Patent ID: 7810651
Filing Date: 2010-10-12
Classification: C02F

Abstract:
1. A reusable portable bottle having filtering capability, comprising: a hollow container component, said container component including a relatively rigid neck portion surrounding an open mouth portion and positioned above a flexible body portion that is squeezable to reduce total volume of the body portion; a cap component having a spout, said hollow container component and said cap component include respective interengaging members so as to secure said cap component to said hollow container component; said hollow container component and said cap component each have an external surface and an internal surface, each internal surface being substantially cylindrical and substantially coaxial with the hollow container component and with the cap component; a filter assembly; said filter assembly is removably and replacably slidably secured to said interior surface of the hollow container component and of the cap component so as to be inside said neck while remaining outside said flexible body portion of the hollow container component when said cap component is secured to said hollow container component; said filter assembly includes a hollow shell having an open central chamber having two generally opposing open ends; said filter assembly includes a primary filter located inside said open central chamber; a first of said open ends being adjacent said spout and being closed by a secondary filter, said secondary filter being secured to said first open end by a first retainer, a second one of said open ends being closed by a further secondary filter, said further secondary filter being secured to said second open end by a second retainer; said filter assembly has an axial flow characteristic whereby water present in said flexible body portion of the container component moves, in response to digital squeezing pressure on the external surface of the hollow container component, through said secondary filter, then through said primary filter and then through said further secondary filter, and the water then exits the bottle through said spout; the first retainer of the filter assembly has an outer circumference, a groove in its outer circumference, and an O-ring situated in the groove, and said O-ring engages said internal surface of the cap component whereby pushing movement and pulling movement respectively slidably secure and remove the filter assembly onto or from the internal surface of the cap component; and the second retainer of the filter assembly has an outer circumference, a groove in its outer circumference, and an O-ring situated in the groove, and said O-ring engages said internal surface of the hollow container component, whereby pushing movement and pulling movement respectively slidably secure and remove the filter assembly onto or from the internal surface of the hollow container.