Movable Baffle Flue Hood for Gas Water Heaters
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Solution Overview
Problem
Outdoor gas water heating appliances face challenges in resisting winds and rains while ensuring smooth flue gas exhaust, as existing flue hoods allow ingress of external elements and hinder gas discharge.
Innovation Solution
A flue hood with a movable baffle that adjusts the cross-sectional opening size in the flue gas channel, allowing it to restrict external winds and rains while enabling smooth flue gas discharge by pivoting between three positions, ensuring optimal gas flow and drainage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If tongue plates are retained in the flue gas channel to resist winds and rains, then protection against external elements is improved, but gaps between tongue plates allow winds and rains to enter the appliance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a movable baffle instead of fixed tongue plates. The baffle can dynamically adjust its position and orientation in response to varying wind and rain conditions, allowing it to effectively block external elements while maintaining proper flue gas exhaust flow through the flue hood system
2Reliability
If relatively large gaps are defined between tongue plates to ensure exhaust of flue gas, then flue gas discharge is improved, but winds and rains can enter the appliance through these gaps
Solution Approach 1:
The movable baffle dynamically adjusts its position based on operating conditions. When flue gas exhaust is the priority, the baffle positions itself to allow adequate flow. When wind and rain resistance is priority, the baffle adjusts to block external elements, thus dynamically resolving the contradiction between exhaust efficiency and protection against harmful factors
3Object-affected harmful factors
If tongue plates are used to resist winds and rains, then protection against external elements is improved, but the tongue plates may hinder the exhaust of flue gas to some extent
Solution Approach 1:
The movable baffle can adjust its position and orientation dynamically. When protection against winds and rains is the primary concern, the baffle positions itself to block external elements. When flue gas exhaust efficiency is the primary concern, the baffle adjusts to minimize obstruction, thus dynamically optimizing productivity while maintaining protection when needed
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
Effectively resists winds and rains while ensuring smooth flue gas discharge, even under varying wind and gas flow conditions, preventing ingress and maintaining appliance efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
The movable baffle is pivotable on a pivot disposed in the flue gas channel
Implementation Method 2
The movable baffle is movably disposed in the flue gas channel to change an opening size in a cross section of the flue gas channel
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention discloses a flue hood including a shell and a movable baffle. The shell has a gas intake port, a gas exhaust port, and a flue gas channel in communication with the gas intake port and the gas exhaust port. The movable baffle is movably disposed in the flue gas channel to change an opening size in a cross section of the flue gas channel. By employing a movable baffle in the flue gas channel, when there is incoming external winds and/or rains, the movable baffle is able to restrict the opening size in the cross section of the flue gas channel thereby resisting the winds and/or rains, on the other side, when there is exhaust of flue gas, the movable baffle can be pushed by the gas flow to enlarge the opening size in the cross section of the flue gas channel to allow the flue gas to be discharged out smoothly.