Patent Description:
As a traditional building material, glass fiber has been widely used in recent years as a new material in wind power, high-speed rail, automobile and other fields. The scale of the glass fiber industry keeps expanding. At the same time, as a traditional industry, glass fiber production needs high energy consumption. Specifically, an oven serves as a key equipment that requires high energy input and has a great impact on product quality of glass fiber.

The oven in glass fiber production is usually very large and installed on floor. It requires a high circulation air flow rate and a large volume of air, and a circulation fan also needs to be large. The circulation fan is often arranged outside a drying chamber and in communication with the drying chamber via an air pipe. So the oven of this kind is large in size and its heat dissipation is high. What's more, it is difficult to have a uniform air flow in a large drying chamber, which would thus affect the drying efficiency. A large oven is also not good-looking.

<CIT> and <CIT> disclose oven devices according to the preamble of claim <NUM>.

<CIT> provides a process for forming and drying layers of refractory material.

With the increase of production, larger ovens are often required, which could reduce energy consumption per unit product to some extent. The industry needs a new type of oven which has good performance, reliable operation, and availability to increase production. This need can be met by a modular oven structure according to the present invention.

The present invention aims to solve the issue described above. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a modular oven structure to solve any of the above problems, and to provide a tunnel oven comprising a plurality of such modular oven structures. The oven can reduce production energy consumption, improve drying quality, increase the output according to demand and, with relatively simple configuration, enables easy implementation, stable operation and easy maintenance.

The present invention provides a modular oven structure comprising a frame and an air channel structure according to claim <NUM>.

A tunnel air inlet chamber, a tunnel air return chamber, and a tunnel drying chamber between the tunnel air inlet chamber and the tunnel air return chamber, are arranged in the frame. The tunnel drying chamber is used for drying materials. A tunnel air inlet plate is arranged between the tunnel air inlet chamber and the tunnel drying chamber, and a tunnel air return plate is arranged between the tunnel air return chamber and the tunnel drying chamber. A plurality of apertures are arranged both in the tunnel air inlet plate and in the tunnel air return plate.

So the distribution densities of the apertures in the tunnel air inlet plate and in the tunnel air return plate are both different along the height of the tunnel air inlet plate and the tunnel air return plate. The distribution density of apertures in the upper portion of the tunnel air inlet plate is higher than the distribution density of apertures in the lower portion of the tunnel air inlet plate, and the distribution density of apertures in the upper portion of the tunnel air return plate is lower than the distribution density of apertures in the lower portion of the tunnel air return plate.

In this way, the volumes of the hot air passing through the tunnel air inlet plate are basically the same at different height positions of the tunnel air inlet plate, and the volumes of the air passing through the tunnel air return plate are basically the same at different height positions of the tunnel air return plate. As a result, the flow rates of the horizontal air passing the tunnel drying chamber to dry materials therein are basically the same at different height positions of the tunnel drying chamber, which is conducive to achieving a stable drying quality.

Other features of the device according to the invention are described in the dependent claims:
Wherein, the upper end of the tunnel air inlet chamber is in communication with the fan air outlet chamber, and the upper end of the tunnel air return chamber is in communication with the fan air inlet chamber.

Wherein, a circulation air filter is arranged between the tunnel air return chamber and the fan air inlet chamber.

Wherein, the heater can use various heating mode: electrical heating, steam heating, gas combustion heating, and hot air heating, and so forth.

Wherein, the circulation fan is an unhoused fan and is embedded into the oven structure from the top of the frame, so that it can be drawn out from the top of the oven structure to enable an easy maintenance.

The modular oven structure according to the present invention uses the frame and the air channel structure as a passage for air flow, so the air resistance is lowered, which is beneficial for energy conservation and consumption reduction.

Wherein, the inner wall of the frame is provided with a thermal insulation layer.

The modular oven structure according to the present invention is provided with an oven door at each of the two ends of the oven structure, which facilitates the handling of materials. A separate modular oven structure can be used independently, and a plurality of modular oven structures can be combined and connected together to form a longer tunnel oven. Therefore, the present invention also provides a tunnel oven, which comprises a plurality of above-mentioned modular oven structures connected in turn and interconnected with each other.

Wherein, the circulation air flows in opposite directions in the tunnel drying chambers of any two adjacent modular oven structures. Such opposite air flow can homogenize the drying effect for the materials on both sides of a tunnel drying chamber, which is conducive to achieving a stable drying quality.

Wherein, the two ends of the tunnel oven are each provided with an oven door which can move up and down, so that the total length of the tunnel oven can be reduced, and the materials to be dried can easily enter and exit the oven.

