Patent Publication Number: US-2019177048-A1

Title: Pour spout and a method of fabrication thereof

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present disclosure relates to a pour spout and a method of fabrication thereof. 
     CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims benefit of Canadian application Serial No. 2,989,071, filed on Dec. 13, 2017. All documents above are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     A pour spouts is used for transferring a liquid from a bottle to wherever the user wants it to be poured in a controlled amount, the amount of liquid poured being measured by the spout. 
     Every time the user wants to put the original cap back on the bottle to close it and seal it properly to prevent oxidation of the remaining liquid inside, the spout first needs to be removed from the bottle. In a fast-paced environment such as bars and restaurants for example, this turns out to be inefficient. The less frequently used bottles are kept on the back shelf without a spout on, as opposed to the frequently used ones that are kept on a speed rack, each one with a pour spout on. At the end of the day/night when it is time to close the bar and put the original caps on all the bottles on the speed rack, the employees must either take all the spouts out of every bottle to put their respective caps on, or they simply put a pour spout cover on top. Many covers are available that can be used for sealing a bottle when a pour spout still in; however, they take time to be secure, and once secured, the shaft of the spout extends out of the bottle, which may be a liability, as it tends to get caught in the surrounding. Moreover, people often associate pour spout on a bottle to the bottle itself being a lower-end product due to the standards of not putting pour spouts on top of higher-end products. 
     Most commonly used spouts are made of stainless steel and rubber as two separable different parts that can be in continuous contact with liquid without rusting. The two parts are separable for washing purposes for example. Taking out such spout off a bottle may be difficult as, whenever a pulling force is applied on the spout, metal part tends to separate from the rubber part, letting the rubber part alone on the rim of the bottle. The rubber part, having a pretty thin rim itself is a lot harder to pull off the bottle afterwards. The user needs to take the rubber part off the bottle, stick the rubber part back with the metal part and stick it back in the bottle. As a result, bartenders and barmaids need barbacks or busboys in case some things like this happen, which does happen rather frequently. 
     A major issue that bars and restaurants encounter is to cover all their bottles that have a spout on them at the end of the night to prevent dust from going inside the bottle and to avoid the liquid that is in to go bad. What most of the bars and restaurants do, if not all of them, to deal with the pour spouts on the bottles (mostly the speed rack ones) at the end of the night, is put bottle dust caps. Bottle dust caps are simply plastic caps that are put on top of the spouts. It is not ideal because although it does prevent dust from going in, it does not fully seal the hole of the spout, so air is still coming in the bottle and can still get in contact with the liquid. Furthermore, it does not prevent fruit flies or any other bugs of going in since it is not sealed, which is another problem on its own. Thus, dust caps are used to keep the bottles clean and sanitary. 
     Throughout the years, a number of spouts have been provided, each only fixing one or some of the shortcomings. 
     There is still a need in the art for a pour spout and a method of fabrication thereof. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     More specifically, in accordance with the present disclosure, there is provided a pour spout, comprising a main body adapted to fit within the bottle neck of a bottle; a pouring part; the pouring part being slidingly movable between a retracted position within the main body and an extended position out of the main body; and at least one spring extending from a bottom end of the pouring part and a bottom end of the main body; wherein a threshold pressure is applied on a free edge of the pouring part, the spring gets compressed down below the pouring part as the pouring part slides within the main body, until the free edge of the pouring part reaches the edges of the bottleneck. 
     Other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become more apparent upon reading of the following non-restrictive description of specific embodiments thereof, given by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       In the appended drawings: 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic view of a pour spout according to an embodiment of an aspect of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 2  is a top view of the pour spout of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a see-through detail view of a pour spout according to an embodiment of an aspect of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 4A  is a schematic view of a cap for a pour spout according to an embodiment of an aspect of the present disclosure; and 
         FIG. 4B  is a see-through view of a cap positioned on a pour spout mounted on a bottle according to an embodiment of an aspect of the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION 
     In an embodiment of an aspect of the present disclosure as illustrated for example in  FIGS. 1-3 , the spout generally comprises a pouring part  17  and a main body  10 , the pouring part  17  being slidingly movable between a retracted position within the main body  10  (see for example  FIG. 4B ) and an extended position out of the main body  10  (see for example  FIG. 1 ). 
