US2728250A - Crown closure removing and collecting device - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 27, 1-955 ROBERT 2,728,250

CROWN CLOSURE REMOVING AND COLLECTING DEVICE FJ' led Dec. 13, 1954 IIL 15 82 4- [16a f w 14 22 I3 //wewro/e flscrok. 4. Koala-er- United States Patent" (3 CRGWN CLQSURETR-EMQVING AND'EOLLEGTING DEWCE Hector 12;. Robert, Birtie, Manitoba, Canada Application December: 13,v 1954; SeriaLNo; 474,873.

Claims. (CL. 819-31).

The present invention relates to.a device for removing.

crowncl'osures andicollecting. the removed" closures;

Thetremoval of crown closures with conventional'.. bot: tl'e-openers is usually, exceptin the case where the opener is mount'edon a cooler or the like havinga closureereceiving receptacle disposed below the opener, a two-stepprocess. The first and essential step is of course the removal of the closure, while the second step. isthe disposal of the closure in a trash can, waste-paper basket, or the like. The first step can be taken with pleasure because it releases the contents of the bottle, but the second. step is" generally regarded as: a chore. which is usually reluctantly; per.- formed, and is often actually neglected with the result that a littered appearance is imparted to any room where bottled drinks are-being dispensed in quantity.

My invention is aimed at eliminating the chore associated with this second step by providing a device which is both a portable closure remover and a means for collecting and retaining the removed closures; the removed closures being caught and held in a receptacle which is capable of holding a large number of closures and therefore requires only occasional emptying.

The invention may be generally defined as a device for removing crown closures and collecting the removed closures comprising a receptacle having an open end for the reception of removed closures, a bar-like element rigidly mounted within said receptacle and extending longitudinally thereof, said element extending outwardly through said opening and terminating in a closure lifting hook, and an elongated permanent magnet mounted adjacent one side of said bar-like element for sliding movement longitudinally thereof, said magnet being shorter than said element and carrying at its outer end a leverage fulcrum shaped to cooperate with said closure lifting hook in the removal of the closure from a capped bottle. The magnet is slidable, under the influence of gravity, from a position in which said leverage fulcrum cooperates with said closure lifting hook to a position in which said leverage fulcrum is wholly retracted within said receptacle. A stop member is swingably mounted within said receptacle to prevent the escape from the receptacle of removed closures carried thereinto by said magnet.

In the appended drawings which illustrate one embodiment of the invention:

Figure 1 is a perspective view,

Figure 2 is a cross-section taken along the line 22 in Figure 1, and

Figure 3 is a cross-section taken along the line 3--3 in Figure 1.

Considering the drawings in more detail, reference numeral indicates a receptacle having an open end 11 and a base 12, the base being removably mounted on the receptacle by means of screw-threading 13. A bar-like element 14 is rigidly mounted within receptacle 10 and extends longitudinally thereof. Element 14 extends outwardly through opening 11 and terminates in a closure lifting hook 15 of a type known per se. An elongated permanent 2,728,250 Patented. Dec.. 2.7, 1955 'ice magnet. 16." is mounted" adjacent one side. of the. bar-like element 14,,and is slidable. longitudinally thereofl The magnetii's' off anelongated. U.-shapedjformation,, and. the elongated arms otithea U have. heenlahelled. 16a and. 16b in. the di awi'ngs. The. flee; end'sof the. arms. 16a. and 16Zi'are provided with convexly curvedjraised portions.17a. and 17 b respectively which. when. they magnet 16 has. been caused to slide to its outermostiposition. (;as.shownin:.thedrawings. in fulllines),',. cooperate. with. the. lifting. hook. 15. in, the removal of. a closure ftom. a capped bottle, the curved raised" portions I721 and? 17.12; actingas. a. leverage. fulcrum.

The permanent'magnetis slidahly mounted by means of a fixedrod"1'8wliichrunsparalfel 'to,.and-'.'is slightly spaced; apart from; the bar-like element 14; Rod. 18.; passes. through a bore 19 in the.base.of.the U, ofthe magnet 16, and also passes through analignedboreiha welimember 21! which extends. transversely, ofthe magnet hetweenthe arms" 16a and 165 thereof; The. limits. ofj sliding, travel.

of magnet Ioare. shown. in Figure. 2;. The. mag-net. may

by tilting the whole device,,he causedLto. slide,,unden the;

influence of. gravity,.t0 the position shown infull5linesin oppositely tilting the whole device. the. magnet, 16Jmay. be. caused to slide to the. position indicatedlin. broken. lines. in Figure. 2,,in which the base ofjthe' mag-net bears. against.v

a stopZl provid'edat' the inner end -of element 14, and the surfaces 17a and 17b which form the leverage fulcrum are wholly retracted within the receptacle 10.

The bar-like element 14 should either be formed from a non-magnetic material or clad with a non-magnetic material at least on the side thereof adjacent the magnet 16. In the illustrated embodiment it has been assumed that the element 16 is formed of a ferrous (magnetic) material. Therefore a strip 22 of non-magnetic material has been applied to the side of element 14 which lies adjacent magnet 16, so' that the magnetic nature of the element 14 will not interfere with the desired sliding of the magnet.

From the description of the device thus far provided it is believed that those familiar with the art will appreciate that a crown closure, such as the one illustrated at 23 in Figure 3, may be removed from a bottle by first tilting the device so that the magnet 16 slides to the outermost position and then, after catching the crimped lower edge of the closure with the lifting hook l5, pressing downwardly on the receptacle. This prying action, wherein surfaces 17a and 17b act as a leverage fulcrum, removes the closure with ease. The removed closure is held upon the surfaces 17a and 17b by magnetic attraction, and the whole, device is then tilted to a generally upright position, causing the magnet 16 to slide downwardly into the receptacle 10, the magnet carrying the removed closure with it.

It will be appreciated that some means must be provided to prevent the removed closure (or closures) held in the receptacle from escaping through the opening Has the device is tilted preparatory to the removal of a further closure. I found that this problem could be effectively solved by pivotally mounting a swingably retractable weighted stop member 24 just in advance of the outer end of rod 18. The means for pivotally mounting stop member 24 is shown at 25. It is believed that the functioning of the stop arm will be clear. When the device is tilted downwardly preparatory to removing a closure the stop member will swing downwardly to meet the opposite wall of the receptacle, thus preventing removed closures held within the receptacle from escaping through mouth 11. When the device is tilted upwardly to slide the magnet and the removed closure carried thereby into the receptacle, stop member 24 will swing back into general parallelism v .3 r v with the rod 18 and thusnot interfere with the delivery of the closure into the receptacle. Stop member 24 is preferably U-shaped in cross-section so that it can lie flushly against rod. 18 when in its inoperative position; and member 2 4' must, of course, be narrower than the distance between the arms 16a and 16b ofmagnet 16 since it must be capable of swinging through said arms as it is moved between its operative and inoperative positions.

When it becomes necessary to empty 2. load of closures accumulated in the receptacle 10, this may be done either by removing the screw-threaded base 12 or by inverting the device while holding stop member 24 in its inoperative position by inserting a finger through opening 11.

The receptacle could, of course, be quite differently shaped from the strictly utilitarian shape illustrated in the drawings. in which case it might be used as an advertising medium,

or it might be made more attractive by forming the recep" tacle as a figurine.

What I claim as my invention is:

l. A device for removing crown closures and collecting the removed closures comprising a receptacle having an open end for the reception of removed closures, a bar-like element rigidly mounted within said receptacle and extending longitudinally thereof, said element extending outwardly through said opening and terminating in a closure It might for example be shaped like a bottle,

lifting book, an elongated permanent magnet mounted adjacent one side of said bar-like element for sliding movement longitudinally thereof, said magnet being shorter thansaid element and carrying at its outer end a leverage fulcrum shaped to cooperate with said closure lifting hook in the removal of the closure from a capped bottle, said magnet being slidable, under the influence of gravity, from a position in which said leverage fulcrum cooperates with said closure lifting hook to a position in which said leverage fulcrum is wholly retracted within said receptacle, and a stop member swingably mounted within said receptacle to prevent the escape from the receptacle of removed closures carried thereinto by said magnet.

2. A device as defined in claim 1, in which said magnet is slidably mounted on a fixed rod which runs parallel to, and is slightly spaced apart from, said bar-like element.

3. A device as defined in claim 2, in which said bar-like element is formed of non-magnetic material.

4. A device as defined in claim 2, in which said bar-like element is clad with a non-magnetic material at least on the side thereof adjacent said magnet.

5. A device as defined in claim 2, in which said magnet is of elongated U-shaped formation, and in which said stop member is pivotally mounted on said bar-like element just beyond the outer end of said rod, said stop member being narrower than the distance between the arms of the U- shaped magnet, and the position of pivotal mounting of said 'stop member on said element being arranged to permit said stop member to swing between the arms of said magnet.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,653,939 Adams ct al Dec. 27, 1927 2,564,536 Lepkowski Aug. 14, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 699,533 Great Britain Nov. 11, 1953

Images