JPH0356993B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The field of the invention broadly encompasses that of trays for supporting and displaying food products. More particularly, the field of the invention relates to serving dishes for supporting and displaying food items that excude juice or other exudates.

Liquid dripping from poultry meat is a focal point for bacterial spoilage within packaged fresh meat and other poultry products. The growth of microorganisms, especially bacteria and yeasts, occurs very rapidly in such exudates. Leaching is unpleasant from an appearance standpoint, and moreover, even if the meat itself is in normal sanitary condition, packaged meat can quickly become unpleasant due to odor and yeast growth. As a result, even though the meat itself is sanitary and acceptable, the liquid that seeps out of the meat and is contained within the package renders the entire package of meat or poultry unsaleable.

When displaying and selling packaged poultry and meat fillets, it is extremely important that the packaging exhibits a clean and hygienic appearance. The problem of maintaining such a clean and hygienic appearance is that, as mentioned above, many meats, especially fillets of meat and poultry, exude a liquid containing suspended solids that is difficult to wrap around the packaging. This is made extremely serious by the fact that it gives rise to an unclean appearance. Another problem is that this leachate often evaporates or is absorbed into the packaging material, and the suspended solids then settle on the food product and/or packaging. Therefore,
From both hygiene and aesthetic points of view, it is desirable to remove leached liquid not only from the vicinity of the packaged product, but also completely out of sight.

Meat, poultry and other foodstuffs in individual packaging consisting of a supporting platter with an absorbent padding of paper similar to tissue paper stuffed into the bottom of the platter to absorb juices or liquids that seep from the foodstuff. It is common practice to display. Clear outer plastic wrapping is also commonly used to cover and completely enclose the package. A major problem with this type of packaging, as mentioned above, is the fact that the exuded liquid supports the rapid growth of bacteria. In many cases, bacteria are transferred back from the absorbent mat to the food product itself, resulting in spoilage and discoloration of the food product. Such spoilage and discoloration quickly renders the food product unfit for sale.

In an effort to alleviate the above problems and extend the shelf life of food products, absorbent materials such as plastic film act to prevent the back migration of liquid from the absorbent rug back into the food product. It has already been proposed to use absorbent rugs in packaging containing a non-perforated plastic film placed over a layer of rug. It has also been previously proposed to place a non-absorbable barrier on top of an absorbent material for this purpose (see Niblacz et al., US Pat. No. 3,026,209). Although the packaging configuration described above provides a special relationship between the liquid seeped into the rug and the food product, substantial back-transfer of bacteria to the food product is nevertheless still possible; Therefore, it is not completely satisfactory.

Other proposals in this area are disclosed in US Pat. Nos. 4,321,997 and 4,275,811, both by AH Miller. U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,811 discloses a mat of liquid-absorbent material, a liquid-impermeable upper sheet without holes placed over and covering the mat of absorbent material, and a liquid-impervious sheet placed below the mat. An absorbent rug comprising a lower sheet of material is disclosed. The peripheral edges of the upper and lower sheets are sealed together to enclose the mat of absorbent material therebetween, and the lower sheet has a number of holes to permit passage of liquid to the absorbent material. This keeps the liquid from coming into contact with the food product.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,321,997 is essentially an improvement to the structure disclosed in the '811 patent, which improvement consists in placing a spacer means between two sheets of material, thereby placing the material on the sheet. It consists of maintaining the separation of the sheets under compressive loads such as those imposed by foodstuffs etc. The use of spacer means minimizes compression of the mat by the food product, thereby increasing the mat's ability to absorb and retain liquids even under such loads.

Although the invention disclosed in the Miller patent represents an advance in this field, fundamental problems in this area still persist. The basic problem here is the labor cost involved in inserting any type of rug into the platter. This cost includes not only labor, but also the cost of purchasing and maintaining the machinery used to place the rug in each platter. A machine of this type is disclosed in Curry US Pat. No. 3,832,823.
Of course, an additional inherent cost is the price of the rug itself.

It is an object of the present invention to overcome the drawbacks inherent in the above-mentioned conventional serving dish products.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved packaging platter that is particularly suitable for packaging fresh poultry and other meats or juicy foods.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved packaging platter having integral means for the removal of excess liquid from the vicinity of the packaged food product.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a packaging platter having a permeate reservoir for isolating perge or secretions from the food product on the platter.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide consumers with a packaging platter that presents a hygienic and clean appearance.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a packaging platter with a hidden exudate trap.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a packaging plate having an exudate trap or reservoir for isolating exudates or secretions from the food product on the plate.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a packaging plate having an exudate trap or sump that isolates exudates or secretions from the food product on the plate.

Further objects of the invention, its wide applicability, and its many attendant benefits and features will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art from the detailed description provided below. However, the following detailed description and specific examples of presently preferred embodiments of the invention are presented for illustrative purposes only, and those of ordinary skill in the art will know from this detailed description: Various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope of the invention will become apparent.

The present invention includes a food serving dish for use in the packaging of a product that exudes juice or other exudates. More particularly, the serving dish of the present invention has a recessed reservoir into which the juices or infusions flow and are kept out of contact with the food product. This reservoir consists of a perforated liquid-impermeable thermoplastic sheet that is heat-sealed in a liquidtight manner to the raised shoulder area of the serving dish. by forming a false bottom with holes through which juice can flow. The thermoplastic sheet may also be integral with the bottom of the serving dish and standoffs rising from the inside bottom of the serving dish.
Supported by. The volume of the reservoir can be varied as desired by varying the height at which the shoulder area and the isolation column are raised from inside the bottom of the serving dish. In addition, the volume of the sump recesses the area of the sump in the bottom of the serving dish to such an extent that the outer area of the corresponding bottom of the serving dish is lower than the outer area of the bottom of the surrounding serving dish. In other words, it can also be increased by sinking. In one embodiment, the thermoplastic sheet material is opaque so that the reservoir and the juice contained therein are hidden from the consumer's view. In a highly preferred embodiment, the thermoplastic sheet is colored to correspond to the color of the serving plate, so that the serving plate and the sheet of plastic material heat-sealed thereto exhibit the appearance of a unitary structure.

Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate similar structures or similar processing steps, FIG. 2 is an isometric view of a preferred embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 1 is a top view of the serving plate 1 of FIG. The serving dish 1 has a substantially horizontal edge 2 extending around the entire circumference of the upper end of the wall 3 of the serving dish. The walls 3 of the serving dish may be substantially planar, ie vertical up to the horizontally raised shoulder area 4, or they may be sloped. The preferred serving plate embodiment shown in FIG. 1 and other product drawings includes a shoulder area 4 of the serving plate 1, which includes two pairs of supporting ribs ( support ribs) 5. In other words,
The supporting ribs 5 are approximately parallel to the horizontal axis of the serving plate 1. Although the existence of the supporting ribs 5 is not essential for the function of the serving plate, as will be described later,
Experience has shown that the support ribs 5 reduce the lateral deformation that the serving plate undergoes when the serving plate and the products placed thereon are wrapped in packaging material, as is standard in the industry. There is. A shoulder 4 and a support rib 5 surround and rise from the lowered basin area 6 of the serving dish. A number of separating columns 7 rise from the basin area 6 to essentially the same height as the shoulders 4 and the supporting ribs 5. 1
A sheet of thermoplastic plastic film 8 is heat sealed in a liquid-tight manner to shoulder 4 in its edge area 9. The thermoplastic sheet is further supported by support ribs 5 and in particular by isolation columns 7. The number and arrangement pattern of isolation pillars 7 are as follows:
except that their number and arrangement, together with the shoulders 4 and, in this preferred embodiment, the supporting ribs 5, must be sufficient to support the thermoplastic sheet 8 and the goods placed thereon. , not limited. That is, the number of isolation columns 7,
The dimensions, shape and arrangement can vary depending on the weight of the goods to be supported. In some cases,
A suitable number of supporting ribs of suitable arrangement and size may also be used as the sole isolation means. The thermoplastic sheet 8 has holes 1 at many points.
1 are drilled and the holes are designed to allow juices or other exudates exuding from the dished product to pass by capillary action into the lower sump area 6. Moreover, the plastic film 8 has a centrally located relatively large hole 10 which is made to allow juice or other exudate to flow freely down into the reservoir 6. This large hole 10 is centered in order to minimize the possibility that exudate or other oozing liquid will flow back out of the reservoir through the hole 10 when the consumer or other individual tilts the serving dish 1. position.
When the plate 1 is tilted, no backflow through the capillary holes 11 occurs immediately. In this way, although the leached juice easily collects in the reservoir 6, even if the serving dish 1 is tilted significantly, the juice will not accumulate in the reservoir 6.
kept inside. Needless to say, unless the reservoir 6 is completely filled with exudate, no backflow can occur when the tray is in the flat position.

2 and 3 are cross-sectional views of the serving plate 1 in FIG. 1 taken along lines AA and BB, respectively.
These figures further illustrate the same features shown in FIG. 1 from a different perspective, thus making the structure of the serving dish of the invention even clearer. The thickness of the thermoplastic sheet 8 has been exaggerated for clarity in these figures, as well as other features illustrated throughout the figures, as appropriate. Additionally, if heat sealing is chosen as the method for attaching the edge area 9 of the sheet 8 to the shoulder 4 of the serving dish, the edge area 9 of the sheet 8 will generally be melted into the shoulder 4. It's crowded. Thus, the seat 8 normally does not rise above the surface of the shoulder 4.

