FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a device and method to form and bake edible, non-permeable containers, including cups. In particular, the disclosure relates to a device which can create edible containers such as cups and bowls that can stand on a flat surface and hold hot liquid content for two or more hours without structural issues, and which can provide ample insulation to allow the cups to be held comfortably even when filled with a hot liquid such as soup.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Edible cups may allow food sellers to offer hot and cold liquids in zero-waste containers. However, many devices for creating edible cups can take a long time to bake their cups, such as 15 minutes or more. Furthermore, these edible cups may not be capable of holding a hot liquid for two hours or more, rending them less useful for food sellers. Moreover, the devices for creating these cups may be bulky and may not be suitable for portable food sellers. As such, an improved device for creating edible non-permeable cups may be desired.

SUMMARY

[0003] Various implementations of systems, methods, and devices within the scope of the appended claims each have several aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible for the desirable attributes described herein. Without limiting the scope of the appended claims, some prominent features are described herein.

[0004] Details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this specification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, aspects, and advantages will become apparent from the description, the drawings, and the claims. Note that the relative dimensions of the following figures may not be drawn to scale. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0005] FIGs. 1A-1C illustrate three views of an exemplary device for making edible non-permeable cups according to one aspect of the present disclosure.

[0006] FIGs. 2A-2B illustrate two views of an exemplary device for making edible non-permeable cups according to one aspect of the present disclosure.

[0007] FIGs. 3A-3B illustrate two views of an exemplary top mold for making edible non- permeable cups according to one aspect of the present disclosure.

[0008] FIG. 4 illustrates a view of an exemplary bottom mold for making edible non-permeable cups according to one aspect of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0009] Various aspects of the novel systems, apparatuses, and methods are described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings. The teachings disclosure can, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to any specific structure or function presented throughout this disclosure. Rather, these aspects are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. Based on the teachings herein one skilled in the art should appreciate that the scope of the disclosure is intended to cover any aspect of the novel systems, apparatuses, and methods disclosed herein, whether implemented independently of or combined with any other aspect of the invention. For example, an apparatus can be implemented, or a method can be practiced using any number of the aspects set forth herein. In addition, the scope of the invention is intended to cover such an apparatus or method which is practiced using other structure, functionality, or structure and functionality in addition to or other than the various aspects of the invention set forth herein. One of skill in the art would understand that any aspect disclosed herein can be embodied by one or more elements of a claim.

[0010] Thus, although aspects are described herein, many variations and permutations of these aspects fall within the scope of the disclosure. Although some benefits and advantages of the preferred aspects are mentioned, the scope of the disclosure is not intended to be limited to particular benefits, uses, or objectives. The detailed description and drawings are merely illustrative of the disclosure rather than limiting. In the following description, specific details are given to provide a thorough understanding of the examples. However, the examples may be practiced without these specific details.

[0011] The present disclosure describes a device or apparatus for forming and baking an edible, non- permeable container such as cups, bowls, saucers, plates or in general any flat bottomed, generally concave container which can be used to contain hot liquids for a significant time without structurally breaking down. For example, the device may be configured to create a flat-bottomed cup or bowl which can be free-standing, and which can hold a hot liquid, such as soup, for two hours or more without losing structural integrity. The edible, non-permeable cup may also provide insulation for a user’s hand, to allow a user to easily hold the cup even when it is filled with a hot liquid such as soup. The device or apparatus may also be portable, to allow an operator to set up the device at temporary or portable locations. For example, such a device may be used temporary locations such as farmers’ markets, fairs, food trucks, and so on, without requiring a permanent installation into a kitchen. The edible, non- permeable cups may be formed and baked using either low- or high-viscosity doughs.