     The pouring part  17  and the main body  10  are generally open-ended elongated hollow elements, the pouring part  17  having a size allowing telescoping into the main body  10  as will be described hereinbelow. Although straight pouring part  17  and main body  10  are shown, they may be slanted. 
     At least one spring  14  (three springs are shown for illustration purpose only) is secured between a bottom end  11  of the pouring part  17  and a bottom end  20  of the main body  10 . When a threshold pressure is applied on the free edge of the pouring part  17 , i.e., typically on top of the pouring part  17  (see arrow in  FIG. 3 ), the spring  14  gets compressed down below the pouring part  17  as the pouring part  17  slides down within the main body  10 , until the top edge of the pouring part  17  reaches the edges of the bottleneck. 
     Since the spring  14  is secured at a top end thereof to the bottom end  11  of pouring part  17 , it is compressed or extended depending on the movement of the pouring part  17 , inwards or outwards of the main body  10  respectively. The stiffness of the spring is selected for a smooth recoil back when the spring is released from being compressed, while allowing compression by being pushed down upon applying a pressure on the pouring part  17  by a user (see arrow in  FIG. 3 ). 
     In  FIG. 3 , the spring  14  is shown at rest, i.e. in an uncompressed state thereof, between the bottom end  11  of the pouring part  17  and the bottom end  20  of the main body  10 . In practice, the pouring part  17  moves in two directions, generally up and down, so the spring  14  extends and retracts accordingly. 
     The number and diameter of the springs may be selected so as not to hinder the flow of liquids. 
     The pouring part  17  may comprise a breather  6  allowing a user to control the flow rate of liquid. An air tube  9  may be provided extending from the breather  6  down through the main body  10  and out of the main body  10 , in order to let the liquid come out of the pour spout at a controlled flow rate, through an open top end  7  of the pouring part  17 . 
     An outer circumferential ring  5  connects the pouring part  17  and the main body  10  and acts as a stopper of the extension of the pouring part  17  out of the main body  10  in the extended position of the pour spout. The ring  5  may be provided with threads for securing a cap as will be described hereinbelow. 
     An outer circumferential sitting ring  4  at the top of the main body  10  allows the pour spout to rest on the upper edge  13  of the bottle opening. 
     A fitting seal  3 , in sealing contact with the inside wall of the bottle neck  15 , may be provided below the sitting ring  4  to ensure airtightness and liquid tightness. 
     Circumferential fins  8  are shown in  FIGS. 1 and 3  extending from the outer surface of the main body  10 ; they may have different diameters so to fit a range of bottle neck inner diameters. They may have increasing diameters from the bottom up for example, so the first one going from up to down is the largest, fitting large bottle neck inner diameter and the smaller the bottle neck inner diameter, the less the main body  10  of the pour spout enters deeply within while still preserving tightness. They may be rubber fins. 
     The main body  10  has a length selected to receive the length of the pouring part  17  as the pouring part  17  slides in. The interior volume of the main body  10  allows the liquid inside the bottle to get straight to the interior volume of the pouring part  17 , where the liquid stream gets narrowed down to a smaller stream before coming out of the open end  7  of the pouring part  17  as a controlled stream. 
     The air tube  9  aligned with the breather  6  of the pouring part  17  allows a controlled stream flow of the liquid through the spout. By blocking the breather  6 , the user may stop the flow of liquid. 
       FIG. 1  show the pour spout in the extended position length thereof, i.e. with the pouring part  17  fully extended out of the main body  10 . When the pour spout is in position on a bottle (B), at least one of the fins  8  is in contact with the inside surface of the bottle neck, thereby ensuring liquid leak tightness when the user pours from the bottle with the pour spout. 
     The sitting ring  4  of the main body  10  is meant to rest on the edges of the open top of the bottle, the main body  10  extending within the bottle while the pouring part  17  extends up from the sitting ring  4  in the extended position of the pour spout, i.e. when the pour spout is in pouring position. Once thus resting on the top edge of the bottle, the sitting ring  4  provides stability and steadiness. Even if none of the fins  8  is in contact with the inside surface of the bottle, the pour spout is still usable provided the main body  10  extends within the bottle and the sitting ring  4  sits on the edge of the bottle opening. Once the main body  10  is inside the bottle, the pour spout is ready for use, and the liquid within the bottle may be made, by tilting the bottle, to flow up through the main body  10  through the spring  14  and up through the narrower pouring part  17 . Due to the air tube  9  and the breather  6 , air may be made to go in and out of the bottle allowing a controlled stream of liquid. 
