The present invention relates broadly to home appliances for cooking and, more particularly, to a gas range having a supplemental primary air supply and stabilization apparatus.
Gas ranges provide an excellent baking and broiling environment for preparing various dishes in a highly effective manner. Gas ovens burn hot and steady and provide excellent temperature control as well as an instant on-and-off operation with little residual heat. For oven heating, gas ovens include bake elements and broil elements similar to their electric counterparts, but with different structures based on the need to supply the gas heating elements with a combustible fuel and air mixture and the ability to produce discrete flames for even oven-cavity heating.
Gas broiler elements are used when the oven is to be taken to an elevated temperature for broil-type cooking and due to the location of the broil element near the top of the oven cavity, the space between the oven cavity and an associated cooktop can reach undesirable temperatures. Therefore, in order to provide better control of the cooktop temperature as well as protect the electronics of nearby control systems, gas ovens can include a ventilation channel that can provide a cooling airstream intermediate the oven cavity and the cooktop. Usually such a ventilation channel includes a ventilation fan for forced-air ventilation of the channel intermediate the cooktop and the oven cavity. It should be noted that while there may be other fans, such as convection fans and the like, associated with a gas range, the only fan of concern to the present invention is the ventilation fan and references herein to “the fan” refer to the ventilation fan.
The gas burner is fueled by a mixture of gas injected by a gas nozzle and ambient air from behind the oven cavity. The air-to-gas ratio is controlled generally to provide the most efficient burning situation while providing the necessary energy input to elevate the oven to cooking temperatures, or in the case of pyrolytic cleaning, to cleaning temperatures that are substantially greater then cooking temperatures.
During times of elevated or high temperatures within the oven cavity and when the fan is in operation, the fan intake tends to draw primary air away from the broil burner intake and the burning efficiency of the broil burner is reduced due to air deficiency. It therefore becomes desirable to enhance the efficiency of the gas broil burner by providing more primary air to the broil burner intake during such periods of air deficiency.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a home appliance, such as a gas range, with enhanced broil burner efficiency without adding undue expense to the overall cost and production complexity of the gas range, and to provide enhanced burning efficiency in an economic manner that utilizes existing structure where available.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a home appliance with supplemental primary air for enhanced burning efficiency during high-temperature operations.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a home appliance with a supplemental primary air delivery apparatus that is stable and acts to locate the supplemental primary air delivery for efficient operation.
It is another object of the invention to provide such a home appliance that will restrict movement and warping of air delivery components undergoing heating during high temperature operations.
To those ends, a home appliance with a supplemental primary air supply includes an appliance body, a cooktop on the appliance body and an oven cavity within the appliance body. A gas-operable heating element is within the oven cavity for heating the oven cavity to a predetermined temperature, with the heating element including a gas mixing pipe, or venturi, having an inlet open for intake of gas and primary air for combustion wherein the gas mixing pipe is configured for drawing primary combustion air from inside the appliance body, thereby creating a first primary airstream. A gas supply pipe is included for delivering gas to the gas mixing pipe for mixing with the first primary airstream, the gas supply pipe being mounted to a pipe support member for locating and aiming the gas pipe with respect to the gas mixing pipe.
A ventilation channel extends through the appliance body intermediate the cooktop and the oven cavity and is configured to draw air for ventilation from outside the appliance. A ventilation fan is located within the appliance body, with the fan being in fluid communication with the ventilation channel for creating an airstream within the ventilation channel, wherein the fan is selectively operable for use during times of elevated temperature within the oven cavity.
A supplemental primary air delivery apparatus is included for use during ventilation fan operation to create a second primary airstream and includes an air conduit extending between the ventilation channel and the gas mixing pipe, with the air conduit having an air conduit inlet in the ventilation airstream and an air conduit outlet closely adjacent the gas mixing pipe to direct air from the ventilation airstream to the gas mixing pipe as the second primary airstream for mixing with the first primary airstream and gas to form a combustible gas-air mixture. The present invention also includes an air conduit stabilization apparatus.
