Abstract:
The present invention is a conveyor oven that has a base. The base has a first end and a second end. A housing is secured to the second end of the base. A fixed end of a cantilevered top is attached to the housing. The cantilevered top extends generally parallel to the base and towards the first end of the base. The volume between the cantilevered top and the base generally defines an oven chamber.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The present invention relates to conveyor ovens and, more particularly to, an improved conveyor oven having a removable front cover to facilitate disassembly and cleaning of the interior and components of the conveyor oven.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    Many restaurants use conveyor ovens to prepare food. A food service professional may place food such as a pizza or a dish of lasagna, for example, on the conveyor and the food is cooked or heated as it is conveyed through the oven. As the food cooks, cheese may melt and drip on the oven surfaces, tomato sauce may splatter on the oven surfaces, and crumbs of food may fall from the conveyor and collect in the oven. Because most conveyor ovens have relatively confined cooking chambers, cleaning the oven after a day of cooking can be a difficult task.  
           [0003]    Some conveyor ovens have removable interior components that allow the food service professional to partially disassemble the conveyor oven for cleaning. However, typical oven designs have significant obstacles to cleaning. For example, many conventional conveyor ovens have a tunnel-like cooking chamber that is open on opposite ends. The conveyor moves food from one end of the cooking chamber to the other. The cooking chamber is difficult to clean because access is limited to either end of the oven. Additionally, thoroughly cleaning areas near the center of the cooking chamber in larger ovens may be difficult or impossible for a food service professional to reach these areas. Cleaning cooking chambers in smaller ovens may be difficult because the limited space in the oven also limits access by the food service professional.  
           [0004]    Removing interior components of a conventional conveyor oven may only slightly improve cleaning tasks. The interior components must be removed from the relatively small opening at either end of the conveyor oven. Because the orientation of the oven may be parallel to a countertop or table, maneuvering the interior components for removal and subsequent reassembly could be awkward. Access to the interior of the oven may still be limited because of the orientation of the oven on the countertop, even after the interior components are removed.  
           [0005]    Inspecting the interior of the cooking chamber before and after cleaning is also difficult because of the confined area inside the oven. Areas of the oven may not be cleaned because the food service professional may not be able to clearly see certain regions of the cooking chamber. Similarly, an inspection of the oven after cleaning may not reveal unclean regions. As a result, improperly cleaned ovens may be less efficient, wear faster, decrease the quality of the food or even cause adverse health conditions.  
           [0006]    It would, therefore, be desirable to have an improved conveyor oven that does not have regions that are difficult to access for cleaning. It would also be desirable to have an improved conveyor oven that is not difficult to disassemble for cleaning. Further, it would be desirable to have an improved conveyor oven that does not require a particular orientation for disassembly and cleaning.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0007]    The present invention is a conveyor oven that has a base. The base has a first end and a second end. A housing is secured to the second end of the base. A fixed end of a cantilevered top is attached to the housing. The cantilevered top extends generally parallel to the base and towards the first end of the base. The volume between the cantilevered top and the base generally defines an oven chamber.  
           [0008]    In one embodiment of the invention, a modular oven system has a housing having an upper end and a lower end. A first end of a base is attached to the lower end of the housing. A first end of a top is attached to the upper end of the housing. The top extends generally parallel and adjacent to the base. The volume between the base and the top generally defines an oven chamber. A removable plug generally fills an area between the second end of the top and the second end of the base. A removable conveyor is located within the oven chamber. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0009]    For a more complete understanding of the present invention, including its features and advantages, reference is now made to the detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 1 is a perspective exploded view of a conveyor oven that depicts an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 2 is top view of a conveyor oven that depicts an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 3 is a front view of a conveyor that depicts an embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 4 is a side view of a conveyor oven that depicts an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0014]    While the making and using of various embodiments of the present invention is discussed in detail below, it should be appreciated that the present invention provides many applicable inventive concepts that can be embodied in a wide variety of specific contexts. The specific embodiments discussed herein are merely illustrative of specific ways to make and use the invention, and do not delimit the scope of the invention.  
         [0015]    A conveyor oven according to one embodiment of the present invention has many useful advantages over a typical conveyor oven. Typical conveyor ovens have an entrance and an exit. Food is placed on the conveyor at the entrance; it is carried through hot gasses in the cooking chamber; and, presumably, the food exits in a cooked state. The dimensions of the entrances and exits of the typical oven are designed to be large enough to accommodate various foods but small enough to retain the heated gas and maintain efficient operation. As discussed above, cleaning and maintenance of the oven are hindered by the confined nature of conventional ovens. A conveyor oven having the improvements described in detail below overcomes this and other disadvantages of conventional ovens.  
