Abstract:
A windscreen apparatus ( 10 ) for outdoor cooking grills wherein, the apparatus ( 10 ) includes a base member ( 20 ) that supports a cooking grill and a pair of side wall members ( 30 ) ( 30 ′) and a rear wall member ( 40 ) adapted to be pivoted into an upright position relative to the base member ( 20 ) wherein, at least the rear wall member ( 40 ) is hingedly connected ( 50 ′) to the base member ( 20 ) and wherein, all of the wall members ( 30 ) ( 30 ′) and ( 40 ) have a height greater than the top of the cooking grill.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   This application is based on Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/497,097, filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Aug. 22, 2003; and is a Continuation-In-Part application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/776,577, filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office on Feb. 11, 2004, and entitled Wind Screen Apparatus. 

   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates to the field of wind deflectors for outdoor cooking appliances in general and in particular to a wind screen that envelops three sides and the bottom of an outdoor cooking appliance. 
   2. Description of Related Art 
   As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,713,432; 3,814,078; 3,789,821; 5,351,673; 5,967,136; and Des. 303,909, the prior art is replete with myriad and diverse wind deflecting arrangements for outdoor cooking appliances such as gas and charcoal grills, etc. 
   While all of the aforementioned prior art constructions are more than adequate for the basic purpose and function for which they have been specifically designed, they are uniformly deficient with respect to their failure to provide a simple, efficient, and practical windscreen apparatus that is neither attached to nor rests upon the outdoor cooking appliance. 
   Not only are these prior art windscreen arrangements cumbersome to use, costly to manufacture and prone to breakage, but more importantly, their hinged connections are normally disposed at the same level as the heat source which permits a certain volume of moving air to disrupt the cooking process and therefore diminishes the effectiveness of the windscreen. 
   As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need among outdoor cooking enthusiasts for a new and improved windscreen apparatus for outdoor grills that surrounds three sides and the bottom of the grill wherein, any air leakage through the windscreen apparatus occurs substantially below the level of the flames, and the provision of such a windscreen apparatus is the stated objective of the present invention. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   Briefly stated, the windscreen apparatus that forms the basis of the present invention comprises a base member, a pair of opposed side wall members and a rear wall member that are hingedly associated with one another to form an enclosure that surrounds the bottom and three sides of an outdoor cooking appliance such as a gas or charcoal grill. 
   As will be explained in greater detail further on in the specification, the base, side wall and rear wall members are all fabricated from sheets of heat proof, fireproof material such as aluminum, steel, etc., wherein, the opposed side wall members and the rear wall members are hingedly connected to the base member, and the side wall members are releasably engagable with the base member in their operative mode of deployment. 
   In addition, both the rear wall member and the base member are provided with handle apertures that allow the wind screen apparatus to be transported conveniently in its collapsed state, and the apparatus is optionally provided with one or more access openings proximate the hinged connections between the wall members and the base member to accommodate gas line hoses from one or more propane gas sources. 
   Furthermore, not only do the wall members provide a heat shield and splatter guard for the cooking appliances, but the base member also serves as a drip catcher and heat shield for any surface that the wind screen apparatus rests upon. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
     These and other attributes of the invention will become more clear upon a thorough study of the following description of the best mode for carrying out the invention, particularly when reviewed in conjunction with the drawings, wherein: 
       FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the wind screen apparatus that forms the basis of the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  is an enlarged detail view of the hinged connections between the rear wall member, the base member and one of the side wall members; 
       FIG. 3  is an enlarged detail view of the releasable engagement between the free end of one of the side wall members and the base member; 
       FIG. 3   A  is an enlarged detail view of alternate hinge arrangements; 
       FIG. 4  shows the side wall members released from the base member and partially collapsed against the rear wall member; 
       FIG. 5  shows the side wall members fully collapsed against the rear wall member; 
       FIG. 6  shows the wind screen apparatus in its fully collapsed mode; and, 
       FIG. 7  is a perspective view of an alternate version of the preferred embodiment. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   As can be seen by reference to the drawings, and in particular to  FIG. 1 , the wind screen apparatus for outdoor grills that forms the basis of the present invention is designated generally by the reference number  10 . The apparatus  10  comprises in general a base member  20 , a pair of opposed side wall members  30   30 ′ and a rear wall member  40  wherein, the side wall members  30   30 ′ and the base member  20  in the preferred embodiment of the invention are operatively connected to the rear wall member  20  via hinge elements  50  and the side wall members  30   30 ′ are releasably associated with the base member  20  via releasable securing elements  60 . 
