Claims
- 1. A clamshell cooking system, comprising:
- a support structure;
- a lower cooking platen assembly having a top cooking surface, the lower cooking platen assembly being attached to the support structure;
- a platen support arm pivotally mounted on the support structure, the platen support arm being movable to a first position and a second position;
- an upper cooking platen assembly coupled to the platen support arm and having a bottom cooking surface, the top cooking surface and the bottom cooking surface being separated by a gap when the platen support arm is in the first position; and
- an electronic gap adjustment assembly coupled to the upper platen assembly, the electronic gap adjustment assembly adjusting the gap between the top cooking surface and the bottom cooking surface, the electronic gap adjustment assembly including a stepper motor.
- 2. The clamshell cooking system of claim 1, wherein the adjustment assembly is located within the upper cooking platen assembly.
- 3. The clamshell cooking system of claim 2, wherein the adjustment assembly includes a belt drive system coupled to the stepper motor.
- 4. The clamshell cooking system of claim 3, wherein the belt drive system includes a plurality of cams coupled to a plurality of belts.
- 5. The clamshell cooking system of claim 4, wherein the adjustment assembly includes a stop abutment coupled to the belt drive system, the stop abutment being in contact with the top cooking surface when the platen support arm is in the first position, wherein the belt drive system moves the stop abutment to adjust the gap.
- 6. The clamshell cooking system of claim 5, wherein the adjustment assembly includes a plurality of spring mechanisms, the spring mechanisms being fixed between the belt drive system and the bottom cooking surface.
- 7. A clamshell cooking apparatus, comprising:
- a lower cooking platen having a top cooking surface;
- an upper cooking platen assembly disposed above the lower cooking platen, the upper cooking platen assembly including an upper cooking platen having a bottom cooking surface, the upper cooking platen assembly being movable to a lower cooking position and to an upper raised position, the top cooking surface and the bottom cooking surface being separated by a gap when the upper platen assembly is in the lower cooking position, and wherein the upper cooking platen assembly includes an electronic gap adjustment means for adjusting the gap between the top cooking surface and the bottom cooking surface, whereby the gap adjustment means provides limited floating of the top cooking surface with respect to the bottom cooking surface.
- 8. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 7, wherein the gap adjustment means includes a belt assembly located within the upper cooking platen assembly.
- 9. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 8, wherein the belt assembly includes a chain, belt, cable, band, or cord.
- 10. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 8, wherein the belt assembly includes a plurality of cams coupled to a plurality of belts.
- 11. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 7, wherein the gap adjustment means includes a stepper motor.
- 12. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 7, wherein the gap adjustment means includes a stop abutment, the stop abutment being in contact with the top cooking surface when the upper platen assembly is in the lower cooking position, and wherein the adjustment means moves the stop abutment to adjust the gap.
- 13. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 12, wherein the gap adjustment means includes a plurality of spring mechanisms, the spring mechanisms being fixed between a belt drive system and the upper cooking platen.
- 14. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 10, wherein at least one of the cams is generally circular with a plurality of flat sides.
- 15. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 8, wherein the belt assembly includes a plurality of belts, each belt being coupled to a cam and to a fixed position on the upper cooking platen.
- 16. A clamshell cooking apparatus including an upper cooking plate and a lower cooking plate, the upper cooking plate being movable to an upper position and a lower cooking position, the upper cooking plate being separated from the lower cooking plate by a gap when in the lower cooking position, the improvement comprising:
- an electronic gap adjustment mechanism coupled to the upper cooking plate, the electronic gap adjustment mechanism adjusting the gap between the upper cooking plate and the lower cooking plate, the electronic gap adjustment mechanism including a stop and a motor, wherein the stop is positioned in response to movements of the motor to define the gap.
- 17. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 16, wherein the motor is mechanically coupled to the stop through a drive mechanism, the drive mechanism includes a chain, belt, cable, band, or cord.
- 18. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 17, wherein the stop is in contact with the lower cooking plate when the upper cooking plate is in the lower cooking position.
- 19. The clamshell cooking apparatus of claim 18, wherein the gap adjustment mechanism includes a plurality of spring mechanisms, the spring mechanisms being mechanically coupled between the stop and the upper cooking plate.
- 20. The clamshell apparatus of claim 17, wherein the drive mechanism includes a first belt coupled between a cam and a first point on the upper cooking plate and a second belt coupled between the cam and a second point on the upper cooking plate, the first point being on a first side, the second point being on a second side, and the cam being between the first point and the second point.
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/843,770, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,791,234 titled "Two-Sided Cooking Apparatus Having an Electronic Gap Adjustment Mechanism" filed Apr. 21, 1997 by Robert K. Newton and assigned to the Assignee of the present invention.
US Referenced Citations (27)
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
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843770 |
Apr 1997 |
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