Smoker box for holding food flavoring wood chips or the like

• US 8,997,639 B2
• Filed: 02/03/2010
• Issued: 04/07/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Charcoal Companion Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Charcoal Companion Incorporated
• Inventors: Adams, Charles, Borovicka, Cory Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): ALEXANDER, REGINALD
• Application Number:
  US12/699,807
• Publication Number:
  US 20100218691A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,889 Days
• Field of Search: 994/82, 994/01, 994/46, 994/47
• US Class Current: 99/482
• CPC Class Codes: A23B 4/044 Smoking; Smoking devices
• CPC Class Codes: A23B 4/052 Smoke generators ; Smoking apparatus A23B4/056 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 37/0713 with gas burners
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 37/0786 Accessories

Abstract

A smoker box for a cooking grill is formed to fit between and be supported by adjacent parallel heat deflector bars of the cooking grill. The open top of the smoker box is preferably covered with a perforated lid that can be removably placed onto or hingedly connected to the top of the smoker box.

Claims

1. A smoker box for holding food flavoring wood chips or the like and for use with a cooking grill having burners, a removable cooking grate above the burners, and parallel heat deflector bars between the burners and the cooking grate, and wherein the heat deflector bars have an apex and deflector spread walls that spread down and away from the apex whereby adjacent spread walls of adjacent heat deflector bars form a trough region between adjacent heat deflector bars, said trough region having a top at the apex of the adjacent heat deflector bars and a bottom, wherein the trough region progressively narrows from the top to the bottom thereof, said smoker box comprising:

an at least partially open top having top longitudinal edges defining the maximum width of the smoker box, said maximum width being wider than the bottom of the trough region of adjacent heat deflector bars of a cooking grill on which the smoker box is used, and

side wall structures extending downwardly and progressively inwardly from said top longitudinal edges to form a container body for holding wood chips or the like, wherein said container body is sized and shaped to fit substantially entirely within the trough region between adjacent heat deflector bars of a cooking grill on which the smoker box is used, whereby, when the smoker box is placed bottom down between adjacent heat deflector bars of the cooking grill, the smoker box sits between and is supported by said adjacent heat deflector bars and presents a relatively large area top that faces food placed on a cooking grate above the smoker box,

said container body having a bottom centered between the longitudinal edges of the open top of the container body, wherein said bottom defines the deepest portion of the container body, and wherein the downwardly extending sidewalls of the container body extend progressively inwardly to the centered bottom of the container body.

2. The smoker box of claim 1 wherein said sidewall structures are comprised of straight sidewalls extending downwardly and inwardly from said top longitudinal edges to form a generally V-shaped container body.

3. The smoker box of claim 1 wherein said sidewall structures are comprised of inwardly stepped sidewalls extending downwardly from said top longitudinal edges to form an inwardly stepped container body.

4. The smoker box of claim 1 wherein said sidewall structures are comprised of downwardly curved sidewalls.

5. The smoker box of claim 4 wherein said curved sidewalls provide a container body having a substantially hemispherical shape.

6. The smoker box of claim 1 further comprising a lid covering the top of the smoker box, said lid having at least one opening for allowing smoke from wood chips or the like contained within the container body of the smoker box to be released from the smoker box to flavor food on a cooking grate above the smoker box.

7. The smoker box of claim 6 wherein said lid has a plurality of openings to allow smoke to be released over a relatively large portion of the lid.

8. The smoker box of claim 7 wherein said openings are evenly distributed over said lid for evenly distributing smoke released from said smoker box to food supported on a cooking grate above the smoker box.

9. The smoker box of claim 6 wherein said lid covers a portion of the open top of the smoker box, and wherein a portion of the open top remains open for adding wood chips when the lid is closed.

10. The smoker box of claim 6 wherein said lid is hinged to one of the longitudinal edges of said smoker box.

11. The smoker box of claim 1 further comprising wing support structures extending outwardly from said top longitudinal edges, whereby said wing support structures can rest on the apexes of adjacent heat deflector bars of a cooking grill.

12. The smoker box of claim 11 wherein said wing support structures are substantially flat plates extending laterally from the top longitudinal edges of the smoker box.

13. A smoker box for holding food flavoring wood chips or the like and for use with a cooking grill having burners, a removable cooking grate above the burners, and parallel heat deflector bars between the burners and the cooking grate wherein the heat deflector bars have an apex and deflector spread walls that spread down and away from the apex, whereby adjacent spread walls of adjacent heat deflector bars form a trough region between adjacent heat deflector bars, said trough region having a top at the apex of the adjacent heat deflector bars and a bottom, wherein the trough region progressively narrows from the top to the bottom thereof, said smoker box comprising:

an elongated container body having an elongated top having a defined width and a top opening, and an elongated bottom that is narrower than the width of the top, the width of the top of the container body being larger than the width of the bottom of the trough region between adjacent heat deflector bars of a cooking grill on which the smoker box is used, whereby the smoker box can be supported by the heat deflector bars when placed between the heat deflector bars, said elongated container body being sized and shaped to fit substantially entirely within the trough region between adjacent heat deflector bars of the cooking grill, and the elongated bottom of said container body being centered beneath the top opening of the container body and defining the deepest portion of the container body, and

a lid for at least partially covering the top opening of said container body, said lid having a plurality of openings to allow smoke to be released over a relatively large area of the lid, whereby smoke from wood chips or the like contained within the container body of the smoker box is released from the smoker box to flavor food on a cooking grate above the smoker box.

14. The smoker box of claim 13 wherein the width of the top of the container box is selected to be comparable to the distance between the apexes of adjacent heat deflector bars of the cooking grill on which the smoker box is used so that the top opening of the smoker box approximately spans the heat deflector bars.

15. The smoker box of claim 13 wherein said elongated container body has a generally triangular shape.

16. The smoker box of claim 13 wherein said elongated container body has a generally semi-cylindrical shape.

17. The smoker box of claim 13 wherein said container body has inwardly stepped sidewalls.

18. A smoker box for holding food flavoring wood chips or the like and for use with a cooking grill having burners, a removable cooking grate above the burners, and parallel heat deflector bars between the burners and the cooking grate wherein the heat deflector bars have an apex and deflector spread walls that spread down and away from the apex whereby adjacent spread walls of adjacent heat deflector bars form a trough region between adjacent heat deflector bars, said trough region having a top at the apex of the adjacent heat deflector bars and a bottom, wherein the trough region progressively narrows from the top to the bottom thereof, said smoker box comprising:

a container body for holding wood chips or the like, said container body having a top and a smaller bottom centered beneath said top which defines the deepest portion of the container body, wherein the container body progressively narrows from said top to said smaller centered bottom, said container body being sized and shaped to approximately conform to the trough region between adjacent heat deflector bars of the cooking grill on which the smoker box is to be used, and

a lid for at least partially covering the top of the smoker box, said lid having a plurality of openings to allow smoke to be released over a relatively large area of the lid, whereby smoke from wood chips or the like contained within the container body of the smoker box is released from the smoker box to flavor food on a cooking grate above the smoker box.

19. The smoker box of claim 18 wherein said container body has a top and is formed such that its maximum width is at said top.

20. The smoker box of claim 19 wherein said container body is sized such that, when placed in the trough region between deflector bars of the cooking grill, the top thereof will be elevated to approximately the position of the apexes of the heat deflector bars supporting the smoker box.