Abstract:
A grill assembly that may be assembled and disassembled without the use of tools is disclosed. The grill assembly has a housing having a front wall, a rear wall and opposing side walls. The front and rear walls are removably connected to each of the side walls. The housing also has a top surface and a bottom surface and a grilling surface across generally the top surface of the housing. There is also a base which receives the bottom surface of the housing. The base is provided with a knee wall that retains the housing in place in the assembly. The base is provided with a reservoir adapted to receive water for reducing the risk of fire due to burning grease, fat or other flammable material.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention relates to improvements in cooking devices, particularly in the area of portable grilling apparatus especially grilling apparatus that can be readily dismantled without the necessity of tools and which can store in a compact form.  
         DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART  
         [0002]    The grilling of food products is a familiar way of preparing meals particularly during the warmer months of the year. Even though there have been some concerns as to possible health risks to foods prepared in this manner, the popularity of grilling is at an all time high. Traditionally there have been two types of fuel for grilling, using gas or using a wood or charcoal. Each type of fuel has its devotees. Gas grills can be either natural gas or propane. The wood or charcoal users typically rely on one or more hardwoods as the fuel. In view of the present great interest in grilling as a method of preparing foods, there have been a number of new product designs in the field of grills. For example, many of the more expensive grills are currently made of a stainless steel or a brushed aluminum so that they withstand the elements better over the years. Despite the improvements in the materials used in the grills today, the basic functionality of the grill has not changed significantly over the years. Typically, the grill has a housing that supports a metal grill for placing the food above the heating surface. A cover may also be present to protect the cooking food from windblown debris or insects. The cover also has been found to improve the cooking of certain products by retaining more of the heat released by the fuel and thereby raising the temperature of the grill to quickly seal the juices in the foods, particularly for meat products.  
           [0003]    Because of the popularity of grilling food there is a desire among consumers to take the grilling experience to new venues. Whereas in the past barbecue grills were a backyard staple, many people now try to bring the grill to sporting events, on camping trips, on picnics, to the beach etc. Many people enjoy tailgate parties at various sporting events. In addition, many people when using public parks prefer to bring there own grill for picnics as they ate assured that the grill they are using has been suitably cleaned. Conventional grills are frequently difficult to disassemble when not in use and easily put together when needed. Similarly, if you do not disassemble the grill they are bulky and difficult to transport in a compact condition. Many grills are also too bulky to fit conveniently in the available vehicle space. Others are difficult to assemble and disassemble. Many also required tools that many people forgot to pack when taking the grill thus making it difficult to use. As a result, there has been a need for an improved portable grill.  
           [0004]    Another of the major problems in cooking grills is the presence of flammable greases and fats in close proximity to the flame. It is not uncommon during the grilling process for the meats to drip these fats and greases onto the coals causing them to ignite. Sometimes the volume of grease and the nature of the fire is such that these flare ups can be quite extensive and surprising to the consumer who is suddenly faced with a difficult decision of dousing this flare-up and simultaneously ruin the food or hope that the grease and fats burn out quickly without damage to the food or the adjacent area. In a worst case situation, the flare up can spread out of the grill to the surrounding area. These problems are not just limited to the outdoor barbecue grill. In recent years many stove manufacturers have products in their line that permit the grilling of food indoors on the stove with a grilling feature.  
           [0005]    In many instances where there is such a flare up the consumer is not sure of the best means to extinguish the fire. For example, a fire extinguisher is frequently the best choice from a safety stand point as it has the ability to extinguish grease fires quickly and safely. Unfortunately, the culinary repast that caused the flare up suffers from the fire retarding material evacuated from the extinguisher. The conventional fire extinguishers typically spray their material over a wide area necessitating a clean up of not only the work area but also the food In addition, despite their availability, many consumers either do not have fire extinguishers or if they do have them, they are typically stored away for “safe keeping” where they cannot be reached or found quickly in an emergency. For outdoor grills, a fire extinguisher is rarely if ever in close proximity to the grilling area.  
