Drinkware Accessory Strap

Abstract

The accessory strap is formed of an outer layer of nylon loop fabric and an inner layer of woven polyester elastic fabric with the inner layer having an elastic end section covered with a nylon hook fabric for overlapping the outer layer to form a closed loop about an item of drinkware.

Description

[0001] This is a Non-Provisional Patent Application and claims the benefit of Provisional Patent Application 63 / 562,422, filed Mar. 7, 2024.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] As is known, people have made items to decorate straws or change the look of a cup with graphic designs in order to designate the user of the straw or cup.

[0003] Straps have been known that can be worn on a wrist, ankle or shoe and that have charms or the like thereon for decorative purposes. For example, published US Patent Application 2013 / 0074545 describes a strap that has snap-on ornaments and at least one non-skid material on a backside to prevent the strap from sliding on a surface.

[0004] Published US Patent Application 2015 / 0053701 describes a drinkware accessory that employs a resizable attachment band and a pliant fabric coupled to the band. The band is described as attaching the pliant fabric to a piece of drinkware to distinguish one user's drinkware from another user's drinkware.

[0005] Drinkware is becoming more popular outside of the home, where people are using different shapes, styles, colors, and other variations to show their own unique styles. Thus, it is important to be able to personalize the drinkware in a convenient and secure manner to avoid mis-use of the drinkware.

[0006] It is an object of the invention to provide a drinkware accessory that can be easily mounted on and removed from a piece of drinkware to distinguish the user of the drinkware.

[0007] It is another object of the invention to provide a drinkware accessory that can be readily personalized by a user.

[0008] It is another object of the invention to provide a drinkware accessory that can be readily manufactured.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The drinkware accessory is comprised of a strap and one or more attachments or elements to distinguish an individual user. The strap provides a surface for receiving attachments indicative of a user and that is characterized in being elastic in order to firmly attach to drinkware.

[0010] The strap is also characterized in having the ability to have easily removable and multiple types of attachments.

[0011] The drinkware accessory strap utilizes several existing collectable attachment types and brings them together on an adjustable and easily removable strap designed to hold tight around any surface type of drinkware with a fully adjustable length.

[0012] The attachment types integrated are eyelet grommets, snapping cap and socket (male and female “snapping” buttons), hook and loop, as well as jewelry chain and loops for hanging other types of items that can hook onto it. Any other type of existing or custom attachment methods can be integrated onto the strap, allowing quick interchangeability for both useful items such as: Mirrors, lighting, clocks, cell phones, combs, straws, eating utensils, makeup, lip-balm, and other common necessities.

[0013] The strap can also be used for collectible items such as: Snap charms, hook and loop patches, clasp or clip-on charms, jewelry chain or bracelet charms & beads, and other clip or pin methods.

[0014] Other additional features and fastening methods can be permanently or non-permanently attached to the strap using stitching, or any adhesive or bonding method for example: Open pockets, zipped pockets, elastic pen / makeup holder loops, credit card holders, wallets, ornate embroidery, stickers, pill or medicine holders, and other common items used for holding daily use items.

[0015] These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] FIG. 1 illustrates a front view of the strap;

[0017] FIG. 2 illustrates a side view of the strap of FIG. 1;

[0018] FIG. 2-1 illustrates a Detail View of the side view of the strap in FIG. 2;

[0019] FIG. 3 illustrates a back view of the strap in FIG. 1;

[0020] FIG. 3-1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of one end of a strap in accordance with the invention that is stretchable in FIG. 3;

[0021] FIG. 4 illustrates a view of a drinkware accessory strap at the connecting point in accordance with the invention on a drinkware;

[0022] FIG. 5 illustrates a view of a drinkware accessory strap in accordance with the invention on a drinkware;

[0023] FIG. 6 illustrates a view of a drinkware accessory strap with a cellular phone as an attachment.

[0024] FIG. 7 illustrates a view of a drinkware accessory strap with a beauty supply and pen attachment.

[0025] FIG. 8 illustrates a view of a portion of a strap in accordance with the invention with ornaments of several types;

[0026] Referring to FIGS. 3-1 and 5, the drinkware accessory strap 100 is sized to fit around a drinkware 110 and is comprised of two layers 102, 103. The outer layer 102 is a nylon loop fabric and the inner layer 103 is a woven polyester elastic fabric. The two layers 102, 103 can be joined with stitching, adhesive, or other bonding methods.

[0027] The nylon loop fabric for the outer layer 102 is commercially available from VELCRO® USA of Manchester, New Hampshire® as model: 1.5 inch.

[0028] The woven polyester elastic fabric for the inner layer 103 is commercially available from T. R Ribbon of Xiamen, Fujian, China as model: black 1.5 inch width (×3) straight pattern.

[0029] In addition, as shown in FIG. 2-1, the inner layer 103 of woven polyester has silicone, rubber, or adhesive sections 104 bonded to the surface that mates to the surface of the drinkware 110 so the affixed strap 100 does not twist, turn, or slip in any direction relative to the drinkware 110 with or without weight.

[0030] The surface area of the silicone, rubber, or adhesive sections 104 can cover all or part of the inner layer 103 creating more or less friction to the mating surface.

[0031] Referring to FIG. 2, the strap 100 is made so that the inner layer 103 extends beyond the end of the outer layer 102 and the underside of the inner layer 103 is covered by a length of nylon hook fabric 106.

[0032] Referring to FIG. 2-1, the inner layer 103 of woven polyester elastic fabric extends beyond the outer layer 102 of loop fabric at one end to create a small end section (“tension gap”) 115 (approximately 0.75 inches long) between the end of the outer layer 102 and the edge of the nylon hook fabric 106 that can be stretched freely and elastically to create a tensile force that pulls the strap 100 against the drinkware when the ends of the strap 100 are overlapped and attached together to form a loop.

