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  Food warming apparatus and methodRelated Patent Categories: Food Or Edible Material: Processes, Compositions, And Products, Processes, Heating Above Ambient Temperature, Cooking, E.g., Broiling, Baking, Etc.Food warming apparatus and method description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20050255208, Food warming apparatus and method. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application is a divisional of pending U.S. application Ser. No. 10/680,626, filed Oct. 7, 2003, which is a continuation-in-part of pending U.S. application Ser. No. 10/611,295, filed Jul. 1, 2003, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/394,841, filed Jul. 10, 2002, titled HOLDING OR COOKING OVEN. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] This invention relates generally to food service equipment and more particularly to equipment for maintaining foods at temperatures suitable for serving food. [0003] In one embodiment, this invention is especially (but not exclusively) directed to food service equipment that uses infrared (IR) heaters to maintain pre-cooked food at proper temperatures before serving. This type of equipment is referred to using such terms as holding oven, holding unit, and food warmer, and these terms are used interchangeably hereinafter. Such equipment is often used in, for example, the fast food service industry to heat food. However, such equipment has certain disadvantages. For example, short holding times (e.g., twenty minutes or less) and rapid product quality degradation often limit the effectiveness of this technology for holding applications. Additionally, different food products require different amounts of IR energy to be held in optimum condition. The quality of the food being held is affected in large part by the temperature and the air flow in the holding oven. As the food loses moisture due to evaporation, flavor is lost. This affects the texture and taste of the product. For example, chicken meat fibers will dry out and become tough, while the breading will become dry and greasy. French fries will develop a dry, rubbery texture as moisture is lost and the outer skin loses its crispness. [0004] Conventional IR holding devices are not adjustable to control the amount of IR energy delivered to the food being heated. Rather, the heat source is on full power all of the time, and the food is placed relatively far from the heat source to prevent overheating. As a result, the typical prior holding device requires a large amount of vertical space. This can present a problem in a situation where space is at a premium, as in a fast-food restaurant. [0005] U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,175,099, 6,262,394 and 6,541,739, assigned to Duke Manufacturing Co. of St. Louis, Mo. and incorporated herein by reference, are directed to a holding or cooking oven which is an improvement over prior designs and which has proven to be successful with various fried products. However, there is still a need for a technology that extends the holding time and quality of food products, especially fried products such as hash browns, French fries, rotisserie chicken, deep-fried chicken and shrimp. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0006] Among the several objects of this invention will be noted the provision of food service equipment, e.g., a food warmer, which is adapted for holding pre-cooked food longer without degradation of the quality of the product, including products having a crust which tends to become soggy or rubbery, such as fried potato products, fried chicken, and rotisserie chicken; the provision of such equipment which is more compact than conventional food warming equipment, thus requiring less space; the provision of such an oven which allows evaporative losses to be more closely controlled to enhance food quality; and a method of maintaining previously cooked food in an environment where the quality of the food is maintained at a high level for a longer period of time. [0007] In general, one aspect of the present invention is directed to a method of preserving cooked food. The method comprises the steps of cooking food in a cooking appliance to provide pre-cooked food, placing the pre-cooked food in a holding compartment of a food warming apparatus for a duration of holding time, and heating the pre-cooked food in the holding compartment for at least a portion of the duration of holding time by delivering in a pre-programmed manner an amount of radiant heat to the pre-cooked food from a radiant heat source positioned above the pre-cooked food. The heating step comprises varying the amount of radiant heat delivered to the pre-cooked food to maintain the food at a selected holding temperature by delivering radiant heat to the pre-cooked food at a first level during a first phase of the duration of holding time and delivering radiant heat to the pre-cooked food at a second level during a second phase of the duration of holding time. [0008] In yet another aspect, the invention is directed to a method of controlling a food holding oven. The oven comprises a cabinet, a plurality of separate, thermally isolated holding compartments in the cabinet, a plurality of trays for containing pre-cooked food having been previously cooked in a cooking appliance, each compartment being adapted for removably receiving one tray per compartment, and heat sources above respective trays adapted for activation to emit radiant heat to the food in the trays to warm the food. The method of controlling the oven comprises setting a selected holding temperature for each compartment, setting a duration of holding time for each compartment, the duration of holding time comprising a duration of heated holding time, and varying the amount of radiant heat delivered to the pre-cooked food during a respective duration of heated holding time to maintain the food in a respective compartment at the selected holding temperature. [0009] Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0010] FIG. 1 is a front elevation of an oven of the present invention equipped with heat sinks for receiving food-containing trays, auxiliary heat sources mounted above the heat sinks, and metallic covers for covering the trays (the trays being omitted from the view); [0011] FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion of FIG. 1 but showing a tray positioned in a respective heat sink below its cover; [0012] FIG. 3 is a perspective showing a heat sink, cover and auxiliary heat source; [0013] FIG. 4 is a plan of a cover per se; [0014] FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of another embodiment of an oven of the present invention equipped with compartments for receiving food-containing trays; [0015] FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a portion of the oven of FIG. 5 showing trays positioned in respective compartments below heat sources; [0016] FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a portion of the oven similar to FIG. 6 showing trays positioned in respective compartments below alternate heat sources; [0017] FIG. 8 is a sectional view of a portion of the oven similar to FIG. 6 showing trays positioned in respective compartments below alternate heat sources; [0018] FIG. 9 is a sectional view of a portion of the oven of FIG. 5 showing a ventilation system of the oven according to an embodiment of the invention; [0019] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a tray used with the oven of FIG. 5; [0020] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a control circuit of the oven of FIG. 5; Continue reading about Food warming apparatus and method... 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