US 11812895

Analysis of U.S. Patent 11,812,895

Title: Grease containment systems

Assignee: Grease Box LLC

Inventors: Amy Beaumont, Markus Dale Hillman

Filing Date: August 4, 2020

Issue Date: November 14, 2023

Abstract:
A safety system relating to outdoor cooking devices, such as wood pellet grills. An enclosure around a grease drain bucket. The enclosure designed to create a thermal buffer around the grease drain bucket and to securely mount to a drain of the outdoor cooking device increasing stability. The enclosure providing both burn safety and spill prevention, while still allowing ventilation of the heat from the grease collected. Adjustable vents in the walls of the enclosure allowing optional dampening of ventilation and suppression of fire potential inside the enclosure. Increasing safety of the outdoor cooking devices through cleanliness, stability and control of oxygen and flow of heat in the fire prevention triangle.

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Plain-Language Overview of Independent Claims:

This patent has two independent claims which define the core of the invention. The other claims (dependent claims) are variations of these.

Claim 1: This claim describes a system for catching grease from an outdoor grill. The system includes:

• A container (receptacle) to collect the grease.
• An outer box (enclosure) that surrounds the container.
• The enclosure has two parts: a top half and a bottom half that can be separated.
• Inside the bottom half, there's a support to hold the grease container in place.
• The top half has a mounting bracket designed to attach the whole system directly to the grill's drain pipe.
• A layer of insulation, which can be an air gap, is between the grease container and the outer walls of the enclosure to prevent the outside from getting too hot.
• The entire system is designed to be used outdoors, attached to the grill.

In essence, Claim 1 protects the idea of a two-part, insulated, and ventilated box that securely attaches to a grill's drain to safely hold a grease bucket.

Claim 16: This claim is very similar to Claim 1 but is broader in some respects and more specific in others. It describes a system that includes the outdoor cooking device itself, along with the grease containment system. The key features are:

• The outdoor cooking device (e.g., a grill).
• A grease collection container.
• A two-part enclosure (upper and lower sections) that surrounds the container.
• A support for the container inside the lower section.
• A mounting bracket on the upper section to attach the enclosure to the grill's drain.
• An insulation layer between the container and the enclosure's walls.
• The enclosure has thermal vents to let heat escape.
• Crucially, these vents have dampers that can be adjusted to control the airflow, which helps in preventing flare-ups or fires by limiting oxygen.
• The system is used in an outdoor environment.

This claim focuses on the combination of the grill with a grease containment system that has the added safety feature of adjustable vents for fire suppression.

Litigation Status:

A search of the CAFC (Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit) dockets for 2026 did not yield any results for US Patent 11,812,895. However, the patent document itself notes that there is litigation related to this patent family in the Washington Western District Court, under case number 2:25-cv-01300. As a patent analyst, it is important to note that district court litigation can often lead to appeals to the CAFC, but at present, no such appeal is apparent in the 2026 docket.