JP3253473U - teapot - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a teapot whose lid will not fall off even if the body is tilted too much, and which allows tea to be brewed with the fingers resting on the lid, allowing for graceful operation.
The teapot 1 is provided with a lid holder 15 on the opposite side of the air hole, adjacent to a knob 13 of the lid 11 that opens and closes the opening of the body 2, so that tea can be poured by pressing the lid holder with the fingers.
[Selected Figure] Figure 1

Description

Application filed for application of Article 30, Paragraph 2 of the Patent Act, as applied mutatis mutandis under Article 11 of the Utility Model Act. 1. May 23, 2025: Released on the website listed in the attached document. 2. May 23, 2025: Released for sale at the location listed in the attached document. 3. September 1, 2025: Released for sale at Hakodate Tsutaya Bookstore (POPUP event).

This invention relates to a teapot, and in particular to a teapot that makes it easy to pour tea when brewing and has a lid holder that prevents the teapot lid from falling off.

A typical teapot has a spout and handle on the teapot body, i.e., the body, and a lid that can be opened and closed to cover the top opening. When brewing tea, tea leaves and hot water are poured into the top opening of the body, the lid is closed, and after a predetermined time, the tea is poured into a teacup or other container by holding the handle and pouring the tea into the spout.

In this case, if the body of the teapot is tilted more than necessary via the handle, the lid of the body may slip off or turn over and fall, so tea is generally poured while holding the knob with the fingers.

However, the knob is located in the center of the lid, protruding to make it easier to operate, and is not necessarily designed to be easy to press with your fingers. This makes it difficult to press, and sometimes you end up touching the lid directly with your fingers, which can feel hot, leading to you forgetting to press it with your fingers and causing the lid to fall.

To address this issue, various designs have been devised to prevent the lid from falling off even when the body is tilted, such as a design that locks the lid in place when the teapot is attached, preventing it from coming off even if the teapot is tilted excessively when pouring tea. However, this can be a hassle when attaching the lid, which is a drawback.

Registered Utility Model No. 3013389 Registered Utility Model No. 3144162

As shown in Patent Document 1, there is a teapot with an overflow stop cover attached to the spout side of the body, which engages with a protrusion on the lid. However, with teapots configured in this way, when putting the lid on the teapot body, it is necessary to insert the lid into the overflow stop cover, which can be cumbersome.

Also, as shown in Patent Document 2, there is a conventional container in which the position of the knob is shifted from the center of the lid to a position that can be comfortably reached by the thumb when gripping the handle with one hand. However, with this structure, the knob position is shifted from the center of the lid, which causes problems when opening and closing the lid and is not necessarily practical.

This invention was made with such circumstances in mind, and aims to provide a teapot with a lid that has a knob that protrudes from the center and a lid holder that protrudes so that the top of the lid can be pressed with the fingers.

This teapot is comprised of a body with an opening at the top, a spout, and a handle located on the opposite side; a lid that is placed over the opening of the body and has a knob that protrudes from the center; and a lid holder that protrudes adjacent to the knob and is located on the opposite side of the air hole in the lid so that the top surface can be pressed with the fingers.

This invention allows tea to be poured by positioning the air hole in the lid on the spout side and pressing the lid retainer on the handle side with your fingers. This allows the air hole to be positioned properly in the body, prevents the lid from falling off even if the body is tilted too far, and allows tea to be poured with your fingers resting on the lid, providing a teapot that allows for elegant operation.

A front view of the teapot of this invention. A front view showing the lid of the teapot of this invention. Plan view of the teapot of this invention, A plan view showing the body of the device with the lid removed. An enlarged perspective view showing a portion of the teapot of this invention; A perspective view showing how to brew tea with one hand using this teapot. A perspective view showing another way to brew tea with one hand using this teapot. A perspective view showing how to brew tea with both hands using this teapot. This is a perspective view showing another way to brew tea using both hands with this teapot.

This teapot has a body with a spout and a handle on the opposite side, a lid that opens and closes the top opening of the body and has a knob in its center, an air hole in the lid adjacent to the knob, and a protruding lid holder located on the opposite side of the air hole relative to the knob.

The teapot of this invention is constructed as follows.
That is, using a typical manufacturing method, each part is formed from clay, which is then combined and joined together to form the final shape, which is then fired to form the piece.

As shown in Figures 1 to 5, the cylindrical body 2 of the teapot 1 is shaped like a container to hold tea leaves and hot water, and has a bottom 3 for placement. A spout 4 is formed in the upper part of the side, and a tea strainer section 6 with numerous holes 5 for straining tea is provided on its upper surface. Furthermore, a ring-shaped handle 7 is provided on the opposite side, connecting the upper and lower sections.

Furthermore, a circular opening 8 is formed in the center of the upper part of the body 2, and a flange 10 is formed around the periphery of the opening 8, continuing with the periphery 9 of the spout 4. Inside the flange 10, a mounting portion 12 for a circular lid 11 is provided, on which the opening 8 can be opened and closed.

The lid 11 has a knob 13 protruding from its central portion. The lid 11 also has an air hole 14 adjacent to the knob 13, and a lid holder 15 for fingers protruding from the air hole 14 on the opposite side of the knob 13.

A relatively shallow, bowl-shaped finger recess 16 is formed on the top surface of this lid retainer 15, and the side adjacent to the knob 13 is approximately the same height as it. As shown in the figure, the lid retainer 15 is formed to have a shape that slopes downward from the side away from the knob 13 toward the knob 13. Therefore, the top surface of the bowl-shaped finger recess 16 and its periphery 17 slopes downward toward the knob 13.

When the fingers press down on the bowl-shaped finger recess 16 and its rim 17 during tea brewing, the lid 11 is pressed downward toward its center, preventing the lid 11 from falling off the body 2 when tea is poured.

The lid holder 15 has a finger recess 16 and a rim 17, making it easy for fingers to fit around either, making it easy to hold the lid down.

The teapot 1 of this invention constructed as described above is used as follows.
That is, first, the lid 11 of the teapot 1 is opened via the knob 13, and a predetermined amount of tea leaves and hot water is poured into the body 2. Next, the lid 11 is closed with its air hole 14 positioned on the spout 4 side, and after a predetermined time has passed, the teapot 1 is held by the handle 7 and tea is poured into a teacup C from the spout 4, as shown in Figures 6-1 to 6-4.

In this case, the spout 4 is tilted via the handle 7 according to the amount of tea remaining to be poured. In this case, the lid retainer 15 on the lid 11 is located on the handle 7 side, so the user can place their fingers on the lid retainer 15 to prevent the lid 11 from falling. The lid retainer 15 has a bowl-shaped finger recess 16, which allows the user to insert their fingertips into the finger recess 16 and easily grip the rim 17, making it easy to hold down the lid 11.

When closing the upper opening 8 of the body 2 of the teapot 1 with the lid 11, if the lid retainer 15 is positioned on the handle 7 side, the air hole 14 will automatically be positioned on the spout 4 side, allowing tea to be poured smoothly.

Specifically, the following explanation will be divided into cases where tea is brewed with one hand and cases where it is brewed with both hands. In the former case, as shown in Figure 6-1, when a left-handed person brews tea with one hand, for example, they grasp the handle 7 with their index finger and middle finger and press the bowl-shaped finger recess 16 or rim 17 of the lid holder 15 with their thumb to pour tea into the teacup C. The lid 11 will not fall off because the downward force applied to the finger recess 16 or rim 17, in particular, is reliably applied by the thumb.

As shown in Figure 6-2, this time, the index finger and middle finger are inserted into the handle 7 from the front, and the thumb is used to press down on the bowl-shaped finger recess 16 or rim 17 of the lid holder 15, and pour the liquid. In this case, too, the lid 11 is securely held down by the thumb and will not fall off.

Next, when brewing tea with both hands, as shown in Figure 6-3, the handle 7 is grasped with the right hand, and the index finger of the left hand presses against the finger recess 16 or rim 17 of the lid retainer 15, and the middle finger presses against the top of the knob 13, and the tea is poured into the teacup C. In this case, too, the fingers can easily grip the rim 17 of the lid retainer 15, and the index finger particularly applies a downward force to the finger recess 16, preventing the lid 11 from falling.

Furthermore, as shown in Figure 6-4, while holding the handle 7 with the right hand, the index and middle fingers of the left hand press against the bowl-shaped finger recess 16 or rim 17 of the lid holder 15, and the ring finger presses against the top of the knob 13, and pours the liquid into the container. In this case, too, the lid 11 will not fall off, as the diagonal downward force applied to the recess 16 is reliably applied by the index and middle fingers.

In this way, especially when brewing with both hands, the gesture appears elegant and the tea-making action can create a favorable atmosphere.

In the above-described embodiment, the knob 13 of the lid 11 is located in the center, but it is also possible to make the opening and closing of the lid 11 smoother by locating it in the center, which is the center of gravity of the lid 11 including the lid holder 15.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 Teapot 2 Body 3 Bottom 4 Spout 5 Hole 6 Tea strainer 7 Handle 8 Opening 9 Periphery 10 Rim 11 Lid 12 Placement 13 Knob 14 Air hole 15 Lid holder 16 Finger recess 17 Periphery C Tea bowl

Claims (3)

A teapot having a body with a spout and a handle on the opposite side, a lid with a knob in the center that opens and closes the top opening of the body, an air hole in the lid adjacent to the knob, and a protruding lid holder located on the opposite side of the air hole relative to the knob. The teapot of claim 1, wherein the lid holder has a finger recess and a rim on its upper surface. 3. The teapot according to claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the lid holder is inclined downward toward the knob.