The present disclosure relates to ovens and is particularly, although not exclusively, concerned with vapour or steam generation in ovens.

Background

Ovens for cooking or curing foodstuffs are known. It may be desired to produce vapour, such as steam, to aid a cooking process.

Steam is conventionally generated by filling a vessel with water or saturating an absorbent item with water, and placing it in the oven chamber to be heated and covert to steam. Alternatively, water may be directly sprayed into the oven chamber. However, these methods have problems, such as taking up valuable space in the oven chamber, being slow to create large volumes of steam, and/or potentially damaging the oven due to thermal shock.

Further developments in steam generation in ovens would be desirable. Statements

According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an oven comprising: an oven housing containing an oven chamber for containing foodstuffs to be cooked; an aperture formed in the oven housing for receiving liquid; and a vaporiser configured to receive liquid that is received by the aperture, vaporise the liquid into vapour, and convey the vapour into the oven chamber.

It should be understood that the aperture is a separate opening to an oven mouth of the oven. The aperture may be a dedicated aperture for receiving liquid to be converted into vapour. The liquid may be water, and the vapour may be steam.

Regarding “vaporiser, “vaporise”, and ‘“vaporisation”, it should be understood that these terms relate to the conversion of liquid into vapour by evaporation and/or boiling.

The aperture is formed in an exterior surface of the oven housing. Optionally, the aperture is provided on an upper surface of the oven housing. The vaporiser may be configured such that, in use, liquid received by the vaporiser is vaporised by the heat within the oven chamber. The vaporiser may comprises a vaporisation surface for dispersing liquid for vaporisation into vapour. Dispersing should be understood as increasing the surface area of the liquid to promote vaporisation. The vaporisation surface may be a substantially flat surface over which liquid can spread to thereby increase its surface area. The vaporisation surface may comprise surface-area-increasing features, such as fins, undulations, or cavities, to increase the contact area between the liquid and the vaporisation surface. This may improve or hasten vaporisation of the liquid.

The vaporiser may comprise a vaporisation tray for receiving liquid to be vaporised. The vaporisation tray comprise the vaporisation surface and an elevated peripheral wall around the vaporisation surface for retaining liquid on the vaporisation surface.

The vaporiser may comprise first and second vaporisation trays, which each comprise a respective vaporiser surface and peripheral wall. The oven may further comprise a liquid divider in communication with the first and second vaporisation trays. The oven may be further configured such that liquid introduced into the aperture is directed towards the divider. The divider may be configured so as to direct a first portion of liquid received by the aperture into the first vaporisation tray and a second portion of liquid received by the aperture into the second vaporisation tray.

In other examples, more than two vaporisation trays may be provided, and the divider may direct a portion of liquid into each of the vaporisation trays. The vaporiser may be formed from a sheet material. Optionally, the sheet material may be a sheet metal. The vaporiser may be formed from stainless steel. The vaporiser may therefore be resistant to corrosion.

The vaporisation tray may be formed on a first side of the sheet material, optionally an upwardly-facing facing side in use. An opposing side of the sheet, optionally a downwardly-facing side in use, may be directly exposed to, or within, the oven chamber. By providing a sheet material which contacts the liquid on a first side, and is exposed to the oven chamber on a second side, heat from the oven chamber can efficiently heat the sheet material and, therefore, heat the liquid to vaporise it.

A periphery of the vaporiser may be sealed against an internal wall of the oven chamber. The vaporiser may therefore form a vaporisation chamber between the vaporiser and the internal wall of the oven chamber. A portion, or discrete portions, of the periphery of the vaporiser tray may be sealed against the internal wall, or the entire periphery of the vaporiser tray may be sealed against the internal wall. Where the vaporiser is formed from sheet material, the periphery of the vaporiser may comprise a flange for sealing against an internal wall or the oven. The vaporiser may comprise a first, substantially horizontal portion, and a second substantially upstanding portion, such that the vaporiser can be configured to contact both a side wall and a roof of the oven chamber and, therefore, be arranged at a periphery of the roof of the oven. This may maximise an available volume of the oven chamber for cooking. Arranging the vaporiser proximate a roof of the oven chamber, where the hottest temperatures in the oven may be, may promote more efficient or faster vaporisation of the liquid in the vaporiser. The vaporiser may comprise one or more openings through which vapour generated from liquid in the vaporisation tray can travel from the vaporisation chamber into the oven chamber. If the vaporiser comprises a substantially horizontal portion and an upstanding portion, the opening(s) may be formed in the upstanding portion. If a plurality of small openings are provided, such as a mesh, grill, or hole array, rather than one or more large openings, this may reduce the possibility of debris entering the vaporiser or vaporisation chamber, which might reduce its efficiency or prevent correct operation, whilst still permitting vapour to freely enter the oven chamber.

