Field

[01 ] The present disclosure relates to air moving apparatuses for containers, containers comprising air moving apparatuses, and methods of moving air into or out of a container.

Background

[02] Containers are used for storing articles including food and non-food. Many articles tend to stay in a better condition for a longer time when stored in non-atmospheric conditions. Non- atmospheric conditions herein include a vacuum or near-vacuum condition. It would be advantageous if means to facilitate storage in non-atmospheric conditions and having improved user-friendliness is provided.

Summary

[03] An air-moving apparatus comprising a first portion including a handle portion, a second portion including a coupling portion for making air-tight connection with the entry portion of a container, a third portion which is an intermediate portion including a flexible body interconnecting the handle portion and the coupling portion, and an air-exchange arrangement is disclosed.

[04] The flexible body is a tubular body having a tubular axis defining an axial direction and configurable between a first configuration having a first internal volume and a second configuration having a second internal volume. The apparatus is configured to operate to move air into or out of a container through air-exchange operations of the apparatus. The air exchange operations are implemented through the air-exchange arrangement by contracting or expansion of the tubular portion.

[05] The first portion is at a first axial position relative to the second portion when the tubular body is in the first configuration, and at a second axial position relative to the second portion when the tubular body is in the second configuration. The air-exchange arrangement may comprise a valve arrangement. The valve arrangement may comprise a one-way valve or a plurality of one-way valves. A one-way valve is also referred to as a non-return valve.

[06] Air is moved out of the tubular body when the first portion is moved from the first configuration to the second configuration and moved into the tubular body when the first portion is moved from the second configuration to the first configuration.

[07] Therefore, air is exchanged between the apparatus and the space surrounding the apparatus when the apparatus goes through one movement cycle. A movement cycle corresponds to a cycle of contraction and expansion of the tubular body, and may involve moving of the first portion from the first axial position to the second axial position and then returning to the first axial position, or moving of the first portion from the second axial position to the first axial position and then returning to the second axial position.

[08] The second portion may comprise a detachable end assembly which includes an end cap portion, a non-return valve on the end cap portion, and a rim portion surrounding the end cap portion. The end cap portion of the second portion may comprise a closure member which is made of a non-permeable material such as plastics or an elastomer.

[09] The end assembly on the first portion (which may be referred to as a first end assembly), the end assembly on the second portion (which may be referred to as a second end assembly), and the tubular body cooperate to define an air chamber having a variable internal volume which is dependent on the instantaneous axial length of the tubular body, the axial length being measured along the tubular axis. The apparatus as a whole or the second end assembly on its own may be configured as a lid of a container, and more specifically a lid having an air exchange arrangement, for example a one-way valve arrangement.

[10] A method of moving air into and out of a container is also disclosed. The method includes using the apparatus as an attachment, attaching the apparatus to the entry portion of a container to form a sealed channel between the apparatus and the storage compartment of the container, and operating the apparatus such that the flexible tubular body is expanded and/or contracted to cause movement of air through the apparatus into or out of the container.

Figures

[11 ] The disclosure is made with reference to the accompanying figures and examples, in which,

[12] Figures 1 A and 1 B are, respectively, a first perspective view and a second perspective view of an example apparatus 100 of this disclosure,

[13] Figure 1 C is a cross sectional view of the apparatus of Figure 1 A,

[14] Figure 1 D is an exploded view of the apparatus of Figure 1 A,

[15] Figures 2A1 , 2A2 and 2A3 are perspective views of example self-closing lids of the present disclosure,

[16] Figures 3A and 3B are, respectively, a perspective view and an exploded view of an example apparatus 200 according to the disclosure,

[17] Figures 4A1 and 4A2 are perspective views of an example one-way valve, and

[18] Figures 4A3 and 4A4 are respectively schematic views showing the example one-way valve in closed and open states. Description

[19] An apparatus 100 of the present disclosure comprises a first portion 110, a second portion 120, and a third portion 130 which interconnects the first portion and the second portion. The third portion 130 comprises a tubular body 1302 which extends along a tubular axis X-X’ between a first axial end 1302A and a second axial end 1302B to define a tubular portion. The tubular body 1302 is flexible and comprises a flexible peripheral wall which extends in a peripheral direction to surround the tubular axis and define an internal space having an internal volume. The peripheral wall defines a first end aperture at the first axial end and a second end aperture at the second axial end.

[20] The tubular body 1302 is operable in a first configuration or a second configuration. When the tubular body 1302 is in the first configuration, the tubular body 1302 has a first internal volume. When the tubular body 1302 is in the second configuration, the tubular body 1302 has a second internal volume which is different to the first internal volume. The first portion is movable between a first position and a second position which are relative positions with respect to the second portion. When the first portion is at the first position which is a first relative position, the tubular body 1302 is in the first configuration. When the first portion is at the second position which is a second relative position, the tubular body 1302 is in the second configuration. The tubular body is made of a flexible, non-permeable and, optionally, resilient material, such as natural or synthetic rubber.

[21 ] The first portion is configured to facilitate releasable closure of the first axial end 1302A of the tubular body as well as hand-gripped operation of the apparatus 100.

[22] An example first portion 110 comprises an end assembly which is configured to releasably close the first axial end of the tubular body. The end assembly comprises an end portion and a rim portion which surrounds the end portion. The end portion is configured to releasably close the first end aperture of the tubular body and the rim portion is configured to provide mechanical support to the end portion so that the end portion can be brought into a reciprocating motion in the axial direction relative to the second portion and/or into rotational motion about the tubular axis, which is optionally also a rotation axis.

[23] To facilitate releasable closure of an axial end of the tubular body, the end portion of the first portion comprises a closure member 1102 and a one-way valve 1104 disposed on the closure member. The closure member is made of a non-permeable material and the rim portion 1106 is made of a material having a higher rigidity than the tubular body. The closure member and the rim portion may be made, for example, integrally formed, of hard or semirigid plastics. The one-way valve is operable in one of two operating states, namely, an open state and a closed state. When the one-way valve is in the open state, fluid can pass through the end portion via the opened one-way valve. When the one-way valve is in the closed state, passage of fluid through the end portion is prevented due to blocking by the closure member and the closed one-way valve, which in combination form a closure arrangement.

[24] The end assembly is retained on the tubular body 1302 by a retention device. The retention device may be integrally formed with the tubular body or formed separately as a detachable part 1107 which cooperates with a flanged end of the tubular body to secure the end assembly to the tubular body 1302 and form a sealed connection interconnecting the tubular body 1302 and the end assembly.

[25] The apparatus is configured to work with a container having a storage compartment and an entry portion. The storage compartment has a storage space and the entry portion defines an entry aperture which leads to the storage space. To facilitate cooperative working between the apparatus and the container, the second portion comprises an attachment arrangement which is configured to make a sealed connection between the apparatus and the container. When a sealed connection is made between the apparatus and the container, fluid, including air and other gases, can only enter and leave the container via the apparatus, and more particularly via the tubular portion.

[26] An example attachment arrangement comprises an end assembly 1208 which is on the second axial end 1302B of the tubular body 1302. The end assembly 1208 comprises a first axial end portion which is on the tubular body 1302 and a second axial end portion which is configured for attaching to the entry portion of the container. The attachment arrangement is configured such that when the end assembly 1208 is attached to the entry portion of the container and duly secured, a sealed passageway interconnecting the apparatus and the container is formed such that fluid communication with the container has to go through the apparatus, and more specifically the sealed passageway, which is a part of the tubular portion.

[27] The second portion 120 may comprise a closure arrangement in addition to the attachment arrangement. The closure arrangement is configured to facilitate releasable closure of the second axial end 1302B of the tubular body 1302. An example closure arrangement comprises an end portion which includes a closure member 1202 and a one-way valve 1204 disposed on the closure member. The closure member 1202 is made of a non- permeable material and the end portion is configured such that when the one-way valve 1204 is in the closed state, the second axial end 1302B of the tubular body 1302 is closed such that fluid is prevented from passing through the end portion due to blocking by the closure member and the closed one-way valve. When the one-way valve is in the open state, the second axial end of the tubular body is opened and fluid can freely pass through the second end portion via the opened one-way valve. [28] The apparatus as an air-moving apparatus may be configured as a suction apparatus or a pressurizing or compression apparatus. When configured as a suction apparatus, the apparatus is to operate to move air out of the container so that air pressure inside the container is lower than atmospheric pressure. When configured as a pressurizing apparatus, the apparatus is to operate to move air into the container so that air pressure inside the container is higher than atmospheric pressure. The term “air” herein is a term referring generally to a gaseous fluid, and is not limited to air in the atmosphere, but includes other types of gaseous fluids such as inert gases.

