US20100230302A1

US20100230302A1 - Dispensing box cover

Info

Publication number: US20100230302A1
Application number: US12/725,427
Authority: US
Inventors: Frank Yang; Joseph Sandor
Original assignee: Simplehuman LLC
Current assignee: Simplehuman LLC
Priority date: 2009-03-16
Filing date: 2010-03-16
Publication date: 2010-09-16

Abstract

A cover for portable, standalone dispensing boxes of disposable wipes, such as boxed cut and folded tissue wipes. A blocking mechanism is provided to hold the dispensing box in place in the cover. A barrier is provided to prevent the dispensing box from falling out of the cover through the opening at the base of the cover. The cover is portable, which is not attached to any structure. The cover may be made of a rigid material, or a flexible material on a rigid frame.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE

This application claims priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/210,200, entitled “Tissue Box Cover”, filed on Mar. 16, 2009. This application and other applications and documents referenced herein are fully incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to aesthetic covers for household items, in particular covers for dispensing boxes of disposable wipes, and more particularly covers for tissue boxes.
2. Description of Related Art
Boxed disposable tissues (e.g., facial tissues) provide convenience to consumers. Tissue boxes have generally a cuboid shape. An opening is provided at the top of the tissue box, to provide dispensing of cut and folded tissues contained in the box.
Heretofore, covers are available for improving aesthetics of standalone tissue boxes for household use. Box covers may be made of soft or flexible material (e.g., fabric material) or a hard or rigid material (e.g., plastic). Box covers come in various fanciful designs and colors, which blend with household decor and suit individual taste. Typically, a box cover covers the top and four lateral sides of the tissue box, with the base of the cover being open to receive the tissue box. An opening is provided at the top of the cover, which matches the location of the opening at the top of the tissue box, so as to allow access to tissues in the tissue box.
It is common for standalone tissue boxes to be frequently moved from one location to another. With a cover, when one moves the tissue box from one location to another, one would lift the cover, but would also need to hold the bottom of the tissue box, so that the tissue box would not fall out of the opening at the base of the cover. This requires the user to use both hands, which could be inconvenient to the user when one hand is preoccupied with other tasks, or is dirty, to not be available to move the tissue box.
Thus, there remains a need for a tissue box cover that facilitates retaining the tissue box when moved.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a cover for portable, standalone dispensing boxes of disposable wipes, such as boxed cut and folded tissue wipes. The present invention provides a blocking mechanism to hold the dispensing box in place in the cover. A barrier is provided to prevent the dispensing box from falling out of the cover through the opening at the base of the cover. The cover is portable, which is not attached to any structure. The cover may be made of a rigid material, or a flexible material on a rigid frame.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a fuller understanding of the nature and advantages of the invention, as well as the preferred mode of use, reference should be made to the following detailed description read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In the following drawings, like reference numerals designate like or similar parts throughout the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a dispenser box cover in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the dispensing box cover.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the dispensing box cover.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the dispensing box cover.

