Abstract:
A plate carrier is carried on a server&#39;s forearm. The carrier comprises a horizontal support portion for carrying the plate carrier on the forearm and a vertical spine with at least one plate holder. The horizontal support resides between the elbow and the palm, and comprises a plastic support surface and a metal backing. The vertical spine extends downwardly from the horizontal support, looping around the forearm, and continuing downward below the server&#39;s forearm. The spine is laterally centered on the horizontal support, and longitudinally closer to the elbow than the palm. The plate holders extend longitudinally with respect to the horizontal support, and a majority of the plate holders extend forward from the spine.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention relates to a plate carrier, and more particularly to a plate carrier for use by servers in a restaurant. 
   Servers at restaurants often prefer to carry a number of plates in each trip between a kitchen and diner&#39;s table to minimize the number of trips necessary to provide meals and to clear the tables. Generally, plates are carried on a large tray. Unfortunately, if the server is bumped or stumbles, the plates may fall off the tray, and possibly onto diners. 
   U.S. Pat. No. 953,007 for “Serving Rack,” describes a rack for use by waiters in hotels, restaurants, etc. The rack includes a handle and a vertical member extending down from the handle. A multiplicity of substantially round wire loops reside on opposite sides of the vertical member and are adapted for supporting plates and cups of various sizes. A supporting member resides at the bottom of the vertical member, thus allowing the rack to be placed horizontal surfaces when not being carried by a waiter. Unfortunately, the carrier of the &#39;007 patent requires an awkward hand and arm position, resulting in rapid fatigue of the server. Other plate carriers are known, but they similarly require carrying by the hand, and are also awkward and fatiguing. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention addresses the above and other needs by providing a plate carrier carried on a server&#39;s forearm. The carrier comprises a horizontal support portion for carrying the plate carrier on the forearm and a vertical spine with at least one plate holder. The horizontal support resides between the elbow and the palm, and preferably comprises a plastic support surface and a metal backing, but may also be all plastic, all metal, or made from any material providing adequate strength. The vertical spine extends downwardly from horizontal support, looping around the forearm, and continuing downward below the server&#39;s forearm. The spine is laterally centered on the horizontal support, and longitudinally closer to the elbow than the palm. The plate holders extend longitudinally with respect to the horizontal support, and a majority of the plate holders extend forward from the spine. 
   In accordance with one aspect of the invention, there is provided a plate carrier comprising a horizontal support, a spine attached to the horizontal support, and plate holders attached to the spine. The horizontal support has a substantially rectangular shape, resides horizontally, and has a support length of approximately eight inches and support width of approximately 1.5 inches. The spine is attached to the horizontal support and extends downward from the horizontal support. The spine comprises a loop portion below the horizontal support, the loop portion having a height H L  of approximately 4.5 inches and a depth D L  of approximately 1.5 inches, and a plate holder portion below the loop portion. The plate holder portion is approximately laterally centered under the horizontal support. At least one plate holder is attached to the plate holder portion, and the plate holder portion is preferably a vertical segment of the spine and at least two vertically spaced apart plate holders are attached to the plate holder portion. 
   In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is provided a plate carrier comprising a horizontal support, a spine, and at least one plate holder. The horizontal support has a substantially rectangular shape, resides horizontally, and has a support length of between approximately two inches and approximately twelve inches and support width of between approximately one inch and approximately two inches. The horizontal support includes a forward end and a rearward end. The spine is attached to the horizontal support proximal to the rearward end and extends downward from the horizontal support. The spine includes a loop portion below the horizontal support, the loop portion having a height H L  of between approximately four inches and approximately five inches and a depth D L  of between approximately 1.5 inches and approximately 2.5 inches. The spine further includes a plate holder portion below the loop portion, which plate holder portion is approximately laterally centered under the horizontal support. At least one plate holder is attached to the plate holder portion and extends forward. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
     The above and other aspects, features and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following more particular description thereof, presented in conjunction with the following drawings wherein: 
       FIG. 1A  is a side view of a plate carrier according to the present invention. 
       FIG. 1B  is a front view of the plate carrier. 
       FIG. 1C  is a top view of the plate carrier. 
       FIG. 2  depicts the plate carrier resting on a forearm and holding plates. 
       FIG. 3A  I a side view of the plate carrier supported by a stand. 
       FIG. 4A  is a side view of the stand for the plate carrier. 
       FIG. 4B  is a top view of the stand for the plate carrier. 