With respect to the control of drying temperature, one or more temperature sensors are arranged respectively in the tunnel air inlet chamber and the tunnel air return chamber of each modular oven structure to detect the temperature in the modular oven structure in real time. For the purpose of temperature control, the average of two or more temperature values detected in the tunnel air inlet chamber and the tunnel return air chamber is taken as the present value of temperature and compared with a set target value, which is conducive to achieving a stable drying quality.

The present invention does not provide the specific ways of materials entering and exiting the oven, as such ways largely depend on the shape and size of the materials to be dried. In combination with a specific way of materials entering and exiting the oven, the tunnel oven comprising the modular oven structures described above can enable intermittent drying of materials in batches. In this drying method, a batch of materials to be dried are firstly fed into the tunnel drying chamber; when the drying is completed, the materials are altogether released, and then a new batch of materials to be dried are fed into the tunnel drying chamber. The tunnel oven can also enable a continuous, cyclical drying of materials. In this drying method, the exit door of the oven is opened once after a given period of time, and part of the materials are released from the tunnel drying chamber, while the rest of the materials are moving towards the exit door of the oven; in the meantime or a moment later, the entrance door of the oven is opened, some materials are fed into the tunnel drying chamber to keep the chamber fully occupied, and then the entrance door and the exit door of the oven are closed to continue with the drying; and after the above-mentioned given period of time this process will be repeated for drying the materials.

The beneficial effects of the oven structure according to the present invention include: evenly distributed hot air, good drying effect, good air circulation with low resistance, compact and simple structure, small surface area, energy saving, and easy maintenance; also, the tunnel oven comprising a plurality of modular oven structures in series connection enables large production capacity, continuous production and good looks.

The drawings incorporated in the description and constituting a part of the description show the embodiments of the present invention and are used for explaining the principle of the present invention in combination with the description. In these drawings, similar reference numerals represent similar elements. The drawings described hereinafter are some of but not all of the embodiments of the present invention. A person of ordinary skill in the art can obtain other drawings according to these drawings without paying any creative effort.

To make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be described clearly and completely with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Apparently, the described embodiments are just some but not all of the embodiments of the present invention. All other embodiments obtained by a person of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without paying any creative effort shall fall into the protection scope of the present invention. It is to be noted that the embodiments in the present invention and the features in the embodiments can be combined at will if not conflicted.

<FIG> shows a modular oven structure comprising a frame, an air channel structure <NUM>, a heater <NUM>, a circulation fan <NUM>, a thermal insulation layer <NUM>, a temperature control system <NUM> and a control device (not shown). The frame and the air channel structure contain a tunnel drying chamber <NUM>, a tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM>, a tunnel air inlet plate <NUM>, a tunnel air return plate <NUM>, a tunnel air return chamber <NUM>, a circulation air filter <NUM>, a fan air inlet chamber <NUM> and a fan air outlet chamber <NUM>. The thermal insulation layer <NUM> is arranged on the inner wall of the frame to insulate the air channel structure. Wherein, the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> is arranged between the tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM> and the tunnel air return chamber <NUM>; the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM> is arranged between the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> and the tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM>, and the tunnel air return plate <NUM> is arranged between the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> and the tunnel air return chamber <NUM>; a plurality of apertures are arranged both in the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM> and in the tunnel air return plate <NUM> for the purpose of facilitating hot drying air flow; a fan air inlet chamber <NUM> is arranged above the tunnel drying chamber <NUM>, and a fan air outlet chamber <NUM> is arranged between the fan air inlet chamber <NUM> and the top of the frame <NUM>.

A heater <NUM> is arranged in the fan air inlet chamber <NUM> for further heating the air (wind force) entering the air channel structure, so as to maintain the temperature of the wind force circulating in the channel and thus ensure the drying effect.

A circulation fan <NUM> is arranged at the top of the frame, and the air inlet of the circulation fan <NUM> is in communication with the top of the fan air inlet chamber <NUM>, so the circulation fan <NUM> can take in the air from the fan air inlet chamber <NUM> and directly transmits the air to the fan air outlet chamber <NUM>, and then to the tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM> for reuse.

A temperature control system <NUM> comprises several temperature sensors <NUM>, and the several temperature sensors <NUM> are arranged in the tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM> and the tunnel air return chamber <NUM>, to detect the temperature in the air channel structure <NUM> in real time and send the detection results to a control device. An output end of the control device is connected to a control signal input end of the heater <NUM> and a control signal input end of the circulation fan <NUM>, so as to control the operation of the heater <NUM> and the circulation fan <NUM> based on the detection results of the temperature sensors <NUM> and the target temperature values set in the control device. When a detection result given by the temperature sensor <NUM> is higher than the set target temperature value, the control device will stop the operation of the heater <NUM> and start up the operation of the circulation fan <NUM> for a changeover of air; when a detection result of the temperature sensor <NUM> is lower than the set target temperature value, the control device will start up the operation of the heater <NUM> to start heating the air.

