Patent Publication Number: US-2013233182-A1

Title: Rotisserie oven

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to a cooking appliance and, more specifically, to a counter-top rotisserie oven that is specially engineered having space saving and other storage and operating features that provide desired improvements over conventional rotisserie ovens. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Indoor cooking appliances are known in the art and include stoves, toasters, broilers, and countertop-ovens such as rotisserie ovens. Rotisserie ovens known in the art are typically configured having a fixed-size outer housing that defines a cooking chamber within, wherein the cooking chamber includes one or more heating elements for cooking the desired food article. Such rotisserie ovens conventionally have an elongated cooking chamber that is configured to accommodate a chicken or other food article within. 
     Additionally, such rotisserie ovens are configured to accommodate the food article within the cooking chamber on a spit of the like that enables the food article to be rotated within the cooking chamber to provide a uniformly cooked result. Such rotisserie ovens may also include temperature controls or timers or the like, that control or actuate the heating elements and/or spit to facilitate cooking the food article without constant supervision. 
     While such rotisserie ovens are known in the art, they are made having a fixed-outer housing shape or size, that presents a somewhat bulky spatial package that is either left on the kitchen counter when it is not being used, which occupies sometimes precious counter space, or that is difficult to store if removed from the kitchen counter, sometimes requiring storage in a closet, pantry or even a garage. 
     It is, therefore, desirable that a counter-top rotisserie oven be configured in a manner that is capable of operating in a manner that is the same or improved when compared to conventional rotisserie ovens. Additionally, it is desired that such a counter-top rotisserie oven be configured in a manner that enables it to be easily stored when not being used, for example within a kitchen drawer or the like, to thereby avoid the need to consume precious kitchen counter space for storage. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Countertop cooking devices such as ovens and rotisserie ovens as disclosed herein generally comprise a two-piece enclosure or housing formed from a lower member and an upper member. In an example embodiment, the upper member is removably connected to the lower member to form a cooking chamber therebetween, and is movable relative to the lower member, e.g., can be tilted upwardly, to permit access to the cooking chamber. The enclosure includes a heating assembly, e.g., comprising one or more heating elements, disposed therein and positioned to facilitate the cooking of a food article within the cooking chamber when activated. The enclosure can include switches and controls to adjust/set the time and/or temperature of the cooking operation. 
     In an example embodiment, the cooking chamber is configured to accommodate a spit assembly disposed therein for rotatable movement during a cooking operation. The spit assembly comprises a pair of opposed plates with two or more spit rods extending therebetween. In an example embodiment, the spit assembly is disassembled by removing the rods from the plates to facilitate storing the disassembled spit assembly parts within the cooking chamber. The enclosure includes a motorized mechanism to facilitate rotating the spit assembly therein through the use of geared engagement. 
     The enclosure includes one or more support members connected thereto for selectively moving the enclosure between a first storage position (when not in use) and a second operating or cooking position (when used to cook a food article). When in the storage position, the cooking enclosure lower member is oriented having a reduced height profile relative to a horizontal support surface as compared to when the enclosure lower member is in the operating or cooking position. In an example embodiment, the support members are positioned along a rearward bottom surface of the enclosure lower member, and positioned to extend therefrom to place the enclosure in a forward-oriented position. 
     The enclosure lower member includes a front edge and a rear edge. When the enclosure lower member is positioned in the storage position, the height of the front and rear edges are substantially the same as measured from a horizontal support surface. When the enclosure lower member is positioned in the cooking position, the rear edge is oriented substantially higher than the front edge. In an example embodiment, the height of the rotisserie oven in the stored position is less than about 75 percent of the height of the rotisserie oven in the cooking position, is less than about 65 percent of the height, and in a preferred embodiment is about 50 percent or less of the height of the rotisserie oven in the cooking position to facilitate easy and convenient storage. 
