Patent Publication Number: US-2010126519-A1

Title: Cigar ash remover contained in ashtray and method of use

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Field of The Invention 
     The present invention relates in general to ashtrays for use by cigar smokers and more particularly to an ashtray including a device and a method for removing ashes from the burnt tips of partially smoked cigars. 
     2. Description of Prior Art 
     It is well known that smokers vary in their attentiveness to the removal and disposal of ashes from their cigars. A common practice for removing burned ashes from the tips of cigars is to “flick” the ashes off or even let them fall off if the ash build-up (also referred to as the stub) gets long enough. Another common practice is to knock the ashes off by tapping the cigar on a hard surface, such as the rim of an ash tray. All of these methods work with varying degrees of success, assuming that the length of the stub is long enough. The prior art includes several ashtrays incorporating features designed to extinguish or remove the lit stub of cigars. They all consist of multiple components which would make them more difficult to clean, use and manufacture. 
     Although a variety of adaptations of cigar extinguishing devices are known, the following are some that at least suggest some semblance to what the present invention proposes to accomplish: 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,060,092 to Pappas, dated Nov. 29, 1977. This invention has a series of wires forming a grid that the cigar tip can be raked across causing its ashes to be abraded from the cigar and directed toward a liquid filled container. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,240,449 to Caravello, dated Dec. 23, 1980. This invention employs a removable “snuffer” that completely extinguishes the cigar. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,346,719 to Hilkene, dated Aug. 31, 1982. This invention employs a wire screen to abrade the ashes into a chamber using a capillary material to extinguish the cigar. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,105,832 to Tasse, dated Apr. 21, 1992. This invention employs a series of inclined ribs against which the tip of the cigar can be raked. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,510 to Clark, dated Nov. 14, 2000. This invention employs a wire grid against which the tip of the cigar can be raked. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,027,682 to Halmaghi, dated Jun. 7, 1977. This invention employs a guillotine-like cutter for cutting across the cigar near the ash stub. 
     SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION 
     The primary aspect of the present invention is an upstanding, serrated spindle that is positioned in the inner bottom surface of an ashtray. The serrations on the top of the spindle would enable a user to easily dislodge ashes from the “fire” end of a cigar by abrading the end of the cigar against the serrations. The present invention does not render a cigar useless by bringing it into contact with liquid extinguisher agents. Therefore, the cigar can be re-lit at the will of the smoker. This is especially important if the cold ashes had to be removed from the cigar because the fire in the tip of the cigar went out on its own while being smoked, or the smoker intentionally allowed the fire in the cigar to go out and intended to relight it and resume smoking it later. The present invention is aesthetically pleasing, can be easily yet thoroughly cleaned and can be manufactured in an inexpensive manner. 
     OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES 
     To attain the objects and advantages stated in the foregoing summary, the present ashtray, through its new serrated abrading spindle, is simple to use and can be cleaned easily. 
     The present invention is aesthetically pleasing, since it comprises a simple, serrated spindle located in the center of an ashtray and is an inseparable component of the ashtray itself. 
     The present invention is easily and inexpensively manufactured, because it does not incorporate moving or inseparable parts, and the tapered shape of its serrated abrading spindle lends itself to molding. 
     A further object is to provide an ashtray that does not employ the use of liquid extinguishing agents. 
     These objects, as well as further objects and advantages, of the present invention will become readily apparent after reading the description of a non-limiting, illustrative embodiment and the accompanying drawings of the present invention. 
    
    
     
       DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a top view of an example ashtray incorporating a serrated abrading spindle in its center. 
         FIG. 2  is a cutaway side view of  FIG. 1  taken along line  2 - 2  of  FIG. 1 . The purpose of this view is to clearly show where the abrading spindle is located inside the ashtray. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXAMPLE EMBODIMENT 
     Ref.  1  of  FIG. 1  depicts the “shell” embodiment of an ashtray of common design. Ref.  4  shows resting means for the placement of a plurality of cigars, four in this example. Ref.  2  shows the line along which the cutaway view shown in  FIG. 2  is taken. Ref.  6  shows a top view of the new serrated abrading stump and its placement in the center of the ashtray. 
       FIG. 2  is a cutaway view of the new ashtray showing the positioning of the new abrading spindle, Ref.  6 . Ref.  1  and Ref.  4  are shown strictly for perspective purposes. 
     Using the Present Cigar Ash Remover 
     A user dislodges loose ashes from the burnt cigar tip by gently bringing the ash stud of the cigar into contact with the top of the serrated spindle, Ref.  6 , and abrading the ash stud against it until the desired amount of ashes have been dislodged from the cigar, so that the cigar can be relit with ease. 
     CONCLUSION 
     Accordingly, one can see that the incorporation of a serrated abrading spindle in an ashtray, as described in the present invention facilitates removal of burned ashes that cling to the tip of cigars once the cigar has been partially smoked. This design is aesthetically pleasing, because it “flows” into the design of the ashtray in which it is incorporated. This design also lends itself to easy cleaning. 
     Development, manufacturing and distribution costs are important, because of the impact that they ultimately have on the price of the product to the consumer. Those costs have been minimized in designing the present ashtray by simply expanding on the design of many current ashtrays by revising their molds so that they incorporate the serrated abrading spindle into a casting of the present invention. A manufacturer that currently makes ashtrays could incorporate the present ashtray into its offerings and market it through its current distribution channels with its existing marketing means. 
     It will be understood that while the form of the invention herein shown and described constitute an example embodiment of the invention, it is not intended to illustrate all possible forms of the invention. It will also be understood that the words used throughout this application are words of description rather than words of limitation and that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention herein disclosed and claimed.