Abstract:
Container lid with a cooling reservoir for releasably covering a disposable cup containing a hot beverage. The cooling reservoir includes a side wall with a small opening to allow a small volume of the hot beverage to pass into the cooling reservoir in which the beverage sufficiently cools down to enable the consumer to sip the beverage.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     This invention relates generally to a disposable beverage container lid made of a plastic material designed to cover a container containing a hot beverage therein, such as tea or coffee. More particularly, the invention relates to a disposable container lid having an integral cooling reservoir with a small opening in the side wall portion thereof, allowing the hot beverage to partially fill and quickly cool in the reservoir thereby preventing burn of the user&#39;s mouth from the first sips of the beverage. 
     2. Reported Developments 
     The prior art has provided lids/closures/covers for disposable and non-disposable containers, such as take-out cups used in the fast food services. The objects of the prior art included convenient and safe handling of hot or cold beverages without spill from containers, especially in containers carried in moving vehicles. As a result, anti-spill lids were suggested and/or provided for beverage containers such as disclosed for examples in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,146,157 and 5,415,312. 
     Other references disclose detachable covers for a drinking cup having a mouth or orifice enabling the user to drink the liquid without removing the cap form the container, such as disclosed for example in U.S. Pat. No. 4,503,992. 
     Another reference, U.S. Pat. No. 5,090,584 discloses a multi-function cap lid for disposable beverage containers where the lid has a means for retaining a flap in an open and non-interfering position when the liquid in the beverage container is being consumed by a consumer. 
     Still other references, such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,529,179, 5,722,558 and 5,894,952 disclose condiment reservoirs integral with the lid of beverage containers for convenience of the user to consume the condiments therefrom or to place the condiments from the reservoir into the liquid contained in the beverage container from which the condiment is consumed along with the beverage. 
     While providing anti-spill lids for take-out beverage containers, the prior art apparently has not satisfactorily addressed the need to prevent burn of the mouth and lips of the consumer when initially sipping hot coffee or tea. Plastic and paper cups are good insulators and maintain the temperature of a hot beverage for extended periods of time. However, the itinerant consumer in a motor vehicle would wish to sip the hot beverage without waiting for the hot beverage to cool down to a temperature at which it is safe to drink without the risk of burning his or her mouth or lips. 
     Accordingly, the present invention is directed to the provision of a hot beverage cup lid which allows safe sipping of the hot beverage from an associated cup. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a cup lid with a means to contain a small volume of a hot beverage which allows cooling and safe sipping of the beverage from an associated disposable cup. The cup lid comprises: 
     a planar top surface; 
     an outer rim extending around the planar top surface; 
     a recess in the planar top surface adjacent to the outer rim; and 
     a closure tab in the planar top surface positioned away from the recess in said planar top surface; wherein the recess in the planar top surface forms a cooling reservoir which comprises: 
     a conical side wall having an open proximal end terminating in a rim, 
     a distal end connected to a closed bottom, wherein said conical side wall has an opening therein designed to allow a beverage to pass therethrough and into said cooling reservoir. 
     In another aspect, the present invention provides a cup lid with a means to cool a small volume of a hot beverage in combination with a disposable cup containing the hot beverage. 
     The combination comprises the cup lid as described above and a disposable cup which includes: 
     a disposable cup having a generally conical configuration having a distal end and a proximal end. The distal end terminates in a flat, horizontal bottom portion closing the cylindrical side wall and forming a cup therewith. The proximal end of the cup is open to receive a hot beverage and terminates in a circular rim which extends slightly away from the side wall and is adapted to engage the outer rim of the cup lid having a skirt thereon. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 illustrates in perspective view the typical lid of the present invention positioned on a cup, the lid having a reservoir therein and a closure tab thereon, the closure tab being in the closed position; 
     FIG. 2 is a top view of the present invention show in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the present invention shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the present invention positioned on the cup taken along the line  4 — 4  of FIG. 1; and 
     FIG. 5 is a top view of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 with the closure tab being in the open position. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to FIGS. 1 through 5 of the drawings, there is shown a disposable container  10  hereinafter referred to as cup, typically made of polystyrene, or paper coated with a thin polymeric material. Disposable cup  10  is of generally conical configuration having a distal end  12  and a proximal end  14 . The distal end terminates in a flat, horizontal bottom portion  16  closing the cylindrical side wall  18  and forming a cup therewith. The proximal end is open to receive a beverage and terminates in a circular rim  20  which extends slightly away from side wall  18  of the cylindrical cup. 
     Cup lid generally designated by the reference numeral  22  is releasably mounted on proximal end  14  of cup  10  closing the opening thereof. The cup lid is made of a plastic material, such as polystyrene marketed under the trademark STYROFOAM®, or treated paper. Cup lid  22  comprises: a planar top surface  24  and a planar bottom surface  26 ; an outer rim  28  extending around the planar top surface  24  which, when cup lid  22  is mounted on cup  10 , provides for snap-on secure attachment of cup lid  22  to cap  10 ; a recess in cup lid  22  forming a cooling reservoir generally designated by the numeral  30  constituting the main feature of the present invention, and a closure tab  32 , diagonally positioned away from cooling reservoir  30 . 
     Cooling reservoir  30  comprises a conical side wall  34  having an open proximal end  36  and a distal end  38 . Proximal end  36  terminates in rim  40  which preferably is at level with the planar top surface  24  of cup lid  22 , although rim  40  may be at a level a few millimeters higher than the planar top surface  24  of cup lid  22 . Conical side wall  34  at the distal end  38  thereof connects to closed bottom  42 . 
     Cooling reservoir  30  is designed to receive of from about 1 ml to about 10 ml or more of the hot beverage contained in disposable cup  10 . Conical side wall  34  of cooling reservoir  30  contains an opening  44  therein through which the hot beverage enters from the disposable cup  10 . The size of the opening may be of from about 0.5 to about 3 mm when the opening is circular; or of from about 0.3 mm to about 7 mm when the opening is rectangular. 
     Closure tab generally designated by the numeral  32  is positioned in the planar top and bottom surfaces  24  and  26  of cup lid  22  opposite from cooling reservoir  30  and comprises: an access strip  46 ; tear indentations  48  which provides for easy separation of the access strip from cup lid  22 ; hinge  50  which allows the closure tab to flex upon tearing the closure tab indentations away from the surface of the cup lid; and pull tab  52  which is integral with access strip  46  and facilitates the tearing back of the access strip from cup lid  22 . 
     In use the disposable cup  10  is filled with the hot beverage, such as hot coffee or tea. Cup lid  22  is placed on the cup by pressing the outer rim of cup lid with skirt  28  thereon against the rim  20  of the cup  10  and snapping the cup lid in place. At this time the closure tab  32  is in the closed position as shown in FIGS. 1,  2  and  3 . The consumer being in a stationary position or in a moving vehicle holds the cup with the cooling reservoir towards him/her and slightly tilts the cup from its vertical position thereby allowing the hot beverage to enter into the cooling reservoir through the opening in the side wall thereof. Because only a relatively small amount of the hot beverage can be contained in the cooling reservoir, the hot beverage quickly cools down allowing the consumer to sip the beverage without waiting. The cooling reservoir only allows a small volume of the beverage to remain therein even if the cooling reservoir is completely filled initially, since any volume above the opening in the side wall of the cooling reservoir simply flows back to the cup. 
     After sufficient time has elapsed and the hot beverage in the disposable cup is cool enough, the consumer may wish to drink the beverage the conventional way, i.e. by holding the pull tab  52  and peeling back the access strip on the closure tab  46  along tear indentations  48  and bending it along hinge  50  towards the cooling reservoir. 
     
