Patent Application
20220250806
The disclosure relates to sealing devices and more particularly pertains to a new sealing device for resealing cans to preserve contents thereof. The present invention discloses a sealing device comprising a flexible disc having a pair of peripheral lips for resealing a can having a grooved open end, such as cans used for storing paint, putty, food stuffs, and the like.
The prior art relates to sealing devices. Prior art sealing devices for cans may comprise sealing discs positionable within cans, flexible discs with rims that engage outer perimeters of cans, flexible discs with peripheral knobs matching recesses along tops of cans, and flexible discs with peripheral channels matching tops of specially designed cans. What is lacking in the prior art is a sealing device comprising a flexible disc having a pair of peripheral lips for resealing a can having a grooved open end, such as cans used for storing paint, putty, food stuffs, and the like.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a lid, which is resiliently flexible so that the lid is configured to be stretched. The lid comprises a disc, which is sized complementarily to an open end of a can of the type typically used for storing paint, putty, and the like. The open end of the can has an inner rim and an outer rim, which define a groove. A first lip is engaged to the disc and extends circumferentially therearound and arcuately therefrom, so that an outer edge of the first lip is positioned below a lower surface of the disc. A second lip engaged to and extending from the lower surface of the disc is concentric with the first lip. The second lip and the first lip thus define a slot. The lid can be stretched, allowing for insertion of the outer rim of the can into the slot and for insertion the second lip into the groove. The lid thus is sealably engaged to the can to preserve contents thereof.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
The first lip 16 is engaged to the disc 14 and extends circumferentially therearound and arcuately therefrom, so that an outer edge 20 of the first lip 16 is positioned below a lower surface 22 of the disc 14, as shown in
The second lip 18 is engaged to and extends from the lower surface 22 of the disc 14. The second lip 18 is concentric with the first lip 16 so that the second lip 18 and the first lip 16 define a slot 26. The disc 14 is sized complementarily to an open end 28 of a can 30 of the type typically used for storing paint, putty, and the like. The open end 28 of the can 30 has an inner rim 32 and an outer rim 34, which define a groove 36. This type of can 30 is available is a variety of sizes and comes with a metal cover (not shown), which can be pried from the open end 28 of the can 30 to access contents thereof. One issue with this type of can 30 is improper sealing of the metal cover when attempting to reseal the can 30 after initial opening. Improper sealing leads to degradation of the contents, for example drying of paint or putty, and spoilage of foodstuffs.
The lid 12 of the present invention can 30 be stretched, allowing for insertion of the outer rim 34 of the can 30 into the slot 26 and for insertion the second lip 18 into the groove 36. The lid 12 thus is sealably engaged to the can 30 to preserve the contents.
In use, the can sealing device 10 enables a method 38 of resealing a can 30. The method 38 comprises a first step 40 of providing a can 30 having an open end 28, wherein the open end 28 has an inner rim 32 and an outer rim 34 defining a groove 36. A second step 42 of the method 38 entails providing a lid 12 comprising a disc 14, a first lip 16, and a second lip 18, as disclosed above. A third step 44 of the method 38 includes stretching the lid 12 and inserting the outer rim 34 of the can 30 into the slot 26 and the second lip 18 into the groove 36, so that the lid 12 is sealably engaged to the can 30. The method 38 may comprise a fourth step 46 of pressing downwardly upon the disc 14, proximate to a centerpoint 48 thereof, so that air is expelled from the can 30 to create a partial vacuum therein.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
