Automated gas cooking system

An outdoor gas cooking system having multiple burners in which, if the individual manual control valves for all of the burners are placed on a high heat setting or some other specified or recognized activation position, a single electronic master control valve can be activated to control the total gas fuel rate to all of the burners in the cooker based, for example, upon a cooking or operational control set point or upon a target flow rate equaling the sum of the design flow rates of all of the burners at the current operating set points of the manual valves.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to automated outdoor cookers. More particularly, the present invention relates to systems for automatically controlling fuel rates and operating procedures in outdoor grills and other outdoor cookers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the past ten years, numerous cooking appliances have been developed which are equipped with on-board electronic displays and/or remote displays which provide textual or graphical information relative to the status of the food being cooked. In some cases, the temperature of the food being cooked is monitored over time and the temperature is displayed with respect to a target temperature set by the user. This information is displayed in many cases as a pair of numerical values or as a graph of temperature versus time. In other cases, the display provides a numerical cooking timer indicating the amount of time remaining until the product is expected to be done.

In addition, it has also been proposed that gas grills be equipped with semi-automated heating and/or cooking control systems which can be digitally connected to Smart devices such as tablets, cell phones, and the like. An example of one such system for an outdoor grill having three burners is shown and described in US2016/0037966 to Chin et. al. In the grill control system described in US 2016/0037966, it is necessary that each of the three individual burners contained in the grill be equipped with its own independent, automated electric control valve and temperature instrument system for controlling the rate of gas flow delivered to the burner.

As will be apparent, a primary disadvantage of using this prior art system for controlling grills having multiple burners is the excessive cost and complexity of having to use separate electronic fuel control valves and related individualized systems and equipment for all of the burners. The necessity of having to use multiple electronic fuel control valves and individualized control systems also contributes to reduced mechanical reliability, reduced heating consistency across the grill, and increased maintenance costs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an outdoor gas cooker having multiple (i.e., a plurality of) burners and an automated control system therefor which satisfy the needs and alleviate the problems discussed above.

In one aspect, there is provided an outdoor gas cooker and a control system therefor in which only a single electronic control valve for the gas fuel is used to simultaneously control the operation of multiple burners in the cooker. The single electronic gas fuel control valve used to simultaneously control the gas fuel rate for the entire set of burners in the cooker is referred to herein as a Master Control Valve (MCV).

In another aspect, each of the multiple burners of the outdoor gas cooker is also preferably equipped with its own individual manual control valve for manually controlling the rate of flow of the gas fuel to the individual burner. In one scenario for operating this system, the MCV preferably cannot operate to automatically control the rate of flow of the fuel gas to the multiple burners in the cooker unless the manual control valves for all of the burners are set to a MCV activation position. The MCV activation position will preferably be, for example, a maximum flow position of the manual control valves, a designated high heat cooking position (i.e., a designated manual cooking control setting) of the manual control valves, or any other position (preferably at or above 50% open) wherein the simultaneous positioning of all of the manual control valves in this position will cause or allow the activation of the MCV for controlling the rate of fuel gas flow to the entire set of burners.

However, in this control scenario, if at least one of the individual manual control valves for the multiple burners is not moved to, or is taken out of, the MCV activation position, and except for a possible time lag, the MCV preferably will not operate to control the rate of flow of the gas fuel to the burners. Rather, when at least one of the manual control valves in this control scenario is not in the MCV activation position, and unless a system shut-down event has occurred, the MCV will preferably remain in a fully open position (preferably a 100% open position) so that each individual burner will be manually controlled using only the manual control valve for the burner.

In another aspect, there is provided an outdoor cooking system which preferably comprises: (a) a housing; (b) a control unit; (c) two or more gas fuel burners or burner elements in the housing, each of the gas fuel burners or burner elements having a gas fuel inlet which includes a manual control valve and a valve position detector which automatically sends or relays an electronic signal indicating at least one operating position of the manual control valve; (d) a gas fuel supply conduit which supplies the gas fuel to the gas fuel inlets of the gas fuel burners or burner elements; and (e) a master control valve in the gas fuel supply conduit upstream of all of the manual control valves.

In one control scenario using this system, the control unit preferably automatically determines whether all of the manual control valves are in a master control valve activation position so that when all of the manual control valves are in the master control valve activation position, the control unit allows a user to activate, or the control unit itself automatically activates, a master control function of the master control valve wherein the master control valve automatically controls a total rate of flow of the gas fuel to all of the gas fuel burners or burner elements in the housing based upon at least one cooking process control set point.

