Abstract:
A more sanitary application and method of playing beer pong that permits the drinking beverage to remain contained within the cups in play by resting within the cups in play insert cups having catch flaps that let ping pong balls in and keeps them from bouncing out.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to, and the full benefit of, U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/122,013, filed on Oct. 8, 2014, the entirety of which is incorporated by reference hereto. 
     
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0002]    This technology relates generally to the field of beer pong improvements, and more particularly to applications and methods of sanitizing classic beer pong game play. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    The game play of classic beer pong, also known as “Beirut,” typically involves drinking beverages from cups after a ping pong ball “contacts the surface of the beverage contained within the cup.” See http://www.beirut-guide.com/rules/basic.php#rid14. Often times beer pong is played in less than sanitary environments, inevitably resulting in players drinking beverages from cups that a dirty ping pong ball has contacted. Several attempts have been made to avoid such unsanitary game play, but each such attempt fails to adequately model the classic game. One such prior art attempt introduces the addition of a “rinse cup” filled with water, used to rinse off a ball after it has contacted the floor. This attempt fails to protect against contact with unsanitary hands and requires frequent change out of the rinse water. Another such prior art attempt includes the use of empty cups, wherein the beverage to be consumed is contained in a separate cup, but with no liquid in the cups in play, this attempt results in balls that bounce in and out of cups in play, thereby resulting in the introduction of additional contaminants. The deficiencies of this attempt, and proposed solutions, are described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,899,590 to Kahn et al. herein incorporated by reference as part of this description. Kahn describes methods to retain balls and stabilize non-beverage containing cups from tipping over, but Kahn&#39;s methods explicitly teach away from ball retention means that permit the drinking beverage to remain in the cups in play. There is a need for a more sanitary application and method of playing beer pong that permits the drinking beverage to remain contained within the cups in play. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
         [0004]      FIG. 1  depicts an exploded perspective view of an example of an exemplary beer pong system of the present invention comprising a ping pong ball, an insert cup with catch flaps, and a stock red drinking cup. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0005]    This written description is provided to meet the enablement requirements of the patent statute without imposing limitations that are not recited in the claims. Referring now to the exemplary beer pong system depicted in  FIG. 1 , during game play a ping pong ball  10  is thrown towards a stock red drinking cup  20  with the goal of passing vertically through a cross-sectional area of the cup rim  22 . The cup  20  has a cup base  24  and a cup side wall  26  that extends from the cup base  24  to the cup rim  22 . The cup rim  22  has a wider diameter than the cup base  24 . An insert cup  30  includes an insert cup rim  32 , an insert cup base  34 , an insert cup side wall  36 , and at least one insert cup flap  38 . In this example, the insert cup  30  fits inside of the cup  20  without the insert cup base  34  reaching the cup base  24  because the insert cup rim  32  has a diameter substantially similar to the diameter of the cup rim  22  and the vertical height of the insert cup  30  is less than the vertical height of the cup  20 . That difference in heights permits a beverage to sit at the bottom of the cup  20  without contacting the insert cup base  34 . In this example, an insert cup flap  38  extends inward from the insert cup side wall  36  towards a vertical axis  40 , wherein the insert cup flap  38  has a length and rigidity that permits a ping pong ball  10  to pass through the insert cup rim  32  but not back out. 
         [0006]    The insert cup flaps of the present invention are not limited to the particular geometry, length, number, or arrangement shown in this example. Rather, the present invention discloses an application and method of more cleanly playing beer pong with the use of an insert cup that protects the beer pong cup&#39;s beverage from contact with the ping pong ball, while also catching the ping pong ball and allowing for easy retrieval of the ping pong ball with a participant&#39;s fingers. In practice, when a ping pong ball  10  begins to enter the insert cup  30 , that is inserted into the cup  20 , the ping pong ball  10  first contacts an insert cup flap  38 . That contact between ping pong ball  10  and insert cup flap  38 , deflects the position of the insert cup flap  38  towards the insert cup sidewall  36 , thereby reducing the speed of the ping pong ball  10  as it heads toward the insert cup base  34 . If the speed of the ping pong ball  10  was not sufficiently reduced on first contact with the insert cup flap  38 , and the ping pong ball begins to bounce back towards the insert cup rim  32  with enough speed that it could exit the insert cup  30 , then the ping pong ball  10  will again contact an insert cup flap  38 , thereby restricting the ping pong ball  10  from exiting the insert cup  30  and leaving the ping pong ball  10  to bounce back down to the insert cup base  34  before coming to rest there. A participant may remove the insert cup  30  from the cup  20  and drink the contents of the cup  20  either before or after the participant reaches into the insert cup  30  to retrieve the ping pong ball  10  with their fingers. 
         [0007]    It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present invention should not be limited by the above described exemplary embodiment.