IPC분류정보
국가/구분 |
United States(US) Patent
등록
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국제특허분류(IPC7판) |
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출원번호 |
US-0941397
(2004-09-15)
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발명자
/ 주소 |
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출원인 / 주소 |
- Steamway Franchise Sales, Inc.
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대리인 / 주소 |
Carrithers Law Office, PLL
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인용정보 |
피인용 횟수 :
0 인용 특허 :
2 |
초록
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An end user container for food in refrigerated storage and subsequent microwave cooking is made of a thermo-plastic material transparent to radiant energy. The lid and tray are thermo-formed pieces and incorporate latches as integral features in the respective parts. They are arranged with a post-i
An end user container for food in refrigerated storage and subsequent microwave cooking is made of a thermo-plastic material transparent to radiant energy. The lid and tray are thermo-formed pieces and incorporate latches as integral features in the respective parts. They are arranged with a post-in-socket capability for latching the lid to the tray in a position which will permit venting of the interior of the container assembly to the exterior. The rims of the tray and lid are formed to enable pressing them together providing a surface sealing between the tray and lid along engaging wall portions of the lid and tray continuously around the container. Also, the lid has a bottom cooperating with the wall to provide a well, and the wall of the tray is outwardly turned, providing a step or ledge near the top of the tray and extending out to the upper wall portion, forming a part of the rim and which engages the well wall when the container is closed to the seal condition. When it is in the venting condition, the latches enable a perimeter space between those walls and around the entire container.
대표청구항
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What is claimed is: 1. A container for storage and cooking food comprising: a hollow body of material formed into a bottom and a perimeter wall extending upward from the bottom and thereby providing an upwardly opening tray; said wall having a lower portion and an upper portion with each portion ha
What is claimed is: 1. A container for storage and cooking food comprising: a hollow body of material formed into a bottom and a perimeter wall extending upward from the bottom and thereby providing an upwardly opening tray; said wall having a lower portion and an upper portion with each portion having an inner surface and an outer surface; said wall having a ledge extending outward from the inner surface of said lower wall portion to the inner surface of said upper wall portion; said upper wall portion continuing upward from the ledge to a level where said material is turned outward to form a perimeter rim of the tray; said rim extending outward to a transition region where said material is turned downward to form a perimeter skirt of the tray encircling and spaced from said upper wall portion of said tray; a second body of material formed into a panel and a perimeter wall extending upward from the panel and then outward to form a perimeter rim of the lid and then downward to form a perimeter skirt of the lid; the perimeter wall and rim and skirt of the lid providing a downwardly-opening perimeter channel received on the rim of the tray and sealed to the tray by sealing engagement of a surface of said upper portion of the wall of the tray with a surface of said perimeter wall of said lid continuous around the perimeter of said perimeter wall of the lid; means in said panel and said ledge for connecting said lid to said tray prior to establishing said sealing engagement comprising a projection in one of said panel and said ledge and a recess in the other of said panel and said ledger; said projection and said recess being in registry when said tray rim is received in said lid channel to enable a post-in-socket relationship; said projection and recess are shaped to admit said projection into said recess when forced together, and resist separation under force directed toward removal of said projection from said recess; said projection extends downward from said panel and has stem portion proximate said panel and head portion remote from said panel; said recess extends downward into said ledge and has a narrow entrance proximate said ledge wider chamber below said entrance; whereby admission of said head through said entrance is resisted and removal of said head from said chamber is resisted. 2. The container in claim 1 and wherein: said upper wall portion of said tray is wedged into said channel to establish said sealing engagement. 3. The container of claim 1 and wherein: said upper wall portion and said perimeter wall of said lid are retained in sealing engagement by friction. 4. The container of claim 1 and wherein: said projection has an inside wall forming an upwardly-opening recess in said panel. 5. The container of claim 4 and wherein: said tray including said recesses therein is formed of a single homogeneous body of thermoplastic material. 6. The container of claim 4 and wherein: said lid including said recesses therein is formed of a single homogeneous body of thermoplastic material. 7. The container of claim 1 and wherein: said recess in said ledge has an outside wall forming a projection extending downward from the underside of said ledge outside said lower wall portion. 