CA1126209A

CA1126209A - Container assembly

Info

Publication number: CA1126209A
Application number: CA311,611A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Robert H. C. M. Daenen; James B. Swett
Original assignee: Dart Industries Inc
Current assignee: Dart Industries Inc
Priority date: 1977-11-07
Filing date: 1978-09-19
Publication date: 1982-06-22
Also published as: DK494078A; AT362097B; NL7811063A; NO147938B; DK148581B; FI68510C; PL115396B1; IE781845L; HK83385A; JPS5753735B2; AU510694B1; FI783231A; IT7829474A0; GB2007198A; NL172043C; ATA791678A; NL172043B; ZA785329B; FI68510B; MY8500616A

Abstract

RP-8292-,M26 CONTAINER ASSEMBLY

Abstract The periphery of an annular cover is sealingly engage-able with the upper edge of a vessel having a continuous side wall and a closed bottom. A lid is sealingly engageable over the opening within the annular cover. The lid and the cover are invertedly attachable to the underside of the vessel.

Description

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This invention relates to containers.

More particularly, the instant invention relates to kitchen container~ having sealingly engageable closures and used for preparing and storing foods.

In a further aspect, the present invention concerns a kitchen container in which the closure functions as a spatter guard having a sealingly closable access aperture.

The prior art is replete with various types of kitchen containers commonly used for the preparation and storage of food. Of immediate interest is the type of con-tainer including a vessel which will withstand the impact and shock of electrically and manually powered mixing devices and which has a sealingly engageable closure for fluid tight storage of raw and prepared foods.

Commonly, the vessels have a continuous wall, usually either circular or rectangular, and a closed bottom. It is common practice to provide a side wall that is either sloped or curved such that~the bottom is somewhat smaller than the open top. Diverse materials, such as metal, glass and plastics, are used to fabricate vessels that are either rigid or deform-able. The closures are usually plate-like structure molded of a resiliently yieldable material and which are peripherally engageable with the upper edge of the vessel.

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Many foods require beating or mixing during preparation.
Liquid preparations, such as batters and creamed concoctions, frequently necessitate rigorous agitation with attendant

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'' ` ---` `. l~ti2~g difficulty in maintaining the preparation within the vessel.
The preparation is either thrown from the vessel to spatter - items within the environment, or is lifted over the upper edge to dribble down over the outside of the vessel.

In recognition of the problem, the prior art has provided an adaptor cover which functions as a spatter shield.
Alternately usable instead of the regular storage lid, the spatter shield is an annular member which engages the periphery of the vessel. A central aperture provides access to the interior of the vessel for mixing and other preparation ac-tivities, In essence, the adaptor cover provides an inwardly directed peripheral flange to retain food within ~he vessel.

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While adequately performing the intended function, i.e., preventing splattering and dripping, adaptor covers have not proven entirely satisfactory. The adaptor cover is cn auxiliary device having a specialized purpose and, therefore, intermittent utility. Between occasional uses, the adaptor cover is stored independent of the container. In addition to the possibility of being completely misplaced, the adaptor cover requires extra effort to obtain when needed. Since food is often times placed in storage within the container after preparation, the adaptor cover becomes an extra independent element that must be separately handled and cleansed.

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Other problems associated with preparing food in conventional containers have nct been resolved. For example, when not in use, vessels and lids are generally separately stored. Frequently, a vessel is stored with several other vessels and the lid is similarly stored with several other lids.

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Considerable time is ~pent matching lids and vessels during times of need. Also, since the user must commit one hand to maintaining the balance of the vessel, the preparation of food is generally restricted to a serially performed process.
Further, foods which fall from the vessel, especially liquids which dribble down the outside, create an unsightly and even hazardous condition upon the work surface.
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It would be highly advantageous, therefore, to remedy the foregoing and other deficiencies inherent in the prior art.
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Accordingly, it is an ob-ect of the present invention to provide an improved container assembly for the preparation and storage of food.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a container assembly including a vessel having a sealingly engageable closure for fluid tight preservation of food.