[0012] One potential advantage to the device describe herein is that it can use low to high viscosity batters and doughs to create a free-standing, non-permeable, edible cup with sufficient thermal insulation to allow a person to comfortably hold the cup when filled with hot fluid. In embodiments, the dough, also referred to herein as batter or edible non-permeable container precursor materials, includes but is not limited to water, flour and oil to create a dough of suitable viscosity for use with the device as described below. In embodiments, the edible non-permeable precursor material includes approximately 50% to 70% flour by weight, approximately 30% to 40% water by weight, approximately 3% to 9% oil by weight, and approximately up to 1% salt by weight. In further embodiments, the edible non- permeable precursor material includes approximately 59% flour by weight, approximately 35% water by weight, approximately 6% oil by weight, and approximately 0.7% salt by weight. In embodiments, the batter can further include components for consistency, viscosity and flavor, such as spices. [0013] If the ingredients are combined in a manner such as to produce a dough that is too thick or viscous, such as if too much flour is used, and/or too little water is used, and/or too little oil is used, the resulting edible cup will not be properly formed, and will have a high potential for leaking the liquid or food inserted within the resulting formed item. Such a high viscosity dough can also inflict higher stresses on and potentially damage the apparatus while the edible container is being formed. If the ingredients are combined in a manner such as to produce a dough that is too thin or fluid, such as if too little flour is used, and/or too much water is used, and/or too much oil is used, the resulting edible cup will not be properly formed, and will likely have holes in the bottom of the resulting item after cooking because the bottom of the item becomes very thin.

[0014] The baking process and high viscosity dough recipe allow the cup to remain intact for two hours or more before breaking down. The device may therefore result in a zero-waste solution for the temporary one-time use of cups or bottles. These cups may be created by placing dough inside the device, using a male mold to forcibly push down into a female mold to form the cup, and by heating the dough in place for under three minutes to bake the cup.

[0015] Furthermore, the device may offer a user a wide variety of configuration options. Generally, the device may be configured to accept an insert which can change the shape of the resulting cup. For example, this insert may be used to control a size of the cup such as its height, its diameter, or another parameter. Inserts may also be used to alter the shape of the cup in other ways, such as to create wider flat bottom cups or to crease conic cups, based on the needs of a user for a particular task. The device may be used with a ball of dough, such as a ball of previously mixed dough of proper proportion of the ingredients to achieve a desirable viscosity, taste, and based on other characteristics. This dough may be made by a user, may be sold by the manufacturer of the device either fresh or frozen, or may be made using another device or implement. The device may use a male or inner mold inserted into a female or outer mold to press the edible cup into the desired shape and then bake the dough. In general, the inner mold is inserted to engage with the outer mold in a substantially concentric manner to create a create a cavity therebetween of substantially uniform shape, which will result in the formed edible container having a substantially uniform thickness. The dough may be configured to bake for a variety of times, based on the type of dough used, the thickness of the cup, and other characteristics.

[0016] In one aspect, the device may be configured to bake dough for between two and three minutes, such as for 150 seconds, until the cup is ready. In one aspect, the device may be configured to bake dough for between three and four minutes. Other bake times may also be appropriate depending on the dough that is used, such as baking in under five minutes or under seven minutes. If cooking is attempted for periods longer than the specified range, such as longer than 4 minutes, the inner and outer surfaces of the resulting bread cup will overcook, and the surface of the cup may become too crisp and brittle and may break easily, causing the fluid or food contained therein to leak. If cooking is attempted for periods shorter than those in the specified range, such as less than 2 minutes, then the resulting container will be undercooked and too soft and will not work to contain liquids and fluid foods as disclosed herein. In one aspect, the device may be configured to bake dough at a temperature of between 170 and 190 degrees Celsius. In yet another aspect, the device may be configured to bake an edible container such that both the inner and outer mold heat the compressed dough in order to bake a hard crust surface layer on the outside of the baked edible container and to bake a hard crust surface layer on the inside of the baked edible container. If cooking is attempted at temperatures higher than the specified range, such as temperatures higher than 190 degrees C, the inner and outer surfaces of the resulting bread cup will overcook, while the inside will remain undercooked. In addition, the surface of the cup may become too crisp and brittle and may break easily, causing the fluid or food contained therein to leak. If cooking is attempted at temperatures lower than 170 degrees C, overall cooking time must be increased, and the resulting cup will be less crisp and crunchy, resulting in lower sturdiness and a diminished experience during consumption for the user. If cooking time is not increased at temperatures below 170 degrees C, then the resulting container will be undercooked and too soft and will not work to contain liquids and fluid foods as the invention as disclosed herein. Once the edible cup has been baked, the male mold retracts and the baked dough can be removed as an edible, non-permeable cup which can be used to contain hot liquids for a significant time, such as for two hours. [0017] The device may be built so that it can produce one or more cups at a time. For example, the device may be constructed with two matching female and male molds to bake two edible cups at the same time. Devices may also be designed which can cook more than two cups at once. The device’s mold pairs may be configured to forcibly press, form, and simultaneously bake both of two edible cups. For example, the device may use a high torque motor to push the mold pairs close to one another while compressing the dough inserted therebetween to form the cups and then may heat the dough cup to bake it into an edible non-permeable cup. The device may be configured to bake the cups in place, rather than requiring that the cups be moved out of the molds to an external oven, which may considerably hasten the process of making edible non-permeable cups.

