Bowl and cover assembly
AssigneeDolco Packaging Corporation
InventorRichard L. Ramirez
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A bowl and cover assembly includes a bowl with an annular sealing lip depending radially outwardly from the upper annular rim of the bowl. The sealing lip has an annular top sealing surface and an annular edge sealing surface. The cover has a flared annular skirt about its periphery which defines a down facing mating surface and an infacing mating surface adjacent thereto. When the cover is placed over the sealing lip the top sealing surface seats against the downfacing mating surface and the edge sealing surface seats against the infacing mating surface to form an airtight seal. An annular depression in the interior surface of the bowl extends upward from an upfacing interior shoulder to provides an air bypass region to prevent vacuum locking between adjacent stacked bowls.
Claims4
A bowl and cover assembly formed from plastic foam material comprising:
- a bowl comprising
- a bottom,
- an upper annular rim,
- upwardly extending side walls rising from the margin of the bottom and terminating in the upper annular rim, and
- an integrally formed annular sealing lip attached to and depending radially outwardly from the upper annular rim and joined thereto at a single annular hinge region about which the annular sealing lip is resiliently pivotal,
- the annular sealing lip having a single annular top sealing surface and a single annular edge sealing surface depending downwardly from the top sealing surface and defining the outermost peripheral edge of the annular sealing lip;
- and
- a cover comprising:
- a domed panel having a downwardly extending peripheral flange thereabout, and
- an integrally formed annular skirt depending generally outwardly and downwardly from the peripheral flange for defining an upwardly facing annular skirt shoulder around the outside surface of the cover and an inwardly facing annular heel at the junction between the peripheral flange and the annular skirt, the annular skirt comprising an upper laterally depending portion having a laterally disposed down facing mating surface, and a lower downwardly depending portion having an annular inwardly facing mating surface,
- the down facing mating surface adapted for contacting the top sealing surface of the bowl and the edge sealing surface adapted for contacting an annular portion of the inwardly facing mating surface for forming an airtight seal between the bowl and the cover when the annular skirt of the cover is placed over the annular sealing lip of the bowl wherein said annular heel is moveable radially outwardly along the top sealing surface for pressing down on the top sealing surface to break the seal between the down-facing mating surface and the top sealing surface and to simultaneously break the seal between the edge sealing surface and the inwardly facing mating surface by forcing the annular skirt outwardly when the domed panel of the cover is depressed by a depression force, the seal between the annular skirt and the annular sealing lip reforming when the depression force is removed to create a partial vacuum in the covered bowl.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.