Today in 1974, US Patent 3812996 A was issued, an invention of Arthur Bunnell, assigned to Carling O’Keefe Ltd., for his “Bottle Carrying Case.” Here’s the Abstract:
Plastic carrying cases for bottles, especially beer bottles, are provided of a structure, in which, when the cases are stacked with bottles therein the tops of the bottles in one case engage the underside of the next upper case so that the load of the stack is supported through the bottles.
Today in 1897, US Patent 582769 A was issued, an invention of Henry Wank, for his “Beer-Bottling Apparatus.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
The object of my invention is to provide means for siphoning the liquid in the barrel directly into the bottle without exposing the beer to the air to any extent, which usually deteriorates the quality of the beer, and to reduce the escape of gas in the beer to a minimum.
Today in 1936, US Patent 2039345 A was issued, an invention of Edward A. Ravenscroft, for his “Screw-Top Bottle Mouth.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
This invention relates to bottle mouths capable of being closed by drawn or molded caps of practical depths ‘and diameters. It resides in a formation of mouth which provides for a pouring lip without materially reducing the area of the throat or increasing the diameter of the required cap, and without necessitating a lowering of fastening means on the neck to such a point that drawn or molded caps .of impractical depths are required for closing.
In forming closures for bottles substantial economies may be erected through the use of cap closures instead of corks. The cap closure is ideal for bottles intended to contain dry or semi-dry substances, but for closing bottles intended to contain liquids, which are to be dispensed therefrom, cap closures known prior to this invention are open to very serious objections. The common screw cap closure is entirely devoid of any pouring lip and the stream emitted from such a bottle mouth breaks during pouring, spreads down the side of the bottle and is so erratic in behavior that it cannot be directed with any degree of certainty. The fluid which flows down the side of the bottle spreads in copious quantities into the threads or other fastening means on the neck and in many cases causes sticking of the cap. In the case of corrosive or poisonous fluids, the fluid on the outside of the bottle constitutes a real hazard; and in any case is decidedly disagreeable.
Attempts have been made to remedy the above difficulties but none of them has been acceptable. One of these attempts proposes the forming of a pouring lip at the top of the bottle, the threads for securing the cap being displaced a relatively long distance down the neck. This necessitates an exceptionally deep cap, which is so expensive to draw that any economy over the use of ordinary corks is impossible. Further, a substantial constriction of the throat of the bottle is involved in this construction which interferes with rapid pouring. In other constructions proposed a notch at the neck of the bottle is employed, the same producing a malformed lip of small effectiveness in producing a good stream and a clean cut-off. In this form the fastening means are placed entirely below the notch and here also a cap of excessive depth is required. In this form a very substantial constriction in the throat also is involved prior to this invention no means of eliminating the same has been proposed.
According to this invention, however, a good pouring lip is provided without constricting the throat to a substantial degree, the same being that the pouring stream is kept thin and in the accomplished without requiring a lowering of the fastening means on the outside of the neck. With the mouth of this invention a cap of ordinary depth may be employed, the same being substantially no deeper nor more expensive than 5 caps used with ordinary closures. There is also provided in this invention a crest concentric with the exterior of the neck so that a gasket in the cap will repeatedly seat to form a good seal.
Today in 2012, US Patent 8166893 B2 was issued, an invention of Edgar Davis, for his “Table System.” Here’s the Abstract:
A table system that includes a table top having an upper surface and a surface covering which covers substantially the upper surface of the table top. The table top and the surface covering have concentric openings with substantially similar diameters.
This invention is directed to a table system and more particularly to a table system having a table top, an opening on the surface of the table top, and a removable bucket contained in the opening.
Today in 2014, US Patent 8671802 B2 was issued, an invention of Chikamitsu Takagi, for his “Bottle Cap Opener.” Here’s the Abstract:
A movable outer cylindrical member and a movable inner cylindrical member are arranged vertically movably in a lower half of a cylindrical main body. By placing the movable inner cylindrical member on a bottle mouth and pushing down the cylindrical main body, a lower end of a hooking member is engaged with a lower end of the crown cap to pry the crown cap away. At the same time, the movable outer cylindrical member is moved up and a piston inside a cylinder arranged in an upper half of the cylindrical main body is moved up with the movable outer cylindrical member, so that the air in the cylinder is compressed, and a cover member is brought out in by the compressed air.
