Food-Slicing Device

The field of art to which the invention pertains includes food-slicing devices, cutting boards and similar food-processing equipment.

Devices for and associated with the slicing or cutting of foods include cutting boards, meat holders, meat supports, slicing machines, manual or electric, and various styles of cutting blades associated with such devices.

The present invention provides for a cradle adapted to hold food to be sliced or cut and an anvil tray connected to and associated with the cradle to receive the sliced cut food material and to provide an anvil for the cutting blade. The cradle is essentially a pair of upwardly directed lateral wall members, arranged substantially in opposing spaced apart relationship, diverging upwardly and outwardly from an intermediate connected web section. The cradle is open at each end to permit the input of food to be sliced or cut and a discharge of the sliced food material. The angulated cradle wall members permit the food item to be moved upon the web section toward the slicing end of the cradle where a knife can be applied in thrust relationship to the forward leading edges of the cradle wall members and the web section. An anvil for the cutting blade or knife is provided by a tray which can either be integrally formed with the cradle or separately formed and attached to the cradle so that the cutting blade can sever the food product upon the anvil surface if it has not done so at the edge of the cradle web section. The separate sliced food receiving anvil tray can be telescoped within the outer lateral edges or legs of the cradle base adapted to engage the lateral edges of the anvil tray.

The forward leading edges of the cradle, if the cradle is made of a plastic material, are preferably provided with metallic molding or facing strips so that as the cutting blade bears in thrust relationship against such edges, they will not be cut, nicked or sliced by the cutting blade. If the metal molding strips are made of a slightly abrasive metallic-type material, they can also serve to sharpen the edge of the cutting blade as it is passed thereover in contact with such strips.

Because the cradle wall members extend upwardly and diverge outwardly, the food product placed thereon for slicing, if large enough, is wedged between the cradle wall members for more positive support during the slicing operation. The cradle wall members and web section are also provided with longitudinally extending projections, ribs or ridges so that as the food product is sliced and the bulk or mass is diminished, the product remaining in the cradle can be easily moved on or along these ribs toward the forward edges of the cradle where slicing occurs.

Where desired or required, as in the case of slicing a meat product, the anvil tray can be provided with juice-receiving grooves and a juice-collecting well communicating therewith.

Various further and more specific objects, features and advantages of the invention will appear from the description given below, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example preferred forms or embodiments of the invention. Reference is here made to the drawings annexed hereto and forming an integral part of this specification, in which

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a view similar to the illustration in FIG. 1, with the anvil tray being extended from its more telescoped position under the base of the cradle.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the anvil tray illustrated only partially in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 4 is a vertical elevational view, partially in section, taken substantially on the line 4--4 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a transverse vertical sectional view through the cradle and anvil tray, taken substantially on the line 5--5 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a unitary cradle and anvil tray, a modification of the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-5 inclusive.

FIG. 7 is a further modification of the two-piece cradle and anvil tray embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-5 inclusive.

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional view taken substantially on the line 8--8 of FIG. 1.

As illustrated particularly in FIGS. 1-5 inclusive, a preferred embodiment of the invention comprises the food supporting cradle and anvil tray combination 10 in which the anvil tray 12 is telescopically conjoined with the base of the cradle 14 by means and in the manner more particularly described hereinafter below.

The anvil tray 12 comprises a body 16 having a pair of juice-receiving grooves 18,18 adjacent the lateral edges 20,20 which are downwardly and inwardly inclined. The lateral juice-receiving grooves 18,18 extend to the forward end of the anvil tray and communicate with a well 22. Thus, the lateral and forward edges of the anvil tray are provided with a gallery comprising the border flanges or ribs 24, 24 and 26. The medial longitudinally extending portion of the anvil tray has a slightly crowned upper surface 28 so that liquids or juices discharged by the slicing action will run downwardly from the crowned surface into the receiving wells 18,18 and there carried by gravity, due to the sloping surface of the grooves, to the receiving well 22.

The anvil tray 12 is preferably molded of a suitable plastic material adapted to withstand the cutting forces of the slicing blade engaged upon the crowned surface 28. To strengthen the anvil tray in its medial portion, a supportive longitudinally extending medial rib 30 is provided in its base. The anvil tray can be molded as an integral unitary part of plastic or other suitable composition material.

The cradle 14 comprises the lateral upstanding outwardly diverging wall members 40,40 conjoined to and preferably integrally formed with the medial web section 42. The interior surfaces of the cradle, side walls and intermediate web section are provided with projections, ridges or ribs 44 terminating in relatively fine edges that engage the food product placed thereon. These ridges on the web section 42 and the walls 40,40 tend to check the food product against lateral movement and displacement. Although the ridges 44 are shown having two closely adjacent parallel fine edges, the nature of such ridges or projections is optional and modified forms of such ridges, or projections of other forms, on the inner surfaces of the cradle wall members 40,40 and intermediate web section 42 are nevertheless considered to come within the scope of the invention. The provision of ridges on these interior surfaces tends to check lateral and upward sliding movement of a food product placed in contact therewith. The direction of more facile translation for the food product is longitudinally of the cradle between the wall members toward the forward edges 46,46 of the wall members and the edge 48 of the intermediate web section, these edges lying in a plane.

