Warewash shelving system and Warewash machine with associated Warewash shelving system

Abstract

A vessel shelf system for holding lightweight vessels during cleaning in a vessel washing machine, the vessel shelf system comprising a lower vessel shelf comprising a bottom wall, an upstanding side wall, and a plurality of stakes extending upwardly from the bottom wall, where a plurality of the stakes are tall stakes, where a plurality of the stakes are tall stakes, and a plurality of the tall stakes are tall stakes. The high piles have upper ends higher than upper edges of the upright side walls. The upper vessel shelf may be placed upside down on top of the lower vessel shelf to capture the lightweight vessel between the upper end of the high pile and the bottom wall of the upper vessel shelf.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates generally to washing ware and more particularly to washing lightweight ware, such as plastic cups, clamshells, and other containers. Background Art

[0002] Commercial enterprises (such as restaurants and cafeterias) often use dishwashing machines to wash various types of dishes. Usually, dishes are placed on a shelf to facilitate processing and keep the separation between dishes during washing. Some dishwashing machines (such as hooded machines) have a front access opening and a side access opening leading to a treatment chamber, so that dishes do not have to be taken out from the treatment chamber by the same access opening used to put them into the treatment chamber. The rack track is located in the machine, so that when the door / hood of the machine is raised, the dish rack moves in and out of the machine, and supports the rack in the machine during cleaning operations. The trough / tank below the rack track forms a part of a washing spray system, in which washing liquid is sprayed from one or more washing arms in the machine and the washing liquid sprayed falls downwards into the trough, and then recirculated back to the spray arm by a pump.

[0003] One type of vessel rack is formed of plastic and includes a bottom wall and upright side walls in a lattice-type structure that generates openings through which wash liquid and rinse liquid can be sprayed to contact the vessels loaded into the rack. The bottom wall of this rack can be "flat" (i.e., without upward protrusions), or can have various styles of protrusions to help support the vessels loaded into the rack. For example, a vessel rack of the known prior art has a bottom wall, upright side walls, and a series of internally positioned stakes or pins 114b that protrude upward from the bottom wall, and vessels can be placed on these stakes or pins (e.g., glasses or cups placed on pins 114b). In the vessel rack of the prior art, the top end of each pin 114b is located at or below the top edge of the rack side wall.

[0004] In certain commercial enterprises, reusable lightweight utensils (such as reusable plastic cups, clamshell containers and / or pantry containers) are becoming increasingly popular. Due to the large amount of liquid flow typically occurring in commercial dishwashers, cleaning of these lightweight utensils creates potential problems, such as utensils moving around (e.g., cups or other containers being turned upside down or completely out of the ware rack).

[0005] Accordingly, it would be desirable to implement a system that facilitates handling of such lightweight vessels. Summary of the invention

[0006] In one aspect, a ware rack system for holding lightweight ware during cleaning in a warewasher includes a lower ware rack including a bottom wall, upright side walls, and a plurality of pegs extending upward from the bottom wall, wherein a plurality of the pegs are tall pegs having upper ends that are taller than upper edges of the upright side walls.

[0007] In an embodiment, the upper utensil rack is positioned in an inverted manner above the lower utensil rack, wherein the upper utensil rack comprises a bottom wall and side walls, the side walls of the upper utensil rack resting on the side walls of the lower utensil rack.

[0008] In an embodiment, the bottom wall of the upper utensil rack defines a main support plane, and the main support plane is spaced apart from the upper ends of the tall piles by a respective vertical gap.

[0009] In an embodiment, at least some of the vertical gaps are less than one inch in height.

[0010] In an embodiment, at least some of the vertical gaps are between 1 / 4 inch and 3 / 4 inch in height.

[0011] In an embodiment, a portion of the plasticware item is positioned in one of the vertical gaps. The plasticware item may be an inverted plastic cup or an inverted plastic container.

[0012] In an embodiment, at least some of the piles are short piles having upper ends that are lower than the upper edges of the upright side walls.

[0013] In an embodiment, at least some of the tall stakes are removably connected or fixedly connected to the short stakes of the lower utensil rack.

