Abstract:
Water-bottle storage and use furniture has at least one base shelf ( 1 ), one of more bottle-use supports ( 3, 15 ) pyramidally above the base shelf and one or more uprights ( 5, 8 ) intermediate the base shelf and the use support. Weight of the base shelf and weight of any water bottles ( 2, 6, 7 ) provide pyramidical stability. Walls ( 10 ) and doors ( 13, 14 ) can cover open sides with aesthetics selectively and prevent outside view of full and used water bottles on the base shelf. Wheels, casters ( 12 ) and legs ( 9 ) can be positioned on the base shelf. The use support can be articulated for design orientation of the water bottles. Water dispensers ( 17 ) and water modifiers ( 18 ) of temperature, taste, color and quality of water dispensed from the water dispenser are optional.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    This invention relates to furniture for storage and use of drinking-water bottles in private or public facilities.  
           [0002]    Increasing use of bottled water for drinking in homes, businesses and other private and public facilities is creating demand for convenient water-bottle furniture which currently is not known to exist for use and storage of a plurality of water bottles as taught by this invention.  
           [0003]    Examples of most-closely related known but different devices are described in the following patent documents:  
                                       U.S. Pat. No.   Inventor   Issue Date                   5,370,245   Tersch, et al.   Dec. 6, 1994       6,003,654   Webber, et al.   Dec. 21, 1999       6,135,297   DeShazo, et al.   Oct. 24, 2000       5,310,300   Crabb, et al.   May 10, 1994       6,142,300   Kelly, et al.   Nov. 7, 2000       5,016,545   Robertson, et al.   May 21, 1991       4,844,393   Lee   Jul. 4, 1989       4,485,930   Savelkouls   Dec. 4, 1984                  
 
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    Objects of patentable novelty and utility taught by this invention are to provide water-bottle storage and use furniture which:  
           [0005]    stores and contains a desired use-lot of water bottles conveniently for pre-use storage, in-use positioning and after-use storage;  
           [0006]    is safe from being tipped by foreseeable ambient factors;  
           [0007]    includes bottle covering and enclosure with selective aesthetics; and  
           [0008]    provides convenient bottle-handling access.  
           [0009]    This invention accomplishes these and other objectives with water-bottle storage and use furniture having at least one base shelf, one or more bottle-use supports pyramidally above the base shelf; one or more uprights intermediate the base shelf and the use support. Weight of the base shelf and weight of any water bottles provide pyramidical stability. Walls and doors can cover open sides with aesthetics selectively and prevent outside view of full and used water bottles on the base shelf. Wheels, casters and legs can be positioned on the base shelf. The use support can be articulated for design orientation of the water bottles. Water dispensers and modifiers of temperature, taste, color and quality of water dispensed from the water dispenser are optional.  
           [0010]    The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention should become even more readily apparent to those skilled in the art upon a reading of the following detailed description in conjunction with the drawings wherein there is shown and described illustrative embodiments of the invention. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0011]    This invention is described by appended claims in relation to description of a preferred embodiment with reference to the following drawings which are explained briefly as follows:  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 1 is a front view of an embodiment for two cylindrical three-gallon water bottles in storage position on a base shelf and two of the water bottles horizontally one above the other on bottle-use supports;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway side view of the FIG. 1 illustration;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway side view of an embodiment for four cylindrical five-gallon water bottles in storage position on a base shelf and two water bottles horizontally one above the other on bottle-use supports;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway top view of the FIG. 3 illustration;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 5 is a front view of an embodiment for eight rectangular two and one-half-gallon water bottles in storage position on two base shelves and one of the water bottles horizontally on a bottle-use support;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 6 is a front view of an embodiment for six rectangular two and one-half-gallon water bottles in storage position on two base shelves and one of the water bottles horizontally on a bottle-use support;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 7 is a partially cutaway side view of the FIG. 5 illustration that also has doors that are shown in closed modes on fronts of the base shelves and the bottle-use support;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 8 is a partially cutaway top view of the FIG. 7 illustration with the doors shown in open modes;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 9 is the FIG. 8 illustration with the doors shown in closed modes;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 10 is a partially cutaway front view