Ballasted, neutrally bouyant floating beverage-container holder which provides floatation, insulation and stability to a beverage container in water

Abstract

A floatable device capable of supporting a beverage container in an upright position near a person who is floating in the water or engaged in other water activities. The center of gravity of the beverage-container holder remains relatively the same regardless of the weight of the drink, and to have the entire unit remain upright in turbulent water. Using a tether, the device is maintained in appropriate proximity to the person while the person is engaged in activities in a body of water. It is a further object to provide utility to swimmers, floaters, boaters, kayakers, fisherman and hunters in pools, lakes, rivers, oceans, spas, and other bodies of water. A collapsible beverage-container receptacle allows for easy storage and transformation of the receptacle for beverage-containers of varying sizes.

1 . A ballasted, neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder comprising:
 a beverage-container holder receptacle body including a floor with elevated ridges and a receptacle side wall having a top edge and a bottom edge and defining a substantially inverted, truncated surface which is centered to accommodate most commonly available beverage containers while also providing an insulating barrier between the water and beverage container;   a permanently affixed ballast chamber positioned below the receptacle floor, wherein the ballast chamber contains sufficiently dense material to serve as a ballast to provide stability by ensuring the center of gravity is always below the water line, with or without a beverage container in the receptacle so that it remains upright in the water;   a floatation member retained to said receptacle body, with said floating member having a sufficient vertical height, being buoyant in water to provide stability for the neutrally buoyant receptacle body and ballast chamber, the flotation member providing sufficient buoyancy to cause receptacle and ballast chamber to float in water when said receptacle contains a full beverage container;   said receptacle side wall comprised of a plurality of collapsible sections, thereby allowing said receptacle to transition between a first, fully extended orientation, a second, partially extended orientation, and a third, collapsed orientation wherein said receptacle side wall is fully contained within a space between a top edge and a bottom edge of said flotation member; and   a tether of a length attached to the receptacle which will keep the beverage-container holder within a desired area of a body of water.   
     
     
         2 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said bottom wall of the ballast chamber provides a water-tight closure. 
     
     
         3 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1  wherein said receptacle floor is designed with elevated ridges to prevent a vacuum seal from being formed between the beverage container and the receptacle floor. 
     
     
         4 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said permanently affixed ballast chamber contains dense material that is completely enclosed within the ballast chamber to offset buoyancy and provide stability. 
     
     
         5 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said floatation member is retained on said receptacle body by compression friction between the floatation member and receptacle body and is vertically restricted by a perpendicularly protruding flange. 
     
     
         6 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 5 , wherein said perpendicularly protruding flange also contains a plurality of perforations to attach said tether. 
     
     
         7 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said ballast chamber is permanently enclosed within the bottom wall of the ballast chamber. 
     
     
         8 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1 , wherein said ballast chamber contains sufficiently dense material to offset the buoyancy force created by submerged portions of the ballast chamber and receptacle body. 
     
     
         9 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1 , where the ballast weight combined with the weight of the receptacle is calculated to make the receptacle neutrally buoyant allowing the flotation member to support only the weight of the beverage container and the beverage within. 
     
     
         10 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 at least one rib located on an exterior face of said receptacle, said at least one rib configured to constrain said receptacle within said flotation member; and   a base lip located on said exterior face of said receptacle, said base lip configured to engage with a lower face of said flotation member and configured to constrain said receptacle within said flotation member.   
     
     
         11 . The ballasted neutrally buoyant floating beverage-container holder as recited in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 said collapsible sections comprising an upper section, a middle section, and a lower section;   a first break located between said lower section and said middle section configured to allow said lower section to be collapsed within said middle section; and   a second break located between said middle section and said upper section configured to allow said lower and middle sections to be collapsed within said upper section.