Abstract:
An insulated drink holder with various attachments that aid in personal survival. The drink holder is dimensioned to receive a beverage within its interior. The drink holder includes a handle, a light, and a compass. It further includes a removable, mirrored storage cap for retaining small items and which has a magnet. If the drink holder receives a bottle it can have a zipper to selectively tightened the holder on the bottle. The drink holder includes a battery to power the light and a switch to selectively apply power.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     There are currently no applications co-pending with the present application. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The presently disclosed subject matter is directed towards picnic coolers. More particularly, the present invention relates to picnic coolers having multiple thermally insulated compartments and storage compartments. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Insulated beverage containers, or “koozies” as they are commonly known, are used to help keep canned beverages cool. They work by insulating the can from outdoor temperatures and a user&#39;s hands, which tend to warm such beverages, while protecting the user&#39;s hands from the cold. 
     Koozies are available in a wide variety of colors and styles which help distinguish one koozie from another. Some are adorned with shoulder straps, advertising, and small pockets to help increase their versatility while also making one koozie more useful than another. As such, manufacturers are on lookout for innovations that can be incorporated into a koozie to increase their appeal and usefulness. 
     Some of the most useful devices relate to survival. When lost or away from civilization a compass is an extremely useful device. Other useful devices include mirrors, waterproof matches, thread, needles, fish hooks, fishing line, and lights. At times such devices can be very useful. For example, a laced string can be useful to hold items while a magnet can be useful to determine whether an item is made of a ferrous material (for example, iron and steel). Unfortunately, such items are rarely available when needed in an emergency. 
     Accordingly, there exists a need for a means by which the common koozie can be modified to be more useful in a manner that has broad appeal. Such a koozie should still be useful for keeping a retained beverage cold, but should make available items that are useful in an emergency. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The principles of the present invention provide for drink holders that are useful for keeping a retained beverage cold, but that also makes items that are useful in an emergency available. 
     A drink holder according to the present invention incorporates a tubular-shaped insulated receiver body having an exterior, an interior, a bottom, and a neck having a top opening and a zipper. The receiver body is dimensioned to receive a bottle such that the zipper can expand or tighten the top opening to better retain the bottle. An accessory piece is attached to the zipper, while the exterior includes a handle. At the bottom is a removable storage cap that is dimensioned to retain various small items. 
     The drink holder further includes a light-emitting diode for providing illumination, a battery, preferably a button-cell battery, and a switch for selectively applying power to the light-emitting diode. The accessory piece can include a spring-actuated carabiner, a compass, and/or a bottle opener. The storage cap has a mirrored surface and a magnet. 
     An alternative drink holder has a receiver body with a cylindrical wall having an exterior and an interior, a bottom, and a top opening. That receiver body and top opening are dimensioned to receive and retain a can. There is a handle on the exterior and a removable storage cap that is selectively attached to the bottom for retaining small items. 
     That drink holder further includes a light-emitting diode for providing illumination, a battery for supplying power, and a switch for selectively applying power to the light-emitting diode. A compass is attached to the exterior, and the storage cap includes a mirrored surface and a magnet. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The advantages and features of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following more detailed description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like elements are identified with like symbols and in which: 
         FIG. 1  is an environmental view of a drink insulating receiver  10  that is in accord with the principles of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective, partial cut-away view of the drink insulating receiver  10  shown in  FIG. 1  depicting an accessory piece  40  and a storage cap  34 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the storage cap  34  shown in  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 4  is an opposing perspective view of the storage cap  34  of  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 ; 
         FIG. 5  is an environmental view of an alternate drink insulating receiver  50  that is in accord with the principles of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the drink insulating receiver  50  shown in  FIG. 5 ; and, 
         FIG. 7  is another perspective view of the drink insulating receiver  50  shown in  FIG. 5  and  FIG. 6 . 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTIVE KEY 
     
         
         
           
               10  drink holder 
               11  bottle 
               12  can 
               20  receiver body 
               21  exterior 
               22  interior 
               23  top opening 
               24  zipper 
               25  zipper pull 
               26  handle 
               27  bottom 
               28   a  first threaded portion 
               28   b  second threaded portion 
               29  battery clip 
               30  battery 
               31  electrical wiring 
               32  light-emitting diode 
               33  pushbutton 
               34  storage cap 
               35  mirror 
               36  magnet 
               40  accessory piece 
               41  clip 
               42  compass 
               43  bottle opener 
               50  drink insulating receiver 
               51  receiver body 
               52  exterior 
               53  interior 
               54  handle 
               55  bottom 
               56  storage cap 
               57  compass 
           
         
       
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The best mode for carrying out the invention is presented in terms of its preferred embodiment,  FIGS. 1 through 4  and the rest depicted in  FIGS. 5 through 7 , and a person skilled in the art will appreciate that many other embodiments of the invention are possible without deviating from the basic concept of the invention, and that any such work around will also fall under scope of this invention. It is envisioned that other styles and configurations of the present invention can be easily incorporated into the teachings of the present invention, and only one particular configuration shall be shown and described for purposes of clarity and disclosure and not by way of limitation of scope. 
