Foods and beverages: apparatus – Cooking – Diverse cooker types
Reexamination Certificate
2000-12-01
2002-05-14
Alexander, Reginald L. (Department: 1761)
Foods and beverages: apparatus
Cooking
Diverse cooker types
C099S340000, C099S423000, C099S448000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06386092
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to cookware and in particular to an electric grill comprising grilling, cooking, and frying surfaces. The device is configured to allow the dimensions of the cooking surfaces to be conveniently adjusted to accommodate varying quantities and types of foods.
2. Description of the Background
A market exists for portable indoor cooking devices, and a number of indoor grill configurations have sprung up to satisfy this demand. Indoor cooking grills are characterized by a heated cooking surface within a compact design which facilitates portability. Most indoor grills use electricity to cook. One design prevalent in the background art incorporates a clam-shell type hinged lid comprising an upper and lower cooking surface. In the closed position both surfaces cook the food. U.S. Pat. No. 5,845,562 to Deni et al. teaches one such device. The grill comprises a top and bottom cooking surface having a centrally positioned hinge component for lifting or closing the lid. The cooking surfaces comprise a plurality of rounded ribs and channels which drain greases and other liquids from the food. Other indoor grills incorporate distinguishing features such as heating chambers for buns or rolls. U.S. Pat. No. 6,016,741 to Tsai et al. shows an indoor grill having a top and bottom cooking surface in one chamber for cooking foods, which lies beneath a second chamber provided for warming buns or rolls. Both cooking chambers are accessible by opening a clam shell-like hinged lid.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,606,905 to Boehm, et al. discloses a hinged grilling apparatus comprising upper and lower cooking surfaces. A vapor chamber is formed when the lid is sealed closed over the food. The bottom cooking surface is inclined to remove grease and other liquids emanating from the foodstuffs out of the cooking chamber and into a detachable collection plate.
Unfortunately each of the above grills is hampered by the miniature size of their cooking surfaces. To maintain portability, and conserve counter or table space while in use, and facilitate the opening and closing of the hinged lid, it has been necessary to sacrifice the dimensions of the cooking surfaces on these grills. The result has been that indoor grills are unsuitable for preparing foods for more people or more types of food using one unit. When preparing foods on an indoor grill, the cook is forced to make smaller amounts of food at a time which increases the overall cooking time, and requires the host to serve the food in waves, rather than serving everyone at once.
A further difficulty with indoor grills is found in the limited types of grill surfaces available. Flat griddle-like surfaces are useful for frying foods, such as eggs, potatoes, or pancakes. By contrast, a ribbed surface is better for grilling foods like meats. The ribbed surface more closely approximates an outdoor grilling arrangement and channels between the ribs carry away grease and fats which drain from meats while cooking. Lacking in the background art is an indoor grill for cooking which comprises both types of cooking and grilling surfaces in one grill.
It would therefore be advantageous to have an indoor cooking grill which incorporates both grilling and cooking surfaces in a configuration that is large enough to prepare sufficient quantities of various foodstuffs at the same time, and which is economical to manufacture and easily cleaned. It would further be advantageous to have a grill with separate cooking surfaces so that the juices from the different foodstuffs are unable to mix while cooking, thereby preserving the individual flavor of each food. Finally, it would be advantageous to incorporate a temperature control mechanism whereby the temperature of the cooking surfaces may be selected from a range of settings.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide an electric indoor cooking grill which enables the user to simultaneously cook different foods within separate compartments on the same grill without mixing the juices and therefore the flavors, of the foods.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a large flat cooking surface defining a first primary cooking surface enclosed by a shallow retaining wall.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a smaller detachable ribbed grilling surface defining a second cooking surface housed in a pan which can be seated on top of the first cooking surface thereby yielding three separate cooking surfaces.
It is yet another object of the present invention to enable the second ribbed grilling surface to slide laterally over the first flat cooking surface thereby changing the dimensions of the cooking compartments on the first cooking surface.
It is a further object of the present invention to channel grease, released while cooking meats, into a collection reservoir by incorporating a plurality of sloping channels on the second cooking surface.
It is still another object of the present invention to supply an integral electric heat source to the first cooking surface.
It is yet another object of the present invention to transmit heat from the first cooking surface into and through the second grilling surface.
It is a further object of the present invention to regulate the temperature of the first cooking surface by means of an attachable thermostat control which additionally functions to turn the device on and off.
It is still further an object of the present invention to provide a stable one-piece base structure of a heat resistant plastic which elevates the first cooking surface.
These and other objects are accomplished by a portable electric grill comprising four elements: a stable base; a large flat pan defining a first grilling surface and comprising an integral electric heat source; an adjustable grillpan defining a second cooking surface; and a power cord with an integral temperature control dial. The first cooking surface comprises a large flat surface area bounded by four shallow sides, giving the appearance of a large shallow pan. The first cooking surface rests on top of a base platform of heat resistant plastic. The base is a unitary structure comprising four legs, a horizontally disposed platform frame, and a shallow retaining wall which circumscribes three sides of the frame. The first cooking surface houses all electric socket connector which mates with a unit carrying a temperature control dial. The temperature control unit further comprises a length of electrical cord and plug suitable for use in an A/C power source. The second cooking surface is housed within a smaller pan of a dimension which enables it to fit snugly within the pan defined by the first cooking surface. So arranged, two sides of the grillpan contact parallel sides of the larger pan comprising the first cooking surface. The contacting sides and bottom thereby fit together to prevent the mixture of food juices between the compartments while cooking. Further, the grillpan divides the first cooking surface, yielding three available cooking surfaces. One surface lies on each side of the grillpan, with the grillpan itself comprising the third available cooking surface. The grillpan slides laterally over the first cooking surface, thereby changing the dimensions of the cooking compartments. Further, the cooking surface in the grillpan comprises a series of parallel ribs and sloping channels which facilitate the draining of grease or liquids when meats and other foods are grilled.
Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and certain modifications thereof.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4800865 (1989-01-01), Setzer
patent: 5465654 (1995-11-01), Lampi et al.
patent: 5579680 (1996-12-01), Graur
patent: 5606905 (1997-03-01), Boehm et al.
patent: 5829361 (1998-11-01), Richter
patent: 5845562 (1998-12-01), Deni et al.
patent: 5967022 (1999-10-01), Moschella
patent: 6016741 (2000-01-01), Tsai et
Alexander Reginald L.
Law Offices of Royal W. Craig
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