Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02491571 2005-O1-04
-1-
An apparatus for igniting charcoal
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an apparatus for igniting charcoal with the help of
an in-
flammable sustainable material, especially a material based on wood
2. Describtion of the Prior Art
Different igniting aids are used for igniting charcoal, which consist either
of an
easily inflammable, fixed, pasty or liquid combustible or of a carrier
impregnated
with an easily inflammable combustible. The disadvantage in connection with
such
known igniting aids is that they form locally limited pockets of fire which
produce
individual nests of embers from which it is necessary to kindle a stock of
embers
which will then gradually include the entire charcoal. This mostly requires
the use
of blast air. An additional factor is that such igniting aids must meet
respective
requirements concerning the neutrality of taste and odor and the freedom of
harm-
less effects concerning their use in connection with foodstuffs. Wood
materials
meet such requirements, but it is necessary to light the charcoal with the
help of
wood chips or slats because the wood material needs to be ignited first and
with
the use of the flames and the smoke gases the charcoal applied to the wood
fire
needs to be heated to inflammation temperature. Moreover, the igniting of char-
coal into a uniform stock of embers with the help of a wood fire depends on
the
type of stacking of the wood and the employed wood quantity and thus on the
skill
and experience of a person igniting the wood fire.
Summary of the Invention
The invention is thus based on the object of providing an apparatus for
igniting
charcoal of the kind mentioned above in such a way that a uniform stock of em-
CA 02491571 2005-O1-04
-2-
bers is achieved irrespective of the skill of a person igniting the charcoal,
and this
without having to use blast air.
This object is achieved by the invention by a cage receiving the charcoal
which
comprises a circumferential wall which is provided with pass-through openings
and is made of the sustainable material.
Since as a result of this measure the material for igniting the charcoal forms
a
cage enclosing the charcoal, the charcoal to be lit is held together within
the
circumferential wall of the cage and is heated on all sides by the burning
circum-
ferential wall, with the pass-through openings in the circumferential wall
ensure
not only a favorable supply of combustion air for the lit cage, but also for
the char-
coal enclosed by the cage. The combustion of the circumferential wall of the
cage
leads to a bundling of the heat in the region of the charcoal enclosed by the
cage,
which ensures a stock of embers which penetrates the stacked charcoal in an
even fashion without having to employ additional blast air. Since the quantity
of
charcoal to be used on the average is predetermined at least roughly by the re-
ceiving volume of the cage and the quantity of material used for forming the
circumferential wall can be adjusted to this quantity of charcoal, very
advanta-
geous conditions for igniting the charcoal required for a barbequing process
are
obtained.
Although the basic shape of the cage is not relevant for the successful
igniting of
the charcoal, a cage is still recommended which comprises a circumferential
wall
with a polygonal configuration composed of straight walls because straight
walls
are generally easier to produce. Such walls can consist of boards into which
the
pass-through openings for the combustion air have been punched, drilled or
milled. In order to avoid the waste entailed by the cutting of the pass-
through
holes, the walls of the circumferential walls of the cage can advantageously
con-
sist of rods which are spaced from one another and situated above one another
and are made of a sustainable material, so that the pass-through openings be-
tween the rods are obtained automatically.
CA 02491571 2005-O1-04
-3-
The joining of the rods into cage walls can occur in different ways, e.g. by
fasten-
ing the rods to corner pillars. Especially simple constructional conditions
are ob-
tained in this connection when the ends of the rods of adjacent cage walls lie
above one another in an alternating fashion and are joined with each other, so
that the rods of the one wall act as spacers for the rods of the other wall.
The
stacked rod ends also ensure a sufficient cohesion of the cage during the
igniting
of the charcoal due to the larger quantity of combustible in the corner
region.
Although the rods of adjacent cage walls can be joined to each other in the
stacked end region in different ways, especially advantageous constructional
con-
ditions are obtained when the ends of the stacked rods are joined by
penetrating
wood dowels because in this case the joining means will also burn completely
without residue. The wood dowels can be held in an interlocking manner in the
receiving pass-through bores in the rods in order to avoid glued joints.
