Abstract:
A shot caddy includes a platform with hole cutouts providing a device to carry multiple shot glasses. An inner circular wall in the hole cutouts may have a diameter that may provide that the shot glasses are carried with a center of mass at or below the platform.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application having Ser. No. 61510835 filed Jul. 22, 2011, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention generally relates to beverage accessories, and more particularly to a shot caddy. 
         [0003]    Imbibing shots of liquor is sometimes a shared social experience with friends. In some instances, multiple shots are served to one or more people who will imbibe the shots in succession. When serving a person more than one liquor shot at a time, the server often has to try and balance each individual shot in their hand without spilling the liquor contents. 
         [0004]    A series of shot glasses may be lined up and poured in succession. Liquor may be easily spilled when poured into a shot glass. Liquor may be expensive and spillage can account for a significant amount of waste. 
         [0005]    As can be seen, there is a need for a device that improves positioning of shot glasses for pouring and serving. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    In one aspect of the present invention, a shot caddy configured to carry at least one shot glass, the shot glass including an outer wall, the shot caddy comprises a platform; and a plurality of inner circular walls defining hole cutouts in the platform, wherein the diameter of the inner circular wall is large enough to hold the shot glass carried by the platform so that when the shot glass is lifted within the platform, at least one of the inner circular walls engages the shot glass outer wall at an intermediate outer diameter of the shot glass so that the shot glass is carried with its center of mass at or below the platform. 
         [0007]    In another aspect of the present invention, shot caddy configured to carry at least one shot glass, the shot caddy, comprises a platform; and a plurality of inner circular walls defining hole cutouts in the platform, wherein centers of the hole cutouts and the plurality of inner circular walls are spaced on the platform so that the rim of adjacent shot glasses touch when inserted into the platform. 
         [0008]    These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1  is a top view of a shot caddy according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; and 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  is a side view of the shot caddy of  FIG. 1 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0011]    The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims. 
         [0012]    Broadly, an embodiment of the present invention generally provides a shot caddy with a platform where multiple shots may be retained and balanced to provide a simple way to transport shots without spillage. 
         [0013]    Referring to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , a shot caddy  100  may include a platform  110  including a plurality of hole cutouts  120 , each defined by an inner circular wall  125 . The inner circular wall  125  may be of sufficient size for shot glasses  210  to be inserted within the hole cutouts  120 . The shot glass  210  may include an outer wall  220  which may be fluted with a top outer diameter at its rim  230  greater then a bottom outer diameter at its base  240 . The diameter of the inner circular wall  125  may be larger than outer diameter of the base  240  of the shot glass  210  and the diameter of the inner circular wall  120  may be smaller than the outer diameter of the rim  230  of the shot glass  210 . Thus, the diameter of the inner circular wall  125  may be equivalent to an intermediate outer diameter of the shot glass  210  that is between the rim and the base. For example, the diameter of the inner circular wall  120  may be large enough so that when the shot glass  210  is lifted by the platform  110 , the inner circular wall  125  engages the shot glass  210  outer wall  220  at an intermediate outer diameter level so that the shot glass  210  is carried with its center of mass at or below the platform  110 . Therefore, the shot glasses  210  may not fall through the holes cutouts and may not tip over when carried. 
         [0014]    The shot caddy  100  may, for example, be made of a stiff plastic which may be approximately 1/16 of an inch in thickness, 3½ inches wide, and 5 inches long. As an example, multiple hole cutouts  120  may be positioned in the platform  110  with inner circular wall  125  diameters of 1⅜ inches. The hole cutouts  120  may be positioned with centers spaced approximately 1¾ inches of each other in a rectangular pattern. Edges of adjacent hole cutouts  120  may be approximately ¼ inch apart. Non-rectangular patterns may be used. Thus the inner circular walls  125  may be spaced on the platform  110  so that the rim  230  of adjacent shot glasses  210  may touch when inserted into the platform  110 , which allows ease of filling multiple shots in a single motion, thus saving time. 
         [0015]    In an exemplary embodiment, the platform  110  may include a first side  130  of 5 inches in length and a second side  140  of 3½ inches in width. A first row  150  of hole-cutouts  120  may be positioned ⅞ inches from one end of the first side  130 . Remaining rows  150  of hole cutouts  120  may be spaced 1¾ inches from the center of a preceding row of hole cutouts  120 . 
         [0016]    In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, sharp edges may be rounded. The shot caddy  100  may include various sizes for the platform  110 , and various sizes for the hole cutouts  120  in order to accommodate shot glasses  210  of various sizes. The platform  110  may be made of various materials, shapes, thicknesses, and colors. As an example, a stiff pressed paper support body may be utilized instead of plastic. The shot caddy  100  may, for example, be pressed or stamped into a single piece. The shot caddy  100  may include a variety of numbers of hole cutouts  120 . As an example, the platform  110  may comprise a single flat plastic piece with no assembly needed. 
         [0017]    In an exemplary embodiment, the shot-caddy may be placed on a flat surface and may position the shot glasses  210  for being filled with a beverage. The shot-caddy  100  may be lifted, with the shot glasses  210  remaining in position on the support body  110 . Upon lifting the shot-caddy  100 , the shot glasses  210  may, for example, be slidable part way up the shot glasses  210  within the hole cutouts  120 . The shot caddy  100  may be subsequently lowered to allow removal of the shot glasses  210 . 
         [0018]    It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.