BEVERAGE BREWER WITH ADJUSTABLE SHELF

Abstract

A beverage brewer comprises a housing, with a spray head mounted to the housing and operably connected to a source of water. A brew basket is selectively installed and secured to the housing, with the brew basket holding a quantity of a beverage component below the spray head, such that water introduced by the spray head contacts and passes through the beverage component to produce a brewed beverage. A shelf supports a receptacle below the brew basket. The shelf includes a frame that is configured for mounting at multiple locations on the housing, i.e., at multiple vertical positions between the base portion of the housing and the brew basket. The shelf also includes a platform that is mounted to and supported by the frame.

Claims

1. A beverage brewer, comprising: a housing; a spray head mounted to the housing and operably connected to a source of water; a brew basket that is selectively installed and secured to the housing, said brew basket holding a quantity of a beverage component below the spray head, such that, in use, water introduced by the spray head contacts and passes through the beverage component to produce a brewed beverage; and a shelf for supporting a receptacle that receives the brewed beverage from the brew basket, the shelf including a frame that is configured for mounting at multiple locations on the housing, along with a platform mounted to and supported by the frame.

2. The beverage brewer as recited in claim 1, wherein the frame of the shelf includes: a lower portion which defines a substantially horizontal plane and supports the platform; first and second arms which extend from the rear of the lower portion upward and at an angle relative to the substantially horizontal plane defined by the lower portion; and an upper portion which connects the distal ends of the first and second arms, such that a force applied to the platform supported by the frame is translated through the first and second arms and countered by the engagement of the upper portion of the frame with a rear surface of the housing of the beverage brewer.

3. The beverage brewer as recited in claim 2, wherein the first and second arms are positioned at a spaced distance from one another, and wherein the spaced distance is substantially the same as a width of the housing of the beverage brewer.

4. The beverage brewer as recited in claim 2, wherein the angle at which the first and second arms extend from the rear of the lower portion relative to the substantially horizontal plane defined by the lower portion is approximately 135.

5. A beverage brewer, comprising: a housing; a spray head mounted to the housing and operably connected to a source of water; a brew basket that is selectively installed and secured to the housing, said brew basket holding a quantity of a beverage component below the spray head, such that, in use, water introduced by the spray head contacts and passes through the beverage component to produce a brewed beverage; and a shelf for supporting a receptacle that receives the brewed beverage from the brew basket at a selected one of multiple vertical positions relative to the brew basket.

6. The beverage brewer as recited in claim 5, wherein the shelf is comprised of a frame and a platform mounted to and supported by the frame.

7. The beverage brewer as recited in claim 6, wherein the frame of the shelf includes: a lower portion which defines a substantially horizontal plane and supports the platform; first and second arms which extend from the rear of the lower portion upward and at an angle relative to the substantially horizontal plane defined by the lower portion; and an upper portion which connects the distal ends of the first and second arms, such that a force applied to the platform supported by the frame is translated through the first and second arms and countered by the engagement of the upper portion of the frame with a rear surface of the housing of the beverage brewer.

8. The beverage brewer as recited in claim 7, wherein the first and second arms are positioned at a spaced distance from one another, and wherein the spaced distance is substantially the same as a width of the housing of the beverage brewer.

9. The beverage brewer as recited in claim 7, wherein the angle at which the first and second arms extend from the rear of the lower portion relative to the substantially horizontal plane defined by the lower portion is approximately 135.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary brewer made in accordance with the present invention, in which the adjustable shelf of the brewer supports two urns side-by-side;

[0013] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the exemplary brewer of FIG. 1, in which the adjustable shelf of the brewer supports two taller urns side-by-side;

[0014] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the exemplary brewer of FIG. 1, in which the adjustable shelf of the brewer supports an airpot;

[0015] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the frame of the adjustable shelf of the exemplary brewer of FIG. 1;

[0016] FIG. 5 is a rear perspective view of the exemplary brewer of FIG. 1; and

[0017] FIG. 6 is a rear perspective view similar to FIG. 5, but shows an alternate support means for the frame of the adjustable shelf.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] The present invention is a beverage brewer with an adjustable shelf for accommodating urns, shuttles, airpots, and other receptacle of various sizes.

[0019] Referring first to FIGS. 1-3, an exemplary brewer 10 made in accordance with the present invention includes a housing 20, along with a brew basket 40 that is selectively installed and secured to the housing 20 and holds a quantity of tea, ground coffee, or similar beverage component below a spray head 30 installed in the housing 20. As with prior art brewer constructions, the brewer 10 also includes a plumbing system in which water is drawn from a water reservoir (or from another source of water). As water is drawn from the reservoir and into a hot water tank, hot water is forced from the hot water tank to the spray head 30. The spray head 30 distributes the hot water over and through the quantity of tea, ground coffee, or similar beverage component held in the brew basket 40, and the brewed beverage is dispensed through an outlet orifice (or drain hole) 41 into a cup or similar receptacle.

