COASTER WITH SIDEWALLS THAT SEAL THE CAN'S CIRCUMFERENCE

This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/222,386, filed 2015 Sep. 23 by the present inventors.

Metal cans rust when placed in direct contact with water, or when residing in moist environments. Rust on the bottom of the can transfers to the surface it has been placed on, leaving rust stains behind. Many coaster devices are known in the an for collecting condensation or holding various vessels and or containers. However, none of them seal the circumference of a can and are of one piece without any openings. The invention has a base with or without an integrated boss, with side walls that end in a seal around the can's circumference trapping the rust in and blocking direct water from entering. This allows the device to be used in a daily routine where a product is normally placed for use such as a shaving cream can in the shower under direct water or a bug spray left outside on a table in the rain. Most consumers resort to placing their shaving cream can on something to avoid the rust stains from transferring directly to their tub or the or they simply don't leave their shaving cream can in the shower. The process of placing the shaving cream can on something that does not seal the circumference of the can does not contain the rust. Direct water on a metal acts as a catalyst to rust causing the can to rust faster. Consumers had been instructed to throw the shaving cream cans away when rust started to appear, in order to prevent the can from transferring rust onto the surface it was placed on, hence wasting consumer dollars.

U.S. Pat No. 1,957,263 to Gray (1934) describes a coaster designed to catch the condensation in the bottom of the coaster via an absorbent material. This absorbent material would cause a metal can to rust when condensation or water entered the coaster through the spaced apart gripping tongues.

U.S. Pat No. 5,842,675 to Davitt (1998) describes a coaster designed that is of flexible material that stretches to fit over the can bottom.

U.S. Pat No. 2,727,645A to Dore (1955) describes a coaster designed to catch the condensation in the bottom of the coaster via an alternating lip followed by an opening. The lip holds the glass in place and the opening allows for the condensation to drip down the glass into the coater. If water can get into the coaster it can bellow out of the coaster.

U.S. Pat No. 4,040,549 to Sadler (1977) describes a coaster designed to hold a car cup. The coaster has vertical slots for the cup to insert into. The vertical slots allow for water to enter.

U.S. Pat No. 5,143,249 to Gavle (1992) describes a coaster designed to stabilize a container with liquids in it. This coaster is open at the top and open at the bottom, allowing rust from the bottom of a can to transfer to the surface it is placed on.

U.S. Pat No. 6,511,031 to Lin (2003) herein describes a coaster designed to hold a coffee cup. Coaster has a built in weep hole to allow condensation to escape. This weep hole would allow for rust to escape as well.

U.S. Pat No. US20110198473 to McDonough filed (2011) was abandoned. It describes a coaster designed to seal the vertical side of the can.

None of the above mentioned prior art seals the circumference of the can, trapping rust in and keeping water out of the coaster. None of the above includes a boss. The devices in the above references do not solve the problem of the transfer of rust from the bottom of a can to the surface on which it sits, when used in a person's daily routine where the product would normally be placed such as the shower. Further, none of the related prior art provides for a coaster with sidewalls that end in a top seal that goes all the way around the can without breaches. It is this top seal that keeps the can's rust in the coaster.

Another object of the present invention would provide a device which is reusable and dishwasher safe. Many consumers prefer to dispose of a rusted can with some remaining product, then have to scrub rust stains left behind from a rusting can. This behavior is wasteful and costly to the consumer. This low cost household item solves these issues.

The present invention is a coaster device for collecting and trapping rust that forms on the bottom of metal cans. Described herein is a coaster made of one piece with sidewalls that end in a top seal which goes around the circumference of the can without breaches, preventing streaming water from entering the coaster and coming in contact with the can. The seal around the can retains any rust on the bottom of the can from coming out of the coaster. This seal requires that the invention includes a boss in the center of the base to prevent the bottom of the coaster from pushing on the fill valve on the bottom of cans, with that design. In the instances where the can has a bottom fill valve and when the shaving cream can button is pressed, air is sucked through the valve pulling air out of the coaster producing a negative pressure situation. Without the boss, the atmospheric pressure on the outside of the coaster pushes the bottom of the coaster up pressing into the fill valve, if a can has one, which could empty the can of its contents.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a coaster type device that the user can place a metal can into and leave it in the shower under direct water without having to worry that the water will rust the bottom of the can and transfer the rust to the user's surfaces or bellow over the top of an unsealed coaster. Many people shave in the shower and it would be convenient to leave a shaving cream can in the shower where they use it. This sealing coaster keeps water out of the coaster where the rust prone can sits, while trapping the rust that forms on metal cans inside the coaster.

