Outdoor cooker and smoker, and fuel combustor therefor

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9510604-B2
Application number	US-201414305718-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 16, 2014
Priority date	Jun 17, 2013
Publication date	Dec 6, 2016
Grant date	Dec 6, 2016

Abstract

An apparatus for cooking or smoking and a fuel combustor therefor. In the cooking or smoking apparatus and method, combustion products produced by the combustor, by a gas burner, or by other means are preferably delivered upwardly through an upwardly extending inner flow gap which at least partially surrounds a cooking or smoking chamber. The combustion products are preferably then delivered downwardly through the cooking or smoking chamber and then upwardly through an upwardly extending outer flow gap which is outside of the inner flow gap and which also at least partially surrounds the cooking or smoking chamber.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for cooking or smoking a food product comprising a housing having:
an upwardly extending first wall;
an upwardly extending interior wall inside of the upwardly extending first wall;
a food cooking or smoking chamber, for cooking or smoking the food product, which is defined within the upwardly extending interior wall and is at least partially surrounded by the upwardly extending interior wall in a horizontal plane;
an upwardly extending intermediate wall between the upwardly extending first wall and the upwardly extending interior wall;
an upwardly extending inner flow gap which is formed between the upwardly extending interior wall and the upwardly extending intermediate wall and which at least partially surrounds the food cooking or smoking chamber in the horizontal plane;
an upwardly extending outer flow gap which is formed between the upwardly extending intermediate wall and the upwardly extending first wall and which at least partially surrounds the food cooking or smoking chamber in the horizontal plane; and
a flow path defined in the housing for combustion products, wherein the flow path travels through the upwardly extending inner flow gap, the food cooking or smoking chamber, and the upwardly extending outer flow gap,
wherein the apparatus further comprises a fuel burner assembly for producing the combustion products, the fuel burner assembly having a discharge for the combustion products which is in fluid communication with a lower end portion of the upwardly extending inner flow gap and
the fuel burner assembly comprises:
a combustion chamber;
an upwardly extending first wall of the fuel burner assembly;
an upwardly extending second wall within the upwardly extending first wall of the fuel burner assembly, wherein the upwardly extending second wall surrounds at least most of the combustion chamber in a second horizontal plane;
an upwardly extending flow passage formed between the upwardly extending second wall and the upwardly extending first wall of the fuel burner assembly, wherein the upwardly extending flow passage surrounds at least most of the combustion chamber in the second horizontal plane;
a fuel support element within the combustion chamber;
a plurality of flow apertures provided through the upwardly extending second wall which place the combustion chamber in fluid communication with the upwardly extending flow passage; and
a delivery path defined in the fuel burner assembly for the combustion products, wherein the delivery path travels through the flow apertures from the combustion chamber into the upwardly extending flow passage, then upwardly through the upwardly extending flow passage, and then into the lower end portion of the upwardly extending inner flow gap of the housing of the apparatus.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of flow ducts located at a lower end portion of the food cooking or smoking chamber which extend outwardly through the upwardly extending inner flow gap to place the lower end portion of the food cooking or smoking chamber in fluid communication with a lower end portion of the upwardly extending outer flow gap.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the flow path defined in the housing for the combustion products travels upwardly through the upwardly extending inner flow gap, then downwardly through the food cooking or smoking chamber, then outwardly through the flow ducts from the lower end portion of the food cooking or smoking chamber to the lower end portion of the upwardly extending outer flow gap, and then upwardly through the upwardly extending outer flow gap.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the flow apertures are positioned at an elevation which is not more than one inch higher than the fuel support element.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the fuel burner assembly further comprises air openings in the first wall of the fuel burner assembly which are positioned at an elevation lower than the fuel support element.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the upwardly extending flow passage entirely surrounds the combustion chamber in the second horizontal plane.

7. An apparatus for cooking or smoking a food product comprising:
a housing having:
an upwardly extending first wall,
an upwardly extending interior wall inside of the upwardly extending first wall,
a food cooking or smoking chamber, for receiving and cooking or smoking the food product, which is defined within the upwardly extending interior wall and is at least partially surrounded by the upwardly extending interior wall in a horizontal plane,
an upwardly extending intermediate wall between the upwardly extending first wall and the upwardly extending interior wall,
an upwardly extending inner flow gap which is formed between the upwardly extending interior wall and the upwardly extending intermediate wall and which at least partially surrounds the food cooking or smoking chamber in the horizontal plane, and
an upwardly extending outer flow gap which is formed between the upwardly extending intermediate wall and the upwardly extending first wall and which at least partially surrounds the food cooking or smoking chamber in the horizontal plane;
a fuel combustion chamber for burning a fuel to produce combustion products for contacting and cooking or smoking the food product, the fuel combustion chamber being different from and separated from the food cooking or smoking chamber so that the combustion products are prevented from flowing directly from the fuel combustion chamber into the food cooking or smoking chamber;
the fuel combustion chamber having a discharge for the combustion products which is in fluid communication with a lower end portion of the upwardly extending inner flow gap so that the combustion products must travel upwardly through at least a portion of the upwardly extending inner flow gap before entering the food cooking or smoking chamber; and
a combustion products flow path defined in the housing for the combustion products, wherein the combustion products flow path proceeds upwardly through at least a portion of the upwardly extending inner flow gap, then downwardly in the food cooking or smoking chamber, and then upwardly through at least a portion of the upwardly extending outer flow gap.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 further comprising a plurality of flow ducts located at a lower end portion of the food cooking or smoking chamber which extend outwardly through the upwardly extending inner flow gap from the lower end portion of the food cooking or smoking chamber to a lower end portion of the upwardly extending outer flow gap to place the lower end portion of the food cooking or smoking chamber in fluid communication with the lower end portion of the upwardly extending outer flow gap while preventing the combustion products from the lower end portion of the food cooking and smoking chamber from entering the lower portion of the upwardly extending inner flow gap.

9. The apparatus of claim 7 further comprising:
a top opening of the food cooking or smoking chamber for receiving and removing the food product and
a cover for opening and closing the top opening.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the upwardly extending inner flow gap and the upwardly extending outer flow gap entirely surround the food cooking or smoking chamber in the horizontal plane.

11. The apparatus of claim 7 further comprising a food support element positioned in the food cooking or smoking chamber.

12. The apparatus of claim 7 further comprising one or more bottom walls of the food cooking or smoking chamber which separate the fuel combustion chamber from the food cooking or smok

Assignees

• Bradley W C Co

Inventors

• Ahmed Mallik

Classifications

• A23L5/10

  General methods of cooking foods, e.g. by roasting or frying · CPC title

• A47J37/0713

  with gas burners · CPC title

• A23B4/052 Primary

  Smoke generators {; Smoking apparatus} · CPC title

• A23V2002/00

  Food compositions, function of food ingredients or processes for food or foodstuffs · CPC title

• F24C3/08

  Arrangement or mounting of burners · CPC title