FOOD SERVICE CART WITH INDIVIDUALLY ACTIVATABLE HEATERS

摘要

A heating system for use in a food service cart (12) includes a plurality of vertically spaced tray supports (30) attached to the cart (12) and a plurality of heaters attached to the cart at a plurality of vertically spaced locations in alignment with shelf locations for heating foods carried on service trays and supported by the tray supports. A thermostatic control controls the power supplied by each respective heater during a predetermined time period and includes a sensing mechanism for sensing temperature and a power adjusting mechanism for adjusting the power supplied by the heater. The sensing mechanism senses temperature over a predetermined range having upper and lower temperature limits, and the power adjusting mechanism reduces the power at which the heater operates to a lower power level when the sensing mechanism senses the upper temperature limit and increases the power at which the heater operates to a higher power level above the lower power level when the sensing mechanism senses temperature at or below the lower temperature limit. Food is rethermalized by a method that cotinuously applies power through a heater over the predetermined time period, alternately at the high and low power levels.