Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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COOKTOP SAFETY ARRANGEMENT
FEILD OF INVENTION
The present invention relates to a cooktop safety arrangement, and, in
particular, to
an arrangement of cooperating cooktop devices for preventing cookware from
slipping or otherwise being inadvertently displaced from the grate (also known
as a
trivet) of a stove or cooktop.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
The kitchen may be a dangerous place when young children, and particularly
toddlers, are roaming the kitchen looking to satisfy their curiosity or
hunger. A
significant danger is posed by cookware, such as cooking pots and frying pans,
that
are present on a stove during or just after cooking when the food or liquid
contained therein is hot. Young children are likely to reach up, especially
where
the handle of the cookware is protruding to the front of the stove, and pull
the
cooking pot or fiying pan off the stove, with the most feared outcome being
that
they spill the contents over themselves.
A further problem with unsecured cookware is that it may require a second hand
to
hold the pot or pan when it is desired to stir the contents thereof. This
second hand
may, however, be being used for other cooking purposes, and so not be
available to
hold the pot or pan during stirring. Stirring a pot or pan without a steadying
second
hand may cause the pot or pan to shift dangerously or to spill its contents.
A still further problem relates to gas stoves in moving vehicles, such as
marine
vessels, aircraft or recreational land vehicles like motor homes or camper
vans,
where an item of cookware is prone to slipping from a stove
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grate by the effect of acceleration, deceleration, rocking and bumps
encountered by
the moving vehicle.
There have been numerous attempts over many years to address these problems,
but many of the devices have been complex in structure and difficult to
operate,
whilst other simpler devices have lacked reliability.
For instance, US Patent No. 3,583,384 discloses an open-topped, relatively
shallow
receptacle adapted to hold cooking utensils against lateral movement on a
stove
grate or cooking grid, and a plurality of circumferentially spaced anchoring
members projecting downwardly from the receptacle for removably engaging
given ones of a plurality of radial bars of the grate.
US Patent No. 5,638,806 discloses a safety ring that depends downwardly from
the
bottom of an item of cookware, the safety ring including a plurality of chair
members that are annularly spaced apart such that the chair members will fit a
three, four, six or eight pronged gas stove top grate. Each chair member is
generally U-shaped and receives therewithin a respective prong of the grate at
a
different angle to any other chair, thereby preventing lateral movement of the
cookware on the grate.
US Patent No. 4,745,905 discloses a cooking utensil holder having a first ring
with
securing means therein that is placed on a cooking surface having holes, and a
second ring spaced above the first ring by upright support members. The first
ring
also has downwardly depending attachment pins that
securably engage the holes in the cooking surface. A cooking utensil is spaced
inside the holder and a plurality of adjustment means mounted on the
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support members are adjusted until they contact the cooking utensil and hold
it
firlnly on or over the stove grate.
US Patent No. 3,960,134 discloses a restraining device comprising an
expandable
circumference metallic cylinder having means formed integrally therewith for
removably securing the cylinder to a stove grate, the cooking utensil being
encircled, and restrained from sliding off the grate, by the device.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a simple yet reliable
arrangement
that can be built-in to cookware and stove grates prior to their sale at
minimal cost,
and which will prevent the cookware from slipping or otherwise being
inadvertently displaced from the grates.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an arrangement of
cooperating cooktop devices which overcomes or substantially ameliorates the
shortcomings of the aforementioned prior art, or at least provides a useful
alternative.
Accordingly, the present invention provides an arrangement of cooperating
cooktop devices comprising a receiving device mounted to the bottom of
cookware, and a support device extending above a heating element and adapted
to
be removably engaged with the receiving device so as to prevent
displacement of the cookware from its supported position over the heating
element.
Preferably, the support device comprises finger means spaced above a gas
burner
element for engaging the receiving device.
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It is preferred that the receiving device comprises channel means through
which
the fmger means can be slidably engaged.
In a preferred form, the finger means comprise a plurality of fmger members
mounted to an outer support frame of a stove rack removably engaged with a
stove
top, the finger members projecting upwardly and inwardly from the outer
support
frame.
Preferably, the channel means comprises a pair of parallel, spaced apart,
channels
defined by a plate mounted to the bottom of cookware.
It is preferred that there are two finger members which slidably engage
respective
channels of the channel means.
In a further preferred form, there is a first pair of parallel spaced'apart
finger
members mounted to a first location of the outer support frame and having free
end
portions projecting in a first direction, and a second pair of parallel spaced
apart
finger members mounted to a second location of the outer support frame and
having free end portions projecting in a second direction.
Preferably, the free end portions of the first and second pairs of finger
members
project in opposite direction and are out of alignment.
Alternatively, the free end portions of the first and second pairs of fmger
members
project in opposite direction and are in alignment.
In a further preferred form, the free end portions of the first and second
pairs of
finger members project in the same direction.
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The cookware is preferably a pan.
The stove rack may include one or more first tabs extending from a first side
thereof, and one or more second tabs extending from an opposite second side
thereof, the or each second tab having spring means cooperating therewith, and
the
stove top may include one or more slots for receiving the respective one or
more
tabs at each of the first and second sides.
Preferably, the spring means comprises a coil spring cooperating with the or
each
second tab.
SUMMARY OF DRAWINGS
In order that the invention may be readily understood and put into practical
effect,
reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, in which:
Fig. 1 is an isometric top view of a cooperating cooktop device arrangement
according to a preferred embodiment of the invention,
Fig. 2 is a plan view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1,
Fig. 3 is a front side view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1,
Fig. 4 is a right side view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1,
Fig. 5 is an enlarged detail view of the circled area A of the arrangement as
shown
in Fig. 3,
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Fig. 6 is a sectional view through B-B of the arrangement as shown in Fig. 3,
Fig. 7 is an enlarged detail view of the circled area C of the arrangement as
shown
in Fig. 6,
Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail view of the circled area H of the arrangement as
shown
in Fig. 6,
Fig. 9 is an exploded isometric view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1,
Fig. 10 is a front side view of the pan used in the arrangement shown in Fig.
1,
Fig. 11 is a right side view of the pan shown in Fig. 10,
Fig. 12 is a bottom plan view of the pan shown in Fig. 10,
Fig. 13 is an isometric bottom view of the pan shown in Fig. 10,
Fig. 14 is a plan view of the stove rack used in the arrangement shown in Fig.
1,
Fig. 15 is a front side view of the stove rack shown in Fig. 14,
Fig. 16 is a right side view of the stove rack shown in Fig. 14,
Fig. 17 is an isometric top view of stove rack shown in Fig. 14;
Fig. 18, is an isometric top view of an alternative stove rack that may be
used in the
arrangement shown in Fig. 1,
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Fig. 19 is a plan view of the stove top used in the arrangement shown in Fig.
1,
Fig. 20 is a sectional view through D-D of the stove top as shown in Fig. 19,
Fig. 21 is an enlarged detail view of the circled area F of the stove top as
shown in
Fig. 19,
Fig. 22 is an enlarged detail view of the circled area G of the stove top as
shown in
Fig. 20, and
Fig. 23 is an enlarged detail view of the circled area E of the stove top as
shown in
Fig. 20.
DETAILED DESRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The arrangement shown variously in Figs. 1 to 23 comprises a receiving device,
in
the form of a bracket or plate 12, mounted to the bottom of cookware in the
form
of a cooking pan 14, and a support device, in the form of fmger members 16,
18,
20, 22, mounted to an outer support frame 24 of a stove rack 26 removably
engaged with a stove top 27. The fmger members 16, 18, 20, 22 project upwardly
and inwardly from the outer support frame 24 so as to be spaced above a gas
burner element 28.
The plate 12 and fmger members 16, 18, 20, 22 are, in use, removably
interengaged so as to prevent displacement of the cooking pan 14 from its
supported position over the gas burner element 28. For this purpose, the plate
12
defines a pair of parallel, spaced apart, channels 30, 32 through which a pair
of the
finger members are slidably engaged.
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A first pair of finger members 16, 18 are parallel aligned and have free end
portions that project in a first direction. A second pair of fmger members 20,
22 are
similarly aligned and project in an opposite second direction to that of the
first pair
16, 18. Each pair of fmger inembers can engage separate cookware.
Removably engaged to the stove top 27 shown in Fig. 1 are two stove racks 26a,
26b. As part of a first stove rack 26a there is a first pair of parallel
spaced apart
finger meinbers 16, 18 mounted to a first location of the outer support frame
24
which have free end portions projecting in a first direction. There is also a
second
pair of parallel spaced apart fmger members 20, 22 mounted to a second
location
of the outer support frame 24 which have free end portions projecting in a
second
direction.
The free end portions of the first and second pairs of fmger members 16, 18,
20, 22
which are part of the first stove rack 26a project in opposite direction and
are out
of alignment.
In the second stove rack 26b, the free end portions of the first and second
pairs of
finger members 16, 18, 20, 22 project in opposite direction and are in
alignment.
Although not shown, the invention includes an embodiment of stove rack in
which
the free end portions of the first and second pairs of fmger members project
in the
same direction.
There are, in this embodiment, for each stove rack 26 a pair of first tabs 36,
38
extending from a first side thereof, and a pair of second tabs 40, 42
extending from
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an opposite second side thereof. Each of the two second tabs 40, 42 have
spring
means, in the form of a coil spring 44, cooperating therewith.
The stove top 27 includes a pair of slots 46, 48 at opposite sides thereof for
receiving the respective pairs of tabs at each of the first and second sides
of a stove
rack. When so received, the tabs are prevented from sliding out of the slots
by the
pressure of the coil springs.
In use, a cooking pan 14 is in a supported position, say, during cooking, over
the
gas burner element 28 by having the fmger members 16, 18 engage the channels
30
and 32, respectively, in a manner as described above.
To install a stove rack 26 onto the stove top 27, the side of the stove rack
having
the pair of tabs 40, 42 with the coil springs 44 is positioned alongside the
facing
side of the stove top having a pair of slots 46, 48, and the tabs are slid
into the slots
against a resistance pressure exerted by the coil springs, which compress as
the
tabs progress into the slots.
The stove rack is then laid horizontally so that the other pair of tabs 36, 38
on the
other side of the rack 26 can be fitted into their respective slots 46, 48.
Upon
release of the stove rack, the coil springs hold the stove rack in position on
the
stove top.
To engage the cooking pan 14 with the stove rack 26, the pan is brought into
alignment of its pair of channels 30, 32 with a pair of fmger members 16, 18
or 20,
22 of the stove rack, and the pan is then moved so that the fmger members
enter
the channels until the pan is safely supported over the burner element 28.
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After cooking operations have ceased and the pan needs to be removed from the
stovetop, the pan is gripped by its handle 50 and moved sideways sufficiently
so
that the fmger members exit their respective channels.
To remove the stove rack from the stove top, say, for cleaning, the side of
the stove
rack having the coil springs is pushed in a manner so as to fu.rther compress
the
coil springs and so as to allow the tabs on the other side of the stove rack
to exit
their respective slots. That other side can then be lifted so that the tabs
with the coil
springs exit their respective slots.
It will be readily apparent to persons skilled in the art that various
modifications
may be made in details of design, construction and use of the cooktop safety
arrangement described above without departing from the scope or ambit of the
present invention.
For instance, the heating element need not be a gas burner element, but may
instead be an electrical burner element.
