Patent Application
20060070613
The present disclosure is generally related to cooking grills and, more particularly, is related to an apparatus and method for providing a universal condiment rack for a cooking grill.
Outdoor cooking is commonly performed on cooking grills, which use charcoal briquets or propane or natural gas fueled burners for generating cooking heat. Cooking grills of these types commonly feature a lower housing, for containing the heat source and supporting a cooking rack or grill above the heat source. In general, the geometry of the lower housing tapers inwardly from top to bottom, such that the top opening has greater area than the cross-sectional area at the bottom of the lower housing. Although the geometries and dimensions of lower housings vary widely among different grill brands and models, they commonly are configured in either generally rectangular or circular shapes with varying degrees of taper.
One prevalent aspect of all cooking is the use of condiments to enhance and supplement the flavor of cooked foods. Unlike a kitchen, the outdoor cooking environment commonly lacks surrounding countertop space and thus does not typically provide sufficient space for storing condiments while cooking. Although some grills are provided with racks, shelves or trays, these devices are usually produced to specifically complement particular grill shapes and dimensions and thus are not compatible for many other grills.
For example, a condiment rack specifically designed for a generally rectangular grill with a generally linear grill housing top edge and a very slight taper will not be properly fitted to a circular grill having a more pronounced taper. In addition to the angles at which the rack would engage the circular grill being different from those for the rectangular grill, the difference in taper would likely result in non-horizontal rack orientation.
Thus, a heretofore-unaddressed need exists in the industry to address the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.
The present disclosure includes embodiments of an apparatus for providing a universal condiment rack on a cooking grill, comprising: a plurality of substantially parallel longitudinal members, configured to define a rack for supporting condiments, for attaching to a grill; a plurality of supports attached to the plurality of longitudinal members; and a plurality of universal rack mounts, each pivotally attached to the plurality supports, for mounting the rack to a grill, wherein the universal rack mount pivots for attaching to arcuate or linear cooking grill housings.
An embodiment of the present disclosure can also be viewed as providing a method of attaching a universal condiment rack to a grill, comprising: pivoting a condiment rack mount to correspond with an angle of a top edge of a grill housing;
Another embodiment of the present disclosure can be viewed as a system for providing a universal condiment rack for a grill, comprising: a pivoting means for adjusting a mounting device; a supporting means for attaching a rack to the mounting device; and a fastening means for securing the mounting device to a grill.
Yet another embodiment of the present disclosure can be viewed as a grill, comprising: a cooking grill housing; a rack surface for supporting condiments; a support, attached to the rack surface; and a pivotally-adjustable mount, for attaching the support to the cooking grill housing.
Other systems, methods, features, and advantages of the present disclosure will be or become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following drawings and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional systems, methods, features, and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the present disclosure, and be protected by the accompanying claims.
Many aspects of the disclosure can be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the present disclosure. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views:
Reference is now made in detail to the description of the embodiments as illustrated in the drawings. While several embodiments are described in connection with these drawings, there is no intent to limit the invention to the embodiment or embodiments disclosed herein. On the contrary, the intent is to cover all alternatives, modifications, and equivalents.
Reference is made to
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A rack support 150 is pivotally attached to the universal mounting bracket 120 and fixably attached to components which define the condiment supporting surface 160. The rack support 150 and condiment supporting surface 160 of this embodiment are formed longitudinal wire components, but one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that both or either of these components could be fabricated using alternative materials and methods. For example, either or both of the rack support 150 and the condiment supporting surface 160 could be fabricated from a planar material, such as sheet metal. In another alternative embodiment, the rack support 150 and the condiment supporting surface 160 could be integrated into a single component fabricated from a planar material such as, for example, sheet metal, heat-resistant plastics, etc. The condiment supporting surface 160 is further configured to receive hooks 180 for hanging grill related tools or accessories.
Reference is now made to
It should be emphasized that the above-described embodiments of the present disclosure, particularly, any “preferred” embodiments, are merely possible examples of implementations, merely set forth for a clear understanding of the principles of the disclosure. Many variations and modifications may be made to the above-described embodiment(s) of the disclosure without departing substantially from the spirit and principles of the disclosure. All such modifications and variations are intended to be included herein within the scope of this disclosure and the present disclosure and protected by the following claims.
