EP4650669A1

EP4650669A1 - Exhaust air arrangement

Info

Publication number: EP4650669A1
Application number: EP24175944.8A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Ismo Roponen; Petra JÄMSÄ; Jarmo Suominen; Tommi LAPINLEIMU
Original assignee: Savo Design & Technic Oy
Current assignee: Savo Design & Technic Oy
Priority date: 2024-05-15
Filing date: 2024-05-15
Publication date: 2025-11-19

Abstract

The object of the invention is an exhaust air arrangement (1), which comprises a downdraft extractor with a suction equipment (8) and filter (7), which downdraft extractor is placed in the space below a hob (2) of a kitchen furniture, so that a substantially horizontal part (42) of an exhaust air duct (4) after the suction equipment (8) connects the suction equipment (8) to a substantially vertical part (43) of the exhaust air duct (4) running in the back part of the kitchen furniture, so that the part (43) of the exhaust air duct (4) has a width (L) substantially equal to the width of the kitchen furniture and continues vertically from the lower edge of the hob (2) to the plinth (10) of the kitchen furniture.

Description

The object of the invention is an exhaust air arrangement according to the independent claim. The exhaust air arrangement is intended to work in conjunction with a downdraft extractor in kitchen furniture.
In solutions according to prior art, steam and odours from cookware are sucked in through a steam outlet in a hob under the hob. The steam outlet of the hob can be either round or slit in shape. Such solutions are very common, for example, with induction hobs. The steam outlet of the hob is covered with a steam exhaust grate, and underneath it there is a grease filter. For example, such a grease filter may be a stainless-steel grease filter, which can be changed through the steam outlet of the hob. In the equipment of solutions according to prior art, air is sucked from the steam outlet of the hob through the grease filter by means of a suction equipment and blown forward from the suction equipment. The suction equipment is quite compact in size, so the space required by the equipment in height can be kept quite low. This allows for the maximum number of e.g. drawers in the height direction to be installed in the cabinet under the hob. The aim is to maximize the space below the hob for other uses.
The air sucked from the suction equipment through the grease filter is blown forward, for example, directly behind the kitchen furniture, between the back wall of the kitchen furniture and the installation wall of the kitchen furniture, from there under the kitchen furniture and further through the ventilation grate on the front wall of the plinth of the kitchen furniture to the room air. Another option is to build an exhaust air duct from the suction equipment behind the drawers below the hob, inside the kitchen furniture, to the plinth of the kitchen furniture and from there through the grate on the front of the plinth to the room air. Such prior art exhaust air ducts are made of round air-conditioning pipes, which typically have a diameter of at least 100-120 mm to move a sufficient amount of air. Slightly flattened pipe solutions for exhaust ducts are also known, in which case the thickness of the exhaust ducts in the depth direction of the kitchen furniture is 80-90 mm. All such solutions according to prior art reduce the size of space saving storage solutions below the hob, such as drawer units, in the depth direction of the kitchen furniture.
Solutions according to prior art have certain weaknesses, which are solved by the present invention. In the first described solution according to prior art, the filtered air is blown directly into the kitchen furniture, allowing any impurities and moisture that may have passed through the grease filter to affect the kitchen furniture, floor and wall in an undesirable way, and the kitchen furniture may suffer considerable damage over time. This solution has been chosen because there have been no solutions that would enable the use of full-size drawer units in kitchen furniture.
In the second described solution according to prior art, the air-conditioning ducts built inside the kitchen furniture take up a considerable amount of space from space saving storage solutions below the hob, such as drawers, in which case the length of the drawers must be shortened. This does not allow the use of standard-sized drawers, but the length of the drawers must be made with special dimensions. Such special-sized drawer units increase the price of the furniture and reduce the volume of the drawers, thereby also reducing the storage space.
The prior art teaches to blow the exhaust air directly into the furniture if it desired to keep full-size drawer units in the space below the hob.
Therefore, the problem in the prior art is how to create an exhaust air solution for kitchen furniture that enables the use of full-size drawer units in the space below the hob so that the structures of the kitchen furniture do not suffer damage from grease and moisture that may be contained in the exhaust air.
The exhaust air arrangement according to the invention eliminates the above-mentioned problems of the prior art and provides a solution that enables long-term use of kitchen furniture without damage to the structures of the kitchen furniture caused by exhaust air impurities and enables the use of standard-sized drawer units in kitchen furniture under the hob. In addition, with a solution according to one of the embodiments, there is no need to make a separate back wall for the kitchen furniture.
The exhaust air arrangement according to the invention comprises an intake opening in the hob, a grate that at least partially closes the intake opening, a grease filter in the duct after the intake opening, a suction equipment in the duct after the grease filter, and an exhaust air duct. The exhaust air duct continues substantially horizontally from the suction equipment to the back part of the kitchen furniture. With the help of a connecting piece, the shape of the duct changes from a round duct to a flat, substantially rectangular duct on the way from the suction equipment to the back part of the kitchen furniture. In the back part of the kitchen furniture, the flat, substantially rectangular duct continues from the top part of the kitchen furniture behind the drawer unit down to the plinth of the kitchen furniture. The duct continues inside the plinth to the front of the kitchen furniture, from where the air can exit advantageously through a grate into the room air. If the kitchen furniture is placed in an island, the exhaust air can also be directed behind the kitchen furniture or to the side/sides, in which case there are no parts of the exhaust air arrangement under the drawer unit. The solution according to the invention does not damage the structures of the kitchen furniture over time and enables the use of full-size drawer units in the kitchen furniture under the hob. In addition, one of the embodiments according to the invention enables manufacturing a kitchen furniture without a separate back wall, in which case the exhaust air duct itself forms the back wall of the kitchen furniture.
In the following, the invention is described in more detail by the aid of examples with reference to the attached simplified drawings, in which

