IL98359A - Electric grilling appliance - Google Patents

Abstract

An electric grilling appliance, comprising: a housing (302); a pair of infrared radiation emitting heaters (LUR, LLB) disposed within the housing on opposite sides thereof; a food holder (308) disposed within the housing between and spaced from said pair of infrared radiation emitting heaters for holding the food article to be grilled; said food holder including a pair of metal food holder plates (310, 312) of a size and configuration to directly contact, on their inner surfaces, substantially the complete outer surface of the food article to be grilled, the outer surfaces of said metal food holder plates being blackened to absorb the infrared radiation emitted by said heaters; and spring means (314, 315) for urging said metal food holder plates towards each other into firm contact with the food article to be grilled. 180 י" ג בתמוז התש" ס - July 16, 2000

Description

ELECTRIC GRILLING APPLIANCE ELECTRIC GRILLING APPLIANCE The present application is for a patent-of-addition to Patent Application 96665 filed December 1 2 , 1 990 , and relates to improvements in or modifications to the electric grilling appliance described in that patent application.

Patent Application 96665 described an electric grilling appliance, comprising a housing; a pair of infrared radiation emitting heaters disposed within the housing on opposite sides thereof; a food holder disposed within the housing between and spaced from said pair of infrared radiation emitting heaters for holding the food article to be grilled; said food holder including a pair of metal food holder plates of a size and configuration to directly contact, on their inner surfaces, substantially the complete outer surface of the food article to be grilled, the outer surfaces of said metal food holder plates being blackened to absorb the infrared radiation emitted by said heaters; and spring means for urging said metal food holder plates towards each other into firm contact with the food article to be grilled.

Several embodiments of the invention were described in that patent application. The present application describes a further embodiment of that invention .

/ According to the present application, there is provided an electric grilling appliance comprising: a housing, a food holder disposed within the housing for holding a food article to be grilled, a first pair of infrared radiation emitting heaters on opposite sides of the housing, a second pair of infrared radiation emitting heaters on opposite sides of the housing, and cyclical switching means effective, during a first part of a cycle, to connect the heaters of the first pair in parallel with respect to the power supply, and during a second part of the cycle, to connect the heaters of the second pair in parallel with respect to the power supply.

According to one described embodiment, the cyclical switching means is effective, during the first part of each cycle to connect the second pair of heaters in series with respect to the power supply, and during the second part of the cycle, to connect the first pair of heaters in series with respect to the power supply.

Such an arrangement permits the food article, (e.g., steak or hamburger) to be grilled very quickly without overloading the power supply line. Thus, each of the infrared heaters is preferably an infrared lamp of 500-1000 watts, e.g., about 750 watts. During one part of the cycle, each heater of one pair (e.g., the upper pair), connected in parallel to the power supply, is energized by a large current to produce a large amount of heat, whereas each heater of the other pair (e.g., the lower pair), being connected in series, is energized by substantially less current, but sufficient to keep the metal holder plates very hot. This energization pattern is reversed in the next part of the cycle, wherein the upper pair of heaters are connected in series so that the current therethrough is substantially reduced, whereas the lower pair of heaters are connected in parallel so that the current therethrough is higher. As indicated above, such an arrangement has been found to enable a food article, such as a steak, hamburger or the like, to be grilled very quickly without overloading the power supply line.

According to a second described embodiment, the cyclical switching means is effective, during the first part of each cycle to disconnect the second pair of heaters from the power supply, and during the second part of the cycle to disconnect the first pair of heaters from the power supply.

According to further features in the preferred embodiments, the cycles are preferably from 10-50 seconds in duration, and the two parts of the cycle are of equal duration, i.e., about 5-25 seconds each. Particularly good results have been obtained when the two parts of the cycle are each 15-20 seconds in duration.

According to further features in the described embodiments, the metal food holder plates are sufficiently thick to smoothen out fluctuations in the heat received from the infrared heaters caused by the cyclical switching thereof. Particularly good results have been obtained where the food holder plates were of aluminum of at least 2.5 mm, preferably about 3.0 mm, thick.

According to further features in the preferred embodiments described herein, the metal food holder plates are hard anodized aluminum forming a blackened layer on the outer face, and a non-stick layer on the inner face.

According to still furhter features in the preferred embodiments of the invention described herein, one of the metal food holder plates is mounted to a metal frame by means of a pair of metal leaf springs whose opposite sides are secured to the plate and the frame, respectively, the metal frame being hingedly mounted at one end to the other metal food holder plate.