8. The container of claim 1 and wherein: there are at least two of said projections spaced remote from each other in said container, and at least two of said recesses in said container and in registry with said projections. 9. The container of claim 8 and wherein: said projections are in a vertical plane of symmetry in said container. 10. A container for cooking food in a microwave oven comprising: a tray having at least one sidewall and a bottom and a rim defining the top of the sidewall, the rim extending outward from the sidewall and then downward in the form of a skirt having an outwardly extending perimeter lip; a lid having at least one sidewall and a bottom and a rim defining the ton of the lid sidewall and extending outward from the sidewall and then downward in the form of a skirt, the sidewall, rim and skirt of the lid defining a downwardly opening channel of the lid received on the rim and sidewall of the tray, with the sidewall of the rim sealed on the sidewall of the tray continuously around the perimeter of the sidewall of the tray and retaining the lid on the tray; latching means on said lid and said tray and normally disposed in position enabling said lid to become unsealed upon development of a predetermined pressure in said container while sealed, but positioned to retain said lid on said tray upon development of said predetermined pressure to permit escape of steam from inside said container to control pressure in said container while retaining said lid on said container; and said predetermined pressure is one pound per square inch. 11. The container of claim 10 and wherein: said container is made of an integral body of thermo-formed co-polymer polypropylene food grade quality plastic material. 12. The container of claim 10 and wherein: said lid is made of an integral body of thermo-formed co-polymer polypropylene food grade quality plastic material. 13. The container of claim 10 and wherein: the lid has a plurality of channels in the rim extending outward from the side wall at the rim to the skirt to provide gas-venting passageways from the side wall across the rim to the skirt. 14. The container of claim 10 and wherein: a portion of the bottom inboard from the sidewall is at a level above the level of the bottom at which the bottom turns upward into the sidewall. 15. The container of claim 10 and wherein: the lid has an upwardly-facing well for receiving and framing the bottom of the tray when the lid is separated from the tray, whereby the tray can be partially nested in the lid. 16. A container for cooking food in a microwave oven comprising: a tray having at least one sidewall and a bottom and a rim defining the top of the sidewall, the rim extending outward from the sidewall and then downward in the form of a skirt having an outwardly extending perimeter lip; a lid having at least one sidewall and a bottom and a rim defining the top of the lid sidewall and extending outward from the sidewall and then downward in the form of a skirt, the sidewall, rim and skirt of the lid defining a downwardly opening channel of the lid received on the rim and sidewall of the tray, with the sidewall of the rim sealed on the sidewall of the tray continuously around the perimeter of the sidewall of the tray and retaining the lid on the tray; latching means on said lid and said tray and normally disposed in position enabling said lid to become unsealed upon development of a predetermined pressure in said container while sealed, but positioned to retain said lid on said tray upon development of said predetermined pressure to permit escape of steam from inside said container to control pressure in said container while retaining said lid on said container; said sidewall and bottom of the lid define a well in the lid; said latching means include at least two upwardly opening sockets in the tray, and two downwardly projecting posts in the well of the lid; and the sockets and posts having normally-spaced abutments capable of interfering engagement upon pressure-initiated unsealing of said lid and said tray, to inhibit departure of said lid from said tray. 17. The container of claim 16 and wherein: said tray is elongate, has sides and ends and has upwardly-facing shoulders at the ends, said shoulders are at level in the container between the bottom and the rim, and said sockets are located in said shoulders. 18. A container for cooking food in a microwave oven comprising: a tray having at least one sidewall and a bottom and a rim defining the top of the sidewall, the rim extending outward from the sidewall and then downward in the form of a skirt having an outwardly extending perimeter lip; a lid having at least one sidewall and a bottom and a rim defining the top of the lid sidewall and extending outward from the sidewall and then downward in the form of a skirt, the sidewall, rim and skirt of the lid defining a downwardly opening channel of the lid received on the rim and sidewall of the tray, with the sidewall of the rim sealed on the sidewall of the tray continuously around the perimeter of the sidewall of the tray and retaining the lid on the tray; latching means on said lid and said tray and normally disposed in position enabling said lid to become unsealed upon development of a predetermined pressure in said container while sealed, but positioned to retain said lid on said tray upon development of said predetermined pressure to permit escape of steam from inside said container to control pressure in said container while retaining said lid on said container; said tray sidewall has an upwardly-facing ledge defining a tray sidewall lower portion blending into the tray bottom and a tray sidewall upper portion blending into the tray rim; said latching means includes a post projecting downwardly from said lid