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the serving dish of FIG. 1. This figure shows the presence of a bottom 12 of the platter, which in the preferred embodiment shown here has an indentation or depression 1 created during the formation of the ablation column 7.
Includes 3 patterns. Figures 16 and 17 are front and end views of another possible serving plate bottom 12 configuration according to the present invention. These figures show that the reservoir area 6 of the serving plate is located at the bottom area 12 of the corresponding outer serving plate.
An embodiment is shown that is recessed or lowered to such an extent that a is lower than the surrounding external serving dish bottom 12b. This hollow is a reservoir 6
Increase the volume of.

Preferably, the external serving dish bottom area 12a is not so low as to prevent the seating of a stack of serving dishes.

Our research and experiments have revealed that the pattern of the capillary holes 11 significantly influences the rate of flow of the leaching juice or liquid into the reservoir 6. This fact indicates that the thermoplastic sheet 8
This was clarified through an experiment in which whole chicken breasts were placed on four types of serving plates having the perforation patterns shown in Figures 2, 13, 14, and 15. Platter 1 and the supporting product, ie, the inside of a chicken breast, were wrapped and placed in a laboratory refrigerator for about 3 days. The results of this experiment were as follows: In the sample using the perforation pattern of FIG. This result was considered poor. It has been observed that the liquid remaining after removing all the meat does not actually flow down into the reservoir 6.

In the sample using the perforation pattern shown in FIG. 13, most of the liquid present ran down into the reservoir 6. This result was considered to be acceptable.

In the sample using the hole pattern shown in FIG. 14, all of the liquid present ran down into the reservoir 6.
This result was considered good. In the sample using the hole pattern shown in FIG. 15, all of the liquid present ran down into the reservoir 6. However, this result appears to be ambiguous since the initially present leachate was removed from the chicken and then placed in a plate for measurement. Therefore, the total leachate present for flow down was somewhat limited in this example.

From this test, the hole pattern shown in Figure 14 appears to be suitable.

The size, shape and geometrical arrangement of the isolation posts 7 are not limiting to the invention. It goes without saying that the height of the isolation column 7 influences, to a certain extent, the total storage capacity of the reservoir 6. In other words, the total volume available in the reservoir 6 is increased by the height by which the separating column 7, the shoulder 4 and, if used, the supporting rib 5 are raised above the reservoir area 6 at the bottom of the serving dish. For example, by locating the isolation column 7 having the lowest height near the large central hole 10, the height of the isolation column can be gradually reduced toward the center of the serving dish. Such a configuration directs the exudate or juice to flow freely into the holes 10, since the thermoplastic sheet 8 is generally forced downwardly into a funnel or cone shape by the weight of the product placed thereon. And help with that. The leaching liquid or other liquid is thus directed into the large hole 10 by gravitational flow.

The isolation column 7 shown in these figures has a generally cylindrical shape. Those skilled in the art will readily recognize that isolation columns having different configurations and of various geometric patterns can be accommodated, as long as adequate support of the plastic sheet 8 is provided. Probably. For example, standoff columns and/or labyrinthine ribs with geometric shapes and patterns such as diamonds, circles, pyramids, rectangles are within the scope of the invention.

In one embodiment of the invention, the only isolation means consist of two pairs of support ribs 5 extending from either side of the basin area 6 in such a way that each rib is staggered, parallel and partially overlapping laterally. As in,
It is even possible to limit the isolation means to a suitable number and arrangement of supporting ribs 5. In any case, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the supporting ribs 5 are simply a type of isolating means that, in addition to supporting the sheet 8, serves to provide lateral structural support to the serving dish. It will be easy to recognize that this is an example.

Among the several types of plastic materials suitable for processing as the support part of the serving structure of the present invention are, for example, polyolefins such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polybutene, polystyrene, high-impact polystyrene, polyurethane,
Examples include polyvinylidene chloride, paper pulp, acetate, and others. A particular material that has been found to be well suited for fabrication into the platter structure of the present invention is expanded polystyrene. The closed cell expanded polystyrene structure prevents liquid absorption or penetration into the body of the serving dish, and the foam material itself is extremely lightweight, allowing for easy handling and transportation.

As already noted, the preferred material for use in forming the support portion of the platter structure of the present invention is plastic, especially expanded plastic material, especially polystyrene foam. Polystyrene foam can be produced by one of a number of conventional extrusion methods, for example by extrusion of expandable polystyrene beads, i.e. beads that have been premixed with a blowing agent before being fed into the extrusion equipment, or, for example, through a die orifice. It can be produced by a direct injection extrusion process in which a blowing agent is added to the polystyrene melt in an extruder prior to extrusion.

After the polystyrene foam sheet material is manufactured using conventional extrusion methods as described above, it is molded to form the support structure of the serving dish of the present invention. Generally, it is desirable to preheat the expanded polystyrene sheet prior to molding to ensure that it is at a sufficiently high temperature to allow rapid molding of the desired pan structure in the mold. In addition, the mold may also be heated by known means to further aid in the rapid formation of the desired platter structure. One example of such a heating means is the circulation of hot water into the mold section. After preheating the expanded polystyrene sheet, the shaped support structure of the serving dish according to the invention can be conveniently shaped using a molding operation. A cross-section of a preferred form of a mold that can be used to form a molded support structure for a platter according to the present invention is shown in FIG. Such a mold is indicated generally at 21.
This mold consists of a male part 22 and a female part 23. Align both parts as shown by the arrow in Figure 7. The male portion 22 includes an area 24 forming the rim of the platter, an area 25 forming the wall of the platter, and an area 26 forming the shoulder of the platter. A support rib forming area may also be included in the male portion, but it is not shown in this particular cross-sectional view;
They are only needed if the extra support and stiffness of support ribs is desired. The male part 22 furthermore has a vacuum chamber 27 with a suction port 28, which can be connected to a known suction device (not shown in the figures). The vacuum chamber 27 is further divided into suction grooves 29 shaped to give rise to the desired geometry, for example a cylindrical isolation column 7 . The male portion 22 also has an area 30 forming a platter reservoir. The female mold part 23 includes a bottom-forming area 31 of the platter and branches 32, which cooperate with and are inserted into the suction groove during the molding process. If the platter support structure of FIGS. 16 and 17 is desired, the female portion 23 includes a recessed area to provide some recess or depression in the bottom 12 of the platter as in 12a. . Inserting the branch 32 into the groove 29 includes:
Decompression chamber 27 and suction groove 29 in forming isolation column 7
Helps the suction power given through. Suction groove 29
The branches 32 are essential for the formation of the isolation columns 7, since it has been found that isolation columns 7 of suitable height can be formed solely by the use of suction applied by the It doesn't belong to. However, it has been found that branches 32 are useful in forming relatively tall isolation columns 7. Great care must be taken to ensure that the branches 32 are not so long that they physically puncture the polystyrene sheet, creating isolation posts 7 with holes. Such a structure is undesirable because the leaching juice may flow completely out of the serving dish. As mentioned earlier, towards the center of the plate,
It may be desirable to have isolation columns that vary in height in a progressively decreasing manner, especially towards the location of the large hole 10. One way to achieve such a configuration is to isolate the isolation column 7 that is farthest from the hole 10.
In order to form the isolation column 7 located close to the hole 10, both the suction force provided by the suction groove 29 and the suction force provided by the use of the branch 32 are utilized, while for the formation of the isolation column 7 located near the hole 10. Only the former attraction force is used. In other words, the use of the branches 32 is omitted in the formation of the isolation column 7 located close to the hole 10.

From the above, it will be seen that the formation of the support structure of a thermoplastic platter 1 according to the present invention involves placing a heated sheet of suitable desired plastic material into mold portion 22.
and 23 and approximate both mold portions to a desired mold spacing equal to the desired thickness for the finished molding plate. When the mold parts 22 and 23 are brought into close proximity, the thermoplastic material is deformed by each section of said mold part. Moreover, the branches 32 push up a portion of the heating material into the suction groove 29. At the same time, the decompression chamber 27
The suction force applied to the suction groove 29 through the suction port 28 moves the thermoplastic material into the suction groove 2.
9 to form isolation columns 7 of the desired geometric pattern and shape.

Next, referring to FIG. 6, which shows in the form of a block diagram various processing steps involved in the mass production and distribution of the platter 1 according to the present invention, following the forming step 15, the platter 1 is processed. It can be seen that there is a step of applying a perforated thermoplastic sheet 8 to the support structure. This pasting step is shown as step 16 in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a preferred form of apparatus 36 that can be used to join perforated sheet 8 to the support structure of serving dish 1. FIG. The application means used in this preferred device is heat sealing. However, other suitable sealing methods may be suitably used, such as, for example, ultrasonic sealing or gluing. FIG. 8 shows that the support structure of the serving plate 1 is positioned relative to the back plate 33. The back plate 33 serves to support the plastic sheet 8 when it is attached to the supporting portion of the serving plate. A support rod 34 containing a thermal cutting mechanism 35 adapted to cut or fuse a suitably sized section from the thermoplastic sheet 8 is suitably positioned relative to the support portion of the serving plate 1. Other cutting means may alternatively be used if desired. Examples of such measures are:
Hot wire means, punching means or shearing knife means. A clamp 35a serves to hold the plastic sheet 8 fed from the roll 8a in a horizontally fixed position throughout the pasting process 16. Since the heat generated by the heating cutting mechanism 35 has an adverse effect on the plastic sheet 8, the fastener 35a is
is preferably vertically movable so that the sheet 8 can be temporarily brought into close physical proximity with the heated cutting mechanism 35, as will be explained below.