And, another object of the invention is the provision of a container assembly having an ameliorated closure which , functions as a spatter shield during preparation of food.

:' Yet another object of this invention is to provide a closure having a removeable lid portion which is sealingly engageable with the spatter shield.

; Still another object of the invention is the provision of a container assembly which can withstand the stresses and 8hock associated with vigorous use of beating and stirring utensils.

., ' : ' ~62'?~9 A further object of the invention is the provision of a container assembly having a closure which can be used as a base to increase stability of the vessel.

And a further object of the instant invention is to provide a container assembly wherein the lid is alternately attachable to the vessel for safekeeping while the vessel is open .

Yet a further object of the invention is the provision of a closure which has utility as a drip trough for catching and holding food particles which spill over the top of the vessel.

' And still a further object of the invention is to provide a container of the above type which is durably constructed, readily usable and easily cleansed and sanitized.

Briefly, to achieve the desired objectives of the instant invention in accordance with a preferred embodiment thereof, first provided is a vessel, including an upright continuous side wall and a closed bottom. Next provided is an annular cover which is detachably engageable with the upper edge of the vessel. The generally central aperture within the annular cover provides access for various utensils for prepara-tion of food within the vessel. A lid is engageable with the cover to sealingly close the aperture therein. The vessel, the cover and the lid provide a fluid tight container 2ssembly for storage of food.

:1~262~9 The cover functions :s a spatter shield to retain food within the vessel during vigorous beating or stirring, especially of liquid food preparations. Alternately, the cover is inverted and temporarily secured to the underside of the vessel to increase the size of the base of the vessel and enhance the stability thereof. In a further embodiment, the cover has a peripheral lip which normally seals over the upper edge of the ~over. In the inverted position, the lip serves as a trough to catch and retain food particles which spill over the top edge of the vessel. For storage purposes, the lid is engageable with the underside of the vessel alternately with the cover.
Thus, in accordance with the present teachings, an improvement is provided in a closure having a substantially horizontally panel with a central aperture and peripheral , connection means for use in combination with a vessel having an upstanding continuous side wall with complementary connection means for detachable engagement with the connection means of the closure. The improvement which is provided comprises engagement means carried by the closure peripherally of the central aperture with the engagement means including an upright wall having an upper edge and extending upwardly from the horizontal panel and a depending wall continuous with the upright wall and extending below the horizontal panel.

~ 6 6Z~9 The foregoing and further and more specific objects and advantages of the instant invention will become readily apparent to those`skilled in the art from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof,taken in conJunction with the drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is an exploded upper perspective view of a container assembly, including a vessel, a cover and a lid, - constructed in accordance with the teachings of the instant invention;

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Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of the assembled device of Fig. l;
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Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view ^f the inscribed area designated 3 in Fig. 2, and particularly detailing the engagement between the vessel and the cover;

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fi2~9 Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the inscribed area designated 4 in Fig. 2, and especially showing the engagement b~tween the lid and the cover;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view detailing an attachment between the vessel and the lid;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view showing an alternate attachment between the vessel and the cover;

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Fig. 7 is a vertical sectional view generally corres-ponding to the illustration of Fig. 2 and showing the ~ontainer assembly thereof as it would appear when in use during the preparation of food, a typical conventional electric beater being shown in broken outline;

Fig. 8 is an elevation view partly in section and particularly illustrating an alternate arrangement of the components of the contai~er assembly of the instant invention;

Fig. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view taken along the line 9-9 of Fig. 8 particularly illus-trating a preferred pouring spout useful with the vessel; and Fig. 10 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the vessel of the container assembly of Fig. 1 and further illustrating the pouring spout thereof iZ~Ç~

Turning now to the drawings, in which the sa~e refer-ence numerals indicate corresponding elements throughout the several views, attention is first directed to Fig. 1 which shows a container assembly embodying the principles of the instant invention and including a vessel generally designated by the reference character 20, and a closure having an annular cover generally designated by the reference character 21 and a lid generally designated 22. Vessel 20, as further seen in Fig. 2, includes an upright continuous side wall 23 having an inner surface 24, outer surface 25 and upper and lower edges 27 and 28 respectively. Lower edge 28 is curved inwardLy and meets bottom 29 which is continuous therewith to form a fluid carrying vessel. Bottom 29 has a top surface 30 and an under surface 32.