and including a stem projecting downward from the lid and a head at the lower end of the post; and said latching means includes an upwardly-opening socket having an entrance at said ledge and a chamber below said ledge; said entrance is dimensioned to resist entry of said post head to said chamber and departure of said post head from said chamber; the materials of said lid and said tray at said latching means are sufficiently deformable to enable elastic deformation of at least one of said head and said entrance for enabling said post to move through said entrance upon application of sufficient force in a direction tending to change the position of said lid relative to said tray. 19. The container of claim 18 and wherein: the said deformation is sufficiently elastic to enable snap-action installation of said lid on said tray. 20. The container of claim 18 and wherein: said materials and dimensions of said post head and said entrance are such as to require a force of at least 1 to 2 pounds at said post head in a direction tending to remove said post head from said chamber, to remove said post head from said chamber. 21. A container for cooking food in a microwave oven comprising: a tray having at least one sidewall and a bottom and a rim defining the top of the sidewall, the rim extending outward from the sidewall and then downward in the form of a skirt having an outwardly extending perimeter lip; a lid having at least one sidewall and a bottom and a rim defining the top of the lid sidewall and extending outward from the sidewall and then downward in the form of a skirt, the sidewall, rim and skirt of the lid defining a downwardly opening channel of the lid received on the rim and sidewall of the tray, with the sidewall of the rim sealed on the sidewall of the tray continuously around the perimeter of the sidewall of the tray and retaining the lid on the tray; latching means on said lid and said tray and normally disposed in position enabling said lid to become unsealed upon development of a predetermined pressure in said container while sealed, but positioned to retain said lid on said tray upon development of said predetermined pressure to permit escape of steam from inside said container to control pressure in said container while retaining said lid on said container; and said predetermined pressure comprises a pressure necessary to raise said lid to return to a vented position. 22. The container for cooking food in a microwave oven of claim 21, wherein said predetermined pressure is one pound per square inch. 23. The container of claim 21 and wherein: said sidewall and bottom of the lid define a well in the lid; and said latching means include at least two upwardly opening sockets in the tray, and two downwardly projecting posts in the well of the lid, the sockets and posts having normally-spaced abutments capable of interfering engagement upon pressure-initiated unsealing of said lid and said tray, to inhibit departure o said lid from said tray. 24. The container of claim 23 and wherein: said tray is elongate, has sides and ends and has upwardly-facing shoulders at the ends, said shoulders are at level in the container between the bottom and the rim, and said sockets are located in said shoulders. 25. The container of claim 21 and wherein: said container is made of an integral body of thermo-formed co-polymer polypropylene food grade quality plastic material. 26. The container of claim 21 and wherein: said lid is made of an integral body of thermo-formed co-polymer polypropylene food grade quality plastic material. 27. The container of claim 21 and wherein: the lid has a plurality of channels in the rim extending outward from the side wall at the rim to the skirt to provide gas-venting passageways from the side wall across the rim to the skirt. 28. The container of claim 21 and wherein: a portion of the bottom inboard from the sidewall is at a level above the level of the bottom at which the bottom turns upward into the sidewall. 29. The container of claim 21 and wherein: said tray sidewall has an upwardly-facing ledge defining a tray sidewall lower portion blending into the tray bottom and a tray sidewall upper portion blending into the tray rim; said latching means includes a post projecting downwardly from said lid and including a stem projecting downward from the lid and a head at the lower end of the post; and said latching means includes an upwardly-opening socket having an entrance at said ledge and a chamber below said ledge; said entrance is dimensioned to resist entry of said post head to said chamber and departure of said post head from said chamber; the materials of said lid and said tray at said latching means are sufficiently deformable to enable elastic deformation of at least one of said head and said entrance for enabling said post to move through said entrance upon application of sufficient force in a direction tending to change the position of said lid relative to said tray. 30. The container of claim 29 and wherein: the said deformation is sufficiently elastic to enable snap-action installation of said lid on said tray. 31. The container of claim 29 and wherein: said materials and dimensions of said post head and said entrance are such as to require a force of at least 1 to 2 pounds at said post head in a direction tending to remove said post head from said chamber, to remove said post head from said chamber. 32. The container of claim 21 and wherein: the lid has an upwardly-facing well for receiving and framing the bottom of the tray when the lid is separated from the tray, whereby the tray can be partially nested in the lid.
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