     The enclosure upper member is configured so that it can be inverted and fitted within the enclosure lower member cooking chamber. In an example embodiment, at least 75 percent of the upper member fits within the lower member. In an example embodiment, the lower member has a semi-cylindrical configuration, and the upper member has a semi-cylindrical configuration sized to fit concentrically within the lower member when detached from the lower member and inverted. When in a stored configuration, with the upper member inverted and disposed within the lower member, a sufficiently sized space exists between the upper and lower members to accommodate storage of the disassembled spit rod plates and rods therein. 
     Thus, rotisserie ovens as disclosed herein are configured to provide a space-saving low-height profile for storage purposes to thereby enable the oven and its contents, e.g., the spit assembly, to be easily stored in a kitchen drawer or the like, avoiding the need to needlessly occupy valuable kitchen counter space and/or to be stored inconveniently outside of the kitchen, allowing it to always be close by and readily available for repeated use. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       These and other features and advantages of the present invention will be appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an example embodiment rotisserie oven as described herein with top cover in a closed position; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the an example embodiment rotisserie oven as described herein with the top cover in an open position and including a spit assembly disposed within a cooking chamber; 
         FIG. 3  is a front view of the example embodiment rotisserie oven shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4  is a top view of the example embodiment rotisserie oven shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of the example embodiment rotisserie oven shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a side cross-sectional view of the example embodiment rotisserie oven shown in  FIG. 1  now illustrated in a storage condition with the top cover removed and a spit assembly disassembled and stored within the cooking chamber; 
         FIG. 7  is a side cross-sectional view of the example embodiment rotisserie oven shown in  FIG. 6  now illustrated in a storage condition the top cover invertedly disposed within the cooking chamber; and 
         FIGS. 8A and 8B  illustrated rear perspective views of an example embodiment rotisserie oven as described herein showing the placement of rear support members. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Rotisserie ovens as disclosed herein are specifically designed to permit easy, space-saving storage to thereby maximize kitchen counter surface area when not in use. Such Rotisserie ovens generally comprise a lower enclosure or housing member that includes a cooking chamber therein and that includes a motor for rotating a spit assembly, on which a food article is disposed during a cooking operation, within the cooking chamber. An upper enclosure or housing member is removably disposed over the lower member to define and enclose the cooking chamber. The rotisserie oven is configured to facilitate cooking a food article when positioned in a cooking orientation or position, and to facilitate self-contained storage by providing a reduced height profile when placed in a storage orientation or position, wherein “self-contained” refers to the fact that the spit assembly is contained within the rotisserie oven when placed in the storage position. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates a perspective view of an example embodiment rotisserie oven  10  as disclosed herein having an outer enclosure or housing comprising a lower enclosure or housing member  12 , and an upper enclosure or housing member  14  disposed over the lower member. In an example embodiment, the lower member is made from a metallic material and is configured to provide a cooking chamber of desired size and configuration therein (as shown in  FIGS. 2 and 6 ). In an example embodiment, the lower member is configured having a generally cylindrical shape, and is adapted for setting on a horizontal support surface. 
     In an example embodiment, the lower member  12  includes a motorized mechanism  16  disposed therein or attached thereto that is configured to engage and actuate rotation of a spit assembly or the like that is disposed within the cooking chamber. In an example embodiment, the motorized mechanism is provided in the form of an electric motor, and the electricity for the electric motor is provide by an electrical cord  18  extending from the lower member. The lower member can include one or more control features, such as on/off switches and/or timers for the motorized mechanism and/or for a heating assembly disposed within the oven, as well as an indicator of the cooking temperature and/or cooking time. Such control features can be positioned along a panel  20  positioned along a front edge of the lower member  12 . 
     The upper member  14  is positioned over the lower member and in an example embodiment is configured having a generally cylindrical shape that complements that of the lower member. The upper member can also be formed from a metallic material. In an example embodiment, the upper member includes a number of vents or openings  22  extending through a wall surface to optimize cooking In an example embodiment, the upper member includes a plurality of vents that are located toward a rear portion of the upper member. Additionally, the upper member can be configured having a transparent window  24 , e.g., a domed window, positioned towards a front portion of the upper member, to facilitate viewing the food article being cooked from a position outside of the oven. 
     In an example embodiment, the upper member  14  is configured so that it can be tilted upwards away from a front portion of the lower member by pivoting action of the upper member along a rear portion of the lower member. In an example embodiment, the upper member comprises engagement members or features  28  positioned along a rearward portion that are configured to cooperate with respective engagement members or features in the lower member. In an example embodiment, the upper member engagement members are provided in the form of a tongue that engages a respective groove position at a rearward position of the lower member. This arrangement of cooperative engagement members enable the upper member to be tilted upwardly through the use of an upper member handle  26  positioned at the front of the upper member  14 . 
     As best shown in  FIG. 2 , the arrangement of cooperating engagement members or features enable the upper member  14  to be tilted upwardly away from the lower member  12  to fully expose a cooking chamber  30  for the purpose of placing a food article therein and removing a food article therefrom. A further feature of such cooperating engagement members or features is that they permit the upper member to be easily removed from the lower member for cleaning and/or storage. While a particular type of engagement mechanism between the upper and lower members has been disclosed, many other types of engagement mechanisms capable of providing similar or comparable movement and removal of the upper member are understood to be interchangeably used within the scope of this disclosure. 
     The lower member  12  includes one of more rear support elements  32  that are positioned along a lower member bottom surface, specifically a rearward surface  34 . In an example embodiment, the rear support elements  32  are configured to place and maintain the lower member  12  in a forward-oriented cooking position when the rotisserie oven is in cooking operation, as will be described in greater detail below. In such an example embodiment, the support elements are configured to be movable between a cooking position where they extend outwardly away from the bottom rearward surface  34 , and a storage position where they removed, retracted or otherwise are moved to be adjacent to the bottom rearward surface to thereby enable the lower member to be moved to a rearward-oriented storage position, reducing the lower members height profile. 
     As illustrated in  FIGS. 8A and 8B , in an example embodiment, the rear support elements  32  can be provided in the form of a pair of legs, wherein each leg is positioned at opposite ends of the bottom rearward surface  34 . The legs can be configured to retract into slots or channels  33  disposed in the bottom rearward surface for storage. This is but one example embodiment of how the rear support elements  32  can be configured for purposes of reference, and it is to be understood that many other mechanical configurations are possible and intended to be within the scope of this disclosure. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates an example embodiment rotisserie oven  10  with the upper member  14  in a retracted or tilted upward position, thereby exposing the cooking chamber  30  within the lower member. A spit assembly  35  is disposed within the cooking chamber and is configured to accommodate attachment of a food article for cooking within the chamber. The spit assembly  35  comprises a pair of spit plates  36  having one or more spit rods  37  extending in parallel fashion therebetween. In an example embodiment, the spit plates  36  are configured having closed enclosures sized to accommodate respective spit rod ends therein to facilitate attachment of the spit rods between the plates. 
     One or more of the spit rod plates  36  include means for engaging the motorized mechanism in the lower housing to facilitate rotation of the spit assembly  35  in the cooking chamber. In an example embodiment, one or both of the plates include gear teeth positioned along an outer edge that are sized and positioned to engage a driving gear (not shown) extending from a wall surface of the cooking chamber and that is attached to the electric motor. The cooking chamber and spit assembly are configured to accommodate rotational movement of the spit assembly thereby when the electric motor is activated, and are configured to permit the spit assembly to be easily inserted into and removed from the cooking chamber. 
