In general, the present invention relates to a lid assembly, and in particular to a lid assembly for a reusable container.
Containers for holding food can include a removable lid to allow for storage of the container and for containing contents of the container during heating.
The present application provides a lid assembly for a container. The lid assembly includes a lid formed of a first material and a seal formed of a second material and being integrally formed with the lid. The lid can be attached to the container such that a radially outwardly extending flexible lip of the seal compresses against an inner surface of the container to seal the lid assembly to the container. In this way, the lid assembly can seal to a container despite tolerances of the material of the container.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, a lid assembly for a container is provided that includes a lid formed of a first material and having an upper surface, a lower surface, and a projection extending downward from and around the lower surface, a seal formed of a second material and integrally formed with and extending around the projection, the seal having a radially outwardly extending flexible lip for sealing against an inner surface of the container, and at least two flaps pivotally and removably connected to the upper surface of the lid, each flap having a radially inwardly extending clasp, wherein the at least two flaps are movable between respective closed positions where the clasps engage an underside of a lip of the container to secure the lid assembly to the container and compress the radially outwardly extending flexible lip of the seal against the inner surface of the container to seal the lid assembly to the container, and respective open positions where the clasps are disengaged from the underside of the lip of the container.
In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a lid assembly for a container is provided that includes a lid having an upper surface, a lower surface, a projection extending downward from and around the lower surface, and at least two pivot receptacles formed in the upper surface on opposite sides thereof, a seal integrally formed with and extending around a bottom of the projection, the seal having a radially outwardly extending flexible lip for sealing against an inner surface of the container, and at least two flaps each having at least one pivot connected to one of the at least two pivot receptacles, each flap having a radially inwardly extending clasp, wherein the at least two flaps are movable between respective closed positions where the clasps engage an underside of a lip of the container to secure the lid assembly to the container and compress the radially outwardly extending flexible lip of the seal against the inner surface of the container.
In accordance with still another embodiment of the present invention, a lid assembly for a container is provided that includes a lid formed of a first material and having an upper surface, a lower surface, a projection extending downward from and around the lower surface, and at least two pivot receptacles formed in the upper surface on opposite sides thereof, a seal formed of a second material and integrally formed with and extending around a bottom of the projection, the seal having a radially outwardly extending flexible lip for sealing against an inner surface of the container, at least two flaps formed of the second material and each having at least one pivot connected to one of the at least two pivot receptacles, each flap having a radially inwardly extending clasp, and a vent formed of the second material and removably attached to the lid, wherein the at least two flaps are movable between respective closed positions where the clasps engage an underside of a lip of the container to secure the lid assembly to the container and compress the radially outwardly extending flexible lip of the seal against the inner surface of the container.
These and other objects of this invention will be evident when viewed in light of the drawings, detailed description and appended claims.
The invention may take physical form in certain parts and arrangements of parts, a preferred embodiment of which will be described in detail in the specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and wherein:
Embodiments of the invention relate to lid assemblies for containers including a lid having an upper surface, a lower surface, and a projection extending downward from and around the lower surface, a seal integrally formed with and extending around the projection, and at least two flaps pivotally connected to the upper surface of the lid. The at least two flaps are movable between respective closed positions where the clasps engage an underside of a lip of the container to secure the lid assembly to the container and compress a flexible lip of the seal against the inner surface of the container, and respective open positions disengaged from the underside of the lip of the container.
With reference to the drawings, like reference numerals designate identical or corresponding parts throughout the several views. However, the inclusion of like elements in different views does not mean a given embodiment necessarily includes such elements or that all embodiments of the invention include such elements. The examples and figures are illustrative only and not meant to limit the invention, which is measured by the scope and spirit of the claims.
Turning initially to
Referring to
The projection 34 extends downward from and entirely around the lower surface 32 to strengthen the lid, and the seal 14 is integrally formed with and extends entirely around the projection 34. As shown in
Referring additionally to
Referring additionally to
To assembly the lid assembly 10 after the seal 14 has been formed on the lid 12, such as by molding, the flaps 16 and vent 18 are attached to the lid 12 in any suitable order. The pivot portions 70 on the flaps 16 are aligned with the corresponding pivot portions 72 on the lid 12 and pressed into the pivot portions 72 until the snap into position. The vent 18 is aligned with the second recessed area 40 and the bosses 46 inserted into the corresponding openings 44 and the protrusion 50 inserted into the opening 48 until the vent 18 is substantially flush with the first recessed area 38.