In addition, it is also preferred in this control scenario that, when the control unit detects that at least one of the manual control valves is not in the master control valve activation position, the control unit will not permit the master control function of the master control valve to be activated.

In another aspect, there is provided an outdoor cooking system which preferably comprises: (a) a housing; (b) a control unit; (c) two or more gas fuel burners or burner elements in the housing, each of the gas fuel burners or burner elements having a gas fuel inlet which includes a manual control valve and a valve position detector which automatically sends or relays to the control unit an electronic signal indicating at least one operating position of the manual control valve; (d) a gas fuel supply conduit which supplies the gas fuel to the gas fuel inlets of the gas fuel burners or burner elements; and (e) a master control valve in the gas fuel supply conduit upstream of all of the manual control valves.

In one control scenario using this system, the control unit preferably comprises a processing unit and a program code which is embodied on a computer readable storage component and is readable by the processing unit to automatically determine whether all of the manual control valves are in a master control valve activation position and to operate the master control valve according to a programmed procedure in which, when all of the manual control valves are in the master control valve activation position, a user is allowed to activate, or the control unit itself automatically activates, a master control function of the master control valve wherein the master control valve automatically controls a total rate of flow of the gas fuel to all of the gas fuel burners or burner elements in the housing based upon at least one cooking process control set point.

In addition, it is also preferred in this control scenario that when in accordance with the programmed procedure of the program code embodied on the computer readable storage component the control unit determines that at least one of the manual control valves is not in the master control valve activation position, the programmed procedure will not permit the master control function of the master control valve to be activated.

In another aspect, there is provided an outdoor cooking system which preferably comprises: (a) a housing; (b) a control unit; (c) two or more gas fuel burners or burner elements in the housing, each of the gas fuel burners or burner elements having a gas fuel inlet which includes a manual control valve and a valve position detector which automatically sends or relays to the control unit an electronic signal indicating an operating position of the manual control valve; (d) a gas fuel supply conduit which supplies a gas fuel to the gas fuel inlets of the gas fuel burners or burner elements; and (e) a master control valve in the gas fuel supply conduit upstream of all of the manual control valves. The control unit automatically determines whether the manual control valve for each of the burners or burner elements is either closed or in a master control valve activation position so that when the manual control valves for all of the burners or burner elements are either closed or in the master control valve activation position and the manual control valve of one or more of the burners or burner elements is in the master control valve activation position, the control unit allows a user to activate, or the control unit itself automatically activates, a master control function of the master control valve wherein the master control valve automatically controls a total rate of flow of the gas fuel, based upon at least one cooking process control set point, to all of the one or more gas fuel burners or burner elements in the housing for which the master control valve for the gas fuel burner or burner element is in the master control valve activation position.

In yet another aspect there is provided an outdoor cooking system which preferably comprises: (a) a housing; (b) a control unit; (c) two or more gas fuel burners or burner elements in the housing, each of the gas fuel burners or burner elements having a gas fuel inlet which includes a manual control valve having a plurality of manual set points and a valve position detector which automatically sends or relays to the control unit an electronic signal indicating a current manual set point of the manual control valve, wherein one of the manual set points is an off position of the manual control valve for a zero design flow rate of a gas fuel and each remaining one of the manual set points is a partially or fully open position of the manual control valve having a design flow rate of the gas fuel greater than zero corresponding thereto; (d) a gas fuel supply conduit which supplies the gas fuel to the gas fuel inlets of the gas fuel burners or burner elements; and (e) a master control valve in the gas fuel supply conduit upstream of all of the manual control valves. The control unit automatically determines the current manual set point of each of the manual control valves and determines a total of the design flow rates corresponding to the current set points of all of the manual control valves. The control unit also allows a user to activate, or the control unit itself automatically activates, a master control function of the master control valve wherein the master control valve automatically controls a total flow of the gas fuel, to all of the gas fuel burners or burner elements in the housing for which the manual control valve of the gas fuel burner or burner element is partially or fully open, at a rate which is substantially the total of the design flow rates corresponding to the current set points of all of the manual control valves.

The use of the single Master Control Valve (MCV) in the inventive cooker and control system reduces equipment, manufacturing, and maintenance costs and improves system reliability, since only one Master Control Valve is needed for electronically controlling the flow of gas fuel to a plurality (preferably all) of the burners in the cooking chamber.

Further aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those in the art upon examining the accompanying drawings and upon reading the following Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

An embodiment100of the inventive outdoor gas cooking system is illustrated inFIGS. 1-4. The inventive cooker100comprises: a grill housing104; a pivotable lid or other cover106for opening and closing the top opening116of the grill housing104; a firebox105defined within the grill housing104; multiple (i.e., a plurality of) individual burner assemblies110a,110b,110c,110dhaving burner elements112a,112b,112c,112dpositioned within the firebox105; one or more removable cooking grates or cooking grate assemblies115positioned above the burner elements112a,112b,112c,112dand preferably positioned at or near the top opening116of the grill housing104; a front control panel114; and an inventive automated gas fuel control system125or225.

In addition, the inventive outdoor gas cooker100can also comprise: (a) burner flame monitors comprising thermocouples or other burner temperature probes113a,113b,113c,113dpositioned at or in close proximity to (preferably within 1 cm of) each of the burner elements112a,112b,112c,112d; (b) one or more operating temperature probes117positioned at or in proximity to (preferably within 3 cm of) the upper or lower surface(s) of the cooking grate(s)115or otherwise positioned in the firebox105or in an exhaust flow path from the gas cooker100or in the space within the pivotal lid or cover106above the cooking grate assembly115; and (c) a meat/food product temperature probe120which is connected, for example, to a port118provided on the cooker100or is otherwise electronically linked to a control unit134or234of the control system125or225. The operating temperature probe117is preferably an internal vent temperature sensor, positioned in the exhaust flow path of the combustion product gas produced in the cooker100, at the back of the cooker100in the space above the cooking grate115as illustrated inFIG. 1.

Each of the burner assemblies110a,110b,110c,110dused in the inventive cooker100can be a tube burner assembly, a pan burner assembly, a box burner assembly, an infrared burner assembly, or generally any other type of gas fuel burner assembly known in the art. Each of the gas burner assemblies110a,110b,110c, and110dis preferably a tube burner assembly which comprises: a tube burner element112a,112b,112c, or112dwhich extends from front to back through a lower or mid portion of the firebox105; a fuel inlet124a,124b,124c, or124dfor delivering propane or other suitable gas fuel from a main fuel supply manifold or line124to the burner element112a,112b,112c, or112d; a manual control valve126a,126b,126c, or126dincluded in the individual fuel inlet124a,124b,124c, or124dfor manually controlling the fuel rate and for shutting off the flow of fuel to the burner element112a,112b,112c, or112d; and a hand knob or dial128a,128b,128c, or128dfor operating the manual control valve126a,126b,126c, or126d.

A main fuel supply line, tube, manifold or other conduit124delivers the gas fuel to the inventive cooker100from a propane tank or other gas fuel supply source (not shown). The hand knobs128a,128b,128c, and128dfor operating the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126dare preferably located on the front control panel114of the inventive cooker100.

Although the inventive cooker100is shown and described herein as having four burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112d, it will be understood that the inventive automated gas fuel control system125or225can be used for controlling, as a group, all of the burners in a gas cooker having two, three, four, five or any number of multiple burners.

As illustrated inFIG. 2, the embodiment125of the inventive automated gas fuel control system for the outdoor cooker100preferably comprises: (a) a Master Control Valve (MCV)130located in the main fuel supply conduit124upstream of the individual burner fuel supply inlets124a,124b,124c,124dand upstream of the individual burner control valves126a,126b,126c,126d; (b) individual valve position switches or other electronic valve position detectors132a,132b,132c,132dfor detecting at least one operating position or a range of operating positions of the individual burner control valves126a,126b,126c,126d; and (c) a control unit134.

The MCV130can be any type of electric control valve capable of being used in an outdoor gas cooker for automatically controlling the gas fuel rate. Examples of suitable electric control valves include, but are not limited to, electric proportioning solenoid valves, motor driven linear or rotary valves, or variable pressure controlling devices.

By way of example, but not by way of limitation, the valve position switches132a,132b,132c,132dcan be operable for sensing the degree, or position, of valve stem rotation for the individual, manually operated burner control valves126a,126b,126c,126d. However, it will be understood that other types of valve position sensors can be used, particularly if the manual control valves are actuated using mechanisms other than rotating stems.

The control unit134receives the electronic valve position signals134a,134b,134c,134dproduced or relayed by the valve position detectors132a,132b,132c,132d. The control unit134can also receive electronic temperature measurement signals from the meat/food product temperature probe120, the burner temperature probes113a,113b,113c,113d, and/or the operating temperature probe(s)117.

The control unit134can include any desired type and/or number of components wherein, for example (a) the components comprise separate, electronically linked modules which are located together or at different locations in the inventive cooker100or (b) the components are located together and electronically linked on a single circuit board or (c) the components are otherwise located together in a single piece of hardware. It will also be understood, however, that at least some of the components of the control unit134, and/or the functions thereof, can alternatively be located or performed (1) in the World Wide Web using a remote server or the cloud, (2) in a hand held remote, (3) in an app for a smart phone or a tablet, (4) in other hand held devices, (5) etc.

As illustrated inFIG. 4, the control unit134preferably comprises a microprocessor or other computer processing unit140. By way of example, but not by way of limitation, the control unit134can also include: a computer readable medium, device, or other storage component142, which is readable by the processing unit140; a battery144and/or a power cord for powering the control unit134and the other electrical components of the automated gas fuel control system125; and a Bluetooth, radio frequency, infrared, Wi Fi, wired, and/or other communication module146.

The control unit134preferably contains and implements programmed instructions for (a) analyzing the various input signals which it receives, (b) sending an electric current or other electronic signal136to the MCV130for directing the operation of the MCV130, and (c) optionally performing other operations. The computer readable storage component142of the control unit134can have the control logic program or routines (i.e., the programmed procedure) for any desired automated cooking procedures, cooking recipes, MCV activation, shut down protocols and procedures, monitoring, reporting, or other procedures or operations of the inventive cooker100stored (i.e., embodied) thereon. Alternatively, as indicated above, some or all of these programmed procedures or portions thereof can be located or performed elsewhere in the inventive cooker100, in the World Wide Web using a remote server or the cloud, in a hand held remote, in an app for a smart phone or a tablet, in other hand held devices, etc. Also, whether stored on a computer readable storage component142of the control unit134or elsewhere, cooking recipes and other operations can be pre-loaded by the manufacturer or supplier of the inventive cooker100or can be created and stored by the user. The user can create recipes, for example, from scratch or by modifying existing recipes

InFIG. 2, the gas fuel control system125is illustrated as using a single series connection138which connects the valve position indicators132a,132b,132c,132din series, thereby allowing the system to operate in accordance with an operating scenario300(discussed more fully below) such that a closed circuit will only be formed when the detectors132a,132b,132c,132ddetermine that all of the burner control valves126a,126b,126e,126dhave been manually set at a MCV activation position131. The MCV activation position131will preferably be, for example, a maximum flow position of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c,126d, a high heat cooking position of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c,126das indicated by the burner control knobs128a,128b,128c,128d, or any other position (preferably at or above 50% open) wherein when all of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c,126dare simultaneously placed in this position, the control unit134will allow or cause the MCV130to be activated for automatically controlling the total fuel gas flow rate delivered to the entire bank of burner elements112a,112b,112c,112d.

Preferably, in this and in other programmed control scenarios, when the control unit134determines that all of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c,126dare in the MCV activation position or are in other positions corresponding to the programmed control scenarios, the control unit134will allow the user to activate the operation of the MCV130for automatically controlling the rate of fuel gas flow to the entire bank of burner elements112a,112b,112c,112dby pushing a button135on the cooker100and/or by operating some other activator located on the cooker100, on a hand held device, or elsewhere.

The above-mentioned alternative embodiment225of the fuel gas control system for the inventive cooker100is illustrated inFIG. 3. As with the control system125, the control system225preferably comprises: (a) a Master Control Valve (MCV)230located in the main fuel supply conduit124upstream of the individual burner fuel supply inlets124a,124b,124c,124dand upstream of the individual manual control valves126a,126b,126c,126d; (b) individual valve position switches or other electronic valve position detectors232a,232b,232c,232dfor detecting the operating positions of the individual burner control valves126a,126b,126c,126d; and (c) a control unit234.

