Undercabinet culinary instrument rack

Abstract

A culinary instrument storage and access device that installs under a cabinet or a shelf. The rack is secured in stowed position by a snap-in latch, which is pulled to release. It is suspended from four swing down hinges installed under the cabinet, which allow the device to be in a down position for access, or an upper stowed position. The device is suspended high enough above the countertop so as not to present an obstacle within the work area even when in the down position. When moved to the stowed position, it can be latched by pushing it back and up into the locked position under the cabinet. The preferred embodiment of the cutlery rack configuration includes a base platform upon which a smaller rectangular knife rack is centrally disposed made of rock maple wood, into which a plurality of slots for holding dinner knives has been introduced. Symmetrically disposed on either side of the cutlery rack are arrays of u-shaped holders for forks and spoons, respectively. Other embodiments include flatware holders that grasp the handles of the flatware, and a device devoted exclusively to cutlery with a correspondingly larger cutlery rack. An alternate base is provided that includes a front portion, sized to be flush to the cabinet underside, when the base is in the stowed position. In kitchens where the cabinets have no underside recess to conceal the device, this front portion serves the purpose of concealing the device from a frontal view.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.