           [0006]    One alternative to the fire extinguisher is sand. Sand, while being a satisfactory material to extinguish flare ups, does present a problem to the food product it touches. The sand will frequently adhere to the cooking food requiring it to be cleaned or in a worse case discarded. Another material that is frequently used to extinguish flare ups is water. One of the problems with using water is that the flammable grease and fats float on water and are not extinguished by the water and in fact the water can spread the fire. Because of this, fire experts do not recommend that water be used on grease fires. Similarly, as with the case with sand, the application of water onto the grill is typically not done carefully due to the excitement caused by the fire and as a result, the water can extinguish the underlying fire that is cooking the food as well as the grease. In addition, the water affects the flavor of the cooked food.  
           [0007]    Another problem with many of the prior art portable grills particularly table top grills and grills that rest directly on a surface is that the heat from the heat source is in close contact with the heat source and there is a risk that the surface can become unduly hot and burn.  
           [0008]    In my earlier U.S. Pat. No. 5,499,574, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference, there is disclosed a vertically oriented duel grill with a rack that enables both sides of the food to be cooked simultaneously and permits the grease and juices to drain from the food into a pan. By draining the grease and other liquids away from the food during the cooking process there was less of a risk that there could be a build up of carcinogens in the food due to the grilling process. In addition, there was a reduced risk of flare ups as the grease dripped into the pan at the base which was away from the flame. Although there was a reduction in the risk of flare ups due to the cooking of the fats and grease by my earlier invention, this problem was not completely solved. In addition, the problem of flare ups remains in many conventional grilling apparatus that creates a safety hazard.  
         OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    It is an object of the invention to provide a grill that has a first cooking area on its upper surface and a second grilling area through a longitudinal opening in a wall of the grill. The second grilling surface has a heat source on either side of the food and permits flammable greases and fats to drip onto a reservoir of water where the risk of the grease and fat burning is reduced.  
           [0010]    It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved duel grill that may be readily assembled and disassembled without the need for tools.  
           [0011]    It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved duel grill that substantially reduces the risk of flare ups and other fire hazards due to burning grease.  
           [0012]    It is another object of the invention to provide a grill that has a lower surface that contacts the ground or other surface that is insulated from the heat of the heat source thus reducing the risk that the grill will cause the surface to burn or ignite.  
           [0013]    It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved duel grill that provides better cooking ability.  
           [0014]    Further objects and advantages to the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0015]    The improved grill assembly of the present invention generally has a housing comprising a front wall, a rear wall and opposing side walls, said walls being removably connected. The housing has a top surface and a bottom surface. There is a grill that is adapted to be removably applied to the upper surface of the housing. The grill provides the first grilling surface. One wall surface of the housing has a longitudinal opening for receiving a food holding accessory. The longitudinal opening permits food in the accessory to be cooked simultaneously on both sides due to the presence of a heating source on both sides and permits grease and fat to drip off the food onto the base. The base is removably connected to the housing at the housing&#39;s bottom surface. The base provides a reservoir for receiving the drippings of fat and grease and also a storage location for the grilling apparatus when it is dismantled. In a preferred embodiment the reservoir of the base may be provided with water to reduce the temperature of the dripping grease and fat so that there is a reduced risk of dangerous flare ups in the grilling process. The water also lowers the temperature of the base of the grill so that there is less likelihood that the heat from the heat source in the grill will cause the surface on which the grill is placed from scorching, burning or igniting. The grill has a first bar and a second bar and a plurality of support members extending from said first bar to said second bar and wherein at least one of either said bars or said members are preferably in the form of an inverted U for removably retaining the grill on the housing.  
