Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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This invention relates to a lifter for mc~nipulating a
grill used on barbeques and the like.
There are many forms of structures designed for cooking
over hot charcoal or other sources of heat. Such structures are
commonly referred to as barbeques, and for the purpose of the
present invention the word "barbe~ue" is intended to include all
structures having a tray or the like containing a source of heat
and a grill over the heat for supporting the food to be cooked.
One of the main difficulties encountered when using a
10 barbeque is the need to vary the heat applied to the food. The
present invention is intended to simplify making adjustments to
; grills o~ the type which can be turned around or turned over to
change the height of the food-supporting surface above the heat
source. These grills are generally Z-shaped in cross-section
15 for support on two of three shelves at different heights and at
opposite sides of the heat source. The height of the
food-supporting surface depends upon which of several ways the
grill is placed on the shelves.
Accordingly the invention provides a lifter for
20 engaging selected ones of the bars in a grill to lift the grill
either so that it can be retained in a horizontal position for
simply turning the grill back to front, or so that it hangs down
verticall~ from the lifter for turning the grill over.
The invention will be better understood with reference
25 to the following description which refers to the accompanying
drawings, in which
Fig. l is a perspective view looking generally from the
bottom of a preferred embodiment of the lifter according to the
invention;
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Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the lifter in use
to support a grill in a ~enerally horizontal position for
turning the grill back to front;
Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a portion of the grill
and li~ter on line 3-3 of Fig. 2,
Fig. ~ is a perspective view of the lifter being used
to turn the grill over and showing an initial movement;
Fig. 5 is a sectional view on line 5-5 of Fig. 4;
Fig. 6 is a further perspective view showing the grill
being turned o~er after moving from the position shown in Fig. 4;
Fig. 7 (drawn adjacent Fig. 1) illustrates parts of the
lifter during assembly;
Fig. 8 is a sectional vlew of a part of the lifter on
line 8-8 of Fig. l; and
Fig. 9 is a perspective view of an alternative
embodiment of the lifter.
Reference is first made to Fig. 1 which shows a
preferred embodiment of a lifter 20 consisting of a handle 22
terminating at a pair of parallel legs 24, 26 which in turn
terminate at respective reaction portions 28, 30. These
portions define acute angles with the legs 24, 26 and terminate
at hooked end portions 32, 34. The acute angle is such that a
perpendicular drawn at the hooked end portions with reference to
a plane containing the reaction portions 28, 30 will pass
through the handle 22 for reasons which will be explained later.
The relationships between the end portions 32, 34 and
the remainder of the handle will be explained more fully with
reference to the use of the handle.
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As seen in Fig. 2, the handle 20 is being used to lift
a grill 36 while maintaining the grill in a yenerally horizontal
position. The grill is to be used in association with a
barbeque structure 3& having a front shelf 40 and respective
S upper and lower rear shelves 42, 43 for supporting the grill 36
in a variety of positions to vary the height of the
food-supporting surface of the grill a~ove charcoal, or other
heat source, 44. A second grill 46 is in position resting on
the front shelf 40 and the upper rear shelf 42. The grill
includes a first portion 48, a second portion 50, and riser
portion 52. The riser portion effectively offsets one of the
portions 48, 50 from the other portion. Consequently, if the
grill is rotated about a vertical axis (i.e. turned back to
front), then the grill can rest on the front shelf 40 with the -
portion 50 adjacent this shelf and on the lower rear shelf 43.
This will lower the food-supporting surface of the grill.
Alternatively, if the grill is turned over as well as rotated
back to front, then it will rest on the front shelf 40 and on
the upper rear shelf 42 to provide a higher food-suppo}ting
20 surface. ~ '
In Fig. 2, a user is supporting the grill 36 with the
- lifter 20 and, because of the arrangement of the lifter relative
to the grill, it is possible to maintain the grill in a
horizontal position for rotating it back to front. This can be
explained with reference to Fig. 3 where it is seen that the
hooked end portion 32 (which is exemplary of both end portions
32, 34) is proportioned to project through the space between
adjacent bars 54, 56 of the grill 36 and to engage under the bar
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54. Because the centre of gravity of the yrill is to the left
of the end portion 32 (as drawn), there is a tendency for the
grill to rotate in the direction indicated by the arrows. Tnis
is resisted by engagement with the reaction portion 28, the
S necessary reaction torque being provided by the user gripping
the handle of the liEter.
'rhe lifter is engayed in the grill 36 by slipping the
very ends of the portions 32, 34 between the bars 54, 56 with
the reaction portions 28, 30 in a generally vertical position.
Once the end portions are between the bars, the lifter is
rotated bringing the end portions under the bar 54 and the
reaction portions 28, 30 into engagement with a further bar 58.
To remove the lifter, the procedure is reversed.
If it is desired to turn the grill over instead of
turning it back to front, a procedure is adopted which is
illustrated in Figs. 4 to 6. As seen in Fig. 4, the lifter has
been engaged in a different manner from that shown in Fig. 2.
In Fig. 4 the lifter is engaged about an outermost one 59 of the
bars with the reaction portions 28, 30 (Fig. 1) between the
2Q hooked end portions and the centre of gravity of the grill 36.
Alternatively, any of the three outermost bars can be thus
engaged. ~ith any of these bars, the tendency is for the grill
to rotate in the lifter, in the direction indicated by an arrow
in Fig~ 5, as the user raises the lifter, so that the grill
eventually hangs vertically from the lifter. In order to limit
forces which would otherwise tend to rotate the lifter, the
handle 22 ~Fig. 1) is positioned effectively above the hooked
end portions 32, 34 when the reaction portions 28, 30 are in a
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.,orizontal position. To achieve thi~, the afore--mentioned ~cute
angle exists between the legs 24, 26 and the portions 2~, 30.
It will be appreciated that if this angle were 90, the weight
of the grill would tilt the lifter to a position in which it
would tend to disengage from the grill. For safety reasons this
is obviously undesirable and this is why an acute angle is used.
With the grill hanginy down from the lifter, it can be
turned and positioned generally as shown in Fig. 6 and lowered
into position. Now the food-supporting surface has been
la elevated in relation to its original position which was similar
to that of the grill 48.
It will be appreciated that the lifter is both simple
and effective in use. Because of its shape, it can safely be
used to lift quite heavy and hot grills without fear of dropping
the grill or burning the users hand. The grill can be relocated
quite readily either by simply turning it back to front, by
turning it over or by a combination of both of these movements.
This represents a significant advance in the art because prior
structures sufEered from disadvantages which could result in
danger to the user and did not enable grills to be both turned
over and also turned around.
The preferred embodiment is made up from two parts as
illustrated in ~ig. 7. A strip of steel stock is notched to
define cut-outs 60, 62 s~mmetrically positioned about a central
opening 6~ provided for hanging this part in a painting booth.
Prior to or after bending the metal at the cut-outs as shown in
Fig. 7, the reaction portions 28, 30 and end portions 32, 34 are
formed into their final relationship with the related legs 24,
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26. After this forming, the formerly straight strip is bent at
the cut-outs 60, 62 into the position shown in Fig. 7 at which
point the handle 22 is put into position. This handle is of
wood and defines an elongated slot 66 proportioned to receive a
portion 68 of the strip between the cut-outs 60, 62 as shown in
Fig. 1. Ends of the handle 22 are also slotted at 70, 72 for
engagement with portions of the legs 24, 26 adjacent the
cut-outs 60, 62.
After positioning the handle on the central portion 68,
the legs 24, 26 are deflected towards one another into their
final position shown in Fig. 1. The arrangements at the ends of
the handle are illustrated with reference to the leg 24 in Fig.
8. Here it will be seen that after the lifter is finally
formed, the cut-out takes a shape defining a step 74 which traps
the main body of the handle between this step and a
corresponding step on the leg 26 in engagement with the central
portion 68. Consequently, the handle is located positively
without the need for fasteners which would be heat conducting
rom the portion 68 should the lifter be heated due to its use
with a hot grill.
It would be evident that variations ~an be made ~ithin
the scope of the invention. For instance, the handle 22 could
be of another material and of course it would be possible to
form the lifter in a different fashion. An example of a
variation is shown in Fig. 9 in which a piece of relatively thin
sheet material is formed ~o define a single but elongated hooked
end portion 76, a single reaction portion 78, a bifurcated leg
80, and a handle 82. The handle defines a slot for receiving
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~olled end portions on the two parts of the bifurcatea leg. T'r,e
bend between the reaction portion 78 and the leg is reinforced
by a deformation 86 in accordance with accepted sheet metal
practice. Although this structure differs significantly from
that of the preferred embodiment, it is within the inventive
concept. A person gripping the handle 8~ would do so at a
location which is between the ends of the hooked portion and
spaced from the hooked portion so that when a grill is lifted,
it is stable between these ends and below the person's hand.
It will be evident that other variations can be made
within the scope of the invention and such variations are within
the scope of the claims.
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