Bowl-in-one

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6610339
  • Patent Number
    6,610,339
  • Date Filed
    Friday, September 29, 2000
    24 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, August 26, 2003
    21 years ago
Abstract
A portable container for storing an edible liquid separate from an edible dry component is disclosed. The container permits a user to easily mix the edible liquid with the dry component in a readily transportable container without spilling the contents. A portable container includes an outer vessel having a least one internal projection and an inner vessel received within the outer vessel. The inner vessel is rotatable within the outer vessel and includes a removable top and at least one opening covered by a frangible membrane. A sealing member seals the outer vessel to the inner vessel. When the inner vessel is rotated within the outer vessel the at least one internal projections ruptures the frangible membrane and provides communication between the inner vessel and the outer vessel. An edible liquid is stored within an inner space defined between the inner vessel and the outer vessel and a dry component is stored within the inner vessel. Thus, when the frangible membrane is ruptured the edible liquid is mixed with the edible dry component.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




The present invention relates to a portable container for solid and liquid foods, such as cereal and milk. The present invention accommodates a busy lifestyle by allowing people to take mixable liquid and solid foods with them in a single package, to be mixed and consumed at their convenience.




Various types of containers for holding liquid and solid foods, such as milk and cereal, have previously been developed. For example, Ascone U.S. Re. Pat. No. 35,437 discloses a reusable milk and cereal container having a removable freeze pack adjacent a milk compartment, separate milk and cereal compartments with a valve interposed therebetween, and an optional detachable spoon.




Lenahan U.S. Pat. No. 5,514,394 discloses a container for mixing cereal and milk, where the contents are kept in separate compartments and are mixed by applying hand pressure to the container.




Newarski U.S. Pat. No. 5,727,679 discloses a single use cereal and milk container of plastic or paperboard, wherein the contents are mixed by means of removing a seal from the cereal compartment and opening a valve in the milk compartment. All references cited herein are incorporated by reference.




The present invention provides a more convenient portable edible liquid and edible solid container than the containers already known in the art. The easy-to-transport, portable container of the present invention enables the consumer to easily mix the dry and liquid ingredients, without worrying about spilling the contents, and to subsequently easily eat the mixed components. One embodiment of the container fits automobile cup holders. The container is resealable after opening and preferably includes a spoon.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The present invention provides a portable single container for storing an edible liquid separate from an edible dry component. The present invention permits a user to easily mix the liquid with the dry component without spilling the contents in a readily transportable container.




In one embodiment, the present invention is a portable container for transporting a solid and a liquid and comprises an outer vessel having at least one internal projection; an inner vessel received in the outer vessel, the inner vessel is rotatable within the outer vessel and has a removable top and at least one opening covered by a frangible membrane. A sealing member seals the outer vessel to the inner vessel. When the inner vessel is rotated within the outer vessel the at least one internal projection ruptures the frangible membrane and provides.




The present invention further comprises a method for storing an edible liquid separate from an edible solid in a container and subsequently mixing the liquid with the solid in the container. The present method comprises the steps of: providing a container having an outer vessel and an inner vessel, the outer vessel having at least one internal projection and the inner vessel having a removable top and at least one opening covered by a frangible membrane; placing the inner vessel into the outer vessel to define an inner space between them; placing an edible liquid in the inner space and an edible solid in the inner vessel; sealingly joining the inner vessel to the outer vessel; and rotating the inner vessel within the outer vessel, thereby causing the at least one internal projection to rupture the frangible membrane and permit mixing of the edible liquid with the edible solid.











These and other features and advantages of this invention will become more apparent to those skilled in the art from the detailed description of a preferred embodiment. The drawings that accompany the detailed description are described below.




BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS





FIG. 1

is an exploded cut-away view of a container designed in accordance with the present invention.





FIG. 2

is a view along line I—I of FIG.


1


.





FIG. 3

is a cut-away view of the container of

FIG. 1

assembled.





FIG. 4

is a perspective view of the container of

FIG. 1

with an external spoon.





FIG. 5

is a perspective view of the container of

FIG. 1

, showing a consumer rotating the container's lid.





