GB2253344A - Wine bottle rack - Google Patents

Abstract

A wine bottle rack comprises a shallow box or tray 1, with a main surface surrounded by four side walls 3, 4, 5 and 6. The main surface is formed with an array of e.g. twelve or sixteen cylindrical cups or recesses 12, each having an open end in the plane of the main surface and an inner closed end. The recesses 12 are inclined to the plane of the main surface with the inner end lower than the open end, so that a bottle may be supported in the recess by its neck, with the body of the bottle exposed and the bottle inclined upwardly from the neck, thereby retaining the bottle against gravity, and keeping the cork moist. The rack may be made of pressed sheet metal or moulded plastics material, and may be mounted to a support or surface (eg. a wall) by nails or screws, or can be free standing. <IMAGE>

Description

WINE BOTTLE RACK This invention relates to a wine bottle rack for medium or long-term domestic or commercial storage of wine bottles.

Wine bottle racks are used to store bottles of wine with the bottle usually held in a generally axially horizontal position, for amongst other reasons, to maintain moistness in the cork, ready for use, or for storage during maturation in bottle of the wine. Such racks may vary in size from small racks for holding a few bottles for prospective immediate private consumption, to extensive installations for holding thousands of bottles in a wine merchant's store. Such racks also vary in their construction from arrays of wooden pigeon holes, to frame works of shaped and interconnected wire, or even as a makeshift, upended bottle crates may be pressed into service.

Wooden pigeoii-hole racks are of course expensive, and at the other extreme, wire structures may be damaged by bending the wire and are thus riot reliable for safe long tcrm storage.

An object of the invention is to provide a wine bottle rack which will be durahle, but affordable for household use, as well as for caterers, merchants and others who need to store wine.

According to the invention, a wine bottle rack comprises means defining a plurality of recesses, each recess being dimensioned to hold the neck of a wine bottle in such a way that the weight of the entire bottle is supported by the recess, the recesses being generally inclined upwardly by a small angle in position of installation and use, so that bottles are held extending out from the recesses extending with their axes inclined upwardly by a small angle, and exposed to the circulation of air.

The recesses are preferably dimensioned so that the neck of a bottle may be freely inserted or removed from the recess, the bottle being supported from below by the mouth of the recess towards the base of the neck of the bottle, and held by a downwardly acting balancing force exerted by the upper face towards the inner end of the recess on the mouth of the bottle.

The recesses are preferably defined in or by a member which provides a web connecting the recesses into an array. The web and recesses are preferably formed in one piece as a sheet or panel with a plurality oF cups or hollow bosses forming the recesses. The sheet: or panel and cups, are preferably made from a reinforced plastics material, for example glass fibre reinforced plastics.

The rack may be a tray like or block like member shaped so that the sheet is inclined to present the axes of the recesses at the said small angle to the horizontal when the rack is secured to a vertical support.

In a preferrecl embodiment, the upper sides of the inner ends of the recesses may be provided with cut out apertures, which each receive the rim of the mouth of a bottle, providing a downward restraining force on the neck of the bottle, the rim of the recess providing a balancing upward force, so that the bottle is supported in the recess. The axes of the recesses may preferably be inclined at an angle in the order of 800 to the vertical, preferably less than 880, e.g. in the range 850 to 600.

The rack may be configured to provide an array of, for example, twelve or sixteen recesses, and a plurality of such racks may be assembled side-by--side ancl one above the other to comprise a larger unit. The racks may be interconnectable. Means, such as holes for screws, are preferably provided for securing the rack to a support.

Such holes for screws may be provided on the inner ends of two or more of the recesses.

Preferred embodiments of wine bottle rack according to the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic vertical cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of wine bottle storage rack, according to the invention, showing one bottle in place; Fig. la is an end view of a cup or recess formed on the rack of Fig. 1, Fig. ib is a sectional view of the end region of such cup or recess; Fig. 2 is a sicle view of the wine bottle rack of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a frontal elevation of the wine bottle rack of Figs. 1 and 2; Fig. 4 is a sectional view on line B-B of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a view from above of the wine bottle rack of Fig. 3;; Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic vertical cross-sectional view of a pair of wine bottle racks, according to a second embodiment of the invention forming a wine storage installation, vertically disposed one above the other, and containing a plurality of bottles; Fig. 7 is a sectional view of one of the wine bottle racks of Fig.

on line VII-VII of Fig. 8; Fig. 8 is a frontal elevation of the wine bottle rack of Fig. 7; Fig. 9 is a view from above of a pair of wine bottle racks as shown in Figs. 6-8, placed side-by-side, and containing a plurality of bottles; Fig. 10 is a view similar to Fig. 6 of a pair of wine bottle racks according to a third embodiment of the invention, forming a wine storage installation; Fig. 11 is a sicle elevation of one of the wine bottle racks of Fig. 10; Fig. 12 is a frontal elevation of three such racks, forming a multi-rack installation; and Fig. 13 is a view from above of the upper pair of racks shown in Fig. 12.

A first preferred embodiment of wine bottle rack according to the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 5 is in the form of a moulding of 2mm thick glass-fibre reinforced plastics laminate, The moulding is configured as a shallow box or tray 1 with a main web 2 and four side walls 3, 4, 5 and 6. The walls 4 and 6 slope so that the web 2 is inclined to any support to which the rack is secured.

The main web 2 is formed with an array of twelve cylindrical cups or recesses 12, each having an open end in the surface plane of web 2, and a closed end remote from web 2. The recesses are disposed in horizontal rows of three, and vertical rows of four, the vertical rows being separated by shallow channels 14 which provide reinforcement to the web 2. Each cup or recess 112 has, over an upper arc of its inner end a cut-out aperture 13, which receives the rim of the neck of a bottle, as in Fig. 1.

As shown in Fig. I, the cups 12 are of a diameter such as to permit free insertion and removal of the neck of a wine bottle 15, with a clearance. The bottle is supported entirely by the neck in the cup 12 and thus sags slightly. The cup 12 is inclined in such a way that the axis of the bottle subtends an angle of 880 to the vertical (i.e.

20 to the horizontal) and is thus directed at a small upward angle as it extends out of the cup 12 and accordingly does not slip out of the cup 12 due to gravity. The weight of the bottle is supported by the equilibrium between the supporting force acting upwardly at the open end of cup 12 toward the base of the neck of the bottle (e.g. point A in Fig. 1) and the downward force acting on the mouth of the bottle at tiae edge of tllcw aperture 13 (e.g. point B in Fig. 1). The bottles extend out from the rack so that air can circulate freely about the bodies of the bottles, thus helping to maintain them at a desired temperature.

A second embodiment of wine bottle rack according to the invention shown in Figs. 6 to 9 is in the form of a moulding of 2mm thick glass-fibre reinforced plastics laminate. The moulding is configured as a shallow box or tray 101 with a main web 102 and four side walls 103, 104, 105, 106. The walls lOLl and 106 slope so that the web 2 is inclined to any support to which the rack is secured. The four corners are each formed with a quarter-circular recess 107, 108, 109 or 110, with a hole for passage of a screw for securing the racks to a support wall or wooden frame member, such as III.

The main web 102 is formed with an array of sixteen cylindrical cups or recesses 112, each having an open end in the surface plane of web 102, and a closed end remote from web 102. The recesses are disposed in horizontal rows of four, and vertical rows of four, the vertical rows being separated by shallow channels 114 which provide reinforcement to the web 102.

As shown in Fig. 6, the cups 112 are of a diameter such as to permit free insertion and removal of the neck of a wine bottle 115, with a clearance. The bottle is supported entirely by the neck in the cup 112 and thus sags slightly. The web 112 is inclined in such a way that the axis of the bottle subtends an angle of 880 to the vertical (i.e. 20 to the horizontal) and is thus directed at a small upward angle as it extends out of the cup 112 and accordingly does not slip out of the cup 112 due to gravity. The weight of the bottle is supported by tlle equilibrium between the supporting force acting' upwardly at the open end of cup 112 toward the base of the neck of the bottle (e.g. point A in Fig. 6) and the downward force acting on the mouth of the bottle within the cup 112 (e.g. point B in Fig. 6).

The bottles extend out from the rack so that air can circulate freely about the bodies of the bottles, thus helping to maintain them at a desired temperature.

