GB2519659A

GB2519659A - Drinks carrier

Info

Publication number: GB2519659A
Application number: GB1416836.3A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Christopher Eves; Luke Booth
Original assignee: P4CK Ltd
Current assignee: P4CK Ltd
Priority date: 2013-10-03
Filing date: 2014-09-24
Publication date: 2015-04-29
Anticipated expiration: 2034-09-24
Also published as: EP3051984A1; WO2015049489A1; GB201317547D0; GB2519659B; GB201416836D0

Abstract

A drinks carrier 1 has a base 2 and a handle 4 & 5 with gripping holes 6 & 7 formed of a flexible elastic material with plurality of support holes 3 for retaining tapered drinks containers such that a drinks container is supported in the carrier solely by the periphery of a respective support hole. A plurality of support holes are provided with at least one line of weakness 16 around at least part of the circumference of the hole so as to allow the size of the hole to increase by deformation of a flap (17) between the hole and the line of weakness. The drinks carrier comprises as a safety measure at least one line of weakness 20 and 21 arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into separate parts to reduce the trip hazard posed by the drinks carrier being carelessly discarded.

Description

Drinks Carrier The present invention relates to a drinks carrier.

Carrying a number of drinks, particularly over long distances often results in spillage and therefore waste. Traditionally a tray has been used to perform this task, however, various custom-built devices have been proposed, for example, those disclosed in US5127519 and 0B2422289.

However, the drinks carriers thus far proposed have certain drawbacks. For example, drinks carriers made of cardboard may be weakened by wetting owing to spillage of drinks. Thus such carriers have a shod lifetime.

Further, previously suggested carriers often suffer from drinks tipping over, particularly if the carrier is not fully loaded so as to balance weights out. Thus, such carriers must be made of relatively rigid materials such as cardboard or HDPE. The material thickness required results in material waste, particularly if the articles are simply disposed of instead of being reused.

The carrier of GB2422289 is one example of such a wasteful carrier. As can be seen from figures a relatively thick material must be used in order that it is able to transport drinks without them tipping and spilling. If a carrier made to the design of that of GB2422289 were to be formed of a thin, flexible material then each pair of drinks (respective pairs lying on lines between the hinges of respective handles) would tip out from the drink carrier and spill.

The carrier of GB2499600 addresses some of these issues, providing a carrier that can be formed from a thinner flexible material, such as LDPE.

However, such flexible drinks carriers are restricted in what they are able to carry, with each carrier limited to carrying cups of a particular size.

Furthermore, prior art drinks carriers such as that disclosed in 0B2499600 represent a trip hazard, particularly in crowd situations.

The present invention seeks to address these issues.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a drinks carrier comprising: a base formed of a flexible elastic material having at least one support hole for retaining tapered drinks containers such that a drinks container is supported in the carrier solely by the periphery of a respective support hole; at least one handle extending from the base; wherein at least one hole is provided with at least one line of weakness around at least part of the circumference of the hole so as to allow the size of the hole to increase by deformation of a flap between the hole and the line of weakness.

By providing at least one line of weakness around at least one support hole so as allow the size of the hole to vary and accommodate differently sized drinks containers the drinks carrier becomes much more versatile. In particular as the base is formed of a flexible elastic material the flap may deform an appropriate amount for the drinks container placed within a hole, thereby allowing for a range of container sizes to be accommodated by a single carrier.

Preferably the base comprises a plurality of support holes provided with lines of weakness around at least part of the circumference of respective holes so as to allow the size of the holes to increase by deformation of flaps between the holes and the lines of weakness.

In some embodiments at least one line of weakness is provided around at least half of the circumference of a support hole.

In some embodiments at least one line of weakness is provided around approximately half of the circumference of a support hole.

Provision of at least one line of weakness in a substantially semicircular arrangement allows for a support hole to expand to one side.

In some embodiments a line of weakness defines a crescent-shaped flap adjacent a support hole.

In some embodiments lines of weakness associated with respective holes are positioned such that adjacent holes increase in size away from each other.

In some embodiments the drinks carrier comprises a plurality of handles extending from the base In some embodiments the handles extend from the base at points located approximately equidistantly between each pair of adjacent support holes such that each hole is intersected by a line running between respective points.