Figure 1 presents, as a simplified diagram viewed from the side, one advantageous exhaust air arrangement according to the invention,
Figure 2 presents, as a simplified diagram viewed from the side, another advantageous exhaust air arrangement according to the invention,
Figure 3 presents one advantageous embodiment of a part of a duct arrangement viewed obliquely from above, and
Figures 4a and 4b present, as simplified diagrams, some advantageous embodiments of support structures of the exhaust air duct.

Figure 1 presents, as a simplified diagram viewed from the side, one advantageous exhaust air arrangement 1 according to the invention. The exhaust air arrangement 1 comprises an exhaust air duct 4 opening 5 from the upper surface 3 of the hob 2, which opening is advantageously covered with a protective grate 6. The opening 5 of the exhaust air duct 4 and its protective grate 6 can be of any shape but typically the opening of the exhaust air duct is round or rectangular in shape. A filter 7 is advantageously arranged inside the opening 5, in the first part 41 of the exhaust air duct 4, which filter removes impurities, such as grease and moisture, from the air/steam sucked into the exhaust air duct. After the filter 7, the first part 41 of the exhaust air duct 4 is connected to an inlet of a shell structure 9 of suction equipment 8. The suction equipment 8 sucks air/steam, through the shell structure's 9 inlet, through the first part 41 of the exhaust air duct 4 and the filter 7 and blows it forward through an outlet of the shell structure to the exhaust air duct continuing from the suction equipment.
The parts 5, 7, 8, and 9 described above form a downdraft extractor, which downdraft extractor can be any kind of solution according to prior art that is used in kitchen furniture. Such a downdraft extractor is part of the exhaust air arrangement 1 according to the invention.
Outlet of the exhaust air duct 4 from the suction equipment 8 to a second part 42 of the exhaust air duct is typically circular in shape, but it can also have a different shape depending on the suction equipment according to the prior art used. The shell structure 9 of the suction equipment 8 is equipped, at its inlet and outlet, with contact surfaces suitable for attaching the duct, with the help of which the parts 41 and 42 of the exhaust air duct 4 can be attached to the shell structure of the suction equipment. In this example, the exhaust air duct 4 continues from the suction equipment 8 as round, but its shape is changed with the help of the second part 42 of the exhaust air duct from round to a flat, substantially rectangular exhaust air duct, which runs substantially horizontally in the space below the hob 2 towards the back part of the kitchen furniture. When the exhaust air duct 4 reaches the back edge of the hob 2, the exhaust air duct turns 90 degrees and heads down towards the plinth space 10 below the kitchen furniture. The second part 42 of the exhaust air duct 4 is connected to a third part 43 of the exhaust air duct at this turning point. The third part 43 of the exhaust air duct 4 is substantially equal in width to the the entire kitchen furniture, so that the thickness of the exhaust air duct can be made as thin as possible in the depth direction of the kitchen furniture. The connecting point between parts 42 and 43 of the exhaust air duct 4 does not have to be equal in width to the entire kitchen furniture, but the exhaust air duct in part 42 may be narrower than the kitchen furniture and thicker than in part 43. It is essential that the cross-sectional area of the ducts 42 and 43 remains substantially the same in order to achieve undisturbed flow. The third part 43 of the exhaust air duct extends, as wide as the kitchen furniture, advantageously from the lower edge of the hob 2 of the kitchen furniture down substantially to the plinth 10 of the kitchen furniture. In this example, the back part of the kitchen furniture is protected by a separate back wall 30, which covers the structure of the exhaust air duct 4. The back wall 30 may extend to the floor or only to the height of the base floor of the kitchen furniture. Solutions in between are also possible.
After reaching the plinth space 10 of the kitchen furniture, the exhaust air duct 4 again turns 90 degrees towards the front edge of the kitchen furniture. In the plinth 10 of the kitchen furniture, the exhaust air duct 4 is formed by a substantially horizontal part 44, which is connected to the previous part 43 of the exhaust air duct. The exhaust air duct 4 ends with part 44 and with an opening of a cover plate 11 at the front edge of the plinth 10 of the kitchen furniture, which opening is advantageously protected by a grate 12. Alternatively, the cover plate 11 can be attached to legs 13 of the kitchen furniture.
The exhaust air arrangement 1 described above may also be implemented with another type of exhaust air duct 4 solution. Depending on the suction equipment, the duct starting from the suction equipment 8 may also have a shape other than round. In this case, the shape of the part 42 of the exhaust air duct 4 changes accordingly. The connection in the back part of the kitchen furniture, between the part 42 running in the space below the hob 2 and the part 43 running from top to bottom can be implemented as a connection the width of the entire kitchen furniture or also as a part-width but slightly thicker connection. One such solution is presented later in Figure 3. When the exhaust air duct 4 turns 90 degrees into the plinth 10, its width can be reduced and its height increased. In this case, the exhaust air duct 4 can be advantageously and readily passed between the legs 13 of the kitchen furniture. The use of space in the space below the kitchen furniture, i.e. in the plinth 10, is not critical in terms of the other use of the kitchen furniture. What is essential is the exhaust air duct 4 part 43 that is substantially the entire width of the back wall 30 of the kitchen furniture, which part enables maximum utilization of the space below the hob 2, for example by means of full-length drawers 20. Such part 43 of the exhaust air duct 4 in the back part of the kitchen furniture is less than 45 mm thick in the depth direction of the kitchen furniture, advantageously less than 40 mm and very advantageously less than 35 mm.
The exhaust air arrangement may also be implemented without the exhaust duct 4 part 44 in the plinth 10. In this case, the kitchen furniture is placed in an island or at the end of a furniture group, in which case the air can be removed directly from the lower edge of the part 43 of the exhaust air duct 4, through one or more openings placed therein, behind and/or to the side of the kitchen furniture. It is also possible to implement the solution in such a way that the part 44 of the exhaust air duct 4 removes the air from the plinth of the kitchen furniture to the side/sides of the kitchen furniture through one or more openings placed on the side/sides of the plinth of the kitchen furniture. In this case, the air flowing out from the exhaust air duct 4 will not disturb the person standing in front of the kitchen furniture. Similarly, the exhaust air duct 4 can be assembled from more parts than are shown in the examples. For example, a separate corner part can be placed between the parts 43 and 44 of the exhaust air duct 4, to which corner part the parts 43 and 44 of the exhaust air duct are attached. The solution may also comprise a combination of the solutions described above.
Figure 2 presents another advantageous embodiment of the exhaust air arrangement 1. Also in this embodiment, the exhaust air duct 4 of the exhaust air arrangement 1 consists of parts 41, 42, 43, and 44, with which parts the exhaust air is transported from above the hob 2 of the kitchen furniture through the opening of the cover plate 11 of the plinth 10 of the kitchen furniture back to the room air. The embodiment corresponds to the example presented in Figure 1 and differs from it in that the back part of the kitchen furniture is not protected by a separate back wall 30 according to Figure 1, but the exhaust air duct part 43 itself forms the back wall of the kitchen furniture. In this case, the kitchen furniture can be made from a smaller amount of material and its structure can be simplified. Similarly, the connections between the parts 42, 43 and/or 43, 44 of the exhaust air duct 4, as in this example between the parts 43 and 44, can also be implemented with solutions other than straight connections, in which case the flow of air in the exhaust air duct can be facilitated, for example.
Figure 3 presents one advantageous embodiment of the parts 43 and 44 of the exhaust air duct 4, viewed obliquely from above. The exhaust air duct part 43 has a width L of the entire width of the kitchen furniture and has a connection 45 to the exhaust air duct part 42, which is presented in Figures 1 and 2. The connection 45 is narrower and thicker in shape than the exhaust air duct part 43, but the exhaust air duct parts 42 and 43 have substantially the same cross-section size. Correspondingly, a connection 46 between the parts 43 and 44 of the exhaust air duct 4 is also narrower and thicker than the part 43 of the exhaust air duct. This enables the exhaust air duct 4 to be taken unhindered from between the legs 13 of the kitchen furniture through the plinth 10 to the opening of the cover plate 11 of the kitchen furniture as presented in Figures 1 and 2.
The parts 41, 42, 43 and 44 of the exhaust air duct 4 can advantageously be equipped with joints 50 presented in Figure 3, which enable the length adjustment of each part of the exhaust air duct. At its simplest, each of the parts 41, 42, 43 and 44 of the exhaust air duct 4 consists of at least two separate parts that can be slid one inside the other and thus the length of each part can be changed. Telescopic length adjustment can be made to all or only some of the parts 41, 42, 43 and 44 of the exhaust air duct 4. This enables the use of the same structures of the exhaust air duct 4 in kitchen furniture of different sizes and facilitates the installation of the exhaust air arrangement 1.
Figures 4a and 4b present two advantageous embodiments of the internal structure of the exhaust air duct as partial views. Support parts 60 according to Figure 4a or 4b have been prepared inside the exhaust air duct, the purpose of which support parts is to keep the exhaust air duct 4 in the desired shape and to prevent vibration of the exhaust air duct structures caused by the air flow. Such vibration may cause unwanted noise in the exhaust air duct structures.
The shape of the support part is a dot-like round shape in Figure 4a and a plate-like line shape in Figure 4b. The support parts 60 connect the opposing wall structures of the exhaust air duct 4 and keep the exhaust air duct in its shape. When the support structure 60 has a plate-like shape, it is natural to install them in such a way that their shape follows the flow. Such support parts 60 can also, for example, be used to direct the flow in part 43 of the exhaust air duct 4 towards the narrowed connection 46 between parts 43 and 44 presented in Figure 3. The same can be done with other parts of the exhaust air duct.
So, the support parts 60 may be according to those presented in Figures 4a and 4b but are not limited to the shapes presented in the Figures. What is essential, is that the freely movable surface of the exhaust air duct 4 can be reduced with the support parts 60. The use of such support parts 60 is particularly advantageous inside the part 43 of the exhaust air duct 4, since quite large plate surfaces are formed in this part in particular, which surfaces are prone to vibrations. The number of support parts 60 in the exhaust air duct 4 is selected according to each application to prevent vibration from generating. Vibration is affected by e.g. material thicknesses used and airflow rate in the exhaust air duct 4.
It is obvious to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited exclusively to the examples presented above but can vary within the scope of the claims presented below.

