METHOD FOR PACKAGING AND DISPENSING OF FOOD ITEMS

Abstract

A method of packaging food items, such as cupcake type food items, into a dispenser for future consumption. The dispenser includes a hollow vessel, such as a tube, with openings at both ends. The food items are placed within the hollow vessel and a cap is placed over one end and a dispensing mechanism is placed over the opposing end. By removing the cap and actuating the dispensing mechanism, the food items are forced out of the tube for consumption.

Description

BACKGROUND

There is a popular proverb that many know as “You can't have your cake and eat it too”. Which in its most popular form does not really make much sense. Certainly, in order to eat your cake, you must first have your cake. And although most understand the meaning behind the proverb, it really only makes sense if you read it the way it was used in times of old—basically reversing the order of the proverb: “you cannot eat your your cake and still have it”. In this phraseology, the proverb seems to be much clearer and delivers an astute lesson in life: you cannot expend your resources and still expect to have them and so, live your life in a prudent and conservative manner. However, why would one choose to illustrate this life lesson with cake? Certainly, without a doubt, cake is made to be consumed, and consumed with much joy and vigor. While one can gaze upon a cake and enjoy its beauty, it is basically worthless unless you use it for its intended purpose—consumption. In fact, letting the cake sit around on the kitchen counter will ultimately achieve the same result of the proverb “you can't let your cake sit around and become stale or moldy and eat it too”. And so, the whole proverb is quite flawed. If you don't eat your cake or if you eat your cake, eventually you will not have it. And so, always remember to eat your cake.

It may have been an individual trying to live their life in strict adherence to this proverb that ultimately resulted in the invention of the cup cake. This person may have realized the inherent flaw—if you don't eat your cake you won't have it. And maybe after disposing of multiple stale, half consumed cakes, the person thought “maybe I should make a small cake, like the size of a cup, and then if I don't have it anymore, it will most likely be due to the fact that I ate it, rather than it having gone stale”.

Of course, this is just conjecture. Because in reality, according to one resource, the cupcake evolved in the United States in the 19th century, and it was revolutionary because of the amount of time it saved in the kitchen. There was a shift from weighing out ingredients when baking to measuring out ingredients. According to the Food Timeline Web, food historians have yet to pinpoint exactly where the name of the cupcake originated. There are two theories: one, the cakes were originally cooked in cups and two, the ingredients used to make the cupcakes were measured out by the cup.

This same source states that in the beginning, cupcakes were sometimes called “number” cakes, because they were easy to remember by the measurements of ingredients it took to create them: One cup of butter, two cups of sugar, three cups of flour, four eggs, one cup of milk, and one spoonful of soda. Clearly, cupcakes today have expanded to a wide variety of ingredients, measurements, shapes, and decorations—but this was one of the first recipes for making what we know today as cupcakes.

Cupcakes were convenient because they cooked much quicker than larger cakes. When baking was performed in hearth ovens, it would take a long time to bake a cake, and the final product would often be burned. Muffin tins, also called gem pans, were popular around the turn of the 20th century, so people started created cupcakes in tins.

Since their creation, cupcakes have become a pop culture trend in the culinary world. They have spawned dozens of bakeries devoted entirely to them. While chocolate and vanilla remain classic favorites, fancy flavors such as raspberry meringue and espresso fudge can be found on menus. There are cookbooks, blogs, and magazines specifically dedicated to cupcakes.

But, as many are aware, although the concept and benefits of cupcakes are quite apparent, there are also some considerable detriments. One such detriment is that the shape of the cupcake makes it exceedingly difficult to eat without having a blob of icing stuck on the end of your nose. Unlike a taco which can be consumes by rotating your head such that your mouth and the shape of the taco align, one is left with little hope on getting a good clean bite into a cupcake. Furthermore, even aside from this issue, cupcakes are simply messy to eat. Generally cupcakes are for consumption on the go and thus, even the most dainty and civilized cupcake consumer will end up with sticky hands. And so, for hundreds of years, the world has simply sat back and, while it has enjoyed the wonderful benefits of cake, has failed to advance the art to overcome these needs in the art. That is, until now.

BRIEF SUMMARY

The present disclosure presents various embodiments for packaging and dispensing of food items, such as cake and frosting. In one embodiment, the food items, or a food compilation is placed into a vessel that includes a tube, a cap and a dispensing mechanism. In a bottom loading embodiment, the process begins by placing a cap on the tube, wherein the tube includes an upper opening and a lower opening and the cap is placed on the upper opening. The cap and tube assembly is then turned upside down such that the cap can be placed on a surface, such as a counter or table. The food compilation in then placed into the tube through the lower opening. The food compilation is created by layering a first type of food item, such as cake, and at least one second type of food item, such as frosting, into the interior of a tube. As each layer is inserted, the previous layers can be forced towards the upper opening of the tube by applying downward force or, in some embodiments the food items may simply fall to towards the upper opening by gravity. The layers of food items are inserted until the tube is almost full, leaving enough room for the dispenser to be installed. The dispensing mechanism is then placed into the lower opening of the tube and forced inward until the base of the dispensing mechanism is proximate to the food compilation. Once packaged, the dispensing mechanism can be actuated to force the food compilation out of the upper end of the cylindrical tube after the cap is removed by applying a force to the dispensing mechanism in the direction of the upper opening.

In another embodiment, a top loading embodiment, the process begins by inserting a dispensing mechanism into a tube, wherein the tube includes an upper opening and a lower opening and the dispensing mechanism is placed into the lower opening. The tube and dispensing mechanism assembly is then oriented such that the upper opening is facing upwards. The food compilation is created by layering a first type of food item, such as cake, and at least one second type of food item, such as frosting, into the interior of a tube. As each layer is inserted, the previous layers can be forced towards the lower opening of the tube by applying downward force or, in some embodiments the food items may simply fall to towards the lower opening by gravity. The first layer of the food compilation, once installed within the tube is proximate to the dispensing mechanism. The layers of food items are inserted until the tube is almost full, leaving enough room for the cap to be installed. The cap is then placed onto or over the upper opening of the tube. Once packaged, the dispensing mechanism can be actuated to force the food compilation out of the upper end of the cylindrical tube after the cap is removed by applying a force to the dispensing mechanism in the direction of the upper opening.

These and other embodiments and features are more fully described in conjunction with the drawings and the detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a vessel that can be used in implementing an embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram of another vessel that can be used in implementing an embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of yet another vessel that can be used in implementing an embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram of yet another vessel that can be used in implementing an embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes.

FIG. 5 is an exemplary structure for an embodiment of the personal cakes.

FIG. 6 is another exemplary structure for an embodiment of the personal cakes.

FIG. 7 is yet another exemplary structure for an embodiment of the personal cakes.

FIG. 8 is an exemplary assembled packaged personal cake of the structure illustrated in FIG. 7 within the vessel 100 illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 9 is a photograph of an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIOUS EMBODIMENTS

The present invention, as well as features and aspects thereof, is directed towards providing a method for packaging food items in a push-up or screw-up type of container so that the food item can be easily dispensed.

