There have been various attempts at providing a drinking container with a stirring mechanism, to allow the user to stir the beverage without requiring the use of a separate stirring stick or spoon. In one category of such products, the stirring mechanism has been motorized or power operated. An example can be found in U.S. Pat. No. 5,720,552 issued to Schindlegger, in which a stirrer is rotatably attached to the surface of the base of the drinking glass. The stirrer is actuated by a motor inside the base. In an earlier attempt, as seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,435,084 issued to Calhoun, et al., the stirring mechanism is adapted to be manually actuated from the lower end of a cup. While the former may be too complicated a solution, the latter presents a difficulty for the user when the cup is resting in an automobile cup holder, as the user cannot easily access the bottom of the cup in that case.
In another category of drinking containers with integrated stirring mechanisms, the stirrer is attached at the top of the drinking vessel, rather than at the bottom. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,586,676 issued to Lynd shows a drinking container cap that has a stirrer depending downwardly from its interior surface. Such a stirrer, however, is fixed in relation to the lid of the container, requiring that the lid be removed in order for the user to stir the beverage. In a more recent effort, namely in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0179647 issued to Simba, the stirring device is spring loaded and mounted to the top edge of a drinking vessel. The stirring device is shaped like a paddle and is submerged in the beverage content. The paddle pivots in response to the mechanism being operated by the thumb of the user's hand that is holding the vessel. This type of mechanism, however, requires that the top of the vessel remain substantially open so as to allow the pivoting movement of the paddle, making it unsuitable for use while riding in an automobile due to spillage.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds