Thermal measuring and testing – Temperature measurement – Nonelectrical – nonmagnetic – or nonmechanical temperature...
Reexamination Certificate
2000-08-25
2003-06-17
Gutierrez, Diego (Department: 2859)
Thermal measuring and testing
Temperature measurement
Nonelectrical, nonmagnetic, or nonmechanical temperature...
C374S141000, C374S150000, C374S157000, C116S216000, C215S011200
Reexamination Certificate
active
06579006
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to containers. More particularly, the present patent discloses and protects a method and device for use relative to a product container, such as a beverage or comestible container, that provides a thermochromic indication of a temperature of a volume of product that is retained within an open inner volume of the product container and increases the effective display surface of the product container by exploiting a single surface region to display a plurality of designs.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
One knowledgeable in the art of containers, particularly beverage and comestible containers, will be well aware that a plurality of methods and devices have been disclosed for providing an indication of a temperature condition of a volume of material, typically liquid, that is retained within an open inner volume of the container. Of course, these methods and devices are intended to apprise a prospective consumer of the approximate or exact temperature condition of the retained liquid so that the user can rely and act thereon. For example, certain of these inventions can indicate to a user the overall temperature condition of a retained liquid, such as hot or cold. With this, for example, a user simply desiring a cold liquid can ensure that the liquid is cold and a user simply desiring a hot liquid can ensure that the liquid is hot. Other types of temperature indicating devices have been disclosed for providing a more exacting indication of temperature, such as an exact temperature of the retained liquid or in which temperature range of a plurality of small (i.e., 2-5 degree) temperature ranges the retained liquid resides.
Many of these prior art devices employ thermochromic liquid crystal mesophase material, which as its name suggests exhibits a change in color in response to a change in temperature. Stated more particularly, thermochromic liquid crystal mesophase materials have predetermined active temperature ranges in which they change color to indicate that they are in that predetermined active temperature range. Since the active temperature range of thermochromic liquid crystal material can be calibrated to suit particular requirements or desires, temperature indicating devices have been created with selected “hot” and “cold” temperature ranges or selected individual temperature ranges.
Thermochromic liquid crystal mesophase materials technically pass through all colors of the visible spectrum in sequence as the material's temperature is varied through its predetermined active temperature range. However, three colors typically predominate: a brownish-red color will be followed by a green color that leads to a blue color. Outside its active temperature range in either direction, standard liquid crystal mesophase material appears as black against a black background. Exploiting this, prior art devices have interposed black numeric characters representative of the material's active temperature range between a transparent protective layer and the liquid crystal material. With this, the numeric characters will become apparent only when the liquid crystal material is in its active temperature range.
Employing this technique, devices of the prior art have created strips with a plurality of sequentially calibrated thermochromic liquid crystal events, each with a respective numeric temperature indication. These strips have been adhered to the external surfaces of containers, such as beverage containers, by adhesive or the like. With this, the heat condition of a volume of liquid retained in the container will be conducted to the strip of thermochromic liquid crystal events. This, in turn, will cause the liquid crystal event corresponding to the temperature of the contained liquid to enter its active temperature range thereby revealing the otherwise obscured numeric characters. With this, the temperature of the contained liquid will be depicted.
These prior art devices certainly have provided useful contributions to the present state of the art. However, they do typically suffer from a number of disadvantages. For example, by occupying a sizable portion of the surface are of the beverage container, they necessarily detract from the surface area available for advertising, relaying product background information, and similar purposes. Furthermore, devices of the prior art typically have merely relayed the general or particular temperature condition of a retained liquid without improving the appearance and advertising characteristics of the container. Indeed, the utilitarian nature of prior art temperature indicating devices have commonly detracted from the aesthetics of the beverage container relative to which they are employed. Still further, since many prior art devices have been designed to be affixed to a beverage or other product container after its construction, it is likely that application of the devices to the surface area of the container would obscure advertising or product information on the actual surface of the container.
In light of the foregoing, one will appreciate that, notwithstanding the plurality of temperature indicating devices that have been disclosed by the prior art, there remains a need for a thermochromic device for use relative to a product container that exploits thermochromic materials not only to exploit fully the available surface area of the product container but actually to increase the effectively available surface area of the container without requiring a concomitant increase in the actual surface area.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Advantageously, the present invention is founded on the basic object of providing a thermochromic device and method for use with a product container, such as a can or the like, that incorporates thermochromic material to increase the effective surface area of the product container with which the device is used.
An underlying object of the invention is to provide a thermochromic device and method that allows the display of a plurality of different temperature-dependent images on a single surface region of the product container. Stated alternatively, the present invention sets about providing, for example, a thermochromic device and method that is capable of displaying a plurality of images on a single surface region, each over an ideally unique temperature range.
A further object of the invention is to provide such a device and method that can be formed integrally with a product container or fixedly or removably coupled thereto.
Yet another object of the invention is to enhance the safety of users of certain product containers by apprising the user of the temperature condition of the retained product.
A related object of the invention is to provide a thermochromic device and method that adds to a user's overall enjoyment of a retained product by indicating to the user whether the retained product is in a desired temperature condition.
In certain embodiments of the thermochromic device and method, a further object of the invention is to provide an indication of the temperature condition of a retained product on a cap, lid, or other upper surface of a product container whereby consumers of potentially hot liquids or comestibles, such as coffee, tea, or soup, will be made aware of whether the liquid or comestible is in a dangerously hot condition, an ideal temperature condition for consumption, or an unsatisfactorily cold condition.
A still further object of certain embodiments of the invention is to provide thermochromic indications of the temperature condition of a retained product not only on a side surface of a product container but also on an upper surface of the product container.
Of course, additional objects and advantages of the present invention will be obvious both to one who reads this specification and reviews the accompanying drawings and to one who has an opportunity to make use of an embodiment of the invention.
In accomplishing the aforementioned objects, a most basic embodiment of the invention comprises a thermochromic device and method fo
Gutierrez Diego
O'Connell Law Firm
Verbitsky Gail
LandOfFree
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