In contrast to the fuel gas control system125, each of the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dof the alternative control system225has (a) its own individual electrical feed238a,238b,238c, or238dwhich extends from the control unit234to the valve position indicator232a,232b,232c, or232dand (b) its own electrical return signal234a,234b,234c, or234dwhich extends back from the valve position indicator232a,232b,232c, or232dto the control unit234. This allows each of the individual valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dto independently, and preferably continuously, inform the control unit134as to the current actual position of each of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126d, regardless of whether the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126dare in the same or different positions.

Preferably, regarding each of the individual manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126d, the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dof the control system225will independently detect and continuously notify the control unit234as to whether the individual manual control valve126a,126b,126c, or126dis in an off position150, a low heat set position152, a medium heat set position154, or a high heat set position131. These manual settings are preferably also shown on the control panel114of the cooker100by the positions of the individual burner control knobs128a,128b,128c, and128d.

The above-mentioned master control operational scenario300for the inventive cooker100can be performed using either the fuel gas control system125or the alternative fuel gas control system225. The automated master control scenario300is illustrated inFIGS. 5-7. As noted above, in the operational scenario300, the MCV130will not operate, or will not be allowed to operate, to automatically control the rate of flow of the fuel gas to the multiple burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dunless the individual manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126dof all of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dare each set to a MCV activation position131. As indicated above, the MCV activation position131for the control scenario300will preferably be, for example, a maximum flow position of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126d, a high heat cooking position of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126d, or any other preselected position (preferably at or above 50% open).

In the master control scenario300, the simultaneous positioning of all of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126din the MCV activation position131will either automatically activate the MCV130for controlling the rate of fuel gas flow to the entire set of burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dor will more preferably allow the user to activate the master control function of the MCV130by pushing the master control activation button135on the cooker100or by operating some other activator located on the cooker100, on a hand held device, or elsewhere.

This is illustrated inFIG. 6wherein each of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126dfor the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dhas (a) a minimum or low fuel flow setting152which, during 100% manual operation, provides a minimum or low design fuel flow rate to the burner of, for example, 5000 BTU/hour (as expressed, for illustration purposes, in terms of the heating value of the gas fuel), (b) an intermediate gas fuel flow setting154which, during 100% manual operation, provides an intermediate gas fuel flow rate to the burner of, for example, 7500 BTU/hour, and (c) a maximum or high gas fuel flow setting131which is the MCV activation setting and which, during 100% manual operation, provides a maximum or high gas fuel flow rate to the burner of, for example, 10,000 BTU/hour.

When each of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126dis set at its maximum or high fuel flow setting131as shown inFIG. 6, the user can activate the master control function of the MCV130by pushing the master control activation button135on the cooker100or by operating some other activator located on the cooker100, on a hand held device, or elsewhere. The MCV130will then perform a throttling function based upon one or more targeted set points, as will be discussed more fully below, to automatically control the total rate of gas fuel flow to the entire bank of burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112d. Moreover, in performing this automatic control function, the MCV130will also preferably operate within a minimum to maximum total fuel gas delivery range such that (a) the MCV130will always deliver at least a minimal gas fuel flow rate (in this case 20,000 BTU/Hour) amounting to the total of the minimal design flow rates of all of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dand (b) the MCV130will also deliver up to at least a maximum gas fuel flow rate (in this case 40,000 BTU/Hour) amounting to the total of the high or maximum design flow rates of all of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112d.

However, in the master control scenario300, if at least one of the individual manual control valves126a,126b.126c, or126dfor the multiple burners112a,112b,112c,112dis not moved to, or is taken out of, the MCV activation position131, the MCV130preferably will not operate or will not be allowed to operate to automatically control the rate of flow of the gas fuel to the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112d. Rather, when at least one of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, or126dis not in the MCV activation position131, and unless a system shut-down event has occurred, the MCV130will preferably remain in a 100% open position so that each individual burner112a,112b,112c,112dwill be manually controlled using only the manual control valve126a,126b,126c, or126dfor the burner.

This is illustrated inFIG. 7wherein the burner112dhas been turned off (i.e., is no longer in the MCV activation position131) but all of the remaining burners are still operating at the high set point131. In this case, the master control function of the MCV130will be deactivated and the MCV130will then automatically move to and remain in, preferably after a suitable time lag of about 2 minutes or more, a full open or other maximum flow position. At that point, the gas fuel flow rates to the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dwill be individually set and controlled solely by the operating positions of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126d. The full open or maximum flow position of the MCV130will preferably be of a size and capacity sufficient to deliver up to at least a maximum fuel gas flow rate (in this case 40,000 BTU/Hour) amounting to the total of the high or maximum design flow rates of all of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112d.

