Pre-cut aluminum foil round covers

Abstract

The present invention is a pre-cut aluminum foil round cover that is more convenient to use than aluminum foil torn from a roll, conserves a substantial amount of aluminum that would otherwise be unnecessarily thrown away, and covers round containers more safely and effectively than an aluminum foil sheet torn from a roll. The most preferred embodiment is a foil round having a 5 inch (12.5 cm) diameter. The foil rounds can be pre-cut and stacked, thereby eliminating the need for packaging that requires a sharp blade or serrated edge, and eliminating the frustration associated with tearing aluminum foil from a tightly wound roll that is supposed to smoothly tumble inside of a long box.

1 . A method of making aluminum foil covers comprising the steps of: 
 forming at least one large sheet of substantially uniform thickness aluminum foil that is flexible and smooth;    cutting the at least one large sheet to form numerous substantially disc-shaped single sheets; and    packaging a predetermined quantity of the substantially disc-shaped single sheets for use by consumers who desire to cover round containers.    
   
   
       2 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the step of recycling at least some of the scrap that is produced by the cutting step.  
   
   
       3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the cutting step is characterized by a die cutting process.  
   
   
       4 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the cutting step is characterized by a stamping process.  
   
   
       5 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the steps of stacking and aligning a predetermined quantity of large sheets such that the cutting step will produce numerous stacks of substantially disc-shaped single sheets.  
   
   
       6 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the step of embossing a design into the aluminum foil.  
   
   
       7 . The method of  claim 4  further comprising the step of embossing a design into the numerous substantially disc-shaped single sheets substantially during the cutting step.  
   
   
       8 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the cutting step is characterized by a decorative design being formed around the perimeter of the substantially disc-shaped single sheets.  
   
   
       9 . A disposable consumer product comprising: 
 a substantially uniform thickness of aluminum foil that is flexible and smooth;    a pre-formed outer perimeter edge that substantially defines a single ready-to-use sheet of aluminum foil; and    a substantially round shape that, when the single sheet is laid out in a plane, is defined by a diameter that is at least one centimeter larger than the diameter of an opening that is desired to be covered.    
   
   
       10 . The disposable consumer product of  claim 9  further comprising a packaging container that holds a stack of a predetermined quantity of ready-to-use sheets of aluminum foil.  
   
   
       11 . The disposable consumer product of  claim 9  characterized by an embossed design.  
   
   
       12 . The disposable consumer product of  claim 9  characterized by a decorative design formed in the outer perimeter edge.  
   
   
       13 . The disposable consumer product of  claim 9  wherein the pre-formed outer perimeter edge is between ten and fifteen centimeters in diameter.  
   
   
       14 . The disposable consumer product of  claim 9  wherein the pre-formed outer perimeter edge is between fifteen and twenty centimeters in diameter.  
   
   
       15 . The disposable consumer product of  claim 9  wherein the pre-formed outer perimeter edge is between twenty and thirty centimeters in diameter.  
   
   
       16 . The disposable consumer product of  claim 9  wherein the pre-formed outer perimeter edge is between thirty and forty centimeters in diameter.  
   
   
       17 . The disposable consumer product of  claim 9  further comprising a non-stick coating on a surface of the aluminum foil.  
   
   
       18 . A method of making a disposable cover for a round can comprising the steps of: 
 substantially centering a pre-cut disc-shaped sheet of aluminum foil over an open end of the can; and    smoothing substantially all overlapping material down the sides of the can.    
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 18  further comprising the step of selecting an appropriately sized pre-cut disc-shaped sheet of aluminum foil such that the overlapping material smoothed down the sides of the can will extend at least one centimeter down all sides of the can, but not more than five centimeters down any side of the can.  
   
   
       20 . The method of  claim 18  further comprising the steps of: 
 carefully removing the disposable cover from the open end of the can;    re-covering the can with the same disposable cover; and    re-smoothing the overlapping material down the sides of the can.