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US 4,167,983 AGranted
Electrically powered service vehicle
AssigneeGould Inc.
InventorsGene J. Seider, Michael C. Freund, James R. Duffy
Life of this patent
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AssigneeGould Inc.
InventorsGene J. Seider, Michael C. Freund, James R. Duffy
Estimating the term…
An electrically powered service vehicle having a plurality of programmable electrical stations is exemplified by a food service vehicle for use with food serving trays including internal heating elements for providing localized areas of heat on the trays for maintaining food placed thereon at a desired temperature. The vehicle has a plurality of storage compartments, each of which holds a plurality of the food serving trays in vertically spaced relation to each other. An on-board d-c. power source is connected to the heating elements within the trays via a plurality of electrical contacts within each storage compartment. A d-c. drive motor for propelling the vehicle is selectively connected to the power source through a drive control. The electrical contacts within the storage compartment are positioned to engage corresponding contacts on the trays when the trays are inserted into the storage compartments. The electrical contacts within the storage compartments are part of a plurality of controllable power circuits associated with each tray station within the various compartments for supplying separately controllable power to each individual tray heater, and manually operable programming means are connected to each power circuit and generate control signals to enable or disable each separate circuit to permit the programming of the various tray stations within the storage compartments. A resilient bumper is provided on the front of the vehicle, and bumper switch means are actuated in the event the bumper contacts an external object, with the switch de-energizing the drive motor through the drive control. The d-c. power source also powers an air blower which forces air through an inlet means in the rear wall of each storage compartments and directs a stream of forced air forwardly through the storage compartment on the heated side of the tray. A door covering the front of the storage compartment forms an air outlet adjacent the side wall of the storage compartment on the heated side of the trays so that the forwardly flowing stream of forced air exits through the door.
A food service vehicle for use with food serving trays including internal heating elements for providing localized areas of heat on the trays for maintaining food placed thereon at a desired temperature, said vehicle comprising the combination of at least one storage compartment for holding a plurality of said food serving trays in vertically spaced relation to each other, an on-board d-c. power source, a plurality of electrical contacts within said storage compartment for connecting the d-c. power source to the heating elements within the trays, a plurality of controllable power circuits connected to the electrical contacts associated with each tray station within the compartment for supplying separately controllable power to each individual tray heater, manually operable programming means connected to each power circuit and including means for generating control signals to enable or disable each separate circuit, without supplying power thereto, to permit the programming of the various tray stations within the storage compartment, a d-c. drive motor for propelling the vehicle, and a drive control for selectively connecting said power source to said drive motor.
A food service vehicle for use with food serving trays including internal heating elements for providing localized areas of heat on one side of the upper surface of each tray for maintaining food placed thereon at a desired temperature, said vehicle comprising the combination of at least one storage compartment for holding a plurality of said food serving trays in vertically spaced relation to each other, said compartment having a rear wall, top and bottom walls, a pair of side walls, and an open front, an on-board d-c. power source, a d-c. drive motor for propelling the vehicle, a drive control for selectively connecting said power source to said drive motor, an air blower powered by said d-c. power source, forced air inlet means in the rear wall of the storage compartment and connected to the air blower for directing a stream of forced air forwardly through the storage compartment on the heated side of the upper surface of the tray, and a door covering the front of the storage compartment with air outlet means adjacent the side wall of the storage compartment on the heated side of the trays so that the forwardly flowing stream of forced air exits through the door.
A service vehicle comprising the combination of at least one storage compartment, an on-board d-c. power source, a d-c. drive motor for propelling the vehicle, a drive control for selectively connecting said power source to said drive motor, a plurality of electrical contacts located at selected stations within the storage compartment and adapted to engage corresponding contacts on an electrically operated device when said device is inserted into said compartment, said contacts forming part of a plurality of controllable power circuits connected to said power source, and manually operable programming means connected to each power circuit and including means for generating control signals to enable or disable each separate circuit, without supplying power thereto, to permit the programming of the various stations within the storage compartment.
A service vehicle comprising the combination of at least one storage compartment having a plurality of vertically spaced support means defining multiple storage stations within the compartment, said compartment having a rear wall, top and bottom walls, a pair of side walls, and an open front, an on-board d-c. power source, a d-c. drive motor for propelling the vehicle, a drive control for selectively connecting said power source to said drive motor, an air blower powered by said d-c. power source, a plurality of vertically spaced force air inlet means in the rear wall of the storage compartment and connected to the air blower for directing multiple streams of forced air forwardly through said multiple storage stations in the storage compartment, and a door covering the front of the storage compartment with air outlet means adjacent the side wall of the storage compartment so that the forwardly flowing streams of forced air exit through the door.
A food service vehicle comprising the combination of an on-board d-c. power source;
A food service vehicle comprising the combination of an on-board d-c. power source;
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.