Patent Publication Number: US-7900787-B2

Title: Capsule tool

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention is related to capsule containers, more particularly, capsule containers capable of diluting drinkables or blending chemical substances according to how they are used. They are inserted into the inner parts of various kinds of the conventional containers in the state that fluids, powder, etc. having different properties from those of the contents in the containers are accommodated. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     As is generally known, the conventional beverage containers or containers accommodating chemical substances, etc. are constructed to accommodate a single beverage or chemical substance. In more detail, since the insides of the conventional beverage containers (for example, beverage bottles having openings with small inner diameters at their upper ends, etc.) have been constructed to accommodate single-tasted or -flavored beverages, water, etc., it has not been possible to produce various tastes and flavors. 
     In order to solve the above problem, several solutions have been proposed including Korean Utility Model Publication No. 20-0170710 entitled “Beverage containers containing various kinds of original beverage solutions” (hereinafter referred to as Prior Art 1), Korean Utility Model Publication No. 20-0261338 entitled “Beverage containers having pressurized original solution containers built in” (hereinafter referred to as Prior Art 2), and Korean Utility Model Publication No. 20-0259252 entitled “Caps of natural water bottles having beverage powder or tea bags built in” (hereinafter referred to as Prior Art 3). 
     The containers in the above-described Prior Art 1 and Prior Art 3 have the construction and operational effects that heterogeneous substances are divided and contained separately but kept in one container without being mixed at ordinary times, but are mixed and taken as intended by the user. 
     However, the containers in Prior Art 1 have been problematic in that it has not been possible to offer a low cost of manufacture and to manage sanitarily and refill a multiple number of auxiliary containers accommodating the original solutions since they have had complicated structures and have been aimed to accommodate many kinds of original solutions, which could have been blended selectively by the user. 
     As to the containers disclosed in Prior Art 2, the cap combined with the main body of a container is comprised of the first cap and the second cap. The first cap is provided with a double helix at the portion corresponding to the container body. The first cap is threadedly engaged to the container body in the state that it is threadedly engaged to the upper side of the second cap. While the cap is open when the user drinks natural water, the first cap and the second cap are separated, if necessary, in order for the user to put a tea bag or beverage powder built in the second cap into the container body and blend them therein. However, since the first cap should be provided with a double helix as described in the above, its construction is complicated. Also, when the user drinks blended drinkables, the second cap should be released from the first cap, the contents in the second cap should be input into the container body and blended, and finally, the first cap and the second cap should be again threadedly engaged making their operation complicated. Further, in order to perform the above steps, the user should grip the container body, the first cap, and the second cap, making its use inconvenient. Still further, if not enough care is taken when the contents in the second cap are input into the container body, the contents may flow out of the container body. 
     It is seen that the containers in Prior Art 3 have complicated structures. They are comprised of a container, a cap engaged to the container, an original solution container engaged to the lower end of the cap, a cutting blade formed at the lower end of the cap to cut a certain portion of the upper part of the original solution container, a push button passing vertically through the central part of the cap, and a cover finishing the upper side of the cap. These containers are operated in such a way that, after the cover is separated from the cap, if the push button is pushed down, the lower side of the push button presses the cutting blade to widen the side portion, and thus cuts a portion of the original solution container adjacent to the side portion; and the original solution flows out through the cut portion by the pressure of the drinkable accommodated in the container and blended with the drinkable. Accordingly, Prior Art 3 performs the above-described blending action in the state that a fixed amount of fluid pressure is applied to the original solution container by the drinkable accommodated in the container. Therefore, actually, the containers according to Prior Art 3 have been disadvantageous in that only the beverages that have been the mixture of drinkables and original solutions have been applicable; it has not been possible to offer a low cost of manufacture; and they have been disposable making it difficult to demonstrate sufficiently the operational effects corresponding to the complicated structure described in the above. 
     As described in the above, since the containers in Prior Art 1 and Prior Art 3 have been constructed to be used only for beverage bottles, their use has been limited and it has not been possible to apply them to various areas. 
