ALEXANDRIA, Va., Dec. 2 -- United States Patent no. 12,486,073, issued on Dec. 2, was assigned to Daisy Brand LLC (Dallas).

"Separate food cups joined by seal sheet hinge" was invented by Ryan Adame (Queen Creek, Ariz.), Matthew Nichols (McKinney, Texas), Vincent Taylor (Dallas), Christine Horan (Northborough, Mass.), Gregg Flender (Bedford, Mass.) and Julia Sharpe (Cambridge, Mass.).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A food containment assembly includes a first cup with a first sealing flange and a second cup with a second sealing flange. The second cup is separate from and disposed adjacent to the first cup. A seal sheet is adhered to the first sealing flange and the second sealing flange, and t...