Device for warming food and beverage containers having support plate and perimeter skirt structure
US5073699A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 24, 1989 |
| Grant date | Dec 17, 1991 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 24, 2009 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA47J31/4439
- WIPO fieldFurniture, games
- WIPO sectorOther fields
Abstract
A warming unit for warming a vessel for containing food or beverages, such as a coffee pot for an automatic drip coffee maker, reduces scorching and burning resulting from non-uniform heating of the vessel. The warming device has a support plate with an upper surface dimensioned to support the vessel and a perimeter skirt extending downwardly from a perimeter of the support plate to surround a heating element beneath the support plate. The upper surface includes raised support structures formed as dome-shaped structures thereon. The cooking vessel rests on and is supported by the top surfaces of the support structures in spaced relation to the plate thus creating a convection space which reduces thermal conductive heating and allows both convection heating and infrared heating. The support plate also comprises a thermal mass sufficient to dampen fluxuations of temperature at the upper surface. Vent holes through the top plate and perimeter skirt vent steam and vapors from underneath the support plate and facilitate convective warming of the vessel. An alternative embodiment may be constructed as an interface plate device with a flat plate dimensioned correspondingly to a hot plate …
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.