Vacuum Vessel Having Improved Airtightness

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a vacuum vessel, capable of maintaining the freshness of food contained in the vessel for a lengthy period of time by creating a vacuum in the vessel. The vacuum vessel includes a main body (10) having along an edge thereof an annular protrusion. A seat (15) is disposed in the main body to seat an exterior receptacle containing food therein. A cover (20) covers the main body, and includes a valve mount part and a packing groove defined between inner and outer rings at a position corresponding to the annular protrusion of the main body. A packing (25) is fitted into the packing groove, and has an insert groove to engage with the annular protrusion of the main body, and an extension part to enhance a seal. A check valve (30)(130)(230) is mounted to the valve mount part of the cover.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates, in general, to a vacuum vessel which has a main body and a cover with a check valve, and maintains the freshness of food contained in the vessel for a lengthy period of time by creating a vacuum in the vessel. More particularly, the present invention relates to a vacuum vessel, which has a seat on the bottom of a main body, in consideration of the case in which food is not put into the vacuum vessel itself but an additional receptacle containing food therein is put into the vacuum vessel, and which has a packing at a junction of the main body and the cover, thus enhancing sealing ability, and which improves the structure of a check valve provided on the cover, thus allowing a user to easily confirm a vacuum state in the vessel.

BACKGROUND ART

Generally, a vacuum vessel is used to store food, such as fruits or vegetables. That is, a vacuum is created by exhausting air from a vessel body specified to a cover of the vacuum vessel or another receptacle, so that variation of temperature in the vessel body or receptacle is minimal, thus preventing the decay of food by various airborne bacteria, and preventing the oxidation of food due to a chemical reaction with air, therefore prolonging the storage period of food and maintaining the freshness of food. Further, the air evacuation operation allows the cover to be more firmly secured to the vessel body, so that the cover is not easily opened. Thus, a user does not need to worry about the spillage of contents out of the vessel. Thereby, the vacuum vessel has been receiving attention.

Up to now, people have made efforts to develop vacuum vessels so that a vacuum is efficiently and conveniently created.

Vacuum vessels are classified into two types according to a pumping method, that is, a vacuum vessel using a cover and a vacuum vessel using a pump.

In the former case, a cover covers a vessel body of the vacuum vessel, and is compressed toward the bottom of the vessel body while a check valve is opened, so that air is evacuated from the vessel. Afterwards, the check valve is closed. For example, Korean U.M. Registration No. 0253320 which is titled opening and closing food case and was registered on Oct. 26, 2001, Korean U.M. Registration No. 0269043 which is titled food receptacle having air-tight/open type valve structure and was registered on Mar. 8, 2002, etc., have been proposed.

In the latter case, when a mouth of a pump comes into close contact with the cover of the vacuum vessel and the pump is actuated, a check valve is opened and a vacuum is created in the vessel. For example, Korean U.M. Registration No. 0207009 which is titled valve for vacuum vessel and was registered on Oct. 5, 2000, and Korean U.M. Registration No. 0255744 which is titled vacuum device for vessel and was registered on Nov. 16, 2001, etc., have been proposed.

Further, a vacuum cover has been proposed as a kind of vacuum vessel. The vacuum cover does not hold food therein, unlike the vacuum vessel. The vacuum cover is configured to cover an additional receptacle containing food therein, thus evacuating the receptacle.

Various types of vacuum covers have been proposed, examples of which are disclosed in Korean U.M. Registration No. 0245853, titled vacuum cover and registered on Aug. 29, 2001, Korean U.M. Registration No. 0271282, titled height adjustable vacuum cover and registered on Mar. 27, 2002, and Korean U.M. Registration No. 0280872, titled vacuum cover and registered on Jun. 24, 2002. According to Korean U.M. Registration No. 0355863, the vacuum cover is constructed so that a packing is provided along an outer circumference of the bottom of the cover and a check valve is provided on an upper portion of the cover. Further, according to Korean U.M. Registration No. 0371282, the vacuum cover has a folding spiral ring and a spring, thus allowing the height of the vacuum cover to be adjusted. Furthermore, Korean U.M. Registration No. 0280872 provides a special packing means. According to the cited document, an air-tight member, that is, a packing, is provided on a seating surface contacting the lower surface of the cover, or a protrusion is provided on the seating surface, and a groove is provided on an outer circumference of the lower surface of a main body of the cover to engage with the protrusion.

Various kinds of check valves are used for the conventional vacuum vessels. However, a novel check valve which allows a user to confirm the vacuum state of the vessel due to a change in shape of the check valve has not been proposed yet.

DISCLOSURE

Technical Problem

Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a vacuum vessel having an intermediate structure between a general vacuum vessel and a general vacuum cover, which is constructed so that a lower unit, that is, a main body of the vacuum vessel has a shape of a concave bowl or pan, unlike a plate-shaped lower unit of a conventional vacuum cover, and a seat protrudes from the bottom of the main body to a predetermined height, thus allowing an exterior receptacle to be easily put into or taken out of the main body.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a packing to enhance a seal, when a cover covers a main body.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a check valve which can be universally utilized, in addition to being adapted to the vacuum vessel of this invention. An external shape of the check valve varies to allow a user to confirm the vacuum state of the vacuum vessel with his/her naked eyes.

TECHNICAL SOLUTION

In order to accomplish the above objects, the present invention provides a vacuum vessel, including a main body having along an edge thereof an annular protrusion; a seat disposed in the main body to seat an exterior receptacle containing food therein; a cover covering the main body, and comprising a valve mount part and a packing groove defined between inner and outer rings at a position corresponding to the annular protrusion of the main body; a packing fitted into the packing groove, and comprising an insert groove to engage with the annular protrusion of the main body, and an extension part to enhance a seal; and a check valve mounted to the valve mount part of the cover.

According to this invention, the check valve is made of soft rubber or synthetic resin, and includes a knob; an upper disc connected to the knob to cover a mount hole of the valve mount part; a lower disc contacting a lower surface of the valve mount part; a coupling part to couple the upper and lower discs to each other, an outer diameter of the coupling part being smaller than an inner diameter of the mount hole; and a space defined in the valve.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS

According to the present invention, a vacuum vessel has an intermediate structure between a general vacuum vessel and a general vacuum cover, and is constructed so that a lower unit, that is, a main body of the vacuum vessel has a shape of a concave bowl or pan, unlike a plate-shaped lower unit of a conventional vacuum cover, and is provided with a seat, thus allowing an exterior receptacle to be easily put into or taken out of the main body using the seat.

Further, the vacuum vessel of this invention is provided with a packing, thus enhancing a seal when a cover covers a main body.

Furthermore, the vacuum vessel of this invention is provided with a check valve having a space therein, thus allowing a user to easily confirm the vacuum state of the vacuum vessel with his/her naked eyes.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a vacuum vessel, according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a main body of the vacuum vessel, according to the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a check valve, according to the present invention; and

FIGS. 4a and 4b are sectional views to show check valves, according to modifications of FIG. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE CHARACTERS OF IMPORTANT PARTS

• • 10: main body
  • 11: annular protrusion
  • 13: bottom
  • 15: seat
  • 20: cover
  • 21: packing groove
  • 23: valve mount part
  • 25: packing
  • 30, 130, 230: check valve
  • 31, 131, 231: knob
  • 33, 133, 233: upper disc
  • 35, 135, 235: coupling part
  • 37, 137, 237: lower disc
  • 39, 139, 239: space

BEST MODE

The invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, the same reference numerals are used throughout the different drawings to designate the same components.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a vacuum vessel according to this invention includes a main body 10 which is concave therein, like a pan or a bowl. An annular protrusion 11 is provided along an edge of the main body 10, and two handles 10a are provided on both sides of the main body 10.

The vacuum vessel further includes a seat 15, which is the first feature of this invention. The seat 15 is provided in the main body 10 so that an exterior receptacle containing food therein is seated in the main body 10. The seat 15 and the main body 10 may be separately manufactured. However, referring to the drawing, the seat 15 and the main body 10 are integrated into a single structure.

The seat 15 includes a plurality of seating protuberances 15a, which protrudes from a bottom 13 of the main body to a predetermined height. Particularly, three seating protuberances 15a are provided at angular intervals of 120° so as to stably support the receptacle thereon. Further, an anti-slip member 15b made of silicone, rubber, or synthetic resin is attached to an upper surface of each seating protuberance 15a.

Such a seat 15 allows the exterior receptacle to be easily put in and taken out of the main body.

Referring to FIG. 1, the vacuum vessel also includes a cover 20 to cover the main body 10. A valve mount part 23 is provided at a predetermined position on the cover 20. A packing groove 21 is provided along a lower end of the cover 20 at a position corresponding to the annular protrusion 11 of the main body 10.

The packing groove 21 is defined between an outer ring 21a and an inner ring 21b. A packing 25, which is the second feature of this invention, is fitted into the packing groove 21. If necessary, the packing 25 may be adhered to the packing groove 21 using an adhesive.

The packing 25 includes an insert groove 25a which engages with the annular protrusion 11 of the main body 10, and an extension part 25b which covers the inner ring and/or the outer ring of the cover 20 to enhance a seal. The drawing illustrates an example where the extension part 25b of the packing 25 covers the inner ring 21b.

Hereinafter, a check valve, which is the third feature of this invention, will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3. The check valve adapted to the vacuum vessel of this invention may be universally utilized for other vacuum vessels.

The check valve according to this invention is mounted to the valve mount part 23 provided on a central portion of the cover 20, and is made of soft rubber or synthetic resin. A projecting part 20b provided around the valve mount part 23 protrudes from a lower surface of a depressed part 20a to a predetermined height, thus serving as a knob that allows a user to easily grasp the cover 20.

The upper portion of the valve mount part 23 is surrounded by the projecting part 20b so as to prevent a user from accidentally contacting the check valve, thus preventing a vacuum of the vacuum vessel from being undesirably released.

According to the present invention, the check valve 30 includes a knob 31, an upper disc 33 connected to the knob 31 to cover an upper portion of a mount hole 23a of the valve mount part 23, a lower disc 37 contacting a lower surface of the valve mount part 23, and a coupling part 35. The coupling part 35 couples the upper and lower discs 33 and 37 to each other, and has an outer diameter smaller than an inner diameter of the mount hole 23a.

One or more air slits 23b are radially formed on a lower portion of the valve mount part 23, which contacts the lower disc 37. The lower disc 37 functions to prevent the valve 30 from being dislodged from the valve mount part 23.

The important characteristic of the check valve 30 according to this invention is that the valve 30 has a space 39 therein.

The space 39 includes a passage 39a extending from the lower disc 37 toward the knob 31. The passage 39a is expanded at the knob 31, thus providing an expanded space 39b.

After a vacuum has been created in the vacuum vessel, the space 39 is contracted due to the expanded space 39b. Thereby, the knob 31 is deformed, thus allowing a user to easily confirm whether a vacuum exists in the vessel or not. Especially, when the valve 30 is colored, the color of the valve 30 becomes light or dark according to the expansion or contraction of the knob 31. Therefore, it is easier to confirm the vacuum state of the vacuum vessel.

In order to more reliably indicate the vacuum state of the vacuum vessel, a plurality of prominences 31a may be provided on an upper surface of the knob 31. When the vessel is evacuated and the knob 31 is deformed, gaps between the prominences 31a are reduced.

FIGS. 4a and 4b show check valves, according to modifications of FIG. 3.

A check valve 130 of FIG. 4a is different from the check valve 30 of FIG. 3 in that an expanded space 139b has a cylindrical shape, there is only one prominence 131a, and a space 139 extends to the prominence 131a. The expanded space 139b allows the check valve to be more easily pulled out of a mold after a molding process has been completed, thus being convenient to manufacture, in comparison with the check valve 30 of FIG. 3.

Further, a check valve 230 of FIG. 4b is different from the check valve 30 of FIG. 3 in that a space 239b defined in a knob 231 has a multi-stepped cross-section and has a reduced volume. The contracted space 239b allows the check valve to be more easily pulled out of a mold, so that it is easier to manufacture the check valve 230.

In order to evacuate the vacuum vessel according to this invention, a method using a cover or a method using a pump may be utilized.

For example, when the pump is utilized, the mouth of a pump (when the pump has the shape of a syringe) or the nozzle of a pump (when the pump is a motor-operated pump) is located to closely come into contact with a portion around the check valve 30, especially, the depressed part 20a. In such a state, the pump is operated to generate a suction force. At this time, the upper disc 33 of the valve 30 is raised up. After air flows from the interior of the vacuum vessel through the slits 23b of the valve mount part 23, the air is drawn through a gap between the coupling part 35 of the valve 30 and the mount hole 23a to the pump.

When the vacuum has been created in the vessel and the pump is separated from the vessel, the upper disc 33 closes the mount hole 23a. At this time, the vacuum vessel is air-tightly sealed by the extension part of the packing 24, especially, the inner extension part 25b.

Further, when the vessel is evacuated, the knob 31 of the check valve 30 is deformed due to the contraction of the expanded space 39b. Moreover, the gaps between the prominences 31a are reduced or the color of the knob 31 is changed due to the contraction or expansion of the knob 31. Hence, it is easier to confirm the state of the vacuum vessel.

When a user desires to release a vacuum from the vacuum vessel, a user grasps the knob 31 of the valve 30 and lifts the valve 30 up. At this time, the upper disc 33 is raised up, so that air flows through the slits 23b into the vessel, after passing through a gap between the mount hole 23a and the coupling part 35.

Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.

The terms, “include”, “comprise”, “have”, etc., used in the specification and the claims do not limit the present invention, but include various additives, components, combinations or processes.

Claims

1. A vacuum vessel, comprising:

a main body having along an edge thereof an annular protrusion;

a seat disposed in the main body to seat an exterior receptacle containing food therein, and comprising a plurality of seating protuberances to protrude from a bottom of the main body to a predetermined height;

a cover covering the main body, and comprising a valve mount part and a packing groove defined between inner and outer rings at a position corresponding to the annular protrusion of the main body;

a packing fitted into the packing groove, and comprising an insert groove to engage with the annular protrusion of the main body, and an extension part to enhance a seal; and

a check valve mounted to the valve mount part of the cover.

2. (canceled)

3. The vacuum vessel according to claim 1, wherein an anti-slip member is attached to an upper surface of each of the seating protuberances.

4. The vacuum vessel according to claim 1 wherein the check valve is made of soft rubber or synthetic resin, and comprises:

a knob;

an upper disc connected to the knob to cover a mount hole of the valve mount part;

a lower disc contacting a lower surface of the valve mount part;

a coupling part to couple the upper and lower discs to each other, an outer diameter of the coupling part being smaller than an inner diameter of the mount hole; and

a space defined in the valve.

5. The vacuum vessel according to claim 4, wherein a part of the space defined in the knob comprises an expanded space, so that the space is contracted and the knob is deformed when air is exhausted from the vessel, thus allowing a user to easily confirm whether or not a vacuum has been created in the vessel.

6. The vacuum vessel according to claim 4, wherein a part of the space defined in the knob comprises a contracted space with a reduced volume, so that the space is contracted and the knob is deformed when air is exhausted from the vessel, thus allowing a user to easily confirm whether or not a vacuum has been created in the vessel.

7. The vacuum vessel according to claim 5, wherein a plurality of prominences is provided on an upper surface of the knob.

8. The vacuum vessel according to claim 3, wherein the check valve is made of soft rubber or synthetic resin, and comprises:

a knob;

an upper disc connected to the knob to cover a mount hole of the valve mount part;

a lower disc contacting a lower surface of the valve mount part;

a coupling part to couple the upper and lower discs to each other, an outer diameter of the coupling part being smaller than an inner diameter of the mount hole; and

a space defined in the valve.

9. The vacuum vessel according to claim 6, wherein a plurality of prominences is provided on an upper surface of the knob.