The cage principally does not require a floor if the cage is placed on a
grating re-
ceiving the charcoal. A cage floor offers advantages however because prior to
the
burning of the cage floor the coal is held by the same. Such cages can
therefore
also form a packing unit together with the charcoal. To ensure that a simple
and
uncomplicated floor for the cage can be inserted, the cage can comprise a
floor
made of cardboard which in the case of a configuration of the cage walls made
of
rods is preferably held between the two lowermost layers of rods.
For igniting the cage receiving the charcoal, igniting aids can be used. In
this con-
nection the circumferential wall of the cage can be impregnated at least in
sec-
tions with an easily flammable combustible, with wax being the obvious choice
as
a natural combustible. It is also possible that the cage carries igniting aids
in its
corner regions on the floor side, which igniting aids are impregnated with an
easily
inflammable combustible and consist of cotton strings which are saturated with
wax. The circumferential wall will generally consist of wood. It is also
advanta-
geous to process other sustainable materials such as straw or reed, if
respectively
available.
CA 02491571 2005-O1-04
-4-
Brief Description of the Drawings
The subject matter of the invention is shown in the drawings by way of
example,
wherein:
Fig. 1 shows an apparatus in accordance with the invention for igniting
charcoal
in a partly elevated, simplified side view, and
Fig. 2 shows the apparatus according to fig. 1 in a top view.
Description of the Preferred Embodiments
The illustrated apparatus consists according to the shown embodiment of a cage
with a circumferential wall 1 which is square in its layout and comprises cage
walls
2 and 3 which are opposite of each other in pairs. Said cage walls 2 and 3 are
each composed of rods 4 made of sawn wooden laths which are spaced and ar-
ranged above one another. For this purpose the ends of the rods 4 of adjacent
cage walls 2, 3 are situated alternating above one another, as is shown in
fig. 1.
Wood dowels 5 are provided for joining the rods of adjacent walls 2, 3, which
dowels penetrate the rods 4 in aligned pass-through bores 6. In order to avoid
the
use of glue, a non-positive fixing of the wood dowels 5 in the pass-through
bores
6 is sufficient. The cage 1 is not under tension in the direction of the wood
dowels
5.
A floor 9 made of cardboard is inserted between the two lowermost rod layers
7, 8,
which floor is also penetrated by the wood dowels 6. The charcoal to be lit
can
thus be poured onto the floor 9 between the cage walls 2, 3 before the cage
walls
2, 3 are lit.
Igniting aids 10 can be provided for igniting the cage walls 2, 3, which
igniting aids
can consist of a cotton string 11 which is saturated with wax and which is
wrapped
around corner pillars which are formed by the superimposed rod ends and is
held
together by twisting the string ends. A sufficiently even igniting of the
circumferen-
tial wall 1 of the cage is ensured by igniting such igniting aids 10 in the
region of
all cage corners.
CA 02491571 2005-O1-04
-5-
Another possibility for igniting the circumferential wall of the cage is to
impregnate
the rods 4 of the individual cage walls 2, 3 with an easily inflammable
combustible
such as wax, so that the rods 4 per se can be lit in an easy manner. A
saturation
of the lower rod layers would be sufficient in this case because the rising
flames
and smoke gases will ensure a rapid igniting of the upper rod layers.
As a result of the circumferential wall 1 which can be ignited on all sides,
the char-
coal stacked in the cage is heated from all sides, leading to the rapid
formation of
a stock of embers in the charcoal expanding over the entire layout of the cage
without having to use blast air in addition. The combustion air is guided
through
the pass-through openings 12 to the expanding stock of embers in the charcoal,
which pass-through openings are obtained between the stacked rods 4 of the in-
dividual walls 2, 3, so that there are favorable igniting conditions also
within the
circumferential wall 1.
It is understood that the invention is not limited to the illustrated
embodiment be-
cause it is merely relevant to produce a cage with a circumferential wall
forming
pass-through openings for the combustion air, which wall is representative of
a
combustible sufficient for igniting the charcoal and consists of a
sustainable, read-
ily available material, as is formed especially by wood. The circumferential
wall
can also be made of other combustible materials such as straw or reed. It is
merely necessary to take into account that the circumferential wall leads to a
suffi-
cient stock of combustible in order to ignite a quantity of charcoal into a
stock of
embers which is determined by the receiving volume of the cage. The contour of
the cage does not play any role linked to the function, although a square
layout
ensures simple constructional conditions, especially when the walls are
composed
of individual rods.