The device 36 includes a moving block 37 made of a material with low thermal conductivity. Examples of such materials are wood, asbestos and ceramics. Suitable ceramics are epoxy-filled ceramics, such as syntactic foams. The low thermal conductivity of the moving block 37 allows it to be located close to the heat sealing mechanism 38 and kept at a low temperature. This is desirable to avoid sticking or sticking of the sheet 8 when it contacts the moving block 37 as described below. Coating the transfer block 37 with a fluorocarbon polymer, such as a tetrafluoroethylene or fluorinated ethylene-propylene material, has also been found to significantly reduce or eliminate such fouling. These materials are commonly called Teflon. Teflon is a trade name of EI Dupont de Niemour's End Company. The moving block 37 has a generally rectangular configuration in this embodiment and is slidably connected to the generally rectangular sealing device 33 by means 41. Preferably, the means 41 comprises at least two pairs of pins, each pair extending from either side of the moving block 37 to cooperate with a notch in the sealing device 38. The use of a pair of pins on each side of the moving block 37, compared to the use of a single pin, significantly increases the possibility that it will tip up or tilt during movement of the block 37, as described below. significantly reduce Furthermore, the moving block 37 is resiliently attached to the sealing mechanism 38 by spring means 40. The sealing mechanism 38 also includes a transverse plate structure 39. The transverse plate structure 39 preferably consists of an adjacent upper plate 39b and a lower plate 39a. The upper plate 39b has a grid 39c of a large number of holes, for example for a total of 200 holes.
It has 10 and 20 grids. In practice, the drilling pin 42, which is preferably stainless steel, is
The sheet 8 is inserted through holes 39c in a pattern corresponding to the desired hole pattern. each pin 4
2 has a flattened head 42b perpendicular to its longitudinal axis. The width of the pin head 42b is designed to be larger than the diameter of the hole 39c.
Therefore, the pin head 42b connects the plate 39a to the plate 39.
When brought into close physical proximity to b and into planar contact with the pin head, it is compressed by and held between plates 39a and 39b.
Plates 39a and 39b may be connected around their circumference by means known in the art, such as bolts. This arrangement is an easy means to allow the punch pin pattern to be easily rearranged. Figure 18 shows
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a small portion of plates 39a and 39b containing one hole 39a and an associated drilling pin 42; It goes without saying that other embodiments of the drilling pin 42 are also possible. For example, the drilling pin 42 may consist of piano wire folded in a folded manner. In this case, the folded wire can be attached to the plate 39a below the free end of the piano wire while being inserted through the hole 39c in the plate 39b. The drilling pin is also arranged to be inserted into a drilling pin groove 43 which passes completely through the thickness of the moving block 37.

FIG. 9 is a top view of the device 36 shown in cross section in FIG. The pattern of the drilling pin groove 43 and the drilling pin 42 shown in FIG. 9 is a pattern that can be used to obtain the hole pattern shown in FIG. 14. As mentioned above, this hole pattern is preferred. Furthermore,
FIG. 9 shows a large drilling pin groove 43a located at the center of the moving block 37 and a large drilling pin 42a.
clearly shown. Pin groove 43a and pin 42a
together produce said large central hole 10.

