Patent Publication Number: US-8113343-B2

Title: Portable cigarette ashes container with cigarette lighter

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a portable cigarette ashes container, comprising a receptacle and a top portion, detachable from the receptacle, and having a top side in which a circular aperture to the interior of the receptacle and a further aperture to an upwards open pocket situated in the receptacle are situated, in which pocket a gas container of a cigarette lighter with lighter device belonging to it protruding above the top side is received. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     A container of this type is priorly known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,709. This container comprises an open receptacle, which by a partition wall is divided into a chamber for ashes and cigarette butts, and a chamber for the gas container of a cigarette lighter, and a circular lid, which is arranged to be screwed to the open end of the receptacle. The lid is provided partly with an feeding-in aperture for inserting and dropping cigarette butts into an intended space, and partly with an aperture for reaching the lighter device of the cigarette lighter. In order to prevent ashes from falling out through the feeding-in aperture this aperture is provided with a spring-loaded flap on the under side of the lid. A container of this type is impaired by several disadvantages which makes it unsuitable for the intended purpose. Due to the fact that the lid has to be screwed on the receptacle the edge of the partition wall and the lighter device have to be located low enough to permit the flap to pass by without scraping against the partition wall or the lighter device. This results in the fact that if the container is inclined or is held upside-down, ashes will fall out through the aperture above the cigarette lighter. This applies also if the lid is pushed onto the receptacle and is locked by a snap-in closure. It is difficult to adjust the aperture in relation to the cigarette lighter in order to minimize the interspace, which, anyhow, cannot be completely eliminated. This is especially embarrassing because the lid has to be removed and replaced each time the container has to be emptied, which often is carried out in dull light. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The object of the invention is to achieve a portable container of the type mentioned by way of introduction, which is improved such, that the above mentioned inconveniences are eliminated in a simple and efficient way. It is especially important that the container can have a shape that permits keeping of the container without inconvenience in a pocket or handbag. It is also important that the container is almost hermetic sealed, and that the container can be easily opened and closed. 
     This is achieved, according to the invention, in that the portable container is characterized by the subject matter mentioned in the following claims. 
     With such a portable container for ashes with a built-in cigarette lighter for lighting a cigarette available a smoker always knows where to get rid of the glowing butt, namely by pushing the butt with the glow foremost down into the tubular passage. The mouth end or mouthpiece of the cigarette forms a plug that relatively quick chokes the glow, because the top portion is integrated with the pocket for the cigarette lighter and has a cap that in closed position closes the tubular passage, and consequently forms an airtight seal of the space enclosing the ashes and the cigarette butts. When the next butt or a following butt is pushed down into the passage the lowest butt falls down in the receptacle, which when required can be removed for emptying. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The invention is more clearly described in the following with reference to the attached drawings which schematically show by way of example two embodiments of a portable container according to the invention. 
         FIG. 1  is a longitudinal sectional view of the top portion with a cap belonging to it and the receptacle, 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the top portion, the cap and the upper part of a protruding conventional cigarette lighter, 
         FIGS. 3 and 4  are each the same view as  FIG. 1  but showing a preferred embodiment of the invention during a compressing of the top portion and the receptacle, and after the compressing, respectively, 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the top portion in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , and 
         FIGS. 6   a,b,c,d  are views of the container according to the invention as seen from four different directions with open cap and closed cap, respectively. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       FIG. 1  discloses a receptacle  1  with an opening  2  which is closed by a top portion  3 . The top portion has a side wall  4  with an edge which follows the edge of the receptacle  1  at its opening  2 , where the two edges are detachably connected to each other by a conventional snap-in locking device  5 . The top portion is further designed with a top side  6  with a circular aperture  7  and an oval aperture  8 . A passage  9  with a diameter essentially equal to the diameter of a cigarette extends from the aperture  7 . The passage leads to the interior of the receptacle  1  and has a length essentially equal to three cigarette butts  10 , which have been inserted into the passage through the aperture  7 . A butt  11  inserted just before the lowest butt  10  has dropped down from the passage  9  and rests on the bottom of the receptacle  1 . 
     The top side  6  of the top portion also has a pocket  12  extending from the aperture  8  with the same interior shape as the gas container  13  of a conventional cigarette lighter which is pushed down into the pocket  12  with its lighter device  14  accessible at the upper side of the cigarette lighter, and with a discharge hole  15  for the gas directed up from the upper side of the top portion. 
     A cap  16  hingedly connected to the top portion  3  has an interior closure member  17 , which closes the aperture  7  to the passage  9 , when the cap is swung in over the top portion  3 . 
       FIG. 2  discloses the top portion  3  with the cap  16  and the gas container  13  (not shown) of a conventional cigarette lighter inserted into the pocket  12 , and its lighter device  14  protruding from the upper side of the top portion  3 . 
     The preferred embodiment, that is shown in  FIG. 3  and  FIG. 4 , differs from the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2  by the conventional snap-in locking device shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2  being replaced by a more efficient snap-in locking device, including that the top portion  3  has been designed with a downwards directed collar  20  with essentially the same exterior shape as the shape of the interior wall of the opening  2  of the receptacle  1 , which consists of a ridge  21  which extends around the interior wall of the edge of the opening  2 . The collar  20  has an exterior ridge  22 , designed such that at pushing together the top portion  3  and the receptacle  1 , the ridge  21  displaces outwards under spring action as much as the ridge  21  can slide over the ridge  22  and lock the opening of the receptacle  1  tightly against the top portion  3 . This function is possible without the need of an impractically strong force, partly due to the opening having an oval, flattened shape, partly due to the fact that the ridge  22  at one end  23  of the collar  20  has a maximum height, which decreases at both sides of the collar in the direction towards the other end  24  of the collar, as shown in  FIG. 5 . This means that if the end  24  of the top portion  3  is pushed upwards the ridge  21  can slide over the beginning of the ridge  22  of the collar at both sides of the collar  20  and after that along the ridge  22  until the top portion  3  is separated from the receptacle  1  and vice versa. 
     Owing to these circumstances, the hinge  25  of the cap  16 ,  FIGS. 6   a - d , is designed like a shoulder against which one can easily use a thumb to press this end of the top portion  3  upwards for separating the top portion  3  from the receptacle  1 . At the other end of the top portion  3  there is a small recess  26  beneath the cap  16 . The device according to the invention can, for obvious reasons, be operated easily with only one hand such that the cap  16  is opened by a push with a thumb against the cap  16  at the recess  26 , and such that the top portion  3  with closed cap  16 , as mentioned before, is separated from the receptacle  1  by a push upwards against the hinge  25 . This hinge is of a type that has a resilient spring link  25   a  adapted to either keep the cap  16  in closed or open position. 
     The invention is of course not restricted to the embodiments here shown and described by way of example but can be modified in different ways within the scope of the invention defined by the patent claims. Thus, the ridges  21  and  22  may for instance change places without influence on the locking function.