Abstract:
A utensil used in eating that allows ergonomic grasp thereof by a variety of users having varying sized hands. The handle region may be looped in one preferred embodiment to accommodate the fingers of a user there through. In an alternate preferred embodiment, the handle region is elongated and only one end is connected to the planar region.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The invention relates to utensils in general and, more particularly, to the art of an ergonomically designed eating utensil that allows a user to push food onto another utensil and may provide a sharp edge for cutting food before pushing the same. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Numerous eating utensils are known in the art, the most common of which, are the fork and knife. However, knives that are commonly used do not allow for an ergonomic fit into the hand of a user. In addition, knives cannot be easily used at a variety of angles to reach certain portions of a serving dish. Numerous attempts have been made to provide substitutes for knives to be used in eating. 
         [0003]    For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 2,940,634 to Wild discloses an eating aid for use on food retaining plates. The device is comprised of a thin sheet of plastic material which forms a baffle adapted to clip to the rim of a plate. Mounted food can be moved against the baffle, which facilitates the gathering of food where a fork or spoon can be pushed under it. 
         [0004]    U.S. Pat. No. 3,734,306 to Moorewood discloses a self-feeding device which is operated by an electric motor. The device is comprised of several tubular arms and means with which a feeding implement is disposed at an angel of less than 180 with respect to a dish so that food from the dish can be pushed, by a wand onto the feeding implement. The device is energized through a switch adapted to be activated by a wand attached to a handicapped operator who need only be able to control the motion of his head and neck. 
         [0005]    U.S. Pat. No. 4,159,839 to Sigler discloses an implement of tableware adapted to work in conjunction with conventional silverware to clear all food from the plate. The implement comprises a bowl head having a front scooped, pushing surface, peripherally defined by variously contoured scraping edges, and a handle attached to the rear of the bowl head. The contoured edges serve as scrapers. At least one edge is flat to maximally contact the surface of a flat plate, and at least one other edge is curved to maximally conform to the rounded bottom surface of cups and bowls. 
         [0006]    U.S. Pat. No. 4,229,880 to Brooks, et al. discloses a combined eating utensil which is usable as a holder or pusher to accumulate food on a plate, a blocking member that can be used in conjunction with other utensils to remove food from the plate, and as a knife. The patent discloses an eating utensil having a surface that can be either moved along the top of a plate to accumulate food positioned on the plate or placed in a blocking position on the plate, and a second surface that can be used as a knife. 
         [0007]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,588,551 to Morrow, et al. discloses an eating device for aiding persons to eat when they only have the use of one hand. The object of the invention is to provide an eating aid which is a stop against which a person can push food with an eating utensil, thereby making it easier to get the food onto the utensil without the need to use a second utensil in a second hand. 
         [0008]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,774,921 to Harrison, et al. discloses a toothbrush or other utensil specifically designed for use by toddlers and small children providing a handle in the form of an animal figure having a body to scale. An object of the invention is to provide the toothbrush or other utensil with a handle that is easily held and sufficiently large to prevent swallowing of the utensil by a small child. 
         [0009]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,105,254 to Crane, et al. discloses a spoon with scissors like handles which are pivotally connected to each other at approximately their midpoints. An object of the invention is to provide hand held eating utensil of a novel construction which allows for the interaction of the user with the decorative and functional animal figures of the spoon. 
         [0010]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,141,815 to Harrison, et al. discloses a toothbrush or other utensil specifically designed for use by toddlers and small children providing a handle in the form of an animal figure having a body which is essentially to scale. The handle carries either a rearwardly extending tail or forwardly extending trunk or other singular symmetrical limb. A toothbrush head or other operative utensil portion is secured to the limb, tail or trunk. The shaft of the utensil can include a spring-loaded locking member to that it is detachably removable from a base of the handle. 
