Abstract:
Devices for dipping or dunking snacks into beverages include elements for holding a snack in place for dipping or dunking and a structure for allowing the user to keep his hands out of the beverage while immersing the snack. One embodiment includes a handle, a tray and a pivoting holding arm which slides up and down the handle and pivots into place to hold the snack.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    Field of the Invention 
         [0002]    The present invention relates to apparatus and methods for dipping or dunking snacks into beverages. 
         [0003]    Discussion of Related Art 
         [0004]    Kids want to dip cookies into milk and adults want to dip pastries into coffee. In either case, the dipper either gets his fingers wet or part of the snack doesn&#39;t get wet. In addition, the snack tends to fall apart once it gets wet. A need remains in the art for improved devices to allow dipping and dunking of snacks into liquid. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    Devices according to the present invention for immersing snacks into beverages include elements for holding a snack in place for dipping or dunking and a structure for allowing the user to keep his hands out of the beverage while immersing the snack. One embodiment, called the Dip or Dunk, includes a handle, a tray and a pivoting holding arm which slides up and down the handle and pivots into place to hold the snack. Another embodiment, called the Dipper, includes scissoring legs and fingertip pads for attachment to a user&#39;s finger and thumb so the user can scissor the legs in place to hold the snack for dipping or dunking. 
         [0006]    Dip or Dunk apparatus for immersing a snack in a beverage comprises a tray for holding the snack, a handle attached to the tray, a holding arm attached to the handle, and a slide mechanism for allowing the holding arm to slide along the handle such that the holding arm may be positioned to hold the snack against the tray. A pivot mechanism allows the holding arm to rotate toward and away from the tray in order to hold the snack in place. The pivot mechanism further allows the holding arm to be locked into place with respect to the handle in a first position and to be unlocked with respect to the handle in a second pivot position. The holding arm includes a locking pin and the handle includes teeth, and the pivoting mechanism allows the locking pin to rotate between handle teeth to lock the holding arm in place. 
         [0007]    The holding arm further comprises a spike for optionally impaling the snack, if the snack is large. If the snack is smaller, it may fit into an indented center portion of the holding arm. Wings attached to the handle adjacent to the tray prevent the snack from excessive wobbling. A plate is included so the tray may be placed on the plate to allow the snack to drain after immersion. 
         [0008]    In another embodiment, Dipper apparatus for immersing a snack in a beverage comprises two legs connected in a scissoring arrangement. A foot is attached to a first end of each leg for gripping a snack. A finger attachment element is attached to a second end of each leg. The finger attachment elements attach a finger or a thumb to each leg. Thus, when the finger and thumb are moved it causes the finger attachments to move also. When the finger attachments are moved together the feet move together to grip a snack and when the finger attachment elements are moved apart, the feet move apart. The feet are formed of a resilient material for gripping. 
         [0009]    Each finger attachment element comprises a T-bar frame and an attachment strap for threading through the frame and around a finger to attach the finger to the frame. The attachment strap includes hook and loop fastening sections. The finger attachment element further includes a fingertip pad attached to the T-bar frame. The fingertip pad forms a bumpy surface for gripping. The apparatus floats in a liquid. Again, a plate is included for draining the snack after immersion. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0010]      FIG. 1  is a side view of a Dip or Dunk according to the present invention 
           [0011]      FIG. 2  is a front view of the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0012]      FIG. 3  is a detailed view of a portion of the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1  holding a snack in place. 
           [0013]      FIG. 4A  shows a detailed view of a pivoting holding arm of the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1  in an unlocked position.  FIG. 4B  shows a detailed view of a pivoting holding arm of the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1  in a locked position. 
           [0014]      FIG. 5  shows a detailed cutaway top view of a portion of a handle and a pivoting holding arm the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0015]      FIG. 6  shows a side view of the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1  in use, dunking a snack into liquid. 
           [0016]      FIG. 7  shows a side view of the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1  in use, draining excess liquid from the snack after dunking. 
           [0017]      FIG. 8  is a detailed side view of a portion of the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1  holding a snack in place. 
           [0018]      FIG. 9  is a detailed front view of a portion of the Dip or Dunk of  FIG. 1  holding a snack in place. 
           [0019]      FIG. 10  is a top view of a plate for a dipped or dunked snack. 
           [0020]      FIG. 11  is a front view of a Dipper according to the present invention. 
           [0021]      FIG. 12A  is a detailed side view of a T-bar frame of the Dipper of  FIG. 1 .  FIG. 12B  is a detailed side view of an attachment strap of the Dipper of  FIG. 1 .  FIG. 12C  is a detailed side view of a T-bar frame of the Dipper of  FIG. 1 , as a user begins to attach the T-bar frame to the user&#39;s finger.  FIG. 12D  is a detailed side view of a T-bar frame of the Dipper of  FIG. 1 , as the user continues the process of attaching the T-bar frame to the user&#39;s finger.  FIG. 12E  is a detailed side view of a T-bar frame of the Dipper of  FIG. 1 , after the user has attached the T-bar frame to the user&#39;s finger. 
           [0022]      FIG. 13A  is a front view of a Little Dipper according to the present invention in use, with a full glass.  FIG. 13B  is a front view of the Little Dipper in use, with a half-full glass. 
           [0023]      FIG. 14  is a side view of a Big Dipper in use dipping a snack into a coffee cup. 
           [0024]      FIG. 15  is a front view of a Big Dipper and Little Dipper floating in a liquid. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0025]    The below table shows elements and their associated reference numbers for convenience. 
         [0000]    
       
         
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
               
               
               
               
             
               
               
               
             
           
               
                   
                   
               
               
                   
                 Ref. No. 
                 Element 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
             
               
                   
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                  1 
                 Dip or Dunk handle 
               
               
                   
                  2 
                 Dip or Dunk tray 
               
               
                   
                  3 
                 Dip or Dunk tray spikes 
               
               
                   
                  4 
                 Pivoting holding arm spike 
               
               
                   
                  5 
                 Pivoting holding arm center 
               
               
                   
                  6 
                 Pivoting holding arm 
               
               
                   
                  6A 
                 Side of pivoting holding arm 
               
               
                   
                  7 
                 Locking pin 
               
               
                   
                  8 
                 Teeth 
               
               
                   
                  9 
                 Arm locking lever point 
               
               
                   
                 10 
                 Arm unlocking lever point 
               
               
                   
                 11 
                 Holding arm axis rods 
               
               
                   
                 12 
                 Tray wings 
               
               
                   
                 13 
                 Tray front lip 
               
               
                   
                 14 
                 Handle track 
               
               
                   
                 15 
                 Dip or Dunk device 
               
               
                   
                 16 
                 Glass 
               
               
                   
                 17 
                 Snack 
               
               
                   
                 18 
                 Liquid 
               
               
                   
                 20 
                 Plate 
               
               
                   
                 21 
                 Logo 
               
               
                   
                 29 
                 Fingertip pad 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 30 
                 Dipper 
                 30A 
                 Little 
                 30B 
                 Big 
               
               
                   
                   
                 device 
                   
                 Dipper 
                   
                 Dipper 
               
             
          
           
               
                   
                 31 
                 T-bar frame 
               
               
                   
                 32 
                 Attachment strap 
               
               
                   
                 33 
                 Dipper legs 
               
               
                   
                 34 
                 Dipper feet 
               
               
                   
                 35 
                 Finger 
               
               
                   
                 36 
                 Thumb 
               
               
                   
                 38 
                 Cup 
               
               
                   
                 39 
                 Hook portion of attachment strap 
               
               
                   
                 40 
                 Loop portion of attachment strap 
               
               
                   
                   
               
             
          
         
       
     
         [0026]      FIG. 1  is a side view of one embodiment of a Dip or Dunk  15  according to the present invention. Dip or Dunk  15  comprises a dunk handle  1 , a dunk tray  2 , and a pivoting holding arm  6 . Pivoting holding arm  6  may be moved up and down within dunk handle track  14  in order to place it to hold a snack  17 . Once pivoting holding arm  6  is in place, it is locked by pivoting locking pin  7  to lock between the appropriate teeth  8 , for example by pressing arm locking lever point  9  down. It is unlocked for example by pulling arm unlocking lever point  10  upward. 
         [0027]    Pivoting holding arm  6  includes a spike  4  which may be used to impale a large snack such as a bagel or may pivot to the outside of snack  17  to hold it in place from the side. Similarly, dunk tray  2  includes spikes  3  and lip  13 . Spikes  3  may impale snack  17  or hold it in place from the side. Tray  2  also includes wings  12 , better shown in  FIG. 2 . 
         [0028]      FIG. 2  is a front view of Dip or Dunk  15  of  FIG. 1 . From the front, it can be seen that wings  12  help to stabilize a wide snack  17  by preventing it from rotating with respect to dunk handle  1 . Tray  2  includes  3  dunk tray spikes in this embodiment. 
         [0029]      FIG. 3  is a detailed view of a portion of Dip or Dunk  15  holding a snack  17  in place. In this example, snack  17  is large and thick, for example a bagel or doughnut. Thus spikes  3 ,  4  impale snack  17  in order to hold it in place. 
         [0030]      FIG. 4A  shows a detailed view of pivoting holding arm  6  in an unlocked position.  FIG. 4B  shows a detailed view of pivoting holding arm  6  in a locked position. When in an unlocked position, pivoting holding arm  6  may be moved up and down within track  14  of dunk handle  1 . When in a locked position, teeth  8  prevent locking pin  7  from moving up or down. 
         [0031]      FIG. 5  shows a detailed cutaway top view of a portion of dunk handle  1  and pivoting holding arm  6 . Holding arm axis rods  11  allow pivoting holding arm  6  to move up and down within handle track  14 , and also allow pivoting holding arm  6  to pivot between the locked and unlocked positions. 
         [0032]      FIG. 6  shows a side view of Dip or Dunk  15  in use, dunking snack  17  into liquid  18  in glass  16 . In this example, snack  17  is thin enough to be held in from the side by spike  4  of pivoting holding arm  6  and by tray front lip  13  (refer back to  FIG. 1  for a better view). This embodiment does not include dunk tray spikes  3   
         [0033]      FIG. 7  shows a side view of Dip or Dunk  15  in use, draining excess liquid  18  from snack  17  after dunking. 
         [0034]      FIG. 8  is a detailed side view of a portion of the Dip or Dunk  15  holding a thin snack  17  (such as a cookie) in place. In this example, snack  17  slides forward within dunk tray  1  until it is retained by lip  13 . The top of snack  17  slides into and is held in place by center  5  of pivoting holding arm  6 .  FIG. 9  is a detailed front view of the same portion of Dip or Dunk  15 . Wings  12  prevent snack  17  from wobbling. 
         [0035]      FIG. 10  is a top view of a plate  20  for a dipped or dunked snack. It is shown with the Dip or Dunk logo  21 . Plate  20  is a normal round plate used to stand Dip or Dunk  15  on after each use, to catch any of the beverage  18  that did not drain into the cup or glass while snack  17  was retrieved. 
         [0036]    An example of Dip or Dunk user instructions follows.
       This apparatus was designed to make it easier to dip or dunk a snack (such as a cookie, doughnut, or Danish) into a beverage such as coffee or milk. It comes complete with a holding tray and holding arm attached to a handle designed to hold your snack in place while dipping or dunking it. There are holding spikes on the upper lip of the holding tray. They were put there to hold a doughnut or Danish that is too big for the tray in place. With help from the holding arm, you should have no trouble dipping or dunking a larger snack. This apparatus will stand straight up on the plate that was included for easier loading and unloading. It was designed so that most of the beverage you are dipping it into will drain off the bottom of the handle while retrieving your snack. So let&#39;s get started by reading the instructions and enjoying yourself.   If you have looked over the parts list you are ready to use your Dip or Dunk original. Let&#39;s get started by standing your dip or dunk on the plate that was included. Check to see if the locking pin is in the unlocked positions as illustrated on the parts list. If the locking pin is not in the unlocked position, put your index finger under the unlocking lever point and pull it up and away from the handle teeth as illustrated on the parts list. Now that the locking pin is unlocked, put your thumb on one side of the holding arm and your index finger on the other side. By turning the holding arm counter-clockwise, keeping the locking pin from hitting the handle teeth, you can easily slide the holding arm up and down the handle.       
 
         [0039]    —Loading your Dip or Dunk—
       Now that you know how to control the holding arm, slide it to the top of the handle and hold it there. Using your other hand, stand your snack firmly into the holding tray. Once the snack is in place, slide the holding arm down the handle and lay it on top of the snack. The top of the snack must be under the center or spike of the holding arm for the locking pin to work properly. After making sure your snack is in the correct position, slide the holding arm down the handle one more time to make sure it is good and tight and let go. If the locking pin did not lock on its own, put your thumb on top of the arm locking lever point and slowly press down until the locking pin locks into place between two of the handle teeth. Congratulations! That is how to load your Dip or Dunk original. Now go ahead and dip or dunk.       
 
         [0041]    —Unloading your Dip or Dunk—
       After dipping or dunking your snack for your desired time, pull your Dip or Dunk out of your beverage and hold it on the inside rim of the cup or glass over the beverage, giving it time to drain. After your desired draining time, stand your Dip or Dunk back on the plate and, while holding the handle with one hand, use your other hand to unlock the locking pin from the handle teeth and retrieve your snack.              If you have any trouble getting the locking pin to unlock, from the handle teeth, put your index finger on the center of the holding arm and press down while at the same time pulling the locking pin away from the handle teeth until it is unlocked. This technique will be sure to work.   Thank you for buying a Dip or Dunk Original.       
 
         [0045]      FIG. 11  is a front view of one embodiment of a Dipper  30  according to the present invention. Dipper  30  comes in different sizes for use by different users. Little Dipper  30 A and Big Dipper  30 B are shown in  FIGS. 13-15 . Dipper  30  comprises two T-bar frames  31 , attachment straps  32 , scissoring legs  33 , and resilient feet  34 . A user affixes a finger to one T-bar frame  31  with an attachment strap  32  and a thumb to the other T-bar frame  31  with a second attachment strap  32  and opens and closes Dipper  30  to grip a snack  17 . Resilient feet  34  (for example rubber) help hold snack  17  in place. 
         [0046]      FIG. 12A  is a detailed side view of a T-bar frame  31  of Dipper  15  of  FIG. 11 . T-bar frame  31  may include a fingertip pad  29 . In this embodiment, T-bar frame  31  forms an open shape to allow attachment strap  32  to thread under and inside the frame, over finger  35  and back through and under the frame. In some embodiments, fingertip pad  29  is rough or bumpy for a better grip. 
         [0047]      FIG. 12B  is a detailed side view of attachment strap  32 . In this example, attachment strip  32  includes a hook and loop closure. Hook portion  39  is placed on two ends of attachment strap  32 . Loop portion  40  is placed in the middle of attachment strap  32 . 
         [0048]      FIG. 12C  is a detailed side view of T-bar frame  31  of Dipper  30 , as a user begins to attach the T-bar frame  31  to the user&#39;s finger  35 . Finger  35  is placed on findertip pad  29 . Attachment strap  32  was threaded under one side of the frame forming T-bar frame  31  and one end hook portion  39  was attached to center loop portion  40 . Next, the user places a finger on fingertip pad  29  and brings the rest of strap  32  over the finger. 
         [0049]      FIG. 12D  is a detailed side view of T-bar frame  31 , as the user continues the process of attaching T-bar frame  31  to the user&#39;s finger  35 . Now, attachment strap  32  is threaded under the other side of the frame forming T-bar frame  31 . The second hook portion  39  will then attach center loop portion  40 . 
         [0050]      FIG. 12E  is a detailed side view of T-bar frame  31 , after the user has attached T-bar frame  31  to the user&#39;s finger  35 . Strap  32  was pulled snug and second hook portion  39  was attached to the center loop portion  40 . The same process is used to attach the user&#39;s thumb  36  to the other T-bar frame  31  (See  FIGS. 13-14 ). 
         [0051]      FIG. 13A  is a front view of a Little Dipper  30 A according to the present invention in use, with a full glass  16 . The user might be a child with small fingers  35 .  FIG. 13B  is a front view of the Little Dipper in use, with a half-full glass. The user&#39;s small fingers allow him to reach into the glass with Little Dipper  30 A and dip his snack  17 , even when beverage  18  is half gone. Note that Plate  10  may also be provided with Dipper  30 . 
         [0052]      FIG. 14  is a side view of a Big Dipper  30 B in use dipping a snack into a coffee cup  38 . Big Dipper  30 B is better sized for adult fingers. 
         [0053]      FIG. 15  is a front view of a Big Dipper  30 B and Little Dipper  30 A floating in a liquid  18 . In this embodiment, Dippers  30  are formed of a material (for example plastic) that floats. This is convenient if a user drops a Dipper  30  into a liquid and needs to retrieve it. 
         [0054]    An example of Dip or Dunk user instructions follows.
       By using Velcro™, you can attach this apparatus to your index finger and thumb of your left or right hand by following the instructions included. It was designed to add an extension to your index finger and thumb to make it easier for you to dip or dunk your snack, such as a cookie, doughnut, or Danish, into beverages such as coffee or milk. Once attached properly this apparatus will open and close along with the finger and thumb it is attached to. The bottom of this apparatus has a rubber tip on each end for better gripping on the snack. So let&#39;s get started by reading the instructions and having fun.   Your Dipper original comes with two separate Velcro™ straps. Please attach one strap to each fingertip pad before using. The Velcro™ side of each strap should face away from the T-bar and T-bar frame after attachment. Each fingertip pad has a bumpy surface for a better grip.   Step 1: Place your index finger tip firmly against the T-bar frame.   Step 2: By using your other hand grab the loose end of the Velcro™ strap and lay the strap over the top of your finger while pushing the end of the strap down the side of your finger and through the T-bar.   Step 3: Grab the end of the strap and while pulling it tight wrap it back around to the top of your finger and press the Velcro™ together pressing it together keeping it in place. If necessary, ask an adult to trim off any unneeded Velcro™ strap by using scissors to fit better.   Now place your thumb on the other fingertip pad and repeat steps 1-3.       
 
         [0061]    While the exemplary preferred embodiments of the present invention are described herein with particularity, those skilled in the art will appreciate various changes, additions, and applications other than those specifically mentioned, which are within the spirit of this invention. For example, attachment straps  32  could use some other form of adhesive, or could be affixed to T-bar frame  31 , which could be a solid surface rather than a frame. 
         [0062]    Note that terms such as “top”, “bottom”, “front” and “side” are used for convenience when describing the embodiments in the figures, but are not intended to be limiting to any particular orientation. Further, the term “finger” includes a thumb as well.