GB2477146A - A flueless heating appliance - Google Patents

Abstract

A flueless catalytic heating appliance 10 has a vent 22 in a side wall or front wall (fig 3). The appliance 10 is secured to a wall 12 in a domestic environment and provided a fuel, typically mains gas or 1pg. The fuel is supplied to a combustion section (not shown) and flames 16 are visible at viewing window 14, which also seals the combustion section and radiates heat into the room. A catalytic converter 19 is above the combustion section. A heat collector 18 above the catalytic converter 19 collects hot combustion gases. The collector 18 channels those hot combustion gases to a duct 20, which leads to a side vent 22, exhaust pipes (24, fig 2), or front vents (26, fig 3).

Description

Flueless Heating Device This invention relates to a flueless heating device, particularly, but not limited to, a flueless heating device having a catalytic converter adapted to use gas as a fuel.

Flueless heating devices, which include flueless cooking and warming devices that burn gas, typically mains -supplied natural gas or liquefied petroleum gas (lpg), make use of a catalytic converter to convert carbon monoxide (00) in emissions from the appliance to carbon dioxide (002).

The purpose of these devices is to warm a room, typically in a domestic environment.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a flueless gas burning appliance with an improved heat distribution.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a flueless gas-burning appliance having at least one vent for combustion gases, said at least one vent being located at a side and/or front region of the appliance.

Preferably, the vent is located on a side and/or front wall of the appliance.

Preferably, the vent is located at an upper edge of the side wall.

The appliance preferably includes a heat collector, which may be a shroud or cowl, preferably located above a catalytic converter of the appliance.

Preferably a duct leads from the heat collector to the vent.

Preferably, the side region is laterally outward of a nominally vertical line at a lateral boundary of a viewing window of the appliance.

For a better understanding of the invention, and to show how embodiments of the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of a flueless catalytic heating appliance showing a heat collector and vent on a side wall thereof; Figure 2 is a similar view to that of figure 1 showing a different vent arrangement; and Figure 3 is a similar view to that of figures 1 and 2 showing a different vent arrangement.

The functioning of a flueless catalytic heating appliance typically involves a gas supply being burnt in a combustion section of the appliance. Combustion gases are then directed to a catalytic convertor which, as mentioned above, removes CO from the combustion gases. This arrangement allows the cleaned combustion gases to be vented into a suitably ventilated room. Previously, the combustion gases have been vented from a location directly above the combustion section of the appliance. This may lead to the disadvantage of what is known as convection staining, in which unsightly dark marks are created on a wall above the appliance by virtue of the prolonged convection of heated air against the wall, which can lead to deposits of dust and grime, particularly when tobacco smoke or pets are usually present in the room.

Furthermore, the disadvantage of high heat levels above the appliance causes undesirable heating of objects placed above the appliance.

In order to address the above mentioned disadvantages, the appliances show schematically in figures 1 to 3 have been developed.

Figure 1 shows a flueless catalytic heating appliance 10 secured to a waIl 12 in a domestic environment. The appliance 10 is provided with a supply of fuel, typically mains gas or lpg. The fuel is supplied to a combustion section (not shown) and flames 16 are visible at viewing window 14. The viewing window also serves to seal the combustion section and is treated by the combustion of gas, to radiate heat in to the room.

A catalytic converter 19 is located above the combustion section. A heat collector 18 is located above the catalytic converter 19 in order to collect hot combustion gases.

The collector 18 channels those hot combustion gases to a duct 20, which leads to a vent 22 in a side wall of the appliance 10. The vent 22 allows the hot combustion gases to be vented. The heat collector 18 and duct 20 are suitably made of aluminium, or suitable material.

The lateral channelling of the combustion gases to the vent 22 along the duct 20 causes lateral movement of the combustion gases. Once combustion gases exit the vent 22 the laterally moving gases will start to rise, due to their temperature and thus lower density. This movement of the combustion gases reduces the effect of convection heat spreading, because the flow of hot gases across the adjacent wall is more spread out compared to ejection of those combustion gases directly up and out of the heating appliance.

An optional arrangement not shown in figure 1 is to direct hot combustion gases from the collector to ducts directed to both left and right side walls, rather than just the right side wall as shown in figure 1. Such an arrangement would provide a broader spread of heating, because venting would be from both sides of the appliance 10.

The beneficial ejection of combustion gases from one or both side walls of the appliance 10 results in lower temperatures above the appliance 10, compared to the prior art appliances that vent directly above the combustion of the gases. This feature allows more sensitive items, such as a television, for example, to be located above the appliance without undesirable heating, or over heating thereof.

In figure 1 the vent 22 is shown as a simple opening, which would typically have a protector, such as a mesh, placed over the opening.

Figure 2 shows an alternative arrangement of appliance 10, in which exhaust pipes 24 are located over the vent 22, which in this example are located at both left and right side walls of the appliance.

Figure 3 shows a further alternative arrangement in which vents 26 are located at the side edges of a front face of the appliance. 10.

All of the versions described above provide for venting of combustion gases from side or front edges of the appliance. The vents are located laterally outside nominally vertical lines drawn at side edges of the viewing window 14.

The appliance 10 described herein collects all combustion emissions from the appliance and vents these into a room in which the appliance is located from side regions thereof. Side regions can be taken to mean side walls or parts of the appliance that are laterally outward of nominally vertical lines drawn at the side edges of the viewing window 14. This is to be contrasted with devices that conduct combustion fluids out of a room to remove noxious combustion gases, whilst collecting heat from a distribution to the room.

A further alternative not shown in the figures would be to incorporate a television into the appliance by extending the unit upwards and incorporating a television above the combustion section.

Attention is directed to all papers and documents which are filed concurrently with or previous to this specification in connection with this application and which are open to public inspection with this specification, and the contents of all such papers and documents are incorporated herein by reference.

All of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the steps of any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in any combination, except combinations where at least some of such features and/or steps are mutually exclusive.

Each feature disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

The invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment(s). The invention extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process so disclosed.

Claims (9)

1. CLAIMS1. A flueless gas-burning appliance has at least one vent for combustion gases, said at least one vent being located at a side and/or front region of the appliance.
2. 2. The flueless gas-burning appliance of claim 1, in which the vent is located on a side and/or front wall of the appliance.
3. 3. The flueless gas-burning appliance of claim 1 or claim 2, in which the vent is located at an upper edge of the side wall.
4. 4. The flueless gas-burning appliance of any preceding claim, wherein the appliance includes a heat collector.
5. 5. The flueless gas-burning appliance of claim 4, in which the heat collector is a shroud or cowl
6. 6. The flueless gas-burning appliance of claim 4 or claim 5, in which the heat collector is located above a catalytic converter of the appliance.
7. 7. The flueless gas-burning appliance of any one of claims 4 to 6, in which a duct leads from the heat collector to the vent.
8. 8. The flueless gas-burning appliance of any preceding claim, in which the side region is laterally outward of a nominally vertical line at a lateral boundary of a viewing window of the appliance.
9. 9. A flueless gas-burning appliance substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.