Cooler trash disposal accessory

Abstract

A trash disposal accessory (1) for a cooler (3) removably attachable to a side of a cooler under a top cover (2), said accessory having an attachment bracket (4) having a top rim (5) with a n opening (6) a planar extension (10) and a perpendicularly attached handle (12) for insertion into a strap slot (11) of certain coolers. A bracket with a clamping handle (16) is provided for use with coolers without strap slots. The accessory has a trash holding bag (7) which is removably attached to the bracket by a draw cord (8) sewn around a top opening and which can be tightened or loosened through a cord lock (9).

Claims

1. A trash disposal accessory for a cooler characterized by an insulating body and top cover, wherein said insulated body has an upper rim that seals against said top cover when in a closed position and includes one or more integral slots, said accessory comprising: (a) a bracket of one piece unitary construction configured for ready attachment to and removal from a side of said cooler under the top cover of said cooler, said bracket consisting of (i) a vertical portion defining a handle that extends into one of said one or more slots and (ii) a horizontal portion consisting of a planar extension that extends outwardly from said handle, projects proximally past an outer edge of said top cover, and terminates in an open rim for holding a trash bag; and (b) a trash bag having a top opening which is removably attachable around said open rim.

2. The trash disposal accessory of claim 1, wherein said open rim has a top perimeter flange and a bottom perimeter flange that define an annular recess therebetween.

3. The trash disposal accessory of claim 2, wherein said trash bag is removably attachable to the annular recess of said open rim by means of a draw cord enclosed around the top opening of said trash bag.

4. The trash disposal accessory of claim 2 wherein the trash bag is removably attachable to said open rim by means of a first section of hook and loop fastening material disposed around the top opening of said trash bag attached to a complementary second section of hook and loop fastening material disposed in the annular recess between said top and bottom flanges.

5. The trash disposal accessory of claim 3, wherein said draw cord further includes a cord lock that serves to secure the top opening of said trash bag to the open rim of said bracket.

6. The trash disposal accessory of claim 1, wherein said trash bag is fabricated from a mesh material.

7. A trash disposal accessory for attachment to a cooler, said accessory comprising: a. a cooler attachment bracket for ready attachment to and removal from a side of said cooler, under a top cover of said cooler, wherein said bracket is comprised of (i) a vertical handle for insertion into a body of the cooler, (ii) a planar extension extending outwardly from said handle, (iii) an open rim attached to said planar extension for holding a reusable trash bag; and (iv) a clamping handle disposed parallel to the vertical handle and affixed to a horizontal slot in said planar extension, wherein the spacing between the clamping handle and the vertical handle may be slidably adjusted by means of a fastener that serves to tighten the clamping handle in position such that the side of said cooler is gripped between said vertical and clamping handles; and b. a trash bag having a top opening that may be removably secured around said open rim.

8. The trash disposal accessory of claim 7, wherein said fastener is a wing nut.

9. The trash disposal accessory of claim 7, wherein said open rim has a top perimeter flange and a bottom perimeter flange that define an annular recess therebetween.

10. The trash disposal accessory of claim 9, wherein said reusable trash bag is removably secured to the annular recess of said open rim by means of a draw cord disposed about the top opening of said trash bag.

11. The trash disposal accessory of claim 10, wherein said draw cord further includes a cord lock that serves to secure the top opening of said trash bag to the open rim of said bracket.

12. The trash disposal accessory of claim 7, wherein said reusable trash bag is removably secured to said open rim by means of a first section of hook and loop material disposed about the top opening of said trash bag attached to a complementary second section of hook and loop fastening material affixed to said open rim.

13. The trash disposal accessory of claim 7, wherein said bracket is of one-piece unitary construction.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) In the following detailed description, reference will be made to the attached drawings in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the cooler trash disposal accessory of the present invention attached to a cooler in a closed mode;

(3) FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the cooler trash disposal accessory of the present invention attached to a cooler in an open mode;

(4) FIG. 3 is a side view of the cooler trash disposal accessory of the present invention by itself;

(5) FIG. 4 is a side view of the trash bag of the present invention by itself;

(6) FIG. 5 is a side view of the trash bag holding bracket of the present invention by itself;

(7) FIG. 6 is a top view of the trash bag holding bracket of the present invention by itself;

(8) FIG. 7 is a side view of another trash bag holding bracket of the present invention with an adjustable attachment bracket; and

(9) FIG. 8 is a top view of the adjustable trash bag holding bracket of FIG. 7.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(10) For purposes of describing the preferred embodiment, the terminology used in reference to the numbered accessories in the drawings is as follows: 1. cooler trash disposal accessory, generally 2. cooler top cover 3. cooler 4. attachment bracket, generally 5. top perimeter flange of attachment bracket 6. inlet 7. trash bag 8. pull tightening cord 9. cord lock 10. extension of adjustment bracket 11. tie down strap slot 12. vertical holding handle of attachment bracket 13. bag top 14. bottom perimeter flange of adjustment bracket 15. bag holding recess 16. inner clamping handle 17. adjustment tightening nut 18. adjustment slot 19. tightening screw for inner clamping handle

(11) Referring now to the FIGS. 1 and 2, perspective views of the trash disposal accessory 1 of the present invention are illustrated as attached to a cooler in closed and open modes, respectively. The trash disposal accessory 1 has two major components, a cooler attachment bracket 4 and a trash holding bag 7 removably affixed around a perimeter of a rim 5 of the attachment bracket 4. The trash bag 7 is securely held to the bracket 4 by a cord 8 around the inlet 6 which can be tightened by pulling on the cord 8 through a conventional cord lock 9. Conversely, the trash bag 8 can be removed as needed for trash disposal by depressing the cord lock 9 to loosen the cord 8. As shown, the trash disposal accessory 1 is designed to be attached to a side of a body 3 under a top cover 2 of a cooler. The attachment bracket 4 may differ depending on the type of cooler. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the attachment bracket 4 is attached to an Igloo Sportsman® cooler which contains strap slots 11 on a side as so illustrated in FIG. 3 the bracket has a vertical holding handle 12 extending from the top extension 10 which allows the handle 12 the bracket 4 to be easily insertable into the strap slots 11.

(12) FIG. 3 is a side illustration of the trash disposal accessory by itself showing the attachment bracket 4 having a top rim 5 with planar extension 10 from the side having sufficient length to allow a vertical handle 12 to be inserted into a strap slot 11 or over a side of a cooler 3. The trash bag 7 is also shown attached under the rim of the attachment bracket 4 by a pull cord 8 through a cord lock 9. Other means not shown of attaching the trash bag 7 to the attachment bracket 4 in lieu of a pull cord and cord lock include hook and loop fastening material.

(13) FIG. 4 illustrates the trash collection bag 7 having an open bag top 13 around which a cord 8 is enclosed so the cord 8 can be pulled through a cord lock 9 to decrease the circumference of the bag top opening 13 to secure it to the bracket 4 or when in use or conversely, loosened to decrease the circumference of the top opening 13 as necessary to remove the trash bag 7 from the bracket 4 for trash disposal.

(14) FIG. 5 illustrates the attachment bracket 4 by itself showing the top perimeter rim 5, the planar extension 10 and vertical cooler holding handle 12 previously discussed. With the trash bag 7 no longer in place the bag holding recess 15 and lower perimeter flange 14 can be seen.

(15) FIG. 6 illustrates a top view of the attachment bracket 4 showing the top perimeter rim 5 encircling an inlet 6 for trash insertion with a side extension 10 with vertical cooler holding handle 12 attached perpendicularly thereto.

(16) FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate another version of the cooler attachment bracket 4 in side and top views, respectively, which is designed for use when a cooler does not have strap slots on a side to insert the handle 12 to ensure more secure attachment to a cooler. This version has a second vertically-oriented handle 16 extending perpendicularly from the extension 10 which can be moved inward or outward in a slot 18 in the extension 10 to accommodate the width of a side of a particular cooler by loosening a butterfly nut 19 around a screw or bolt 17 on top of the handle 16 and tightening at a desired position.

(17) It is to be understood that while a preferred embodiment of the invention is described, it is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement of parts herein described and shown. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention and the invention is not to be considered limited to what is shown and described in the specification and/or drawings.