     By allowing air in, the breather  6  allows to unclog in case the liquid cumulates within the pouring part  17 ; by simply closing the breather  6  with a finger, the user may cause the reverse effect, i.e. stopping of the liquid on its way to the open end  7  of the pour spout. 
     The material of the retractable pour spout needs be resistant to continuous contact with liquids and corrosion, while being lightweight and cost effective. 
     The pouring part  17  may be in a metal such as stainless steel for example, and the main body  10  may be made in a thermoplastic polymer such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) for example. The fins  8  may be made in rubber for flexibility as they slide in and out of the bottle neck. 
     The material of the spring  14  needs to be resistant to corrosion, and light. Stainless steel may be selected for its strength, high corrosion resistance and weight. 
     The present disclosure provides an effective way to quickly and efficiently pour a liquid from a bottle with a pour spout that may remain in the bottle even if not in use. 
     The retractable pour spout may remain in the bottle, and the bottle still be closed with a cap when the pouring part  17  of the spout is retracted within the main body  10  within the bottle. Thus, the present retractable pour spout saves a lot of time by not having to be taken off prior to closing the bottle after pouring. 
     Moreover, the pouring spout may be removed from the bottle by pulling the pouring spout out from the pouring part  17 , thereby withdrawing the main body  10  from its engagement within the bottleneck, together with the pouring part  17 , as one single part, so that the main body  10  is disengaged from within the bottle. 
     Moreover, when in position in the bottle with the pouring part  17  extending out, the spout allows keeping air out, thereby preventing oxidation of the liquid within the bottle even though the spout is still on. When in position on the bottle with the pouring part  17  retracted within the main body  10  within the bottle, the bottle may be sealed with a cap fixed on the bottle pushing the pouring part  17  inside, the same way it would be in absence of the spout: the whole pour spout, including the pouring part, is within the bottle under the bottle cap. The bottle size is thus unchanged, without element protruding therefrom, thus reducing the risks of unintentionally hitting a spout sticking out of a bottle for example. 
     The cap may either be the cap of the bottle that can be put back on top of the bottle or it may be a cap of the pour spout. 
     The cap may be a screw cap fitting the size of the outer circumferential ring  5  connecting the pouring part  17  and the main body  10  for example, thereby closing the bottle in an airtight way with the retractable pour spout inside in the retracted position of the pouring part  17 . 
     Alternatively, as illustrated for example in  FIGS. 4 , a cap  22  is illustrated as a generally tubular body with a closed top with a magnetic plate  21  on an inner surface thereof, and an open end opposite the closed top, the edge of the open end being provided with a rubber or elastic band  23  wrapping around the top edge of the bottle (B) with a minimal grip when the cap  22  is in position for closing the bottle (B). The magnetic plate  21  at the top of the cap  22  allows that the cap  22  is secured to the top of the pour spout. The rubber band  23  may be covered in the same material as the magnet plate  21 . Thus, the cap  22  is one piece with the magnet  21  on top and the rubber band  23  on the bottom, both covered by a soft and thin material for example. When the cap  22  is pushed onto the retractable pour spout, the magnet  21  provides that the cap  22  is secured to the top of the pour spout (see  FIG. 4B ). 
     The present free pouring, retractable spout achieves a balance between a controlled flow rate with no backlash for liquids of a range of viscosity, protection against fruit-flies or other bug infestations and/or oxidation of the liquid within the bottle, and efficiency and control of the pouring. It may be used for a medium flow rate which allows for pouring at a moderate flowrate. 
     The present pour spout may remain in the bottle even when the bottle is closed, thereby preventing oxidation from occurring when the bottle is not being used, as well as bug or dust contamination for example. 
     The present pour spout may be easily removed from the bottle by pulling on the pouring part  17  thereof. 
     The scope of the claims should not be limited by the embodiments set forth in the examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole.