Portable electric food warming apparatus having a removable tray insert

• US 5,274,215 A
• Filed: 11/02/1992
• Issued: 12/28/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/1992
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Emily R. Jackson
• Original Assignee: Emily R. Jackson
• Inventors: Jackson, Emily R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Bartis, Anthony
• Application Number:
  US07/970,922
• Time in Patent Office: 421 Days
• Field of Search: 219/429-442, 219/506, 219/521, 219/202, 219/385-387, 392/444-447
• US Class Current: 219/439
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 36/2483 with electrical heating means

Abstract

A portable food warming apparatus has a base container removably receiving a tray insert having a tray floor spaced from the base container floor to define a chamber therebetween filled with a heat exchange liquid. An electric resistance heating element coil is mounted on the container floor to effect warming of the liquid and thereby the tray insert. A vehicular cigarette lighter adapter plug permits energization of the heating element coil at remote locations. The base container includes a rotatable locking member for releasable locking the tray insert to the base container. A light source on the base container coupled to a fiber-optic cable surrounding the periphery of the tray insert may be provided for illuminating the tray insert contents during conditions of limited light. A removable lid covers the tray insert.

Claims

1. A food warming apparatus, comprising,

an open top base container, the base container having a base container floor,

a container side wall, wherein the container side wall is oriented at a predetermined obtuse included angle relative to the floor,

a heating chamber mounted onto the container floor, with the heating chamber having an electrical resistance coil within the heating chamber,

an electrical socket directed through the side wall of said container in electrical communication with the electrical resistance coil,

an electrical plug, the electrical plug having a power supply cord adapted to be connected in electrical communication with a vehicular cigarette lighter, the electrical plug being plugged into the electrical socket for supplying power to the electrical resistance coil,

a tray insert, the tray insert mounted in said container having a floor positioned on a spaced relation to the container floor defining a fluid chamber therebetween, said fluid chamber including a heat exchange liquid, and the insert further including an insert side wall oriented at said obtuse included angle relative to the tray insert floor, with the tray insert side walls arranged in contiguous contact with the container side wall within the container, the container further having a side wall flange oriented parallel to the container floor directed peripherally and projecting exteriorly of the container side wall,

the side wall flange having a continuous lid receiving channel directed into the side wall flange at an intersection with the container side wall,

a lid arranged for covering the base container, the lid having a lid side wall and a lid flange, the lid flange being received within a lid receiving channel,

the lid flange being in contiguous contact with an upper distal end of the insert side wall,

the container floor includes a floor recess medially of the container floor projecting into the base container between the container floor and the tray insert floor, and a rotary plate mounted within the floor recess, the rotary plate having a lock shaft fixedly and coaxially mounted to the rotary plate, and the container floor recess having a bore directed orthogonally through the container floor, with the lock shaft rotatably mounted within the bore, the lock shaft including a lock shaft head, and the tray insert floor having a cylindrical locking cup recess, with the lock shaft having a lock shaft head complementarily received within the locking cup recess, the locking cup recess including at least one L-shaped slot, and the lock shaft head having a head lug, the head lug received within the L-shaped slot by rotation of the lock shaft in the locking cup recess permitting locking of the lock shaft head within the locking cup recess.

2. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 wherein the container side wall flange includes a cable groove, the cable groove extending around the entire perimeter of flange and having a fiber optic cable mounted continuously within the cable groove, with the fiber optic cable including a fiber optic cable leading end, and an illumination housing mounted to the container side wall exteriorly of the container side wall, and the illumination housing having an illumination bulb therewithin, and the cable leading end directed into the illumination housing in adjacency to the illumination bulb, the illumination bulb arranged for electrical communication with the electrical socket permitting simultaneous illumination of the illumination bulb upon directing electrical current to the electrical resistance coil, and the fiber optic cable having a plurality of spaced cable notches within the cable for directing illumination onto the tray insert.