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a vessel that can be used in implementing an embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes. The illustrated vessel 100 includes a dispensing tube or cylinder 102 for housing the food item and a cap or lid 104 that can be secured to the top of the cylinder 102 in a re-attachable configuration using a snap on ring 106 as a non-limiting example. The vessel includes a base 108 on which the food items rests and a plunger 110 for forcing the base 108 upwards through the interior of the cylinder 102 or retracting the base 108 downward through the interior of the cylinder 102. The base includes a sleeve 114 either attached to or integrally molded to the base 108. The plunger 110 is slid into the sleeve 114 and can be secured within the sleeve 114 by being screwed, glued, heat-welded or other techniques. A seal 116 may be placed within the lower portion of the cylinder 102 to prevent contamination of food items within the cylinder 102 or to prevent leakage from the cylinder 102. The seal includes an aperture 118 through which the plunder 110 can be passed. The aperture 118 may include a grommet or other mechanism for creating a seal between the plunger 110 and the walls of the aperture 118 that allows the plunger 110 to move through the aperture 118 but retains a seal. The dispensing mechanism includes the base 108, sleeve 114 and plunger 110. In operation, the dispensing mechanism can be placed into the bottom opening 112 of the cylinder 102 and slid slightly upwards. The seal 116 can then be secured within the interior of the cylinder 102. The food items can then be placed through an upper opening of the cylinder 102 and finally the lid 104 can be secured to the top of the cylinder 102. Alternatively, the food items can be placed into the bottom opening 112 of the cylinder 102 by turning the cylinder 102 upside down with the cap 104 in place, and then dropping or placing the food items into the interior of the cylinder 102 until near full. The dispensing mechanism can then be placed into the bottom opening 112 of the cylinder 102 and slid slightly upwards.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram of another vessel that can be used in implementing an embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes. The illustrated vessel 200 includes a dispensing tube or cylinder 202 for housing the food item and a cap or lid 204 that can be secured to the top of the cylinder 202 and crimped or folded to create a friction to hold the cap 204 in place. The vessel includes a base 208 on which the food items rests and a plunger 210 for forcing the base 208 upwards through the interior of the cylinder 202 or retracting the base 208 downward through the interior of the cylinder 202. The plunger 210 can be molded together with the base 208 as a single unit, or can be attached to the base 208 in a variety of matters such as adhesive, heat weld, screwing as a few non-limiting examples. The dispensing mechanism includes the base 208 and the plunger 210. In operation, the dispensing mechanism can be placed into the bottom opening 212 of the cylinder 202 and slid slightly upwards. The food items can then be placed through an upper opening of the cylinder 202 and finally the lid 204 can be secured to the top of the cylinder 202. Alternatively, the food items can be placed into the bottom opening 212 of the cylinder 202 by turning the cylinder 202 upside down with the cap 204 in place, and then dropping or placing the food items into the interior of the cylinder 202 until near full. The dispensing mechanism can then be placed into the bottom opening 212 of the cylinder 202 and slid slightly upwards.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of yet another vessel that can be used in implementing an embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes. The illustrated vessel 300 includes a dispensing tube or cylinder 302 for housing the food item and a cap or lid 304 that can be secured to the top of the cylinder 302. In the illustrated embodiment, the cylinder 302 includes threads 320 and the interior edge of the cap 304 includes grooves 322 such that the cap 304 can be screwed or threaded onto the cylinder 302 in the direction of arrow 324 or, unscrewed in removed by rotating the cap 304 in the opposite direction from arrow 324. The vessel includes a base 308 on which the food items rests and a plunger 310 for forcing the base 308 upwards through the interior of the cylinder 302 or retracting the base 308 downward through the interior of the cylinder 302. The plunger 310 can be molded together with the base 308 as a single unit, or can be attached to the base 208 in a variety of matters such as adhesive, heat weld, screwing as a few non-limiting examples. The dispensing mechanism includes the base 308 and the plunger 310. In operation, the dispensing mechanism can be placed into the bottom opening 312 of the cylinder 302 and slid slightly upwards. The food items can then be placed through an upper opening of the cylinder 302 and finally the cap 304 can be secured to the top of the cylinder 302. Alternatively, the food items can be placed into the bottom opening 312 of the cylinder 302 by turning the cylinder 302 upside down with the cap 304 in place, and then dropping or placing the food items into the interior of the cylinder 302 until near full. The dispensing mechanism can then be placed into the bottom opening 312 of the cylinder 302 and slid slightly upwards. In the embodiments illustrated, it is shown that the vessel can be of a variety of sizes and dimensions and the illustrated embodiments are only a few non-limiting examples. As will be described further, the different shapes may have advantages for the types of items to be placed within the vessel and the method utilized for placing the food items into the vessel. As a non-limiting example, vessel 300 may be suitable for receiving a standard cupcake as is, while vessel 100 and vessel 200 may be more suited for receiving layers of cakes and frosting or icing.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram of yet another vessel that can be used in implementing an embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes. In the illustrated embodiment, the vessel 400 is cork-screw style dispenser similar to what is utilized for CHAPSTICK branded lip treatment. In the illustrated embodiment, the vessel 400 includes a cylindrical tube 402 and a cap 404. The cylindrical tube 402 includes an inset top 442 for receiving the cap 404. The inset 442 may include a ring 444 over which the cap 404 can be snapped and held into position. Within the interior of the cylindrical tube 402 is a dispensing mechanism including a base 408 and a threaded guide 432 and a thumb-wheel 430. The threaded guide 432 is fixedly coupled to or integral with the thumb-wheel 430. In operation, when the thumb-wheel is turned one direction, the threaded guide 432 rotates causing the base 408 to rise within the cylindrical tube 402. When the thumb-wheel is turned in the opposing direction, the base 408 lowers within the cylindrical tube 402. To dispense food items, the dispensing mechanism can be placed into the bottom opening of the cylinder 402 with the base 408 in the lowered position. The food items can then be placed through an upper opening of the cylinder 402 and finally the cap 404 can be secured to the top of the cylinder 402. Alternatively, the food items can be placed into the bottom opening of the cylinder 402 by turning the cylinder 402 upside down with the cap 404 in place, and then dropping or placing the food items into the interior of the cylinder 402 until near full. The dispensing mechanism can then be secured into position at the bottom of the cylindrical tube 402.

It should be appreciated that although the embodiments are illustrated with cylindrical tubes, other shaped tubes may also be used, such as square, triangular and oval as a few non-limiting examples

FIG. 5 is an exemplary structure for an embodiment of the personal cakes. In the illustrated embodiment, multiple layers of food items are presented with somewhat uniform size except for the top layer. For instance, layers 502-514 may different flavors or colors of cake wedges and layer 516 can be a layer of frosting. In other embodiments, alternating layers may be cake and frosting. For instance, layers 502, 506, 510 and 514 may be of cake substance while layers 504, 508 and 512 may be frosting. Again, layer 516 could be frosting in this embodiment. It should be appreciated that several other combinations and ingredients may be used. A few non-limiting examples may include peanut butter, jelly, pudding, cream cheese, cookies, candy, gummy candy, caramel, coconut, syrup, honey, chocolate syrup, gelatin, fruit, fruit spread, or the like. For cake layers, the disk shaped cake layers may be baked in a mold to create the individual layers or, a cylindrical shaped mold may be utilized to create a cylindrical shaped cake, which can then be sliced to create the disks. In addition, an instrument similar to an apple core device may be used to cut cylindrical shaped pieces out of a normal cake.

FIG. 6 is another exemplary structure for an embodiment of the personal cakes. In this embodiment the food items consist of multiple irregularly shaped layers 602-616. Similar to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5, the various layers may be constructed from a variety of ingredients. One non-limiting example would be to use cake substance on layers 602, 606, 610 and 614 and place frosting between the cake at layers 604, 608 and 612. The top layer 616 can be frosting or any of a variety of toppings.

FIG. 7 is yet another exemplary structure for an embodiment of the personal cakes. Similar to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the various layers may be constructed from a variety of ingredients. One non-limiting example would be to use cake substance on layers 702, 706, 710 and 714 and place frosting between the cake at layers 704, 708 and 712. The top layer 716 can be frosting or any of a variety of toppings.

FIG. 8 is an exemplary assembled packaged personal cake of the structure illustrated in FIG. 7 within the vessel 100 illustrated in FIG. 1. In the illustrated embodiment, a food compilation consisting of layers 702-716 of food items are shown as being within the interior of the cylindrical tube 102. The cap 104 is placed over the cylindrical tube 102 and the dispensing mechanism is shown as having the food compilation resting upon the base 108. After removing the cap 104, pressure or a force can be applied to the plunger 110 to force the dispensing mechanism towards the upper opening to force the food compilation out of the upper end of the cylindrical tube 102. As the food compilation is consumed, the plunger 110 can be further actuated to force additional portions of the food compilation out of the upper opening. Alternatively, the cap 104 may be replaced onto the top of the cylindrical tube 102 for storage or safe keeping.

FIG. 9 is a photograph of an exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment of the method for packaging personal cakes. The process 1000 includes the step of preparing a cylindrical cake 1002. As mentioned previously, this can be accomplished by baking cake disks, baking cylinder or cutting a cylinder from a regular cake. In the latter two techniques, the additional step of slicing the cylindrical cake into disks 1004 can be included. The process 1000 continues by placing a disk into the container or vessel 1006. Next, a layer of icing can be placed into the container on the disk 1008. At decision block 1010, if the vessel is full, processing continues at block 1006 to continue layering cake and frosting into the vessel. When the vessel is full 1010, then the top is sealed and the dispenser mechanism is installed 1012. It should be appreciated that when the vessel is loaded from the bottom, the top is sealed prior to placing the food item into the vessel at step 1006 and the last step includes installing the dispenser mechanism 1012. For top loaded embodiments, the action of installing the dispenser mechanism 1012 may be performed prior to inserting the disks and frosting into the vessel and, the last step includes placing the top on the vessel.

Further, in some embodiments, rather than disks, chunks, crumps or irregular pieces of cake and be pushed into the vessel.

In the description and claims of the present application, each of the verbs, “comprise”, “include” and “have”, and conjugates thereof, are used to indicate that the object or objects of the verb are not necessarily a complete listing of members, components, elements, or parts of the subject or subjects of the verb.

The present invention has been described using detailed descriptions of embodiments thereof that are provided by way of example and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The described embodiments comprise different features, not all of which are required in all embodiments of the invention. Some embodiments of the present invention utilize only some of the features or possible combinations of the features. Variations of embodiments of the present invention that are described and embodiments of the present invention comprising different combinations of features noted in the described embodiments will occur to persons of the art. Further, aspects and features illustrated in one embodiment may also be incorporated into other embodiments.

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited by what has been particularly shown and described herein above. Rather the scope of the invention is defined by the claims that follow.

Claims

1. A method for packaging of food items, the method comprises the actions of:

placing a food compilation comprising layers of a first type of food item and at least one second type of food item into the interior of a cylindrical tube with openings on opposing ends;

inserting a dispensing mechanism into a first end of the cylindrical tube;

placing a cap on the second end of the cylindrical tube;

wherein the dispensing mechanism can be actuated to force the food compilation out of the second end of the cylindrical tube by applying a force to the dispensing mechanism in the direction of the second end.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of placing a food compilation into the interior of a cylindrical tube comprises placing alternating layers of cake and frosting into the cylindrical tube.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the action of placing alternating layers of cake and frosting into the cylindrical tube comprises placing a cake layer proximate to the first end and ending with a frosting layer proximate to the second end.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of inserting a dispensing mechanism further comprises the actions of inserting a base into the first end of the cylindrical tube and coupling a plunger to side of the base that is proximate to the first end.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of placing a cap on the second end of the cylindrical tube further comprise snapping the cap over the second end.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the exterior of the cylindrical tube includes threads proximate to the second end and, the cap includes groves on the interior side of the cap and, the action of placing a cap on the second end of the cylindrical tube further comprises screwing the cap into position.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of placing a food compilation into the interior of a cylindrical tube comprises placing alternating layers of cake and frosting into the cylindrical tube with each of the layers being of substantially uniform size.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of placing a food compilation into the interior of a cylindrical tube comprises placing alternating layers of cake and frosting into the cylindrical tube with each of the layers are irregularly shaped.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the action of placing a food compilation into the interior of a cylindrical tube comprises placing layers of at least two different kinds of cake and at least one kind of frosting into the cylindrical tube.

10. A method for packaging of food items, the method comprises the actions of:

placing a cap on a tube, wherein the tube includes an upper opening and a lower opening and the cap is placed on the upper opening;

orienting the tube and cap assembly such that the cap and upper opening are placed down onto a surface;

placing a food compilation comprising layers of a first type of food item and at least one second type of food item into the interior of a tube by inserting each layer into the lower opening of the tube and forcing the food compilation downward as each successive layer is added until the tube is almost full;

inserting a dispensing mechanism into a lower opening of the tube;

wherein the dispensing mechanism can be actuated to force the food compilation out of the upper end of the cylindrical tube after the cap is removed by applying a force to the dispensing mechanism in the direction of the upper opening.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the action of placing a food compilation into the interior of the tube comprises placing alternating layers of cake and frosting into the tube.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the action of placing alternating layers of cake and frosting into the tube comprises placing a frosting layer into the lower opening first and ending with placing a cake layer into the lower opening.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the action of inserting a dispensing mechanism further comprises the actions of inserting a base into the lower opening of the tube and coupling a plunger to side of the base that is proximate to the lower opening.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the action of placing a cap on the upper opening of the tube further comprise snapping the cap over the upper opening.

15. A method for packaging of food items, the method comprises the actions of:

inserting a dispensing mechanism into a tube, wherein the tube includes an upper opening and a lower opening and the dispensing mechanism is placed into the lower opening;

orienting the tube and dispensing mechanism assembly such that the upper opening is facing upwards;

placing a food compilation comprising layers of a first type of food item and at least one second type of food item into the interior of a tube by inserting each layer into the upper opening of the tube and forcing the food compilation downward as each successive layer is added until the tube is almost full;

placing a cap over the upper opening of the tube;

wherein the dispensing mechanism can be actuated to force the food compilation out of the upper end of the cylindrical tube after the cap is removed by applying a force to the dispensing mechanism in the direction of the upper opening.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the action of placing a food compilation into the interior of the tube comprises placing alternating layers of cake and frosting into the tube.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the action of placing alternating layers of cake and frosting into the tube comprises placing a cake layer into the upper opening first and ending with placing a frosting layer into the upper opening.

18. The method of claim 15, wherein the action of inserting a dispensing mechanism further comprises the actions of inserting a base into the lower opening of the tube and coupling a plunger to side of the base that is proximate to the lower opening.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the action of placing a cap on the upper opening of the tube further comprise snapping the cap over the upper opening.