Slicing device
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Many devices exist for slicing fruits and vegetables including: tomatoes, onions, lemons, limes, and the like. Such devices usually incorporate racks of thin sharp blades and some form of slotted pusher for forcing the object through the blades. It is an object of this invention to slice a wide variety of objects in a single slicer. Other objects are to maintain the device as compact as possible, with blades shielded and as short as possible, simple, economical, rugged and durable. 
     SUMMARY 
     In accordance with this invention a pair of diagonally crossed alternately meshed racks of thin sharp blades are mounted within the open interior of a base frame. An object to be sliced is forced by a slotted pusher first through the more widely spaced extremities of the blades and then through the more narrowly spaced junctions of the crossed blades whereby initiation of slicing is facilitated and remarkably effective slicing action is ultimately achieved. The pusher may be reciprocally mounted with an axis of movement extending through the crossed blade junctions and has a concave pocket for urging the object towards the junctions of the crossed blades. An advantageous embodiment has a rectangular frame with end bars over which C-shaped blade supporting members are mounted. The blades extend between the upper arm of one C-shaped member and lower arm of the other racks are meshed with each other at a substantially uniform spacing. One of the mounting bars is adjustably mounted to tension the blades. An auxiliary blade may be mounted below the junctions of the crossed blades for cutting the obtained slices in two parts. The auxiliary blade may be mounted in extensions of slots in the side plates which slidably receive the rods, which guide movement of the pusher through the blades. The sides, ends, blades supports and pusher may have uniform cross sections to facilitate their fabrication by extrusion. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Novel features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to one skilled in the art from a reading of the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein similar reference characters refer to similar parts and in which: 
     FIG. 1 is an end view in elevation of a slicing device which is one embodiment of this invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a side view in elevation of the slicing device shown in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the slicing device shown in FIGS. 1 and 2; 
     FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the slicing device shown in FIGS. 1-3 with the pusher removed; 
     FIG. 5 is a bottom plan view of the slicing device shown in FIGS. 1-4; 
     FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken through FIG. 3 along the line 6--6; 
     FIG. 7 is a diagrammatic pictorial view of the blade arrangement utilized in the slicing device shown in FIGS. 1-6; and 
     FIG. 8 is a diagrammatic view showing slices obtained from one configuration of the slicing device shown in FIGS. 1-7. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     In FIGS. 1-7 is shown a slicing device 10 including a substantially rectangular base frame 12 having a pair of side plates 14 and end bars 16, 18 and 20. End bar 18 is more specifically a tension bar. End bar 16 is securely mounted across one end of side plates 14 by insertion in slots 22 and engagement by cap screws 24. Lower end bar 20 on the other end of base frame 12 is secured to shoulder 26 of side plate 14 by cap screws 28. Upper tension bar 18 is adjustably secured to shoulder 26 by cap screws 30, which are adjustable to move tension bar 18 towards and away from shoulder 26 for tensioning or removing blade assemblies. Side plates 14 have uniform cross-sections to facilitate fabrication by extrusion from an aluminum alloy. The other major parts of the device, with the exception of the blades, may also be fabricated from an aluminum alloy and also as extrusions except when they are merely bars or shafts. 
     FIG. 6 shows the disposition of C-shaped blade supports 32 about end bars 16 and tension bar 18 disposed against body portions 34. Upper and lower arms 36 of C-shaped members 32 include holes 38 through which blade mounting pins 40 are inserted. The angular throats 42 joining holes 38 are merely for facilitating extrusion of C-shaped members 32. Arms 36, slots 39 and pins 40 provide means for anchoring the ends of thin sharp blades 44 including holes 46. Pins 40 are removably inserted through holes 38 in arm 36 and blade holes 46 for removably connecting blades 44 to arms 36. 
     Blades 44 are made of a strong sharp steel with sharp upper edges 48. Blades 44 are advantageously made of &#34;400&#34; series stainless steel such as &#34;410&#34; stainless steel approximately 0.018 inches in thickness and one-half inch wide. 
