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(11) | EP 1 371 309 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Method for detachably fastening a snack to a glass |
| (57) The invention relates to a method for serving a beverage and a snack, in which use
is made of a fastening means (2), by means of which the snack (1) is detachably fastened
to a glass (3), a cup, a mug or the like, in such a way that the beverage and the
snack can be served together without everything having to be placed on a serving tray.
The fastening means (2) is formed by a flexible plate (4) with a bottom part provided
for fastening to the snack (1), and with a top part in which at least one lip (5)
that can be pushed resiliently out of the face of the plate is cut, by means of which
lip the plate (4) can be hooked onto the rim of the glass (3). Such a plate (4) can
be made easily with little material, in such a way that the fastening means is suitable
for disposable use. |
[0001] The present invention relates to a method for serving a beverage in a beverage container, such as a glass, a cup, a mug or the like, and a snack.
[0002] For serving a beverage and a snack to go with it, such as a biscuit, a piece of chocolate, nuts and the like, an individual serving tray is generally used in practice, the beverage and the snack being placed on the tray and this then being served as one unit. If several persons have to be served at the same time, the waiter usually places the individual trays on a larger serving tray, so that he can take everything to the table in one go. A disadvantage of such a way of working is that an individual serving tray has to be used in each case, which is not only time-consuming, but also involves additional washing-up.
[0003] US-A-5,960,973 discloses a carrier in the form of a strap, which can be fastened around a beverage holder, and in which a clip system in which a snack can be retained is formed. The strap and the clip system are made of plastic, and more particularly cast in a mould. Since the snack must be retained sufficiently firmly in the clip system, the strap must be of a sufficiently thick design. Owing to the relatively large quantity of material that is needed for manufacturing such a carrier and the relatively high production costs, this known fastening means is not suitable for disposable use, and would therefore always have to be washed up after each use. Besides, the fastening of this fastening means around a glass is too time-consuming and would sometimes not even be possible, for example in the case of bowl-shaped or tapering glasses, since the strap would then slip off the glass in each case. In practice, however, snacks are often given with special beers, which are generally poured into bowl-shaped glasses or into glasses with a flared opening.
[0004] The object of the invention is therefore to provide a method for serving a beverage and a snack by means of which it is possible to serve the snack at the same time as the beverage, without having to use a serving tray in each case, by fastening the snack to the beverage container with a fastening means that can be manufactured more cheaply, in particular because of the fact that less material and no casting processes are required for its manufacture, and which fastening means can also be fastened quickly and simply to a glass.
[0005] To this end, the method according to the invention is characterized in that the snack is hooked detachably onto the rim of the beverage container with the aid of a fastening means, and the beverage and snack are served in this way as one unit, the fastening means used being a flexible plate with a bottom part that is attached to the snack and with a top part in which at least one lip that can be pushed resiliently out of the face of the plate is cut, by means of which lip the plate - and the snack attached to it - is hooked onto the rim of the beverage container.
[0006] Since the snack is suspended from the beverage container, the beverage and the snack can be served as one unit, and a separate serving tray is therefore not required in each case.
[0007] Owing to the fact that the fastening means is formed by a flexible plate in which a lip is cut, said fastening means is easy and cheap to produce. The fastening means does not have to be further fastened around the glass, but can be hooked quickly and easily onto the rim of the glass. The fact that the lip merely has to hang over the rim of the glass, but does not have to clamp said rim means that the thickness of the plate can be limited greatly relative to the thickness of the fastening means according to US-A-5,960,973.
[0008] In a preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, use is made of a flexible plate made of a plastic sheet that is sufficiently rigid for the snack to be suspended with this plate from the rim of the glass. The plate, in this embodiment the sheet, can in particular be of a thickness that is less than 1 mm, particularly less than 0.5 mm, and more particularly less than 0.2 mm.
[0009] The snack can be fastened to the fastening means in all kinds of ways. It is, for example, possible to staple the pack of the snack to the fastening means. In a preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, a self-adhesive zone is, however, provided on the bottom part of the plate, in order to stick the fastening means on the snack. The fastening means can easily be stuck on the pack of the snack by removing the cover sheet that has been applied to this self-adhesive zone, without there being a need for any aid such as a stapler.
[0010] Further advantages and details of the invention will emerge from the description that follows of a preferred embodiment of a method for serving a beverage and a snack according to the invention, and in particular of the fastening means used in the process. This description is, however, given only as an example and is not intended to limit the scope of protection, as determined by the claims. The reference numerals specified in the description relate to the appended drawings, in which:
Figure 1 shows a front view of a fastening means according to a preferred embodiment of the invention;
Figures 2 to 4 show front views of variant embodiments of the fastening means shown in Figure 1;
Figure 5 shows a perspective view around a glass on which a snack has been hooked by means of a fastening means according to Figure 1.
[0011] In the method for serving a beverage and a snack according to the invention, use is generally made of a fastening means for detachably fastening or hooking the snack onto a beverage container, in particular onto a glass, a cup, a mug or the like. The snack can be, for example, one or more biscuits, pieces of chocolate, chocolates, nuts, and so on. For hygienic reasons, the snacks are preferably packed in individual portions.
[0012] Figure 5 shows a general perspective view of a packed biscuit 1, which is hooked as a snack onto a bowl-shaped beer glass 3 by means of the fastening means 2 shown in Figure 1. The fastening means 2 is formed by a flexible plate 4, which in the suspended state has a bottom part for fastening to the snack 1 and a top part in which a lip 5 that can be pushed resiliently out of the face of the plate 4 is cut. As can be seen from Figure 5, the plate with this lip 5 can be simply hooked onto the rim of the glass 3.
[0013] In order to fasten the snack 1, more particularly its pack, on the bottom part of the plate 4, said bottom part is provided with a self-adhesive zone 6, by means of which the plate 4 can be stuck on the snack after the removal of the pull-off cover layer 7 from this zone. Instead of providing such a self-adhesive zone, the use of other means for fastening the plate around the snack could also be considered if desired, for example staples. As an alternative, the bottom part of the plate 4 could also be shaped to the form of a bag in which the snacks, such as, for example, loose nuts, could be placed. In practice, however, a self-adhesive zone has been found to be the most practical.
[0014] As can be seen from Figures 1 to 4, the lip 5 cut out in the plate can be of various shapes, in particular a U, a V or a trapezium shape. The lip 5 is preferably formed without cutting material away from the plate 4, in such a way that no material is wasted. The plate 4 itself can be of all kinds of shapes, but is preferably rectangular, triangular or trapezium-shaped, in such a way that it can easily be cut out of a larger plate without losses of material. The plate 4 can in particular also be, for example, the shape of a heart, a beer glass or even of a head.
[0015] The lip 5 can be cut out at one edge of the plate 4. In the preferred embodiments shown in the figures, the lip 5 is, however, situated fully within the plate 4 or, in other words, has all sides at a distance from the outside edge of the plate, in such a way that a clip is formed, so that the lip 5 is held more firmly on the rim of the glass. In this case the lip 5 is formed by a circumferential incision 8, extending around the lip from a first point 9 situated at the top of a first side 11 of the lip 5 to a second point 10 situated at the top of a second side 12 of the lip, situated opposite said first side 11.
[0016] The incision 8 preferably runs from the first point 9 and the second point 10 with a part 13 and 14 further into the plate 4, in a direction away from the lip 5, more specifically in a direction formed substantially by a line I going through the first and the second point. In this way, it is not only easier to push the lip 5 out of the face of the plate 4, but also in particular it is advantageous that when the top part of the lip 5 is hooking behind the rim of the glass 3 it can move backwards in such a way that the rim of the glass can extend between the lip 5 and the remaining part of the plate 4 without the lip having to fold excessively backwards. An important advantage of this is that in this way the plate can bear a greater weight without the lip overturning completely, since together with the lip, the parts 13 and 14 of the incision in this way form a double hook structure.
[0017] In order to ensure that the rim of the glass can fit even more snugly against the top parts 13 and 14 of the incision 8, after these parts 13 and 14 said incision preferably runs yet further into a contiguous further part 15, 16, which in the suspended state of the plate 4 again extends downwards. The fact is that these further incision parts 15 and 16 ensure that the face of the plate 4 can more easily be pressed outwards by the rim of the glass.
[0018] The fastening means described above can be cut or punched easily and cheaply out of a plastic sheet. Said plastic sheet need only be sufficiently rigid to permit the snack with the lip 5 made of said sheet to be suspended from the rim of the glass 3. The sheet is preferably transparent, in such a way that the fastening means is not or is barely noticeable when it is suspended from a glass. On the other hand, it is also possible to make the plate of a non-transparent sheet and apply text, drawings, photographs, figures, advertising and the like to it in all kinds of colours. The thickness of the sheet can be limited to a thickness of less than 1 mm, in particular less than 0.5 mm, and more particularly to a thickness of less than 0.2 mm. Tests have shown, for example, that with a fastening means formed according to the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 5 and made of a rigid polyethylene sheet of 100 ยต snacks up to a weight of approximately 60 grammes and more can be suspended from the rim of a glass. The tested fastening means had a height of 30 mm and a width of 25 mm, while the lip had a height of approximately 13 mm and a width of 7 mm. The horizontal parts 13 and 14 of the incision 8 also had a length of approximately 3 mm. Xonad (brand name of Avery Dennison) adhesive was used for providing the self-adhesive zone on the plate, in a zone with a height of approximately 10 mm. The weight that can be carried by the fastening means is, of course, dependent upon the thickness of the lip and also of the material from which the fastening means is made.
[0019] It will be clear from the description given above of a number of embodiments of the method and of the fastening means used for it according to the invention that all kinds of modifications can be made to them without going beyond the scope of the invention as determined by the appended claims.
1. Method for serving a beverage in a beverage container, such as a glass, a cup, a mug
or the like, and a snack, characterized in that the snack is hooked detachably onto the rim of the beverage container with the aid
of a fastening means, and the beverage and snack are served in this way as one unit,
the fastening means used being a flexible plate with a bottom part that is attached
to the snack and with a top part in which at least one lip that can be pushed resiliently
out of the face of the plate is cut, by means of which lip the plate - and the snack
attached to it - is hooked onto the rim of the beverage container.
2. Method according to Claim 1, characterized in that use is made of a flexible plate in which said lip is situated fully within the plate,
in order to form a clip.
3. Method according to Claim 2, characterized in that use is made of a flexible plate in which said lip is formed by a circumferential
incision, extending around the lip from a first point situated at the top of a first
side of the lip to a second point situated at the top of a second side of the lip,
situated opposite said first side.
4. Method according to Claim 3, characterized in that use is made of a flexible plate in which said incision runs from said first point
and said second point with a part further into the plate, in a direction away from
the lip, more specifically in a direction formed substantially by a line going through
said first and said second point.
5. Method according to Claim 4, characterized in that use is made of a flexible plate in which said incision runs yet further into a contiguous
further part, which in the suspended state of the plate again extends downwards.
6. Method according to one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that use is made of a flexible plate made of a plastic sheet that is sufficiently rigid
for the snack to be suspended with this plate from the rim of the glass.
7. Method according to Claim 6, characterized in that said plastic sheet is a transparent sheet.
8. Method according to one of Claims 1 to 7, characterized in that use is made of a flexible plate that is of a thickness that is less than 1 mm, in
particular less than 0.5 mm, and more particularly less than 0.2 mm.
9. Method according to one of Claims 1 to 8, characterized in that use is made of a flexible plate on which a self-adhesive zone is provided on the
bottom part, by means of which self-adhesive zone the fastening means is stuck on
the snack.
10. Method according to one of Claims 1 to 9, characterized in that said snack is packed in individual portions.