Auto heat lamp

A food warming apparatus with sensors to detect the presence of food comprising of:

• Heat lamp unit (a),
• Sensor (b),
• Power switch (c),
• Reflector body (d),
• Bulb (heat source) (e),
• Bulb power contact (f),
• Circuit enclosure (g),
• AC power cable (h),
• Connection bar (i),
• Interface unit featuring a male lamp attachment for connecting to a female lamp attachment for the heat source bulb;
• plus, circuitry (j)
• A Mechanism to attach the sensor to a pendant body,
• Gantry (l),
• Food carrier (m),
• Level of sensor (n),
• Bottom of the gantry (r),
• wherein the sensor comprises a distance measuring sensor configured such that:
• (i) when the apparatus is powered on, the circuitry automatically calibrates a default distance between the sensor and a nearest surface assumed to be an empty pass beneath the heat source;
• (ii) when the sensor registers a reduction in the measured distance relative to the calibrated default distance, the apparatus determines that an object has been placed beneath the heat source and activates the heat source:
• and
• (iii) when the sensor subsequently detects that the measured distance has returned to the default distance, the apparatus deactivates the heat source;
• wherein the circuitry is further configured to recalibrate the default distance when the measured distance exceeds the default distance by a predetermined threshold.