of the FIG. 9 illustration;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 11 is a partially cutaway front view of an embodiment for four cylindrical five-gallon water bottles in storage position on a base shelf and one water bottle positioned vertically on a bottle-use support having a controllable water dispenser and water modifier;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 12 is a partially cutaway side view of the FIG. 11 illustration with casters and with front doors in closed modes;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 13 is a partially cutaway top view of the FIG. 12 illustration with the doors in open modes;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 14 is a partially cutaway side view of an embodiment for four cylindrical five-gallon water bottles in storage position on a base shelf and one water bottle slanted on a bottle-use support;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 15 is a partially cutaway front view of an embodiment for twenty-four one-gallon water bottles in storage position on three base shelves and one water bottle positioned vertically on a bottle-use support having a controllable water dispenser and water modifier;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 16 is the FIG. 15 illustration having doors in closed modes;  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 17 is a partially cutaway side view of the FIG. 16 illustration; and  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 18 is a top view of the FIG. 17 illustration with the doors in open modes. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0030]    Listed numerically below with reference to the drawings are terms used to describe features of this invention. These terms and numbers assigned to them designate the same features throughout this description.  1 . Base shelf  12 . Casters  2 . Multiple-gallon water bottle  13 . Base door  3 . Bottle-use support  14 . Use-support door  4 . Horizontal support  15 . Water-bottle cradles  5 . Upright  16 . Bottle exit  6 . Rectangular water bottles  17 . Water dispenser  7 . One-gallon water bottles  18 . Water modifier  8 . Pillared upright  19 . Controller  9 . Legs  20 . Third base shelf  10 . Back cover  21 . Handle  11 . Second base shelf  
         [0031]    Referring to FIGS.  1 - 4 , water-bottle storage and use furniture has at least one base shelf  1  that is articulated to support a predetermined plurality of predetermined water bottles used to contain drinking water for use in private, commercial and public buildings. For this embodiment, the water bottles are three-gallon or five-gallon water bottles  2  that are cylindrical. One or more bottle-use supports  3  on horizontal supports  4  are situated vertically above the base shelf  1  and above the water bottles which are stored in an upright orientation on the base shelf  1 . The bottle-use supports  3  are situated on one or more uprights  5  intermediate the bottle-use supports  3  and the base shelf  1 .  
         [0032]    The bottle-use supports  3  have smaller cross-sectional area than the base shelf  1 . The bottle-use supports  3  are positioned frustrate-pyramidally above the one or more uprights  5  and the base shelf  1  to provide weight and area in addition to weight of any water bottles with or without water in them for upright stability pyramidally in relation to a water bottle being used on the bottle-use support  3 , water bottles containing water being placed on the base shelf  1  and emptied water bottles being taken off of the base shelf  1  selectively.  
         [0033]    The base shelf  1 , the bottle-use support  3 , the uprights  5  and other features of this invention are intended to be structured and otherwise articulated for support and use of conventional and foreseeable sizes, shapes and volumetric capacities of water bottles. In addition to the three-gallon or five-gallon water bottle  2  shown in FIGS.  1 - 4 , and  11 - 14 , the currently most common conventional and foreseeable water bottles include rectangular water bottles  6  shown in FIGS.  5 - 10  that generally are made of plastic to contain two and one-half gallons and one-gallon water bottles  7  shown in FIGS.  15 - 18  that usually are square and made of plastic, but can be cylindrical and made of glass for containing more or less than one gallon of drinking water. The three-gallon or five-gallon water bottle  2  is representative of cylindrical water bottles that can be made of glass or plastic for containing designedly more or less than five gallons. The shapes of the water bottles can include various structural stiffening forms, handles, stiffening ribs, necks, outlet and lid features.  
         [0034]    Three convenient sizes of this water-bottle storage and use furniture for the three-gallon or five-gallon water bottle  2  include a four-bottle-three gallon size shown in FIGS.  1 - 2 , a six-bottle-five gallon size shown in FIGS.  3 - 4  and a five-bottle size shown in FIGS.  11 - 14 . For the four-bottle size, two of the three-gallon water bottles  2  are oriented vertically on the base shelf  1  for storage before or after use. The other two are in-use bottles that are oriented horizontally for a manual-use mode on the horizontal support  4  from which they can be extended slightly for convenient handling access in transferring water to smaller, different or immediate-use containers. Shown with the four-bottle size are a pillared upright  8  that can be optional to the uprights  5  in order to allow the uprights  5  to be covering.  
