Patent Application
20210325049
The present invention relates to discharge devices installed in a cooking appliance for efficiently reducing odor and smoke generated when food is heated. Specifically, it relates to discharge devices that cool and reduce fumes of the cooking chamber generated from food.
When an object, such as food, is heated in a cooking apparatus equipped with a cooking chamber, various organic substances are generated together with steam. As heating proceeds, anaerobic conditions are formed in the cooking chamber, resulting in severe smoke and odor.
Conventional cooking appliances do not have a function of removing fumes generated during cooking. The fumes generated from food are not only harmful to the human body, but also cause environmental pollution and discomfort. To solve this problem, a range hood is currently installed in the kitchen. However, since the range hood is located far from the place where the actual cooking is performed, it cannot prevent the spread of fumes to the kitchen and living room.
An oven is a cooking appliance that puts food in a cooking chamber equipped with a heater. The oven heats the surface and the inside of food at the same time, so that bulky foods can be cooked efficiently. However, the conventional oven does not have a function of purifying fumes generated while food is being cooked. Some ovens have a cleaning function that causes thermal decomposition by heating the cooking chamber to about 400° C. to remove contaminants accumulated on the walls of the cooking chamber. However, in this case, since the cooking chamber is mainly heated without food, it is not possible to solve the problem of spreading the fumes to the room while food is being cooked.
A method of reducing fumes by installing an oxidation catalyst in the cooking chamber is also known. The fumes must be passed through an oxidation catalyst heated to 300° C.-500° C. in order to effectively reduce them. Therefore, such an oven mainly includes a heater for heating food and a heater for heating an oxidation catalyst, respectively, so that electric energy consumption is large. In addition, the oxidation catalyst itself is expensive and needs to be replaced when it loses its activity.
Another technique for removing cooking fumes has been developed by the present applicant. According to international application WO 2013/187561 A1 and European application publication EP2,860,461 A1, an oven in which a pyrolysis device is attached to a cooking chamber is disclosed. The pyrolysis device includes a heating means installed inside the cooking chamber, a hollow combustion tube surrounding the heating means, a combustion space formed between the heating means and the combustion tube through which gas can flow, a fan that creates a flow of air, and a connector connecting the middle part of the combustion tube and the fan.
In an oven equipped with a pyrolysis device, fumes do not diffuse out of the cooking chamber and is pyrolyzed in a combustion space heated to 700° C. or more by a heating means. The heating means also heats the food by providing radiant heat to the cooking chamber in addition to the action of pyrolyzing the fumes.
An oven equipped with a pyrolysis device is effective in pyrolyzing fumes generated while food is being heated, but it cannot purify the fumes any more after heating is terminated. In order to cool the cooked food, the pyrolysis unit must be stopped. However, when the operation of the pyrolysis device is stopped, since pyrolysis no longer occurs, the fumes continue to occur and spread out of the oven until the food is completely cooled.
The present invention provides a water-cooling discharge device for fumes generated while food is heated. This discharge device can reduce fumes during and after heating the food.
The following prior art is relevant to the current patent application: Korean Pat. Nos. 10-1649682; 10-0329500; 10-1592245; 20-0478046; and U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,490,613 B2; 8,101,894; and Japanese Pat. Nos. 1991-055438; 2010-112593; 2002-263006.
Conventional cooking appliances do not reduce the fumes generated in the cooking chamber, and the fumes diffuse into the room to reduce comfort. Therefore, there is a need to improve this.
The present invention is devised to solve this problem and provides a discharge device capable of cooling and reducing fumes by using water.
A discharge device connected to an exhaust tube for discharging fumes in a cooking chamber to the outside comprises a water reservoir, a cooling container, and a gasket.
A water reservoir is provided with a water supply plug on an upper side of a tall rectangular shaped body in which a space is formed to receive water.
A cooling container has a tall rectangular shaped body with an open upper part through which accommodates the water reservoir and a space to receive water in the lower part thereof. An inlet pipe is formed at one side of the rectangular body and connected to the exhaust tube through which the fumes flow.
A first partition wall, a second partition wall, and a third partition wall are installed in vertical direction at the bottom of the cooling container. A pair of a first sidewall, a pair of second sidewall, and a pair of third sidewall are formed at the two sides facing each other starting from the partition walls to seal a gap with the water reservoir.
