Patent Application
20070137503
The present invention relates to pellet-fueled smoke generators that may be used in conjunction with so-called “smokers” or “smokehouses” in the preparation of food by smoking.
Pellet fuel has been recognized as an inexpensive and clean burning fuel with smoke that imparts the flavor of a wood-based fire to food. Such pellets are conventionally prepared by pelletizing comminuted wood waste under heat and pressure to produce a product of substantially uniform size. The use of solid pellets as a fuel source is known in the art of self-contained stoves and barbeques. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,823,684 and 6,223,737 describe barbeque devices that both smoke and cook food by the burning of pellet fuel.
Unlike stoves or barbeques, smoke generators do not include a means for supporting or storing the food to be prepared. Instead, smoke generators may be attached, as by tubing or piping, to a separate “smoker” or “smokehouse” unit with racks supporting the food to be smoked and/or cooked. Having separate devices for generating smoke and storing food allows for greater temperature adjustability and smoke purification. For instance, smoke in a self-contained stove or barbeque unit may reach the food at a temperature of 400° F. whereas smoke may enter a smokehouse from a smoke generator at 120 to 140° F., allowing for a wider range of applications. In the art of smoke generators, only fuel such as sawdust or charcoal is known, as can be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,270,464 and 6,705,213. Charcoal is known to be an expensive fuel source, can be messy to handle, and requires significant time to ignite. Further, both charcoal and sawdust fuel are known to impart creosote chemicals, hydrocarbons, and other chemicals to the food being smoked or cooked, which may be unhealthy and can leave food with a bitter taste.
The present invention includes the burning of pellet-fuel in a separate, smoke generating device, allowing for the use of clean-burning and flavorful pellet fuel in a wide range of smoking applications. These and other objects and advantages are attained by the invention, which is described below.
An apparatus for generating smoke is provided. The apparatus includes a hopper chamber that is adapted to receive pellet fuel and a smoke chamber that is adapted to collect and emit smoke. It also includes a pellet burning assembly with ends adjacent each chamber. The pellet burning assembly includes openings positioned to receive pellet fuel from within the hopper chamber and auger means for conveying pellet fuel from the openings to fire pots with perforated sides and a top communicating with the interior of the smoke chamber. The smoke chamber includes a baffle adapted to deflect sparks rising from the fire pots. The apparatus also includes one or more blowers adapted to supply air to the fire pot through the perforated sides of the fire pot.
As noted above, hopper chamber 12 may receive pellets 24 and deposit the pellets in pellet burning assembly 14. Hopper chamber 12 may be generally cubical and may have a floor 34, sides 36 and a top 38. Top 38 may act as an openable cover for depositing pellets 24 into hopper chamber 12. The hopper chamber may also contain funneling members 40 in the form of plates adjacent at one end to the interior sides 36 of hopper chamber 12. Funneling members 40 may be adapted to guide pellets 24 into one or more openings 42.
Fire pots 28 may comprise cylinders with bottom 54, side 56 and an open top 58. Auger tube assemblies 50 may be connected to fire pots 28 through a circular opening in side 56. Through open top 58, fire pots 28 may communicate with the interior of smoke chamber 16. Side 56 may contain perforations 60. Fire pots 28 may also communicate with the lower interior 62 of rectangular housing 44 through perforations 60. Blowers 64 may be attached as by welding to rectangular housing 44 at a point approximately underneath openings 42. Blowers 64 may communicate with lower interior 62 and, accordingly, may communicate with fire pots 28 through perforations 60. Augers 26 may be powered by electric motors 66 which may be disposed at extreme pellet entry end 46 of rectangular housing 44.
As depicted in
As noted, in the depicted embodiment, smoke chamber 16 also contains spark baffle 30 with baffle member 80. Baffle member 80 is supported by a support member 82 and a support bar 84. Baffle member 80 may be generally cone-shaped with the based disposed so that it is parallel to floor 68. Support bar 84 may be disposed across the diameter of the circular opening between smoke outlet 18 and vent hood 78. Support member 82 may be attached to support bar 84 and may extend downward to connect to the apex of baffle member 80 such that support member 84 is disposed perpendicularly to floor 68.
To begin operating the pellet-fired smoke generator, the door of the smoke chamber is opened and a small amount of pellets are placed in the fire pots along with combustible material such as paper. Next, the user turns on the blowers. The user then lights the pellets and combustible material in the fire pots, beginning combustion, and closes the door of the smoke chamber. To continue combustion, the cover of the hopper chamber is lifted and additional pellets are placed into the hopper chamber. The pellets are guided by funneling plates through the openings 42 and into the auger tubes. The user then activates the electric motors, which begin to turn the augers. The augers gradually convey the pellets through the auger tube and into the fire pots, where the pellets provide additional fuel for combustion.
To aid in combustion and the movement of smoke, the blowers push air along the lower interior of the pellet-burning assembly housing, through the perforations in the sides of the fire pots, and up into the smoke chamber, as indicated by the arrows in
It is believed that the disclosure set forth above encompasses multiple distinct inventions with independent utility. While each of these inventions has been disclosed in its preferred form, the specific embodiments thereof as disclosed and illustrated herein are not to be considered in a limiting sense as numerous variations are possible. The subject matter of the inventions includes all novel and non-obvious combinations and subcombinations of the various elements, features, functions and/or properties disclosed herein. Similarly, where the claims recite “a” or “a first” element or the equivalent thereof, such claims should be understood to include incorporation of one or more such elements, neither requiring nor excluding two or more such elements.
