Abstract:
The present invention provides an enhanced water product, wherein a solid dosage product is conveyed with a bottle of water in an attached dosage cup. The attachment is achieved with a novel frangible feature that flexes out of the way during a simplified snap-on assembly. The feature breaks away when any attempt is made to separate the dosage cup from bottle, thus rendering the product safe from malicious tampering. In an alternate embodiment, the dosage cup is used to measure any liquid product.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application 61/158,828, filed Mar. 10, 2009. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to bottled water products, and more particularly to a nutritionally enhanced drink. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Additives are commonly sold in combination with bottled water. Currently marketed examples include energy, or health, drinks, where the additive is provided in solution form. Other examples include a medication where the bottled water is supplied simply as a convenience for washing down a pill or a capsule. 
     In particular instances involving nutritional supplements, however, it is useful to supply the supplement in solid dosage form, similar to the medication example. Doing so improves the shelf stability of a natural active ingredient, and particularly one of a biological derivation, which might otherwise degrade or lose potency over time when in dissolution. 
     In contrast with the medication circumstance, however, the water is not just a convenience for administering the dosage. It is also a measured amount of ingredient required for the best metabolic results. Therefore, the means for combining the two components into a single package is an important aspect of the product put-up. One such means is with a dose cup inverted over the bottle cap. 
     Dose cups attached to bottles containing liquid products are known. In U.S. Pat. No. 526,772 to Dickerson and U.S. Pat. No. 525,753 to Turner, for example, a dose cup having measurement graduations is locked onto the neck of a bottle containing a liquid preparation by screw-thread or lug mechanisms. In U.S. Pat. No. 7,296,700 to Steele, a dosage cup is coupled to the cap of a bottle containing a liquid nutritional supplement. A friction fit with shoulder-like appendages in the cup provides the mechanism for attachment to the cap in this case. 
     The attachment means used for the above instances are not particularly secure, either in terms of retaining the cup or in terms of tamper-safety. In the marketplace of today, a well-known liquid product for cold and flu relief, branded Vicks® NyQuil®, provides a dose cup secured to the neck flange of a bottle by means of a shrink band. Shrink bands are considered to be tamper-indicating in certain cases, and the enshroudment of the cup prevents unintended separation. In U.S. Patent Application 2008/0000786 to Collotta, a secondary cap, in the configuration of a cup, creates a chamber to house a solid dosage preparation in the form of pills or capsules for a companion water bottle. The cup is held in place by a body-type shrink band. 
     The cup-over-cap provides a convenient means for packaging a nutritional solid dosage preparation with a measured amount of water. Transparency can be easily modulated to provide either visibility to the product or protection from harmful radiation. It also provides a convenient and sanitary way to handle the dosage when removed from the bottle. The shrink banding, on the other hand, has drawbacks. Because heat must be applied, there is a risk of degradation to a temperature-sensitive product. Furthermore, the operation represents an investment in equipment, an additional step in the production process, and an additional material expense. Lastly, the customer is inconvenienced by having to strip away the band. 
     The unfulfilled need is for a tamper-indicating put-up, whereby a cup assembled to a bottle containing a liquid provides a container for an accompanying solid dosage product in a simple, snap-together process avoiding the application of heat. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a dose cup attached to a bottle of liquid product for measuring out or handling doses. 
     It is further object of the present invention to provide a nutritional supplement in an interior space of a dose cup inverted over the cap of a bottle of water. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to attach the dose cup to the bottle of water without applying heat to the nutritional supplement. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to perform the attachment in a single assembly step. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide an indicator for product tampering. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to make the attachment secure for shipping and handling purposes while suitably frangible for access to the contained products. 