A third embodiment of wine bottle rack according to the invention shown in Figs. 10 to 13 is in the form of a moulding of 2mm thick glass-fibre reinforced plastics laminate. The moulding is configured as a shallow box or tray 201 with a main web 202 and four side walls 203, 204, 205 and 206. The walls 204 and 206 converge slightly so that the open hrck of the tray is wider than the web 202, but the web 202 is parallel to any support to which the rack is secured.

The main web 202 is formed with an array of twelve cylindrical cups or recesses 212, each having an open end in the surface plane of web 202, and a closed end remote from web 202. The two outer ones of the upper run of recesses are provided with holes 207 for the passage of screws for securing the racks to a support wall or wooden frame member. The recesses are disposed in horizontal rows of three, and vertical rows of four, the vertical rows being separated by shallow channels 21tis which provide reinforcement to the web 202.

As shown in Fig 10, the cups 212 are of a diameter such as to permit free insertion and removal of the neck of a wine bottle 215, with a clearance. The bottle is supported entirely by the neck in the cup 212 and thus sags slightly. The web 202 is vertical, but the axes of the recesses are inclined so that their axes each subtend an angle of 800 to the vertical and, even allowing for sagging, the axes of the bottles are directed at a slightly lesser upward angle as they extend out of the cup 212, and accordingly do not slip out of the cups 212 due to gravity. The weight of each bottle is supported by the equilibrium between the supporting force acting upwardly at the open end of cup 212 toward the base of the neck of the bottle (e.g.

point A in Fig. IO) and the downward force acting on the mouth of the bottle within the cup 212 (e.g. point B in Fig 10). The bottles extend out from the rack so that air can circulate freely about the bodies of the bottles, thus helping to maintain them at a desired temperature, maintained in the space where the rack is located.

The rack is suitable for all "standard" wine bottles, e.g. the common "Burgundy", "Claret" and "Hock" bottles. For sparkling wines, with large wired ,toppers, the shape and dimensions of the cups 212 would be altered.

The wine bottle rack may less preferably be made of other materials, such as wood, or press-formed metal, or of other plastics materials with suitable characteristics. Care should be taken in selecting plastics materials, as thermoplastics may "flow" under prolonged stress, causing deformation of the cups, leading eventually to bottles slipping out, or rigid materials may crack under similar stress. The rack could be formed as a solid block having cup-formed recesses, or bores formed completely through the block.

The rack may have any desired number of recesses, e.g. twelve or twenty four, and any number of racks may be combined in a wine storage installation. The rack may be fitted in any suitable place, such as a cellar or other cool location.

Claims (8)

Claims:-

1. A wine bottle rack comprising means defining a plurality of recesses, wherein each recess is dimensioned to hold the neck of a wine bottle in such a way that the weight of the entire bottle is supported by the recess, each recess being inclined upwardly in position of installation and use, so that the bottles are held extending out from the recess with their longitudinal axes inclined upwardly, and the bottles are exposed to the circulation of air.

2. A rack according to claim 1 wherein the recesses are each dimensioned so tl-lat a bottle may be freely inserted into or removed from the recess, the bottle being supported from below by the rim of the recess towards the base of the neck of the bottle, and held by a downwardly acting balancing force exerted by the upper face of the recess towards the inner end of the recess on the mouth of the bottle.

3. A rack according to claim I or 2, wherein the recesses are provided in a member which provides a web connecting the recesses into an array, the web and recesses being formed as a sheet or panel with a j plurality of cups or hollow bo* forming the recesses.

4. A rack according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the upper sides of the inner ends of the recesses are provided with cut-out apertures which each reccive the rim of the mouth of a bottle, providing a downwardly acting restraining force on the neck of the bottle, the rim of the recess providing a balancing upward force, so that the bottle is supported in the recess.

5. A rack according to any preceding claim, wherein the axes of the recess are inclined at an angle in the order of 800 to the vertical, i.e. less than 880 and in the range 850 to 600, so that the resultant inclination of the bottle is more than 20 to the horizontal.

6. A rack according to any preceding claim providing an array of twelve or sixteen recesses.

7. A wine bottle rack substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in Figs. I to 5, or Figs. 6 to 9, or Figs. 10 to 13.

8. A wine storage installation comprising two or more wine bottle racks, according to any preceding claim, mounted together whether separately or interconnected.