Self-assembling device for the transportation of food and related method

Abstract

The present invention indicates a self-assembling container for the transport and storage of food. It is composed of a boxed body and a lid, the boxed body being configured to assume a flat configuration, suitable for storage (when the containers are empty), and an assembled configuration, suitable for transporting food. An interesting feature is that no instructions are needed to achieve the assembled configuration. The device, in its flat configuration, which is raised in the center (being conformed with a slightly convex bottom), is squashed by the weight of the food that is intended to be transported, for example a pizza; this pressure brings the base to a flat shape and raises the four edges, closing the sides; at the same time, the foldable corners that connect the four lateral edges to each other retract towards the inside of the box. The base of each shelf has a number of evapotranspiration rises to allow the circulation of hot air released by the food, avoiding condensation, and in the case of stacking a plurality of containers, one on top of the other, the heat will transfer from one shelf to the other thanks to the internal ventilation holes. Finally, a lid suitable for closing the last container at the top of the stack is then supplied separately.

Description

[0001] TITLE: SELF-ASSEMBLING DEVICE FOR THE TRANSPORTATION OF FOOD AND RELATED METHOD

[0002] DESCRIPTION

[0003] Technical sector of the invention

[0004] This invention refers to containers, and more specifically to a self-assembling box for transporting and storing food.

[0005] Premise

[0006] Food container devices represent an ingenious solution for transporting and preserving food, adapting to different needs and contexts.

[0007] Their design requires careful consideration of various factors, such as storage temperature, resistance to liquids, robustness during transport, the ability to maintain the organoleptic properties of foods unaltered, ease of assembly, temperature maintenance, the reduction of overall dimensions and the reduction of environmental impacts.

[0008] For example, the pizza container must ensure that the pizza remains hot and crunchy until delivered, avoiding the accumulation of humidity which could compromise its quality.

[0009] Similarly, containers for fruit and vegetables must allow correct ventilation to preserve their freshness, while those intended for meat and fish must ensure an airtight seal to prevent contamination and maintain the cold chain.

[0010] Versatility is another crucial aspect: a good food container should be able to transport various types of food, from pasta to fried foods, from meat to fish, from fruit to vegetables and so on, without compromising its flavor or texture.

[0011] Furthermore, the ecological aspect is increasingly relevant: the materials used for containers should be recyclable or biodegradable, to reduce the environmental impact. Finally, aesthetics cannot be overlooked, as an attractive design can enhance the content and improve the consumer experience. In summary, designing food containers is a complex process that requires a balance between functionality, safety, sustainability and design.

[0012] Known technique

[0013] For simplicity's sake, let's examine the container for transporting pizzas and focaccias as a container of excellence and massive diffusion designed for the purpose of keeping the food inside warm.

[0014] The search for biodegradable materials as alternatives to plastic, polystyrene and aluminum is an important step towards reducing environmental impact. Cardboard, being biodegradable, already represents a more ecological choice that is quite largely used.

[0015] Other interesting measures include the introduction of internal separators and supports to avoid contact between the lid and the pizza, and they show a commitment towards improving the integrity of the product during transport.

[0016] These innovations not only preserve the quality of the pizza, but also improve the consumer experience, ensuring that the pizza arrives as if it had just come out of the pizza chef's oven. As technology advances, we see an increasingly sophisticated design of food transport devices, incorporating features for better ventilation and to maintain the crispness of the food by preventing it from becoming moist. These improvements are not just a matter of aesthetics but are functional, contributing significantly to the dining experience.

[0017] Companies are exploring new sustainable materials that can offer superior strength and, at the same time, reduce environmental impact. This is a sign that the food packaging industry is taking its ecological responsibility seriously. The challenge of balancing efficiency, cost and convenience remains at the center of the industry's concerns.

[0018] Pizzerias, in particular, are looking for solutions that are economically advantageous without sacrificing quality. Single or stackable containers, despite being economical, must face critical issues related to production costs, the difficulty and time of assembly, the considerable storage space once assembled, and finally the maintenance of the temperature during transport. These aspects are crucial to daily operations and directly influence the profit margin of pizzerias.

[0019] The world of containers is in a phase of transformation, with the industry rapidly adapting to the demands of an evolving market and increasingly aware and demanding consumers.

[0020] We can expect innovation to continue to drive the industry towards more sustainable and practical solutions, improving not only transportation efficiency but also the entire dining experience.

