Abstract:
A lined beverage-cooling container is disclosed, the container comprises a carton lined with a watertight liner bag. The walls of the bag are higher than the walls of the carton. Because the bag expands past the walls of the carton, a cavity for holding ice is formed on top of the carton. A method of use such container is also disclosed.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims priority benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/234,942 filed Aug. 18, 2009, the disclosures of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    During warm weather months, many people enjoy picnics, barbeques, tailgate parties and similar outdoor functions. It is ordinary to serve canned or bottled beverages at such gatherings. Because canned or bottled beverages are typically sold in boxes, which are rarely insulated or water-resistant, the beverages are typically transferred into coolers in order to keep the beverages cool for the duration of the gathering. However, coolers may not be readily available or, if available, may lack sufficient holding space. Accordingly, there is still a need in the art for a more convenient method for cooling and enjoying beverages. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The present invention solves this need by providing a lined beverage-cooling container. Such container comprises a carton lined with a liner bag, which is substantially watertight, i.e., leakproofed and waterproofed. The walls of the liner are higher than the walls of the carton so a cavity for holding ice is formed on top of the carton when the bag is expanded out of the carton. Because the liner bag is watertight, water from melting ice is held inside the bag, thereby preventing the carton from falling apart and generally avoiding the mess associated with water spills. 
         [0004]    The liner bag may be colored to prevent light absorption by the bag. Additionally or alternatively, the liner bag may also include a reflective layer or an insulating layer disposed on a part of or all over the outer surfaces of the liner bag. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         [0005]      FIG. 1  presents a perspective view of one embodiment of the lined carton of the present invention. 
           [0006]      FIG. 2  presents a top view of one embodiment of the lined carton of the present invention. 
           [0007]      FIG. 3  presents a side view of one embodiment of the lined carton of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0008]    Referring to  FIGS. 1-3 , a lined beverage-cooling container comprising a carton  10  for holding beverage containers  30   a ,  30   b,  etc. The carton  10  may be of any size or shape typically used for storage and transportation of canned or bottled beverages. In preferred embodiments, the carton  10  is a hexahedron, such as a cube or rectangular parallelepiped. Accordingly, the carton comprises a top side  11 , a bottom wall  12 , two side walls  13   a,    13   b  and two end walls  14   a,    14   b.  The top wall is preferably made up of two main flaps  15   a,    15   b  of equal side hinged to the upper edges of the side walls  13   a,    13   b , respectively. To close the carton, the main flaps are folded over the front side of the carton. A typical carton also includes two reinforcing flaps  16   a,    16   b  hinged to the upper edges of the end walls  14   a,    14   b,  respectively. These reinforcing flaps are folded over the front side of the carton first and then the flaps forming the front wall are folded over them. It will of course be understood that a carton having only reinforcing flaps, but not the main flaps, is within the scope of this invention. 
         [0009]    The carton is designed for transportation and storage of beverage containers, such as cans or bottles. It may be made of any suitably durable material such as paperboard or corrugated fiberboard. In preferred embodiments, the carton is sized to accept six, twelve, eighteen, or twenty four, or thirty beverage containers. 
         [0010]    The carton is lined with a liner bag  20  that forms a watertight vessel inside the carton. Similarly to the carton, the liner bag may be made of any shape or dimension, but preferably it is of the same general shape as the carton and is sized to fit snugly into the carton. Accordingly, in preferred embodiment the liner bag comprises a bottom surface, and two side walls and two end walls. The side walls and end walls of the liner bag are substantially higher than the corresponding walls of the carton. Accordingly, when the liner bag is expanded out of the carton, a cavity is formed on top of the carton, i.e. above the beverage containers, for holding ice or any other cooling means. The liner bag may also have a top wall. In such embodiments, a resealable fastener mechanism such as a zipper, reusable adhesive, or fastening tape, may be disposed on the top wall of the bag. Alternatively or additionally, the top wall of the bag may be formed by simply overlapping the walls of the bag, which will also seal the bag. 
         [0011]    The liner bag may be made of plastic, resin or any other waterproofed material. In addition to being waterproofed, the liner bag is also made leakproofed by sealing the walls of the liner bag together. Accordingly, the liner bag forms a watertight vessel inside the carton for holding ice or water from the ice. 
         [0012]    The liner bag may be transparent or may be colored at least partially to minimize light absorption by the liner bag. To further increase efficiency of the liner bag, the liner bag may include a reflective coating and/or an insulating layer. These layers may be disposed on part of or all over the outer surfaces of the liner bag. 
         [0013]    In operation, upon opening of the carton, the liner bag is extended outside the carton and the space in the liner bag above the beverage containers is filled with ice. If the beverage containers are not at desired temperature, the liner bag may be sealed for some time to let the beverage containers cool to the desired temperature. When the beverage containers have sufficiently cooled, they are removed from the liner bag for consumption and the bag is resealed to maintain the remaining containers at low temperature. Since the liner bag is watertight, it will hold the melted ice, water and/or any other condensation inside the bag, thereby preventing the carton from getting wet and weakening and the water from leaking out. When all of the beverage containers have been consumed, empty containers along with any other waste may be placed in the liner bag for proper disposal. 
         [0014]    By way of non-limiting example, a liner bag for a carton holding 18 bottles of beer will have the height and length of 15.75 about in and the width of about 8 inches. 
         [0015]    Although the invention herein has been described with reference to particular embodiments, it is to be understood that these embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and applications of the present invention. It is therefore to be understood that numerous modifications may be made to the illustrative embodiments and that other arrangements may be devised without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention which is defined by the following claims.