Shot glass or pipe with mechanical counter

Abstract

A shot glass or pipe includes a counter in the form of a sleeve rotatably coupled to a main body or stem of the shot glass or marijuana pipe, the sleeve including a window through which a number indicative of the number of units of alcohol or marijuana consumed is visible. A ratcheting mechanism prevents reverse rotation of the sleeve, and ensures that the window stays in place in front of a particular number until the user intentionally applies force to rotate the sleeve to a next number.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A drinking vessel combined with a mechanical counter for indicating a number of alcohol units consumed by a user of the drinking vessel, comprising:
 a main body, configured to hold approximately one of said alcohol units;   numbers, symbols, and/or pictures extending at least partially around a circumference of the main body, said numbers, symbols, and/or pictures including at least one of:
 (a) a series of numbers that increase in increments of one, starting with number 1, and 
 (b) symbols or pictures that represent a number of said alcohol units consumed or effects of the number of said alcohol units consumed; 
   a sleeve rotatably mounted on the main body, the sleeve having a window through which one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible at a time; and   a ratcheting mechanism configured to enable rotation of the sleeve relative to the main body in a single direction, and that maintains the window in a first stationary position, in which one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible through the window, until force is applied by the user to rotate the sleeve from the first stationary position to a second stationary position, in which an incrementally higher one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible through the window,   whereby rotation of the sleeve relative to the main body causes the sleeve to move from one number to the adjacent, incrementally higher number, or from one symbol or picture to a symbol or picture representative of an incrementally higher number, in order to maintain a running count of a number of said alcohol units consumed by the user.   
     
     
         2 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the drinking vessel is a shot glass and the alcohol units are shots. 
     
     
         3 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the sleeve is cup-shaped and fits over a bottom portion of the shot glass, and wherein the ratcheting mechanism includes pawls or detents extending from an upper surface of a base of the sleeve and a stepped surface on an bottom surface of the main body that faces the upper surface of the base. 
     
     
         4 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein the pawls or detents each includes a vertical end surface and an inclined surface, and wherein the stepped surface includes spaced inclined surfaces, horizontal surfaces extending from respective spaced inclined surfaces, and vertical surfaces extending between ends of the horizontal surfaces and the spaced inclined surfaces, the vertical surfaces being respectively aligned so that, as the sleeve is rotated relative to the main body, the inclined surfaces of the pawls or detents encounter and pass over the spaced inclined surfaces of the stepped surface, resulting in an increased resistance to rotation that is felt by the user and maintained as the inclined surfaces of the pawls or detects continue to pass over the horizontal surfaces until the vertical surfaces of the notches are reaches, at which time reverse rotation of the sleeve relative to main body is prevented and the increased resistance to rotation abruptly ceases, providing tactile feedback that the window is now aligned with the incrementally higher number. 
     
     
         5 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein the sleeve is rotatably secured to the main body by a fastener that passes through an opening in the sleeve and threaded into a pillar extending from the main body, the pillar also extending through the opening in the sleeve to serve as bearing about which the sleeve is rotatable. 
     
     
         6 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the sleeve is cup-shaped and fits over a bottom portion of the shot glass, and wherein the ratcheting mechanism includes pawls extending inwardly from an inner surface of the sleeve and asymmetric notches extending around an outer surface of the main body. 
     
     
         7 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 6 , wherein the pawls form tines formed by cuts on three edges of the tines, the fourth edge joining the tines to the sleeve. 
     
     
         8 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 7 , wherein the tines are further cut from the sleeve along a principal outer surface of the tines, so that the cuts do not extend through to the outer surface of the sleeve and the tines are not visible from outside the sleeve. 
     
     
         9 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 7 , wherein bottom edges of the tines engage a rim extending around bottom edge of the main body below the notches to retain the sleeve on the main body. 
     
     
         10 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the sleeve is generally annular and arranged to rotate within a groove in the main body, the groove also containing said numbers, and wherein the ratcheting mechanism includes pawls extending downwardly and inwardly from an inner surface of the sleeve and asymmetric notches extending around an outer surface of the main body within the groove. 
     
     
         11 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 10 , wherein the pawls are formed by tines cut out of an inner surface of the sleeve but not visible from an outside of the sleeve. 
     
     
         12 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 11 , wherein the sleeve is retained on the main body by engagement between bottom edges of the tines and a horizontal shoulder at a bottom of the groove. 
     
     
         13 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve is cup-shaped and fits over a bottom portion of the drinking vessel, and wherein the ratcheting mechanism includes pawls or detents extending from an upper surface of a base of the sleeve and a stepped surface on an bottom surface of the main body that faces the upper surface of the base. 
     
     
         14 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve is cup-shaped and fits over a bottom portion of the drinking vessel, and wherein the ratcheting mechanism includes pawls extending inwardly from an inner surface of the sleeve and asymmetric notches extending around an outer surface of the main body. 
     
     
         15 . A drinking vessel as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve is generally annular and arranged to rotate within a groove in the main body, the groove also containing said numbers, and wherein the ratcheting mechanism includes pawls extending inwardly from an inner surface of the sleeve and asymmetric notches extending around an outer surface of the main body within the groove. 
     
     
         16 . A marijuana pipe combined with a mechanical counter for indicating a number of marijuana units consumed by a user of the pipe, comprising:
 a pipe stem and bowl in communication with the pipe stem, the bowl being configured to hold marijuana for smoking;   numbers, symbols, and/or pictures extending at least partially around a circumference of the pipe stem, said numbers, symbols, and/or pictures including at least one of:
 (a) a series of numbers that increase in increments of one, starting with number 1, and 
 (b) symbols or pictures that represent a number of said marijuana units consumed or effects of the number of said marijuana units consumed; 
   a sleeve rotatably mounted on the pipe stem, the sleeve having a window through which one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible at a time; and   a ratcheting mechanism configured to enable rotation of the sleeve relative to the pipe stem in a single direction, and that maintains the window in a first stationary position, in which one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible through the window, until force is applied by the user to rotate the sleeve from the first stationary position to a second stationary position, in which an incrementally higher one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible through the window,
 whereby rotation of the sleeve relative to the pipe stem causes the sleeve to move from one number to the adjacent, incrementally higher number, or from one symbol or picture to a symbol or picture representative of an incrementally higher number, in order to maintain a running count of a number of said marijuana units consumed by the user. 
   
     
     
         17 . An implement for consuming an intoxicating substance combined with a mechanical counter for indicating a number of units of the intoxicating substance consumed by a user of the implement, comprising:
 a main body;   numbers, symbols, and/or pictures extending at least partially around a circumference of the main body, said numbers, symbols, and/or pictures including at least one of:
 (a) a series of numbers that increase in increments of one, starting with number 1, and 
 (b) symbols or pictures that represent a number of said units consumed or effects of the number of said units consumed; 
   a sleeve rotatably mounted on the main body, the sleeve having a window through which one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible at a time; and   a ratcheting mechanism configured to enable rotation of the sleeve relative to the main body in a single direction, and that maintains the window in a first stationary position, in which one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible through the window, until force is applied by the user to rotate the sleeve from the first stationary position to a second stationary position, in which an incrementally higher one of the numbers, symbols, and/or pictures is visible through the window,   whereby rotation of the sleeve relative to the main body causes the sleeve to move from one number to the adjacent, incrementally higher number, or from one symbol or picture to a symbol or picture representative of an incrementally higher number, in order to maintain a running count of a number of said units consumed by the user.