The oven may further comprise a conduit in communication with the aperture for conveying liquid to be vaporised from the aperture to the vaporiser. The conduit may be arranged to convey liquid directly onto the vaporisation surface of the vaporiser. The aperture may form an inlet of the conduit, and an outlet of the conduit may be arranged directly over the vaporisation surface, or the divider if present. The conduit may be substantially vertical, such that its inlet (i.e. the aperture) is arranged directly above its outlet and the vaporisation surface (or divider) may be arranged directly below the conduit’s outlet. This may reduce the distance the liquid is required to travel and minimise the space envelope required for the vaporiser.

The oven may further comprise a funnel comprising an inlet for receiving liquid, a funnel volume for containing liquid, and an outlet, optionally comprising a spout, configured to deliver liquid from the funnel volume into the aperture.

The funnel may be removable such that its outlet can be fitted to the aperture when vapour generation is required, and removed when it is not. The oven may further comprise a bung or cover for sealing the aperture in the oven housing when the aperture and vaporiser are not in use. Accordingly, when vapour production is not required, heat loss via the aperture from the oven chamber is reduced or prevented.

The funnel may further comprise a removable lid for sealing the inlet so to as to generate a partial vacuum in the funnel volume as liquid is expelled from the outlet. By sealing the inlet, a partial vacuum may be created as liquid leaves the funnel via the outlet. This may regulate the rate of liquid leaving the funnel (i.e. the rate of liquid being provided to the aperture and the vaporiser), so that vapour can be produced over an extended period of time. Furthermore, by gradually introducing the liquid to the vaporiser rather than inundating it, the vaporiser may maintain a higher temperature and vapour sate the liquid more efficiently and/or quickly.

The funnel volume and funnel outlet may be configured such that, when the funnel is filled with liquid, the liquid is gradually delivered into the aperture over a predetermined period of time, optionally over a period of between 60 seconds and 90 seconds. For some cooking methods, such as baking bread, it may be desirable to provide vapour generation for a set period of time.

The vaporiser may be elevated off an oven floor of the oven chamber. The vaporiser may be configured to project outwardly and/or laterally from the internal wall of the oven. The vaporiser may be formed proximate a roof or uppermost portion of the oven chamber. The oven may further comprise an oven mouth. The oven may further comprise a door for closing the oven mouth. The oven may further comprise an oven outlet, such as a chimney, for expelling gases from the oven chamber. The oven outlet may comprise a valve, such as a throttle plate, for sealing the oven outlet, or regulating a flow of gas out of the oven outlet.

When the vaporiser is being used, the oven door may be positioned to close the oven mouth, and the valve in the chimney or flue may be closed to seal the oven outlet, to thereby retain the vapour in the oven chamber. The oven door may be provided with a closable vent for selectively permitting vapour to escape from the oven chamber.

According to a second aspect, there is provided a vaporiser apparatus for use with an oven as set out in accordance with the first aspect above. The vaporiser apparatus may comprise the vaporiser, or may comprise the vaporiser and the aperture.

The vaporiser may not arranged directly over a heat source of the oven. Such an arrangement could have a risk of extinguishing the heat source when liquid is fed to the vaporiser.

To avoid unnecessary duplication of effort and repetition of text in the specification, certain features are described in relation to only one or several aspects of the invention. However, it is to be understood that, where it is technically possible, features described in relation to any aspect of the invention may also be used with any other aspect or embodiment of the invention.

Brief Description of the Drawings

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front view of an exemplary oven according to the principles of this disclosure;

Figure 2 is sectional side view of the oven of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a sectional front view of the oven of Figures 1 and 2; and Figure 4 is a perspective view of an exemplary vaporiser; and

Figure 5 is a sectional side view of the oven of Figure 1, further comprising a funnel.

Detailed Description

Figure 1 shows an oven 100 according to the principles of the present disclosure. In this example, the oven could be a domestic oven for use by domestic chefs or a commercial oven for use by commercial chefs. It should be understood that the principles of this disclosure can be applied to many different types of oven.

