GB2203532A

GB2203532A - Simulated solid fuel gas fires

Info

Publication number: GB2203532A
Application number: GB08808953A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael William Morley
Original assignee: Glow Worm Ltd
Current assignee: Glow Worm Ltd
Priority date: 1987-04-16
Filing date: 1988-04-15
Publication date: 1988-10-19
Anticipated expiration: 2008-04-15
Also published as: GB8808953D0; GB2203532B; GB8709159D0

Abstract

A fuel support grid (1) for a simulated solid-fuel gas fire has a fuel supporting surface in which a plurality of channels are formed so that, when the grid is in use, flames from the gas burner (7) of the fire are directed, by the channels, beneath and through a bed of simulated solid fuel (6) on the fuel supporting surface. The depth of the channels decreases in the direction away from the burner (7) and some at least of the channels have a transverse wall (8) therein. <IMAGE>

Description

GAS FIRES This invention relates to gas fires and more specifically to simulated solid-fuel gas fires.

It is known, in a simulated solid-fuel gas fire, to position the simulated solid fuel on a support, for example a grid, through which, when the fire is in use the flames of a gas burner pass to heat the fuel to incandescence. Such an arrangement has a "real fire" appearance in use, which can be made even more realistic by providing means for illuminating the simulated fuel.

When the gas burner is not in use, the simulated fuel can still be illuminated so that the fire still appears attractive.

It is an object of the present invention to enable the appearance of a simulated solid-fuel gas fire to be improved still further.

The present invention provides a fuel support for a gas fire having a fuel supporting surface in which a plurality of channels are formed to direct flames from a gas burner beneath and through simulated solid fuel when located on the surface.

Preferably, the depth of the channels decreases in the direction of travel of the flames therethrough.

Some at least of the channels may have a transverse wall located therein.

Apertures may be formed in the support to allow light to pass therethrough to the fuel supporting surface.

The fuel support may comprise a base with upstanding ribs the top edge of which define the fuel supporting surface and the spaces between which constitute the channels.

Means may be provided on the fuel supporting surface for locating pieces of simulated solid fuel. When the fuel support comprises a base with upstanding ribs, the locating means may comprise upstanding pins on the top edges of the ribs. Parts at least of the fuel supporting surface, between the locating means can be roughened or given an undulating appearance.

In a gas fire including a fuel support as defined above, a bed of simulated solid fuel is located on the fuel supporting surface and a gas burner is so positioned that, in use, flames from the gas burner are directed into the channels in the fuel support.

The gas burner may be located forwards of the fuel support, the latter being. located in an inclined position in which it extends generally upwards away from the gas burner.

The gas fire may include means for directing light to the fuel support from below. To this end the fire may include means for illuminating the fuel support from below and/or from the side.

At least one member that transmits light may be positioned between the fuel support and the illu minatinq means. The fuel support may be located on the member, or one of the members, that transmits light.

The present invention further provides a simulated solid fuel bed and a combustion chamber above the fuel bed, part at least of the combustion chamber walls comprising a reflector, and in which part at least of the reflector is removable from and replaceable in the fire..

Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a vertical section through a gas fire; Figs. 2 and 3 are front and plan views respectively of the fuel bed support grid used in the gas fire of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a plan view of another fuel bed support grid suitable for use in the gas fire of Fig. 1.

Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are cross-sections on the lines V-V, VI-VI and VII-VII respectively in Fig. 4, and Fig. 8 is a schematic view, corresponding to Fig. 1, showing part of the fire in greater detail.

The gas fire shown in Fig. 1 comprises a generally rectangular fuel bed support grid 1 of a refractory material such as low density ceramic, front and plan views of which are shown in Figs. 2 and 3 respectively. The grid 1 is disposed across the fire and is inclined downwards from back-to-front thereof, being supported in the body of the fire so that it is spaced from the base 2. The volume above the grid 1 constitutes a combustion chamber 3 and the volume below the grid constituting an illumination chamber 4. The grid is provided on its upper surface with a plurality of ribs 5, shown more clearly in Figs. 2 and 3 and described below, on which ribs a bed 6 of individual pieces of simulated solid-fuel is supported.

The simulated solid-fuel 6 is typically made of a ceramic fibre material and is shown as having the form of coal but could equally well have the form of logs.

In front of the grid 1 is disposed a gas burner 7 and above the burner 7 is disposed a support 9 on which the front part of the simulated solid-fuel bed 6 rests to prevent it from falling on the burner.