FIG. 5 is sectional view taken along line 5-5 in FIG. 4.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present description is of the best presently contemplated modes of carrying out the invention. This description is made for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention and should not be taken in a limiting sense. The scope of the invention is best determined by reference to the appended claims. The invention has been described herein in reference to various embodiments and drawings. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that variations and improvements may be accomplished in view of these teachings without deviating from the scope and spirit of the invention.
The present invention is directed to a cover for dispensing boxes of disposable wipes. More particularly, the present invention is directed to a cover for portable, standalone dispensing boxes of disposable wipes, such as boxed cut and folded tissue wipes. The present invention provides a blocking mechanism to hold the dispensing box in place in the cover. A barrier is provided to prevent the dispensing box from falling out of the cover through the opening at the base of the cover. The cover is portable, which is not attached to any structure. The cover may be made of a rigid material, or a flexible material on a rigid frame.
FIGS. 1-5 illustrate one embodiment of a dispensing box cover or cover of the present invention. In the illustrated embodiment, the dispensing box cover is designed for use with a tissue box. While the illustrated embodiment is directed to a cover for a tissue box, the present invention is equally applicable to covers for dispensing boxes of other types of disposable wipes, such as napkins, towels, disinfecting wipes, etc., which could be scented or chemically treated.
In the illustrated embodiment, the dispensing box cover 10 has an enclosure comprising a top 12 and four lateral sides 14, defining an internal cavity 15 that is sized to receive a tissue box 16 of a particular standard size (shown generally in dotted lines in FIG. 2). While the dispensing box cover 10 in the illustrated embodiment is designed to cover a generally cube shaped tissue box, the dispensing box cover 10 can have a cross-section of various geometries (e.g., circular, oval, etc.) about a vertical axis of symmetry.
An opening 18 is provided at the top 12, which matches the location of the top opening of the tissue box 16 received in the cavity 15 of the cover 10, so as to allow access to tissues in the tissue box 16. A base 20 of the cover 10 is opened, with an opening 22 sized to receive the tissue box 16. In the illustrated embodiment, the cavity 15 has a substantially square opening 22. At least two opposing sides 14 of the cover 10 are sloped inwardly a little to provide flanges 24 a and 24 b around the base opening 22 (see FIG. 5). The cover 10 is portable, which is not attached to any structure.
To prevent the tissue box 16 from falling out of the cavity 15 when the cover 10 is lifted, a locking mechanism is provided. In the illustrated embodiment, a barrier 26 is provided across the opening 22 at the base 20 of the cover 10. The bottom of the barrier 26 is about at or above the base 22 of the cover 10 so that the base 22 of the cover 10 can sit stably on a substantially even surface. The barrier 26 may be in the form of a gate, formed by a plate (flexible or rigid), a tab, a bar, a screen, string, cable, wire, etc. (or a combination of two of more of foregoing), which would facilitate retaining the tissue box 16 within the cavity 15 of the cover 10.
In the particular embodiment illustrated, the barrier 26 is in the form of a pivoting door or gate 28 constructed by a generally U-shaped spring wire loop. The base part of the U-shaped wire gate 28 is anchored at a pivot 29 on the flange 24 a at the base 20 of one side 14 of the cover 10. At the base 20 of the opposite side 14 of the cover 10, two lip sections 30 are provided at two ends of a cutout 32 in the flange 24 b. In the illustrated embodiment, the wire gate 28 includes extending prongs 34 which have ends 36 for engaging the lips 30. The ends 36 of the extending prongs 34 of the U-shaped wire gate are sized to be able to clear through the cutout 32 and latch against the lips 30. Given the prongs 34 are springy, they can be squeezed together (i.e., within the plane of the U-shaped wire gate 28, or parallel to the base 20 of the cover 10) to clear the cutout 32. The prongs 34 can have recesses or notches for users to conveniently grab and squeeze the prongs 34. When the prongs 34 are released after positioning the prongs 34 adjacent the lips 30, the prongs 34 would spread under spring action to latch onto the lips 30. The ends 36 of the wire prongs 34 may be curled or flattened to provide smooth ending prongs.
As can be appreciated, the portable tissue box 16 may be inserted or removed from the cavity 15 by operating the wire gate 28. By squeezing on the prong 34 to release or disengage the ends 36 from the lips 30 on the flange 24 b, the gate 28 is pivoted away from the opening 22, and a tissue box 16 can be inserted into or removed from the cavity 15 of the cover 10. According to the present invention, after the tissue box 16 is inserted into the cavity 15 and the gate 28 is in place as a barrier to block the opening 22 at the base 20 of the cover 10, the tissue box 16 would be securely held in the cavity 15 of the cover 10 even when the cover 10 is being lifted. The user does not need to hold the bottom of the dispensing box cover 10 to keep the tissue box 16 in place in the cover 10.
The walls of the top 12 and sides 14 of the enclosure of the cover 10 may be in the form of a thin wall structure, which may be fully or partially opened other than at the opening 22. The walls of the enclosure of the cover 10 may be made of a rigid material. The enclosure of the cover 10 may be formed by extrusion, molding, etc. The enclosure may be made of metal (e.g., steel, aluminum, alloys, etc.), synthetic material (e.g., silicone, rubber, plastics, polymeric materials) or natural material (e.g., wood, bamboo, etc.), which may possess a painted, coated, smooth, polished, brushed, textured, etc. finish. A combination of materials and finishes may be implemented to achieve the desired structural integrity and aesthetic appeal for the cover 10. The wire gate 28 may be made of metal or plastic, preferably springy.
Other wall structure of the enclosure of the cover 10 may be implemented without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention. For example, alternatively, the enclosure of the cover 10 may be made of a flexible wall material (e.g., fabric material) that is supported on a rigid frame, which has a similar base structure as shown in FIG. 4. For example, a wire or plastic frame may support a soft “skin” to form an enclosure defining an internal cavity for a dispensing box. Further alternate embodiment may include an enclosure with walls having a meshed or net structure defining an internal cavity for receiving the dispensing box, having a base structure as shown in FIG. 4. A combination of the above disclosed wall structure may be implemented.
While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to the preferred embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the spirit, scope, and teaching of the invention. Accordingly, the disclosed invention is to be considered merely as illustrative and limited in scope only as specified in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A cover for a dispensing box of disposable wipes, comprising:

an enclosure comprising a top, a base and lateral sides defining a cavity;

a dispensing opening defined in the top;

a base opening defined in the base; and

a blocking mechanism at the base, retaining the dispensing box when held in the cavity.

2. A cover as in claim 1, wherein the blocking mechanism comprises a barrier blocking the dispensing box from falling out of the base opening when held in the cavity.

3. A cover as in claim 2, wherein the barrier comprises a gate blocking the base opening.

4. A cover as in claim 3, wherein the gate extends across the base opening.

5. A cover as in claim 4, wherein the gate is pivotally anchored at base of one of the sides of the enclosure, and extends across the base opening to base of an opposite side of the enclosure.

6. A cover as in claim 5, wherein the base of said one of the sides of the enclosure is provided with a first flange on which the gate is pivotally anchored.

7. A cover as in claim 6, wherein the base of said opposite side of the enclosure is provided with a second flange against which an extended end of the gate latches against to secure the gate across the base opening.

8. A cover as in claim 7, wherein at least a lip of the second flange defines a cutout, and wherein the extended end of the gate can freely pivot to clear through the cutout to latch against the lip to secure the gate across the base opening.

9. A cover as in claim 8, wherein the gate comprises generally U-shaped prongs.

10. A cover as in claim 9, wherein two lips are provided on the second flange to define the cutout, and the extended ends of the prongs are sized to be able to clear through the cutout by bending of the prongs and latch against the lips of the second flange.

11. A cover as in claim 1, wherein the cover is portable, which is not attached to any structure.

12. A cover as in claim 11, wherein the dispensing box is a box of tissue.

13. A cover as in claim 1, wherein the disposable wipes comprises at least one of tissue, towel and napkins.

14. A cover as in claim 1, wherein the enclosure comprises walls made of a rigid material.

15. A cover as in claim 1, wherein the enclosure comprises walls made of a flexible material supported on a rigid frame.

16. A cover as in claim 1, wherein the enclosure comprises walls having a meshed or net structure.

17. A cover and dispensing box combination, comprising:

a dispensing box of disposable wipes;

a cover enclosing the dispensing box, comprising:

an enclosure comprising a top, a base and lateral sides defining a cavity;

a dispensing opening defined in the top;

a base opening defined in the base; and

18. A cover as in claim 17, wherein the blocking mechanism comprises a gate extending across the base opening.

19. A cover as in claim 18, wherein the gate is pivotally anchored at base of one of the sides of the enclosure, and the extends across the base opening to base of an opposite side of the enclosure.

20. A cover as in claim 19, wherein the gate comprises a generally U-shaped having two prongs that are made of a springy material.