Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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EASY GRIP BOTTLE
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[01] This invention relates to containers. In particular, the invention
relates to bottles that
are easy to open.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[02] One type of container is a bottle having exterior helical threads around
the opening.
Typically, a closure for the bottle is a cap that has threads that cooperate
with the
threads around the bottle opening. The cap thus is twisted onto the bottle to
seal it,
and is twisted in the opposite direction to remove the cap and open the
bottle.
[03] Although this type of bottle with removable closure is popular, such
bottles are not
always easily opened and closed. For example, a person with a weak grip may
have
difficulty twisting a typical screw-on bottle cap. Also, it often is difficult
to properly
grip a bottle that is relatively small, such as a container for
pharmaceuticals,
especially pharmaceutical tablets. Similarly, it often is difficult to hold
the container
if the bottle or cap is slippery, perhaps because of moisture or oil thereon.
Thus, the
inability to securely grip the bottle and the cap can make it difficult to
open the
container.
[04] Accessories for opening bottles with twist-off caps, such as that in
United States
Patent Number 5,921,154, have been proposed. Similarly, various bottle shapes
have
been proposed to make bottles easier to hold. For example, the hot-fillable
bottle of
United States Patent Number 7,191,910 is designed to be easy to hold.
Similarly, the
bottle of United States Patent Number 5,156,285 is narrowed toward the top to
make
it easier to grip. However, these designs are not completely satisfactory.
Therefore,
there remains a need for an easily-opened bottle.
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BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[05] A first embodiment is directed to a bottle that is easy to open.
[06] A second embodiment is directed to a round bottle having finger grooves.
[07] A third embodiment is directed to a round bottle having deep finger
grooves in lower
side walls of the bottle.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[08] Figure 1 illustrates a side view of an embodiment of a bottle.
[09] Figure 2 shows a top view of the embodiment of Figure 1.
[10] Figure 3 shows a bottom view of the embodiment of Figure 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[11] The invention is directed to a bottle that is easy to open. In one
embodiment, a round
bottle has finger grooves in the side wall of the bottle. In another
embodiment, a
round bottle has deep finger grooves in lower side walls.
[12] Bottles that are slippery because they are wet or oily often are
difficult to open.
Similarly, a bottle can be difficult to open for a person having a weak grip
because of
advanced aged, physical impairment, or injury.
[13] The inventor has discovered that a bottle having grooves for the fingers
is easy to
open. An embodiment of the bottle of the invention is round and has deep
finger
grooves in the lower side walls. The grooves allow the user's fingers to enter
the
grooves. The ability to put one's fingers in the grooves increases the
diametrical grip
between opposing fingers. This ability also affords the opportunity to use the
sides of
the fingers to exert additional force in the direction that resists rotation
of the cap for
removal.
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[14] The drawing figures illustrate one embodiment of the invention. Fig. 1 is
a side view
of this embodiment. Bottle 1 has an opening 2 at the distal end of neck 3 and
a closed
end 5 at the opposite end of bottle 1. Helical threads 4 are on the outside of
neck 3.
Finger grooves 6 are formed at the closed end 5 of the bottle.
[15] Finger grooves 6 are smoothly formed to accommodate a finger and have
dimensions
that afford the opportunity to place the finger sufficiently deeply into the
groove to
afford the opportunity to exert a firm grip and to provide additional twisting
force
with the sides of the fingers placed in the grooves. The grooves are oriented
essentially vertically on side wall 7 of the bottle and extend upwardly from
bottom 5.
Often, the grooves wrap around the bottom edge of the bottle and extend
somewhat
into or across bottom 5. Often, the grooves are between about 0.15 to about
0.5
inches wide at the bottle surface, and are between about 0.1 to about 0.4
inches deep.
Often, the grooves extend around bottom 5 of bottle 1, and typically extend up
the
lower sides of bottle, as shown in Fig. 1. The grooves are smoothly formed to
make
gripping more secure and to make exertion of force significantly easier.
[16] Fig. 2 illustrates a top view of the embodiment illustrated in Figure 1.
Bottle 1 has
opening 2 at the distal end of neck 3 and helical threads 4 around the outside
of the
neck. Finger grooves 5 are clearly visible on this figure.
[17] Fig. 3 illustrates a bottom view of the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 1.
Finger
grooves 6 are illustrated in this bottom view of the embodiment of bottle 1 of
Fig. 1.
As can be seen, finger grooves 6 extend somewhat across bottom 5 of bottle 1.
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[18] The grooves of the embodiments of this invention are designed, including
shape and
size, to accommodate the user's fingers and to enable the sides of the fingers
to
provide resistance to turning of the bottle. Thus, these deep finger grooves
are
fundamentally different from other bottles such as bottles for soft drinks or
water.
Such bottles have a similar geometry to that shown in the drawing figures.
However,
soft drink and water bottles have indentations and bulges for different
purposes.
Thus, the indentations and bulges on such bottles are not designed to make
opening
easier. Rather, these bulges and indentations are provided to increase the
strength of
the bottle or to better enable the bottle to stand vertically. These shapes
thus are
different from the shape of grooves to the fingers. The shapes of known soft
drink
and water bottles are not intended to accommodate the fingers to improve grip
and
make opening the bottle easier. The skilled practitioner need only examine
such
bottles and compare them to the drawing figures herein to see the difference
in shape
engendered by the difference in purpose.
[19] The number of finger grooves often is related to the size of the
container. For
example, the bottle illustrated in Fig. 1 has 6 finger grooves. Six finger
grooves can
easily be accommodated on a bottle having a diameter between about 2 and about
2.5
inches. With the guidance provided herein, the skilled practitioner can
arrange and
properly size the finger grooves.
[20] Bottles can be formed of any material from which bottles are known to be
made.
Finger grooves in accordance with embodiments of the invention can be
incorporated
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into bottles made of plastic, whether blown, moulded, cast, or otherwise
formed,
metal, or glass.
Example 1
[21] A bottle was blow moulded from plastic. The bottle had a diameter of
2.125 inches
and a total height of about 2.75 inches. The opening had a diameter of about
1.375
inches. The bottle has helical threads on the outside of the neck of the
bottle. The
radius of curvature between the vertical side wall and the bottom was 0.5
inch. Six
finger grooves having a width of about 0.7 inches at the widest part of the
top surface
(i.e., at the bottle wall) extended vertically up the side wall and about 0.7
inches from
the side wall across the bottom toward the center.
[22] While the invention has been described with respect to specific examples
including
presently preferred modes of carrying out the invention, those skilled in the
art will
appreciate that there are numerous variations and permutations of the above
described
systems and techniques that fall within the spirit and scope of the invention
as set
forth in the appended claims.
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