Food service apparatus and methods
First Claim
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1. Apparatus for heating food, said apparatus comprising:
- a first compartment into which food is adapted to be placed;
a first heat source in the first compartment for delivering heat to food in the first compartment;
a second compartment adjacent the first compartment into which food is adapted to be placed;
a second heat source in the second compartment for delivering heat to food in the second compartment; and
a control system for controlling the operation of said first and second heat sources, said control system being programmed to operate the first heat source to vary the amount of heat delivered in the first compartment by the first heat source as a function of the amount of heat delivered in the second compartment by the second heat source.
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Abstract
In general, this invention involves various improvements relating to food service apparatus, including an energy-compensation feature to compensate for the transfer of heat from one food-holding compartment to another food-holding compartment, and an energy-limit feature for preventing overheating of the apparatus in the event it is incorrectly programmed by an operator, for example.
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Citations
25 Claims
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1. Apparatus for heating food, said apparatus comprising:
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a first compartment into which food is adapted to be placed; a first heat source in the first compartment for delivering heat to food in the first compartment; a second compartment adjacent the first compartment into which food is adapted to be placed; a second heat source in the second compartment for delivering heat to food in the second compartment; and a control system for controlling the operation of said first and second heat sources, said control system being programmed to operate the first heat source to vary the amount of heat delivered in the first compartment by the first heat source as a function of the amount of heat delivered in the second compartment by the second heat source. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method of operating apparatus for heating food, comprising
placing food in a first compartment of said apparatus, operating a first heat source of said apparatus to deliver heat to food in the first compartment, placing food in a second compartment of said apparatus adjacent the first compartment, operating a second heat source of said apparatus to deliver heat to food in the second compartment, and varying the amount of heat delivered in the first compartment by the first heat source as a function of the amount of heat delivered in the second compartment by the second heat source.
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24. Heating or cooling apparatus comprising:
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a first compartment; a first heat transfer device operable in time-based cycles for heating or cooling the first compartment; a second compartment adjacent the first compartment; a second heat transfer device operable in time-based cycles for heating or cooling the second compartment; and a control system for controlling the operation of said first and second heat transfer devices, said control system being programmed to operate the first heat transfer device to vary the amount of heat transferred to heat or cool the first compartment by the first heat transfer device as a function of the amount of heat transferred to heat or cool the second compartment by the second heat transfer device.
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25. A method of operating apparatus for heating or cooling, said method comprising
operating a first heat transfer device in time-based cycles to heat or cool a first compartment of said apparatus, operating a second heat transfer device in time-based cycles to heat or cool a second compartment of said apparatus, and varying the amount of heat transferred by the first heat transfer device to heat or cool the first compartment as a function of the amount of heat transferred by the second heat transfer device to heat or cool the second compartment.
Specification