AU2018100211A4

AU2018100211A4 - Sausage sizzle holder and serving tray

Info

Publication number: AU2018100211A4
Application number: AU2018100211A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Trevor Power
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2017-02-17
Filing date: 2018-02-19
Publication date: 2018-03-15
Anticipated expiration: 2026-02-19
Also published as: WO2018148783A1; AU2018221878A1

Abstract

The present invention provides a sausage sizzle holder and serving tray comprising an elongated body portion comprising a plurality of channels, wherein an included angle of the plurality of channels is about 55 degrees to 75 degrees to receive and hold a sausage sizzle sandwich therein, a flange extending outwardly from each end of the body portion and at least one foot connected to the body portion such that a base of the plurality of channels will lie above a supporting surface. 110a

Description

TITLE

SAUSAGE SIZZLE HOLDER AND SERVING TRAY FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to food serving trays and storage products. The present invention relates to a sausage sizzle holder and serving tray.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Sausage sizzles are typically a fundraising and community event held to raise money for a particular cause, group or event. Sausage sizzles are well known and widely adopted across Australia and New Zealand in particular, by schools, sporting clubs and non-profit organisations, general barbeques and commercially in markets and for business promotions. The sausage sizzle involves people preparing and serving barbequed sausages which are served on a single slice of bread on a serviette together with a choice of grilled onions, cheese, mustard and tomato and barbeque sauce.

Once the prepared sausages are ready they are handed over to the customer in exchange for money. However, the problem arises when a customer is after a number of sausages or there are a large number of customers waiting to be served and there is nowhere to keep the prepared sausage sandwiches while more are being made. It is particularly difficult for mums holding infants or toddlers finding it awkward to pull out their purse and exchange money single-handedly and then struggle to add toppings and sauces. Consequently, service becomes slower which could result in lost sales with people waiting in line becoming impatient and choosing to leave. While an option is to have more people to serve the customers, sausage sizzles are typically unpaid events and it is often difficult to get people to volunteer their time. Sausage sizzles are held outdoor under a marquee. The table surface can often become wet from bad weather and/or spillages from toppings or drinks which are commonly served with the sausage sizzle sandwiches. A rack for serving individual portions of food by placing the servings in open containers such as paper bags and delivering the food to the diner while maintaining them neat and securely upright to prevent the food from spilling from the open top is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 3,586,173. The bases of the successive slots are aligned to provide feet on which the rack may rest, for example upon a serving tray. The rack also provides a means for detachably connecting together a plurality of the racks via lips at the end of the rack which enable corresponding elements of other racks to be linked together. It is noted when linked together, one end of the rack is raised higher than the other to overlie the adjacent rack making the base unbalanced.

Various trays have developed to try and address similar problems which arise for a taco. U.S. Patent No. 4,004,501 discloses a taco holding tray to support formed taco shells for filling and serving. The tray has a series of linear parallel spaced round bottom “V”-shaped troughs with inclined walls high enough to support all but about the last one inch wide portion of the taco shell. An additional trough is provided at each end of the supporting trough to catch and hold any excess filling material from the taco shells. The included angle of the troughs is about 30 degrees to 40 degrees to allow the taco shell to open sufficiently to allow filling. The height of the supporting trough walls is 2 to 2.5 centimeters. The diameter of the bottom of the supporting troughs is about 1.6 centimeters to match the normal bending radius of a cooked and formed taco shell so that as filling is placed in the taco shell, the bottom will be well supported. The troughs have a very wide opening for ease of filling however, this can lead to spillage from the sides. This is particularly not suitable for a supporting a softer product such as a slice of bread which would flop open. While the invention provides an additional trough at each end, the resulting product is more complex, and expensive to manufacture. U.S. Patent Publication No. 2005/0023234 discloses a clip-on taco holder for up to three (3) or more tacos which clips onto the edge of most any typical dinner or serving plate. This holder for taco shells is designed to not only hold the tacos in an upright position for filling the taco ingredients, but to clip onto the edge of a dinner plate for resistance to tipping-over while carrying the plate between the table and kitchen, lines or passing between people. Each food receptacle includes a seat portion and side portions having lower portions and upper portions. Each lower portion defines an angle of approximately between 45 and 75 degrees relative to the seat portion and each upper portion defines an angle of approximately between 75 and 90 degrees relative to the seat portion. The height of each food receptacle is about 5 centimeters. The upper portion of these food receptacle is designed to narrow the opening of the food receptacle. However, an opening so narrow can make it difficult to add toppings particularly in a sausage sizzle where tongs and other similar utensils which require a certain degree of clearance are used to add toppings.

