Non-stick stopper with easy removal structure

A non-stick stopper with easy removal structure includes a device having an integral body with an upper portion for use in removing the stopper and a lower portion of special configuration for relatively non-compressive sealing with a tapered neck of a glass container. In one embodiment of the invention, an elongated pin handle is inserted through a traversely extending aperture in the body upper portion for use of a tool and/or a user's hand for ease in removing the stopper from the container. The tool is specially configured with a U-shaped recess bottle engaging portion at one end of an elongated handle. The U-shaped stopper engaging portion has double recesses from either side thereof so that the tool can be used with both the first embodiment and the second embodiment of the invention. The second embodiment involves an inverted cone-shaped stopper having a radially extending stopper removing flange at one end thereof and a further conical closure structure at the other end thereof. The same tool as used for easy removal in the first embodiment can be used with this embodiment merely by reversing same 180.degree. from its original position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
1. Field of the Invention 
This invention relates generally to stopper devices, and especially to a 
stopper designed so that it may be easily removed from the neck of a 
container with which it is used. 
2. Description of the Prior Art 
There are several problems with the design of the tapered stoppers which 
are in use today. One of these problems is due to temperature changes. 
When the temperature of the stopper and bottle is reduced, the difference 
in coefficient of expansion of the Teflon is much greater than that of the 
glass bottle. As the temperature is reduced, the difference in shrinkage 
between the Teflon and glass will allow the stopper to drop further into 
the taper of the bottle, and thereafter when the temperature is restored 
to normal room temperature, the stopper expands but cannot push itself up 
to its original position in relation to the taper. The expansion of the 
Teflon causes the stopper to be much tighter in the bottle neck than 
originally, and as a result it can become impossible to remove the stopper 
when the temperature difference is large. Furthermore, if the expansion of 
the Teflon is extreme, it can even break the glass container. 
Another major cause of tight stoppers is due to the material in the bottle. 
When some of the material is removed from the container, the liquid must 
contact the tapered sealing portion of the bottle, and when the stopper is 
replaced, a film of liquid remains between the tapered surfaces. Depending 
upon the material in the container and the length of time between the next 
removal of the stopper, oxidation, evaporation, and other actions can 
cause the material to act as a glue, thus preventing the stopper from 
being removed. 
A further problem with known-type stopper devices is that they are not 
normally designed for easy removal with a supplemental removal tool. By 
using such a supplemental tool with a specially designed stopper, the 
force needed to remove same from a container with which it is used can be 
substantially reduced. 
Existing known prior patents which may be pertinent to this invention are 
as follows: 
J. R. L. Martin, U.S. Pat. No. 2,526,622, 10/24/50 
J. A. Clark, U.S. Pat. No. 3,842,790, 10/22/74 
H. Dichter, U.S. Pat. No. 3,900,122, 8/19/75 
J. Ruetz, U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,820, 2/22/77 
R. J. Miskinis, U.S. Pat. No. 4,391,779, 7/5/83. 
These patents generally show stoppers for sealing narrow neck bottles and 
containers in a secure manner. 
U.S. Pat. No. 2,526,622 to Martin shows a bottle sealing stopper, 
especially in cross-section in FIG. 2, having a cone 13 which functions as 
a resilient spring to push outwardly upon the inner walls of the stopper 
body 10. Thus, the conical spring member 13 effectively urges body 10 
radially outwardly in all directions so as to perform an extremely 
efficient sealing function. To remove the device, a fingernail or other 
object is inserted below the shoulder 11 and the stopper lifted upwardly. 
The patent to Clark, U.S. Pat. No. 3,842,790, discloses another elastic 
closure member and also a tool for assisting in insertion and extraction 
of the closure member from the neck of a container. While the concept of 
this invention is similar to that of the present one, the specific 
structure for effecting same is substantially different therefrom. 
The Dichter patent, U.S. Pat. No. 3,900,122, shows a stopper 11 having a 
resilient plug portion 12 which widens conically 14 towards the neck of 
the container and then tapers inwardly 15 therefrom. The cross-sections 
shown in FIGS. 1-3 best depict the features of this patent. 
Ruetz U.S. Pat. No. 4,008,820 shows another stopper of plastic material 
having a gripping portion 1 and a substantially cylindrical sealing 
portion 2. The sealing portion 2 includes a cylindrical sealing wall 7 and 
a centering member 8 adjacent thereto, with the walls of the gripping 
portion, the centering member and the sealing wall all being laterally 
deformable. Again, the purpose of this patent is somewhat similar to that 
of the present invention, but the structure for effecting same is 
different. 
The Miskinis patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,391,779, shows a stopper 10 made with 
a Teflon body 12 with a retracting nut 22 threadably mounted on one end of 
the body for assisting in removing the stopper from a narrow neck 
container. 
None of the above-listed patents teaches applicant's new and novel 
invention. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The purpose of this invention is to eliminate the possibility of an 
expanding stopper from producing sufficient force to break a glass 
container it is being used with, and to reduce the wedging action so that 
it is easier to remove. Another purpose is to provide a removal tool for 
those unusual conditions where both the wedging action and the contained 
material have combined to glue the stopper into the container. 
An object of the present invention is to provide an easily removable, 
non-stick stopper with removal structure included therewith so that the 
stopper can be easily disengaged from a tapered neck of a container with 
which it is being used. 
Another object of the present invention is to provide a stopper made of 
Teflon material having a conical tapered portion with flexible resilient 
walls designed so that even though the stopper may be permanently wedged 
into a narrow neck container, it can be relatively easily removed 
therefrom. Also, a tool for ease of removal of the stopper is part of the 
invention. 
