Patent ID: 7026579
Filing Date: 2006-04-11
Classification: A21B

Abstract:
1. An oven for cooking food items comprising: an oven housing defining a heating cavity, said oven housing having first and second opposing openings into the heating cavity; a conveyor, within the heating cavity and which carries food items through the heating cavity; a first, electrically powered planar quartz heater, located within the heating cavity and positioned above the conveyer and being located closer to said first opening than it is to said second opening, said first planar quartz heater generating infrared heat and directing said infrared heat downwardly and substantially orthogonal to the conveyor; a second, electrically powered planar quartz heater within the heating cavity and positioned above the conveyer and being located closer to said second opening than it is to said first opening, said second planar quartz heater generating infrared heat and directing it downwardly and substantially orthogonal to the conveyor, said, second electrically powered planar quartz heater being displaced away from said first electrically powered planar quartz heater; a third electrically cowered planar quartz heater within the heating cavity and positioned below the conveyer so that it is transversely displaced from both said first and second quartz heaters and generating infrared heat and directing it upwardly, said first, second and third quartz heaters being located and arranged with respect to each other such that said third planar quartz heater is not directly opposite of either of said first and second planar quartz heaters, with no perpendicular overlapping of any opposing heaters; a controller, operatively coupled to at least one of the first, second and third quartz heaters, the controller being capable of controlling the amount of electrical power delivered to at least one of the first, second and third quartz heaters.