Continuous grease fire suppression system
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing continuous cooking processes for bacon slices, such as microwave and circulating air oven systems, fail to produce precooked sliced bacon products with the same texture, bite, mouth feel, color, and appearance as home-fried products, while also being space-intensive and posing a significant fire risk due to high flammable grease production.
Innovation Solution
A spiral oven process that uses a fire suppressing vapor cooking medium with a temperature analyzer, finned heating elements, and a humidity analyzer to maintain a relative humidity of at least 10% vol. dry air, indirectly cooking bacon slices at an average temperature of 325°F to 650°F with a low contact flow velocity, and adding steam to reduce air partial pressure, ensuring consistent crispness and color without burning edges.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If continuous microwave oven systems are used to cook bacon slices, then production rate is improved, but the product texture, color, and appearance deteriorate significantly compared to home-fried products
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the cooking parameters by using a circulating air oven system with controlled air flow velocities (5-20 feet per second) and temperature ranges (325°F to 650°F), replacing the microwave energy field with thermal convection to achieve better product quality while maintaining continuous production capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from the electromagnetic dimension (microwave radiation) to the thermal convection dimension (circulating hot air), fundamentally changing the cooking mechanism to achieve pan-fried like texture and appearance while maintaining continuous processing capability
2Manufacturing precision
If continuous linear circulating air oven systems are used to cook bacon slices, then product texture and color are improved compared to microwave systems, but the system requires even greater floor space and presents higher fire risk
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces dynamic air circulation with variable velocities (5-20 feet per second) that can be adjusted during cooking, allowing flexible control of heat transfer rates and cooking uniformity, which improves product quality while optimizing space utilization through efficient heat distribution
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different air flow velocities and temperatures to different zones within the oven chamber, creating localized cooking conditions that optimize both product quality and energy efficiency, thereby reducing the overall space requirement for achieving the desired throughput
3Productivity
If high velocity impingement air is used in circulating air cooking processes, then cooking efficiency is improved, but the bacon slices are displaced on the conveyor belt
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses moderate air velocities (5-20 feet per second) rather than extreme high velocity impingement, applying just enough air flow to achieve efficient heat transfer and acceptable cooking times while staying below the threshold that would cause product displacement, thus balancing cooking efficiency with product stability
4Productivity
If continuous microwave or circulating air oven systems are used, then continuous production is achieved, but fire risk increases due to large amounts of hot flammable grease
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful effect of hot grease by using moderate air velocities that allow grease to cool and solidify on the conveyor belt rather than accumulating in liquid form, thereby maintaining continuous production capability while significantly reducing fire risk through physical state change of the grease
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The spiral oven process produces precooked sliced bacon with a consistent texture and color similar to home-fried bacon, reduces fire risk, and has a smaller footprint compared to traditional systems, achieving a product with a pan-fried texture and appearance without the space and safety issues of previous methods.
Implementation Method 1
finned heating elements in communication with the temperature analyzer and arranged to heat the fire suppressing vapor cooking medium
Implementation Method 2
adding steam to reduce air partial pressure
Implementation Method 3
a fire suppressing vapor cooking medium circulating within a cooking chamber
Data Source
AI summary
A continuous fire suppression system includes a fire suppressing vapor cooking medium circulating within a cooking chamber of a spiral oven; a temperature analyzer arranged to monitor a temperature of the fire suppressing vapor cooking medium; finned heating elements in communication with the temperature analyzer and arranged to heat the fire suppressing vapor cooking medium; a humidity analyzer arranged to monitor a relative humidity of the fire suppressing vapor cooking vapor medium; and a fire suppressing vapor cooking medium injector in communication with the humidity analyzers. the at least one fire suppressing vapor cooking medium injector arranged to inject the fire suppressing vapor cooking medium into the cooking chamber as needed to maintain a relative humidity equal to or greater than a relative humidity of no more than 10% vol. dry air with the remaining volume being the fire suppressing vapor cooking medium.