Patent ID: 7597206

Claim:
A one-piece thermoformed container for storing food items, comprising: a tray comprising a bottom wall from which extends a peripheral wall to define a recess for storing food items, with the peripheral wall terminating in a peripheral flange to define an open top for providing access to the recess; and a cover sized to close the open top of the tray and comprising a top wall terminating in a peripheral flange; a hinge connecting the tray and the cover for relative movement between an opened and a closed condition such that the tray and cover can be relatively moved to selectively close the tray with the cover; a first peripheral seal structure provided on the tray and circumscribing the recess and having a rear portion adjacent the hinge and a front portion opposite the rear portion, with the rear portion having a projection; and a second peripheral seal structure provided on the cover having a rear portion adjacent the hinge and having a front portion opposite the rear portion, with the rear portion having a projection, and the first and second peripheral seal structures cooperate to form a peripheral seal between the tray and the cover circumscribing the tray recess in the closed condition; wherein the cover is vertically offset from the hinge such that the projection on the rear portion of the second peripheral seal is lower than the projection of the rear portion of the first peripheral seal in the opened condition, and the rear portion of the second peripheral seal structure is wider than the rear portion of the first peripheral seal structure, such that upon the relative rotation of the cover and tray, the projection on the rear portion of the second peripheral seal structure hooks with the projection on the rear portion of the first peripheral seal structure to form an axis of rotation therebetween for the subsequent movement of the cover to the closed condition and upon the application of a compression force between the front portions of the first and second seal structures a peripheral seal is formed around the recess to effect a one-step formation of the peripheral seal and thereby form a one-step closing container.