     One rack of blades 44 is connected to the upper arm 36 at one side of base frame 12 and has its other ends connected to the lower arm 36 at the other end of base frame 12. The other row of blades is similarly mounted from the top of one arm to the bottom of the other arm opposite C-shaped blade support members 32. The blades of one arm 36 alternate or mesh with the blades connected to the other arm 36 of one C-shaped member 32 and cross each other with junctions approximately in the midportion of the interior space within box frame 12. Off-center junctions are also contemplated for certain conditions. Movement of adjusting screws 30 pulls tension bar 18 away from bar 16 and also pushes one C-shaped member 32 away from the other to forcefully tension blades 44. 
     Pusher 50 is movably mounted relative to base frame 12 by parallel rods 52 connected to the pusher head by brackets 53. Rods 52 slidably engage in slots 54 in the mid-portion of side plates 14. Pusher 50 includes an array of flat spaced ribs 56 separated by slots 58. A concave pocket 60 is disposed in the bottom edges of ribs 56 for pushing an object 62, such as a tomato or onion shown in phantom outline, through the crossed junctions of blades 44. The illustrated spacing between the upper and lower ends of blades 44 provides an angle A between each of the blades and the axis 64 of movement of pusher 50 of approximately 65°, and a blade length of approximately 51/2 inches or 14 cm. The angle B between the blades is approximately 50°. This disposition provides a remarkably effective slicing action, which is remarkably facilitated between cross junction of the alternating blades, which in some way unexpectedly improves the slicing action over that obtainable from a single set of diagonal blades. A useful range of angles A would extend from about 55 ° to 75° to the axis of movement 64 of pusher 50, but such angles could also be smaller or greater, depending upon space considerations and action desired. 
     Pusher 50, has a uniform cross section capable of extrusions includes an upper handle 66 and a longitudinal slot 68 in ribs 56 to provide clearance for an optional auxiliary blade 70 mounted below junctions 72 of blades 44 for cutting slices of an object 62 into two parts 63 (shown in FIG. 8) if such are desirable for example for lemons, limes or tomatoes. Blade 70 is mounted on a pair of auxiliary rods 74 removably mounted (as shown in FIG. 5) in angular extensions 76 of slots 54, which receive pusher rods 52. FIG. 5 shows spring clips 78 removably securing auxiliary blade mounting rods 74 against angular slot extensions 76. 
     Pusher 50 is shown in a position in which it is urging an object 62 through the crossed junctions of blades 44. Pusher 50 can be raised a considerable distance away from base frame 12 to permit an object 62 to be inserted by hand into junctions 80 between the sharp edges 48 or blades 44. An operator can safely prescore the skin of an object 62, such as a soft tomato while inserting it into junctions 80 by sliding it down one set of sharp edges 48. The upper extension of C-shaped member 32 above the blade array helpfully shields the hand and fingers of the operator from the sharp edges of the blades 44 and provides convenient handles for lifting, manipulating and transporting slicer 10. Elastomeric O-rings 82 about the upper ends of pusher rods 52 cushioning the downward movement of the pusher 50 against the upper edges of side plates 14. 
     Slicing device 10 is remarkably capable of slicing of wide variety of fruits and vegetables, including lemons, tomatoes and onions. It has heretofore only been possible to slice onions in a special slicer having a relatively stronger configuration and thicker blades than used for slicing softer objects, such as tomatoes. Slicing devices 10, however, is capable of dependably slicing onions without damage to the blades and can also advantageously slice tomatoes, even soft ones. 
     FIG. 7 shows the difference in spacing C between blades 44 at the unmeshed portions of blades 44 and the narrower spacing D at the junctions or meshed portions 80 of blades 44. Spacing C is, for example, approximately 3/8 inch or 10 mm. and spacing D is approximately 3/16 inch or 5 mm. This transition from wider to narrower spacing highly facilitates initial piercing of the object to be sliced, because the object must be pushed through less blades during the more difficult initial cutting phase. It is not until the object is substantially cut through between unmeshed portions of the blades that it is subjected to concerted cutting by all of the blades at junctions 80 of the blades in the mid portion of base frame 12. This transition remarkably facilitates cutting and the ultimate final slicing of the object.