         [0011]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,363,568 to Harrison, et al. discloses a toothbrush or other utensil specifically designed for use by toddlers and small children proving a handle in the form of an animal figure having a body, which is essentially to scale. The handle carries either a rearwardly extending tail or forwardly extending trunk or other singular symmetrical limb. The body includes appendages, such as legs, that allow it to stand stably upon a planar surface with the operative utensil portion supported off of the surface. The shaft of the utensil can include a spring-loaded locking member so that it is detachably removable from a base of the handle. 
         [0012]    The prior art does not address the need for a utensil that is adapted to ergonomically fit within the hands of a variety of users. In addition, the prior art fails to provide a utensil that can be used at a variety of angles depending upon the position of the food in a serving dish. Other disadvantages of the prior art will become apparent from the reading of the following specification and claims. Therefore, there remains a long standing and continuing need for an advance in the art of eating utensils, which shortcomings are addressed by the instant invention. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0013]    In keeping with the principles of the present invention, a unique utensil device is disclosed wherein the device is capable of use by a variety of users having a wide range of hand sizes in an ergonomic manner. In addition, by providing a substantially rigid body, the device is durable and cost efficient to manufacture. 
         [0014]    One aspect of a preferred embodiment of the utensil, has a substantially looped handle region to allow grasping thereof at a variety of points along the handle region, which in turn allows a user to grip the handle at a most comfortable position. The looped handle region may also have varying thicknesses along the length thereof to further provide various grip alternatives to a user. The looped handle region also allows use of the utensil at varying angles to reach foods in a variety of serving dishes. 
         [0015]    Another aspect of an alternate preferred embodiment is to provide an elongated handle region that may also have a varying thickness along the length thereof to further provide various grip alternatives to a user. In one preferred embodiment, the handle region rests in the first dorsal web space and is enclosed by a users thumb and fingers. The handle region is curved to allow for ergonomic engagement with the hand of the user and the handle region may be rotated within the hand of the user such that a second, third, and fourth edge of the utensil may contact the serving surface. 
         [0016]    Another aspect of the invention is to provide a tapered edge to contact the serving surface such that the edge may be used to cut food products. In addition, the edge may be serrated to provide further ability in cutting the food product. 
         [0017]    Such stated summary of preferred embodiments of the invention are only examples and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the invention herein will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the claims that follow. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0018]    It is to be understood that the drawings are to be used for the purposes of setting forth preferred embodiments of the invention via illustration only and not as a definition of the limits of the invention. In the drawings, wherein similar reference characters denote similar elements throughout the several views: 
           [0019]      FIG. 1  is a side elevational vies of the utensil. 
           [0020]      FIG. 2  is a side elevational view of an alternate preferred embodiment of the utensil. 
           [0021]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of the utensil device taken along line  3 - 3  of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0022]      FIG. 4  is a side elevational view of an alternate preferred embodiment of the utensil. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0023]    Referring now to the  FIG. 1 , a preferred embodiment of an eating utensil generally designated by reference numeral  10  is illustrated. Eating utensil  10  is made of plastic and is preferably injection molded in one piece, however, it is to be understood that other manufacturing methods known in the art may also be employed. For purposes of illustration, but not limitation, eating utensil  10  may be formed of two separate parts of plastic that are sonic welded. Furthermore, eating utensil  10  may be made of metal, wood or any other rigid material that is heat resistant. Eating utensil  10  has a substantially planar region  12  and a handle region  14  extending therefrom. Handle region  14  is ergonomically designed to fit within a wide range of users&#39; hand sizes such that the planar region  12  maintains contact with a serving dish. 
         [0024]    Planar region  12  has a first edge  16  and an opposing second edge  18  which are interconnected by a third edge  20  and a fourth edge  22 , which third  20  and fourth  22  edges are distal to one another. Handle region  14 , in one preferred embodiment, extends from first edge  16  to third edge  20  in a substantially oval-shape and is tubular in cross-section whereby an opening  24  is created to accommodate fingers of a user in an ergonomic manner such that handle region  14  rests in the palm of the hand and are enclosed by the fingers of a user. 