[29] Referring to Figures 1A to 1 D, the example second end portion comprises a closure arrangement and an attachment arrangement in combination. The closure arrangement comprises a closure member 1202 and a one-way valve 1204 disposed thereon, as shown in Figure 1 D. The attachment arrangement comprises a rim portion which extends in a peripheral direction to surround the closure member 1202 and the tubular axis X-X’. The rim portion extends downwardly in the axial direction to form a collar portion 1208A for making sealed connection with the entry portion of the container. The collar portion 1208A may be made of a flexible, non-permeable and resilient material such as an elastomer, for example, natural or synthetic rubber, and the sealed connection may be formed by tensioned engagement or friction fitted engagement. The collar portion 1208A may also be made of a non-permeable and rigid or semi-rigid material such as plastics and the sealed connection may be formed by threaded or mated engagement. The closure arrangement and the attachment arrangement are parts of an end assembly 1208 which is attached to the tubular body by a retention member 1206. The retention member 1206 is optional and the end assembly 1208 may be permanently secured to the tubular body without requiring assistance of the retention member 1206 to form a sealed connection between the tubular body and the end assembly. A sealed connection between the apparatus and the container may be formed by complementary engagement means distributed on the apparatus and the container. The complementary engagement means may comprise a mechanical interlocking system including a first locking part on the apparatus and a second locking part which is complementary to the first locking part on the container. The mechanical interlocking system may be a threaded locking system, a bayonet type locking system, a latching system, or other mechanical mating systems suitable for forming an air-tight joint or connection between component parts.

[30] The second portion of the apparatus may have a closure arrangement and an attachment arrangement in combination. In example embodiments where the apparatus comprises a second portion having in combination a closure arrangement and an attachment arrangement, the apparatus may be configured as a lid of a container, and the air exchange arrangement may be configured for drawing air from the container or for moving air into the container.

[31 ] Where the second portion has a closure arrangement, or more specifically a combined closure and attachment arrangement, the apparatus comprises a first one-way valve which is on the first portion and a second one-way valve which is on the second portion. The two oneway valves may be configured to operate in different states during air moving operations, that is, when the first one-way valve is in the open state, the second one-way valve is in the closed state, and vice versa. The one-way valves are to stay in the closed state when the apparatus is not in an air-moving mode. The two one-way valves may be configured so that air moves through the one-way valves in opposite operation manners, that is, one of the one-way valves is configured to operate to only permit air entry into the apparatus while the other one of the one-way valves is configured to operate to only permit exit of air from the apparatus. The two one-way valves may be configured so that air moves through the one-way valves in the same direction.

[32] When the apparatus is configured as a suction apparatus, which may also be referred to as a suction pump or a vacuuming pump, the first one-way valve is configured to only permit exit of air from the apparatus and the second one-way valve is configured to only permit entry of air into the apparatus. When the apparatus is a suction apparatus, the apparatus is to operate in a suction mode to move air out of a container or to reduce air pressure inside a container so that the internal storage compartment can be in a near-vacuum storage state.

[33] When the apparatus is configured as a pressurizing apparatus, which may also be referred to as a pressurizing pump, the first one-way valve is configured to only permit entry of air into the apparatus and the second one-way valve is configured to only permit exit of air from the apparatus. When the apparatus is a pressurizing apparatus, the apparatus is to operate in a pressurizing mode to move air into a container or to increase air pressure inside a container.

[34] When the apparatus is to operate in an air-moving mode to perform air moving operations, the user is to attach the apparatus to the entry portion of a container so that an air-tight connection is established between the apparatus and the container.