Preferably the air conduit stabilization apparatus includes a first bracket mounted to the air delivery conduit adjacent the ventilation fan, the first bracket being upstanding from a support surface and including a curved portion for engaging and stabilizing the air conduit. The first bracket is preferably configured to restrict movement of the air conduit undergoing heating.
It is preferred that the air conduit stabilization apparatus includes a second bracket mounted to the air conduit adjacent the gas mixing pipe and engaged with the gas mixing pipe bracket. Preferably, the second bracket includes a curved portion for engaging the gas mixing pipe and a downwardly projecting engagement member for engaging the gas mixing pipe. It is further preferred that the second bracket includes two downwardly projecting engagement members for engaging the gas mixing pipe bracket.
Preferably, the second bracket supports the gas mixing pipe at a position away from the center of the gas mixing pipe inlet adjacent a gas supply nozzle at the inlet of the gas mixing pipe. It is preferable that the second bracket is configured to restrict movement of the air conduit undergoing heating.
Preferentially, the air conduit stabilization apparatus includes a first bracket mounted to the air delivery conduit adjacent the ventilation fan, the first bracket being upstanding from a support surface and including a curved portion for engaging and restricting movement of the air conduit in a first direction and a second bracket wherein the air conduit stabilization apparatus includes a second bracket mounted to the air conduit adjacent the gas mixing pipe and engaged with the gas mixing pipe bracket for restricting movement of the air conduit in a second direction, wherein the second direction is different than the first direction.
It is preferable that the home appliance is a range.
The air conduit stabilization apparatus of the present invention provides several advantages. First, the first and second brackets can ensure that the air conduit is consistently correctly installed across a production run of the present home appliances. Accordingly, more uniform performance characteristics are achieved across the production run. Further, the second bracket provides a precise location for the air outlet with respect to the burner venturi to maximize efficiency of the air conduit system. The first and second brackets also resist any tendency of the air conduit to warp or otherwise distort while undergoing heating during high temperature operations. Imprecise positioning, distortion or both of the air tube can prevent the present apparatus from operating at its best efficiency. The incoming secondary air stream could have a detrimental effect on the gas stream if positioned incorrectly in one direction or disrupt air flow at the venturi walls if moved in the other direction. If the air conduit is too far away from the venturi, the airstream from the air conduit may be disrupted or otherwise rendered ineffective. Accordingly, it is desirable to precisely position the air conduit with respect to burner venturi.
The present invention also includes a second preferred embodiment, which is also preferably a range. To that end, the present home appliance includes a home appliance body, a cooktop on the home appliance body, an oven cavity within the home appliance body and a gas-operable heating element within the oven cavity for heating the oven cavity to a predetermined temperature, wherein the heating element includes a gas mixing pipe having an inlet open for intake of gas and primary air for combustion.
A ventilation channel extends through the home appliance body intermediate the cooktop and the oven cavity. A ventilation fan is located within the home appliance body, the fan being in fluid communication with the ventilation channel for creating an airstream within the ventilation channel.
An air conduit extends between the ventilation channel and the gas mixing pipe, the air conduit having an air conduit inlet in the airstream and an air conduit outlet closely adjacent the gas mixing pipe to direct air from the airstream to the gas mixing pipe as supplemental primary air for combustion with the gas and primary air.
Preferably, the fan is mounted within a fan housing having an air outlet into the ventilation channel and the air conduit is mounted with the air conduit inlet in the air outlet of the fan housing. It is further preferred that the air conduit is formed as a tubular member having an air channel extending between the air conduit inlet and the air conduit outlet for free air passage through the air conduit. Preferably, the air conduit inlet includes a flared end portion. It is preferred that the air channel has a generally circular cross-section and a substantially constant diameter throughout its length and that the air conduit outlet is mounted adjacent a gas supply nozzle at the inlet of the gas mixing pipe.
Preferentially, the fan is configured to activate at a predetermined temperature to provide air to the ventilation channel and the air conduit, and, more particularly, the fan is configured to activate at a temperature in the home appliance of about 300° F. to about 350° F.
