Cigar Storage and Ash Disposal Container and Method

Abstract

To allow for capturing ash from smoking products such as cigars a container is provided that has a ferromagnetic bottom portion or alternatively a magnetic portion and one or more cradles or holders that are shaped to retain a smoking product such as a cigar wherein the combination of the container bottom and the cradle together allow for the cradle to be magnetically held in place on the container bottom.

1 . A method of smoking of a smoking product of the type that develops an ash length which needs to be allowed to fall off the smoking product and/or which is allowed to remain on the smoking product comprising:
 providing an ash container that includes an ash container bottom portion and an ash container lid that cooperates with the ash container bottom portion to close the container bottom portion sufficiently to retain ash that may be collected in the body portion and wherein the body portion has a bottom element that has a least a portion of ferro-magnetic material extending along a selected length of the bottom element;   providing at least a single cradle which has a leg element and at a top of the leg element an upwardly open curved arm defining a curvature extending across the leg element so as to allow the smoking product to be placed in the curvature and located at a bottom of the leg element a magnet;   whereby the cradle is adapted to be positioned in the ash container bottom portion by the bottom of the leg element being set on a ferromagnetic portion of the ash container bottom portion so as to be held in place by the magnet.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the cradle can be moved along the ferromagnetic portion of the ash container bottom portion to allow a smoking product to be positioned above the ash container bottom portion such that a lit portion of the smoking product developing ash is suspended above the ash container bottom portion whereby the ash may drop into the container. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2  wherein there are at least two cradles which are spaced apart on the ferromagnetic portion of the ash container bottom portion such that a smoking product can be held in place by being positioned on both cradles. 
     
     
         4 . A portable cigar and ash storage and smoking system comprising:
 an ash storage compartment;   a cigar storage compartment;   at least one magnetically positionable cigar cradle having an upwardly concave cradle portion and a vertically oriented leg portion;   at least one cigar cradle positioning magnet, wherein each of the at least one cigar cradle positioning magnets is inset into a distal portion of the corresponding leg portion of the at least one magnetically positionable cigar cradle and wherein the at least one or more magnetically positionable cigar cradles are sized to fit inside the ash storage compartment or cigar storage compartment in a storage configuration of the respective compartment, and wherein the at least one or more magnetically positionable cigar cradles are sized to be stably oriented upright at a magnetically fixable position suitable for holding a resting cigar horizontally with a lit tip of the resting cigar oriented over a location within a perimeter of the ash storage compartment.   
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 4  wherein the ash storage compartment and cigar storage compartment are separate compartments. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 4  wherein the one or more cigar cradles comprises two cradles sized to hold a cigar diameter size chosen from a set of standard cigar diameters. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 4  wherein the cigar storage compartment is sized to store a plurality of cigars. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 4  wherein a portion of the cigar storage compartment having a flat ferromagnet portion for accepting and magnetically fixing the magnet inset in an end of the leg portion of the one or more cigar cradles. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 5  wherein the ash storage compartment and cigar storage compartment have independent lid components. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the ash storage compartment is round. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 9  wherein the cigar storage compartment is rectangular. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 11  wherein a sliding lid of the cigar storage compartment is sized to cover the cigar storage compartment, the sliding lid having parallel edges sized to fit within a parallel mating groove in an upper portion of the cigar storage compartment interior side surfaces. 
     
     
         13 . A system for allowing collection of ash from a smoking product in which the ash can be collected during a smoking period that allows ash to drop into protected space and allows the ash to be securely carried away comprising:
 an ash storage compartment;   a cigar storage compartment;   at least one magnetically positionable cigar cradle having an upwardly concave cradle portion and a vertically oriented leg portion;   at least one cigar cradle positioning magnet, wherein each of the at least magnets is inset into a distal portion of the corresponding leg portion of the cigar cradle and wherein the at least one or more cigar cradles may be contained within the ash and cigar storage compartments when stored and may be configured upright at a magnetically fixable position to hold a resting cigar horizontally with a lit tip of the resting cigar oriented over a location inside the ash storage compartment.   
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13  wherein the ash storage compartment and cigar storage compartment are separate compartments. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 13  wherein the one or more cigar cradles comprises two cradles sized to hold a cigar diameter size chosen from a set of standard cigar diameters. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 13  wherein the cigar storage compartment is sized to store a plurality of cigars. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 13  wherein a portion of the ash storage container having a flat ferromagnet portion for accepting and magnetically fixing the magnet inset in an end of the leg portion of the one or more cigar cradles. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 14  wherein the ash storage compartment and cigar storage compartment have independent lid components. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18  wherein the ash storage compartment is round. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 18  wherein the cigar storage compartment is rectangular. 
     
     
         21 . The system of  claim 20  wherein a sliding lid of the cigar storage compartment is configured to cover the cigar storage by horizontally sliding the sliding lid within grooves on opposing sides of the inner surface near a top edge of the cigar storage compartment into which the opposing edges of the sliding lid is fitted.