Not applicable.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a candle blower. More specifically, the present invention is an automated candle blower programmable to direct a flow of air to the general position of a flame on a burning candle.
2. Description of the Related Art
According to one government study, in 2006, an estimated 23,600 fires in residences were caused by candles, resulting in 1525 civilian injuries, 165 deaths, and $390 million in property damage. Unattended burning candles caused a large portion of these fires.
Numerous attempts have been made to address the problem of unattended, burning candles and the dangers they present. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,226,284 (issued on Jun. 5, 2007) describes a controller electrically connected to a fan that, when actuated, forces air into a transparent cover. A series of openings are formed in the candle support. The invention of the '284 patent operates by continually providing air into the cover through the openings for so long as candle burning is desired. To extinguish the candle, air flow is stopped—that is, the fan is deactivated.
U.S. Published Application 2008/0076082 (published Mar. 27, 2008) also incorporates a fan orientated to create a horizontal air stream toward a flaming wick of a candle. The invention also incorporates a countdown timer. The invention may be remotely actuated with a transmitter.
U.S. Published Application 2007/0072140 (published Mar. 29, 2007) describes a system that includes a base with an extinguishing fluid situated within the base. Movement of a solenoid arm causes actuation of a spray nozzle to direct fluid, such as air, to the top of the candle through channels formed in a shell in which the candle is placed. The solenoid is actuated after a predetermined elapsed time, when a specific temperature is reached, or if a tilt sensor is triggered.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,132,084 (issued Nov. 7, 2006) discloses a candle warmer having a base and a fan orientated to direct air flow close to a candle resting on the base. This invention is not intended to control the flame of the candle, but rather to disperse the smell from the scented wax.
The present invention is an automatic candle blower having a main housing with a base and a back member. The back member has a plurality of vent holes therethrough, each of the vent holes providing an air flow path from an interior space of the back member. A candle support surface is formed adjacent to the back member to support a candle. A blower is positioned to direct air to the vent holes. An air channel is formed within the main housing between the blower and the vent holes.
An alternative embodiment of the invention further includes a control circuit, which has a processor, a timer, and a processor-readable medium, that is electrically connected to the blower. A user input device and display are electrically connected to the control circuit.
While the terms “upper,” “lower,” “front,” “rear,” and similar terms are used throughout this document, it should be understood that such are simply terms of convenience only to aid in description of the invention.
The back member 24 has a back wall 28 and a front wall 30, and is curved to partially encircle a space above the base 26 to be occupied by a candle during use. A plurality of vent holes 32 through the front wall 30 of the back member 24 provide air paths from an interior space within the back member 24. In this embodiment, the vent holes 32 are formed in a vent plate 46 that forms a portion of the front wall 30. However, it is also anticipated that the vent holes 32 could be formed through the front wall 30 without the use of a vent plate 46.
A circular depression 40 is formed in the base 26 of the main housing 22. The depression 40 is bordered in the rear by the front wall 30 of the back member 24 and bordered in the front by a vertical shoulder 45 (see
A user input device 36 and a display 38 are positioned proximal to the front end 34. The user input device 36 is adapted to accept user input for a time at when the user desires to extinguish a candle resting on the embodiment. The display 38 may be an LCD, LED, or other suitable type sufficient to provide information to the user necessary for operation of the embodiment, such as the current time, the programmed time for actuation of the air flow, time remaining until actuation, status and error codes, and the like.
A vent plate 46 is positioned in an opening in the front wall 30. Vent holes 32 formed through the vent plate 46 are generally angled downwardly and generally directed radially inward toward a vertical axis 18 intersecting the center of the support surface 44. In the preferred embodiment, the vent holes 32 are angled downwardly at fifteen degrees from horizontal. The curvature of the vent plate 46 corresponds to the curvature of the front wall 30.
A channeling member 54 having an interior surface 59 is positioned within the first interior space 51 and forms an air channel 52 between the vent holes 32 and the base 26. The air channel 52 is also partially defined by the interior surface 56 of the back wall 28.
FIGS. 3 and 5A-5B show the association between the vent plate 46, the front wall 30 of the back member 28, and the channeling member 54 at the top and bottom ends of the vent plate 46, respectively. As shown in
Referring back to
Referring to
As shown in
The bottom cover 72 may be fastened to the main housing 22 at screw positions 75. When so fastened, the interior of the base 26 of the main housing 22 is divided into a front volume 90 and a back volume 92, which are separated by the semicircular shoulder 60 extending downward from the blower mount 58 and two interior walls 94 extending inward from the outer walls of the main housing 22. The interior walls 94 and shoulder 60 are positioned generally below the candle support surface (not shown) to help support the weight of a candle properly resting on the embodiment 20.
Use of the embodiment 20 is described with reference to
The user may program the time for actuation of the device with the user input device 36 fixed to the front portion 34 of the main housing 22. The control circuit 70 accepts user input received from the user input device 36 indicating when the blower 64 should activate. This may be determined based on a time differential from the time of the user input (e.g., two hours from present) or at an absolute time (e.g., 8:00 p.m.).
At the designated time of activation, the blower 64 is activated by the control circuit 70. When activated, the blower 64 takes ambient air proximal to the port 74 and displaces it to and through the outlet 66 of the blower housing 62. To aid with air flow, the shoulder 60 prevents air contained in the front volume forward of the shoulder 60 from being received by the blower.
The air displaced by the blower is forced into the air channel formed by the channeling member 54 and the interior surface 56 of the back wall 28 until the air flow reaches the vent plate 46. The air flow is thereafter directed through the vent holes 32 toward the candle 50, causing the flame to extinguish.
The curvature of the vent plate 46 causes air from the vent holes 32 to be directed toward an axis extending perpendicularly from the center of the support surface 44. Because of basic fluid dynamics principles, air flow through the vent holes is focused and flows at a faster rate than if air was direct through a large opening, thus being more effective to extinguish the candle when compared to unchanneled air.
The present invention is described in terms of a preferred illustrative embodiment of the invention. Those skilled in the art will recognize that yet other alternative embodiments of such a device can be used in carrying out the present invention. Other aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention may be obtained from a study of this disclosure and the drawings, along with the appended claims.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 61/341,818, filed Apr. 5, 2010, which is incorporated by reference herein.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
3150831 | Bosak | Sep 1964 | A |
3717936 | Tolmie et al. | Feb 1973 | A |
6780007 | Coffin, Sr. | Aug 2004 | B1 |
7132084 | Roumpos | Nov 2006 | B1 |
7226284 | Avelar | Jun 2007 | B2 |
7607916 | Almodovar | Oct 2009 | B2 |
20070031769 | Burton et al. | Feb 2007 | A1 |
20070072140 | Almodovar | Mar 2007 | A1 |
20070273326 | Krieger et al. | Nov 2007 | A1 |
20080076082 | Wolfson | Mar 2008 | A1 |
20090200393 | Avelar | Aug 2009 | A1 |
20110229833 | Valentine | Sep 2011 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
WO8703070 | May 1987 | WO |
WO2008143806 | Nov 2008 | WO |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20110244406 A1 | Oct 2011 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
61341818 | Apr 2010 | US |