Patent Publication Number: US-2021186181-A1

Title: Handheld device and a method for creating customised colours instantly

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to creating a plurality of customised colours using two or more base colours. More specifically, the present invention relates to a handheld device and a method that enables users to create their own custom colour liquid lipsticks instantly anywhere. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     The global cosmetics market is growing at the rate of about  4 % every year. Colour cosmetics (or makeup) segment is one of the largest contributors towards this growth. Colour cosmetics has recently joined other lifestyle segments such as clothing, perfumery etc. in the popular trends towards customisation and personalisation. 
     One of the first segments in colour cosmetics industry to embrace customisation was liquid foundations. Services wherein consultants mix the perfect shade for a user in-store or via an order placed online is know in the art. Similarly, customisation of lip colours in-store or online is know in the art. A big tabletop printer for ‘printing’ custom lip colours is also known in the art. 
     While these existing products or services appease the consumer&#39;s need for customised products, those skilled in the art will realise that they either have a long wait time or the devices are very bulky to travel with. Also, consumers only receive a couple of customised colours at a time making it difficult to use repeatedly. 
     Today&#39;s consumers are impatient and actively seek to get more value for their money. Moreover, consumers are becoming more eco-conscious and have shown a preferance for smaller product quantities and resuable packaging to reduce product and packaging wastage. 
     There are no known products in the art that enable a user to instantly create their own colours (for lipstick, eye colours, foundations etc.) in the comfort of their homes or while travelling. 
     Keeping in mind this pressing need of the market for instant gratification and sustainability, the present invention discloses a handheld device and a method thereof to enable consumers to create their own customised colour cosmetics instantly. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention discloses a handheld device and a method to enable a user to create their own customised colours instantly anywhere. The proposed application of the handheld device is for liquid lipsticks, however, variations of the present invention to create any cosmetics or liquid colour of semi solid/solid or liquid consistency are foreseen and are within the scope of the present invention. 
     The handheld device comprises of a holder body with two or more slots to house two or more dispensers, wherein each dispenser contains a liquid lipstick of a specific base colour. The base colours can primary colours from any colour system such as RYB (Red, Yellow, Blue, White, Black), CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key), RGB (Red, Green, Blue, White, Black) etc. 
     To create a specific custom colour, a user refers to a colour recipe chart and pumps each of the dispensers the number of times mentioned in the colour recipe chart. When the user pumps each dispenser, the liquid lipstick inside the dispensers falls into a container attached to the holder body. The user then detaches the constainer and manually mixes all of the dispensed liquid lipstick with a wand to create their desired custom colour. 
     The user can create any number of different colour liquid lipsticks in accordance with the present invention and also store created liquid lipsticks for later use. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The various aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent in light of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: 
         FIG. 1  illustrates a dispenser  100  known in the art for dispensing viscous liquids. 
         FIG. 2  illustrates a handheld device  200  for creating a plurality of customised colours in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  illustrates the handheld device  200  with five dispensers insterted inside. 
         FIG. 4  illustrates a perspective view of a holder body  202  of the handheld device  200  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 5  is a vertical cross sectional view of the holder body  202  of the handheld device  200  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 6  depicts a colour recipe chart  600  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 7  describes a flowchart of a method of creating a plurality of customised colours using the handheld device  200  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present invention is described with reference to the attached figures, wherein like reference numerals are used throughout the figures to designate similar or equivalent elements. The figures are not drawn to scale and they are provided merely to illustrate the instant invention. Several aspects of the invention are described below with reference to example applications for illustration. It should be understood that numerous specific details, relationships, and methods are set forth to provide a full understanding of the invention. One with ordinary skill in the relevant art, however, will readily recognize that the invention can be practiced without one or more of the specific details or with other methods. In other instances, well-known structures or operations are not shown in detail to avoid obscuring the invention. The present invention is not limited by the illustrated ordering of acts or events, as some acts may occur in different orders and/or concurrently with other acts or events. Furthermore, not all illustrated acts or events are required to implement a methodology in accordance with the present invention. 
     Spatially relative terms, such as “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or a relationship between a feature and another element or feature as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, for example, the term “below” can encompass both an orientation which is above as well as below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or viewed or referenced at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein should be interpreted accordingly. 
     The present invention will now be described by referencing the appended figures representing preferred embodiments. 
       FIG. 1  depicts a dispenser  100  for liquids and is already known in the art. The dispenser  100  is used as a colour cartridge of a base colour in the present invention. The term ‘cartridge’ and ‘dispenser’ may be used interchangably for the purposes of this description. 
     In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the dispenser  100  is airless, however, those skilled in the art will appreciate that some embodiments of the present invention may entail the use of dispensers with regular pump mechanism without compromising on the functionality or the results. 
     The dispenser  100  is conventionally know in the art for dispensing viscous liquids such as serums or creams. However, in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention, the dispenser  100  is used to dispense a base colour  101 . The base colour  101  can be, but is not limited to, a liquid lipstick of a primary colour of a colour system such as RYB, CMYK, RGB etc. or an additive to transform the finish of the liquid lipsticks. For instance, the base colour  101  can be a white colour, a black colour, a blue colour, a red colour, a yellow colour, a mattifier agent, a shine agent or a sparkle agent. 
     The dispenser  100  dispenses a predetermined amount of the base colour  101  through a hole  102  in a nozzle  103  when the nozzle  103  is pressed down. With each push of the nozzle  103 , the predetermined amount of the base colour  101  enters an inlet  104  of the nozzle  103 , and consequently, air enters an empty area  105  through a hole  106  in a bottom lid  107  of the dispenser  100  to replace the dispensed liquid lipstick and a movable plate  108  moves the base colour  101  upwards by a proportional amount. 
     In accordance with the present invention, two or more of the dispenser  100  are used as cartridges to dispense two or more base colours of liquid lipstick into a container. Various custom colours or textures are achieved when the two or more base colours are dispensed in different ratios and mixed homogeneously. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates a handheld device  200  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The handheld device  200  comprises of a holder body  202  designed to house five dispensers—a first dispenser  204 , a second dispenser  206 , a third dispenser  208 , a fourth dispenser  210  and a fifth dispenser  212 . Each dispenser dispenses a different base colour of liquid lipstick. For example, the first dispenser  204  may dispense a white colour liquid lipstick, the second dispenser  206  may dispense a black colour liquid lipstick, the third dispenser  208  may dispense a red colour liquid lipstick, the fourth dispenser  210  may dispense a blue colour liquid lipstick and the fifth dispenser  212  may dispense a yellow colour liquid lipstick. This colour scheme of red, blue and yellow is known in the art as the RYB colour scheme. White and black colours are used to change the hue and the tone of the colours respectively. 
     The holder body  202  comprises two or more slots to house the two or more dispensers. In accordance with  FIG. 2 , the holder body  202  comprises a first slot  214  to house the first dispenser  204 , a second slot  216  to house the second dispenser  206 , a third slot  218  to house the third dispenser  208 , a fourth slot  220  to house the fourth dispenser  210  and a fifth slot  222  to house the fifth dispenser  212 . The slots are moulded such that the dispensers fit snugly into the holder body  202  with minimum wobble or relative movement. 
     The handheld device  200  with the first dispenser  204 , the second dispenser  206 , the third dispenser  208 , the fourth dispenser  210  and the fifth dispenser  212  inserted inside the holder body  202  is shown in conjunction with  FIG. 3  below. 
     In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the handheld device  200  further comprises a top lid  224  and a container  226 . 
     In accordance with the present embodiment, the top lid  224  comprises an arc cutout  228  such that the arc cutout  228  exactly matches the dimensions of the outer circumference of the dispensers. 
     The top lid  224  fits into the top portion of the holder body  202  such that the top lid  224  rotates freely around the top portion of the holder body  202  with the first dispenser  204 , second dispenser  206 , third dispenser  208 , fourth dispenser  210  and fifth dispenser  212  inserted inside. 
     Furthermore, when rotated, the top lid  224  stops at one or more predetermined positions along the rotation path. The one or more predetermined postitions are such that the arc cutout  228  aligns directly above each of the two or more dispensers in the two or more slots. Those with ordinary skill in the art will realise that the mechanism described in the current embodiment enables a user to rotate the top lid  224  and position the arc cutout  228  directly above a desired dispenser. The user can then push the desired dispenser through the arc cutout  228  to dispense a desired base colour. 
     In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, the top lid  224  is without the arc cutout  228  and is used only to secure the five dispenser in place. During usage, a user is required to remove the top lid  224  and press a desired dispenser individually. 
     In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the top lid  224  is without the arc cutout  228  and has a push-click mechanism. The top lid  224  rotates freely about the holder bodt  202  and stops at each dispenser. The user can rotate the top lid  224  to a desired dispenser and push-click the top lid  224  to dispense a desired base colour. 
     In accordance with various embodiment of the present invention, the container  226 , when attached to the holder body  202 , collects the dispensed base colour. 
     The user dispenses the two or more base colours from the two or more dispensers in prederminted ratios (or number of pushes) to create a plurality of customised colours or textures of liquid lipstick. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that with each push of a dispenser, approximately same amount of base colour is dispensed each time. Consequently, a colour recipe chart  600  (described in detail in  FIG. 6  below) can be formulated and provided to the user which has ‘recipes’ for a plurality of customised colours, wherein a number of pushes of the base colours such as red, yellow, blue, white and black can be listed to create a particular custom colour. 