       FIG. 4C  is an front view of the stand for the plate carrier. 
       FIG. 5A  is a side view of a first alternative plate holder. 
       FIG. 5B  is a front view of the first alternative plate holder. 
       FIG. 5C  is a side view of a plate carrier with an adjustable upper pin height. 
       FIG. 6A  is a side view of a second alternative plate holder. 
       FIG. 6B  is a front view of the second alternative plate holder. 
       FIG. 6C  is a top view of the second alternative plate holder. 
       FIG. 7A  is a side view of a third alternative plate holder. 
       FIG. 7B  is a front view of the third alternative plate holder. 
       FIG. 7C  is a top view of the third alternative plate holder. 
   

   Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding components throughout the several views of the drawings. 
   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   The following description is of the best mode presently contemplated for carrying out the invention. This description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of describing one or more preferred embodiments of the invention. The scope of the invention should be determined with reference to the claims. 
   A side view of a plate carrier  10  according to the present invention is shown in  FIG. 1A , a front view of the plate carrier  10  is shown in  FIG. 1B , and a top view of the plate carrier  10  is shown in  FIG. 1C . The plate carrier  10  includes a horizontal support  12  and a spine  16 . The horizontal support  12  has a length L S  and a width W S . The length L S  is preferably between approximately two inches and approximately twelve inches and more preferably is approximately eight inches. The width W S  is preferably between approximately one inch and approximately two inches, and more preferable approximately 1.5 inches. The plate carrier  10  has a centerline CL which aligns with a server&#39;s forearm. 
   The horizontal support  12  is preferably substantially rectangular with rounded corners and includes a forward (to the left in  FIG. 1A ) end  12   a  and a rearward end  12   b  opposite the forward end. The horizontal support  12  includes a support surface  12   c  configured to carry on a server&#39;s forearm. The support surface preferably includes an upwardly arched portion  13  proximal to the forward end  12   a  to cooperate with (or follow) a server&#39;s hand. The upward arched portion  13  is rounded and somewhat resembles a large inverted spoon and includes a thumb hole  13  for the server&#39;s thumb. The horizontal support  12  may be made from a flexible or soft material and a support bracket  14  may be attached to the spine  16 , and the horizontal support member  12  may be attached to the support bracket  14 . 
   The spine  16  is connected to the horizontal support  12  proximal to the rearward end  12   b . The spine  16  includes a loop portion  16   b  under the horizontal support  12 , which loop portion  16   b  loops around the server&#39;s forearm. The spine  16  further includes a plate holder portion  16   c  under the loop portion  16   b . At least one plate holder  18  is attached to the plate holder portion  16   c  for holding plates, and preferably three forward pointing vertically spaced apart plate holders  18  are attached to the portion  16   c  and pointing forward (to the left in  FIG. 1A ). The plate holders  18  may be the same size, or may be different sizes for different size plates. The spine  16  may further include a spine upper portion  16   a  extending upward from the horizontal support  12 , and having a fourth plate holder  18  attached. 
   Feet  21  are attached to the spine  16  proximal to the bottom of the spine  16 , and extend angled downward from the spine  16  opposite a bottom most plate holder  18 . The feet extend downward approximately as far as the bottom of the spine  16 . A pepper mill holder  17  is attached to the spine proximal to the top of the plate holder portion  16   c . The pepper mill holder  17  faced to the rear (right in  FIG. 1A ) and is forked to cooperate with the pepper mill holder  17 . A carrying hook  23  is attached to the spine near the horizontal carrier  12  to allow the place carrier  10  to be hooked over a belt, pocket, and the like to free up the server&#39;s arms and/or hands. A pair of stabilizers  19  are attached to the spine  16  proximal to the top of the plate carrier portion  16   c . The stabilizers  19  may rest against the server&#39;s side while carrying the plate carrier  10 , or may be hooked or rest on the server&#39;s belt, pocket, or the like. 
   The plate holders  18  may be any structure suitable for holding a plate to the plate carrier  10 . For example, each plate holder  18  may comprise three pins extending from the spine  16 , and may preferably comprise two downward angled pins  15   b  and one pin is an upward angled pin  15   a . A plate is inserted between the pins  15   a  and  15   b  to hold the plate. The pins  15   a  and  15   b  may be coated with a latex, a rubber or other sticky material to facilitate holding the plates. Such pins  15   a  and  15   b  advantageously accommodate a variety of plate sizes and shapes. The plate holders may also be wire loops to set plates onto, or solid cupped holders to set plates into, or be spring clamps, or the like. 
