Improvements in or relating to Cooking Apparatus.
Year: 1898

page_text: Date of Application, 1st Jan., 1898
Complete Specification Left, 3rd Oct., 1898-Accepted, 19th Nov., 1898
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in or relating to Cooking Apparatus.
I, HUBERT HIGGINS, of 4, Trinity Street, Cambridge, in the County of Cam-
bridge, Demonstrator of Anatomy to the Cambridge University, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
The object of this invention is to provide an efficient and economical steam
cooking apparatus capable of being operated by saturated or superheated steam
as desired. The invention comprises improvements in the method of generating
and superheating the steam; in the method of employing it in the cooking
apparatus; in the utilization of the waste steam after it has passed through the
cooking chambers; and in improved forms of apparatus, which are adapted either
for large fixed installations, or for portable forms, either complete in themselves
or adapted to be attached to an ordinary fire place or cooking range.
A cooker constructed according to this invention comprises a chamber, sur-
rounded by a water jacket, which forms the steam generator. A coil, or other
convenient arrangement of piping, which gives length of travel to the steam, open-
ing at one end in the upper part or steam space of the generator and at the other
in the lower portion of the cooking chamber, forms the superheater for the steam.
One or more superheaters may be provided, and it, or they, may be arranged so
as to be heated at will either directly by the source of heat, or merely by the
combustion gases.
A pipe or other connection is provided between the generator and the cooking
chamber for the admission of saturated steam. Both this connection, and the
superheater, or each of the superheaters if more than one be provided, should be
controlled by suitable valves readily manipulated from the outside of the apparatus.
An outside casing may conveniently be provided for the steam generator so as
to direct the combustion gases around it.
The chamber is provided with an opening for obtaining access to its inside,
and this may consist either of a lid placed on the top or of a door in one of its
sides. Suitable means are provided for the escape of the steam from the chamber.
A water tank may be provided, so as to maintain the water in the jacket at a
proper level.
Preferably one or more chambers are combined in the same apparatus with the
chamber and generator just before described. In this case the second chamber
is connected with the first so as to receive steam therefrom. Conveniently it is
constructed with double walls forming a confined air space to act as a non-con-
ducting covering. The second chamber may be placed over or by the side of the
first one, with which it may be constructed in one, or it may be entirely separate
and removable; it may in small apparatus form the lid of the first chamber.
The apparatus may be provided with a third chamber, placed either above or by
the side of the other two, and constructed with a jacket to receive the steam from
the second chamber of the series. This jacket may be lagged and it is provided
with one or more escape pipes for the steam which may be in a partially or wholly
condensed state.

page_text: Each chamber is provided with suitable openings or doors for allowing access
to their interior and with all suitable fittings.
In operation the steam, either saturated or superheated to any desired tempera-
ture, is passed into the first chamber of the series, which may be lined with a
non-conductor, and from which it escapes into the second, passing thence into the
jacket of the third, from which it may blow to waste, or be utilised as herein-
after described.
If the steam jacketted chamber be placed above the steam generator, its escape
pipe may be connected directly with the latter, into which the condensed steam
will enter through gravity forming a closed cycle. A coil to aid the condensa-
tion of the steam by prolonging its exposure to the air may be employed.
A casing may be provided to receive a saucepan and soup kettle or the like,
and the waste steam from the jacket utilised to heat this before being returned
to the generator or otherwise disposed of.
Instead of the superheater or superheaters opening into the chamber surrounded
by the steam generator, it or they may be connected with the air jacketted chamber,
the steam passing from this latter chamber into the one enclosed in the steam
generator, and from the latter into the steam jacket of the third chamber; or
the steam connections may be arranged so that saturated steam may be applied
to two chambers only of the series and the other chamber cut out of operation.
With large installations the waste steam may be utilised for warming the air,
say in a restaurant, by passing it into a receptacle provided with pipes through
which the air may be drawn by a blower of any usual kind or it may circulate
through radiators or be employed to boil water, or heat a warming plate for
dishes, etc.
Although three chambers are described herein it is evident that the number may
be increased if required.
If desired, in large installations, steam, already generated, may be introduced
into the jacket herein before described as forming the steam generator, and the
steam only superheated in the apparatus itself.
A convenient form of apparatus specially adapted for use with an ordinary fire
place or cooking range and preferably portable in form comprises a chamber, sur-
rounded by a jacket and with a water tank of any convenient shape attached to or
formed with it. The water tank is connected with the inside of the cooking cham-
ber, by a pipe, shaped so as to farm one or more projecting bends or
convolutions, arranged to pass between the bars of a grate into the fire space. This
pipe acts both as a steam generator and superheater according to the length of pipe
exposed to the action of the fire and may be conveniently constructed so that the
length exposed may be regulated in the same apparatus to control the temperature
of the steam entering the chamber.
The chamber is provided with convenient means of access to its interior and may
have hooks or like devices to attach it to the front of the grate. It is also furnished
with openings for escape of the steam.
The jacket may form a dead air space to act as lagging and prevent loss of heat
from the chamber.
Or alternatively the water tank may be dispensed with and the jacket used to
contain the water to supply the steam in which case one end of the pipe forming
the steam generator is connected with the jacket.
Although specially adapted for small portable apparatus this modification may
be constructed on a large scale, as a fixture in which case two or more chambers
may be combined as in the form first described and the waste steam utilised in
like manner.
Dated this 1st day of Januar 1900

