CA2006881A1 - Cover for a food container - Google Patents

Abstract

COVER FOR A FOOD CONTAINER
ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
A cover formed of a flexible, thin gauge, heat reflective material is provided for mounting on an open top container. The cover is initially interconnected to a plurality of similar covers and coacts therewith to form a continuous web. The web is initially rolled into an elongate roll, the latter being rotatable about its longitudinal axis. A plurality of tear scores are provided on at least one surface of the web. Each tear score is disposed between adjacent covers of the web.
Indicia is provided on the web one surface between adjacent tear scores. The indicia is arranged on the web one surface so as to visually indicate the location of the next succeeding tear score as the web is being manually unrolled from the elongate roll. When the next succeeding tear score is exposed, a cover of predetermined dimensions can be readily separated from the web along the exposed tear score.

Description

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COVER FOR A FOOD CONTAINER

Background Of The Invention Field Of The Invention This invention relates to a roll of sheetlike disposable covers for food containers used by the food preparation industry. More particularly, this invention -relates to a plurality of disposable covers initially ` `
interconnected and forming a web defining a roll for rotation about its longitudinal axis. The web is -preferably of a flexible, thin gauge, heat-reflective material and is provided with a plurality of tear scores~ `
arranged in longitudinally spaced relation. Intermediate adjacent tear scores and on at least one surface of the web is indicia extending longitudinally thereof and visually indicating the approach of the next tear score as the web is being manually pulled from the roll.

Description Of The Prior Art In cafeteria or self-serving type restaurants hot entre items and vegetables are normally displayed in ~ -~
individual open top pans or trays which are accommodated in one or more elongate steam or heated serving tables.
The pans are removably disposed in a plurality of openings formed in the top surface of each table in such a way that -the underside of each tray is exposed to steam or a 25 heating medium provided in the table interior. `~
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2 r It is customary with pans of this type to have them covered when the contents thereof are not being served to the customer, or when the loaded pan is being transported from the kitchen to the serving table.
5 Heretofore, metallic covers were normally utilized to -;
provide the desired coverage. Such covers, however, are of costly, bulky and heavy construction, are difficult to store when not in use, and are not capable of being used on pans or trays having a variety of configurations.
lO Because of the heat absorbed from the covered pans, the -covers become potential hazards to personnel working in the area of the serving table.
In lieu of the metallic covers afore-described, cover sheets of metallic ~e.g., aluminum) foil are 15 sometimes used to close the open top of the pan. While the foil sheets are effective for this purpose there is oftentimes a substantial amount of material waste because the intended foil cover sheet is either oversized or undersized for a given pan. Where the cover sheet is to 20 be manually torn off a roll of foil, the person doing the tearing has to exercise care and judgment to make sure the resulting tear line is rectilinear and extends `
transversely across the web and that the length of the sheet is proper. Furthermore, when the cover sheet is 25 being severed from the roll, the foil material is susceptible to being accidentally punctured or cut thereby reducing the heat reflective character of the cover sheet.
Where the width of the foil web is less than the ~-corresponding width of the pan, several lengths of foil --:
arranged in side by side relation are required to properly cover the pans; thus, making the covering operation an -~
awkward, frustrating, time-consuming maneuver. -:.... ' -.'.`' , - ': ,~ '~ ' Z~)~)6~

When the prior art covers are formed of either ;
heavy gauge metal or thin gauge foil the type and quantity of the accommodated food cannot be determined by the customer or server without removing the cover. As a `~ -5 result, the cover is handled more frequently, thereby ;
increasing the risk of injury and burn to serving personnel.
Where the covers are formed of sheets of plastic film material, difficulty is encountered in controlling and maintaining the temperature of the covered food; thus, the quality of the food rapidly deteriorates. -~

Summary of the Invention Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a disposable food container cover ~`
which avoids the aforementioned disadvantages and shortcomings besetting the prior art.
It is another object to provide a disposable cover which is of inexpensive, simple and lightweight construction, and can readily accommodate a wide variety of trays and/or pans.
It is a further object to provide a roll of metallic foil having surface indicia which enables a cover sheet of proper dimensions to be readily torn from the roll thereby significantly reducing material waste. ~ ;
It is a further object to provide a cover for a ;~
food container which includes surface indicia identifying ` `-the contained food without the necessity of removing the - -cover.
Other objects of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, accompanying drawing and appended claims.