     The terms “a” and “an” herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced items. 
     The principles of the present invention provide for novelty drink insulating receivers which help maintain the temperature of a beverage while also making available to the user items that are highly useful for personal survival. Such drink insulating receivers also protects a user&#39;s hands from temperatures associated with a beverage container, which is preferably a bottle, yet other containers such as cans can also benefit. 
       FIG. 1  presents an environmental view of a first embodiment drink holder  10  that is in accord with the present invention. The drink holder  10  has an insulated receiver body  20  that has a tubular-shape and a narrow neck that are dimensioned to encompass a common beverage bottle  11 . The receiver body  20  is slightly larger than the bottle  11  to enable placement of the bottle inside the receiver body  20 . The second embodiment has an alternate receiver body  51  that holds cans  12  (see  FIG. 5 ) as is described subsequently. 
     The receiver body  20  encompasses the bottle  11  to help maintain its temperature and to protect the user&#39;s hand during holding. The receiver body  20  includes a top opening  23  which assists placement or removal of the bottle  11  in its interior  22  (see  FIG. 2 ) of the receiver body  20 . The receiver body  20  is preferably fabricated from materials such as, but not limited to: foam, neoprene, or the like, and may be fabricated in various colors, patterns, or the like to accommodate the user. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the exterior  21  of the drink holder  10  incorporates features and attachments for personal necessity. At the top of the receiver body  20  is a zipper  24  which is used to expand or tighten the top opening  23  for placement or removal of the bottle  11 . The zipper  24  has a zipper pull  25  which suspends an accessory piece  4 . The exterior  21  also includes a handle  26  and a light-emitting diode  32 . The receiver body  20  has a bottom  27 . 
       FIG. 2  shows a removed accessory piece  40  and a removed storage cap  34 , while  FIGS. 3 and 4  provide opposing perspective views of the storage cap  34 . Referring to those figures, as noted the zipper pull  25  suspends the removable attachable accessory piece  40 . The accessory piece  40  includes a clip  41 , a compass  42 , and a bottle opener  43 . The clip  41  is preferably a common spring-actuated carabiner. However, other spring devices may be utilized instead. The clip  41  is attached to a disc-shaped body which includes the compass  42  on one (1) side surface and the bottle opener  43  on the other. The compass  42  is a common navigating instrument for determining direction while the bottle opener  43  is a common device which removes bottle caps. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the exterior  21  includes the handle  26 , which is used to provide a secure gripping feature. The handle  26  is beneficially attached to the exterior  21  via sewing techniques, yet other attachment means may be utilized. The handle  26  is depicted as comprising a multiple-looped configuration for illustration only as other configurations may be used. 
     Adjacent the handle  26  is the light-emitting diode  32 . The light emitting diode  32  is used to provide illumination. The light-emitting diode  32  is activated by a common momentary pushbutton  33  that is located next to the light-emitting diode  32 . Power for the light-emitting diode  32  is supplied via a battery  30  that is located on the bottom of the receiver body  20 . Electrical wiring  31  that runs within the receiver body  20  is used to interconnect the light-emitting diode  32  and the pushbutton  33  to the battery  30 . The battery  30  is preferably a common button-cell battery accessed by removing a storage cap  34  from the bottom  27 . A common battery clip  29  mounted to the bottom  27  is used to retain the battery  30  in place. The bottom  27  is beneficially fabricated from a durable plastic material which supports removal and attachment of a storage cap  34 . 