     These objects, and others to become hereinafter apparent, are embodied in an enhanced water product with a safety feature, comprising a water bottle containing water and having a neck finish and a neck flange operable with a closure. The closure is sealing fitted to the neck finish and has a top surface. The enhanced water product further comprises an inverted frusto-conical cup having a sidewall interior surface, a top rim and a bottom. The inverted frusto-conical cup forms a chamber between the bottom and the top surface of the closure with the sidewall interior surface resting on the neck flange. The top rim has a diameter broader than the neck flange. The enhanced water product further comprises a solid dosage product contained within the chamber. The enhanced water product finally comprises a means for frangibly coupling the inverted frusto-conical cup to the neck flange, said means engaged during the act of assembling the inverted frusto-conical cup to the water bottle, the engagement providing both physical and tamper-indicating security of the assembly. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the means for frangibly coupling comprises a boss extending radially inward from the sidewall interior surface, the boss capable of flexing out of the way during passage over the neck flange and of snagging there under to form the engagement. The means for frangibly coupling additionally comprises a flexible sidewall. The top rim diameter is sufficiently broad to allow the flexed boss to bypass the flange when the sidewall is flexed into an ovate shape during assembly. The engaged boss separates from the sidewall and releases the inverted frusto-conical cup when a predetermined force is applied thereto, the separation constituting a telltale of the act. 
     In a particularly preferred embodiment, the boss is attached to a separable portion of the sidewall, which, in turn, is attached to the sidewall by a plurality of breakable filaments. The predetermined force is a hand pressure applied to the inverted frusto-conical cup of sufficient strength and direction to break the breakable filaments. 
     In an alternate embodiment, the same mechanism is used to assemble a frusto-conical cup to a bottle containing a liquid, the cup serving to measure out the liquid. 
     As this is not intended to be an exhaustive recitation, other embodiments may be learned from practicing the invention or may otherwise become apparent to those skilled in the art. 
    
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood through the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the enhanced water product of the present invention with the cap and solid dosage shown in hidden line; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the enhanced water product with the cap and solid dosage is shown in hidden line with a feature broken away; 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of the enhanced water product; 
         FIG. 4  is an elevation view of the enhanced water product; 
         FIG. 5  is a partial sectional view taken along the lines  5 - 5  of  FIG. 4 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a detail view of a portion of the partial sectional view of  FIG. 5 ; 
         FIG. 7  is an elevation view of the dose cup of the invention; 
         FIG. 8  is a bottom perspective view of the dose cup; 
         FIG. 9  is an elevation view of an alternate embodiment of the enhanced water product; 
         FIG. 10  is a partial sectional view taken along the lines  10 - 10  of  FIG. 9 ; 
         FIG. 11  is a detail view of a portion of the partial sectional view of  FIG. 10 ; 
         FIG. 12  is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the dose cup; and 
         FIG. 13  is a bottom perspective view of the alternate embodiment of the dose cup. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The constituent components of the present invention are best shown in the exploded view of  FIG. 3 . An enhanced water product  1  is comprised of a water bottle  10 , a closure  2 , a solid dosage product  4  and a frusto-conical cup  20 .  FIG. 1  shows the components in assembly with dotted lines indicating by outline the closure  2  and the solid dosage product  4  enclosed by the frusto-conical cup  20 .  FIG. 2  shows a separable portion  32  of a means for frangibly coupling  30  the frusto-conical cup  20  to the water bottle  10 . As a following discussion will show, the separable portion  32  comprises a safety feature of the enhanced water product  1 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , the water bottle  10  is comprised of a neck  11 , a shoulder  12 , a neck finish  13 , and a neck flange  15 . The neck  11  joins the shoulder  12  to form an opening for the water bottle  10 . The water bottle  10  is a container generally filled with water, but may contain any liquid suitable for a nutritional regimen. In the preferred embodiment, the neck finish  13  has there around threads  14  configured for engaging complementary features of the closure  2 . When the closure  2  is threadingly engaged with the neck finish  13 , the water bottle  10  is sealed. The closure  2  may also engage by any alternate means known in the art. 
