GROMMET ASSEMBLY ASSOCIATED WITH WORK SURFACES FOR HEATING AND COOLING LIQUIDS
First Claim
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1. A liquid warming grommet assembly for use in maintaining liquid or other materials in a vessel at a desired temperature, said grommet assembly adapted to be mounted to a work table or other furniture item having a work surface, said grommet assembly comprising:
- a grommet having a casing receivable within a slot of said work surface, and further having an upper collar, said casing forming a housing interior;
a heating element comprising a lower element housing adapted to be received within said housing interior, and an upper warmer plate adapted to be positioned substantially flush with said work surface; and
power connection means connected to said heating element and connectable to a source of electrical power, so as to energize said heating element.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Grommet assemblies (600, 700, 800) maintain liquids or other materials within vessels (606, 706, 806) at desired temperatures selectively above or below ambient. Certain of the grommet assemblies (600, 700) are receivable within apertures (612, 712) within a work surface (604, 704). A thermoelectric device (638, 738) is utilized in combination with a hot/cold plate (620, 720) to selectively heat or cool liquids or other materials contained within the vessel (606, 706).
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A liquid warming grommet assembly for use in maintaining liquid or other materials in a vessel at a desired temperature, said grommet assembly adapted to be mounted to a work table or other furniture item having a work surface, said grommet assembly comprising:
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a grommet having a casing receivable within a slot of said work surface, and further having an upper collar, said casing forming a housing interior; a heating element comprising a lower element housing adapted to be received within said housing interior, and an upper warmer plate adapted to be positioned substantially flush with said work surface; and power connection means connected to said heating element and connectable to a source of electrical power, so as to energize said heating element. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A liquid warming grommet assembly for use in maintaining liquid or other materials in a vessel at a desired temperature, said grommet assembly adapted to be mounted to a work table or other furniture item having a work surface, said grommet assembly comprising:
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a grommet having a lower casing receivable within an aperture within said work surface, said grommet also having an upper collar, said casing forming a housing interior; a heating element comprising a lower element housing adapted to be received within said housing interior, and an upper warmer plate adapted to be positioned substantially flush with said work surface; power connection means connected to said heating element and connectable to a source of electrical power, so as to energize said heating element; a plurality of alignment slots mounted to an inner surface of said casing; a plurality of element ears mounted to outer surfaces of said element housing, with each of said element ears adapted to be received within a corresponding one of said alignment slots; a plurality of press-fit ribs located on an outer surface of said casing; a power switch positioned on an outer surface of said element housing, and adapted to selectively enable or disable power being applied to said heating element from said source of electrical power; and a finger slot cut into said warmer plate above said power switch. - View Dependent Claims (13)
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14. A liquid warming grommet assembly for maintaining liquid or other materials in a vessel at a desired temperature, said grommet assembly being mounted to a work table or other furniture item having a work surface and an aperture extending therethrough, said grommet assembly comprising:
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a grommet having a casing received within said aperture within said work surface, said grommet having a lower casing and an upper collar, said lower casing forming a housing interior; a heating element comprising a lower element housing received within said housing interior, and an upper warmer plate positioned substantially flush with said work surface; and power connection means connected to said heating element and connectable to a source of electrical power, so as to energize said heating element.
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15. A hot/cold grommet assembly for maintaining liquid or other materials in a vessel at a desired temperature, said grommet assembly being mounted to or on a work table or other furniture item having a work surface, said grommet assembly comprising:
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a grommet having a casing received within an aperture extending through said work surface, said grommet having a lower casing and an upper collar, said lower casing forming a housing interior; heating means selectable by a user and positioned within a housing interior, and coupled to a hot/cold plate for selectively maintaining said liquid or other materials at a desired temperature above ambient and/or increasing temperatures of said liquid or other materials within said vessel, with said vessel positioned on said hot/cold plate; and cooling means positioned within said housing interior, and coupled to said hot/cold plate, for maintaining the temperature of said liquid or other materials in said vessel at a temperature below ambient and/or lowering the temperature of said liquid or other materials within said vessel; and power means connected to said heating means and said cooling means and connectable to a source of electrical power, so as to energize said heating means and said cooling means. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification