Patent Application
20090090714
This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to Taiwanese Patent Application No. 096216905, entitled Preserved Canister, filed on Oct. 9, 2007, in the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office, Chinese Patent Application No. 200720177216.0, entitled Preserved Canister with Preserved Lid, filed on Oct. 18, 2007, in the Chinese Patent Office, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.
The present inventive concepts relate to the field of storage containers and canisters, and more particularly to storage containers and canisters having re-sealable lids.
Canisters and other storage containers are in widespread use domestically and commercially, collectively referred to herein individually as a “canister” or “container” or as “canisters” or “containers” when there is more than one. It is typical for a canister to have a lid or cover that makes it re-sealable. For example, in food applications lids and covers can be used to keep foods fresh. In some applications it is desirable or necessary to have a canister with an airtight lid—particularly, but not exclusively, in food applications.
One example of a lid that can be used with a container is described in U.S. Patent Publication 2006/032852, entitled Airtight Lid For Container And Method Of Use, published Feb. 16, 2006. This publication describes a lid having a membrane made from a flexible material and having an outer perimeter larger than the rim of the container and a metal enforcement ring for establishing an airtight seal between the membrane and rim of the container. The lid may further comprise an air evacuation passageway having an air collection chamber for extracting air from the container and a valve for allowing air to flow out of the container, but preventing air from entering. The lid can be sealed to a container by pushing the membrane into the container and releasing the membrane to generate a vacuum. Without the enforcement ring the membrane would not form an airtight seal. One disadvantage to this type of lid is that it generally requires two hands to remove the lid, since the container must be steadied and held in place with one hand so the lid edge can be pulled up and away from the edge or rim of the container with the other hand.
Another example of a lid that can be used with a container is described in U.S. Patent Publication 2006/0151511, entitled Suction Cup Lid, published Jul. 13, 2006. This publication describes a lid made from a flexible material, e.g., silicone, forming a convex or other bulged shape. The lid includes a central handle or knob. When place on an opening of a container, the handle can be pressed downward causing the convex shape to be reduced or converted to a concave shape, while evacuating air from the container to form an airtight seal. The lid is made sufficiently wide so that an edge of the lid extends past the rim of the container. This allows the edge of the lid to be lifted up and away from the container to break the seal and remove the lid. Like the lid above, a disadvantage to this type of lid is that it generally requires two hands to remove the lid, since the container must be steadied and held in place with one hand so the lid edge can be pulled up and away from the edge or rim of the container with the other hand.
Another example of a lid that can be used with a container is described in U.S. Patent Publication 2006/0169693, entitled Silicone Lid For Sealing Any Type Of Open-Ended Container, published Aug. 3, 2006. This publication describes a lid that can be sealed to a container by placing a bottom of the lid on an open-ended side of the container and depressing the top, forcing air out of the container and forming a vacuum seal. The lid is substantially flat and wider than the opening it is sealing. To remove the lid a protrusion that extends outwardly from an edge of the lid is pulled up and toward the center of the lid to break the vacuum seal—i.e., to open the container. Similar to the lids described above, a disadvantage to this type of lid is that it generally requires two hands to remove the lid, since the container must be steadied and held in place with one hand so the lid can be pulled up and away from the edge or rim of the container with the other hand.
In accordance with one aspect of the present disclosure, provided is a canister comprising: a vessel defining a volume and an opening having a rim; and a lid comprising a flexible bulb and a conformal outer edge configured to create an airtight seal with the rim to close the opening, wherein the flexible bulb is configured to release pressure from the vessel and break the airtight seal in response to compression of the bulb.
The lid can be configured to evacuate air from the vessel and to create the airtight seal between the conformal outer edge and the rim in response to pressure applied to the lid in the direction of the volume.
The lid can further comprises a pliable top member between the conformal outer edge and flexible bulb.
The lid can comprise rubber.
The lid can comprise silicone.
The vessel can be made from a material comprising at least one of ceramic, acrylic, metal, resin, plastic, wood, stone or glass.
The rim and conformal outer edge can have a circular shape.
The rim and conformal outer edge can have an oval shape.
The rim and conformal outer edge can have a rectangular shape.
The rim and conformal outer edge can have a square shape.
The rim can have a flare shape and the conformal edge can have a corresponding flare shape configured to fit within the rim to make the airtight seal.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, provided is a lid for use with a vessel defining a volume and an opening having a rim. The lid comprises a flexible bulb and a conformal outer edge configured to create an airtight seal with the rim to close the opening, wherein the flexible bulb is configured to release pressure from the vessel and break the airtight seal in response to compression of the bulb.
The lid can be configured to evacuate air from the vessel and to create the airtight seal between the conformal outer edge and the rim in response to pressure applied to the lid in the direction of the volume.
The lid can further comprise a pliable top member between the conformal outer edge and flexible bulb.
The lid can comprise rubber.
The lid can comprise silicone.
The conformal outer edge can have a circular shape.
The conformal outer edge can have an oval shape.
The conformal outer edge can have a rectangular shape.
The conformal outer edge can have a square shape.
The conformal edge can have a flare shape configured to fit within the rim to make the airtight seal.
The present invention will become more apparent in view of the attached drawings and accompanying detailed description. The embodiments depicted therein are provided by way of example, not by way of limitation, wherein like reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. In the drawings:
It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used to distinguish one element from another, but not to imply a required sequence of elements. For example, a first element can be termed a second element, and, similarly, a second element can be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of the present invention. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes” and/or “including,” when used herein, specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
Lid 120 is configured to close the open end 112 of the vessel 110 by creating an airtight seal with the rim 114. The lid 120 includes a conformal outer edge 122 and a flexible bulb 124. Between the conformal outer edge 122 and bulb 124 there is a top member 126. In this embodiment the top member is substantially planar and pliable. As will be discussed in greater detail below, the conformal edge 122 is particularly useful in creating the airtight with an inner surface of rim 114 and the flexible bulb is particularly useful in breaking the airtight seal for removal of lid 120 from vessel 110. The lid 120 can be comprised of a flexible material, such as silicone, rubber, plastic, polypropylene, or a combination thereof—as examples.
Tests with prototypes having a silicone lid used with a ceramic vessel have shown that an airtight seal is created that has enough strength to enable the canister to be lifted by the bulb without breaking the airtight seal. Although, the ability to lift the canister by the flexible bulb need not be realized in all embodiments.
As demonstrated in
In this embodiment, the vessel rim 114 has a flared shape, as does conformal edge 122 of lid 120. This shape is generally preferable because: (1) it allows a larger degree of surface area for making the airtight seal between the vessel 110 and the lid 120, which provides a better seal; (2) is configured to create a desirable flow path for air being evacuated from the vessel during sealing; (3) completely contains the lid within the vessel 110 perimeter, so there is no overhang that would make the lid vulnerable to external forces that could unintentionally break the airtight seal; and (4) offers resistance to the lid being sucked into the vessel 110 by the vacuum created in the vessel during the sealing process.
As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, canisters, vessels, and could take other shapes not explicitly disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
While the foregoing has described what are considered to be the best mode and/or other preferred embodiments, it is understood that various modifications may be made therein and that the invention or inventions may be implemented in various forms and embodiments, and that they may be applied in numerous applications, only some of which have been described herein. It is intended by the following claims to claim that which is literally described and all equivalents thereto, including all modifications and variations that fall within the scope of each claim.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 096216905 | Oct 2007 | TW | national |
| 200720177216.0 | Oct 2007 | CN | national |
