FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention is in the field of baby feeding containers having means for preventing vacuum buildup inside the container during the baby feeding process.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Solutions for overcoming the problem of vacuum buildup in baby feeding bottles during the baby feeding process have been suggested based on balloon like containers made of elastomeric materials (see WO2006129302) . In containers of that type there is no vacuum buildup and hence no air flow into the container during baby feeding. The feeding process is thus more comfortable, and the baby need not struggle with a vacuumed container and does not suck air from the container.

People are more familiar, however, with baby feeding containers that do not alter shape or size during the feeding process, i.e. with baby feeding bottles made of rigid materials. A solution for the vacuum buildup problem that will allow the use of baby feeding bottles made of rigid materials and yet prevent both vacuum buildup and air entering the bottle while its content is being consumed is thus required. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In a first broad aspect the invention relates to a baby feeding device comprising (i) a nipple for baby nursing in liquid communication with (ii) a liquid receiving cavity formed in a rigid body and having a predetermined maximal capacity; (iii) a piston movable along the cavity thereby allowing to determine a temporal liquid capacity smaller than said predetermined maximal capacity, in a cavity portion delimited between the piston and the nipple; (iv) a stressing mechanism coupled to the piston and to said body for maintaining a force on the piston tending to move it about the body in a direction so as to decrease the temporal liquid capacity; wherein the nipple is closed by a valve adapted to prevent spontaneous outflow of liquid under pressure of the stressing mechanism and to allow outflow of liquid under the natural nursing actions of a baby, and wherein during a baby nursing use of the device said piston is movable from a position in which the temporal liquid capacity of the cavity between the piston and the nipple is maximal to a position in which the temporal liquid capacity is minimal, under a force exerted by said stressing mechanism, and wherein said movement is limited by the body of liquid contained in the cavity such that when the volume of the contained liquid is similar to the temporal volume of the cavity as determined by a current position of the piston, further movement of the piston is blocked by the body of contained liquid and a certain portion of the force exerted by the stressing mechanism is exerted through the piston on the contained liquid, thereby increasing the pressure of the contained liquid and hence the pressure by which the contained liquid exerts on the valve .

Due to the increased pressure maintained on the nursing liquid by the stressing mechanism according to the invention, outflow of the contained liquid from the nipple into the baby's mouth upon nursing maneuvering of the baby's mouth and gums is gained and due to the fact that the temporal capacity of the cavity between the piston and the nipple is equal to the amount of contained liquid, said invented feeding device prevents vacuum buildup inside the cavity. The result of both, the increased pressure under which the outflow occurs upon baby's nursing maneuvering and the absence of vacuum buildup (and hence of air accumulation inside the cavity) is a smoother and easier baby feeding process in comparison with feeding by other baby feeding devices formed of rigid containers.

The valve can be of any design that prevents spontaneous outflow of liquid under pressure of the stressing mechanism and allows for outflow of liquid under the natural nursing actions of a baby, e.g. a tight X shaped slit formed at the top of a nipple made of a silicone rubber of sufficient thickness and stiffness so as not to deform under the pressure exerted by the stressing mechanism, and yet to deform and hence allow an outflow to occur when a baby's nursing maneuvering cooperates with said pressure to allow pressurized outflow through the temporarily deformed nipple, or e.g. a valve selected from the valve embodiments described by WO2006129302 and by WO2014102789. In a second broad aspect the invention relates to a nipple for baby nursing, especially useful in a baby feeding device of the type characterized in accordance with said first broad aspect. The invented nipple comprises (i) a nipple base part having a bottom surface intended to contact the body of nursing liquid contained in the baby feeding device and a top surface intended to face the baby' s mouth during the nursing process, a tube like extension extending outwardly from said top surface so as to allow a baby to adhere his/her lips around the outer wall of the extension and to suck fluids from an inner hollow space of the extension, a valve comprising an oppositely oriented tapering extension extending from a wide end thereof stemming from said bottom surface to a tip end thereof having a normally closed through slit that when temporarily distorted allows for fluid communication between a bottom side of the base part and between the inner hollow space of the tube like extension, the nipple is characterized by a pair of ribs extending on said bottom surface in opposite directions from the tapering extension such that when the tapering extension tends to deform due to a partial vacuum formed in said inner hollow space (as occur when a baby is sucking the tube like extension) , the ribs contribute to stabilize the tapering extension from being deformed in a direction parallel to a length of the ribs such that it becomes more deformed in a direction traverse to the length of the ribs, thereby distorting the slit and allowing for liquid communication from the bottom side of the base part to the tube like extension. Once in use in the baby feeding device according to the first broad aspect of the invention, and due to the opposite orientation of the tapering extension (differently from conventional bottle feeding devices in which the slits that aim to normally close the nipple are located in the tip of a nipple that is tapering towards the baby' s mouth) , the excess liquid pressure exerted by the stressing mechanism is pressing on the tapering extension in a direction that tightens the slit close thus contributing in keeping the through slit of the valve normally closed.

The stressing mechanism can be a spring, a pneumatic actuator, an electrical motor, or any other mechanical and/or electrical device that can be coupled between the body and the piston for pushing the piston through the cavity along a longitudinal axis of the cavity.

In various embodiments of the invention a surface of the piston which is in contact with the contained liquid (hereinafter the frontal surface of the piston) is circular, and hence cavity is cylindrical in shape (i.e. having a circular cross section everywhere along its longitudinal axis) . In various other embodiments of the invention the frontal surface of the piston is not circular and therefore the cavity is not of a circular cross section. This can be useful for preventing rotation of the piston in embodiments of the invention in which the stressing mechanism is a helical spring or a revolving electrical motor, that require respective rotation between a rotating axis thereof and between the piston for making the piston move along the cavity.

Since the revolution direction of electrical DC motors can easily be switched by inverting the polarity of the DC supplied to the motor, the same motor that is used as a stressing mechanism can be utilized also for filling the invented device with a liquid content. This can be achieved by immersing the nipple in the source of the baby feeding liquid when the piston in its closest approach to the nipple, then turning the electrical motor on for withdrawing the piston apart from the nipple. Due to a sub atmospheric pressure produced by withdrawal of the piston through the cavity, liquid will be loaded through the nipple into the cavity until the piston halts .

In embodiments of the invention in which the stressing mechanism is pneumatic or spring based, the liquid content can be filled into the cavity by retracting the stressing mechanism by human force. Human force can be coupled to a spring for retraction through an appropriately designed actuator, e.g. a string (or e.g. a rotatable butterfly shaped handle) coupled to the spring, of the type used for setting up spring loaded toys, spring clocks and the like. Alternatively, the device may comprise a decompressing mechanism for releasing the pressure of the spring from the piston thereby allowing to fill liquid into the liquid receiving cavity without being actively pressed by the piston.

In various preferred embodiments of the invention, the decompressing mechanism comprises a spring support connectible to the rigid body by a threading connection. The spring support may constitute a bottom cover of the device, to be removed during the liquid feeling process, then coupled back with the user' s human force compressing the spring back against the piston. In various embodiments of the invention the decompressing mechanism may allow the user also for manually adjusting the force by which the spring pushes the piston during a baby feeding process. This can be achieved by a mutual threading between the decompressing mechanism and a main body of the device, allowing to vary the distance between the piston and the spring support upon respective rotation between the body of the device and the spring support .

The stressing mechanism, either pneumatic, mechanical, or electromechanical, can be concealed inside the body in which the cavity is formed, between the piston and a bottom end of said body, opposite to and remotely from the cavity end with which the nipple is in liquid communication .

It can be appreciated that due to the increased pressure of the contained nursing liquid produced by the stressing mechanism according to the invention, a nipple of appropriate leak prevention attributes must be used in order to avoid spontaneous outflow under the internal liquid pressure, i.e. to prevent leaking whenever the nursed baby does not actively suck and/or does not exert pressure on the nipple. Accordingly, in various preferred embodiments of the invention the nipple comprises a unidirectional valve oppositely oriented in the nipple as described in WO2014102789 (the entire document is herewith incorporated by reference) for preventing spontaneous outflow from the cavity through the nipple due to increase in the pressure of the liquid content under the force of the stressing mechanism. The nipple is designed to allow outflow of liquid only under the influence of mouth and gum maneuvering of a baby upon feeding .

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention will be further explained by the accompanying Figures. With specific reference now to the figures in detail, it is stressed that the particulars shown are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of one or more preferred embodiments of the present invention, and are presented in the cause of providing what believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of the principles and conceptual aspects of the invention. In this regard, no attempt is made to show in the figures structural details of the invention in more detail than necessary for understanding the basics of the invention, the description taken with the drawings making apparent to those skilled in the art how several forms of the invention may be embodied in practice.

Brief Description of the Figures:

Fig. 1 illustrates a baby feeding device according to an embodiment of the invention comprising a spring as a stressing mechanism.

Fig. 1A illustrates a an alternative embodiment of a baby feeding device according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 illustrates some members of a baby feeding device according to an embodiment of the invention comprising an electrical motor as a stressing mechanism, in a position of maximal liquid capacity.

Fig. 2A illustrates the members of the device illustrated in Fig. 2, in a position of minimal liquid capacity.

Fig. 3 illustrates from a top view a preferred embodiment of nipple with oppositely oriented valve according to the second broad aspect of the invention.

Fig. 3A illustrates from a bottom view the same nipple embodiment of Fig. 3.

Fig. 3B illustrate a cross sectional view of the nipple of Fig. 1, sectioned through the side ribs. Fig . 3C illustrates a cross sectional view of the nipple of Fig. 1, sectioned perpendicularly to the section illustrated in Fig. 3B

Fig . 3D illustrates a cross sectional view of the nipple of Fig. 1, placed within a conventionally dome shaped sheath .

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

It will be evident to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing illustrative embodiment and that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof. The present embodiment is therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

Fig . 1 illustrates a baby feeding device 1 according to an embodiment of the invention comprising a spring 8 as a stressing mechanism. The device comprises (i) a nipple 6 In liquid communication with (ii) a liquid receiving caviLy 3 formed in a rigid body 2 and having a predeLermined maximal capacity; (iii) a piston 4 movable along the cavity 3 thereby allowing to determine a temporal liquid capacity smaller than said predetermined maximal capacity, in a cavity portion delimited between the piston 4 and the nipple 6 ; (iv) a stressing mechanism 8 coupled between the piston 4 and said body 2 for maintaining a force on the piston tending to move it in a direction so as to decrease the temporal liquid capacity; wherein during a baby nursing use of the device said piston is movable from a position in which the temporal liquid capacity of the cavity between the piston and the nipple is maximal to a position in which the temporal liquid capacity is minimal, under a force exerted by said stressing mechanism, and wherein said movement is limited by the volume of liquid 5 contained in the cavity such that when the volume of the contained liquid is similar to the temporal volume of the cavity as determined by a current position of the piston 4, further movement of the piston is blocked by the contained liquid 5 and a certain portion of the force exerted by the stressing mechanism 8 is exerted through the piston 4 on the contained liquid 5, thereby increasing the pressure of the contained liquid and hence the pressure by which the contained liquid exerts on the nipple 6.

The nipple 6 is mounted to the body 2 of the device through a threaded cap 7 connected to a matching threading formed in the bottleneck 2a of the body. The spring 8 which constitutes the stressing mechanism in the illustrated embodiment, is coupled to the piston 4 simply by the stress of the spring itself and preferably also by any acceptable connective means such as a snap connection or a snug fitting onto a protrusion 4b formed at the bottom portion of the piston 4. An opposite end of the spring 8 is coupled to a bottom end 2b of the body, simply by the stress of the spring, and preferably also by any acceptable connective means.

The liquid content 5 can be filled into the cavity by retracting the spring 8 by a human force. In the illustrated embodiment human force can be coupled to the spring for retraction through the string 10 which is connected to a protrusion 4b and thereby coupled to the top end of the spring 8. A ring 10a for ease of gripping and pulling the spring, is connected to the end of the string which extends outside the device 1 through aperture 11 formed in a bottom end 2b of the body 2.

The spring 8 is concealed inside the body 2 in which the cavity 3 is formed, outreach of the baby, between the piston 4 and a bottom end of said body, opposite to and remotely from the cavity end with which the nipple is in liquid communication. The body 2 and its bottom end 2b are preferably separable (e.g. by mutual threading connection) , in order to allow removal of the piston and of the stressing mechanism from the body, for cleaning and for service purposes. In embodiments of the invention in which the bottom end 2b of the body can be removed, there is no need in a separate retracting mechanism for the elimination of the spring stress on the piston 4 when filling the liquid. The user can simply remove the bottom end 2b for eliminating the resistance of the spring during the liquid filling process, thus making use of the bottom cover 2b as a decompression mechanism for releasing the pressure of the spring from the piston. Once the device is fully filled (in which case the piston 4 is in its lowermost position within the cavity 3) the user can compress the spring into its active state by bringing the bottom end 2b closer to the lower edge of the body 2, and in turn securing it back to its position on the body 2 by threading.

In the illustrated embodiment the nipple 6 comprises a unidirectional valve 6a oppositely oriented in the nipple as described in WO2014102789 for preventing spontaneous outflow of the liquid 5 from the cavity through the nipple due to increase in the pressure of the liquid content under the force of the spring 8. The nipple 6 is designed to allow outflow of the liquid content 5 only under the influence of mouth and gum maneuvering of a baby upon feeding.

Fig. 1A Illustrates an alternative embodiment of a baby feeding device 1A according to the present invention, differing from the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 1 by further comprising a mechanism for manually adjusting the pressure of the liquid contained in the device. The mechanism allows to vary within a predetermined extent the force by which the spring 8a pushes against the piston 40 during a baby feeding process. Differently from the embodiment illustrated by Fig. 1, in the embodiment of Fig. 1A the bottom 20b of the cavity 3 is manually movable a predetermined distance with respect to the piston 40, no matter what is the temporal position of the piston 40 within the cavity 3. In the illustrated embodiment this movement is enabled by a mutual threading connection 22d and 22c between the body 20 of the device and between a cup like member 20c the bottom of which 20b constitutes the bottom of the cavity 3. The cup like member 20c accommodates a variable portion of the lower end of the rigid body 20 of the device. By rotating the cup like member 20c clockwise or counterclockwise about the body 20, a user can make the bottom 20b of the cup like member move closer to or apart from the piston 40, thereby providing the spring 8a with less or with more space, respectively, i.e. compressing or decompressing it, respectively, thereby increasing or decreasing the force by which it pushes the piston 40 and thus controlling the intensity of the outflow of liquid from the device during the baby feeding process. The height of the cup in proportion to the height of the device is a matter of design and can be predetermined according to the desired degree of control on the force by which the spring 8a pushes against the piston 40. The rigid body 20 has an opening 21a at its bottom, through which the spring 8a extends between the bottom 20b and a bottom protrusion 40b of the piston 40. Around the opening 21a there is a rim 21 for preventing escape of the piston 40 through the opening 21a when filling liquid into the device .

Furthermore, the cup like member 20c can be completely removed from the device by rotating it in the appropriate direction. Once removed, the spring 8a no more pushes against the piston 40 thereby easing the filling of the device with the nursing liquid. Once the device is filled the cup like member 20c can be returned by the user by rotation in the closing direction, while recompressing the spring 8a to exert a desired force on the piston.

Fig. 1A further illustrates an alternative embodiment of the spring 8 of Fig. 1, in which a tapering spring 8a is provided, having the advantage of more compactly arranged in its fully pressed state (not illustrated) by allowing all its spring windings rest on the same plane, one inside another, thereby allowing to minimize the volume of the cavity 3 to be dedicated for concealing the mechanism . Fig. 2 illustrates a baby feeding device according to an embodiment of the invention comprising an electrical motor

108 as a stressing mechanism. Only the parts of the device that differ from those illustrated in Figs. 1 and 1A are shown. A bottom end 102b of the body 2 is shown, to which an electrical motor 108 is connected. The motor is powered by batteries 120 located in an appropriate compartment inside the body of the bottom cover 102b. A three state switching and controlling unit 121 allows to turn the motor on in clockwise or counterclockwise rotation direction, depending on whether the piston 104 is intended to push upwards (during baby feeding operation) or downwards (during liquid filling operation) . The switching and controlling unit 121 is provided also with sensing and controlling means for turning the motor ON and OFF during operation, depending on the load acting on the motor, such that when the piston pushes the liquid content 5 towards the nipple and momentarily no outflow occurs, the motor automatically turns OFF (and alternatively the current through the motor is reduced to a predetermined minimal value) . The motor is automatically switched ON every now and then in order to maintain a pressure on the liquid, and continues to operate whenever the liquid pressure is reduced due to outflow through the nipple.

The motor 108 is coupled to the piston 104 through a series of threaded cups 130e — 130d that move apart upon motor rotation in one direction and come closer upon its rotation to the opposite direction. Fig. 2A illustrates the state of the threaded cups when the piston 104 is fully pushed up (i.e. when the liquid capacity of the cavity is nearly zero) .

As shown in the Figs., the bottom part of the piston 104 is utilized as a threaded cup as well and is circular in shape so as to allow rotation of the next threaded cup 130a inside it. The piston's outer contour is not of a circular shape, however, and is matching a noncircular cross section of the cavity 3, thus cannot rotate inside the cavity upon rotation of the motor. The motor 108 is provided with a first threaded cup 130e rigidly connected to and rotating with the motor's axis. Since cup 130e rotates upon rotation of the motor's axis, and since the piston cannot rotate inside the cavity, relative rotation occurs between the other threaded cups and between the piston, and consequently the piston moves up or down depending of the motor's rotation direction.

The number and sizes of the threaded cups can be adapted to the dimensions and liquid capacity of the device, and the threading may be provided on flanges (not illustrated) so as to inhibit the cups from fully departing one from another, as a matter of design.

Figs 3A and 3B illustrate from a top view and from a bottom view, respectively, a preferred embodiment of nipple with oppositely oriented valve according to the second broad aspect of the invention. The nipple is especially useful in a baby feeding device of the type characterized in accordance with the first broad aspect of the present invention. The nipple 30 comprises (i) a nipple base part 31 having a bottom surface 31b intended to contact the body of nursing liquid contained in the baby feeding device and a top surface 31t intended to face the baby's mouth during the nursing process. A tubular extension 32 extends outwardly from said top surface 31t so as to allow a baby to adhere his/her lips around the outer wall of the tubular extension 32 and to suck fluids from an inner hollow space 33 of the extension. In various embodiments of the invention the tubular extension 32 is placed within a conventionally shaped nipple part sheath 38 constituting an outer wall of the nipple 30 (see Fig. 3D) and having a dome end with aperture/s 38a for releasing the liquid into the baby's mouth from the central area of the dome end. The nipple has a valve made of an oppositely oriented tapering extension 36 extending from a wide end thereof 36a stemming from said bottom surface 31b to a tip end thereof (see 36t in Figs 3B and 3C) having a normally closed through slit 36s that when temporarily distorted allows for fluid communication between a bottom side 31b of the base part 31 and between the inner hollow space 33 of the tube like extension, the nipple 30 is characterized by a pair of ribs 35a 35b extending on said bottom surface 31b in opposite directions from the tapering extension 36 such that when the tapering extension 36 tends to deform due to a partial vacuum formed in said inner hollow space 33 (as occur when a baby is sucking the tube like extension) , the ribs 35a 35b contribute to stabilize the tapering extension 36 from being deformed in a direction parallel to a length of the ribs 35a 35b such that it becomes more deformed in a direction transversely to the length of the ribs 35a 35b, thereby distorting the slit 36s and allowing for liquid communication from the bottom side 31b of the base part 31, to the inner space of the tube like extension 32. Once in use in the baby feeding device 1 according to the first broad aspect of the invention, and due to the opposite orientation of the tapering extension 36 (differently from conventional bottle feeding devices in which the slit/s that aim to normally close the nipple are located in the tip of a nipple that is tapering towards the baby' s mouth) , the excess liquid pressure exerted by the stressing mechanism 8 (or 108, depending on the actual device's embodiment) is pressing on the tapering extension 36 in a direction that tightens the slit close, thus contributing in keeping the through slit 36s of the valve normally closed.

Fig. 3B illustrate a cross sectional view of the nipple of Fig. 1, sectioned through the side ribs 35a 35b. The pair of ribs 35a 35b extend on the bottom of the base part 31, one to the left and the other to the right of the tapering extension 36. A through slit 36s is formed in the narrower end of the tapering extension 36, and merges with the inner hollow space of the tapering extension 36 which constitutes a tapering extension of the hollow space 33 of the tubular extension 32. The slit forms a normally closed valve, and the ribs 35a 35b stabilizes its contour in the plane of the illustrated cross section, such that when the tapering extension becomes deformed due to a partial vacuum or due to mechanical stress resulting from a baby' s nursing maneuvering, the slit is more deformed in the direction perpendicular to the cross section plane than in the direction parallel to that plane, thereby providing for a temporal fluid communication between the contained liquid, the hollow 33 of the tubular extension 32, and the baby' s mouth that sucks from the tubular extension 32.

As can be seen in Fig. 3C, the inner facing surfaces of the slit 36S are normally in touch, stressed together under the pressure exerted on the outer walls of the tapering extension 36 by the liquid contained in the cavity 5 of the baby feeding device 1, which is pressurized by the pressing mechanism (either 8 or 108) . When the wall 36 is temporarily deformed due to the sucking and mouth maneuvering of a baby, the inner faces of the slit 36s become distorted, slightly spread apart and allow the contained liquid to escape through the slit into the nipple's inner space 33 and into the baby's mouth .

Fig. 3D illustrates a cross sectional view of the nipple 30 of Fig. 1, placed within a conventionally dome shaped sheath 38 exemplified by a dotted line.