         [0016]    As depicted in FIGS.  1 - 4 , an oven  10  has a housing  12 . The housing  12  may house various components of the oven  10  such as heating elements, a power supply, switches, motors and the like. The housing  12  may be fabricated from stainless steel or other suitable material such as aluminum or carbon fiber. A stainless steel housing  12  may be formed by a brake or fabricated from multiple pieces and bolted, screwed or welded together, for example. The housing  12  may rest directly on a countertop or table or may have adjustable feet (not shown) to compensate for out-of-level surfaces.  
         [0017]    The weight of the housing  12  may be altered according to desired design characteristics. For example, weight may be added to the housing  12  to increase the stability of the oven  10 . Plates of steel may be added to the housing  12  or heavier gauge stainless steel may be used to fabricate the housing  12  to increase total weight. A heavier housing  12  is less likely to slide across a surface if a user accidentally bumps the oven  10 . Consequently, a heavier housing  12  may enhance user safety. Increased weight may also impart an additional perception of quality to the user of the oven  10 .  
         [0018]    Alternatively, the weight of the housing  12  may be reduced to save material and shipping costs, thereby reducing costs passed to the customer. Reducing weight may be accomplished by using a lighter gauge stainless steel to fabricate the housing  12 . Smaller, more efficient components may also be installed in the housing  12  to reduce weight.  
         [0019]    A base  14  is attached to the lower portion of the housing  12 . The base  14  may be welded, bolted or screwed to the housing  12 . Similar to the housing  12 , the base  14  may also be fabricated from stainless steel, aluminum or other suitable material for the food service industry. The base  14  may impart additional stability to the oven  10  by distributing the weight of the oven  10  over a larger area. The dimensions of the base  14  will generally define the size of the oven  10 . Smaller capacity ovens  10  will usually have a smaller base  14 , whereas larger capacity ovens  10  will usually have a larger base  14 .  
         [0020]    The base  14  provides support for a conveyor  16 . The conveyor  16  may be a wire mesh that conveys food through the oven  10 . A motor within the housing  12  typically drives the conveyor  16  but the conveyor  16  may also be driven by an external drive or other drive that is housed within the conveyor  16 . Alternative methods of driving the conveyor  16  will be apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art of conveyor ovens.  
         [0021]    The base  14  may also support one or more lower plenums  18 , although some ovens  10  may not have lower plenums  18 . The lower plenums  18  deliver heated air or gasses to the lower side of a food that is cooked in the oven  10 . The lower plenums  18  may be fabricated from stainless steel, aluminum, molded plastic or other material that is suitable to channel heated air or gasses. The lower plenums  18  may simply rest on the base  14  or interlock into the base  14  or the housing  12 . The lower plenums  18  may be easily removable from the oven  10  to facilitate cleaning and maintaining the oven  10 .  
         [0022]    Heated air or gasses may be generated in the housing  12  by electric heating elements or gas combustion, for example. A blower within the housing  12  may force the heated air or gasses into the lower plenums  18 . The lower plenums  18  may be tapered towards their distal ends to maintain air or gas velocity along the length of the lower plenums  18 . The heated air or gasses may be discharged from the lower plenums  18  through a series of air distribution ports in the upper surface of the lower plenums  18 . The series of ports may be sized and arranged to deliver an appropriate volume of heated air or gasses and properly cook food within the oven  10 . Heated air or gasses from the lower plenums  18  travels through the conveyor  16  and may impinge on the lower surface of the food. This directional distribution of heated air or gasses aids in cooking separate portions of foods such as the bottom of a pizza crust, for example.  
         [0023]    A top  20  is attached to an upper portion of the housing  12 . The top  20  may be fabricated from materials such as stainless steel, aluminum or other materials known in the art of oven manufacturing. The size of the top  20  may have dimensions similar to the dimensions of the base  14 . The volume of space between the base  14  and the top  20  generally defines a chamber  22  of the oven  10 . The size of the chamber  22  determines the size of the conveyor  16  and ultimately determines the size or amount of food that may be cooked in the oven  10  during a particular time. Different sizes of ovens  10  may be manufactured by varying the lengths and widths of the top  20  and base  14  and varying the distance between the top  20  and the base  14 .  
         [0024]    The top  20  is attached to the housing  12  in a cantilevered manner. The housing  12  provides structural support for the cantilevered top  20 . The connection between the top  20  and the housing  12  may be screwed, bolted, welded or fastened in another manner known to those of ordinary skill in the oven fabricating art. The top  20  is rigid enough to have little or no deflection at the distal end of the top  20 . Consequently, the top  20  requires no additional support structure.  