         [0035]    In the six-bottle size, the five-gallon water bottles  2  are juxtaposed cubically. Shown with the six-bottle size and also the four-bottle size are optional legs  9  and a back cover  10  that can aid structural integrity.  
         [0036]    Referring to FIGS.  5 - 10 , the rectangular water bottles  6  can be juxtaposed on the base shelf  1  and on a second base shelf  11 . The bottle-use support  3  can include a rectangular housing sized and shaped for the rectangular water bottles  6  instead of for the three-gallon or five-gallon water bottles  2  shown in FIGS.  1 - 4 . Casters  12  can be provided as an option to the legs  9  for all embodiments as shown on a nine-bottle size with the legs  9  in FIG. 5 and with the casters  12  in FIG. 6 for a seven-bottle size.  
         [0037]    Base doors  13  shown in FIGS.  7 - 10 ,  12 ,  13 - 14  and  16 - 18  and use-support doors  14  shown in FIGS.  7 - 10  are optional for blocking vision and addition of select aesthetics. The base doors  13  are preferably double doors that open from opposite sides to save building space as shown in closed modes in FIGS.  7 ,  9 - 10 ,  12 ,  14  and  16 - 17 . In open modes, the base doors  13  are shown in FIGS. 8, 13 and  18 . The use-support doors  14  are shown in closed modes in FIGS. 7 and 9- 10 . In open mode, a use-support door  14  is shown in FIG. 8.  
         [0038]    The bottle-use supports  3  include water-bottle cradles  15  for one water bottle of the predetermined water bottles at a time in an inverted vertical orientation with a bottle exit  16  downward in fluid communication with an inside periphery of the water bottle. The water bottles are the five-gallon water bottle  2  depicted in FIGS.  11 - 13  and the one-gallon water bottle  7  depicted in FIGS.  15 - 18 .  
         [0039]    As shown in approximate size and schematic relationships in FIGS.  10 - 11 , and in FIGS.  15 - 16 , a water dispenser  17  can be situated in fluid communication with the bottle exit  16 . The bottle-use supports  3  include water-bottle cradles  15  for one water bottle of the predetermined water bottles at a time in an inverted vertical orientation with the bottle exit  16  downward in fluid communication with an inside periphery of the water bottle. In fluid communication with the water dispenser  17  can be a water modifier  18  having a controller  19  for selection of water modification temperature, taste, color and other factors selectively.  
         [0040]    As shown in FIGS. 15 and 17, a third base shelf  20  is desirable for positioning the one-gallon water bottles  7  in the same working relationship to the water-bottle support  3  in related forms as for the three-gallon or five-gallon water bottles  2  in FIGS.  1 - 4  and  11 - 14  and in the same working relationship as for the rectangular water bottles  6  in FIGS.  5 - 10 .  
         [0041]    Similar in appearance and with commonality of function and structure, there is a horizontal support  4  as a refreshment table above a case of water bottles  2 ,  6  and  7  that can have the base doors  13  and the use-support door  14  as desired to provide the same furniture features and advantages for each embodiment. Some users may prefer economy of the three-gallon or five-gallon water bottles  2  of FIGS.  1 - 4  and  11 - 14 . Others may prefer the storage economy and lifting ease of a handle  21  on the rectangular water bottles  6  of FIGS.  5 - 10 . Still others may prefer still more ease of handling in addition to preservation of water quality in smaller unit volumes of the one-gallon water bottles  7  of FIGS.  15 - 18 , even with possibly higher costs. In addition to its similarity in appearance and commonality of function and structure, total storage volume of water and size of the water-bottle storage and use furniture can be varied similarly for different sizes and shapes of water bottles.  
         [0042]    New and useful water-bottle storage and use furniture having been described, all such foreseeable modifications, adaptations, substitutions of equivalents, mathematical possibilities of combinations of parts, pluralities of parts, applications and forms thereof as described by the following claims and not precluded by prior art are included in this invention.