Lip-pucker avoiding drinking straw

Abstract

A lip-pucker avoiding drinking straw providing a tube body defining an enclosed conduit for a flow of liquid. The tube body and enclosed conduit have a substantially round sectional profile at a distal end meant to be placed into a container of liquid, and a substantially oblong sectional profile at a proximal end meant to be placed between lips of a user and to be accommodated by the lips of the user without requiring puckering or pursing of the lips. The sectional profile of the enclosed conduit changes from a round profile at the distal end and through approximately 90 percent of the tube body to an oblong profile at the proximal end, with the change of profile occurring at a transition segment near the proximal end. An optional bending segment can be provided to provide a bend in the tube body or allow the user to make such a bend. The sectional area or circumference of the enclosed conduit at the proximal end is not less than the sectional area at the distal end.

I claim: 
     
         1 - 19 . (canceled) 
     
     
         20 . A method of drinking liquids without lip puckering, the method comprising the steps of:
 (i) providing a drinking straw comprising an elongated tubular body having a cylindrical distal portion, a proximal portion, and a bending segment formed between the distal portion and the proximal portion, said cylindrical portion being defined by an outer cylindrical wall and being formed with a central opening extending through the distal portion, said central opening having a circular cross-section, said proximal portion having a flat-oval cross-section and a flat oval proximal end opening, the proximal end opening being defined by a continuous-curve inner tube wall having a pre-determined distance between opposing long sides, the distance between the long sides defining height of the tubular body at the proximal end, said height being smaller than diameter of the central opening in the distal portion;   (ii) engaging, by user's lips, the proximal end of the tubular body;   (iii) positioning the distal end of the tubular body in a container with a liquid; and   (iv) sipping the liquid through said drinking straw without puckering of the user's lips.