The upper end of the tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM> is in communication with the fan air outlet chamber <NUM>, and the upper end of the tunnel air return chamber <NUM> is in communication with the fan air inlet chamber <NUM>. A circulation air filter <NUM> is arranged between the tunnel air return chamber <NUM> and the fan air inlet chamber <NUM>, to filter the air entering the fan air inlet chamber <NUM> from the tunnel air return chamber <NUM>.

Specifically, the heater <NUM> can use various heating mode, such as electrical heating, steam heating, gas combustion heating, hot air heating, and so forth.

The circulation fan <NUM> is an unhoused fan and is embedded into the oven structure from the top of the frame, so that it can be drawn out from the top of the oven structure to enable an easy maintenance. The modular oven structure according to the present invention uses the frame and the air channel structure as a passage for air flow, so the air resistance is lowered, which is beneficial for reduction of energy consumption.

As shown in <FIG>, the distribution densities of the apertures in the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM> are different along the height of the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM> in that the distribution density of apertures in the upper portion of the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM> is higher than the distribution density of apertures in the lower portion of the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM>. Similarly, the distribution densities of the apertures in the tunnel air return plate <NUM> are also different along the height of the tunnel air return plate <NUM> in that the distribution density of apertures in the upper portion of the tunnel air return plate <NUM> is lower than the distribution density of apertures in the lower portion of the tunnel air return plate <NUM>. In this way, the volumes of the hot air passing through the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM> are basically the same at different height positions of the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM>, and the volumes of the air passing through the tunnel air return plate <NUM> are basically the same at different height positions of the tunnel air return plate <NUM>. As a result, the flow rates of the horizontal air passing the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> to dry materials therein are basically the same at different height positions of the tunnel drying chamber <NUM>, which is conducive to achieving a stable drying quality.

The modular oven structure with the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> being provided with two doors at each end of the chamber is a complete oven and can be used independently. Or otherwise a plurality of modular oven structures can be combined to form a longer tunnel oven. When combined, the flow direction of the circulation air in the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> of one modular oven structure is opposite to the flow directions of the circulation air in the tunnel drying chambers <NUM> of adjacent modular oven structures.

As shown in <FIG>, a second modular oven structure <NUM>, being in axial symmetry with a first modular oven structure <NUM> by a <NUM>-degree rotation, is connected to the first modular oven structure <NUM>; a third modular oven structure <NUM>, being in axial symmetry with the second modular oven structure <NUM> by a <NUM>-degree rotation, is connected to the second modular oven structure <NUM>; a forth modular oven structure <NUM>, being in axial symmetry with the third modular oven structure <NUM> by a <NUM>-degree rotation, is connected to the third modular oven structure <NUM>; and more connections are made in this manner till a tenth modular oven structure <NUM> is connected to a ninth modular oven structure <NUM>. In this way, the circulation air in the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> of the second modular oven structure <NUM> flows in an opposite direction to that in the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> of the first modular oven structure <NUM>, the circulation air in any two adjacent modular oven structures flows in opposite directions, and the circulation air in the tunnel drying chambers of modular oven structures on odd positions flows in the same direction, and the circulation air in the tunnel drying chambers of modular oven structures on even positions flows in the same direction. Such opposite directions of circulation air flow in any two adjacent modular oven structures would help to ensure a uniform drying effect for the materials on both sides of a tunnel drying chamber, which is conducive to achieving a stable drying quality.

Referring to <FIG>, the temperature control system <NUM> comprises several temperature sensors <NUM>, and one or more temperature sensors <NUM> are arranged respectively in the tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM> and the tunnel air return chamber <NUM> of each modular oven structure. For the purpose of temperature control, the average of two or more temperature values detected in the tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM> and the tunnel air return chamber <NUM> is taken as the present value of the temperature and compared with a set target value to perform temperature control, which is conducive to achieving a stable drying quality. Normally, the air volume and the air flow rate are high in the oven, and the difference between the air temperature in the oven and the air temperature in the tunnel air return chamber <NUM> after cooled by the materials is low. That is, the differences between the air temperatures in the tunnel air inlet chamber <NUM> or the tunnel air return chamber <NUM> and the air temperatures in the central area of the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> when contacting with the materials to be dried, are low. Controlling the temperature according to the average value will not cause problems of high temperature difference between two sides. This drying method with high air flow rate and low temperature gradient is beneficial to improve the drying quality.

