US3921683A

US3921683A - Tray support assembly for use with tiltable kettles

Info

Publication number: US3921683A
Application number: US451572A
Authority: US
Inventors: Elmer S Vegh; David Schwerzler
Original assignee: Ikon Office Solutions Inc
Current assignee: Ikon Office Solutions Inc
Priority date: 1974-03-15
Filing date: 1974-03-15
Publication date: 1975-11-25
Anticipated expiration: 1992-11-25

Abstract

A tray supporting assembly for use with a tiltable kettle in which the supporting frame which carries the kettle has attached to it vertically disposed cam means which, in turn, slidably receive a tray holder. The tray holder is then pivotally interconnected to one lip of the kettle by means of a bail so that upon tilting movement of the kettle, the tray support is forced downward in a vertical direction along the cam means, thereby permitting the relative relationship between the tray and the pouring spout of the kettle to be maintained regardless of the movement of the kettle from its normal upright position to its final pouring position which would be substantially horizontal or slightly beyond. In this fashion a simple, economical, yet efficient device is provided which ensures safety and accuracy of pouring with a minimum of mechanical complexity.

Description

United States Patent [191 Vegh et al.

[ Nov. 25, 1975 1 TRAY SUPPORT ASSEMBLY FOR USE WITH TILTABLE KETTLES [75] Inventors: Elmer S. Vegh, Lyndhurst; David Schwerzler, Cleveland Heights, both of Ohio [73] Assignee: Alco Standard Corporation,

Cleveland, Ohio 221 Filed: Mar. 15, 1974 21 Appl. No.: 451,572

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Shaw 141/271 Primary Examiner-Richard E. Aegerter Assistant Examiner-Frederick R. Schmidt Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Teare, Teare & Sammon [57] ABSTRACT A tray supporting assembly for use with a tiltable kettle in which the supporting frame which carries the kettle has attached to it vertically disposed cam means which, in turn, slidably receive a tray holder. The tray holder is then pivotally interconnected to one lip of the kettle by means of a bail so that upon tilting movement of the kettle, the tray support is forced downward in a vertical direction along the cam means, thereby permitting the relative relationship between the tray and the pouring spout of the kettle to be maintained regardless of the movement of the kettle from its normal upright position to its final pouring position which would be substantially horizontal or slightly beyond. In this fashion a simple, economical, yet efficient device is provided which ensures safety and accuracy of pouring with a minimum of mechanical complexity.

8 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures US. Patent Nov. 25, 1975 Sheet10f3 3,921,683

U.S. Patent Nov. 25, 1975 Sheet2of3 3,921,683

U.S. Patent Nov. 25, 1975 Sheet30f3 3,921,683

TRAY SUPPORT ASSEMBLY FOR USE WITH TILTABLE KETTLES RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is related to Applicants copending application entitled tiltable cooking receptacle apparatus filed Feb. 22,1974, as Ser. No. 444,782, which is primarily concerned with an improved means for tilting kettles of this general nature.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART Applicant is aware of Shaw US. Pat. No. 3,068,912

which discloses a tiltable kettle assembly and also discloses a tray mechanism which is movable in response to the tilting of the kettle. The structure disclosed therein is, however, considerably more complex and less stable than that disclosed herein and involves a rather intricate parallelogram type linkage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the art of food preparation, it is well known that food in large quantities can be prepared in quite large kettles for purposes of efficiency. The difficulty with apparatus of this type lies in transferring the contents of the large heavy kettle to a more manageable-size receptacle such as a tray, for example.

Accordingly, kettles of this nature have been mounted in various assemblies which enable them to be mechanically tilted to assist in pouring the contents out of the kettle proper. Furthermore and as noted above, attempts have been made to provide holders or supports which would move in response to the tilting motion of the kettle, with these supports receiving the smaller receptacle such as a tray or pan and being maintained in their relative position with respect to the lip of the kettle so as to avoid spillage, which is an advantage both from the standpoint of economy and safety. Devices of this type have heretofore been relatively complex and unstable.

It has been discovered, however, that by providing an attachment for the side of the supporting stand, the attachment, in the form of a bracket, can be provided with fixed elongate vertical cams and thereby attains a substantial increase in stability.

It has also been found that by providing a tray holder with elongate cam tracks and interconnecting the tray holder to the lip of the kettle pivotally by means of a bail member, upon tilting of the kettle from its upright to its horizontal position, the tray holder with its associated cam tracks will ride in a vertical direction down the cams and thereby maintain the tray itself in a predetermined relationship to the spout of the kettle.

In this fashion spillage is avoided but yet a firm, strong support is provided beneath the receiving tray.

Furthermore, this motion and effect is accomplished with a minimum of mechanical linkages and, therefore, provides an improved and more efficient and less trouble-prone device.

Accordingly, production of a tray supporting assembly for use with tiltable kettles of the character described becomes the principal object of this invention, with other objects thereof becoming more apparent upon a reading of the following brief specification considered and interpreted in view of the accompanying drawings.

OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the overall tiltable kettle assembly with the tray support in place.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation view, on an enlarged scale, showing the kettle and the tray holder in various stages of tilting.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the cam means.

FIG. 4 is a further exploded perspective view showing the cam means and the support means, and

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the lines 55 of FIG. 1 showing one means for tilting the kettle in question.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring first to FIG. 1, it will be noted that the overall kettle assembly includes a support stand 10, the kettle 20, the tray support means 30, and the cam means 40. Also illustrated in FIG. 1 in an exploded fashion is the tray itself and the handle for one means of tilting the kettle.

Referring still to FIG. I for a more detailed description of the support stand, it will be noted that the same is generally rectangular in section and includes a plurality of opposed walls 11,11, one of which has been designated as the front" wall 114: for purposes of description. The support stand 10 rests on a plurality of

legs

12,12 and also has a top surface 13 with a circular opening 14 therein for reception of the kettle 20.

A detailed description of the support stand has not been presented herewith since there are a number of these stands commercially available, and construction of the stand per se would be within the skill of one normally skilled in this art. Examples can be found in Shaw US. Pat. No. 3,068,912 above-noted, as well as in Applicants co-pending application, Ser. No. 444,782.

Considering again FIG. 1, it will be noted that the kettle 20 generally has a lower hemispherical portion 21 and an upper cylindrical portion 22. A flanged ring 23 surrounds the cylindrical portion 22 and is intended to rest on the lip of the opening 14 in the table so as to prevent the kettle from slipping entirely into the interior of the table. It will be assumed that the interior of the table contains heating means, etc., as is common with regard to tables of this nature.

It will be noted that the kettle 20 has opposed

arms

24,24 welded or otherwise secured to and projecting from the ring 23 in the direction of the front wall 11a of the support stand. Projecting upwardly from the top surface 13 of the support stand 10 are opposed

brackets

15,15, and a pin or rod 25 is passed through an opening in the

brackets

15,15 and a similar opening in the

projections

24,24 so that the kettle 20 is pivotally secured to the table.

Referring next then to FIGS. 2, 3, and 4, it will be noted that the cam means, generally indicated by the numeral 30, includes a U-shaped bracket which has a base 31 and opposed

legs

32,32. The bracket is appropriately bored for reception of the

screws

33,33 which are threaded into the openings 1112,1111 of the support stand on its front wall 11a. In this fashion the bracket can be secured firmly to the support stand as clearly shown in FIG. 1, for example.

On the outboard ends of the

legs

32,32 are mounted

elongate cam members

35,35. It is contemplated that these cam members could. for example, be comprised of a polymeric material such as Teflon to eliminate the need for lubrication and to provide for smooth and unhindered sliding movement.

Referring still to FIGS. 3 and 4 and particularly to FIG. 4, it will be noted that the tray holder 40 also consists of a U-shaped member having a base 41 and projecting

legs

42,42. Depending from the

legs

42,42 are cam tracks. 43,43 which are U-shaped in cross-section and dimensioned so as to engage the

cams

35,35 in sliding contact therewith. A lower cross brace 44 is also provided for stability purposes, and it will be seen from FIGS. 1 and 4 that once the bracket of the cam means has been affixed to the support stand, the tray support itself 40 can be slipped down over the

cams

35,35 to be in sliding engagement therewith.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 then, it will be noted that on one portion of the lip of the kettle a pouring spout 26 is provided. Affixed to the bottom of this spout 26 is a spring clip 27. It will also be noted that the tray support 40 has a bail-like member 45 pivotally received in the

legs

42,42 thereof. This bail has its opposed end snapped into and pivotally received in the opening of the clip 27, and in this fashion the tray support is pivotally secured to the kettle and will move in response to tilting movement thereof.

Reference is made to FIG. 2, for example, wherein a succession of movements is illustrated in full and broken lines. The normal upright position of the kettle is shown in full lines, while progressive movement to an intermediate position and to a final pouring position in which the kettle has been tilted slightly past the horizontal is shown in broken lines. It will be noted that at all stages of movement, pressure from the spout 26 will be transmitted to the tray support 40 through the bail 45, and the tray support will be forced downwardly in a straight line vertical path of movement by means of the interaction of the cam tracks and the cams. In this fashion the relative position of the tray 50, which is carried on the tray support, with respect to the pouring spout 26 will remain constant, and spillage will be avoided.

In this regard also it is believed important to note that the tray is supported directly below the point it will be receiving the contents of the kettle due to the straight line vertical movement thereof.

As to the means for actually tilting the kettle, reference is made to Applicants co-pending application, Ser. No. 444,782, as well as FIG. 5 of this application.

FIG. 5 shows one form of manual means for tilting the kettle, while Applicants co-pending application also shows a motor driven means for achieving the same result.

It will be noted then from FIG. 5 that a hand crank 60 is mounted on the front wall 110 of the support stand. This crank is connected by a chain drive 61 to an elongate shaft 62. The shaft has a threaded portion 63 and a block 64 is adapted to move along the threaded portion upon rotation of the crank 60. As the block moves to the right of FIG. 5, it willcomeinto contact with the cam 65 which is pivotally mounted on the support bracket 66. As the cam is rotated in an. up-

ward direction. the roller 67 and arm 68 will move from the full to chain-dotted positions. It will be noted that the roller 67 is in contact with the bottom of the hemispherical portion 21 of the kettle, and thus movement from the full to broken line positions will cause the kettle to be tilted around its point of pivotal support.

In the invention, therefore, as the kettle 20 is rotated about the pivot axis, as at 25, the tray support via the cam 30 and bail mechanism is moved vertically downwardly (dotted line FIG. 2) while being maintained in a horizontal position to receive the contents.

of the kettle. Thus. the tray is moved from a position above the general plane of the top surface 13 to a position below the same, while the spout 26 is disposed at the mid-point of the tray in full tilt position of the kettle.

of this nature, both manually and by means of a motor such as is illustrated in applicants co-pending application, Ser. No. 444,782. For the purposes of this application, however, it is sufficient that the kettle. be tilted around its point of pivotal attachment to the support stand by any means desired.

It should be noted that this assembly can be used either as an attachment to an existing tiltable kettle or in combination with an overall assembly specifically de-.

signed for its use.

It should also be noted at this point that, while. one form of cam means has been specifically referred to above, the invention is not intended to be limited to any particular material for the cams.

While a full and complete description of the invention has been set forth in accordance with the dictates of the Patent Statutes, it is understood that modifications may be resorted to without departing from the spirit hereof or the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A tiltable kettle assembly, comprising;

A. a support stand B. a kettle l. pivotally receivable within said support stand,

in sliding movement of said cam follower.

means on said cam means for moving said tray holder relative to said support stand. 2. The assembly of claim 1 wherein A. said cam means include opposed, vertical, elongate cams; and

There are, of course, other means for tilting kettles B. said cam follower means includes opposed elongate cam tracks for sliding engagement with said cams.

3. The assembly of claim 1 wherein said last mentioned means include A. a bail having 1. one end pivotally secured to said tray holder and 2. its opposed end pivotally secured to said kettle.

4. The assembly of claim 3 wherein said kettle includes A. a projecting pouring spout; and

B. a spring clip disposed in the lower surface of said spout;

C. said opposed end of said bail being engaged by said spring clip.

5. A tray support assembly for use in combination with a tiltable kettle assembly which includes a kettle and support stand therefor, and means for tilting the kettle from an upright to a substantially horizontal position, the improvement comprising:

A. cam means adapted to be secured to one side of said support stand;

B. a tray holder for supporting a tray thereon;

C. said tray holder including cam follower means slidably engaged with said cam means for movement of said tray holder relative to said support.

stand when said cam means is secured to said support stand, and D. interconnection means pivotally connected between said tray holder and said kettle 1. whereby tilting movement of said kettle results in sliding movement of said cam follower means on said cam means moving said tray holder rela tive to said support stand when said tray support assembly is in the installed position thereof. 6. The assembly of claim 5 wherein A. said cam means include opposed, vertical, elongate cams; and

B. said cam follower means includes oppoed elongate cam tracks for sliding engagement with said cams.

7. The assembly of claim 5 wherein said last mentioned means include A. a bail having 1. one end adapted to be pivotally secured to said tray holder and 2. its opposed end adapted to be pivotally secured to said kettle.

8. A tiltable kettle assembly, comprising;

A. an upright support stand having 1. a central vertical opening and 2. opposed front, rear, and side walls;

B. a kettle l. disposed within said opening and 2. pivotally attached to said support stand adjacent said front wall;

C. means carried by said support stand and adapted to tilt said kettle to a substantially horizontal positron;-

D. vertically disposed cam means secured to said front wall of said support stand;

E. a tray holder for supporting a tray thereon:

F. said tray holder including cam follower means slidably cngaged with said cam means for vertical movement of said tray holder relative to said support stand; and

G. interconnection means pivotally connected between said tray holder and said kettle 1. whereby tilting movement of said kettle results in sliding movement of said cam follower means on said cam means and impart said vertical movement to said tray holder.

Claims

1. A tiltable kettle assembly, comprising; A. a support stand B. a kettle 1. pivotally receivable within said support stand, and 2. normally disposed therein in an upright position; C. means for tilting said kettle to a substantially horizongal position, and D. tray support apparatus including 1. cam means secured to said support stand 2. a tray holder for supporting a tray thereon 3. said tray holder including cam follower means slidably engaged with said cam means for movement of said tray holder relative to said support stand, and 4. interconnection means pivotally connected between said tray holder and said kettle a. whereby tilting movement of said kettle results in sliding movement of said cam follower means on said cam means for moving said tray holder relative to said support stand.

2. a tray holder for supporting a tray thereon

2. normally disposed therein in an upright position; C. means for tilting said kettle to a substantially horizongal position, and D. tray support apparatus including

2. The assembly of claim 1 wherein A. said cam means include opposed, vertical, elongate cams; and B. said cam follower means includes opposed elongate cam tracks for sliding engagement with said cams.

2. pivotally attached to said support stand adjacent said front wall; C. means carried by said support stand and adapted to tilt said kettle to a substantially horizontal position; D. vertically disposed cam means secured to said front wall of said support stand; E. a tray holder for supporting a tray thereon: F. said tray holder including cam follower means slidably engaged with said cam means for vertical movement of said tray holder relative to said support stand; and G. interconnection means pivotally connected between said tray holder and said kettle

2. opposed front, rear, and side walls; B. a kettle

2. its opposed end adapted to be pivotally secured to said kettle.

2. its opposed end pivotally secured to said kettle.

3. The assembly of claim 1 wherein said last mentioned means include A. a bail having

3. said tray holder including cam follower means slidably engaged with said cam means for movement of said tray holder relative to said support stand, and

4. The assembly of claim 3 wherein said kettle includes A. a projecting pouring spout; and B. a spring clip disposed in the lower surface of said spout; C. said opposed end of said bail being engaged by said spring clip.

4. interconnection means pivotally connected between said tray holder and said kettle a. whereby tilting movement of said kettle results in sliding movement of said cam follower means on said cam means for moving said tray holder relative to said support stand.

5. A tray support assembly for use in combination with a tiltable kettle assembly which includes a kettle and support stand therefor, and means for tilting the kettle from an upright to a substantially horizontal position, the improvement comprising: A. cam means adapted to be secured to one side of said support stand; B. a tray holder for supporting a tray thereon; C. said tray holder including cam follower means slidably engaged with said cam means for movement of said tray holder relative to said support stand when said cam means is secured to said support stand, and D. interconnection means pivotally connected between said tray holder and said kettle

6. The assembly of claim 5 wherein A. said cam means include opposed, vertical, elongate cams; and B. said cam follower means includes oppoed elongate cam tracks for sliding engagement with said cams.

7. The assembly of claim 5 wherein said last mentioned means include A. a bail having

8. A tiltable kettle assembly, comprising; A. an upright support stand having