Slide-Type Range Hood with Movable Jet Plenum for Compact Fume Capture
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional exhaust hoods for kitchen ventilation are large and obstructive, requiring significant room air intake to ensure complete capture and containment of pollutants, which can obstruct the view and are inefficient in terms of space usage.
Innovation Solution
The system employs movable jet plenums that can be repositioned to optimize airflow and capture fumes effectively, using high-velocity jets to transfer momentum to surrounding air and direct fumes away from cooking appliances, with automated control systems and user override options to adjust positioning based on appliance state.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a large interior void hood is used to smooth fume fluctuations and ensure full capture and containment, then pollutant capture effectiveness is improved, but the hood becomes large and tall obstructing the view across the kitchen
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a movable jet plenum that can be repositioned horizontally along the ductwork. This dynamic positioning allows the hood to be adjusted to different locations, optimizing both fume capture effectiveness and visibility requirements for different kitchen layouts and cooking positions, thereby resolving the contradiction between hood size and capture effectiveness
Solution Approach 2:
The invention segments the traditional monolithic hood into a modular system with a stationary duct and a movable jet plenum component. This segmentation allows the functional elements to be separated, enabling the jet plenum to be positioned independently to achieve optimal fume capture without requiring a large fixed hood structure
2Reliability
If a large volume of room air is drawn to ensure all fumes are captured without interior void, then pollutant capture is improved, but energy consumption and air handling requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the traditional mechanical exhaust system that relies on large volumes of room air intake with a jet-induced airflow system. The jet plenum creates a jet stream that mechanically induces surrounding air to flow through the duct, substituting the need for large-scale mechanical air handling with a more efficient jet-driven flow mechanism
3Adaptability or versatility
If the jet plenum is repositioned manually during installation or by the cook, then adaptability to different appliances and viewing needs is improved, but system complexity and operational interruption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements an automated control system that uses sensors to detect appliance operation status and automatically positions the jet plenum accordingly. The system serves itself by detecting when cooking is occurring and autonomously adjusting the plenum position, eliminating the need for manual intervention and reducing operational complexity while maintaining high adaptability
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 allows for efficient capture and containment of kitchen fumes while minimizing the need for large air intake, reducing the overall footprint of the ventilation system and improving visibility in the kitchen, with adjustable jet plenums ensuring effective fume removal regardless of appliance depth or cooking mode.
Implementation Method 1
a jet plenum having one or more jet openings on a distal end configured to create a jet
Implementation Method 2
functions as a low hood that can be repositioned... to optimize its overhang... the position of the jet plenum may be changed
Implementation Method 3
the fan plenum and the jet plenum each having a respective flow-transfer opening that overlaps the opening of the other... to allow air to flow from the fan to the jet plenum to the one or more openings and form a jet
Data Source
Figure 1A~1C
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
An exhaust device has a fan plenum with a fan and a jet plenum having a generally planar shape with one or more jet openings on a distal end thereof configured to create a planar jet. The jet plenum is movably attached at a proximal end thereof to the fan plenum to permit sliding movement of the jet plenum relative to the fan plenum. The fan plenum and the jet plenum each have a respective flow-transfer opening that overlaps the opening of the other, the respective openings being shaped and arranged to remain overlapped in all positions to which the jet plenum is moved relative to the fan plenum such that an interior of the fan plenum and the jet plenum remain in fluid communication to allow air to flow from the fan to flow from the fan plenum to the jet plenum.