Patent 10852002

Prior art

Earlier patents, publications, and products that may anticipate or render the claims unpatentable.

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Prior art

Earlier patents, publications, and products that may anticipate or render the claims unpatentable.

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To identify the most relevant prior art for US Patent 10852002, I will search the USPTO database for the patent's citations. The USPTO's Patent Public Search tool or other patent citation search tools are suitable for this purpose. I will then analyze each cited patent to provide its full citation, publication/filing date, a brief description, and an assessment of which claims of US10852002 it potentially anticipates under 35 U.S.C. § 102.

The full patent text for US10852002 includes a "Citations" section listing 161 documents. I will review these citations to identify the most relevant prior art.

Here are some of the most relevant prior art citations for US Patent 10852002, based on the provided patent text:

  • US6116154A

    • Full Citation: US6116154A - Food pan management system in food warming apparatus [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6116154A under "Citations".]
    • Publication Date: 2000-09-12 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6116154A with a publication date of 2000-09-12.]
    • Filing Date: 1999-08-10 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6116154A with a priority date of 1999-08-10.]
    • Brief Description: This patent describes a food pan management system in a food warming apparatus. The system aims to keep food warm and ready for serving, potentially including features for tracking food age and optimizing use.
    • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): US6116154A potentially anticipates aspects of Claims 1, 14, and 21 related to a food holding bin with heating elements and a system for managing food. Specifically, the concept of keeping food warm using heating elements within a holding apparatus is a core element. The patent's emphasis on "food pan management" also suggests elements related to tracking food items and potentially individual bays, which could overlap with the multi-zone and individual bay management aspects of US10852002.

  • US6011243A

    • Full Citation: US6011243A - Holding cabinet and method and apparatus for controlling a holding cabinet [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6011243A under "Citations".]
    • Publication Date: 2000-01-04 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6011243A with a publication date of 2000-01-04.]
    • Filing Date: 1996-06-27 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6011243A with a priority date of 1996-06-27.]
    • Brief Description: This patent discloses a holding cabinet and methods for controlling it. It likely addresses maintaining food at specific temperatures within a cabinet structure, which is fundamental to food holding bins.
    • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): This patent could potentially anticipate elements of Claims 1, 14, and 21 that relate to a food holding compartment, chassis, and heating elements for maintaining temperature. The "method and apparatus for controlling a holding cabinet" could encompass control mechanisms for temperature, similar to the independently controllable heating elements and temperature maintenance in US10852002.

  • US6031208A

    • Full Citation: US6031208A - Topless holding bin with side heat source [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6031208A under "Citations".]
    • Publication Date: 2000-02-29 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6031208A with a publication date of 2000-02-29.]
    • Filing Date: 1998-11-12 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US6031208A with a priority date of 1998-11-12.]
    • Brief Description: This patent describes a holding bin without a top, employing a side heat source. This suggests a different heating configuration compared to US10852002, but still pertains to keeping food warm in a bin.
    • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): While the heating element placement differs, the core concept of a "holding bin" for food, as described in US6031208A, could potentially anticipate the general idea of a food holding compartment with a heat source as recited in Claims 1, 14, and 21. Depending on the specifics, the side heat source might not directly anticipate the top and bottom heating elements, but the overall function of maintaining food temperature in a bin is present.

  • US5724886A

    • Full Citation: US5724886A - Cooked food staging device and method [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US5724886A under "Citations".]
    • Publication Date: 1998-03-10 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US5724886A with a publication date of 1998-03-10.]
    • Filing Date: 1995-05-11 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US5724886A with a priority date of 1995-05-11.]
    • Brief Description: This patent details a device and method for staging cooked food, which inherently involves keeping food warm and ready for service.
    • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): The "cooked food staging device" described in US5724886A could anticipate the fundamental purpose and some structural elements of a food holding bin as claimed in Claims 1, 14, and 21. If the staging device includes compartments or zones for different temperatures, it could directly impact the novelty of the multi-zone aspect of US10852002.

  • US5069273A

    • Full Citation: US5069273A - Food server [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US5069273A under "Citations".]
    • Publication Date: 1991-12-03 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US5069273A with a publication date of 1991-12-03.]
    • Filing Date: 1990-10-12 [cite: The full patent text of US10852002 lists US5069273A with a priority date of 1990-10-12.]
    • Brief Description: This patent describes a food server, which implies a device for holding and dispensing food, likely at a maintained temperature.
    • Potential Anticipation (35 U.S.C. § 102): Similar to the other broad food holding references, US5069273A's "food server" could anticipate the general concept of a food holding compartment and its function, which is a foundational element in Claims 1, 14, and 21.

It is important to note that a full anticipation analysis under 35 U.S.C. § 102 requires a detailed claim-by-claim comparison and an understanding of whether each element of a claim is literally present in a single prior art reference. The descriptions above are based on the titles and general summaries typically associated with prior art citations and their potential relevance to the broad concepts of US10852002.

Generated 7/3/2026, 12:02:07 AM