MULTIFUNCTIONAL UTENSIL

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning. The utensil includes a spoon on one end of a handle and a fork on the other end of the handle. The utensil comprises a unique combination of a rigid substrate portion and an over-molded soft or conformable edge portion, which expands its functionality beyond that of prior known multifunctional utensils.

BACKGROUND

In outdoor, camping, and travel applications, it is common to forgo standard household metal utensils and kitchen tools in favor of purpose-specific products which may be lighter, more durable, and/or offer additional functionality beyond that of a standard utensil. The usage of purpose- and application-specific products may help minimize the quantity, size, and weight of gear needed for a given trip or outing. There exist a wide variety of outdoor-specific utensils and kitchen tools intended to improve upon and address the shortcomings of standard kitchen utensils. Some such products may also include additional features and functionalities that enhance their overall usefulness and versatility. These existing offerings span a wide variety of configurations and designs, most commonly including lightweight metal stampings or molded plastic utensils. Many of these utensils attempt to offer a multitude of functionalities, such as combining a spoon and fork into a single product (commonly called a “spork”). However, many of these products have significant shortcomings that may adversely affect their overall performance as a spoon and/or fork. As an example, many sporks feature impractically short fork tines on the fork-aspect, and the spoon-aspect will often leak liquid through the fork's tines, resulting in diminished liquid spoon capacity. These products tend to be primarily designed for eating only, and offer no functionality for scraping or cleaning a food vessel. In addition, many conventional utensil products are rigid and have curvature geometry that results in a single point of contact between the utensil and a food vessel, resulting in ineffective scraping performance across curved and flat surfaces of the food vessel.

In certain outdoor, camping, and travel applications, it may be desirable for a utensil or kitchen tool to have excellent mechanical cleaning performance to remove food particulate from the walls of a food vessel, for the purpose of minimizing both water consumption and contamination, as well as minimizing or eliminating food waste due to difficulty in effectively cleaning food from the inner surfaces of the food vessel. In order to address deficiencies of known utensils and to reduce the number of utensils needed, embodiments of the present invention are directed to an integration of a mechanical cleaning solution into a multifunctional eating and cooking utensil.

SUMMARY

The present invention, more particularly, is directed to a multifunctional utensil that may be used for eating, cooking, and cleaning. The utensil is comprised of a spoon on one end of the handle and a fork on the other end of the handle, with additional unique features that enhance cleaning functionality. In addition to the spoon and fork, the utensil includes several distinct and novel features designed to expand functionality beyond that of known utensils.

The multifunctional utensil may include a rigid portion that is constructed from a thermoplastic (nylon, polycarbonate, polyester, polypropylene, etc.) or metal (stainless steel, aluminum, titanium, etc.) substrate to be relatively rigid, and at least the handle and spoon features may include a soft edge portion that runs down the length of at least a segment of the handle's edge and around the spoon's edge. This soft edge portion may be over-molded onto the rigid portion, and may be comprised of any of a variety of moldable elastomeric materials (TPE, TPV, silicone, natural rubber, etc.) having a Shore hardness in a range of Shore 30A to Shore 70A, resulting in a finished product that consists of both rigid and soft elements/materials.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of embodiments hereof as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and form a part of the specification, further serve to explain the principles of the invention and to enable a person skilled in the pertinent art to make and use the invention. The drawings are not to scale.

FIGS. 1, 2, and 3 are, respectively, a top view, a side view, and a bottom view of a multifunctional utensil, according to an embodiment herein.

FIGS. 4, 5, and 6 are, respectively, a top view, a perspective side view, and a perspective top view of a first part of a multifunctional utensil, according to an embodiment hereof.

FIGS. 7 and 8 are perspective top views of a second part of a multifunctional utensil, according to an embodiment hereof.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1 in accordance with an embodiment hereof.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1 in accordance with another embodiment hereof.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 1 in accordance with another embodiment hereof.

FIG. 12 is a top view of a fork end of a multifunctional utensil, according to embodiments hereof.

FIGS. 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17 illustrate various advantages of a multifunctional utensil of the present invention.

FIGS. 18A, 18B and 18C illustrate various embodiments of a multifunctional utensil as described hereof.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the invention or the application and uses of the invention. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any expressed or implied theory presented in the preceding technical field, background, brief summary or the following detailed description.

Embodiments of the present invention are directed to a multifunctional utensil that may be used for eating, cooking, and cleaning. The utensil includes a spoon at a first end of the handle and a fork on a second or opposing end of the handle, with additional unique features that enhance eating and cleaning functionality. In addition to the spoon and fork, the utensil includes several distinct and novel features designed to expand functionality beyond that of known multifunctional utensils.

Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3, a multifunctional utensil 100 in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIGS. 1, 2, and 3 respectively illustrate top, side, and bottom views of the utensil 100. In the embodiment, the utensil 100 includes a fork 110 attached to a first end 122 of a handle 120 and a spoon 130 attached to a second end 124 of the handle 120.

The utensil 100 includes a first part 190, which also may be referred to herein as a rigid substrate portion 190, that is shown separated from a remainder to the multifunctional utensil 100 in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6. FIGS. 4, 5, and 6 respectively illustrate a top view, perspective side view, and perspective top view of the rigid substrate portion 190 of the utensil 100. The first part 190 may be formed or constructed from a thermoplastic material, such as nylon, polycarbonate, polyester, or polypropylene, or a metal, such as stainless steel, aluminum, or titanium.

The portions of the handle 120 and the spoon 130 formed by the first part 190 include a second part 140 secured along edge segments of the first part to form an outer edge of a portion of the multifunctional utensil 100. In the embodiment shown, the second part 140 is attached to the first part 190 along a first edge segment 184 on a first side 182 of the handle 120, around a second edge segment 194, or continuous lip 194, that follows a profile of the spoon 130, and along an opposite third edge segment 174 on a second side 172 of the handle 120. The second part 140, which also may be referred to herein as a soft portion, a soft edge portion or a conformable portion 140, may be made from a wide variety of thermoplastic or thermoset elastomers, including food-safe silicone or other injection moldable or castable materials, such as a thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), santoprene thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPV), silicone, or natural rubber, and having a Shore hardness in a range of Shore 30A to Shore 70A. FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate perspective views of the soft edge portion 140 separated from a remainder of the utensil 100. In an embodiment, the second part 140 may be over-molded onto the first part 190 to form an outer edge of a portion of the multifunctional utensil, and such that the multifunctional utensil 100 includes both rigid and elastomeric elements/materials.

The handle 120 is shaped to include a radial curvature CR, or concave cross-section, as illustrated in the various embodiment shown in FIGS. 9, 10, and 11, as well as axial curvature along the length of the handle 120, as illustrated by FIG. 2 with the handle 120 curving away from a reference line R_L. The double curvature geometry of the handle 120 provides the utensil 100 with enhanced strength and rigidity under heavy usage or bending when compared to a handle with a flat or single curvature cross-section. By double curvature geometry, shape or profile the handle may be considered to have a saddle or a hyperbolic paraboloid shape, as the handle has a first curvature when viewed from a side of the handle (a longitudinally-extending sectional view, see FIG. 2) as well as a second curvature when viewed from an end of the handle (a cross-sectional view, see FIGS. 9-11). The fork 110 and the spoon 130 are inclined at angles A1, A2, respectively, away from a line that is tangent to, or joins, respective ends 122, 124 of the handle, i.e., reference line R_L, where each of the fork and spoon meet the handle 120, as illustrated by FIG. 2. In accordance with embodiments hereof, angles A1, A2 may be equal or unequal and in a range of 10 degrees to 40 degrees. In other embodiments, angles A1, A2 may be equal or unequal and in a range of 20 degrees to 27 degrees. The fork 110 and the spoon 130 being disposed at angles A1, A2, respectively, from the handle's lengthwise curvature tangency provides a more ergonomic and effective utensil angle for eating. Furthermore, another benefit of the fork 110 and spoon 130 being angled relative to the handle 120 is that when the handle 120 is held at an angle from a vertical or longitudinal axis of a container, such as while reaching into a deep pot or food bag, the angles A1, A2, respectively, of the fork 110 or spoon 130 elements permits the utensil being directed into the container, i.e, one of the fork or spoon, to remain relatively level to prevent spillage.

In accordance with embodiments hereof, the concave cross-section of the handle 120 of the multifunctional utensil 100 provides an ergonomic and secure resting place for the thumb and fingers. In accordance with embodiments hereof, the handle 120 may also be longer than a standard eating utensil, resulting in an increased overall utensil length. Whereas conventional or standard utensils are generally too short to be sanitary, ergonomic, or effective in scenarios involving deep food vessels, the additional length of the multifunctional utensil handle 120 described herein is a benefit in certain applications, especially in camping and outdoor activities, because the multifunctional utensil 100 may be used as a stirring tool for a tall pot, and because it is long enough to allow eating from tall foil or plastic food bags that are commonly used by backpackers and campers to hold dehydrated meals, as illustrated in FIGS. 16 and 17. In a similar instance, a utensil with a standard length would require the user to insert their hand into the tall foil or plastic food bag, thereby getting their hands dirty and potentially contaminating the food inside. In contrast, an embodiment of the multifunctional utensil 100 having a handle of an increased length allows the user to eat from the bottom of such a tall foil or plastic food bag without requiring their hands to enter the bag and thus avoids their hands getting soiled and/or contamination of the food held therein. In an embodiment, the handle 120 may optionally include a hole 150, slot, or series of holes, for the purpose of attaching a lanyard or other variety of tethering or strapping accessory.

The fork 110 of the multifunctional utensil 100 resembles a standard kitchen fork in that it contains a plurality of fork tines 115a, 115b arranged in parallel in a row. With reference to FIG. 12, the inner fork tines 115a are of a relatively conventional nominal size and shape with a tine width W1 and parallel or near-parallel edges. The outer fork tines 115b have a nominal tine width W2 that is wider than tine width W1, and the tine width of the outer fork tines 115b increase in width to W2′ at a base 112 of the outer fork tine 115b, toward the handle, and tapers to a width W2″ at a tip 111 of the outer fork tines 115b. In an embodiment, the inner fork tines 115a may also slightly or minimally taper as each extends from its base to its tip. In addition to having a wider width, each of the outer fork tines 115b also features an outer edge 160 that is angled relative to the nominal fork tine orientation, viz., relative to a longitudinal axis LA of the utensil 100, and is also beveled along the edge to form a knife-like cutting or splitting edge. An angle A3 of the outer edges 160 of the outer fork tines 115b allows the handle 120 to be held at an angle while cutting foods that lay flat on a plate. The outer edge 160 may be used to cut foods like vegetables, fruits, or meats. In another embodiment, only a single outer fork tine 115b includes an outer edge 160 as described herein. In embodiments hereof, the cutting or splitting outer edge or edges 160 also may feature scalloped or serrated portions along the length to enhance cutting and sawing ability for cutting tough foods. In accordance with embodiments hereof, as described above, the fork 110 also may include a double curvature geometry, shape or profile for added structural rigidity. By double curvature geometry, shape or profile the fork may be considered to have a saddle or a hyperbolic paraboloid shape, as the fork has a first curvature when viewed from a side of the fork (a longitudinally-extending sectional view) as well as a second curvature when viewed from an end of the fork (a cross-sectional view). In embodiments hereof, the tips of the plurality of fork tines 115a, 115b may be pointed for effectively piercing hard or resilient food surfaces.

The spoon 130 of the multifunctional utensil 100 has an asymmetric shape relative to a longitudinal axis LA of the utensil to provide enhanced eating, cleaning, and scraping functionality. A first side 180 of the spoon 130 smoothly blends into the corresponding first side 182 of the handle 120, and includes a large, progressive radius portion, or a large outside radius portion 185, as the first side 180 extends to an outer end of the spoon 130. A second side 170 of the spoon 130 is offset a greater distance from the longitudinal axis LA than the first side 180, and is not aligned with the second side 172 of the handle 120. Instead, the second side 170 of the spoon 130 includes a curved portion 128 where the second side 170 of the spoon 130 extends radially outward (away from the longitudinal axis LA) from the second side 172 of the handle 120. A third side 190 of the spoon 130 connects the first and second sides 180, 170 at an outer end of the spoon 130 and includes a small, sharp radius R1 at an apex 175 of the spoon. The small, sharp radius R1, which can be in a range of 0 mm to 5 mm, or more preferably may be approximately 2 mm, enhances the spoon's ability to clean corners within, or inside of, food vessels, while a flat segment 171 along a length of the second side 170 of the spoon 130, which extends from the apex 175 toward the handle, provides a continuous contact surface CS for scraping flat surfaces of a food vessel, such as a container, bowl, pot, bag or plate, etc., as shown in FIG. 15. When these edge geometry elements are considered as a complete system, the utensil 100 is configured to conform to nearly any curved or flat surface, radius-ed edge, or corner, that may be found in a food bowl, plate, container or cooking pot, or bag, as illustrated by example in FIGS. 13-17.

In embodiments hereof, the soft edge portion 140 may extend inward from an outer profile of the utensil 100 by approximately 4 mm to 10 mm and may utilize a variety of cross-sectional profiles along its length, including pointed and/or rounded profiles as shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 9-11. To enhance the strength and toughness of the bond interface between the over-molded second part 140 and the substrate first part 190, an interface of the substrate first part 190 may include an internal swept protrusion 125 with a V-shaped profile for extending into the over-molded second part 140. FIG. 10 shows a cross-section of the handle 120 at line A-A of FIG. 1 in which the second part 140 is over-molded onto the internal swept protrusion 125 of the first part without any mechanical interlock. In accordance with another embodiment, FIG. 11 shows a cross-section of the handle 120 at line B-B of FIG. 1 with a handle cross-section that is cosmetically and geometrically different from the handle cross-section shown in FIG. 10. The V-shaped protrusion 125 mitigates shear and peel loading at the rigid substrate-over-mold bond interface, which would otherwise occur in a flat interface. The V-shaped protrusion 125 also substantially increases the contact surface area of the rigid substrate-over-mold bond interface, resulting in increased strength in the chemical bond between the two materials. In embodiments in accordance herewith, the V-shaped protrusion 125 in the substrate first part 190 may include one or more pass-through aperture, hole or slot features through the V-shaped protrusion at semi-regular intervals along the swept length, for the purpose of receiving a material of the second part during over-molding and thereby creating a mechanical interlock connection or joint 126 between the two materials/part 140, 190 in addition to the chemical bond. For instance, FIG. 9 shows a cross-section of the handle 120 at line A-A of FIG. 1 in which the over-mold of the second part 140 has a mechanical interlock 126 through an aperture of the V-shaped protrusion 125 on the left side vs attachment only to the V-shaped protrusion 125 on the right side. The addition of a mechanical joint feature enhances the overall joint strength and helps prevent delamination or debonding of the over-mold second part 140 from the substrate first part 190.

The object of the over-molded soft edge portion 140 is to provide a conformable edge that may be used to effectively collect food or food substance (such as, e.g., sauce), or clean a food container, regardless of the shape or contour, as illustrated in FIGS. 13-17. When combined with the variable radius geometry of the first, second and third edge segments 184, 194, 174 of the handle and spoon formed by the first part 190 as described herein, the soft edge of the second part 140 will conform to the shape of nearly any food vessel (including, but not limited to, pot, plate, bowl, cup, bag, or finger), resulting in highly effective food collection, cleaning, and scraping functionalities. For the purpose of cleaning one of the aforementioned food vessels, the invention will perform more effectively in cleaning the walls of a food vessel because of the conformable nature of the soft edge portion 140, which allows it to maintain a long, continuous contact surface with the food vessel, in direct contrast to conventional utensils which result in a single point of contact for such applications. In this aspect, the utensil 100 may also function as a kitchen cleaning tool. This is an advantageous feature in situations where it may be necessary to effectively clean all food surfaces, such as cleaning, animal-attractive odor mitigation, and extracting every last bite of food and nutrients from a given food vessel. Because the sweep geometry of the soft edge portion 140 follows the asymmetric spoon profile and includes a combination of a straight portion and the large outside radius portion 185 of the first side 180, a small outside radius portion 195 defining the apex 175 of the third side 190, and an internal radius or curved portion 128 of the second side 170, the soft edge portion 140 may accommodate cleaning a wide variety of food vessel shapes. The internal radius or curved portion 128 of the soft edge portion 140 is effective for cleaning food off of a finger, lip of a bowl, other utensil, or anything else that requires an internal scraping radius, as illustrated in FIG. 14. In further embodiments, a straight portion, a large outside radius portion, a small outside radius portion, and an internal radius portion can adopt different degrees of curvature in order to accommodate different shapes, and exemplary embodiments are illustrated in FIGS. 18A-18C.

FIG. 18A illustrates a multifunctional utensil 200 with a handle 220, a fork 210, and a spoon 230. The spoon 230 has a first side 280 that blends into a corresponding first side 282 of the handle 220 and a second side 270 that extends a shorter length than the first side 280. The second side 270 is offset from the longitudinal axis LA and includes an angled portion 228 where it extends radially outward from a second side 272 of the handle 220. A third side 290 of the spoon 230 is slanted from the first side 280 to the second side 270 at an end of the spoon 230, i.e., the third side 290 is not squared with the first side 280 and the second side 270. The third side 290 connects with the second side 270 at a first apex or corner 275 of the spoon, and the third side 290 connects with the first side 280 at a second apex or corner 276 of the spoon. The presence of two apexes or corners 275, 276 allows the spoon to conform to different shapes of various types of food vessels, such as, e.g., narrow containers which have corners.