;' Referring also to Fig. 3, there is seen a connection element in the form of a peripheral flange 33 having terminal edge 34 extending outwardly downward from upper edge 27 of side wall 23. Side wall 23 has an inclined upper portion 35 which extends outwardly upward to upper edge 27. It is preferred that upper edge 27, being the apex between peripheral flange 33 and inclined upper portion 35, is curved to present a smooth blended radius between peripheral flange 33 and inclined upper portion 35.

A continuous wall 37,having inner surface 38 and outer surface 39, depends from under surface 32 of bottom 29. Wall 37, ~hich e~tends Qutwardly downward, will be described in further detail presently.

' Annular cover 21, as viewed in Figs. 1 and 2, includes a substantially horizontal panel 42 having top surface 43, under surface 44 and periphery 45.

A complementary connection element, detachably secure-able to the connection element at the upper edge of vessel 20, is continuous with periphery 45 of panel 42. The complementary connection element, seen in greater detail in Fig. 3, includes an inclined wall extending upwardly outward to a curved junc-tion 48 from which lip 49 extends downwardly outward. Lip 49 terminates at tne lower edge with an inwardly directed protru-sion 50. Preferably, protrusion 50 is in the form of a semi-circular bead.

It has been found that a satsifactory fluid tight seal between vessel 20 and annular cover 21 can be accomplished by forming lip 49 and flange 33 at the same angle of inclination such that the under surface of lip 49 lies in juxtaposition against the outer surface of flange 33. Also, flange 33 has a length to be snugly received junction 48 and protrusion 50.
In order not to subtract from the sealing engagement between flange 33 and lip 49, inclined wall 47 is displaced at a greater angle from vertical than upper portion 35 of side wall 23. If, for example, upper portion 35 slopes 15 from vertical, then wall 47 slopes 20~ from vertical to insure that initial contact between vessel 20 and cover 21 is made in the area between upper edge 27 and junction 48. Lip 49, being resiliently yieldable, is received over flange 33 in snap engagement.

z~9 A ge~erally central aperture 52, as further illustrated in Fig. 4, bounded by periphery 53, extends through panel 42.
An engagement element in the form of wall 54, having upper cdge 55, extends upwardly from top surface 43 of panel 42 and is continuous with periphery 53.

Lid 22, having a horizontal panel 57 with peripheral complementary engagement element, is detachably secureable to wall 54 for sealingly closing aperture 52 and providing a fluid tight container assembly. As more particularly illus-trated in Figs. 2 and 4, panel 57 has a top surface 58, an under surface 59 and a periphery 60. A recess is formed in under surface 59 continuous about periphery 60 for receiving upper edge 55 of wall 54. The recess is formed by an inner wall 62 extending upwardly from under surface 59, an outer wall 63 and a top connecting wall 64 extending between inner wall 62 and outer wall 63. The spacing between inner wall 62 and outer wall 63 is such to tightly receive wall 54 there-between. Similar to lip 49, walls 62, 63 and 64 are resilient-ly yieldable, whereby wall 54 is received in snap engagement.
Wall 63 terminates with an outwardly directed flange 65 which provides a finger hold for lifting upwardly and removing lid 22.

A second wall 67, associated with cover 21, depends from under surface 44 of panel 42 at the periphery 53 of aperture 52. Second wall 67 terminates with lower edge 68 and has an outer surface 69 and an inner surface 70.

~ Alternately, annular cover 31, as illustrated in Fig.
; 6, is alternately attachable to the underside of vessel 20.

