Abstract:
A closed, unbroken ring having an identifying member attached thereto, the ring having elasticity for placement on the free end of a bottle neck, and a method of distinguishing a plurality of bottles from one another by placing respective closed rings with distinctive ornamentation on the necks of each of the plurality of bottles.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention relates to a beer bottle ring and method for marking beer bottles to distinguish one from another.  
           [0002]    Decorative devices for display on a wine bottle and removal therefrom for placing on the stem of wine glasses to distinguish one wine glass from another are known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,293,034 discloses a wine bottle ring of a continuous unbroken form for accepting a neck of a wine bottle. The wine bottle ring stores a plurality of wine glass rings, each providing a distinctive ornamentation, that are removably placed on the wine bottle ring. Each wine glass ring does not form a closed loop and thus can be removed from the wine bottle ring and can be spread opened to enclose the stem of a wine glass and be supported on the base of the glass. Since each wine glass ring has distinctive ornamentation attached to it, each wine glass can be distinguished from another. However, since the size of the wine glass rings is relatively small, their versatility is limited.  
           [0003]    At social events and the like, beverages including beer, ale, lager, lemonade, soft drinks, etc. are often served in containers designed for individual consumption. Typically such containers are glass or plastic bottles that contain 12 ounces of liquid, and are shaped to have a relative thin neck portion that expands to a relative wide base. Although different brands of beverages are readily distinguishable by their labeling, it is often the case that more than one individual will be consuming the same brand of beverage. Under such circumstances, the containers may be commingled, resulting in one individual drinking from another individual&#39;s container. The wine glass rings of the &#39;034 patent mentioned above cannot be used for such containers, since there is no central or “source” container analogous to the wine bottle on which the wine glass rings can be stored, and since such containers do not have a stem onto which the wine glass rings can be placed.  
           [0004]    It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a device and method for easily distinguishing conventional beer bottles and the like from one another.  
           [0005]    It is a further object of the present invention to provide a device for distinguishing conventional beer bottles and the like from one another that is easily removable from the bottle and capable of being washed and re-used, yet remains secured to the bottle when the bottle is inverted during pouring or drinking.  
           [0006]    These and other objects will be made apparent by reference to the following description and drawings.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0007]    The problems of the prior art have been overcome by the present invention, which provides a closed, unbroken ring having an identifying member attached thereto, the ring having elasticity for placement on the free end of a bottle neck, and a method of distinguishing a plurality of bottles from one another by placing respective closed rings with distinctive ornamentation on the necks of each of the plurality of bottles.  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0008]    [0008]FIG. 1 is a top view of a bottle ring having ornamentation in accordance with the present invention; and  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a bottle having the bottle ring of FIG. 1 in accordance with the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0010]    Turning now to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a closed-loop bottle ring  10  in accordance with the present invention. The ring  10  has elasticity and memory so that it can be stretched to fit around the neck  12  of a bottle  20 , and once so placed, tightly fits around the neck  12  so that it remains stable. In this regard, conventional beer bottles are typically formed with long necks that taper outwardly from the top open end towards the bottle base. Preferably the inside diameter of the ring  10 , when in its normal unstretched state, is slightly smaller than the outside diameter of the smallest portion of the neck  12  of the bottle, so that when placed on the bottle neck, the ring  10  circumscribes the neck  12  and is tightly wrapped around the neck  12 . However, it is within the scope of the present invention for the inside diameter of the ring  10 , when in its normal unstretched state, to be the same as or slightly smaller than the outside diameter of any portion of the neck  12 . It is also within the scope of the present invention to use the device on bottles other than beer bottles, although beer bottles will be used herein for purposes of illustration. Most preferably the bottles have elongated necks with a maximum outside diameter smaller than the maximum outside diameter of the bottle base. The bottles may be made of any suitable material, including glass and plastic.  
         [0011]    The elasticity and memory of ring  10  allows it to remain secure on the neck  12  when the bottle is tilted or inverted, such as during pouring or drinking of the bottle contents. This is accomplished by the ring  10  contracting from its stretched state about the bottle neck. The contraction need to be complete to its original unstretched state; contraction to an intermediate state wherein the ring diameter is larger than the unstretched state but small enough to remain secure about the neck  12  when the bottle is tilted or inverted is sufficient and within the scope of the present invention.  
