FIELD OF THE INVENTION:

The present invention relates to a pivot pin for a pressure cooking utensil. Particularly, the present invention relates to a pivot pin having a leaning geometry which shifts the pivot point off centric.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION:

Pressure cookers have been used for many years, they accelerate cooking time, reduce the use of cooking fuel and increase the overall efficiency of cooking by using pressure to cook food articles. A common type of pressure cooker employs a lid having a plurality of circumferentially spaced flanges, which interlock, with similar flanges on the cooker body or pan when the lid is rotated relative to the pan. A lid with this type of locking mechanism is known as a “bayonet” lid. Bayonet style pressure cookers often operate at pressures of 5-15 psig. These cookers do an excellent job of cooking. However, people are afraid to operate them as the dangers of explosion in such cookers is greater. Numerous interlock systems of this type have been the subject of patents, some examples being U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,765,563; 4,423,825; 4,932,550; and 6,105,808. These interlock systems add significantly to the safety of the cookers, but they also add to the expense and complexity of the devices, and, of course, cannot be released to open until the pressure inside the cooker has decreased to a safe level. To overcome the above problem, an alternate type of pressure cooker is often preferred, namely an inner lid type pressure cooker. This type of pressure cooker typically contains a cooking pot, a lid which is generally sealed with a gasket and fastened by pressing the lid handle downwards, towards the compartment handle by means of a pivot mechanism accompanied by a hinge mechanism.

Currently available inner lid pressure cookers have numerous drawbacks especially in terms of safety and ease of usage. The drawbacks include at least:

1. Long handles which make the utensil extremely space inefficient

2. Handles which are not strongly attached to the utensil body, this can lead to dangerous incidents if the handle tilts or worse detaches completely

3. Overall bulky size of the pressure cooker

4. Tedious fastening mechanism which requires much force and effort by the user.

Furthermore, conventionally available inner lid pressure cookers consist of pivot pins which are fixed typically to the bottom handle of the cooking utensil, these pivot pins have a vertical geometry, the proximity of which is limited by the supporting handle onto which the pivot pin is fixed. Therefore, the pivot point offered by the pivot pin is also limited and cannot be brought any closer than the extreme end of the bottom handle. Since the location of the pivot point is limited, the distance between the vent weight and Pivot point is restricted to a particular length and cannot be reduced. Meaning that the distance between the pivot pin and the end of the handle too is restricted. Resulting in a long handle having a weak and dodgy fastening mechanism, which requires considerable force to operate the fastening mechanism.

Therefore, there is a need to overcome at least one of the problems mentioned above OBJECT OF THE TNVENTTON

The principal object of this invention is to provide a pivot pin for cooking utensil which reduces the force required for unlocking the lid handle from the container handle of said cooking utensil,

Another object of this invention is to provide a pivot pin for cooking utensil which reduces the distance between the center of cooking utensil (center of vent weight) and the pivot point of the pivot pin, thereby reducing the length of the lid handle and container handle,

A further object of this invention is to reduce the overall length of the handle(s) of the cooking utensil for a strong clamping of lid handle with the container body or bracket making the cooking utensil safe and sturdy,

A further object of this invention is to provide a pivot pin for a cooking utensil which enables easy and effective handling of the cooking utensil.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

An aspect of the present invention discloses a pivot pin 03 for a pressure-cooking utensil wherein, the pivot pin comprising: a. a base 05 fixed to a container handle 02’; and b. a pivot surface 06 parallel to the base 05 receives a lid handle 01’ at a pivot point B at an underside of the lid handle 01’ to comprise an open- ended length of the lid handle 01’ greater than a close-ended length of the lid handle 01’.

Another aspect of the present invention provides a pivot pin 03 for a pressure- cooking utensil, wherein, the pivot pin is characterized by a leaning geometry comprising: a. a bottom portion fixed to the handle; and b. the top portion leaning towards the center of the cooking utensil or vent weight.

Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a pivot pin for inner lid cooking utensil wherein, an open-ended length BC between the pivot point B to the effort point C is greater than the close-ended length AB between the load point A and pivot point B for reducing an external force applied on the lid handle 01’ for unlocking the lid handle 01’ from the container handle 02’ ;

Yet another aspect of the present invention is to provide a pivot pin for inner lid cooking utensil wherein, the pivot point B at the underside of the lid handle 01’ is shifted towards the vent weight A of the pressure cooking utensil such that the pivot point B is always closer to the center axis XX’, than the end of the handle D. Yet another aspect of the present invention is to provide a pivot pin for inner lid cooking utensil wherein, the pivot pin is made using Bakelite, a material same as that of the handle and preferably using a single injection mould to make both, the pivot pin and the handle.

