US2710108A - Travel flask - Google Patents

Description

June 7, 1955 R. D. ZARRA 2,710,108

TRAVEL FLASK Filed Jan. 25, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l ii. INVENTOR Poi/44.00. D 20229 R. D. zARRA TRAVEL FLASK June 7, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 25, 1952 INVENTOR Rot/4400 D. 242,24

ATTORNEYS TRAVEL FLASK Rinaldo D. Zarra, Newburgh, N. Y.

Application January 25, 1952, Serial No. 268,269

2 Claims. (Cl. 215-13 This invention relates to beverage containers, and more particularly to an improved beverage flask or bottle which can be opened or closed by a simplemovement of one hand.

The main object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved beverage flask or bottle which is simple in construction, which is inexpensive to manufacture, and which can be opened and closed with a simple movement of one hand, whereby it is especially suitable for use by drivers of vehicles, pilots and crew members of military and other aircraft, and persons in similar occupations, to allow such persons to drink liquids while engaged in driving a vehicle, operating an aircraft, or in other similar occupations requiring the use of one hand.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved beverage flask or bottle especially arranged so that it may be opened and closed with a simple movement of one hand in order to permit the user to drink therefrom while the users other hand is occupied, the improved bottle being durable in construction, being compact in size, and allowing the user to drink therefrom without requiring the bottle to be elevated into the users line of vision.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description. and claims, and from the accompanying'drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of an improved thermos flask constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary elevational view, partly in cross section, of the upper portion of the flask of Figure 1, the cap of the flask being shown in opened position.

Figure 3 is a top view of the structure shown in Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a vertical cross sectional View taken on the line 44 of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a vertical cross sectional view similar to Figure 4 but showing the cap of the flask in closed position.

Referring to the drawings, the flask is designated generally at 11 and comprises an outer elongated housing 12 having the reduced neck portion 13 which is formed with a rim 14. Designated at 15 is an inner bottle or receptacle which may be of the Thermos type or which may be of ordinary single walled construction, as shown, the bottom of the bottle being rounded, as shown at 16, and being supported on an inverted U-shaped bracket member 17 secured in the bottom of the outer housing 12. The bottle 15 is formed with a reduced neck 18 which is sealingly and frictionally secured in the rim 14 by an annular sealing collar 19 interposed between the neck 20 of the bottle and the rim 14 of the outer housing 12, as shown, the sealing collar 19 being, for example, of deformable resilient material, such as rubber, cloth or the like.

Secured in the bottom of the bottle 15 is a conical spring 21 which has secured to its top end the rigid conduit 22, said conduit being biased upwardly by the spring nited States Patent ()7 21, as shown in Figure 4. The conduit 22 is of substantial length and is arranged to project upwardly through the neck 20 of the bottle, as shown in Figure 4, when released.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the upper portion of the outer housing 12 comprises a removable section 24 whose shoulder 29 defined at the lower end of the reduced rim 4 of the coiled spring 28'.

spring 28' urges the bar member 31 upwardly and'biases section 13 of the outer housing. The cap 28 is hinged at 30 to a flat bar member 31 which extends slidably through a slot 32 in the shoulder 29. The lower end of the flat bar 31 is secured in any suitable manner to the top end It is thus apparent that the the hinge connection 30 to an elevated position relative to the shoulder 29, as shown in Figure 4. The cap member 28 may be locked in closed position on the shoulder 29 by a detent hook 33 pivoted to the shoulder 29 opposite the slot 32 and arranged to lockingly engage with a catch lug 34 formed on the lower portion of the cap 28, as shown in Figures 4 and 5.

The hinge 30 includes a conventional hinge spring biasing the cap 28 to the open position thereof shown in Figure 4.

When the hook member 33 is engaged with the catch lug 34, the cap 28 is secured in sealing closing position on the shoulder 29, the bar member 31 being held in depressed position, whereby the spring 28 is compressed, as shown in Figure 5. When the hook 33 is rotated outwardly, as by the users thumb, the cap 28 is released, whereby the spring 28' expands, elevating the cap 28 and allowing said cap to be rotated to the elevated open position shown in Figure 4.

Secured centrally in the cap 28 is a depending stud 35 in which is secured the elongated tapered cork plug 36 which is arranged to enter the top end of the conduit 22 when the cap 28 is moved downwardly to scaling, closing position on the shoulder 29. As shown in Figure 5, when the cap 28 is closed, the plug 36 enters the top end of the conduit 22, and moves the conduit 22 downwardly as the cap is moved downwardly toward closing position. When the hook 33 is engaged on the catch lug 34, the cap 28 is locked and the conduit 22 is secured in its depressed position, shown in Figure 5.

