GB2083341A

GB2083341A - Article of table cutlery

Info

Publication number: GB2083341A
Application number: GB8025733A
Authority: GB
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1980-07-29
Filing date: 1980-08-07
Publication date: 1982-03-24
Also published as: ZA805848B; NL8004335A; FR2487660A1; FI802791A; AU6218380A; NO802609L; BE885280A

Abstract

This invention provides an article of table cutlery 1, such as a knife, a fork, or a spoon, in which the handle 2 has a duct extending over most of the handle length. There is an opening at the extreme end of the handle remote from the bowl in the preferred case of a spoon. The duct, of more restricted cross-section, is shaped as an extension of the handle, and runs along the concave surface and convex surface of the spoon bowl. The spoon may be used as a stirrer, a spoon for lifting soft foods, or a straw for drinking beverages. The spoon may be reversely hung on a slender necked bottle, when drinking a beverage contained in the bottle. The spoon bowl 3 abuts against the bottle neck. Thus, the spoon cannot drop into the bottle as often happens with a conventional drinking straw. The spoon can also be used for stirring beverages in the bottle. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Article of table cutlery This invention relates to articles of table cutlery.

Knives, forks and spoons have distinct and largely separate, but partly overlapping, functions. Knives are used for sub-division and for co-operation against a fork. Forks may be used for spearing or lifting unit pieces of, or accumulations of sub-divided solids without adherent liquid; they have a subsidiary cutting function and some designs are provided with (necessarily blunt) edge on an outer tine to assist this. Spoons are used for lifting soft foods, for sub-division of soft food, and, if suitably dimensioned, for liquids.

Some food stuffs however need utensils of more than one type. Typically, foods containing liquid and a solid mass of material, bigger than conveniently edible in one mouthful, are inconvenient to eat; even if a spoon is used for the solid, it will for preference be of small size and thus not be suitable for convenient subsequent handling of liquid. Food stuffs such as some soups and stews, or desserts containing both ice-cream and liquid are typical examples. The first often need both a fork (for solids) and a spoon of suitable size for the liquid; the second are often supplied with both a spoon and a spoon for sucking up the remaining liquid.

Another area where two utensils need be used is in the preparation of drinks such as instant coffee, lemonade from lemonade powder, beef or yeast extracts, etc.. Typically, a measured spoonful of powder is used e.g.

successively in a number od vessels which thus need separate stirrers or (for lemonade etc.) straws. The wet spoon cannot be introduced back into the powder container.

The invention sets out to provide cutlery which in addition to its normal function is particularly adapted to handle liquids. The cutlery can be embodied either as permanent metal or like articles or as novelty articles e.g.

of synthetic polymeric material primarily for use by children and disposable after single or limited use.

In one aspect the invention consists in an article of table cutlery having a continuous duct extending from an opening at or near one end to a second opening at or near the other end, whereby it can also be used for sucking up liquids.

The article can be a knife, fork or spoon. It is preferably a spoon.

The duct can be constituted over most of its length as the handle of the spool, open at the end remote from the bowl. The remainder of the duct can be (i) a hollow bowl (i.e. made of two spaced layers with the space communicating with the duct in the handle) or (ii) can be a portion of more restricted cross-section (.e.g generally shaped as an extension of the handle) and run along the concave surface, or the convex surface, or both surfaces, or within the thickness of the spoon bowl.

In either case it can be provided with an opening at the edge of the bowl remote from the handle, which edge in most spoons is formed as a more or less rounded lip. The opening in the bowl can open forwards, backwards or preferably outwards in relation to the bowl concave surface. Similarly the opening in the handle is preferably at the extreme end of the handle. In either case, the shape and location of the opening should not detrimentally affect the suction requirement.

If the article is a fork, the duct can extend within the handle and one or more tines.

The article can be made of a rigid synthetic polymeric material, especially when as a novelty article for use by children e.g. at parties.

The construction of the article of table cutlery is such that the article can be used either as a spoon for lifting food or as a mixer for stirring liquids. The article, if a spool, can be used for drinking beverages contained in a bottle with a slender neck, because the spoon bowl abuts against the bottle neck, thereby preventing the spoon from dropping into the bottle as can happen with existing straws.

The invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of an article of table cutlery according to the invention; Figure 2 is a sectional view of the article of table cutlery taken along line A-A in Fig. 1; Figure 3 is a sectional view of a second embodiment of an article of table cutlery; Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along line C-C in Fig. 1; and Figure 5 is a perspective view of the article of table cutlery in a bottle with a slender neck.

