PLATE HAVING SEPARATOR WALLS AND SUCTION BASE
A plate includes an upper body having a circumferential wall and an upper side bottom surface. The plate also includes a base integrally formed with the upper body. The base includes a flexible base body configured to create a suction force when deformed.
The present disclosure relates to the technology field of tableware containers and, more particularly, to a plate having separator walls and a suction base.
BACKGROUNDTableware containers, such as plates, are typical tableware people use in their daily life for containing foods. Sometimes plates are used for training young children, such as those who are in the age of learning to eat foods by themselves. Multiple types of food (e.g., fruits, vegetables, meats) may be fed to the young children. Therefore, it is desirable that different kinds of foods be separated in a plate. In addition, young children tend to move a lot on dinner table. Therefore, plates are easy to be knocked off from the table, causing food spill mess and sometimes break of the plate if the plate is made of a fragile material, such as ceramics.
SUMMARYIn accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a plate. The plate includes an upper body having a circumferential wall and an upper side bottom surface. The plate also includes a base integrally formed with the upper body. The base includes a flexible base body configured to create a suction force when deformed.
In accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a tableware container. The tableware container includes a circumferential wall enclosing a space. The tableware container also includes a bottom surface. The tableware container also includes a separator wall disposed in the space enclosed by the circumferential wall, the separator wall protruding from the bottom surface and both ends of the separator wall being separated from an inner surface of the circumferential wall by gaps.
To better describe the technical solutions of the present disclosure, the accompanying drawings showing the various embodiments will be briefly described. As a person of ordinary skill in the art would appreciate, the drawings show only some embodiments of the present disclosure. Without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, those having ordinary skills in the art could derive other embodiments and drawings based on the disclosed drawings without inventive efforts.
Technical solutions of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, in which the same numbers refer to the same or similar elements unless otherwise specified. A person having ordinary skills in the art would appreciate that the described embodiments represent some, rather than all, of the embodiments of the present disclosure. A person having ordinary skills in the art can conceive or derive other embodiments or variations based on the described embodiments. Such embodiments also fall within the scope of the present disclosure.
Further, in the present disclosure, the disclosed embodiments and the features of the disclosed embodiments may be combined. The described embodiments are some but not all of the embodiments of the present disclosure. Based on the disclosed embodiments, persons of ordinary skill in the art may derive other embodiments consistent with the present disclosure. For example, modifications, adaptations, substitutions, additions, or other variations may be made based on the disclosed embodiments. Such variations of the disclosed embodiments are still within the scope of the present disclosure. Accordingly, the present disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Instead, the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims.
As used herein, when a first component (or unit, element, member, part, piece) is referred to as “coupled” to or with a second component, it is intended that the first component may be directly or indirectly, permanently or removably, coupled, mounted, fixed, connected, or secured to or with the second component.
When a first component is referred to as “disposed,” “located,” or “provided” at a second component, the first component may be partially or entirely, directly or indirectly, disposed, located, or provided in, inside, within, on, below, or above the second component. The first component may be disposed, located, or provided at any suitable orientation (back, front, to the left, to the right, above, or below) relative to the second component.
The singular forms of “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context indicates otherwise. The terms “comprise,” “comprising,” “include,” and the like specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, and do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups.
The phrase “at least one of A or B” may encompass all combinations of A and B, such as A only, B only, or A and B. Likewise, the phrase “at least one of A, B, or C” may encompass all combinations of A, B, and C, such as A only, B only, C only, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C. The phrase “A and/or B” may be interpreted in a manner similar to that of the phrase “at least one of A or B.” For example, the phrase “A and/or B” may encompass all combinations of A and B, such as A only, B only, or A and B. Likewise, the phrase “A, B, and/or C” has a meaning similar to that of the phrase “at least one of A, B, or C.” For example, the phrase “A, B, and/or C” may encompass all combinations of A, B, and C, such as A only, B only, C only, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C.
