DISCUSSION OF RELATED ART Presently, all juice extractors are based on devices having a conically- shaped extractor wherein a piece of fruit or vegetable is situated on the conically- shaped top of the extractor and pressure is applied by hand or by other mechanisms to the top of the fruit or vegetable. Moreover, the fruit must be twisted on to the conically-shaped extractor in order to extract juice. As a result of both the force applied and twisting of the piece of fruit or vegetable, juice is extracted.

Accordingly, there is a need for a juice extractor that extracts more juice with less effort and force.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the-present invention, there is provided a juice extractor assembly including a concave bottom filtering and pulp collecting mechanism and a top pressure extracting mechanism that operatively engages with the bottom filtering and pulp collecting mechanism. The bottom filtering and pulp collecting mechanism further includes at least one perforation that allows liquids to flow therethrough, while allowing pulp to be collected within the bottom filtering and pulp collecting mechanism. The top pressure extracting mechanism further includes a protrusion that forces the fruit or vegetable to be turned inside out upon application of force.

More specifically, the juice extractor device of the invention comprises a bottom filtering member and a top pressing member pivotally connected to each other. The filtering member comprises a concave receiving chamber having a perforated bottom for allowing liquids to flow therethrough and pulp to be collected therein. The pressing member comprises a pressing surface substantially conforming to and adapted to fit into the receiving chamber for gradually pressing a fruit or a vegetable placed in the receiving chamber. The fruit or vegetable is placed in the receiving chamber with the peel directed away from the perforated bottom. Preferably, the dimensions of the pressing surface are slightly smaller than the dimensions of the receiving cup so as to form a gap between the two when the device is in a closed position. In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, the filtering member and the pressing member are further provided with

arms extending from an end opposed the pivoted end for gripping the device and for acting as levers for enhancing the compressing force. Preferably, the concave receiving chamber and the pressing surface are of a substantially truncated hemisphere having an upwardly directed opening and a flat bottom.

The invention further provides a method for extracting juice from a fruit or a vegetable. The method comprising the steps of a) placing a fruit or vegetable or a part thereof in a concave receiving chamber having a perforated bottom with the peel of said fruit or vegetable directed away from said perforated bottom; and b) pressing said fruit or vegetable or the part thereof by means of a pressing surface, the pressing surface is having a curvature adapted to fit into said concave receiving chamber. Preferably, the fruit or vegetable is cut and the cut fruit or vegetable is placed in the receiving chamber with-the cut facing the perforated bottom.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The present invention will be understood and appreciated more fully from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings in which: Figs. 1A and 1B are a perspective view and a side view, respectively, of a juice extractor in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, showing the juice extractor in an open position; Fig. 2A is a perspective view of the juice extractor in a closed position; Fig. 2B is a longitudinal cross-section through the closed juice extractor; Figs. 3A-3D are a side view, a top view, a bottom view and a front view, respectively, of the closed juice extractor ; Figs. 4A-4D are a front view, a side view, a top view and a perspective view, respectively, of the filtering and pulp collecting member; 5A-5D are a longitudinal cross section, a front view, a top view and a perspective view, respectively, of the pressure extracting member; Figs. 6A and 6B illustrate the operation of the juice extractor of the invention in a perspective view and a side view, respectively.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Generally, the present invention is directed towards a juice extracting device. The juice extracting device extracts juice from a fruit or vegetable by pressing the fruit and by turning the fruit or vegetable inside out, in other words, the natural concavity of the fruit or vegetable is reversed, for maximizing extraction.

The present invention can be used in any setting, including, but not limited to, residential and commercial use. The present invention can be a hand- held device or can be adapted to be used in larger fruit extraction machines. In the hand-held embodiment the device allows for directly extracting the juice onto or into the designated target, e. g. , a salad bowl, a drinking glass, etc. , with no need to use an additional collecting bowl as is usually the case with other manual- manipulated juicers.

The present invention has numerous advantages over the prior art. For example, the present invention is easy to use and easy to clean. The present invention extracts more juice than other prior art juice extractions systems.

Moreover, less force and time is required to extract the juice from the fruit or vegetable.

The present invention can be made of any material known to those of skill in the art. Materials, include, but are not limited to, aluminum, plastic, stainless steel, ceramic, chrome, alloys, composites, polymers, combinations

thereof, and any other suitable hardened materials known to those of skill in the art.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the juice extracting assembly includes a bottom filtering and pulp collecting mechanism that is a concave device with at least one perforation. Attached to the bottom filtering and pulp collecting mechanism is a top pressure extracting mechanism. The pressure extracting mechanism is pivotally connected to the bottom filtering mechanism through a pivoting mechanism including, but not limited to, a pin, bolt, and the like. The top pressure extracting mechanism operatively engages the bottom filtering and pulp collecting mechanism. The top pressure mechanism includes a protrusion such as an upside down hemisphere that can insert into the bottom filtering and pulp collecting mechanism in order to turn the fruit or vegetable inside out and extract juice therefrom. Although an upside down hemisphere is preferred, any protruding or conically shaped device can be used to turn the fruit or vegetable inside out.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the bottom filtering mechanism and top extracting mechanism further includes handles for gripping and for acting as levers for applying force to the juice extracting assembly. In a motor-driven mechanical embodiment, the device may comprise a stationary bottom filtering mechanism and a motor-driven movable top extracting mechanism. The movable top extracting mechanism may be actuated by a pivotal

movement of an arm toward and away from the stationary filter, similarly to the manual device.