The oven 100 has an oven housing 102. The oven housing 102 has an outer housing surface 104. The oven housing 102 contains an oven chamber 106 for containing foodstuffs to be cooked. The oven chamber 106 is accessible via an oven mouth 108 on the front of the oven housing 102 to insert and remove items, such as foodstuffs into the oven chamber for cooking and/or curing. When cooking is required, a heat source (not shown) heats the oven chamber to a desired temperature for cooking. A temperature sensor 109, and a heat source adjuster knob 111 are provided for measuring the temperature in the oven, and adjusting the heat source respectively. The heat source may be a gas burner, or may be a solid or liquid fuel burner, such as a wood fire. It should be understood that, although the heat sources in these specific examples utilise gas and/or solid fuel, ovens utilising electrical energy sources, such as radiant elements or fan heaters are equally possible within the principles of this disclosure.

A further temperature dial may be provided to indicate the temperature of the oven chamber. The temperature dial could be configured with a standalone sensor from the temperature sensor 109, or could use data from the temperature sensor 109.

The oven 100 further comprises a chimney 110 which is in communication with the oven chamber 106, to expel gases within the oven chamber 106. The chimney 110 in this example comprises a throttle valve 112 for sealing or regulating the flow of gases out of the oven chamber 106 via the chimney 110. Arrows E show the path that gases may take when exiting the oven chamber 106 via the chimney 110.

Figure 2 shows a side sectional view of the oven 100 along the plane A-A shown in Figure 1 in the direction of the arrows. The internal construction of the oven 100 can be seen more clearly in Figure 2. The internal construction of the oven is also shown in Figure 3, which shows a front sectional view of the oven along the plane B-B shown in Figure 2 in the direction of the arrows.

Referring to Figures 2 and 3, the oven 100 will be described further.

As can be seen in Figure 2, the oven chamber 106 is formed centrally within the oven housing 102. The oven housing 102 comprises an outer housing layer 102a, which defines the outer housing surface 104 of the oven, and an inner housing layer 102b, which defines the oven chamber 106. An insulating cavity 102c is formed between the layers 102a, 102b to reduce the temperature of the outer housing layer 102a for safety. The oven chamber 106 has an oven floor 116, which is formed from a thick stone, which retains heat for cooking the underside of foodstuffs placed in the oven.

For some types of cooking, such as baking, it may be desired or required to produce vapour, and in particular water vapour or steam, to aid the cooking process. The oven 100 therefore comprises a vaporisation apparatus 118. The vaporisation apparatus 118 comprises an aperture 120 formed in the oven housing 102 for receiving liquid, and a vaporiser 122. The vaporiser 122 is configured to receive liquid from the aperture 120 and to vaporise that liquid into vapour, and convey the vapour into the oven chamber 106.

The aperture 120 is, in this example, formed on an uppermost surface or roof 124 of the oven 100. The aperture 120 is an entirely separate opening to the oven mouth 108 of the oven 100. The aperture 120 is dedicated to receiving for receiving liquid, usually water, to be converted into vapour. We will refer to the generic terms “liquid” and “vapour” throughout this description, but it should be understood that these terms could be swapped for “water” and “steam” respectively in one specific example. Regarding “vaporiser, “vaporise”, and ‘“vaporisation”, it should be understood that these terms relate to the conversion of liquid into vapour by evaporation and/or boiling.

It is evident that the aperture 120 is formed in the exterior surface 104 of the oven housing 102. Accordingly, the aperture is easily accessible by a user to generate vapour without requiring access to the interior of the oven chamber 106, such as via the oven mouth 108. In this example, the vaporiser 122 forms a vaporiser chamber 126 between the vaporiser 122 and the internal surface of the oven chamber 106 defined by the inner housing layer 102b.

Turning now to the vaporiser 122, it will be understood that it is configured such that, when the oven chamber 106 is heated in use, liquid received by the vaporiser 122 is will be heated and, thus, vaporised by the heat within the oven chamber 106.

An exemplary vaporiser 122 is shown in more detail in Figure 4, which illustrates a perspective view of the upper/internal surface of the vaporiser 122.

As can be seen, the vaporiser 122 comprises a vaporisation surface 128 for dispersing liquid for vaporisation into vapour. In this example, the vaporisation surface 128 is a wide, flat surface for dispersing liquid so as to increasing the surface area of the liquid to promote vaporisation. In other examples, the vaporisation surface 128 could have surface-area-increasing features, such as fins, undulations, or cavities, to increase the contact area between the liquid and the vaporisation surface. This could further improve or hasten vaporisation of the liquid.

Additionally, or alternatively, the vaporiser 122 may be provided with a mass of material (not shown), such as stone or cast iron, which is configured to add thermal mass to the vaporiser 122 this mass may enable the vaporiser to heat liquid more quickly and maintain a higher temperature during vaporisation.

The vaporiser 122 in this example comprises two vaporisation trays 130a and 130b for receiving liquid to be vaporised. The vaporisation trays 130a,b comprise a respective vaporisation surface 128 and an elevated peripheral wall 132 around the vaporisation surface 128 which serves to give the tray 130 depth and thereby retain liquid on the vaporisation surface 128. In other examples, only a single vaporisation surface or tray may be provided, or more than two may be provided. If one or more masses of material to increase thermal mass are provided, it or they may be located in the vaporisation tray or trays.

Also, in this example, the oven, and in particular the vaporiser 122, features a liquid divider 134 which is in communication with the first and second vaporisation trays 130a,b. The liquid divider 134 in this example is a ridge formed between the two vaporisation trays 130a,b. It will be understood that liquid introduced into the aperture 120 is directed towards the liquid divider 134, and the divider 134 will deflect a first portion of the liquid received by the aperture 120 into the first vaporisation tray 130a and a second portion of liquid received by the aperture 120 into the second vaporisation tray. In other examples, more than two vaporisation trays may be provided, and it should be understood that a divider may direct a portion of liquid into each of the vaporisation trays.

In this example, the vaporiser is formed from a sheet material and, in particular, stainless steel. The vaporiser 122 of this example therefore be resistant to corrosion. As will be appreciated from considering Figures 2 and 4, the vaporisation trays 130a, b, which hold and distribute liquid for vaporisation are formed on an upwardly-facing facing side of the vaporiser 122, while the opposing downwardly-facing side of vaporiser 122, is directly exposed to the oven chamber 106. By providing the vaporiser 122 as a thin, thermally- conductive sheet material which contacts the liquid on a first side, and is exposed to the oven chamber 106 on a second side, heat from the oven chamber can efficiently heat the sheet material and, therefore, heat the liquid to vaporise it.

The vaporiser 122 has, at its periphery, a flange 136 for sealing against the internal wall of the oven chamber, which is formed by the internal housing layer 102b. Accordingly, the vaporiser 122 may forms the vaporisation chamber 126 between itself and the internal wall of the oven chamber 106. In this example, the entire periphery of the vaporiser 122 is sealed against the internal wall but, in other examples, a portion, or discrete portions, of the periphery of the vaporiser may be sealed against the internal wall.

As can be appreciated, the exemplary vaporiser 122 comprises a first, substantially horizontal portion 122a, and a second substantially upstanding portion 122b, such that the vaporiser 122 has a generally L-shaped cross-section along its width. This configuration permits the vaporiser 122 to contact both a side wall 102b and a roof 138 of the oven chamber 106 and, therefore, be arranged at a periphery of the roof 138 of the oven chamber 106. The vaporiser trays 130a,b are configured on the horizontal portion 122a, such that they are arranged to receive and contain liquid. The vaporiser 122 is generally configured to project outwardly or laterally from the internal wall of the oven chamber 106.

This configuration of the vaporiser 122 may further increase an available volume of the oven chamber 106 for cooking. Arranging the vaporiser 122 proximate the roof 138 of the oven chamber, where the hottest temperatures in the oven may be, may promote more efficient or faster vaporisation of the liquid in the vaporiser. In this example, the vaporiser 122 is not arranged directly over a heat source of the oven 100 because such an arrangement could have a risk of extinguishing the heat source when liquid is fed to the vaporiser.

The vaporiser 122 in this example comprises an array of openings 140 through which vapour generated from liquid in the vaporisation tray can travel from the vaporisation chamber into the oven chamber. The openings 140 are formed on the upstanding portion 122b of the vaporiser 122. In other examples, one or more larger openings could be provided. However, by providing a plurality of small openings, such as a mesh, grill, or hole array as per this example, rather than one or more large openings, this may reduce the possibility of debris entering the vaporiser 122 or vaporisation chamber 126, which might reduce its efficiency or prevent correct operation, whilst still permitting vapour to freely enter the oven chamber 106.

Generally, it should be understood that the exemplary vaporiser 122 and other examples enable the vaporiser 122 to be elevated off the oven floor 116 of the oven chamber 106. This may maximise an available area of the oven floor 116 for cooking.