[0014] In an embodiment, the tall and short piles are integrally molded as a single piece with the bottom wall and upstanding side walls.

[0015] In an embodiment, the tall piles and short piles are arranged in an array defined by a plurality of rows and columns, wherein each row is defined by an alternating sequence of tall piles and short piles, and wherein each column is defined by an alternating sequence of tall piles and short piles.

[0016] In an embodiment, an alignment structure is provided to position the side walls of the upper utensil rack against the side walls of the lower utensil rack.

[0017] In an embodiment, a dishwasher comprises a treatment chamber, a system for spraying a liquid in a treatment zone of the treatment chamber, and a utensil rack system according to one of the above aspects or embodiments positioned in the treatment zone.

[0018] In another aspect, a utensil rack system for holding lightweight utensils during cleaning in a dishwasher includes a utensil rack including a bottom wall and upright side walls to define a utensil receiving space above the bottom wall and within a boundary defined by the upright wall, the upper side wall having an upper edge. A plurality of first piles extend upward from the bottom wall, wherein the first piles have upper ends that are higher than the upper edges of the upright side walls. A plurality of second piles extend upward from the bottom wall, wherein the second piles have upper ends that are located below the upper edges of the upright side walls.

[0019] In another aspect, a method for cleaning lightweight dishware items involves: using a lower rack having a bottom wall and peripheral upright side walls, and a plurality of tall piles extending upward beyond upper edges of the upright side walls; placing the lightweight dishware items down on the tall piles in an inverted manner so that bottom wall portions of the lightweight dishware items are located on top of upper ends of the tall piles; forming a rack system by placing an upper rack having a bottom wall and peripheral side walls down in an inverted manner over the lower rack so that bottom wall portions of the lightweight dishware items are captured between the upper ends of the tall piles and the bottom wall of the upper rack; and cleaning the lightweight dishware items in a chamber of a dishwashing machine while the rack system is disposed in the chamber.

[0020] In an embodiment, the vertical spacing between the bottom wall of the upper shelf and the upper ends of the tall piles is less than one inch.

[0021] In another aspect, a method of assembling a utensil rack having piles of at least a first height and a second height includes: using a utensil rack having an integral pile of a first height; partially applying a plurality of tall piles defining a second height to corresponding integral piles of the utensil rack; heating the utensil rack with the plurality of tall piles partially applied thereto to cause thermal expansion of the tall piles and the integral piles; and completing applying the plurality of tall piles downwardly to the corresponding integral piles while the utensil rack and the plurality of tall piles are still heated.

[0022] In an embodiment, the heating step includes placing the ware racks having the plurality of high piles partially applied thereto into a processing chamber of a dishwasher and running one or more machine cycles in which heated liquid is sprayed onto the ware racks having the plurality of high piles partially applied thereto.

[0023] The details of one or more embodiments are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages will be apparent from the description, drawings, and claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] Figure 1 to Figure 2 An exemplary dishwasher is shown;

[0025] Figures 3 to 12 An exemplary utensil rack system for lightweight utensil is shown; and

[0026] Figures 13 to 16 Another lower vessel rack configuration for a vessel system is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] Reference Figure 1 to Figure 2 , the dishwashing machine 10 includes a housing 12 (e.g., having a support frame and a panel) that partially defines a treatment chamber 14 having a washing zone 16. The chamber 14 includes a front access opening 18, a left access opening 20, and a right access opening 22, through which utensils can be moved into and out of the chamber for cleaning. One or more upper spray arms and / or lower spray arms (e.g., a wash arm 23a and a rinse arm 23b having corresponding wash nozzles and rinse nozzles) are arranged above and / or below the washing zone. The spray arm is configured to spray liquid toward the washing zone 16. In a typical machine, both a wash spray arm 23a and a rinse spray arm 23b can be provided, wherein the wash spray arm is fed by a pump that recirculates liquid from a collection tank or storage tank 26 below the washing zone, and the rinse spray arm is fed by a pump (or line pressure) that delivers hot water from a hot water booster 98. The arm can be, for example, a rotating arm and / or a fixed arm.

[0028] The multi-faceted hood assembly 30 includes a movable front wall section 32, a left wall section 36, and a right wall section 38 (e.g., forming a box-like hood structure that is open at the bottom), and the hood assembly may or may not have a movable top wall section and a rear wall section. These wall sections move together as a whole so that the multi-faceted hood assembly can be in a lowered closed position for washing and a raised open position for ware entry and exit (e.g., according to Figure 1 ) between the front and left sides of the washing area (according to arrow 42). When the multi-faceted hood assembly is in the closed position, the hood assembly closes the front access opening 18, the left access opening 20, and the right access opening 22, thereby containing the cleaning spray within the chamber during ware cleaning. When the multi-faceted hood assembly is in the open position, the front access opening 18, the left access opening 20, and the right access opening 22 are open, thereby allowing access to the washing area for ware entry and exit. A pivot handle 44 may be provided to facilitate operator movement of the hood assembly 30.

[0029] A fixed chamber rear wall 50 is disposed at the back or rear side of the processing chamber and, in embodiments where the hood assembly includes a rear wall section, the wall 50 is at least partially located behind the hood rear wall section when the hood is closed.

[0030] The shelf rails 90 are removably supported in the lower portion of the processing chamber in a substantially horizontal orientation of use by support structures located at the front and rear of the processing chamber. For example, the support structure can be various internal shell surfaces and / or brackets. The shelf rails 90 shown are configured in the form of metal rods or wires, and the upper rod sections are aligned to define a shelf support surface or shelf support plane for the shelves for accommodating utensils to be cleaned (e.g., dishes, glasses, pots and / or pans, etc.). The rear shelf rails 80 and the front shelf rails 82 are shown here, which are located in a position elevated relative to the shelf support plane to guide the sliding movement of the shelf, such as entering the processing chamber via the left entry opening 20 for cleaning, and then leaving the processing chamber via the right entry opening 22 after the utensils are cleaned.

[0031] Reference Figures 3 to 12 , a utensil rack system for lightweight utensils is shown, and the utensil rack system includes a lower utensil rack 105 having a bottom wall 110 and upright side walls 112. A plurality of piles 114 extend upward from the bottom wall 110, and at least some of the piles 114 are high piles 114a that extend upward so that the upper ends of the piles are higher than the upper edges 112a of the side walls 112. Here, some of the piles 114 are short piles 114b that do not have upper ends lower than the upper edges 112a of the side walls.

[0032] In an embodiment, the ware rack system also includes an upper ware rack 107 that can be positioned above the lower ware rack 105 in an inverted orientation such that the bottom wall 120 of the upper ware rack is at the top and the side walls 122 extend downward toward the side walls 112 of the lower ware rack. The side walls 122 rest on the side walls 112 so that the combined lower and upper ware racks form an enclosure within which lightweight ware is placed for cleaning in a dishwasher (e.g., machine 10), and the lattice structure of the two racks enables cleaning liquid to be sprayed onto the ware within the enclosure.

[0033] Here, the upper utensil rack 107 is a "flat" rack such that the bottom wall 120 of the upper utensil rack has no utensil holding / positioning protrusions. The stakes 114a of the lower rack 105 are sized so as to provide a relatively small gap 130 (e.g., a gap size of less than 1 inch, a gap size of between 1 / 4 inch and 3 / 4 inch, or a gap size of between 3 / 8 inch and 1 / 2 inch) between the upper ends of the stakes and the main support plane 120a defined by the bottom wall of the upper utensil rack 107. This gap 130 is advantageously used to help stabilize lightweight utensils during cleaning. Specifically, some portion of the ware (e.g., the bottom wall 150 of an inverted plastic cup 152 or other type of open-top container (e.g., a box of French fries)) is positioned above the pegs 114 such that when the upper ware rack 107 is positioned on top of the lower ware rack 105, that portion of the ware is effectively loosely captured between the upper ends of the pegs 114 and the bottom wall 120 of the upper ware rack and is permitted only a small amount of vertical movement, which in turn limits the movement that the ware itself can or will undergo during the cleaning process (e.g., the plastic cup or container cannot be turned upside down or removed from the rack system and exposed to a spray of cleaning liquid).

