Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Imitated – simulated – ornamental – three-dimensional product...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-20
2001-02-13
Brouillette, Gabrielle (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Imitated, simulated, ornamental, three-dimensional product...
C426S115000, C426S132000, C426S134000, C446S071000, C446S475000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06187352
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to an apparatus for holding a piece of candy, such as a lollipop, and for dispensing a spray of liquid into the mouth of a person.
Various mechanisms have been designed to hold pieces of candy, such as lollipops, in a manner intended to enhance the experience of eating the candy. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,209,692 to Coleman, et al. discloses a battery-operated candy holding device having a motor, a gearing system, and a rotatable shaft which is adapted to be coupled to the stick of a lollipop. Upon depression of a button on the candy-holding device, the motor is activated, which causes the gearing system to spin the rotatable shaft, which in turn causes the lollipop to spin.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,535 to Coleman, et al. discloses a candy holding device which is designed to hold two lollipops and rotate the lollipops upon depression of a button. The candy holding device of the Coleman, et al. '535 patent has a pair of rotatable spindles, each of which is adapted to be coupled to a respective one of the two sticks of the lollipops, and a gearing system which simultaneously rotates both of the spindles upon depression of the button.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,324,527 to Coleman discloses a candy sucker and liquid candy dispensing assembly having a spherical sucker-type candy piece
28
through which edible liquid filling may be forced. As shown in
FIGS. 1 and 3
of the Coleman '527 patent, the candy piece
28
has a plurality of fluid channels
30
formed therein through which the edible filling passes. The edible filling is disposed in a reservoir
19
, and, in the embodiment disclosed in
FIG. 3
, a pumping mechanism is provided to pump the edible filling from the reservoir
19
, through a hollow tube
26
attached to the candy piece
28
, and through the channels
30
formed in the candy piece
28
.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is directed to a candy-holding and liquid-dispensing apparatus having a housing with a liquid reservoir formed therein, a volume of potable liquid, such as water, disposed within the liquid reservoir, a spray mechanism fluidly coupled to the liquid reservoir, a candy holder coupled to the housing, and a piece of candy supported by the candy holder, the piece of candy being supported by the candy holder so that the piece of candy may be inserted into the mouth of the person while the person is holding the housing.
The liquid reservoir may be disposed within a housing having a cylindrical shape and composed of a plastic material having a red color so that the housing resembles a fire extinguisher. The piece of candy may be provided with a hot flavor so that the potable liquid may be sprayed from the liquid reservoir into the mouth of the person to cool the person's mouth after the hot-flavored piece of candy has been tasted by the person.
The spray mechanism may be designed to spray the potable liquid from the liquid reservoir into the mouth of the person when the spray mechanism is spaced at least about six inches from the mouth of the person, and the spray mechanism may be positioned and designed to spray the liquid directly into the mouth of the person via a spray path that does not pass through the piece of candy. The spray mechanism may include a trigger pivotably attached to the housing of the device so that depression of the trigger causes the liquid to be sprayed.
The apparatus may also be provided with a stopper associated with a hole formed in the housing, the stopper being movable between a first position in which the stopper plugs the hole formed in the housing to prevent the liquid from leaking out of the liquid reservoir and the stopper being movable to a second position in which additional potable liquid may be added to the liquid reservoir through the hole in the housing.
The features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of the preferred embodiment, which is made with reference to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided below.
REFERENCES:
patent: Re. 35577 (1997-08-01), Coleman
patent: 688882 (1901-12-01), Spector
patent: 2119641 (1938-06-01), Marx
patent: 2121185 (1938-06-01), Claff
patent: 3193149 (1965-07-01), Beaubien
patent: 3821425 (1974-06-01), Russell
patent: 5071387 (1991-12-01), Pottick
patent: 5209692 (1993-05-01), Coleman et al.
patent: 5277642 (1994-01-01), Dorta
patent: 5324527 (1994-06-01), Coleman
patent: 5370278 (1994-12-01), Raynie
patent: 5370884 (1994-12-01), Coleman
patent: 5391107 (1995-02-01), Coleman
patent: 5515998 (1996-05-01), Wang
patent: 5536054 (1996-07-01), Liaw
patent: 5667419 (1997-09-01), Spector
patent: 5681200 (1997-10-01), Shecter
patent: 5690535 (1997-11-01), Coleman et al.
patent: 5820437 (1998-10-01), Coleman et al.
Brouillette Gabrielle
Dauerman Sherry A.
Marshall O'Toole Gerstein Murray & Borun
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