Further, when an embodiment illustrated in a drawing shows a single element, it is understood that the embodiment may include a plurality of such elements. Likewise, when an embodiment illustrated in a drawing shows a plurality of such elements, it is understood that the embodiment may include one such element. The number of elements illustrated in the drawing is for illustration purposes only, and should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiment. Moreover, the embodiments and/or features included in various embodiments shown in the drawings are not mutually exclusive, and they may be combined in any suitable manner. For example, elements shown in only one embodiment (or figure) may nevertheless be included in the other embodiments (or figures).
In some embodiments, the entire plate 100 is made of silicone. In some embodiments, the silicone may be food-grade silicone, which may be suitable for containing food, liquid (e.g., water, juice, milk, baby formula, etc.). In some embodiments, the entire plate 100 may not include any paint, metal, or other harmful chemical components that may be unsafe for humans, such as for young children.
The plate 100 may include an upper body 110 and a suction base 120 (or referred to as a base 120 for simplicity of discussion) attached to a bottom of the upper body 110. In some embodiments, the upper body 110 and the base 120 may be formed as an integral piece. That is, the entire plate 100 may be formed as a single piece. For example, the plate 100 may be formed through injection molding, 3D printing, or any other suitable manufacturing processes as a single piece.
The upper body 110 may include a circumferential wall 105 (also referred to as a wall 105 for simplicity). The wall 105 may enclose or define a space for the plate 100 for containing food. The wall 105 may include a top surface 105t, an inner surface 105a, and an outer surface 105b. The wall 105 may have a round shape, or any other suitable shapes, such as oval shape, rectangular shape, triangular shape, etc. That is, the upper body 110 may include a round shape or any other suitable shape. The upper body 110 may include an upper side bottom surface 125.
The plate 100 may include one or more separator walls to separate the inner space of the plate 100 into a plurality of portions. For example, in the embodiment shown in
In some embodiments, the first separator wall 111 may extend along a diameter, and may not be connected (or in contact) with the two opposite portions of the wall 105. Instead, the first separator wall 111 may have a gap from the wall 105 (e.g., the inner surface 105a). In other words, both ends of the first separator wall 111 may be separated from the inner surface 105a of the wall 105 by gaps. The first separator wall 111 may have a curved shape, with a center portion 111c having the highest height and two end portions 111a and 111b having heights lower than the height of the center portion 111c. In some embodiments, the highest height of the first separator wall 111 may be lower than the top surface 105t of the wall 105. In some embodiments, the highest height of the first separator wall 111 may be at the same level as the top surface 105t of the wall 105. The height of the first separator wall 111 may smoothly or gradually decrease from the center portion 111c to the end portions 111a and 111b. In some embodiments, the first separator wall 111 may have a half-oval shape. With the structure of the plate 100, where the end portions 111a and 111b are lower, and do not touch or connect with the wall 105 (e.g., inner surface 105a), it is easier to clean as compared with a configuration in which the separator wall 111 is connected (or in contact) with the inner surface 105a of the wall 105. In other embodiments, it is possible to make at least one of the end portion 111a or the end portion 111b connected (or in contact) with the inner wall 105a.
The plate 100 may include a second separator wall 112 disposed in one half of the inner space divided by the first separator wall 111. The second separator wall 112 may be disposed between the first separator wall 111 and the wall 105, and may extend along a half diameter in a direction perpendicular to the first separator wall 111. The second separator wall 112 may have a length slightly shorter than a half length of a diameter. In other words, the length of the second separator wall may be about half of the length of the first separator wall 111. The second separator wall 112 may be integrally formed on the upper side bottom surface 125, and may protrude upwardly from the upper side bottom surface 125. In other words, the first separator wall 111, the second separator wall 112, the wall 105, the upper side bottom surface 125, and the base 120 of the plate 100 may be integrally formed as a single piece. For example, the various components of the plate 100 may be integrally formed during a molding process.
The second separator wall 112 may divide the one half of the plate 100 into two substantially equal portions (e.g., each portion being a quarter of the inner space of the plate 100). An end of the second separator wall 112 may not touch or connect with the first separator wall 111. That is, an end of the second separator wall 112 may be separated from the first separator wall 111 by a gap. In some embodiments, the second separator wall 112 may not touch or connect with the inner surface 105a of the wall 105. That is, another end of the second separator wall 112 may be separated from the inner surface 105a of the wall 105 by a gap. With the gap between the second separator wall 112 and the first separator wall 111, and the gap between the second separator wall 112 and the inner wall 105a of the wall 105, cleaning of the plate 100 may be made easier than the configuration in which the second separator wall 112 is connected (or in contact) with the inner wall 105a and the first separator wall 111.
The second separator wall 112 may include a curved shape. A center portion 112c may have a highest height, and end portions 112a and 112b may have lower heights. In some embodiments, the highest height of the second separator wall 112 may be lower than the top surface 105t of the wall 105. In some embodiments, the highest height of the second separator wall 112 may be at the same level as the top surface 105t of the wall 105. In some embodiments, the height of the second separator wall 112 may smoothly or gradually decrease from the center portion 112c to the end portions 112a and 112b.
Although one first separator wall 111 and one second separator wall 112 are shown for illustrative purposes, the number of the separator walls is not limited. In some embodiments, there may be three separator walls, four separator walls, etc. In addition, the lengths of the separator walls are not limited to the substantially full diameter length (as with the first separator wall 111) or the substantially half diameter length (as with the second separator wall 112). The plurality of separator walls may include any suitable lengths.
For example, in some embodiments, the plate 100 may include three separator walls of equal lengths (all being substantially half diameter length) evenly divide the space of the plate 100 into three equal portions. That is, the three separator walls may be disposed at 120 degrees apart. The three separator walls may not be connected (or in contact). In other words, gaps may exist between first ends of the three separator walls at the center of the plate 100. In addition, the three separator walls may not be connected (or in contact) with the inner surface 105a of the wall 105 (e.g., gaps may exist between second ends of the three separator walls and the inner surface 105a).
In some embodiments, there may be four separator walls evenly divide the space of the plate 100 into four equal portions. The four separator walls may be disposed at 90 degrees apart, each having a length of substantially half of the diameter of the plate. The four separator walls may not be connected (or in contact) with each other (e.g., gaps may exist between first ends of the four separator walls at the center of the plate 100). In addition, the four separator walls may not be connected (or in contact) with the inner surface 105a of the wall 105 (e.g., gaps may exist between second ends of the four separator walls and the inner surface 105a of the wall 105).
Regardless of the number of separator walls in the plate, the gaps between the separator walls and the gaps between the separator walls and the inner surface 105 of the wall 105 may increase the convenience of cleaning the plate 100, as food residues may be easily wiped off of the plate 100 due to the presence of the gaps.
The base 120 may include a base body 130. The base body 130 may be made of the same flexible material used to make the upper body 110, such as silicone. The silicone base body 130 may include a thin wall enclosing a hollow space therein. Thus, the base body 130 may provide a suction function (via creating a partial vacuum in the hollow space) when deformed. That is, due to the flexibility of the base body 130, when the plate 100 is placed on a flat surface, such as a table top, the base body 130 may deform to expel air out of the hollow space enclosed by the base body 130, thereby generating an at least partial vacuum to provide a suction force. The base body 130 may deform due to the weight of the plate 100 and/or the weight of the food contained therein, and/or due to any external force applied onto the plate 100 (e.g., by the user of the plate 100).
The base 120 may include a tab 135 at a suitable location on the base body 130. The tab 135 may be an integral piece of the base body 130. The tab 135 may include any suitable shape, such as half-circle, half-oval, rectangle, square, circle, oval, etc. The tab 135 may be slightly pulled, pushed, or lifted by a finger of the user to release the suction force of the base body 130. That is, when the tab 135 is slightly pulled or lifted, air may enter the space enclosed by the base body 130, thereby releasing the suction force. For discussion purposes, the side where the tab 135 is located is regarded as a front side of the plate 100. Although one tab 135 is shown in
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in the cross-sectional view illustrated in
In some embodiments, the upper side bottom surface 125 of the plate 100 may be parallel to the horizontal plane 160, or parallel to the horizontal plane 165 formed by the circumferential top surface 105t of the wall 105, or parallel to the flat surface on which the plate 100 is placed. In some embodiments, as shown in
As shown in
The separator walls 190a, 190b, 190c, and 190d shown in the different configurations of
The disclosed plate may be made of a soft, flexible material, such as silicone. Silicone is non-toxic, and safe for humans. The silicone plate (which may be food-grade silicone) is safe for a young child to use. The silicone plate is not fragile, and is not easy to break. The plate includes a suction base, which can firmly attach the plate to a flat surface, such as a table surface. Therefore, when the silicone plate is used by a young child, it is not easy for the plate to be accidentally moved on the table surface or knocked over by the young child. Despite the strong suction force provided by the flexible suction base, the tab provided at the base body makes it easy to release the suction force. A user can apply a small force onto the tab while grabbing the corresponding portion of the plate to release the suction force, and to remove the plate from the table surface. With the slanted plate body (one side being thicker than the other opposite side), the uneven configuration also makes it easier for a user to grab the plate and remove the plate from the table surface.
Other embodiments of the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the embodiments disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as example only and not to limit the scope of the present disclosure, with a true scope and spirit of the invention being indicated by the following claims. Variations or equivalents derived from the disclosed embodiments also fall within the scope of the present disclosure.
Claims
1. A plate, comprising:
- an upper body having a circumferential wall and an upper side bottom surface; and
- a base integrally formed with the upper body,
- wherein the base includes a flexible base body configured to create a suction force when deformed.
2. The plate of claim 1, wherein the plate is made of a silicone.
3. The plate of claim 1, further comprising a tab on the base body for releasing the suction force.
4. The plate of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of separator walls integrally formed on the upper side bottom surface.
5. The plate of claim 4, wherein the plurality of separator walls include a first separator wall and a second separator wall, the first separator wall extending along a diameter, and the second separator wall extending along a half diameter perpendicular to the first separator wall.
6. The plate of claim 5, wherein gaps are formed between two ends of the first separator wall and the circumferential wall.
7. The plate of claim 5, wherein gaps are formed between an end of the second separator wall and the first separator wall, and another end of the second separator wall and the circumferential wall.
8. The plate of claim 4, wherein the first separator wall includes a curved shape.
9. The plate of claim 8, wherein a height of the first separator wall gradually decreases from a center portion to both end portions.
10. The plate of claim 9, wherein a highest height of the first separator wall is at a same level as a top surface of the circumferential wall.
11. The plate of claim 4, wherein the second separator wall includes a curved shape.
12. The plate of claim 11, wherein a height of the second separator wall gradually decreases from a center portion to both end portions.
13. The plate of claim 12, wherein a highest height of the second separator wall is lower than a top surface of the circumferential wall.
14. The plate of claim 1, wherein the upper side bottom surface is slanted.
15. The plate of claim 4, wherein a first depth of the plate at a portion adjacent an end of the second separator wall that is close to the circumferential wall is smaller than a second depth of the plate at an opposite portion.
16. The plate of claim 3, wherein a portion of the base body includes a thin wall, a first portion of the thin wall adjacent the tab forms a first angle with respect to a horizontal plane formed by circumferential tip portions of the base body, a second portion of the thin wall opposite to the first portion forms a second angle with respect to the horizontal plane, the second angle being smaller than the first angle.
17. The plate of claim 3, wherein a lower side bottom surface of the plate is slanted with respect to a horizontal plane formed by circumferential tip portions of the base body.
18. A tableware container, comprising:
- a circumferential wall enclosing a space;
- a bottom surface; and
- a separator wall disposed in the space enclosed by the circumferential wall, the separator wall protruding from the bottom surface and both ends of the separator wall being separated from an inner surface of the circumferential wall by gaps.
19. The plate of claim 18, further comprising a base including a flexible base body configured to create a suction force when deformed.
20. The plate of claim 19, wherein the base body includes a tab configured for releasing the suction force when pushed or pulled.