         [0025]    In said one preferred embodiment depicting a substantially oval-shaped handle region  14 , a distal end  25  is defined on the handle region  14  that is distal to planar region  12 . The width of the looped handle region  14  may vary by expanding from narrower to wider areas such that a variety of users may be able to grip the handle region  14  at a thickness point that is comfortable for the particular user. In one preferred embodiment, handle region  14  is approximately 0.5 inches thick and provides a comfortable grip for a user. At the point of attachment between the handle region  14  and first edge  16  and third edge  20 , the width of the handle region may taper to allow a smooth transition to eliminate jagged corners or crevices in which food may become lodged during use of eating utensil  10 . 
         [0026]    In one preferred course of use, third edge  20  maintains contact with a flat surface of a substantially flat surface  27 , such as a plate or a tray. However, when a concave serving dish is used, such as a bowl, distal end  25  allows for gripping the utensil using the thumb and forefinger, such that fourth edge  22  may be the leading edge of the utensil in making contact with the surface of the serving dish to push food onto another utensil. In a preferred embodiment, fourth edge  22  is substantially rounded; however, it is to be understood that fourth edge  22  may be formed of other shapes and for purposes of illustration, but not limitation, it could be pointed or squared. 
         [0027]    The gracefully contoured oval shape of the handle region  14  is considered by the inventors to be one of the best modes of carrying out the invention because it has proven to fit comfortably within the hand of a variety of users with varying hand sizes. Of course, other shapes of the handle portion may be selected depending upon the intended ultimate use of utensil  10 . 
         [0028]    For purposes of illustration, but not limitation, a second preferred embodiment is presented in  FIG. 2 . The handle region  14  is attached to first edge  16 , however, the attachment point can be modified as necessary to provide for differences in ergonomic grip and may be attached at a transition point between first edge  16  and third edge  20 . The handle region  14  has a first end  26  and an opposing second end  28  that are interconnected by middle region  30 . Middle region  30  is curved outwardly such that an area closer to the second end  28  rests between the thumb and palm of a user, and the forefinger and thumb of the user may wrap around the middle region at a location more proximal to the first end  26 , such that the middle region  30  rests substantially on the first dorsal web space defined between the first and second metacarpal bones of the hand. In such engagement, the wrist of a user is maintained in a straight alignment, thereby reducing the risk of carpal tunnel syndrome, during which the second edge  18  maintains contact with flat surface  27 . 
         [0029]    Now referring to  FIG. 3 , in one preferred embodiment, second edge  18  may be of narrower width than first edge  16 . In such preferred embodiment, second edge  18  tapers to provide a sharp edge with possible use in cutting any food products. However, in an alternate preferred embodiment contemplated for use by children, second edge  18  does not taper in order to avoid the sharp edge that may cut a younger user. Now also referring to  FIG. 4 , second edge  18  may have multiple cavities  32  in order to form a serrated edge. The multiple cavities  32  may also extend to fourth edge  22  in order to allow cutting food products when eating utensil  10  is held at distal end  25 . 
         [0030]    As previously mentioned, utensil  10  of the present invention preferably is injection molded to have a single piece plastic structure. The utensil  10  may be molded from any of a variety of plastic materials as appropriate to its intended final use. For example, a polyethylene or Teflon material might be preferred if the utensil is to be used in the kitchen because of the durability of these materials and their tendency not to break and not to leach polymers or chemicals into food. Other materials such as PVC or ABS plastic also may be appropriate. 
         [0031]    Although injection molding is the preferred fabrication method, the utensil  10  may be fabricated by other techniques such as by being formed from individual component pieces of different materials. For example, the utensil  10  may be formed with a separate metal planar region  12  fitted into plastic handle region  14 , where the intended use requires rugged construction and durability. Thus, while a unitary molded plastic construction is preferred, it certainly is not required and should not be considered to be a limitation of the invention. 
         [0032]    While the above description contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the invention, but rather as an exemplification the preferred embodiments thereof. Many other variations are possible without departing from the essential spirit of this invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be determined not by the embodiments illustrated, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.