[35] After the air-tight connection has been established, a sealed air passageway in the form of a sealed tunnel connecting the apparatus and the container is formed, and the tubular portion forms a part of the tunnel. To operate the apparatus in the air-moving mode, a user is to cause the first portion and the second portion to execute a relative movement in a manner to achieve the designed function of the apparatus. [36] For example, when the apparatus is a suction apparatus, a user is to cause the first portion and the second portion to execute a relative movement or repeated movements in a manner which will decrease air pressure inside the apparatus so that the apparatus can extract air from the container. When air pressure inside the apparatus (or more specifically inside the tubular portion) is dropped so that air pressure inside the container is higher than air pressure inside the tubular portion by a threshold, which is a first threshold, the pressure difference will cause opening of the second one-way valve, and air will flow from the container to the tubular portion as a result, thereby reducing the pressure inside the container.

[37] To cause the first portion and the second portion to execute a relative movement which will reduce pressure inside the tubular position, a user will need to bring the first portion and the second portion into a first relative position which is a start position and then move the first portion and the second portion into a second relative position which is a stop position, the start position corresponding to a starting configuration and a starting volume of the tubular portion and the end position corresponding to an ending configuration and an ending volume of the tubular portion which is significantly larger than the starting volume.

[38] To further reduce the pressure inside the container, a user will need to repeat the relative movement. In the course of bringing the tubular portion back into a starting configuration so that air extraction movements can be repeated, the internal volume of the tubular portion will decrease, thereby increasing the pressure inside the tubular portion. Since the second oneway valve is configured to only allow exit of air from the container, air inside the apparatus will be trapped inside tubular portion until the pressure inside the tubular portion increases so that the pressure inside the tubular portion is higher than the air pressure outside the first portion by a threshold, which is a second threshold. When this happens, the first one-way valve is opened and air is to flow out of the apparatus through the first one-way valve in the first portion. The air extraction operation can be repeated to reduce air pressure inside the container until the pressure inside the tubular portion is no longer lower than the pressure inside the container by the first threshold, at which the second one-way valve will open.

[39] The tubular portion is configurable between a maximum-volume configuration having a maximum internal volume and a minimum-volume configuration having a minimum internal volume. The starting volume of the suction apparatus may be the minimum internal volume or an internal volume which is intermediate the maximum internal volume and the minimum internal volume. The ending volume of the suction apparatus may be the maximum internal volume or an internal volume which is intermediate the maximum internal volume and the minimum internal volume. [40] In changing from the maximum-volume configuration to the minimum-volume configuration or vice versa, the tubular portion will go through a plurality of intermediate configurations corresponding to a corresponding plurality of intermediate internal volumes.

[41 ] To facilitate a tidier or more organized transition between the maximum-volume and minimum-volume configurations, the tubular portion may comprise a plurality of fold lines so that the tubular portion can be folded or unfolded according to the fold lines. The fold lines may be concentric fold lines that are orthogonal to the tubular axis. The fold line may be organized so that transition between the maximum-volume and the minimum-volume configurations can go through a plurality of discrete fold steps.

[42] The tubular body may be tapered. A tapered tubular body may make the apparatus more compact when in the minimum-volume configuration. The tubular body may taper to narrow on extending from the first axial end to the second axial end or taper to narrow on extending from the second axial end to the first axial end.

[43] A tubular portion having a wider first axial end and a narrower second axial end would mean that the tubular body can collapse to the minimum-volume configuration with the collapsed tubular body surrounded by the rim portions of the first portion and/or the second portion.

[44] The apparatus may attach to the container as a lid of the container. When the apparatus is attached to the container as a lid, the apparatus is typically stored in its compact state which is the collapsed state. When the apparatus as a lid is in the collapsed state, the rim portion 1106 of the first portion will become the outermost peripheral of the lid and function as a handgrip portion to allow finger-gripped operation by a user to loosen or tighten the lid.

[45] The apparatus may comprise a plug 1108 which is disposed on the first portion and which when unplugged will equalize air pressure inside and outside the apparatus. The apparatus may comprise a plug which is disposed on the second portion and which when unplugged will equalize air pressure inside and outside the container. The plug on the second portion is configured to stay plugged in until prior to removal of the lid from the container.

[46] The apparatus may work with a container having a self-closing lid which comprises a non-return valve. The lid is self-closing because the non-return valve on the lid is to automatically return to its closed state once the force which force-opens the valve is no longer available. The end assembly 1208 may be used or configured as a self-closing lid and cooperate with a container body to form a lidded container.

[47] Referring to Figures 2A1 to 2A3, the first attachment portion is on a first axial end and configured for attaching to the second portion of the apparatus, the second attachment portion is on a second axial end and configured for attaching to the entry portion of a container, and the closure arrangement is intermediate the first and second axial ends. The lids shown in Figures 2A1 to 2A3 have the same technical features, except that the second attachment portions are configured to making air-tight coupling with entry portions of different dimensions.

[48] The first attachment portion of the lid comprises an engagement means which is configured to make air-tight connection with the apparatus. The second attachment portion of the lid comprises an engagement means which is configured to make air-tight connection with the container. To facilitate making of air-tight connection, the engagement means on the first attachment portion is compatible with the corresponding engagement means on the apparatus and the engagement means on the second attachment portion is compatible with the corresponding engagement means on the container. The example engagement means on the attachment portions are helical threads.

[49] The closure arrangement comprises an end portion and a one-way valve which is disposed on the end portion. The end portion has all the features of the end assembly 1208 on the second portion, and the description thereon is incorporated herein by reference save that the end assembly is now a lid.

[50] The apparatus 200 which is configured to work with the self-closing lid comprises a first portion 110, a second portion 220, and a third portion 130 which interconnects the first portion and the second portion. Referring to Figures 3A and 3B, the second portion 220 is configured to make air-tight connection with the self-closing lid and comprises a coupling device 2206 for this purpose. The coupling device 2206 comprises a threaded collar which defines an internal aperture, as shown in Figure 3B. The coupling device is configured to form a sealed joint interconnecting the apparatus and the lid, and more specifically interconnecting the second axial end of the tubular body and the first attachment portion of the lid. The coupling device 2206 may have the same description as the retention device 1206, but serves a different purpose of facilitating sealed connection between the apparatus 200 and the self-closing lid.

[51 ] To operate the apparatus 200, a user is to attach the apparatus to the lid so that a sealed interconnection is formed between the apparatus 200 and the lid. The user then operates the apparatus 200 so that the apparatus 200 is moved relative to the lid whereby the tubular body of the apparatus 200 changes between the starting and ending configurations to perform airmoving motions as described above. After air moving has ended, the user may detach the apparatus 200 from the lid, leaving the lid intact on the container, which is now a sealed container, and perform air-moving operation on another stand-alone lid.

[52] An example one-way valve suitable for the apparatus is shown in Figures 4A1 , 4A2, 4A3 and 4A4. The valve 1104 comprises a main body having a valve aperture 11042, a piston 11044 having a piston head, and a coil spring 11046. The coil spring is configured to bias the piston to close the valve aperture. When there is a large enough air pressure difference inside and outside of the main body, the piston will be brought away from the valve due to force produced by the pressure difference and air can flow through the valve aperture in the direction of the arrow. The valve can be disposed in a manner consistent with the direction of permitted flow of air without loss of generality.

[53] As a convenient example, the tubular body may have an internal volume of between 8oz (210ml) and 16oz (420ml), including 8-oz, 10oz, 12oz, 14oz, 16oz or a range selected by a combination of any of the aforesaid values in its expanded state.

[54] The coupling portion may be configured for making air-tight engagement with a container having a standard-sized entry portion. A standard-sized entry portion may have a diameter (<t>) of 56mm, 70mm, 86mm, etc.

[55] While the present disclosure refers to examples, embodiments and figures, it should be appreciated that the examples, embodiments and figures are not intended to be limiting.

[56] For example, while the example tubular portion has a frustoconical shape, it may have other shapes, for example, cylindrical or other prismatic shapes.

[57] While an example one-way valve is described, it should be appreciated that other types of one-way valves can be used without loss of generality.