An example of a program code embodied on the computer readable storage component142for operating the inventive cooking system in accordance with the master control scenario300is illustrated inFIG. 5. In accordance with the program code shown inFIG. 5, the control unit134or234of the gas fuel control system125or225continuously operates to determine if a commanded shut off condition exists and, if not, determine whether all of the burner manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126dare set in the Master Control Valve activation position131. If a commanded shut off condition exists, the Master Control Valve130is placed or maintained in a closed position. If no commanded shutoff condition exists but at least one burner control valve126a,126b,126c, or126dis not in the Master Control Valve activation position131, the Master Control Valve130is preferably placed or maintained in a fully open position. However, if no commanded shut off condition exists and all of the burner control valves126a,126b,126c, and126dare in the Master Control Valve activation position131, the Master Control Valve130will or can be placed in, or will be maintained in, an activated status to perform the automatic master control function of the MCV130using one or more cooking process control set points.

In other words, as mentioned above, when all of the manual control valves126a,126b,126c, and126dare in the MCV activation position131and the master control operation300of the MCV130is activated, the MCV130will perform a throttling function for the inventive gas cooker100wherein the gas flow to all of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112das a group will be set and automatically controlled as an electronic control function of the MCV130and the control unit134or234. The throttling control set point(s) for the control unit134or234and the MCV130can be any desired measured or calculated target value(s) related to the food product, the operation of the cooker100, conditions in the cooker100, etc. involved in the cooking process. Examples of such values and parameters include, but are not limited to, the temperature of the cooker exhaust gas (e.g., as measured by the temperature probe117), the temperature of the food product (e.g., as measured by the temperature probe120), the temperature at or near the cooking grate(s)115, the temperature in the firebox105, the ambient temperature outside of the cooker100, the cooking time, or any combination thereof.

As one example, the control unit134or234and the MCV130can be operated to automatically reach and maintain a set cooking temperature as measured by the temperature probe117. Alternatively or in addition, the control unit134or234and the MCV130can be operated to: (a) automatically stop the cooking process or move to a different cooking or warming temperature when a targeted food temperature is reached or a set cooking time has expired or (b) operate the grill on high for a certain period of time following cooking in order to burn off food residue and then turn off the gas to the burners and notify the user that this has been done and instruct the user to manually turn off the gas at the fuel source.

An example of another control scenario325which can be implemented using the inventive fuel gas control system225is illustrated inFIG. 8. The control scenario325is a programmed indirect cooking procedure wherein the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dinform the control unit234that only one burner valve (e.g., valve126d) is set in the maximum flow position131and all of the remaining burners are in the off position150. In the scenario325, the MCV130will preferably operate when activated by the user to automatically control the gas fuel flow rate to the fully open burner112a, based upon one or more target parameters, within a range extending from the minimum design flow rate152(in this case 5000 BTU/Hour) to the maximum design flow rate131(in this case 10,000 BTU/Hour) for the individual burner112d.

An example of another control scenario350which can be implemented using the inventive fuel gas control system225is illustrated inFIG. 9. The control scenario350is a programmed indirect cooking procedure wherein the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dinform the control unit234that only two burner valves (e.g., valves126aand126d) are set in the maximum flow position131and all of the remaining burners are in the off position150. In the scenario350, the MCV130will preferably operate when activated by the user to automatically control the gas fuel flow rate to the fully open burners112aand112d, based upon one or more target parameters, within a range extending from the sum of the minimum design flow rates152of the burners112aand112d(in this case 10,000 BTU/Hour) to the sum of the maximum design flow rates131of the burners112aand112d(in this case 20,000 BTU/Hour).

An example of another control scenario375which can be implemented using the inventive fuel gas control system225is illustrated inFIG. 10. The control scenario350is a programmed indirect cooking procedure wherein the valve position indicators232a,232b,232e, and232dinform the control unit234that only three burner valves (e.g., valves126a,126b, and126d) are set in the maximum flow position131and the remaining burner126cis in the off position150. In the scenario375, the MCV130will preferably operate when activated by the user to automatically control the gas fuel flow rate to the fully open burners112a,112band112d, based upon one or more target parameters, within a range extending from the sum of the minimum design flow rates152of the burners112a,112b, and112d(in this case 15,000 BTU/Hour) to the sum of the maximum design flow rates131of the burners112a,112b, and112d(in this case 30,000 BTU/Hour).

An example of another control scenario400which can be implemented using the inventive fuel gas control system225is illustrated inFIG. 11. The control scenario400is a programmed precision flow control procedure wherein the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dinform the control unit234that one of the burner valves126dis in the minimum flow position152and all of the remaining burner valves126a,126b, and126care set in the maximum flow position131. When activated in the precision flow control scenario400, the MCV130operates as a flow control valve to control the total gas fuel flow to the bank of burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat a rate which is not substantially more than or substantially less than (i.e., preferably within ±10% and more preferably within ±5% of) the sum of the individual design flow rates of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat these set points. In this case, the sum of the design flow rates at these set points would be 10,000+10,000+10,000+5000=35,000 BTU/Hour.

An example of another control scenario425which can be implemented using the inventive fuel gas control system225is illustrated inFIG. 12. The control scenario425is a programmed precision flow control procedure wherein the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dinform the control unit234that two of the burner valves126aand126dare in the minimum flow position152and all of the remaining burner valves126band126care set in the maximum flow position131. When activated in the precision flow control scenario425, the MCV130operates as a flow control valve to control the total gas fuel flow to the bank of burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat a rate which is not substantially more than or substantially less than (i.e., preferably within ±10% and more preferably within ±5% of) the sum of the individual design flow rates of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat these set points. In this case, the sum of the design flow rates at these set points would be 5,000+10,000+10,000+5000=30,000 BTU/Hour.

An example of another control scenario450which can be implemented using the inventive fuel gas control system225is illustrated inFIG. 13. The control scenario450is a programmed precision flow control procedure wherein the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dinform the control unit234that three of the burner valves126a,126b, and126dare in the minimum flow position152and the remaining burner valve126cis set in the maximum flow position131. When activated in the precision flow control scenario450, the MCV130operates as a flow control valve to control the total gas fuel flow to the bank of burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat a rate which is not substantially more than or substantially less than (i.e., preferably within ±10% and more preferably within ±5% of) the sum of the individual design flow rates of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat these set points. In this case, the sum of the design flow rates at these set points would be 5,000+5,000+10,000+5000=25,000 BTU/Hour.

An example of another control scenario475which can be implemented using the inventive fuel gas control system225is illustrated inFIG. 14. The control scenario475is a programmed precision flow control procedure wherein the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dinform the control unit234that all of the burner valves126a,126b,126c, and126dare in the minimum flow position152. When activated in the precision flow control scenario475, the MCV130operates as a flow control valve to control the total gas fuel flow to the bank of burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat a rate which is not substantially more than or substantially less than (i.e., preferably within ±10% and more preferably within ±5% of) the sum of the individual design flow rates of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat these set points. In this case, the sum of the design flow rates at these set points would be 5,000+5,000+5,000+5000=20,000 BTU/Hour.

An example of another control scenario500which can be implemented using the inventive fuel gas control system225is illustrated inFIG. 15. The control scenario500is a programmed precision flow control procedure wherein the valve position indicators232a,232b,232c, and232dinform the control unit234that two of the burner valves126aand126dare in the minimum flow position152, one of the burner valves126bis in the off position150, and the remaining burner valve126cis set in the maximum flow position131. When activated in the precision flow control scenario500, the MCV130operates as a flow control valve to control the total gas fuel flow to the bank of burner elements112a,112b,112c, and12dat a rate which is not substantially more than or substantially less than (i.e., preferably within ±10% and more preferably within ±5% of) the sum of the individual design flow rates of the burner elements112a,112b,112c, and112dat these set points. In this case, the sum of the design flow rates at these set points would be 5,000+0+10,000+5000=20,000 BTU/Hour.

Also, as mentioned above, the control unit134or234and the MCV130can be operated to automatically close the MCV130to stop all gas flow to the burners112a,112b,112c, and112din the event that a shut off condition occurs. Examples of possible shut off conditions include, but are not limited to: (a) a loss of flame (e.g., due to a gust of wind) from one or more of the burners112a,112b,112c, and112das detected by one or more of the burner temperature probes113a,113b,113c,113dor (b) an abnormally high temperature detected by one or more temperature probes117indicating a likely flaring or temperature runaway condition above the cooking grate(s)115.