[0018] The device may be able to use a wide variety of doughs, such as either low or high viscosity doughs and batters, or other suitable edible non-permeable container precursor materials. Using high viscosity doughs may require a higher actuating force on the male mold, to enable it to press each edible cup into a consistent shape.

[0019] The device may allow a user to configure its settings. For example, the device can use various types of dough, as described above. These different doughs may require different bake times and bake temperatures. Accordingly, the device can be configured to use either pre-set or user-set bake times and temperatures, based upon the needs of a particular application. For example, the device may be configured to bake edible cups in under three minutes, such as in 2.5 minutes. In other examples, the device may be configured to bake edible cups in under four minutes, such as in 3.5 minutes.

[0020] Generally, the device may include buttons, lights, audio alarms, and display screens to both provide information to and receive information from a user. For example, a user may be able to set a bake temperature on the device using a button or a touchscreen and may be able to see the bake temperature of the device using a screen. Such a screen can also provide other information, such as alerting a user to a current temperature of the device and providing a timer which lets a user know when the edible cups being baked inside the device will be ready.

[0021] The device may be configured to accept different inserts which allow it to create cups of different shapes and sizes. Generally, a mounting insert may be associated with the male mold of the device. This may reduce a volume of a cavity in the device, formed between the male mold and a female portion of the device, to allow for the creation of smaller or differently shaped cups. These inserts may be easily changed to allow for the creation of multiple different shapes and sizes of cups in a rapid manner. This may enable simply, on- the-fly adjustments to the products of the device. For example, an insert may be used to create half-sized cups to allow for the creation of two sizes of a given product — such as selling small and large sizes of hot liquids in edible cups.

[0022] The inserts and/or the molds of the device may form a cavity in which dough is baked into an edible cup. The cavity formed by the inserts and molds can be reworked with minimal effort to produce a wide range of cup geometries. This includes, but is not limited to cones, multiple positions of smaller/mini cups, chips/wafers, and other geometries. It can be appreciated that, in general, any container shape such as but not limited to generally flat shaped charger plates, dinner plates or saucers, or shapes such but not limited to generally concave shaped cups, bowls, or cones, or any of any other of any other appropriate shape and configuration can be used. Further, recipe permitting, the molds and inserts may also incorporate a branding feature that can brand the dough product with lettering or logos.

[0023] The device may be designed so that it can bake edible cups in under three minutes while still being portable. For example, the device may be portable enough to allow a user to use the device in a temporary setup, such as a food fair or from a booth at an event. The device may be light and portable enough for two users to easily transport and set up for a mobile eating experience.

[0024] The device may be configured to work on relatively low power, to enable further portability. For example, the device may be configured to operate on normal electrical circuits rather than requiring specialized voltages and/or currents. The device may be configured to operate on typical electrical circuits of approximate 115 volts of alternating current and at a current under 15 amps, to allow it to operate on a typical circuit and to enable additional portability by reducing specialized requirements.

[0025] Alternatively, the device may also be made in larger sizes which can bake more cups at once for a higher throughput. These larger size devices may have higher power requirements and lessened portability, but at the benefit of a higher throughput. For example, the device may also come in sizes suitable for using in a restaurant or other business with a permanent location suitable for the needs of a bustling restaurant.

[0026] The device may be configured to make edible cups which have a taste and texture like bread. These cups may be configured to be free-standing, non-permeable, and may be thermally insulating. For example, these cups may be used as an edible cup to store hot liquids to help eliminate waste.

[0027] FIGs. 1A-1C illustrate three views of an exemplary device 100 for making non-permeable cups according to one aspect of the present disclosure. As illustrated, the device 100 is configured to form and bake two non-permeable cups as the same time. The device 100 may be built in different configurations to allow a user to bake one cup at a time, two cups at a time as illustrated, four cups, six cups, or any other number of cups at a time as may be convenient for a given use case.

[0028] The device 100 includes a controllable movable engagement mechanism to engage and disengage the inner and outer molds from each other in open and closed positions, and to hold said inner and outer molds in each of said open and closed positions. In embodiments, the controllable movable engagement mechanism comprises a high precision guide and drive system 105 which is used to accurately lower the male or inner molds 110 to interface with the female or outer molds 115. The female mold 115 includes the profile 117 of a formed dough cup. The device 100 illustrated here is configured to create two cups at once, so it includes two male molds 110 and two female molds 115 — one for each cup it is creating at the same time. The device 100 may also be used to create a single cup at a time, such as by only inserting dough into one cup or by selecting to only use a single cup on the control panel 120. The high precision guide and drive system 105 may be configured to vertically displace, allowing it to open to receive dough and then to close to form and bake the edible cups.

[0029] The device 100 may be configured to accept various inserts which allow for the creation of different edible cups. For example, inserts may be used to create cups with different shapes and sizes. These inserts can be quickly placed on and removed from the device, allowing an operator to quickly switch from making one size or shape of cup to making another size or shape. For example, one possible insert is half-cup molding attachment 149, which can be used to create a cup that is half the size or volume of a typical edible cup created by the device, enabling an operator of the device to offer two or more different sizes of edible cups to customers or other eaters.

[0030] The device 100 can include a wide variety of inputs and outputs to allow a user to interact with the device 100. For example, the device 100 includes a control panel 120 which may include buttons to, e.g., turn on and off the device 100, begin warming up the device 100, and to begin making one or more cups. The device 100 may also include one or more indicator lights 125 to indicate one or more statuses of the device, such as whether it is on or off, whether it is ready to bake cups, and other settings. The device 100 may also include a speaker 127, which can be used to provide aural indications to a user of the status of the device 100, such as playing a sound when cups are done baking in the device 100. The device 100 can also include an LCD screen 129, which can display the status of the device 100. In some aspects, the LCD screen 129 may be a touch screen and may also be configured to allow a user to input instructions to the device 100, allowing an additional or alternative input mechanism in addition or the control panel 120. Each of these input and output mechanisms may work together to allow a user to control the device 100 and to ascertain a status of the device 100 quickly and easily. The device 100 may also include electronics and protective housings for those electronics. In embodiments, the electronics further includes control electronics, operable to further control and automate the operation of the device. The electronics may be sufficient to provide a user with a useful user interface, such as displaying messages on the LCD screen 129, receiving inputs from the control panel 120, and to convey messages about the device’s status using speaker 127 and indicator lights 125.

[0031] The device 100 can further include a cooling fan 135 integrated into its main housing 140. The main housing 140 may include a support structure 145 which may provide an upper body of the housing 140 and which can support the high precision guide and drive system 105, helping it to be more precise. The device may be created from electrical, mechanical, and software engineering designs. The machine parts can be created from CNC and manufactured parts using standard industrial processes such as forming, milling, rolling, and tapping. The device can be configured to use precision guides and sensors to ensure accuracy and consistency of the edible cups created by the device. [0032] The device 100 can further include one or more viewing windows 147, such as those built into the support structure 145. The viewing windows 147 may be configured to allow an operator or a customer to see the creation of cups using the device 100. The device 100 can further include leveling feet 151, allowing it to be leveled on an uneven surface.

[0033] The device 100 may also include custom heating cartridges and banned specially made for the power ratings and heating requirements for this machine. The device 100 may also include significant insulating materials, which can be used to help maintain the temperature of male mold 110 and/or female mold 115. These insulating materials can both protect the device 100 from damage due to heat and can also enable the device 100 to operate more efficiently and to use less electricity to generate and maintain its baking temperature.

[0034] Although not illustrated, some versions of the device 100 may also include handles to increase the portability of the device 100. For example, handles may be provided which allow a user to pick up and transport the device more easily. This may be especially practical for smaller versions of the device 100, such as those configured to mobile operation and which operate on typical electrical settings such as operating on 115 volts of alternating current with a current of 15 amperes or less.

[0035] Some versions of the device 100 may also provide a user with convenient cable management.

[0036] FIGs. 2A-2B illustrate two views of an exemplary device 200 for making non-permeable cups according to one aspect of the present disclosure.

