Patent Application
20230277007
The disclosure relates generally to the field of cooking utensils. More specifically, the disclosure relates to tools to facilitate the roasting of sausages such as hot dogs or other cylindrical shaped food items.
Long pointed sticks have long been used for roasting food such as sausages over an open fire. Sausages pierced by and supported on a stick tend to rotate on the stick with a heavier end rotating downward. If care is not taken, the sausage may slide off the sharpened end of the stick and into the fire and ashes. Long handled forks which pierce the sausage in at least two spots prevent unwanted rotation, but sausages are still prone to slide off the end of the fork. Piercing of a sausage with a stick or fork also allows juices to escape from the sausage casing reducing the quality of the roasted sausage. The sharp ends of sticks or forks used to hold hot dogs warrant close monitoring of their use by children to prevent injury.
In an embodiment of the invention, a tool for holding and roasting cylindrical shaped foods comprises a handle having a hand grip end and a roasting end. The tool includes at least one annular gripper mounted on the roasting end of the handle, the annular gripper forming a receiver sized to receive and hold a portion of a first sized cylindrical shaped food item therein.
The annular gripper is formed from a flexible material, and the annular gripper includes a slit extending through one end, such that the annular gripper comprises first and second arcuate legs. The annular gripper having a slit may also be described as having a split ring shape. Typically, the slit is located on an end opposite the shaft, and the arcuate legs are of approximately equal arc lengths. These arcuate legs are biasable outward to increase the size of the receiver formed therebetween to receive and hold a portion of a cylindrical shaped food item. The increase in receiver size allows for larger diameter foods to be held by the annular grippers.
In another embodiment, a tool for holding and roasting cylindrical shaped foods comprises a handle having a hand grip end, a shaft and a roasting end. The tool includes a gripping assembly having first and second prongs connected to and projecting outward from the shaft at the roasting end of the handle. First and second grippers are mounted on the first and second prongs respectively, and each of the first and second grippers has a receiver formed therein sized to receive and hold a portion of a cylindrical shaped food item. Each gripper is preferably formed as an expandable, split ring to accommodate food items of varying diameter or cross-section.
Illustrative embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the attached drawing figures.
Certain terminology will be used in the following description for convenience in reference only and will not be limiting. For example, the term “hot dog” may refer to any number of cylindrically-shaped consumable food products, such as hot dogs, sausages, bratwursts, and any other variations known by those in the art.
An embodiment of a tool 100 for roasting cylindrical shaped food items 101 of varying sizes such as hot dogs and other types of sausages is shown in
In the illustrated embodiment, the handle 104 includes a rod or shaft 116. Shaft 116 may be formed from metal, preferably aluminum, but may be constructed from other metals or other rigid materials such as fiberglass which are not susceptible to failure or deformation when exposed to extreme heat. In some embodiments, it may be desirable to vary the length or angle of the handle 104. This may be advantageous for storage, as a collapsible or foldable handle may have a smaller footprint. The handle 104 and shaft 116 therefore may be formed as a telescoping or folding assembly as desired.
A handle grip 117 may be formed at the grip end 106 of the handle 104 to improve ergonomics and/or reduce the temperature of the grip end 106. A through hole 118 may be formed through handle 104, handle grip 117 or both the handle grip 117 and the handle 104. to permit the handle 104 the be hung vertically, either for storage purposes or for commercial display. The handle grip 117 may be formed from a flexible polymeric material, for example silicone, and may be molded over the rigid rod 116. In the preferred embodiment, the handle grip 117 is formed from a food-safe FDA-approved silicone material.
In the embodiment shown, the arms 121 and 122 extend outward from the hosel 119 at an acute angle relative to a longitudinal axis A extending through the handle 104. The arms or prongs 121 and 122 may be described as forked or forming a forked gripping assembly 110. The annular grips 111 and 112 are also shown as offset from the arms 121 and 122, respectively. In some embodiments, it may be desirable for the grippers 111 and 112 to be offset at an angle supplementary to the arms 121 and 122, such that the grippers 111 and 112 each extend in a plane that is substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis A. As shown in
Likewise, it may be desirable in some embodiments to be able to manually alter the angle of the arms 121 and 122 and/or grippers 111 and 112 relative to the handle on an as-needed basis, including the angular offset. This may be achieved via different materials and/or by varying the thickness of the arms 121 and 122 such that they are more elastic, which may provide a more adjustable angle for the grippers 111 and 112 that conforms to a wider variety of possible foods. The angular offset of each arm 121 and 122 and/or gripper 111 and 112 may be individually biasable inward or toward the longitudinal axis A extending through the handle 104 and/or outward or away from the longitudinal axis A. Each arm 121 and 122 and/or gripper may also be individually adjustable upward toward a user and/or downward toward the ground.
In the embodiment shown, the gripping assembly 110 includes a central portion or hub 123 to which inner ends of the arms 121 and 122 and an end of the hosel 119 are connected. The arms 121 and 122 project tangentially outward from a radial face 127 of the central hub 123 on a side of the hub 123 opposite the hosel 119. The radius of the radial face 127 may vary depending on the desired level of flexibility of the arms 121 and 122.
In the embodiment shown, the grippers 111 and 112 are substantially annular in shape. The receiver 114 of each annular grip 111 and 112 is shown as a hole, opening or void which extends through its thickness. The receiver 114 of each annular grip 111 and 112 is defined or surrounded by an inner concentric surface 128 of the annular grip 111 or 112. As shown in
In the illustrated embodiment, a discontinuity or slit 129 is formed in each of the annular grips 111 and 112, forming what may be referred to as split rings. The slit 129 extends through the thickness of each annular grip 111 and 112, on a side of the annular grip 111 and 112 opposite its attachment to the respective arm 121 and 122. Preferably, the slit 129 bisects the respective annular grip 111 and 112 into two arcuate segments or legs 131 and 132 forming approximately equal length arcs. When the grips 111 and 112 are empty (i.e., there is no food item inserted) the slit 129 in each annular grip 111 and 112 is substantially planar in shape. In the preferred embodiment, the slit 129 is bounded by surfaces 135 of the annular grips 111 and 112, which are substantially parallel to each other when the annular grips 111 and 112 are empty.
The slit 129 and flexibility of the material forming the annular grips 111 and 112 allows for expansion of the arcuate segments 131 and 132 of the annular grips 111 and 112 to accommodate cylindrical food items 101 of a variety of diameters. For example, in
In the preferred embodiment, the combination of the material and the geometry of the annular grips 111 and 112 normally biases the annular grips 111 and 112 toward a closed state, whereby the width of the slit 129 is minimized. Because the annular grips 111 and 112 are biased toward the closed state, the food item 101 remains frictionally engaged with the inner surface 128 at all times, regardless of the diameter of the inserted food item.
Many different arrangements of the various components depicted, as well as components not shown, are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Embodiments of the present disclosure have been described with the intent to be illustrative rather than restrictive. Alternative embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the art that do not depart from its scope. A skilled artisan may develop alternative means of implementing the aforementioned improvements without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.
It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations and are contemplated within the scope of the claims.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application, Ser. No. 63/268,737, filed Mar. 1, 2023, and titled “TOOL FOR HOLDING AND ROASTING CYLINDRICAL SHAPED FOODS,”
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63268737 | Mar 2022 | US |
