Abstract:
A spout ( 20 ) for a lid ( 10 ), where the lid ( 10 ) is constructed and arranged to fit over and close an open top of a container ( 150 ). The spout ( 20 ) has an elongated fluid conduit ( 22 ) having two ends ( 24, 25 ) and lying along a conduit longitudinal axis ( 23 ). The conduit ( 22 ) has a pair of opposed convex curved sidewalls ( 61, 63 ) that meet at two opposed locations ( 64, 65 ) at an angle of less than 180 degrees to define a generally elliptical cross-sectional shape that has a major axis ( 51 ) that passes through the sidewall meeting locations ( 64, 65 ).

Description:
FIELD 
       [0001]    This disclosure relates to a spout for a lid, where the lid can be adapted to fit over and close an open top of a container. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    Children sometimes ingest from cups foods such as liquids (e.g., water, milk, formula, juice) and more viscous foods such as purees, yogurt, smoothies and the like. Reusable open-top cups need to have removable lids so they can be cleaned and refilled. The lid needs to carry a delivery spout. Some spouts have bite valves that are compressed with the lips, teeth or gums so as to open the valve and deliver the food. The valve should open easily yet close quickly to inhibit spills. It should also open wide enough to deliver the food without the need for the child to suck on the spout very hard. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0003]    This disclosure features a spout for a lid. The lid may be adapted to fit over and close an open top of a container. The spout can include an elongated fluid conduit lying along a conduit longitudinal axis and having a pair of opposed convex curved sidewalls that meet at two opposed locations at an angle of less than 180 degrees to define a generally elliptical cross-sectional shape that has a major axis that passes through the sidewall meeting locations. A bite valve comprising a membrane is located within the conduit. The bite valve may be but need not be spaced from the ends of the conduit. The membrane is coupled to both walls and spans the conduit so as to fully block the conduit when the valve is not activated or opened by the user&#39;s action. The membrane can be but need not be generally dish-shaped or dome-shaped. A slit through the membrane lies along a slit axis that is preferably but not necessarily transverse to (e.g., normal to) the major axis of the conduit. Preferably, the conduit sidewalls are essentially identical and the spout is a unitary part molded from an elastomeric material, preferably silicone. 
         [0004]    The membrane can have a top surface and a bottom surface, and the bite valve may further comprise a reinforcing ridge projecting outwardly from the bottom of the membrane. The slit may be generally linear when viewed from above. The reinforcing ridge may be co-linear with the slit. The slit may pass through the reinforcing ridge. The ridge may be generally semi-circular in cross section. The ridge may be bisected by the slit. 
         [0005]    The spout may further comprise a pair of shallow indentations, one on the outside of each conduit sidewall and located at the approximate location of the slit. The spout may further comprise two wall-strengthening ribs, one projecting inwardly from each of the sidewalls and both coupled to the top of the membrane. The ribs may be centered on the slit. Each rib may define an indentation at the slit location. Each indentation may extend along at least most of the rib in the direction of the conduit longitudinal axis. 
         [0006]    The spout sidewalls may be essentially identical. The conduit and the bite valve may comprise a unitary part molded from an elastomeric material. The conduit may have a minor axis that is orthogonal to the major axis, and the slit may be co-linear with the minor axis. The slit may extend along most of the length of the minor axis. The bite valve may be symmetric about both the major axis and the minor axis. The membrane may be generally dome shaped. The membrane may be generally uniform in thickness, and along the minor axis the membrane may define an arc-shape. Along the major axis the membrane may be generally V-shaped. The lid may be convex, flat, or concave. 
         [0007]    Also featured herein is a spout for a lid, where the lid is constructed and arranged to fit over and close an open top of a container. The spout may include an elongated fluid conduit having two ends and lying along a conduit longitudinal axis, the conduit having a pair of opposed convex curved sidewalls that meet at two opposed locations at an angle of less than 180 degrees to define a generally elliptical cross-sectional shape that has a major axis that passes through the sidewall meeting locations. The spout may further include a bite valve comprising a generally dome-shaped membrane located within the conduit and spaced from the ends of the conduit, the membrane coupled to both sidewalls so as to fully block the conduit, and a slit through the membrane, where the slit lies along a slit axis that is transverse to the major axis of the conduit, wherein the membrane has a top surface and a bottom surface, and wherein the bite valve further comprises a reinforcing ridge projecting outwardly from the bottom of the membrane, wherein the slit is generally linear when viewed from above, and the reinforcing ridge is co-linear with the slit, and wherein the slit passes through the reinforcing ridge. There may be two wall-strengthening ribs, one projecting inwardly from each of the sidewalls, the ribs coupled to the top of the membrane, wherein the ribs are centered on the slit. The conduit may have a minor axis that is orthogonal to the major axis and wherein the slit is co-linear with the minor axis, wherein the slit extends along most of the length of the minor axis and wherein the bite valve is symmetric about both the major axis and the minor axis. 