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Generally, these objects are achieved by a roll -of thin gauget flexible heat-reflective ~aterial adapted to rotate about a fixed axis ancl having a plurality of disposable cover sheets initially interconnected to form a continuous web. The web is provided with a plurality of longitudinally spaced tear means and indicia means on at least one surface thereof which indicate to the user the location of the next tear means as the web is being unrolled, thereby facilitating severing the sheets from the web. The indicia means may include a series of distinctive marks extending longitudinally of the web and gradually changing in size and/or shape as the user pulls `
the web off the roll, thus, indicating more precisely the location of the next tear means on the web. The web is 15 sufficiently wide so that one sheet of material will ; `~
completely cover the width of the food container.
Moreover, the surace indicia may also include information regarding the type of food accommodated in the container to be covered and/or the date the food was 20 prepared. Indicia may include shapes or forms which can ~
be readily understood by personnel unable to read, or who ~ ~;
have sight problems. In the latter situation, the indicia may be in Braille or in an embossed form.

Description ~ ~-For a more complete understanding of this invention, reference should now be made to the embodiment illustrated in greater detail in the accompanying drawing wherein~
FIG. l is a fragmentary perspective view of a ~-30 roll of web material and showing a predetermined length of -~
the webs being pulled from the roll;

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FIG. 2 is an enlarged top plan view of one ~` -embodiment of the improved cover sheet ~ se after it has "
been severed from the web;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the cover sheet `
of Fig. 2 mounted on the open side of a conventional serving pan or tray; one corner of the cover sheet is ~ `
folded back so as to expose the accommodated food item.
It should be understood, of course, that the invention is not limited to the particular embodiment `~
illustrated in the drawing.
As shown in FIG. 1, a roll R of a web W of a thin gauge, flexible heat-reflective metallic material ~e.g., aluminum foil) is provided. The web W comprises a ;
plurality of integrally connected cover sheets 20 which 15 are of a predetermined size and shape and are adapted to ~`~
close the open top of conventional food pans P, the latter `
being removably mounted on suitable serving tables, not shown. The size and shape of each cover sheet depends ~`
upon the configuration of the pan or tray to be covered. ~
20 For example, a cover sheet having a 17 inch and 25 inch -length may be utilized to effectively cover a serving table tray 12 inches in width and 20 inches in length. ~
The cover sheet 20 can be made of any ~`
appropriate heat reflective material that serves to -insulate the inside of the food container and is foldable r flexible, and thin. In addition, the material should be resistant to tearing, puncturing, pitting and corrosion.
In lieu of metallic foil, the cover sheet may be made of a -~
plastic film material, such as a thermoplastic copolymer -~
of vinylidene chloride and vinyl chloride or acrylonitrile; paper; or a combination of the above. The`~
preferred aluminum foil has a thickness of at least 0.001 "~
gauge; however, the thickness of the cover sheet may vary ~ ' '``' ' , q~

and will depend on its end use. For example, if the cover sheet is used to cover a full size steam table tray, a thicker sheet of material is recommended so as to avoid the accidental tearing or puncturing and to minimize corrosion. Alternatively, if the cover sheet is used to wrap food to be stored in a refrigerator or freezer, a thinner layer of material may be more practical. Other important considerations are the cost of the product and the convenience with which the cover sheet may be manually severed from the web and applied to the tray open top.
The cover sheets forming the web are segregated from one another by transversely extending tear means 25, - ;
26 at predetermined longitudinally spaced locations along the web. The tear means, or scores, may be lines of perforations or partial cuts and are normally parallel to one another and to the axis of the roll R. 8ecause of the relative locations of the tear scores, a cover sheet 20 of proper size can be easily severed from the roll without material waste occurring. As an alternative, the tear means may comprise a printed line on at least one surface of the web indicating where a scissor or knife cut should be made to obtain the proper size cover sheet from the web. ~ `~
Disposed on at least one surface of the web and between successive, or adjacent, tear scores is indicia.
The indicia is uniformly repeated in the same pattern along the web and is intended to visually alert the user ;
when the next tear score will be uncovered as the web is pulled from the roll, and thereby enables the proper size `
cover sheet to be severed from the web.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the indicia ~
comprise two sets of parallel bars (30, 31) placed ~-adjacent each marginal edge of the web. Starting from one ~;~

