Abstract:
A lip guard for use with beverage or food dispensers and vessels to prevent the transfer of germs, bacteria, viruses, and other contaminants to the user of the vessel. The lip guard is comprised of guard section ( 8 B), base section ( 8 A), and can be attached to vessels and dispensers. Guard section ( 8 B) of the lip guard works to prevent the spread of germs by coming into contact with the vessel at a point below the lip and rim area.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application (PPA) Ser. No. 61/250,616, filed Oct. 12, 2009. 
     
    
     FEDERALLY SPONSERED RESEARCH 
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
       SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM 
       [0003]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0004]    1. Field 
         [0005]    This application relates to lip guards, specifically to a new kind of lip guard that is used on beverage and food dispensers, and also on drinking and eating vessels (e.g. cups, glasses, and bowls). 
         [0006]    2. Prior Art 
         [0007]    This type of lip guard is believed to be entirely new. 
         [0008]    Some drink dispensers, such as self-serve soda dispensers in fast-food restaurants, have parts that are called “sanitary levers”, “sanitary push levers”, and “sanitary valve levers”. These parts are not guards in and of themselves. They are cup-actuated and push-to pour (i.e. activated by pushing a drinking vessel) mechanisms that are shaped to reduce the transmission of undesirable substances. 
         [0009]    These sanitary levers are shaped so that they come in contact with a drinking vessel below the lip and rim area. A vessel&#39;s lip and rim area is the area around the rim where a person&#39;s lips may come into contact. To give some idea of the dimensions of the lip and rim area, the Society of Glass and Ceramic Decorators (SGCD) defines it to be the top 20 mm of the outside of a drinking vessel. A reference to a sanitary lever can be seen in the application Multi-Flavor Valve, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/846,331 to Piatnik et al. (2005). 
         [0010]    Some drink dispensers have parts called cup locators. While some of these cup locators may have a similar appearance to my lip guard, they are created for the purpose of indicating where a cup should be placed. They are not guards either. 
         [0011]    There are guards and strips for sanitary drinking vessels such as Sanitary Strip for Drinking Vessels, U.S. Pat. No. 6,001,441 to Polizzano (1999), Lip Guard for Drinking Vessels, U.S. Pat. No. 1,369,293 to Mooney (1921), and Sanitary Drinking Vessel, U.S. Pat. No. 999,134 to Toan (1911). But these guards and strips are merely covers for a vessel&#39;s lip and rim area. They do not prevent the spread of undesirable substances that can result from contact. 
         [0012]    Most of these guards and strips for sanitary drinking are designed to be applied to a drinking vessel only, with the possible exception of the Sanitary Strip for Drinking Vessels, U.S. Pat. No. 6,001,441 to Polizzano (1999). But the sanitary strip is still only a covering, and doesn&#39;t block or check the vessel. 
         [0013]    There are also products such as self-adhesive pads, protectors, guards, and bumpers that are commonly used to protect furniture, walls, doors, and floors. These protectors may be easily attached to a flat surface. 
         [0014]    But most, if not all, of these protectors are rectangular or circular in shape. This makes the area of contact, or contact area, between a vessel and these protectors relatively large. Minimizing the contact area is important since substances such as viruses and germs can be microscopic. 
         [0015]    The placement of circular or rectangular protectors can also be awkward if the available space on a surface is limited. A guard may need to be short so that it can be positioned so that it will be below the lip and rim area. Cup-actuated members or cradles are sometimes short, and vessels are sometimes short. 
         [0016]    But even if a protector has a very small surface area, and is short, it may still not safely accommodate a vessel. A protector may have insufficient width to encompass the width of a vessel safely, or may have a convex-rounded surface that bulges outward and deflects the vessel. The vessel, or the protector itself, may slide when they come into contact with a protector. These concerns become worrisome in the case of fragile vessels that may fall and break, or with hot beverages that may spill, or with heavy vessels that may cause injury if dropped, or with the guard itself that may slide and become dislodged and possibly be swallowed by a child or a pet. 
         [0017]    Because of the circular or rectangular shape of many protectors, a user may also be less inclined to position the vessel properly. A vessel should come into contact with a protector below the lip and rim area. If the guard is circular, for example, the user may instead favor the midpoint or center of the protector. 
         [0018]    Virtually all of these protectors consist of a base section that has the same height and width of its guard section. An extender could be required to position these protectors properly. 
         [0019]    Also it may be difficult to attach protectors, which tend to have bases that are flat, to a surface that may be tilted, curved, narrow, etc. In my embodiments the base may take on a number of different shapes and sizes. 
         [0020]    Some guards, including protectors as well as other types of guards, may also be too thick. A guard that is too thick might obstruct a vessel from a dispenser&#39;s spout. 
         [0021]    Some protectors might be made from materials that leach chemicals, such as certain plastics. Some may collapse after repeated use and not be substantially rigid, such as a door protector made of soft rubber or a floor protector made out of felt. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0022]    In accordance with one embodiment, a lip guard for beverage and food dispensers and vessels reduces the possibility of transmission of undesirable substances between a vessel and a dispenser. It comprises a guard section that has sufficient size and rigidity to receive and check a vessel below its lip and rim area without obstructing a spout. It also comprises a base section and can be attached to a dispenser or to a vessel. 
     