[0037] The device 200 includes a main body 201 with a door panel 202. The door panel 202 may be opened and closed to cover the internals of the device 200. This can aid with portability, for example. The door panel 202 may hinge open from one or both sides or may slide off to a side for use of the device 200. For example, the door panel 202 may be configured to open and close using the door catch bracket 209. The device 200 may also include a mount handle 224, to allow for increased portability.

[0038] The device 200 further includes an upper mold mounting bracket 203 which may be attached to a top mold spacing washer 207 and to a top mold mounting gusset 210. The top mold 213 may be a male or inner mold, as illustrated, which is operably connected to the top mold spacing washer 207 and which is configured to be vertically displaced using the ball screw drive 215 powered by a motor 214, such as a high torque stepper motor. The top mold 213 may be configured to be forcefully inserted into bottom mold 212, which may be a female or outer mold, after a predetermined amount of dough has been inserted into said bottom mold 212, thereby forcefully compressing and deforming the inserted dough. The bottom or outer mold 212 can be placed using a spacer ring 206. The top or inner mold 213 may further include a heating element adapted to heat the top or inner mold 213 to a desired temperature. The bottom mold 212 may be placed operably near or within a heating element 221 to heat the bottom or outer mold 212 to a desired temperature, which can heat a dough cup contained between the top mold 213 and the bottom mold 212, to form an edible cup. As illustrated, a heating element 221 is placed inside the device 200 in a location such that dough is pressed into a cup shape between the bottom mold 212 and the top mold 213, and then is immediately baked in place to form an edible, non-permeable cup. This integrated baking features enables the device 200 to create edible non-permeable cups on its own in a single-step process. The cups which emerge from device 200 may then be fully-formed and baked, and may not require any further baking before they are filled with a liquid and consumed.

[0039] The device 200 also includes electronics panel 211. This can contain a variety of display screens, buttons, knobs, indicator lights, and other devices for providing a user with information about a status of the device 200 and for adjusting the settings of the device 200. The device 200 also includes four leveling feet 227 to allow the device to be level even when placed on an uneven surface. The leveling feet 227 may be mounted to or through bottom cover 205.

[0040] FIGs. 3A-3B illustrate two views of an exemplary top mold 300 for making edible non- permeable cups according to one aspect of the present disclosure.

[0041] FIG. 4 illustrates a view of an exemplary bottom mold 400 for making edible non-permeable cups according to one aspect of the present disclosure.

[0042] As illustrated, the top mold 300 and the bottom mold 400 may have complementary shapes which are designed to work together to create a cup-shape. For example, the two molds 300, 400 may both includes a flat bottom 302, 402. The flat shape of the bottom of the cup may allow it to be placed stably onto surfaces, allowing it to function as a cup. The cup may also have upwardly and outwardly slanted sides 304, 404. [0043] Both molds 300, 400 may also contain a top rim 306, 406, which may define an upper rim of a baked dough cup. The top mold 300 may additionally include screw holes 308, which allow it to be attached to the edible cup-making device.

[0044] The dough-touching surfaces of the top mold 300 and the bottom mold 400 may be coated in heat-resistant coatings intended to create a non-stick surface. This may allow dough between the two molds to be baked while touching the molds, but also to be easily removed from the molds at the end of the baking process. For example, the bottom 302, 402 and sides 304, 404 of both molds may be coated in polytetrafluoroethylene (“PTFE”), which is heat-resistant, hydrophobic, non-wetting material which may be suitable to create non-stick surfaces.

[0045] Implementations disclosed herein provide a device for rapidly shaping and baking an edible cup. The phrase “based on” does not mean “based only on,” unless expressly specified otherwise. In other words, the phrase “based on” describes both “based only on” and “based at least on.” In the foregoing description, specific details are given to provide a thorough understanding of the examples. However, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the examples may be practiced without these specific details. For example, the shape and size of various components may be changed for a given implementation or to match design preferences. Certain components may be combined with one another or may be excluded from some implementations. In other instances, such components, other structures and techniques may be shown in detail to further explain the examples.

[0046] Headings are included herein for reference and to aid in locating various sections. These headings are not intended to limit the scope of the concepts described with respect thereto. Such concepts may have applicability throughout the entire specification.

[0047] The previous description of the disclosed implementations is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present invention. Various modifications to these implementations will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other implementations without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the implementations shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.