Patent ID: 7220944

Claim:
An oven assembly comprising: at least one non-recirculating impingement oven (NRIO) unit comprising: an elongated cooking chamber with a feed end and a discharge end; a conveyor system for transporting food items from the feed end of the chamber to the discharge end of the chamber; a plurality of impingement units disposed in the chamber and spaced along at least a portion of the conveyor system, the impingement units adapted to introduce heated air into the chamber and onto the food items from a source external to the chamber; and a cooking-vapor vent at about the discharge end of the chamber; and at least one additional oven unit (AOU) operatively coupled to the adjacent NRIO comprising: a cooking chamber with a feed end and a discharge end; a conveyor system for transporting food items from the feed end of the chamber to the discharge end of the chamber; the AOU providing a set of cooking conditions independently adjustable from those of the NRIO unit; and wherein an AOU is an impingement oven having a plurality of impingement units spaced along the cooking chamber, the impingement units introducing heated air recirculated from within the AOU.