Today in 1975, US Patent 3870810 A was issued, an invention of Anthony Martin Humphrey, for his “Inhibiting Beer Gushing.” Here’s the Abstract:
The present invention provides a method for reducing the tendency of beer to gush by incorporating in the beer 1 to 20 percent based on the weight of iso- alpha -acids in the finished beer of an unsaturated fatty acid having from 10 to 20 carbon atoms. The invention includes hop extracts containing said unsaturated fatty acid and also includes methods of making said extracts.
Today in 1900, US Patent 642548 A was issued, an invention of Thomas Howard, for his “Bottle-Filling Machine.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
My invention relates to machines for filling bottles with beer or other liquids and is designed to provide certain improvements in the construction of the same whereby the bottles may be fed to and removed from the filling devices from either side, the bottle-necks automatically sealed, except vas to the supply tubes and vent-pipes, when the bottles are in the filling position, the supply of liquid to the bottles automatically turned on and automatically cut off when the mouths of the filling tubes are reached, and the surplus liquid in the filling-tubes and vent-pipes automatically fed into the bottles as the latter are being removed from the filling-tubes.
Today in 2011, US Patent D631360 S1 was issued, an invention of Sven van Westreenen, assigned to Koninklijke Grolsch N.V., for his “Beer Bottle.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description is simply “the ornamental design for a beer bottle, as shown and described, although it also includes this explanation of the drawings:
The broken lines showing of the bottom raised ridges are for illustrative purposes only and form no part of the claimed design.
The slanted shading shown on the bottle represents a translucent surface.
Today in 1911, US Patent 981768 A was issued, an invention of Alvin N. Ketterer, for his “Jetting Attachment For Bottle-Fillers.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
My invention relates to improvements in jetting attachments which are designed to control and direct jets of beer into bottles, one at a time in succession; the objects of which are to provide an attachment of this class, which can readily be attached to the discharge chute of beer bottle fillers now. Further objects are to so construct a jetting device that the same shall be extremely. simple, substantial and durable, and not liable to get out of order, be extremely cheap in cost of manufacture, and require but little attention or care.
Today in 1963, US Patent 3071403A was issued, an invention of William J. Hohenstein and Helmut W. Preu, assigned to Schaefer Brewing Co., for their “Crowned Bottle Rejection Pin For Bottle Pick Up Apparatus.” There’s no Abstract, although in the description it includes this summary:
The present invention relates to a crowned bottle rejection pin for use on apparatus which picks up empty bottles for moving them from place to place.
A conventional apparatus for removing empty bottles, such as beer bottles or the like, from cases for transferring them to a conveyer for movement into a washing machine, has a plurality of heads thereon which have an expandable rubber sleeve within them. The heads are connected to a source of compressed air so that when the heads are lowered over the tops of the bottles in a case of empty bottles, the compressed air is fed to the heads and it expands the rubber sleeves around the tops of the bottles. The apparatus is then operated to lift the empty bottles from the case or the like and move them to a conveyer.
It often occurs, however, that caps or crowns will be placed on the tops of the bottles after they are empty, and when the heads on the bottle removing apparatus move down around the tops of the empty bottles, they will pick up the crown as well as the empty bottle and transport it to the conveyer to the washing machine. The crown will remain on the bottle in the washing machine and prevent a brush spindle which cleans the inside of the bottle as well as the rinsing tube from entering the bottle. This malfunction results in the spindles and rinse tubes being bent out of shape, requiring a thirty to fifty minute shutdown of the machine to replace the bent parts.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a pin which can be placed within the heads on the bottle removing apparatus which will prevent the head from picking up an empty bottle which has a crown thereon, yet which will not prevent the head from picking up a bottle without such a crown thereon.