A further aspect of the present invention is to provide a pivot pin for inner lid cooking utensil wherein, the handle of the cooking utensil is reduced in length due to the leaning geometry of pivot pin resulting in strong fastening of handle to utensil body and a compact utensil.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS:

Figure 1 shows perspective of an inner lid utensil with a pivot pin 03 having leaning geometry 03’.

Figure 2 shows the leaning geometry 03’ of the pivot pin towards the centre of the utensil.

Figure 3 shows a perspective view of pivot pin 03.

Figure 4 shows reduction in length of the handles.

PET ATT, ED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION:

Before the present disclosure for a handle for a pivot pin for cooking utensil is described, it is to be understood that this application is not limited to the particular information or technology described, as there can be multiple possible embodiments which are not expressly illustrated in the present disclosure. It is also to be understood that the terminology used in the description is for the purpose of describing the particular versions or embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope of the present application. This description is not intended to identify essential features of the claimed subject matter nor is it intended for use in determining or limiting the scope of the claimed subject matter. Some embodiments of the present disclosure, illustrating all its features, will now be discussed in detail. It must also be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Various modifications to the embodiment will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and the generic principles herein may be applied to other embodiments.

Unless otherwise indicated, this disclosure uses the following definitions. However, it is to be noted here that the definitions mentioned hereunder are merely to explain the invention with clarity and in no manner are the definitions intended for use in determining or limiting the scope of the claimed subject matter:

• “A leaning geometry” is defined as a shape of the pivot pin having at least one side or one part or one portion deviating from the perpendicular axis. • “Centre of cooking utensil” is defined as a point that is equidistant from all sides, ends or walls of the container of the utensil and matching the centre of the vent weight.

• “Centre of the vent weight” is the same as the Centre point of the cooking utensil.

• “Centre axis” is defined as an imaginary axis which is passing through the centre of the cooking utensil and vent weight.

• “Pivot point” is defined as the top end of a pivot pin where the pivot action / function / mechanism takes place.

• “Pivot action” is defined as turning, bending or oscillating movement happening over the “pivot pin” mentioned above, it may also be referred to as “pivot mechanism” or “pivoting action”, or “pivot function”.

• “Leaning” is defined as a deviation from the perpendicular axis; an inclination.

• “A load point” is defined as the point on the lever/arm/handle where a load is connected as shown in (A) of Fig. 4.

• “An effort point” is defined as the point of the lever/arm/handle where the force is applied to overcome the weight of the load as shown in (C) of Fig. 4.

• “A close-ended length” is defined as the length between a centre of the vent weight A and the pivot point B.

• “An open-ended length” is defined the length between the pivot point B and an open-end C of the lid handle 01’. Various embodiments of the present invention relate to a pivot pin 03 for a pressure-cooking utensil. Wherein, the pivot pin has a leaning geometry. The cooking utensil of the present invention includes at least the following parts:

A container; a container handle; a lid; a lid handle; a pivot pin, a hinge mechanism at the end of the handles.

An embodiment of the present invention discloses a pivot pin 03 for a pressure- cooking utensil wherein, the pivot pin comprising: a. a base 05 fixed to a container handle 02’; and b. a pivot surface 06 parallel to the base 05 receives a lid handle 01’ at a pivot point B at an underside of the lid handle 01’ to comprise an open- ended length of the lid handle 01’ greater than a close-ended length of the lid handle 01’.

An embodiment of the present invention discloses a pivot pin, wherein the pivot surface is at a predetermined height between 18 mm and 39 mm above the base and wherein the pivot point B at the underside of the lid handle 01’ is shifted towards the vent weight A of the pressure-cooking utensil by a distance of between 40 mm and 675 mm. An embodiment of the present invention discloses a pivot pin, wherein the pivot surface 06 is covered by an implant made of a non-abrasive metal.

An embodiment of the present invention discloses a handle 03 for inner lid cooking utensil 100, wherein, the pivot pin 03 is characterized by a leaning geometry 03’ comprising: a. a base 05 fixed to the handle 02’; and b. the top portion 06 leaning towards the center of the cooking utensil.

An embodiment of the present invention discloses a pivot pin, wherein the base 05 extends into a leaning geometry 03’ ending at the pivot surface. The pivot surface is at a predetermined height between 18 mm and 39 mm above the base.

An embodiment of the present invention discloses a pivot pin, wherein the pivot point B at the underside of the lid handle 01’is shifted towards the vent weight A of the pressure-cooking utensil by a distance of between 40 mm and 675 mm.

