Removable Divider For Food Warming Apparatus
First Claim
1. A food warming apparatus for maintaining previously cooked food portions contained in a plurality of trays in a ready-to-use condition, said plurality of trays including a first tray having a first rim extending outwardly from a first tray opening and a second tray having a second rim extending outwardly from a second tray opening, said food warming apparatus comprising:
- a cabinet having at least one heating compartment therein, said at least one heating compartment having an upper compartment surface, a lower compartment surface, a first side-wall and a second side-wall;
at least one divider removably mounted in said at least one heating compartment, said at least one divider dividing said at least one heating compartment into at least a first sub-compartment and a second sub-compartment;
a first support flange disposed on said at least one divider for supporting said first rim of said first tray in said first sub-compartment such that said first tray is suspended above said lower compartment surface; and
a second support flange disposed on said at least one divider for supporting said second rim of said second tray in said second sub-compartment such that said second tray is suspended above said lower compartment surface.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A food warming apparatus includes a cabinet with one or more heating compartments for holding one or more trays. Each tray has a rim extending outwardly from a tray opening and may contain previously cooked food portions. One or more dividers are removably mounted inside a heating compartment, dividing the heating compartment into a first sub-compartment and second sub-compartment. The one or more dividers include a first support flange that extends into the first sub-compartment and a second support flange that extends into the second sub-compartment. The first support flange supports a rim of a first tray in the first sub-compartment such that the first tray is suspended above a lower compartment surface of the heating compartment. The second support flange supports a rim of a second tray in the second sub-compartment such that the second tray is suspended above the lower compartment surface of the heating compartment.
39 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A food warming apparatus for maintaining previously cooked food portions contained in a plurality of trays in a ready-to-use condition, said plurality of trays including a first tray having a first rim extending outwardly from a first tray opening and a second tray having a second rim extending outwardly from a second tray opening, said food warming apparatus comprising:
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a cabinet having at least one heating compartment therein, said at least one heating compartment having an upper compartment surface, a lower compartment surface, a first side-wall and a second side-wall; at least one divider removably mounted in said at least one heating compartment, said at least one divider dividing said at least one heating compartment into at least a first sub-compartment and a second sub-compartment; a first support flange disposed on said at least one divider for supporting said first rim of said first tray in said first sub-compartment such that said first tray is suspended above said lower compartment surface; and a second support flange disposed on said at least one divider for supporting said second rim of said second tray in said second sub-compartment such that said second tray is suspended above said lower compartment surface. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method for using a plurality of trays in a food warming apparatus, said plurality of trays including a first tray having a first rim extending outwardly from a first tray opening and a second tray having a second rim extending outwardly from a second tray opening, said food warming apparatus including a heating compartment, said heating compartment having a lower compartment surface and an upper compartment surface, said method comprising:
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removably mounting a divider inside said heating compartment such that said heating compartment is divided into at least a first sub-compartment and a second sub-compartment, said divider including a first support flange extending into said first sub-compartment and a second support flange extending into said second sub-compartment; inserting a first tray into said first sub-compartment such that said first rim is supported by said first support flange and said first tray is suspended above said lower compartment surface; and inserting a second tray into said second sub-compartment such that said second rim is supported by said second support flange and said second tray is suspended above said lower compartment surface. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification