The present invention relates to improvements in drinks carriers. In particular the present invention relates to disposable cardboard drinks carriers for use at live outdoor events.

Numerous disposable drinks carriers have been proposed in the past such as those illustrated in US2010059392A1 and KR101793097B1.

Whilst such carriers are perfectly serviceable they are somewhat wasteful as the entire carrier may be disposed of after a single use thereby limiting the benefits of providing and distributing drinks carriers.

The present invention seeks to improve upon the prior art.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a drinks carrier comprising: a beverage-holder portion having at least one support hole for retaining a drinks container; at least one detachable visor portion that is attached to the beverage-holder portion by least one line of weakness; wherein once the visor portion has been detached from the beverage-holder portion the visor portion is configurable into a wearable sun visor by a user; wherein the drinks carrier in an unused state is substantially planar.

By providing a drinks carrier having at least one detachable visor portion drinks carriers may be employed to distribute sun visors to crowds. Beneficially a sun visor may bear printed promotional indicia that continue to be displayed by a visor portion of the drinks carrier even though the beverage-holder portion has been used and disposed of.

By providing drinks carriers that are substantially planar in an unused state, wherein each is preferably formed from a sheet of cardboard, the carriers may be easily manufactured, and a large number of drinks carriers may be readily transported and stored at hospitality venues. In some embodiments a drinks carrier comprises a plurality of visor portions.

In some embodiments a drinks carrier comprises 2, or 3, or 4 visor portions.

In some embodiments a drinks carrier comprises a first visor portion that tessellates with the beverage-holder portion and a second visor portion that tessellates with the first visor portion.

In some embodiments a drinks carrier comprises a plurality of tessellating visor portions.

In some embodiments a drinks carrier comprises 2, or 3, or 4 tessellating visor portions.

In some embodiments a visor portion comprises a bill from which extends first and second arms that may be attached together such that the arms and bill form a loop that may rest upon a user's head.

In some embodiments a line of weakness is provided by perforations, or is provided by a score, or is provided by a tear strip.

In some embodiments the beverage-holder portion comprises a plurality of support holes for retaining drinks containers.

In some embodiments the drinks carrier comprises 2, or 3, or 4 support holes.

In some embodiments the number of visor portions is equal to the number of support holes.

By providing a number of visor portions that is equal to the number of support holes for drinks containers each person being provided with a beverage may enjoy a visor.

In some embodiments the drinks carrier is formed of cardboard having a weight in the range of 300gsm to 500gsm, or in the range of 350gsm to 450gsm, or in the range of 380gsm to 400gsm.

In some embodiments a drinks carrier in an unused state is substantially planar. In some embodiments at least one support hole comprises a removable insert.

In some embodiments at least one support hole comprises a plurality of peripheral flaps alterable between a substantially planar configuration wherein the flaps at least partially cover the support hole and a configuration wherein the support hole is open to receive a drinks container.

In some embodiments when the beverage holder portion and peripheral flaps are substantially planar the flaps cover at least 50% of the area of the support hole, or at least 60% of the area of the support hole, or at least 70% of the area of the support hole, or at least 80% of the area of the support hole, or at least 90% of the area of the support hole, or at least 95% of the area of the support hole.

In some embodiments the flaps are isosceles trapezoid in shape.

In some embodiments when the beverage holder portion and peripheral flaps are substantially planar the flaps substantially cover the support hole.

In some embodiments the flaps are triangular in shape.

In some embodiments a beverage-holder portion comprises printed indicia.

In some embodiments a visor portion comprises printed indicia.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a drinks carrier comprising a beverage-holder portion having at least one support hole for retaining a drinks container; wherein: the drinks carrier in an unused state is substantially planar; at least one support hole comprises a plurality of peripheral flaps alterable between a substantially planar configuration wherein the flaps at least partially cover the support hole and a configuration wherein the support hole is open to receive a drinks container; the beverage-holder portion comprises printed indicia; when the beverage holder portion and peripheral flaps are substantially planar the flaps cover at least 50% of the area of the support hole.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of advertising comprising the step of providing a drinks carrier as previously described herein, wherein the visor portion comprises printed indicia.

In order that the present invention may be more fully understood a specific embodiment will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings, of which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a drinks carrier made in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a plan view of a drinks carrier made in accordance with the present invention illustrating how a single visor may be detached from a beverage-holder portion;

Figure 3 is a plan view of a drinks carrier made in accordance with the present invention illustrating how two visors may be detached from a beverage-holder portion;

Figure 4 is a plan view of a single visor portion of the drinks carrier of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a perspective view of the visor portion of Figure 4 once configured for use;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the beverage-holder portion of the drinks carrier of Figure

1;

Figure 7 is a perspective view of the beverage-holder portion of Figure 6 illustrating how the portion may be bent for use;

Figure 8 is a perspective view of the beverage-holder portion of Figure 7 holding two beverage containers;

Figure 9 illustrates how a visor portion of a drinks carrier of the present invention may bear printed indicia;

Figure 10 illustrates a plan view of a drinks carrier made in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 11 illustrates a perspective view of the beverage-holder portion of Figure 10 illustrating how the portion may be bent for use; and

Figure 12 illustrates how the beverage-holder portion of Figure 10 may be used as a sign both before and after being used to transport beverages. Turning to a first embodiment of the present invention, drinks carrier 1 comprises a beverage-holder portion 2, first visor portion 3 and second visor portion 4.

Drinks carrier 1 is formed in one piece from a sheet of cardboard and is substantially planar when laid on a flat surface. As drinks carriers 1 are substantially planar, a plurality of unused drinks carriers 1 may be provided in a stack.

Beverage-holder portion 2 is detachable from first visor portion 3 by line of weakness 5 and first visor portion 3 being detachable from second visor portion 4 by line of weakness 6.

In the present embodiment carrier 1 is formed of cardboard of around 390gsm. Lines of weakness 5, 6 are formed of linear perforations of 130mm in length separated by 2mm gaps.

However, it will be apparent that any suitable material and appropriate lines of weakness may be employed.

Line of weakness 5 defines a rear edge of first visor portion 3 and line of weakness 6 defines a front edge of first visor portion 3.

Thus beverage-holder portion 2 tessellates with visor portion 3 and first visor portion 3 tessellates with second visor portion 4.

First and second visor portions 3, 4 are identical in size and shape.

Referring to Figure 4, first visor portion 3 comprises a bill 3c from which extends first arm 3a and second arm 3b. First and second arms 3a, 3b are elongate.

First arm 3a comprises at its free end a hooking portion 3d. Second arm 3b comprises a plurality of spaced-apart apertures 3e arranged a long a length of arm 3b adjacent to its free end.

Apertures 3e are suitable to cooperate with hooking portion 3d such that first arm 3a may be attached to second arm 3b to configure visor portion 3 into a wearable sun visor as illustrated in Figure 5. In this configuration first arm 3a, second arm 3b and bill 3c form a loop that may rest upon a user's head.

A user may choose to connect hooking portion 3d to a particular aperture 3e so as to select a particular size of loop appropriate for the user's head size.

Beverage-holder portion 2 may be used with or without visor portions 3, 4 detached therefrom.

Beverage-holder portion 2 is substantially trapezoidal. In particular beverage-holder portion is substantially in the shape of an isosceles trapezoid, having two substantially parallel sides 2a, 2b and two nonparallel sides 2c, 2d.

Beverage-holder portion 2 has rounded corners and the shorter of its parallel sides 2b is slightly curved so as to tessellate with curved rear edge of bill 3c of first visor portion 3.

Similarly non-parallel sides 2c, 2d of carrier 2 tessellate with first and second arms 3a, 3b of first visor portion 3.

Adjacent side 2a of beverage-holder portion 2 is located first handhold aperture 7a and adjacent side 2b of beverage-holder portion 2b is located second handhold aperture 7b. Side 2a may be folded towards side 2b such that a user may insert their hand through both apertures 2a and 2b so as to hold beverage-holder portion 2 in a carrying configuration. In this configuration tapered drinks vessels 10 may be retained by support holes 8a, 8b.

Substantially centrally disposed between sides 2a and 2b are located support holes 8a, 8b for retaining respective drinks containers. In the present embodiments holes 8a, 8b have substantially circular inserts 9a, 9b that are removable by a user prior to use of beverage- holder portion 2a, but in other embodiments a carrier 1 may be provided without such inserts.

Beverage-holder portion 2 may have indicia, such an advertising message or a sports team name printed thereon. With inserts 9a, 9b not detached from beverage-holder portion 2 a user may in some instances deploy beverage-holder portion 2 as a placard. A visor portion may also have indicia printed thereon; an example of a visor portion 11 bearing indicia 12 is illustrated in Figure 9.

Turning to Figures 10 to 12 and a second embodiment of the present invention, drinks carrier 13 is substantially identical to drinks carrier 1, comprising a beverage holder portion 16 and two visor portions 17.

Flowever, that instead of comprising detachable inserts 9a, 9b, carrier 13 comprises a plurality of flaps 14 arranged around the periphery of each of support holes 15a, 15b.

In the present embodiment flaps 14 are each in the shape of an isosceles trapezoid such that at the centre of support holes 15a, 15b a small aperture is defined. The provision of a small aperture at the centre of support holes 15a, 15b beneficially inhibits damage to the flaps when the flaps are first folded.

Flaps 14 extend across approximately 40% of the diameter of support holes 15a, 15b such that when beverage holder portion 16 and peripheral flaps 14 are substantially planar flaps 14 cover approximately 95% of the area of the support hole.

The provision of flaps 14 instead of removable inserts is beneficial as with flaps 14 bent into the configuration illustrated in Figure 11 such that flaps 14 are angled to support holes 15a, 15b, and a user may use beverage holder portion 16 to transport drinks containers.

The user may then reposition flaps 14 in the same plane as the rest of beverage holder portion 16 such that support holes 15a, 15b are covered and beverage holder portion 16 forms a placard that may bear readable indica that is not spoiled by support holes 15a, 15b being visible.

A user may therefore purchase drinks from a bar, transport beverages to their seat, and then reconfigure beverage holder portion 16 to be a readable placard. A single carrier may be used multiple times in this fashion. Whilst in the present embodiment beverage holder portion 16 bears the word 'goal' for use as a supportive placard in other embodiments other indicia might be provided. For example, a carrier may bear written or pictorial information, one or more maps, a programme of events, or other indicia.

In some embodiments the beverage holder portion 16 may be provided to users without any visor portions attached thereto. Such embodiments may be suited to particular climates, times of year and/or indoor venues.

In this specification an apparatus/method/product "comprising" certain features is intended to be interpreted as meaning that it includes those features, but that it does not exclude the presence of other features.

Many variations are possible without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined in the appended claims.