Ready Meals Shipping

Abstract

A ready-meal shipping container includes: a housing comprising a plurality of walls bounding an interior cavity and a food-tray-retention assembly. The food-tray-retention assembly includes a plurality of racks arranged in a stacked configuration within the interior cavity of the housing, and an elongated sleeve aligned with the racks.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A ready-meal shipping container, comprising:
 a housing comprising a plurality of walls bounding an interior cavity; and   a food-tray-retention assembly, comprising:   a plurality of racks arranged in a stacked configuration within the interior cavity of the housing, each of the racks including one or more discrete bounded cells for receiving modular food trays; and   an elongated sleeve aligned with the racks and configured to receive a temperature control member in a position to promote heat transfer between the temperature control member and modular food trays received in the cells,   wherein each of the racks is configured and arranged within the interior cavity such that, during shipping operations, the modular food trays are retained in a fixed position relative to each other, the walls of the housing, and the elongated sleeve.   
     
     
         2 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein the housing further comprises a non-planar gable structure enclosing a top portion of the interior cavity. 
     
     
         3 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 2 , wherein the gable structure comprises an upstanding ridge spanning at least a portion of the length of the housing. 
     
     
         4 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 3 , wherein the ridge extends to a maximum height that is at least about 10% of the overall height of the housing. 
     
     
         5 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 4 , wherein the ridge extends to a maximum height that is between about 15% and 45% of the overall height of the housing. 
     
     
         6 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 5 , wherein the ridge extends to a maximum height that is about 40% of the overall height of the housing. 
     
     
         7 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 3 , wherein the upstanding ridge defines a handhold aperture therethrough. 
     
     
         8 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 3 , wherein the gable structure further comprises a pair of upstanding panels located proximate opposing ends of the ridge. 
     
     
         9 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 8 , wherein each of the panels includes a slot opening for receiving a corresponding end of the ridge. 
     
     
         10 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein the housing, the racks, and the sleeve are manufactured from a recyclable material. 
     
     
         11 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein each of the discrete cells defines a rounded rectangular shape. 
     
     
         12 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the discrete bounded cells of a rack located immediately above the sleeve comprises a throughhole aperture to expose a bottom portion of the food tray received therein to the elongated sleeve. 
     
     
         13 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 12 , wherein at least one of the modular food trays is supported in one of the racks, such that a bottom surface of the tray is suspended at a distance from the elongated sleeve. 
     
     
         14 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , further comprising a plurality of insulators positioned between the walls of the housing and the food-tray-retention assembly. 
     
     
         15 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 14 , wherein at least one of the insulators comprises a cushioned pad encased in insulating material. 
     
     
         16 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve is positioned between adjacent racks in the stacked configuration. 
     
     
         17 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve is positioned immediately on top of a topmost rack in the stacked configuration. 
     
     
         18 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein each of the racks includes a face panel extending across a space between two opposing side walls, and wherein the cells comprise apertures bounded by surface material of the face panel. 
     
     
         19 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein the temperature control member comprises a cooling element located within an interior space of the sleeve. 
     
     
         20 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the modular food trays comprises a main body and a lip extending outwardly from the main body, and wherein the main body is received within an open space of one of the cells of one of the racks, with the lip overhanging a surface of the rack between adjacent cells. 
     
     
         21 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein each of the racks consists essentially of a single contiguous planar blank folded into a three dimensional structure. 
     
     
         22 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein the housing consists essentially of a single contiguous planar blank folded into a three dimensional structure. 
     
     
         23 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 1 , wherein the sleeve is located in a position to promote heat transfer via natural convection current. 
     
     
         24 . A ready-meal shipping container, comprising:
 a housing comprising a plurality of walls bounding an interior cavity; and   a food-tray-retention assembly, comprising:   at least one rack located within the interior cavity of the housing, the rack including one or more discrete bounded cells for receiving modular food trays; and   an elongated sleeve positioned adjacent the rack and configured to receive a temperature control member in a position to promote heat transfer between the temperature control member and modular food trays received in the cells,   wherein the housing further comprises a non-planar gable structure enclosing a top portion of the interior cavity.   
     
     
         25 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 24 , wherein the gable structure comprises an upstanding ridge spanning at least a portion of the length of the housing. 
     
     
         26 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 25 , wherein the ridge extends to a maximum height that is at least about 10% of the overall height of the housing. 
     
     
         27 . The ready-meal shipping container of  claim 26 , wherein the ridge extends to a maximum height that is about 40% of the overall height of the housing. 
     
     
         28 . A packaged ready-meal assembly, comprising:
 a housing comprising a plurality of walls bounding an interior cavity; and   at least one rack located within the interior cavity of the housing, the rack having a planar surface defining one or more discrete openings;   one or more food trays containing pre-cooked food and positioned in the one or more openings and held spaced from one another by the rack; and   an elongated sleeve spanning the rack and positioning a cooled substance in spaced relation to the one or more food trays.   
     
     
         29 . The packaged ready-meal assembly of  claim 28 , wherein the housing further comprises a non-planar gable structure enclosing a top portion of the interior cavity. 
     
     
         30 . The packaged ready-meal assembly of  claim 28 , wherein the sleeve is exposed to a surface of each of the one or more food trays. 
     
     
         31 . The packaged ready-meal assembly of  claim 28 , wherein the sleeve is located in a position to promote heat transfer between the cooled substance and the one or more food trays via natural convection current.