COMBINED DRINKING VESSEL AND CONTAINER

Abstract: The convertible container/vessel comprises a container (1) shaped as a body of revolution about a longitudinal axis (14) and having a first end (15) of greater diameter than a second end (16). The second end (16) is closed or closable and the first end (15) is open to an interior of the container (1). A disc shaped member (2a, 2b) is adapted removably but sealingly to close (as 2a) the open first end (15) and also, when removed therefrom and (as 2b), to be attachable to the second end (16) to act as a foot for the drinking vessel.

Description: COMBINED DRINKING VESSEL AND CONTAINER The present invention relates to a combined drinking vessel and drinks container. More particularly, but not exclusively, it relates to a ready charged wine glass In this connection, the word "wine" will be used herein to refer to the contents of the container/drinking vessel and the word is intended to mean not only wine but also other beverages such as beer, lager, fruit juice, water or other non-alcoholic beverages, or pre-mixed spirit based drinks or cocktails, such as gin and tonic. On many occasions, particularly when eating out of doors, such as at picnics or at sporting occasions such as Wimbledon or Ascot, those present may wish to have a glass of wine with their meal or may even wish to have a glass of wine, as herein defined, at other times. However, at such time, there may be no need for a full bottle of wine. In any event, a half empty bottle is cumbersome and difficult to maintain closed or at least in a non-spill condition. It is of course possible, although somewhat uncouth, to drink the wine directly from the neck of the bottle Separate drinking vessels may be taken or available, but these are usually either breakable or of an unrefined shape. It is an object of the present invention to provide a wine glass which is sold full of wine, as defined, and which will overcome or at least obviate the above disadvantages. According to the present invention there is provided a convertible drinks container and drinking vessel comprising: a container shaped as a body of revolution about a longitudinal axis and having a first end of greater diameter than a second end, the second end being closed or closeable after filling therethrough and the first end being open to an interior of the container; and a generally disc shaped member adapted removably but sealingly to close said open first end and also, when removed therefrom, to be attachable to said second end. The second end may include a sealable passageway to allow filling of the otherwise closed container. In this case, the passageway may be sealed by means of lid means which may optionally include detent means adapted to engage said container adjacent the first end thereof. Preferably the disc member is provided with screw thread means at a peπpheral zone thereof and the body is provided with cooperable screw thread means adjacent its first end Advantageously, the cooperable screw thread means of the body comprises an internally facing interrupted screw thread Seal means may be provided within the body to prevent contact between the contents and the disc member In this case the seal means may comprise a foil seal Additionally or alternatively, means may be provided to seal between the body and the disc where they contact when the latter acts to close the first end of the body In this case, the seal means may comprise an O-πng or the like of rubber or plastics material Embodiments of the present invention will now be more particularly described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 shows schematically a drinks container/drinking vessel combination embodying the invention in separated condition with a single disc shaped member shown twice in either of its alternative connectable positions, Figure 2A is a cross-sectional view of a first end of the combination with the disc shaped member acting as a closure of the first end, Figure 2B shows one embodiment of a second end of the container body Figure 2C shows in cross-section a scrap view of the disc shaped member about to act as a foot of the combination. Figure 3 shows a further embodiment of a disc shaped closure member, Figure 4 shows three variations of disc shaped closure/foot members, Figure 5shows a drinks container/drinking vessel combination according to a second embodiment of the invention, Figure 6 is a part cross sectional view of the container/vessel of Figure 5, Figure 7 shows as a scrap view one form of lid for use with any embodiment of the invention; and Figure 8 shows an alternative form of lid Referring now to Figure 1 of the drawings, the combination is shown, in a simplified manner, to consist of a container 1 and disc member 2 The container 1 serves a single purpose - to hold wine, as defined herein - although this may be as a "wine bottle" or as a "wine glass" The disc member 2 serves two purposes and for clarity it is labelled as 2a and 2b, depending on function, although there is no structural difference between 2a and 2b As 2a, the disc member 2 acts to close a "wine bottle" at its base As 2b, the disc member 2 forms a foot of a "wine glass" For convenience, it is preferred to refer to the drinking vessel as a "wine glass" (even though it is most likely to be made of plastics material) and to refer to the container as a "wine bottle" (although the neck of the "bottle" is closed) In other embodiments, the neck of the "bottle" may have an opening, open at least during the process of filling the container, but afterwards closed Hence, as may be seen, the product is sold as a bottle with the container 1 filled with wine and closed by means of the disc 2a For purposes of sale, it would be usual to place the combination so that it stands on the disc 2a, and has a generally bottle shape In order to drink the wine, the bottle is inverted so that the disc 2a is uppermost and this is then removed It is transferred to the base of the container 1, thereby becoming 2b It is then attached to the base of the container 1 to form the foot of what is now an open topped wine glass During the transformation from 2a to 2b, the disc may be inverted or not The sealing features of the disc 2a may thus be on the same or a different side thereof to the connecting features of the disc 2b The disc 2 is only generally disc shaped It may be configured for appearance when fulfilling either of its functions or as a matter of its function As may be seen from Figure 2 A, the disc 2a has a lip 5 adapted to cover the rim of the body 1, and also an