10 bottom

11 boss

12 sides

13 top seal (seals around circumference of can)

14 fill valve of can

15 metal can

16 push button on can

This invention provides people with the means to prevent rust marks from forming on their surfaces by placing a coaster type device on the bottom of cans that rust. This coaster type device is made of one piece with a bottom (10) with or without a boss (11), side walls (12) and a top (13) that seals the circumference of the can (16). This design allows people to keep their shaving cream cans in the shower, under water without any rust transferring from the can to the surface or rust overflowing from a coaster that does not seal all the way around the can. It allows people to leave bug spray cans out on their patios in the rain without the fear of rust marks appearing on the surface it was placed on or rust overflowing from a coaster that does not seal all the way around the can.

The present invention can be constructed in various sizes, colors and designs. The material used to make this coaster would be plastic of a durometer rigid enough to hold its design form overtime. The material used to seal the circumference of the can would be of a durometer that could be flexible enough to deflect on application and removal but will form a seal and frictional fit to keep streaming water from entering a coaster that is on a can when in direct contact with the water.

When manufactured the coaster could be made utilizing a singular plastic or a multi shot plastic injection molding operation. In the method of manufacture that involves multiple materials the invention could be manufactured in a manner that would cause the two materials to bond to a degree higher than just mechanical bonding or the multiple materials could be made in separate operations. In the case of manufacturing in separate operations the materials could be assembled mechanically and held together by a physical interface or by adhesives, both scenarios would ensure proper sealing as described in the specification. This sealing material would be of a durometer that would be flexible enough to deflect on application and removal but would form a seal and frictional fit to keep the invention on the can. In both manufacturing cases the material selection would provide proper barrier properties, to be non-abrasive to the surface it is used on and non-corrosive to the can. The invention could be produced using plastic injection molding, machining or other thermoplastics methods.

Description—FIG. 1—Cross Section-Coaster with Boss

FIG. 1 is a cross section of the coaster which consists of four elements. The base (10) of the coaster which has a boss (11) built into the center of it. The base (10) has side walls (12) attached, with a top seal (13). This top seal goes all the way around the can sealing it. The seal blocks water from entering the coaster and coming in contact with the bottom of the can (15) in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4.

Description—FIG. 2—Cross Section-Coaster without Boss

FIG. 2 is a cross section of the coaster which consists of three elements. The base (10) has side walls (12) attached, with a top seal (13). This top seal goes all the way around the can sealing it. The seal blocks water from entering the coaster and coming in contact with the bottom of the can (15) in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4.

Description—FIG. 3—Cross Section-Can with a Coaster On It with Boss

FIG. 3 is a cross section of a can (15) that has a fill valve (14) with the coaster on it. Many metal cans (15) have concave bottoms with fill valves (14) in the center. The top of the coaster seals (13) the circumference of the can. The base (10) is connected to the seal (13) via the coasters side walls (12). When the release button is depressed on a can with a fill valve (14), assuming the seal (13) on the can does seal the can, air will be sucked up the can through the fill valve (14) causing the base (10) of the flexible coaster to be pulled upwards pressing on the fill valve (14) and in turn causing the contents of the can (15) to empty via the fill valve (14), in the case where there is not a boss present. The boss (11) which is attached to the base (10) prevents the base from being pulled up and depressing the fill valve (14).

Description—FIG. 4—Cross Cection-Can with a Coaster On It Without Boss

FIG. 4 is a cross section of a can (15) that has a fill valve (14) with the coaster on it. The top of the coaster seals (13) the circumference of the can. The base (10) is connected to the seal (13) via the coasters side walls (12).