page_text: Improvements in or relating to Cooking Apparatus.
I, HUBERT HIGGINS, of 4, Trinity Street, Cambridge, in the County of Cam-
bridge, Demonstrator of Anatomy to the Cambridge University, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement; -
The object of this invention is to provide an efficient and economical steam
cooking apparatus capable of being operated by saturated or superheated steam
as desired. The invention comprises improvements in the method of generating
and superheating the steam; in the method of employing it in the cooking
apparatus; in the utilization of the waste steam after it has passed through the
cooking chambers; and in improved forms of apparatus, which are adapted either
for large fixed installations, or for portable forms, either complete in themselves
or adapted to be attached to an ordinary fire place or cooking range.
A cooker constructed according to this invention comprises a chamber, sur-
rounded by a water jacket, which forms a steam generator. A coil, or other
convenient arrangement of piping, which gives length of travel to the steam, open-
ing at one end in the upper part or steam space of the generator and at the other
in the lower portion of the cooking chamber, forms the superheater for the steam.
One or more superheaters connected by independent pipes or attached to a single
pipe may be provided, and it, or they, may be arranged so as to be heated at will
either directly by the source of heat, or merely by the combustion gases.
A pipe or other connection is provided between the generator and the cooking
chamber for the admission of saturated steam. Both this connection, and the
superheater, or each of the superheaters if more than one be provided, should be
controlled by suitable valves readily manipulated from the outside of the apparatus.
An outside casing may conveniently be provided for the steam generator so as
to direct the combustion gases around it.
The chamber is provided with an opening for obtaining access to the inside,
and this may consist either of a lid placed on the top or of a door in one of its
sides. Suitable means are provided for the escape of the steam from the chamber,
A water tank may be provided, so as to maintain the water in the jacket at a
proper level.
Preferably one or more chambers are combined in the same apparatus with the
chamber and generator just before described. In this case the second chamber
is connected with the first so as to receive steam therefrom. Conveniently it is
constructed with double walls forming a confined air space to act as a non-con-
ducting covering. The second chamber may be placed over or by the side of the
first one, with which it may be constructed in one, or it may be entirely separate
and removable; it may in small apparatus form the lid of the first chamber.
The apparatus may be provided with a third chamber, placed either above or by
the side of the other two, and constructed with a jacket to receive the steam from
the second chamber of the series. This jacket may be lagged and it is provided
with one or more escape pipes for the condensing or condensed steam. When two or
more chambers are used they may be disposed in the same horizontal plane with
reference to each other or in different planes, or they may be super-imposed.
Each chamber is provided with suitable openings or doors for allowing access
to their interior and with all suitable fittings.
In operation the steam, either saturated or superheated to any desired tempera-
ture, is passed into the first chamber of the series, which may be lined with a
non-conductor, and from which it escapes into the second, passing thence into the