     The inner surface of the bottom  27  has a first threaded portion  28   a  which threads with a second threaded portion  28   b  of the storage cap  34 . The storage cap  34  comprises a waterproof cup-shaped body which is also fabricated from a durable plastic. The storage cap  34  is dimensioned to retain desired items such as, but not limited to: matches, fishing line, fishing hooks, or the like. The interior surface of the storage cap  34  forms a mirror  35  having reflective characteristic suitable for starting fires or gaining the attention of others. The bottom exterior of the storage cap  34  forms a magnet  36  which enables the drink holder  10  to magnetically attach to a desired surface such as a boat or vehicle to hold the drink holder  10  upright. 
       FIG. 5  shows an environmental view of an alternative drink insulating receiver  50  that is in accord with the principles of the present invention. The drink insulating receiver  50  retains and thermally insulates a can  12 . The drink insulating receiver  50  includes a tubular-shaped open-topped receiver body  51  which enables insertion or removal of a can  12  into and out of an interior  53  (see  FIG. 6 ). The drink insulating receiver  50  is fabricated from similar materials as the abovementioned receiver body  20 . 
     Referring now to  FIG. 6  and  FIG. 7  the drink insulating receiver  50  includes a storage cap  56  and a handle  54  on the exterior  52  of the drink insulating receiver  50  to provide a grasping means. The handle  54  is attached to the exterior  52  by common sewing techniques and beneficially comprised a multi-looped configuration. The exterior  52  also retains a compass  57  that is beneficially fixed to the receiver body  51  via integral molding techniques. The compass  57  differs from the compass  42  by the way it is attached. 
     The exterior  52  also retains a light-emitting diode  32  and a pushbutton  33  for providing illumination. The light-emitting diode  32  and the pushbutton  33  are electrically interconnected via electrical wiring  31  to the battery clip  29  and battery  30  which are located upon a bottom  55 . The bottom  55  is beneficially fabricated from a durable plastic and includes a first threaded portion  28   a  that mates with a second threaded portion  28   b  of a storage cap  56 . The storage cap  56  and the bottom  55  provide a waterproof storage space for desired items (matches, for example). The interior surface of the storage cap  56  forms a mirror  35  while the out surface forms a magnet  36 . 
     It is envisioned that other styles and configurations of the present invention can be easily incorporated into the teachings of the present invention, and while only two particular configurations are shown and described, that is only for purposes of clarity and disclosure and not by way of limitation of scope. 
     The preferred embodiment of the present invention can be used by the common user in a simple and effortless manner with little or no training. After initial purchase or acquisition of the drink holder  10 , it would be used as indicated in  FIG. 1  to retain a bottle  11 . 
     The method of installing and utilizing the drink holder  10  may be achieved by performing the following steps: acquiring the drink holder  10 ; unzipping the zipper  24  by downwardly pulling the zipper pull  25 ; inserting a bottle  11  into the interior  22  of the receiver body  20 ; zipping the zipper  24 ; grasping the handle  26  to drink from the bottle  11 ; removing the accessory piece  40  by the clip  41  to use the compass  42  or bottle opener  43  as desired; depressing the pushbutton  33  to illuminate the light-emitting diode  32 ; disengaging the storage cap  34  from the bottom  27  to store desired items within or use the mirror  35 ; attaching the storage cap  34  onto the bottom  27  to utilize the magnet  36 ; removing the bottle  11  from the receiver body  20  as desired; and, enjoying a beverage while being able to deal with survival type situations as needed. 
     The alternate embodiment of the present invention can be utilized by the common user in a simple and effortless manner with little or no training. After initial purchase or acquisition of the novelty drink insulating receiver  50 , it would be installed as indicated in  FIG. 5 . 
     The method of installing and utilizing the drink insulating receiver  50  may be achieved by performing the following steps: acquiring the drink insulating receiver  50 ; inserting a can  12  into the interior  53  of the receiver body  51 ; grasping the handle  54  to drink from the can  12 ; using the compass as desired; depressing the pushbutton  33  to illuminate the light-emitting diode  32 ; disengaging the storage cap  56  from the bottom  55  to store desired items within or uses the mirror  35 ; attaching the storage cap  56  onto the bottom  55  to use the magnet  36 ; removing the can  12  from the receiver body  51  as desired; and enjoying a beverage while being able to deal with survival type situations. 
     The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention and method of use to the precise forms disclosed. Obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application, and to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is understood that various omissions or substitutions of equivalents are contemplated as circumstance may suggest or render expedient, but is intended to cover the application or implementation without departing from the spirit or scope of the claims of the present invention.