    
     
       DRAWINGS 
       Figures 
         [0023]    I&#39;ve included eleven drawings. In the drawings, closely related figures have the same number but different alphabetic suffixes. Also, some closely related parts or sections have the same number but different alphabetic suffixes. 
           [0024]      FIG. 1A  is a perspective view of a first embodiment of my lip guard. 
           [0025]      FIG. 1B  is a front view of a first embodiment of my lip guard. 
           [0026]      FIG. 1C  is a side view of a first embodiment of my lip guard. 
           [0027]      FIG. 2  is a front view of a typical refrigerator water dispenser, one example of a surface to which my lip guard may be applied. 
           [0028]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a first embodiment of my lip guard, in close proximity to a typical refrigerator water dispenser. 
           [0029]      FIG. 4A  is a perspective view of a first embodiment of my lip guard, in contact with a typical refrigerator water dispenser. 
           [0030]      FIG. 4B  is a front view of a first embodiment of my lip guard, in contact with a typical refrigerator water dispenser. 
           [0031]      FIG. 5A  is a perspective view of a straight-edge glass being pressed against an embodiment of my lip guard in contact with a typical refrigerator water dispenser. 
           [0032]      FIG. 5B  is a front view of a straight-edge glass. 
           [0033]      FIG. 6A  is a perspective view of a slanted-edge glass being pressed against a first embodiment of my lip guard, in contact with a typical refrigerator water dispenser. 
           [0034]      FIG. 6B  is a front view of a slanted-edge glass. 
       
    
    
     REFERENCE NUMERALS 
       [0000]    
       
         
           
               8 A base section 
               8 B guard section 
               10 A dispenser cradle, cup-actuated member 
               10 B dispenser housing (a cover that houses the dispenser&#39;s spout; the spout is not visible) 
               12  straight-edge glass 
               14  slanted-edge glass 
           
         
       