[0034] The double utensil rack system housing with high stakes helps stabilize the utensil even when some portion of the utensil is not placed within the gap 130, because the overall resulting structure still creates limited opportunities for the utensil to move around. Thus, the system is suitable for cups and other containers (e.g., fry boxes) of different sizes, and can also be used with other lightweight utensil types (such as clamshell packages 153) laid between rows, all while being in the same rack system for simultaneous cleaning.

[0035] In one embodiment, according to Figure 6 , the pile 114 is integrally formed with the rest of the lower vessel rack 105 (e.g., molded together into a plastic single-piece structure). In the illustrated embodiment, all high piles 114a have substantially the same height. In alternative embodiments, two or more different pile heights may be provided, wherein both pile heights are higher than the upper edge of the side wall of the lower vessel rack. In the illustrated embodiment, the downward facing edge of the upper vessel rack side wall 122 rests on the top of the upward facing edge of the side wall 112 of the lower vessel rack, and provides sufficient stability for the cleaning operation. In other embodiments, alignment features may be provided for the vessel rack (e.g., a protrusion at the edge of the side wall 112 fits into an opening on the edge of the side wall 122). Attachment / alignment components (e.g., alignment pins engaged in the openings of the two sets of side walls) may also be used. In the illustrated embodiment, the pile 114a is tapered and has a smaller size at the top. In other embodiments, the pile may not have a tapered shape, or other pile shapes may be provided.

[0036] Here, tall piles 114a and short piles 114a are arranged in an array defined by a plurality of rows and columns, wherein each row is defined by an alternating sequence of tall piles and short piles, and each column is also defined by an alternating sequence of tall piles and short piles. However, variations are possible.

[0037] In another embodiment, according to Figures 13 to 16 , piles 114a are additional components (e.g., plastic material) that are removably attached to standard, lower height piles 114b114b of a more standard utensil rack. In this case, piles 114a define a tubular structure that may or may not be tapered, and the inside of the piles frictionally engage and retain the piles 114b on these piles 114b. Pile 114a may also include inwardly protruding features 114a (e.g., threads or other) that help to grab and retain the piles 114a on piles 114b. Fasteners or clip-latch features may also be provided to attach piles 114a to piles 114b. In other embodiments, piles 114a may be attached to piles 114b by glue, welding, or friction pins.

[0038] In some embodiments, a corresponding stake 114a is attached to each stake 114b of a standard stake-type utensil rack. In other embodiments, a corresponding stake 114a is attached to only some of the stakes 114b (eg, every other stake in a stake row).

[0039] When formed separately and attached, tall stakes 114a may include an internal shape and configuration that matches the external shape and configuration of shelf stakes 114b for engagement therewith (e.g., where shelf stakes 114b have a cross-shaped profile in an axial end view, the internal cavity of each of stakes 114a may have a corresponding shape). However, tall stakes 114a may have an internal shape and configuration that differs from the external shape and configuration of shelf stakes 114b.

[0040] In one embodiment where the high pile 114a is a separate structure connected to the shorter shelf pile 114b, the thermal properties of the corresponding piles 114a and 114b are utilized during the attachment process of the high pile 114a. In particular, when the shelf 105 and the high pile 114a are both in a cooling state (e.g., at or near ambient room temperature), the high pile 114a is loosely assembled downwardly to a specific shorter shelf pile 114b in an arrangement that conforms to a given use. This step should typically be completed outside the dishwasher. The high pile 114a is tightly fitted with the shorter pile 114b to prevent the high pile 114a from easily pressing all the way down onto the shorter pile 114b. The shelf 105 with the pile is then placed in the dishwasher and one or more machine cycles are run to heat both the shelf 105 and the pile 114. While the shelf 105 and piles 114 are still hot from the machine cycles, the high piles 114a are then pressed further downward onto the shelf piles 114b with force until the piles 114a "bottom out." This force application step can be performed manually by hand force, or can involve, for example, the use of a tool, such as a rubber hammer. Since the high piles 114a are not solid, the high piles 114a expand more than the solid shelf piles 114b. This helps to complete the assembly of the high piles 114a to the shelf piles 114b and form a tight fit when the corresponding parts cool. The process can be used in reverse to remove the high piles 114a from the shorter piles 114b (e.g., to remove the high piles 114a after the shelf 105 and piles have been heated through one or more machine cycles).

