Supports: racks – Special article – Receptacle support
Reexamination Certificate
1999-02-01
2001-04-24
Stodola, Daniel P. (Department: 3634)
Supports: racks
Special article
Receptacle support
C248S311300
Reexamination Certificate
active
06220458
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to bottle storage shelves and more particularly to a bottle rack system for storing direct dispense bottles, such as used to store and dispense ketchup, salad dressing, steak sauce, etc., in an inverted position with the bottle cap positioned below the bottle bottom so that the contents of the bottle accumulate adjacent to the dispensing opening of the direct dispense bottle so as to be readily available for dispensing; the bottle rack system including a bottle support member, a slide-in drip tray, two small diameter neck inserts, and two medium diameter neck inserts; the bottle support member being U-shaped and including a pair of parallel oriented end portions connected by a perpendicularly oriented middle portion; an inner bottom edge of each of the parallel oriented end portions having a drip tray insertion channel formed along the length thereof sized to receive and hold an edge of the slide-in drip tray; the middle portion having two circular bottle neck openings formed therethrough of a first diameter and four bottle anti-tip structures extending downwardly from the middle portion, between the two end portions, and spaced around the perimeter of each of the circular bottle neck openings; the slide-in drip tray including a rectangular shaped, plastic planar tray portion having two drip receiving depressions formed therein for receiving and holding drips from bottles positioned through the bottle neck openings of the bottle support member; each of the small and medium diameter neck inserts being formed from a resilient plastic and including a center portion having a diameter equal to the first predetermined diameter, a tapered insertion tip formed at one end of the center portion, a support member contact flange formed at a second end of the center portion, and a tapered bottle neck insertion passageway formed through the support member contact flange, the center portion, and the tapered insertion tip; the tapered bottle neck insertion passageway tapering in diameter from a larger diameter cap insertion opening formed through the support member contact flange to a smaller diameter cap exit opening formed through the tapered insertion tip.
BACKGROUND ART
It is often time consuming and frustrating to dispense the contents of a direct dispense bottle, such as shampoo, ketchup, steak sauce, salad dressing, bar-b-que sauce, etc. It would be a benefit, therefore, to have a bottle rack system for storing direct dispense bottles in an inverted position with the bottle cap positioned below the bottle bottom so that the contents of the bottle accumulate adjacent to the dispensing opening of the direct dispense bottle so as to be readily available for dispensing. Because direct dispense bottles come in various sized and have necks of various diameters, it would be a further benefit if the bottle rack system included a number of inserts, each adapted for use with a different sized bottle, that could used to adapt the shelf system to a particular bottle if desired.
GENERAL SUMMARY DISCUSSION OF INVENTION
It is thus an object of the invention to provide a bottle rack system that includes a bottle support member for holding a bottle in an inverted position.
It is a still further object of the invention to provide a bottle rack system that includes a number of inserts each adapted for use with a different sized bottles.
It is a still further object of the invention to provide a bottle rack system that includes a bottle support member, a slide-in drip tray, two small diameter neck inserts, and two medium diameter neck inserts; the bottle support member being U-shaped and including a pair of parallel oriented end portions connected by a perpendicularly oriented middle portion; an inner bottom edge of each of the parallel oriented end portions having a drip tray insertion channel formed along the length thereof sized to receive and hold an edge of the slide-in drip tray; the middle portion having two circular bottle neck openings formed therethrough of a first diameter and four bottle anti-tip structures extending downwardly from the middle portion, between the two end portions, and spaced around the perimeter of each of the circular bottle neck openings; the slide-in drip tray including a rectangular shaped, plastic planar tray portion having two drip receiving depressions formed therein for receiving and holding drips from bottles positioned through the bottle neck openings of the bottle support member; each of the small and medium diameter neck inserts being formed from a resilient plastic and including a center portion having a diameter equal to the first predetermined diameter, a tapered insertion tip formed at one end of the center portion, a support member contact flange formed at a second end of the center portion, and a tapered bottle neck insertion passageway formed through the support member contact flange, the center portion, and the tapered insertion tip; the tapered bottle neck insertion passageway tapering in diameter from a larger diameter cap insertion opening formed through the support member contact flange to a smaller diameter cap exit opening formed through the tapered insertion tip.
It is a still further object of the invention to provide a bottle rack system that accomplishes all or some of the above objects in combination.
Accordingly, a bottle rack system is provided. The bottle rack system includes a bottle support member, a slide-in drip tray, two small diameter neck inserts, and two medium diameter neck inserts; the bottle support member being U-shaped and including a pair of parallel oriented end portions connected by a perpendicularly oriented middle portion; an inner bottom edge of each of the parallel oriented end portions having a drip tray insertion channel formed along the length thereof sized to receive and hold an edge of the slide-in drip tray; the middle portion having two circular bottle neck openings formed therethrough of a first diameter and four bottle anti-tip structures extending downwardly from the middle portion, between the two end portions, and spaced around the perimeter of each of the circular bottle neck openings; the slide-in drip tray including a rectangular shaped, plastic planar tray portion having two drip receiving depressions formed therein for receiving and holding drips from bottles positioned through the bottle neck openings of the bottle support member; each of the small and medium diameter neck inserts being formed from a resilient plastic and including a center portion having a diameter equal to the first predetermined diameter, a tapered insertion tip formed at one end of the center portion, a support member contact flange formed at a second end of the center portion, and a tapered bottle neck insertion passageway formed through the support member contact flange, the center portion, and the tapered insertion tip; the tapered bottle neck insertion passageway tapering in diameter from a larger diameter cap insertion opening formed through the support member contact flange to a smaller diameter cap exit opening formed through the tapered insertion tip.
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Breaux Joseph N.
Stodola Daniel P.
Tran Khoa
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