The gas burner 7 is arranged to direct flames over the upper surface of the grid 1 and between the ribs 5 thereof, the flames dispersing upwards through the simulated solid-fuel bed 6 to afford a 'real fire' effect as described in more detail below. At the rear and sides of the grid 1 are positioned ceramic fibre insulation pads 10 which glow easily when a gas flame touches them.

The front of the combustion chamber 3 is provided with an inclined, heat resistant glass sheet 11 and, in front of the glass sheet, is disposed the front casing 12 of the fire. In one form of the fire, the front casing takes the form of a side-ways opening door which affords access to the interior of the fire, for example for cleaning and to enable the simulated solid-fuel to be replaced.

To the rear of the combustion chamber 3 is provided a two-part reflector 13 which consists of a fixed upper part 14 which is conveniently of satin stainless steel steel /"304" so as not to generate unwanted reflections from the room in which the fire is installed, and a 'user replaceable' lower part 15 (described in greater detail below) which is conveniently of bright stainless steel "304". The reflector 13 has the effect of increasing the effective size of the simulated solid-fuel bed 6.

The fuel support grid 1 will now be described in greater detail with reference to Figs. 2 and 3 and also with reference to Figs. 4 to 7 which show a slightly modified version of the grid. As already mentioned, the grid has a plurality of ribs 5 on its upper surface. These ribs 5 extend from the back edge 30 of the grid towards the front, terminating short of she front edge 31 an, as can be see rorn Figs. 1 and Figs. 5 te 7, are o a height compar to or greater an trite ticess of the base portion 32 of the grid.

The upper surface 33 of the base portion 32 of the grid is not flat but, as shown in Fig. 1 and in Figs. 5 to 7, slopes upwardly from the front 31 of the grid across the greater part of the width of the grid and then slopes downwardly towards the back edge 30 of the grid. Over the downwardly-sloping rear part the top edges 34 of the ribs 5 run substantially parallel to the surface 33 but over the upwardly-sloping front part they do not: rather, over the front part of the grid the surface 33 and the top edges 34 of the ribs 5 converge slightly, the degree of convergence being greater for the outer ribs (Fig. 5) than for the centre ribs (Fig. 7). The channels defined in the fuel supporting surface formed by the top edges of the ribs 5 thus decrease in depth from the front of the grid towards the apex of the surface 33.

At the apex of the surface 33, transverse webs 8 are provided between the central ribs 5.

Holes 16 extend through the base portion 32 of the grid at locations between the ribs 5, those in the grid of Figs. 1 to 3 being of constant cross-section while those in the grid of Figs. 4 to 7 widen progressively from the top to the bottom of the grid.

The ribs 5 on the grid 1, as weil as supporting the simulated solid-fuel bed 6 as already described, also have the effect of guiding the gas flames from the burner 7 to the back of the fire, this effect being enhanced by the inclination, just described, of the upper surface 33 of the grid base 32 relative to the top edges 34 of the ribs, which affords a 'venturi' effect. The transverse webs 8 prevent the flames from travelling straight to the rear of the support 1 and aid the dispersion of flames at low gas levels.

The plurality of holes 16 in the bottom of the grid is provided to allow light from the illumination chamber 4 to pass through the grid to illuminate the simulated solid-fuel bed 6 and also the rear and side insulation pads 10. Indents 16a in the rear edge of the grid also allow light to pass from the illumination chamber 4 into the combustion chamber 3. The grid rests on a transparent or translucent sheet 17, preferably of ceramic glass, and, within the illumination chamber 4, is disposed at least one electric light bulb 18 which is preferably of clear i.e. colourless, form. The sheet 17 forms a heat barrier between the combustion chamber 3 and the light bulb(s) 18 and helps to prolong the life of the latter.Between the light bulb or bulbs 18 and the sheet 17 is disposed a coloured sheet 19, preferably of toughened glass, which colours the illumination transmitted to the simulated solid-fuel bed 6 and the rear and side pads 10 to afford a more realistic effect.

The grids 1 shown in Figs. 1 to 3 and Figs.

4 to 7 typically have a width (ie. side-to-side dimension) of about 34 cms at the front of the grid and a depth (ie. front-to-back dimension) of about 12.5 cms. These grids both have nine ribs 5 spaced from each other at about 3.5 cms with transverse webs 8 between the centre five ribs only. The height of the ribs 5 at the apex of the surface of the grid is about 1.5 cms for the outer ribs, increasing to about 2.5 cms for the centre ribs.

The thickness of both the ribs 5 and te webs 8 decreases from the bottom to the top, with the thickness at the top edges being about 0.5 cm.

