Heating container for individually packaged wet sheet and the like

Abstract

To provide a heating container for individually packaged wet sheets and the like, which has a simple structure and is capable of taking out, in a first-in-first-out manner, properly heated individually packaged wet sheets and the like.SOLUTION: A heating container for an individually packaged wet sheet and the like includes: a container body 2 for storing an individually packaged wet sheet and the like P; a heater 3 for heating the stored individually packaged wet sheet and the like P; and a take-out port 4 for the individually packaged wet sheet and the like P. The take-out port 4 is provided at an upright surface 23 at a lower part of the container body 2, and a lower lid part 43 for opening / closing the take-out port 4 is provided. Furthermore, at an upper part of the container body 2, a supply port 52 openable / closable by an upper lid part 51 and for supplying the individually packaged wet sheet and the like is provided.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a container for heating individually packaged wet wipes, etc. More specifically, the present invention relates to a container for heating individually packaged wet wipes, etc., which has a container body for storing individually packaged wet wipes and hand towels (hereinafter referred to as "individually packaged wet wipes, etc."), a heater for heating the stored individually packaged wet wipes, etc., and an outlet for dispensing the individually packaged wet wipes, etc. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, a heating container for wet products such as wet tissues is known, as described in Patent Document 1. In this heating container, an electric heating element is provided inside a lid attached to the top of the container body, so the lid must be opened to remove the wet tissues, which can cause the wet tissues to cool down when removed. Furthermore, when this heating container is used for individually packaged wet tissues or hand towels, the first product placed therein ends up at the bottom, making it impossible to thoroughly implement a first-in, first-out system. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 11-89742 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In view of the above-described conventional situation, the present invention aims to provide a container for heating individually packaged wet wipes, etc., which has a simple structure and allows for the removal of appropriately heated individually packaged wet wipes, etc. on a first-in, first-out basis. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the container for heating individually packaged wet wipes, etc. according to the present invention is characterized in that it has a container body for storing individually packaged wet wipes and hand towels (hereinafter referred to as "individually packaged wet wipes, etc."), a heater for heating the stored individually packaged wet wipes, etc., and an outlet for the individually packaged wet wipes, etc., in which the outlet is provided on the upright surface at the bottom of the container body, a lower lid portion for opening and closing the outlet is provided, and further a supply port for supplying the individually packaged wet wipes, etc. that can be opened and closed with an upper lid portion is provided at the top of the container body.

[0006] According to the above configuration, the outlet is provided on the upright surface of the lower part of the container body, a lower lid that can be opened and closed is provided at the outlet, and the top of the container body can be opened and closed with an upper lid, so that individually packaged wet wipes etc. are replenished (stored) from the top of the container body and removed from the bottom of the container body. This ensures a first-in, first-out system for individually packaged wet wipes etc., and allows the individually packaged wet wipes etc. to be removed and used after being properly warmed.

[0007] In the above configuration, it is preferable that the heater is provided in the lower part of the container body, so that the individually wrapped wet wipes or the like are heated just before being taken out, and therefore do not cool down when taken out.

[0008] In the above configuration, the outlet preferably has a horizontal cutout opening and a protruding opening that protrudes locally above the cutout opening. The protruding opening that protrudes locally upward allows a user to approach the outlet without touching the cutout opening when removing wet wipes or the like, making it easier to remove wet wipes or the like. Furthermore, the container can be used (and can be used in combination) for both roughly rectangular individual packages such as wet wipes and roughly cylindrical individual packages such as hand towels.

[0009] In such a configuration, the container body may be a substantially rectangular parallelepiped that is rectangular in plan view, the outlet may be provided on a surface on a short side, and the protruding opening may be provided at a lateral intermediate position of the cut opening.

[0010] In any of the above configurations, the lower lid portion may have a lower edge supported by the container body so as to be swingable open and closed, and may include a magnetic fixing means for maintaining the closed state. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the above-described features of the container for heating individually wrapped wet wipes or the like according to the present invention, the structure is simple, yet it is possible to take out appropriately heated individually wrapped wet wipes or the like on a first-in, first-out basis.

[0012] Other objects, configurations and effects of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of a container for heating individually wrapped wet wipes or the like according to the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic view of the storage state of individually wrapped wet wipes. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a heater. [Figure 5] 1A is a front view of the first side surface having the outlet, in which (a) is a wet sheet in which individually wrapped wet sheets or the like are individually wrapped, and (b) is a hand towel in which individually wrapped wet sheets or the like are individually wrapped. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of a container for heating individually wrapped wet wipes or the like. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Next, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings where appropriate. (Overview of heating container 1) As shown in Figure 1, the individually packaged wet wipes heating container 1 (hereinafter abbreviated as "heating container") according to the present invention roughly comprises a container body 2 for storing individually packaged wet wipes P (hereinafter abbreviated as "individually packaged wet wipes"), a heater 3 for heating the stored individually packaged wet wipes P, and an outlet 4 for the individually packaged wet wipes P.

[0015] (Container body 2) In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the container body 2 is a roughly rectangular parallelepiped in plan view, with a storage space 20 formed therein for storing individually wrapped wet wipes P. The top surface 21 and bottom surface 22 of the container body 2, as well as the upright side surfaces 23, are formed of a heat-insulating material that keeps the storage space 20 warm. Examples of heat-insulating materials that form each surface include a six-layer structure in which the inner and outer surfaces are made of aluminum sheets, with an additional aluminum sheet between these aluminum sheets, a heater 3 (described later) sandwiched between the aluminum sheet on the inner surface and the inner aluminum sheet, and a heat-insulating material such as felt or sponge filled (laminated) between the aluminum sheet on the outer surface and the inner aluminum sheet. Regarding the upright side surfaces 23, the side including the short side of the rectangular container body 2 in plan view is referred to as the first side surface 23a, and the side including the long side is referred to as the second side surface 23b.

[0016] Furthermore, a supply port 5 for supplying (replenishing) individually wrapped wet wipes P is provided at the top of the container body 2, and an outlet 4 is provided on the upright surface 23 at the bottom of the container body 2. This ensures that individually wrapped wet wipes, etc. are supplied first-in, first-out, so that individually wrapped wet wipes, etc. can always be taken out and used after being properly heated. In this way, the warming container 1 according to the present invention is particularly useful as a container for warming individually wrapped wet wipes P and individually wrapped wet wipes, such as individually wrapped hand towels P'.

[0017] In this embodiment, the supply port 5 is configured as an opening 50 that covers the entire upper surface of the container body 2, and the opening 50 is provided with an upper lid 51 that can be opened and closed by a slide fastener 52. A handle 24 is provided on the upright surface 23.

[0018] (Heater 3) As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the heater 3 comprises a first heater 31 provided inside the lower surface 22 (bottom surface) of the container body 2 and second heaters 32, 32 provided inside the opposing second side surfaces 23b, 23b. As shown in FIG. 3, while individually stored in the storage space 20, the individually wrapped wet wipes P are heated by the second heaters 32, 32 between the pair of second side surfaces 23b, 23b, and the bottommost individually wrapped wet wipes P are also heated by the first heater 31 inside the lower surface 22. Furthermore, since the second heaters 32, 32 are provided on the larger second side surfaces 23b, 23b, heat is easily transferred to the center of each individually wrapped wet wipe P stored. Therefore, individually wrapped wet wipes, etc., that have been appropriately heated can be removed and used. Furthermore, the heater 3 is equipped with a jack 36 into which a plug of an AC adapter (not shown) is inserted and a switch 35 for the heater 3, making it portable.

[0019] In this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 4, the first and second heaters 31, 32 are connected in series via a thermostat 34, with electric wires 33 running snaked inside the heater bodies. This enables temperature control by turning the first and second heaters 31, 32 off when the temperature reaches a predetermined temperature or higher, and turning the first and second heaters 31, 32 on when the temperature falls below the predetermined temperature.

[0020] (Outlet 4) In this embodiment, as shown in Figures 1, 2, and 5, the outlet 4 is provided on one side of the first side surface 23a of the upright surface 23, which includes the short side of the container body 2. This outlet 4 has a lateral (horizontal) cut opening 41 and a protruding opening 42 that protrudes locally above the cut opening 41. The protruding opening 42 is provided at a lateral midpoint of the cut opening 41. The upper edge of the protruding opening 42 is formed in an arc shape. As shown in Figure 1, this protruding opening 42 allows the user to approach the outlet 4 without touching the edge of the cut opening 41 when taking out the individually wrapped wet wipes P, making it easy to take out the individually wrapped wet wipes P.

[0021] Furthermore, since the upper edge of the protruding opening 42 is formed in an arc shape, it is possible to take out not only the individually wrapped wet sheets P shown in Figure 5(a) but also individually wrapped hand towels P' as shown in Figure 5(b). Therefore, the heating container 1 according to the present invention can be used (in combination) with either individually wrapped wet sheets, etc., in roughly rectangular packages such as the individually wrapped wet sheets P, or in roughly cylindrical packages such as the individually wrapped hand towels P', making it highly versatile.

[0022] 1, 2, and 5, a lower lid portion 43 that opens and closes the outlet 4 is provided at the outlet 4 so as to cover the cut opening 41 and the protruding opening 42. The lower edge of this lower lid portion 43 is supported by the container body 2 and is configured to be swingable open and closed. In this embodiment, magnets 44, 44 are disposed (built-in) on the lower lid portion 43 and the first side surface 23a, and these constitute a magnetic fixing means that maintains the lower lid portion 43 in a closed state.

[0023] Next, other possible embodiments of the present invention will be described, in which the same components as those in the above-described embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals. In the above embodiment, the outlet 4 is provided on one side of the first side surface 23a including the short side of the container body 2. However, as shown in FIG. 6, the outlet 4 can also be provided on one side of the second side surface 23b including the long side of the container body 2. Also, as shown in the same figure, the protruding opening 42 can be omitted. However, in terms of workability, the above embodiment in which the protruding opening 42 is provided is superior. Note that the container body is not limited to being a substantially rectangular parallelepiped, and may be, for example, a regular cube.

[0024] In the above embodiment, the fastening means for the lower cover 43 is a magnetic fastening means. However, the fastening means is not limited to this as long as the opening and closing operation is easy. Furthermore, the opening and closing means for the upper cover 51 is not limited to a slide fastener.

[0025] In the above embodiment, the heater 3 is composed of a first heater 31 and a pair of second heaters 32, 32, with the first heater 31 provided over the entire bottom surface 22 of the container body 2 and the second heater 32 provided over the entire side surface 23 perpendicular to the outlet 4. However, the configuration, size, arrangement, etc. of the heater 3 are not limited to those described above, and any configuration may be used as long as the individually wrapped wet wipes or the like are heated when they are taken out, such as around the outlet 4, only the bottom surface 22, or only the lower portions of the side surfaces 23, 23. [Explanation of symbols]

[0026] 1: individually wrapped wet wipes or similar heating container (heating container), 2: container body, 3: heater, 4: outlet, 5: supply port, 20: storage space, 21: top surface, 22: bottom surface, 23: side (upright surface), 23a: first side (short side), 23b: second side (long side), 24: handle, 31: first heater, 32: second heater, 33: electric wire, 34: thermostat, 35: switch, 36: jack, 41: cut opening, 42: protruding opening, 43: bottom lid, 44: magnet, 50: opening, 51: top lid, 52: slide fastener, P: individually wrapped wet wipes, P': individually wrapped hand towel

Claims

1. A container for heating individually packaged wet sheets or hand towels (hereinafter referred to as "individually packaged wet sheets or the like"), the container having a container body for storing individually packaged wet sheets or the like, a heater for heating the stored individually packaged wet sheets or the like, and an outlet for the individually packaged wet sheets or the like, The outlet is provided on a vertical surface of the lower part of the container body, A lower lid portion is provided for opening and closing the outlet, The container for heating individually wrapped wet wipes or the like further comprises a supply port on the top of the container body for supplying individually wrapped wet wipes or the like that can be opened and closed with an upper lid.

2. 2. The container for heating individually wrapped wet wipes or the like according to claim 1, wherein the heater is provided in the lower part of the container body.

3. 2. The container for warming individually wrapped wet wipes or the like according to claim 1, wherein said outlet has a lateral cut opening and a protruding opening which locally protrudes above said cut opening.

4. 4. The container for heating individually wrapped wet wipes or the like according to claim 3, wherein the container body is a substantially rectangular parallelepiped in a plan view, the outlet is provided on a surface of a short side, and the protruding opening is provided at a lateral intermediate position of the cut opening.

5. The container for heating individually wrapped wet wipes or the like as described in any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the lower lid portion is supported at its lower edge by the container body so as to be swingable open and closed, and is provided with a magnetic fixing means for maintaining the closed state.

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