Paper bags and tacos have a generally tapered end. Hence, the prior art teach trays having receptacles with a narrow base to suit the tapered end of the paper bag or taco. Such a narrow base would not fit a sausage sandwich or result in the bread breaking along the fold. All the prior art racks, trays and holders are designed such that the base rests directly upon a supporting surface. Therefore, any spill onto the supporting surface will ruin the stored food which would result in waste and loss of profits for a sausage sizzle. The racks, trays and holders of the prior art must also be first placed onto serving trays or plates to be passed between people and/or transported from place to place. This requires additional cost and waste or washing efforts. Hence, there is a need for a product specifically designed to hold and support sausage sizzle sandwiches.

In this specification, the terms “comprises”, “comprising” or similar terms are intended to mean a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a sausage sizzle holder that comprises a list of elements does not include those elements solely, but may well include other elements not listed.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

It is a preferred object of the present invention to provide a sausage sizzle holder and serving tray, that addresses or at least ameliorates one or more of the aforementioned problems of the prior art and/or provides consumers with a useful or commercial choice.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Generally, embodiments of the present invention relate to a sausage sizzle holder and serving tray.

According to one aspect, although not necessarily the broadest aspect, the present invention resides in a sausage sizzle holder and serving tray comprising: an elongated body portion comprising a plurality of channels, wherein an included angle of the plurality of channels is about 50 degrees to 75 degrees to receive and hold a sausage sizzle sandwich therein; a flange extending outwardly from each end of the body portion; and at least one foot connected to the body portion such that a base of the plurality of channels will lie above a supporting surface.

Preferably, the included angle of the plurality of channels is about 67 degrees.

Preferably, the channels are substantially v-shaped having a flat base and two angled side walls.

Preferably, the plurality of channels are equally spaced apart by a ridge therebetween.

Preferably, the width and height of the ridge determines the angle of the channels.

Preferably, when the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray is in a first orientation, the flange extends outwardly from a bottom end of the body portion of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray to support and stabilise the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray on a supporting surface.

Preferably, wherein when the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray is flipped over to lie in a second orientation, the flange extends outwardly from a top end of the body portion of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray to provide a handle for use as a serving tray.

Preferably, the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray further comprises a handle attachable to a top end of the body portion of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray such that the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray can be carried.

Preferably, the height of the side walls is about 3 to 5 centimeters, preferably 3.5 centimeters.

Preferably, the width of the bottom of the channels is about 3 to 5 centimeters, preferably 3.5 centimeters.

Further features and forms of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the invention may be readily understood and put into practical effect, reference will now be made to embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numbers refer to identical elements. The drawings are provided by way of example only, wherein: FIG 1 shows a top perspective view of sausage sizzle holder and serving tray according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG 1A shows a bottom perspective view of sausage sizzle holder and serving tray according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG 2 shows a side view of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray of FIG 1; FIG 3 shows a top perspective view of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray of FIG 1 holding a plurality of sausage sizzle sandwiches; and FIG 4 shows an example of a foot which can be connected to a body portion of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray.

Skilled addressees will appreciate that elements in the drawings are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the relative dimensions of some of the elements in the drawings may be distorted to help improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to a sausage sizzle holder and serving tray. The present invention is specifically designed to be used for sausage sizzle sandwiches where barbequed sausages are served in a slice of bread. The sausage sizzle holder and serving tray is designed to allow a sausage and/or onion on a slice of bread to be placed on a serviette and folded in such a way that is stands almost upright within the holder so that customers can add their own sauces and toppings without having to hold the sausage sizzle sandwich. It should be noted that the present invention is not designed to be used for holding other foods such as hotdogs or tacos. Similarly, a hotdog or taco holder would not be suitable for holding sausage sizzle sandwiches.

Referring to FIGS 1 to 3, the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 comprises an elongated body portion 110. The sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 is substantially rectangular in shape. The sausage sizzle holder and serving tray is made of stainless steel preferably, a food grade stainless steel. However, it is envisaged any other material suitable for use with food could also be adopted such as plastic, melamine, cardboard or the like. It is envisaged in further embodiments, the thickness of the material of the body portion of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray may be reduced to save costs by employing a darting or similar process along the edges of the holder and serving tray to provide rigidity and strength. It will be acknowledged that the colour, size and dimensions of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray may be varied to meet the requirement of the invention. Similarly, the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 may have any suitable labelling or design printed, imprinted or placed thereon.