By positioning the handles such that they extend from points located approximately equidistantly between each pair of adjacent support holes such that each hole is intersected by a line running between respective points, any drinks container held within a support hole is less prone to tipping and therefore spillage. Further, each support hole is equally supportive of a drinks container when the carrier is in use, thus any number of drinks may be transported using any combination of support holes.

In some embodiments the carrier comprises a central bridging portion.

By providing a central bridging portion any drinks container held in the carrier is even less prone to tipping as the bridging portion provides a tension in the base around at least part of the peripheries of the respective support holes, thus making the base less prone to torsional deformation.

In one embodiment the drinks carrier comprises four support holes and a pair of handles. Preferably the handles extend from points that substantially define a square, with each hole being intersected by a respective side of the square.

Preferably the drinks carrier is formed from a plastics material. In one embodiment the drinks carrier is formed from [DPE.

By forming the carrier from a plastics material the carrier may be used repeatedly.

Preferably the thickness of the material that the carrier is formed from is greater than 125pm. Preferably the thickness of the material that the carrier is formed from is 250pm. Preferably the thickness of the material that the carrier is formed from is less than 300pm.

By forming the carrier of a material with a thickness in the range 125 to 300pm, and preferably around 250pm material wastage is minimized, whilst maintaining optimum performance.

In some embodiments and according to a second aspect of the present invention more generally the drinks carrier comprises as a safety measure at least one line of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into separate parts.

The provision of a line of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into separate parts reduces any trip hazard that might be posed by a drinks carrier made in accordance with the present invention.

In some embodiments the drinks carrier comprises as a safety measure at least one line of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into two pads. In some embodiments those pads are substantially halves.

In some embodiments the drinks carrier comprises as a safety measure two lines of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier substantially into four parts. In some embodiments those parts are substantially quarters.

In some embodiments the drinks carrier comprises as a safety measure a plurality of lines of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into a plurality of parts.

A specific embodiment will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which exemplify the present invention and, together with the description, serve to explain and illustrate principles of the invention.

The examples given are intended to be illustrative and are not inherently restricted to particular apparatus.

Figure 1 is a schematic view of a drink carrier made in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 is a schematic view of the drinks carrier of Figure 1 showing how each drink support hole is intersected by a line drawn between the respective points where the handles of the carrier meet the base of the carrier; Figure 3 is a diagram demonstrating the carrier of Figure 1 in use; Figure 4 is a diagram showing the carrier of Figure 1 being used to carry one, two, three and four drinks; Figure 5 a schematic view of a support hole of a drink carrier made in accordance with the present invention, showing the support hole retaining a small cup; Figure 6 a schematic view of a support hole of a drink carrier made in accordance with the present invention, showing the support hole retaining a large cup; Figure 7 is a schematic view of a support hole of a drink carrier made in accordance with the present invention, showing how perforations around part of the circumference of the support hole allow the hole to expand so as to accommodate a large cup; and Figure 8 illustrates a carrier made in accordance with the present invention having been torn into four separate parts along lines of weakness provided for safety reasons.

Referring to Figure 1, in a first embodiment the present invention a drinks carrier 1 that has been die cut from a single sheet of LDFE of a thickness of around 25ORm. Carrier 1 comprises a base 2 having four substantially circular drink support holes 3 and two handles 4, 5.

Handles 4, 5 each comprise a respective gripping hole 6, 7 by which a user may take hold of handles 4, 5.

Drink support holes 3 are arranged around the periphery of base 2 in a substantially square formation. Drink support holes 3 are of an appropriate size to support a tapered drink container, typically a coffee cup, but evidently other sizes may be appropriate for different containers such pint glasses.

At the centre of base 2 is bridging portion 8 in the form of an unbroken panel that extends between holes 3. Although in the present embodiment bridging portion B is in the form of an unbroken panel, in other embodiments the bridging portion may have pads cut from it provided its purpose is not compromised.

Drinks carrier 1 comprises cuts 16 running around approximately half of the circumference of each of support holes 3. It can be seen that cuts 16 are slightly spaced from support hole 3 such that between a support hole 3 and its corresponding cuts 16 is defined a crescent-shaped flap 17.

Drinks carrier 1 also comprises perforations 20, 21 running between opposing sides. Perforations 20 may split drinks carrier 1 into two halves. Similarly perforations 21. which are perpendicular to perforations 20 may split drinks carrier 1 into two halves.

