Patent Application
20110163092
Not applicable
Not applicable
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to collapsible containers with adjustable internal volume comprised of means for attaching or connecting similar collapsible containers together at their top rims in order to make a single, airtight container with adjustable enclosed volume. This invention also relates to a method of using collapsible containers with adjustable internal volume comprised of means for attaching or connecting similar collapsible containers together at their top rims in order to make a single, airtight container with adjustable enclosed volume.
2. Description of Prior Art
The Rubbermaid Corporation has produced and commercially sold collapsible bowls which can be expanded or compressed as needed in order to increase or reduce their volume, respectively. Only the exact amount of storage volume is provided so that space is saved when storing the sealed bowls in a refrigerator, freezer, or elsewhere. However, Rubbermaid's collapsible bowls require a separate lid or cover that is normally detached from the bowl and which makes it difficult to store the items neatly before usage. Losing the lids is also possible since the lids are usually not physically attached to the bowl at all times.
Container sets comprised of different sizes (volumes) of containers that lock together at the container faces or top rims are being advertised on TV and sold under the ‘WOW Containers’ brand name. The idea is to eliminate the need for lids, but only a few container sizes are offered in the advertised sets so there are only a limited number of combinations that can be made when matching and attaching the containers together at their faces. It's important to note, however, that the WOW Containers interlock together at their faces, but only the specific containers included in those sets which do not have adjustable internal volumes can be mixed and matched for connecting together. Thus, the container that's created by interlocking any two containers from the WOW Containers set also does not have adjustable enclosed volume so that space is not conserved during storage. There is also no way to exhaust air from the container that's created when two WOW Containers are locked together because neither of the two containers being locked together at their top rims have adjustable internal volume (they are not collapsible) to begin with. A lid in the case of the WOW Containers is merely one container from the set without adjustable internal volume being flipped over and locked together with another container without adjustable internal volume and nothing is gained as far as conserving storage space is concerned. The Hefty Corporation has produced and commercially sold disposable plates where two plates can be placed together in a certain manner for temporarily holding or storing food. The plates can be attached to each other with interlocking ribs so that one plate can be used as a lid or cover for another. Plates commercially known as Hefty Store 'n Serve plates use technology for attaching two similar plates together at their faces as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,886,704 to Hayes et al. (2005) to be known herein as the Hayes patent. However, Hayes failed to disclose containers with adjustable internal volumes which lock together at their faces or top rims where the enclosed or internal volume of the resulting container is also adjustable. Moreover, Hayes did not contemplate or disclose a method of locking two containers (bowls or plates for example) with adjustable internal volumes together at their faces or top rims with interlocking ribs and spaces where the enclosed volume of the resulting container is also adjustable. A problem with the Hefty Store 'n Serve plates (the Hayes patent put into practice) which made them less favorable to consumers is the series of interlocking ribs on each plate, as contemplated and disclosed by Hayes, do not necessarily provide a strong and airtight seal between the two plates when the ribs and spaces are locked together. Hefty clearly warns their customers not to store food items for long periods of time in a freezer apparently because of the inadequate seal provided between two plates. Hefty's plates are advertised as disposable (or “everyday”) and they can only be used a limited number of times before they are discarded. Discarding the disposable plates then presents an environmental and landfill problem because the plates are not easily recyclable and they are not environmentally friendly. It's also important to note that the prior art includes multiple commercially-successful inventions, such as other design patents issued to Hayes, that use containers which interlock together at their faces or top rims, but do not use containers with adjustable internal volumes. Finally, Hayes failed to contemplate or disclose connecting two containers with adjustable internal volume together at their faces or top rims by using side connectors or latches (instead of using rim spaces and ribs or other projections) that pull and hold the two containers tightly together to make a strong, airtight seal between them.
Manufacturing a matching lid for a bowl costs approximately 40% to 60% of the cost of making the bowl so it's logical to save material and make two containers where one container can be used separately or where one container can act as a cover for another matching container in the set. There are no collapsible bowls or containers in the prior art with adjustable enclosed volume which can be connected together at their faces or top rims so that a strong and airtight seal between them is achieved and where the resulting container has adjustable enclosed volume. There is also no method to be found in the prior art that comprises connecting together and using two provided collapsible bowls or containers with adjustable internal volume which can be connected together at their faces or top rims so that a strong and airtight seal between them is achieved and where the resulting container has adjustable enclosed volume. Having a method and associated means for connecting two identical bowls or containers together that have adjustable internal volume would result in a very limited number of identical items that must be stored when not used. There would simply be no separate lids that must be kept near or somehow attached to the matching bowls or containers in order to avoid losing one or the other. The same method and means for accomplishing that method would also prevent the unpleasant experience of not having a lid readily available when needed since each bowl or container can act as a lid or cover for the other bowl or container. If a method and means were available for connecting two collapsible bowls or containers together, then the bowls or containers can be expanded or contracted in order to conserve freezer or cabinet space.
It would therefore be advantageous to provide collapsible containers with adjustable internal volume that can be interlocked together at their faces or top rims where a strong and airtight seal is achieved between them so that food can be stored and frozen if necessary for relatively long periods of time, and where the bowls and containers can be used many times before discarding. It would also be advantageous to provide collapsible containers with adjustable internal volume which can be interlocked together at their faces or top rims in a manner where the resulting container created from the two separate containers has adjustable enclosed volume that can be quickly and easily varied as needed. It would be of even greater advantage to provide a method of using provided containers with adjustable internal volume that can be locked together at their faces or top rims in a manner where the resulting container created from the two separate containers has adjustable enclosed volume that can be quickly and easily varied as needed along with a strong, airtight seal between the two interlocked containers.
In accordance with the present invention, collapsible containers with adjustable internal volume are provided that interlock together at their faces or top rims in a manner that establishes a strong and airtight seal between them in order to preserve food when stored or frozen for any length of time, and where the resulting container made by interlocking two separate containers with adjustable internal volume together at their faces or top rims also has adjustable enclosed volume. A method of interlocking and using two provided identical collapsible bowls or containers with internal volume together at their faces or top rims to create a single container that also has adjustable enclosed volume is also provided. A container with adjustable enclosed volume is provided that's comprised of two identical collapsible containers interlocked together at their top rims or faces where both of the identical containers have connecting-means on their top rims or faces for locking or connecting the collapsible containers together.
Although the description above contains much specificity, this should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention, but as merely providing illustrations of the presently preferred embodiment of this invention. It should be evident to one skilled in the art that the present invention is a combination of prior art that overcomes the limitations and provides new benefits over the prior art. The present invention provides containers with adjustable internal volume comprised of connecting-means that can be interlocked together to form an expandable or collapsible container with adjustable enclosed volume which is not disposable, but which instead is comprised of matter that is much stronger and resilient than paper or paper derivatives. Furthermore, any combination of non-disposable containers that can be interlocked together with other identical non-disposable containers with matching slots and projections on their rims that achieves a strong and airtight seal between them and where the resulting container also has adjustable enclosed volume would be construed by a person skilled in the art as being an object or embodiment of the present invention.
The use of a soft-seal ring as described herein and used along with a series of interlocking slots and projections of any type or design as used to lock two identical containers together would also be considered by one skilled in the art to be an additional embodiment of the present invention. The use of collapsible bowls or other containers with adjustable internal volume that lock together with interlocking side latches or any other side connectors on their top rims, for that matter, would surely be considered by a person skilled in the art to be a further embodiment of the present invention.
Thus, the scope of this invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.
U.S. Provisional Patent 61/291,921
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61291921 | Jan 2010 | US |