Referring now to the drawings, Figs. 1-6 illustrate a hand-held juice extractor, generally designated 10, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention. Juice extractor 10 comprises a bottom filtering and pulp collecting member 20 and an upper pressing member 30. Members 20 and 30 are pivotally joining together at one end by means of common pin axis 50. Member 20 comprises a concave receiving cup 12 having a perforated bottom 15 and an arm 22 extending from one end of the upper edge of chamber 12. An extension 26 extends outwardly and upwardly from a second end of cup 12 in opposite direction to arm 22. The bottom surface 15 of cup 12 is provided with perforations 18.

Member 30 comprises a pressing cup 32 adapted to fit into filtering cup 12, a pair of laterally spaced extensions 46 extending from one end of cup 32 and an arm 42 extending from an opposed end thereof. Members 20 and 30 are pivotally joined together by means of common traverse pin 50 inserted through holes 28 and 48 of extensions 26 and 46, respectively, for allowing a swinging motion of members 20 and 30 toward and away each other. Arms 22 and 42 extending in an opposite direction to the pivot end allow for gripping device 10 and act as levers for facilitating exertion pressure on a fruit or vegetable placed in chamber 12. Arms 22 and 24 are substantially of the same size and adapted to come in contact and substantially overlap each other when the device is closed. In accordance with the embodiment shown here, lower arm 22 in provided with an enforcing rib 25 (best

seen in Fig, 3C) designed to enhance the strength of the device and facilitates gripping. Also in accordance with the embodiment described here, arms 22 and 42 comprise an external frame which define inners spaces 21 and 42, respectively.

This allows for reducing the weight of the device while maintaining its strength.

Arms 22 and 42 are further provided with apertures 24 and 44 at the distal ends thereof for allowing hanging device 10 when not in use.

The upper edge of cup 32 is provided with a peripheral rim 34 having circumference identical to the most upper circumference of cup 12. The lower surface 36 of cup 32 closely conforms with the upper inner surface 14 of receiving cup 12 but is having a slightly smaller dimension. In accordance with embodiment shown here, both cups 12 and 32 are of a substantially hemisphere shape. When device 10 is in a closed position, the lower edge of rim 34 comes in contact with the upper edge of cup 12 while cup 32 is located inside cup 12, as best seen in Fig.

2B. Also seen in Fig. 2B is the gap 60 formed between cups 12 and 32 in the closed position. Gap 60 allows for the accommodation of the skin, pulp and seeds of the fruit or vegetable. Preferably the gap is having a cross section in the range 2 - 6 mm. In order to enhance the compression force acting on the fruit or vegetable for maximizing extraction, the bottoms 15 and 35 of cups 12 and 32, respectively, are flat, thus maximizing the contact surface between fruit and compressing cups.

Further in order to increase the pressure, a flat annular portion 37 is projecting upwardly from bottom 35 (best seen in Fig. 5A) such that the lower part of pressing surface 36 assumes the shape of an upside-down cut cone. As best seen in

Figs. 6, portion 37 of pressing cup 32 is the first portion to come in contact with the fruit placed inside cup 12. This allows for applying the extracting pressure in a gradual manner for enhancing ease of operation and for maximizing the amount of extracted juice.

In operation, a fruit or a vegetable is placed in cup 12 with its curved surface directed upwardly, as illustrated in Fig. 6. Preferably, the fruit or vegetable is first cut into halves and the fruit or vegetable 70 is placed in cup 12 with the cut facing the perforated bottom 15 and with peel directed upwardly. It will be realized that in most cases, when the fruit or vegetable is initially placed in cup 12, the cut is not yet in contact with bottom 15 and that initially the fruit is stopped by the inwardly slopped walls of the cup to be positioned at a certain height above bottom 15. However, as pressing cup 32 applies pressure on the upper surface of the fruit, the natural concavity of the fruit is reversed and the fruit's peel is turned inside out. It will be realized that the unique curvature of cups 12 and 32 as well as their conformation to each other and the dimension of gap 60 formed between the cups maximize the compressing force applied to the fruit or vegetable and forces it to turn inside out. Furthermore, the force applied on the fruit at the final stage of the extraction, i. e. when the peel is already turned inside out, presses all the remaining parts, such as pulp and seeds, into the peel so that all the remains can be collected as a one piece with no leftovers sticking to the walls of the cups or clogging perforations 18. In order to further reduce the stickiness of leftovers and to facilitate ease of cleaning after use, the inner surface 14 of cup 12 is a

smooth non-sticking surface and/or may be covered with a smooth non-sticking food-compatible layer, such as lacquer, a teflon etc.

It will be appreciated that device 10 can be provided at various sizes and shapes. It will be also appreciated that cups 12 and 32 may be designed to assume size and curvature adapted to fit a specific type of fruit or vegetable. In particular device 10 may be used for extracting juice from citrus fruits such as lemon, tangerine, etc. In order to enhance the appearance of the device, the external surface 16 of cup 12 may be provided with decorative design. The design may be directed at resembling the appearance of a fruit or a vegetable, for example a design of citrus fruit segments as illustrated in the drawings, for insinuating the use of the device.

It will be appreciated that the invention has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology, which has been used, is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation. Obviously, many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the described invention, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

Accordingly, it will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to what has been particularly shown and described hereinabove. Rather the scope of the present invention is defined only by the claims which follow.