In using the device, the bottle 15 is filled with the desired liquid, such as coffee, or similar liquid. When the user desires to drink the liquid he grasps the flasks outer housing 12 with the fingers of the hand and rotates the catch 33 outwardly with his thumb, releasing the cap 28 and allowing the cap to be elevated by the expansion of spring 28' as above explained. The cap 28 may then be rotated to the open position thereof shown in Figure 4, by a further movement of the users thumb, disengaging the plug 36 from the top end of the conduit 22, and allowing said conduit to rise freely to its elevated position, shown in Figure 4. This provides free access to the top end of the conduit 22, which the user may employ as a drinking tube, whereby it is not necessary to elevate the flask into his line of vision while drinking the contents of the bottle 15. It is therefore possible to obtain a drink from the flask using only one hand. When the user has obtained the desired drink, he may close the flask by rotating the cap 28 to a position overlying the top end of the bottle 15 and then depressing cap 28 until Patented June 7, 1955.

the catch member 34 comes into locking engagement with the hook member 33. The hook member 33 is provided with a biasing spring which urges said hook member to the upstanding position thereof shown in Figure 4 whereby 'it lockingly engages with the catch lug 34 when said lug is moved downwardly past the hook member. Therefore, the cap member 28 is locked in its closed sealing position when it is moved downwardly into engagement with the shoulder 29. This may all be accomplished with the thumb of the hand holding the main housing 12 of the flask. As the cap 28 is depressed into closed position, the plug 36 enters the conduit 22 and depresses said conduit to the position thereof shown in Figure 5.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, an annular sealing cork 40 is preferably provided in the neck 18 of the bottle 15, the conduit 22 being slidable through the central aperture of said cork 40. When the cap 28 is closed, the tapered plug 36 makes sealing engagement with the central aperture of the annular cork 40, as well as with the top end of the conduit 22.

An additional small opening 42 may be provided, if desired, in the annular main cork 40 to admit air into the bottle as the liquid is sipped from conduit 22. This would be sealed by another depending plug element 44 carried by cap 2%, similar to the plug 36. However, by providing sufficient air inlet clearance between the slidable conduit 22 and the central aperture of the annular cork 40, there would be no necessity for providing such an additional opening.

The exterior of the flask may be of any suitable shape to facilitate grasping the flask for the above described one-hand operation thereof.

While a specific embodiment of an improved beverage flask has been disclosed in the forgoing description, it will be understood that various modifications within the spirit of the invention may occur to those skilled in the art. Therefore, it is intended that no limitations be placed on the invention except as defined by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a flask of the character described, an outer elongated housing, an inner vessel received in said housing, the housing being open at one end and said vessel having its top rim sealingly secured in the open end of the housing, an apertured closure member positioned within the top rim of the vessel, a rigid tubular conduit in said vessel slidably extending through said aperture, spring means connecting the bottom end of said conduit to the bottom of said vessel and biasing the conduit outwardly through said top rim, a closure cap hinged to said housing and being linearly movable into closing relationship with the open end of said housing, and a tapered plug member rigidly secured to said cap and engageable in said conduit, said plug member being arranged to depress said conduit into said vessel when the cap is in closed position.

2. In a flask of the character described, an outer elongated housing, an inner vessel received in said housing, the housing being .open at one end and said vessel having its top rim sealingly secured in the open end of the housing, an apertured closure member positioned within the top rim of the vessel, a rigid tubular conduit is said vessel slidably extending through said aperture, spring means connecting the bottom end of said conduit to the bottom of said vessel and biasing the conduit outwardly through said top rim, a closure cap slidably and pivotally connected to said housing, said cap being movable into closing position on the open end of the housing, means biasing said cap upwardly away from the open end of the housing, latch means on the housing lockingly engageable with said cap to retain said cap in closed sealing position on said open end, and a tapered plug member rigidly secured to said cap and engageable in said conduit, said plug member being arranged to depress said conduit into said vessel when the cap is in closed position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 124,733 George Mar. 19, 1872 942,306 Clarke Dec. 7, 1909 1,503,187 Fitchett July 29, 1924 1,623,544 Kushner Apr. 5, 1927 2,052,307 Kennedy Aug. 25, 1936 2,448,893 Lamar Sept. 7, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS 261,862 Great Britain Dec. 2, 1926 33,697 Netherlands Sept. 15, 1934

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