FIG. 9 shows yet another feature of moving block 37. It is the presence of a suction port 45 at the corner of the moving block 37. Suction port 45
is the entrance of the suction groove 49 which completely penetrates the moving block 37 in the same way as in the drilling pin groove 43. Suction groove 49 communicates with a suction source (not shown) by a suction tube or other means known in the art. Although the arrangement and number of suction ports is not critical, a triangular arrangement of three suction ports at each corner of the moving block has been found to be advantageous. The suction opening 45 serves to temporarily hold the thermoplastic sheet material 8 on the surface of the moving block during the process of applying the sheet material 8 to the shoulder 4 of the molded part of the serving dish 1.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of device 36 taken along line C--C shown in FIG. This cross-sectional view is shown in somewhat more detail than in FIG. In particular, FIG. 10 shows a means for maintaining the sealing mechanism 38 at a high temperature. This means may be by any suitable means generally known in the art. Examples of such means include circulation of hot water through a serpentine groove within the sealing mechanism 38 or the use of electrical resistance. In one embodiment, hot water or other heating element enters sealing mechanism 38 at inlet 46 and 4
It snakes its way through the interior of the sealing mechanism 38 as shown at 7. The heating element or liquid exits the sealing mechanism 38 at an outlet 48 . Another way in which the temperature of the sealing head 44 can be easily adjusted is through the use of small cartridge heaters controlled by thermocouples, as is known in the art. One important function of the heating element is to ensure that the sealing head 44 of the sealing mechanism 38 is maintained at a sufficient temperature to heat seal the thermoplastic sheet 8 to the support portion of the serving dish 1. In particular, the temperature of the sealing head 44 must be adjusted to produce a good liquid-tight heat seal. This temperature will depend on the materials used for the support structure of the sheet 8 and the plate 1, but can be determined without undue experimentation.
Generally speaking, this temperature is the lower limit at which the sheet 8 will not adhere properly to the support structure of the serving dish 1, e.g. non-uniformly and thus in a non-liquid tight manner, and at which the sheet 8 and the support structure will melt. within a range with an upper limit of Just to give an example, plate 1
The sealing head 44 is made of expanded polystyrene material and the sheet 8 is made of oriented polystyrene having a thickness of about 1.2 mils.
The temperature must be maintained between 290〓 and 320〓. As noted with respect to the moving block 37, the sealing head 44 has the following features: during heat sealing of the edge area 9 of the sheet 8 to the shoulder 4, to reduce the adhesion of the edge area 9 to the sealing head 44; Preferably, it is coated with Teflon. Another important function of the heating means is that the transverse plate 39 and thus the drilling pins 42 and 42a can be heated indirectly by conduction of heat through direct or indirect contact with the heated sealing mechanism 38. It means that it can be done. The heating of the drilling pins 42, 42a assists the ends 42e of the pins 42 and 42a in drilling the plastic sheet 8. The ends 42c of the drilling pins 42 and 42a may be sharp, as shown in FIG. 18, or they may be somewhat blunt, such as when using bent piano wire. We have found that when heating the drilling pins 42, 42a as described above, each hole in the sheet 8 has a cylindrical configuration and is surrounded by ribs of material melted during drilling. Ta. This is in contrast to holes made with room temperature drilling pins. In this case, the hole is funnel-shaped and there are no surrounding ribs.

Another important feature of device 36 is that drilling pins 42 and 42a are of such length that their distal ends or tips 42c are only slightly above the plane of sealing head 44. This feature allows the drilling pins 42 and 42a to drill into the thermoplastic sheet 8 upon depression of the resiliently mounted moving block 37, as will be explained in more detail below.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the device 36 taken along line D--D shown in FIG. Many details have been removed from this cross-sectional view so that details of the device 36 that primarily relate to the suction port 45 can be illustrated. In FIG. 9, the suction port 45 is connected to the moving block 37.
This shows that the hole is for the suction groove 49 that completely passes through the hole. After that, the suction tube 50 is
It connects to the suction groove 49 by means known in the art (not shown). It is clear that suction can be easily achieved through the suction port 45 by connecting a known vacuum device to the suction tube 50. The presence of suction in the corners of the moving block 37 facilitates holding the thermoplastic sheet 8 in place when it is brought into contact with the moving block 37. FIG. 11 also shows one embodiment of a resilient attachment 40 of moving block 37 onto device 36. Particularly elastic spring means 40 can be mounted between the moving block 37 and the cross plate 39 or alternatively between the moving block and the sealing mechanism 38. In one preferred embodiment, the moving block 37 has four
It is provided with leg members 37a, each leg 37a
is located at the corner of the bottom of the moving block 37.
It extends through an appropriately sized hole in 9. Thus, in this preferred embodiment, the moving block 37 can be viewed as a table structure which is resiliently supported by spring means 40 under each leg 37a. This structure as a whole is the 19th
Although shown in the figure, many details have been omitted from this figure. Such a resilient attachment allows the moving block 37 to be depressed by applying pressure to the face of the moving block 37. Needless to say, the transverse plate 39 must be positioned within the sealing mechanism 38 in such a way that it does not impede the depression of the transfer block 37 at least as far as the plane of the sealing head 44. Such depression is in order to expose the distal end 42c of the drilling pin 42 from the drilling pin groove 43 and thereby to be able to drill into the thermoplastic sheet 8 holding it on the face of the moving block 37. is necessary.

