Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02284336 1999-09-29
FOOD PREPARATION AID FOR SINGLE-HANDED PERSONS
This invention relates to food preparation, and more particularly to a food
preparation aid
for single-handed persons.
Most people take the use of both hands for granted and do not realize the
practical
difficulties experienced by those persons who have lost the use of one hand
through
injury or illness. A simple everyday task that most people take for granted
becomes
difficult for persons lacking the use of one hand. For example, a simple task
such as
spreading butter on a slice of bread, or opening a jam jar, becomes difficult
to carry out
without the ability to retain the item in place using the other hand.
Similarly, slicing a tomato, for example, becomes difficult without the other
hand to hold
the tomato in place. The same is also true for grating and slicing operations.
Most food aids implicitly imply the availability of both hands.
An object of the invention is to alleviate these difficulties for single-
handed persons.
According to the present invention there is provided a food preparation aid
for single-
handed persons, comprising a board member providing a flat upper working
surface and
having an anti-slip arrangement on its underside; at least one upstanding post
on said
board member for skewering foodstuff so as to hold said foodstuff in position
on said
working surface while a single-handed person works therewith; and a removable,
massive
retaining block with at least one guide hole complementary to said at least
one post
mountable on said working surface with said at least one post guided in a
respective
complementary hole in said block, said block having an upper surface with a
lip for
receiving one end of an inclined food processing accessory .
Typically, a pair of posts are provided, although the invention would be
operative with a
different number.
The food preparation aid in accordance with the invention, which has an
appearance in
some ways resembling a chopping board with additional features, permits the
single-
handed user to slice food items, for example, tomatoes by removing the
retaining block
and placing them on the posts in a skewered fashion. The skewered food item
will be
CA 02284336 1999-09-29
held firmly in place, allowing the user to slice it or chop it as desired with
the aid of a
knife and only one hand.
With the retaining block in place on the upstanding posts, the single-handed
user can
place a conventional scraper or grater on the working surface with its upper
end retained
by the massive block. This holds the grater or scraper at an inclined angle,
allowing the
user to grate or scrape food items with his or her working hand.
The massive block can also be used to trap items, such as slices of meat,
between the
working surface of the aid and the lower surface of the retaining block. This
permits the
user to chop up a piece of sliced meat, for example.
In a further aspect, the invention also provides a pair of abutment bars,
which are
perfectly removable, on the working surface of the food preparation aid. These
abutment
bars, which normally lie at 90° to each other, locate a food item, such
as a slice of bread,
which the user might wish to work on. For example, the user can place the
slice of bread
in abutting relationship with the abutment bar so as to spread butter on the
slice of bread
with his or her working hand. It will be understood that the abutment bars
could lie at
other angles provided they offer a corner to an item to be supported. Such
other angles
will be less convenient for accommodating rectangular items, such as slices of
bread.
A friction pad may also be provided to permit the user to place a jar or like
element
against the abutment bars while opening the lid.
The aid should preferably be made of a strong, fairly heavy, hygienic material
such as
CorianTM available from Dow Chemical Company. This is a compressed synthetic
material used for kitchen working surfaces and the like. It is easily washable
to remove
bacteria, and has a fairly high density so as to give the food preparation aid
a reasonably
solid and massive feel.
The invention will now be described in more detail, by way of example only,
with
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 is a perspective view of the food preparation aid; and
Figure 2 is a perspective view of the food preparation aid seen from the
opposite corner.
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In the drawings, the food preparation aid comprises a rectangular board member
10 of
CorianTM, a trademark of Dow Chemical. The rectangular board member has four
elastomeric, anti slip pads provided on the underside so that when placed on a
working
surface, such as a kitchen countertop, it will not easily slide.
The board member 10 has an upper working surface 12 surrounded by a shallow
groove
14, which serves to catch drips leaking from items placed on the working
surface 12.
A pair of posts 16, spaced close enough apart to jointly skewer, for example,
a tomato, are
fixedly mounted on the board member adjacent one of the shorter sides. The
posts 16
have beveled, but have blunt ends for skewering a food item, such as a tomato,
in an
efficient but safe manner. The ends should not be sufficiently sharp to cause
injury if lent
on by the user.
A rectangular block 18 has a pair of through holes 20 complementary to the
upstanding
post 16. The rectangular block can be placed on the working surface 12 with
the
upstanding post guided into the through holes 20. In this manner, the block is
retained
firmly in position on the working surface 12 of the board member 10. The
through holes
allow for easy cleaning with the aid of a simple wire brush.
The lower surface 22 of the block 18 is flat, although it may be roughened to
serve as a
gripping surface in order to trap food items, such as slices of meat, between
the lower
surface of the block and the working surface of the board member 10.
20 A rectangular channel 24, extending lengthwise at the block, 18 is formed
in its upper
surface. The rectangular channel 24 provides a lip 26 which engages the upper
edge of a
food working device, such as a grater or scraper, which may be placed at an
angle on the
board with its upper edge engaged by the lip 26.
In use, the single-handed person, after placing the grater or scraper in
position, can work
on a food item by moving it up and down the working device with one hand. The
retaining block 18 with lip 26 will prevent the working device from moving.
Slices of meat can be trapped under the block, which will retain them in place
due to its
weight, so as to allow the user to slice them further, or chop them into
strips or cubes, for
example.
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Tomatoes, onions, apples or like food items can be skewered by the upstanding
post after
removal of the block and worked on by the user with the aid of a knife. Drips
tend to be
caught in the groove 14.
A pair of abutment bars 28 lying at right angles to each other so as to define
a corner are
located on the working surface at the end remote from the massive block 18.
Each of
these bars has a pair of protruding pins on its underside, which engage in
complementary
holes formed in the upper surface of the board member 10. The bars are also
made of
CorianTM.
The abutment bars 28 have mutually facing rounded ends 30 separated by a gap
32
sufficient to accommodate a knife (not shown).
If the user wishes to spread butter on a slice of bread, for example, he or
she places the
slice of bread so as to abut the bars 28. The user can then spread butter on
the slice of
bread without fear of it slipping off the working surface by spreading in a
direction
toward the bars 28.
1 S The user can cut the bread diagonally with a knife by passing the knife
through the gap 32
between the bars 28. An optional elastomeric, neoprene friction pad 34 can be
placed on
the working surface in the vicinity of the bars 28, preferably extending under
them and
being retained temporarily in place by the pins 36 from the bars extending
into the holes
on the working surface. The friction pad 34 is used primarily for permitting
the user to
open jam jars and the like. For example, a jam jar with a twist top can be
placed on the
friction pad in a butting relationship with the abutment bars 28. The user can
then apply
downward pressure with his or her working hand and friction will hold the jar
in place
while the top is twisted off. To get an even better grip, the user may wish to
invert the jar
temporarily just to loosen it before complete removal.
The dimensions are as follows: board 10 11 His" x 8 His"; retaining block 18 2
His" x 1 %2" x
1 '/z"; abutment bars 28 %Z" x '/2" x 4" with a 3is" gap.
The food preparation aid in accordance with the invention is thus a highly
versatile aid
suitable for use by single-handed persons who have lost the use of one hand
and arm. It
permits them to carry out many food preparation operations that are taken for
granted by
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two-handed persons, but which for single-handed persons can become difficult
to
execute.
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