FIG. 6

is a perspective view of the container of

FIG. 1

with the lid removed, showing a consumer eating cereal from the container.





FIG. 7

is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the container.





FIG. 8

is a partial cross-sectional view of the container of FIG.


7


.





FIG. 9

is a cross-sectional view of a lid.





FIG. 10

is a cross-sectional view of a removable top.











DESCRIPTION




Referring to the Figures, wherein like numerals indicate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, in

FIG. 1

a portable container according to the present invention is generally indicated at


20


. Container


20


includes an outer vessel


22


having a first length, an inner vessel


24


having a second length substantially the same as said first length, a sealing member


26


, and a lid


28


. Inner vessel


24


is received within outer vessel


22


and sealing member


26


seals inner vessel


24


to outer vessel


22


. An inner space


29


is defined between inner vessel


24


, outer vessel


22


, and sealing member


26


. Outer vessel


22


further includes a plurality of projections


30


that are disposed on a sidewall of the outer vessel


22


and extend or project radially inwardly therefrom into inner space


29


. In one embodiment, projections


30


are V-shaped fins. In a preferred embodiment, container


20


includes a plurality of projections


30


, but as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art and as explained below, container


20


could be formed with a single projection


30


. Outer vessel


22


further includes a socket


32


formed in one end of outer vessel


22


. Socket


32


is centrally located. Opposite socket


32


, outer vessel


24


includes an upper rim


34


. Upper rim


34


includes a plurality of ribs


36


and


38


. A groove


39


is formed between two of the ribs


38


.




Inner vessel


24


includes a plurality of openings


40


. In one embodiment, inner vessel


24


includes a first plurality of openings


40


adjacent one end of inner vessel


24


and a second plurality of openings


40


adjacent a second end of inner vessel


24


and spaced apart from the first plurality of openings as shown in FIG.


1


. The openings


40


are defined in a sidewall of the inner vessel


24


. Each of the openings


40


is covered by a frangible membrane


42


. In a preferred embodiment, frangible membranes


42


each include a projection


44


which extends away from frangible membrane


42


and into inner space


29


. Each of the frangible membranes


42


and accompanying projections


44


form a frangible component. As best shown in

FIG. 2

, the projections


44


of the frangible component are disposed on the fragible membrane


42


and extend radially outwardly therefrom. In one embodiment, the projections


44


are V-shaped fins. Inner vessel


24


includes a ball


46


mounted to a stem


48


which extends centrally from one end of inner vessel


24


. Ball


46


is received rotatably in socket


32


. This provides a rotatable connection between inner vessel


24


and outer vessel


22


. As would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, the rotatable connection between the inner vessel


24


and the outer vessel


22


could take a number of other forms including, for example, a simple projection extending from inner vessel


24


that is received in a depression in outer vessel


22


(not shown). Inner vessel


24


further includes an upper rim


50


having at least one groove


51


bounded by a plurality of ribs


52


. Inner vessel


24


further includes a removable top


54


. Preferably, removable top


54


includes internal threads, which threadingly engage external threads adjacent upper rim


50


of inner vessel


24


(not shown).




In one embodiment, sealing member


26


comprises a U-shaped annular member having a long leg


56


and a short leg


58


. Long leg


56


includes a groove


62


and a rib


64


. Short leg


58


includes a pair of ribs


60


and


64


.




Lid


28


includes a rib


68


and preferably accommodates a spoon


66


.





FIG. 2

is a view along line I—I of FIG.


1


. In the embodiment shown in

FIG. 2

, outer vessel


22


includes a pair of projections


30


located adjacent each of the projections


44


of frangible membranes


42


. As would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, container


20


could be designed with either a single projection


30


or a single projection


30


adjacent each projection


44


.