     In the meantime, the conventional bucket containers have been used to accommodate chemical substances (for example, paints, etc.). More concretely, a bucket container has been comprised of a bucket-shaped container body with a closed inner part, an opening formed on the container body, and a cover for opening or closing of the opening. Described below is the conventional bucket container taking a paint as the chemical substance accommodated in the bucket container as an example for the sake of convenience: 
     In using the conventional bucket containers accommodating water- or oil-based paints, in order to implement a proper concentration and a desired color, the paint should be diluted by using solvents such as a thinner, etc., or water. Conventionally, dilution should be performed by taking a fixed amount of the paint to a separate container after opening the cap of a bucket container. In these cases, there have been problems that the material accommodated in the container flows out to the outside due to a difference in atmospheric pressure or temperature when opening the cap, thus contaminating the worker and/or working environment. Also, there have been other problems that a separate container for dilution should have been equipped with since the dilution of the paint should have been done in a separate container different from the bucket container, a fixed amount of the diluted paint has still remained in the container after the painting work has been completed generally, which has been disposed at once producing a large amount of contaminated materials causing environmental contamination. 
     DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION 
     Therefore, an object of the present invention is to solve the problems involved in the prior art, and to provide with capsule containers accommodated in beverage containers and/or bucket containers, in which the capsule containers are supported by the rim of an opening provided at the beverage container and bucket container. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide with a capsule container capable of effectively using two kinds of contents, in which the content contained in a beverage container or a bucket container is used at ordinary times, but the content contained in the capsule container is mixed with the content contained in the beverage container or the bucket container as intended by the user. 
     Still another object of the present invention is to provide with a capsule container capable of not only preventing the content from splashing or flowing-out to the outside when opening the cap of a beverage container and/or bucket container, drinking, or taking-out the content from the container but also adjusting the amount of flow-out when drinking or taking-out the content. 
     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide with capsule containers by making capsule containers in the form of modules so that the contents in one or more capsule containers may be blended with the contents accommodated in beverage containers and/or bucket containers at a specific ratio as intended by the manufacturer. 
     In order to achieve the above objects, there is provided with a capsule container comprised of a cylindrical receiving member with both ends open; a partition extended inwardly from the portion of an inner periphery of the receiving member to divide the receiving member into upper and lower portions; one or more discharging ports penetrating at regular intervals through the side wall of the receiving member located on or above the partition; an inverted-cup-shaped pressing member extended upwardly from a portion of the partition in a fixed length; a vertically movable member extended downwardly from the inner upper side of the pressing member in a fixed length having a point at the lower end; and a shielding membrane finishing the lower side of the receiving member, in which the receiving member is inserted into and supported by the opening of the conventional container. 
     Preferably, the portion of the pressing member encountered with the vertically movable member is made of a material selected from the materials having a fixed amount of elastic stability. 
     The capsule container may further include a hollow portion vertically penetrating through the central portion of the partition; a cylindrical guide member extended upwardly from the partition or an inner periphery of the hollow portion; and a vertically movable member, separately from the receiving member, which is inserted into the hollow portion, supported by the guide member to be able to slide up and down, and equipped with a pressing member on its upper side. 
     The capsule container may be further equipped with a locking portion extended from the upper side of the receiving member; and a guide end having an inner periphery that comes in contact with the outer periphery of the guide member, as the upper side of the pressing member is made to have the same shape and size as those of the outer periphery of the guide member. 
     In this case, the partition may be curved and streamlined from the discharging port. And the vertically movable member may be inverted-cup-shaped, where the lower end is open and the other side is closed, thereby forming a space part therein, and the lower end is equipped with the above point. 
     And the upper side of the guide member may be cut to have fixed thickness and height, and thus, equipped with an enlarged end and a stepped portion. The pressing member is further equipped with a locking portion, which is caught and supported by the stepped portion when it moves down since its upper side is horizontally extended to have the same size as that of the enlarged end. 
     In the meantime, the inner periphery of the guide end and the outer periphery of the vertically movable member, or the outer periphery of the guide member and the inner periphery of the guide member corresponding to the above, may be equipped with a concave portion and the corresponding convex portion. And the shielding membrane is a thin film made of aluminum, or one or more materials selected from synthetic resins, or one or more synthetic resins layered. 