           [0016]    The housing has a pair of screens, one on each side of the food holding accessory. Each screen is connected, preferably removably to the housing. The screens have openings therein to permit heat to readily transfer from the heat source the food in the food holding accessory. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0017]    [0017]FIG. 1 is a generally top view of the grill assembly of the present invention.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 2 is view of the grill assembly of FIG. 1 with the food receptacle for holding the food while it is being cooked being situated between the housing of FIG. 1 and the grilling surface.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 3 is an alternative view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 2 with the food receptacle in a partially opened position.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 4 is a view of the apparatus of FIG. 1 with the food receptacle removed from the housing.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 5 shows the grill assembly of the present invention in its storage condition with all the pieces in the base.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 6 depicts one example of the configuration of the tongue of the housing wall.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 7 shows the grill of the present invention partially assembled.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 8 a - c  show an alternative embodiment of the grill assembly of the present invention in which the housing is generally cylindrical.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIGS. 9A and 9B show examples of tongue and groove arrangements for connecting the walls and/or the screens to the walls.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIGS. 10A and 10B shows a front and rear wall for one embodiment of the invention.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 11 shows the configuration of the sidewalls of the housing of FIGS. 1, 4 and  7 .  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 12 shows an embodiment of the “U” shaped members for the front and rear walls of the housings of FIGS. 1, 4 and  7 .  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 13 shows a side view of the “L” shaped members.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0030]    [0030]FIG. 1 depicts the grill assembly  10  of the present invention. The grill assembly  10  has a housing  11  on which grill  12  is placed on the upper surface in a generally horizontal position. Grill  12  provides a first cooking surface for the food. The grill  12  is preferably used for vegetables, fish and non greasy or fatty foods although it can be used for any type of food. The grill is preferably provided with at least a pair of generally parallel bars  13  and  14 . Extending from first bar  13  to second bar  14  are a plurality of support members  15 ,  16 ,  17 , etc. As seen in FIG. 2, in one embodiment of the grill, the support members are generally but not necessarily in the form of an inverted U, each having a pair of legs  18  and  19  that are joined together by base member  20 . As seen in FIG. 2 legs  18  and  19  are generally relatively short in comparison to the length of base member  20 . First bar  13  is connected to the support members at the leg  18  and second bar  14  is connected to the support members at the leg  19 . As seen in FIG. 4 the support members  15 ,  16 ,  17 , etc., of the grill are generally straight and it is the first bar  13  and the second bar  14  that are generally in the form of an inverted U, each having a pair of legs  21  and  22  that are joined together by base member  23 . As seen in FIG. 4 legs  21  and  22  are generally relatively short in comparison to the length of base member  23 . The purpose of the legs is to assist in holding the grill to the remainder of the assembly when the device is assembled and ready for use. The grill is also readily removable from the remainder of the grill assembly for easy cleaning and storage.  
         [0031]    The housing  11  is preferably formed of four walls  24 ,  25 ,  26  and  27 . These walls are preferably but not required to be planar and have a top edge  28 , a bottom edge  29  and a pair of side edges  30  and  31 . The advantage of the planar walls is that they permit the storage of the grill in a smaller volume. The walls may preferably be removably connected together to form the housing. Assembly of the housing is by means of a tongue and groove construction. As seen in FIG. 2, a portion of the edge of each wall has a tongue  32 ,  33 ,  34 , and  35  that mate with grooves  32 A,  33 A,  34 A, and  35 A in the adjacent wall surface. In one embodiment, the tongue has a rectangular cross section as does the groove. As shown in FIG. 6 the tongue has a notch  40  which holds the adjacent wall in place when the tongue passes through the slot and drops down so the wall in the area of the base of the slot prevents the tongue from being removed from the slot. If another connection for the walls is desired, the edge of a wall can have a tongue that mates with a groove. The tongue  90  and groove  91  can have a configuration such as that shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B which lock the two wall surfaces together when the tongue slides into the groove. In an alternative embodiment, tongues  36 ,  37 ,  38 , and  39  enter into slots  36 A,  37 A,  38 A and  39 A on adjacent walls. In the Figures, each wall is provided with the two tongues and two slots as shown in FIG. 11.  
         [0032]    The grill assembly has a base assembly  41 . The base assembly typically has a pair of upwardly extending “L” shaped members  42  and  43  which extend from a position above the floor  46  of the base into the underside of the wall assembly. These upwardly extending “L” shaped members have an arm  42 A and a shelf  43 A. The shelf  43 A provides a surface for the charcoal or other fuel to rest. The shelf and arm can be separable to provide an even more compact storage for the grill. In one embodiment the arm and shelf can be connected together by a mortise and tenon joint or other suitable connection. As seen in FIGS. 10A and 10B, the front wall and the rear wall  27  are provided with slots  92 ,  93 ,  94  and  95  a shelf can extend from slot  92  to slot  94  and from slot  93  to slot  95  to support the heating element above the surface of the floor.  
