Container lid-spoon combination
OwnerJohn R. Tobiassoninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A food container lid is described which is convertible into a spoon for use in eating food from the container. A flap which is separable from the remainder of the lid is bendable at its base outward from the plane of the lid covering through approximately 180.degree. so that such flap provides a spoon bowl and the lid otherwise provides a handle for manipulation of such spoon bowl. The base of the flap is positioned inwardly of the peripheral edge portion of the lid covering so that when the flap is bent outward it overlaps such peripheral edge portion which thereby provides rigidity to the connection between the spoon bowl and the handle. The lid covering and the base of the spoon bowl flap are foldable upon themselves with the covering encompassing the base in order to enhance such structural rigidity.
Claims8
A container lid convertible between the first position to function as a lid for closing the top of a container for food and a second position wherein it is folded to function as a spoon for removing and eating the contents of the container, comprising:
- in its first position a generally disc-shaped, snap-on food container lid comprising a generally discoidal removable planar covering for the mouth of said container, and a peripheral edge portion defining a rim channel circumscribing the body of said covering for receiving a complimentary lip on said container, said rim channel having an inner and an outer edge;
- a planar flap at the mid-portion of said covering having an edge contour generally corresponding to that of the planar projection of a bowl of a spoon with the base of said spoon bowl edge contour permanently secured to said covering along a straight fold line that extends between two points at least closely adjacent said inner edge of said rim channel of said covering;
- and
- in its second position a spoon having said flap bent on said straight fold line at said base outward from said covering through approximately 180.degree. from said first position so as to be overlapping said rim channel;
- said flap projecting outwardly from said covering and said rim channel for a major portion of its length as measured along the longitudinal axis of said flap perpendicular to said straight fold line;
- both said covering and said rim channel being folded upon themselves about the longitudinal axis of said flap so that said flap is curved about its longitudinal axis to form a spoon bowl, so that the fold line and the corresponding arcuate shape of said rim channel and said covering overlaid by said flap provide structural rigidity to the connection between said spoon bowl and said handle, and said rim channel strengthens said peripheral edge portion to resist bending under pressure of said spoon bowl when said spoon bowl is in use.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.