     Once the user dispenses the desired amount of the two or more base colours into the container  226 , they can detach the container  226  from the holder body  202  and mix the dispensed base colours with a mixing wand and create the desired custom colour. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, the container  226  comes with a lid so that the created custom colour can be stored for later use. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates the handheld device  200  with the five dispensers, viz. the first dispenser  204 , the second dispenser  206 , the third dispenser  208 , the fourth dispenser  210  and the fifth dispenser  212  insterted inside the five slots, viz. the first slot  214 , the second slot  216 , the third slot  218 , the fourth slot  220  and the fifth slot  222  respectively. 
     In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the handheld device  200  has colour marking next to each slot to enable a user to insert the correct colour dispensers in their respective slots. For instance, a dispenser with white base colour can be inserted inside a slot with white marking, a dispenser with red base colour can be inserted inside a slot with red marking, and so on and so forth. 
     It will however be appreciated by one skilled in the art that the markings are only a guide for a user to afford a better user experience and does not have any functional impact on the handheld device  200 . 
     Furthermore, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the dispensers are transparent such that a user is able to see the base colour and its level. In accordance with this embodiment, the holder body  202  comprises two or more indicator cutouts for the two or more slots, such that the level of the base colours can be seen through the two or more indicator cutouts when the two or more dispensers are inserted in the two or more slots. 
     For instance, as shown in  FIG. 3 , a user is able to see the colour and level of the base colour in the first dispenser  204  through a first indicator cutout  302  in the first slot  214 . Similarly, the user is able to see the colour and level of the base colour in the fifth dispenser  212  through a fifth indicator cutout  304  in the fifth slot  222  and the colour and level of the base colour in the fourth dispenser  210  through a fourth indicator cutout  306  in the fourth slot  220 . Indicator cutouts for the second slot  216  and the third slot  218  are not shown in  FIG. 3  but are understood to be present. 
     When the level of base colour in any of the two or more dispensers reaches below a predetermined mark, the user can replace that dispenser with a new dispenser. 
     In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the two or more dispensers, when inserted completely into the two or more slots, have a predetermined lenght of tail end that remains outside the slots. The predetermined lenght of tail end corresponds to the distance of full push of a dispenser, such that when a user presses an inserted dispenser, they can push the dispenser to its full capacity easily without hitting a top surface  308  of the holder body  202 . 
     Those skilled in the art will appreciate that other embodiments with different arrangement of insertion of a dispenser and dispension of a base colours are envisioned and are within the scope of the present invention. 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a perspective view of the holder body  202  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the two or more dispensers are not inserted into the first slot  214 , the second slot  216 , the third slot  218 , the fourth slot  220  and the fifth slot  222 . 
     Those skilled in the art will realise that the holder body  202  has a center space  402 . The center space  402  can be a cavity in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention in order to reduce the overall weight of the handheld device  200 . In addition, the center space  402  can be used to hold a colour recipe chart described in  FIG. 6  below. 
     Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various shapes of the handheld device  200  can be envisioned, as long as the basic functionality of the handheld device  200  remains the same. 
       FIG. 5  is a vertical cross sectional view of the holder body  202  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, wherein dispensers are not inserted into the first slot  214  and the third slot  218 . 
     In accordance with this embodiment, the first slot  214  and the third slot  218  have a groove  502  and a groove  504  respectively, such that the first dispenser  204  and the third dispenser  208  fit perfectly into the first slot  214  and the third slot  218 . A mechanism for holding the two or more dispensers in place can be built inside of the two or more slots so that when the handheld device  200  is flipped upside down without the top lid  224 , the two or more dispensers don&#39;t fall off 
       FIG. 6  depicts a colour recipe chart  600  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     The colour recipe chart  600  comprises of two or more columns correponding to the two or more base colours in the two or more dispensers. For example, in the current embodiment, the colour recipe chart  600  comprises a first column  601 , a second column  602 , a third column  603 , a fourth column  604  and a fifth column  605  corresponding to a base colour in first dispenser  204 , a base colour in the second dispenser  206 , a base colour in the third dispenser  208 , a base colour in the fourth dispenser  210  and a base colour in the fifth dispenser  212  respectively. One or more rows  606  of the colour recipe chart  600  correspond to one or more custom colours that can be created with different permutations and combinations of the two or more base colours depicted in the two or more columns. 
     For instance, in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the first column  601  corresponds to the colour red, the column  601  corresponds to the colour blue, the third column  603  corresponds to the colour yellow, the fourth column  604  corresponds to the colour black and the fifth column  605  corresponds to the colour white. 