         [0033]    The base assembly  41  can be connected to the housing by a friction fit or if a stronger connection is desired by means of pin arrangement in which pin  44  the passes through an orifice  45  in each of the wall and member. The base assembly has knee walls  68 ,  69 ,  70  and  71  which extend upwardly a short distance above the floor  46  of the base assembly. Typically the knee walls only extend an half inch to an inch or two in height. While the knee walls can have a greater height the result is that when disassembled the package takes up a greater volume of space. The housing may be held in place by the knee walls. Preferably the knee walls frictionally retain the housing in place. However, if desired the knee walls may be connected to the housing walls by on or more pins  44  that pass through orifices  45  in the knee wall and housing. Alternatively, a latch mechanism may also be used to retain the two in position.  
         [0034]    In a preferred embodiment the reservoir is provided with water during grilling. The purpose of the water in the reservoir is to reduce the possibility of flare ups during cooking. When the food is cooking any fat or grease dripping from the food receptacle  51  does not drip onto the hot coals but down into the reservoir where the water prevents a flare up of the hot flammable grease or fat. At least a portion of the base and the knee walls form a reservoir for holding a quantity of water. The water provides a safety feature because any flammable grease or fat or other material that drips of falls from the cooking food is extinguished when it hits the water in the reservoir. In addition, the water cools the temperature of the base and as a result there is less of a risk that the heat from the fuel could ignite the surface on which the grill is resting. In one embodiment of the invention, the reservoir is provided with a rust resistant surface.  
         [0035]    The food receptacle  51  is a cooking rack  55  that has a pair of leaves between which the food is placed. A pair of handles, each extending from a leaf, are present. A ring  56  slips over the handles to hold the leaves together during cooking. For cooking, the food receptacle is placed into the orifice  57  in front wall  24 . This provides a second cooking area for the grill. Preferably, the food receptacle  51  may be held in place by a hook or a notch  66  on rear wall  27  of the housing. In a preferred embodiment the food receptacle  51  is provided with a pair of pins  66 A and  66 B which pass through notch  66 . The pins along with the arrow shaped configuration of the notch provide a stable resting place for the food receptacle  51 . A second notch  77  may also be provided in the rear wall  27  and another one or two pins can be provided on the food receptacle  51  for additional support.  
         [0036]    The arm  42 A may be provided with one or more openings to permit heat from the heating source to pass to the food in the food receptacle. In a preferred embodiment the leg  42 A is provided with a plurality of openings that forms a screen for passing heat and air through the arm  42 A. As seen in FIG. 12 the “L” shaped member has a pair of tongues  101  and  102  as well as slots  103  and  104 . The slots in the “L”shaped member line up with the slots  105  and  106  in the front and rear walls. Alternatively, instead of arm  42 A, screen members  60  and  63  may be present instead of the “L” shaped members. The screen members are preferably removably connected to the front and rear wall. The screen members may be connected to the front and rear wall by any suitable means. For example, the front wall  24  and rear wall  27  may be provided with one or more slots on each side of the longitudinal orifice  57 . Extending from slot  58  in the front wall  24  to the corresponding slot in rear wall  27  is screen member  60 . Similarly, extending from slot  61  in the front wall  24  to slot  62  in rear wall  25  is screen member  63 . In an alternative embodiment, the interior wall surfaces may be provided with a groove instead of a slot and the screen can be provided with a tongue that mates with the groove similar to the manner in which the wall may be connected. The screen members typically extend generally the height of the wall to provide as much area for fuel as possible. The screen members form receptacles  64  and  65  for the heating source for the grill assembly whether it be wood, charcoal, electric heat, etc. Where the fuel is wood or charcoal the fuel is placed into the receptacles and ignited. Alternatively, electric heating elements way be present in the receptacles to provide the heat for cooking. As shown in FIG. 2 the screen members do not extend from the bottom of the housing to the top but end a short distance from the top surface of the housing. A cover (not shown) extending at least from the upper surface of the first screen to the upper surface of the second screen may be present. In this embodiment, fuel such as charcoal may be placed in the housing as well as in the area above the screens to provide two areas for cooking. This cover protects the food cooking in the food receptacle from ash when the first cooking surface is used.  
