Patent Application
20080289992
The present invention relates to kits for making decorative structures, such as gingerbread houses, and methods for constructing such decorative structures. In particular, it is related to a decorative structure kit having a primary support structure and panels, adapted for supporting a pliable material, which are attached to the primary support structure.
The art of making decorative structures, in particular those in the shape of houses, has been existence for many years. Typically, decorative structures, such as gingerbread houses, are found during various holiday seasons and times of celebration such as birthdays and weddings. Often such structures are used not only for decoration but as toys or for instructional purposes. Many of these structures are made of edible materials such as cookie dough and chocolate.
A typical house structure has two end walls, two side walls, and two roof members. An opening, representing a door, is usually found in either an end wall or a side wall along with openings serving as windows. In preparing the house structure, each wall or roof member is baked individually in separate pans, removed from the pan and then bonded together, typically using royal icing, to form the structure. However, several problems result when this method of assembly is practiced. First, because the design of the house is free-standing, the house builder must find some way to prop up the wall structures while the icing is setting. This is typically achieved by the house builder holding the walls together as the icing sets and then moving to bonding the next pieces together. Such a process is time consuming and frustrating as walls become strained and often collapse during the process. Another problem is that if the dough used to form the walls is not properly mixed, the resulting wall and roof structures crumble.
Babos in U.S. Pat. No. 4,431,395 describes a group of molds or baking tins for placement of dough therein and in which the dough is baked. The molds constitute the pieces or parts making up a gingerbread house. Also included is a group of inserts referred to as cookie cutters, for forming openings in the wall panels. All of the molds include a bottom element and an upturned rim completely surrounding the bottom element. Dough is placed in the molds, filling them to the top of the surrounding rim, and the molds are then placed in the oven and baked. Thereafter the baked dough is removed from the molds, forming panels for placement together to construct the gingerbread house. These panels become rigid by the baking thereof, and are self-supporting when placed upright, and the roof panel placed atop the walls. The problem with this construction is that the panels are subject to falling over during assembly.
Kolz in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US2004/0142063A1 describes a system and method for building an interlocking decorative house. A special tabbed pattern is integrated into a series of forms. The forms may be cookie cutters adapted to cut baked dough or other material set to desired density to provide a series of panels corresponding to the cutters. The panels are adapted to be joined together to form a decorative structure. The tabs are sized and positioned to provide a dovetail joint along each edge of the structure. The protruding tabs or ends are of a slightly smaller dimension than the notches that they fit inside of to provide a secure fit. This self-interlocking design allows each individual piece of the structure to be fitted together, one at a time, while maintaining an acceptable degree of stability throughout the assembly process. The problem with this design is that the panels must be cut from baked cookie dough rather than unbaked dough. If the dough is too rigid, it will crumble when placed under the pressure of the cookie cutter and the panel is then not useable. In addition, the baked cookie scraps cannot be used so there is much waste.
Green in U.S. Pat. No. 2,775,523 presents a decorative house that is made from blanks made of any material of a permanent nature, such as a heavy metal foil, that is susceptible to being cut, and folding into a pan-like structure. The blank is defined by a bottom edge, two inclined side edges, and two top edges. Outstanding from each of the side edges and each of the top edges are a pair of spaced tabs, all of which are substantially alike. An appropriate pastry mixture such as gingerbread, cake, bread or cookie dough is filled into the pan. After the pan has been filled to substantially the level of flanges on the pan, it is subjected to a baking operation to harden or set the mixture. The various end walls, side walls, and roof members are assembled into a house construction by brining the various wall and roof elements together. The tabs on one element will come into meeting face to face engagement with the tabs on an adjacent element. The tabs are bent or curled over into the construction, securing the assemblage. Cracks and seams are covered by frosting. The problem with this construction is that the baked pastry is subject to sliding off of the pan when the pan is vertical.
An object of the present invention is to provide a kit for making a decorative structure which will permit the structure to be assembled one panel at a time while maintaining stability of the structure.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a kit for making a decorative structure where a three dimensional primary support structure is prepared from a two-dimensional primary support structure and where panels corresponding to a portion of the primary support structure are provided such that the panels are eventually attached to the primary support structure to form a decorative structure.
A kit for making a decorative structure is presented. The kit comprises a primary support structure having a three-dimensional shape of a structure. The primary support structure has at least one panel receiving slot. The kit further comprises at least one panel. Each panel has at least one panel tab extending therefrom. Each panel is of a shape corresponding to a portion of the primary support structure.
A method for making decorative structures using the kit of the present invention is also presented. In practicing the method, the kit is provided along with a pliable material. The pliable material is affixed to a side of each panel such that it is integral with the panel. Each panel tab which extends from each panel is only partially covered with the pliable material such that a portion of each panel tab is completely free of any pliable material. The panel containing the pliable material is attached to the primary support structure by inserting each panel tab into each panel receiving slot.
The kit of the present invention is useful for making many decorative structures. Examples of such structures include but are not limited to: gingerbread houses; cruise ships; Noah's ark; Easter baskets; Christmas trees; plaques; signs; menus; birthday cakes; wedding cakes; cars; trucks, such as dump trucks; cities; gift boxes; castles; volcanoes; tee pees; draidels; wagons; window boxes; wishing wells; graduation caps; baby blocks; trains; churches; carousels; log cabins; animals; space ships; carry-out food boxes; cradles; books; pyramids; and treasure chests. The decorative structure is made from any pliable material and the pliable material may or may not be baked or hardened. Examples of pliable materials include but are not limited to: cookie dough; cake mix; confections; clay; plaster; and ceramic materials.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention will be obtained by means of instrumentalities in combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
The accompanying drawings illustrate a complete embodiment of the invention according to the best modes so far devised for the practical application of the principals thereof, and in which:
In general, the kit of the present invention comprises a three-dimensional primary support structure having at least one panel receiving slot and at least one panel having at least one panel tab extending therefrom. Each panel is of a shape corresponding to a portion of the primary support structure. Although the figures depict the structure as a house, it is understood that other structures such as: gingerbread houses; cruise ships; Noah's ark; Easter baskets; Christmas trees; plaques; signs; menus; birthday cakes; wedding cakes; cars; trucks, such as dump trucks; cities; gift boxes; castles; volcanoes; tee pees; draidels; wagons; window boxes; wishing wells; graduation caps; baby blocks; trains; churches; carousels; log cabins; animals; space ships; carry-out food boxes; cradles; books; pyramids; and treasure chests to name a few, are also included in this invention. As a most preferred embodiment, the structure is either a house, Easter basket, or a Christmas tree.
Referring now to the figures where similar elements are numbered the same throughout,
Referring now to
Referring back to
In constructing a decorative structure using the kit of the present invention, panels 60 (
As an alternative embodiment to the invention, the kit further comprises a pliable material. By pliable, it is meant that the material is flexible, capable of being shaped, or conforming to the shape of the surface on which it is placed. Any pliable material known to one of ordinary skill in the art is suitable for the present invention. In particular, such pliable materials include but are not limited to: a dough; a wax; a confection; a clay; and a plaster. Examples of a dough include but are not limited to: pastry dough; gingerbread; cookie dough (such as sugar cookie); and a cake dough. Waxes include all forms of wax such as beeswax and paraffin wax. Confections include candy mixtures such as gumdrops, chocolates, taffy, caramel, and hard candy mixtures. Clay includes modeling clay—both synthetic and natural. Plaster includes plaster of Paris, sheetrock, mud, and ceramic materials. In a preferred embodiment, the pliable material is a dough and most preferably, the dough is a gingerbread dough.
As yet another embodiment of the invention, the kit further comprises a storybook. The storybook tells a story about the structure and may or may not be fictional.
When practicing the method of the present invention, the kit is provided (
As a preferred embodiment, the pliable material is baked after it has been affixed to a side of each panel and before each panel is attached to the primary support structure. When the pliable material is to be baked, it may be desirable to modify the panel so that holes or perforations are made to the panel to allow moisture to escape from the pliable material as it is baked. The pliable material is affixed to the panel using any method known to one of ordinary skill in the art. In particular, the pliable material is affixed by the following method. The pliable material is first provided and then flattened onto a releasable surface. Any method of flattening the material is suitable for the present invention. In particular, the material is flattened by using a rolling pin. The releasable surface is preferably a surface of waxed paper or parchment paper. A panel is then placed onto the flattened pliable material. The panel is pressed into the pliable material. In the case where the surface of the panel is a grooved surface, it is desirable to provide enough pressure in the pressing process so that the material becomes integral with the panel. The pliable material is trimmed around the panel and the pliable material is removed from a portion of the panel tab. Lastly, the panel containing the flattened pliable material is removed from the releasable surface. As an additional step, the panel containing the flattened pliable material is removed from the releasable surface and is baked in an oven.
The decorative structures prepared using the kit of the present invention have some unique distinctions from those found in the prior art. In particular, all of the decorative structures have an underlying three-dimensional primary support structure to which panels containing a pliable material are attached. In other words, panels containing a pliable material are affixed directly to the primary support structure. The presence of the three-dimensional primary support structure overcomes the problem in the prior art where free-standing structures had a tendency to fall or crumble during assembly. Moreover, the panels of the instant invention become an integral part of the structure instead of being used as simply a means to form or cut out parts of the structure. The panels are actually embedded in the pliable material prior to attachment to the primary-support structure instead of removing the material from the panel as is done in the prior art. Once the panels having the pliable material are affixed to the primary support structure, the finishing touches such as covering seams and closing gaps with various cover materials, such as icing, are made. The kit of the present invention simplifies the art of making decorative structures and removes the problems associated with making such decorative structures.
The above description and drawings are only illustrative of preferred embodiments which achieve the objects, features and advantages of the present invention, and it is not intended that the present invention be limited thereto. Any modification of the present invention which comes within the spirit and scope of the following claims is considered part of the present invention.
