Patent ID: 7260944

Claim:
A self-cooling beverage container comprising: a container body having a top and a bottom, a side wall connecting said top and bottom, said top including an openable portion; a pressure vessel substantially housed within said container body; said pressure vessel including a chamber for containing a refrigerant and a means for charging said chamber with refrigerant; an actuation valve system having an inlet in fluid communication with said chamber and an outlet in fluid communication with an outlet conduit, said outlet conduit terminating external to said container body; means for providing a temporary seal between said chamber and said actuation valve inlet to allow for charging of said pressure vessel with said container at substantially atmospheric pressure; said actuation valve system configurable from a closed configuration wherein said refrigerant is maintained within said pressure vessel chamber to an open configuration wherein said refrigerant is allowed to expand and flow through said outlet conduit; said actuation valve system maintained in said closed configuration by pressure greater than atmospheric pressure within said container body external to said pressure vessel; and said actuation valve system being automatically configured to said open configuration upon opening of said container body open portion and reduction of pressure within said container body to substantially atmospheric pressure; whereby said actuation valve open configuration allows for refrigerant expansion and flow through said outlet conduit thereby cooling contents of said container.