AU720348B3

AU720348B3 - A product temperature and product identification device

Info

Publication number: AU720348B3
Application number: AU22417/00A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Brett David Jones
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2000-03-20
Filing date: 2000-03-20
Publication date: 2000-06-01
Anticipated expiration: 2006-03-20
Also published as: WO2001071698A1

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A PETTY PATENT Name of Applicant: Actual Inventor: Address for Service: .Brett David JONES As above CULLEN CO., Patent Trade Mark Attorneys, 239 George Street, Brisbane, QId. 4000, Australia.

Invention Title: A PRODUCT TEMPERATURE AND PRODUCT IDENTIFICATION DEVICE The following statement is a full description of this invention including the best method of performing it known to me: A PRODUCT TEMPERATURE AND PRODUCT IDENTIFICATION DEVICE This invention relates to a product temperature and product identification device which has particular use in the food take-away and food display industry, and which allows the temperature of a particular product and the identity of the product to be readily viewed by a consumer and/or the retailer. The device need not be limited to this industry.

Temperature probes which can be inserted into food products to see if the food products are the correct temperature are well-known. These probes usually comprise a dial and a metal sensor in the form of a spike which is pushed into the food to ensure that the food is at the correct temperature.

Food products and especially fresh meat and dairy-based products are required to be chilled to minimise bacterial growth. These foods include processed meat products such as salamis, bacons and the like, dairy products such as cheese and especially young cheeses, fresh fish products, salads, coleslaw, meat salads, meat mixes, marinated meats and a host of other food products.

It is conventional for these food products to be placed in dishes or trays in a side-by-side relationship in a large refrigerated or cooled cabinet.

The cabinet is provided with a glass front wall such that a consumer can view and select the purchase, and the rear of the cabinet is either open or has sliding doors to allow the desired product to be removed from the cabinet.

The cabinet is refrigerated and it is usual for the cabinet to have a temperature sensor. However, in large cabinets, it is impossible to keep all parts of the cabinet at the same temperature. For instance, food products towards the rear of the cabinet (near the open rear or rear doors) are cooled less than products in the front of the cabinet. Outside temperature conditions can also affect the temperature of food products situated immediately behind the glass parts of the cabinet. This results in uneven cooling of the food dishes or trays in the cabinet which can result in the food products spoiling.

Another consideration is that different food products should be maintained at different temperatures. For instance, a made up tuna salad needs to be kept at a lower temperature than an ordinary garden salad which does not contain fish products.

While it may be possible to insert a temperature probe into each food dish to give the temperature of that particular food dish in the cabinet, this does not present useful information to a consumer or a retailer. For instance, a particular temperature (say 100) may be suitable for one type of food product, but may be too high for a more sensitive type of food product which will become quickly spoiled at this temperature.

Many consumers are very astute and know that certain food products maintain optimum freshness and taste if kept at certain temperatures while other food product keep optimum taste and freshness if kept at different temperatures. Thus, a general temperature sensor in a cabinet is insufficiently precise, as are individual temperature sensors in each food product which does not readily identify the food product.

The present invention is directed to a device which will enable a consumer to readily identify a particular product (for instance a food product) and also enables the consumer to identify the temperature at which the product is being maintained. The device finds particular use in the take-away and food display industry, but it should be appreciated that the device is not limited to this type of industry and finds use in any industry where a product identification and product temperature needs to be provided as a combined source of information.

It is an object of the invention to provide a device which may overcome the abovementioned disadvantages or provide the public with a useful or commercial choice.

In one form, the invention resides in a product temperature and product identification device which has an advertising surface which is visible to a consumer and on which product identification can be applied, a support to support the device adjacent the product, a temperature sensor to sense the temperature of the product, and a temperature display to display the temperature of the product to the consumer.

In a more particular form, the invention resides in a product temperature and product identification device which has a main body portion provided with at least one advertising surface which is visible to a consumer and on which product identification can be applied, a support to support the main body portion adjacent the product, the support adapted to be in thermal communication with the product, a temperature sensor located on or in the support to sense the temperature of the product, and a temperature display on the main body portion to display the temperature of the product to the consumer.

The device will be described with reference to its use to determine the temperature and identification of food products, but it should be appreciated that no limitation is meant thereby.

The device has an advertising surface which is visible to a consumer and on which product identification can be applied. It is preferred that the device has a main body portion which can be rectangular and where one side wall of the main body portion is planar or has a planar portion on which product identification can be applied.

The product identification can be written on, or printed on the surface, and the surface may be a write on/wipe off surface which can be reused many times. Alternatively, the product identification can be in the form of a sticker, label, transfer and the like which can be applied to and removed from the advertising surface. It is envisaged that for devices which are always used with a particular product, the product identification can be applied permanently on the advertising surface such that when the device is cleaned, the identification is not removed.

The main body portion may be formed of plastic or other materials suitable for the purpose. If used with food products, the main body portion is suitably of a food grade plastic which can be readily cleaned.

The main body portion may be rectangular and plate-like to allow it to be easily gripped by a retailer and placed next to or into a food product. The size of the device can vary to suit but it is envisaged that the size should be sufficient to provide a sufficient advertising surface to allow product identification to be applied and easily viewed by a consumer while not being so large that removal of product becomes cumbersome of difficult, or that the price of manufacture of the device becomes excessive.

In an embodiment, the device may be rectangular when viewed in plan and may have a length of between 5 to 20cm, a width of between 3 to 10cm, and a thickness or depth of between 1 to 5cm. Of course, the device may have shapes other than rectangular although a rectangular shape appears to be most suitable for use with food products due to the ability to provide a good sized advertising surface.

The device has a support which allows the device to be supported, typically in a generally upright position, on, in, or adjacent the product. The support may be in the form of one or more leg members which can be inserted into the product (for instance if the product is a food product).

The leg members may be pointed or otherwise configured to facilitate their insertion into the food product. A small device may have a single leg portion while a larger device may require two or more spaced apart leg portions. The support may alternatively comprise a foot to allow the device to be selfsupporting and free standing. The foot may be in the form of an L-shaped member or bracket or other type of member having a portion which can sit underneath the product or product bowl to hold the device in place. Other types of supports are also envisaged although it is preferred that the support is of the type which is easily inserted and removed from the food product and easy to clean.

A temperature sensor is provided to sense the temperature of the product. As a temperature sensor is usually fairly fragile, it may be positioned in, on or adjacent the support for protection and also to minimise the number of parts of the device which directly contact or disrupt the product.

A temperature display is provided to display the temperature of the product to the consumer. The display may be in the form of a dial, LED, or colour display, or any other type of suitable display. It is preferred that a clear temperature display is on, or adjacent the advertising surface to allow a consumer to read the temperature of the product and the identification of the product as a combined, or single source of information. Alternatively, or in addition thereto, a temperature display may be on the rear of the device to allow the temperature to be displayed to the retailer or serving person.

The advantage of the device is that it provides the product temperature and an identification of the product as a single or combined source of information which is an advantage not found in the prior art.

An embodiment of the invention will be described with reference to the following drawings in which Figure 1 is a front view of a device according to an embodiment of the invention.

Figure 2 is a rear view of the device of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a device according to an alternative embodiment of the invention.

Figure 4 is a device according to an alternative embodiment of the invention.

Figure 5 is a device according to an alternative embodiment of the invention.

Referring to the drawings and initially to Figures 1 and 2, there is illustrated a product temperature and product identification device 10 which in the embodiment has a main body portion 11 which is generally rectangular in shape and has a front wall 12, a back wall 13 (see Figure a top wall 14, a bottom wall 15, and side walls 16. In the embodiment, the main body portion is plate-like or box-like in configuration and has a length of about a height of about 5cm, and a thickness of about 2cm (this can of course vary to suit).

Front wall 12 is substantially planar and most of the entire front wall can be used as an advertising surface which is visible to a consumer and on which product identification can be applied. In the embodiment, the front wall is of a food grade plastic material where product information can be written on/wiped off for repeated use. The product information can comprise an identification of the product and a product price.

Extending from bottom wall 15 is a pair of supports 17.

Supports 17 in this embodiment is in the form of flat leg members which are tapered to a sharpened point to allow the leg members to be pushed into a food product. The leg members function to hold the main body portion in an upright or inclined position such that the front wall is visible to the consumer.