Referring back to Figure 2, it can be appreciated that the oven further comprises a conduit 142 in communication with the aperture 120 for conveying liquid to be vaporised from the aperture to the vaporiser 122. The aperture 120 forms an inlet of the conduit 142, and the outlet of the conduit 142 is arranged directly over the vaporiser 122, and in particular, over the divider 134. The conduit 142 is substantially vertical, such that its inlet (i.e. the aperture 120) is arranged directly above its outlet and the vaporiser 122 is arranged directly below the conduit’s outlet. This can serve to reduce the distance the liquid is required to travel and minimise the space envelope required for the vaporiser 122. It will be understood that, in examples where there is some distance or wall thickness between the outer surface of the oven and the oven chamber, a conduit can be provided to covey liquid to the vaporiser 122 from the aperture 120. Many different configurations are feasible within the principles of this disclosure. In other examples, where the wall thickness of the oven is minimal, the aperture may simply be arranged directly over the vaporiser, without a conduit to direct liquid. The oven 100 further comprises a bung or cover (not shown) for sealing the aperture 120 when the aperture 120 and vaporiser 122 are not in use. Accordingly, when vapour production is not required, heat loss via the aperture 120 from the oven chamber 106 is reduced or prevented.

Referring now to Figure 5, the oven 100 is shown in use with a further optional component in a side perspective view corresponding to Figure 2. In this example, the oven 100 is provide with a funnel 144. The funnel 144 has an inlet 146 for receiving liquid, which in Figure 6 is covered by a lid 148, a funnel volume 150 for containing liquid, and an outlet 152, which comprises a spout, configured to deliver liquid from the funnel volume 150 into the aperture 120. The funnel 144 is removable such that its outlet 152 can be fitted into the aperture 120 when vapour generation is required, and removed when it is not. The funnel outlet 152 has a much smaller cross sectional area than the inlet 146 and the funnel volume 150, such that liquid contained in the volume 150 drains slowly from the outer 152.

The funnel’s lid 148 is removable. When vapour generation is required, the lid 148 is removed, and liquid (in this case, water) is provided to fill the funnel volume 150. The lid 148 is then quickly replaced to seal the inlet 146. As water drains from the funnel 144 via the outlet 152, a partial vacuum is formed in the funnel volume 150 due to the seal between the lid 148 and the funnel inlet 16. This regulates the rate of liquid leaving the funnel 144 (i.e. the rate of liquid being provided to the aperture 120 and the vaporiser 122), so that vapour can be produced over an extended period of time. Furthermore, by gradually introducing the liquid to the vaporiser 122 rather than inundating it with all of the liquid at one time, the vaporiser 122 may maintain a higher temperature and vaporise the liquid more efficiently and/or quickly.

The funnel volume 150 and funnel outlet may be configured such that, when the funnel is filled with liquid, the liquid is gradually delivered into the aperture over a predetermined period of time, optionally over a period of between 60 seconds and 90 seconds. For some cooking methods, such as baking bread, it may be desirable to provide vapour generation for a set period of time. This can be achieved by providing a funnel volume 150 of a predetermined volume and a funnel outlet 152 of a predetermined size such that, when the funnel volume 150 is filled completely with water, or to a fill line, the time for ejecting all of the water in the volume 150 is known. The oven may further comprise a door for closing the oven mouth (not shown). When the vaporiser 122 is being used to generate vapour for the oven chamber 106, the oven door may be positioned to close the oven mouth 108, and the valve 112 in the chimney 110 may be closed to seal the oven, to thereby retain the vapour in the oven chamber 106.

It should be appreciated that the oven, and vaporiser apparatus disclosed herein may provide many advantages over prior art systems. The systems and apparatus disclosed herein may provide safer vapour generation, as access to the oven chamber is not required. Furthermore, the location and size of the vaporiser apparatus achievable with the present disclosure may maximise oven chamber volume and oven floor area available for cooking. The vaporiser may better produce vapour in a quicker or more efficient way owing to its structure and positioning. Additionally, the construction of the vaporiser may minimise deformation and stress due to the temperature changes inherently involved in vapour generation, and thereby protect the oven from damage.

To avoid unnecessary duplication of effort and repetition of text in the specification, certain features are described in relation to only one or several aspects of the invention. However, it is to be understood that, where it is technically possible, features described in relation to any aspect of the invention may also be used with any other aspect of the invention.

It will be appreciated by a skilled person that although the invention has been described by way of example, with reference to exemplary examples, it is not limited to the disclosed examples and that alternative examples could be constructed without departing from the scope as defined by the appended claims.