Foldable eating utensil

Abstract

A foldable eating utensil includes a cutlery head, a first rod, and a second rod that are sequentially connected. A neck of the cutlery head connected to the first rod has a restricting portion corresponding to the neck. When the second rod is folded toward the first rod, the second rod is restricted by the restricting portion from leaving the first rod. When the cutlery head is folded toward the compacted first and second rods, the cutlery head is restricted by the same restricting portion for retaining the second rod. Since the second rod is restricted by the restricting portion, during a process of folding the compacted first and second rods toward the cutlery head by an automatic machine, the work of the automatic machine is not be hindered by the second rod leaving the first rod. Therefore, the foldable eating utensil is suitable for automated packaging.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A foldable eating utensil, comprising:
 a cutlery head, a first rod, and a second rod, which are sequentially connected in a first direction, which is defined as a direction from a front end to a rear end of the foldable eating utensil, and   wherein the cutlery head includes a functional portion and a neck, wherein the neck extends in the first direction from the functional portion;   wherein a front end of the first rod is foldably connected to a rear end of the neck; and a section of the first rod, where the first rod is overlapped with the neck of the cutlery head when the cutlery head is folded toward the first rod, has a restricting portion; and   wherein a front end of the second rod is foldably connected to a rear end of the first rod; when the second rod is folded toward the first rod, the second rod is restricted by the restricting portion from moving away from the first rod, thereby keeping the first rod and the second rod compacted; when the cutlery head is folded toward the first rod and the second rod that are compacted, the neck of the cutlery head is restricted by the same restricting portion for restricting the second rod, thereby keeping the foldable eating utensil in a compacted state.   
     
     
         2 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein a first hinge joint is located between the front end of the first rod and the neck; a second hinge joint is located between the rear end of the first rod and the front end of the second rod; a length of the second rod in the first direction is greater than a length between the second hinge joint and the restricting portion and is smaller than a length of the first rod in the first direction. 
     
     
         3 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the first rod has two first edges at right and left sides; the restricting portion comprises at least one lateral hook that is disposed on one of the two first edges and extends upward; each of the at least one lateral hooks is flexible; an interior side of a top portion of each of the at least one lateral hook has a protrusion; the protrusion on each of the at least one lateral hook is adapted to sequentially lock the second rod and the neck of the cutlery head. 
     
     
         4 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein the neck of the cutlery head has two neck peripheries at right and left sides; the second rod has two second edges at right and left sides; the protrusion of each of the at least one lateral hook is located at a position where the protrusion is pushed by one of the two second edges during a process of folding the second rod toward the first rod; simultaneously, the protrusion of each of the at least one lateral hook is located at the position where the protrusion is pushed by one of the two neck peripheries of the cutlery head during a process of folding the cutlery head toward the first rod. 
     
     
         5 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 4 , wherein the restricting portion comprises two lateral hooks that are respectively disposed on two first edges and are arranged symmetrically along the first direction. 
     
     
         6 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 4 , wherein the restricting portion comprises one lateral hook that is disposed on one of the two first edges. 
     
     
         7 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 4 , wherein the restricting portion comprises two lateral hooks that are respectively disposed on two first edges and are arranged in a staggered manner. 
     
     
         8 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the first rod has two first edges at right and left sides; the restricting portion comprises at least one tilted lateral hook that is disposed on one of the two first edges and extends upward; each of the at least one tilted lateral hooks is flexible; an interior side of a top portion of each of the at least one tilted lateral hook has a protrusion; the protrusion on each of the at least one tilted lateral hook is adapted to sequentially lock the second rod and the neck of the cutlery head. 
     
     
         9 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 8 , wherein the neck of the cutlery head has two neck peripheries at right and left sides; the protrusion of each of the at least one tilted lateral hook is located at a position where the protrusion is pushed by one of the two second edges during a process of folding the second rod toward the first rod; simultaneously, the protrusion of each of the at least one tilted lateral hook is located at the position where the protrusion is pushed by one of the two neck peripheries of the cutlery head during a process of folding the cutlery head toward the first rod. 
     
     
         10 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 8 , wherein an imaginary line is defined to be perpendicular to a top surface of the first rod; each of the at least one tilted lateral hook extends upward and is tilted medially; a tilted angle between each of the at least one tilted lateral hook and an imaginary line is smaller than and equal to 3 degrees. 
     
     
         11 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the restricting portion comprises two tilted lateral hooks that are respectively disposed on two first edges and are arranged symmetrically along the first direction. 
     
     
         12 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the restricting portion comprises one tilted lateral hook that is disposed on one of the two first edges. 
     
     
         13 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the restricting portion comprises two tilted lateral hooks that are respectively disposed on two first edges and are arranged in a staggered manner. 
     
     
         14 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the first rod has two first edges at right and left sides; the neck of the cutlery head has two neck peripheries at right and left sides; the second rod has two second edges at right and left sides; the restricting portion comprises two lateral hooks that are respectively disposed on the two first edges and extend upward; each of the two lateral hooks is flexible, and a top of each of the two lateral hooks has a curved surface; a distance between the two second edges is greater than a distance between the interior sides of the two lateral hooks; when the second rod is folded toward the first rod, the second rod slides along the two curved surfaces to enter into and be restricted by a space between the two lateral hooks; a distance between the two neck peripheries is greater than the distance between the two second edges; when the neck is folded toward the first rod, the neck slides along the two curved surfaces to enter into and be restricted by a space between the two lateral hooks. 
     
     
         15 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 2 , wherein the restricting portion is a retainer on a top surface of the first rod; the retainer has a retaining surface facing toward the rear end; the neck of the cutlery head has a slit; the foldable eating utensil has a second direction is defined as a direction extends from a left side to a right side; a width of the retainer in the second direction is greater than a width of the slit in the second direction; the rear end of the second rod urges the retaining surface when the second rod is folded toward the first rod; the retainer is inserted into the cutlery head when the cutlery head is folded toward the first rod. 
     
     
         16 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein a top of the retaining surface has a guiding surface, and a height of a convex surface of the retainer is gradually reduced in a direction from the top to a front end of the retainer; the rear end of the second rod slides along the guiding surface to move downward to urges the retaining surface. 
     
     
         17 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the functional portion is either a fork head or a spoon head. 
     
     
         18 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 17 , wherein the functional portion has a bowl, and the bowl extends in the first direction to an inner side of the neck to form a groove in the inner side of the neck; when the cutlery head is folded toward the second rod and the first rod that are compacted, the bowl receives the second rod, and the groove receives the rear end of the second rod. 
     
     
         19 . The foldable eating utensil as claimed in  claim 18 , wherein a bottom side of the neck and the front end of the first rod jointly form a first buckle assembly; a bottom side of the rear end of the first rod and the front end of the second rod jointly form a second buckle assembly.