초록 ▼

An expansible container is provided for use during the cooking of food in a radiant energy device such as a microwave oven, with the container being configured or otherwise designed to provide entertainment to onlookers as the container expands in size during the relative rapid cooking of food in th

An expansible container is provided for use during the cooking of food in a radiant energy device such as a microwave oven, with the container being configured or otherwise designed to provide entertainment to onlookers as the container expands in size during the relative rapid cooking of food in the container and/or with the fully expanded container of cooked food providing an interesting article, character, figure or configuration that is of novel, interesting or entertaining appearance. The container is formed from relatively flexible materials that define a closed chamber which contains food to be cooked. In its deflated form, the container is collapsed to assume a relatively flat, thin configuration which, in most preferred practice, displays or is configured to provide an entertaining or amusing shape. The inflation of the container during cooking of its food contents in a device such as a microwave oven may be rendered even more entertaining by selecting the food contents to comprise a substance such as popcorn that generates various types of entertaining noises such as "popping" noises during the cooking process. Once inflated, the container retains its expanded or inflated form to provide a measure of lasting entertainment or amusement. If popping corn is the food being cooked, the cooking time typically requires about one to about six minutes.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A microwave popcorn device comprising:an inflatable container, a mass of unpopped popcorn disposed in said inflatable container, said mass of unpopped popcorn being adapted to be popped by exposure to microwave energy, and said mass of popcorn generating an inflation gas as it is popped by exposu

1. A microwave popcorn device comprising:an inflatable container, a mass of unpopped popcorn disposed in said inflatable container, said mass of unpopped popcorn being adapted to be popped by exposure to microwave energy, and said mass of popcorn generating an inflation gas as it is popped by exposure to microwave energy, said inflatable container having a base portion adapted to rest on a food support surface of a microwave oven and having an inflatable portion which is substantially fully inflatable by inflation gas generated in said container as said mass of popcorn is popped, said inflatable portion of said container being preformed so as to be substantially fully inflatable into a predetermined three-dimensional external shape by inflation gas generated in said container, said predetermined three-dimensional shape being other than in the form of a bag or envelope and simulating the external configuration of an animate object, said inflatable portion of said container having graphic material on the exterior thereof, said graphic material combining with said three-dimensional external shape to visually detail the animate object in the three-dimensional external shape formed by said inflatable portion, and said inflatable container comprises a pair of flexible panels which are joined together and which cooperate to form said inflatable portion, each of said flexible panels being preformed to said predetermined three-dimensional external shape of the animate object, and at least one of said flexible panels having said graphic material which combines with said three-dimensional external shape to visually detail the recognizable character or article in the three dimensional shape formed by said one of said panels.