HEATED OR COOLED PORTABLE DRINKWARE

• US 20190008317A1
• Filed: 09/04/2018
• Published: 01/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 02/24/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ember Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Ember Technologies, Inc.
• Inventors: Alexander, Clayton
• Granted Patent: US 10,413,119 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A47G 19/2288 with means for keeping liquid cool or hot
• CPC Class Codes: A47G 2200/166 sensor
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 36/2433 with electrical heating means
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 2200/42 Heating means
• CPC Class Codes: A61J 9/003 Vacuum feeding-bottles vacuum bottles in general A47J41/02
• CPC Class Codes: F28D 20/02 using latent heat
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 1/0269 For heating of fluids
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 2203/021 Heaters specially adapted for heating liquids
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 3/0014 Devices wherein the heating current flows through particular resistances
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 3/06 Heater elements structurally combined with coupling elements or holders
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 3/82 Fixedly-mounted immersion heaters
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/14 Thermal energy storage

Abstract

An actively heated or cooled portable container has a body with a chamber that receives and holds a liquid, and one or more heating or cooling elements in thermal communication with at least a portion of the chamber. An outer surface of the body has one or more electrical contacts. A module is removably coupled to a portion of the body. The module has one or more electrical contacts on an outer surface of the module that contact the one or more electrical contacts on the outer surface of the body, control circuitry, and one or more power storage elements that provide power to the control circuitry and/or the one or more heating or cooling elements. The control circuitry wirelessly communicates with a mobile electronic device to wirelessly transmit information to the mobile electronic device associated with the operation of the module and/or wirelessly receive instructions from a user via the mobile electronic device.

Claims

1. (canceled)

2. An actively heated or cooled drinkware container system, comprising:

a body having a chamber configured to receive and hold a liquid, one or more heating or cooling elements disposed in the body and in thermal communication with at least a portion of the chamber, a distal outer surface of the body having one or more electrical contacts;

a module removably coupleable to a bottom portion of the body to thereby contact at least a portion of the body and provide an electrical connection with the body when the body is placed on the module, the module comprising

one or more electrical contacts on a proximal outer surface of the module configured to provide an electrical connection with the one or more electrical contacts of the body when the body is placed on the module, and

one or more power storage elements;

one or more magnets in one or both of the module and the body that magnetically couple the module and the body, allowing the module and body to be mobile as one unit; and

control circuitry operable to control the operation of the one or more heating or cooling elements to control an amount of energy supplied to the liquid in the chamber to maintain or increase the temperature of the liquid to a user selected temperature setpoint.

3. The container of claim 2, wherein the control circuitry is housed in the module and when the body is attached to the module one or more sensors in the body that sense one or more parameters of the liquid in the chamber are configured to communicate with the control circuitry via at least one of the one or more electrical contacts in the body and the module, wherein the one or more heating or cooling elements are configured to receive power from the one or more power storage elements via at least one of the one or more electrical contacts in the body and the module, and wherein detaching the body from the module disconnects the control circuitry from the one or more sensors and disconnects the one or more heating or cooling elements from the one or more power storage elements.

4. The container of claim 3, wherein the one or more sensors includes a temperature sensor operable to sense a temperature of the liquid in the chamber.

5. The container of claim 2, wherein the one or more electrical contacts on one of the body and the module include one or more pins and wherein the one or more electrical contacts on the other of the body and the module include one or more circular rings.

6. The container of claim 2, wherein the one or more magnets include at least one magnet in the body and at least one magnet in the module.

7. The container of claim 2, wherein the control circuitry is configured to wirelessly receive a user selected temperature from a mobile electronic device, the control circuitry configured to control power delivery to the one or more heating or cooling elements when the module is coupled to the body to adjust a temperature of the liquid in the chamber toward the user selected temperature.

8. An actively heated or cooled drinkware container system, comprising:

a body having a chamber configured to receive and hold a liquid, one or more heating or cooling elements disposed in the body and in thermal communication with at least a portion of the chamber, and one or more sensors operable to sense one or more parameters of the liquid in the chamber;

a module removably coupleable to a bottom portion of the body to thereby contact at least a portion of the body, the module comprising one or more power storage elements and configured to provide power from the one or power storage elements to the one or more heating or cooling elements when the body is placed on the module;

one or more magnets in one or both of the module and the body couple the module and the body, allowing the module and body to be mobile as one unit; and

control circuitry operable to control the operation of the one or more heating or cooling elements to control an amount of energy supplied to the liquid in the chamber to maintain or increase the temperature of the liquid to a user selected temperature setpoint.

9. The container of claim 8, wherein the body has a distal outer surface having one or more electrical contacts, and the module has one or more electrical contacts on a proximal outer surface of the module configured to provide an electrical connection with the one or more electrical contacts of the body when the body is placed on the module.

10. The container of claim 9, wherein the one or more electrical contacts on one of the body and the module include one or more pins and wherein the one or more electrical contacts on the other of the body and the module include one or more circular rings.

11. The container of claim 8, wherein the control circuitry is housed in the module and when the body is attached to the module the one or more sensors are configured to communicate with the control circuitry via one or more electrical contacts in the body and the module, wherein the one or more heating or cooling elements are configured to receive power from the one or more power storage elements via at least one of the one or more electrical contacts in the body and the module, and wherein detaching the body from the module disconnects the control circuitry from the one or more sensors and disconnects the one or more heating or cooling elements from the one or more power storage elements.

12. The container of claim 11, wherein the one or more sensors includes a temperature sensor operable to sense a temperature of the liquid in the chamber.

13. The container of claim 8, wherein the one or more magnets include at least one magnet in the body and at least one magnet in the module.

14. The container of claim 8, wherein the control circuitry is configured to wirelessly receive a user selected temperature from a mobile electronic device, the control circuitry configured to control power delivery to the one or more heating or cooling elements when the module is coupled to the body to adjust a temperature of the liquid in the chamber toward the user selected temperature.

15. An actively heated or cooled drinkware container system, comprising:

a body having a chamber configured to receive and hold a liquid, one or more heating or cooling elements disposed in the body and in thermal communication with at least a portion of the chamber, and one or more sensors operable to sense one or more parameters of the liquid in the chamber;

a module removably coupleable to a bottom portion of the body to thereby contact at least a portion of the body, the module comprising one or more power storage elements and configured to provide power from the one or power storage elements to the one or more heating or cooling elements when the body is placed on the module; and

control circuitry operable to control the operation of the one or more heating or cooling elements to control an amount of energy supplied to the liquid in the chamber to maintain or increase the temperature of the liquid to a user selected temperature setpoint.

16. the container of claim 15, further comprising one or more magnets in one or both of the module and the body couple the module and the body, allowing the module and body to be mobile as one unit.

17. The container of claim 16, wherein the one or more magnets include at least one magnet in the body and at least one magnet in the module.

18. The container of claim 15, wherein the body has a distal outer surface having one or more electrical contacts, and the module has one or more electrical contacts on a proximal outer surface of the module configured to provide an electrical connection with the one or more electrical contacts of the body when the body is placed on the module.

19. The container of claim 15, wherein the control circuitry is housed in the module and when the body is attached to the module the one or more sensors are configured to communicate with the control circuitry via one or more electrical contacts in the body and the module, wherein the one or more heating or cooling elements are configured to receive power from the one or more power storage elements via at least one of the one or more electrical contacts in the body and the module, and wherein detaching the body from the module disconnects the control circuitry from the one or more sensors and disconnects the one or more heating or cooling elements from the one or more power storage elements.

20. The container of claim 19, wherein the one or more sensors includes a temperature sensor operable to sense a temperature of the liquid in the chamber.

21. The container of claim 15, wherein the control circuitry is configured to wirelessly receive a user selected temperature from a mobile electronic device, the control circuitry configured to control power delivery to the one or more heating or cooling elements when the module is coupled to the body to adjust a temperature of the liquid in the chamber toward the user selected temperature.