         [0008]    The membrane may be generally uniform in thickness. Along the minor axis the membrane may define an arc-shape and along the major axis the membrane may be generally V-shaped. 
         [0009]    Examples of the spout for a lid that is adapted to fit over and close an open top of a container are shown in the drawings. The spout is typically an integral part of a one-piece molded lid that is constructed and arranged to fit over and seal with the top lip of an open-top cup or other container. The lid can be injection molded from an elastomeric material such as a silicone compound. The lid can alternatively be made from more than one part with the parts coupled together through mechanical joints, ultrasonic welding, chemical bonding, or another adhesion method. 
         [0010]    Examples of containers that can be closed by such a lid are numerous and include sippy cups for use by young children (typically for fluids or purees), water bottles, and storage containers that need to be sealed so the contents do not spill, but from which the user desires to drink or otherwise ingest the contents. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    The disclosure is supported by the below-described non-limiting examples shown in the drawings, in which: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  is a top view of a spout that projects from the top of a lid. 
           [0013]      FIG. 2A  is a cross-section taken along the major axis of the spout of  FIG. 1 , and  FIG. 2B  is a cross-section taken along the minor axis of the spout. 
           [0014]      FIG. 3A  is a top perspective view of the spout. 
           [0015]      FIG. 3B  is a perspective cross-section taken along the major axis of the spout, orthogonally to the slit. 
           [0016]      FIG. 3C  a bottom view of the spout. 
           [0017]      FIG. 3D  is a top view of the spout. 
           [0018]      FIG. 4  is a side view of the spout and the lid. 
           [0019]      FIG. 5  is a side view of the spout. 
           [0020]      FIG. 6A  is a top view of a different spout. 
           [0021]      FIG. 6B  is a bottom view of the spout of  FIG. 6A . 
           [0022]      FIG. 6C  is a cross-section taken along the major axis of the spout of  FIG. 6A , and 
           [0023]      FIG. 6D  is a cross-section taken along the minor axis of this spout. 
           [0024]      FIG. 7  is a side view of the spout of  FIG. 6A . 
           [0025]      FIG. 8  shows a spout on a lid, which is on a cup. 
           [0026]      FIG. 9  shows a spout mounted to a different type of lid. 
           [0027]      FIG. 10A  is a top perspective view of a lid with a spout, where the lid is concave and the spout is located off-center. 
           [0028]      FIG. 10B  is a top perspective cross-sectional view of the lid with spout of  FIG. 10A , taken along the minor axis of the spout. 
           [0029]      FIG. 10C  is a side cross-sectional view of the lid with spout of  FIG. 10A , taken along the minor axis of the spout. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0030]    A first example of a spout for a lid is shown in  FIGS. 1-5 . Lid or cap  10  includes a lid body  12  which has lower rim  13  that is adapted to fit over and create a liquid-tight seal with the rim of a container (a non-limiting example of a container  150  is shown in  FIG. 8 ) in a manner that is well known in the field and does not need to be further described. One-way valve or vent  14  allows air to enter into the container as fluid is withdrawn, to prevent the formation of a vacuum, as is also well known. Vent  14  is not essential to the function of the spout. Vent  14  allows the user to continuously drink from the spout—an intentionally designed feature. Without vent  14  the spout can be used until vacuum build up prevents the release of further liquid. At this point the user would need to crack the bite valve to allow the pressure in the cup to become equal with the ambient pressure. 
         [0031]    Spout  20  is essentially an elongated fluid conduit  22  with an internal bite valve  21  that is adapted to be opened by the user via pressure applied to the outside of the spout through the lips, teeth and/or gums. Conduit  22  lies along longitudinal axis  23 ,  FIG. 1  (axis  23  projects normal to the page in  FIG. 1 ). In this non-limiting example spout  20  is located vertically (i.e., axis  23  is vertical when lid  10  is located on a cup that is standing upright). Also, in this non-limiting example spout  20  is located at the center of lid body  12 . Conduit  22  is defined by opposed convex curved sidewalls  61  and  63  which meet at locations  64  and  65 ; sidewalls  61  and  63  are preferably but need not be essentially identical. When the spout is an integral molded member, sidewalls  61  and  63  and locations  64  and  65  are all portions of a continuous outer wall that is generally elliptically shaped and defines major axis  51  and minor axis  53 . 