       FIG. 3  is a front view of an example embodiment rotisserie oven  10  with the upper member  14  in a closed position relative to the lower member  12 , and showing the position of the upper member window  24 , the upper member handle  26 , and the lower member control panel  20 . The lower member additionally includes one or more front support elements or feet  39  that are positioned along a lower member bottom frontward surface  38 . The front support elements  39  are configured to support the lower member on a horizontal supporting surface when the rotisserie oven is oriented in a cooking position, e.g., when the rear support members  32  are extended outwardly from the lower member bottom rearward surface  38  to place the oven into a forward-oriented position. 
       FIG. 4  is a top view of an example embodiment rotisserie oven  10  with the upper member  14  in a closed position relative to the lower member  12 , and showing the position and number of the vents  22  in the upper member along with the window  24 , the handle  26 , and the lower member control panel  20 . Further illustrated is the location of the engagement members or features  28  of the upper and lower members. 
       FIG. 5  is a side view of an example embodiment rotisserie oven  10  with the upper member removed, showing the lower member  12  oriented in a cooking position with the cooking chamber  30  exposed and opened. This view best illustrates the relationship between the differently-oriented lower member bottom surfaces relative to a horizontal support surface  40 . Moving from left to right along the lower member  12 , it has a front surface  42  that extends downwardly a distance from a forward edge  44  to the bottom frontward surface  38  having the front support elements  39  attached thereto. In an example embodiment, the bottom frontward surface  38  is substantially parallel with the horizontal support surface when the rotisserie oven is oriented in its cooking position, thereby representing the bottom-most portion of the cooking chamber. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 6 and 7 , the rotisserie oven includes a removable grease pan  46  that is disposed within the lower member  12  and that is positioned long an inside wall of the bottom frontward surface  38 , e.g., in parallel with the bottom frontward surface  38 , to collect cooking fluids by gravity flow to the bottom of the cooking chamber. A handle  48  is attached to the grease pan to facilitate removing the pan, and the collected fluids captured therein, from the front of the lower member  12 . In practice, it is desired that the grease pan  46  be removed from the oven and emptied while the oven is in the cooking position, e.g., as illustrated in  FIG. 5 . 
     Moving away from the bottom frontward surface  38 , the lower member bottom surface transitions upwardly to the bottom rearward surface  34  to which the rear support members  32  are connected. As illustrated, when the rotisserie oven is oriented in a cooking position, the rear support members  32  operate to move and maintain the bottom rearward surface  34  in a position that is at a forward angle relative to the horizontal support surface, e.g., at an angle that is sufficient to place the bottom frontward surface  38  parallel with the horizontal support surface. In an example embodiment the forward angle is greater than about 10 degrees, in the range of from about 15 to 60 degrees, and in an example embodiment between about 20 to 45 degrees. Moving away from the bottom frontward surface  38 , the lower member has a back surface  50  that curves upwardly from the bottom frontward surface  38  to a rearward edge  52 . 
     Thus, as described herein, when the rotisserie oven  10  is oriented in its cooking position, the lower member  12  is oriented such that its back surface  50  and its rearward edge  52  is positioned significantly higher than its front surface  42  and its forward edge  44 . Positioning the lower member  12  in this manner enables easy frontal access to the cooking chamber  30  for the purpose of introducing and removing a food article to be cooked, and when the cooking article is being cooked it enables easy viewing through the upper member window. 
       FIG. 6  illustrates a side cross-sectional view of the rotisserie oven  10  with the upper member removed, and the lower member  12  oriented in a storage position. In this position, the rear support members have been removed or retracted so that the lower member  12  is removed from its forward-oriented position, causing the lower member to shift rearward such that the front support elements  39  extending from the bottom frontward surface  38  no longer engage the horizontal supporting surface, and the bottom rearward surface  34  is now parallel with the horizontal supporting surface  40 . As illustrated, the lower member may include one or more feet or pads  51  disposed along the bottom rearward surface  34  for purposes of resting the lower member in the storage position. In the storage position, the opening to the cooking chamber is substantially parallel with the horizontal supporting surface. 
