Abstract: A blade assembly for a food processing appliance includes a shaft and a base member in which one end of the shaft is journalled for rotation about its axis. First and second blade members are mounted to the shaft at respective axial locations and extend radially and in opposite directions from their respective locations on the shaft, with the blade member nearer the free end of the shaft being angled back along the shaft towards the base member and the other blade member angled forwardly along the shaft, towards the free end. The first blade member further has associated therewith a relatively short and blunt stub-like blade portion angled forwardly from the support location for the first blade member and extending beyond the free end of the shaft.

Abstract: The invention relates to citrus juicers of the kind in which a reamer is supported upright on a shaft driven by an electric motor so that half of a citrus fruit may be pressed down onto the reamer for juice extraction. Typically such juicers are fitted with an arm (20) that carries a hollow pressing member which is intended to be lowered, by pivoting the arm, so as to press a half-fruit onto the reamer, and it is usual for the arm (20) to return to its fully raised position after use. Accordingly, the arm (20) is spring-urged towards its raised position and tends to adopt the raised position during storage and transit. The invention provides a latching means (50) to latch the arm (20) in a lowered position, thus allowing the juicer to be stored and moved around with the arm latched down, thereby making the juicer more compact and easier to handle.

Abstract: Beater assembly for mixing ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer with planetary drive, the assembly (10) including upright arm members (12, 14) which repeatedly approach and pass close to the walls of the bowl in accordance with the motion imparted by the planetary drive. The arm members are provided with flexible wiping or scraping blades (22) which are capable of adapting themselves to fully conform to the bowl surface, each arm member (12, 14) is grooved (24) along its length and each blade (22) is formed of a length-wise resilient elastomer configured for mounting in the groove. The blades are formed at each end with fasteners (34, 36) and are held in position, under length-wise tension, by interlocking the fasteners with anchoring devices (38, 40) located near the ends of the arm members.

Abstract: A stand mixer (10) capable of subjecting ingredients in a bowl (60) to a planetary mixing action, and which is also provided with the capability of heating the ingredients, is further provided with a guarding device (70, 80) to reduce unwanted egress of steam and/or to prevent ingredients being ejected from the bowl (60). The guarding device comprises a first component (70) which is removably attachable to the stand mixer (10) in the vicinity of its planetary drive outlet (44) and a second component (80) which is removably attachable to the first component (70) and also to the bowl (60). The first component (70) is shaped and configured to shield part of the stand mixer (10) from heat and the second component (80) is designed to resist unwanted egress of steam and/or to prevent ingredients being ejected from the bowl.

Abstract: A tool intended as an attachment or accessory for a food processor and configured to automate the delicate operation of folding ingredients together without expelling air is described. The tool includes first and second curved blades which depend from a casing part that is rotated within a processing bowl by means of a geared arrangement that picks up rotary drive from a drive shaft coupled to a driven outlet on the base of the food processor. The blades are disposed at different distances from the axis about which the casing rotates, so that the outer blade passes closer to the wall of the bowl than does the inner blade.

Abstract: The invention provides a centrifugal juicer with a removable bin for collection of unwanted pulp generated by the juicing process. The pulp is thrown upwardly and outwardly, and exits through a letterbox-like aperture which aligns with a filler aperture in the bin. The bin is slidably movable towards and away from the juicer and is open-topped; being covered during operation by a roof member which extends outwardly from the juicer. The bin (32) is provided, above the filler aperture, with a bridging member having a surface adapted to slide in contact with, or closely adjacent, the underside of the roof, thereby to wipe pulp deposits from the roof when the bin is slid away from the juicer for removal. The wiping surface of the bridging member may be shaped or configured to enhance the wiping action.

Abstract: A juicer arrangement comprises a motor-driven appliance (1), capable of extracting juice from fruit, and a vessel (10) for receiving the juice. The appliance has a tubular outlet duct (9) through which juice can flow; the duct consisting of an inner portion (12) that is fixed to the appliance (1) and an outer portion (13) which can be rotated, relative to the inner portion (12), about the longitudinal axis (12a) of the tubular outlet duct (9). Near the outlet end of the outer portion (13) of the outlet duct there is provided a chordally-extending internal wall (15), configured such that, in one rotational position of the outer portion (13) of the duct relative to the inner portion (12), the wall (15) is positioned to act as an anti-dripping dam member to resist liquid flow through the outlet duct (9). In another rotational position of the outer portion (13) of the duct relative to the inner portion (12), the wall (15) is inverted, leaving a gap through which juice can be dispensed.

Abstract: Beater assembly for mixing ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer with planetary drive, the assembly (10) including upright arm members (12, 14) which repeatedly approach and pass close to the walls of the bowl in accordance with the motion imparted by the planetary drive. The arm members are provided with flexible wiping or scraping blades (22) which are capable of adapting themselves to fully conform to the bowl surface, each arm member (12, 14) is grooved (24) along its length and each blade (22) is formed of a length-wise resilient elastomer configured for mounting in the groove. The blades are formed at each end with fasteners (34, 36) and are held in position, under length-wise tension, by interlocking the fasteners with anchoring devices (38, 40) located near the ends of the arm members.

Abstract: The invention provides an electrically-driven kitchen machine including a food mixer or a food processor. The machine has a support platform for supporting a receptacle for foodstuffs to be mixed or otherwise processed. The machine has an electric motor used to drive mixing or processing tools disposed in the receptacle; and a heater for heating the foodstuffs in the receptacle. In order to ensure that the temperature of the foodstuffs is accurately determined, the base of the receptacle consists of multiple layers, including a first metallic material, such as aluminum, having a relatively high thermal conductivity, sandwiched between outer and inner skins of a second metallic material of lower thermal conductivity than the first metallic material. The machine is also provided with first and second probes, each protruding through the receptacle-supporting platform and urged upwardly to contact the inner skin and the first metallic material respectively.

Abstract: A variable-width toaster is described, in which the food-supporting carriage (5, 60) adapts readily, robustly and in a cost-effective manner to different width settings of the toasting chamber (2, 70). Respective elongate members (51, 52; 61, 62) are mounted to either side of the toasting chamber and are linked together by linking members (53a-53n; 63a, 63b) which form part of the food-supporting surface and are pivotally attached to the elongate members to accommodate lateral relative movement between the elongate members as the width of the toasting chamber is varied. In one embodiment, unitary linking members (53a-53n) link the two elongate members (51, 52) and the elongate members are urged apart by a spring (54). In another embodiment, chevron-like linking members, comprising pairs of pivotally associated linking members (63a, 63b) are employed.