         [0025]    The top  20  may support one or more upper plenums  24 , although some ovens  10  may not have upper plenums  24 . The upper plenums  24  deliver heated air or gasses to the upper side of a food that is cooked in the oven  10 . The upper plenums  24  may also deliver heated air or gasses to the chamber  22  to thoroughly cook the entire food rather than cook only a particular region of the food, such as the top of a pizza, for example. The upper plenums  24  may be fabricated from stainless steel, aluminum, molded plastic or other material that is suitable to channel heated air or gasses. The upper plenums  24  may interlock into the top  20  or the housing  12 . The upper plenums  24  may be easily removable from the oven  10  to facilitate cleaning and maintaining the oven  10 .  
         [0026]    The blower within the housing  12  may force the heated air or gasses into the upper plenums  24 . The upper plenums  24  may be tapered towards their distal ends to maintain air or gas velocity along the length of the upper plenums  24 . The heated air or gasses may be discharged from the upper plenums  24  through a series of air distribution ports in the lower surface of the upper plenums  24 . The series of ports may be sized and arranged to deliver an appropriate volume of heated air or gasses and properly cook food within the oven  10 . Heated air or gasses from the upper plenums  24  may be directed to impinge on the upper surface of the food. This directional distribution of heated air or gasses aids in cooking separate portions of foods such as the meat or cheese toppings on a pizza, for example.  
         [0027]    The cantilever structure of the top  20  imparts many beneficial features to the oven  10 . One result of the cantilever structure is that the chamber  22  of the oven  10  is only bounded on one side, which may be located at the back of the oven  10 . This beneficial result allows internal components of the oven  10  such as the conveyor  16 , the lower plenums  18  and the upper plenums  24  to be removed from the front or the sides of the oven  10 . Consequently, cleaning and maintaining the oven  10  is simplified because the orientation of the oven  10  does not hinder access by maintenance and cleaning personnel.  
         [0028]    Because access to the chamber  22  is not restricted to the entrance and exit, the chamber  22  may also be cleaned from the front. Cleaning the chamber  22  from the front results in more thorough and sanitary cleaning. Many areas in the chamber of an oven without a cantilever top are confined, difficult to reach and often impossible to observe without using specialized equipment. As a result, these areas may not be thoroughly cleaned, which could contaminate food that is cooked in a non-cantilever oven. The cantilever top  20  on the oven  10  according to one embodiment of the present invention allows much better access to the chamber  22  and the interior surfaces of the oven  10  for cleaning and maintenance purposes. Therefore, the cantilevered top  20  allows users to prepare food in a more sanitary manner.  
         [0029]    Heat may be lost through the area between the distal end of the top  20  and the distal end of the base  14 . A plug  26  may be fitted in this area between the top  20  and the base  14  to reduce or eliminate this heat loss. The plug  26  may have one or more handles  28  to facilitate installation and removal of the plug  26 . The plug  26  may be fabricated from stainless steel, aluminum, heat-resistant polymers and the like. The plug  26  may also be insulated to reduce heat loss through the front of the chamber  22  and to reduce chances that users will be injured by hot surfaces on the oven  10 . A friction fit between the plug  26  and the distal ends of the top  20  and the base  14  may hold the plug  26  in place during use. The plug  26  may also have detents that mate with protrusions on the distal ends of the top  20  and the base  14  to hold the plug  26  in place. Other methods of removably fastening the plug  26  to the oven include, but are not limited to, springs, straps, thumb screws, hinges, latches and the like.  
         [0030]    The top  20  may also provide support for easily removable baffles  30  and side covers  32 . One or more baffles  30  may be removably attached to the top  20  or other portion of the oven  10  to contain and redirect heated air or gasses within the chamber  22 . The baffles  30  may help prevent heated air or gasses from escaping through the entrance or exit of the oven  10 , and thereby improve the efficiency of the oven  10  and the environment of a user. The baffles  30  may be removed from the front of the oven  10  after the plug  26  is removed to facilitate cleaning the chamber  22 . One or more side covers  32  may also be removably attached to the top  20  or other portion of the oven  10 . The side covers  32  may be insulated to help protect users from injuries caused by hot surfaces on the oven  10 .  
         [0031]    Whereas the invention has been shown and described in connection with the preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that many modifications, substitutions and additions may be made which are within the intended broad scope of the appended claims. There has therefore been shown and described an improved conveyor oven that accomplishes at least all of the above stated advantages.