Without the flat leg members, the main body portion may be quite unstable and may fall into the food product. In Figures 1 and 2, a pair of spaced apart leg members are provided this being suitable for larger bowls of food material and to provide greater stability especially if the food product is made of rather loose material (for instance a chicken stirfry).

Forming part of, or otherwise associated with each leg member 17 is a temperature sensor 18 which is commercially available in the marketplace. The sensor is attached to, or forms part of each leg member which means that the sensor is protected by the leg member and the food product is not cluttered by an unnecessary number of projections and the like extending into the food product. Therefore, as the leg members are pushed into the food product to stabilise the main body portion 11, the sensor is in thermal communication with the product.

Temperature sensor 18 displays the temperature to a temperature display 19 which may comprise a digital or colour display. Back wall 13 is also provided with a temperature display 20 to allow the temperature to be displayed both to the consumer and to the server. Back wall 13 may also be substantially planar to form an advertising surface such that the product identification can also be written on the back wall for the benefit of the server of the food product.

Figure 3 illustrates a device similar to that of Figure 1 and 2 except that only a single leg member 21 is provided which can be pushed into the food product. A single temperature sensor 22 is on leg member 21 and allows the temperature to be displayed by display 19. To power the sensor, a solar panel 23 is provided on front wall 12 but away from where the product identification is written on the front wall 12. In most delicatessens, a fairly bright light is directed onto the food products and solar panel 23 can use that light to generate sufficient power for the display 19.

Figure 4 illustrates an embodiment where the support is in the form of a foot having a vertical portion 24 extending from the bottom wall of the main body portion 12, and a horizontal portion 25. This L-shaped foot makes the main body portion free standing but also allows the device to sit around a food box or a polygonal food product (for instance block cheese or food presented in a rectangular or angular container). Again, a sensor 26 is provided on vertical porton 24 and which is either in direct contact or very close to the food product to allow the temperature to be displayed on display 19.

Figure 5 illustrates an embodiment where the support is in the form of a single thin post-like finger 27 which contains a temperature sensor (not illustrated) to provide the temperature to display 19.

The device may be made of water resistant material for cleaning purposes and if used to display the temperature of hot food, is also heat resistant. The unit may be solar powered or battery powered and if a battery is supplied, it may be inside main body portion 12. The front face 12 in the embodiment is able to be written on/wiped off for repeated use. The device is easy to operate and requires almost no maintenance, is easy to clean and extremely cost effective. There are no loose wires or temperature sensors which can be damaged or which may break off and fall into the food product.

The identifcation of the food product and the temperature of the food product are in a close relationship and can be seen as providing a single source of information.

The device can be used in the take-away and food display industry. A constant problem in this industry is to monitor the correct temperature to inhibit the growth of harmful bacterial in the food product. The device allows the constant monitoring of each product on display and allows the consumer and the retailer to be aware of the temperature of the food that is on display and to ensure that the food is within the temperature range for safe consumption.

The device may be suitable for hot and cold foods and can be manufactured for uses of temperatures from -50 up to 365 0

C.

The device has use outside the food industry. The temperature 9 display may be numerical or use a colour range to provide ideal temperatures. The temperature display, while preferably being on the front face, may be on other parts of the device. Similarly, if the device is solar powered, the solar panel may be on other parts of the device.

It should be appreciated that various other changes or modifications may be made to the embodiment described without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

Claims

1. A product temperature and product identification device which has an advertising surface which is visible to a consumer and on which product identification can be applied, a support to support the device adjacent the product, a temperature sensor to sense the temperature of the product, and a temperature display to display the temperature of the product to the consumer.

2. The device of claim 1, which has a main body portion provided with at least one advertising surface which is visible to a consumer and on io which product identification can be applied, a support to support the main body portion adjacent the product, the support adapted to be in thermal communication with the product, a temperature sensor located on or in the support to sense the temperature of the product, and a temperature display on the main body portion to display the temperature of the product to the consumer

3. The device of claim 1 or claim 2 substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings. DATED this 20 t h day of March 2000 Brett David JONES By his Patent Attorneys CULLEN CO.