     Along with the above, it is preferable to accommodate one or more components selected from solid powder, liquid, and gas having different components in the space part, between the partition of the receiving member and the shielding membrane, and the containers. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above objects, other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing the preferred embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a cross-sectional view of a capsule container according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of the capsule container shown in  FIG. 1  assembled to a beverage bottle; 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of the capsule container shown in  FIG. 2  when it is used; 
         FIG. 4  is a partially sectional perspective view of a capsule container according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of the capsule container shown in  FIG. 4  when it is used; 
         FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view of a capsule container according to still another preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view of a capsule container according to yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 8  is a disassembled perspective view of a capsule container of the present invention applied to a bucket container. 
     
    
    
     BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 
     Reference will now be made in detail to preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. 
     Preferred Embodiment 1 
       FIG. 1  is a cross-sectional view of a capsule container  100  according to the present invention.  FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of the capsule container  100  shown in  FIG. 1  assembled to a beverage bottle  700 .  FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of the capsule container shown in  FIG. 2  when it is used. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 1 to 3 , the capsule container  100  according to the present invention includes a receiving member  110 , a pressing member  120  integrally formed on the inner periphery of the receiving member  110 , a vertically movable member  150  installed inside of the pressing member  120 , and a shielding membrane  130  finishing the lower side of the receiving member  110 . 
     More concretely, the receiving member  110  has a cylindrical shape having both ends open, and the outer periphery  118  of the receiving member  110  has the same diameter and shape as those of the inner periphery  712  of the opening formed on a bottle  700 . The upper side of the receiving member  110  is laterally extended to form a locking portion  111  which is caught and supported by the rim  711  of the opening. The receiving member  110  is provided with a plurality of discharging ports  113  penetrating through the side wall  117  of the receiving member  110  at regular intervals. 
     In the meantime, as shown in  FIGS. 1 through 3 , the pressing member  120  includes a partition  112  extended inwardly from a portion of the inner periphery  115  of the receiving member  110  under the discharging ports  113  to divide the receiving member  110  into upper and lower portions, and has an inverted cup shape extended upwardly from the partition  112  to the upper side of the locking portion  111 . 
     As described in the above, the pressing member  120  also includes a vertically movable member  150  extended downwardly from the inner upper side  121  of the pressing member  120  in a fixed length to be equipped with a point  151  at the lower end thereof. The point  151  has a length shorter than that of the lower end of the receiving member  110 . 
     Therefore, the capsule container  100  according to the present invention is advantageous in that it has a less cost of manufacture through injection molding, etc. since the receiving member  110 , pressing member  120 , and vertically movable member  150  are formed integrally. 
     The operational principle of the capsule container  100  will now be described in detail with reference to  FIGS. 2 and 3 . 
     In principle, the capsule container  100  is inserted into the opening formed on the neck of a common bottle  700  containing a beverage or another substance, where the locking portion  111  is caught and supported by a rim  711  forming the opening. 
     Different contents are accommodated in a space part  114 , formed between the shielding membrane  130  and the partition  112  of the receiving member  110 , and the receiving part  750  of the bottle  700 . For instance, if the bottle  700  including the capsule container  100  is used to contain a beverage, accommodated in the receiving part  750  of the bottle  700  is a content  20 , such as water, carbonated beverage, milk, ionic beverage, health beverage, various kinds of drugs supplied through pharmaceutical companies, tonic water, etc. And accommodated in the space part  114  is another content, such as the original solution of a medicinal herb, original solution of a juice, original solution of a carbonated beverage such as coke, etc., infant food, alcoholic beverage such as whisky, etc., that may be readily diluted with the above content  20 . 
     Alternatively, if the bottle  700  including the capsule container  100  is used for blending in a chemical reaction, accommodated in the receiving part  750  and the space part  114  of the bottle  700  are a proper amount of a chemical substance (for example, an agricultural chemical, original chemical synthesis material, etc.) to be blended. 
