Abstract:
A combination of a beverage container and a case for storing a compact disc, with the compact disc case being affixed to the beverage container. The combination also provides multiple options for accessing the compact disc from the case.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to the field of packaging, specifically the packaging of beverages and compact discs.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     In the sale of consumer products, it is often desirable to design packaging that will promote the sale of multiple items simultaneously. Often the primary consumer product is packaged with a promotional consumer product in order to promote the sale of the primary product. Presently, there is no packaging that permits facile sale of the combination of a primary consumer product, like a beverage, with a promotional consumer product, like a compact disc.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     The present invention provides the combination of a beverage container and a case for storing a compact disc with the compact disc case being affixed to the beverage container. The present invention also provides multiple mechanisms for accessing the compact disc stored in the case.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0004]      FIG. 1  is an illustration of a preferred embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0005]      FIG. 2  is a cross sectional view of the tray.  
         [0006]      FIG. 3  is an illustration of the case of  FIG. 1  where the tray is located within the housing.  
         [0007]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 3  with the tray rotated in an open position, away from the housing.  
         [0008]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 3  with the tray located within the housing.  
         [0009]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 3 , having an opening mechanism, with the tray rotated away from the housing.  
         [0010]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 3 , having an opening mechanism, with the tray located within the housing.  
         [0011]      FIG. 8  is an illustration of the case of  FIG. 1  where the tray is located within the housing and slides out from the housing when opened.  
         [0012]      FIG. 9  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 8  with the tray positioned away from the housing.  
         [0013]      FIG. 10  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 8  with the tray positioned within the housing.  
         [0014]      FIG. 11  is a detailed view of the guides of the case of  FIG. 8 .  
         [0015]      FIG. 12  is a detailed view of alternative guides of the case of  FIG. 8 .  
         [0016]      FIG. 13  is an illustration of the case of  FIG. 8  having an opening mechanism.  
         [0017]      FIG. 14  is an illustration of the case of  FIG. 1  where the tray is completely separated from the housing.  
         [0018]      FIG. 15  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 14  with the housing and the tray separated from one another.  
         [0019]      FIG. 16  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 14  with the tray attached to the housing.  
         [0020]      FIG. 17  is a detailed view of the catches for holding the tray to the housing.  
         [0021]      FIG. 18  is an illustration of the case of  FIG. 1  where the tray is hinged to the housing.  
         [0022]      FIG. 19  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 18  with the hinges opened.  
         [0023]      FIG. 20  is a perspective view of the case of  FIG. 18  with the hinge closed.  
         [0024]      FIG. 21  is an illustration of the case of  FIG. 1  where the housing contains a slot for the compact disc.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0025]     One possible use of the combination beverage container and compact disc case of the present invention may be for the commercial sale of beverages. A beverage bottler may package his beverage in the beverage container of the present invention and package a promotional CD or DVD in the case of the present invention affixed to the beverage container. Conversely, the CD or DVD may be packaged with a promotional beverage. In either scenario, a consumer will be further enticed to purchase the beverage or CD or DVD because they will receive the promotional item along with the purchase. The combined packaging of the beverage and the CD or DVD is advantageous to the seller and has more consumer appeal than packaging the beverage and the CD or DVD separately.  
         [0026]     Turning now to the drawings,  FIG. 1  shows a preferred embodiment of the present invention having a beverage container  10  in combination with a case  20  for holding a compact disc. The beverage container  10  used in the present invention may be composed of any one of a variety of materials, such as plastic, metal, or glass. The beverage container  10  has a base  12  that can range in diameter from two (2) to six (6) inches. Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention use a glass wine bottle or standard 2-liter plastic bottle (e.g., used in the packaging of soda pop) in combination with the case  20 , the beverage container  10  need not be limited to those with a round base.  
         [0027]     Likewise, the dimensions of the case  20  utilized in the present invention are dependent upon a number of factors, such as the size of the beverage container utilized and/or the size of the compact disc. However, the size of the beverage container  10  need not limit the size of case  20 , nor must the size of the compact disc limit the size of the beverage container. For example, it is conceivable that the diameter of the disc and, therefore, of the case may be larger than the diameter of the beverage container. The present invention is not limited to a case for standard, round, five-inch compact discs but also includes cases for smaller compact discs and compact discs of different shapes (e.g., rectangular). The present invention may also be used with more than one compact disc. Furthermore, the term compact disc as used herein is not limited and includes any similar optically readable storage medium including, but not limited to, CDs, CD-Rs, CD-RWs, and DVDs. A case for storing a CD holding any type of information, such as music, digital images, video, or software may be utilized in the present invention.  
         [0028]     The case  20  is comprised of a protective housing  40  and a tray  60 . The protective housing has a top member  41  having a top surface  42  and a bottom surface  44 . The top surface  42  and bottom surface  44  of the top member  41  are connected via an upstanding wall  46  about the perimeter of the housing  40 . In some embodiments, the upstanding wall  46  may extend beyond the top surface  42  of the top member  41  of the housing  40 . The top member  41  of the housing  40  is designed to attach the case to the beverage container  10  and to protect the compact disc on the top side. The case also has a bottom member  47  having a top surface  48  and a bottom surface  49 . The bottom member  47  is designed to protect the compact disc from the bottom side. The protective housing  40  can be made of a variety of stiff, non-deformable material(s), but is preferably made of plastic.  
         [0029]     The case according to the invention is adapted to be permanently or removably affixed to a beverage container. Preferably, the top member  41  of the protective housing  40  is affixed to the base  12  of the beverage container by the placement of an adhesive between the top surface  42  of the top member and the base  12  of the beverage container. Alternatively the housing  40  may be affixed to the beverage container  10  by the friction created between the upstanding wall  46  of the housing and the base  12  of the beverage container. The top surface  42  of the top member of the housing may be flat or, alternatively, may be conformed to the shape of the base  12  of the beverage container  10 . Where permanent affixation of the case  20  to the beverage container  10  is desired, the top surface  42  is preferably conformed to the shape of the base of the beverage container.  
         [0030]     The tray  60  of the present invention is designed to hold a compact disc within the protective housing  40  of the case  20 .  FIG. 2  shows a cross-sectional view of the upper surface  62  of the tray  60 . The tray  60  has a central post  68  with four flexing catches  69  for holding the compact disc in place. Preferably, a circular rib  66  surrounds the central post  68  on the upper surface  62  of the tray  60 . This rib  66  elevates the compact disc from the upper surface  62  of the tray  60  to ease the removal of the disc from the tray  60  by the user. To further assist the user in removal of the compact disc, surface depressions  64  may be designed in the upper surface  62  of the tray to allow the user to easily grip the edges of the compact disc with her fingers.  
         [0031]     In the preferred embodiments shown in  FIGS. 3-13 , the tray  60  is located within the housing  40  between the top member  41  and bottom member  47  of the housing  40 . Preferably, the top member  41  and the bottom member  47  are permanently attached to each other along a portion of the upstanding wall  46  of the perimeter of the housing. The top member  41  and bottom  47  may be molded as separate pieces or as one integrated unit. In one preferred embodiment, shown in  FIGS. 3-7 , the tray  60  rotates about a pivot point  75  from a first position within the housing  40  to a second position outside the housing. The pivot point  75  connects the tray  60  to the housing  40  and rotates along an axis that is perpendicular to the plane of the tray  60 . In the embodiment of  FIGS. 3-5 , the tray  60  rotates away from the housing when the tray is manually pulled open by the user. Alternatively, as shown in  FIG. 6-7 , the tray  60  may rotate away from the housing when an opening mechanism  50  is triggered. Preferably, the opening mechanism utilized is a spring-loaded latch. However, one of skill in the art would recognize that a number of different types of opening mechanisms may be utilized in the present invention, such as a clasp, or a pressure sensitive latch.  
         [0032]     In another preferred embodiment, shown in  FIGS. 8-13 , the tray  60  slides from a first position within the housing  40  to a second position away from the housing  40  along guides  85  located between the bottom member  47  of the housing and the tray  60 . Examples of the guides  85  utilized in the present invention are shown in  FIG. 11 , showing a runner  87  located on the lower surface  70  of the tray sliding within a track  89  placed between the tray  60  and the bottom member  47  of the housing, and  FIG. 12 , showing the runner system of  FIG. 11  with a spring  90  pushing against one of the runners  87 . One of skill in the art would recognize that the guide examples shown in  FIGS. 11 and 12  are just two of the many variations of guides  85  that may be used in the present invention to slide the tray  60  out from the housing  40 . Furthermore, as shown in  FIG. 13 , an opening mechanism may be used in the present embodiment to initiate the sliding of the tray.  
         [0033]     In the preferred embodiments shown in  FIGS. 14-20 , the tray  60  is affixed to the bottom member  47  or integrated with the bottom member  47  to form one unit. The tray/bottom member is then attached to the top member  41  of the housing. In one preferred embodiment, the tray bottom member is completely separated from the top member  41  of the housing, as shown in  FIG. 14 . In this embodiment, the tray/bottom member may be removeably attached to the housing by friction or by using clasps that release when a force is exerted against the tray/bottom member. Alternatively, screw threading may be located about the perimeter of the tray/bottom member and the top member  41  of the housing to hold the tray into place. In still another alternative, shown in  FIGS. 15-17 , catches  95  formed along the perimeter of the upper surface  62  of the tray may be engaged within catch holes  55  located along the perimeter of the bottom surface  44  of the top member  41  of the housing. When the tray  60  is twisted, the catches  95  fall through the catch holes  55  and release the tray  60  from the housing  40 .  
         [0034]     In another preferred embodiment, shown in  FIGS. 18-20 , the tray/bottom member  60  is permanently attached to the top member  41  of the housing through a hinge, a pivot point, or guides. The tray  60  may be held in a closed position against the top member  41  by the weight of the beverage container  10 , by clasps that release when force is exerted against the tray  60 , or by an opening mechanism  50 .  
         [0035]     In another preferred embodiment, shown in  FIG. 21 , the case  20  consists of only the top member  41 , with no tray  60  or bottom member  47 . The top member contains a slot  59  which is parallel with the top surface of the top member and is the same size or slightly smaller in diameter than the compact disc. The compact disc is held within this slot by friction, a clasp or latch. Preferably, depressions are made in the upstanding wall  46  at the slot in order to allow the user to grip the compact disc and remove it from the housing.  
         [0036]     It should be understood that a wide range of changes and modifications can be made to the embodiments of the combination beverage container and compact disc case described above. For instance, the size and shape of the beverage container, the size and shape of the case, and/or the mechanism used to open the tray holding the compact disc may be different than the exemplary embodiments described above, depending on consumer and manufacturing preferences. It is therefore intended that the foregoing description illustrates rather than limits this invention, and that it is the following claims, including all equivalents, which define the invention.