A gasket is formed starting at an edge of the opening on the third sidewall of the cooling container, turning around the wall where the inlet pipe is formed, and extending to an edge of the other third sidewall on the opposite side;
A first gap is formed between the first partition wall and the bottom side of the water reservoir, and a second partition wall is in close contact with the bottom side of the water reservoir. The height of the second sidewall is shorter than the other two side walls, therefore a second gap is formed in the upper end of the second sidewall. A third gap is formed between the third partition wall and the bottom side of the water reservoir.
The fumes entering into the inlet pipe are reduced in two different stages, firstly cooled by the water reservoir while moving through a number of gaps and adhering to the surface, and secondly cooled and precipitated by the water in the cooling container.
The cooling container is detachably connected to the exhaust tube.
The water reservoir is detachably accommodated in the cooling container.
The inlet pipe is installed at a position higher than the water level in the cooling container.
A discharge device according to another embodiment comprises a water reservoir, a cooling container, and a gasket, wherein the discharge unit is attached to the exhaust tube of a cooking chamber.
A water reservoir is provided with a water supply plug on the upper side of a rectangular shaped body in which a space is formed to receive water.
A cooling container has a rectangular shaped body with an open upper side which is connected to the water reservoir and a space to receive water at the bottom side. An inlet pipe is formed at one side of the rectangular body and connected to the exhaust tube through which the fumes flow.
A first partition wall and a second partition wall are installed in vertical direction at the bottom of the cooling container.
A gasket is installed on the upper edge of the sides to which the first partition wall, the second partition wall and the inlet pipe are formed.
A first gap is formed between the first partition wall and the bottom side of the water reservoir, and a second gap is formed between the second partition wall and the the bottom side of the water reservoir.
The fumes introduced into the inlet pipe are reduced in two different stages, firstly cooled by the water reservoir while moving through a number of gaps and adhering to the surface, and secondly cooled and precipitated by the water in the cooling container.
The cooling container is detachably connected to the exhaust tube.
The water reservoir is detachably connected to the cooling container.
The inlet pipe is installed at a position higher than the water level in the cooling container.
A discharge device according to another embodiment comprises a water reservoir, a cooling container, and an inlet pipe, wherein the discharge unit is attached to an exhaust tube of a cooking chamber.
A water reservoir is provided with a water supply plug on the upper side of a rectangular shaped body in which a space is formed to receive water.
A cooling container is a rectangular shaped container, and a tube is formed at the upper end of one side. An exhaust pipe is formed in vertical direction at the upper end of the other side. The tube cosists of a plurality of straight portions installed in parallel in the horizontal direction and U-shaped bending portions alternately arranged at both ends of the straight portion, but the entire tube is connected by one line and has an elliptical cross-section through which gas can circulate. The cooling container is located inside the water reservoir.
An inlet pipe is connected to the upper straight end portion of the tube and passes through the upper side of the water reservoir. The inlet pipe is connected to the exhaust tube to introduce fumes into the tube.
The exhaust pipe has a structure penetrating the upper portion of the water reservoir to discharge gas exiting the cooling container. The fumes entering into the inlet pipe are reduced in two different stages, firstly by adhering to the surface of the tube and the exhaust pipe which are kept cool in the water reservoir, and secondly cooled and precipitated on the water in the cooling container.
The inlet pipe is detachably connected to the exhaust tube.
Water in the cooling container can be filled or removed through the exhaust pipe.
The cooling container, the tube, and the exhaust pipe have a sealed structure so that water in the water reservoir does not leak.
According to another embodiment, a discharge device is connected to a cooking chamber where an exhaust hole is formed at the bottom center thereof, and all places except the exhaust hole are sealed so that the fumes are exhausted only through the exhaust hole. The discharge device comprises an outer container, an inner container, and a cover.
An outer container is bowl-shaped and located under the cooking chamber. The outer container has an open upper rim to receive water;
An inner container has a shape resembling the outer container. The inner container is smaller in size than the outer container and located inside the outer container.
A cover is a flat plate covering the upper opening of the outer container and the inner container. The cover is provided with an inlet pipe which protrudes upward from a hole formed in the center of the flat plate,
The exhaust hole and the inlet pipe are connected to each other so that the fumes in the cooking chamber flow into the inner container. A first space is formed between the inner container and the cover and a second space is formed between the outer container and the cover. The fumes are reduced in a two-stage cooling structure, firstly cooled while passing through the first space, and secondly cooled while passing through the second space.
The inlet pipe is detachably connected to the exhaust hole.
The outer container and the inner container are detachably connected to the cover.
The fumes flowing into the first space through the inlet pipe are cooled, and any uncooled fumes move to the second space through the gap between the upper rim of the inner container and the cover.
According to the cooking appliance having the discharge devices of the present invention, the fumes sufficiently are reduced while passing through the discharge devices having a plurality of cooling stages, so that the indoor environment can be comfortably maintained.
The discharge devices use easily available water to cool the fumes, so it is safe and needs no electricity.
In addition to the above objects, other features of the present invention will be described with reference to the first embodiment.
Referring to
The cooking chamber 20 may further include a plurality of heaters for generating heat, a convection fan for circulating air inside the chamber, and a rotating drum for rotating the object to be heated. Heaters, convection fans, and rotating drum are obvious to those skilled in the art, and detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted.
Refering to
The water reservoir 40 has a tall rectangular shaped body in which a space to receive water is formed. A water supply plug 42 is installed on the upper side of the water reservoir 40 to fill or discard water. The water reservoir 40 is removably accommodated in the cooling container 50 to cool the fumes moving along its outer surface. The water reservoir 40 is formed of a metal, such as aluminum that conducts heat well.
The cooling container 50 has a tall rectangular shaped body with an upper opening and a space for storing water 80, and the water reservoir 40 is accommodated therein through the upper opening. An inlet pipe 52 through which fumes flow is formed at one side of the cooling container 50 and connected to the exhaust tube 22. The inlet pipe 52 is located at a position higher than the level of water 80 in the cooling container 50 and has an inner diameter in a range of 5 mm-25 mm. The cooling container 50 is detachably connected to the exhaust tube 22 to make it easy to fill water or wash.
A first partition wall 54, a second partition wall 55, and a third partition wall 56 are installed in vertical direction at the bottom of the cooling container 50. The water 80 in the cooling container 50 serves to cool the fumes passing through the discharge device 30 with help from the water reservoir 40. The fumes are reduced in two different stages, firstly cooled by the water reservoir 40 while moving and adhering to the surface thereof, and secondly cooled by the water 80 in the cooling container 50. The water reservoir 40 is detachably connected to the cooling container 50 and can be easily separated for cleaning. The water 80 in the cooling container 50 may freely flow between the first partition wall 54, the second partition wall 55, and the third partition wall 56, or through an open space.
A pair of a first sidewall 54a, a pair of second sidewall 55a, and a pair of third sidewall 56a are formed at the two long sides of the cooling container 50, starting from the partion walls to seal the gap between the water reservoir 40 and the cooling container 50.
A gasket 60 is formed starting at an edge of the opening on the third sidewall 56a, turning around the wall where the inlet pipe 52 is formed, and extending to an edge of the other third sidewall 56a on the opposite side.
The second partition wall 55 is in close contact with the bottom of water reservoir 40, and a first gap 70 is formed between the first partition wall 54 and the bottom of water reservoir 40, and a third gap 74 is formed between the third partition wall 56 and the bottom of water reservoir 40. The height of the second sidewall 55a is shorter than the other two side walls 54a and 56a, so that a second gap 72 is formed at the top thereof.
The gap between the lower portion of water reservoir 40 and the first partition wall 54 and the third partition wall 56 is formed in the range of 0.5 mm-3 mm.
The fumes entering into the inlet pipe 52 are cooled: while moving downward between the water reservoir 40 and the cooling container 50, passing through the first gap 70, moving toward the second gap 72, passing through the second gap 72, moving toward the third gap 74, and lastly passing through the third gap 74. After the fumes in the discharge device 30 are reduced through a multitude of reduction stages, an uncooled gas is exhausted in opposite direction of the side where the inlet pipe 52 is installed.
A cooking chamber 20′ for accommodating an object is formed inside a body 10′, and a door 12′ is installed in front of the body 10′ to open and close the opening of the cooking chamber 20′. An exhaust tube 22′ for discharging out fumes is installed above the cooking chamber 20′. The exhaust tube 22′ is the only passage through which the fumes in the cooking chamber 20′ are discharged out.
The discharge device 30′ is connected to the exhaust tube 22′ for cooling and discharging out the fumes. The discharge device 30′ includes a water reservoir 40′, a cooling container 50′, and a gasket 60′.
The water reservoir 40′ is a rectangular shaped container in which a space is formed to receive water. A water supply plug 42′ for receiving water is installed on the top side of the water reservoir 40′. The water reservoir 40′ is detachably connected to the upper opening of the cooling container 50′ to cool the fumes moving along its surface. The bottom side of water reservoir 40′ is formed of a metal, such as aluminum that conducts heat well.