[0033] This gap 115 can be increased or decreased as desired to create a specific level of tension and elasticity. The intended weight to be held by the drinkware accessory strap 100 is at or below, but not limited to 10 lbs.

[0034] The layers 102, 103 are flexible and able to contour and grip to any surface geometry. The width is intended to be 1.5 inches and length 14 inches to accommodate the majority of common drinkware, but the width and length of the band can be changed to fit a wide range of sizes, with no limitations.

[0035] Referring to FIG. 2, when off the drinkware 110, the strap 100 has two free ends, one end 105 with the outer nylon loop fabric and one end with the inner nylon hook fabric 106. The two ends are connected to one another via the overlapping ends 105, 106 when the strap 100 is connected end to end allowing adjustable sizing and compression against the surface of the drinkware such that the strap 100 will not twist, turn, or slip in any direction with or without weight on it.

[0036] The outer nylon hook fabric 102 and the nylon loop fabric 106 are each commercially available, for example, under the trade name Velcro®.

[0037] The intended size of the length of nylon loop fabric 106 is to be 0.75 inches long and cover the entirety of the woven polyester elastic fabric width, but is not limited to any size as long as when attached around the drinkware, the drinkware accessory strap does not twist, turn, or slip in any direction with or without weight and the tension gap 115 is maintained.

[0038] Referring to FIG. 4, snaps, clips, adhesive, stitching, or other methods can also be used to connect the open ends around the drinkware 109. Referring to FIG. 2-1, the tension gap 115 for creating elasticity must be maintained between the outer nylon loop edge and the inner end of strap nylon hook edge.

[0039] The nylon loop layer 102 and the end of the nylon loop 106 may be interchanged with one another and the function will remain the same.

[0040] Referring to FIG. 1, accessory items may be attached to the outer surface using attachment methods such as, a nylon hook fabric to connect to the outer nylon loop layer 102, snapping cap and socket (male and female “snapping” buttons 107, eyelet grommets 108, and any other permanent or non-permanent connection method desired.

[0041] The outer nylon loop layer's intended use is to hold a variety of items, some illustrated in FIGS. 6, 7, and 8, including but not limited to: jewelry, jewelry chain 116, snapping cap and socket (male and female “snapping” buttons) jewelry 112, patches 114, clip on charms 113, cell phones 118, straws, scoops, lids, lighting, and all other mentioned in the background information above.

[0042] The inner layer 103 of woven polyester elastic fabric covers the hard surfaces of different mounting hardware and is attached to the inner side of layer 102 of nylon loop fabric and protects the drinkware from damage and scratches of the attachments mounted through the outer nylon loop layer. A similar construction of strap with a single band can be created, but will limit the rigidity for mounting of accessories, and require an additional method of protecting the drinkware attachments from damage and sacrifice of either elasticity or rigidity (or both). Another construction of the band can be created to be a closed loop with no open ends for adjustment but would sacrifice being able to be located under the closed loop of a drinkware handle and will limit the range of adjustment. The drinkware accessory strap is easily removed when the drinkware requires cleaning or storage and can be transferred to other drinkware or stored on its own.

[0043] The drinkware type intended for use with the drinkware accessory strap may be made from any material, but commonly are plastic, glass or metal. The drinkware for intended use of the drinkware accessory strap may be any shape, but is commonly a cylinder of consistent or varying geometry, having a closed bottom and open top with or without a lid. The common names of drinkware used with the drinkware accessory strap are, but not limited to: cup, drinking glass, pint, tumbler, thermos, “Stanley” (by brand name), “Yeti” (by brand name), jug, mug, tall glass, wine glass, teacup, bottle, water bottle, highball glass, stein, jar, coffee cup, flask, shot glass, whiskey glass, canning jar, mason jar, canteen, can, carton, sippy cup, and goblet.

[0044] The invention thus provides a drinkware accessory that can be easily mounted on and removed from a piece of drinkware to distinguish the user of the drinkware and that can be readily personalized by a user. The invention also provides a drinkware accessory that can be readily manufactured using simple components.

Claims

1. A drinkware accessory comprisingan outer layer of nylon loop fabric;an inner layer of woven polyester elastic fabric joined to said outer layer in sandwiched relation, said inner layer having an end section extending beyond said outer layer; anda length of nylon hook fabric covering said end section of said outer layer for overlapping said outer layer to form a closed loop about an item of drinkware.

2. A drinkware accessory as set forth in claim 1 wherein said end section is elastically stretchable.

3. A drinkware accessory as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a plurality of sections bonded to said inner layer opposite said outer layer for frictionally engaging the item of drinkware.

4. A drinkware accessory as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a plurality of accessory items mounted on said outer layer.

5. A drinkware accessory as set forth in claim 1 wherein said outer layer has a length of 14 inches and a width of 1.5 inches and said end section has a length of 0.75 inches.

6. The combination ofan item of drinkware; andan accessory strap removably mounted about said drinkware and including an outer layer of nylon loop fabric, an inner layer of woven polyester elastic fabric joined to said outer layer in sandwiched relation, said inner layer having an end section extending beyond said outer layer; and a length of nylon hook fabric covering said end section of said outer layer for overlapping said outer layer to form a closed loop about said item of drinkware.

7. The combination as set forth in claim 6 further comprising a plurality of accessory items mounted on said outer layer.

8. The combination as set forth in claim 6 wherein said end section is elastically stretchable.

9. The combination as set forth in claim 6 further comprising a plurality of sections bonded to said inner layer opposite said outer layer for frictionally engaging said item of drinkware.

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