This application relates to and claims the benefit and priority to Spanish Patent Application No. P201330885, filed Jun. 14, 2013.
The present invention relates to a dual pilot light burner suitable for dual household appliances which can be supplied with gaseous fuels of several types, particularly natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG).
Household appliances such as stoves including dual pilot light burners are known in the state of the art.
Pilot light burners are used to control turning on gas burners in a household appliance and for monitoring the flame of the burners. These pilot light burners comprise a gas inlet, a sleeve with a nozzle to provide an outlet for the gas, a chamber in fluid communication with the injector where the air and gas is mixed according to the type of gas used, and a burner head where the combustion of the mixture takes place, the burner head being adjacent to the gas burner in the household appliance. However, users commonly use different types of gas, natural gas (NG) and liquefied gas (LPG) being the most common. The pilot light burner is manufactured based on one type of gas, and if the user has any other type of gas in their home, parts in the pilot light burner must be changed in order to adapt it to the latter type of gas.
WO2011134725 A2 describes a pilot light burner, suitable for working with gaseous fuels of several types, particularly natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG), comprising a support, a regulating sleeve comprising a first supply nozzle to supply gas, an air and gas mixing and intake chamber in fluid communication with the regulating sleeve, and an injector operatively cooperating with the regulating sleeve, comprising a second supply nozzle to supply gas, the second nozzle being able to be located with respect to the first nozzle in a first position for supplying a first gas, and a second position for supplying a second gas.
According to some implementations, a dual pilot light burner suitable for working with gaseous fuels of several types, such as for example, natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG), is provided that comprises a support, a regulating sleeve comprising a first supply nozzle to supply gas, an air and gas mixing and intake chamber in fluid communication with the regulating sleeve, and an injector operatively cooperating with the regulating sleeve, the injector comprising a second supply nozzle to supply gas, the second nozzle being able to be located with respect to the first nozzle in a first position for supplying a first gas, and a second position for supplying a second gas. In order to adapt the pilot light burner to one of the first and second gases the regulating sleeve is operated with a tool directly from outside pilot light burner to move the regulating sleeve and arranging the second nozzle in the first or second position with respect to the first nozzle.
The dual pilot light burner allows changing the type of gas without changing any parts and using a simple tool, such as, for example, a screwdriver from outside the burner. Unlike the dual pilot light burners of the state of the art, the pilot light burner does not require any intermediate actuation means incorporated in the pilot light burner assembly, but rather it is the very tool acting directly on the regulating sleeve, causing the movement thereof, and the movement to at least two possible positions regulates one type of gas or the other. An easy-to-operate dual pilot light burner is thus obtained with a minimum number of parts, and both the assembly time of the burner and its final cost are therefore reduced.
These and other advantages and features will become evident in view of the drawings and the detailed description.
The dual pilot light burner 100 for a household appliance, such as a stove for example, is suitable for working with gaseous fuels of several types, such as, for example, natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG). The dual pilot light burner 100 comprises a support 10 with a plurality of housings in which different elements of the burner 100 can be arranged. In the embodiment of the dual pilot light burner shown in
With the configuration defined above, the dual pilot light burner 100 can be used with, for example, natural gas (NG) and with liquefied gas (LPG), natural gas (NG) being supplied through the first nozzle 31 and liquefied gas (LPG) being supplied through the second nozzle 51. To perform the regulation, the regulating sleeve 30 is movable and the injector 50 is fixed, the regulating sleeve 30 being able to be operated with a tool, such as a screwdriver for example, directly from the outside without the cooperation of intermediate actuation means between the regulating sleeve 30 and the injector 50. By moving the regulating sleeve 30, and with it also moving the first nozzle 31, the second nozzle 51 can be arranged in the first or second position, and natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG) can therefore be supplied with a simple operation, without changing any part, and with a minimum number of elements.
In the embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100 shown in
According to other embodiments, the housing that forms the port 14 is not molded as a single part with the support 10. In such embodiments the housing may constitute a separate part that is assembled on the support 10.
To make a correct air and gas mixture in the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40 according to if the gas supply is natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG), the amount of air is different, being lower in the case of natural gas (NG) and greater in the case of liquefied gas (LPG). The dual pilot light burner 100 allows the differentiated air supply into the chamber 40 due to the movement of the regulating sleeve 30. The air regulation is performed when the regulating sleeve 30 is operated directly with a tool and is moved arranging the second nozzle 51 in the first or second position. As the regulating sleeve 30 is moved, the body of the regulating sleeve 30 interferes with the ports 41 of the chamber 40, defining a passage 42 in the port 41 which is lower in the first position corresponding to natural gas (NG) than in the second position corresponding to liquefied gas (LPG). Therefore, and while at the same time as setting the dual pilot light burner 100 to natural gas (NG) or to liquefied gas (LPG) with the movement of the regulating sleeve 30, the primary air needed in the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40 is regulated.
