Title of the Invention

FLEXIBLE DRINKING TRAINING SPOUT

Field of the invention

The invention relates to engineering field. In particular, this invention relates to a flexible drinking training spout.

Background of the Invention

When the children are 6 months old or older, it is the time for children to change from a baby bottle to a drinking training container. Often, the parents or baby sitter begins to train their children to sip the liquid such as milk, water, or fruit juice from the training container. To develop the children's skill in drinking, a training container or a training cup, which installs the training spout instead of baby nipple, is used. In the present, there are various shapes of the training spout, which is designed to be closely identical to the baby nipple so as to make the children easy to be familiar and ready to learn to sip from the training container at the beginning of drinking training. To develop the children to know how to drink the water from a glass like the adult when the children get older, the training spout having a closed cap will be used instead.

In general, the liquid outlet hole of the training spout is bigger than that of the baby nipple. Thereby, a liquid can flow from the training spout at faster speed and in larger amount than the baby nipple. Currently, there are 3 types of the training spout:

1. A flexible training spout, which is used for a baby just begin the drinking training. This type of spout is designed to have the same characteristics as teat of the training container and to be similar to a training cup in order to attract the children to use the training cup.

2. A tubular training spout, which is formed with a protruded tube for suction of the baby.

3. A training spout with closed cap, which is used alike drinking from a glass. This type of spout is formed with a closed cap, which defines a flowing out area of liquid, for purpose of teaching the children to learn how to limit and estimate a distance in lifting the cup up to drink and for purpose of training the children how to drink the water from a glass like the adult.

However, it is found that the children, at the beginning of drinking training, love to play with the training container rather than concentrate on drinking a liquid. Thus, the children are likely to invert, shake, throw away or bite the training container while drinking the liquid from the training container. This has caused liquid leakage in the traditional training spout because the most of the liquid outlet hole of the traditional training spout are rather big. In some embodiment, the liquid outlet hole is a fixed-opening or a slit in which it cannot resist to shaking force caused by the user, resulting in the inside liquid flowing out to stain not only the drinker but also the surrounding area. Moreover, if the liquid outlet hole has a big fixed-opening, it may cause difficulty in controlling the rate of liquid flowing and sometimes the user may choke the liquid.

Tooth development in children is another problem. The children during this period love to bite the training spout when sucking, which might cause the training spout base to tear from the training container thereby causing the liquid inside the training container to stain the user and the surrounding area.

Accordingly, the inventor has developed a preferred embodiment of drinking training spout to solve these problems. This invention is provided for preventing the liquid leakage from the inside and more efficiency works, which is enable the children to be trained in drinking without choking and staining from the liquid leakage in any case of work.

Summary of the Invention

The present invention is to provide a flexible drinking training spout having an improved liquid outlet hole, which comprises a blockage and a liquid outlet valve. The blockage is shaped an inverse cone and is provided to separate a spout head from other parts of the training spout. At a center of the blockage, it is formed with a deep groove having rectangular base to serve as the liquid outlet valve. At a base of the liquid outlet valve, it is formed with a slit in horizontal direction to the elliptical-cross sectional area of the cylinder-shaped head, in other words, the slit is formed perpendicular to the user's lips.

One of the objectives of the invention is to provide the flexible drinking training spout having a preferred embodiment, strength, durability and more efficiency work thereby the user is able to drink the liquid from a drinking training container pleasantly, conveniently and continuously without any liquid leakage from the liquid outlet hole when the container is inverted, shook or threw away. The spout therefore can prevent the user and the surrounding area from getting dirty and is detachable to clean easily.

Brief Description of the Drawings

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of top of the flexible drinking training spout of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is the perspective view of bottom of the flexible drinking training spout of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the flexible drinking training spout of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the flexible drinking training spout of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a side of the flexible drinking training spout of the present invention. FIG. 6 is the cross-sectional view of a front of the flexible drinking training spout of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is the cross-sectional view of the side of the flexible drinking training spout of the present invention, when drinking the liquid inside the liquid container or the cup.

Description of the Invention

According to Figs 1 to 4, there are shown different views of a flexible drinking training spout of the present invention, which it made of a elastic material, such as synthetic rubber or natural rubber etc., The spout comprises a spout head 1 , a spout body 2, a spout neck 3, a spout base 4, a pressure adjusting valve 5, and a liquid outlet hole 6.

The spout head 1 , which is shaped a vertical-hollowed cylinder having an elliptical cross sectional area and two-open ends, is mounted on the top-most part of the spout. The said elliptical cross sectional area of each open end has a size of longitudinal diameter corresponding to a width of the user's lips. The upper end of the spout head 1 is open for the user to use lips to surround a side wall of the spout head 1 to drink the liquid that is inside the training container at this area, the lower end of spout head 1 is connected to a slight curve, convex and disk body 2 extending from the spout head 1 , which serve as a cap of drinking training container. The periphery of the lower end of spout body 2 is connected to the upper end of said spout neck 3 in which the spout body 2 can be in any shapes and surfaces as desired for use.

The spout neck 3, which is connected to the spout body 2 and the spout base 4, is shaped a vertical hollowed cylinder. In some type of spouts, said spout body 2 can be connected to the spout base 4 directly without the spout neck 3.

The spout base 4, which is shaped a flat ring, is perpendicularly extended around the spout neck 3. The spout base 4 is placed in parallel to the spout mouth. The spout base 4 formed with a vent 9, which is connected to the pressure adjusting valve 5 for allowing the air to flow through in order to adjust air pressure inside the training container. The vent 9 is formed with its shape and size of opening for air flow similar to of opening of top end of the pressure adjusting valve 5 connected to the bottom of spout base 4.

The pressure adjusting valve 5 is shaped a hollowed cylinder having a closed end. Interior of the valve 5 is used as air flow passageway 10. A slit 1 1 formed on a part of periphery of side wall of the valve 5 above the lower-closed end, which serves as closed-open door for allowing the outside air flowing through the air flow passageway 10 located in the valve 5 to pass into the training container. The valve 5 is provided as an optional component of the drinking training spout and for a purpose of adjusting the air pressure inside the spout only. The present invention, therefore, may be formed either with the valve 5 or without the valve 5, depending on the convenience and appropriation of manufacturing and working.

According to the present invention, the developed part of the drinking training spout is the liquid outlet hole 6, which is formed as an inverse cone shaped blockage 7 having the liquid outlet hole formed at the center of the blockage 7. Details will be provided below.

Referring to Figures 5 and 6, there are shown cross- sectional views of a front and a side of the flexible training spout according to the present invention respectively to clearly illustrate the feature of the liquid outlet hole 6 and the method of connecting the liquid outlet hole 6 to an interior surface of the side wall of the spout head 1. From those figures, it can be seen that the liquid outlet hole 6 comprises 2 parts; one is the blockage 7 and another is the liquid outlet valve 8. The blockage 7 is shaped an inverse cone and is provided to separate the spout head 1 from the other parts of the spout. The end edge around the blockage 7 is connected to the interior surface of the side wall of spout head I. At the center of the blockage 7, it is formed with a deep groove having a rectangular base to use as a liquid outlet valve 8. The base of the liquid outlet valve 8 is narrower or equal to upper end of the liquid outlet valve 8 in which inside wall of the liquid outlet valve 8 can be two oblique walls, four oblique walls, curve-concave wall, or any wall shape as appropriate. Additionally, the base of the liquid outlet valve 8 is rectangular.

At the base of the liquid outlet valve 8, at least one slit 12 is formed in the horizontal direction to the elliptical-cross sectional area of the cylinder-shaped head (1 ) or perpendicular to the user's lips. As shown in Figure 5, it can be found the slit 12 is in horizontal direction to the elliptical-cross sectional area of the cylinder-shaped head 1. As shown in Figure 6, it can not been found the silt 12 because the slit is formed in same direction as the elliptical-cross section of the cylinder-shaped head 1. In preferred embodiment, the slit 12 may further be formed at the base of liquid outlet valve 8 placed in longitudinal direction to the elliptical-cross section of the cylinder-shaped head 1. or parallel to the user's lips.

