Abstract:
The Multi-Purpose Utensil is kitchen tool that has a plurality of functions such as a peeler, julienne, sharpener, pitter, among others.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Not Applicable 
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
       [0002]    Not Applicable 
       INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC 
       [0003]    Not Applicable 
       BACKGROUND 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    Modern kitchens, whether commercial or residential, are cluttered with multiple hand-held utensils for peeling fruits and vegetables, making juliennes of various sizes, a knife or blade sharpener, among others. Kitchens are further cluttered by utensils that can be used only by the right-handed user. 
         [0005]    Information relevant to attempts to address these problems can be found in: U.S. Chapman, Pub. No. 2007/0186423 (Pub. Date August 2007); Di Bitonto, U.S. Pat. No. 7,140,111 (Patent Date November 2006); Ruiz, U.S. Pat. No. 6,671,964 (Pat. Date January 2004). However, each of these references suffers from one or more of the following disadvantages:
       (1) does not provide a single utensils that can peel thick and thin skinned fruits and vegetables;   (2) does not provide multiple tools in one utensil;   (3) does not provide a utensil that can be comfortably used by both left- and right-handed users.       
 
         [0009]    The object of the Multi-Purpose Utensil is to provide a tool that can peel both thick and thin skinned vegetables and fruits. Another object of the Multi-Purpose Utensil is to provide one tool that has a plurality of functions such as a peeler, julienne, sharpener, pitter, among others and, does not occupy any more space than a conventional peeler. A further object of the Multi-Purpose Utensil is to provide an ergonomic handle that can comfortably be used by the left- or right-handed user. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0010]    The multi-purpose utensil is a kitchen tool that has a plurality of functions and can replace multiple tools that are found in the kitchen. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0011]    Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: 
           [0012]      FIG. 1  is an elevation view of the multi-purpose utensil; 
           [0013]      FIG. 2  is an expanded view of the multi-purpose utensil; 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0014]    While preferred embodiments of the invention will be shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modification may be made therein without departing from the invention in its broader aspects. 
         [0015]    The Multi-Purpose Utensil is a kitchen tool with a plurality of uses. Referring to  FIG. 1 , the multi-purpose utensil  10  comprises in combination a handle  20 , a blade end  30 , and a blade guard  40 . 
         [0016]    Referring to  FIG. 2 , the handle  20  consists of a mounting end  50  and a gripping end  60 . The shape of the handle  20  is ergonomic allowing either a left- or right-hand user to comfortably use the multi-purpose utensil. 
         [0017]    In the preferred embodiment, the gripping end  60  of the handle  20  defines a mounting hole or hanger eye  70 . The gripping end can also comprise a can opener or a pitter. 
         [0018]    The blade end  30  comprises a proximal end  80  and a distal end  90 . The proximal end  80  of the blade is permanently attached to the mounting end  50  of the handle  20 . In the preferred embodiment the mounting end  50  has a bore into which the proximal end  80  sits and is attached permanently thereto. In the preferred embodiment, the distal end  90  further comprises a pitter  110 . 
         [0019]    The blade end  30  comprises a plurality of blades  100 . In the preferred embodiment, there are three blades which are placed symmetrically,  120  degrees from each other; each blade has a different function. The blades can peel, julienne, or sharpen, among other functions. 
         [0020]    In the preferred embodiment, the blade guard  40  is attached to the proximal end  80 . The blade guard  40  will rotate to cover the blades  100  not in use, allowing the multi-purpose utensil to function as a single utensil. In the preferred embodiment, the blade gaurd  40  is removable so that it can be washed separately from the handle and blade end.