drink from a container through said built-in drinking straw in said cup or said lid by sucking in air, or

(c) allowing a person to operate said blow toy in said cup or said lid with said second channel and said air-motor for driving or rotating said object or item to be promoted or advertised by expelling air from lungs into said first channel or said drinking straw; then

(d) alternating as desired the sucking in or expelling of air by said person into said channel or said built-in drinking straw in said cup or said lid for either sipping said liquid from said container or else blowing into said channel or said built-in drinking straw in said cup or said lid comprised of said blow toy with said second channel and said air-motor for driving or rotating said object or said item to be promoted or advertised, then

(e) receiving enjoyment or having fun or obtaining breathing exercise while promoting said object to be advertised by either repeatedly sucking said liquid from said container or else repeatedly blowing into said channel or said built-in straw in said cup or said lid comprised of said built-in drinking straw and said blow toy.

8. A cup or lid with combined built-in straw and blow toy that can be used for drinking or sipping a beverage or else used for having fun and doing exercise when blowing into said cup or said lid which causes an object or item to rotate or otherwise move, and where said object intended to be rotated or otherwise moved is advertised and promoted, whereby said cup and said lid with combined built-in straw and blow toy is used as a toy, a drinking apparatus, a promotional item, or an item of memorabilia.