Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02678140 2011-07-15
FLAME TAMERS AND ARRANGEMENT THEREOF FOR
BARBECUE GRILLS
(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a design of flame tamer for use in a barbeque
burner box and more particularly to flame tamers that have protruding openings
for guiding the heat energy from heat sources toward particular directions so
that
the heat energy can be evenly distributed to enhance the cooking efficiency.
The
invention relates also to ways of arrangement of the flame tamers in the
barbeque
burner box.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
A known flame tamer for a barbeque burner box is to be bridged on a barbeque
burner box above a heat source. This design of flame tamer has a double-
beveled
configuration. Small holes may be made on the flame tamer for allowing upward
hot air to pass. However, this design of flame tamer cannot distribute heat
energy
evenly throughout the whole area of the barbeque cooking surface. During
cooking, there is a temperature difference between the hot spot around the
center
of the barbeque cooking surface and the cold spot around the border of the
barbeque grill. This temperature difference results in low cooking efficiency
and
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waste of fuel energy, and the food tends to be overcooked or
undercooked.
US Pat. No. 6332395 teaches the use of a board in a barbeque
burner box above a heat source to enhance heat distribution.
However, this arrangement cannot evenly distribute heat energy
throughout the whole cooking area. US Pat. No. 5617778 teaches
the application of apertures to guide heat source. This measure
still cannot achieve even distribution of heat source. US Pat. No.
61 87359 teaches the use of a resistant metal plate for placing over
the burners. The plate has a series of louvered openings which
allow heat to rise from the barbeque flames while blocking the
flames.
Because conventional designs cannot guide heat source to be
evenly distributed over the whole area of the barbeque cooking
surface, the temperature around the center area of the barbeque
cooking surface will be relatively higher than the border area of
the barbeque cooking surface, resulting in low cooking efficiency
and waste of fuel gas.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been accomplished under the
circumstances in view. It is one object of the present invention to
provide a flame tamer for bridging in a barbeque burner box in a
barbeque grill set to distribute heat energy evenly over the
barbeque cooking surface so that the food can be cooked evenly
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and efficiently, thus saving much energy consumption.
According to the present invention, there is provided a flame tamer for
bridging on a
barbeque burner box above heat sources in said barbeque burner box to
distribute
heat energy from the heat sources evenly in said barbeque burner box, said
flame
tamer having at least one protruding opening facing toward a first peripheral
wall of
said barbeque burner box, and at least one protruding opening facing toward a
second peripheral wall of said barbeque burner box, wherein the first
peripheral wall
is immediately adjacent to and substantially perpendicular to the second
peripheral
wall.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is also provided a
flame
tamer and barbeque burner box arrangement, comprising:
a barbeque burner box having a front wall, a rear wall, a left sidewall
substantially perpendicular to the front wall and the rear wall and a right
sidewall
substantially perpendicular to the front wall and the rear wall,
a set of flame tamers including a left flame tamer, a right flame tamer and at
least one middle flame tamer, each said flame tamer bridged on the front wall
and
the rear wall of said barbeque burner box above heat sources, and
a barbeque grill in said barbeque burner box, wherein:
said left flame tamer is disposed close to the left sidewall of said barbeque
burner box, having at least one first protruding opening facing toward the
left
sidewall of said barbeque burner box and at least one second protruding
opening
facing toward the front wall of said barbeque burner box;
said right flame tamer is disposed close to the right sidewall of said
barbeque
burner box, having at least one first protruding opening facing toward the
right
sidewall of said barbeque burner box and at least one second protruding
opening
facing toward the front wall of said barbeque burner box; and
said at least one middle flame tamer is set between said left flame tamer and
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said right flame tamer, each said middle flame tamer having at least one first
protruding opening disposed at a front end thereof and facing toward the front
wall of
said barbeque burner box.
Other aspects, objectives, embodiments, applications, variants and/or
resulting
advantages of the present invention, all being preferred, are briefly
summarized
hereinbelow.
Indeed, to achieve other objects of the present invention, a flame tamer for
use in a
barbeque burner box is to be bridged on two opposite peripheral walls, namely,
the
front and rear walls of the barbeque burner box, having at least one
protruding
opening for guiding the hot air from the heat source in the barbeque burner
box
toward at least one of the peripheral walls of the barbeque burner box so that
the
food can be cooked evenly and efficiently on the barbeque cooking surface.
In one application example, a left flame tamer, a right flame tamer and at
least one
middle flame tamer are bridged on the front wall and rear wall of the barbeque
burner box above the heat sources. The left flame tamer is disposed close to
the left
sidewall of the barbeque burner box, having at least one first protruding
opening
extending in a direction toward the left sidewall of the barbeque burner box
and at
least one second protruding opening extending in a direction toward the front
wall of
the barbeque burner box. The right flame tamer is disposed close to the right
sidewall of the barbeque burner box, having at least one first protruding
opening
extending in a direction toward the right sidewall of the barbeque burner box
and at
least one second protruding opening extending in a direction toward the front
wall of
the barbeque burner box. The at least one middle flame tamer is set between
the left
flame tamer and the right flame tamer. Each middle flame tamer has at least
one first
protruding opening
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disposed at one end thereof and extending in a direction toward
the front wall of the barbeque burner box.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a flame tamer in accordance
with a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a flame tamer in accordance
with a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 3.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a flame tamer in accordance
with a third embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line C-C of FIG. 5.
