Beverage Container Support

The present invention relates generally to beverage supports, and more particularly, to supports for holding beverage containers, such as glasses, bottles, cups, and the like, in an upright position while being used on a boat or moving vehicle.

Various hanging or pivotable supporting devices have been proposed for holding and maintaining beverage containers in upright positions against the tendency of the container to become tilted or upset while being used on a boat or moving vehicle. Such prior devices have included a wire formed container receiving basket or receptacle which is pivotably hung in the boat or vehicle by various means. Such prior devices generally are formed of numerous wire elements which must be welded together at many points during their manufacture. The manufacture and fabrication of such devices, as a result, has been relatively expensive. The ends of such various wire elements forming the support also often terminate or protrude as relatively sharp ends which can hook clothing or scratch a person passing adjacent such support under unstable conditions, as in a boat or moving van. Moreover, in order to provide adequate pivotal support of the beverage container receiving basket, such prior devices have employed relatively complex means for mounting the support on the wall of the boat or vehicle, which further adds to the cost of the device.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a beverage container support which is formed from fewer wire elements and requires less weldments during fabrication than heretofore possible, and thus, lends itself to more economical manufacture.

Another object is to provide a beverage container support as characterized above in which the wire elements are formed and assembled without dangerous or cumbersome protruding ends.

A further object is to provide a beverage container support of the above kind which includes a relatively simple wall mounting arrangement for pivotably supporting the device on a wall or other vertical surface, while permitting the support to be easily removed for compact storage.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective of a beverage container support embodying the present invention, showing the support in a removed condition from its associated wall mounting means;

FIG. 2 is a top view of the illustrated beverage container support in mounted position on a wall and holding a cup shown in phantom;

FIG. 3 is a vertical section taken in the plane of line 3--3 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of the illustrated beverage container support; and

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view showing the beverage container support removed from its mounting means with the cantilever support member thereof shown pivoted to a stored position.

While the invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative constructions, a certain illustrated embodiment thereof has been shown in the drawings and will be described below in detail. It should be understood, however, that there is no intention to limit the invention to the specific form disclosed, but, on the contrary, the intention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.

Turning now more particularly to the drawings, there is shown an illustrated beverage container support 10 embodying the present invention supported on a wall 11, which could be any generally vertically oriented surface on a boat, recreational van, or the like. The support 10 in this instance is shown holding a cup 12, indicated in phantom. The beverage container support 10 includes a cantilever member 15 mounted on the wall 11 for pivotal movement about an axis "Y" perpendicular to the wall and a container receptacle or basket 16 hanging from the end of the cantilever member 15 for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis "X" parallel to the wall.

In accordance with the present invention, the beverage container support is formed with three wire elements which permit the support to be economically fabricated without dangerous or cumbersome wire ends protruding out from the device. To this end, the support 10 includes a first wire element 20 formed with a pair of diametrically opposed uprights 20a interconnected at their lower ends by a wire network 20b which lies in a generally horizontal plane when the support is in mounted position and defines the base of the container receiving receptacle 16. The wire network 20b in this case is made by bending an intermediate portion of the first wire element into a zig-zag or "Z" pattern that lies in a common plane perpendicular to the uprights. The upper ends of the uprights 20a terminate with downwardly directed hooks 20c for suspending the receptacle from the cantilever member 15, as will be apparent.

For defining the sides of the receptacle 16, a second wire element 21 is formed into a plurality of vertically spaced annular rings 21a that are welded to each of the uprights 20a. The rings 21a are interconnected by spaced vertical segments 21b of the second wire element which define a channel for receiving a handle 24 of the cup or other beverage container 12 that is placed in the receptacle. It will be apparent that the angular rings 21a and vertical segments 21b may be formed from a single wire element with the opposed ends 21c of the wire element in an abutting relation as shown.

A third wire element defines the cantilever member 15, being formed with a pair of spaced arms 15a which each terminate in a reversely directed hook 15b for pivotably supporting the hooks 20c of the first wire member. To facilitate mounting of the cantilever member 15 on the wall 11, the third wire member 15 is formed with a generally U-shaped downwardly opened loop portion 15c intermediate its ends.

In keeping with the invention, screw and grommet means are provided for easily and removably mounting the support on the wall or other vertical surface and for guiding pivotal movement of the support in a plane parallel to the wall. In the illustrated embodiment, there is shown an annular grommet 30 formed with a groove about its periphery for receiving and supporting the U-shaped loop portion 15c of the third wire element. The grommet 30 preferably is made of a plastic material that permits easy pivoting of the wire cantilever member 15 relative to the grommet.

To facilitate mounting of the grommet 30 on the wall, it is formed with a central axial bore through which a wall engaging screw 31 may be placed. The grommet 30 preferably is formed with a countersunk bore for receiving the tapered head of the screw 31 such that no sharp edges exist in the mounting. It will be seen that the grommet not only permits easy pivoting of the cantilever member 15 relative to the wall, but the annular groove of the grommet also guides such movement so as to maintain it in a plane parallel to the wall.

When the support 10 is mounted in such manner on the wall or other vertically oriented surface of a boat, recreational van, or other moving vehicle, it will be seen that jarring, tilting or rocking movement of the boat or vehicle will be absorbed by the dual pivotal support of the beverage holding receptacle 16, the receptacle being pivotable in a plane perpendicular to the wall and also in a plane parallel to the wall. Such a dual pivotal support arrangement will tend to prevent significant tilting or upset of a container held therein, even under relatively extreme rocking conditions that might exist on a boat. It will be seen, however, that when the need for such beverage support ceases to exist, such as when the boat is docked or beverages are not being served, the support may be easily removed from its mounting grommet by simply lifting the loop 15c of the cantilever member 15 off the grommet 30. The cantilever member 15 may thereupon be pivoted downwardly to a generally vertical position within the receptacle 16, as illustrated in FIG. 5, for relatively compact storage of the support.

In view of the foregoing, it can be seen that the beverage container support of the present invention is formed with relatively few wire elements and requires only four weldments, and thus, lends itself to economical fabrication and manufacture. The wire elements also are formed and assembled so as to essentially eliminate dangerous or cumbersone protruding ends customarily existing in such wire fabricated devices. The beverage container support further includes a relatively simple wall mounting arrangement for pivotably supporting the device on a vertical surface, while permitting it to be easily removed for compact storage.