Forced-Air Gas Burner for Wide Cooktop Power Modulation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing household gas cooktop burners lack adjustability for a broad range of heating power, requiring bulky designs to accommodate multiple flame crowns for secondary air, limiting their use for small and medium-sized pots and necessitating overdimensioning of the cooktop.

Innovation Solution

The burner incorporates a forced ventilation system with a motor-rotor unit to draw additional air and a gas flow, allowing for modulation of combustion power through a control unit that regulates air and gas flow rates, integrating traditional and enhanced flame configurations within a compact design.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If multiple flame crowns are provided to achieve broad heating power range, then heating power adjustability is improved, but device dimensions (width and clear height) increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveheating power adjustabilityVSAvoidcombustion unit dimensions
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSVolume of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent changes the physical state and delivery parameters of air by introducing a forced ventilation system that actively controls air supply rate, allowing a single combustion unit to achieve multiple heating power levels (400W to 7kW) without increasing physical dimensions, thereby resolving the contradiction between power adjustability and compact size

Inventive Principle:
Principle #35Parameter changes

2Adaptability or versatility

If forced ventilation system is added to enable broad power range modulation, then heating power adjustability is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveheating power modulationVSAvoidventilation system complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent employs pneumatic principles through a motor-rotor forced ventilation system that uses fluid dynamics to control air-gas mixture delivery. The system utilizes a diffuser body with strategically positioned holes and passages that leverage pressure differentials and flow dynamics to achieve precise combustion control, enabling broad power modulation while managing complexity through fluid-based rather than purely mechanical control

Inventive Principle:
Principle #29Pneumatics and hydraulics

3Area of stationary object

If compact burner design is used for small and medium pots, then cooktop size is reduced, but heating power range is limited

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecooktop sizeVSAvoidheating power range
Core Design Contradiction:
Area of stationary objectVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary action by pre-mixing air and gas in a carefully designed diffuser body before combustion. The diffuser contains multiple holes and passages that pre-position and pre-mix the combustion gases, allowing a compact burner to efficiently generate a broad heating power range (400W to 7kW) suitable for small and medium pots without requiring oversized cooktop space

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

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

This solution enables modulation of combustion power from 400W to 7kW, allowing for ultra-rapid heating of pots of various sizes while maintaining temperature, reducing cooktop size requirements and ensuring efficient combustion with a constant fuel-to-air ratio.

Implementation Method 1

at least one enhancement device 14 with a forced ventilation unit, for example a motor-rotor unit 15, so configured as to be able to suck a second air volume 16 from an environment different from the area of the first air volume 10

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectForced Convection: Forced Convection

Implementation Method 2

a venturi tube mixer 11 with a gas passage having a throttled section portion 12 and one or more passages 13 for the air 10 which open in the proximity of the throttled section portion 12, so that the gas acts as a driving fluid to draw the first air volume 10 into the partial gas flow 9

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectVenturi Effect: Venturi Effect

Implementation Method 3

one or more combustion units 4 with a plurality of flame outlet holes 5, 6 defining a flame configuration of the burner 2

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectCombustion: Combustion

Data Source

PatentEP2072900B1Burner for a household gas cooktop and household gas cooktop
Publication Date: 2011.06.15 CANDY
  • EP2072900B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2072900B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP2072900B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

A burner (2) for a household gas cooktop (1) comprising one or more combustion units (4), one or more gas partial ducts (7) connected to each of the combustion units (4), a regulating valve (8) of the gas passage in the partial duct (7), air (11, 12, 13) feeding means to the gas flow (9) in the partial duct (7). The burner (1) further comprises a enhancement device (14) with a forced suction unit (15) to suck a second air volume (16) from an area which is different from the area of the first air volume (10), a ventilation duct (17) connecting the forced suction unit (15) to an enhanced combustion unit (4) of said combustion units (4) in order to supply the second air volume (16) to the enhanced combustion unit (4), an auxiliary duct (18) connected to the ventilation duct (17) and adapted to supply a second gas flow (19) to the second air volume (16), an auxiliary valve (20) to regulate the second gas flow (19) in the auxiliary duct (18).