Further features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the description below. The invention is herein described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: Fig. 1 is a side elevational view illustrating one form of electric grilling appliance constructed in accordance with the invention of the present application; Fig. 2 is an end view, partly in section, of the electric grilling appliance of Fig. 1 ; Fig. 3 is a top view, partly in section, of the electric grilling appliance of Fig. 1 ; Fig. 4 is a side view of the food holder in the grilling appliance of Fig. 1-3; Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the food holder of Fig. 4; Fig. 6 is a schematical diagram of the electric circuit controlling the heaters in the grilling appliance as described herein; and Fig. 7 is a schematical diagram of a modification in the electric circuit for controlling the heaters.

The grilling appliance illustrated in the drawings comprises a housing 302 including rubber feet 304 at the four corners of its bottom wall. In this case, the end wall of the housing is formed with an elongated opening 306 (Fig. 2) for receiving the food holder, generally designated 308, adapted to hold the food article, e.g., steak or hamburger, to be grilled. The food holder 308 includes a pair of metal food holder plates 310, 312, adapted to be inserted, with the food article between them, through opening 306 into the housing.

The heating means disposed within the housing 302 comprises two pairs of infrared radiation emitting heaters, namely an upper pair of lamps on the opposite sides of the housing, and a lower pair of lamps on the opposite sides of the housing. Fig. 2 illustrates only one lamp of each pair, i.e., the upper right lamp and the lower right lamp L^. Fig. 6, however, illustrates all four lamps, namely the above two on the right side of the housing, the upper left lamp L^, and the lower left lamp L^, on the left side of the housing.

As also shown in Fig. 6, the two pairs of lamps are controlled by a cyclical switching means, including a synchronous motor , and three switches MS-j, MS2 and ≤3· The switches are cyclically controlled by the motor M so as to connect the two upper lamps LUR I*UL in series and the two lower lamps LLR, in parallel during a first part of each cycle, and the two upper lamps LyR, in parallel and the two lower lamps I«LR L-^ in series during a second part of each cycle. The illustrated circuit includes a further switch MS^, which acts as a timer switch.

The two pairs of lamps are halogen lamp which emit intense infrared radiation towards the metal plates 310, 312 of the food holder 308. This radiation is absorbed by the blackened outer surfaces of the metal plates, and is converted to heat, which heat is transmitted by conduction directly to the surfaces of the food article contacted by the plates. A pair of reflectors, e.g., 324 (Fig. 2), extend along the outer sides of the halogen lamps and reflect the infrared radiation emitted by them substantially uniformly over the blackened outer surfaces of the metal food holder plates 310, 312.

The construction of the food holder 308, and particularly the two food holder plates 310, 312, is best seen in Figs. 4 and 5.

Thus, as shown in these figures, food holder plate 310 is a solid plate of metal, such as aluminum, of rectangular configuration formed with a flange 310a around its periphery. Plate 312 is also a solid metal plate but it is mounted to a metal rectangular frame 313 by a pair of leaf springs 31 , 315 at the opposite sides of plate 312. Thus, the outer end of each leaf spring 314, 315 is secured to the frame 313 and the inner end of each leaf spring is secured to the metal plate 312, so that the metal plate is springly mounted by the leaf springs towards metal plate 310. Frame 313 is pivotally mounted to plate 310 by a hinge 316.

Each of the two food holder plates 310, 312, further includes a thermally insulated handle 317, 318, joined to plate 310 and frame 313 by extensions 318a and 317a, respectively, and enabling the food holder to be inserted into and removed from housing 302 via opening 306.

Housing 302 further includes a liquid drippings collector 336 (Fig. 2) underlying the food holder 308 to catch any drippings from the food article during its grilling. Collector 336 is removable via an opening in the end wall of the housing.

The illustrated appliance further includes a timer control knob 340 having a plurality of graduation markings 342 (Fig. 2) viewable via slot 344 formed in the housing 302. Knob 340 thus controls the setting of the timer switch MS^ (Fig. 6), which in turn controls the energization of the heater lamps as well as the operation of the motor M.

The metal plates 310 and 312 and frame 313 of the food holder 308 are of aluminum which has been hard anodized on both faces. Such hard anodized aluminum forms a blackened layer on the outer faces which efficiently absorbs the infrared radiation emitted by the four heater lamps, and also forms a non-stick layer on the inner faces which prevents the food article from sticking thereto. The metal plates should be sufficiently thick, preferably at least 2.5 mm, e.g., 3.00 mm, to smoothen out fluctuations in the heat received from the infrared heaters by the cylical switching thereof, as described above with respect to Fig. 6.