Looking back at FIG. 8 in light of the above discussion, those skilled in the art will recognize that the pasting step 16 of FIG. 6 proceeds as follows: For example, in FIG. From the mold shown at 21, the supporting part of the serving plate 1 is placed directly above the device 36 and on the back plate 33.
When initially withdrawn into position directly below the clamping means 35a grip the thermoplastic sheet material 8 and hold it in a relatively fixed horizontal position. At this point the clamping means 35a and the device 36 begin to move into the way of the heated cutting mechanism 35 and the supporting part 1 of the serving dish. The vertical movement of the clamping means 35a stops when the sheet 8 is directly below the heating cutting mechanism 35. However, the device 36 continues to move in the direction of the sheet 8. device 36
When the moving block 37 of the sheet 8 comes into contact with the plastic sheet 8, the suction force applied to the sheet 8 by the suction port 45 causes the moving block 37 of the sheet 8 to
work to maintain close contact with Device 3
Further movement of 6 brings the retained sheet 8 into contact with the hot cutting mechanism 35, cutting a portion of the plastic sheet 8 from the sheet 8 and retaining it on the moving block 37. Hot cutting mechanism 35 is sized to permit passage of device 36 therethrough. Additionally, the high temperature cutting mechanism 35 includes a sealing mechanism 38
A portion of the thermoplastic sheet 8 is cut to a size approximately equal to the size of the thermoplastic sheet 8. In other words, the edge of the cut portion of the thermoplastic sheet 8 extends completely or at least substantially over the sealing head 44. This area of the sheet 8 extending over the sealing head 44 was previously designated as the edge area 9. Further movement of the device 36 towards the supporting part of the serving dish 1 and the backing plate 33 brings the cut portion of the thermoplastic sheet 8 into contact with the supporting part 1 of the serving dish. Due to this contact, the support portion of the serving plate 1 is pushed down until it comes into contact with the fixed back plate 33, and
provides temporary physical support for the supporting portion of the plate 1 during the remainder of the pasting process 16. At this point, the thermoplastic sheet 8
The heat sealing of the area 9 of the edge of the cut part and the perforation of the thermoplastic sheet 8 prevents the movement of the device 36 towards the supporting part of the serving dish 1, with the sealing head 44 overlying the edge of the thermoplastic sheet 8. Press area to support part 1 of the serving plate
This is achieved simultaneously by continuing up to the point of contact with the shoulder 4 of the. The pressurized contact of the heated sealing head achieves a liquid-tight heat seal to the raised shoulder 4 in the edge area. The cut portion of the thermoplastic sheet 8 is thus completely heat sealed to the shoulder 4 in the edge area 9. Such a sheet 8 in its entire periphery (i.e. edge area 9)
The liquid-tight sealing of the shoulder 4 to the shoulder 4 serves to prevent any leachate or other liquid that has flowed into the sump 6 from flowing out of the sump at the junction of the seat 8 and the shoulder 4. do. During this final stage of movement of the device 36 in the direction of the supporting part of the serving dish 1 supported by the backing plate 33, it is slidably moved against the sealing mechanism 38 by the means 41 as described above. The elastic means 40 supporting the attached moving block are compressed and the moving block 37
is pressed down to the surface of the sealing head 44.
This pushing down of the moving block 37 is carried out by the drilling pin grooves 4 at the tips of the heated drilling pins 42 and 42a.
3 and 43a. Once the tips of the heated pins 42 and 42a are exposed, they perforate the plastic sheet in the desired perforation pattern. After completing the sealing and drilling, remove the device 36 from the support part of the serving dish 1, leaving behind a cut section of the thermoplastic sheet 8 that has been punched and heat-sealed to the shoulder 4 in the edge area 9. Pull apart. Thereafter, the supporting part of the new serving dish 1 and the part of the thermoplastic material 8 are pulled out into position and the pasting process is repeated.

FIG. 6 shows that after the cut pieces of thermoplastic sheet 8 have been applied to the supporting portion of the serving plate 1, the individual serving plates are separated from the roll of serving plates by means known in the art. It is shown that. For example, the plates can be separated by cutting blades. The separated individual plates are then sent to a stacking station where they are stacked and prepared for packaging. After packaging in platters, they are stored as inventory or transported to the end user.

Examples of thermoplastic materials that can be used to form thermoplastic sheet 8 are polymers and polymer blends of the following monomers: monoolefins and conjugated diolefins, such as ethylene, propylene, butene-
1, isobutene, 1,3-butadiene, isoprene and other aliphatic mono- and diolefins; halogen-substituted olefins, such as vinyl chloride, vinylidene chloride; mono/vinylidene aromatic compounds, such as styrene, alphamethylstyrene, chlorostyrene, etc. aromatic olefins and other unsaturated monomers such as acrylonitrile, acrylamide, etc. Polyamide polymers such as nylon 66 and nylon 6 can also be used. In one preferred embodiment, the material for manufacturing the thermoplastic sheet 8 is the same as that used to form the support portion of the serving dish 1. In another preferred embodiment, the thermoplastic material 8 is made from expanded polystyrene, which is the same material used to make the molded part of the serving dish 1. The thermoplastic sheet material 8 may be dyed or otherwise colored the same or at least substantially the same color as the molded portion of the serving dish 1. In this case, the presence of the exudate reservoir or fluid trap 6 is very effectively hidden from view. Moreover, the opaquely colored thermoplastic sheet 8 completely hides from view the presence of run-off exudates.

Although the serving dish of the present invention was designed to eliminate the need for a permeable pad or other absorbent material to be placed within the serving dish, the present invention is indeed amenable to the use of such absorbent materials. adapt to. A material of this kind is placed in the reservoir area 6 of the molded part of the serving dish 1 prior to the pasting, preferably by heat sealing, of the thermoplastic sheet 8 against the raised shoulder 4 of the serving dish 1. be able to. The absorbent pad or filling may contain a disinfectant. Suitable bacteriostatic agents are tetracyclines, such as chlortetracycline and oxytetracycline, such broad spectrum antibiotics; quaternary ammonium compounds; chlorine-containing compounds such as, for example, hypochlorite and chloramine; and phenols and their derivatives, such as, for example, pentachlorophenol and ortho-phenyl phenyl; dehydroacetic acid; for example, hydrogen peroxide, potassium persulfate. , peroxide compounds such as peracetic acid and sodium perborate. The bactericidal or bacteriostatic agent can be added to the absorbent material in any suitable manner. The two basic methods are, first, wetting the absorbent material with an aqueous solution of the drug and then drying, or second, mixing or impregnating the absorbent material with the dry drug. . Of course, any method of placing bacteriostatic or bactericidal agents within the absorbent material such that they come into contact with exudates but does not adversely affect the quality of the product is acceptable. .

Although the invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, it should be understood that modifications and changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. For example, the support portion of the platter need not be molded, but may be formed using any other suitable means. Furthermore, the upper surface of the sheet 8 can be etched by known methods to lower its surface tension and increase the rate of flow of the leachate into the reservoir 6, while the reservoir 6 It may contain a wetting agent that helps the exudate flowing down into it to spread more quickly and evenly within the area of the reservoir. Such changes and modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are considered to be within the scope of the claims.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a top view of a preferred embodiment of a food serving plate according to the present invention. Figure 2 shows A- shown in Figure 1.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the serving dish of FIG. 1 along line A; FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the serving dish of FIG. 1 taken along line B--B shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the serving dish of FIG. 1. FIG. 5 is an isometric view of the platter shown in FIG. FIG. 6 is a conceptual diagram of a preferred method for forming a food platter according to the present invention. FIG. 7 is a preferred embodiment of a mold for use in forming the molded portion of a food serving dish according to the present invention. FIG. 8 shows the area of the edge of a perforated thermoplastic sheet that can be used to heat seal the shoulder of a serving dish according to the invention.
1 is a cross-sectional view of a preferred device according to the invention; FIG. FIG. 9 is a top view of the device of FIG. 8, taken from point X shown in FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the device of FIG. 9 taken along line C--C in FIG. 9. FIG. Figure 11 is the 9th
10 is a sectional view of the device of FIG. 9 taken along line D-D in the figure; FIG. FIG. 12 is a top view of the first perforation pattern. FIG. 13 is a top view of the second perforation pattern. FIG. 14 is a top view of a third preferred perforation pattern. FIG. 15 is a top view of the fourth perforation pattern. FIG. 16 is a front view of a second embodiment of the platter support structure according to the present invention. FIG. 17 is an end view of a second embodiment of the platter support structure of FIG. 16. FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view of the arrangement for retaining the drilling pin on the cross plate. FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view of a preferred embodiment of a moving block according to the present invention.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A leachate trap tray adapted for displaying products exuding leachate, the tray comprising: () a recessed reservoir adapted to contain a liquid leachate; an area; () a support adapted to support the article; the support (A) rising from and completely surrounding the recessed reservoir area; a shoulder area; (B) isolation means rising from the recessed reservoir area; (C) a perforated liquid-impermeable thermoplastic film supported by the isolation means and supporting the article; a perforated liquid-impermeable thermoplastic film (i) an edge area secured to the shoulder area in a liquid-tight manner; (ii) adapted to permit capillary flow of exudate into the reservoir; (iii) a centrally located hole having a larger diameter than any other hole, which increases the flow of leachate into the sump and prevents seepage upon tilting of the tray; A leachate trap tray having a centrally located hole to minimize backflow of material. 2. Infusion according to claim 1, wherein the tray material comprises polystyrene foam, the film comprises polyethylene, and the film is heat-sealed to the tray shoulder in the edge area of the film. Material trap tray. 3. The leachate trap tray of claim 1, wherein the film is opaque to hide collected collected leachate from view. 4. A leachate trap tray as claimed in claim 1, incorporating an absorbent material in the reservoir area, said absorbent material containing a bactericide. 5. A leachate trap tray according to claim 1, wherein the support means has at least two supports rising from the reservoir to substantially equal heights.