Abstract:
A container for alcoholic or non alcoholic beverages has a container body for accommodating a beverage, and a camera attached to the container body, for making pictures, as well as for storing, printing, and projecting the pictures.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention relates generally to containers, in particular to containers for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. 
         [0002]    Containers of the above mentioned general type are know in the art, and manufactured and used in great varieties. The containers are usually provided with labels. Also containers are known, which are provided with electronic devices of various types. It is believed that the existing containers for alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages can be further improved. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a container for beverages, which is a further improvement of the existing containers for beverages. 
         [0004]    In keeping with these objects and with others which will become apparent hereinafter, one feature of the present invention resides, briefly stated, in a beverage container comprising a hollow container body for accommodating a beverage, and a camera attached to said container body of the beverage container and configured to make pictures. 
         [0005]    In accordance with another feature of the present invention, means are provided for projecting the pictures made by the camera onto an electronic display provided in the container body, or into an interior of the container body, or onto an outside surface, or various combinations of the above are possible. 
         [0006]    In accordance with the present invention, the camera makes pictures of still images or moving images, and the projecting means project the still images, or the moving images, or both onto corresponding objects. 
         [0007]    In accordance with a further features of the present invention, the pictures produced by the camera can be also stored, or stored and reproduced latter, or wirelessly transmitted to recipients, or printed, or combinations of the above are possible as well. 
         [0008]    In accordance with another feature of the present invention, means can be provided for recording audio messages during making pictures or independently from them, and reproducing of the recorded audio messages or transmitting the latter. 
         [0009]    In accordance with another feature of the present invention , the camera can be introduced into a cavity of the container body together with another electronic device or separately from the electronic device. 
         [0010]    The novel features of the present invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, will best understood from the following description of the preferred embodiments, which is accompanied by the following drawings. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]      FIG. 1  of the drawings is a perspective view showing a container for beverages in accordance with the present invention; 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is a view showing a partial cross section of a wall of the beverage container in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is a view showing a partial cross section of a wall of the beverage container in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0014]      FIG. 4  is a view showing a schematic diagram of an electronic circuit of the inventive beverage container. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0015]    In accordance with the present invention, a beverage container is provided for accommodating an alcoholic or a non alcoholic beverage as identified with reference numeral  1 . The beverage container  1  has a container wall  2  which delimits a hollow interior accommodating the beverage. 
         [0016]    The beverage container  1  is provided with a camera  3  for taking pictures. The camera  3  can be formed as an electronic camera. It can be for example introduced directly into a cavity formed in the container wall  2  by a snap action and retained in it, as shown in  FIG. 2 , and used for taking picture while being on the beverage container  1 . The camera  3  can be also removed from the cavity of the container wall by simply pulling it out, and thereafter used outside of and without the beverage container  1 , as will be explained hereinafter. 
         [0017]    The camera  3 . on the other hand, can be incorporated into an electronic device  4 , which, together with the camera  3 , can be introduced into a cavity of the container wall for example by snap action and held in it, as shown in  FIG. 3 . The electronic device  4  can be also removed from the cavity of the container wall together with the camera  3 , so that the electronic device  4  with the camera  3 , or the camera  3  and the electronic device  4  separately, can be used outside of the beverage container  1 . 
         [0018]    The camera  3  can be formed and operate as a camera which produces pictures of still images, such as a photo camera, or pictures of moving images, such as a movie camera, as known per se in the art of cameras. When it is located on the beverage container  1  it can make pictures of a person of an object in front of the beverage container or at any location by simply turning the beverage container  1  with the camera  3  in a corresponding direction and activating the camera. The same can be also done when the camera  3  or the electronic device  4  with the camera  3  are removed from the beverage container  1  and used separately. 
         [0019]    The camera  3  can store the pictures which it makes, of the still images or the moving images, in its memory  5 . The camera  3  further has output means  6  for outputting the pictures made by it in order to print the pictures. The camera  3  further has output means  7  for wirelessly transmitting the picture made by it, for example via internet. 
         [0020]    The camera  3  is further provided with projecting means for projecting the pictures made by it, including still or moving images. The projecting means include a projecting unit  8  which projects the images onto an outside screen  9 , a projecting unit  10  which projects the images onto a display  11  of the electronic device  4 , a projecting unit  12  which projects the images into the interior of the beverage container  1  into its hollow space which can be filled with a beverage, onto the electronic device  4  etc. 
         [0021]    The camera  3  and/or the electronic device  4  can be further provided with audio recording means  13  which can record audio messages. The recorded audio messages can accompany or they do not accompany the images produced by the camera  3 . The recorded audio messages also can have an audio content that corresponds to or does not correspond to the content of the images produced by the camera  3 . The camera also has audio messages reproducing means  14 , which reproduce the audio recorded audio messages. The audio recording means and the audio reproducing means can be combined with one another. 
         [0022]    The camera  3  and/or the electronic device  4  further has control means  15  which control all operations of the camera  3 , such as taking pictures, printing the pictures, transmitting the pictures wirelessly or via wires, projecting the picture in different directions, recording audio messages, reproducing audio messages, etc. The control means  15  can be formed as a plurality of operation-specific buttons, as a keyboard, etc. 
         [0023]    A microprocessor  16  is further provided in the beverage container. It is designed and operates to perform all required functions of the electronic components disclosed hereinabove. 
         [0024]    The electronic device  4  of the container for beverages  1  can be formed and performs the functions as disclosed for example in our patent applications Ser. Nos. 11/588,494; 11/821,334, 11/821,349 etc, which are incorporated here by reference thereto. 
         [0025]    The invention is not limited to the details shown since various modifications and structural changes are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention.