Patent Application
20170215691
The present invention relates generally to utility racks, and more specifically to a collapsible dish rack for holding plates, bowls, servers, chargers, cutting boards, cookware and the like during drying and/or for storage.
Dish racks are often used as kitchen organizers, designed for holding kitchen items, such as plates, bowls, servers, chargers, cutting boards, cookware and the like for drying after they have been washed and/or for storage. However, dish racks are generally bulky and difficult to store and, therefore, can take up a significant portion of kitchen countertop, cabinet, drawer or shelf space relative to their size.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a collapsible dish rack that holds kitchen articles and is compact for ease of storage.
The present invention is directed to a collapsible dish rack comprising two or more sectioned side walls having openings between one or more vertical sections for receiving one or more kitchen items to be held vertically and at two end members engaging the sectioned side walls with a pivotable connection to maintain a variable fixed distance between the side walls. The pivotable connection provides that the side walls can be adapted from a separated orientation where the side walls and end members form a frame, when in the use configuration, to an adjacent orientation where the side walls and end members lie flat, when in a storage configuration.
The end members preferably have cylindrical terminal portions for engaging cylindrical openings in the side walls to fix the end members to the side walls. Of course, the entire end member, including the terminal portions and a central portion may be formed of a cylindrical wire, for ease of manufacture. Notwithstanding, the central portion, between the terminal portions, may have any form or corresponding member that does not interfere with the pivotal connection of the end members to the side walls, so the dish rack can be collapsed from the use configuration to the storage configuration, with the side walls maintained a relative fixed distance from one another.
Preferably, the vertical height of the central portions of the end members is substantially the same as the height of the vertical sections of the sectioned side walls, to permit a kitchen item to be supported against the central portion of the end members. Alternatively, one or both of the end members can have a height that does not exceed the height of the side walls between the vertical sections of the side walls, so as only to facilitate pivoting of the side walls between the use and storage configurations but not support the kitchen items placed on the dish rack.
The engagement of the end members at each end of the sectioned side walls with a pivotal connection completes the frame of the dish rack and maintains the shape of the dish rack, allowing the sectioned side walls to support kitchen articles of suitable shape and size. The engagement of the end members to the sectioned side walls with a pivotable connection forms hinges at each end of the sectioned side walls, which allows the dish rack to convert from the use configuration to the storage configuration.
In a preferred embodiment, the end members each comprise terminal sections that are inserted into openings at the ends of the sectioned side walls. In a most preferred embodiment, molded inserts and molded endcaps cooperate with the terminal portions of the end members to retain the end members on the side walls.
The molded inserts are positioned at the terminal sections of the end members above the terminal ends and above the upper surface of the ends of the side walls, and the endcaps are adapted to receive the terminal ends of the terminal portions of the end members, locking the side walls between the inserts and endcaps. In a preferred embodiment, the inserts not only fix the terminal sections to the top of the side wall, but include a sleeve portion that fits within the opening of the side walls to facilitate smooth pivoting of the end members within the openings of the side walls.
Although the collapsible dish rack can have feet on the bottom surface of the side walls, the preferred embodiment using molded inserts and endcaps contemplates that the molded endcaps serve as feet on which the dish rack rests. In such an embodiment, at least the bottom surface of the endcaps comprises a non-slip material that stabilizes and prevents the dish rack from slipping on a surface on which it is placed while in use. Also preferred is the removable attachment of the endcaps from the terminal ends of the end members, such that the end members may be removed from the side walls to allow for disassembly of the dish rack for cleaning and storage.
The present invention is now described with reference to the appended figures, which reference identical or functionally similar elements with like reference characters. While specific configurations and arrangements are discussed, it should be understood that this is done for illustrative purposes only. A person skilled in the relevant art will recognize that other configurations and arrangements can be used without departing form the spirit and scope of the invention.
In a preferred embodiment, shown in accompanying
The side walls 18 of the dish rack 10 may be composed of any suitable substantially rigid and durable material such as wood, glass, metal, and/or plastic. A preferred material for the side walls 18 is plastic, and more preferably an acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). Moreover, the side walls 18 may be solid or hollow, preferably including a support structure for maintaining the structural integrity of the side walls 18 when hollow.
As best seen in
In another preferred embodiment, shown in accompanying
The end members 12 may be composed of any substantially rigid and durable material such as a wood, metal, plastic, and/or similarly suitable material. A preferred material for the end members 12 is steel, and more preferably stainless steel, in a cylindrical wire shape.
The end members 12 and the side walls 18 or 18′ may be connected with any suitable style pivotal connection including, but not limited to, fasteners, clamps, clasps, snaps, clips, pins, pivots, flanges, mounts or the like. The end members 12, when engaged with the side walls 18 or 18′, complete the frame and maintain the shape of the dish rack 10 or 10′, allowing the side walls 18 or 18′, and the end members 12 to cooperate to support kitchen articles of suitable shape and size. The pivotal connection for engagement of the end members 12 and the side walls 18 or 18′ forms hinges at each corner, which allows the dish rack 10 or 10′ to collapse from a use configuration, where the side walls 18 or 18′ are spaced apart from one another (as shown in
In a preferred embodiment, as illustrated in
Although the terminal ends of the end members 12 can be received directly in the chambers 28 of the side walls 18 or 18′, the preferred embodiment of the drawings include endcaps 20 for receiving the terminal ends of the terminal portions of the end members 12 extending through openings extending through the chambers 28 at the ends of the side walls 18.
The endcaps 20 of the dish rack 10, as illustrated in
While certain exemplary embodiments have been described and shown in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that such embodiments are merely illustrative and not restrictive of the current invention, and that this invention is not restricted to the specific constructions and arrangements shown and described since modification can occur to those of ordinarily skilled in the art.
Variations, modifications, and alterations to the above detailed description will be apparent to those skilled in the art. All such variations, modifications and/or alternatives are intended to fall within the scope of the present invention.
The term “comprising” as used in the following claims is an open-ended transitional term that is intended to include additional elements not specifically recited in the claims.
It is also noted that any feature or element that is positively identified in this document may also be specifically excluded as a feature or element of an embodiment of the present invention.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62289581 | Feb 2016 | US |