   The plate carrier  10  is shown resting on a server&#39;s forearm  22  and holding plates  28  in  FIG. 2 . The length L F  (see  FIG. 1C ) of the horizontal support  12  is aligned with the centerline CL of the forearm. The horizontal support  12  extends from near the elbow  24  to the hand  26 , more or less depending on the forearm length of the server. In the instance of a plate carrier  10  with a short horizontal support  12 , the plate carrier  10  may be carried at any position along the forearm, or even by the hand  26 . The plates  28  are carried forward (to the left in  FIG. 2 ) of the spine  16 , and the spine  16  is attached to the horizontal support  12  toward the rear  12   b  (see  FIG. 1A ) of the horizontal support  12  to provide for balanced carrying. The server may further insert a thumb or finger through the thumb hole  13   a  (see  FIG. 1C ) in the forward end  12   a  of the horizontal support  12  to hold the plate carrier  10  more securely. 
   The plate carrier  10  may further be supported on a substantially flat surface  30  by the feet  21  and a stand  32  as shown in  FIG. 3 , wherein the plate carrier  10  is held in a substantially vertical position thereby allowing plates to be held by the plate holders. The plate carrier  10  thus supported may receive plates in preparation for delivery by the server to a table. Because the plates reside in a vertically spaced apart manner on the plate carrier, the kitchen and/or serving area required for the plate carrier is minimized. The plate carrier  10  may alternatively include a flat plate, cone, or rounded base to provide support on a horizontal surface. The plate carrier  10  may further include a downward pointing pin to insert into a receiving hole to support the plate carrier  10 , for example, a pin pointing downward from a rounded base. 
   A detailed side view of the stand  32  is shown in  FIG. 4A , a top view of the stand  32  is shown in  FIG. 4B , and an end view of the stand  32  is shown in  FIG. 4C . The stand comprises a base  34  which may be a small base fixed to a surface using fasteners passing through mounting holes  38 , or the base  34  may also be a larger base providing stable support without fixing to a surface. The stand  32  includes a first positioner  36   a  and a second positioner  36   b . The base of the spine  16  resides between the positioners  36   a ,  36   b , and the feet  21  (see  FIG. 1A ) which hold the plate carrier  10  in a substantially vertical position. The positioner  36   a  includes an upwardly extending extension  40  which resides between the bottom most downward pointing pins  15  (see  FIG. 1B ) to better support the plate carrier  10 . The positioner  36   b  curves away from the positioner  36   a  to facilitate insertion of the base of the spine  16  into the stand  32 . 
   A side view of a first alternative plate holder is shown in  FIG. 5A , and a front vie the first alternative plate holder is shown in  FIG. 5B . The first alternative plate w of holder is similar to the plate holder  18  (see  FIGS. 1A and 1B ) but includes a horizontal pin  15   c  connecting the lower pins  15   b . 
   A side view of a plate carrier with an adjustable upper pin height is shown in  FIG. 5C . Pockets  42  are attached to a back side of the spine  16 . The pockets have open mouths for insertion of the upper pin  15   a , and closed ends to hold the pin  15   a . Two or more pockets  42  are vertically spaced apart on the spine  16  to allow vertical adjustment of the upper pin  15   a  to accommodate various plate sizes. 
   A side view of a second alternative plate holder is shown in  FIG. 6A , a front view of the second alternative plate holder is shown in  FIG. 6B , and a top view of the second alternative plate holder is shown in  FIG. 6C . The second alternative plate holder comprises a wire loop  50  is attached to the spine  16 , and plates are carried on the wire loop  50 . 
   A side view of a third alternative plate holder is shown in  FIG. 7A , a front view of the third alternative plate holder is shown in  FIG. 7B , and a top view of the third alternative plate holder is shown in  FIG. 7C . The third alternative plate includes a cup  60  for holding plates. The cup  60  is attached to the spine  16  by an arm  62 . The cup  60  resides substantially orthogonal to the spine  16 , and is sufficiently close to being orthogonal to carry plates without the plates easily slipping. The cup  60  is preferably dished and may be solid, or include slots, perforations, or the like. 
   The plate carrier  10  may be made from solid metal or plastic, for example, the spine  16  may be made from metal bar or strap as shown herein, or the plate carrier  10  may be made from a wire form. 
   While the invention herein disclosed has been described by means of specific embodiments and applications thereof, numerous modifications and variations could be made thereto by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention set forth in the claims.