US3504832A - Food and drink serving tray - Google Patents

Description

April 7, 1970 I P. CORVETTI 3,504,832

FOOD AND DRINK SERVING TRAY Filed April 22, 1968 INVENTOR.

PA TRICK CORVETT/ United States Patent U.S. Cl. 224-48 5 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A serving tray having bottom handle means and means to use an arm of the server as a tray support when the hand of the server grasps the handle means.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION My tray comprises a hollow vertical cylinder open at both ends. The axial length of the cylinder is substantially smaller than the diameter thereof. A horizontal disc is disposed in the cylinder intermediate its ends, the top surface of the disc being adapted to receive items to be served. Handle means is secured to the bottom surface of the disc. A portion of the cylinder wall extending from a point substantially coincident with the disc to the bottom end is cut away to form an arm receiving hole through which an arm of a server extends when the hand of the server grasps the handle means.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 6 shows my tray adapted for household use;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to FIGS. 1-5, a hollow vertical cylinder 10 has an axial length which is substantially smaller than the diameter. A horizontal disc 12 is disposed in the cylinder intermediate the open top and bottom ends thereof, but closer to the top than the bottom end. The top surface of the disc is fiat and can support items to be served such as glasses 14. The portion of the cylinder wall 16 intermediate the disc and top end serves as a peripheral lip. A large radius rounded fillet 18 connects the top surface of the disc to the inner surface of the cylinder walls to eliminate dust and dirt collecting edges. This will facilitate cleaning of the tray and ensure proper cleanliness at all times.

First and second parallel horizontal spaced apart rails 20 extend along the bottom surface of the disc. The midpoints of these rails are joined by a transversely extending horizontal member 22 which serves as a handle. In the region of the handle, the disc has a finger receiving recess 24 through which the fingers can extend when the handle is gripped by a hand 24 of a server 26.

A portion of the cylinder wall extending from a point substantially aligned with the disc to the bottom end of the cylinder is cut away at 28 in the form of a semi-cylindrical channel whereby the arm 30 of the user can extend therethrough and further support the tray. The shape of 3,504,832 Patented Apr. 7, 1970 the cutaway is such as to enhance stability of the tray in use.

The entire tray can be molded into a single integral piece of plastic, or of course can be made of any other material.

In FIG. 6, the skirt defined by cylinder 10 is sharply reduced in width as shown at 32 but the rails 20 remain to act as a support when the tray is positioned on a table or the like.

In FIGS. 7-9, the tray is as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5 but has a fixed vertical support 34 disposed in 28 and pivotally supporting a bracket in the shape of an inverted U having two legs 38 adapted to detachably engage a rolled down window 40 of an automobile for curbside service. The bracket can be folded or pivoted horizontally out of the way when the tray is carried. A resilient ball 41 is retained between legs 38 below support 34, in order to cushion the serving tray against the edge of window 40.

While I have described my invention with particular reference to the drawings, such is not to be considered as limiting its actual scope.

Having thus described this invention, what is asserted as new is:

1. A serving tray comprising:

a hollow vertical cylinder open at both ends, the axial length being smaller than the diameter thereof,

an integrally formed fiat surface disposed in the top portion of said cylinder and recessed below the top rim of said cylinder for receiving items to be served,

a concave semi-cylindrical channel integrally formed and extending along the entire diameter in the bottom end of said cylinder, said channel being open to the bottom and both sides of said cylinder, to receive a portion of the arm of the server, and

handle means integrally formed in midsection of said channel for supporting the tray and its contents.

2. The serving tray as recited in claim 1 wherein said handle means comprises a horizontal hand grip extending transversely across said channel along the bottom of said cylinder and forming a finger receiving recess between the top of the hand grip and the wall of the channel.

3. The serving tray as recited in claim 1 wherein said handle means comprises a vertical support member depending the wall of said channel and extending toward the bottom of said cylinder, a U-shaped bracket pivotably retained in said support member and having a pair of extending parallel legs for detachably engaging a vertical panel.

4. The serving tray as recited in claim 1 wherein said recessed top surface and the top rim of said cylinder define a rounded annular fillet to facilitate cleaning and scouring of said tray.

5. The serving tray as recited in claim 3 additionally comprising a resilient ball retained between said pair of extending legs below said vertical support member, said ball serving as a cushion for mounting the serving tray.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,953,933 5/1934 Gundelach 224-48 2,039,922 5/1936 Neats et a1. 224-45 2,092,176 9/1937 Lyon 224-48 3,414,157 12/1968 Wright 206- XR FOREIGN PATENTS 813,481 2/1937 France.

ALBERT J. MAKAY, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 206-72; 211-88

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