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This application relates generally to decorator tips for dispensing food materials onto items such as frosting onto cakes and/or other piped foods. More specifically, this application relates to a piping tip cap for securing to a piping tip.
The application of food material and confectionary material, such as cake frosting, to a food product generally involves urging the material through a piping tip having a generally conical shape with an orifice at the narrow end thereof. When not in use, the piping material near the orifice is exposed to the air, risking contamination and dehydration, which clogs the piping tip, making subsequent use difficult. The present invention is a system for capping a piping tip with a cap that is held in place by frictional engagement with the piping tip. Described herein is a piping tip cap and a piping tip cap system for capping a piping tip that is easy to use and solves the problems mentioned above. The device is of simple construction, inexpensive to produce, economical to maintain, and can be used in conjunction with all forms of piping tips.
In particular, this application discloses a piping tip cap comprising a generally conical cover portion having an interior surface, an exterior surface, a closed end and an open end sized to fit over a piping tip, a gripping portion on the exterior surface of the closed end of the cover portion and a plurality of frictional elements affixed to the interior surface of the cover portion for holding the cap in position over the piping tip.
This application further discloses a piping tip cap system comprising a generally conical piping tip and a generally conical piping tip cap having mating elements for maintaining the cap in position on the piping tip. These mating elements include a circular indentation extending circumferentially around the exterior surface of the piping tip and a similarly sized circular ridge extending circumferentially around the interior surface of the cap, the ridge sized to fit within the circular indentation in the piping tip to maintain the cap in position on the piping tip.
The drawings, when considered in connection with the following description, are presented for the purpose of facilitating an understanding of the subject matter sought to be protected.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a piping tip cap disclosed herein;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a piping tip cap disclosed herein;
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of a piping tip cap system disclosed herein; and
FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional side view of a third embodiment of a piping tip cap system disclosed herein.
Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, shown are perspective views of first and second embodiments of the piping tip cap 10 disclosed herein. The invention comprises a piping tip cap 10 comprising a generally conical cover portion 14 having an interior surface 16, an exterior surface 18, a closed end 20 and an open end 22 sized to fit over a piping tip, a gripping portion 24 on the exterior surface 18 of the closed end 20 of the cover portion 14 and a plurality of frictional elements affixed to the interior surface 16 of the cover portion 14 for holding the cap 10 in position over the piping tip. The gripping portion 24 can be affixed to the cover portion 14 or can be integral with the cover portion 14, and can be in a shape which is easy to grip, for example, as a tab (FIG. 1) or as a loop (FIG. 2).
Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, shown is a perspective and a partial cross-sectional view of a third embodiment of a piping tip cap system disclosed herein. This embodiment is a piping tip cap system comprising a generally conical piping tip 12 having an exterior surface 28 and an open narrow end 30, and a generally conical piping tip cap 10 having mating elements for maintaining the cap 10 in position on the piping tip 12. These mating elements include, for example, a circular indentation 32 extending circumferentially around the exterior surface 28 of the piping tip 12 and a similarly sized circular ridge 34 extending circumferentially around the interior surface 16 of the cap 10, the ridge 34 sized to fit within the circular indentation 32 in the piping tip 12 to maintain the cap 10 in position on the piping tip 12.
As shown in FIG. 4, the plurality of frictional elements 26 affixed to the interior surface 16 of the cover portion 14 comprises a plurality of interior protuberances, such as scales, extending toward the closed end 20 of the cover portion 14. Further embodiments of the invention include a plurality of frictional elements (exterior protuberances), such as scales, or a textured (e.g. pebbled) surface on the exterior surface 18 of the cover portion, to provide the user with a better grip when handling the cap 10. Also shown in FIG. 4 is the circular ridge 34 extending inward from the open end of the cap 10. The open end of the cap 10 is optionally formed of a flexible, or elastomeric, material, such as a silicone-based material. Further embodiments of the invention comprise a plurality of scales affixed to the exterior surface 28 of the piping tip 12, with the scales extending away from the open narrow end 30 of the piping tip 12 in order to frictionally engage the scales on the interior 16 of the cap 10.
To use the piping tip cap 10 of the invention, the cap 10 is pressed down onto the piping tip 12 such that the frictional elements 26 of the cap 10 frictionally engage the piping tip 12. When the embodiment of the invention having a ridge 34 in the cap 10 and a corresponding indentation 32 in the piping tip 12 is employed, the cap 10 is pressed onto the piping tip 12 until the ridge 34 in the cap 10 engages the indentation 32 in the piping tip 12 to hold the cap 10 in place.
While the present disclosure has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.