As a protective covering to prevent nicking, cutting or slicing of the forward edges 46,46 by the cutting edge of a blade, the outer corners of these edges are provided with metallic facing angles 50,50 having lateral inturned flanges 52,52 adapted to seat in grooves 54,54 at the front and outer side surfaces of these corners, whereby the facing angles are secured to the cradle wall edges. These grooves extend upwardly to the top surface of the cradle wall members 40,40 permitting the angles 50,50 to be slid over the outer corners of the wall members and downwardly to a seated position substantially as illustrated.

The input end of the cradle 14, at the outer edges of the wall members 40,40 and the intermediate web section 42, is provided with inwardly directed flanges 56,56 and the upstanding flange 58 therebetween and connected thereto, as a gallery or fence for the food product placed upon the cradle.

The base of the cradle 14 comprises the lateral outwardly directed flange portion 60,60 and the body of the intermediate web section 42, the lateral flange portions terminating at their edges in downwardly directed legs 62,62 having their inner surfaces inclined downwardly and inwardly in an attitude complementary to and adapted to receive the anvil tray legs 20,20 therebetween, the legs of the cradle and of the anvil tray dovetailing so that when the cradle is elevated, the anvil tray will not fall therefrom but remain engaged upon the mating surfaces of their respective legs.

A first modification of the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIGS. 1-5 is that illustrated in FIG. 6, wherein the anvil tray 12a and the cradle 14a are integrally formed, or combined by cementation or other fusion or coupling process into a unitary food-slicing device. The anvil tray 12a is not extensible but is fixed in relationship to the cradle 14a, extending forwardly from the cradle intermediate web section adjacent the cradle wall edges 46a,46a. The lateral edges of the anvil tray 12a are substantially vertical and lie substantially in the same plane as the lateral edges of the cradle flanges 60a,60a. The intermediate supporting rib 30 (FIG. 5), applied in the modification illustrated in FIG. 6, extends from the inner surface of the forward edge 16a of the anvil tray to the outer intermediate web section flange 58a at the input end of the cradle 14a, to provide medial support for the cradle and anvil tray in and for the slicing operation. This intermediate supporting rib 30a is illustrated in broken lines in FIG. 6.

A second modification of the food-slicing device illustrated in FIGS. 1-5 inclusive is that shown in FIG. 7, wherein the cradle 14 is now combined with a telescoping anvil tray 12b having lateral upstanding flanges 68,68 and adjacent downwardly and inwardly inclined side walls 70,70 that are complementary to the inner surfaces of the cradle legs 62 for sliding engagement therewith, similar to the telescoping relationship of the side walls 20,20 of the anvil tray 12 (FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 5). The forward leading edge of the anvil tray 12b comprises the upstanding flange 72 lying in the same plane as the lateral flanges 68,68 and connected thereto, to form a gallery or fence on three sides of the anvil tray. The anvil tray 12b having a peripheral support in the forward wall 74 and the lateral walls 70,70 can also be provided with a longitudinally extending supporting rib, similar to the ribs 30 or 30a, under the medial portion of the tray anvil surface 76 for adequate support in slicing the food product and the slices falling upon such surface. The anvil surface 76 is substantially planar and extends from the lateral ribs 68,68 and the forward rib 72 to the rearward edge of the tray. The intermediate anvil surface 76, though shown in planar form and so described above, can be crowned with a relatively higher medial longitudinally extending surface than that adjacent each of the lateral ribs or flanges 68,68, as in the case of the anvil tray 12. In this form of anvil tray, the medial crowned surface and the lateral flanges 68,68 form grooves to receive juices or liquids generated in the slicing operation. The lateral flange portions 60,60 of the cradle 14 are provided with longitudinally extending grooves 78,78 above the legs 62,62 to accommodate the lateral upstanding flanges 68,68 of the anvil tray 12b, for telescoping relationship of the anvil tray and the cradle.

The food-slicing device 10 is utilized in the following manner. A food product (or any other commodity suitable for and requiring a cutting or slicing operation) is placed upon the web section 42 between the wall members 40,40 and moved forwardly thereon until a portion of the product projects beyond the forward edges 46,46 and 48 of the cradle a distance substantially equal to the amount one desires to slice or cut off. The food product is held by the fingers of the hand or by a tool or implement to maintain it firmly upon the cradle. Normally and preferably, the fingers, tool or implement are positioned rearwardly of the forward edges to prevent personal injury or damage when the cutting blade of a knife or other cutting or slicing instrument is applied to the food product. The blade is brought downwardly upon the food product closely adjacent the facing angles 50,50 and substantially parallel thereto, using the facing angles as a thrust surface and guide in the slicing operation. With a sawing or slicing motion, the blade will cut through, or nearly through the food product at the upper surface of the web section 42 and its forward edge 48. But if the slice or cut is not completely severed, the blade will continue downwardly to the crowned surface 28 or 28a, or the planar surface 76 of the anvil trays 12, 12a and 12b respectively, to sever the slice from the mass of food product remaining on the cradle. The slices will collect upon the anvil tray, from which they can be removed for serving by conventional means, one or more at a time.

The lengths, widths and thicknesses of the structural features of the cradle and the anvil tray are, of course, optional and selective, readily determinable for any particular application(s). The cradle and anvil tray are preferably made of a moldable plastic or composition material, in unitary form to the extent permitted by the design adopted for each unit. The corner angles 50,50 are preferably made of a thin stainless steel strip material, preformed for mounting upon the cradle corners in the grooves 54,54.

Although particular embodiments of the invention have been disclosed herein for purposes of explanation, further modifications or variations thereof, after study of this specification, will or may become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains. Reference should be had to the appended claims in determining the scope of the invention.