Abstract:
An ashtray that can be used in a vehicle has an extinguishing function. The ashtray includes a case having an upper opening and a disposal chamber. A first lid is pivotally supported on one wall of the case and covers a first part of the upper opening. A second lid is pivotally supported on a second wall opposing the first wall and covers a second part of the opening. A slot is formed between the first and second lids. A rotor is rotatably supported by the case below the slot. The rotor has vanes, with adjacent vanes defining receptacles for holding lit cigarettes. One of the receptacles is arranged at a receiving position below the slot and another of the receptacles is arranged at an extinguishing position in which the receptacle is covered by the first lid. A rotating mechanism rotates the rotor such that the receptacle in the receiving position moves to the extinguishing position. A lit but finished cigarette is disposed of by putting it in the slot such that it falls into the receptacle at the receiving position. The rotor is then rotated, moving the receptacle with the cigarette to the extinguishing position. In the extinguishing position, the cigarette is extinguished due to a lack of oxygen, since in this position the receptacle is sealed shut. The next time the rotor is moved, the cigarette in the extinguishing chamber falls into the disposal chamber.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to an ashtray, and more particularly, to an ashtray provided with an extinguisher. 
     In the prior art, when smoking while driving an automobile, a driver extinguishes a cigarette by pressing the cigarette against an ashtray, which is arranged in the automobile. The extinguishment of a cigarette may be dangerous since the driver must glance at the ashtray. 
     Accordingly, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 56-127083 describes a rotary ashtray that does not require the cigarette to be pressed against it in order to extinguish the cigarette. The rotary ashtray includes a case having a hollow portion, a cylindrical rotor that substantially contacts the wall of the hollow portion, a latchet mechanism for rotating the rotor about the axis thereof in angular intervals of 30°, and a pan attached to the lower surface of the case. Twelve grooves extend along the cylindrical surface of the rotor parallel to the rotor axis. The length and width of each groove are such that the groove can retain a cigarette. An upper slit and a lower slit are respectively provided on the upper surface and lower surface of the box. The length and width of the upper and lower slits are such that a cigarette can pass therethrough. 
     When using the ashtray, a cigarette is first dropped into the upper slit. The cigarette is then received by one of the grooves of the rotor. The latchet mechanism then rotates the rotor by 30°. This seals the groove holding the cigarette with the wall of the hollow portion. When the amount of oxygen in the groove is low, the cigarette is extinguished. When the rotor is rotated by 180°, the cigarette waste, such as tobacco ashes and the cigarette butt, falls from the groove and into the pan through the lower slit. 
     The extinguishment of the cigarette, however, may be insufficient since the cigarette is extinguished only in the groove. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the present invention to provide an ashtray that guarantees the extinguishment of cigarettes. 
     To achieve the above object, the present invention provides an ashtray provided with an extinguishing function. The ashtray has a case including an upper opening and a disposal chamber for accommodating cigarette waste, a first lid pivotally supported by the case that covers a first part of the upper opening, and a second lid pivotally supported by the case that covers a second part of the upper opening. A slot having a predetermined width and length is defined between the first and second lids. A rotor is rotatably supported by the case. The rotor has a plurality of receptacles for temporarily retaining cigarettes. One of the receptacles is arranged at a receiving position below the slot. Another one of the receptacles is arranged at an extinguishing position at which the receptacle is covered by the first lid. A rotating mechanism rotates the rotor in predetermined angular intervals. A first extinguishment chamber is defined by the first lid and the receptacle arranged at the extinguishing position, and a second extinguishment chamber is defined by the first lid, the second lid, the rotor, and the case. 
     Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention, together with objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description of the presently preferred embodiments together with the accompanying drawings in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view taken along line  1 — 1  in FIG.  2  and shows an ashtray according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the ashtray of the preferred embodiment; 
     FIG. 3 is a side view showing an automobile incorporating the ashtray of FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 4 is a side view showing a rotating mechanism of the ashtray of FIG. 2; and 
     FIGS. 5 to  7  are cross-sectional views illustrating the operation of the ashtray. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     An ashtray  11  according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described. 
     As shown in FIGS. 1 to  7 , the ashtray  11  includes a synthetic resin ashtray case  12  having an upper opening, front and rear lids  13 ,  14  arranged at the opening, a rotor  15 , and a rotating mechanism  16  for rotating the rotor  15 . 
     The ashtray  11  is installed, for example, in a driver&#39;s side door of an automobile as shown in FIG.  3 . 
