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Field of the Invention
The invention pertains to the field of containers and dispensers for quantities of food. More particularly, the invention pertains to the field of combined container-dispenser apparatuses adapted to store, organize, dispense, and transport quantities of food, particularly powdered foods.
Background Art
Travel has always created inconvenience, but in particular, those who travel frequently are constantly subject to difficult transportation options with respect to supplements or pre-measured foods. Vitamins and other small pills are easily organized, stored, and transported in pill containers, but no easy solution exists for powder supplements, such as whey protein drink mixes, powdered vitamin drinks, baby formula, ground coffee, etc. When a single powder supplement is used, a traveler will place a quantity of powder into a plastic bag or container, and then pack a measuring scoop or spoon, a drink container into which the powder is dispensed, and a stirring tool such as a whisk for mixing the powder. The main problem with this solution is its inconvenience, and premeasuring and preparing multiple small bags or loose containers so as to eliminate the measuring utensil is tedious and bulky.
When multiple powders are used, organizing, packing, and mixing the powders becomes even more difficult: separate containers and separate scoops must be packed, labelled, and organized as there is no universal or standard amount of powder for any given supplement—so one brand of supplement may have its own scoop and a different brand may use a completely different scoop, and the powder containers and measuring scoops must be identified and kept organized. Further, whether a traveler takes a single powder or multiple powders, the powders must be mixed with a source of liquid, and for many travelers, bottled water is the only reliable and readily available clean source of potable water. The water bottle lid also allows the traveler to mix the powder by shaking the bottle's contents, eliminating the need for a mixing tool. However, since powders are generally messy to measure, dispense, and mix even when using a cup, when the bottle of water is the only liquid container that can be used for mixing the powder, unless the traveler remembered to bring a funnel, measuring and then dispensing the powder cleanly and completely into the bottle of water is a hassle. In particular, the combination of a tall, thin water bottle and a wobbly funnel inserted into, but not securely attached to the bottle, creates spillage opportunities.
Even if the traveler is very organized and can remember all the measuring scoops, amounts, etc., using plastic bags or disposable containers are not always a good option for storing and transporting multiple powders, since bags can rip and common plastic containers stored in a suitcase are subject to abuse during travel and may crack or spill powder. Bags or containers can also get lost, so the traveler must scrupulously count and organize the multiple bags or containers to ensure a dose is not missing.
What is needed is a container that can safely and conveniently transport premeasured quantities of powder or other foods and keep quantities of stored powders or other foods separate from one another.
What is also needed is an easy to use dispenser that allows convenient dispensing of powder from the container into a conventional water bottle, and cleanly dispenses other foods.
Accordingly, in a first aspect of the invention, an apparatus for storing and dispensing a quantity of food is comprised of a container body having an opening at a top end, an opposed base, a continuous, curved interior wall defining an interior space, and a center post affixed to and rising upwards from the base and terminating at the opening. Walls are affixed to both the center post and to the interior wall, forming chambers in the interior space.
In a second aspect of the invention, embodiments for fixed and removable walls are included. In embodiments having removable walls, each wall is further formed as an I-beam having a web sandwiched between a pair of flanges. The center post and interior wall are notched, the notches adapted to receive the flanges. The base of the container body is further formed with a groove adapted to receive a wall bottom.
In a third aspect of the invention, the container body is further comprised of a lid having a top side and an underside, the top side having at least one of a spout or port, and the underside having a center post seal with a spoke-like array of lid channels radiating outwards from the center post seal to a perimeter channel of the underside of the lid. The lid mates with the top end of the container body, in some embodiments via mating threads formed along the lid and the container top end, and in other embodiments by a pressure fit. The lid channels mate with a wall top, sealing each chamber in the container body.
In yet a fourth aspect of the invention, the lid is a bipartite lid having upper lid independently rotatable from a lower lid mateable with the top end of the container body.
In a fifth aspect of the invention, a funnel having a mouth and a neck approximating a shape of the opening of the top end of the container body between the center post and the curved, interior wall of the container body is included, the neck pressure fitting into the opening of the container body so as to allow secure and quick filling of the chambers.
The features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the subsequent detailed description presented in connection with accompanying drawings, in which:
The following is a list of reference labels used in the drawings to label components of different embodiments of the invention, and the names of the indicated components.
Food: any ingestible liquid, powder, and edible materials, and includes dietary supplements.
Dietary Supplements: includes any edible or ingestible form of powder, pills, and foods that comprise multiple pieces, such as candy, granola, cereal, etc.
The invention 100 is an improved container-dispenser apparatus described below and in
The invention allows dietary supplements, in powdered form or apportioned or pieced, such as pills, to be easily and safely transported, stored, organized and dispensed. The term “dietary supplements” is meant to include any edible or ingestible form of powder, pills or small foods often comprising multiple pieces, such as nuts, candy, granola, and even ground coffee and dried herbs. The invention protects the dietary supplements during transportation since the container body is designed to withstand moderate impact and physical abuse that potentially occurs during travel conditions.
The inventors note that the invention's primary function is the transportation, storage, organization, separation and dispensing of various powders into the small openings of bottles (i.e. water bottles) where the normal methods of scooping powder from one container to another is either undesirable or not practical.
Turning now to the Figures, the invention 100 is comprised of an inverted conical frustum having a container body 30 with a top end 30m and in one embodiment, shown in
Turning now to
Turning to
The chambers 30a allow for the convenient separation and organization of dietary supplements, and allow a single container-dispenser to separately store and dispense both powdered supplements and apportioned supplements such as pills or other foods that are commonly stored in multiple piece, such as crackers and cereal. It should be noted that the walls 40, post notches 30d, and wall notches 30dd span the entire length of the chamber 30a, from the base 30i to the an uppermost edge of the top end 30m of the container body 30, as shown in
Turning now to
For the embodiment of the bipartite lid, shown in
Turning now to
Each lid channel 62b is comprised of a pair of raised, parallel walls in spaced apart relationship, the space between the parallel walls sized and shaped to receive the top of the wall 40. The perimeter channel 64 is sized and shaped to receive the uppermost edge of the top end 30m of the container body 30. When the lid 10 engages the top end 30m of the container body 30, the top of the walls 40 mate with the lid channels 62b, sealing any contents stored inside the chambers 30a (
The improved container-dispenser 100 is further provided with a funnel 50, as shown in
The funnel 50 is uniquely sized and shaped to mate with the top end 30m of the container body 30, regardless of the number of chambers 30a, and can securely mate with the non-partitioned interior space 30aa of the container body by pressure fitting the funnel neck 50b into the container body 30 so as to span a distance between the center post 30c and the interior wall 30h. The funnel 50 features a wide mouth 50c, typically circular, with sloping inner walls tapering down into a neck 50b approximating an annular sector, with a through-passage from mouth to neck. The neck 50b is an approximate same shape as a single chamber 30a created by inserting two walls 40 immediately adjacent to one another. The inventors note that the unique size and shape of the neck 50b allows the funnel 50 to securely sit inside the top end of the container body, while allowing maximum flow of powder of other materials to quickly and easily fill the chambers 30a or interior space 30aa, as the case may be, and regardless of the configuration of chambers 30a. Unlike the prior art funnels that feature wide, round mouths and long narrow cylindrical necks, the particular size and shape of the inventors' funnel 50, mimicking the shape of the chambers, stabilizes the funnel when used, allowing for rapid and spill-free filling of the chambers.
To use the improved container-dispenser 100, a user removes the lid 10, and inserts a desired number of walls 40 into the container body 30 so as to create up to six total chambers 30a. The user then places the neck 50b of the funnel 50 into the top end 30m of the container body 30, inserting the neck 50b of the funnel 50 into a selected chamber 30a. Dietary supplements are poured into the mouth 50c and down into the chamber 30a via the neck 50b. The funnel 50 is then moved to a next empty chamber 30a to be filled. When all the chambers 30a are filled, the funnel 50 is removed. The lid 10 is then secured onto the container body 30, by mating the lid to the top end of the container body. Upon mating the lid to the container body, the user rotates the lid until the wall tops 40b mate with the lid channels 62. In a preferred embodiment, the user aligns a series of guide marks 10g on the lid, each guide 10g corresponding to a position of each lid channel 62b, with marks along the container body corresponding with the walls engaged in the wall notches, or alternatively by simply visualizing the wall positions through the container body. The user is further aided in sealing contents stored in each chamber by a “clicking” sound caused when the lid is rotated and the wall tops 40b engage the lid channels via a pressure fit as the wall tops 40b are forced over and into each lid channel 62b. In turn, the lid channels 62b prevent the lid 10 from accidentally turning and thus potentially spilling or cross contaminating contents from one chamber into another chamber or out of a port or spout.
To access the stored supplements, the user first determines whether the spout or the port will be used to dispense the supplements stored in the chamber 30a. The spout is typically used for dispensing powders, and the port is typically used for dispensing pills, granola, small crackers, etc. Locating the relevant spout or port, the user then grasps the upper lid 10a, in the embodiment with the bipartite lids, or grasps any part of the lid 10 in the embodiment comprised of the single lid, and rotates the relevant dispensing opening (spout or port) until a desired chamber is positioned directly below the relevant spout or port, as chosen by the user. As the lid is turned, each wall top 40b slides out of its respective lid channel 62b and is repositioned into an adjacent lid channel 62b as the lid is rotated. Access to any specific chamber is achieved by rotating the spout 10d or port 20, as desired, directly over the desired chamber. To dispense apportioned or pieced dietary supplements such as pills, nuts, granola, and other larger apportioned supplements, the port is positioned over the desired chamber and the port lid opened so as to provide access the chamber's contents. The lid channels 62b prevent the contents of the other chambers 30a from being dispensed. Turning to Figure XXX, the aperture 10f is shown as a through-hole leading directly to an opening in the spout 10d. The port 20 is typically oriented opposed the spout, although the location of the port 20 in relation to the spout 10d could be immediately adjacent or any other variation so long as the port location does not interfere with operation of the spout and vice versa.
The inventors have noted through personal experience that water bottles, purchased prefilled, or reusable and self-filled, are convenient containers into which powdered supplements may be dispensed, mixed, and then ingested. They have noted however that trying to pour powdered supplements into a small water bottle neck is difficult because powder is difficult to pour and control, and measuring utensils such as scoops are not designed for pouring powders into narrow openings. Hence, the invention 100 allows the user to quickly and conveniently store premeasured quantities of powder into a single chamber by using the funnel 50 to easily direct the measured powder quickly and cleanly into the chambers 30a. Dispensing the stored powder is easily achieved using the spout. To use the spout 10d, the spout is flipped up and the contents of the chamber directly below the spout can be dispensed through the spout 10d by simply tilting the container body 30. The spout in particular allows for neat and accurate dispensing of powdered dietary supplements into a small opening, such as a mouth of a water bottle.
The container body 30a is typically made of a transparent or translucent BPA-free plastic, to allow users to visually identify chamber contents. In some embodiments, the lid 10 will allow for identification of contents, or other means of discerning differences between chamber contents, such as by using numbers, days of the week, etc. on the lid itself so as to allow the user a further visual reminder of contents, dosage, order of use, and other pertinent information. The container height, in a typical embodiment, is approximately 6-8 inches, but the inventors note that many different sizes are possible. A diameter of the container body, in a typical embodiment, is approximately 4 inches measured at the bottom end 30k of the container body, but again, a variety of diameters are suitable according to desired use by the user.
It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are only illustrative of the application of the principles of the present invention. Numerous modifications and alternative arrangements may be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention. For instance, the inventors note that the bipartite lid described above can be made in a variety of ways to allow the lower lid to secure the entire lid structure onto the container body and yet allow the upper lid to rotate. For instance, a rim or flange may be formed inside the perimeter of both lower and upper lids, with the rim or flange of one lid resting atop the rim or flange of the other. This sort of arrangement is already present on a number of portable coffee mug lids with rotating open/close ports to allow the user to drink the beverage or close the drinking port by rotating a lid over the opening. Many other bipartite lids are known in the art, and the inventors believe that many existing bipartite lid mechanisms can be used with their invention, so long as the lids incorporate the unique lid channel design as described above.