Self-supporting household stirring appliance

A self-supporting cordless rechargeable battery operated household stirring appliance for use in a saucepan, said appliance comprising:

• A) a molded synthetic resinous housing body formed from a synthetic resin having lubricating properties and having generally parallel spaced apart side walls and a truncated parallelogram profile providing a flat forward face and a pair of downwardly angularly extending converging front and rearward bottom walls and a pair of upwardly angularly extending converging front and rearward top walls,
• B) a battery operated motor and at least one rechargeable battery electrically connected thereto, said motor and battery being held within cavities formed in said housing,
• C) a drive gear journaled in a cylindrical bearing cavity formed in said housing, said drive gear being adapted to engage the central shaft of a multi-bladed ejectable stirring paddle,
• D) a speed-reducing gear train journaled in cylindrical bearing cavities formed in said housing and operatively connecting said drive gear to said motor,
• E) a multi-bladed ejectable stirring paddle which, when resting on the bottom of the saucepan, supports and holds the housing body upright during use, said paddle having a central shaft extending into said housing and engaging said drive gear, said shaft having an annular channel at its top end,
• F) an elongated spring biased pivotal latching member having two ends and an intermediate portion contained in a cavity in said housing,
• 1) one end of said latching member being positioned adjacent to said annular channel and being engageable with said annular channel to retain said paddle shaft in the housing,
• 2) an external manually operable latch release button at the top of the housing connected to the opposite end of the latching member, and
• 3) the intermediate portion of said latching member extending through a narrow fulcrum-forming throat in the cavity,
• G) a handle integral with said housing body and extending outwardly at one end from the top edge of the body, the length of said handle being greater than the radius of the saucepan with which the appliance is used,
• H) a downwardly directed extension of the handle extending from the end of said handle opposite from the end which is integral with the housing body, said extension being spaced from and generally paralleling the shaft of the stirring paddle,
• I) recharger electrical contacts in the end of said extension, and
• J) circuitry extending from said contacts to said battery.

In combination:

• A) a self-supporting cordless rechargeable battery operated household stirring appliance for use in a saucepan, said appliance comprising:
• 1) a molded synthetic resinous housing body having generally parallel spaced apart side walls and a truncated parallelogram profile providing a flat forward face and a pair of downwardly angularly extending converging front and rearward bottom walls and a pair of upwardly angularly extending converging front and rearward top walls,
• 2) a battery operated motor and at least one rechargeable battery electrically connected thereto, said motor and battery being held within cavities formed in said housing,
• 3) a drive gear journaled in a cylindrical bearing cavity formed in said housing, said drive gear being adapted to engage the central shaft of a multi-bladed ejectable stirring paddle,
• 4) a speed-reducing gear train journaled in cylindrical bearing cavities formed in said housing and operatively connecting said drive gear to said motor,
• 5) a handle integral with said housing body and extending outwardly at one end from the top edge of the body,
• 6) a downwardly directed extension of the handle extending from the end of said handle opposite from the end which is integral with the housing body,
• 7) recharger electrical contacts in the end of said extension, and
• 8) circuitry extending from said contacts to said battery, and
• B) a recharging cradle for said stirring appliance comprising:
• 1) a housing having a first cavity on one side complementary in profile to the forward face and bottom walls and side walls of the appliance housing for receiving the appliance housing in a slide fit engagement therein,
• 2) a second cavity spaced from the first cavity in the same side of the cradle housing as said first cavity and complementary in profile to the end of the appliance handle extension for receiving the same in loose fitting engagement therein,
• 3) electrical contacts in said second cavity engagable with the recharger electrical contacts in the end of the appliance handle extension,
• 4) a recharger power unit adapted for connection to an electric power source, and
• 5) flexible electrical conductors connecting said contacts and power unit.

A self-supporting electrically operated household stirring appliance for use in a saucepan, said appliance comprising:

• A) a molded housing body defining outer edges,
• B) an electrically operated motor held within a cavity formed in said housing,
• C) a drive gear journaled in said housing,
• D) a speed-reducing gear train journaled in said housing and operatively connected said drive gear to said motor,
• E) a stirring paddle at the bottommost end of a central vertical shaft, said shaft extending into said housing and engaging said drive gear, said paddle having at least one horizontally extending blade, said paddle defining distal outer edges, said distal outer edges of said paddle extending beyond the outer edges of the overlying housing and lying generally in a common plane, whereby said paddle, when resting on the bottom of the saucepan, and the vertical shaft, solely and exclusively support and hold the housing body upright during use,
• F) a handle integral with said housing body and extending outwardly at one end from the top edge of the body, the length of said handle being greater than the radius of the saucepan with which the appliance is used, and
• G) a downwardly directed extension of the handle extending from the end of said handle opposite from the end which is integral with the housing body, said extension being spaced from and generally parallel to the shaft of the stirring paddle.