.. 10 fiZ~9 For this assembly configuration, annular cover 21 is inverted with second wall 67 extending upwardly from panel 42. As vessel 20 is lowered over inverted cover 21, second wall 67 is received within wall 37. Walls 37 and 67 have substantially the same slope and have a relative size such that inner s~rface 38 of wall 37 is brought into juxtaposition against outer surface 69 of wall 67 prior to the abutment of lower edge 40 of wall 37 against under surface 32 of bottom 29, or the abutment of lower edge 40 of wall 37 against under surface 44 of panel 42. Accordingly, a frictional engagement is made between surfaces 38 and 69.

Fig. 7 shows the container assembly of the instant invention in a preferred assembly configuration for vigorous agitation during the preparat;on of food. Annular cover 21 i8 assembled in the normal position at the top of vessel 20, as hereinbefore specifically described in connection with Fig. 3. Lid 22 is temporarily attached to the underside of vessel 20, as previously described with reference to Fig. 5.
Aperture 52 is open, communicating between the interior of vessel 20 and the environment.

An electric mixer, generally designated by the reference character 72 is fragmentarily illustrated in broken outline.
Electric mixer 72 includes head section 73,normaliy housing the motor and drive mechanism, which imparts rotary movement to the beater assembly including spindle 74 and blade 75.
The dashed outline 72 graphically represents a typical electric mixer of the type readily commercially available and well known to those in the art. To accommodate various mixing requirements, most conventional electric mixers have a variable ,~
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speed control. Especially at the hlgher speed ranges, there is a tendency for food particles, more particularly liquids, to be thrown from the vessel. Thi phenomenon particularly occurs near the edges of the vessel as a result of the liquid being deflected by the side wall of the vessel.

Liquid, deflected upwardly by the side wall of the vessle, strikes under surface 44 of horizontal panel 42 and is redirected to the interior of the vessel. Second wall 67 provides a further deflection to prevent the exit of food preparations through aperture 52. ~he seal formed between lip 49 and flange 33 prevents liquids from escaping over the upper edge of vessel 20 and under annular cover 21.

As illustrated, spindle 74 passes through aperture 52, which is of sufficient size in relation to standard beater size to permit blade 75 to pass in close contact to inner surface 24 of side wall 23 for thorough mixing. It is not intended that during the mixing operation spindle 74 should be required to bear against inner surface 70 of walls 54 and 67. However, with proper selection of resiliently yieldable material, as will readily occur to those skilled in the art, neither the mixing implement nor cover 21 will suffer damage by sudden or sustained impact, shock or pressure. Prior to or subsequent to preparation, lid 22 is engaged with annular cover 21, as specifically shown in Fig. 2, for air-tight storage of the food.

Fig. 8 illustrates another useful arrangement of the components of the instant invention, as previously noted in connection with Fig. 6. The combined vertical height of wall 2~9 :
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54 and the thickness of top connecting wall 64 is less than the vertical height of inclined wall 47. Therefore, in the instant configuration, the assembly rests upon junction 48 of inclined wall 47 and lip 49. This effectively increases the size of the base of vessel 20 and imparts substantially in-creased stability thereto. Further, inclined wall 47 and lip 49 form a trough which collects and retains food particles which are lifted over upper edge 27 of vessel 20 and eventually drip from terminal edge 34 of peripheral flange 33.

d The assembly arrangement depicted in Fig. 8 has particular utility when it is desired to have maximum use of the full size of the opening of vessel 20, such as during manual stirring and blending. Frequently, during such operations, the user is required to blend or fold with one hand, while pouring in ingredients with the other hand, leaving the container assembly unsupported by extraneous means. The arrangement is also preferred for storage, since the interior of the vessel is exposed for sanitary purposes, yet the cover and the lid are attached to the vessel and readily available when needed.