The pivot pin 03 for a pressure-cooking utensil as disclosed in the present invention, wherein due to the leaning geometry 03’ of the pivot pin 03, the close- ended length AB between the load point which is located at center of the vent weight A and pivot point B remains less than the open-ended length BC between the pivot point B to the effort point C. Therefore, the open-ended length BC of the lid handle 01’ is greater than the close-ended length AB of the lid handle 01’. In another embodiment of the present invention, the leaning geometry 03 of pivot pin 03 reduces the distance between the center of the vent weight (also the centre of the cooking utensil) and the pivot point of a pivot pin thereby reducing the length of the lid handle 01 and container handle 02 and in turn, resulting in stronger fastening of handle to utensil body.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, presents a cooking utensil having a pivot pin meant for opening and/or closing mechanism of the cooking utensil, such a pivot pin includes a leaning geometry and comprises of a bottom portion and a top portion wherein the bottom portion is fixed to the container handle and the top portion leans towards the center of the vent weight (also the centre of the cooking utensil).

This reduced handle length is achieved by shortening the distance between AB, as the top end of the pivot pin, leans towards the center point, it allows the pivot point B to come closer, beyond the limitation of the supporting container handle which can only go as far as the external point D of the cooking utensil. The pivot point B is therefore always closer to the center axis XX’, than the end of the handle D.

Therefore, the pivot pin is pushed in a position beyond the farthest point offered by the bottom supporting handle, which would be impossible without a leaning geometry of the pivot pin. The pivot surface of the pivot pin maintains the length between the load point A and pivot point B. Such length AB maintained by the pivot pin must always be less than the length BC between the pivot point and the effort point, to enable a pivot function / mechanism.

The closeness of the pivot pin thus achieved, shortens the distance AB which in turn allows the reciprocating distance of BC to be that much shorter, while still enabling a pivot function. Therefore, reducing the overall distance AC, providing a sturdy yet compact inner lid cooking utensil with a pivot function to open and close the lid of the cooking utensil with strong clamping of handle with the container body or bracket.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the pivot pin of the present invention having a leaning geometry wherein the pivot pin may be of a shape including but not limited to rectangular, crescent, cylindrical but most preferably triangular. The pivot pin may be made up of a material selected from but not limited to Bakelite. In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the pivot pin of the present invention may be made of a material same as that of the handle. In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the pivot pin of the present invention may be made of a material same as that of the handle using a single injection mould to make both the handle and the pivot pin. The cooking utensil of the present invention is selected from but not limited to an inner lid pressure cooker.

In the case of the pivot pin 03 for a pressure-cooking utensil made using the present invention; wherein the open-ended length of the lid handle 01 is greater than the close-ended length of the lid handle 01 for reducing an external force applied on the lid handle 01 for unlocking the lid handle 01 from the container handle 02’ . hence, the amount of external force required to open and/or close the inner lid is less. Thus, the external force required to operate the opening and closing mechanism of the cooking utensil is reduced by at least 15%.

In an embodiment of the present invention due to leaning geometry of pivot pin the force required to operate the opening and closing mechanism of the cooking utensil is reduced by min 4% and max 15%. In an embodiment of the present invention due to leaning geometry of pivot pin the force required to operate the opening and closing mechanism of the cooking utensil is reduced by 13% In yet another embodiment of the present invention, due to leaning geometry of pivot pin the length of handle is reduced. Reduction in handle length enables strong clamping of the handle with the container body or bracket, resulting in sturdy fixing of handle. This is essential to ensuring safety of the user handling the utensil especially when cooking at high temperatures and additionally offers easy and effective handling of an inner lid utensil.

Figure 1 of the present invention shows a side view of an inner lid utensil 100. Wherein, an inner lid comprises a lid 01, a lid handle 01’, a container 02, a container handle 02’, a pivot pin 03 and a vent weight 04. The center axis of the container 02 body is represented by XX’.

Figure 2 of the present invention shows pivot pin 03 leaning towards the center axis XX’ which is passing through the center of the container 02.

Figure 3 of the present invention shows a side view of the pivot pin 03. wherein, the pivot pin 03 comprises a bottom part 05 which is connected with container handle 02’, a pivot surface 06 which is leaned towards the center axis XX’ of the container 02 and a leaning geometry 03’ and parallel to the base 05 receives a lid handle 01’ at a pivot point B at an underside of the lid handle 01’ to comprises an open-ended length of the lid handle 01’ greater than a closer-ended length of the lid handle 01’. Figure 4 of the present invention shows reduction in the length of the lid handle 01’ and container handle 02’. The point A on the lid handle 01’ is a load point which is located at the vent weight of the utensil, point B is a pivot point on an underside of the lid handle 01’and point C is an effort point on the lid handle 01’. Due to the inclination of the pivot point 03; the close-ended length AB between the load point A and pivot point B remains less than the open-ended length BC between the pivot point B to the effort point C. It allows the pivot point B to come or shift closer to the point A, beyond the limitation of the supporting container handle 02’ which can only go as far as the external point D of the cooking utensil. The pivot point B is therefore always closer to the center axis XX’, than the end of the handle D.