GB2218347A

GB2218347A - Multi-purpose kitchen machine

Info

Publication number: GB2218347A
Application number: GB8909834A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Ian Geoffrey Ettridge
Original assignee: SWAN HOUSEWARES Ltd
Current assignee: SWAN HOUSEWARES Ltd
Priority date: 1988-04-28
Filing date: 1989-04-28
Publication date: 1989-11-15
Also published as: GB8810046D0; GB8909834D0

Abstract

A kitchen machine for processing foods has a body (3) housing an electric motor (11), an open topped vessel (5) detachably mounted on the body (3) and through an opening in the bottom of which the motor is drivably connected by a lower drive outlet (30, 31) to any of a variety of interchangeable tools, and a lid (4') for the vessel (5), the lid incorporating an orbital overhead drive (35) for driving tools (49) mounted on the lid (4). Coupling means (32) drivably connects the overhead drive (35) to the motor (11) through the opening in the bottom of the vessel. The coupling means (32) may comprise a sleeve releasably connectable with the lower drive outlet (31) and releasably connectable with the overhead drive (32) as part of a separable drive coupling. The overhead drive (32) is preferably a planetary gear system. The lid (4') may be hinged to the body (3). An adaptor kit to convert a conventional food processor to a machine in accordance with the invention is also disclosed. <IMAGE>

Description

MULTI-PURPOSE KITCHEN MACHINE This invention relates to multi-purpose kitchen machines of the kind, often called food processors, having an open-topped vessel through an opening in the bottom of which an electric motor can be drivably connected to any of a variety of tools for carrying out within the vessel stirring, mixing, cutting, slicing, grating or other culinary operations.

A first aspect of the present invention consists in a multi-purpose kitchen machine comprising a body housing an electric motor; an open-topped vessel detachably mounted and located on the body and through an opening in the bottom of which the motor can be drivably connected by a lower drive outlet to any of a variety of interchangeable tools operable within the vessel to carry out culinary operations; a lid for the vessel including an overhead drive for driving culinary tools detachably mounted on the lid and operable inside the vessel, and coupling means for drivably connecting the overhead drive to the motor.

Preferably the overhead drive is coupled to the motor through the opening in the bottom of the vessel.

Alternatively the overhead drive may be coupled to the motor by coupling means extending in an upright column to one side of the body.

The coupling means may be connected to the motor by a releasable connection to the lower drive outlet.

The coupling means may also be releasably connected to the overhead drive. In one practical embodiment of the invention the coupling means is a sleeve having at its lower end a drive socket corresponding to that on one of the tools to be directly driven by the lower drive and complementary to the lower drive outlet. The coupling sleeve is thus positively supported on the drive outlet in a manner similar to one of the tools.

The upper end of the coupling sleeve is formed as one element of a separable drive coupling, the other element of which is formed or mounted on a depending input member of the overhead drive. A flexible coupling member may be interposed between the coupling sleeve and the overhead drive input. The separable drive coupling may be of any suitable known form, for example it may comprise complementary drive dog formations or a spigot of square or other non-circular cross-section on one coupling element and a complementary socket on the other part. The spigot may be associated with the coupling sleeve or the input member of the overhead drive. The free end of the spigot may be formed with a lead to assist engagement with the socket.

The lid of the vessel may be hinged to the body, any angular movement at the coupling means during hinging being accommodated by suitable shaping of the releasable connection, for example by appropriate formations of the spigot and/or socket of a separable drive coupling.

The invention is however equally applicable to multi-purpose kitchen machines in which the lid is fitted in some other way, by a bayonet-type joint, for example.

The lid having the overhead drive is preferably completely detachable from the body, for example when the lid is hinged to the body by swinging it beyond the normal open position to a position 900 or more from the closed position. When the overhead drive is not required and the machine is to be used with tools driven directly by the lower drive the lid with the overhead drive can be replaced by another lid having, for example, a feed tube for food to be processed in the vessel.

The overhead drive is preferably orbital that is to say the tool is rotated about an axis which itself rotates about another axis, usually the central vertical axis of the vessel. The electric motor and the orbital overhead drive are preferably arranged to stop the drive in such a position that there is adequate clearance between the tool and the walls of the vessel when the lid is raised. An alternative to allow the lid to swing is to provide a bowl having a suitable internal profile such that the tool can clear the bowl wherever the tool stops.

The overhead drive may comprise a drive outlet for rotating the tool about an axis inclined to the vertical. The inclined overhead drive outlet may be driven by a planetary bevel gear train which may also provide orbital motion of the axis.

A second aspect of the invention consists in an adaptor kit for a multi-purpose kitchen machine of the kind having a body housing an electric motor, an open-topped vessel detachably mounted and located on the body and through an opening in the bottom of which the motor can be drivably connected by a lower drive outlet to any of a variety of interchangeable tools operable with the vessel to carry out culinary operations, and a lid for the vessel; the adaptor kit comprising an adaptor lid interchangeable with the lid of the machine to be adjusted and including an overhead drive for driving culinary tools detachably mounted on the adaptor lid and operable inside the vessel when the adaptor lid is fitted to the vessel, and connector means for releasably drivably connecting the overhead drive to the motor.

Preferably the connector means comprises coupling means adapted to releasably drivably connect the overhead drive to the motor through the lower drive outlet.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described, by was of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an elevation, partly in section, of a multi-purpose kitchen machine according to the invention, Figure 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Figure 1, and Figure 3 is a fragmentary section on line 3-3 of Figure 2.

The machine shown in the drawing comprises a body 3, a hinged lid 4' and a mixing vessel 5 detachably secured and located on a platform 6 of the body. The mixing vessel 5 has a handle 5'. The body 3 includes a hollow raised turret portion 7 which extends upwards at the side of the vessel 5 nearly to the level of the top of the vessel 5. The lid 4' is hinged to the top of the raised portion 7 by a hinge pin 8 which engages open-ended slots 8' in the lid.

A pair of parallel quadrant portions 25 depend from the top of the lid 4'. A round bar 26 mounted on resilient arms 27 depending from the top of the turret portion 7 bear on the arcuate edges 28 of the quadrants which are centred on the axis of the hinge pin 8.

Notches 28', 28" in the arcuate edge 28 receive the bar 26 and respectively hold the lid 4' in the closed position shown in Figure 1, and in an open position in which the lid is inclined upwards. Upon further angular movement about the hinge in an anti-clockwise direction to a position 900 or more from the closed position of the lid the quadrant portions 25 disengage from the bar 26 and the lid 4' can be separated entirely from the body 3 and removed, the open-ended slots 8' allowing the lid to be disengaged from the hinge pin 8.

The machine has actuating means (not shown) comprising a plunger urged upwards by a spring. The upper end of the plunger is engaged by the closing lid and moved downwards to operate a switch (not shown) in the supply circuit of an electric motor 11. The motor 11 powers a lower drive comprising a shaft 30 extending upwards through an opening in the bottom of the vessel 5 into the hollow interior of a central turret extending upwards from the bottom of the vessel 5. The shaft 30 is normally used to drive any of a variety of tools usual in domestic food processors and fitted to the upper end 31 of the shaft 30 to operate within the vessel 5.

The upper end 31 of the shaft 30 is of D or hexagonal cross-section and the tools to be fitted to it have a complementary socket. According to the present invention, instead of a tool, a coupling sleeve 32 having a socket similar to a tool and complementary to the D or hexagonal end of the shaft 30 is detachably fitted to the shaft 30. The upper end of the sleeve 32 is formed with driving dogs 33 which engage complementary formations in the lower face of a flexible coupling member 34.

Mounted within the lid 4, is an orbital overhead drive 35 comprising a gearbox 36 which is mounted in, and partly extends downwards through, an opening in the underside of the lid 4'. In the lower open end of the gearbox 36 is rotatably mounted a carrier 37 of a planetary gear train which also comprises a sun gear 38, a fixed internally toothed gear 39 on the wall of the gearbox 36 and three planetary gears 40 rotatably mounted in angularly spaced position on the carrier 37 and in mesh with both the sun gear 38 and the internally toothed gear 39. The sun gear 38 is rotatable with a spindle 41 mounted in the ball races 42 in the gearbox 36 and carrier 37. At its lower end the spindle 41 has driving dog formations 43 which engage complementary formations in the upper face of the flexible coupling member 34.

One, at least, of the planetary gears 40 has on its underside an integral bevel pinion 44 (Figure 3).

A bevel gear 45 meshing with the bevel pinion 44 is mounted in the carrier 37 for rotation about an inclined axis 46 lying in a plane common to the axis of rotation 47 of the planetary gear 40. This common plane is the section plane of Figure 3 and as can be seen from the line 3-3 in Figure 2 is tangential to an imaginary circle the centre of which is on the central vertical axis of the shaft 30 and of the mixing bowl 5.

The bevel gear 45 has an axial bore (not shown) forming a socket to receive a hexagonal spigot 48 of a tool 49 shown as a whisk but which may be replaced by some other form of tool such as a dough hook or beater.

Part of the axial bore of the bevel gear 45 is hexagonal in cross-section to receive the hexagonal spigot 48 and enable the bevel qear 45 to rotate the tool 49 about the inclined axis. At the upper end of the axial bore the bevel gear 45 has a resilient split-collet formation arms of which have internal projections to engage a peripheral groove in the spigot 48 and retain the tool 49. The arms, being resilient, separate as the end of the spigot 48 is inserted in the socket and then snap into the peripheral groove.

For use for food processing operations with tools, directly mounted on the shaft 30 as previously described, a different lid (not shown) without the overhead drive 35 is fitted. When the food processor is to be used with overhead driven tools, for example, as a food mixer, the lid 4' is mounted on the body by the disengageable hinge, the coupling sleeve 32 fitted to the shaft 30 and the flexible coupling member 34 mounted on top. An appropriate tool 49 is fitted to the socket of the bevel gear 45.

When the lid 4' is closed, the driving dog formations of the spindle 41 and flexible coupling member 34 are engaged and the lower drive shaft 30 is drivably connected to the orbital overhead drive 35.

The switch in the supply circuit of the electric motor 11 closed by the actuating means on closing the lid 4' allows the user to switch on the motor 11. The motor rotates the spindle 41 and the sun wheel 38, causing the planetary gears 40 to rotate. As the planetary gears 40 are also in mesh with the fixed internally toothed gear 39 they travel orbitally around the sun gear, rotating the carrier 37 also. The bevel pinion 44 and bevel gear 45 rotates the tool 49 about the inclined axis 46. The orbital movement of the planetary gear 40 causes the tool 49 to travel around the interior of the mixing bowl. As the tool is inclined it tends to lift the contents of the vessel and this helps to improve the mixture by trapping more air in it.

Brake means operated when the motor 11 is switched off may be arranged to stop the orbital gear train in a position such that the tool 49, can be raised on the hinged lid without fouling the walls of the vessel 5.

If the lid 4' should be lifted while the motor 11 is still rotating the actuating means switches off the motor and brakes it and the overhead drive is also disconnected by separation of the driving dog formations of the coupling so avoiding dangerous consequences.

It is also envisaged that we produce an adaptor or conversion kit for converting a conventional food processor, for example a machine similar to that shown in the drawings but with a removable plain lid. The adaptor kit could comprise the lid 4' having the overhead drive 35 (planetary gear system), the coupling sleeve 32 and the flexible coupling member 34. The lid 4' would of course have whatever releasable connection was compatible with that provided for the original lid of the food processor to be converted, and the sleeve 32 would be compatible with the lower drive shaft of the machine.

The old plain lid is then simply removed, the new lid 4' put in its place, and the sleeve 32 put in place of the removable tool normally driven by the lower drive shaft.

Other features of the lid of the adaptor kit could be as provided in the lid 4' shown in the drawings.

It is also envisaged to provide a machine similar to that shown in the drawings but with the coupling means connecting the motor to the overhead drive (which could be the same planetary gear system in a similar lid) provided extending upwards in the turret portion 7. The upper end of the coupling means could have a gear releasably engageable with another gear provided as part of the overhead drive means in the lid.

Opening of the lid (most conveniently hinging motion) disconnecting the gear of the coupling means from the gear of the drive means. The gear releasably engageable with the gear at the top of the coupling means could drive an externally toothed ring gear of the drive means, the ring gear being comparable with gear 39 shown in the drawings, but rotatable. The planetary gear system would be peripherally driven.

The ring gear comparable with gear 39 could be the gear which is releasably engageable with the coupling means.

Claims

1. A multi-purpose kitchen machine comprising a body housing an electric motor; an open-topped vessel detachably mounted and located on the body and through an opening in the bottom of which the motor can be drivably connected by a lower drive outlet to any of a variety of interchangeable tools operable within the vessel to carry out culinary operations; a lid for the vessel including an overhead drive for driving culinary tools detachably mounted on the lid and operable inside the vessel; and coupling means for drivably connecting the overhead drive to the motor.

2. A kitchen machine according to Claim 1, in which the overhead drive is coupled to the motor through the opening in the bottom of the vessel.

3. A kitchen machine according to claim 1 or claim 2 in which the coupling means is connected to the motor by a releasable connection to the lower drive unit.

4. A kitchen machine according to any preceding claim in which the coupling means is releasably connected to the overhead drive.

5. A kitchen machine according to any preceding claim in which the coupling means is a sleeve having at its lower end a drive socket corresponding to that on one of the tools to be directly driven by the lower drive and complementary to the lower drive outlet, whereby the coupling sleeve is positively supported on the lower drive outlet in a manner similar to one of the tools, and the upper end of the coupling sleeve is formed as one element of a separable drive coupling, the other element of which is formed or, mounted on a depending input member of the overhead drive.

6. A kitchen machine according to claim 5 in which a flexible coupling member is interposed between the coupling sleeve and the overhead drive input member.

7. A kitchen machine according to claim 5 or claim 6 in which the separable drive coupling comprises complementary drive dog formations or a spigot of square or other non-circular cross-section on one coupling element and a complementary socket on the other coupling element.

8. A kitchen machine according to any preceding claim in which the overhead drive is orbital, a tool detachably mounted on the lid being rotated about an axis which itself rotates about another axis.

9. A kitchen machine according to claim 8 in which the overhead drive comprises a drive outlet for rotating said tool detachably mounted on the lid about an axis inclined to the vertical.

10. A kitchen machine according to claim 9 in which the inclined overhead drive outlet is driven by a planetary bevel gear train.

11. A kitchen machine according to claim 10 in which the bevel gear train provides orbital motion of the inclined axis of rotation of said tool about an axis which itself rotates about an axis.

12. A kitchen machine according to any one of claims 8 to 11 in which the electric motor and the orbital overhead drive are arranged to stop the drive in such a position that there is adequate clearance between said tool and the walls of the vessel when the lid is raised.

13. A kitchen machine according to any preceding claim in which the lid is hinged to the body and any angular movement at the coupling means during hinging is accommodated by suitable shaping of the releasable connection.

14. A kitchen machine according to any preceding claim in which the lid is completely detachable from the body.

15. A kitchen machine according to claim 14 which has interchangeable lids, one having the overhead drive and another not having an overhead drive.

16. A kitchen machine according to any one of claims 1 to 4, in which the coupling means extends in an upright column to one side of the body.

17. A kitchen machine according to claim 16, in which the coupling means has a gear at its upper end which is releasably interengageable with a complementary gear provided as part of the overhead drive of the lid, the gears being engaged when the lid is closed.

18. An adaptor kit for a multi-purpose kitchen machine of the kind having a body housing an electric motor, an open-topped vessel detachably mounted and located on the body and through an opening in the bottom of which the motor can be drivably connected to a lower drive outlet to any of a variety of interchangeable tools operable within the vessel to carry out culinary operations, and a lid for the vessel; the adaptor kit comprising an adaptor lid interchangeable with the lid of the machine to be adapted and including an overhead drive for driving culinary tools detachably mounted on the adaptor lid and operable inside the vessel when the adaptor lid is fitted to the vessel, and connector means for releasably drivably connecting the overhead drive to the motor.

19. An adaptor kit according to claim 18 in which the connector means comprises coupling means adapted to releasably drivably connect the overhead drive to the motor through the lower drive outlet.

20. An adaptor kit according to claim 19, in which the coupling means is a sleeve having at its lower end a drive socket corresponding to that on one of the tools which may be directly driven by the lower drive and complementary to the lower drive outlet, whereby the coupling sleeve is adapted to be positively supported on the lower drive outlet in a manner similar to one of the tools, and the upper end of the coupling sleeve is formed as one element of a separable drive coupling, the other element of which is formed or mounted on a depending input member of the overhead drive.

21. An adaptor kit according to claim 20 in which a flexible coupling is interposed between the coupling sleeve and the overhead drive input member.

22. An adaptor kit according to claim 21, in which the separable drive coupling comprises complementary drive dog formations or a spigot of square or other non-circular cross-section on one coupling element and a complementary socket on the other coupling element.

23. An adaptor kit according to any one of claims 18 to 22 in which the overhead drive is orbital, a tool detachably mounted on the adaptor lid being rotated about an axis which itself rotates about another axis.

24. An adaptor kit according to claim 23 in which the overhead drive comprises a drive outlet for rotating said tool detachably mounted on the lid about an axis inclined to the vertical.

25. An adaptor kit according to claim 24 in which the inclined overhead drive outlet is driven by a planetary bevel gear train.

26. A adaptor kit according to claim 25 in which the bevel gear train provide orbital motion of the inclined axis of rotation of said tool about an axis which itself rotates about an axis.

27. A kitchen machine substantially as illustrated and described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.

28. An adaptor kit substantially as described herein.