     Hereinafter, the present invention is illustrated in detail assuming that the bottle  700  accommodating the capsule container is for beverages for the sake of convenience in description. 
     As typical containers do, the bottle includes a lid  720  for opening or closing an opening formed on the upper side, and a sealing member  730  of a flexible material on the inner upper side of the lid  720  for pressurized sealing of the upper side of the locking portion  111  and the rim  711  of the opening. In case of bottles  700  including such capsule container  100 , if a user wants to drink the content accommodated in the bottle  700  at ordinary times, the user separates the lid  720  from the bottle  700  and drinks the content in the usual method. 
     At this time, air pressure is applied to the receiving part  750  through the discharging ports  113  formed on the receiving member  110 , and the content  20  is discharged through the discharging ports  113  when the user drinks the content  20 . Since the content  20  is discharged in an amount corresponding to the size of diameter and number of the discharging ports  113 , it can prevent excessive flow-out of the content not contaminating the clothes of the user. 
     When the user wants to drink the mixture of the content  10  accommodated in the space part  114  of the capsule container  100  and the content  20  accommodated in the bottle  700 , the user applies a fixed amount of pressure P to the pressing member  120 . 
     The portion of the pressing member  120  on which the vertically movable member  150  is formed has a thickness and is made of a material that can allow elastic stability. When the pressure P is applied to the portion, as shown in  FIG. 3 , the portion is transformed to move the vertically movable member  150  downwardly, and thus, break the shielding membrane  130 . After that, if the pressure P is released, the vertically movable member  150  is restored to its original position. Accordingly, the content  10  accommodated in the space part  114  flows into the bottle  700 , and the contents  10  and  20  are blended. 
     The user can drink the completely blended content  30  after maximizing blending by shaking the bottle  700  in the state that the opening of the bottle  700  is closed by using the lid  720 . 
     Preferably, formed on the outer periphery  118  of the receiving member  110  is a graduated gauge that enables recognition of the amount of the content of the receiving part  750 , so that the content  20  in the receiving member  110  is drunk or withdrawn at ordinary times but is diluted or blended through the above capsule container  100  as intended by the user. If the bottle  700  and/or receiving member  110  is used for beverages, blending chemical substances, etc., it is preferable to implement them with transparent or semi-transparent material so that the blending action such as a chemical reaction, dilution, etc. may be observed readily. 
     Preferred Embodiment 2 
       FIG. 4  is a partially cross-sectional view of a capsule container  200  according to another preferred embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of the capsule container  200  shown in  FIG. 4  when it is used. 
     Referring now to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , the capsule container  200  is briefly constructed to have a receiving member  110 , a pressing member  120  formed on the upper side which is slided and inserted in the receiving member  110 , a vertically movable member  150  installed under the pressing member  120 , and a shielding membrane  130  finishing the lower end of the receiving member  110 . 
     More concretely, the receiving member  110  has a similar structure to that of Preferred Embodiment 1, and is characterized by being equipped with a partition  112  dividing the receiving member  110  into upper and lower portions, a hollow portion vertically penetrating through the central part of the partition  112 , a cylindrical guide member  220  extended upwardly from the inner periphery of the partition  112 , and a shielding membrane  130  attached to the lower side of the receiving member  110 . 
     In the meantime, the vertically movable member  150  has a point  151  at its lower side, and is inserted into the hollow portion to be able to move up and down. That is, the upper side of the vertically movable member  150  is equipped with a guide end  251  having the same shape and inner diameter as the shape and outer diameter of the guide member  220 . As shown in  FIG. 4 , the outer periphery and inner periphery of the guide member  220  come in contact tightly with each other by the guide end  251  and the outer periphery of the vertically movable member  150 , and therefore, the guide member is not released from the guide end and the vertically movable member and the up-and-down movement is performed stably. 
     It is preferable that a concave portion  252  and the corresponding convex portion  224  are constructed on a portion where the inner periphery and the outer periphery of the vertically movable member  150  and guide member  220  are coupled when the vertically movable member  150  is slided to the top of the guide member  220  so that the downward sliding movement according to the concave-convex combination is suppressed. 