FIG. 18B illustrates a multifunctional utensil 300 with a handle 320, a fork 310, and a spoon 330. The spoon 330 has a first side 380 that extends at an angle from a first side 382 of the handle 320. The first side 380 is curved upward from the first side 382 towards a second side 370 at an angle A4. A second side 370 of the spoon 330 is offset from the longitudinal axis LA and includes a slanted portion 328 where it extends radially outward from a second side 372 of the handle 320. The first and second sides 380, 370 are joined at an apex 375 at the end of the spoon 330. The curvature of the first side 380 allows the spoon to conform to different shapes and types of food vessels, such as, e.g., curved bowls or cups.

FIG. 18C illustrates a multifunctional utensil 400 with a handle 420, a fork 410, and a spoon 430. The spoon 430 of the multifunctional utensil 400 has a symmetric, paddle-like shape relative to a longitudinal axis LA of the utensil. The spoon 430 has first and second sides 480, 470 that are symmetrical about the longitudinal axis LA and includes curved portions 428, 428′ that extend at a radially outward from first and second sides 482, 472 of the handle 420. A third side 490 of the spoon 430 connects the first and second sides 480, 470 at an end of the spoon 430, forming two corners 475, 485. The symmetric, paddle-like shape with the two corners 475, 485 allows the spoon to conform to different shapes and types of food vessels, e.g., containers which have corners or flat surfaces such as plates.

In view of the foregoing, various embodiments of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning are contemplated a few of which are outlined below.

A first embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes a first part that is a rigid portion of the utensil and a second part that is a conformable portion of the utensil, the second part being attached to an edge segment of the first part, wherein the second part forms an outer edge of at least a portion of the utensil and is configured for conforming to a surface of a food vessel.

A second embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features of the first embodiment, wherein the utensil has a handle with a spoon at a first end of the handle and a fork at a second end of the handle, and wherein the edge segment of the first part, along which the second part is attached, includes a first edge segment along a first side of the handle and a second edge segment that follows a profile of the spoon.

A third embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features of the second embodiment, wherein the edge segment of the first part, along which the second part is attached, includes a third edge segment along a second side of the handle.

A fourth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the first through third embodiments, wherein the second part is of an elastomeric material having a Shore hardness in a range of Shore 30A to Shore 70A.

A fifth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the first through fourth embodiments, wherein at least the handle of the utensil has a double curvature geometry.

A sixth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the proceeding embodiments, wherein the edge segment of the first part includes a protrusion and the second part is over-molded onto the protrusion.

A seventh embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to the sixth embodiment, wherein the protrusion includes one or more pass-through apertures within which a material of the second part is received.

An eight embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the second through seventh embodiments, wherein at least one of the spoon and fork is angled from a line that is tangent to, or joins, respective ends of the handle.

A ninth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the second through eighth embodiments, wherein the spoon has an asymmetric shape relative to a longitudinal axis of the utensil.

A tenth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the second through ninth embodiments, wherein the spoon includes an apex configured to reach a corner of a food vessel.

An eleventh embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the second through tenth embodiments, wherein the spoon includes a flat segment along a side thereof that provides a continuous contact surface for scraping surfaces of a food vessel.

A twelfth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the second through eleventh embodiments, wherein the spoon includes a curved portion along a side thereof that extends radially outward from a side of the handle.

A thirteenth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the first through ninth embodiments, wherein the utensil includes a straight portion, a large outside radius portion, a small outside radius portion, and an internal radius portion having different degrees of curvature and over which the second part extends in order to be conformable to different shapes and surfaces of a food vessel.

A fourteenth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the second through thirteenth embodiments, wherein the fork includes inner and outer tines and at least one of the outer tines includes a knife-like cutting or splitting edge.

A fifteenth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the second through fourteenth embodiments, wherein the fork has a double curvature geometry.

A sixteenth embodiment of a multifunctional utensil for eating, cooking, and cleaning includes the features according to any of the first through fifteenth embodiments, wherein the first part is formed from a rigid thermoplastic material, such as nylon, polycarbonate, polyester, polypropylene, or a metal, such as stainless steel, aluminum or titanium.

While various embodiments have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented only as illustrations and examples of the present invention, and not by way of limitation. It will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art that various changes in form and detail can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present invention should not be limited by any of the above-described exemplary embodiments, but should be defined only in accordance with the appended claims and their equivalents. It will also be understood that each feature of each embodiment discussed herein, and of each reference cited herein, can be used in combination with the features of any other embodiment.

MULTIFUNCTIONAL UTENSIL

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