Outdoor grill toy
A simulated outdoor gas-fired grill includes a simulated thermometer. A grill assembly includes a grate and a flame plate positioned below the grate. The flame plate includes simulated flame segments positioned to extend through slots in the grate. The grate is movable toward and away from the grate. A cam connected with a knob contacts the underside of the flame plate and moves the plate toward and away from the grate, simulating adjustment of the heat setting of the grill. The grill includes a port to hold the thermometer. The thermometer has a dial face at a proximal end and a probe at a distal end. The probe is biased in the distal direction and is movable inward and outward from a housing of the thermometer. A nut fixed with the probe engages a dial shaft within the thermometer housing. The dial shaft is rotatable about the central axis of the housing and engages with the nut. Movement of the probe, including the nut, relative to the dial shaft causes the shaft to rotate. An indicator needle at the proximal end of the dial shaft rotates across the dial face, simulating measuring a temperature of a food item.
1 . A simulated thermometer comprising:
a thermometer housing having a dial face at a proximal end thereof, wherein the thermometer housing extends in a distal direction, wherein the thermometer housing encloses a housing cavity arranged along a longitudinal axis;
a dial shaft disposed concentrically within the housing cavity along the longitudinal axis and rotatably connected with the thermometer housing;
a probe defining a probe cavity, wherein the probe extends in the distal direction along the longitudinal axis, wherein a distal portion of the dial shaft is positioned concentrically within the probe cavity and wherein a proximal portion of the probe is positioned concentrically within a distal portion of the housing cavity, and wherein the probe is slidable along the longitudinal axis in a proximal direction and a distal direction respectively into and out from the thermometer housing and is rotationally fixed with respect to the thermometer housing; and
a helical engagement mechanism on one or both of the dial shaft and probe, wherein a motion of the probe in the proximal and the distal direction causes the helical engagement to rotate the dial shaft about the longitudinal axis.
2 . The thermometer of claim 1 , wherein the helical engagement mechanism comprises a helical thread on an outer surface of the dial shaft and a nut fixed with the probe cavity and engaged with the thread and wherein motion of the probe in the proximal and distal directions causes the engagement of the thread and the nut to drive the dial shaft to rotate about the longitudinal axis.
3 . The thermometer of claim 1 , wherein the helical engagement mechanism comprises a helical groove on an inner surface of the probe and a cam follower extension connected with the dial shaft, wherein the cam follower extension travels along the helical groove when the probe is moved is the proximal and distal directions and drives the dial shaft to rotate about the longitudinal axis.
4 . The thermometer of claim 1 , wherein the thermometer housing further comprises a biasing mechanism arranged to apply a resilient force to bias the probe in the distal direction.
5 . The thermometer of claim 4 , wherein the biasing mechanism comprises a coil spring.
6 . The thermometer of claim 5 , further comprising a bearing rotatably fitted to a distal end of the dial shaft, wherein the coil spring is positioned between a distal surface of the bearing and a distal internal surface of the probe.
7 . The thermometer of claim 1 , further comprising an indicator connected the dial shaft and a dial case at a proximal end of the thermometer housing, wherein the dial face and the indicator are disposed in the dial case, wherein rotation of the dial shaft in the first or second direction causes the indicator to rotate within the dial case.
8 . The thermometer of claim 7 , wherein the dial face comprises a plurality of simulated temperature indicia.
9 . The thermometer of claim 8 , further comprising a viewing window connected with the dial case, wherein the indicator and the indicia are visible within the dial case through the viewing window.
10 . The thermometer of claim 1 , wherein the thermometer housing further comprises a shoulder at a distal end of the thermometer housing, wherein the probe further comprises a probe tip at a distal end of the probe, wherein the probe tip extends from the thermometer housing distal of the shoulder, and wherein movement of the probe proximally and distally relative to the thermometer housing comprises movement of the probe tip relative to the shoulder along the longitudinal axis.
11 . The thermometer of claim 10 , further comprising a simulated food item, wherein the simulated food item comprises:
an outer surface; and
one or more blind holes extending through the outer surface and into the food item and sized to accept insertion of the probe tip.
12 . The thermometer of claim 11 , wherein, a depth of the blind hole is selected so that, when the probe tip is inserted into the blind hole and contacts a bottom surface of the hole and the shoulder of the thermometer housing contacts the outer surface, the probe is displaced in the proximal direction a selected distance along the longitudinal axis to cause the dial shaft to rotate the indicator to point to a selected one of the plurality of temperature indicia.
13 . The thermometer of claim 12 , wherein the one or more holes comprise a plurality of blind holes, wherein each of the plurality of blind holes has a different depth and wherein, when the probe tip is inserted into a selected one of the blind holes, a different selected temperature indicia is pointed to by the indicator.