     The operational effects of capsule containers will now be illustrated concretely below: 
     As described in Preferred Embodiment 1, the user drinks the content accommodated in the bottle  700 , and applies a fixed amount of pressure P to the upper side of the pressing member  120 . The applied pressure P refers to a force as strong as that can release the combination between the concave portion  252  and the convex portion  224 . If the pressure P is applied to the pressing member  120 , the combination of the concave and convex portions  252  and  224  is released elastically, and the outer periphery of the vertically movable member  150  and the inner periphery of the guide end  251  move down along the inner and outer peripheries of the guide member  220 . When the point  151  provided on the lower end of the vertically movable member  150  reaches the shielding membrane  130  finishing the lower end of the receiving member  110 , it breaks the receiving member  110 . Then, the content contained in the space part  152  of the capsule container  200  flows into the bottle  700  to produce a mixture  30  as described in the above. 
     Therefore, the capsule container of this preferred embodiment has an advantage that the vertically movable member is comprised of two components enabling a stable sliding movement, rather than an integral construction, as shown in the above Preferred Embodiment 1. 
     The principle of drinking hereinafter is the same as that of Preferred Embodiment 1, and therefore, its detailed illustration is omitted here. 
     Preferred Embodiment 3 
       FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional view of a capsule container  300  according to still another preferred embodiment of the present invention, which shows modified designing and construction of a capsule container in the above Preferred Embodiment 2. 
     The capsule container shown in  FIG. 6  has a similar construction to that of Preferred Embodiment 2, provided that the upper side of the guide member  220  is cut to have fixed thickness and depth, and therefore, an enlarged end  324  having an extended inner diameter as well as a stepped portion  325  having the shape of a locking portion are formed on the enlarged end  324  and the lower part of the enlarged end  324 . 
     The pressing member  120  further includes a locking portion  326  which is horizontally extended from the upper side of the pressing member, where the locking portion  326  has the same size as that of the enlarged end  324 . When the pressing member  120  and vertically movable member  150  break the shielding membrane  130  by the point  151 , the locking portion  326  is caught and supported by the stepped portion  325  thus suppressing the downward movement and preventing break-away. 
     And if the manufacturer desires to choose, a return spring (not shown) may be installed at the inside of the enlarged end  324 , i.e., between the locking portion  326  and the stepped portion  325 , so that the integrated pressing member  120  and vertically movable member  150  return elastically to the original upward position after the shielding membrane  130  is broken. 
     Accordingly, it is possible to have a stable up-and-down sliding movement even if the construction of the guide end  251  disclosed in Preferred Embodiment 2 is omitted. 
     Preferred Embodiment 4 
       FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional view of a capsule container  400  according to yet another embodiment of the present invention, which shows the formation of a multiple number of discharging ports  113  on the partition  112 . 
       FIG. 7  shows a construction to which a part of the construction of the vertically movable member  150  and guide member  220  in Preferred Embodiment 3 disclosed in the above is applied besides the construction of the above discharging ports  113 . 
     In more detail, constructed on the upper side of the pressing member  120  are a cylindrical guide member  220  protruded from the upper and lower sides of the partition  112 , and a locking portion  326  horizontally extended from the upper side of the pressing member  120 , where the locking portion  326  has the same diameter as that of the inner periphery of the guide member  220 . 
     The guide member  220  protruded downwardly from the bottom side of the partition  112  has an inner periphery that comes in contact with the outer periphery of the vertically movable member  150 . The guide member has the same height as that of the lower side of the receiving member  110 , and the lower side of the guide member is finished by the shielding membrane  130 . 
     Therefore, in principle, the outer periphery of the locking portion  326  and the vertically movable member  150  are slidably guided by the inner periphery of the guide member  220  protruded upwardly from the upper side of the partition  112 . When the vertically movable member  150  reaches the lower portion, it is supported on the guide member  220  and the partition  112 . 
     Before the locking portion  326  is caught and supported by the partition  112 , the shielding membrane  130  is broken by the vertically movable member  150  enabling the blending operation of contents as described in the above. 