page_text: jacket of the third, from which it may blow to waste, or be utilised as herein-
after described.
If the steam jacketted chamber be placed above the steam generator, its escape
pipe may be connected directly with the latter, into which the water from the
condensed steam will enter through gravity forming a closed cycle. As in this
case the steam must be completely condensed, a coil to ensure the perfect con-
densation of the steam by prolonging its exposure to the air may be employed,
and if necessary a safety-valve employed.
A casing may be provided to receive a saucepan and soup kettle or the like,
and the waste steam from the jacket utilised to heat this before being returned
to the generator or otherwise disposed of; or the steam may be used to boil water.
Instead of the superheater or superheaters opening into the chamber surrounded
by the steam generator, it or they may be connected with the air jacketted chamber,
the steam passing from this latter chamber into the one enclosed in the steam
generator, and from the latter into the steam jacket of the third chamber; or
the steam connections may be arranged so that saturated steam may be applied
to two chambers only of the series and the other chamber cut out of operation..
With large installations the waste steam may be utilised for warming the air,
say in a restaurant, by passing it into a receptacle provided with pipes through
which the air may be drawn by a blower of any usual kind or it may circulate
through radiators or be employed to boil water, or heat a warming plate for
dishes, etc.
Although three chambers are described herein it is evident that the number may
be increased if required.
If desired in large installations, steam, already generated, may be introduced
into the jacket hereinbefore described as forming the steam generator, and the
steam only superheated in the apparatus itself.
A convenient form of apparatus specially adapted for use with an ordinary fire
place or cooking range and preferably portable in form comprises a chamber, sur-
rounded by a jacket and with a water tank of any convenient shape attached to or
formed with it. The water tank is connected with the inside of the cooking cham-
ber, by a pipe, or pipes shaped so as to form one or more projecting bends or
convolutions, arranged to pass between the bars of a grate into the fire space. This
pipe acts both as a steam generator and superheater according to the length of pipe
exposed to the action of the fire and may be conveniently constructed so that the
length exposed may be regulated in the same apparatus to control the temperature
of the steam entering the chamber.
The chamber is provided with convenient means of access to its interior and may
have hooks or like devices to attach it to the front of the grate. It is also furnished
with openings for escape of the steam.
The jacket may form a dead air space to act as lagging and prevent loss of heat
from the chamber.
Or alternatively the water tank may be dispensed with and the jacket used to
contain the water to supply the steam in which case one end of the pipe forming
the steam generator is connected with the lower portion or water space of the
jacket.
Although specially adapted for small portable apparatus this modification may
be constructed on a large scale, as a fixture in which case two or more chambers
may be combined as in the form first described and the waste steam utilised in
like manner.
In the accompanying drawings,
Figures 1 to 5 show diagrammatically various typical forms of apparatus con-
structed according to this invention, and
Figure 6 is an air heater for utilising the waste steam from such apparatus.
Like letters indicate like parts in all the figures.
In Figures 1 to 4, A is a cooking chamber contained within a jacket B which

page_text: forms the steam generator. A¹ A3 are also cooking chambers provided with
jackets B1 B2, which jackets may either be heated by a current of steam or form
closed receptacles for air to act as heat retainers. The chambers, A, A¹ A³, may
be of any convenient shape, preferably rectangular, and are provided with suitable
openings for introducing and removing the materials to be cooked, these may be
either top lids or covers as shown in Figures 1 and 2, or side doors, as in the forms
shown in Figures 3 and 4. C is an outside casing desirably provided with lag-
ging C and furnished with suitable openings at bottom and top for the supply
of air to the source of heat and for the escape of the products of combustion respec-
tively; suitable arrangements may be provided for regulating the supply of air
and conducting the combustion gases to a chimney. D is a superheater coil, which
may be of any desired form which will give prolonged travel
of heat which may
source
be of any
suitable character, depending on the size and purpose of the instal-
lation, say one or more gas burners, as shown in the figures, or an oil stove, or in
large installations a coal furnace.
to the steam and E is the
A cooking apparatus with a single chamber is shown in Figure 1. The cham-
ber A is connected with the superheater 1 by a pipe D¹, the superheater receiving
its steam from the upper part, which forms the steam space, of the generator B,
through a pipe D2, furnished with a valve D³; a valve D being also provided
to admit saturated steam directly from the generator into the chamber A, when
desired. A funnel and valve B may be provided for filling the generator with
water; B is an escape pipe for the steam from the chamber.
In Figure 2 is shown an apparatus having two cooking chambers A, A¹. The
arrangement of the chamber A and its steam generator B is similar to that in
Figure 1, except that two independent superheaters 1) are shown. The chamber A
is provided with an air jacket 13¹, and receives steam from the chamber A through
a pipe A3 and valve A', and is provided with a drain cock A as well as with a
steam escape pipe and valve Bt.
If desired, either of the above described apparatus may be provided with a feed
water tank, such as is shown at F, Figure 3, and in that case the escape pipe B*
may be carried by an elastic or other connections into said feed tank so as to heat
the water and condense or partially condense the waste steam.
A form of apparatus comprising three cooking chambers A, A', A³, is shown
in Figure 3. In this case the chamber A is not provided with steam connections
being heated only by conduction from the surrounding steam generator. The
superheater is connected by its pipe D' to the second chamber A¹ which may also
be connected through the valve D directly with the steam space of the generator.
The third chamber A3, which may be placed as shown outside the casing,
receives steam from the chamber A¹ through pipe A6 and valve A. Both cham-
|bers A¹ A² are provided with air jackets B1 B2 respectively. The chamber A¹
may have an escape pipe and valve B so that it may, if desired, be worked with-
out passing steam into the chamber A².
A feedwater tank F is placed in any convenient position so as to supply the
generator by gravity, the supply of water being maintained at the desired level
by a ball cock F".
An escape valve A is placed at the lowest part of the chamber A2, and this
valve may be connected by suitable tubing with an air heating apparatus such
as is shown in Figure 6 and hereinafter more fully described, or the steam may
be used to heat the feed water of the generator.
In Figure 4 is shown another form of cooker having three chambers, and like-
wise provided with a casing for the reception of a saucepan, pot, or like utensil.
In this form the chamber A is shown connected with the pipe B₁ of the super-
heater, the second chamber A¹ receiving its steam from the chamber A through
pipe A3 and valve A. The third chamber A2 is not supplied with steam but
heated by conduction from its jacket B³, into which the waste steam from the

page_text: chamber A passes through pipe B5 and valve B. The steam from the jacket 12
passes through a pipe 17 into a casing BS formed to receive a sauce pan H
or other cooking utensil. Both the chamber A2 with its jacket and the casing 138
may if desired be placed within the outside casing C carried up for that purpose,
or, as shown in the figure, they may be placed outside the casing, in which case
they are suitably lagged with non-conducting material.
From the casing 138, the steam passes into a condenser G of any convenient
shape, in which it is condensed, and passes, as water by gravity into the feed
tank F through the pipe G¹; the feed tank may also be provided with an
independent source of water supply, controlled by a ball cock F1 or similar
device to make up for loss occasioned during the working of the apparatus.
With steam from a superheater is employed within one of the chambers A,
placed within the generator, the chamber is desirably provided with lagging A³,
as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 4, to prevent the superheated steam parting with
its heat to the steam and water of the generator, which is at a lower temeperature.
It is evident that the condenser G may be employed to warm air, in which
case it may be constructed as shown in Figure 6, consisting of a receptacle G³
with tubes G3, and with a conical hood on one end, in the orifice of which is
placed a fan J to draw or drive air through the pipes G³. A pipe G is pro-
vided for connecting the tubular receptacle with the waste steam pipe of the
cooking apparatus, and a pipe G6 is also placed in its lowest part to carry off
the water, as the steam is condensed, and this may be carried into the feed tank
or disposed of in any convenient manner.
In Figure 5 is shown a modification of this invention specially adapted for
use as a portable cooker, although it may be arranged as a fixed installation on
a large scale.
The cooking chamber A6, which may be of any suitable shape is surrounded
by an air jacket B, and provided with a water tank I, placed beneath it as
shown in the figure or on the side of the chamber but at its lowest part. A
tube L bent in zigzag convolutions L', is connected at one end with the bottom
of the tank K, and at the other end with the upper part of the back of the cham-
ber A. The zigzags are arranged relative to each other so as to pass between
the bars of an ordinary fire grate or kitchen range.
One or more of these zigzag elements may be employed according to the size
of the cooker.
The tank K is kept filled with water which therefore by gravity fills that por-
tion of the element L on the same level, which consequently forms the boiler
proper, the middle portion constituting the steam space and the upper portion a
super heater.
The cooker A is provided with a steam escape pipe and valve B and may
have a drain cock A. It may be provided with a removable cover A8, or with
a door or doors on front or at the side as preferred. The jacket and water tank
are preferably lagged.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of this said
invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is;-
1. In a steam cooker the combination with steam generator of a cooking
chamber contained within said generator and provided with one or more super-
heaters substantially as described.
2. A steam cooker comprising a steam generator one or more superheaters, a
cooking chamber contained within said generator, and one or more jacketted
cooking chambers connected either with the aforesaid chamber or with the
generator or superheater or with each other substantially in the manner specified.
3. In a steam cooker utilizing the steam after its passage through one or more
cooking chambers to heat air substantially as described.
4. In a steam cooker the combination with a generator of a cooking chamber

page_text: within the generator one or more cooking chambers external thereto a feed water
tank and a condenser for the waste steam substantially as described.
5. The combination of a steam cooker and a tubular generator and super-
heater substantially as described.
C. The combination and arrangement of parts forming the complete cooking
apparatus substantially as described or as illustrated in Figure 1 or in Figure 2
or in Figure 3 or in Figure 4 or in Figure 5 of the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 2nd day of October 1898
BOULT & WADE,
Agents for the Applicant.