Chopper

• US 7,100,854 B2
• Filed: 03/18/2004
• Issued: 09/05/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Helen of Troy Limited
• Original Assignee: Helen of Troy Limited
• Inventors: DiPietro, Dean, Aby-Eva, Grégoire
• Primary Examiner(s): Francis, Faye
• Application Number:
  US10/803,583
• Publication Number:
  US 20050205705A1
• Time in Patent Office: 901 Days
• Field of Search: 241/168, 241/169, 241/169.1, 241/283, 241/272, 241/166
• US Class Current: 241/169
• CPC Class Codes: B26D 3/26 specially adapted for cutting fruit or vegetables, e.g. for onions

Abstract

A food chopper includes a housing for receiving a food item, a blade assembly including a blade movable within the housing for chopping the food item, a shaft attached to the blade assembly for movement therewith, a plunger assembly coupled to the shaft for effecting, reciprocating, and rotational movement thereof, and a shock absorber disposed between the plunger assembly and the shaft. The shaft is threadedly connected to the blade assembly. The chopper may include a stripper fixed to the housing and responsive to movement of the blade assembly for removing food from the blade, and first and second guide structures respectively on the blade assembly and the stripper for guiding coupling of a blade assembly to the stripper.

Claims

1. A food chopper comprising:

a housing for receiving a food item,

a blade assembly including a blade and moveable within the housing for chopping the food item,

a shaft attached to the blade assembly for movement therewith,

a plunger assembly coupled to the shaft for effecting reciprocating and rotational movement thereof,

and a shock absorber disposed between the plunger assembly and the shaft, wherein the shaft has an axial bore formed in an end thereof, the plunger has a post coaxially received in the bore, and the shock absorber is disposed between the post and an inner end of the bore.

2. The chopper of claim 1, wherein the shock absorber comprises an elastomeric body.

3. The chopper of claim 1, wherein the post has a recess in an inner end thereof, the shock absorber having a portion receivable in the recess.

4. The chopper of claim 1, wherein there is a threaded connection between the shaft and the blade assembly.

5. A food chopper comprising:

a housing for receiving a food item,

a blade assembly including a blade and moveable within the housing for chopping the food item,

a shaft attached to the blade assembly for movement therewith,

a plunger assembly coupled to the shaft for effecting reciprocating and rotational movement thereof,

a shock absorber disposed between the plunger assembly and the shaft, and

structure for latching the plunger assembly to the shaft, the structure including snap-fittable interlocking flanges respectively formed on the plunger assembly and the shaft.

6. A food chopper comprising:

a housing for receiving a food item,

a blade assembly including a blade, the blade assembly reciprocable and rotatable within the housing for chopping the food item,

a shaft threadedly connected to the blade assembly for movement therewith,

a plunger assembly coupled to the shaft for effecting reciprocating and rotational movement thereof, and

cooperating structure on the shaft and on the blade assembly for indicating when the shaft has been threadedly engaged with the blade assembly in a mounted condition, the cooperating structure including a bifurcated end on the shaft, and including a recess on the blade assembly for receiving the bifurcated end.

7. The chopper of claim 6, wherein the blade assembly includes a cylindrical neck which is threadedly connected to the shaft.

8. the chopper of claim 7, wherein the neck is a hollow tubular construction which is internally threaded for threadedly receiving the shaft therein.