The body portion 110 comprises a plurality of channels 111 which are adapted to receive and hold a sausage sizzle sandwich therein, as illustrated in FIG 3. The channels 111 are substantially v-shaped having a flat base 111a and two angled side walls 111b, as shown in FIG 2. The included angle of the channels 111 is about 55 degrees to 75 degrees, preferably 67 degrees, to allow the bread to be supported and unfold to a certain angle so sauces, onions and other toppings can be added easily without spilling out. The design of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray also allows the sausage sizzle sandwich to be easily picked up and also allows multiples sandwiches to be collected at one time by grabbing the sandwich and/or napkin of multiple sandwiches within the holder. FIGS 1 to 3 show an embodiment of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 having six channels 111 however, it will be appreciated that any number of channels 111 may be provided. Preferably, the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 will have between four to six channels. It is envisaged that multiple embodiments, will be provided with a varying and unlimited number of channels 111 to suit different preferences. It is noted that if there are too many channels 111 and the length becomes too excessive, the sausage sizzle holder 100 may become too long and cumbersome and may be too heavy depending on the material being used for manufacture. If there are too few channels, multiple holders may be required.

The body portion 110 of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 comprises a plurality of ridges 112 wherein a ridge 112 is located on either side of the channels 111. The plurality of channels 111 are equally spaced apart by the ridges 112. The width and height of the ridges 112 determines the angle of the channels 111. The width and height have been carefully calculated and tested in the design of the present invention to ensure the sausage sizzle sandwich does not open and can be picked up with one hand. The height of the side walls is about 3 to 5 centimeters, preferably 3.5 centimeters. The width of the bottom of the channels is about 3 to 5 centimeters, preferably 3.5 centimeters, to support a sausage sandwich therein. However, it is envisaged that these dimensions can be varied in alternative embodiments.

Provided at each end of the body portion 110 is a flange 113. When the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 is in a first orientation, as shown in FIGS 1 to 3, the flanges extends outwardly from a bottom end 110b of the body portion 110 of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 to support and stabilise the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 on a supporting surface. When the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 is flipped over to lie in a second orientation, as shown in FIG 1A, the flanges 113 extends outwardly from a top end of the body portion 110 of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 to provide a handle for use as a serving tray. The second orientation also allows an additional sausage sizzle sandwich 200 to be held therein.

The body portion 110 may have permanent or removable feet 114 (an example of which is shown in FIG 4) connected thereto such that, the bottom of the channels 111 is raised to lie above the supporting surface instead of sitting directly thereon. In this way, if there is a spill on the supporting surface, it will not be able to travel into the channel 111 and ruin a sausage sizzle sandwich 200 being held therein. In a further embodiment, it is further envisaged that the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray may also have provided a handle attachable to a top end 110a of the body portion 110 of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 such that the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray 100 can be carried and used as a serving tray.

Hence, the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray provides a solution to the aforementioned problems of the prior art by providing a sausage sizzle holder and serving tray which enables a person to add toppings and sauces to a sausage sizzle sandwich without holding the sausage sizzle sandwich. It also holds the sausage sizzle sandwich in a manner which enables people to pick one or more up using only one hand. By having a place to keep the prepared sausage sizzle sandwiches, vendors are able to serve customers more quickly and efficiently. Further, the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray can be used in a dual orientation where it can be flipped over for use as a serving tray with an additional channel for an extra sausage sizzle sandwich. It should be noted that a hotdog or taco holder would not be suitable for holding sausage sizzle sandwiches. To date, people have struggled with existing holders because they are simply not intended to be used with and cater for a sausage sizzle sandwich. Much experimentation and testing has been required in the present invention to derive an effective product specifically for a sausage sizzle sandwich. Similarly, the present invention is not designed to be used for holding other foods such as hotdogs or tacos.

The reference to any prior art in this specification is and should not be taken as, an acknowledgment or any form or suggestion that the prior art forms part of the common general knowledge.

Throughout the specification the aim has been to describe the invention without limiting the invention to any one embodiment or specific collection of features. Persons skilled in the relevant art may realize variations from the specific embodiments that will nonetheless fall within the scope of the invention.

Claims

I claim:

1. A sausage sizzle holder and serving tray comprising: an elongated body portion comprising a plurality of channels, wherein an included angle of the plurality of channels is about 55 degrees to 75 degrees to receive and hold a sausage sizzle sandwich therein; a pair of flanges, each said flange extending outwardly from each end of the body portion; and at least one foot connected to the body portion such that a base of the plurality of channels will lie above a supporting surface.
2. The sausage sizzle holder and serving tray of claim 1, wherein the included angle of the plurality of channels is about 67 degrees.
3. The sausage sizzle holder and serving tray of claim 1 .wherein the channels are substantially v-shaped having a flat base and two angled side walls.
4. The sausage sizzle holder and serving tray of claim 1, wherein when the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray is in a first orientation, the pair of flanges extend outwardly from a bottom end of the body portion of the sausage sizzle holder.
5. The sausage sizzle holder and serving tray of claim 1, wherein when the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray is flipped over to lie in a second orientation, the pair of flanges extend outwardly from a top end of the body portion of the sausage sizzle holder and serving tray to provide a handle for use as a serving tray.