     The neck flange  15  extends radially outward from the neck  11  below the seated closure  2 . The extension of the neck flange  15  is sufficient to allow the frusto-conical cup  20  to seat thereon without interference from the closure  2 . The position of the neck flange  15  above the shoulder  12  is sufficient to permit the frusto-conical cup  20  to overlap the neck flange  15  when seated thereon. 
     The closure  2  has a top surface  3 . The solid dosage product  4  rests on the top surface  3  when assembled thereto. The solid dosage product  4  may be a tablet or a capsule, or may be a plurality individually, or a mixture, thereof. The solid dosage product  4  may be contained in a sealed pouch  5  (not shown). The sealed pouch  5  may be comprised of a heat-sealed film, such as that commonly used for sanitation purposes. In the preferred embodiment, the sealed pouch  5  is visually transparent so that the solid dosage product  4  can be inspected. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1-3 ,  7 , and  8 , the frusto-conical cup  20  has a flared sidewall  21 , a bottom  23  and a top rim  24 . The flared sidewall  21  has a sidewall interior surface  22 . When assembled to water bottle  10 , the sidewall interior surface  22  rests on the neck flange  15  to define a chamber  25  between the bottom  23  of the frusto-conical cup  20  and the top surface  3  of the closure  2 . The flare of the sidewall is such that the diameter of the top rim  24  is greater than the diameters of the bottom  23  and the neck flange  15 . The slope of the flare is roughly defined by the sections of the frusto-conical cup  20  intersected by the planes of the top surface  3  and the contact profile of the neck flange  15 . The chamber  25  is of sufficient volume to contain the solid dosage product  4  therein. The flared sidewall  21  is sufficiently flexible as to change the top rim  24  from a circular shape to an ovate shape and sufficiently resilient as to resume the circular shape thereafter. In the preferred embodiment, the frusto-conical cup  20  is visually transparent, or at least translucent, but may contain spectral filters to prevent the degradation of the solid dosage product  4 . 
     The means for frangibly coupling  30  is best shown in  FIGS. 4-8 . The means for frangibly coupling  30  comprises a boss  31  extending radially inward from the sidewall interior surface  22  adjacent the top rim  24  of the frusto-conical cup  20  to underlap the neck flange  15 . The boss  31  has a tapered lip  34  which angles upwardly and inwardly to make contact with the underside of the neck flange  15 , thereby coupling the frusto-conical cup  20  to the water bottle  10  with interfering structure. The tapered lip  34  diminishes in thickness toward a tip end  35 , whereby the tip is made progressively flexible. The angle is of the tapered lip  34  is such as to urge the top rim  24  of the frusto-conical cup  20  into an ovate shape when the frusto-conical cup is forced downward over the closure  2  and the neck flange  15 . The ovate shape is optimized by sizing of the top rim  24  and the boss  31  to provide minimal clearance for the tip end  35  in its extreme flexed position to bypass the neck flange  15  and snap thereunder. 
     Because the neck flange  15  is forced to reside, by means of tapered lip  34 , at a cross-section of the frusto-conical cup  20  which is smaller in diameter than that of the top rim  24 , thereby reducing available bypass clearance, and because the upward and outward angle of the tapered lip  34  effectively lengthens the boss  31  when an attempt is made to lift the frusto-conical cup  20 , the frusto-conical cup is effectively captured by the boss  31 . The frusto-conical cup  20  can be further secured by lowering the top rim  24  toward the shoulder  12 , whereby the gap there between is narrowed sufficiently to prevent manipulation of the tapered lip  34  there through. Similarly, the frusto-conical cup  20  cannot be tipped off the water bottle  10  from an opposite leverage point with the sidewall interior surface  22  positioned sufficiently close to the closure  2  (see  FIG. 5 ). 