The space 346 between the reflector 324 and the housing 302 is cooled by air circulated therethrough via inlet openings 348 formed in the housing bottom wall 350 and an outlet opening 352 through the top wall of the housing. Thus, even though the halogen lamps generate intense heat, reflectors 324 and the air-cooled spaces 346 between it and the housing, enable the housing to be made of a plastics material.

The operation and manner of using the illustrated grilling appliance will be apparent from the above description. Thus, the food to be grilled is inserted between the two metal plates 310, 312 of the food holder 308, and the food holder is then inserted via elongated opening 306 into the housing 302. Leaf springs 314, 315 press metal plate 312 firmly against the food article and the food article against metal plate 310 of the food holder. After the food holder with the food article therein has been thus inserted into the housing 302, the timer controller knob 340 is set to select the grilling time.

The setting of the timer control knob 340 energizes the four halogen lamps and also the motor M. The motor actuates the switches MS^MSj to cyclically switch the four lamps, such that during a first part of the cycle the upper pair of lamps are connected in series and the lower pair are connected in parallel, and during the second part of the cycle the upper pair of lamps are connected in parallel and the lower pair are connected in series. The heat radiated by the lamps is absorbed by the blackened surfaces on the metal food holder plates 310, 312 and is immediately converted into heat. This heat is transmitted by conduction through the food holder plates directly to the food article to quickly grill it.

Fig. 7 illustrates a modification in the circuit of Fig. 6, wherein the switches MS MS3 are cyclically controlled by the motor such that during a first part of the cycle the upper pair of lamps are disconnected from the power supply and the lower pair of lamps are connected in parallel; and during the second part of the cycle the upper pair of lamps are

Claims (9)

disconnected from the power supply. Such an arrangement requires even less power and has been found to maintain a relatively high temperature in the metal food holder plate 310, 312 sufficient to quickly grill the food article heated by conduction from the food holder plates. The grilling appliance illustrated in the drawing thus provides all the advantages of those described in patent application 96665, with the further advantage that it permits a quick grilling of the food article without unduly overloading the power supply line. WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. An electric grilling appliance, comprising: a housing; a pair of infrared radiation emitting heaters disposed within the housing on opposite sides thereof; a food holder disposed within the housing between and spaced from said pair of infrared radiation emitting heaters for holding the food article to be grilled; said food holder including a pair of metal food holder plates of a size and configuration to directly contact, on their inner surfaces, substantially the complete outer surface of the food article to be grilled, the outer surfaces of said metal food holder plates being blackened to absorb the infrared radiation emitted by said heaters; and spring means for urging said metal food holder plates towards each other into firm contact with the food article to be grilled.

2. The appliance according to claim 1 , wherein said housing includes reflector plates extending along the outer sides of said infrared radiation emitting heaters, opposite to those facing the food holder, for reflecting the emitted radiation substantially uniformly over said blackened outer surfaces of the metal food holder plates.

3. The appliance according to claim 1 , wherein said infrared radiation emitting heaters are halogen lamps.

4. The appliance according to claim 1 , further including a liquid drippings collector underlying said pair of metal food holder plates.

5. The appliance according to claim 1, wherein there are two pairs of infrared radiation emitting heaters, including a first pair on opposite sides of the housing and a second pair on opposite sides of the housing; said appliance further including cyclical switching means effective, during a first part of each cycle, to connect the heaters of the first pair in parallel with respect to a power supply, and during a second part of each cycle, to connect the heaters of the second pair in parallel with respect to the power supply.

6. The appliance according to claim 5, wherein said cyclical switching means is effective, during said first part of each cycle, to connect said second pair of heaters in series with respect to the power supply, and during said second part of the cycle, to connect said first pair of heaters in series with respect to the power supply.

7. The appliance according to claim 5, wherein said cyclical switching means is effective, during said first part of each cycle, to disconnect said second pair of heaters from the power supply, and during said second part of the cycle , to disconnect said first pair of heaters from the power supply.

8. The appliance according to claim 1, wherein said metal food holder plates are sufficiently thick to smoothen out fluctuations in the heat received thereby from the infrared heaters by the cyclical switching thereof.

9. The appliance according to claim 1, wherein one of said metal food holder plates is mounted to a metal frame by means of a pair of metal leaf springs whose opposite ends are secured to he plate and the 14 frame, respectively, said metal frame being hingedly mounted at one end to the other of said metal food holder plates. Advocate, Patent Attorney Beit Amot Mishpat 8 Shaul Hamelech Boulevard 64733 Tel Aviv