Patent Publication Number: US-2003226558-A1

Title: Kitchen island vent hood

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001] Kitchen islands are common and popular, and often include a gas or electric stove top for cooking. Such an island stove top presents problems with venting, since the island sits in the open area of the kitchen, apart from any walls. Prior art venting for islands generally comes in two forms, upward and downward venting. Upward venting involves a hood at the lower end of a column hanging from the ceiling. The hood captures rising hot air carrying grease, steam, smoke, and/or odors, and vents them upwardly through a duct extending through the hanging column. In order to be effective, such hanging hoods must extend to a height approximately 28-30 inches above the cooking surface. However, at this elevation, the hood obstructs view across the kitchen and from one side of the island to the other.  
       [0002] Downward venting systems typically include a panel which extends or pops up from the island a short distance and draws air laterally across the cooking surface for expulsion through a duct extending downwardly into the island. However, since hot air naturally rises, such downward venting systems are inefficient and allows substantial portions of grease, steam, smoke and/or odors to escape into the ambient kitchen air.  
       [0003] Another type of venting system is disclosed in Applicant&#39;s U.S. Pat. No. 6,276,358, which discloses a pop-up table top with vent hoods that can be extended and retracted so as to overlay a portion of the cooking surface. A similar pop-up column with a swivel vent hood is offered for sale by Gaggenau under the tradename V1051 Cook-Top Ventilator, which has a hood extending over a portion of the cooking surface. In both the Gaggenau system and the system of U.S. Pat. No. 6,276,358, the vent hoods are relatively small and do not cover all of the cooking surface. Therefore, these ventilation systems are not efficient in capturing rising air from cooking areas beyond the reach of the small hoods.  
       [0004] Therefore, a primary objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved kitchen island vent hood.  
       [0005] Another objective of the present invention is the provision of an island vent hood which extends over substantially the entire cooking area to capture grease, steam, smoke and/or odors.  
       [0006] A further objective of the present invention is the provision of an island vent hood which is retractable into the island when not in use and extensible over the entire cooking surface when in use.  
       [0007] Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of an improved island vent hood which can be positioned at various heights above the cooking surface and which can also be horizontally positioned overall or a portion of the cooking surface.  
       [0008] Still another objective of the present invention is the provision of an island vent hood which is efficient and durable in use, and economical to manufacture.  
       [0009] These and other objectives will become apparent from the following description of the invention.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0010] An improved vent hood is provided for an island cooking surface. The vent hood is mounted on an extensible and retractable column so as to be retracted into a recess in the island structure when not in use, and is extensible to a height up to 30 inches above the cooking surface when in use. The column extends from a position in the island rearwardly of the cooking surface, preferably at an angle of approximately 15° from vertical. The vent hood slides horizontally from a forward position covering the cooking surface to a retracted position for receipt in the island recess when not in use. Separate actuators control the raising and lowering of the column and the extension and retraction of the vent hood relative to the column. The movement of the vent hood actuator is amplified by linkages so as to maximize the extension of the vent hood with minimal space requirements for the actuator. 
     
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
     [0011]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the improved island vent hood of the present invention.  
     [0012]FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the island vent hood of the present invention.  
     [0013]FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the island vent hood of the present invention.  
     [0014]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a portion of the island framework with the frame assemblies of the vent hood and column in a retracted or storage position.  
     [0015]FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 4 showing the column and vent hood frames in fully extended positions.  
     [0016]FIG. 6 is a side elevation view of the frame structures shown in FIG. 4 in the retracted positions.  
     [0017]FIG. 7 is a side elevation view of the frame structures shown in FIG. 5 in the fully extended positions.  
     [0018]FIG. 8 is an enlarged perspective view of the vent hood frame structure in a retracted position.  
     [0019]FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 8 showing the vent hood frame structure in an extended position.  
     [0020]FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the vent hood frame structure taken along lines  10 - 10  of FIG. 8.  
     [0021]FIG. 11 is a sectional view of the vent hood frame structure taken along lines  11 - 11  of FIG. 9. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
     [0022] A kitchen island is generally designated by the reference numeral  10  in the drawings. The island includes a stovetop or cooking surface  12  and the vent hood assembly  14  of the present invention. The assembly  14  includes a telescoping lift column  16  with a retractable and extendable vent hood  18  mounted on top of the column  16 . As seen in FIG. 1, the assembly  14  extends upwardly in the operative or use position from a recessed area  20  in the island  10 . In the non-use or storage position, the assembly  14  resides within the recess  20 . Preferably, when the assembly  14  is lowered and retracted into the recess  20 , the top of the vent hood  18  is slightly above the countertop  22  of the island  10 , so as to discourage the setting of an object on the edge of the vent hood where the object could fall off or spill when the assembly  14  is raised. Alternatively, the top of the vent hood  18  can be flush with the countertop  22  when the assembly  14  is in the storage position.  
     [0023] As seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the column  16  preferably extends at a non-perpendicular angle relative to the cooking surface  12 . The angle is in the range of 10°-20° from vertical, with a preferred angle of 15°.  
     [0024] The vent hood  18  is mounted on the column  16  so as to be horizontally movable between a retracted position, shown in FIG. 3, and an extended position, shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The angular orientation of the column  16  allows the vent hood  18  to be positioned fully over the cooking surface  12  with less forward movement, as compared to a vertical column. While it is understood that the column  16  may be oriented vertically, such a vertical orientation would require a greater extension of the vent hood  18  for positioning over the cooking surface  12 .  
     [0025] FIGS.  4 - 10  show the frame structures for a portion of the island  10 , the column  16 , and the vent hood  18 . More particularly, the island  10  includes a forward frame portion  24  which supports the stovetop or cooking appliance which defines the cooking surface  12 . The island  10  also includes a shorter rearward frame portion  26  which defines the recessed area  20  of the island  10 .  
     [0026] The mechanical structures of the assembly  14  are mounted in the rearward frame portion  26  of the island  10  as shown in FIGS.  4 - 7 . The column  16  includes a pair of spaced apart frame members  28  with telescoping sections. The frame members  28  are connected so that they are raised and lowered in unison. It is understood that a single telescoping frame member could be provided, though it is preferred to use the dual frame members  28  which provide increased lateral stability for the vent hood  18 .  
     [0027] As best seen in FIGS. 6 and 7, an actuator  30 , such as a motor driven screw, has a lower end connected to the rearward frame  26  of the island  10  and an upward end connected to the base  28 A of the column frames  28 . The bases  28 A of the column frames  28  are mounted for sliding movement along rails  32  in the rearward frame  26  of the island  10 . The angle of orientation of the rails  32  determines the angle of the column  16 , preferably 15° from vertical. As seen in FIG. 6, when the actuator  30  is retracted, the bases  28 A of the column frames  28  are at the bottom of the rails  32 , and when the actuator  30  is extended, as shown in FIG. 7, the bases  28 A of the column frames  28  are at the top of the rails  32 .  
     [0028] The telescoping frame sections  28 A, B and C of the column  16  are enclosed by housing sections  17 A, B, C, which also telescope with respect to one another.  
     [0029] The column frames  28  includes internal linear slides and actuators (not shown) for extending and retracting the telescoping frame sections  28 B and  28 C. The lift column frames  28  are commercially available from Linak of Denmark, Model DL3. These Linak lift columns extend more than two times their retracted height.  
     [0030] The actuator  30  and rails  32  define a first stage of the lift action for the vent hood assembly  14 , while the internal actuators of the column frames  28  define a second stage of the lifting action.  