The front and rear parts of the upper surface 33 of the base portion of the grid are inclined at about 80 and 200 respectively to the bottom surface of the grid, with the thickness of the base portion varying from about 0.5 cms at the front edge to about 1.5 cms at the apex of the upper surface and then to about 1 cm at the back edge.

The holes 16 in the base portion of the grid have a generally oval cross-section, being about 1.5 cm wide and 2.5 cm lon and, in the grid of Figs. 4 to 7, the sides of the holes diverge at an angle of about 160.

A larger form of the grid has a width (ie.

side-to-side dimension) of about 44 cms at the front of the grid and a depth (ie. front-to-back dimension) of about 13.5 cms. This larger form has thirteen ribs 5 rather than nine as shown in Figs. 1 to 3 and 4 to 7 and the holes 16 in the base portion, although of the same width as in the smaller form (about 1.5 cm), have a length of about 4.5 cm.

The inclination of the front and rear parts of the upper surface 33 of the base portion of the grid can be varied. The inclination of the front part of the surface to the base may, for example be within the range CO to 100 and the inclination of the rear part may be within the range 150 to 200. The inclination of the front part, in particular, affects the appearance of the fire in use because it has an effect on charact eristics such as the length of the flames.

The spacing between the ribs 5 should be selected to ensure that the pieces of simulated solid fuel forming the bed 6 can not fall between the ribs. In addition, the surface finish of the grid should be such that the pieces of simulated fuel will remain in position on the grid and not slip downwards towards the front support 9: to this end, the surface of the grid can, for example, be roughened by wire brushing. Alternatively, to hold the fusel pieces in position, ceramic pins or pegs can be provided on the top edges 34 of the ribs 5, on which the fuel pieces are located: to this end the fuel pieces are formed with holes to receive the pins or pegs. The pins or pegs, when present, can be moulded in one piece with the grid and provide accurate locations for the pieces of simulated fuel.To improve the visual appearance of the fire, at least those parts of the top edges of the ribs 5 that are visible between the pieces of fuel can be roughened or given an undulating appearance.

To facilitate manufacture, the grid can be produced in two pieces corresponding to a division of the grid along the line X-X in Fig. 4.

It will be appreciated that the coloured intermediate sheet 19 in the illumination chamber 4 of the fire may be dispensed with by using a coloured light bulb or bulbs 18, although coloured light bulbs tend to have a shorter life than clear bulbs, or by colouring the sheet 17. However, the provision of the intermediate sheet 19 has the effect providing an additional heat barrier between the combustion chamber -3 and the light bulb or bulbs 18, which has the effect of increasing their effective life. Any convenient form of light bulb 18 may be used, such as high temperature bulbs as used in cooker applications, or perhaps halogen bulbs. To enhance the effect of the light bulb(s) 18, a device for producing a "flicker" effect (for example a mechanical spinner or an electronic control circuit for varying the output of the bulb(s) 18) may be provided.

In order to increase the effect of the light bulb or bulbs 18, a bright reflector 20 is provided and extends behind, beneath and in front of the bulb(s) to direct light from the bulb(s) towards the underside of the fuel bed support 1. The shape of this reflector 20 also encourages a flow of air over the bulb(s) 18 to cool and thereby prolong the life of the latter. A gap 21 is provided at the rear of the support 1, between it and the rear insulating pad 10, to allow a large amount of light to fall on the rear pad 10.

The bulb(s) 18 need not be located directly underneath the support grid 1 but cold be located to the side of the grid or in any other suitable position subject to the provision of one or more reflectors to direct light through the holes 16 in the grid.

The reflector 13 at the rear of the combustion chamber 3, as already described, is of two-part construction. The upper edge 35 of the "user-replaceable" part 15 of the reflector passes behind, and is retained by, the fixed part 14 of the reflector while the lower edge 36 is held by clips 22 as shown in Fig. 8. These clips 22 which are hidden from view by the rear insulating pad 10 (Fig. 1) can be pivoted out of the position shown in Fig. 8 to release the lower edge of the reflector part 15 so that, if the latter should become discoloured, it can be pulled out from behind the fixed part 14, removed from the fire and replaced by a new part. The attractive appearance of the fire, to which the reflector part 15 makes a substantial contribution, can thus be maintained.

It will be appreciated, however, that the provision of a "user replaceable" reflector 15 is not an essential feature of the fire.

Although, in the arrangement described, the simulated solid-fuel bed 6 is shown as consisting of individual pieces of simulated coal, it will be appreciated that it may be of one piece construction, be it to simulate coal or logs, with suitable holes in it for light and flames to pass through.

The gas fire described with reference to Fig. 1 is designed to be inset in a fireplace opening, in front of the usual 'chair' brick, but it will be appreciated that the invention is equally applicable to other types of fire.