The manner in which the regulating sleeve 30 and the injector 50 are placed and arranged to operatively cooperate in the embodiment illustrated in
The regulating sleeve 30 may be a substantially cylindrical part comprising an inner duct 32. The inner duct 32 in turn comprises a lower chamber 35 and an upper chamber 33, the upper chamber 33, according to some implementations being substantially conical-shaped. The upper chamber 33 is in fluid communication with the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40 when the regulating sleeve 30 is assembled in the pilot light burner 100. The first nozzle 31 of the regulating sleeve 30 is arranged at an upper end 36 of the regulating sleeve 30, in an outlet vertex 34 of the upper chamber 33.
The support 10 comprises at its through port 14 a certain diameter in the upper inlet area of the support 10, and in the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40 the port 14 increases in diameter, a horizontal internal wall which is a stop 11 being formed. The regulating sleeve 30 comprises a threaded area in the lower portion of the lower chamber 35, in the wall thereof, and the injector 50 has at its end 52 and above the lower threaded area for attachment with the support 10, an upper threaded area, these threaded areas defining attachment means 60 when they are attached to one another. The regulating sleeve 30 is arranged on the injector 50, the threaded area of the lower chamber 35 of the regulating sleeve 30 is attached to the upper threaded area of the injector 50, and the regulating sleeve 30 and the injector 50 are thus attached to one another.
Once the regulating sleeve 30 is assembled in the injector 50, the assembly is located in the housing of the support 10 where the burner head 20 is located. The regulating sleeve 30 and injector 50 assembly is assembled in a fixed manner in the housing from the lower portion of the support 10 and through the through port 14 from the larger diameter. The injector 50, with the regulating sleeve 30 incorporated therein, is located inside the housing of the support 10, the lower threaded area of the injector 50 is attached to the threaded area of the through hole 14 forming the attachment means 70, the injector 50 being able to move in the support 10 until the injector 50 is located on a stop 12 of the support 10. The injector 50 is thus permanently fixed in the support 10.
The regulating sleeve 30, which is attached to the injector 50 by attachment means 60, can move in the axial direction of the port 14 of the support 10 in both directions, and therefore both the regulating sleeve 30 and the injector 50 are operatively cooperating. The movement in both directions has stops, such that when one of the natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG) is to be regulated, the regulating sleeve 30 is operated with the tool turning which is capable of turning the regulating sleeve 30 in both directions. By turning the regulating sleeve 30 in the direction of opening with respect to the injector 50, as the injector 50 is fixed in the support 10, the regulating sleeve 30 moves in the threaded attachment 60 until the upper end 36 of the regulating sleeve 30 contacts the stop 11 of the support 10. By turning the regulating sleeve 30 in the direction of closing with respect to the injector 50, the regulating sleeve 30 moves in the threaded attachment 60 until the inner surface of the upper chamber 33 of the regulating sleeve 30 contacts the outer surface of the outlet vertex 53 of the end 52 of the injector 50. The outlet vertex 53 and the upper chamber 33 may be substantially conical-shaped surfaces, but in this embodiment the conical-shaped surfaces have a different trailing angle, so contact between both surfaces occurs in a contact area 80 in a portion of each of the surfaces along the entire periphery thereof.
The regulating sleeve 30 can thus move inside the support 10 in a path located between the stop 11 with the support 10 in the upper area, and the contact area 80 with the injector 50 in the lower area. The stop 11 and the contact area 80 are positions corresponding to the first position and to the second position of the second nozzle 51. The dual pilot light burner 100 can thus be regulated for natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG) in a simple manner by simply moving the regulating sleeve 30 directly with a tool against a contact area 80 and against a stop 11, respectively. With this configuration of the dual pilot light burner 100, the regulating sleeve 30 and the injector 50 are arranged coaxially with respect to one another, and in turn the assembly formed by both is arranged coaxially with respect to the port 14 of the support 10.
The second nozzle 51 can be positioned with respect to the first nozzle 31 in a first position, in which the gas flow supplied to the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40 is defined through the first nozzle 31, and the second nozzle 51 can also be positioned in a second position, in which the gas flow supplied to the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40 is defined also through the first nozzle 31, the second nozzle 51 having no effect on the gas supply in the second position.
As shown in
When the natural gas (NG) or liquefied gas (LPG) dual pilot light burner 100 is to be regulated, the regulating sleeve 30 is operated with the tool that is capable of turning the regulating sleeve in both directions. By turning the regulating sleeve 30 in the direction of opening with respect to the injector 50, as the injector 50 is fixed in the support 10, the regulating sleeve 30 moves in the threaded attachment 60 until the upper end 36 of the regulating sleeve 30 contacts the stop 11 of the support 10. By turning the regulating sleeve 30 in the direction of closing with respect to the injector 50, the regulating sleeve 30 moves in the threaded attachment 60 until the inner surface of the upper chamber 33 of the regulating sleeve 30 contacts the outer surface of the outlet vertex 53 of the end 52 of the injector 50. The outlet vertex 53 and the upper chamber 33 may be substantially flat-shaped surfaces, but in this embodiment the conical-shaped surfaces have a different trailing angle, so contact between both surfaces occurs in a portion of each of the surfaces, that is the contact area 80.
In the first embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100, as shown in
When the dual pilot light burner 100 is set to natural gas (NG), and therefore the second nozzle 51 is located in the first position, the gas G introduced through the lower end of the injector 50 flows through the inner duct 55 and exits through both the injection hole 56 and through the holes 54 of the injector 50. These gas flows are capable of finally exiting together through gas supply hole 38 of the first nozzle 31 of the regulating sleeve 30, since the diameter of the gas supply hole 38 is greater than the diameter of the injection hole 56 of the second nozzle 51. The gas flow towards the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40 is therefore defined, in this first position of the second nozzle 51 corresponding to natural gas (NG), by the gas supply hole 38.
When the dual pilot light burner 100 is set to liquefied gas (LPG), and therefore the second nozzle 51 is located in the second position, the regulating sleeve 30 contacts the injector 50 in the contact area 80. In this situation, the gas introduced through the lower end of the injector 50 and flowing through the inner duct 55, can only exit through the injection hole 56 of the second nozzle 51, since the holes 54 are located below the contact area 80 in the direction of the gas flow. As explained above, duct 43 is defined between the first nozzle 31 and the injector 50, specifically a path is defined, through which the gas flows, linking the injection hole 56 and the gas supply hole 38. Since the diameter of the injection hole 56 is smaller than the diameter of the gas supply hole 38, the gas flow exits through the gas supply hole 38 of the first nozzle 31 towards the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40, the gas flow in this second position of the second nozzle 51 therefore being defined by the injection hole 56.
In the second embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100, as shown in
The second gas flow corresponding to liquefied gas (LPG), supplied to the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40, is defined by the duct 43, defined in this second embodiment by the path that links the gas supply hole 38 of the first nozzle 31, and the injection hole 56 of the second nozzle 51, corresponding to the second position of the second nozzle 51, as shown in
According to some implementations of the first and second embodiments, the burner head 20 is assembled once the injector 50 and the regulating sleeve 30 are assembled in the support 10. To that end, the tubular duct 21 is first introduced in the port 14 of the support 10, and the pilot light nozzle 22 is then assembled at the end of the tubular duct 21.
In the first embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100, as shown in
In the second embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100, as shown in
When the injector 50 together with the regulating sleeve 30 and the burner head 20 are fixed in the support 10, the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40 is formed in the gap comprised between the tubular duct 21 and the regulating sleeve 30, the primary air inlet ports 41 being arranged in the air and gas mixing and intake chamber 40.
To enable correctly operating the regulating sleeve 30 with the tool from the outside in setting the dual pilot light burner 100 to natural gas (NG) or to liquefied gas (LPG), the regulating sleeve 30 comprises an indentation 37 on the outer surface of its upper end 36 which allows coupling the tool thereto.
In the first embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100 shown in
In the second embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100 shown in
However, other indentations at the end 36 of the regulating sleeve 30 are possible, such as a radial or star-shaped indentation, for example.
Once the dual pilot light burner 100 is assembled, when it is to be set to natural gas (NG) or to liquefied gas (LPG), in the first embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100, the fixing means 90 is released, and the burner head 20 is removed, and in the second embodiment of the dual pilot light burner 100 the tubular duct 21 is pulled to remove the burner head 20. Then, the inside of the housing of the support 10 is accessed through the port 14 with the end of the tool. The end of the tool is coupled to the indentation 37 of the regulating sleeve 30 and it is turned in either direction either until the upper end 36 of the regulating sleeve 30 contacts the stop 11 of the support 10 in the case of setting to natural gas (NG), or until the inner surface of the upper chamber 33 of the regulating sleeve 30 contacts the outer surface of the outlet vertex 53 of the end 52 of the injector 50 at the contact area 80, in the case of setting to liquefied gas (LPG). The pilot light nozzle 22 can be a single-pilot or multi-pilot light nozzle corresponding to the number of burners served by the dual pilot light burner 100. In the case of a single pilot light, the pilot light nozzle 22 can have a port that is axial with respect to the tubular duct 21 (not depicted in the drawings), such that the burner head 20 would not have to be removed to set the pilot assembly to the different types of gas. In this case, the regulating sleeve 30 would be accessed with the tool directly through the tubular duct 21.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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612959 | Wilson | Oct 1898 | A |
723667 | Grossmann | Mar 1903 | A |
2048260 | Guhl | Jul 1936 | A |
20070277812 | Deng | Dec 2007 | A1 |
20100095945 | Manning | Apr 2010 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
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191501944 | Jan 1916 | GB |
2011134725 | Nov 2011 | WO |
Entry |
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Spanish Search Report, Spanish Application No. 201330885, issued by the Spanish Patent Office, dated Nov. 17, 2014, Madrid Spain. |
Partial English Translation of the Spanish Search Report (cited above; translated p. 5 of 6). Spanish Application No. 201330885, issued by the Spanish Patent Office, dated Nov. 17, 2014, Madrid Spain. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20140370449 A1 | Dec 2014 | US |