         [0012]    Preferably the ring  10  is circular and is an O-ring, commercially available from numerous sources. Suitable ring materials include rubber (natural or synthetic), such as butadiene-styrene copolymers (SBR), acrylonitrilebutadiene copolymers, ethylenepropylene-diene rubbers (EPDM), butyl rubber, nitrile-butadiene rubber (NBR), chloroprene (Neoprene); silicone; urethane; polyacrylonitrile; tetrafluoroethylene fluorocarbon polymers (TEFLON) and combinations thereof. Other suitable materials include metal and plastic. Preferably a material is chosen that is durable and that can be washed in a conventional automatic dishwasher without destroying the material or its properties.  
         [0013]    The ring  10  should have a sufficient inside diameter so that when placed on the neck  12  of a beer bottle  20  or the like, it remains stationary and compressed about the neck  12  even if the bottle is tilted or inverted. Suitable inside diameters are from about 1 inch to about 1.5 inches, preferably about 1.25 inches. The thickness of the wall defining the ring  10  is not particularly limited, but is preferably about {fraction (1/16)}″ to about ¼″, most preferably about ⅛″. Preferably the wall is circular in cross-section, although other shapes, regular or irregular, are within the scope of the invention.  
         [0014]    The elasticity and memory of the ring  10  allows the ring  10  to be stretched to an inside diameter larger than the outside diameter of the bottle neck as it is placed over the open or free end  15  of the bottle neck  12 , regardless of whether the bottle is capped or uncapped. The ring  10  (either while being stretched or after being allowed to return to its normal configuration) can then be pushed down the neck  12  to engage the neck  12  at a suitable resting location that is visible to the user as shown in FIG. 2. Once the beverage in the bottle is consumed and the bottle is to be discarded, the ring  10  can be removed from the bottle neck  12  by lifting it over and off the neck. If the ring  10  and/or identifying member  18  is soiled, the ring  10  and/or identifying member  18  can be washed and re-used. Alternatively, the ring and/or identifying member can be discarded.  
         [0015]    In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the ring  10  supports on or more identifying members  18 . The design of each identifying member  18  is not particularly limited. In the embodiment shown, the identifying member  18  is an ornamental star, but those skilled in the art will appreciate that any figure or shape having any color or size could be used, provided that when the identifying member  18  is supported by ring  10  that is placed on a bottle neck  12 , it distinguishes the bottle  12  from another bottle having a ring  10  supporting a different identifying member  18 . For example, the identifying member could be a configuration identifying a particular hobby or of the user, such as a tennis racket, a golf club or a football, or could be in the configuration of a favorite pet or the like. The materials of construction of the identifying member  18  are not particularly limited, and include metal, ceramic, plastic, stone, shell, wood, etc. or combinations of the foregoing. The identifying member may be purely decorative, or may include functionality, such as a written message, an indication of the contents of the bottle, or an identifying brand mark. The function of a written message, inscription, annotation or brand allows the device to be useful in a kitchen, laboratory or other such setting where bottles are used to store consumable or useful liquids. The device also may be electronic, e.g., sending a sound pulse or tone, or a visual light emission. Such an electronic device may be triggered or activated by a remote activator device via infrared light or radio waves, for example.  
         [0016]    The identifying member  18  can be supported by the ring  10  by any suitable means. Preferably a ring  22  having an inside diameter greater than the outside diameter of the wall of the ring  10  is positioned on the wall of the ring  10  and is attached to the identifying member  18  (such as through loop  21 ), so that the identifying member  18  is loosely attached to the ring  10 . The ring  22  is a resilient material such as spring steel and is similar to conventional key rings used to attach keys to a key chain. Thus, the ring  22  can be opened to place it on or remove it from ring  10 , or to attach identifying member  18  through the aperture in loop  21 . Alternatively, the identifying member  18  can be permanently affixed to the ring  10  by fastening, gluing, etc. The identifying member  18  can be configured to also circumscribe the bottle.  
         [0017]    In an alternative embodiment, the ring  10  itself is the identifying member. This can be accomplished by designing the rings to have different colors patterns, shapes, and/or inscriptions, etc., and/or be made of different materials, so that each ring of a set is distinctive.