Skewers mounted on an oven conveyor belt
OwnerNick Ausafinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Multiple belt drives spaced apart transversely are engaged to multiple longitudinally spaced apart transversely mounted guide bars. The guide bars are juxtaposed to multiple parallel fixed longitudinally mounted spaced apart travel grooves. Skewers containing food items have wheels at each end for moving in the travel grooves through a heated oven housing. The skewers rotate between the parallel guide bars from a loading station to a discharge station. Heating elements mounted in the oven housing heat the food during transit through the oven housing on the skewers. Color coded wheels are attached to ends of the skewer to identify a food order for a customer.
Claims20
Apparatus for heating and dispensing food items supported on elongated skewers, the apparatus comprising:
- a conveyor means within an oven housing for creating an elongated horizontal path of travel between a skewer receiving and discharge station;
- the conveyor means including two or more endless belt drives spaced transversely from each other relative to the length of the elongated horizontal path;
- driving means operatively engaged to the belt drives for moving the belt drives along the elongated horizontal path of travel;
- heating means for heating the food items, the heating means disposed within the oven housing along the elongated horizontal path of travel;
- multiple transversely spaced apart guide bars engaged to links on transversely adjacent belt drives and juxtaposed to at least two longitudinally mounted parallel spaced apart travel grooves;
- multiple skewers containing the food items adapted for conveyance along adjacent travel grooves between the guide bars;
- the skewer having a wheel at a first and second end for movement in the travel grooves and retaining the food items on the skewer;
- a means at a receiving station for guiding a skewer into the travel grooves and a means at a discharge station for receiving the skewer from the travel grooves after passing between the heating means.
An apparatus for heating and dispensing food items supported on elongated skewers, the apparatus comprising
- a housing having electric heating coils on an inner surface of a ceiling and base;
- a conveyor having an elongated horizontal path of travel between a skewer receiving and discharge station and between the heating coils;
- the conveyor having two outboard and one middle endless belt drives spaced transversely from each other relative to the length of the elongated horizontal path;
- an electric motor driving sprockets engaged to the belt drives for moving the belt drives along the elongated path of travel;
- multiple transversely mounted guide bars, each guide bar engaged at each end to links on transversely adjacent belt drives;
- four longitudinally mounted parallel spaced apart travel grooves fixedly attached by support members to the housing;
- one travel groove mounted inboard of each outboard endless belt drive;
- one travel groove mounted on each side of the middle endless belt drive;
- multiple skewers containing food items conveyed along adjacent travel grooves between adjacent transversely mounted guide bars, the skewers having a wheel at each end to rotate in adjacent travel grooves, and;
- a means for inputting and retrieving the skewers containing food items to and from the conveyor belt drives.
Apparatus for heating and dispensing food items supported on elongated skewers, the apparatus comprising:
- conveyor means for creating an elongated horizontal path of travel between a skewer receiving and discharge station;
- the conveyor having a first, second and third endless belt drive spaced transversely from each other relative to the length of the elongated horizontal path;
- driving means operatively engaged to the belt drives for moving the belt drives along the elongated horizontal path of travel;
- heating means for heating the food items, the heating means disposed above and below the elongated horizontal path of travel;
- multiple transversely spaced apart guide bars engaged to links on transversely adjacent belt drives and juxtaposed to four longitudinally mounted parallel spaced apart travel grooves;
- one travel groove mounted inboard of the first belt drive and a second travel groove mounted inboard of the third belt drive, a third and fourth travel groove mounted on each side of the second belt drive;
- multiple skewers containing the food items adapted for conveyance along adjacent travel grooves between the guide bars;
- the skewer having a wheel at a first and second end for movement in the travel grooves and retaining the food items on the skewer;
- a loading tray at the receiving station for guiding a skewer into the travel grooves and an end tray at the discharge station for receiving the skewer from the travel grooves after passing between the heating means.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.