It is further preferred that the fan includes an inlet for drawing air from outside the home appliance for forced delivery of air to the ventilation channel and the air conduit.
Turning now to the drawings and, more particularly to
An upper control panel 18 is mounted behind and above the cooktop 14 for general disposition against a kitchen wall. The upper control panel 18 may include oven controls and a timer. A lower control panel 20 is mounted to the front of the body 12 immediately underneath the cooktop 14. The lower control panel 20 may include controls for the burners on the cooktop 14. The body 12 includes an internal oven cavity 22 with an access opening covered by an oven door 24 that is mounted to the body 12 immediately beneath the lower control panel 20.
A gas supply pipe 32 extends from a main gas supply through a distribution network (not shown) and, for purposes of the broil burner 26, includes a gas nozzle 34 to direct gas into the gas mixing pipe 28. Ambient air is drawn in with the gas from the nozzle 34 as primary air for combustion in the broil burner 26 to produce flame in order to elevate the temperature within the oven cavity 22 to cooking or cleaning levels.
As the temperature in the oven cavity 22 increases to a predetermined level, typically, between 300° F. and 350° F., the heat from the top of the oven can cause problems with the cooktop 14 and the electric and electronic controls of the range. Therefore, an air channel 38 is located intermediate the oven cavity 22 and the cooktop 14. In order to more effectively cool the air between the cooktop 14 and the oven cavity 22, a fan 42 is mounted within a fan housing 40 adjacent a rear portion of the range 10 within the ventilation channel 38 to draw ambient air from outside the range 10 and direct such air through the ventilation channel 38 to cool the area between the cooktop 14 and the oven cavity 22. The airstream thusly created is illustrated generally by arrows in
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, an air supply conduit in the form of a tube is illustrated at 52 and extends from the fan housing 40, where it receives air, to the gas delivery pipe 32 where the air is discharged into the gas mixing pipe 28 to provide supplemental primary air, along with the gas from the gas nozzle 34 and the existing ambient primary air for combustion.
As seen in
Turning now to
The air conduit 52 is mounted with its inlet 56 directed into the plenum 46 of the fan housing 40 to receive air from the fan. As noted above, the flared end portion 58 enhances the ability of the air conduit 52 to receive air. The air conduit 52 is bent to direct the air away from the fan housing 40 across the horizontal support panel 48 and downwardly toward the broil burner 26.
As seen in
With reference to
As seen in
The gas mixing pipe 28 includes a flared portion 30 to facilitate the inlet of air surrounding the gas mixing pipe 28 for combustion. The vertical support panel 50 resides internally of the range body panels. As seen in
There are several advantages to the air conduit stabilization apparatus. The second bracket 74 locates the air outlet in the correct position inside the burner venturi or gas mixing pipe with reference to the gas mixing pipe bracket. The air conduit stabilization apparatus also keeps the air tube from warping under heated conditions. Overall, the air conduit stabilization apparatus, including the first bracket 64 and the second bracket 74, provides consistency and enhance the overall performances of the air conduit of the present invention.
While
In operation, as the oven temperature approaches about 300° F. to about 350° F., the fan motor 44 is activated to generate an air stream within the ventilation channel 38 as seen in
By the above, the present invention provides an inexpensive solution to enhancing the efficiency of the broil burner while utilizing existing parts of the range to minimize expense and lower manufacturing costs.
It will therefore be readily understood by those persons skilled in the art that the present invention is susceptible of a broad utility and application. While the present invention is described in all currently foreseeable embodiments, there may be other, unforeseeable embodiments and adaptations of the present invention, as well as variations, modifications and equivalent arrangements, that do not depart from the substance or scope of the present invention. The foregoing disclosure is not intended or to be construed to limit the present invention or otherwise to exclude such other embodiments, adaptations, variations, modifications and equivalent arrangements, the present invention being limited only by the claims appended hereto and the equivalents thereof.
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/711,711, filed Dec. 12, 2012.
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European Search Report EP 15 16 9866 dated Oct. 7, 2015. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20140305424 A1 | Oct 2014 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 13711711 | Dec 2012 | US |
Child | 14315824 | US |