         [0037]    In use, the grill assembly is formed without the need for tools by connecting a first wall and a second wall by means of a tongue and groove. The tongue of one wall surface slips into the groove at one end of the second wall surface where it is held in place. The remaining walls may be connected in a similar manner to form the entire housing. Alternatively, the grill assembly may formed by connecting a first wall and a second wall by means of the tongue and slot so that the notch of the tongue prevents the first and second wall from being separated until desired by the user. In the same manner the remaining two walls may be connected to the assembly of the first and second walls. The “L” shaped members may be placed in position by connecting each shelf to opposing walls of the housing. Instead of the “L” shaped members, the screen members may be placed in position so that they extend from the front wall to the rear wall. The housing so formed can be placed over the base such that the knee walls frictionally retain the walls of the housing. Alternatively, the housing can be placed between the knee walls and connected by a suitable means. The grill  12  is placed on the housing so that at least a portion of the grill extends downwardly adjacent to the outer surface of two opposing walls of the housing. Preferably, water is placed in the base reservoir. One of the advantages of the grill assembly of the present invention is the superior heat that is generated in the grill assembly because of the quantity of heat generated there is no need to have holes placed in the base or the side walls to improve the flow of air to the fuel.  
         [0038]    When the grill assembly  10  is no longer needed, the assembly may also be disassembled without the need for tools. The grill  12  is lifted off the housing. The water may be removed from the base and the base may be separated from the housing. The walls of the housing may be separated and the “L” shaped member or screen members can be removed from the front and rear walls.  
         [0039]    The grill assembly may be formed of any suitable heat resistant material such as metal, a ceramic or porcelain material, etc. Preferably, a rust resistant material is also used. The base of the grill assembly may be flat on its underside to permit it to rest evenly on a surface. Alternatively, the base may be provided with legs. The legs may be adjustable to permit the grill assembly to rest on an uneven surface.  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 8 depicts an alternative embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment the wall surfaces are not planar but rather form a generally circular housing. The grill, FIG. 8C, may have a singular circular bar  80  with one or more of the support members  81 ,  82  etc. having the generally unshaped configuration discussed above which hold the grill in place on the top surface of the housing  83 . Alternatively, the grill may rest on pins  84  extending from the inside surface of the housing. The remaining features of the circular housing can be the same as in the other embodiments. In one embodiment, the screen  85  can be welded to the inside walls of the housing. Although the housing in FIG. 8 is depicted as a single piece the housing may be comprised of a plurality of curved wall-surfaces that connect as described above in connection with the planar housing. In this embodiment the wall surfaces are individual arcs of a circle and connect together to form a generally circular structure. Also handles  86  may be present on the outside walls of the grill to facilitate movement of the grill.  
         [0041]    In an alternative embodiment of the grill of FIG. 8 the grill has a top surface  121  for placement of food products for cooking purposes. In one embodiment, removably attached to the grill are two screens  85  that extend downwardly from the under surface of the top surface  121 . The screens may be made of thin rods welded to a frame member or may have desired another configuration. The top surface  121  of the grill is usually formed from a metal ring with a plurality of rods extending from one side of the ring to the other to provide a support surface for the food products being cooked. Extending upwardly from the top surface of the grill may be a pair of handles.  
         [0042]    In an alternative embodiment, the top surface  121  may be removable and there may is a meshed or screened section that extends from edge  85 A to  85 B of the screen  85  along the inside curved wall of the housing. Similarly, there may also be a meshed or screened section that extends from edge  85 C to  85 D of the screen  85  along the inside curved wall of the housing. Handles may be attached to the screened section along the curved portion. The pockets thus formed by the screen permit the user to place the charcoal in the pockets and to carry that assembly along with the charcoal and to be able to insert the assembly into the housing. Similarly, when the cooking is done, the assembly containing the hot coals can be removed-from the housing. This is advantageous when the coals are still hot because the grill can be removed and the hot coals can be readily extinguished by dousing with water or dipping the assembly into a bucket or other water source.  
         [0043]    The size of the base of the grill and the height of the knee walls are selected so that the walls may be stored in the base. Similarly, the “L” shaped member and the grill are also sized to permit placement of the pieces in the base for easy storage. The disassembled grill with the pieces stored in the base is shown in FIG. 5. The shelves of the two “L” shaped members are shown as rising above the surface of the stored grill in FIG. 5. If a more compact arrangement is desired the shelves may separated from the legs and laid on the remaining pieces for storage.