[0020] Referring now specifically to FIG. 1, the brewer 10 also includes an adjustable shelf 50, which, in this case, is positioned intermediate a base portion 22 of the housing 20 and the brew basket 40 and is supporting two urns 100a, 100b side-by-side.

[0021] In FIG. 2, the adjustable shelf 50 is positioned adjacent the base portion 22 of the housing 20 to support taller side-by-side urns 110a, 110b.

[0022] In FIG. 3, the adjustable shelf 50 is again positioned intermediate the base portion 22 of the housing 20 and the brew basket 40, but, in this case, is supporting an airpot 120.

[0023] Referring now to FIG. 4, the adjustable shelf 50 is generally comprised of a frame 60 with a platform 70 (as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 3, and 5) mounted to and supported by the frame 60. With respect to the frame 60, in this exemplary embodiment, the frame 60 includes a lower portion (forming three sides of a rectangle) 62, which defines a substantially horizontal plane that serves as the support for the platform 70. The frame 60 further includes first and second arms 64, 66 that are positioned at a spaced distance, d.sub.1, from one another. These first and second arms 64, 66 extend from the rear of the lower portion 62 upward and at an angle, , relative to the substantially horizontal plane defined by the lower portion 62. In this case, the angle, , is an obtuse angle of approximately 135. Finally, the frame 60 includes an upper portion 68, which has a generally C-shape and connects the distal ends of the first and second arms 64, 66. This upper portion 68 of the frame 60 also defines a substantially horizontal plane, which is generally parallel to and above the substantially horizontal plane defined by the lower portion 62 of the frame 60.

[0024] As a result of such a construction, and perhaps as best shown in FIG. 5, the upper portion 68 of the frame 60 wraps around and engages a rear surface 20a of the housing 20 of the brewer 10. The distance, d.sub.1, between the first and second arms 64, 66 is substantially the same as the width, w.sub.1, of the housing 20 of the brewer 10, such that the first and second arms 64, 66 are positioned against the side surfaces of the housing 20, while the lower portion 62 of the frame 60 is positioned and effectively extends from a front surface 20b of the housing 20. As a result of such construction, the force applied to the platform 70 supported by the frame 60 (i.e., the weight of the one or more urns, shuttles, airpots, or other receptacles on the platform 70) is translated through the first and second arms 64, 66 and countered by the engagement of the upper portion 68 of the frame 60 with the rear surface 20a of the housing 20 of the brewer 10.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 5, in this exemplary embodiment, there are multiple aligned pairs of holes 24a, 24b, 25a, 25b, 26a, 26b, 27a, 27b defined through the rear surface 20a of the housing 20 at predetermined heights relative to the base portion 22. As shown in FIG. 4, the frame 60 includes corresponding holes 60a, 60b defined through the upper portion 68 of the frame 60. Thus, and referring again to FIG. 5, the frame 60 can be fixed at a selected height relative to the base portion 22 by inserting screws 74a, 74b (or similar fasteners) through the holes 60a, 60b defined through the upper portion 68 of the frame 60 and then into a selected pair of holes 24a, 24b, 25a, 25b, 26a, 26b, 27a, 27b defined through the rear surface 20a of the housing 20. This fixes the position of the frame 60 and prevents it from sliding down the housing 20 of the brewer 10.

[0026] Referring now to FIG. 6, in an alternate embodiment, there are multiple aligned pairs of stops 124a, 124b, 125a, 125b, 126a, 126b, 127a, 127b extending from the rear surface 20a of the housing 20 at predetermined heights relative to the base portion 22. Thus, the frame 60 can be positioned at a selected height relative to the base portion 22 with the upper portion 68 of the frame 60 resting on and supported by a selected pair of stops 124a, 124b, 125a, 125b, 126a, 126b, 127a, 127b. Furthermore, other forms of attachment or support could also be used to fix the height of the frame 60 relative to the base portion 22 without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

[0027] The adjustable shelf 50 of the present invention can thus be mounted at multiple locations on the housing 20, i.e., at multiple vertical positions between the base portion 22 of the housing and the brew basket 40, and thus allows receptacles of various sizes to be positioned directly below the outlet orifice 41 of the brew basket 40. Again, as described above, in FIG. 1, the adjustable shelf 50 is positioned intermediate a base portion 22 of the housing 20 and the brew basket 40 and is supporting two urns 100a, 100b side-by-side. In FIG. 2, the adjustable shelf 50 is positioned adjacent the base portion 22 of the housing 20 to support taller side-by-side urns 110a, 110b. In FIG. 3, the adjustable shelf 50 is again positioned intermediate the base portion 22 of the housing 20 and the brew basket 40, but, in this case, is supporting an airpot 120.

[0028] One of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that additional embodiments are possible without departing from the teachings of the present invention. This detailed description, and particularly the specific details of the exemplary embodiment disclosed therein, is given primarily for clarity of understanding, and no unnecessary limitations are to be understood therefrom, for modifications will become obvious to those skilled in the art upon reading this disclosure and may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.