Thus, as illustrated in Figure 8, drinks carrier 1 may split into quarters by tearing drinks carrier 1 along perforations 20, 21.

Perforations 20. 21 act as a safety measure so as to reduce the trip hazard posed by drinks carrier 1 if it is carelessly discarded.

As illustrated in Figure 2, carrier 1 includes a flick 14 on each of the cuts 15 that define the handle parts so as to minimize the chances of the material tearing under the weight of the contents being transported, which might happen particularly if carrier 1 is used repeatedly.

As can be seen from Figure 2, handles 4, 5 meet base 2 at points 9, 10, 11, 12 located equidistantly between adjacent support holes 3 around the periphery of base 2 such that each support hole 3 is intersected by a line running between respective adjacent points 9, 10, 11, 12. Although the lines intersecting holes 3 do not in the present embodiment precisely bisect holes 3, the lines are adjacent to lines of bisection, and in some embodiments might form lines of bisection.

Figures 3 and 4 show carrier 1 in use. As can be seen from Figure 3, to load carrier 1 a user may, with carrier 1 lying flat on an appropriate surface, locate drinks containers 13 such that they are positioned at holes 3, then by grasping handles 4, 5 simultaneously pick up and subsequently transport all four drinks containers 13.

As can be seen in Figure 4, the combination of central bridging portion B with points 9, 10, 11, 12 being located between located equidistantly between adjacent support holes 3, regardless of whether the drinks carrier is loaded with one drink, two drinks, three drinks or four drinks, results in all of the drinks transported in the container remaining substantially upright. This is the case no matter what combination of holes 3 are used to carry drinks owing to each of holes 3 being equally supportive of a container owing to the equidistant positioning between holes 3 of points 9, 10, 11, 12.

Each of holes 3 lies on a line drawn between points 9, 10, 11, 12 that is roughly adjacent to a line of bisection of the respective holes. Thus the centre of gravity of a drink container placed within any hole lies roughly on one of these lines and therefore exerts little torsional force to the material surrounding the periphery of the hole. Thus it can be seen that by positioning points 9, 10, 11, 12 adjacent to a line of bisection of holes 3, carrier 1 is adapted to maintain drinks container 13 in a substantially upright position when carrier 1 is in use.

It will be apparent that the less flexible the material used to form drinks carrier 1, the further from a line of bisection of holes 3 it may be possible to position points 9, 10, 11, 12. This is because the greater the anti-torsional influence of bridging portion 8 (an influence that increases with a decrease in the flexibility of the material) the more torsional force is required from a drinks container in order to tip it over. Thus, the centre of gravity of a drinks container (which when the carrier is in use is on a line of bisection of a hole 3) may lie further away from lines that run between respective points 9, 10, 11, 12 through holes 3.

As can be clearly seen from the Figures ito 4, points 9, 10, 11, 12 and four holes 3 are positioned in an alternating around periphery of base 2. This provides an advantage to a carrier made in accordance with the present invention in comparison to previous carriers in that as the handles are positioned in between each of the holes, a single user may access drinks held in the carrier using one hand, and without hindrance by the handles. This is best illustrated by Figure 4.

Although in the present embodiment a carrier for four drinks has been described it should be apparent that containers to carry a different number of drinks (for example, three, five, six, or more) might be made in accordance with the present invention.

Turning to Figures 5 to 7 and so as to illustrate how drinks carrier 1 is capable of transporting drinks containers of different sizes, Figure 5 shows a single support hole 3 of drinks carrier 1 accommodating a small cup 18.

Figure 6 shows a single support hole 3 of drinks carrier 1 accommodating a large cup 19.

As can be seen from Figures 5 to 7, when a support hole 3 accommodates a small cup 18 crescent-shaped flap 17 remains extended in the general plane of base 2 of drink carrier 1. Crescent-shaped flap 17 remains in position owing to the relatively elastic nature of LDPE.

When support hole 3 accommodates a large cup 19 crescent-shaped flap 17 may deform and fold down along cuts 16 thereby allowing hole 3 to expand and retain large cup 19.

It will be noted from Figure 1 that the lines of lines of weakness associated with adjacent holes 3 are positioned such that the holes increase in size at ninety degrees away from each other. This arrangement is provided such that when the carrier is in use and carrying larger cups in adjacent holes the cups do not interfere with each other, thereby allowing for easy transportation.

Although in the present embodiment the holes increase in size at ninety degrees away from each other It will be apparent that in other embodiments lines of weakness might be arranged such that holes increase in size in other divergent directions so as to achieve the same or similar effect, i.e. so as to increase the space between adjacent cups retained in a carrier when its holes are expanded.

It will be apparent that in other embodiments other configurations of cuts might be employed. For example cuts could be provided around the full circumference of a support hole. Furthermore, in other embodiments a line of weakness may be provided by perforations or a score instead of by a plurality of cuts.

Although in the present embodiment the carrier is formed from [DRE, it may of course be possible to form the carrier from other materials such as latex.

In the present embodiment the drinks carrier is formed in one piece such that it may be readily formed by processes such as die cutting.

Although in the present embodiment the drinks carrier is formed of [DRE in other embodiments other flexible elastic materials may be used such as polypropylene.

Many variations are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention as set out in the appended claims.

Claims

Claims: 1. A drinks carrier comprising: a base formed of a flexible elastic material having at least one support hole for retaining tapered drinks containers such that a drinks container is supported in the carrier solely by the periphery of a respective support hole; at least one handle extending from the base; wherein at least one hole is provided with at least one line of weakness around at least part of the circumference of the hole so as to allow the size of the hole to increase by deformation of a flap between the hole and the line of weakness.
2. The drinks carrier of claim 1 wherein the base comprises a plurality of support holes provided with lines of weakness around at least part of the circumference of respective holes so as to allow the size of the holes to increase by deformation of flaps between the holes and the lines of weakness.
3. The drinks carrier of claim 1 or 2 wherein at least one line of weakness is provided around at least half of the circumference of a support hole.
4. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein at least one line of weakness is provided around approximately half of the circumference of a support hole.
5. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein a line of weakness defines a crescent-shaped flap adjacent a support hole.
6. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein lines of weakness associated with respective holes are positioned such that adjacent holes increase in size away from each other.
7. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein the drinks carrier comprises a plurality of handles extending from the base.
8. The drinks carrier of claim 7 wherein the handles extends from the base at points located approximately equidistantly between each pair of adjacent support holes such that each hole is intersected by a line running between respective points.
9. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein the carrier comprises a central bridging portion.
10. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein the drinks carrier comprises four support holes and a pair of handles and wherein the handles extend from points that substantially define a square, with each hole being intersected by a respective side of the square.
11. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein the drinks carrier is formed from a plastics material.
12. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein the drinks carrier is formed from LDPE.
13. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein the thickness of the material that the carrier is formed from is greater than 125i1m.
14. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein the thickness of the material that the carrier is formed from is 250km.
15. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim wherein the thickness of the material that the carrier is formed from is less than 300km.
16. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim comprising as a safety measure at least one line of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into separate pads.
17. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim comprising as a safety measure at least one line of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into two pads.
18. The drinks carrier of claim 17 wherein those parts are substantially halves.
19. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim comprising as a safety measure two lines of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier substantially into four pads.
20. The drinks carrier of claim 19 wherein those parts are substantially quarters.
21. The drinks carrier of any preceding claim comprising as a safety measure a plurality of lines of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into a plurality of parts.
22. A drinks carrier comprising: a base having at least one support hole for retaining a tapered drinks container such that a drinks container is supported in the carrier solely by the periphery of a respective support hole; at least one handle extending from the base; as a safety measure at least one line of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into separate parts.
23. The drinks carrier of claim 22 comprising as a safety measure at least one line of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into two parts.
24. The drinks carrier of claim 23 wherein those parts are substantially halves.
25. The drinks carrier of claim 22 comprising as a safety measure two lines of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier substantially into four pads.
26. The drinks carrier of claim 25 wherein those parts are substantially quarters.
27. The drinks carrier of claim 22 comprising as a safety measure a plurality of lines of weakness arranged so as to split the drinks carrier into a plurality of parts.
28. The drinks carrier of any of claims 22 to 27 wherein the drinks carrier is formed from a plastics material.
29. The drinks carrier of any of claims 22 to 28 wherein the drinks carrier comprises a plurality of support holes.
30.A drinks carrier substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.