1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of portable containers, and, more specifically, to a portable container for holding canning jars in a number of different configurations.
2. Description of the Related Art
Prior art includes stackable jars (U.S. Pat. No. 2,738,891), nestable trays (U.S. Pat. No. 5,184,748), and a method for locking a first stack of trays onto a second stack of trays involving protruberances on the bottom floor surfaces of each tray (U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,601). U.S. Pat. No. 5,377,862 describes a bottle holder and bottle holding system in which a pair of identical thermoformed bottle holders support the bases and to portions of an array of glass bottles. U.S. Pat. No. 7,721,891 provides a system of nested and stacked containers that are not specifically designed to hold jars.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,743,939 discloses a nestable beverage case in which the lower wall section is inset relative to the upper wall section so that one case can nest into another up to about one-half its height. U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2009/0108002-provides a stackable tray assembly in which beverage multipacks or individual bottles may be inserted in between individual trays. U.S. Patent Application Pub. No. 2009/0178946 describes a container assembly for the storage and transport of goods in which a second portion is pivotally connected to a first portion. Both the first and second portions have an outer surface with a stacking pattern on it that allows one container assembly to be stacked on top of another.
There is no product on the market today that holds up to six or twelve (depending on the embodiment) canning jars, is portable and stackable in the number of different configurations described herein, and that accommodates both standard and wide-mouth canning jars. None of the inventions mentioned above is specifically designed to accommodate both standard and wide-mouth canning jars, to “locate” each individual jar within the assembly, to “locate” tops of jars to bottom of trays, and to allow each tray to serve either as a cover or as a base. In short, the trays of the present invention are designed to locate, stack, snap and nest. The structural features of the present invention are discussed more fully below in connection with the figures.
The present invention is a tray for holding canning jars comprising a plurality of wells arranged in a first row, a second row and a third row, each well comprising a bottom surface with ridges; wherein the ridges on the bottom surface of each well in the first and third rows comprise an inner circle, two first opposing crescents that lie outside of the inner circle, and two second opposing crescents, and the ridges on the bottom surface of each well in the second row comprise a first semicircle and a second semicircle; wherein the inner circle is situated at the center of the bottom surface of each well, the two first opposing crescents are situated opposite one another on the bottom surface of the well, the two second opposing crescents are situated opposite one another on the bottom of the well and at a ninety-degree angle relative to the first opposing crescents, and the two first opposing crescents are closer to the inner circle than the two second opposing crescents; and wherein the bottom surface of each well has a center, the first semicircle on the bottom surface of the wells in the second row is situated opposite the second semicircle, and the first semicircle is closer to the center of the bottom surface of the well than the second semicircle.
In a preferred embodiment, each canning jar comprises a lid with an outer ring having an inside diameter, and the outside diameter of the first opposing crescents is roughly the same as the inside diameter of the outer ring of a standard canning jar. Preferably, each canning jar comprises a lid with an outer ring having an inside diameter, and the outside diameter of the second opposing crescents is roughly the same as inside diameter of the outer ring of a wide-mouth calming jar.
In a preferred embodiment, each canning jar comprises a lid with an outer ring having an inside diameter, each inner circle has an outside diameter, and the outside diameter of each of the inner circles is less than the inside diameter of the outer ring on the lid of a standard canning jar. Preferably, each canning jar comprises a lid with an outer ring having an inside diameter, each of the first semicircles has an outside diameter, and the outside diameter of the first semicircles is roughly the same as the inside diameter of the outer ring on the lid of a standard canning jar. Preferably, each canning jar comprises a lid with an outer ring having an inside diameter, each of the second semicircles has an outside diameter, and the outside diameter of the second semicircles is roughly the same as the inside diameter of the outer ring on the lid of a wide-mouth canning jar.
In a preferred embodiment, the first and third rows each comprises a first well and a second well, the inner circle on the bottom surface of the second well in the first row is slightly smaller than the inner circle on the bottom surface of the first well in the first row, and the inner circle on the bottom surface of the first well in the third row is slightly smaller than the inner circle on the bottom surface of the second well in the third row. In an alternate embodiment, the first and third rows each comprises a first well, a second well, a third well, and a fourth well, the inner circle on the bottom surface of the second and fourth wells in the first row is slightly smaller than the inner circle on the bottom surface of the first and third wells in the first row, and the inner circle on the bottom surface of the first and third wells in the third row is slightly smaller than the inner circle on the bottom surface of the second and fourth wells in the third row.
In a preferred embodiment, the second well in the first row is rotated ninety degrees relative to the first well in the first row, and the second well in the third row is rotated ninety degrees relative to the first well in the third row and relative to the second well in the first row. In an alternate embodiment, the second and fourth wells in the first row are rotated ninety degrees relative to the first and third wells in the first row, and the second and fourth wells in the third row are rotated ninety degrees relative to the first and third wells in the third row and relative to the second and fourth wells in the first row.
In a preferred embodiment, the second row comprises a first well and a second well, and wherein the second well in the second row is rotated one hundred eighty degrees relative to the first well in the second row. In an alternate embodiment, the second row comprises a first well, a second well, a third well, and a fourth well, and wherein the second and fourth wells in the second row are rotated one hundred eighty degrees relative to the first and third wells in the second row.
In a preferred embodiment, the invention further comprises a top surface and a perimeter, a number of tongues extend partially around the perimeter of the tray, the same number of grooves extend partially around the perimeter of the tray, and the tongues and grooves are situated such that each tongue on one tray fits within a groove on another tray when the top surface of one tray abuts up against the top surface of another tray. Preferably, the top surface comprises at least one snap mechanism comprised of an upward protrusion and a downward protrusion on the top surface of the tray, and the upward and downward protrusions are situated such that the upward protrusion on one tray fits within a downward protrusion on another tray when the top surface of one tray abuts up against the top surface of another tray.
In a preferred embodiment, the top surface 5 of each tray 1 further comprises apertures 10 situated around the perimeter 6 of the top surface of the tray and between the jars, and the side walls 12 of the trays 1 comprise indentations 11 adjacent to the apertures 10 (except for those apertures 10 situated next to the snap mechanism 9), so that a string, rope or cable may be passed through the apertures 10 and used to secure the trays together when stacked in any of the configurations shown in
As shown in
Note that the present invention is not limited to any particular configuration and that multiple configurations may be used in the same assembly; for example, as shown in
In a preferred embodiment, each of the two wells 2 that form the second (or center) row (“E” on
In a preferred embodiment, the wells 2 in the third row (“F” on
Furthermore, in a preferred embodiment, the outside diameter of the semicircle 13d of the wells 2 in the second row is roughly the same as the inside diameter of the outer ring 3a on a standard canning jar 3. Similarly, the outside diameter of the semicircle 13e of the wells 2 in the second row is roughly the same as the inside diameter of the outer ring 4a on a wide-mouth canning jar 4. (As noted above and shown in
In a preferred embodiment, the outside diameter of the inner circles 13a on the wells 2 is less than the inside diameter of the outer ring 3a on a standard canning jar 3. The crescents 13b are roughly the same distance from the center of the inner circle 13a on a well 2 as the inner radius of the outer ring 3a (i.e., radius to the inside of the outer ring 3a) on a standard canning jar 3; thus, when a standard canning jar 3 is placed directly underneath and centered on the bottom of a well 2, the crescents 13b will lie just inside the outer ring 3a (see
With the configuration of ridges 13 described above, the trays 1 may be placed on top of any combination of standard or wide-mouth canning jars (or all standard or all wide-mouth canning jars in a given tray), and the ridges 13 may be used to “locate” the jars (more specifically, the tops of the jars in the bottom tray) on the bottom of the upper tray. Note that the ridges 13 are used primarily to “locate” the insides of the outer rings 3a, 4a on a canning jar. The purpose of the inner circles 13a is primarily to locate the trays when in a bottom-to-bottom configuration.
Note that in the first and second embodiments, the distance of the semicircle 13d from the center point of the well 2 is roughly the same as the distance of the crescents 13b from the center point of the inner circle 13a, and the distance of the semicircle 13e from the center point of the well 2 is roughly the same as the distance of the crescents 13c from the center point of the inner circle 13a. As shown in
The locating and snapping features of the present invention have been described above, and three different stacking configurations (top on top, bottom on bottom, and top of jar on bottom of tray) have been shown and described. Although not shown in any of the figures, the trays 1 may also be nested inside of one another without any jars in them.
Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many changes and modifications may be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects. The appended claims are therefore intended to cover all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.
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Number | Date | Country |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20120187016 A1 | Jul 2012 | US |