Attention is now directed to Figs. 8, 9 and 10, which shows a depression 77 formed in vessel 20 and functioning as a pouring spout. Depression 77 has a continuous surface 78, which begins at upper edge 27 and extends downwardly through peripheral flange 33 and inclined wall 35 toward terminal edge 34. Surface 78 then continues substantially horizontal intermediate upper edge 27 and terminal edge 37 for a given distance, then slvpes upwardly to upper edge 27. Surface 78 is also continuous with .~
inclined portion 35 and peripheral flange 33 and further forms Z~9 a continuation of inner ~urface 2~ of side wall 23. It is par~icularly noted that a portion of peripheral flange 33 resides below depression 77 and terminal edge 34 is undisturbed, and a fluid tight seal is had with cover 21 in the immediate area.

The container assembly of the instant invention is readily fabricated from various materials. For example, vessel 20 may be either rigid or flexible and is formed or molded of metal, glass or plastic. Annular cover 21 and lid 22 are best produced of a resiliently yieldable material, such as plastic.
Preferabl~, the entire structure, vessel, cover and lid, i_ molded of polyethelene or any of several thermo-plastic synthetic resins or vinyl compounds, as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Since the device is particularly intended for the preparation and storage of food, the particular material of construction should be chosen to have physical characteristics compatible with established sanitary standards.
Accordingly, the chosen material is odorless, resistent to common kitchen acids and chemicals, is non-absorbing and will accommodate an extreme of temperatures.

:, Various changes and modifications to the device herein chosen for purposes of illustration in the drawings will readily occur to those skilled in the art. For example, the pouring spout may assume alternate configurations or be omitted at the option of the manufacturer. Also, the attachment between the ve~sel and the annular cover may be affected in accordance with the structure by which the lid is attached to the annular ; ,, cover. Similarly, the annular cover may include variously modified peripheral engagement elements for use with conventional .

~62~9 pre-existing vessels. Also, it will be appreciated that shape is not a consideration within the instant invention. While specifically illustrated as having a generally cylindrical appearance, other forms and shapes, such as rectangular, are structurally and functionally equivalent.

Various other modifications and variations of the embodiment herein chosen for purposes of illustration will readily occur to those skilled in the art. To the extent that such modifications and variations do not depart from the spirit of the invention, such are intended to be included within the scope thereof, which is limited only by a fair interpretation of the appended claims.

, ~ aving fully described and disclosed the instant inuention and a preferred embodiment thereof in such clear and concise terms as to enable those skilled in the art to under-; stand and practice the same, the invention claimed is:

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Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. In a closure having a substantially horizontal panel with a central aperture and peripheral connection means for use in combination with a vessel having an upstanding continuous side wall with complementary connection means for detachable engagement with the connection means of said closure improvements therein comprising;
engagement means carried by said closure peripherally of said central aperture, said engagement means including an upright wall having an upper edge and extending upwardly from said horizontal panel, and a depending wall continuous with said upright wall and extending below said horizontal panel.

2. The cover of claim 1 wherein said upright wall and said depending wall are frusto-conical and are yieldable.

3. A container assembly comprising a vessel including an upright continuous side wall having an upper edge;
a bottom wall integral with said side wall and having an under surface from which a second engagement element com-prising a continuous engagement element comprising a continuous depending wall, such normally providing the bearing surface for said vessel;
a connection element peripherally continuous with the upper edge of said side wall;
a closure including, a substantially horizontal panel with a central aperture;
engagement means carried by said closure peripherally of said central aperture;

said engagement means including an upright wall having an upper edge and extending upwardly from said horizontal panel; and a depending wall continuous with said upright wall and extending below said horizontal panel.

4. The container assembly of claim 3 wherein:
said connection element includes at least one depression therein along its extent.

5. The container assembly of claim 3 wherein:
said connection element includes a peripheral flange extending outwardly upwardly and then downward from the upper edge of said side wall and having a terminal edge; and a complementary connection element continuous with the periphery of said Panel and including a resiliently yieldable peripheral lip extending outwardly upwardly and then downwardly from said cover and matingly receiving said flange and having an inwardly directed protrusion engageable under the terminal edge of said flange.

6. The container assembly of claim 3 wherein said second engagement element is sized, the depending wall continu-ous with said upright wall of said closure when said closure is inverted.