CA1185932A - Carry-out tray - Google Patents

Abstract

CARRY-OUT TRAY

Abstract of the Disclosure A molded carry-out tray is provided for use in accommodating cup-shaped containers which vary in size within a predetermined range. The tray comprises at least one recessed pocket for accommodating and maintaining a container in an upright position while the tray is disposed in a substantially horizontal plane. The pocket is provided with a base section which subtends and supportingly engages the bottom of the container when the latter is inserted to the fullest extent into the pocket. Extending divergently upwardly from the base section are walls which terminate at a common plane disposed at a predetermined elevation above the base section. Corner sections are disposed inter-mediate the walls and interconnect corresponding portions of adjacent walls. Each corner section is connected to a peripheral portion of the base section and extends upwardly therefrom. The corner sections and walls coact to form an open top. Each wall has an upper segment integrally con-nected to adjacent corner sections and an outwardly yieldable depending lower segment having the lower edge thereof dis-posed adjacent to, but spaced from, the periphery of the base section. Side edges of the lower segment extend up-wardly from opposite ends of the lower edge and are spaced from corresponding side portions of the adjacent corner sections. Each corner section side portion is provided with a ledge which is recessed from the open top of the pocket and is offset inwardly towards the center of the pocket.

Description

~5~

CARRY-OUT TRA'Y

Background of the Invention _ . . .. ~ .

With'the dramatic increased popularity in recent years of the fast-food type'restaurants, various means have heretofore been provided to facilitate the handling of the purchased food and beverage items by the customex !
Such means have'included conventional paper bags, folding boxes, foil wrappers, and trays of various shapes and sizes.
The'instant invention is direc~ed to trays utilized for this purpose.
Most of the more popular chains of fast-food stores are provided with tables and seating for the customer so that a significant amount of the food and beverage items is consumed on the store premiseO As a convenience to customers desi.ring to eat and drink on the premise, the ordered items are normally placed on either a reusable or disposable tray at the service counter and then carri~d by the customer to a selected location within the store interior or out to the patio benches and tables provided on the 'outside of the store. ' Various types o~ reusable tra~s formed o wood, plastics, or metal have heretofore been provided for this purpose;' however, such trays are'costIy; are hlghly susceptible to being lost, stolen, or bxoken; in order to comply with various pu~lic health and sanitary rules and ordinances, each tray must be cleaned hefore beiny reused, and thus r~quires an inordinate amount of manual labor;
adequate storage space must be provided for the trays; and the supply of trays must be continuously replenished because of loss, theft, and damage so as to handle varying volumes of business.
For the foregoing reasons, the use of disposable trays has become increasinyly popular. ~arious trays o~
this general type have been provided in the past; however, beca.use of certain design characteristics they have been beset by one or more of the following shortcomings:
a) they were costly and difficult to manufacturei b) they were not bio-degradable or no~ capable of being recycled;
c) they were inhexently weak and awkward to handle; d~ they were incapable of properly accommodating various size b~ver-age containers; e) they could not be nested with similar trays so as to form a compact stack suitable for storage by or shipment to the store operator; and f) they required presetting-up before they could be used by the customer.

Summary of the Invention Thus, it is an object of the invention to provide a molded carry-out tray which avoids all of the aforenoted shortcomings, It is a further object to provide a carry-out tray which can readily accommodate a variety of articles and is formed of an inexpensive, lightweight, insulative material.
It is a still fu.rther object to provide a carry-out tray which, when loaded, can be conveniently carried by one hand of the customer.
Further and additional objects will appear from the. description, accompanying drawings,- and appended claims.

933;2 In accordance with one embodim~nt o the invention, a molded carry-out tray is provided for use in accommodating cup-shaped containers which vary in size and shape within a predetermined range. The tray is provided with at least one recessed pocket for removably accommodatiny and main-taining a cup-shaped container within a pr~determined size range in an upright position while the tray is disposed in a substantially horizontal plane. The pocket includes a base section which subtends and supportingly engages the bottom of an accommodated container. Extending divexgently upwardly from the base section are walls which terminate at a common plane disposed at a predet'ermined elevation relative tc the base section~ 'Disposed between adjacent walls and interconnecting corresponding portlons thereof are corner sections which are connected to peripheral segments of the 'base sec'tion and extend upwardly therefrom.
At least one of the corner sections terminates at the common plane and coacts with th walls to form at least a three-sided open top through whi'ch the lower portion of the container is inserted. Each wall includes an upper segment having the'opposite'sides thereof integrally connected to adjacen't corner sections. In addition, each wall includes an outwardly yieIdable lower segment which depends from the upper segment. The lower segment has a lower edge which is adjacent to, but spaced froml the periphery of the base sectionO The side edges of the lower segment extend upwardly from opposite ends of the lower edge and are spaced from corresponding side portions of the adjacent corner sections. Each corresponding side portion of a corner section is provided with an offset ledge which extends inwardly towards the center of the pocket and is spaced downwardly from the'common plane.

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Description For a more complete understanding of the invention reference should be made to the 'drawings wherein FIG. 1 is a top plan view of one form of the improved carry-out tray.
FIGS. 2 and 3 are side elevational and bottom views, respectively, of the tray of FIG. 1.
FIG. 4 is an en'larged ~ragmentary top perspective view of one of the pockets provided in the tray o~ FIG. 1.
FIG. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along line'5-5 of FIG. 1.
FIG. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view taken along line 6-6 of ~IG. 1. ' FIGS. 7 and 8 are'top plan and side elevational views, respectively, of a second embodiment of the improved carry-out tray. ' FIG$o 9 and 10 are top plan and side'elevational views, res'pecti~eIy, of a ~hird embodiment of the improved carry-out tray.
- FIG. 11 is a top plan view of one of the pockets embodiea in the tray and showing in concentric phantom lines the relative positions of the lower ends of three standard size cup-shaped containers, commonly used in ~ast-food restaurants for dispensing beverages to the customers, with respect to the walls defining the pocket~
FIG~ 12 is a top plan view of a fourth embodiment of the improved carry-out tray.
FIG. 13 is similar to FIG. 4 and is a fragmentary perspecti~e top view of the carry-out tray of FIG~ 12.
FIG5~ 14-17 are fragmentary enlarged sectional views taken res'pectiveIy along lines' 14-14, 15-15, 16-16, and 17-17 o FIG. 12~ ' Referrin~ now ,to the drawings and more'particularly to FIGS. 1-3, one'form 20 of the improved carry-out tray is 35~
. 5 shown which is preferably formed of a molded pulp material.
Such material is particularly suitable becau5e it is in-expensive and possessed of good thermal insulative properties.
Other forms 120 and 220 and 320 of the carry-owt tray are shown in FIGS~ 7 and 9 and 12, respectively, and will be described more fully hereinafter.
Tray 20, as illustrated in FIG~ l, is provided with four recessed pockets Pl, P2, P3, 4 which are o~ like configuratiorl and thus, only one of the pockets will be described in detail hereina~ter. The pockets are symmetrically arranyed about the center C of the tray.
Each pocket is separated from an adjacent pocket by a shallow depression D which is substantially wedye-shaped with the narrow end Dl therebf adjacent the tray center C.
Each pocket is reces'sed a like amount from a common plane A which'is defined by the open tops of the pockets. The plane A is delimited by a depending peripheral flange F which provides' added stiffness and strength to the tray, thereby facilitating manual handling of a loaded tray.
Each pocket of the tray 20, 120, 220, or 320 may be of the same basic design. In the illustrated embodiments, each pocket is three-sided and includes a base section 21 which is adapted to subtend and supportingly engage the bottom of a container X, Y, Z. The container, in this instance, is of a conventional cup-shape, and is of a type commonly utilixed by fast-food operators for dispensing beverages in small, medium, and large quantities. The side wall of the container is generally tapered so a5 to permit nesting of like size containers. The lower end of the side wall defines an annular bottom or end wallO
Extending divergently upwardly from the base sec'tion 21 of the'pocket are walls 22, 23, 24. Disposed between adjacent walls and connected thereto are corner sec'tions 25, 26, 27. The'upper edges' of the walls and corner sec'tions terminate in plane A and coact with'one another to form the'open top for the'pocket. Each'pocket wall is preferably of like'configuration and, as see'n in 3~

FIG. 6 r includes an upper seyment 28 having the opposite side edges thereof integrally connected to the adjacent corner sections 25, 27. Integral with and depending from the wall upper segment 28 is an outwardly yieldable lower segment 30. 'The outward yieldability of the lower seyment 30 permits the pocket to readily accommodate the medium and large size containers Y, Z, as well as the small size X, see FIG. ll. The 'lower segment 30 has the lower edge 30a thereof disposed adjacent to, but spaced from, the periphery of base 'section 21. Lower segment 30 is also provided with side edges 30b whi'ch extend upwardly from opposite ends of the lower edge 30a. The side edges 30b are spaced from corresponding side portions 25a, 27a of the corner sections by an elongated slot or slit S. As illustrated, the upper end of each'slot may terminate'at approximatel'y the mid-height of the walls. 'If desired, the'interior surface of the lower segment 30 ~h~'t is the'surface 'facing towards the center of the pocket), may have'the 'center portion thereof'provided with a slight concave configurationO The curvature of the center portions of the lower segment in~erior surfaces may partially conform to the'curved exterior of the side wall of the small size'container X and thus, engage same and provide 'resilient lateral support for the'accommodated con-tainer even though the container is inserted into and removed from the pocket several times. It is desirable that the center portion of the lower segment interior surface be only slightly curved so as not to impair the outward yielda~ility of the lower segment or cause the lower segment to assume a permanent set.
As noted in FIG. 4, the peripheral portions 21a of the ~ase section, which are adjacent the lower edyes 30a of the wall lower segments 30,,are recessed a small amount so as to facilitate molding o~ the tray with con- -ventional moldin~ equipment.
Each'side'portion 25a,,27a of the corner sections 25, 27 has the'upper end thereof offset inwardly so as to ~35~3~

form a ledge 1, see FIG. 5. The relative location of the ledges within a pocket is such as to provide lateral side wall support for the large size container Z when ~he latter is inserted to the fullest extent into the pocket. When the large size container is accommodated in the pocket, the wall lower segments 30 are ou-twardly deflected subs-tantiall.y the maximum amount.
As will be observed in FIG. 6,.,the lower end of the coxner section is ma.de in-tegral at 21b w.ith the perlphery of the base 'section 21 and thus, provides support for the base section~
FIGS. 7~8 and 9-lO disclose modified forms 120, 220 o~ the improved trays, which besides pockets Eor beverage containers, also include enlarged recessed areas R for accommodating items such as sandwiches or the' like. The pockets in trays 120~' 220 are preferably of the type prev iously described with'respect to tray 20. As will be observed, in tray 120 only two pockets Pl, P2 are pro~ided, both'being disposed to one side of reces'sed area R. If desired, tray 120 could be modified 50 that the two pockets would be separated by the 'rec'essed area. The 'depth of t~.e recessed area R in both'trays should preferably be the'same as the depth of the pockets; thus, enabling each tray to assume a stable 'horizontal position when resting upon a supporting surface.
In tray 220, two pairs of pockets Pl, P2, and P3, P4 are provided and disposed on opposite sides of recessed area R. While'only four pockets are shown in tray 220, it i5 to be understood that the number of pockets may be increased or decreased from that shown. Furthermore, the configuration of the area R may also be changed from that shown.
The recessed area in both tra~s includes a sub~
stantially planar floox sec'tion 50 whi'ch is delimited by upwardly diverging wall sections 51, 52 and corner sections 53 which'interconnec't the'latter~ 'The recessed area R is 3~

separated from the pockets by a land section 54 which is substantially coplanar with the open tops of the pockets.
FIGS. 12-17 disclose a fourth embodiment 320 of the improved carry out tray and is particularly suitable where the loaded tray is likely to be manually carried by one hand of the customer or the person serving the customer.
One handed manipulation of the loaded tray is a common occurrence in fast-food operations when the loaded tray is being passed by the server through a drive-up window to a cus~omer sitting in a vehicle.
Tray 320 in the illustrated embodiment is provided with four pockets Pl, P2, P3, and PA which are syr~etrically arranged about a center portion C. As in the case of tray 20, the poc~ets of tray 320 are preferably of like con-struction, and each has a configuration similar to thatdescribed with respect to tray 20. For con~enience in understanding the pocket structure, parts thereof corres-ponding to the pocket parts of tray 20 will be given the same identifying numbers but in a 300 series~ In tray 320, the pocket walls 322 which are symmetrically arranged about the recessea base section 321, extend divergently upwardly therefrom and terminate in a common plane A. The walls of each pocket in tray 320 are interconnected by corner sections 325-27. Corner section 326 is disposed in close proximity ' to the center portion C of the tray and projects upwardly from base section 321 and terminates in plane A. The re-maining two corner sections 325, 327 are disposed in close proximity to a raised peripheral rim Q which encompasses the tray. Rim Q, as seen more clearly in FIG. 14, has the upper surface thereof defining a second common plane B.
Plane B is at a greater elevation relative to the pocket base section 321 than plane A. The raised rim Q is con-tinuous throughout and thus, adds si~nificantly to the rigidity o~ the tray 320.

~15~32 g .

As noted in FIG. 13, corner sections 325, 327 merge into the innex segment Q' defining the rim Q. The outer segment Q" of the rim Q exten~s downwardly and out-wardly a slight amount, see FIGS. 14, 17. Preferably the outer segment Q" ~epends a grea~er distance from plane B
-than the spacing between planes A and B.
Adjacent pockets in tray 320 are separated from one another by relatively w.ide planar lands K which extend in substantially radial d.irections from the center por~ion C of the tray 320. The outer distal portion of each land K terminates in a broad depression T which is shaped to conveniently accommodate the thumb sf the person carrying the tray. The depres'sion is separated from an adjacent pocket by a narrow substantially solid rib 360, see FIG. 15.
The side of the rib adjacent the pocket is formed by the upper segment 328 of one of the walls of the pocket. Ea~h rib ex'tenas from the outer end of land K to the inner wall Q' of peripheral rim Q; thus, providing substantial stiffness to the center' portion C of the tray.
The center portion C of. the'tray is provided with a raised segment C' having the upper exposed surface there-o~ substantial3.y flush with plane B 7 see FIG. 14. When tray 320 is formed of molded pulp, the raised segment C' serves an important function during forming of the tray in preventing sag or distortion of the center portion C while the tray is disposed in an inverted position on a d,rying ConVeyoL or rack.
Symmetrically arranged about the raised segment C' and extending radially and downwardly from segment Clto center portion C are a plurality of fillet-like protuberances C" which prevent sticking toget'her of a plurality of like trays when the'latter are 'arranged in nested relation for storage or bulk shipping.
As seen in FIG. 12,,each'pocket has a triangular configuration and is so arranged wlthin the tray that one 3~

of the three side walls thereof is disposed adjacent ~
peripheral corner of the tray 32~. The upper edge of such wall is spaced from the tray corner but is connected to the inner surface Q', of the rim ~ by a second land K'. Lands K
and K' are substantially coplanar with one another and with plane A and thus, effectively re-tain the open tops of the pockets in proper spaced relation to each other and to the peripheral rim.
It wil.l be noted in FIG. 12 that the width o~
the rim Q in the vicinity of the depress:ion T is greater than the width of the rema.inder of the rim and thus provides added stiffness to the rim at the depressions T and also --facilitates denesting of the trays when arranyed in nested relation.
As aforenoted the structure of the pockets in both trays 20, 320 is substantially the same and each pocket wall includes a lower segment 30~ 330 and an upper segment 28, 328. The'opposite'sides of the wall upper segment are integrally connected to the adjacent corner sections 25, 26, 27, or 325, 326, 327 so that the open top of the pocket will maintain a desired shape and will resist distortion. The lower segment 28, 328, on the other hand, is connected only to the wall upper segment and the bottom edge of the lower segment is spaced vertically'outwardly from the periphery of the base section 321 and the side edges of the lower segment are spaced laterally from the adjacent corner sections. By reason of this arrangement the wall lower segments are yieldable outwardly so as to readily accommodate various size beverage containers or 30 the like which are placed within the various pockets~ Further-more, by reason of the wall lower segment being connected to only the wall upper segment and not to either the base section or the adjacent corner sections as well, the lower segment when contacted by the'accommodated container will 3s not take a permanent set whi'ch would impair the capability of the wall seyments to exert a resilient contact with the accommodated container even though the la~er is repeatedly removed from the pocket.
In all forms of the carry out trays 20, 120, 220, and 320 herei'n described, the pockets, recessed ar~as, depressions, and peripheral rlms thereo~ have tapered interior and exterior wall surfaces, thereby enabling a plurality of like trays to be closely nested together so as to form a compact stack or bundle, sui~able for bulk storaye and for shipping. The ].edges L and the solid ribs 360 serve to prevent over-~compacting of the trays in a stack which might otherwise present a denesting prohlem.
While the'pockets herei'n illustrated and descri~ed have a tapered triangular or three-sided configurakion, it is to be understood, however, that the invention hereinafter claimed is not to be limited thereto. Square, hexagonal, or octagonal shaped pockets may also be'utilized and will depend to a larye'extent on the'shape and size of the containers to be acco~modated in the tray pockets. Furthermore, the number of pockets and ~heir location to each other or to other rec'es'sed areas may be varied from that shown without departing from the scope of the invention.
The improved carry-out tray is of simple inexpensive construction, is sturdy and convenient to manually carry when loaded. It is readily nestable with other like trays for storage or shipping and does not require any manual s~tting up before use.
We claim:

Claims (17)

1. A molded carry-out tray for accommodating cup shaped containers varying in size within a predetermined range, said tray comprising a continuous raised peripheral rim delimiting an area, at least one recessed pocket formed in said area for removably accommodating and maintaining a container in an upright position while said tray is disposed in a substantially horizontal plane, said pocket including a base section for subtending and supportingly engaging the bottom of an accommodated container; walls extending divergently upwardly from said base section and terminating at a pre-determined elevation with respect to said base section, said rim having a top disposed at a greater elevation from said base section than the upper termination of said pocket walls;
and corner sections intermediate said walls and interconnecting corresponding portions of adjacent walls, said corner sections being connected to peripheral segments of said base section and extending upwardly therefrom, said corner sections terminating at substantially the same elevation as said walls, said walls and corner sections coacting to define an open top; each wall being provided with an upper segment integrally connected to adjacent corner sections, and an outwardly yieldable lower segment having a lower edge disposed adjacent to, but spaced from, the periphery of said base section, said lower segments having side edges extending upwardly from opposite ends of said lower edge, said side edges being spaced from corresponding side portions of the adjacent corner sections, each corresponding side portion of a corner section being provided with an inwardly offset ledge, said ledge being spaced from the open top of said pocket.

2. The tray of claim 1 wherein the upper and lower segments of each wall are integral with one another.

3. The tray of claim 1 wherein each corner section is provided with a pair of relatively spaced ledges, the pairs of ledges of said corner sections co-acting with one another for supportingly engaging the exterior of at least the largest container within said predetermined range accommodated by said pocket.

4. The tray of claim 2 wherein the lower seg-ments are symmetrically arranged about the periphery of said base section.

5. The tray of claim 1 wherein the pocket is disposed to one side of an enlarged recessed area, the latter being disposed within the area delimited by said rim and separated from said pocket by a land section disposed in substantially coplanar relation with said pocket open top;
said recessed area including a floor section delimited by upwardly and divergently extending wall panels, said floor section and said pocket base section being in substantially coplanar relation.

6. A molded carry-out tray for accommodating cup-shaped containers varying in size within a predetermined range, said tray comprising a plurality of adjacent recessed portions, at least one of said portions being a pocket for removably accommodating and maintaining a container within the predetermined range in an upright position while said tray is disposed in a substantially horizontal plane; a finger-accommodating depression disposed intermediate said recessed portions; and a continuous, peripheral reinforcing rim en-compassing the plurality of recessed portions, the top of said rim defining a first plane, said depression being proximate said rim; said pocket including a base section for subtending and supportingly engaging the bottom of an accommodated container within the predetermined range;
walls extending divergently upwardly from said base section and terminating at a predetermined elevation with respect to said base section and beneath said first plane, each wall having an upper segment and a yieldable lower segment extending from said upper segment and spaced from said base section, said wall lower segments being adapted to resiliently engage the container accommodated in the pocket, and corner sections intermediate said walls and intercon-necting corresponding upper segments of adjacent walls, said corner sections being integrally connected to peripheral segments of said base section and extending divergently upwardly therefrom, said corner sections being spaced from corresponding lower segments of said adjacent walls, predeter-mined corner sections terminating at substantially the same elevation as said walls, said corner sections and said wall upper segments coacting to define an open top of greater area than said base section, said pocket open top being separated from said finger-accommodating depression by a stiffening rib, each corner section being provided with an inwardly offset ledge spaced downwardly from the open top and laterally from the adjacent wall lower segment.

7. The tray of claim 6 wherein the recessed portions are recessed a substantially like amount and define a second plane disposed in spaced substantially parallel relation with said first plane.

8. The tray of claim 7 wherein said recessed portions are pockets of substantially like configuration.

9. The tray of claim 8 wherein said pockets are substantially symmetrically arranged about a center portion of said tray.

10. The tray of claim 9 wherein the tray center portion includes a raised segment disposed in substantially flush relation with the first plane.

11. The tray of claim 10 wherein there is a finger-accommodating depression intermediate each pair of adjacent pockets, a peripheral segment of each depression being separated from the raised segment of the tray center portion by a substantially planar first land, said first lands defining a third plane disposed intermediate said first and second planes.

12. The tray of claim 6 wherein the stiffening rib is partially formed by the upper segment of an adjacent pocket wall.

13. The tray of claim 11 wherein a wall of each pocket is separated from and connected to an adjacent seg-ment of the rim by a planar second land.

14. The tray of claim 13 wherein the first and second lands define said third plane.

15. The tray of claim 11 wherein adjacent pockets are separated from one another by the coaction of a depres-sion and a first land.

16. The tray of claim 6 wherein the lower segment of each pocket wall has the lower edge thereof spaced upwardly and outwardly from the periphery of said base section, and the side edges of the lower segment are laterally spaced from the adjacent corner section.

17. The tray of claim 6 wherein the upper and lower segments of a pocket wall are interconnected at substantially the mid-height of said wall.