Abstract:
An ashtray includes doors that open and close and define a disposal path to a drawer when open. Cigarettes dropped on the doors will fall into the drawer when the doors are open. Cigarette disposal openings lead to the drawer and a cigarette grinder mechanism can be included to grind the cigarette or to cut off the lit tip of a cigarette placed in the cigarette disposal opening. Debris from the ground or cut cigarette drops into the drawer.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to the general art of containers, and to the particular field of ashtrays. 
   2. Discussion of the Related Art 
   Residue associated with cigarette smoking has long been a problem. Simple ashtrays in which cigarette ash is deposited and snuffed cigarette butts are left have been a source of problems. Not only are such ashtrays unsightly and unpalatable, they are often a source of smoldering cigarettes. Smoldering cigarettes not only produce undesirable smoke, they can be potential fire hazards. 
   Therefore, the art contains several designs for cigarette disposal units which capture the cigarette. However, while effective, these known units often do not fully seal off the discarded cigarette thereby allowing smoke to escape and permitting air to reach a discarded cigarette which may permit the cigarette to smolder. 
   Therefore, there is a need for an ashtray that ensures that a discarded cigarette is fully extinguished, and is not permitted to smolder. 
   Cleaning ashtrays has always been an undesirable task. Thus, anything that can be done to make this job easier and more effective is desirable. 
   Therefore, there is a need for making the task of cleaning an ashtray easier and more effective. 
   PRINCIPAL OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
   It is a main object of the present invention to provide an ashtray that ensures that a discarded cigarette is fully extinguished, and is not permitted to smolder. 
   It is another object of the present invention to provide an ashtray that is easily and effectively cleaned. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   These, and other, objects are achieved by an ashtray mechanism which comprises a housing having a top wall having a cigarette disposal opening defined therein, a side wall and an internal volume defined between the top wall and the side wall; a drawer slidably mounted on the side wall to move into and out of the internal volume of the housing, the drawer being in a closed position when the drawer is located inside the internal volume and being in an open position when at least some of the drawer is located outside of the internal volume; a plurality of cigarette disposal openings defined through the top wall of the housing and located above the drawer when the drawer is in the closed position; a door unit attached to the top wall of the housing adjacent to the cigarette disposal opening and including two doors which are movable relative to each other between an open orientation defining a cigarette disposal path between the cigarette disposal opening in the top wall of the housing and the drawer when the drawer is in the closed position; and a door-operating mechanism operatively connected to the door unit to move the doors of the door unit between the closed position and the open position, the door-operating mechanism including a button located on the top wall of the housing. 
   The ashtray embodying the present invention ensures that discarded cigarettes are closed off from the environment thus helping to ensure that the discarded cigarette is completely extinguished. Smoke from this source is thus reduced if not eliminated. Still further, the ashtray embodying the present invention can grind all or a portion of a discarded cigarette to further ensure that the cigarette is fully extinguished. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view showing the ashtray embodying the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is an end elevational view of the ashtray embodying the present invention. 
       FIG. 3  is a schematic representation of an elevational view showing a grinding mechanism in the ashtray of the present invention. 
       FIG. 4  is a schematic representation of an elevational view showing a mechanism for opening and closing the cigarette-accommodating doors of the ashtray of the present invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
   Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings. 
   Referring to the figures, it can be seen that the present invention is embodied in an ashtray mechanism  10  that will efficiently dispose of cigarette ash as well as cigarette butts and prevent smoldering of discarded cigarettes. Mechanism  10  comprises a housing  12  having a first side wall  14 , a second side wall  16 , a first end wall  18 , a second end wall  20 , and a longitudinal axis  22  extending between the first end wall  18  and the second end wall  20 . A transverse axis  24  extends between the first side wall  14  and the second side wall  16 . A top wall  28  is located on a top rim of each of the side walls  14 ,  16  and end walls  18 ,  20  and a bottom wall  30  is attached to a bottom rim of the end walls  18 ,  20  and side walls  14 ,  16 . A height dimension  32  extends between the top wall  28  and the bottom wall  30 . A disposal opening  34  is defined through the top wall  28  and an internal wall  36  has an upper rim  38  attached to the top wall  28  adjacent to the disposal opening  34 . The internal wall  36  extends toward the bottom wall  30  and has a lower end  40  spaced apart from the top wall  28  and from the first side wall  14  and from the second side wall  16  and from the first end wall  18  and from the second end wall  20  and from the bottom wall  30 . The housing  12  has an internal volume  42  defined by the top wall  28  and the first side wall  14  and the second side wall  16  and the first end wall  18  and the second end wall  20  and the bottom wall  30 . A drawer slot  44  is defined in the first side wall  14 . 
   A drawer  50  is slidably mounted on the first side wall  14  of the housing  12  to move between a closed position shown in  FIG. 1  located beneath the disposal opening  34  of the housing  12  and an open position shown in  FIG. 2  at least partially located outside of the internal volume  42  of the housing  12 . The drawer  50  can be removed from the housing  12  and is used to store ashes and cigarette butts. 
   A plurality of cigarette disposal openings, such as opening  52 , are defined through the top wall  28  of the housing  12  and are located above drawer  50  when the drawer  50  is in the closed position. Cigarettes, such as cigarette C, are forced into the cigarette disposal openings  52  in direction C 1  with the lit end leading the way. The cigarettes can be accommodated in the drawer  50 , or ground up or simply cut as will be understood from the following discussion. 
   A cigarette grinder mechanism  60  is associated with at least one cigarette disposal opening of the plurality of cigarette disposal openings  52 . The cigarette grinder mechanism  60  includes a motor  62  mounted on the housing  12  inside the internal volume  42  of the housing  12 , a power source  64 , such as a battery or a connection to an external power source, located inside the internal volume  42  of the housing  12 , and a switch  66  mounted on the top wall  28  of the housing  12 . The switch  66  has an “on” configuration and an “off” configuration and electrically connects the motor  62  to the power source  64  when the switch  66  is in the “on” configuration. The cigarette grinder mechanism  60  further includes a grinder blade  70  connected to the motor  62  and located adjacent to the one cigarette disposal opening  34  to engage a cigarette located in that cigarette disposal opening  34  and to grind the cigarette located in that cigarette disposal opening  34  when the motor  62  is electrically connected to the power source  64 . The cigarette grinder mechanism  60  further includes a debris chute  72  connecting the grinder blade  70  to the drawer  50  when the drawer  50  is in the closed position. Debris from a ground cigarette will fall into the chute  72  and be directed to the drawer  50  for storage until the drawer  50  is removed for disposal of the debris. 
   A door unit  80  is attached to the top wall  28  of the housing  12  adjacent to the disposal opening in the top wall  28  of the housing  12  and includes a first door  82  having a first end  84  hingeably connected to the lower end  40  of the internal wall  36  of the housing  12  and a second end  86  located in the internal volume  40  of the housing  12 . Second end  86  is spaced apart from the first end  84  of the first door  82  in the direction of the transverse axis  24  of the housing  12  and in the direction of the height axis  32  of the housing  12 . The door unit  80  further includes a second door  90  having a first end  92  hingeably connected to the lower end  40  of the internal wall  36  of the housing  12  and a second edge  94  located in the internal volume  42  of the housing  12 . Second end  94  is spaced apart from first end  92  of the second door  90  in the direction of the transverse axis  24  of the housing  12  and in the direction of the height axis  32  of the housing  12 . Second door  90  is movable with respect to the first door  82  between a closed orientation shown in  FIG. 4  with second end  94  of the second door  90  contacting second end  86  of the first door  82  and an open orientation indicated in  FIG. 4  in dotted lines with the hinged movement being indicated in  FIG. 4  by double-headed arrow  98 . In the open orientation, the second end  86  of the first door  82  is spaced apart from the second end  94  of the second door  90  in the direction of the transverse axis  24  of the housing  12 . A cigarette disposal path  100  is defined between the first door  82  and the second door  90  when the second door  90  is in the open orientation with the cigarette disposal path  100  being located above the drawer  50  when the drawer  50  is in the closed position. 
   A door-operating mechanism  102  is operatively connected to the second door  90  of the door unit  80  to move the second door  90  between the closed orientation and the open orientation thereof. The door-operating mechanism  102  including a button  104  located on the top wall  28  of the housing  12 . 
   One form of door-operating mechanism is indicated in  FIG. 4  as including a hinge  110  mounted on one of the walls of the housing. A first pivot lever arm  112  is hingeably connected at one end thereof to the hinge  110  and is connected at the other end thereof to one of the walls. A second pivot lever arm  114  is also hingeably connected at one end thereof to hinge  110  and has an arm  116  connected at one end thereof to the other end of pivot lever arm  114 . A distal end  118  of arm  116  is hingeably connected to door  90 . A third pivot lever arm  120  is hingeably connected at one end thereof to the arm  116  and has a second end connected to a distal end of an arm  122 . A proximal end of arm  122  is connected to button  104  for movement therewith as indicated by double-headed arrow  126 . A fourth pivot lever arm  130  is hingeably connected at one end thereof to the distal end of arm  122  for movement therewith. The other end of fourth pivot lever arm  130  is connected to the same wall as first pivot lever arm  112 . 
   As can be understood from  FIG. 4 , forcing button  104  downward toward bottom wall  30  forces pivot lever arms  120  and  130  downward; however, pivot lever arms  112  and  114  cannot move downwardly, so the pivot lever arms tend to move in direction  134  thus moving arm  116  in direction  134 , which moves door  90  away from door  82  to open the doors and define path  100 . Spring  140  is connected at one end thereof to a wall of the housing  12  and at the other end thereof to the button arm  122 . Spring  140  biases the button arm  122  in direction  126 ′ which corresponds to the direction of closing the doors, or opposite to direction  134 . 
   It is understood that while certain forms of the present invention have been illustrated and described herein, it is not to be limited to the specific forms or arrangements of parts described and shown.