Container holding apparatus with spill prevention mechanism

A container holding apparatus for preventing spill of items from a container, the container holding apparatus comprising:

• a hollow structure configured to hold the container;
• a cover member connected to the hollow structure via a hinge, wherein the cover member is movable between an open position and a closed position, the closed position covering an open portion of the hollow structure to prevent spillage;
• a first spring, wherein a first end of the first spring is connected to the cover member and a second end of the first spring is connected to the hollow structure, the first spring being configured to bias the cover member towards the closed position;
• a pendulum mechanism mounted adjacent to the hollow structure, the pendulum being responsive to vertical motion caused by turbulence;
• a string, wherein the string is connected to the cover member via a first end of the string;
• and
• a latch mechanism that comprises:
• a hook connected to the cover member via the string;
• and
• an eye member attached to the hollow structure, wherein
• a first end of the hook is connected to a second end of the string,
• a second end of the hook is latched with the eye member to maintain the cover member in the open position where the cover member does not the cover the hollow structure,
• in the open position of the cover member, a downward force applied by the pendulum mechanism on the string is less than a threshold force,
• the hook is unlatched from the eye member in response to an impact of a downward force applied by the pendulum mechanism on the string is greater than the threshold force, thereby allowing the first spring to move the cover member to the closed position.