A cooling container 50′ has a rectangular body with an open upper side and a space to contain water at the bottom side. An inlet pipe 52′ is formed at one side of the cooling container 50′ and connected to the exhaust tube 22′ through which the fumes flow. The upper opening of the cooling container 50′ is covered by the water reservoir 40′. The inlet pipe 52′ is installed at a position higher than the level of water 80′ in the cooling container 50′, and its inner diameter is in the range of 5 mm-25 mm. The cooling container 50′ is detachably connected to the exhaust tube 22′, so that it is easy to fill water or clean.
A first partition wall 54′ and a second partition wall 55′ are installed in vertical direction at the bottom of the cooling container 50′. The water 80′ in the cooling container 50′ serves to cool the fumes in the discharge device 30′ with help from the water reservoir 40′.
The fumes are reduced in two different stages, firstly cooled by the water reservoir 40′ while moving through a number of gaps and adhering to the surface, and secondly cooled and precipitated on the water in the cooling container 50′. The water reservoir 40′ is detachably connected to the cooling container 50′ and can be separated for cleaning.
A gasket 60′ is installed on the upper edge of the sides to which the first partition 54′, the second partition wall 55′, and the inlet pipe 52′ are installed. The gasket 60′ seals any gaps between the water reservoir 40′ and the cooling container 50′.
A first gap 70′ is formed between the first partition wall 54′ and the bottom side of water reservoir 40′, and a second gap 72′ is formed between the second partition wall 55′ and the bottom side of water reservoir 40′. The first gap 70′ and the second gap 72′ are passages through which the fumes move. The gap between the bottom side of water reservoir 40′ and the first and second partition walls 54′ and 55′ is in the range of 0.2 mm-2 mm.
Referring to
A cooking chamber 20″ for receiving an object is formed inside a body 10″, and a door 12″ for opening and closing the opening of the cooking chamber 20″ is installed in front of the body 10″. An exhaust tube 22″ for discharging out fumes is installed on the side of the cooking chamber 20″. The exhaust tube 22″ is the only passage through which the fumes in the cooking chamber 20″ are discharged out.
The discharge device 30″ is connected to the exhaust tube 22″ for cooling and discharging out the fumes. The discharge device 30″ is composed of a water reservoir 40″, a cooling container 50″, and an inlet pipe 52″.
The water reservoir 40″ has a tall rectangular shaped body in which a space is formed to receive water. A water supply plug 42″ is installed on the upper side of the water reservoir 40″ to fill or discard water. The water reservoir 40″ accommodates a cooling container 50″ therein to keep it at low temperature.
A cooling container 50″ has a rectangular shaped body, and a tube 90 is formed at the upper end of one side. An exhaust pipe 92 is formed in vertical direction at the upper end of the other side. The tube 90 consists of a plurality of straight portions installed in parallel in horizontal direction and U-shaped bending portions alternately arranged at both ends of the straight portion. The tube 90 is connected as one line and has an elliptical cross-section through which gas can circulate. The cooling container 50″ receives water 80″ therein and has a space through which gas can flow over the water 80″. The cooling container 50″ is inserted inside the water reservoir 40″. The tube 90 is maintained at low temperature by the water in the water reservoir 40″, and the fumes are reduced by sticking to the inner surface of the tube 90.
An inlet pipe 52″ is connected to the upper straight end portion of the tube 90 and penetrates the upper side of the water reservoir 40″. The inlet pipe 52″ is connected to the exhaust tube 22″ to introduce the fumes into the tube 90.
An exhaust pipe 92 having a circular cross section is provided in vertical direction at an upper end of the opposite side to which the tube 90 is fixed. The exhaust pipe 92 penetrates the upper portion of the water reservoir 40″ to discharge out gas exiting the cooling container 50″. The exhaust pipe 92 is kept at low temperature in the water reservoir 40″, and the fumes are reduced by sticking to its inner surface. The exhaust pipe 92 is also configured to fill or remove the water 80″ in the cooling container 50″.
The cooling container 50″, the tube 90, and the exhaust pipe 92 are formed of a metal that conducts heat well and have a sealed structure so that water in the water reservoir 40″ does not leak.
The fumes entering into the inlet pipe 52″ are reduced in two different stages, firstly by sticking to the surface of the tube 90 and the exhaust pipe 92 which are kept cool in the water reservoir 40″, and secondly cooled and precipitated on the water in the cooling container 50″.