       
         
               
             
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
               
               
                 PARTS LIST 
               
               
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 Disposable container or cup 
                 10 
               
               
                   
                 Distal end of cup 
                 12 
               
               
                   
                 Proximal end of cup 
                 14 
               
               
                   
                 Bottom portion of cup 
                 16 
               
               
                   
                 Side wall of cup 
                 18 
               
               
                   
                 Circular rim on proximal end of cup 
                 20 
               
               
                   
                 Cup lid, generally designated, in closed position 
                 22 
               
               
                   
                 Cup lid, generally designated, in open position 
                 22′ 
               
               
                   
                 Planar top surface of cup lid 
                 24 
               
               
                   
                 Planar bottom surface of cup lid 
                 26 
               
               
                   
                 Outer rim of cup lid with skirt 
                 28 
               
               
                   
                 Cooling reservoir in lid, generally designated 
                 30 
               
               
                   
                 Closure tab, generally designated 
                 32 
               
               
                   
                 Conical side wall of cooling reservoir 
                 34 
               
               
                   
                 Proximal end of conical side all of cooling reservoir 
                 36 
               
               
                   
                 Distal end of conical side wall of cooling reservoir 
                 38 
               
               
                   
                 Rim of cooling reservoir 
                 40 
               
               
                   
                 Closed bottom of cooling reservoir 
                 42 
               
               
                   
                 Opening in side wall of cooling reservoir 
                 44 
               
               
                   
                 Access strip on closure tab 
                 46 
               
               
                   
                 Tear indentations in access strip 
                 48 
               
               
                   
                 Hinge of access strip 
                 50 
               
               
                   
                 Pull tab on access strip 
                 52 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
     Having described the invention, it is apparent that changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.