     The lower member  12  includes a heating element assembly  53  positioned within the cooking chamber along an inside portion of the back surface  50 , which assembly may comprise one or more heating elements  54 . As illustrated, in an example embodiment, the heating element assembly  53  extends longitudionally along a length of the cooking chamber back wall. The heating elements may be openly exposed within the cooking chamber or may be covered, e.g., behind a wall or screen adjacent the cooking chamber. As noted earlier, the lower member includes a grease pan  46  positioned within the cooking chamber along the bottom frontward surface  38  and connected to a handle  48  for easy removal and replacement. In an example embodiment, the grease pan can include a broiler cover or the like  56  disposed thereover comprising an arrangement of slots or other configured openings. 
     A feature of rotisserie ovens as disclosed herein is that they are specially configured to provide an improved degree of space-saving storage, thereby making such ovens more practical to buy and keep available for repeated use. The ovens as disclosed herein achieve this through the use of an enclosure engineered to provide a cooking orientation having one height profile, and a storage orientation having another reduced height profile, and further through the use of oven members that are designed to be stored within the oven without contributing to the reduced storage height profile. 
     In an example embodiment, ovens as disclosed herein achieve this through the use of retracting and/or removable rear support members that permit the oven to be shifted from a forward-oriented cooking position (where the rear edge is significantly higher than the front edge), to the storage position (where the height of the rear and front edges are substantially the same). The storage position provides a reduced overall height profile of the oven as measured from a horizontal supporting surface. Additionally, the cooking chamber is sized to accommodate placement of the spit assembly therein when the spit assembly is in a disassembled form. 
     In an example embodiment, the height of the rotisserie oven in the stored position is less than about 75 percent of the height of the rotisserie oven in the cooking position, is less than about 65 percent of the height, and in a preferred embodiment is about 50 percent or less of the height of the rotisserie oven in the cooking position. 
     As noted above, the spit assembly comprises a pair of spit plates having one or more spit rods interposed therebetween. The spit assembly can be disassembled by simply removing the spit rods from the spit plates. In this form, as illustrated in  FIG. 6 , the spit plates  36  can be positioned within the cooking chamber, e.g., side-by-side of one another, adjacent an inside wall of the bottom frontward surface  38 , and the spit rods  37  can be positioned running longitudionally along the same wall. The ability to store the spit assembly within the rotisserie oven when in a storage position further operates to ease storage as all oven elements are self-contained within the oven. 
       FIG. 7  is similar to  FIG. 6  in that it illustrates the rotisserie oven lower member  12  in a storage position. However,  FIG. 7  illustrates the complete rotisserie oven as now combined/stored within the upper member  12 . Specifically, the upper member  14  is configured such that it can be removed from its position on top of the lower member in a cooking position, inverted, and then inserted into the cooking chamber. 
     In an example embodiment, at least 75 percent of the inverted upper member can be disposed within the cooking chamber, and preferably at least 85 percent. In a most preferred embodiment, the inverted upper member is completely disposed within the cooking chamber of the lower member such that the overall height profile of the combined upper and lower oven members in such storage position is substantially the same as the lower member when it is in a storage position alone. In an example embodiment, the upper member  14  is inverted so that its lid  26  rests adjacent lower member front edge  44 . 
     Further, the configuration of the upper member and the cooking chamber permits the upper member when inverted to fit completely within the cooking chamber while the disassembled spit assembly is also stored therein, thereby providing a rotisserie oven that is capable of consuming less storage space (thus being able to be more easily stored in conventional areas such as kitchen drawers and the like) than conventional rotisserie ovens. The ability to provide a rotisserie oven having such a space-saving storage ability is significant as it permits such an appliance to be easily stored within a kitchen drawer or the like, thereby avoiding having to consume valuable counter space. 
     Other modifications and variations of rotisserie ovens as disclosed herein configured in the manner described above with reference to the figures will be apparent to those skilled in the art. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, this invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.