Spice jar and associated dispenser cap
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A measuring/dispensing jar comprising a container body having a bottom wall and a peripheral side wall extending upwardly from said bottom wall and terminating at an upper open end defined by a rim;
- said upper open end including first means for receiving a cap; and
a measuring/dispensing cap including a substantially planar top wall having at least one dispensing door pivotally mounted by an integral hinge within said top wall and including a free edge at the periphery of the top wall, a peripheral depending skirt extending downwardly from said top wall, said peripheral skirt being divided into upper and lower portions, said lower portion including second means cooperable with said first means for removably securing the measuring/dispensing cap on the upper open end of the container body;
a substantially parallel partition disk having at least one dispensing aperture therein, said dispensing aperture defined in part by a straight edge lying in the plane of said disk, said partition disk located between said upper and lower portions of said skirt to thereby form in combination with said top wall and said upper portion of said peripheral skirt one unobstructed, substantially cylindrical volumetric space for receiving contents from said container body, and wherein said straight edge of said dispensing aperture and said free edge of said dispensing door are located on opposite sides of a horizontal center line through the cap in a direction parallel to said integral hinge, thereby enabling container contents to be transferred to said volumetric space and to be subsequently discharged from said dispensing door without additional container contents spilling into said volumetric space; and
wherein volumetric indicators are provided on said cap and located and arranged to permit a user to determine an exact amount of container contents transferred to said volumetric space while said container body is in a horizontal orientation.
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Accused Products
Abstract
In accordance with this invention, the conventional screw or snap-on type closure is replaced with a dispensing cap which incorporates a volumetric space to thereby permit precisely measured amounts of contents to be poured from the dispensing cap. The cap in this exemplary embodiment is constructed of a transparent plastic material and is provided with volume indicators to assist the user in measuring precisely desired amounts as the contents are transferred from the jar into a volumetric space provided in the dispensing cap.
93 Citations
13 Claims
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1. A measuring/dispensing jar comprising a container body having a bottom wall and a peripheral side wall extending upwardly from said bottom wall and terminating at an upper open end defined by a rim;
- said upper open end including first means for receiving a cap; and
a measuring/dispensing cap including a substantially planar top wall having at least one dispensing door pivotally mounted by an integral hinge within said top wall and including a free edge at the periphery of the top wall, a peripheral depending skirt extending downwardly from said top wall, said peripheral skirt being divided into upper and lower portions, said lower portion including second means cooperable with said first means for removably securing the measuring/dispensing cap on the upper open end of the container body; a substantially parallel partition disk having at least one dispensing aperture therein, said dispensing aperture defined in part by a straight edge lying in the plane of said disk, said partition disk located between said upper and lower portions of said skirt to thereby form in combination with said top wall and said upper portion of said peripheral skirt one unobstructed, substantially cylindrical volumetric space for receiving contents from said container body, and wherein said straight edge of said dispensing aperture and said free edge of said dispensing door are located on opposite sides of a horizontal center line through the cap in a direction parallel to said integral hinge, thereby enabling container contents to be transferred to said volumetric space and to be subsequently discharged from said dispensing door without additional container contents spilling into said volumetric space; and
wherein volumetric indicators are provided on said cap and located and arranged to permit a user to determine an exact amount of container contents transferred to said volumetric space while said container body is in a horizontal orientation. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4)
- said upper open end including first means for receiving a cap; and
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5. A measuring/dispensing cap for use with a standard jar having a bottom and a peripheral side wall terminating at an open upper end, the jar including first means for receiving said cap;
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said measuring/dispensing cap including a substantially planar top wall having at least one dispensing door pivotally mounted by an integral hinge within said top wall and including a free edge at the periphery of the top wall, and a peripheral depending skirt extending downwardly from said top wall, said peripheral skirt being divided into upper and lower portions, said lower portion including second means cooperable with said first means for removably securing the measuring/dispensing cap on the upper open end of the container body, and said upper portion including a volumetric space for receiving contents from said container body; and a substantially planar partition disk having at least one dispensing aperture therein, said dispensing aperture defined in part by a straight edge lying in the plane of said disk, said partition disk located between said upper and lower portions of said skirt to thereby form in combination with said top wall and said upper portion of said peripheral skirt one unobstructed, substantially cylindrical volumetric space for receiving contents from said container body, and wherein said straight edge of said dispensing aperture and said free edge of said dispensing door are located on opposite sides of a horizontal center line through the cap in a direction parallel to said integral hinge, thereby enabling container contents to be transferred to said volumetric space and to be subsequently discharged from said dispensing door without additional container contents spilling into said volumetric space; and
wherein volumetric indicators are provided on said cap and located and arranged to permit a user to determine an exact amount of container contents transferred to said volumetric space while said container body is in a horizontal orientation. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8)
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9. A measuring/dispensing jar comprising a container body having a bottom wall and a peripheral side wall extending upwardly from said bottom wall and terminating at an upper open end defined by a rim;
- said upper open end including first means for receiving a cap;
a measuring/dispensing cap including a substantially planar top wall having at least one dispensing door pivotally mounted by an integral hinge within said top wall and including a free edge at the periphery of the top wall, and a peripheral depending skirt extending downwardly from said top wall, said peripheral skirt being divided into upper and lower portions, said lower portion including second means cooperable with said first means for removably securing the measuring/dispensing cap on the upper open end of the container body; and a substantially planar partition disk having at least one dispensing aperture therein, said dispensing aperture defined in part by a straight edge lying in the plane of said disk and on one side of a horizontal center line through the cap in a direction parallel to said integral hinge, said partition disk located between said upper and lower portions of said skirt to thereby form in combination with said top wall and said upper portion of said peripheral skirt one unobstructed, substantially cylindrical volumetric space in said upper portion for receiving measured amounts of contents from said container body, and wherein said free edge of said dispensing door is located on an opposite side of said horizontal center line, thereby enabling container contents to be transferred to said volumetric space and to be subsequently discharged from said dispensing door without additional container contents spilling into said volumetric space; and
further wherein said measuring/dispensing cap is transparent and includes volumetric gradations in at least said upper skirt portion to permit a user to determine an exact amount of container contents transferred to said single volumetric space while said container body is in a horizontal orientation. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13)
- said upper open end including first means for receiving a cap;
Specification