As shown in <FIG>, the two ends of the tunnel oven comprising a plurality of above-mentioned modular oven structures are each provided with an oven door which can move up and down, so that the total length of the tunnel oven can be reduced, and the materials to be dried can easily enter and exit the oven.

The present invention does not provide specific ways for the materials to be dried to enter and exit the oven, as the entering and exiting ways are closely related to the shape and size of the materials. In combination with a specific way of materials entering and exiting the oven, the tunnel oven comprising the modular oven structures described above can enable intermittent drying of materials in batches. In this drying method, a batch of materials to be dried are firstly fed into the tunnel drying chamber; when the drying is completed, the materials are altogether released, and then a new batch of materials to be dried are fed into the tunnel drying chamber. The tunnel oven can also enable a continuous, cyclical drying of materials. In this drying method, the exit door of the oven is opened once after a given period of time, and part of the materials are released from the tunnel drying chamber, while the rest of the materials are moving towards the exit door of the oven; in the meantime or a moment later, the entrance door of the oven is opened, some materials are fed into the tunnel drying chamber to keep the chamber fully occupied, and then the entrance door and the exit door of the oven are closed to continue with the drying. And after the above-mentioned given period of time this process will be repeated for drying the materials.

According to the present invention, the hot air from the circulation fan <NUM> at the top of the oven structure passes successively through the fan air outlet chamber <NUM>, the tunnel inlet chamber <NUM> and the tunnel air inlet plate <NUM>, and then enters the tunnel drying chamber <NUM> from one side and, after drying the materials therein, flows out of the other side of the tunnel drying chamber <NUM>. The hot air then passes successively through the tunnel air return plate <NUM> and the tunnel air return chamber <NUM> and, after being heated by the heater <NUM>, enters the fan air inlet chamber <NUM>, and then is sucked in by the circulation fan <NUM> for drying in the next cycle. In this way, the hot air is reused.

The contents described above can be implemented independently or in combination in various ways, and these transformations shall fall into the protection scope of the present invention.

The specific dimension values of the components listed herein are exemplary numerical values, and the dimension parameters of different components can have different numerical values as required in practical operations.

It is to be noted that, as used herein, the term "comprise/comprising", "contain/containing" or any other variants thereof is non-exclusive, so that an object or a device containing a series of elements contains not only these elements, but also other elements not listed clearly, or further contains inherent elements of the object or device. Unless otherwise defined herein, an element defined by the statement "comprises/comprising an/a. " does not exclude other identical elements in the object or device including this element.

Claim 1:
A modular oven structure comprising a frame and an air channel structure (<NUM>), wherein,
a tunnel air inlet chamber (<NUM>), a tunnel air return chamber (<NUM>), and a tunnel drying chamber (<NUM>) between the tunnel air inlet chamber (<NUM>) and the tunnel air return chamber (<NUM>) , are arranged in the frame; a tunnel air inlet plate (<NUM>) is arranged between the tunnel air inlet chamber (<NUM>) and the tunnel drying chamber (<NUM>), and a tunnel air return plate (<NUM>) is arranged between the tunnel air return chamber (<NUM>) and the tunnel drying chamber (<NUM>); a plurality of apertures are arranged both in the tunnel air inlet plate (<NUM>) and in the tunnel air return plate (<NUM>);
a fan air inlet chamber (<NUM>) is arranged above the tunnel drying chamber (<NUM>), and a heater (<NUM>) is arranged in the fan air inlet chamber (<NUM>);
a fan air outlet chamber (<NUM>) is arranged between the fan air inlet chamber (<NUM>) and the top of the frame;
a circulation fan (<NUM>) is arranged at the top of the frame, and an air inlet of the circulation fan (<NUM>) is in communication with the top of the fan air inlet chamber (<NUM>);
wherein the modular oven structure further comprises a temperature control system (<NUM>) and a control device, wherein the temperature control system (<NUM>) comprises several temperature sensors (<NUM>), and the temperature sensors (<NUM>) are arranged in the tunnel air inlet chamber (<NUM>) and/or the tunnel air return chamber (<NUM>) and/or the tunnel drying chamber (<NUM>); and
output ends of the temperature sensors (<NUM>) are connected to the control device, and an output end of the control device is connected to a control signal input end of the heater (<NUM>) and a control signal input end of the circulation fan (<NUM>),
characterised in that
the distribution density of apertures in the upper portion of the tunnel air inlet plate (<NUM>) is higher than the distribution density of apertures in the lower portion of the tunnel air inlet plate (<NUM>), and the distribution density of apertures in the upper portion of the tunnel air return plate (<NUM>) is lower than the distribution density of apertures in the lower portion of the tunnel air return plate (<NUM>).