         [0032]    Bite valve  21  comprises membrane  26  that is generally dish-shaped or generally dome-shaped; it lies along a curved plane that is convex toward the bottom of the conduit (i.e., toward the contents of the cup on which the lid is located). Membrane  26  presents a generally partially spherical bottom surface  29  that faces the fluid contents of the cup, and an opposed top surface  27  that faces the outside conduit end  24  which will be located in the user&#39;s mouth. As can be seen in  FIGS. 2A and 2B , membrane  26  is generally a partially spherical surface along the slit axis (or the projection of the minor axis), and is more generally “V”-shaped along major axis  51 . These shapes generally describe this example of the membrane but the shape is not exactly geometric. Membrane  26  intersects sidewalls  61  and  63  at an acute angle  19  defined by lower or bottom surface  29  and conduit  22 . Angle  19  may be but need not be approximately 60 degrees. By making the angle  19  smaller (less than 60 degrees), the valve will react faster, i.e., open and close in a more sensitive manner. The combination of angle  19  and the radius of curvature of membrane  26  helps to determine the speed and sensitivity at which the valve will open and shut as well as how widely the valve will physically open. 
         [0033]    The center of membrane  26  lying along minor axis  53  has a lower reinforcing ridge  28 , which preferably is generally semi-circular in cross-section. A single slit  40  is made through membrane  26  and ridge  28  along the middle of ridge  28  to provide for valve  21  to be opened under use control, to allow the contents of the container to be dispensed through valve  21  into the user&#39;s mouth. Slit  40  preferably but not necessarily bisects both membrane  26  and ridge  28 . For a curved membrane, ridge  28  as well as slit  40  are curved in one dimension and straight when viewed from above, and thus lie in a vertical plane that includes the minor axis. 
         [0034]    Spout  20  has on its outside shallow indentations  54  and  55  that serve as tactile locating elements for the user&#39;s lips. They are located approximately level with the location of membrane  26 , preferably proximate the minor axis along which the slit lies. The center of each indentation  54 ,  55  may be positioned toward the ends of ridge  28 . With this arrangement, when the user applies inward force by slightly closing the lips or mouth with the lips at the locations of indentations  54  and  55 , sidewalls  61  and  63  are pushed closer together. This causes valve  21  to open. The depth of indentations  54  and  55  can be approximately 0.2 mm, which is enough depth for the lips to register with the indentations. 
         [0035]    Wall-strengthening ribs  30   a  and  30   b  are located at each end of slit  40  and are both connected to the top of membrane  26  as well as to the inside of spout sidewalls  61  and  63 . Ribs  30   a  and  30   b  have inwardly-facing surfaces  32  and  33 , respectively, that when viewed from the top as in  FIGS. 1 and 3D  are slightly concave relative to major axis  51 . The faces of the ribs are shaped this way to both inhibit fatigue in the materials (stress fatigue), as well as to inhibit premature cracking of the valve when the proximal section of the valve is accidently hit or pinched slightly. Since the ribs project into the conduit from the walls, they also prevent collapse of the conduit due to suction force when the valve is being used. 
         [0036]    Ribs  30   a  and  30   b  are preferably identical and serve to add some rigidity to sidewalls  61  and  63  so that when the sidewalls are pressed together the bending force is concentrated at locations  64  and  65 . This causes the valve to open more widely than it would without these ribs. Ribs  30   a  and  30   b  thicken sidewalls  61  and  63  to allow the collapse force to focus on valve  21  and not the area proximal to valve  21 . Similarly, by strengthening the area proximal to valve  21 , spout  20  will not collapse when the user sucks on spout  20 . Ribs  30   a  and  30   b  each have fillets  35  and  37  that connect them to membrane  26  and the sidewall that the rib projects from. Additionally, the ribs prevent occlusion of flow if the user were to completely compress (bite) the two wall sections together. Fluid will still be able to pass through the open sections of the spout. Further, rib indentations  34  and  34   a  (which may be but need not be generally semi-circular) have their lower ends located co-linearly with slit  40  to help terminate slit  40  in a manner that inhibits its propagation as spout  20  is used. The semi circle shape of the indentations is a natural stress relief shape. The curve evenly distributes stress at that location, which inhibits the propagation of the slit (effectively the slit is like shear force tear). 
         [0037]    The semi-circular shape of ridge  28  helps to concentrate the forces applied to the underside or bottom surface  29  of membrane  26  by fluid in the cup when the cup is tilted such that fluid flows into the space just below membrane  26 . The shape of ridge  28 , along with the convex shape of bottom surface  29 , allow the force of the fluid against the bottom of the membrane to push the two sides of membrane  26  together along slit  40 , which helps to keep slit  40  closed so that the contents of the container are less likely to leak if the container is tipped over. 
         [0038]    Another example of a spout  80  is shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 . Spout  80  is essentially the same as spout  20 , except spout  80  is more pointed at its ends and is thus more almond or diamond shaped). Also, the wall strengthening ribs are shaped slightly differently. Like spout  20 , spout  80  is preferably symmetric about both the major axis ( 120 ) and minor axis ( 122 ) of conduit  81 . Conduit  81  has top end  102  and lower end  101 , which is coupled to the lid such as lid  140 ,  FIG. 8 . Spout  80  includes spout sidewalls  110  and  112  that are convexly curved and meet at locations  111  and  113 . Sidewalls  110  and  112  are slightly less convex than sidewalls  61  and  63 , making the approximately oval cross-sectional shape of conduit  81  more pointed than that of conduit  22 . Sidewalls  110  and  112  are thus a little less stiff than are sidewalls  61  and  63 . This construction and arrangement makes valve  82  open with less force than valve  21 , but the valve also opens a smaller amount and so may be more appropriate for less viscous substances than is valve  21 . This construction also may make valve  82  close faster than valve  21  (presuming that the materials and the rest of the construction remains the same between the two valves), since the valve opens less. The combination of having a longer membrane sidewall ( 84 ) that is at a more acute angle creates a valve that is more sensitive to open and close, but will not open as wide, i.e., the open area for a substance to pass through will be slightly less than in spout  20 . 
         [0039]    Membrane  84  has top surface  85  and bottom surface  86 , which meets the inside of conduit  81  at an angle  103  that is acute and about 45 degrees. Ridge  88  is generally semi-circular in cross-section and lies along the slit axis, which is parallel to minor axis  122 , as in the first example. The lowermost extent of membrane bottom or lower surface  86  may be closer to lower end  101  of conduit  81  than is the membrane  26  of the first example. In practice the valve location could also be the top of a long straw. Also the conduit distal end  101  could extend into the cup, possibly several inches into a cup, like a straw. 
         [0040]    Wall-strengthening ribs  92  and  94  are located at each end of slit  90  and are connected to membrane  84  as well as to the inside of spout sidewalls  110  and  112 . Ribs  92  and  94  have inwardly-facing surfaces  96  and  98  that when viewed from the top as in  FIG. 6A  are slightly convex relative to major axis  120 . They are shaped this way to both inhibit fatigue in the materials (stress fatigue) and to inhibit premature cracking of the valve when the proximal section of the valve is accidently hit or pinched slightly. The ribs also inhibit collapse due to suction force when the valve is being used. Additionally, as with spout  20 , if the user completely collapses the spout proximal to the valve, fluid will still be able to be released from the valve because the ribs prevent the conduit from completely collapsing. Further, rib indentations  95  and  97  (which may be but need not be generally semi-circular) are located co-linearly with slit  90  to help terminate slit  90  in a manner that inhibits its propagation as spout  80  is used. Indentations  114  and  116  are sized, shaped and located relative to the valve in the same or a similar manner as with spout  20 . 
         [0041]      FIG. 8  depicts a non-limiting example of a cup or container  150  that carries the spout disclosed herein, in this case spout  130  located on lid  140  that has atmospheric vent  142 . Also shown in this view is one of the lip locating features,  132 . 
         [0042]      FIG. 9  illustrates that spout  160  herein can be located off-center of lid  170 , which has atmospheric vent  172 . This drawing also illustrates a different style of lid  170  that is flatter than lid  10 . A flatter lid provides more depth between the end of the spout and the lid and thus more room for the nose and so may be easier and more comfortable to use. Also, a flatter lid is less likely to collapse inwardly toward the bottom of the cup when a differential pressure exists between the bottom and top of the lid (e.g., when suction is applied by the child) as compared to the outwardly convex lid  10 . 
         [0043]      FIGS. 10A-10C  illustrate another example of lid  200  with lid body  204  and spout  202 , which in this example is located off-center of top  206  of lid body  204 . Spout  202  has the same general construction as the previous examples, with concave membrane  220  that has a slit along its minor axis, to act as a bite valve. Lid body  204  has lower rim  208  that is coupled to a container (not shown), as with the other examples herein. Top  206  of lid body  204  in this example is concave, such that its central portion  212  is lower (i.e., closer to rim  208 ) than is its outer portion  213 . The concavity provides even more room for the child&#39;s nose, and resists collapsing under differential pressure even more than the flat top lid described above. 
         [0044]    A number of implementations have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that additional modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the inventive concepts described herein, and, accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.