     The means for frangibly coupling  30  further comprises the separable portion  32 . The separable portion  32  supports the boss  31  and forms a part of the flared sidewall  21 , to which it is connected by a multiplicity of breakable filaments  33 . The breakable filaments  33  are sufficiently frangible as to shear apart when a downward pressure is applied to the boss  31 . Such a downward pressure occurs when an attempt is made to lift the frusto-conical cup  20  away from the water bottle  10 . The lifting of the frusto-conical cup  20  causes the separable portion  32  to experience a shearing force cantilevered by the boss  31 . When the breakable filaments  33  are thusly sheared, the separable portion  32  drops away and the frusto-conical cup  20  is freed from the water bottle  10  in evidence of the act. In such a way, the separable portion  32  constitutes a tamper-indicating feature. 
     An alternate embodiment of the means for frangibly coupling  30  is shown in  FIGS. 9-13 . In this embodiment, the separable portion  32  and the breakable filaments  33  are replaced by a notch  36  at the base of the boss  31 . The notch  36  provides a weakened point in the structure of boss  31  that will sustain a compression force while giving away under a tension force. When the tapered lip  34  of the boss  31  is flexed in response to forcing the frusto-conical cup  20  downward over the neck flange  15 , a compressive force is applied to the notch  36 , wherein the gap of the notch, given sufficiently narrow breadth, provides strain relief for the structure at the base of the boss  31 . By contrast, the depth of the notch  36  is sufficient to fracture the boss  31  at the base when a tension force is applied thereto by lifting the frusto-conical cup  20 . This causes the boss  31  to drop away and free the frusto-conical cup, again witnessing the act, in similar fashion to the separable portion  32 . The boss  31 , itself, in this case, is the analogous tamper-indicating mechanism. 
     In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the solid dosage product  4  is omitted. In such a case, the chamber  25  is no longer needed and the bottom  23  of the frusto-conical cup  20  may rest on or near the top surface  3  of the closure  2 . With dosage gradation marks  26  (not shown) applied to the frusto-conical cup  20 , the same may be used for measuring out doses of a liquid product. The dosage gradation marks  26  may be applied by imprinting or embossing techniques known in the art. 
     The frusto-conical cup  20  may be formed by injection molding. While any suitable thermoplastic resin may be used, the preferred resin is one of low toughness, such as polystyrene (PS) or poly methyl methacrylate (PMMA). Moldings with these resins can be rendered flexible with sufficiently thin wall design. Because of the multiple undercuts in the preferred embodiment involving the separable portion  32 , actions within the mold to manipulate steel withdrawal from the undercuts will be complex. Such complexities drive up the mold cost and lengthen the cycle time, hence the incremental cost of the molded part. 
     The alternate embodiment involving the notch  36  addresses the undercut dilemma by providing a tooling aperture  37  (see  FIG. 12 ). The tooling aperture  37  allows shutoffs around the notch and boss undercuts in a straight pull of the mold core without collateral actions. In this way, the mold design is simplified and the cycle efficiency improved. The tooling aperture  37 , however, renders the frusto-conical cup  20  unsuitable for holding a liquid product of any volume, and, consequently, makes it of limited usefulness for the alternative embodiment of the present invention. This usefulness can be significantly improved, on the other hand, by decreasing the slope of the flared sidewall  21 . This would have the effect of narrowing the tooling aperture  37  and moving it toward the top of the frusto-conical cup  20 , whereby the volume of contained liquid would scalably increase. 
     The water bottle  10  can be formed by known methods in a variety of thermoplastic materials. In the preferred embodiment, the bottle is blow-molded from polyethylene terephthalate (PETE), which is a clear resin of the polyester family. Similarly, production methods and materials for the closure  2  can be selected from those well known by practitioners in the art. In the preferred embodiment, closure  2  is injection molded from one, or a combination of, polypropylene (PP) or polyethylene (PE), both of which are commodity resins generically known as polyolefin&#39;s. Solid dosage product  4  can be granulated, compressed, or comminuted in accordance with known methods, typically in the domain of pharmaceuticals. 
     It is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the preceding description or illustrated in the drawings. For example, there may be more than one separable portion  32 , or more than one notch  36 . Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting.