Food slicing guide

A food-slicing guide device for guiding a knife in slicing portions of food comprises a platform and a bail. A pair of opposing slots spaced along the lateral edges of the platform are adapted to align the bail either perpendicularly to the platform while using the device as a food-slicing guide, or longitudinally with the platform when storing or transporting the device. The slots are adapted to permit either side or either end of the platform to be used for slicing purposes, thereby permitting the abrasion caused by contact between a slicing utensil and the platform to be distributed at various times at different areas, thus reducing the abrasion effects and extending the useful life of the device. The bail is constructed of resilient material and the interacting corners of the slots are eased whereby the bail readily snaps into slicing position. For storage, the bail pivotally rotates to a resting position in a pair of V-shaped grooves along the edges of the platform.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a device for positioning food, such as 
bread, and guiding a knife while slicing portions therefrom. 
A select few individuals are sufficiently talented to adeptly ply the 
culinarian's art and slice food in uniform, artistically pleasing slices, 
with nothing more than a pair of steady hands and a sharp slicing utensil. 
The majority of individuals attempting to slice food, however, are not so 
talented and produce severed portions of food having an uneven thickness. 
Several conventional devices exist that have been developed in an attempt 
to close the gap between the talented and the untalented. While some of 
these prior art devices are applicable to a variety of foods, many are 
limited in use. 
Also, devices which have permanently-secured, perpendicularly-extending 
guides, or which extend substantially three-dimensionally, may provide a 
cutting edge for slicing breads or other foods, but result in storage 
problems because of the spatial requirements needed therefor. Even prior 
art devices which may be disassembled for storage purposes generally have 
one or more parts extending substantially in three-dimension. 
Furthermore, prior art devices have generally failed to allow for the 
abrasion which occurs when the cutting edge of the slicing utensil comes 
into contact with the platform, which abrasions eventually substantially 
reduce the attractiveness of the device and the ease with which the device 
can be sanitized after each use thereof. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
An improved food-slicing guide device is provided to assist with the 
slicing of food, particularly a loaf of bread. The device comprises a 
platform or base and a bail. The platform is preferably constructed of 
laminated strips of hardwood, such as birch, ash, oak, walnut, or other 
suitable material. Two opposing sides of the platform each have a 
longitudinally-disposed V-shaped groove carved therein. Two pairs of 
opposing slots with bores centrally located therein are also disposed in 
the grooved edges and are adapted to direct the bail in an orientation 
perpendicular to the platform for slicing purposes. 
The bail is preferably constructed of stainless steel or other suitable 
resilient material. Distal ends of the bail are oriented in coaxial 
alignment and are inserted in the bores of one of the pairs of opposing 
slots. The bail is biased to urge the ends thereof inwardly, and the bores 
in the slots serve as pivoting points for rotation of the bail relative to 
the platform. 
For storage purposes, the legs of the bail lie within or alongside the 
grooved edges of the platform, with the arcuate portion of the bail 
disposed substantially across one end of the platform. A cutout in each 
end of the platform provides an opening in conjunction with the end of the 
bail sized to receive the fingers from a hand therethrough whereby the 
fingers of a user can be curled around the bail for carrying purposes, for 
grasping the bail to raise same to an operable position and to allow the 
bail to be used as a hanger during storage. In particular, the cutout 
provides an attractive feature for insertion of suspension means such as a 
nail, hook, or peg for storing or displaying the apparatus when not in 
use. 
When converting the apparatus to its food-slicing configuration, the 
arcuate portion of the bail is grasped by the fingers and pulled so as to 
rotate upward and away from one of the faces of the platform such that the 
bail pivots about the bores in the slots. The outer corners of the slots 
between the bail and the closest end of the board on a cutting side of the 
bail are eased to facilitate the perpendicular alignment of the bail with 
the slots, causing the bail to readily snap into a secure slicing 
position. Opposite corners of the slots on the non-cutting side of the 
bail are not eased and are generally parallel to the plane of the 
non-cutting side of the bail so as to be urged against lower ends of the 
bail during use and support the bail in an upright position as a user 
slices food using the bail as a guide. 
When returning the slicing apparatus to its storing position, a user pushes 
the top of the bail toward the nearest end of the board such that the 
lower ends of the bail rotate along the eased corners of the slot and 
slide along opposite sides of the board to the storage position. The legs 
of the bail seat in V-grooves in the sides of the platform when in the 
storage position and are biased toward the grooves so as to remain therein 
until a user again converts the apparatus to a use configuration thereof. 
That is, the resiliency of the bail causes the bail to be retained in the 
V-grooves for storing. 
The platform includes a first face and a second face and is designed so 
that an item of food to be sliced may be positioned on either face. The 
bail is selectively and alternatively positionable within either pair of 
opposing slots with bores and is rotatably positionable so as to extend 
perpendicularly above and away from either face thereby providing four 
cutting areas on the platform. The multiple cutting areas reduce the wear 
on the platform caused by repeated contact with a knife in one area and 
thereby increase the useful life of the food slicing guide. The board is 
also designed to be easily reversed to facilitate use by both right and 
left-handed users. 
OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION 
Therefore, the objects of the present invention are: to provide a device 
for a food-slicing guide; to provide such a device which is 
self-contained; to provide such a device having a bail which provides a 
two-point guide for controlling a slicing utensil relative to the food 
being sliced and, therefore, providing accurate control of the thickness 
and uniformity of each slice of the food; to provide such a device which 
guides the slicing utensil such that it travels substantially 
perpendicularly to a food-supporting platform of the device; to provide 
such a device wherein the bail has substantially two preferred positions 
with one of those positions being substantially perpendicular to the plane 
of the food-supporting platform and a storage position wherein the bail is 
substantially parallel to the plane of the food-supporting platform; to 
provide such a device wherein the bail is lockably supported in an upright 
position against pressure applied to a cutting side of the bail in the 
perpendicular position or use configuration and which allows the bail to 
be easily rotated from the use configuration to the storage position 
thereof by pressure from the user against the non-cutting side of the 
bail; to provide such a device which exposes a variety of areas of the 
platform to the abrasiveness of the slicing utensil such that the wear 
resulting from usage of the device can be distributed to several different 
areas, thereby prolonging the useful life of the device; to provide such a 
device having cutouts near the ends of the platform which, in conjunction 
with the bail form openings that receive the hand of a user and facilitate 
carrying or hanging the device; to provide such a device having a platform 
constructed of parallel strips of material laminated together in 
side-by-side relationship; and to generally provide such a device which is 
relatively easy to use, simple to maintain, reliable in performance, 
inexpensive to manufacture, and which generally performs the requirements 
of its intended purposes. 
Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from 
the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying 
drawings wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example, 
certain embodiments of this invention. 
The drawings constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary 
embodiments of the present invention and illustrate various objects and 
features thereof.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed 
herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are 
merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. 
Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are 
not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims 
and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to 
variously employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately 
detailed structure. 
Referring to the drawings in more detail the reference numeral 1 generally 
represents a food slicing guide of the present invention. The food slicing 
guide 1 comprises a platform or base 2 and guide means or bail 3. 
The base 2 is generally formed of hardwood, but may be constructed of 
plastic or other materials suitable for use as a cutting board. The base 2 
includes a first face 10 and an opposingly directed coplannar and mirror 
image second face 11 each adapted to support an item of food to be sliced 
thereon. The base 2 further includes opposed first side 13 and second side 
14 extending in parallel alignment from a first end 16 to a second end 17 
of the base 2. A V-shaped groove 20 extends along the length of the first 
and second opposed sides 13 and 14 of the base 2. 
A first slot 25, a second slot 26, a third slot 27 and a fourth slot 28 
extend into the base 2 from the first and second opposed sides 13 and 14 
in perpendicular alignment thereto and each extend between said first face 
10 and said second face 11. The first slot 25 and the third slot 27 extend 
inward from the first opposed side 13 and the second slot 26 and the 
fourth slot 27 extend inward from the second opposed side 14 such that the 
first slot 25 and the second slot 26 are oppositely aligned and the third 
slot 27 and the fourth slot 28 are oppositely aligned and an imaginary 
line connecting same is perpendicular to the sides 13 and 14. 
As best shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, a bore 30 extends partially into the base 2 
from an inner surface 31 of each of the first, second, third and fourth 
slots 25-28. 
The slots 25 to 28 are each shaped so that when viewed from the top, each 
has a first corner 32 that is closest to a respective end 16 or 17 having 
surfaces that extend along both respective base side 13 or 14 and into a 
respective slot 25 to 28 that is eased or substantially arcuate so that 
the corners 32 allow relatively easy sliding movement of the bail 3 from 
the use position (solid lines in FIG. 4) to the storage position (phantom 
lines in FIG. 4) thereof. An opposite corner 33 of each slot 25 to 28 has 
an inner surface that extends generally perpendicular to a respective side 
13 or 14 of the base 2 and likewise generally parallel to a plane formed 
on either opposite sides (cutting side 34 and non-cutting side 36) of the 
bail 3 when the bail 3 is in the use configuration shown in FIG. 1 and an 
outer surface that extends along a respective base side 13 or 14. The 
corners 33 support the bail 3 in the upright or use position shown in FIG. 
1 and generally prevent pressure against the cutting side 34 of the bail 3 
from causing the bail 3 to fold or rotate relative to the base 2, whereas 
pressure against the non-cutting side 36 of the bail 3 does cause such 
rotation relative to the base 2. A rear or inner portion 35 of each slot 
25 to 28 is arcuate and has a radius approximately that of the legs 40 of 
the bail 3. 
The first end 16 and the second end 17 of the base 2 each include arcuate 
portions 37 and a semicircular cutout portion 38 curved opposite the 
arcuate portions 37. The cutout portions 38 are positioned to facilitate 
grasping of the bail 3 by a user when in the storage configuration 
thereof. 
The bail 3 is preferably formed from a strand or length of stainless steel 
wire but may be formed of other resilient materials such as plastic. The 
strand is bent or formed so that the bail 3 is generally U-shaped having a 
pair of opposed legs 40, an arcuate cross-member 41, and a pair of 
inwardly directed distal ends 42. As shown in FIG. 2 the opposed legs 40, 
near the arcuate cross-member 41 are spaced apart a distance approximately 
equal to the distance between the V-shaped grooves 20 in the first and 
second opposed sides 13 and 14. The distal ends 42 of the bail 3 are 
biased slightly inward by inherent resiliency of the wire forming the bail 
3 to return to a preconfigured shape so as to grip the base 2 and snap 
into the slots 25 to 28 when placed in the use position thereof and to 
snap the legs 40 into the V-shaped grooves 20 when placed in the storage 
position thereof. 
Near the lower end (that is, the end connected to the base 2) of each bail 
leg 40, the legs 40 are bent so as to have an inwardly directed or facing 
jog region 44 that extends approximately 2 inches from the leg ends 42. 
The jog regions 44 have a lower section 45 generally parallel to an upper 
portion 46 of a respective leg 40 that snugly and abuttingly seats in a 
respective V-shaped groove 20 of the base 2 when in the bail 3 is in the 
storage position thereof (see FIGS. 5 and 6), while the upper portion 46 
of the leg 40 is spaced from the groove 20. Because the jog regions 44 
space the upper leg portions 46 from the grooves 20, movement of the bail 
from the storage position to use position thereof requires less force than 
would be required if substantially the entire legs 40 were within 
respective grooves 20, yet the lower section 45 of each jog region 44 
snaps snugly into a respective groove 20, when the bail 3 is moved from 
the use position to the storage position thereof. 
The bail 3 is selectively securable to the base 2 so that the distal ends 
42 of the bail 3 are rotatably received within the bores 30 of either the 
first slot 25 and the second slot 26 or, alternatively, the third slot 27 
and the fourth slot 28. Secured to the base 2, the bail 3 may be rotatably 
positioned in a perpendicular alignment or a coplanar alignment relative 
to the faces 10 and 11 of the base 2. When the bail is positioned in 
perpendicular alignment with the base 2, a stub portion 47 of each of the 
opposed legs 40 is received within the first slot 25 and the second slot 
26 respectively or, alternatively, the third slot 27 and the fourth slot 
28 respectively so that the stub portion 47 abuts against a respective 
support corner 33 such that the corners 33 function as stops to rotary 
movement of the top of the bail 3 away from the nearest base end 16 or 17 
and so as to maintain the bail 3 in perpendicular alignment with respect 
to the base 2. 
To advance the bail 3 to a coplanar alignment with the base 2, the arcuate 
cross-member 41 is urged towards the first end 16 of the base 2 if the 
bail 3 is positioned in the first and second slot 25 and 26 or towards the 
second end 17 of the planar base 2 if the bail 3 is positioned in the 
third and fourth slots 27 and 28 and closely aligns with the base end 
arcuate portions 37. The edges of corners of the first, second, third and 
fourth slots 25-28 nearest respective ends 16 and 17 are rounded such that 
the urging of the arcuate cross-member 41 of the bail 3 towards the first 
end 16 or the second end 17 biases the lower portion 47 of the opposed 
legs 40 outwardly and along the edge of a respective groove 20 and finally 
into a respective groove 20. 
As best shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 when the bail 3, secured in the bores 30 in 
the first and second slots 25 and 26, is placed in parallel alignment with 
the base 2 in a storage position thereof, a portion of the bail 3 
including the arcuate cross-member 41 extends beyond and across the first 
end 16 of the base 2 so as to form a hand opening 50 for receiving a hand 
and/or suspension means such as the illustrated hook 52 mounted on a wall 
surface 53. Similarly, when the bail 3 is positioned in parallel alignment 
with the base 2 along the second end 17, a portion of the bail 3 including 
the arcuate cross-member 41 extends beyond and across the second end 17 so 
as to form an opening 50 for receiving a hand or suspension means. The 
cutout portions 38 of the first end 16 and the second end 17 cooperate 
with the bail 3 to increase the area of each respective opening 50 such 
that, when the bail 3 is positioned in a parallel alignment with the first 
and second faces 10 and 11 of the base 2, a hand of a user may be 
positioned through the opening 50 so as to grasp the bail 3. 
Placing the bail 3 in parallel alignment with the base 2 allows the food 
slicing guide 1 to be more readily stored. In the storage configuration, 
the base 2 and bail 3 have a very low profile and a plane formed by 
passage through the bail 3 is substantially coplanar with the first and 
second faces 10 and 11 of the base 2. The creation of the opening 50 by 
positioning the bail 3 in parallel alignment with the base 2 allows the 
food slicing guide to be hung from a variety of suspension means, 
including pegs, hooks, nails or the like, for storage or decorative 
purposes. When the bail 3 is placed in parallel alignment with the base 2, 
a portion of each of the distal ends 42 of the bail 3 remains in the bores 
30 and the opposing legs 40 bias against the first and second opposed 
sides 13 and 14 of the base 2 so as to secure the bail 3 to the base 2 
when the base 2 is grasped or suspended by the bail 3. 
To advance the bail 3 into perpendicular alignment with the base 2, the 
arcuate cross-member 41 is rotatably urged back over the base 2. As the 
bail 3 is advanced toward a perpendicular alignment with the base 2, the 
joged region 44 of each of the opposed legs 40 are urged out of the 
V-shaped grooves 20 and the lower portions 47 of the opposed legs 40 are 
biased to fully sit into the bores 30 of the first and second slots 25 and 
26 or the third and fourth slots 27 and 28. 
The bail 3 may be positioned in perpendicular alignment with the base 2 so 
as to extend away from either the first face 10 or the second face 11 when 
the bail 3 is positioned in either the first and second slots 25 and 26 or 
the third and fourth slots 27 and 28. Therefore, the bail 3 may be 
positioned so as to extend in perpendicular alignment above four different 
areas of the board. 
A groove 60 extends across each face 10 and 11 of the base 2 between the 
slots 25 and 26 and between the slots 27 and 28. The grooves 60 are 
positioned to be in planar alignment with the front or cutting side 34 of 
the bail 3 when placed in respective slots 25 to 28. The slots 60 
facilitate the passing of a cutting instrument through a lower side of 
food being sliced on the apparatus. 
To use the food slicing guide 1 to guide a user in slicing an item of food 
59, the bail 3 is positioned in perpendicular alignment relative to the 
base 2. The item of food 59 to be sliced is then positioned on either the 
first or second face 10 or 11 of the base 2 between the bail 3 and the 
base 2, as shown in FIG. 1, so that a portion of the item of food 59 to be 
sliced extends on a side of the bail 3 opposite of a remaining portion of 
the item of food 59. A user may then position a knife 60 or other cutting 
utensil against the cutting side 34 of the bail 3 and use the bail 3 as a 
guide in slicing the item of food 59 appropriately positioned on the base 
2. The size of the slice may be varied by positioning more or less of the 
item of food 59 to be sliced on the side of the bail 3 opposite the 
remaining portion of the item of food 59. 
The ability to position the bail 3 in perpendicular alignment with the base 
2 in four different areas greatly increases the useful life of the food 
slicing guide by permitting the abrasion caused by contact between a knife 
60 and the base 2 to be distributed at various times to any of the four 
different areas. 
It is to be understood that while certain forms of the present invention 
have been illustrated and described herein, it is not to be limited to the 
specific forms or arrangement of parts described and shown.