A cooking chamber 20# for receiving an object is formed inside a body 10#, and a door 12# for opening and closing the opening of the cooking chamber 20# is installed in front of the body 10#. An exhaust hole 24 for discharging out fumes from the object is formed at the bottom center of the cooking chamber 20#. The cooking chamber 20# is sealed except for the exhaust hole 24 so that the exhaust hole 24 is the only passage where the fumes in the cooking chamber 20# are discharged out.
The exhaust hole 24 is connected to the inlet pipe 52# of the cover 57 and serve as a passage through which gas or liquid in the cooking chamber 20# moves.
The discharge device 30# comprises an outer container 51, an inner container 53, and a cover 57. The discharge device 30# is located below the bottom of the cooking chamber 20# to cool the fumes exiting therefrom.
The outer container 51 is bowl-shaped, has an opening at its top portion and a bottom at the lower portion of its side wall to receive water. The inner container 53 has a shape resembling the outer container 51, and its size is smaller than the outer container 51 to be positioned in the center thereof. The bottom of the inner container 53 is connected to the bottom of the outer container 51.
The cover 57 is a flat plate and covers an upper opening of the outer container 51 and the inner container 53. The cover 57 is provided with an inlet pipe 52# which protrudes upward from a hole formed in the center thereof. The inlet pipe 52# which allows fluids move up and down is connected detachably to the exhaust hole 24. The inlet pipe 52# is a passage through which the fumes in the cooking chamber 20# flow into the inner container 53. The cover 57 is detachably connected to the outer container 51 and the inner container 53, so that it is convenient to fill water 80# and clean.
The upper rim of the inner container 53 and the outer container 51 are in contact with the surface of the cover 57. A first space 82 is formed between the inner container 53 and the cover 57, and a second space 84 surrounded by the outer container 51 is formed between the inner container 53 and the cover 57.
The upper rim of the outer container 51 and the inner container 53 is brought into close contact with the cover 57 during heating of an object, and the cover 57 can be separated after heating. Some fine gaps are formed at a surface between the cover 57 and the outer container 51 and the inner container 53 so that the fumes are discharged out therethrough.
The fumes flowing into the first space 82 through the inlet pipe 52# are cooled, and uncooled fumes move to the second space 84 through a gap between the upper rim of the inner container 53 and the cover 57.
The fumes flowing into the second space 84 from the first space 82 are cooled, and uncooled fumes are discharged outside through a gap between the upper rim of the outer container 51 and the cover 57.
The fumes are reduced efficiently in two-stage cooling structure, firstly cooled while passing through the first space 82, and secondly cooled while passing through the second space 84.
Referring to
The fumes in the cooking chamber 20# cannot escape to other places, but only flow into the first space 82 through the inlet pipe 52# which is connected to the exhaust hole 24 (F1). The fumes in the first space 82 are cooled by the water 80# in the inner container 53. The fumes not cooled in the first space 82 move to the second space 84 through the gap between the upper rim of the inner container 53 and the cover 57 (F2). The fumes flowing into the second space 84 are cooled by the water 80#. The fumes not cooled in the second space 84 are discharged out through the gap between the upper rim of the outer container 51 and the cover 57 (F3).
According to the present invention, discharge devices 30, 30′, 30″, 30# which are designed to cool fumes while moving over the water over in the containers 50, 50′, 50″, 51, 53 with no direct contact with water or passing through water do not require any separate air movement device such as a fan.
The lower the temperature of the water, the more effectively the fumes cool down. Therefore, it is preferable that the cooking chambers 20, 20′, 20″, 20# and the discharging devices 30, 30′, 30″, 30# are installed separately from each other or an insulating material is provided in order to prevent direct transfer of heat. Alternatively, an outside air can be blown to the discharge devices 30, 30′, 30″, 30# with a fan to block conduction of heat from the cooking chambers 20, 20′, 20″, 20#.
The discharge devices 30, 30′, 30″, 30# of the present invention can be connected to various appliances such as grills, ovens, air fryers, food waste dryers, and coffee roasters to solve the problem that fumes spreads indoors.
The scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various changes and modifications may be made by those of ordinary skill in the art to which the invention belongs. Accordingly, the present invention is limited only by the following claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10-2018-0065209 | Jun 2018 | KR | national |
| 10-2019-0033974 | Mar 2019 | KR | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/KR2019/006153 | 5/23/2019 | WO | 00 |
