Illumination – Light source or light source support and luminescent material
Reexamination Certificate
1997-10-09
2001-04-10
Sember, Thomas M. (Department: 2875)
Illumination
Light source or light source support and luminescent material
C362S101000, C362S154000, C362S806000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06213616
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to illuminated containers, and in particular to containers illuminated by electro-luminescent lighting elements.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Electro-luminescent elements have been used to decorate and enhance the appearance of objects in a variety of contexts, ranging from shoes, clothing, and backpacks to flying objects, bicycles, signs, audio equipment, night lights, and wristwatches. In the container art, on the other hand, decoration has been limited to static printed or painted designs, and incandescent or LED displays which provide background illumination for the printed or painted designs.
Decorated containers have of course been used since the beginning of mankind, long before the invention of writing, to identify the contents of the container, the manufacturer of the contents, the manufacturer of the container itself, and the owner of the container, as well as to make political, social, and artistic statements. While the styles of decoration has evolved over time, however, the manner of decorating containers has changed little during the last 10,000 years. From the earliest geometric designs, to classical Greek amphorae and Ming Dynasty vases, and the modern coffee mug or Coke bottle, the decoration has always involved either the shape of the container, painting, or printing on the side of the container. Little has done, from the standpoint of technology, to improve upon the ancient decorating techniques.
This situation is no longer adequate. Unlike past times, in which a decorated container stood out, the modern world is saturated with decoration, and a decorated container no longer captures the attention it once did, no matter how artistic or clever the decoration. Supermarkets display thousands of containers, all designed to grab the attention of shoppers, while ordinary household items such as mugs and glasses can be easily manufactured to resemble the greatest artworks of the past. During seasonal events, such as Christmas, decorations are everywhere, all carrying generally the same message and competing for attention.
The present invention offers a way for containers to stand out, by adding electro-luminescent elements to the containers. Electro-luminescent elements differ from other types of lighting elements in that they not only provide light, but because of their paper thin dimensions and wide range of relatively bright colors, can be used to create artistic designs or messages, with low power consumption, rather than simply providing background for other designs.
While it has previously been proposed to add incandescent lighting elements or light emitting diodes (LEDs) to certain containers, such as beer or coffee mugs, such lighting elements are either too fragile or too bulky to be used on a functional or commercially viable container, and therefore have had limited usage. In the case of mugs, for example, the conventional incandescent lights or LEDs must be placed at the base of the mug, altering the basic container design and causing the center of gravity of the container to be higher, thereby affecting the stability of the mug.
The present invention solves these problems in a way which, while based on known technology, represents a quantum leap in the specific area to which the technology is applied, namely containers, adding elements of color and brightness to greatly increase the possibilities for creative design available to the container artisan for the first time since the invention of painting.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is accordingly an objective the invention to provide a container having improved visibility, in which the decorations on the container can be readily distinguished, either to enhance the appearance of the container, advertise the contents of the container or another product or service, or provide other messages, without changing the basic design of the container.
It is a further objective of the invention to provide a container in which the decoration includes illuminated elements which, unlike incandescent lights or LEDs, offer increased area for advertisements, artistic designs, or messages, hundreds of color choices, increased brightness, a wide viewing angle, decreased power consumption, and simple installation, and which can be used on any container surface, including curved surfaces, without altering the shape of the container.
It is a still further objective of the invention to provide a container in which the decoration includes illuminated elements that can be placed on either the inside or outside surfaces of the container, within layers of the container structure, or anywhere else on the container.
These objectives are achieved, in accordance with the principles of a preferred embodiment of the invention, by providing a container in which the decoration includes electro-luminescent elements arranged either on an outside surface of the container, between two at least partially transparent layers of the container, or on the inside of an at least partially transparent portion of the container.
In one exemplary implementation of the preferred embodiment of the invention, the container is a beer mug and the electro-luminescent elements are panels or three-dimensional electro-luminescent elements placed on a surface of the mug, or between walls of the mug in the case of a double walled construction such as is conventionally used for thermal or insulated mugs. In other exemplary implementations, the containers include baby bottles, an arcade type toy dispensing apparatus, a gumball or candy dispenser, and a soft drink vending machine.
Power to the electro-luminescent elements is preferably supplied by a power source such as a battery, an inverter, an optional function interface for turning the lighting elements on and off according to a predetermined pattern or timing to achieve such effects as flashing, chasing, random on and off, fade in-out, pair flashing, and the like, and one or more switches responsive to user input or to conditions such as the amount of ambient light.
The containers to which the principles of the invention may be applied include any container designed to hold a material, such liquids, solids, gels, powders, gases, combinations of materials, items, or parts, and even other containers (e.g., vending machines), and which can be made from plastic, glass, paper, tin, cardboard, ceramic, porcelain, or other materials. In addition, the containers to which the principles of the invention may be applied can be selected from the group consisting of bottles, tanks, barrels, boxes, cases, pots, dishes, cartons, glasses, mugs, cups, and buckets, as well as any other types of containers to which decoration can be applied.
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Miskin Howard C.
Sember Thomas M.
Tsui-Yip Gloria
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