FIG. 7 is a top view of the present invention, showing flame
tamers of the first, second and third embodiments arranged on a
barbeque burner box.
FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along line D-D of FIG. 7.
FIG. 9 is schematic sectional assembly of the present
invention, showing the flame tamers bridged on the barbeque
burner box above the heat sources.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to FIGS. 1-6, first, second and third flame tamers
1;2;3 constructed according to the first, second and third
embodiments of the present invention are shown. As shown in FIG.
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7, a barbeque burner box 4 of a barbeque grill set has four
peripheral walls 41, 42, 43 and 44. The flame tamers 1, 2, 3
commonly have at least one protruding opening facing one of the
peripheral walls 41, 42, 43 or 44 of the barbeque burner box 4 (see
FIG. 7) for guiding the upward flow of hot air from the heat
sources 5 (see FIG, 8 and FIG. 9) toward the cold spot of the
barbeque burner box 4 to rapidly and evenly distribute the thermal
energy over the whole area of the barbeque grill 6 to cook the food
on the barbeque grill 6, thereby saving energy consumption and
preventing the food from being unevenly cooked.
Referring to FIG. 7 and FIGS. 1 and 2 again, the first flame
tamer I in accordance with the first embodiment of the present
invention is supported between two opposite peripheral walls,
namely, the front wall 42 and the rear wall 44 of the barbeque
burner box 4 near one side wall 41 (the left side of the barbeque
burner box 4), having at least one, for example three, first
protruding openings 11 arranged in line and extending in a
direction toward the left side wall 41 and at least one, for example
two, second protruding openings 12 extending in a direction
toward the front wall 42.
Referring to FIG. 3, FIG. 4 and FIG. 7 again, at least one
second flame tamer 2 in accordance with the second embodiment
of the present invention is supported between the front wall 42
and the rear wall 44 of the barbeque burner box 4 in the middle,
having at least one, for example two, protruding openings 21
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extending in a direction toward the front wall 42. The number of
the second flame tamer 2 to be bridged on the barbeque burner box
4 is determined according to the size of the barbeque burner box
4. According to the application example shown in FIG. 7, two
pieces of second flame tamers 2 are bridged on the barbeque
burner box 4 in the middle.
Referring to FIG. 5, FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 again, the third flame
tamer 3 in accordance with the third embodiment of the present
invention is supported between the front wall 42 and the rear wall
44 of the barbeque burner box 4 near the other side wall 43 (the
right side of the barbeque burner box 4), having at least one, for
example three, first protruding openings 31 arranged in line and
extending in a direction toward the right side wall 43 of the
barbeque burner box 4 and at least one, for example two, second
protruding openings 32 extending in a direction toward the front
wall 42.
Referring to FIG. 8, the aforesaid flame tamers 1, 2 and 3 are
bridged on the barbeque burner box 4 above the heat sources 5.
According to this application example, the heat sources 5 are
elongated gas burners (see FIG. 9) controllable by respective
burner control knobs 7. When the head sources 5 are activated,
heat energy is transferred to the flame tamers 1, 2 and 3 and
evenly distributed through the whole area of the barbeque grill 6.
At the same time, the protruding openings 11, 12, 21, 31 and 32 of
the flame tamers 1, 2 and 3 guide part of the heat energy toward
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the border area of the barbeque burner box 4 so that heat energy
is evenly distributed throughout the whole area of the barbeque
grill 6 to cook food thoroughly, thus achieving high cooking
efficiency and preventing the food from being overcooked or
undercooked.
Each of the flame tamers 1, 2 and 3 has a plate body with a
double-beveled configuration. Each of the protruding openings
(11, 12, 21, 31 or 32) comprises an opening on the plate body and
a chute protruding over the opening in a certain direction for
guiding the hot air flowing through the opening. Except the
protruding openings 11, 12, 21, 31 or 32, the plate body forming
each of the flame tamers is an enclosed surface. To reinforce the
structural strength and heat transfer effect, the flame tamers 1, 2
and 3 preferably have a concave convex surface configuration.
The flange tamer I further has a front extension portion 14 and a
rear extension portion 13 for supporting on the front wall 42 and
the rear wall 44 of the barbeque burner box 4 respectively.
Similarly, the flame tamer 2 further has a front extension portion
23 and a rear extension portion 22, and the flame tamer 3 further
has a front extension portion 34 and a rear extension portion 33,
for supporting on the front wall 42 and the rear extension wall 44
respectively.
There is no any special limitation on the configuration of the
barbeque burner box 4. The heat sources 5 of the barbeque burner
box 4 are not limited to fuel gas. Further, the configurations of the
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flame tamers 1, 2 and 3 may be changed, however the protruding openings 11,
12,
21, 31 and 32 are requisite structural features. As far as the length, width
and
material are concerned, they are determined according to actual needs.
However,
excellent heat distribution is necessary. Further, the shape, opening and
elevation
angle of the protruding openings 11, 12, 21, 31 and 32 as well as the
positioning
structure between the flame tamers 1, 2 and 3 and the front wall 42 and the
rear wall
44 of the barbeque burner box 4 can be altered.
The scope of the claims should not be limited by the preferred embodiments set
forth
in the examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent
with the
description as a whole.
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