Patent Application
20140105668
Food preparers and culinary professionals alike are constantly in search of tools and implements in order to practice their craft. Of paramount importance to persons familiar with the art of food preparation becomes the use of the various senses of the body. This is not just limited to taste, but sight and touch are known to be equally important. There exist a number of articles that are provided for dispensing butter in food preparation. One of the biggest shortcomings in these articles relates to the fact that they use various arms, pistons and other remote devices to contact the butter and the food preparer does not get the tactile sense relating to the application of butter. The present invention addresses this need while providing a way of handling a stick of butter without contacting the hands and allowing the food preparer to utilize the sense of touch when applying the butter in food preparation.
Although the present invention refers to a conventional stick of “butter,” the invention can be used with any article similarly configured including, but not limited to, margarine, shortening, and similar articles.
In one embodiment, sticks are 121 millimeters (4.8 in) long and 32 millimeters (1.3 in) wide, wherein the stick is generally a square solid.
Food preparers want to use sense of touch, but handling butter presents difficulties due to the surface properties.
The present invention provides an article and system, whereby a user accesses a holder in which butter is placed in an interior cavity. The user squeezes opposing walls in order to “grasp” the butter using the walls, while still being able to have a feel for the butter in the cavity.
The opposing walls are elastically deformable. As understood, the walls will bend inward toward one another upon application of pressure from a the exterior, and, upon release of the pressure, will return to their original orientation, that being substantially perpendicular to each respective end.
In one embodiment, the present invention is a butter holder and dispensing device comprising: a unitary body, wherein said unitary body defines an interior central cavity, said central cavity constructed and arranged with a configuration to accommodate a conventional stick of butter, said unitary body further formed of a pair of longitudinal opposing walls constructed and arranged to be elastically deformable, a first open end, and a second closed end; a removable lid dependent upon a living hinge, said hinge dependent on said unitary body.
In one embodiment, the two longitudinal walls are elastically deformable one to another at a distance of between 0.05 to 0.14 inches. In another embodiment, they are elastically deformable one to another at a distance of between 0.07 to 0.11 inches.
The two longitudinal that are elastically deformable one to another and are substantially perpendicular to said first end and a second end of said body in the absence of any inward pressure applied to said walls.
The present invention also encompasses a system for applying butter from a stick comprising:
a holder according to the present invention; and
a push tab constructed and arranged to position within said cavity and move a butter stick along said cavity, ultimately exiting an open end of said holder.
Further contemplated is a method of applying a stick of butter of other article in similar shape, said method comprising:
providing a holder according to the present invention; placing a stick in said interior cavity;
orienting said stick to be dispensed through said open end;
grasping each of said opposing walls such that said grasping deforms said walls inward, one to another, thus contacting the surface of said stick;
placing said open end on or near a surface in which dispensing of said stick is desired; dispensing said stick through said open end.
IN one embodiment, the method utilizes a push tab as described herein in order to push the stick out the open end.
As described herein butter holder 1 is a unit whereby an inner cavity 23 is defined by a body 10 that is formed substantially to conform to the conventional size and shape of a stick of butter 28. Body 10 has a pair of opposing vertical sides 12a and 12b having on one side a living hinge 20 dependent thereon. Further dependent on living hinge 20 is a removable lid for accessing the inner cavity 23. Body 10 is constructed and arranged with a first end 34 and a second end 19 covered by fixed end cap 36. Said second end 19 encompasses a permanent closure, end cap 36 and said first end 34 is constructed and arranged to receive a removable cap 22 thereon. The butter holder encompasses a configuration whereby it is used with a manual butter dispensing tab 24. Said dispensing tab 24 has a plurality of holding points 26 disposed on one surface thereof. Holding points 26 are constructed and arranged such that they indent into the end surface of butter stick 28 and provide stabilization when push tab 24 is utilized. As generally understood in the environment of use a stick of butter 28 is placed within the inner cavity 23 of butter holder body 10. The butter can be stored in butter holder 10 by closing the lid in order to completely form a rectangular solid and cap 22 is affixed to first end 34. Cap end 22 affixes by interaction of snap protrusion 16 on body 10 that is complimentary with snap indentation 18 formed on cap 22. Persons familiar with culinary art understand that each of the five senses is important in food preparation. The present invention provides an improved holder for applying butter in food preparation. Other devices utilizing pistons and remote application means fail to take into account the desired attribute whereby one engaged in food preparation is able to use their sense of touch in applying butter. Each of the vertical walls of the present invention are elastically deformable. Elastically deformable only to the point that when a person applies pressure on either side such as shown in
The holder is formed of plastic, polymers, composites, or combinations thereof. It is constructed and arranged such that with repeated compression on side walls 12a and 12b, the walls return to a position wherein each wall 12 a and 12b is substantially parallel one to another and substantially perpendicular to end cap 36.
In one embodiment a first gradation 15 and a second gradation 14 provide visual indicators for dispensing common amounts. A common amount can vary, but can include a tablespoon measure, teaspoon measure, milliliter measure, and the like. In one embodiment, although only 2 gradations are illustrated, the present invention can have as many gradation markings as desired.
The present invention encompasses not only butter holder 1 but butter holder 1 constructed and arranged to be utilized with push tab 24 which is constructed and arranged with a plurality of holding points 26 on one side thereof. Push tab 24 is inserted at one end of butter stick 28, the end opposite first open end 34 and as shown in
While the invention has been described in its preferred form or embodiment with some degree of particularity, it is understood that this description has been given only by way of example and that numerous changes in the details of construction, fabrication, and use, including the combination and arrangement of parts, may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
