Plate and Bowl Insulator Ring and Method of use

Abstract

A ring for providing insulation for a plate or bowl. The ring surrounds a perimeter of the item, and insulates where it surrounds. The ring is formed of silicone which can be stretched to cover the perimeter.

Description

BACKGROUND

Many foods are conventionally served hot. When the food is kept hot until eaten, the food can have an enhanced taste, smell and other improved characteristics.

When hot food is put on a cold plate, however, the plate cools the food, often rendering the food cold prior to serving to the eater. The colder food can lose some of its taste and smell.

Consequently, it is often desirable to preheat plates and bowls prior to serving the food onto those plates and bowls. However, the hot plate, especially when heated to a high temperature, can be dangerous to the skin, and can cause burns and other skin injuries.

Users have conventionally attempted to handle these hot plates and bowls with oven mitts, towels or cloth napkins. However, these are often bulky, insufficient protection, and can get into the touching the food.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The inventor recognized that there are a number of drawbacks with the current systems and has conceived of and describes herein, an improved system and method for using a removable, insulating, food-safe ring, for removably covering outside areas of servingwear, including plates and bowls.

An embodiment describes a heat resistant ring that covers some or all of the outer perimeter of a servingwear item. The heat resistant ring is preferably formed of a insulating material that does not absorb water. In an embodiment, the ring is formed of heat resistant food-safe silicone.

A first embodiment describes a heat resistant plate ring that covers the perimeter of a plate. The ring has a u-shaped cavity that fits around the edge of the plate and covers the outer 1-2 inches of the top and bottom of the plate. An embodiment of the plate covers a standard ceramic ceramic dinner plate that is 10.4 inches in diameter, however, other sizes are contemplated by this invention.

Another embodiment describes a heat resistant bowl ring that covers outer surfaces of a bowl and has handles facilitating carrying the bowl.

In one embodiment, the rings are intended to be left on or around the edges of the servingwear, allowing people eating from the plates or bowls to safely eat without touching edges of the plates, and preventing against burns.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the Drawings

The figures show aspects of the invention, and specifically:

FIG. 1 shows a plan view across the plate ring;

FIG. 2 shows a cross-section along the line 2-2 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 illustrates the initial stages of placing the plate ring on a plate at one edge;

FIG. 4 illustrates the plate ring being stretched to fit around the remainder of the perimeter;

FIG. 5 shows the plate ring on the plate;

FIG. 6 shows an oblique view of the bowl ring;

FIG. 7 shows a side view of the bowl ring;

FIG. 8 shows the bowl ring held around a bowl;

FIG. 9 shows a side view showing the bowl ring; and

FIG. 10 shows the bowl ring from the bottom showing the support portion for the bowl ring along the bottom of the bowl.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present application describes a heat resistant ring device that is used to cover outside edges of servingwear. The term servingwear, as used herein, intends to refer to any implement that can be used to serve and contain hot food, including a plate, bowl or other implement. The invention is most applicable to items of servingwear that are formed of heat conducting materials such as a ceramic or glass.

The term servingwear is used throughout the specification refers to plates, bowls, and other like items that can hold food to be served.

The first embodiment, as described herein, is a plate ring, intended for covering the edge of a servingwear item, here a disc shaped plate 300 as shown in FIG. 3. As described herein, the ring 100 is sized to fit around the perimeter of the plate edges. The ring has an inner u-shaped surface to fit around and be held by the edges of the plate.

FIG. 1 shows a view of the plate ring 100, having an inner surface 110 formed between a top surface 115 and the bottom surface 120. The top surface and bottom surface are separated by a small spacing, e.g.***. In an embodiment, the ring 100 also has an outer edge 130 which forms a u-shaped inner surface between the top surface 115 and the bottom surface 120. The outer edge may be curved like a u to hold the plate perimeter edges.

In an embodiment, the plate extends between any inner bounding surface 140 and outer bounding surface 141. The distance between the inner bounding surface 140 and outer bounds doing surface 141 is approximately 1 inch. This edge fits on the outer 1 inch of the plate. In an embodiment, the ring is formed of an elastomeric insulating and stretchable material, preferably silicone. This silicone is stretched, as described herein to fit around the edge of the plate and the stretching action causes the ring to be held on the plate.

FIG. 2 shows a cross-section of the ring 100, along the line 2-2 in FIG. 1. The ring edges have, as described herein, the top surface 115, the bottom surface 120, and a U-shaped surface 200 extending between the top and bottom surfaces. The plate ring also has inner surfaces, with an inner top surface 116 intended to press against the top of the plate and a lower inner bottom surface 121 intended to press against the bottom of the plate.

The U-shaped surface 200 fits around the edge of the plate.

FIG. 3 illustrates how the ring 100 is placed around the edge of the plate 300. The plate 300 is shown with its edges 302. First, a portion of the ring 100 is stretched over one edge 302 of the plate so that the inner surface 116 of the ring is pushed against the top surface of the plate and in the opposite inner surface 121 is pushed against the bottom edge of the plate surface at only one location of the plate.

FIG. 4 illustrates how once that initial portion is pressed over the plate in the area 400, the remainder of the ring 100 is stretched around the remaining edge of the plate, finally leaving the ring completely surrounding the plate as shown in FIG. 5. In this condition, the plate edges are completely insulated and can safely be handled even when hot, without burning a skin of the handler.

