Abstract:
A kitchen utensil system including a universal handle and modular heads adapted for quick and easy interchangeable attachment to the handle. The interchangeable heads may include a fork, spoon, spatula, straining ladle, mixer, or any other suitable head. A storage basket is provided for compact and convenient storage of the handle and interchangeable heads, and maintains all of the components in a single compact configuration when placed in a dishwashing machine. The storage basket further functions to keep the heads organized and accessible during use, and includes a cover that doubles to contain drippings.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     N/A  
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
       [0002]     N/A  
       COPYRIGHT NOTICE  
       [0003]     A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or patent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrights rights whatsoever.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0005]     The present invention relates to kitchen utensils, and more particularly to kitchen utensils having modular, interchangeable, detachable heads.  
         [0006]     2. Description of Related Art  
         [0007]     Cooking utensils having detachable and interchangeable heads or implements have been known in the art for several years. In particular, many of these devices include a handle and several heads and/or implements that may be interchangeably attached to and detached from the handle. These devices range in use from kitchen utensils, to utensils for infants. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,479,708, issued to Thomas, discloses a utensil holder for infants and toddlers that is made up of a generally triangular handle and a utensil head. The handle includes a gripping area and a hollow socket that receives a selected utensil head. The utensil head, in turn, includes a tapered shank with a protuberance that fits inside the hollow socket. The hollow socket further includes a depression for receiving the protuberance on the tapered shank. The utensil head, and more particularly, the tapered shank, may be forced into the hollow socket of the handle such that the protuberance fits into the depression in the socket, thus locking the utensil head into place. The utensil head may be forcibly removed from the handle by the user and thus does not provide for easy or sanitary interchangeability.  
         [0008]     While this and other prior art devices have presumably worked suitably for their specific applications, none are suited for the present contemplated application. Accordingly, there remains a need for an integrated kitchen utensil system having modular interchangeable, and detachable heads, wherein detachment and changing of the heads is easily accomplished while avoiding potential contamination by the user&#39;s hands. There further exists a need for such a utensil that is dishwasher safe and adapted for convenient storage and cleaning in a dishwasher.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0009]     The present invention overcomes the limitations in the art by providing a kitchen utensil system including a universal handle and modular heads adapted for quick and easy interchangeable attachment to the handle. The interchangeable heads may include a fork, spoon, spatula, straining ladle, mixer, or any other suitable head. A storage basket is provided for compact and convenient storage of the handle and interchangeable heads, and maintains all of the components in a single compact configuration when placed in a dishwashing machine. The storage basket further functions to keep the heads organized during use, and includes a cover that doubles to contain drippings.  
         [0010]     Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide improvements in the field of kitchen utensils.  
         [0011]     Still another object of the present invention is to provide a kitchen utensil system having a universal handle and interchangeable heads.  
         [0012]     Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an kitchen utensil system having a universal handle and interchangeable heads that is further provided with a basket adapted to maintain the head in an organized configuration during storage and use.  
         [0013]     In accordance with these and other objects, which will become apparent hereinafter, the instant invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0014]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a kitchen utensil system according to the present invention stored in a conventional utensil tray;  
         [0015]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a kitchen utensil system according to the present invention in a compact storage configuration;  
         [0016]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the universal handle with a mixing head attached thereto;  
         [0017]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the universal handle with a fork head attached thereto;  
         [0018]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the universal handle with a spoon head attached thereto;  
         [0019]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of the universal handle with a spatula head attached thereto;  
         [0020]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view thereof with the spatula head detached;  
         [0021]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the universal handle;  
         [0022]      FIG. 9  is a detailed view of the head mounting end portion thereof;  
         [0023]      FIG. 10  is a perspective view of the handle;  
         [0024]      FIG. 11  is a half sectional view of the handle;  
         [0025]      FIG. 12  shows an internal spring biased locking mechanism for the handle;  
         [0026]      FIG. 13  shows the handle end grip;  
         [0027]      FIG. 14  shows the handle body;  
         [0028]      FIG. 15  shows the handle finger grip;  
         [0029]      FIG. 16  is a perspective view of an attachable fork head;  
         [0030]      FIG. 17  is a perspective view of an attachable spatula head;  
         [0031]      FIG. 18  is a perspective view of an attachable spoon head;  
         [0032]      FIGS. 19 and 20  are perspective views of an attachable strainer ladle head;  
         [0033]      FIG. 21  is a perspective view of a storage basket for use with the present invention;  
         [0034]      FIG. 22  shows the basket and utensil components in the storage configuration; and  
         [0035]      FIGS. 23-25  show the basket and utensil components in the countertop use configurations. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0036]     The present invention overcomes the limitations and disadvantages in the art by providing a kitchen utensil system, generally referenced as  10 , including a universal handle and modular heads adapted for quick and easy interchangeable attachment to the handle. The present invention thus provides a single universal handle that may be used with a variety of heads while cooking, and further provides a storage basket that allows for compact storage. In accordance with the present invention, a universal handle, generally referenced as  20 , is provided with a variety of interchangeable heads, generally referenced as  40 , and a storage basket, generally referenced as  60 .  FIG. 1  depicts the handle  20  and a variety of interchangeable heads  40  disposed in a conventional kitchen drawer storage tray.  FIG. 2  depicts the handle, interchangeable heads  40 , and storage basket in a compact configuration for storage and/or placement for cleaning in a dishwasher.  
         [0037]      FIGS. 3-7  depict handle  20  in relation with a variety of interchangeable heads.  FIG. 3  depicts handle  20  having a mixing head  42  attached thereto.  FIG. 4  depicts handle  20  with a fork head  44  attached thereto.  FIG. 5  depicts handle  20  with a spoon head  46  attached thereto.  FIGS. 6 and 7  depict handle  20  with a spatula head  48  in attached and detached configurations respectively.  
         [0038]     As best depicted in  FIGS. 8-15 , handle  20  is preferably an elongate apparatus that includes a first end having a grip  22 , a second end having an attachment post or shank  24 , and an intermediate portion defining laterally projecting finger grip sleeve  26 . Grip  22  is preferably attached to handle  20  by threaded engagement and provides an ergonomically shaped grip structure for allowing the user to easily maintain a firm grip on handle  20 . Grip  22  may include a rounded end  23  for comfort and raised ridges  25  to provide a non-slip grip. Grip  22  is preferably fabricated from a rubberized or rubber-like material. Finger grip sleeve  26  may be fabricated of a resilient rubber so as to allow for manual inward deformation as further discussed herein below. As noted above, handle  20  further includes a second end having a projecting, generally cylindrical attachment post  24 . Attachment post  24  has a cylindrical sidewall having a pair of opposing apertures each of which receives semi-spherical cantilevered snap fit members  28  therein. Snap fit  28  members are movable in a radially inward direction and biased radially outward from attachment post  24  to facilitate a locking snap fit with an attached head. As best depicted in  FIG. 9 , attachment post  24  further defines a beveled end  27  to facilitate inserted engagement with the heads and planar sections  29  to prevent unwanted rotation of attached heads.  
         [0039]      FIG. 11  shows a sectional view of handle  20 , and best depicts an internal biasing member, referenced as  30  having an end portion that terminates in snap fit members  28 . Biasing member  30  is disposed within the generally hollow handle  20  and includes laterally projecting portions  32  aligned with and received in finger grip sleeve  26 . A significant aspect of the present invention relates to the cooperation between finger grip sleeve  26  and biasing member  30  and snap fit members  28 . More particularly, the present invention contemplates fabricating finger grip sleeve  26  from a resilient rubber-type material so as to allow the user to manually deform the structures inward so as to engage and likewise deform laterally projecting portions  32  of biasing member  30  inward thereby allowing snap fit members  28  to retract within attachment post  24  to release a previously attached head  40  and/or to allow for attachment of one of said heads  40 .  FIG. 12  provides a detailed view of biasing member  30 . In a preferred embodiment biasing member  30  may be fabricated from metal, plastic, or any other suitable material having spring-like characteristics. Accordingly, manual deformation of finger grip sleeve  26  allows for attachment and/or removal of head without requiring the user to actually touch the heads with his hands.  
         [0040]      FIGS. 16-20  illustrate a variety of heads for use with the present invention. Each attachable head includes a generally hollow cylindrical sleeve sized for mating engagement with attachment post  24  on handle  20 . More particularly,  FIG. 16  shows a perspective view of a fork head  44 , and particularly reveals a generally hollow cylindrical attachment sleeve  45  adapted for snap fit mating engagement with handle attachment post  24  disposed at the base thereof.  FIG. 17  depicts a perspective view of a spatula head  48  having a generally hollow cylindrical attachment sleeve adapted for attachment to post  24  at the base thereof.  FIG. 18  depicts a perspective view of a spoon attachment head  46  having an attachment sleeve  47  adapted for snap fit mating engagement with handle attachment post  24 .  FIG. 19  depicts a perspective view of a combination ladle and strainer attachment head  50  having an attachment sleeve  52  adapted for snap fit mating engagement with handle attachment post  24 . The combination ladle and strainer attachment head  50  includes a main ladle body having a strainer portion  54 . As should be apparent, the present invention is suitable for use with any suitable modular heads adapted for use with the disclosed handle. While not specifically depicted, the present invention further contemplates an embodiment for attachable knife heads, such as steak knives, bread knives, carving knives, etc.  
         [0041]     As best depicted in  FIGS. 21-25  the present invention further includes a basket assembly, generally referenced as  60 , for compact storage of the handle  20  and heads  40 . Basket assembly  60  includes a basket  62  and a cover  64  adapted for removable attachment to basket  62 . Basket  62  includes a central compartment  66  for receiving a portion of handle  20 , and opposing side compartments, each referenced as  68 , for receiving heads  40 . Central compartment  66  further includes mounting ribs defining circular sleeves  67  for receiving and anchoring a portion of handle  20  in a storage configuration. Cover  64  also defines a circular aperture for inserted reception of handle  20 .  FIG. 22  shows the present invention in the storage configuration with cover  64  attached to basket  62  and handle  20  inserted therein in the storage configuration.  FIG. 22  further shows the attachable heads  40  within the opposing side compartments. In this configuration, basket assembly  60  functions to maintain the handle  20  and heads  40  in a compact storage configuration suitable for placement in a kitchen cabinet while also being suitable for placement in a dish washing machine for cleaning.  
         [0042]     A significant aspect of the present invention relates to use of cover  64  as a base when in use as shown in  FIGS. 23-25 . More particularly, cover  64  may be removed and attached to the opposite end (i.e. bottom) of basket  62  thereby enabling the basket to be free standing, while providing convenient access to handle  20  and particularly attachable heads  40 . In this configuration heads  40  are disposed in a generally vertical orientation with the attachment sleeves on top such that the user may remove and replace heads using handle  20 . A further advantage of this configuration is that cover  64 , when configured as a base, functions to catch and contain drippings, such as liquids, grease, etc.  
         [0043]     The instant invention has been shown and described herein in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiment. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art.