externally facing edge which is provided with a screw thread 3 An interior surface of the body 1 is provided with a corresponding screw thread 4 For reasons of convenience, this screw thread 4 may be interrupted so that the thread does not inconvenience users of the glass When the disc 2 is inverted to become a foot 2b as shown in Figure 2C, the uppermost, at that time, surface is provided with a cylindrical blind hole 6 having, at a median point of its depth, a peripheral groove 7 an outer edge of which is formed as a detent 8 The purpose of the groove 7 is to cooperate lockingly with the "neck" of the body 1, which in this case and as shown in Figure 2B is provided with three resiliently deformable pawls 9 which can be pushed into the disc 2b and locked into the groove 7. Alternatively, the "neck" of the body 1 may be releasably connectible to the disc 2b, for example by cooperating screw threads (not shown). Other connections are also possible. The disc may be further developed, as shown in Figure 3, to prevent leakage when used as a closure for the container. As can be seen, the lip 5 is extended downwardly to form a groove 10 into which a rim of the body 1 may fit. At an end of the groove 10, there is provided a seal 11, which may be of rubber or plastics material. For aesthetic purposes, the disc of Figure 3 is preferably used as a foot for a glass in the same disposition as when used as the container closure. Hence, there is a possible problem of liquid or wine being left on the surface which may then drip onto table cloths, clothing or the like. As shown in Figure 4, this may be overcome by providing a notch 12, the exact form of which may vary. Three versions are shown in Figure 4, but other versions are possible. The idea is that the notch 12 will accommodate liquid run off from the overall area of the disc which has been in contact with the wine. The problem of spillage could be further overcome by providing a seal between the closure disc 2a and the contents of the container 1. A simple seal of plastics foil, metal foil, paper foil, or indeed any other foil, will be sufficient, provided that it is impervious to liquid and can be peeled away once the container has been opened. Alternatively, or additionally, an O-ring may be provided to seal between the periphery of the contact 1 and the disc 2a. Referring now to Figures 5 and 6, there is shown a container 1 which comprises a base member 17 and an upper member 18. The upper member 18 includes a "neck portion" which has an aperture to allow the container 1 to be filled with wine, as herein defined The base member 17 and upper member 18 are connected during storage by means of a clip mechanism 19 which includes a peripheral bead on one of the members and a peripheral groove on the other. The container 1 is filled to a depth less than that of the clip mechanism 19, and the container 1 is then divided by a foil seal 24 to maintain the wine within the base member 17. Once the container 1 is filled, the filling aperture at the "neck" of the container is sealingly closed either removably or permanently, by means of a lid 20. This may be provided with a peripheral bead 22 or a plurality of pawl members 22, the purpose of which is described below. When it is desired to partake of the contents of the container 1, the upper member 18 is separated from the base member 17 and the lid 20 is engaged within the recess 21 of the base member 17. One or more pawl members 22 on the periphery of the lid 20 may then engage in a groove 23 of the recess 21 The upper member 18 thereby becomes a foot to the base member 17 which then constitutes a drinking vessel (after any foil seal 24 has been removed). As shown in Figures 7 and 8, the lid 20 may take several forms which may be dependent on the diameter of the filling aperture. Such lids 20 may be used not only with the embodiment of Figures 5 and 6, but with any other embodiment of the invention which includes a filling aperture.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel comprising a container shaped as a body of revolution about a longitudinal axis and having a first end of greater diameter than a second end, characterised in that the second end is closed or closable after filling therethrough and the first end is open to an interior of the container, and a closure/stand member adapted removably but sealingly to close said open first end to form a drinks container and also, when removed therefrom, to be attachable to said second end to form a foot for said drinking vessel. 2. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel according to claim 1, characterised in that said closure/stand member is a generally disc shaped member. 3. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel according to either claim 1 or claim 2, characterised in that said second end comprises a sealable passageway to allow filling of the otherwise closed container. 4. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel according to claim 3, characterised in that the passageway is sealed by means of lid means which include detent means adapted to engage said container adjacent the first end thereof. 5. A convertible drinks container as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the closure/stand member is provided with screw thread means at a peripheral zone thereof and the container is provided with cooperable screw thread means adjacent its first end. 6. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel according to claim 5, characterised in that the cooperable screw thread means of the container comprises an internally facing interrupted screw thread. 7. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that seal means are provided within the container to prevent contact between the contents and the disc member. 8. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel according to claim 7, characterised in that the seal means comprises a foil seal. 9. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel according to any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that means are provided to seal between the body and the disc where they contact when the latter acts to close the first end of the body. 10. A convertible drinks container and drinking vessel according to claim 9, characterised in that the seal means comprises an O-ring or the like of rubber or plastics material.

Inventors: BROOK SIMON JONATHAN, BROOK, SIMON, JONATHAN
Applicants: BROOK SIMON JONATHAN, BROOK, SIMON, JONATHAN
Application year: 1999
Main classification: B65D51
IPC codes: A47G19, B65D25, B65D51, B65D81