Claims

CLAIMS:

1. A fuel support for a gas fire, having a fuel supporting surface in which a plurality of channels are formed to direct flames from a gas burner beneath and through simulated solid fuel when located on the surface.

2. A fuel support as claimed in claim 1, in which the depth of the channels decreases in the direction of travel of the flames therethrough.

3. A fuel support as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, in which some at least of the channels have a transverse wall located therein.

4. A fuel support as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which apertures are formed in the support to allow light to pass therethrough to the fuel supporting surface.

5. A fuel support as claimed in claim 4, in which the apertures are located in the bottom of the channels.

6. A fuel support as claimed in claim 4 or claim 5, in which the cross-sectional area of the apertures increases in a direction away from the fuel supporting surface.

7. A fuel support as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, comprising a base with upstanding ribs the top edges of which define the fuel supporting surface and the spaces between which constitute the channels.

8. A fuel support as claimed in claim 7, in which the base has an upper surface on which the ribs are formed and a lower surface, part at least of the upper surface being inclined relative to the lower surface.

9. A fuel support as claimed in claim 8, in which part at least of the fuel supporting surface is inclined relative to the upper surface of the base.

10. A fuel support as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the width of each channel decreases towards the bottom of the channel.

11. A fuel support as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which the support is generally rectangular and the channels extend across the rectangle.

12. A fuel support as claimed in claim 11, in which there are a plurality of indents along one side of the support, each indent being aligned with a respective one of the channels.

13. A fuel support as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, in which means are provided on the fuel supporting surface for locating pieces of simulated solid fuel.

14. A fuel support as claimed in claim 13 when appended to any one of claims 7 to 8, in which the locating means comprise upstanding pins on the top edges of the ribs.

15. A fuel support for a gas fire, substantially as described herein with reference to, as shown in, Figs. 2 and 3 or Figs. 3 to 7 of the accompanying drawings.

16. A simulated solid fuel gas fire including a fuel support as claimed in any one of the preceding claims.

17. A gas fire as claimed in claim 16, including a bed of simulated solid fuel on the fuel supporting surface of the support.

18. A gas fire as claimed in claim 16 or claim 17, including a gas burner so positioned that, in use, flames from the gas burner are directed into the channels in the fuel support.

19. A gas fire as claimed in claim 18, in which the gas burner is located forwards of the fuel support, the latter being located in an inclined.position in which it extends generally upwards away from the gas burner.

20. A gas fire as claimed in claim 19, including a further support for the front of a fuel bed on the fuel support, the further support being located above the gas burner.

21. A gas fire as claimed in any one of claims having a combustion chamber above the fuel support and a reflector at the rear of the combustion chamber.

22. A gas fire as claimed in claim 21, in which part at least of the reflector is removable from, and replaceable in, the gas fire.

23. A gas fire as claimed in claim 21 or claim 22, in which the walls of the combustion chamber around the fuel support are formed, at least partly, from a material that glows easily.

24. A gas fire as claimed in any one of claims 16 to 23, including means for directing light to the fuel support from below.

25. A gas fire as claimed in any one of claims 16 to 24, including means for illuminating the fuel support from below and/or from the side.

26. A gas fire as claimed in claim 25, in which at least one member that transmits light is positioned between the fuel support and the illuminating means.

27. A gas fire as claimed in claim 26, in which the fuel support is located on the member, or one of the members, that transmits light.

28. A gas fire as claimed in claim 26 or claim 27, in which the member, or one of the members, that transmits light is coloured.

29. A gas fire as claimed in any one of claims 25 to 28, including a reflector positioned to direct light from the illuminating means towards the fuel support.

30. A gas fire as claimed in claim 29, in which the reflector is shaped to direct air over the illuminating means to cool the latter.

31. A simulated solid fuel gas fire which has a simulated solid fuel bed and a combustion chamber above the fuel bed, part at least of the combustion chamber walls comprising a reflector, and in which part at least of the reflector is removable from and replace able in the fire.

32. A gas fire as claimed in claim 31, in which the reflector comprises a fixed upper part and a removable lower part.

33. A gas fire as claimed in claim 32, in which the upper portion of the removable reflector part is retained in position by the fixed reflector part and the lower portion is retained in position by releasable securing means.

34. A gas fire substantially as described herein with reference to, and as shown in, Figs. 1 to 3 or Fig. 1 as modified by Figs. 4 to 7 of the accompanying drawings.

35. A gas fire as claimed in claim 31, in which the reflector is substantially as described herein with reference to, and as shown in, Fig. 8 of the accompanying drawings.