To attach the lid assembly 10 to the container 80, the flaps 16 are moved to their respective open positions and the lid positioned over the container to align a bottom of the edge 52 with the lip 82. The lid assembly 10 is then moved downward until the bottom of the edge 52 abuts the top of the lip 82. As the lid assembly 10 is moved downward, the sealing lip 66 is compressed by the inner surface 84 of the container 80 to create an airtight seal with the container 80. Once the lid assembly 10 is positioned, the flaps 16 are moved downward to their closed position where the clasps 74 engage an underside of the lip 82 to hold the lid assembly 10 to the container. The design of the lid assembly 10 allows for a seal between the lid assembly and the container despite the tolerances of the material of the container, such as with soda-lime glass.
Turning now to
The lid assembly 110 includes a lid 112, a seal 114 integrally formed with the lid 112, at least two flaps 116 pivotally connected to the lid 112, and a vent 118 removable attached to the lid 112. The lid may be any suitable size, such as one sized to attach to an eight by eight container. The lid 112 has an upper surface 130, a lower surface 132, and a projection 134 extending downward from and around the lower surface 132. The upper surface 130 includes a first area 136, a first recessed area 138, and a second recessed area 140 recessed relative to the first recessed area 138 for receiving the vent 118. Provided in the second recessed area is an indent 142 for a user's fingers that allows a user to grasp an underside of the vent 118, one or more openings 144 for receiving bosses 146 on the vent 118, and an opening 148 for receiving a protrusion 150 on the vent 118. The lid 112 also has an edge 152 projecting downward and outward from the first area 136 to contact an upper surface of the container. The edge 152 includes one or more griping portions 154, such as two extending from opposite corners thereof, which extend beyond the upper surface of the container for a user to grasp to remove the lid.
The projection 134 extends downward from and entirely around the lower surface 132 to strengthen the lid, and the seal 114 is integrally formed with and extends entirely around the projection 134. A finger 160 projects downward from a bottom of the projection 134 and entirely around the projection 134 to define with the bottom of the projection 134 a ledge 162 inward of the finger 160 to assist in preventing separation of the seal from the projection. The seal 114 includes a body 164 integrally formed with the projection 134 and a radially outwardly extending flexible lip 166 projecting radially outwardly from the body 164 for sealing against an inner surface 184 of a container 180.
The flaps 116 each include a plurality of pivot portions 170, and in the illustrated embodiment three pivot portions at a top of each flap 116 that removably engage with corresponding pivot portions 172 in the upper surface 130 of the lid 112. The flaps 116 each also include a radially inwardly extending clasp 174 extending along a length of the flaps 116 from an inner surface of the flap near a bottom of the flap 116. The at least two flaps 116 are movable between respective closed positions where the clasps 174 engage an underside of a lip 182 of the container 180 to secure the lid assembly 110 to the container 180, and respective open positions where the clasps 174 are disengaged from the underside of the lip of the container 180.
Turning now to
The lid assembly 210 includes a lid 212, a seal 214 integrally formed with the lid 212, at least two flaps 216 pivotally connected to the lid 212, and a vent 218 removable attached to the lid 212. The lid 212 has an upper surface 230, a lower surface 232, and a projection 234 extending downward from and around the lower surface 232. The upper surface 230 includes a first area 236, a first recessed area 238, and a second recessed area 240 recessed relative to the first recessed area 238 for receiving the vent 218. Provided in the second recessed area is an indent 242 for a user's fingers that allows a user to grasp an underside of the vent 218, one or more openings for receiving bosses 246 on the vent 218, and an opening for receiving a protrusion 250 on the vent 218. The lid 212 also has an edge 252 projecting downward and outward from the first area 236 to contact an upper surface of the container. The edge 252 includes one or more griping portions 254, such as two extending from opposite corners thereof, which extend beyond the upper surface of the container 280 for a user to grasp to remove the lid.
The projection 234 extends downward from and entirely around the lower surface 232 to strengthen the lid, and the seal 214 is integrally formed with and extends entirely around the projection 234. A finger 260 projects downward from a bottom of the projection 234 and entirely around the projection 234 to define with the bottom of the projection 234 a ledge 262 inward of the finger 260 to assist in preventing separation of the seal from the projection. The lid 212 additionally includes one or more additional projections 290, and as illustrated two projections 290 extending downward from and entirely around the lower surface 232 radially outwardly spaced from the projection 234, and the seal 214 is also integrally formed with and extends entirely around the projections 290. By increasing the number of projections, the thickness of the projection 234 can be reduced.
The seal 214 includes a body 264 integrally formed with the projection 234, a radially outwardly extending flexible lip 266 projecting radially outwardly from the body 264 for sealing against an inner surface 284 of the container 280, and a portion 292 projecting upward and radially outward from the body defining peaks between the projections 234 and 290. During molding of the seal 214 onto the lid 212, the seal material flows through openings (not shown) spaced around the periphery of the lid 212 such that the seal 212 is formed and is integral with a portion 294 on the upper surface 230 and ledge 252.
The flaps 216 each include a plurality of pivot portions 270, and in the illustrated embodiment three pivot portions at a top of each flap 216 that removably engage with corresponding pivot portions 272 in the upper surface 230 of the lid 212. The flaps 216 each also include a radially inwardly extending clasp 274 extending along a length of the flaps 216 from an inner surface of the flap near a bottom of the flap 216. The at least two flaps 216 are movable between respective closed positions where the clasps 274 engage an underside of a lip 282 of the container 280 to secure the lid assembly 210 to the container 280, and respective open positions where the clasps 274 are disengaged from the underside of the lip of the container 280.
The aforementioned systems, components, (e.g., containers, lid assemblies, among others), and the like have been described with respect to interaction between several components and/or elements. It should be appreciated that such devices and elements can include those elements or sub-elements specified therein, some of the specified elements or sub-elements, and/or additional elements. Further yet, one or more elements and/or sub-elements may be combined into a single component to provide aggregate functionality. The elements may also interact with one or more other elements not specifically described herein.
While the embodiments discussed herein have been related to the systems and methods discussed above, these embodiments are intended to be exemplary and are not intended to limit the applicability of these embodiments to only those discussions set forth herein.
The above examples are merely illustrative of several possible embodiments of various aspects of the present invention, wherein equivalent alterations and/or modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon reading and understanding this specification and the annexed drawings. In particular regard to the various functions performed by the above described components (assemblies, devices, systems, circuits, and the like), the terms (including a reference to a “means”) used to describe such components are intended to correspond, unless otherwise indicated, to any component, such as hardware, software, or combinations thereof, which performs the specified function of the described component (e.g., that is functionally equivalent), even though not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure which performs the function in the illustrated implementations of the invention. In addition although a particular feature of the invention may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application. Also, to the extent that the terms “including”, “includes”, “having”, “has”, “with”, or variants thereof are used in the detailed description and/or in the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising.”
This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that are not different from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims.
In the specification and claims, reference will be made to a number of terms that have the following meanings. The singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Approximating language, as used herein throughout the specification and claims, may be applied to modify a quantitative representation that could permissibly vary without resulting in a change in the basic function to which it is related. Accordingly, a value modified by a term such as “about” is not to be limited to the precise value specified. In some instances, the approximating language may correspond to the precision of an instrument for measuring the value. Moreover, unless specifically stated otherwise, a use of the terms “first,” “second,” etc., do not denote an order or importance, but rather the terms “first,” “second,” etc., are used to distinguish one element from another.
As used herein, the terms “may” and “may be” indicate a possibility of an occurrence within a set of circumstances; a possession of a specified property, characteristic or function; and/or qualify another verb by expressing one or more of an ability, capability, or possibility associated with the qualified verb. Accordingly, usage of “may” and “may be” indicates that a modified term is apparently appropriate, capable, or suitable for an indicated capacity, function, or usage, while taking into account that in some circumstances the modified term may sometimes not be appropriate, capable, or suitable. For example, in some circumstances an event or capacity can be expected, while in other circumstances the event or capacity cannot occur—this distinction is captured by the terms “may” and “may be.”
The best mode for carrying out the invention has been described for purposes of illustrating the best mode known to the applicant at the time and enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the invention, including making and using devices or systems and performing incorporated methods. The examples are illustrative only and not meant to limit the invention, as measured by the scope and merit of the claims. The invention has been described with reference to preferred and alternate embodiments. Obviously, modifications and alterations will occur to others upon the reading and understanding of the specification. It is intended to include all such modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differentiate from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/754,185 filed Nov. 1, 2018, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
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