Patent ID: 9528707
Filing Date: 2016-12-27
CPC Classification: F23K,F24B

Claim Text:
1. A biomass-burning fireplace assembly, comprising: a firebox having a fuel inlet opening; a hopper configured to contain a biomass fuel, the hopper having a hopper outlet with an outlet aperture through which the biomass fuel passes out of the hopper; a guide connected to the hopper outlet and surrounding the outlet aperture, wherein the guide has a cylindrical bottom portion with a circular cross-section and the outlet aperture is positioned above approximately one-half of the circular cross-section; a vertically oriented, planar barrier member extending across the circular cross-section of the cylindrical bottom portion adjacent to the outlet aperture, the barrier member extending vertically away from the hopper outlet in a direction normal to the circular cross-section; a fuel metering assembly adjacent to the hopper outlet, the fuel metering assembly having a first driver, a cylindrical receiving area, and a meter adjacent to the cylindrical receiving area, the meter being coupled to the first driver, the fuel metering receptacle configured to receive the biomass fuel from the hopper, the fuel metering assembly being positioned with the cylindrical bottom portion of the guide extending into the cylindrical receiving area in a male/female fit, with the barrier member extending across the fuel meter receptacle, and the first driver being activatable to rotate the meter, the fuel metering receptacle being moveable relative to the hopper outlet between first and second positions, the fuel metering receptacle in the first position is disposed on a first side of the barrier member and arranged to receive the biomass fuel from the hopper outlet, and the fuel metering receptacle in the second position is disposed on a second side of the barrier member and out of alignment with the hopper outlet, the barrier member providing a physical barrier dividing the cylindrical bottom portion approximately in half and physically blocking a potential fire path between the fuel metering receptacle in the second position and the hopper outlet; a fuel feed assembly having a feed inlet positioned at least partially under the fuel metering assembly and in alignment with the fuel metering receptacle when the fuel metering receptacle is in the second position to receive the biomass fuel from the fuel metering assembly, wherein the feed inlet is fully blocked from the hopper outlet by at least a portion of the barrier member to avoid a fire path to the hopper, the fuel feed assembly having a fuel feed outlet in communication with the fuel inlet opening in the fire box, the fuel feed assembly having a second driver coupled to a fuel advancing member, wherein the fuel advancing member is disposed between the fuel feed inlet and fuel feed outlet and upon activation of the second driver is configured to move the biomass fuel out the fuel feed outlet and through the fuel feed inlet of the firebox; a burn platform assembly coupled to the firebox and positioned adjacent to the fuel inlet opening, the burn platform having a support surface that receives the biomass fuel received from the fuel feed assembly; and a controller coupled to the first driver of the fuel metering assembly and to the second driver of the fuel feed assembly, the controller being activatable to drive each of the first and second drivers to control fuel feed rate from the hopper and through the fuel metering assembly and fuel feed assembly.