Novel cooking apparatus with automatic doors

Hello, my name is Elaine Chavez and together with Thomas Rishton we invented a Power Opening Barbeque (five barbeque versions and one vertical cooker), US patent 20240099702‑A1.

Current commercially produced barbeques have not changed in design much since their popularity grew some 60 years ago. Whether industrial pro/restaurant, home, built‑in or portable, marine or RV, and tailgating, all barbeques have a handle on a lid or cover that must be manually operated by the user.

Anyone who has ever used a current BBQ grill has experienced the burn of touching a hot handle of the hinged lid or having a child touch that hot handle. There’s also the risk of singed hair or burns to the arm from extending over a hot surface to lift the lid, and the heat blast to the face from being in close proximity to the grill.

We have eliminated these safety issues by designing barbeques with power doors. No hot handles — access to the grill can be achieved by pressing a button on the control panel, or by using a keychain remote or smartphone app. Because our doors open from the centerline of the grill body, the hot air travels upward instead of toward the user, eliminating the need to extend the arm over the hot grill. Together we can bring more joy and safety to outdoor cooking.