Automated vacuum canister

Abstract

An automated vacuum container can include a main body, lid, valve(s), automated pump, processor, and input device(s). The main body can have an outer housing, sealable opening, and inner volume. The lid can be removably coupled to the main body to cover the sealable opening and can include air passage(s) therethrough. Valve(s) can control airflow through air passage(s). as air is pumped from the inner volume to form a vacuum. The processor can operate in sleep and awake modes, receive input(s), and control pump operation. An input device can send a wake up signal to the processor based on an environmental condition change. Pressure sensor(s) can detect pressure within the inner volume and provide input to the processor. The pump can be stopped when pressure is sufficiently low and restarted when pressure rises above a threshold level, such as when stored perishable item(s) outgas under vacuum within the inner volume.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An automated vacuum container, comprising:
 a main body having an outer housing, an inner volume contained therein, and a sealable opening therethrough, wherein the inner volume is configured to store one or more perishable items received through the sealable opening;   a lid removably coupled to the main body and covering the sealable opening, wherein the lid includes an inner surface proximate the inner volume, an outer surface proximate an exterior of the automated vacuum container, and one or more air passages from the inner surface to the outer surface;   one or more valves located within or proximate the lid, wherein the one or more valves are configured to control the flow of air through the one or more air passages;   an automated pump located within or proximate the lid and coupled to the one or more air passages, wherein the automated pump is configured to pump air from the inner surface through the one or more air passages to the outer surface to form a vacuum within the inner volume;   a processing component located within or proximate the lid and coupled to the automated pump, wherein the processing component is configured to receive one or more inputs, to control operation of the automated pump based on the one or more inputs, and to operate in a sleep mode to conserve power and an awake mode based on one or more environmental conditions; and   at least one input device located within or proximate the lid and coupled to the processing component, the at least one input device being configured to generate a wake up signal and send the wake up signal to the processing component based on an environmental condition change,   
       wherein the processing component is further configured to wake up from its sleep mode to its awake mode when it receives the wake up signal. 
     
     
         2 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a user interface located at or proximate the outer surface of the lid, wherein actuation of the user interface results in a user input being provided to the processing component.   
     
     
         3 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 2 , wherein the user interface includes a button located along a top surface of the lid. 
     
     
         4 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one input device includes an accelerometer configured to detect motion of the lid. 
     
     
         5 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more valves include a check valve, a solenoid valve, or both. 
     
     
         6 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 one or more pressure sensors located within or proximate the lid and coupled to the processing component, wherein the one or more pressure sensors are configured to detect an air pressure within the inner volume and to provide a detected air pressure input to the processing component.   
     
     
         7 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 6 , wherein the processing component is configured to turn off the automated pump when the detected air pressure input is below a minimum threshold pressure and to turn on the automated pump when the detected air pressure input is above a maximum threshold pressure. 
     
     
         8 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a battery located within or proximate the lid, wherein the battery is coupled to the processing component; and   a charging port located along the lid outer surface and coupled to the battery, wherein the charging port is configured to facilitate charging the battery from an external power source.   
     
     
         9 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a status indicator located at or proximate the outer surface of the lid and coupled to the processing component, wherein the status indicator is configured to indicate statuses regarding inner vacuum state, pump operation, battery charge, charging operation, or any combination thereof.   
     
     
         10 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a filter located proximate the inner surface of the lid, wherein the filter is removable and is configured to prevent fine particles from entering the one or more air passages;   a screen located proximate the filter, wherein the screen is removable and is configured to keep coarse particles away from the filter; and   a gasket located between the lid and the main body, wherein the gasket is configured to provide an airtight seal when the lid is coupled to the main body.   
     
     
         11 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 1 , wherein the main body is a cylindrical canister including a first threaded region at the sealable opening and the lid includes a second threaded region configured to facilitate a rotational coupling of the lid to the first threaded region of the cylindrical canister. 
     
     
         12 . An automated vacuum lid configured to maintain a vacuum within a separate associated container having an inner volume, the automated vacuum lid comprising:
 an upper lid housing having an outer surface proximate an exterior of the automated vacuum lid;   a lower lid housing coupled to the upper lid housing to form an internal lid space therebetween, the lower lid housing having an inner surface arranged to be proximate to the inner volume of the separate associated container when the automated vacuum lid is removably coupled to the separate associated container;   one or more air passages located within the internal lid space, wherein the one or more air passages connect the inner surface to the outer surface;   one or more valves located within the internal lid space, wherein the one or more valves are configured to control the flow of air through the one or more air passages;   an automated pump located within the internal lid space and coupled to the one or more air passages, wherein the automated pump is configured to pump air from the inner surface through the one or more air passages to the outer surface to form a vacuum within the inner volume of the separate associated container;   a processing component located within or proximate the lid and coupled to the automated pump, wherein the processing component is configured to receive one or more inputs, to control operation of the automated pump based on the one or more inputs, and to operate in a sleep mode to conserve power and an awake mode based on one or more environmental conditions; and   at least one input device located within or proximate the lid and coupled to the processing component, the at least one input device being configured to generate a wake up signal and send the wake up signal to the processing component based on an environmental condition change, wherein the processing component is further configured to wake up from its sleep mode to its awake mode when it receives the wake up signal.   
     
     
         13 . The automated vacuum lid of  claim 12 , further comprising:
 a user interface located at or proximate the outer surface, wherein actuation of the user interface results in a user input being provided to the processing component.   
     
     
         14 . The automated vacuum lid of  claim 12 , wherein the at least one input device includes an accelerometer configured to detect motion of the lid. 
     
     
         15 . The automated vacuum lid of  claim 12 , further comprising:
 one or more pressure sensors located within the internal lid space and coupled to the processing component, wherein the one or more pressure sensors are configured to detect an air pressure within the inner volume of the separate associated container and to provide a detected air pressure input to the processing component, and wherein the processing component is configured to turn off the automated pump when the detected air pressure input falls below a minimum threshold pressure and to turn on the automated pump when the detected air pressure input rises above a maximum threshold pressure.   
     
     
         16 . The automated vacuum container of  claim 15 , wherein the air pressure within the inner volume of the separate associated container rises above the maximum threshold pressure due to outgassing of one or more perishable items stored within the inner volume under vacuum. 
     
     
         17 . The automated vacuum lid of  claim 12 , further comprising:
 a status indicator located at or proximate the outer surface and coupled to the processing component, wherein the status indicator is configured to indicate statuses regarding vacuum state of the inner volume of the separate associated container, pump operation, battery charge, charging operation, or any combination thereof.   
     
     
         18 . A method of maintaining a vacuum state within an automated vacuum container, the method comprising:
 monitoring automatically by a pressure sensor a pressure level within an inner volume of the automated vacuum container, wherein the inner volume is configured to store one or more perishable items under vacuum;   determining automatically by a processing component coupled to the pressure sensor when the pressure level rises above a maximum threshold pressure;   activating automatically by the processing component an automated pump when the pressure level is determined to rise above the maximum threshold pressure;   pumping automatically by the automated pump air out of the inner volume;   determining automatically by the processing component when the pressure level falls below a minimum threshold pressure; and   turning off automatically by the processing component the automated pump when the pressure level is determined to fall below the minimum threshold pressure.   
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the automated vacuum container includes a main body having the inner volume and a lid removably coupled to the main body, the lid including the pressure sensor, the processing component, the automated pump, and one or more air passages connecting the inner volume to an exterior or the automated vacuum container. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein the step of monitoring includes operating in a sleep mode to conserve battery power and waking up from the sleep mode at periodic intervals to perform the remaining steps. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 18 , further comprising the steps of:
 receiving a user input prior to the step of monitoring;   activating the automated pump in response to the user input; and   pumping air out of the inner volume by the automated pump until a vacuum state is reached within the inner volume.