US20060216379A1

US20060216379A1 - Mini jelly container

Info

Publication number: US20060216379A1
Application number: US11/088,902
Authority: US
Inventors: Chih-Yung Chou
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2005-03-25
Filing date: 2005-03-25
Publication date: 2006-09-28

Abstract

A mini jelly container according to the invention includes a container, at least one partition plate at an interior of the container, at least two accommodating spaces at the interior of the container and respectively filled with jellies and an opening cover for sealing. Using the aforesaid structure, without altering original shape and size of prior mini jellies, jellies are divided into smaller sizes. Thus, not only elderly people and children are allowed to eat the divided mini jellies individually for ensuring safety for eating and are prevented from choking, but also mini jellies having different flavors are offered.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(a) Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a mini jelly container, and more particularly, to a mini jelly container that divides a mini jelly into smaller sizes without changing original shape and volume of a container of the mini jelly. Thus, elderly people and children are allowed to eat the divided jelly pieces individually while preventing the jelly getting congested at a throat, thereby providing safety for eating as well as offering multiple favors using the mini jelly container.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
Mini jellies are one of favorite snacks for people of all ages by being small in size, offering good portability, and being tasty and hygienic. People often eat mini jellies one after another, and cannot resist temptations of mini jellies for the above reasons.
However, unfortunate events of mini jellies choking children and elderly people to death are frequently heard from many places including the U.S., Taiwan, Korea and Thailand, leaving numerous broken homes as a result. Furthermore, competitiveness of industrialists making mini jellies are significantly lowered while being obliged to pay substantial amounts of compensations. Whether for consumers or industrialists, great losses are caused.
According to research statistics, mini jellies are such popular snack due to having unique and pleasant tastes, and being non-teeth-sticking and small in size with good portability as shown in FIG. 1. Thus, in addition, to the aforesaid advantages, mini jellies are extensively enjoyed by vast consumers for they are convenient to eat. More particularly, a main reason that parents give mini jellies as snacks to their children is that, unlike eating puddings, no spoons are required by children in order to eat the mini jellies, meaning that after-cleaning of sofas and floors is avoided.
A mini jelly measures approximately 3 cm in diameter. However, according to research reports, products measuring 3 cm in diameter are most likely to get congested at a throat—that is also why mini jellies often choke people to death.
Therefore, specialists and scholars later suggested the industrialist to enlarge a size of mini jellies. However, enlarged jellies inevitably loose the prior characteristic of being small and dainty. It is also proposed that jellies are cut to reduce a size thereof, so as to avoid dangers caused by jellies stuck at a throat.
Although the aforesaid method seems easy to implement, unfortunate accidents of people choked to death by mini jellies are still frequently heard because industrialists yet fail to promptly comply with the theoretical solution. A cause behind it is difficulties that arise during a manufacturing process of the mini jellies. To be more precise, a margin of a mini jelly is extremely limited, and hence it is necessary that mini jellies be manufactured by automated production to reduce production costs thereof. Referring to FIG. 1, containers 10 are arranged side by side for continuously filling a jelly fluid therein. At this point, the jelly fluid is at a high temperature in a liquid state, and cannot be cut. Therefore, the jelly fluid is cooled in the containers to form solid jellies 20, which can further be cut and sealed by opening covers 30. Nevertheless, the above process is rather too time-consuming to add loading to production costs of industrialists. In conclusion, the industrialists fail to comply with such manufacturing process, and repeated accidents of people choked to death remain unsolved.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the aforesaid shortcomings, the primary object of the invention is to provide a container having a partition plate at an interior thereof, so as to divide the interior of the container into at least two accommodating spaces. A jelly fluid is filled into the individual accommodating spaces, and jellies having a reduced size are formed when the jelly fluid is cooled to a solid state, thereby overcoming an issue of prior mini jellies being prone to choke people to death.
Another object of the invention is to provide a container having at least two accommodating spaces using a partition plate, such that a mini jelly having different flavors is formed by filling jelly fluids of different flavors into the accommodating spaces.
The other object of the invention is to provide a container having an opening cover divided into a same quantity as that of the accommodating chambers, such that not only an eater is allowed to respectively tear away individual parts of the opening cover to prevent the jellies from simultaneously falling into a mouth, but also remaining jellies not consumed yet can be properly stored for in a hygienic manner.
To accomplish the aforementioned objects, a mini jelly container according to the invention comprises a container, and at least one partition plate in the container to divide an interior of the container into at least two accommodating spaces. A jelly fluid is filled into the individual accommodating spaces, and two mini jellies having a reduced size are formed when the jelly fluid is cooled into a solid state. The mini jelly container is then sealed with an opening cover, thereby overcoming an issue of prior mini jellies being prone to choke people to death.
To better understand characteristics, effects, functions and objects of the invention, detailed descriptions of a preferred embodiment shall be given with the accompanying drawings below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of a prior mini jelly.
FIG. 2 shows a schematic view according to the invention.
FIG. 3 shows a schematic view according to the invention having been opened.
FIG. 4 shows a schematic view of another embodiment according to the invention.
FIG. 5 shows a schematic view illustrating the structure in FIG. 4 in a sealed status.
FIG. 6 shows a schematic view illustrating the structure in FIG. 5 being eaten.
FIG. 7 shows a schematic view of yet another embodiment according to the invention.
FIG. 8-FIG. 10 show schematic views of several other embodiments according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, a mini jelly container according to the invention comprises a container 10, at least one partition plate 40 at an interior of the container 10, at least two accommodating spaces 11 divided at the interior of the container 10 so as to hold a jelly 20 in each accommodating space 11, and an opening cover 30 for sealing, thereby reducing a size of the jellies 20 to overcome a shortcoming of mini jellies prior being likely to choke people to death.
In addition, apart from being an integral, the opening cover 30 at an upper section of the container 10 can also be divided into a same quantity as the accommodating spaces 11 using a dividing line 31. Thus, when eating the jellies, a jelly placed in one of the accommodating spaces 11 having the opening cover 30 being torn away is eaten first, so as to avoid the jellies from simultaneously falling into a mouth as well as facilitating storage and keeping cleanliness of remaining jellies not consumed yet.
Referring to FIGS. 4 to 6, the container 10 comprises a partition plate 40 having three sections that are isogonal to one another to divide the container 10 into at least three accommodating spaces 11, and an opening cover 30 divided into three parts at an upper section of the container 10, with each part of the opening cover 30 respectively covering an upper section of each accommodating space 11.
To eat the jellies, a pulling section 32 at part of the opening cover 30 is torn away in sequence to eat the jellies 20 stored in the accommodating spaces 11 one after the other. Thus, the jellies 20 are prevented from simultaneously falling into a mouth as well as facilitating storage and hygiene of remaining jellies 22 not consumed yet. Furthermore, the opening cover 30 can be torn away all at once to eat the jellies placed in the storage spaces 11. For that the jellies 20 in individual accommodating spaces 11 are reduced to smaller sizes, hazards of the jellies getting congested at a throat is prevented.
To adapt to jellies having different flavors, the opening cover 30 can be indicated with words or patterns. Also, to prohibit children from purposely or accidentally tearing away all the opening cover 30, the pulling section 32 are located at different positions as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5.
With reference to FIG. 7, the container 10 is further disposed with an intersecting partition plate 40 to provide at least four accommodating spaces 11.
Again referring to FIGS. 2 and 7, the container 10 is divided into at least two accommodating chambers 11 using the partition plate 40, thereby reducing sizes of jellies to minimize dangers of choking when eating with one swallow. FIGS. 8 to 10 show different partition plates in more embodiments according to the invention.
The accommodating spaces 11 may be filled with jelly fluids of different flavors. Thus, numerous flavors are offered in a same mini jelly to increase purchase urge of consumers while also keeping original tastes of mini jellies and effectively overcoming potential dangers of eating conventional mini jellies.
It is of course to be understood that the embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the principles of the invention and that a wide variety of modifications thereto may be effected by persons skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1-2. (canceled)

3. A mini jelly container comprising:

a) a container having:

i) a peripheral wall and a curved bottom defining an interior;

ii) at least one partition plate located on the interior of the container; and

iii) at least two accommodating spaces formed by and separated by the at least one partition plate; and

b) a cover connected to a top of the container and individually sealing each of the at least two accommodating spaces,

wherein each of the at least two accommodating spaces has a bottom formed from an equal portion of the curved bottom of the container and a common interior wall shared with an adjacent accommodating space, each common interior wall is formed by the at least one partition plate.

4. The mini jelly container according to claim 3, wherein the cover is removable from an individually selected accommodating space of the at least two accommodating spaces along a dividing line of the cover.

5. The mini jelly container according to claim 3, wherein each of the at least one partition plate extends radially from a center axis of the container.