[0021] This improvement process is an example of how business needs and environmental concerns can go hand in hand, bringing benefits to both companies and consumers.

[0022] A self-assembling container that could satisfy some of the needs listed above is described in an old Belgian patent: BE 475 561 A (“Emballage pliant, en forme de parallelepipede droit, en matiere fibreuse” in the name of Noleveaux Simon, 21 August 1947). The solution indicated in BE 475 561 A, although it can be considered an example of prior art close to the present invention, however lacks several essential features to make the food transport device realistically usable in real contexts.

[0023] Summary of invention

[0024] Innovation in the field of food transport and storage devices is crucial to ensuring the safety, temperature, freshness and quality of food products during their transfer and storage. An ideal device should be not only efficient in maintaining food integrity, but also cost- effective and simple to use. For example, pizza and focaccia cardboard represents a practical and popular solution for transporting hot foods, designed to preserve the temperature and consistency of the food. The invented device satisfies all the needs of ease of use, temperature maintenance, ease of assembly and adaptability for the transport and conservation of a wide range of food products, taking into account the different conservation and transport needs.

[0025] For simplicity, a preferred embodiment will be shown, however the device has a general character for storing and transporting all foods.

[0026] The device object of this invention does not need to be assembled and does not require complex instructions or multiple steps.

[0027] The inventive fulcrum of said device lies in an innovative design that allows the device itself to self-assemble, furthermore said device radically improves thermal insulation and the passage of vapors, ensuring that even hot foods maintain the temperature during transport from the point of sale to the consumer's home.

[0028] This solution responds to the needs of traders to contain time, costs and space and also improves the customer experience, ensuring that the food is always delicious and ready to be enjoyed as if it had just come out of the pizzeria oven.

[0029] The present invention includes a box Fig.1 , preferably made of corrugated cardboard, to preferably contain cooked pizzas and focaccias with the result of maintaining the internal temperature unchanged for as long as possible. The box includes a portion of the base (1 ) raised centrally, said base has pre-holes (10) and elevations (11 ) for vapor transpiration, the two pairs of opposite lateral edges, a first pair of lower edges (2), and a second pair of higher edges (3), said lateral edges have the hooking holes (7) both for the cover and for a further device, said second pair of lateral edges (3) in addition to the hooking holes (7) have the wings (8), visible in Figure 3, where the box is shown in assembled configuration. Said first pair of lower edges (2) have holes (9) for breathability, edges (2) and (3) are connected to each other by four foldable corners (4). Said cardboard can be defined as in a flat configuration, as shown in Figure 1 , or in a closed configuration, as shown in Figure 3. The lid (5), shown in Figure 2 is supplied separately and has the attachment wings (6) on two sides. Fig.5 represents the devices stacked and only the last one at the top with the cover (5).

[0030] Figure 6 shows several stacked devices, but in a flat configuration, where one can appreciate how the overall dimensions are significantly reduced..

[0031] Detailed description of the preferred embodiment

[0032] The device is delivered to the pizza chef in a stack of cardboards, as shown in Fig.6, the pizza chef takes a device and places it on the work surface, when the pizza is ready, he transfers the pizza from the oven to the device. The device, which is raised in the center, is crushed by the weight of the pizza, this pressure brings the base (1 ) back to a flat shape and raises the four edges (2) and (3) closing the sides, the comers (4) they fall inside the box.

[0033] The base of each level has elevations (11 ) in order to convey the hot air released by the pizza which will promote evapotranspiration, avoiding condensation and in the case of stacking several levels, it will transfer from one level to another thanks to the internal holes ventilation.

[0034] In conclusion, the device achieves the box configuration by simply pressing the center of the base (1 ). The comers (4) are lower than the edges (2) and (3) and serve as a support for stacking other devices and / or to prevent the lid from touching the pizza.

[0035] The cover (5) is equipped with wings (6) which will fit into the holes (7). When the device is in a closed form, the attachment wings (8) remain in a flat position, they will be used to stack the device on another device by matching said wings (8) with the holes (7), the vapors emitted from the pizza freshly baked they are channeled into the open pre-holes (10) which ensure convective motion between one device and another, as, for example, is shown in Figure 7. The holes (9) ensure that air enters the internal circulation system. The more floors are interlocked, the more the convective effect of circulation and temperature maintenance will be amplified thanks to the presence of more hot bodies in heat exchange.

[0036] If the pizza chef delivers just one pizza he closes the device with the lid, if he has to deliver multiple pizzas, he stacks the devices on top of each other and only the last one will be closed with the lid with an obvious saving in the use of cardboard material.

[0037] While a particular form of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be apparent that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The invention, for example, while a corrugated material is used in the preferred embodiment, any suitable material may be used. Accordingly, it is not intended that the invention be limited, other than by the accompanying claims.

[0038] The actual scope of the invention includes not only the disclosed embodiments, but also all equivalent ways and forms of practicing or carrying out the invention including, fixing holes, lugs and slots.

[0039] The above detailed description of the implementation of the invention is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form indicated above or to the particular field of use mentioned in this disclosure.

[0040] The elements and acts of the various incarnations described above can be combined to provide further forms of implementation. Changes can be made to the invention in light of the previous “Detailed Description”. While the specification details certain embodiments of the invention and describes the best mode contemplated, regardless of the above detail appearing in the text, the invention can be practiced in many ways. Therefore, the implementation details may vary considerably in forms and materials while still being included by the invention disclosed herein. Just to give an example of an alternative embodiment, a transport device for hot foods such as pasta, fried foods, main courses in general, etc. is shown in Fig.7., where rectangular-based transport devices are shown that can be used for hot foods such as pasta, fried foods, main courses in general, etc. or for the simple domestic and industrial freezing of foods.

Claims

TRANSLATION (Rule 12.3) 17 June 2025CLAIMS1 . Self-assembling device for transporting food comprising a boxed body and a lid (5), said boxed body being configured to assume a flat configuration, suitable for storing empty devices, and an assembled configuration, suitable for transporting food; and said boxed body comprises: a. a convex bottom (1 ) with a quadrilateral shaped base; b. a first pair of opposite lateral edges (2) and a second pair of opposite lateral edges (3), said pairs of lateral edges being configured to erect, passing from a position substantially coplanar to said base to a position substantially orthogonal to said base, when said convex bottom (1 ) is pressed by the weight of the food to be transported; and said device for transporting food is characterized in that it also includes: c. four foldable corners (4) which connect the four lateral edges belonging to said first pair of lateral edges and said second pair of lateral edges; d. and when said boxed body passes from said flat configuration to said assembled configuration, said foldable comers pass from a flat configuration, substantially coplanar with said base, to a position folded towards the inside of the boxed body, so as to perform a support function, or to stack other food transport devices, or to prevent the lid (5) from resting on the transported food; e. two attachment wings (6) of the lid, which protrude from said lid (5); f. two attachment wings (8) of the boxed body, which protrude from said convex bottom (1 ) even when the boxed body is in the assembled configuration; g. two hooking holes (7) present on a pair of lateral edges and shaped to couple either with said attachment wings (6) of the cover or with said attachment wings (8) of the boxed body;h. a plurality of ventilation holes (9) present on the lateral edges; i. a plurality of evapotranspiration pre-holes (10) present on the bottom (1 ); j. a plurality of evapotranspiration rises (11 ) present on the bottom (1 ).

2. Self-assembling device for transporting food according to claim 1 characterized in that no instructions for use are required to achieve the assembled configuration.

3. Self-assembling device for transporting food according to claim 1 , characterized in that the vertical bulk of the device in flat configuration is minimal, as it is entirely composed of substantially coplanar parts.

4. Self-assembling device for transporting food according to claim 1 characterized in that the assembled configuration is suitable to support the stacking of a plurality of self-assembling devices, wherein only the highest device needs to be closed with a lid (5).

5. Method of assembling the device according to claim 1 which comprises at least the following operations: a) applying pressure to the center of the device in a flat shape, so that the convex bottom (1 ) is squashed and no longer convex; b) vertical erection of the edges (2) and (3), which rise as a result of the squashing of said convex bottom (1 ); c) when said convex bottom (1 ) is squashed, the folding comers (4) fold as a consequence of the vertical erection of the edges (2) and (3); d) eventual stacking of the assembled device on top of another identical device already mounted previously, by resting its bottom (1 ) on the folded comers (4) of the underlying device, and inserting said attachment wings (8) into the hooking holes (7);e) if the device does not have to sustain another one to be stacked on top of it, closing of the container with the lid (5) by inserting the attachment wings (6) of the lid into the hooking holes (7).

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