Contact toaster
US6192789A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 31, 1999 |
| Grant date | Feb 27, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 31, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA47J37/0864
- WIPO fieldFurniture, games
- WIPO sectorOther fields
Abstract
An improved contact toaster for heating bagels, muffins and other food items features a housing containing a toasting chamber with an inlet and an outlet. The toasting chamber contains a pair of conveyor belts with a removable platen positioned between them. Two auxiliary heaters are positioned so that they heat both the platen and the conveyor belts. A pair of tensioners engage the conveyor belts so that pathways between the conveyor belts and platen taper inward to a minimum thickness and then expand outward again. As a result, food items moving through the pathways via the conveyor belts are toasted on both surfaces and also absorb heat from both the platen and the conveyor belt surfaces as they are compressed and released. The platen may be diamond shaped to increase the rate and degree of compression and release and removable so that thicker food items may be accommodated. The platen may contain upper and lower heating elements that may be individually controlled to provide greater heat in the region of maximum compression of the food item.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.