A further object of the present invention is to provide a plastic stopper 
having flexible sealing walls of conical shape supported from a head 
portion by further flexible conical walls, and with the head portion 
receiving a handle for aid in removing the stopper from a container. 
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a stopper 
having conical sealing surface walls ending in a further tapered closed 
end and with the open end of the sealing surface walls provided with an 
extending flange portion for ease in removing the stopper from a 
container. The extending flange also provides a large area for engagement 
by a tool which is a further part of the invention. 
The present invention has a number of new and novel features. There are two 
primary embodiments of the invention. The first embodiment has a head 
portion of solid construction with an aperture therethrough for receiving 
a handle pin therethrough. Extending from the head portion is a conical 
diverging resilient wall for supporting an inwardly tapered conical 
sealing surface wall. The sealing surface wall is preferably of generally 
the same configuration as a tapered neck glass bottle container for which 
the stopper is designed to be used. The dual flexible conical walls permit 
the stopper to be removed relatively easily from the container, and also 
prevents the stopper from exerting very much of a radial force against the 
inner surface of the container neck. The handle pin also permits handy 
gripping by a user for removal of the stopper and/or use of an 
accompanying tool for pivotable wedging action and removal of the stopper 
from the container. 
Another embodiment has a stopper having a reversed central cone with 
conical tapering walls of resilient construction ending in a closed 
further conical end for adding strength to the overall stopper. An 
outwardly extending flange at the open end of this stopper permits easy 
removal of same from a container with which it is used by either a user's 
hand and/or a stopper removal tool. The same tool as in the first 
embodiment can be used because of the specific design arrangement of the 
tool. 
These together with other objects and advantages which will become 
subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation 
as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to 
the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals 
refer to like parts throughout.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
Referring to FIG. 1 of the drawings, reference numeral 10 indicates in 
general the stopper and removing tool of the present invention. The 
stopper is indicated generally by reference numeral 11 and is shown 
mounted in a bottle neck of a glass container. The glass container 13 has 
an outwardly tapered neck 23 extending upwardly therefrom which terminates 
in a radially extending flange 25. The flange 25 has an upper bearing 
surface 27 thereon. 
In FIG. 2, the tapered stopper 11 is shown fitted into the tapered inside 
portion 15 of the bottle 13. The head portion 19 of the stopper 11 is 
fitted with a handle 30. The handle 30 comprises an elongated pin with 
rounded ends 130 which fits into the traverse aperture 39 in the head 
portion. The lower portion of the stopper is hollowed out area 18 to form 
thin walled sections 16 and 17. The thin wall section 16 is the lower most 
portion which forms the sealing wall portion of the stopper against the 
tapered portion 15 of the bottle neck. Since this conical sealing wall is 
thin enough to be flexible, the accuracy of matching the respective tapers 
of the wall and the container in order to produce a good seal is less 
important. The upper wall of the hollowed out area 18 is formed by an 
angular conical portion 17. The importance of the shape of this portion is 
that it results in a structurally weak portion. In making the sealing 
portion 16 of the stopper a tapered conical portion which is a thin 
section and thus a flexible surface, is that it also aids in the removal 
of the stopper since any movement of the sealing portion 16 will more 
easily break the seal and make the stopper easier to remove. By forming 
the stopper with the hollowed out area 18, and with the shaped depicted by 
walls 16 and 17, these areas are so weak that excessive pressure due to 
expansion cannot be exerted upon the glass bottle sufficient to break it. 
The removing tool 40, as shown in FIG. 1, has a handle 46, a head 44 with a 
cut out recess 48, and flat portions 42, 142 on opposite sides of the dual 
tines 34. Grooves 41, 141 are provided on opposite sides of the tines so 
that in cross section (see FIG. 3) each of the tines have back to back 
double right angle grooves. The purpose being so the same tool can be used 
with both stopper embodiments. 
In FIG. 3, the tool is shown in position on the top lip 27 of the bottle 
flange 25. The U-shaped cut out recess 48 in head 44 is slightly tapered 
from front to back so that it will fit several sizes of outside diameters 
of the head portion 19 of the stopper 11. The dimensions are arranged so 
that when the cut out portion 48 is in contact with the head portion 19, 
the level flat portions 142 of the tool is in position to contact the top 
lip 27 of the bottle 13. The circumferential edge of the top lip 27 and 
flange 25 of the bottle is used as a fulcrum. The handle 30 is preferably 
made of plastic material. By using the lever 40, a large force can be 
developed to pry the stopper 11 from the bottle 13. 
FIG. 4 shows a variation of the stopper in which the principle is the same 
as the first embodiment, but the domed section 129 is reversed. In this 
case, the handle 30 is replaced with a circular flange 125. 
FIG. 5 shows the removal tool 46 turned over and with the flange 25 of the 
bottle as the fulcrum and the flange 125 of the stopper receiving the 
force from the lever 40. The faces 142, 42 of the tool are shown turned 
over from the showing in FIG. 3, and because of the back-to-back right 
angle grooves 41', 141', properly fit the larger tapered walls of stopper 
11'. 
Again, as in the first embodiment, the walls 116, 117 of the second 
embodiment which are conically tapered inwardly from the flange 125, are 
flexible and provide benefits similar to those of the first embodiment. 
The domed portion 129, in conjunction with the greatly tapered conical 
wall 117, completely close the interior area 18' of the second embodiment 
in the same manner that the head portion 19 does for the first embodiment. 
With both embodiments, the dual purpose tool 40 is very useful for exerting 
the necessary leverage force to easily remove a stopper which has been 
partially glued or stuck into a bottle neck of a glass container. 
The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the 
invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily 
occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the 
invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, 
and, accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be 
resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.