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tear score, the length and/or thickness of the bars of each set either increases or decreases as the set of bars ;
extends towards a successive tear score. Thus, by the change in the bar size or thickness, the user becomes ~ `
visually alerted that the next successive tear score will become observable and when observed further pulling of the ~ ~
web from the roll should cease and the cover sheet severed ~-from the web along the observed tear score.
In lieu of parallel bars, the indicia may ~ ;~
include various types of markings such as dots, stars, circles and/or arrowheads, or various forms, such as animals, fish and the like. Where animal or fish forms ~ -~
are utilized, they may suggest the type of food being covered (e.g., cattle-beef; lambs-lamb; chickens-chicken; `
15 and fish-fish). The markings or bar indicia may be of ``~``~`i various colors and the intensity of the color may vary from light to dark or vice versa. ThP indicia may be --located along the longitudinal centerline of the web or along only one marginal edge of the web. Additional 20 indicia may be provided for assisting the user to properly ~ ~
center the cover sheet over the open top of the container ~ ~`
(33a). Furthermore, the indicia may provide relevant ~ `
information, such as the identity of the accommodated food item, the date the food was prepared, the quantity of the `
food, etc.
The indicia may be printed and/or embossed on `
the web prior to being formed into a roll. In forming the roll, the web is wound about a spool, which may have the `~-opposite ends thereof forming sockets S to accommodate axially aligned bracket pintles, not shown. The pintles I define the rotational axis X-X of the roll. At least one I of the pintles is withdrawn from the corresponding socket when a roll is to be replaced.

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:.. , The indicia means enables a cover sheet to be economically produced and efficiently used on various -types of food containers, including steam table trays.
Furthermore, the indicia means allow users, who are unable to read, to utilize the disposable covers in an efficient and a cost effective manner. Similarly, personnel with vision problems could easily manipulate the cover sheet.
The improved cover sheet may also be used as a wrapper for food items to be stored in a refrigerator or ; -`
10 freezer or transported in a suitable vehicle. - `-While preferred embodiments have herein been ~
shown and described, it will be understood that a skilled ~;
artisan may make variations without departing from the `
spirit of the invention. ~
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Claims (8)

1. A cover for mounting on an open top container, said cover being formed of a flexible, thin gauge, heat reflective material, said cover being initially interconnected to a plurality of similar covers and coacting therewith to form a continuous web defining an elongate roll rotatable about a longitudinal axis thereof, adjacent covers in the web being segregated from one another by a transversely extending tear means; a predetermined number of covers forming the web each having indicia on at least one surface thereof and forming a pattern for visually indicating the approach of the next succeeding tear means as the web is being manually unrolled from the elongated roll and thus, enable a cover of predetermined dimensions to be separated from the web along the said succeeding tear means.

2. The cover of claim 1 wherein the tear means is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of said roll.

3. The cover of claim 1 wherein each tear means is defined by a tear scoreline extending substantially the width of the web.

4. The cover of claim 3 wherein the tear scorelines include lines of perforations.

5. The cover of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the indicia includes a plurality of individual, visually distinctive shapes arranged in longitudinally spaced relation and extending between adjacent tear means.

6. The cover of claim 5 wherein the indicia means includes a second portion providing information regarding the contents of the container on which the cover is mounted.

7. The cover of claim 1 wherein all the covers forming the web are of like configuration.

8. The cover of claim 1 wherein the indicia is printed on the cover surface.