     Also, as in Preferred Embodiment 3, a return spring (not shown) may be installed inside of the enlarged end  324 , i.e., between the locking portion  326  and the corresponding partition  112 , to return the pressing member  120  and the vertically movable member  150  to the original position after the shielding membrane  130  is broken. 
     Preferred Embodiment 5 
       FIG. 8  is a disassembled perspective view of any one of the capsule containers  100 ,  200 ,  300 , and  400  of the present invention applied to a bucket container  800 , in which the capsule containers disclosed in Preferred Embodiments 1 through 4 are inserted in and supported by the bucket container  800  accommodating a paint or the like to prevent flowing-out and splashing of the content, flowing-out of foams, etc. when opening the cover (not shown). 
     The capsule containers  100 ,  200 ,  300 , and  400  are implemented in the form of modules, and therefore, various kinds of contents to be used by the user may be offered to the user in the state that they are accommodated in the space part of the capsule container. 
     In case of a paint, for example, after the user uses a desired amount of the paint from the bottle at ordinary times, when the paint is consumed to have a proper amount or as intended by the user, the capsule container having a thinner, water, etc. accommodated may be operated in order to dilute the paint with a thinner, water, etc. Of course, since the capsule container accommodating water, a thinner, etc. can be purchased separately, the capsule container having the contents completely discharged is separated from the bucket container  800 , after which a new capsule container accommodating a solvent (such as a thinner, water, etc.) is inserted into the receiving member  110  through the opening  810 , and its rim  811  is caught and supported by the locking portion  111  of the receiving member  110 , so that the dilution operation is facilitated by a desired amount of the thinner or water. Accordingly, it is not necessary for the user to be equipped with separate solvents, etc., and the user can carry out the painting work at any time and place. 
     Preferred Embodiment 6 
     The capsule container according to the present invention may be utilized in the form that the original solutions of agricultural chemicals, solvents in which the original solutions of agricultural chemicals are diluted, etc., instead of the paint or solvent shown in Preferred Embodiment 5. 
     Conventionally, the original solutions of agricultural chemicals have been accommodated and circulated in glass bottle containers. Therefore, there have been problems of causing serious social phenomena such as poisoning by agricultural chemicals, etc., since it has been difficult to handle agricultural chemicals, and harmful materials such as heavy metals, etc. contained in the original solutions of agricultural chemicals have had to be exposed to atmosphere when they have been diluted with solvents. 
     Whereas, the capsule container according to the present invention is manufactured in the form that the original solutions of agricultural chemicals and solvents are accommodated selectively, and therefore, is advantageous in that the original solutions of agricultural chemicals are not exposed to atmosphere even after the dilution of the solvent and the original solution of the agricultural chemical is begun. 
     Also, as shown in Preferred Embodiment 5, since the capsule container accommodating the original solutions of agricultural chemicals and solvents separately is manufactured in the form of modules, there is an advantage of facilitating carrying of the capsule container and the dilution work as it becomes possible to dilute an agricultural chemical having a desired degree of dilution by simply carrying such capsule container. 
     While the present invention has been described and illustrated herein with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, some components of the Preferred Embodiments 1 through 4 may be selectively combined, which belongs to the scope of the present invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications and variations of this invention that come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents. 
     INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY 
     As described in the above, the capsule container according to the present invention may be applied to various containers such as beverage containers, bucket containers, etc. The capsule container enables blending of not only fluids but also particles, solids, etc. The capsule container can effectively use two contents by being operated in such a way that the content accommodated in the beverage container or bucket container is drunk or withdrawn at ordinary times, while the content accommodated in the capsule container is mixed with the content stored in the above beverage container or bucket container as intended by the user. 
     Further, the capsule container is advantageous in that it may be used safely since the content does not splash or flow out when the cap of the beverage container or bucket container is open, or when drinking or withdrawing the content from the container. 
     Still further, the present invention is a very useful invention in that the capsule container is manufactured in the form of modules, and therefore, it is possible to blend the contents in one or more capsule containers with the contents accommodated in the beverage container and/or bucket container at a specific ratio as intended by the manufacturer.