     The ashtray case  12  has a bottom wall  17 , a front wall  18 , a rear wall  19 , a left wall  20 , and a right wall  21 , which define a disposal chamber  12   a . A disposal outlet  19   a  is formed in the rear wall  19 . The disposal outlet  19   a  is covered by a cover  19   b . Cigarette waste, such as ashes and cigarettes butts, are removed from the disposal chamber  12   a  by removing the cover  19   b.    
     The rotor  15  has a rotor shaft  15   a  rotatably supported by the left and right walls  20 ,  21 . First, second, third, and fourth vanes  22 - 25  extend radially from the rotor shaft  15   a . Each of the vanes  22 - 25  is curved in the same direction (in the preferred embodiment, the clockwise direction as viewed in FIG.  1 ). A V-shaped receptacle  27  ( 27   a ) for temporarily holding a cigarette  26  is defined between each pair of adjacent vanes  22 - 25 . The axial length of the rotor  15  is about the same as the distance between the left wall  20  and the right wall  21  and slightly longer than the full length of a cigarette. 
     The front lid  13  has a front lid shaft  13   d  pivotally supported between the left wall  20  and the right wall  21 . A lid leaf spring  28 , which serves as an urging member, biases the front lid  13  upward. The front lid  13  is a metal plate bent at two locations to define an upper piece (upper portion)  13   a , which extends from the lid shaft  13   d , a seal piece (intermediate portion)  13   b , which extends from the upper piece  13   a , and a support piece (lower portion)  13   c , which extends from the seal piece  13   b . The upper piece  13   a  extends diagonally downward from the front wall  18  into the middle of the opening of the ashtray case  12  so as to cover about half of the opening. The seal piece  13   b  extends toward the bottom wall  17 . 
     The lid leaf spring  28  urges the seal piece  13   b  toward the rotor  15 . As viewed in FIG. 1, the distal portions of the adjacent first and second vanes  22 ,  23  contact the upper and lower portions of the seal piece  13   b . The support piece  13   c  contacts the second vane  23  and prevents the rotation of the rotor  15  in the counterclockwise direction. The seal piece  13   b  seals the corresponding V-shaped receptacle  27  shut. In other words, the seal piece  13   b  and the two vanes  22 ,  23  define a sealed V-shaped receptacle  27 , or a first extinguishing chamber. A cigarette  26  is extinguished as the oxygen in the first extinguishing chamber becomes insufficient for it to stay lit. 
     The rear lid  14  has a rear lid shaft  14   a  pivotally supported between the left wall  20  and the right wall  21 . 
     The rear lid  14  is a rectangular metal plate extending diagonally downward from the rear wall  19  to the middle of the opening of the ashtray case  12  so as to cover about half of the opening. A slot extends between the front and rear lids  13 ,  14 . As viewed in FIG. 1, the fourth vane  25  supports the lower surface of the rear lid  14 . Contact of the first and second vanes  22 ,  23  with the seal piece  13   b  and contact of the fourth vane  25  with the rear lid  14  seals shut the disposal chamber  12   a . The disposal chamber  12   a  functions as a second extinguishing chamber. 
     The V-shaped receptacle  27   a  defined between the first vane  22  and the fourth vane  25  is located between the front and rear lids  13 ,  14 . The receptacle  27   a  receives the cigarette  26  that is put into the slotted opening of the ashtray case  12 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the rotating mechanism  16  is arranged at the outer side of the right wall  21 . A gear  30  fixed to the rotor shaft  15   a  rotates integrally with the rotor  15 . The gear  30  has four equally arranged teeth  31 . 
     An elongated lever  33  is supported pivotally about a pivot shaft  33   a  at the lower portion of the right wall  21  near the rear wall  19 . A key  33   b  is provided on one end of the lever  33 . A lever leaf spring  34  is arranged below the lever  33  to urge the lever  33  upward. Two stoppers  32  project from the right wall  21  near the front wall  18 . The two stoppers  32  restrict the movement of the lever  33  between an upper position, which is shown by the solid lines in FIG. 4, and a lower position, which is shown by the broken lines. 
     An engaging member, or latch  35 , which has a bent portion, is pivotally connected to a shaft  35   b  at the longitudinally middle portion of the lever  33 . An engaging portion, or latching portion  35   a  for engaging the teeth  31  of the gear  30  is defined on the distal end of the latch  35 . 
     When the lever  33  is arranged at the upper position, the latching portion  35   a  engages one of the teeth  31  of the gear  30 . The lever  33  is moved to the lower position by pressing the key  33   b  against the force of the lever leaf spring  34 . With reference to FIG. 4, when the lever  33  is moved to the lower position, the gear  30  and the rotor  15  are rotated by one pitch (90° in the counterclockwise direction). In other words, by pressing the lever  33 , the V-shaped receptacles  27 ,  27   a  are moved by one pitch to the next position. 
     When the lever  33  is released, the lever leaf spring  34  moves the lever  33  upward. As the lever  33  moves, the latching portion  35  moves upward. The latching portion  35   a  then automatically engages the next tooth  31 , which has been rotated by one pitch. 
     The method for using the ashtray  11  will now be described. 
     The rotor  15  is first located at an initial position shown in FIG.  1 . At the initial position, the distal ends of the first and second vanes  22 ,  23  contact the seal piece  13   b , and the fourth vane  25  contacts the lower surface of the rear lid  14 . In this state, the V-shaped receptacle  27   a  between the first vane  22  and the fourth vane  25  is located below the slot between the lids  13 ,  14  and arranged at a receiving position. 
     When a lit cigarette  26  is dropped into the slotted opening of the ashtray case  12 , the cigarette  26  is guided by the front and rear lids  13 ,  14  and falls through the slot into the V-shaped receptacle  27   a . The cigarette  26  is held stably at the bottom of the V-shaped receptacle  27   a.    
     The lever  33  is then pushed to the lower position. This rotates the gear  30  and the rotor  15  in the direction shown by the arrows in FIG. 4 from the initial position shown by broken lines in FIG. 5 to a first position shown by solid lines in FIG.  5 . The rotation of the rotor  15  causes the first vane  22  to force the seal piece  13   b  toward the front wall  18 . The curved form of the first vane  22  enables the distal portion of the first vane  22  to slide smoothly along the seal piece  13   b . The second vane  23  simultaneously  23  moves away from the seal piece  13   b , while the fourth vane  25  forces the rear lid  14  upward. 
     The rotor  15  then rotates from the first position shown by broken lines in FIG. 6 to a second position shown by solid lines. During the rotation, the rear lid  14  is pivoted downward by its own weight and then held by the third vane  24 . The cigarette  26  is retained between the first vane  22  and the seal piece  13   b.    
     When the lever  33  abuts against the lower stopper  32 , the rotation of the gear  30  and the rotor  15  is stopped. This arranges the V-shaped receptacle  27   a , which is holding the cigarette  26 , at an extinguishing position shown in FIG.  7 . When the V-shaped receptacle  27   a  is arranged at the extinguishing position, the first extinguishment chamber is sealed by the distal portions of the fourth and first vanes  25 ,  22  and the seal piece  13   b . The cigarette  26  gradually consumes the oxygen in the first extinguishment chamber (V-shaped receptacle  27   a  ) until the cigarette  26  is extinguished. The support piece  13   c  supports the first vane  22  from below and restricts rotation of the rotor  15 . 
     Further, the front lid  13  is returned to the initial position, and the rear lid  14  is supported by the third vane  24 . In this state, the next V-shaped receptacle  27  between the fourth vane  25  and the third vane  24  is located at the receiving position. 
     By releasing the force applied to the lever  33 , the lever  33  returns to the initial position and the latching portion  35   a  engages the next tooth  31 . 
     When another cigarette  26  is dropped into the ashtray  11 , the procedures described above are performed to rotate the rotor  15  and move the V-shaped receptacle  27   a  from the extinguishing position to a releasing position. At the releasing position, the first cigarette  26  falls into the disposal chamber  12   a  from the V-shaped receptacle  27   a.    
     The disposal chamber  12   a  functions as a second extinguishment chamber that is sealed by the front and rear lids  13 ,  14 , the rotor  15 , and the walls  18 - 21 . Accordingly, if the extinguishment of the cigarette  26  in the first extinguishment chamber is incomplete, the cigarette is extinguished as the amount of oxygen therein decreases. 
     The preferred embodiment has the advantages described below. 
     (1) The ashtray  11  seals the cigarette  26  in the first and second extinguishment chambers to extinguish the cigarette  26 . Therefore, the cigarette  26  does not need to be pressed against the ashtray  11 . Accordingly, the ashtray  11  enables safe driving. Further, the second extinguishment chamber guarantees extinguishment of the cigarette  26  even when the cigarette  26  is not extinguished in the first extinguishment chamber. 
     (2) The disposal chamber  12   a  is sealed to form the second extinguishment chamber. Accordingly, even when the ashtray  11  is used frequently and the cigarette  26  is held in the first extinguishment chamber for a short period of time, the extinguishment of the cigarette  26  in the disposal chamber  12   a  is guaranteed. 
     (3) The front lid  13  and the rotor  15  form the first extinguishment chamber, while the front lid  13 , the rear lid  14 , the rotor  15 , and the walls  18 - 21  form the second extinguishment chamber. Thus, the structure of the ashtray  11  is more simple in comparison with the conventional rotary ashtray. 
     (4) The four V-shaped receptacles  27  are formed by the first to fourth vanes  22 - 25  of the rotor  15 . Accordingly, a plurality of grooves do not have to be formed on the surface of a cylindrical rotor. This simplifies the manufacture of the rotor  15 . 
     (5) The rotor  15  is provided with the four V-shaped receptacles  27  and rotated by about 90° each time the lever  33  is pressed. In other words, a cigarette  26  is transferred to the disposal chamber  12   a  by pressing the lever  33  twice. Accordingly, the ashtray  11  is operated a number of times less than the conventional rotary ashtray to release a cigarette  26  into the disposal chamber  12   a  from the rotor  15 . 
     (6) The first to fourth vanes  22 - 25  are curved in the rotating direction of the rotor  15 . Thus, when the rotor  15  is rotated, the first to fourth vanes  22 - 25  are not caught by the front and rear lids  13 ,  14 . Accordingly, the rotor  15  rotates smoothly, and the extinguishment of a cigarette  26  in the first and second extinguishment chambers is guaranteed. 
     (7) The front lid  13  is urged toward the rotor  15  by the spring  28 . This guarantees the sealing of the first extinguishment chamber with the seal piece  13   b  and the rotor  15 . Further, gravitational force pivots the rear lid  14  downward and the lower surface of the rear lid  14  contacts the rotor  15 . Accordingly, the sealing of the second extinguishment chamber  12   a  is assured. 
     (8) The front and rear lids  13 ,  14  are opposed to each other and extend diagonally downward toward the middle of the ashtray case  12  to guide a cigarette  26  into the V-shaped receptacle  27 . This facilitates the extinguishment of the cigarette  26 . 
     (9) The rotating mechanism  16  is mechanically operated through manual operation. Accordingly, the structure of ashtray  11  is simple in comparison to one that employs an electrical driving mechanism. 
     The preferred embodiment may be modified as described below. 
     A coil spring or an elastic body, which is made of rubber or the like, may be used in lieu of the lid leaf spring  28 . 
     The upper piece  13   a  and the rear lid  14  may extend horizontally instead of extending diagonally. 
     Instead of using the curved vanes  22 - 25 , linear vanes extending radially from the rotor shaft  15   a  may be employed. In this case, it is preferred that the distal portion of each vane be bent in the rotating direction of the rotor  15 . Alternatively, vanes curved in a direction opposite the rotating direction of the rotor  15  may be employed. 
     The support piece  13   c  may be omitted. 
     The rotating mechanism  16  may be driven electrically. For example, an electric motor may be used to rotate the rotor  15 . 
     A coil spring or an elastic body, which is made of rubber or the like, may be used in lieu of the lever leaf spring  34 . 
     The number of V-shaped receptacles  27  of the rotor  15  may be changed. However, it is preferred that rotor  15  have at least three V-shaped receptacles  27 . When three receptacles  27  are provided, the receptacles  27  are each arranged at one of a receiving position, an extinguishing position, and a releasing position. For example, if three V-shaped receptacles  27  are defined, three vanes are formed on the rotor  15 . 
     The form of the ashtray case  12  may be changed to, for example, a triangular box or a circular box. 
     The ashtray  11  may be used in an automobile and installed in the instrument panel, passenger side door, or rear seat door. The ashtray  11  may also be installed in buses, taxis, or smoking areas inside buildings. 
     Water may be contained in the disposal chamber  12   a . This further guarantees the extinguishment of cigarettes  26 . 
     The cross-sectional form of the V-shaped receptacles  27  may be changed. For example, the receptacles may have curved bottom surfaces. 
     Instead of using a rotor provided with vanes, a cylindrical rotor may be used. In this case, it is preferred that equally spaced receptacles extending parallel to the axis of the rotor be formed in the cylindrical surface of the rotor to receive cigarettes  26 . Each of the receptacles form the first extinguishment chamber when sealed by the seal piece  13   b . The front and rear lids  13 ,  14 , the rotor, and the walls  18 - 21  seal the disposal chamber  12   a.    
     The cigarette  26  includes cigars. The ashtray  11  is preferable for disposing lit material, such as matches. 
     It should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be embodied in many other specific forms without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Therefore, the present examples and embodiments are to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the invention is not to be limited to the details given herein, but may be modified within the scope and equivalence of the appended claims.