Foods and beverages: apparatus – Cooking – Collapsible – expansible or sectional support
Reexamination Certificate
2000-09-07
2001-05-22
Simone, Timothy F. (Department: 1761)
Foods and beverages: apparatus
Cooking
Collapsible, expansible or sectional support
C099S339000, C099S483000, C126S00900B, C126S033000, C126S040000, C211S181100, C211S189000, C248S150000, C248S153000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06234068
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a food service system for supporting, heating, serving and displaying food in trays and, more particularly, to a chafing dish assembly that is collapsible for storage and erectable during food service.
2. Description of the Related Art
Caterers, picnickers, campers, householders having a party and the like serve food, and sometimes utensils, in a conventional chafing dish or tray supported on a frame. When the food is to be served hot, it is common to place a petroleum-based gel within a can and commonly referred to as “sterno”, or analogous burners, underneath the tray. The tray may be filled with water, and dishes or smaller trays containing the food are placed in the heated water. Alternately, the tray may be directly filled with the food.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,467,697, 5,287,800 and 5,517,903 are examples of such chafing dish assemblies which, advantageous as they are in serving heated food, suffer from being difficult to assemble and disassemble at a particular location. Thus, kits of multiple parts have to be assembled and disassembled, and various components have to be manipulated in the process. All such actions detract from the ability to set up and remove a food serving system rapidly and efficiently.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is a general object of this invention to quickly set up a food service system, and to quickly collapse and remove the food service system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In keeping with the above objects and others which will become apparent hereafter, one feature of the present invention resides, briefly stated, in a food service system, comprising a frame having frame elements bounding a generally horizontal main plane, the frame elements having upper edges for supporting a tray; a pair of legs pivotably connected to the frame for movement between a collapsed position in which the legs lie within the frame and along said main plane, and an erected position in which the legs extend away from, and elevate, the frame relative to a support surface on which the system rests in use; and a pair of heater supports pivotably connected to the legs for movement between a folded position in which the heater supports lie within the legs and along said main plane, and an unfolded position in which the heater supports extend away from the legs in another generally horizontal plane located below, and generally parallel to, said main plane.
A pair of lifting handles is spaced apart along the frame. In accordance with this invention, the legs and the heater supports automatically move to their erected and unfolded positions upon lifting of the frame by the handles. Conversely, the legs and the heater supports are easily returned to their collapsed and folded positions for storage and transport purposes.
In the preferred embodiment, the frame is generally rectangular. Two of the frame elements extend along longitudinal axes. Another two of the frame elements extend along transverse axes generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axes. The legs are pivoted at opposite ends of the longitudinal frame elements. Each leg has a pair of leg elements pivotably connected to the longitudinal frame elements, and a base element extending between the leg elements and resting on the support surface.
Moreover, each leg element has a ledge, and each heater support is pivotably connected to a respective leg adjacent the ledge, and engages the ledge in the unfolded position. Also, the frame has abutments for engaging the legs in the collapsed position.
The novel features which are considered as characteristic of the invention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.
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patent: 4157801 (1979-06-01), Elmer
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patent: 5287800 (1994-02-01), Orednick
patent: 5293859 (1994-03-01), Lisker
patent: 5467697 (1995-11-01), Hunziker
patent: 5517903 (1996-05-01), Kaufman
Kirschstein et al.
Simone Timothy F.
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