The invention concerns to a storage container for frozen food substances to be crushed, for their subsequent food use, that it to be eaten, such as fruit smoothies, slushes, ice creams, etc. and / or for the preparation of foods to eat subsequently, such as condiments or seasonings.

Various storage containers for frozen food substances are known, as for example ice cream cups made of plastic material or cardboard, or containers for soups or similar preparations, etc. ..

Such containers usually have a shape with a rectangular or circular base extended in depth with a frusto- pyramidal or frusto-conical shape, and are also provided with smooth walls and with an upper opening that can be closed with a cap on occasion..

In order to crush or blend the frozen food substances contained in such types of containers, it is possible to use an immersion blender, or suitable automatic crushing or blending devices. In the case of usage of the immersion blender, it proceeds by removing the cap from the storage container and by penetrating with the same immersion blender, in its operating state, into the frozen food substance by crushing it, while holding said container in position. Furthermore, in the case such a container has a circular base, it will be difficult to keep it still in position while working with the immersion blender, if the wall is smooth. It is also possible that the frozen substance rotates inside the storage container, because of its smooth internal walls.

Another problem is that these containers, having a frusto- pyramidal or frusto-conical shape, if they are not of considerable size, do not allow a complete crushing of all the frozen food substance, as a standard immersion blender has operating problems in the case of an internal tapering of the container.

The automatic crushing or blending devices are substantially constituted by a support structure comprising at least a first upper compartment, reachable through an openable and closable support door, in which at least one rotating blade, operated by an electric motor, is located in a further second compartment, which motor is operated by control means arranged externally to the support structure.

In order to blend or to crush frozen food with the aforementioned type of devices, it is necessary to extract the frozen food substance, which is present in a single body, from the storage container in which it is contained and to transfer it into the first upper compartment of the said device, then closing such a compartment. Then, the motor that activates the rotating blade starts, which blade blends or crushes the frozen food, letting the relative flakes or fragments fall into the lower through opening and then into the collection container, in order to then be able to eat them or previously flavoured with any syrups.

Such a type of device presents the problem to force to extract the frozen food substance from the storage container each time, therefore it is necessary to lose time for such an operation.

Furthermore, for the aforementioned extraction, it may be necessary to heat the storage container, thus dissolving the external part of the single body of the food substance, which could cause loss of its food properties.

Furthermore, by inserting the single body of frozen food substance in the upper compartment where the crushing by means of a rotating blade takes place, it is possible to cause damage to the same device, as a single frozen body moved by a blade can break the internal structure of the same compartment.

There are further manual devices for crushing frozen foods, constituted by an elongated body, of such shape and size that it may be handled with one hand, in which elongated body there is inserted an electric motor that actuates a rotating blade, which is arranged externally near one end portion of said elongated body, and possibly protected by a circular casing.

The object of the present invention is to realize a storage container for frozen food substances intended for their subsequent crushing, which eliminates the aforementioned problems.

This storage container for frozen food substances is made with the construction characteristics that will be described, by way of non-limiting example only, and with particular reference to the attached claims of the present invention, and to the attached figures in which:

- Fig. la, which shows an exploded perspective view from a first angle of a first example of a storage container for frozen food substances to be crushed, according to the invention;

- Fig. lb, which shows a perspective view of the storage container for frozen food substances to be crushed in Fig. la, from an angle opposite to the one of fig. la;

- Fig. 2a, which shows an exploded perspective view from a first angle of a second example of a storage container for frozen food substances to be crushed, according to the invention;

- Fig. 2b, which shows a perspective view of the storage container for frozen food substances to be crushed in Fig. 2a, from an angle opposite to that of fig. 2a;

- Fig. 3, which shows an exploded perspective view from a first angle of a third example of a storage container for frozen food substances to be crushed, according to the invention.

The aforementioned figures show a storage container for frozen food substances to be crushed, for their subsequent food use, that is to be eaten and / or drunk, as for example fruit smoothies, slushes, ice creams, etc. and / or for the preparation of food to be eaten subsequently, as for example condiments or seasonings, such a storage container being substantially shaped in such a way as to allow the crushing of the frozen substance contained therein by means of automatic or manual electric crushing devices, without the need to previously extract the frozen food substance from the same storage container.

Basically, the storage container 10 object of the present invention is made of rigid or semi rigid material for food use, in order to thus be able to contain any frozen food substance to be crushed, without modifying the organoleptic characteristics thereof and/or without polluting it, and is constituted by a hollow cylindrical body 11 with a transversal end portion

12 closed by means of a respective closing portion 17 made of piece and with the other end portion 13 opened and able to be closed with a removable closing element 14, 15, or with both ends 12, 13 open and able to be closed by means of respective removable closing elements 14, 15, and provided on its vertical cylindrical wall 16 and / or on the portion 17 of the end portion 12 with at least one external elongated rib 18, preferably rectilinear, and with at least one internal elongated groove 19, preferably rectilinear.

Said closing element 14, 15 is adapted to be applied to the container 10, by closing it for the preservation of the frozen food substance and to be removed for the crushing of the same food substance.

Such at least internal groove 19 and such at least external rib 18 may be arranged misaligned to each other or coincident to each other, by forming in this second case at least a rib, shaped as half- shell raised outward and concave at the rear thereof.

Such a portion 17 may be shaped in a flat or concave or convex or conical way, etc ... Following, there will be described three examples of embodiment of said container 10, by way of non-limiting example only.

In the first embodiment of such a storage container 10, shown in Figs la- lb, it can be noted that the hollow body 11 has a vertical cylindrical wall 16 closed at a first transversal end portion 12 thereof with the closing portion 17 and opened at a second transversal end portion

13 thereof, in turn provided with a flat edge 20 turned and extended outwards.

The cylindrical wall 16 is provided on its internal surface 21 with at least one rectilinear groove 19, arranged longitudinal with respect to the cylindrical body 11, and which extends preferably from the closed end portion 12 to the shaped edge 20.

The cylindrical wall 16 is provided on its external surface 22 with at least one rectilinear rib 18, arranged longitudinal with respect to the cylindrical body 11, and which preferably extends from the closed end portion 12 to the shaped edge 20.

Said removable closure element 14, 15 may be applied to the open end portionl3, for the storage period of the frozen food substance.

Such at least removable closing element 14, 15 may be constituted by a flat cylindrical rigid cap 14 applied by interlocking to said shaped edge 20, being suitable sized, or it may be constituted by a film 15, made of polymeric material for food use, as for example a film, heat-sealed externally to the shaped edge 20.

In the second embodiment of this storage container 10, shown in Figs. 2a-2b, it may be noted that the hollow body 11 has a cylindrical surface 16 closed at a first flat transversal end portion 12 by means of a portion 17 made of piece and opened at a second opened transversal end portion 13, in turn provided with a flat edge 20 turned and extended outward. The portion 17 of the closed end portion 12 is provided on its internal flat surface with at least one rectilinear groove (not shown), transversal with respect to the cylindrical body 11. Such a groove is preferably made with three identical segments and arranged radially joined to each other at one end portion thereof.

The portion 17 is also provided on its external surface 28 with at least one rectilinear rib 18, transversal with respect to the cylindrical body 11. In the embodiment example, such a rib 18 is made with three segments 29 identical to each other and arranged radially and joined to each other at one end portion 30 thereof.

The closing element 14, 15 is able to be applied to the opened end portion 13, for the storage period of the frozen food substance. Such at least removable closing element 14, 15 may be constituted by a flat cylindrical rigid cap 14 applied by interlocking to said shaped edge 20, being opportunely sized, or it may be constituted by a polymeric film 15, as for example a film, heat- sealed externally to the shaped edge 20.

In the third example of embodiment of such a storage container 10, shown in Fig. 3, it can be noted that the hollow body 11 has both transverse flat ends 12, 13 opened, which are each provided with a flat edge 20 turned and extended outwards.

The cylindrical wall 16 is provided on its internal surface 21 with at least one rectilinear groove 19, arranged longitudinal with respect to the cylindrical body 11, which preferably extends from shaped edge 20 to the other one.

The cylindrical wall 16 is provided on its external surface 22 with at least one rectilinear rib 18, arranged longitudinal with respect to the cylindrical body 11, which preferably extends from shaped edge 20 to other one.

The removable closure element 14, 15 is applicable to each opened transversal end portion 12, 13, for the storage period of the frozen food substance.

Such a removable closing element 14, 15 may be constituted by a flat cylindrical rigid cap 14 applied by interlocking to such a shaped edge 20, being suitably sized, or it may be constituted by a film 15, made of polymeric material, such as a film, heat-sealed externally to the shaped edge 20.

Said cylindrical body 11 may be provided with said ribs 18 and grooves 19 simultaneously on the cylindrical wall 16 and on the closing portion 17.

With the opened container 10 without the at least closing element 14, 15, the food substance contained therein is manually or automatically crushed.

Manually, after having removed the at least closing element 14, 15, the container 10 is held in position with one hand by the user while it penetrates with a manual crushing means, such as for example an immersion blender, or equivalent, through the end 12, 13 resulting open, inside the container, thus crushing the frozen food substance and letting it deposit outside the container 10, where desired.

This container 10 is kept stationary in position thanks to the at least external rib 18 of the same container 10, which interferes with the hand that grasps it.

Automatically, after having removed the at least closing element 14, 15, the container 10 is placed in the electric crushing device inside a suitable housing compartment, specially shaped to be coupled integrally with the same container 10, in particular said compartment being provided with grooves adapted to couple with the external ribs 18 of said container 10, by eliminating in particular a possible angular play between the two ones.

Furthermore, said apparatus also comprises at least one crushing means provided with at least one cutting means, such as for example a blade, which is able to penetrate into the container thus crushing all frozen food substance, which may then be collected outside to the container 10 and device .

Finally, such a device is constituted in such a way that, either the housing area, which houses integrally the container 10, rotates along a longitudinal axis or the crushing means rotates along a longitudinal axis, so as to facilitate the crushing of the frozen substance by means of said cutting means.

Once the crushing cycle is ended, the empty container may simply be removed from the housing compartment to replace it with a second container 10 containing frozen food substance, for a new crushing cycle.

The frozen food substance fills the at least groove 19 of the container 10, therefore it remains blocked therein, and during the crushing phase, whether it is manual or automatic, the same food substance does not rotate with respect to the container 10, allowing its crushing. From the above description it is thus results that the present invention offers numerous advantages with respect to the known technique.