     
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     First Embodiment—FIGS.  1 A,  4 A,  5 A,  5 B,  6 A,  6 B 
       [0041]    One embodiment of the lip guard is illustrated in  FIG. 1A  (perspective view). This first embodiment comprises guard section  8 B and base section  8 A. Guard section  8 B has the form of a semi-annular (semicircular) flange, or external rib, and is firmly attached at the bottom of base section  8 A. Base section  8 A is a sheet of rigid material in this embodiment. The surface area of base section  8 A is large enough to accommodate a common adhesive mounting strip. 
         [0042]    In this embodiment the lip guard is sized and shaped to be attached to a typical refrigerator water dispenser.  FIG. 4A  shows a perspective view of the lip guard in contact with a water dispenser. Both the lip guard itself and dispenser cradle  10 A are curved. A simple adhesive mounting strip (not visible) is used here for attaching. The adhesive strip is positioned between base section  8 A and cradle  10 A. The refrigerator water dispenser depicted in this drawing has a dispenser housing  10 B that houses a spout. The spout is not visible. 
         [0043]    The dimensions of the lip guard correspond to the dimensions of cradle  10 A in this embodiment. Cradle  10 A is 5 cm in width and 6 cm in height. Base section  8 A is slightly wider than cradle  10 A, and its height is 3 cm. This height happens to be larger than the Society of Glass and Ceramic Decorators&#39; height standard for a drinking vessel&#39;s lip and rim area (20 mm). Guard section  8 B extends only 5 mm outward from the bottom of base section  8 A, so as not to obstruct a vessel from the dispenser&#39;s spout (not visible). The spout is located inside dispenser housing  10 B. 
         [0044]    The material used in this embodiment is plastic. The thickness of the plastic used is 1 mm. The material should be substantially rigid to withstand pressure from a vessel. The lip guard could be formed as a single piece of plastic using a process such as injection molding. 
         [0045]    Two vessels that might be used with the lip guard are also depicted in the drawings, including straight-edge glass  12  in  FIGS. 5A and 5B  and slanted-edge glass  14  in  FIGS. 6A and 6B . 
       Operation 
     First Embodiment—FIGS.  4 A,  5 A,  6 A 
       [0046]    Instead of covering the lip and rim area to protect against undesirable substances like germs, my lip guard instead works to prevent a drinking or eating vessel from ever touching a dispenser directly. It does this by blocking or checking the vessel at a point below the lip and rim area. 
         [0047]      FIG. 4A  shows the lip guard positioned on cradle  10 A. Guard section  8 B is oriented to extend outward toward a vessel, e.g. a cup. It is positioned at a location on cradle  10 A so that it is likely to come into contact with a vessel below the lip and rim area. In this case guard section  8 B extends outward at a perpendicular from cradle  10 A. A common adhesive mounting strip (not visible) is used for attachment. 
         [0048]    To use the guard, one simply uses the dispenser (now fitted with a lip guard) normally. In this case, the vessel is pressed against cradle  10 A as seen with straight-edge glass  12  in  FIG. 5A , or slanted-edge glass  14  in  FIG. 6A . 
       Alternative Embodiments 
     FIG.  6   a    
       [0049]    The lip guard may be used on many surfaces including beverage and food dispensers and also on the drinking and eating vessels themselves. 
         [0050]    The drawings depict a push-lever or cup-actuated (i.e. activated by pushing a vessel such as a cup or a glass) type of cradle  10 A, but the lip guard may also be used with other cup-actuated members such as water-dispenser pads. 
         [0051]    The lip guard may also be used with other non-cup-actuated or push-button dispensers such as a water cooler. Although dispensers like water coolers may not have a cup-actuated member, a lip guard might be used to prevent a vessel from coming into contact with other parts of the cooler. 
         [0052]    For some dispensers a lip guard may need to be thin. Sometimes the spout is very close to the cradle, for example. A thick lip guard could obstruct a vessel from the spout. 
         [0053]    One way to reduce the thickness of the lip guard, without sacrificing the guard section, might be to attach the guard section directly to a surface without a separate base section. Instead, an adhesive such as glue could be used. Something like glue could be stronger and not take up as much space as something like an adhesive mounting strip. Another way to reduce thickness could be the use of something like a strap or a clip, that might secure the lip guard by clipping or wrapping around an object instead of attaching directly. The lip guard could also be shaped it so that its base is flush with the attaching surface. 
         [0054]    If the lip guard is attached to the dispenser using an adhesive such as a mounting strip, then increasing the surface area of the base section could allow for a larger mounting strip, and a stronger bond. 
         [0055]    If attaching the lip guard with an adhesive, using a water-resistant adhesive could make the lip guard less likely to become detached. 
         [0056]    When attaching the lip guard to uneven, curved, angled, or tilted surfaces, the shape of the lip guard could also be angled or shaped so that guard section  8 B extends at a proper angle. 
         [0057]    The guard could be made from materials that do not leach chemicals over time, materials such as HDPE (high density polyethylene), LDPE (low density polyethylene), or PP (polypropylene). 
         [0058]    The base may extend beyond the guard section. This could allow the base to be used as an extender. This could be useful when attaching a lip guard to a cup-actuating mechanism or cradle that is very short, for example. Alternately, the base section of my lip guard may be smaller than the guard section, allowing for easier placement when the area of the attaching surface is limited. 
         [0059]    Changing the shape or size of the guard section could further reduce the contact with a vessel. This might be done by using smaller projections such as a series of nibs instead of a flange or external rib, or by altering the guard section&#39;s edge so that is beveled, notched, grooved, and the like. Other types of projections might be used for the guard section such as bails, arms, nibs, levers and the like. 
         [0060]    In addition to adhesive mounting strips, other adhesive and adhesiveless methods of attachment might be used such as glue, straps, clips such as edge clips and slide clips, and the like. 
         [0061]    Different materials, sizes and interconnections may be used for all components. 
       CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE 
       [0062]    The reader will see that the lip guards of various embodiments are substantially rigid and capable of being mounted. In addition, embodiments of the lip guard are wide enough to safely accommodate a vessel, and thin enough so that they do not obstruct the vessel from a spout, and can be mounted on various surfaces. Furthermore, embodiments of the lip guard might be made so as not to leach chemicals over time, and to have a minimal area of contact with a vessel.