     The one or more rows  606  correspond to the various custom colours that can be obtained when the colours red, blue, yellow, black and white are mixed in various ratios. The numbers corresponding to the ratios are written in the respective cells. 
     It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that presentation of the colour recipe chart  600  may vary and may have recipes for any number of colours, and all such embodiments are within the scope of the present invention. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, the colour recipe chart  600  is stored in the center space  402  inside the holder body  202 . 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the colour recipe chart  600  is printed on the handheld device  200  itself. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the colour recipe chart  600  is attached to the handheld device  200  with a roll out mechanism. 
     In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the colour recipe chart  600  is available to the user via an App on their smart devices. 
       FIG. 7  describes a flowchart of a method for creating a custom colour using the handheld device  200  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     At step  701 , a user checks if all the five dispensers, viz. the first dispenser  204 , the second dispenser  206 , the third dispenser  208 , the fourth dispenser  210  and the fifth dispenser  212  are inserted properly inside the solts in the holder body  202 . If not, then the user inserts the first dispenser  204 , the second dispenser  206 , the third dispenser  208 , the fourth dispenser  210  and the fifth dispenser  212  into their respective slots, viz. the first slot  214 , the second slot  216 , the third slot  218 , the fourth slot  220 , the fifth slot  222 , at step  702 . 
     Once the dispensers are inserted into the holder body  202 , the user attaches the top lid  224  to the holder body  202 , at step  703 . Those skilled in the art will appreciate that other embodiments wherein the top lid  224  is not required to be attached to the handheld device for usage are envisioned and are within the scope of the present invention. 
     At step  704 , the user ensures that the container  226  is attached to the holder body  202 . The container  226  needs to be clean, without any other colour liquid lipstick, in order to get accurate results. 
     At step  705 , the user refers to the colour recipe chart  600  and selects a custom colour that they wish to create from the one or more rows  606 . The columns corresponding to the custom colour comprises the number of pumps of each of the two or more base colours required to create the custom colour. 
     At step  706 , the user rotates the top lid  224  so that the arc cutout  228  is positioned above one of the dispensers. 
     The user then pumps the dispenser the number of times mentioned in the recipe for the custom colour, at step  707 . 
     At step  708 , the user repeats step  706  and step  707  for each dispenser represented in the recipe of the custom colour till all the dispensers mentioned in the recipe of the custom colour are pumped out into the container  226 . 
     At step  709 , the user removes the container  226  from the holder body  202  and mixes the dispenses liquid lipsticks with a wand to create the custom colour. 
     Those skilled in the art will realise that the colour recipe chart  600  can comprise the ratios of the base colours in the columns to be mixed to create any custom colour. A user can create a larger quantity of custom colour by pumping the dispensers by multiples of the ratios mentioned in the colour recipe chart. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, the container  226  comes with a cover so that the custom colour created can be stored for future use. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the custom colour is created on a pan to be used immediately. 
     Those with ordinary skill in the art may appreciate that the handheld device  200  can be designed for any number of dispensers. For instance, the handheld device  200  can be built for six dispensers, wherein five dispensers dispense the five primary colours mentioned in the above embodiment, and the sixth dispenser dispenses a mattifier liquid to transform the final mixture to a ‘matte’ effect liquid lipstick. 
     Moreover, in an embodiment of the present invention, the liquid lipstick colours in the dispensers may follow the CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Key) system for colour creation. In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the colours in the dispensers are RGB (Red, Green and Blue) instead of the RYB (Red, Yellow and Blue) as described in the above preferred embodiment. 
     In an embodiment of the present invention, the holder body  202  is made of a composite material such as Fiber-Reinforced Plastic (FRP) to insulate the liquid lipstick inside the dispensers from drastic temperature changes. 
     In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, the handheld device  200  comes with an insulating jacket to support optimal performance of the dispenser mechanism. 
     It will be apparent to those skilled in the art will that while the present invention has been described to be used for liquid lipsticks, the handheld device  200  and the method can be used for various other products such as eyeshadows, foundations, skin care creams etc. and even for non-cosmetic products such as artists colours etc. with a few simple modifications. 
     While various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not as a limitation. Numerous changes to the disclosed embodiments can be made in accordance with the disclosure herein without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present invention should not be limited by any of the above described embodiments. 
     Although the invention has been illustrated and described with respect to one or more implementations, equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of this specification and the annexed drawings. In addition, while a particular feature of the invention may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, such a feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application. 
     The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms “consists”, “consisting”, “including,” “includes,” “having,” “has,” “with,” or variants thereof are used in the detailed description, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising.” 
     Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein. 
     The Abstract of the Disclosure allows the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the present invention.