Abstract:
An article holder for a barrel cooler has a lip for fitting on the top end of the barrel sidewall and a tray attached to the lip for holding containers which indicate the contents of the barrel.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     This invention relates generally to a beverage cooler, and, more particularly, to an article holder for mounting on a barrel cooler.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     A beverage cooler in the shape of a barrel is often used to cool and display containers of beverages for sale. Barrel coolers are typically filled with ice and the beverage containers are placed in the ice. Product identification can be placed on the outside of the cooler so that a consumer knows what product is buried in the ice. Such product identification is acceptable when a single cooler contains a single brand and size of product. When a single cooler contains multiple sizes or brands, a consumer must probe the ice with a hand to find a desired item without actually knowing whether that particular item is stocked in the barrel. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that it would be highly desirable to have a way of indicating what products are stocked in the barrel before looking for a particular item.  
         [0003]     Snack foods, straws and other items used or consumed with beverages are typically conveniently stocked on shelves or racks near the beverages. It is desirable to have these items as close as possible to the beverages to increase convenience for the consumer and to boost impulse sales.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above. Briefly summarized, according to the present invention an article holder for a barrel cooler comprises an inverted U-shaped lip having curved inner and outer vertical lip panels and a top panel connecting top end portions of the inner and outer lip panels and a tray having a curved rear wall connected to the outer lip panel.  
         [0005]     The curved vertical lip panels fit over the top of a barrel to hold the tray on the outside of the barrel. Beverage containers can be displayed in the tray to indicate the contents of the barrel so that a consumer will readily know what is in the barrel ready for consumption. Snack foods and other item complimentary to the beverages can also be held in the tray.  
         [0006]     These and other aspects, objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood and appreciated from a review of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and appended claims, and by reference to the accompanying drawings 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]      FIG. 1  is a top perspective view of a preferred embodiment of an article holder for a barrel cooler according to the present invention.  
         [0008]      FIG. 2  is a bottom perspective view of the article holder.  
         [0009]      FIG. 3  is a diagrammatic right end view of the article holder.  
         [0010]      FIG. 4  is a diagrammatic end view of an article holder with a removable tray.  
         [0011]      FIG. 5  is a top perspective view of another preferred embodiment of an article holder. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0012]     Referring to  FIGS. 1-4 , an article holder  10  is provided for a barrel cooler  12 . Barrel cooler  12  has a curved vertical sidewall  14  terminating at a top end of the barrel. The insulated barrel sidewall  14  has a thickness of value T and curves on an inner radius of value R i  and curves on an outer radius of value R o .  
         [0013]     The article holder  10  has an inverted U-shaped lip with inner and outer vertical lip panels  16 ,  18 . A top lip panel  20  connects top end portions of inner and outer lip panels  16 ,  18 . Inner lip panel  16  curves at a radius, from the center axis of barrel  12 , less than R i  and the outer lip panel  18  curves at a radius, from the center axis of barrel  12 , greater than R o . This difference in radiuses allows the lip to fit over the top end of the barrel sidewall.  
         [0014]     A tray  22  is connected to outer lip panel  18  and is preferably integrally formed therewith. Tray  22  has a curved rear wall  24  that curves at a radius greater than Ro. A front wall  26  is spaced from rear wall  24 , and there are opposed left and right sidewalls  28 ,  30 . A bottom wall  32  is connected to the front wall  26 , rear wall  24 , left sidewall  28  and right sidewall  30  and preferably integrally formed therewith.  
         [0015]     A right brace  34  is connected to right sidewall  30 , rear wall  24  and outer lip panel  18 . A left brace  36  is connected to left sidewall  28 , rear wall  24  and outer lip panel  18 .  
         [0016]     Still referring to  FIGS. 1-3 , partitions  40  fitted in to grooves  38  divide tray  22  into a plurality of compartments. Each groove  38  preferably extends transversely along the bottom of tray  22  and along the front and rear walls of tray  22 , but grooves along the front and rear walls are sufficient. Each partition  40  is preferably a flat panel but curved panels can be used to conform to the contour of an article in the tray. For example, curved panels could be used for cylindrical bottles or the like. Also, removable panels allow certain panels to be removed to accommodate articles of different sizes.  
         [0017]     Alternatively, grooves and partitions  40  could be integrally formed with tray  22  ( FIG. 5 ) and partitions could be used without grooves as there would be no need for grooves. The advantage of an integrally formed unit is that it is simple to use.  
         [0018]     It can now be appreciated that an article holder for a barrel cooler has been presented wherein the barrel has a curved sidewall of thickness T, an inner radius R i  and an outer radius R o . The article holder has an inverted U-shaped lip with inner and outer vertical lip panels and a top panel connecting top end portions of the lip panels. The inner lip panel has a radius less than R i  and the outer lip panel hast a radius greater than R o . A tray is connected to the outer lip panel and has a curved rear wall of radius greater than R o . The tray has at least one partition dividing the tray into a plurality of compartments. The partition may be connected to the front and rear walls, may be connected to the bottom wall of the tray, or may be removably positioned in grooves in the tray. The tray may be used to indicate the contents of the barrel cooler or to hold snack foods, straws or other items complimentary to the beverages in the cooler.  
         [0019]     While the invention has been described with particular reference to the preferred embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements of the preferred embodiments without departing from invention. For example, while it is contemplated that the article holder will be constructed of plastic, it can be formed of metal or a composite material. It is accordingly intended that the claims shall cover all such modifications and applications as do not depart from the true spirit and scope of the invention.  
       ELEMENT LIST  
       [0000]    
       
           10  article holder  
           12  barrel cooler  
           14  barrel sidewall  
           16  inner lip panel  
           18  outer lip panel  
           20  top lip panel  
           22  tray  
           24  rear wall  
           26  front wall  
           28  left sidewall  
           30  right sidewall  
           32  bottom wall  
           34  right brace  
           36  left brace  
           38  grooves  
           40  partition panels