Claims

Exhaust air arrangement (1), which comprises a downdraft extractor with a suction equipment (8) and filter (7), which downdraft extractor is placed in the space below a hob (2) of a kitchen furniture, so that a substantially horizontal part (42) of an exhaust air duct (4) after the suction equipment (8) connects the suction equipment (8) to a substantially vertical part (43) of the exhaust air duct (4) running in the back part of the kitchen furniture, characterized in that the part (43) of the exhaust air duct (4) has a width (L) substantially equal to the width of the kitchen furniture and continues vertically from the lower edge of the hob (2) to the plinth (10) of the kitchen furniture.
Exhaust air arrangement (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the part (43) of the exhaust air duct has one or more outlets for air in its lower part, in which case the air is removed behind and/or to the side of the kitchen furniture.
Exhaust air arrangement (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the exhaust air duct (4) further comprises a part (44), which connects the part (43) of the exhaust air duct via the plinth (10) of the kitchen furniture to the front part of the kitchen furniture and/or to the side(s) of the kitchen furniture, in which case the air is removed through one or more openings to the front and/or to the side(s) of the kitchen furniture.
Exhaust air arrangement (1) according to any of the claims 1-3, characterized in that the part (43) of the exhaust air duct (4) has a thickness of less than 45 mm, advantageously less than 40 mm and very advantageously less than 35 mm.
Exhaust air arrangement (1) according to any of the claims 1-4, characterized in that the part (43) of the exhaust air duct (4) forms the back wall of the kitchen furniture.
Exhaust air arrangement (1) according to any of the claims 1-4, characterized in that the part (43) of the exhaust air duct (4) is covered by a back wall (30) of the kitchen furniture.
Exhaust air arrangement (1) according to any of the above claims 1-6, characterized in that one or more of the parts (42, 43, 44) of the exhaust air duct (4) have a joint (50) to enable telescopic length adjustment.
Exhaust air arrangement (1) according to any of the above claims 1-7, characterized in that the internal structure of the exhaust air duct (4) comprises support parts (60) in one or more parts (42, 43, 44) of the exhaust air duct (4).