     [0031] Attached to the upper column section  28 C is the frame assembly  34  for the vent hood  18 . More particularly, a pair of plates  36  are secured between the upper column sections  28 C, and are substantially L-shaped. A lower plate  38  is secured to the lower end of the plates  36 . A backing plate  40  is secured to the rearward side of the plates  36  adjacent the upper end thereof. An upper plate  42  is secured to the top of the plates  36 . The plates  36 ,  38 ,  40  and  42  define a sandwich structure which houses an actuator  44 , as described in further detail below.  
     [0032] A horizontally disposed, rectangular subframe  46  is mounted to the upper end of the lift column frames  28  via mounting blocks  48 . The subframe  46  is defined by opposite side slide rails  50  and cross bars  52 ,  53  secured at opposite ends of the slide rails  50 . The slide rails  50  are attached to the mounting blocks  48 . A slide bar  54  extends between the slide rails  50  and is adapted to slide there along. A retractable and extendable scissors mechanism  56  has a rearward end  58  connected to the upper plate  42  and a forward end  60  connected to the forward cross bar  52 . The scissors  56  includes multiple joints, with the first joints  62  being slidably pinned or connected to elongated slots  64  in the slide bar  54 .  
     [0033] The slide bar  54  is connected to a rod  66 , which in turn is pivotally connected to the upper end of a link arm  68 . The lower end of the link arm  68  is connected to the upper end of the actuator  44 , as best seen in FIGS. 10 and 11. The lower end of the actuator  44  is secured to the lower plate  38 . When the actuator  44  is extended, the link arm  68  and connecting rod  66  translate the upward linear motion of the actuator  44  to horizontal linear motion so as to slide the slide bar  54  forwardly along the slide rails  50 , while the scissors  56  simultaneously extend as the first joints  62  thereof move inwardly along the slots  64  of the slide bar  54 . Thus, the slide bar  54  and scissors  56  translates a short linear extension of the actuator  44  into a substantially longer linear extension of the subframe  46  and the attached vent hood  18 . Thus, the travel of the vent hood  18  is much longer than the travel of the actuator  44  due to the amplification resulting from the scissors  56 . It is further contemplated that other types of actuators including, but not limited to, a motor driven screw mechanism could be substituted for the scissors mechanism  56 .  
     [0034] The vent hood  18 , which is mounted on the subframe  46 , houses filters (not shown) through which the updraft heated air passes. A flexible duct  70  extends from the vent hood  18  and downwardly through the lift column  16  and into the island  10 . The flexible duct thus raises and lowers with the lift column  16 . The upper end of the duct  70  is secured in a collar or ring  72  in any convenient manner. The lower end of the duct  70  is connected to a filter assembly  74  to remove cooking vapors from the air. (The details of the filter assembly  74  are described in Applicant&#39;s co-pending application titled ______ filed Jun. __, 2002, and incorporated herein by reference.) A blower  76  draws air through the duct  70  and filter  74  and discharges filtered air into an outlet duct  78 . A humidifier  80  and heater  82  may optionally be provided in the outlet duct  78 . The outlet duct  78  preferably discharges the filtered air for recycling back into the kitchen. Alternatively, the outlet duct  78  can be connected to an exhaust duct (not shown) in the floor to carry the vented air for discharge outside the house.  
     [0035] Controls are provided on the island for actuating the first stage actuator  30 , the internal second stage actuators of the lift column frames  28 , and the vent hood actuator  44 . The various actuators can be positioned anywhere between the fully retracted and fully extended positions, such that the height of the assembly  14  is adjustable and the position of the vent hood  18  relative to the burners of the cooking surface  12  is adjustable. Thus, the vent hood  18  may cover only the rear burners, or may cover the rear burners and the front burners. Also, the height of the vent hood  18  above the cooking surface  12  can be selected to accommodate various cooking conditions.  
     [0036] The invention has been shown and described above with the preferred embodiments, and it is understood that many modifications, substitutions, and additions may be made which are within the intended spirit and scope of the invention. From the foregoing, it can be seen that the present invention accomplishes at least all of its stated objectives.