FIG. 3

is a cut-away view of container


20


shown fully assembled. When container


20


is assembled the inner vessel


24


is inserted into outer vessel


22


and inner vessel


24


is loaded with an edible dry product


70


, see below. An edible liquid is then placed in inner space


29


. Then sealing member


26


is secured to outer vessel


22


and inner vessel


24


to seal outer vessel


22


to inner vessel


24


and to seal the edible liquid within inner space


29


. In the embodiment shown in

FIG. 3

, rib


60


of short leg


58


of sealing member


26


is received in groove


51


of inner vessel


24


. In addition, rib


64


of short leg


58


contacts inner vessel


24


. This seals sealing member


26


to inner vessel


24


. Groove


39


of outer vessel


22


receives groove


62


of sealing member


26


. In addition, ribs


36


and


38


of outer vessel


22


engage sealing member


26


and rib


64


of sealing member


26


engages outer vessel


22


. Thus, sealing member


26


is sealingly engaged with outer vessel


22


. Rib


68


of lid


28


is received in groove


62


of sealing member


26


to sealingly secure lid


28


to sealing member


26


. Container


20


can further include a tamper resistant outer covering surrounding lid


28


, not shown, as is known in the art.




As discussed above, inner vessel


24


contains an edible dry ingredient, such as for example, cereal. Inner space


29


contains an edible liquid, such as for example, milk. In

FIG. 4

, an alternative location for spoon


66




a


is shown. In this embodiment, spoon


66




a


is attached to the outside of container


20


. In

FIG. 5

a user is shown rotating removable top


54


to rotate inner vessel


24


within outer vessel


22


. This rotation causes projections


30


to rupture frangible membranes


42


thereby causing communication between inner space


29


and inner vessel


24


. This communication permits the edible liquid within inner space


29


to flow through openings


40


into inner vessel


24


thereby mixing the edible liquid with the edible dry ingredients within inner vessel


24


. As shown in

FIG. 6

, once a user has removed removable top


54


a spoon


66


can be used to consume the edible ingredients


70


mixed with the edible liquid.




In

FIG. 7

a prospective view of an alternative embodiment of a container


20




a


is shown. Components


10


common between the embodiment shown in

FIGS. 7-10

and

FIG. 1

are designated with like numerals and the suffix “a”. Container


20




a


includes an outer vessel


22




a


, a sealing member


26




a


, and a lid


28




a


. The outer dimensions of outer vessel


22




a


include a lower end


72


sized to be accommodated in an automobile cup holder.





FIG. 8

is a partial cross-sectional view of the container


20




a


of FIG.


7


. Container


20




a


is similar to container


20


as shown in FIG.


1


. The main differences between the embodiment shown and

FIGS. 7-10

and

FIGS. 1-6

reside in the contour of outer vessel


22




a


, which is followed by the contour of an inner vessel


24




a


. In addition, container


20




a


includes a sealing member


26




a


that is shaped somewhat differently from sealing member


26


. Specifically, sealing member


26




a


includes a pair of ribs


76


, which are received in a sealing manner in a pair of grooves


74


located in outer vessel


22




a


. Sealing member


26




a


is compression fit onto inner vessel


24




a


to provide a sealing connection between sealing member


26




a


and inner vessel


24




a


. As shown in

FIGS. 10 and 9

, container


20




a


includes a removable top


50




a


, which is threadingly received on inner vessel


24




a


adjacent upper rim


50




a


. In addition, lid


28




a


includes a rib


68




a


, which is received in groove


62




a


of sealing member


26




a


to seal lid


28




a


to container


20




a.






Preferably the components of container


20


and


20




a


are formed out of a plastic material. But other suitable materials, such as for example, stainless steel are also acceptable.




The foregoing invention has been described in accordance with the relevant legal standards; thus the description is exemplary rather than limiting in nature. Variations and modifications to the disclosed embodiment may become apparent to those skilled in the art and do come within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of legal protection afforded this invention can only be determined by studying the following claims.



Claims
  • 1. A portable container for transporting a solid and a liquid comprising:an outer vessel having a sidewall and al least one internal projection disposed on said sidewall and extending radially inwardly therefrom; an inner vessel supported by said outer vessel and having a removable top and a sidewall defining at least one opening; a frangible membrane covering said at least one opening; at least one projection disposed on said frangible membrane and extending radially outwardly therefrom for radially overlapping and contacting said at least one internal projection of said outer vessel when said inner vessel is rotated relative to said outer vessel to rupture said frangible membrane thereby providing communication between said inner vessel and said outer vessel; and a sealing member sealing said outer vessel to said inner vessel.
  • 2. A portable container as recited in claim 1 further including a rotatable connection between said inner vessel and said outer vessel.
  • 3. A portable container as recited in claim 2, wherein said outer vessel includes a socket and said inner vessel includes a ball, received in said socket when said inner vessel is received in said outer vessel, whereby said ball and said socket form said rotatable connection.
  • 4. A portable container as recited in claim 1 further comprising a removable lid, sealingly received on said sealing member.
  • 5. A portable container as recited in claim 4 wherein one of said lid and said sealing member includes a rib and the other of said lid and said sealing member includes a groove, engaging said rib to seal said lid to said sealing member.
  • 6. A portable container as recited in claim 1, wherein said inner vessel includes a first plurality of openings each covered by a frangible membrane and located adjacent first and second ends of said inner vessel with each of said frangible membranes having a projection disposed thereon and extending radially outwardly therefrom.
  • 7. A portable container as recited in claim 1 wherein one of said sealing member and said outer vessel includes a rib and the other of said sealing member and said outer vessel includes a groove, engaging said rib to sealingly join said sealing member to said outer vessel.
  • 8. A portable container as recited in claim 1 wherein one of said sealing member and said inner vessel includes a rib and the other of said sealing member and said inner vessel includes a groove, said groove engaging said rib to sealingly join said sealing member to said inner vessel.
  • 9. A portable container as recited in claim 1 wherein said sealing member is sealingly compression fit onto said inner vessel to seal said sealing member to said inner vessel.
  • 10. A portable container as recited in claim 1 wherein said at least one internal projection extending radially inwardly from said sidewall of said outer vessel and said at least one projection extending radially outwardly from said frangible membrane are V-shaped fins.
  • 11. A portable container as recited in claim 1 wherein said outer vessel has a first length and said inner vessel has a second length substantially the same as said first length and wherein the sidewalls of said inner vessel and said outer vessel define an inner space between said vessel such that said at least one internal projection extends radially inwardly into said inner space and said at least one projection extends radially outwardly into said inner space in an overlapping relationship to said at least one internal projection.
  • 12. A portable container comprising:an outer vessel having a sidewall and at least one internal projection disposed on said sidewall and extending radially inwardly therefrom; an inner vessel supported by said outer vessel and having a removable top and a sidewall defining at least one opening; a sealing member sealing said outer vessel to said inner vessel; an inner space defined between said outer vessel and said inner vessel; an edible liquid disposed in said inner space; an edible solid disposed in said inner vessel; a frangible membrane covering said at least one opening; and at least one projection disposed on said frangible membrane and extending radially outwardly therefrom into said inner space for radially overlapping and contacting said at least one internal projection of said outer vessel when said inner vessel is rotated relative to said outer vessel to rupture said frangible membrane thereby providing communication between said inner vessel and said inner space and mixing said edible solid and said edible liquid.
Parent Case Info

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/156,839, filed Sep. 30, 1999.

US Referenced Citations (16)
Number Name Date Kind
2677459 Ritzenberg May 1954 A
4024952 Leitz May 1977 A
4132308 Goncalves Jan 1979 A
4177938 Brina Dec 1979 A
4195730 Hunt Apr 1980 A
4591050 Finke et al. May 1986 A
4682689 Pereira et al. Jul 1987 A
4773529 Finke et al. Sep 1988 A
4793475 Itzel Dec 1988 A
4793476 Schrupp Dec 1988 A
5209348 Schafer May 1993 A
5514394 Lenahan May 1996 A
5540326 Arnold et al. Jul 1996 A
RE35437 Ascone Feb 1997 E
5706980 Dickerson Jan 1998 A
5727679 Newarski Mar 1998 A
Foreign Referenced Citations (4)
Number Date Country
2694542 Feb 1994 FR
2298406 Apr 1996 GB
06080166 Mar 1994 JP
WO0029305 May 2000 WO
Provisional Applications (1)
Number Date Country
60/156839 Sep 1999 US