An alternative embodiment, is intended for use on a bowl, which is a vessel that is much deeper than a plate and typically has edge surfaces which are more vertical than horizontal, while the plate's edge surfaces are horizontal. Because the plate edge surfaces are horizontal, the plate can easily be held at its edge.

However, the bowl surfaces are more vertical and food is contained in the inside surface. In order to properly hold the bowl, this embodiment uses a device which holds the bottom of the bowl, and has horizontally extending handles.

This bowl holding embodiment is illustrated in FIGS. 6-10.

A heat resistant silicone ring 600 supports an area on an upper portion of the bowl, surrounding about 1½ inch of the bowl circumference. Two handles are formed as 1″ extending flanges 610, 615, on opposing sides of the bowl for handling the bowl safely. The flanges form oppositely facing handles which extend in a radial direction relative to the circle defined by the ring. The ring and flanges need not be right at the top edge of the bowl, but can be, as shown in the figures, spaced slightly down from the top of the bowl, for example ½ to 2 inches down from the top of the bowl.

This facilitates using the bowl holding ring on many different bowl sizes.

Additional support is provided by a strip of silicone that extends from the circumferential strip at the flanges, under the sides and bottom of the bowl like a sling.

This modification of the safe n sizzling ring prevents liquid from the soup bowl from heating the ring surrounding the bowl. The ring on the plate embodiment is at the edges of the plate, but a bowl may have hot material actually inside the bowl just on the other side of the location where the plate surrounds the bowl. Because of this, the ring could still get very hot when the bowl is filled with hot liquid. The flanges 610, 615 extend away from the edges of the bowl, and can stay cool no matter how hot the bowl or its contents are, while the strip of silicone under the bowl provides total support for the bowl when held by the flanges.

The bowl is custom sized for the Safe N Sizzlin bowl supporter and just slides into it easily with slight stretching of the silicone strap and sling. After use, the bowl is easily removed from the bowl supporter with simple stretching of the strap and sling.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show respectively an oblique view and a side view of the device. The device has a ring 600 which surrounds an outer edge of the bowl, and provides insulation against heat from the bowl. Two different opposite flanges 610, 615 form extending handles that extend out from the ring portion of the bowl to facilitate carrying the bowl with the device attached thereon. In order to allow the device to be to carry the bowl more safely without slipping off the bowl, there is also an under-bowl extending section 620 which extends downward to cover and hold the bottom of the bowl.

The side view of FIG. 7 also shows the top ring 600, the left and right handles 610, 615, and the bottom support portion 620.

FIG. 8 illustrates how the device 599 can be placed around a bowl 597, having the surrounding ring 600 surrounding the outside of the bowl, but not necessarily covering the edge of the bowl. The surrounding ring is attached to handles 615, 620, which extend away from the bowl enabling carrying the bowl.

FIG. 9 illustrates a side view, showing the ring 600, the handle 615, 620, and the support portion 620 extending around the bottom of the bowl.

FIG. 10 illustrates the bottom of the bowl, showing how the bottom portion 620 extends between the handles 610, 615 to cover the bottom of the bowl.

The previous description of the disclosed exemplary embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present invention. Various modifications to these exemplary embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A removable insulating ring for covering a surface of an item of servingwear by extending around a portion of an outer perimeter of the servingwear, the ring formed of a stretchable insulating material extending around in a circle.

2. The ring as in claim 1, wherein the ring is formed of silicone.

3. The ring as in claim 2, wherein the ring is held to the servingwear by elastic action of the silicone ring.

4. The ring as in claim 1, wherein the servingwear is a disc-shaped plate.

5. The ring as in claim 4, wherein the ring is round, and has an inner U-shaped cavity that is sized to fit around an outer edge of the disc-shaped plate and cover and outer portion of an edge perimeter of the plate.

6. The ring as in claim 1, wherein the servingwear is a bowl.

7. The ring as in claim 6, wherein the ring extends in a circle and has two oppositely facing handles which extend in a radial direction relative to the circle.

8. The ring as in claim 7, wherein the ring also includes a support portion which extends from one portion of the ring, to a location under a bottom of the bowl, and to another portion of the ring.

9. The ring as in claim 8, wherein said one portion of the ring is attached to one of the handles, and the another portion of the ring is attached to the other of the handles.

10. A method of covering an item of servingwear, comprising attaching a removable insulating ring around a round outer surface of the servingwear, by stretching the ring around the round outer surface; andsubsequently holding the servingwear by holding a surface of the insulating ring.

11. The method as in claim 10, wherein the ring is formed of silicone.

12. The method as in claim 11, wherein the method is held to the servingwear by elastic action caused by the stretching.

13. The method as in claim 10, wherein the serving wear is a disc-shaped plate.

14. The method as in claim 13, wherein the ring is round, and has an inner U-shaped cavity that is sized to stretch around an outer edge of the disc-shaped plate and cover an outer portion of an edge perimeter of the plate.

15. The method as in claim 10, wherein the servingwear is a bowl.

16. The method as in claim 15, wherein the ring extends in a circle and has two oppositely facing handles which extend in a radial direction relative to the circle.

17. The method as in claim 16, wherein the ring also includes a support portion which extends from one portion of the ring, to a location under a bottom of the bowl, and to another portion of the ring.

18. The ring as in claim 17, wherein said one portion of the ring is attached to one of the handles, and the another portion of the ring is attached to the other of the handles.