   As can best be seen by reference to  FIG. 1 , all of the wall members  30   30  and  40 , as well as, the base member  20  are fabricated from sheets of heat proof, fireproof material  70  such as aluminum, steel or the like wherein, in the preferred embodiment of the invention, the sheets of material  70  are fabricated specifically from aluminum due to its lack of heat conductivity. 
   Still referring to  FIG. 1 , it can be seen that the base member  20  and the rear wall member  40  are provided with rounded corners  32   32 ′ and  42   42  such that the upper exposed corners of the wind screen apparatus  10  do not have any sharp exposed edges. 
   Turning now to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , it can be seen that the rear wall member  40  is connected to the base member  20  via a full length hinge element  50 ′ while the side wall members  30   30 ′ are connected to the rear wall member  40  via a partial length hinge element  50 ″ given the fact that the rear wall member  40  has the same general dimensions as the base member  20  and the height of the rear wall member  40  is substantially greater than the height of the opposed rear wall members  30   30 ′. 
   As can also be appreciated by reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the partial length hinge arrangement  50 ″ between the rear wall member  40  and the opposed side wall members  30   30 ′ creates openings  80  between the inboard ends of the opposed side wall members  30   30 ′ and the base member  20  wherein, the openings  80  are dimensioned to receive a gas line from a propane tank or the like when one or more portable gas grills (not shown) rests on the base member  20 . 
   Turning now to  FIGS. 1 and 3 , it can be seen that the releasable engaging elements  60  that connect the outboard ends of the opposed side wall members to the outboard side edges of the base member  20  comprise a pair of open hinge components  61   62  and a removable hinge pin  63  having a tether  64 . 
   At this juncture, it should be noted that in the preferred embodiment, the apparatus  10  provides a three sided enclosure wherein, all of the wall members  30   30 ′ and  40  have a height that exceeds the top of a grill (not shown) and the rear wall  40  is substantially taller than the side walls  30   30 ′ plus the fact that the base member  40  is dimensioned to provide a heat proof platform that is dimensioned to support one or more grills. 
   Turning now to  FIG. 7 , it can be seen that in the alternate version of the preferred embodiment, the position of the full length hinge element  50 ′ and the partial length hinge elements  50 ″, as well as, the releasable engaging elements  60 , have been disposed on the exterior surfaces of the base member  20 , the rear wall member  40  and the side wall members  30   30 ′ wherein, the side wall members  30   30 ′ extend below the partial length hinge elements  50 ″ so that the side wall members  30   30 ′ are disposed in flush contact with the base member  20  along their respective lengths. 
   In this version of the preferred embodiment, one or more gas line openings  80 ′ are formed in one or more of the side wall members  30   30 ′ and the rear wall member  40  wherein, each gas line opening  80 ′ is further provided with a pivoting closure element  81  which is deployed when a particular gas line opening  80 ′ is not in use. 
   It should further be noted that in all of the embodiments described herein, all of the gas line openings  80   80 ′ are disposed in close proximity to the base member  20  and substantially below the level of a grill flame, for the specific purpose of insuring that any wind entering through the gas line openings  80  will not have any impact on the heat source. 
   In addition, as shown in  FIGS. 4 through 7 , in both the preferred and alternate embodiments of the invention, both of the side wall members  30   30 ′ are designed to be folded in an overlapping fashion relative to the rear wall member  40  which is then folded against the base member  20  to align the handle apertures  21   41  for transporting the apparatus  10  to and from an outdoor cooking site. 
   As was also mentioned previously, the windscreen apparatus  10  that forms the basis of the present invention is dimensioned to accommodate at least one portable cooking grill and in the single grill version, the preferred dimensions of the base member  20  and rear wall member  40  are approximately 18″×24″ and the preferred dimensions of the opposed side walls  30   30 ′ are approximately 12″×18″ with the double grill versions being proportionately larger. 
   Furthermore, as depicted in  FIG. 3   A , in order to accommodate oversize grills, this invention further contemplates the use of oversize generally U-shaped hinge pin elements  65  that will angle the side wall members  30   30 ′ outwardly from the base member  20 . 
   Although only exemplary embodiments of the invention has been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the following claims. 
   Having thereby described the subject matter of the present invention, it should be apparent that many substitutions, modifications, and variations of the invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is therefore to be understood that the invention as taught and described herein is only to be limited to the extent of the breadth and scope of the appended claims.