| Self-contained warmer -> Monitor Keywords |
|
|
 
Self-contained warmerRelated Patent Categories: Stoves And Furnaces, Liquid Heater, ChemicalSelf-contained warmer description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070034202, Self-contained warmer. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/706,958, filed on Aug. 10, 2005, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] Apparatuses and methods consistent with the present invention relate to a self-contained warmer that may be used as a portable heating device to heat food, beverages or other items by placement in contact with a vessel, such as a dish, plate, bowl, cup, or the like. [0004] 2. Description of the Related Art [0005] Conventional heat sources used for the heating of food in a dish or other food container suffer from a number of disadvantages. For instance, the materials and methods previously used in some portable heat sources result in the formation of flammable and/or toxic by-products. These by-products are potentially dangerous and may require special disposal as hazardous materials. Further, conventional portable heat sources have a low efficiency of heat production such that there is a small quantity of heat generated for a given weight or volume of heater material. [0006] In addition, self-heating food modules that are integrated with a heat source cannot be used with conventional dishes. One such example is U.S. Pat. No. 5,220,909 to Pickard et al., in which a rectangular shaped tray includes an exothermic chemical pad disposed in a main compartment of the tray and an electrolytic pouch provided in a side compartment of the tray. The tray provides heat when the electrolytic pouch is ruptured, thereby activating the exothermic chemical pad in the tray to provide heat to food contained within the tray. However, the food must be placed within the specialized tray itself and then heated. Thus, such integrated heating modules cannot be used with conventional dishes, plates, bowls, cups, or other food or beverage containers. [0007] Other conventional food heating modules require an external supply of an activating agent, such as water, to facilitate the chemical reaction which generates the heat. For instance, one such self-heating module must be immersed in water to activate the heat generating reaction of the module. Such modules, however, are not practical for use in warming or heating a dish, plate, bowl, or other such vessel. [0008] Further, conventional food heating modules fail to provide a convenient and effective mechanism of placement on and/or attachment to dishes, cups, or other types of food containers to thereby heat the food or beverages within such containers to a desired temperature for a sufficient period of time. Also, as noted above, the chemical reactions involved in prior approaches suffer from the disadvantage of involving the use of substances which result in the formation of flammable and toxic by-products. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0009] According to an aspect of the present invention, a self-contained warmer provides heat without the need for a stove, fire, external fuel source, electrical or other power source. [0010] According to another aspect of the present invention, a self-contained warmer is provided which includes a container and an exothermic composition provided within the container that produces heat by a chemical reaction upon activation of the exothermic composition, wherein the warmer is configured to be removable and is placed in contact with a surface of a vessel to provide heat transfer from said chemical reaction to the vessel such that the heat generated by the exothermic reaction generates sufficient heat to at least warm food in the vessel. [0011] According to another aspect, the self-contained warmer may further include a membrane provided on a surface of the container; and a removable seal covering the membrane, wherein removal of the removable seal activates the exothermic composition by allowing air to enter the container and initiate the chemical reaction. [0012] According to another aspect, the self-contained warmer may further include an adhesive layer provided on a surface of the container, wherein the adhesive layer is configured to attach the self-contained warmer to the vessel. [0013] Additionally, the chemical reaction of the exothermic composition may generate heat so that the temperature of a surface of the container is between 60 to 90.degree. C. Further, the exothermic composition may undergo the chemical reaction for a maximum duration of 20-120 minutes from activation, at which time a temperature of the surface of the container is less than 60.degree. C. [0014] According to another aspect, the self-contained warmer may include an air-tight package which encloses the container and which, upon removal, activates the exothermic composition. [0015] According to another aspect, the vessel may be a dish having an indentation formed by a rim on an underside of the dish, and the container is shaped to be placed under the dish and within the indentation. Further, the self-contained warmer may be placed under the dish such that the dish can be stably supported on a flat surface. [0016] According to another aspect, the container may be a flexible pouch that encloses the exothermic composition. [0017] According to another aspect, the container may be rigid and shaped to be placed at the underside of the vessel to at least warm food in the vessel and is removable from the underside of the vessel without altering the self-contained warmer. [0018] A still further aspect of the present invention provides a method of heating food in a food containing vessel, including providing a self-contained warmer that includes a container, and an exothermic composition provided within said container that produces heat by a chemical reaction upon activation of the exothermic composition; and placing the self-contained warmer in contact with a surface of the vessel to transfer the heat from said chemical reaction to the vessel, in which the heat generated by the exothermic reaction generates sufficient heat to at least warm food in the vessel. [0019] A still further aspect of the present invention provides a system for warming a food containing vessel, comprising a self-contained warmer, which includes a container, and an exothermic composition provided within the container that produces heat by a chemical reaction upon activation of the exothermic composition; and a vessel in which food is contained, wherein the container is configured to be removably placed in contact with a surface of the vessel to provide heat transfer from the chemical reaction to the vessel such that the heat generated by the exothermic reaction generates sufficient heat to at least warm food in the vessel. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0020] The above and other aspects of the present invention will become more apparent from the description of the following exemplary embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Continue reading about Self-contained warmer... Full patent description for Self-contained warmer Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Self-contained warmer patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Self-contained warmer or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Heat-generating mixture and device and method for heat generation Next Patent Application: Hood with telephone communication functions Industry Class: Stoves and furnaces ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Self-contained warmer patent info. IP-related news and info Results in 0.14789 seconds Other interesting Feshpatents.com categories: Qualcomm , Schering-Plough , Schlumberger , Seagate , Siemens , Texas Instruments , 174 |
 * Protect your Inventions * US Patent Office filing 
PATENT INFO |
|