Figs. 1 to 4 show an article of table cutlery 1, which is a spoon having a duct 6 and 8 or 7 and 6 between a spoon bowl 3 and a handle 2. The handle 2 comprises an upper convex piece 2a and a lower concave piece 2b (as shown in Fig. 4). They are sufficiently rigid to be able to withstand considerable stirring of a liquid in a container. The upper convex piece 2a and the lower concave piece 2b form a duct 8, which can be oblong, circular, elliptical, regtangular, or square in cross-section. The spoon bowl 3 comprises an upper lip piece 3a and a lower lip piece 3b (as shown in Fig. 2), or an upper lip piece 3c and a lower lip piece 3d (as shown in Fig. 3).

The upper lip piece 3a has an upper convex piece 5a and the lower lip piece 3b has a lower concave piece Sb, from which the duct 6 is formed. The duct can be oblong, circular, elliptical, rectangular, or square in cross-section, so that the shape of the duct 6 can match the shape of the duct 8 of the handle 2. The spoon bowl formed from the upper lip piece 3a and the lower lip piece 3b has a duct projecting from both the upper lip and the lower lip.

There is an upper convex piece Sc on the upper lip piece 3c, which is used for forming the duct 7 when the upper lip piece 3c and the lower lip piece 3d are assembled together.

The duct is connected with the duct 8 of the handle 2. The spoon bowl 3 formed from the upper lip piece 3c and the lower lip piece 3d has the duct projecting from the upper lip piece, but not from the lower lip piece, which is smooth.

The spool bowl 3 is formed from the upper lip piece 3a and the lower lip piece 3b, or from the upper lip piece 3c and the lower lip piece 3d.

The spoon can be used for stirring or for drinking. When drinking a beverage from a bottle with a slender neck 9 (Fig. 5), the handle 2 of the spoon is inserted into the bottle and the spoon bowl abuts against the bottle mouth. The spoon depends from the bottle mouth. Thus, the spoon cannot drop into the bottle as often happens with conventional drinking straws.

The article of table cutlery can be made from permanent metal, glass, water-proof cardboard, heat-resistant and non-toxic sythetic polymeric material. The synthetic polymeric material can be polyethylene, polypropylene or polyvinylchoride. The article of table cutlery can also be made of paper of PP material for disposable purposes, so that the article of table cutlery can comply with sanitation principles. The article of table cutlery can be assembled from parts made of the aforesaid materials for production purposes.

The article of table cutlery has a wide duct 6, 7 and 8, so that the duct cannot be blocked up by larger food particles. The handle 2 and the spoon bowl 3 should always be kept clean, so that the article of table cutlery can be used for sucking up a beverage.

When the article of table cutlery is a spoon, and is used for drinking a beverage, the spoon bowl will feel comfortable in a user's mouth, because the bowl fits the shape of the user's mouth. Of course, it is possible to put the handle of the spoon in a user's mouth.

This is possible if the bowl can fit through the neck of the bottle containing the beverage.

Claims

1. An article of table cutlery having a continuous duct extending from an opening at or near one end to a second opening at or near the other end, whereby it can also be used for sucking up liquids

2. An article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the article can be a knife, fork or spoon.

3. An article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 2, wherein the article is a spoon.

4. An article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 3, wherein the duct is constituted over most of its length as the handle of the spoon, open at the end remote from the bowl.

5. An article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the remainder of the duct is a hollow bowl made of two spaced layers with the space communicating with the duct in the handle.

6. An article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the remainder of the duct is a portion of more restricted cross-section shaped as an extension of the handle and run along the concave surface, or convex surface, or both surfaces, or within the thickness of the spoon bowl.

7. An article of table cutlery as claimed in any of Claims 4 to 6, wherein the article is provided with an opening at the edge of the bowl remote from the handle, which edge is formed as a more or less rounded tip.

8. An article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 7, wherein the opening in the bowl opens forward, backwards or outwards in relation to the bowl concave surface.

9. an article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 4, wherein the opening in the handle is at the extreme end of the handle.

10. An article of table cutlery as claimed in any of Claims 4 to 9, wherein the shape and location of the opening does not detrimentally affect the sucking requirement.

11. An article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 2, wherein the article is a fork.

1 2. An article of table cutlery as claimed in Claim 11, wherein the duct extends within the handle and one or more tines.

1 3. An article of table cutlery as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the article is formed from glass, water-proof cardboard, heat-resistant and non-toxic synthetic polymeric material or permanent metal.

14. An article of table cutlery substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.