Storage device

Description

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

None

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

None

REFERENCE TO “SEQUENCE LISTING”

None

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to storage apparatus and, more particularly, to a storage apparatus for cooking vessel lids that suspend the lids by lid grips of varying sizes from the interior top of a storage cabinet and the like.

Efficient cooking vessel lid storage in the home, in restaurants and in other food preparation establishments presents a number of problems. If, for example, the lids are stored in a cabinet with their corresponding cooking vessels, considerable storage volume is wasted because the combination of vessel and lid prevents several vessels from being nested together and stacked. Alternatively, the lids removed from the vessel are not easily stored together and compete for cabinet space with the other utensils.

Proposals have been advanced to provide an apparatus for attachment to the interior top of a storage cabinet. An elongated body, for example, having a channel with two widths is formed in the body to establish a wide and a narrow separation between the two tracks that the channel forms in the body. Lid grips, which usually are thermally inulating disks of different sizes that are riveted to the centers of their respective lids, are placed on the top of the tracks with the associated lids, suspended below the tracks in the top portion of the cabinet volume.

This proposal, however, is subject to several practical disadvantages. Illustratively, because lid grips frequently are of different sizes, the two widths of a channel accommodate both smaller and larger grips. It is not possible with this structure, however, to match the actual number of grip sizes that are to be stored with the appropriate channel lengths that are available. Thus, depending on the assortment of grip sizes for lids that are to be stored, there will be too much storage space on the tracks for lid grips of one size and insufficient storage space for lid grips of a different size.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

These and other disadvantages that have characterized the prior art are overcome to a great extent through the practice of the invention. For instance, a pair of parallel, opposing tracks are mounted on the under surface of the top of a kitchen cabinet or shelf. The separation between the opposing tracks is adjustable to support different size lid grips. Thus, the tracks are drawn apart or pressed toward each other to form a gap that corresponds to the diameter of the grips on the lids that are to be stored.

In this manner, the problems created in the prior art by the mismatch between the grip sizes for the lids that are to be stored in contrast to a limited storage capability for those grip sizes is largely avoided. These and other advantages, moreover, are achieved through the practice of the invention in accordance with the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment when taken with the drawing. The scope of the invention is limited only through the claims that are appended hereto.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a plan view of an illustrative embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1; and;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation of the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 1, in use.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

As best shown in FIG. 1, a storage device 10 has a track 11 that partially overlaps a parallel track 12. The track 11 has a generally flat upper surface 13 in which two elongated adjustment holes 14, 15 are formed. Turning now to FIG. 2, it can be seen that the track 11 has a perpendicular member 16 that protrudes from lower surface 17 of the track 11. As shown, the perpendicular member 16 terminates in a flat lid grip support 20 that is disposed parallel with the lower surface 17 of the track 11 and inwardly toward the parallel track 12.

The track 12 also has a flat upper surface 21 that is divided by a fold 22 in the track 12 on the side of the track 12 that oriented toward the track 11. A flange 23 protrudes from the fold 22 toward and beneath the lower surface 17 of the track 11 to enable a portion 24 of the track 11 to overlap the flange 23. Holes 25, 26 (FIG. 1) are formed in the flange 23 in alignment with the adjustment holes 14, 15, respectively, in the overlapping portion 24 of the track 11.

A perpendicular member 27 protrudes from lower surface 30 of the track 12. As shown, the perpendicular member 30 terminates in a flat lid grip support 31 that is generally parallel with the lower surface 30 of the track 12. The lid grip support, moreover, is oriented not only inwardly toward the lid grip support 20 on the track 11, but also is in alignment with the support 20.

A means, such as a pair of screws 32, 33 (FIG. 3) are received in the holes 25, 26, (FIG. 1) respectively, in the track 12. The screws 32, 33 are in alignment with and also protrude through the elongated adjustment holes 14, 15 in the track 11 to enable the track 11 to be moved toward and away from the track 12 as illustrated through arrows 34, 35 (FIG. 2).

In operation, and as best shown in FIG. 4, the storage device 10 is pressed up against the lower side of a shelf or cabinet 36. The screws, of which only the screw 32 is shown in FIG. 4, are turned to penetrate the shelf 36 and to secure the storage device 10 to the lower side of the shelf 36. To accommodate a cooking vessel lid 37 and to support the lid 37 from the storage device 10, the track 11 is pressed toward the track 12 in the direction of the arrow 34.

When gap 40 between the lid grip supports 20, 31 is sufficiently wide to sustain a lid grip 41 on the supports 20, 31, the screws 32, 33 (only the screw 32 is shown in FIG. 4) are tightened to secure the storage device 10 to the shelf 36 with sufficient pressure to fix the length of the gap 40 between the supports 20, 31. In this way cooking vessel lids in various sizes, of which the lid 37 is typical, can be suspended in the cabinet space above other utensils (not shown). To widen the gap 40 between the grip supports 20, 31, it is only necessary to back off the screws 32, 33 to enable the track 11 to be moved in the direction of the arrow 35. When the gap 40 that is formed between the lid grip supports 20, 31 is adequate to sustain the cooking vessel lid, the screws 32, 33 can, once more, be tightened to fix the length of the gap 40 in order to mount one or more cooking vessel lids on the storage device 10.

The storage device 10 can be formed from metal, plastic or any suitable material and used not only to stow cooking vessel lids, but any other materials that can be mounted on the tracks 11, 12.