[0041] It should be clearly understood that the above description is for purposes of illustration and example only, and not for purposes of limitation, and that other variations and modifications are possible.

Claims

1. A utensil rack system for holding lightweight utensil during cleaning in a utensil washing machine, comprising: A lower utensil rack includes a bottom wall, upright side walls, and a plurality of piles extending upward from the bottom wall, wherein a plurality of the piles are tall piles having upper ends that are taller than upper edges of the upright side walls.

2. The vessel rack system of claim 1, further comprising: An upper utensil rack is positioned in an inverted manner above the lower utensil rack, wherein the upper utensil rack includes a bottom wall and side walls, and the side walls of the upper utensil rack rest on the side walls of the lower utensil rack.

3. The vessel rack system of claim 2, wherein: The bottom wall of the upper utensil rack defines a main support plane, and the main support plane is spaced apart from the upper ends of the tall piles by a corresponding vertical gap.

4. The vessel rack system of claim 3, wherein: At least some of the vertical gaps have a height of less than one inch.

5. The vessel rack system of claim 3, wherein: At least some of the vertical gaps have a height between 1 / 4 inch and 3 / 4 inch.

6. The vessel rack system of claim 3, further comprising: A plasticware item having a portion positioned in one of the vertical gaps.

7. The vessel rack system of claim 6, wherein: The plasticware item is an inverted plastic cup or another inverted plastic container.

8. The vessel rack system of claim 1, wherein: At least some of the piles are short piles having upper ends lower than upper edges of the upright side walls.

9. The vessel rack system of claim 8, wherein: At least some of the tall stakes are removably connected or fixedly connected to the short stakes of the lower utensil rack.

10. The vessel rack system of claim 8, wherein: The tall piles and the short piles are integrally molded as a single piece with the bottom wall and the upright side walls.

11. The vessel rack system of claim 1, wherein: The tall piles and the short piles are arranged in an array defined by a plurality of rows and columns, wherein each row is defined by an alternating sequence of tall piles and short piles, and wherein each column is defined by an alternating sequence of tall piles and short piles.

12. The vessel rack system of claim 2, wherein: Alignment structures are provided to position the side walls of the upper utensil rack against the side walls of the lower utensil rack.

13. A dishwasher comprising: a processing chamber; a system for spraying a liquid in a processing zone of said processing chamber; A vessel rack system as claimed in claim 7 positioned in said processing area.

14. A ware rack system for holding lightweight ware during cleaning in a warewashing machine, comprising: a utensil rack including a bottom wall and upstanding side walls to define a utensil receiving space above the bottom wall and within boundaries defined by the upstanding walls, the upper side wall having an upper edge; a plurality of first piles extending upward from the bottom wall, wherein the first piles have upper ends that are higher than upper edges of the upright side walls; A plurality of second pegs extend upwardly from the bottom wall, wherein the second pegs have upper ends located below an upper edge of the upstanding side wall.

15. A method for cleaning lightweight utensils, comprising: using a lower shelf having a bottom wall and peripheral upright side walls, and a plurality of tall stakes extending upwardly beyond upper edges of the upright side walls; placing the lightweight item of ware downwardly on the tall pile in an inverted manner so that a bottom wall portion of the lightweight item of ware is located on top of an upper end of the tall pile; forming a shelf system by placing an upper shelf having a bottom wall and peripheral side walls downwardly over the lower shelf in an inverted manner such that the bottom wall portion of the lightweight ware items is captured between the upper ends of the tall piles and the bottom wall of the upper shelf; as well as When the rack system is disposed in a chamber of a dishwasher, the lightweight ware items are cleaned in the chamber.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein: The vertical spacing between the bottom wall of the upper shelf and the upper ends of the tall piles is less than one inch.

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