Patent ID: 6971282
Filing Date: 2005-12-06
Classification: B25B,B67B

Abstract:
1. An opener for assisting a user in the removal of a lid from a containment vessel, the opener comprising: an ergonomically contoured housing defining a peripheral edge which is configured to be graspable by a hand of the user and having a first engagement surface circumscribed by the peripheral edge; and an engagement member movably mounted to the housing and having a second engagement surface circumscribed by the peripheral edge, the first and second engagement surfaces collectively defining an elongate slot which extends through the housing and is sized and configured to accommodate at least a portion of the lid, the slot being of a decreasing width from a closed first end to a second end, with the closed first end being operative to maintain the lid within the slot; and a biasing member cooperatively engaged to the housing and the engagement member for normally maintaining the engagement member in a release position; the engagement member being selectively moveable from the release position to a gripping position as a result of the rotation of the lid subsequent to the advancement thereof into the slot, the movement of the engagement member to the gripping position facilitating the rigid capture of the lid between the first and second engagement surfaces.