Apparatus or cabinet for exhibiting and preserving food products in particular perishable food products or other chemical and pharmaceutical products

Abstract

 The invention relates to an improved structure cabinet, which has been specifically de­signed for exhibiting and preserving food products, chemical and pharmaceutical products, and, in parti­cular, perishable products.
The subject exhibiting and preserving cabinet comprises, essentially, a bearing framework which is provided with guiding member pairs, for slidingly supporting corresponding drawer members.
With the mentioned drawer members dif­ferently shaped members cooperate, adapted for de­fining supporting shelves, or container members, which are simply caused to bear on said structure, so as to support the food products or other exhibited and preserved perishable products.
The mentioned shaped members, may be easily removed for properly cleaning them, or they may be directly replaced by other like members or elements, thereon the products to be exhibited have been preliminarly arranged.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus or cabinet for exhibiting and preserving food products, chemical and pharmaceutical products, of the perishable type, which cabinet is provided with removable shelves or supporting panels.

[0002] As is known, for exhibiting and pre­serving not packaged food products, there are usual­ly used refrigerated cabinets, because of the perish­able nature of said products.

[0003] Also known is the fact that a great portion of the fresh food products may easily ab­sorb and hold outer odors, which may deteriorate them.

[0004] In order to solve this problem, the shelves or supporting panels of the exhibiting and preserving cabinets must always be in a perfectly cleaned condition.

[0005] On the other hand, the conventional types of exhibiting and preserving cabinets, either of the not refrigerated type or of the refrigerated type, are not provided with fixed exhibiting and sup­porting shelves which can be hardly handled.

[0006] In fact these fixed shelves are usual­ly defined by the horizontal or nearly horizontal­ ly extending bottom of a box-like body having side walls upwardly extending to a predetermined height.

[0007] More specifically, the corners of the mentioned box-like body may be hardly cleaned by means of conventional cleaning means.

[0008] Moreover, in order to carry out the cleaning operations, all of the products which are supported on the shelves have to be preliminarly removed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The task of the present invention is to overcome the above mentioned drawbacks, by pro­viding an apparatus or cabinet for exhibiting and preserving food products, which is so designed as to greatly simplify and facilitate the conventional cleaning operations of its shelves.

[0010] Within the scope of the above mentioned task, it is a main object of the present invention to provide an apparatus or cabinet for exhibiting and preserving food products which is provided with removable exhibiting shelves susceptible to be easily and quickly removed and replaced.

[0011] Yet another object of the present in­vention is to provide an apparatus or cabinet for exhibiting and preserving food products which is provided with suitably differentiated shelves the shapes and size of which can be selected depending on requirements.

[0012] According to one aspect of the present invention, the above mentioned task and objects, as well as yet other objects, which will become more apparent thereinafter, are achieved by an ap­paratus or cabinet for exhibiting and preserving food products, in particular perishable food pro­ducts, characterized in that it essentially comprises a bearing framework provided with guiding member pairs, for slidingly supporting corresponding draw­er members, and a plurality of differently shaped shelf members cooperating with said drawers, or container or vessel members, susceptible to be sim­ply caused to rest on said drawer structures, there­by supporting the exhibited food products.

[0013] Accordingly, the above mentioned shaped members may be quickly and easily removed, for pro­perly cleaning them, and, moreover, they can be directly replaced by other members thereon the food products to be exhibited have been preliminarly arranged.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Further characteristics and advantages of the exhibiting apparatus or cabinet according to the present invention will become more apparent hereinafter from the following detailed disclosure of a preferred embodiment thereof, which is illustrat­ed, by way of an indicative but not limitative ex­ample, in the figures of the accompanying drawings where:

Figure 1 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the exhibiting and preserving cabinet ac­cording to the invention, the cabinet being of the refrigerated type;

Figure 2 illustrates the cabinet of Figure 1 with the drawers thereof in a withdrawn condition;

Figure 3 is a perspective view illustra­ting a drawer structure;

Figure 4 illustrates a member adapted for defining two small basins, which may be coupled to the mentioned drawer structure;

Figures 5, 6 and 7 respectively illu­strate a shelf, a basket, and a small basin which may be individually coupled to that same drawer structure; and

Figure 8 illustrates the mentioned basket mounted on a drawer structure.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0015] With reference to the figures of the accompnaying drawings, the exhibiting and preserving apparatus or cabinet according to the invention substantially comprises a bearing framework 1 there­on there are formed, in a horizontal plane and at a given height, parallel guiding member pairs 2, consisting of open hollow section members.

[0016] Along the mentioned guiding member pairs, corresponding drawer structures or members can slide, which are indicated overally at 3 and are formed by a square or rectangular frame 4 per­pendicularly mounted on a vertically extending wall 5, having a given thickness and possibly ther­mally insulated, and provided with anchoring zones 6, for handling said drawers.

[0017] More specifically, the mentioned frame is provided with cross members 7 adapted for defin­ing a bearing surface, and is laterally delimited by open hollow section members.

[0018] In particular, said frame is sliding­ly coupled to the mentioned guiding members by means of bearings and through the interposition of a Z-shaped member 8, so as it can be completely withdrawn from the framework 1 body, while remain­ ing engaged with the mentioned guiding members.

[0019] On the resting surface 7 of the drawer structure, there are provided differently shaped elements, either bidimensional or tridimensional, which are specifically designed for receiving, with a suitable arrangement the products to be exhibited.

[0020] From the above disclosure it should be apparent that , in the disclosed cabinet,it will be easily possible to replace the several exhibiting members, with other preliminarly prepared exhibiting members.

[0021] Moreover, the mentioned exhibiting members may be completely removed from the cabinet, thereby they can be perfectly cleaned.

[0022] In this connection it should be also apparent that the mentioned exhibiting members may be formed with different shapes and size depending on requirements: for example, at 9 there has been shown an exhibiting member provided with two ad­joining small basins; at 10 there has been shown a supporting shelf provided with perimetrical and cross slots; at 11 there has been shown a basket; and at 12 there has been shown a further small basin.

[0023] From the above disclosure and the figures of the accompanying drawings, it should be apparent that the invention fully achieves the in­tended task and objects.

[0024] While the invention has been disclosed with reference to a preferred embodiment thereof, it should be apparent that it is susceptible to many modifications and variations, all of which come with­in the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An apparatus or cabinet for exhibit­ing and preserving food products, in particular per­ishable food products, characterized in that it es­sentially comprises a bearing framework provided with guiding member pairs, for slidingly supporting corresponding drawer members, and a plurality of differently shaped shelf members cooperating with said drawers, or container or vessel members, suscept­ible to be simply caused to rest on said drawer structures, thereby supporting the exhibited food products.

2. A cabinet for exhibiting and pre­serving food products, according to the preceding claim, characterized in that on said bearing frame­work said guiding member pairs are formed in a horizontal plane and at a given height and consist of open hollow sections, said drawer members being adapted for sliding along said guiding member pairs, said drawer members being formed by a square or rectangular frame which is perpendicularly mounted on a vertical wall having a given thickness and possibly thermally insulated, and provided with anchoring zones for handling said drawers, said frame being provided with cross members adapted for defining a bearing surface and being laterally delimited by open hollow section members.

3. A cabinet for exhibiting and pre­serving food products, according to the preceding claims, characterized in that said frame is sliding­ly coupled to said guiding member pairs through the interposition of bearing members and a Z-shaped section member in such a way that it may be com­pletely withdrawn from said bearing framework, while remaining engaged with said guiding member pairs.

4. A cabinet for exhibiting and pre­serving food products, according to the preceding claims, characterized in that on the bearing surface of said drawer members there are provided bidimen­sional or tridimensional members for receiving, with a given arrangement, the food products to be exhi­bited, said exhibiting members having different size and shapes, according to requirements.

5. A cabinet for exhibiting and pre­serving food products, according to the preceding claims, and substantially as broadly disclosed and illustrates for the intended objects.

Drawing