Abstract:
A collapsible grill having two separate sections adapted to be interlocked, one to the other, by a latching mechanism. The grill is supported above a bed of charcoal or the like by means of three stakes, each stake including a series of upwardly opening recesses whereby the height of the grill can be adjusted.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to collapsible grills and, more particularly, to lightweight, collapsible grills which, when assembled and utilized for cooking, are sturdy and which, yet, are economical to manufacture. 
     Collapsible grills have been proposed heretofore. Examples are shown in U.S. Pats. Nos. 4,393,857, issued July 19, 1983, to Sanford; 4,109,567, issued Aug. 29, 1978, to Gage et al.; 3,837,328, issued Sept. 24, 1974, to Schaffer; 3,785,360, issued Jan. 15, 1974, to Martin; 3,149,623, issued Sept. 22, 1964, to Orr, Jr.; 2,469,698, issued May 10, 1949, to Morgan; 2,058,172, issued Oct. 20, 1936, to Myers; and 1,244,357, issued Oct. 23, 1917, to Moore. The collapsible grills which are the subject of these patents tend to be either expensive to manufacture, clumsy to use, bulky from a space standpoint, relatively heavy or insufficiently rigid when assembled to be serviceable. 
     The collapsible grill which is the subject of the present invention, in contrast, is inexpensive to manufacture, easy to use, not bulky from a space standpoint, lightweight and rigid when assembled. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The collapsible grill which is the subject of the present invention comprises a pair of grill sections, each of said sections including a generally U-shaped peripheral frame member having a series of generally parallel food-contacting members overlying and affixed thereto. The food-contacting members define a cooking area within the boundaries of said frame members having at least one straight side. At least one interlock member underlies the food-contacting members on each of the sections within the cooking area, the interlock member being affixed to the food-contacting members. The interlock members include means for interlocking the sections together with the straight sides thereof adjacent one another so as to form a generally planar cooking surface. 
     Where the collapsible grill is to be utilized for camping, backpacking or the like, there are also provided a plurality of supports for retaining the assembled sections in adjustable, elevated relationship with respect to a bed of charcoal or the like. Each of the supports includes a series of vertically spaced, upwardly opening recesses within which the peripheral frame members of each of the assembled sections is adapted to rest. The lower extremities of these supports may be pointed to facilitate insertion of them into the ground. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the collapsible grill and the supports therefor in assembled condition; 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded, fragmentary perspective view of the area delineated by the Roman numeral II in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a cross section taken along the plane III--III in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is a side elevation illustrating the preferred form of the support; and 
     FIG. 5 is an exploded, fragmentary perspective illustrating an alternative, although not preferred, interlock mechanism. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The collapsible grill 10 which is the subject of the present invention includes a pair of identical grill sections, 12a and 12b. Each of the sections includes a generally U-shaped peripheral frame member, 14a and 14b, which, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention, is formed as a semi-circle. A series of foodcontacting members, 16a and 16b, overlie the respective peripheral frame members, 14a and 14b, and are affixed thereto at each extremity by conventional methods such as tack welding, etc. The peripheral frame member and parallel food-contacting member 16 of each section define a cooking area bounded by the frame member and a straight side, generally the innermost food-contacting members, 16a&#39; and 16b&#39;. The straight sides of each of the sections lie adjacent one another when the collapsible grill is assembled. 
     As shown best in FIGS. 2 and 3, each of sections 12a and 12b is provided with a pair of interlock members, which underlie and are affixed to food-contacting members 16a and 16b. The latching interlock members, 18a and 18b, each comprise an elongated body section, 22a and 22b, having a latch, 24a and 24b, formed at the innermost extremity thereof in the form of a right-angle bend. As is apparent from FIG. 2, the innermost extremity of elongated body sections 22a and 22b and the latches 24a and 24b extend inwardly without the cooking area of the particular section to which they are affixed so as to be in a position to underlie at least one food-contacting member of the other section when the two sections are assembled together for cooking. 
     Each of the grill sections 12a and 12b is also provided with a second interlock member, 26a and 26b, also including an elongated body section, 28a and 28b, affixed to the food-contacting members which they underlie. Interlock members 26a and 26b are formed so as to include an upwardly opening notch or bend, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of this invention, underlying the space between the innermost food-contacting members, 16a&#39; and 16b&#39;, and the adjacent food-contacting member on each section. The depth of notches 32a and 32b is equal, approximately, to the diameter of the stock from which the interlock members are fabricated so that the grill, when assembled, will provide a generally planar cooking surface. 
     The grill sections 12a and 12b are assembled by placing them at an acute angle with respect to one another and protruding the latch of each between the adjacent food-contacting members of the other section at the notches 
     The sections are then shifted sideways with respect to one another to nest the latches within the notches and bring the elongated body sections into contact with one another. The sections are thereafter pivoted into a planar relationship causing latch members to bear downwardly within the notches and the innermost food-contacting members, 16a&#39; and 16b&#39;, to bear downwardly on the elongated body sections . This stabilizes the planar relationship of the two sections when supported from the periphery. 
     Additional rigidity is added to the assembled grill by controlling the distance which the latch members protrude without the cooking area of the section to which they are attached such that the exposed extremities 34 of the peripheral frame members 14a and 14b abut when the sections are in assembled planar relationship. Achieving this abutment involves additionally, as will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art, the offsetting of the positions of the elongated body sections a distance equal to their width. Elongated body section 22b, for example, at its intersection with food-contacting member 16b, will be approximately the width of section 22b closer to peripheral frame member 12b than will be body section 28a at its intersection with food-contacting member 16a&#39; to peripheral frame 12a. 
     The assembled grill 10, advantageously, can be supported in adjustable, elevated relationship with respect to a bed of charcoal or the like by a plurality of support stakes 40. Referring additionally to FIG. 4, each of the support stakes 40 includes a relatively wide body section 42 having integrally formed therewith by stamping or the like a right-angle reinforcing section 44. Support 40 is pointed at 46 to facilitate its insertion into the ground. 
     Body section 42 has formed therein a series of upwardly opening recesses 48. The stakes are inserted into the ground and the peripheral frame members 14a and 14b of the assembled grill 10 positioned within recesses 48 at the desired height. By supporting grill 10 from the periphery in this fashion, any downward pressure at its central section is borne by the interaction of the interlock members, as previously described, as well as the abutment of the extremities 34 of the frame members 14a and 14b. 
     Referring now to FIG. 5, an alternative embodiment of the interlock mechanism is illustrated. This mechanism differs from that illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 in that elongated body sections 56a and 56b (the latter not shown) are left straight--i.e., no notch is provided. The necessary height differential is provided in this embodiment by making latch 54b at the extremity of elongated body section 52b in a generally U-shape, the U lying in a plane perpendicular to the axis of elongated body section 52b. Assembly of the sections fabricated in accordance with FIG. 5 is accomplished in the same fashion as assembly of the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1-3. 
     The peripheral frame members, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of this invention are formed from 8 gage steel rod or wire, the interlock members from 10 gage and the food-contacting surfaces from 12 gage (the United States Steel Wire Gage). Support 40, preferably, is fabricated from aluminum having a thickness of approximately 1/16 inch. 
     The resultant grill is both lightweight and nonbulky. It can be easily assembled, disassembled and cleaned. It is, as will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art, extremely economical to manufacture and, yet, provides a sturdy cooking surface. 
     While a preferred embodiment of this invention and a modification thereof have been described in detail, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other embodiments and modifications may be conceived and fabricated without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention. Such other embodiments and modifications are to be deemed included within the scope of the appended claims unless these claims, by their language, expressly state otherwise.