Fragrance-carrier composition retainer

Abstract

A disposable fragrance-carrier composition retainer for retaining fragrance-carrier compositions during heating, facilitating the removal of one fragrance-carrier composition and its quick replacement with a different fragrance-carrier composition, and allowing for easy disposal of the composition byproducts. The fragrance-carrier composition retainer includes, among other elements, a continuous base and at least one sidewall. The retainer is generally shaped to hold the wide variety of commercially available fragrance-carrier compositions, including tart type candles, wax potpourri wafers, and heat activated liquid potpourri, and is configured to be received by the multitude of fragrance-carrier composition heating devices more commonly known as tart burners or potpourri heaters. The at least one sidewall is proximally joined to, or formed with, the base at a sidewall bottom edge and has a distal sidewall top edge and may include at least one removal tab.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to the field of heat activated fragrance-emitting compositions, particularly, a device for retaining such compositions when in the liquid or semi-liquid state, facilitating the removal of one fragrance-carrier composition and its quick replacement with a different fragrance-carrier composition, and allowing for easy disposal thereof.[0002] Purchasers of fragrance-carrier compositions that are heated in fragrance-carrier composition heating devices have long-recognized the need for a method to both retain the composition when in the liquid or semi-liquid state and remove it from the heating device for disposal. What has been needed but was heretofore unavailable are inexpensive disposable fragrance-carrier composition retainers that are suited for use with multitude of fragrance-carrier compositions and fragrance-carrier composition heating devices.[0003] A typical arrangement of fragrance-carrier composition heating devices is described in U.S. Pat. No. ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0007] In its most general sense, the present invention overcomes the shortcomings and limitations of the prior art in any of a number of generally effective configurations. An object of this invention is to provide a fragrance-carrier composition retainer that is capable of reliably retaining fragrance-carrier compositions while heated and facilitating easy disposal of the composition once the fragrance has been emitted. An additional object of this invention is to allow the ready removal of one fragrance-carrier composition and its quick replacement with a different fragrance-carrier composition.

[0010] Many variations of the present invention incorporate varying configurations of the base. The base may be contoured to maximize surface contact with the varying designs and configurations of the multitude of fragrance-carrier composition heating device reservoirs. One such base variation is flat. Additional base variations include bases formed as exteriorly convex or concave surfaces and those formed as a plurality of planar surfaces. One such combination of planar surfaces is a base formed of a plurality of generally triangular shapes that may be sloped toward the center of the base to increase the volume and rigidity of the retainer. Any of the base variations may include a number of brake formed stiffening ridges to add rigidity to the retainer.

[0014] Any of the preceding embodiments may include at least one removal tab. Such tabs are generally shaped for easy gripping between the thumb and forefinger. The tabs allow the retainer and contents to be easily removed from the fragrance-carrier composition heating device reservoir.

Problems solved by technology

Past solutions, all unsatisfactory, to the problem of removing the residue have included pouring out the liquid or semi-liquid residue while still hot; cooling, often by placing the reservoir in a refrigerator or freezer, and then removing the residue by manually striking the reservoir to dislodge the then brittle residue; or by manually digging the residue out of the reservoir with a small hand tool such as a spoon.

Each of these methods poses unsatisfactory aspects.

Handling the reservoir while still hot is awkward and poses the risk of bums to those handling the reservoir.

Freezing the reservoir involves the time and effort of placing the reservoir in a freezer, waiting for the liquid or semi-liquid mass to solidify, and then striking the frozen and possibly brittle reservoir to remove the residue.

Ceramic reservoirs may break when so handled.

Manually extracting the residue with a small tool such as a spoon is messy and often results in fragmentation of the residue mass.

Some heating devices utilize a reservoir integral to the burner assembly, thus complicating the task of removal of the residue by requiring the handling of the entire fragrance-carrier composition heating device during removal of the residue.

Additionally, all of these methods are time consuming, and prevent a rapid change from the use of one fragrance to another in the burner reservoir.

Such removal methods often result in fragmentation of the residue and incomplete removal thereof.

While some of the prior art devices attempted to improve the state of the art of fragrance-carrier composition retainers, none has achieved a cost optimized capability that is easy to fabricate and convenient to use with a wide variety of fragrance-carrier composition heating devices.

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