Referring to Figure 7, it shows the function of the liquid outlet hole 6. Normally, if training container is empty, the air pressure inside the training container is equal to the pressure outside the training container, resulting in the slit 12 of the liquid outlet valve 8 is tightly closed. In other case, if the training container having the liquid is placed vertically, the air pressure pressing down on the top of the liquid inside the training container and the outside pressure or air pressure at the liquid outlet valve 8 or the pressure adjusting valve 5 are balanced, resulting in the slit 12 of the liquid outlet valve is tightly closed as well. When the training container is inverted, the air over the liquid in the training container is flow down to the bottom of the container instead. If a rest area of the air inside the container is small, it results in a range of interior pressure lower than that of the air pressure outside the container. This is because, normally, the air will move from the area having a high air pressure to the area having a lower air pressure. And if there are various channel for air flowing, the air will move to any channel allowing it to most convenient flow into the container.

In general, there is an air distribution in all direction. According to the present invention, there are two channels for air flowing into the training container. One is the liquid outlet valve 8 and another is the air passageway 9 of the spout base 4. It can be seen that when the user sucks the spout head 1 , the lips of the drinker will surround the spout head 1 by inserting an upper and lower lip of the user in parallel to the longitudinal walls of both upper and lower parts of the elliptical- cross section of the cylinder-shaped head 1. Also, the spout head 1 is inserted deeply into a mouth of user, enough to cause the pressing force at the liquid outlet valve 8 to open the slit 12.

In the event of drinking the liquid, there are both pressing and releasing steps. For pressing step, the two longitudinal walls of elliptical-cross section of the spout head 1 are pressed together, causing the base of the liquid outlet valve 8 is pressed convergent to be a U or V shape, causing the slit 12 at the base of the liquid outlet valve to open. Therefore, the liquid inside the training container is able to flow out from the container. For the releasing step, the user will loosen their lips from the spout head 1 , causing all the parts to be released back to the beginning. This causes the slit 12 to be tightly closed once again, therefore the liquid stop flowing out from the training container. These steps are switched throughout the consumption.

If the flexible training spout comprises a pressure adjusting valve 5, when the user suck the liquid, there will be another channel for air flowing left, that is, a vent 9 of the spout base 4. The vent 9 is connected to air flow passageway 10 of the pressure adjusting valve 5 to adjust the air pressure inside the training container, resulting in the user enabling to drink the liquid inside of the training container easily.

If the user is not drinking and the training spout is inverted, shook or threw away, some type of traditional training spouts either with or without the air pressure valve cannot resist to the liquid pressure when the spout is inverted, shook or threw away, thereby causing the liquid to leak and to stain the user and the surrounding area.

Consequently, the liquid outlet valve 8 according to the present invention is designed and developed to solve the said mentioned problems. When the user does not drink the liquid but invert, shake or throw away this training container, the air will press back into the liquid outlet valve 8, and the liquid weight inside the training container will press onto the surface of the liquid outlet hole 6 of the spout inside the training container, the cone-shaped blockage 7, and the wall of liquid outlet valve 8 having rectangular shaped base throughout. Also, the liquid weight pressing down thereon is able to push the slit 12 to remain tightly closed, even if the training container obtains an impact force from inverting, shaking or throwing away in any direction.

For the above reasons, the user can suck the liquid from the training container pleasantly, conveniently and continuously, and also when the training container is inverted, shook or threw away, there will be no liquid leakage from the liquid outlet hole 6 and stain the user and the surrounding area. Additionally, the present invention is detachable to clean the component of the container easily.

It will be understood that the invention as presented and claimed herein are used to illustrate and describe embodiments and examples merely, without any intention to limit the scope of the disclosure thereto. Various equivalent changes, alternations or modifications based on the claims of the disclosure are all consequently viewed as being embraced by the scope of the claim as appreciated by those skilled in the art.

The best mode of the invention As stated in the detailed description of the invention above.