GB2488391A

GB2488391A - Heating apparatus with a flame effect between a fan and a heat source

Info

Publication number: GB2488391A
Application number: GB1121455.8A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Barry Charlton
Original assignee: Charlton and Jenrick Ltd
Current assignee: Charlton and Jenrick Ltd
Priority date: 2011-02-28
Filing date: 2011-12-14
Publication date: 2012-08-29
Anticipated expiration: 2031-12-14
Also published as: GB201121455D0; GB2488391B; GB201103374D0

Abstract

Heating apparatus 10 has a housing 12 has a passage 18 through which air driven by a fan 16 is directed to be heated by a heat source 14 and a flame effect arrangement 20 located between the heat source 14 and the fan 16 and having a separate drive means 22. The heat source 14 can be electric; the flame effect have a rotating array of reflectors 50; and an embodiment (fig 2) is inverted with the fan at the top and the heater beneath the flame effect. The depth of the apparatus is thus reduced.

Description

Heating Apparatus The present invention relates to heating apparatus, and particularly but not exclusively electric heating apparatus.

There are many known types of heating apparatus for heating rooms or similar such spaces within a building. Particularly in domestic environments a fire, such as a real fire, gas fire or electric fire, is typically provided to offer not only a source of heat for the room, but also a focus or decorative feature within that room.

Solid fuel fires such as wood burning and coal burning fires not only generate heat but present a visual flickering flame as the fuel burns, which is generally considered to be attractive to an observer. Gas fires produce a similar effect. Heaters that generate heat primarily through electrical means, such as radiative heaters, convection heaters, fan heaters, do not present an inherent flame and so often such heaters, particularly those that replace or are alternative to a solid fuel or gas fire, typically incorporate means to introduce a fUckering flame effect. Such fires are generally termed electric flame effect fires.

According to the present invention there is provided heating apparatus comprising a housing in which is located a heat source to heat air in the apparatus, a fan to drive the movement of air through and out of the housing, a passage through which air driven by the fan is directed to be heated by the heat source and a flame effect arrangement located between the heat source and the fan and having separate drive means to drive movement thereof to present a simulated flame effect.

The flame effect arrangement may be located outside of the passage.

The flame effect arrangement may be located in an area isolated or generally isolated from the fan and the passage, preferably such that air driven by the fan does not influence movement of the flame effect arrangement.

The drive means may drive rotational movement within the flame effect arrangement and in particular may drive movement of one or more reflectors, the or one or more of which may be rotatable. The drive means may comprise an electric motor.

The flame effect arrangement may comprise one or more light sources arranged so that light emitted therefrom is reflected by the or at least one of the reflectors. The apparatus may comprise one or more surfaces on which reflected light may reflect to create a visual effect that may resemble or emulate real flames. The or at least one of the surfaces may be presented on a screen and may generafly face the in use front of the apparatus to be viewable from outside of the front of the apparatus.

The fan may be located, in use, beneath the flame effect arrangement, and the heat source located above the flame effect arrangement. The heat source may be located at or near the in use top of the housing. The fan may be located at or near the in use base of the housing.

Alternatively, the fan may be located, in use, above the flame effect arrangement and the heat source located beneath the flame effect arrangement. The fan may be located at or toward the in use top of the housing. The heat source may be located at or toward the in use base of the housing.

The passage may extend, in use, generally upwardly in the housing between the fan and the heat source. The passage may extend up an in use rearmost region of the housing, and may extend up a rear wall of the housing.

The passage may have an air inlet through which the fan can draw air to be blown through the passage.

The heat source may comprise an electrical heater that generates heat from electrical energy, such as an electrical resistance heater.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of example only, wh reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig 1 is a diagrammatic cross-sectional view of heating apparatus according to the present invention; and Fig 2 is a diagrammatic cross-sectional view of further heating apparatus according to the present invention.

Referring to the drawings, in particular Fig 1, there is provided heating apparatus 10 comprising a housing 12 in which is located a heat source 14 to heat air in the apparatus, a fan 16 to drive the movement of air in the housing, a passage 18 through which air driven by the fan is directed to be heated by the heat source 14, and a flame effect arrangement 20 located between the heat source 14 and the fan 16 and having separate drive means 22 to drive movement thereof to present a simulated flame effect.

in more detail, the housing 12 comprises very generally a rear 24, a front 26, a top 28, a bottom 30 and two sides, one of which is shown at 32. It will be appreciated that the shape and configuration of the rear, front, top, bottom 24, 26, 28, 30 and sides 32 can, in the main, be determined by the desired size, design and appearance of the heating apparatus.

In this embodiment the heating apparatus 10 is in the form of a domestic electric flame effect fire and so its general design has been created accordingly. One particular advantage of the apparatus 10 of the present invention is that the relative positioning of the heat source 14, fan 16 and the flame effect arrangement 20 enables the overall depth of the apparatus 10 (the distance between the front 26 and the rear 24) to be relatively short compared to certain conventional flame effect fires, thus enabling relatively slim or compact designs to be achieved.

The heat source 14 is located at or in the illustrated embodiment toward the top 28 of the housing 12. The heat source 14 is an electric heat source, and may comprise an electric resistance heater element or elements The heater 14 is located within the passage 18, which extends upwardly, generally up the inside of the rear 24 of the housing 12. In this particular embodiment the passage 18 is defined between the rear 24 of the housing and an inner passage-defining partition 34. It will be appreciated however that the passage could be defined by other passage-defining partitions (not shown) within the housing, and may be spaced from the rear 24.

The passage 18 opens at its upper end through a heated air outlet 36.

At its lower end 38 the passage opens into a chamber 40 defined generally by a fan housing 42. The fan 16 is located within the fan housing 42 and is operable to drive air up through the passage 18 and over the heater 14, as will be described. An inlet 44 is provided in the fan housing 42 through which air can be drawn generally by the action of the fan 16, from outside of the chamber 40, and generally from outside of the housing 12, to be driven through the passage 18.

The fan 16 is typically an electrically driven fan which can be of conventional design.

The flame effect arrangement 20 is positioned just above the fan housing 42 and just beneath a fuel bed support 46. The fuel bed support 46 is of generally conventional design, and is arranged to present a surface on which simulated and/or real solid fuels, such as logs and/or coals, can be presented to be visible from the front of the apparatus 10. A window 48 is provided within the fuel bed support 46. The window 48 comprises transparent and/or translucent material extending across an opening or cut-out in the fuel bed support and may comprise glass, plastic or other suitable materials. In an alternative embodiment the window 48 may be io replaced in whole or in part by one or more support members, such as bars, strips, meshes or grilles, that extend across the opening to provide support for fuel located thereon and preventing such fuel from falling through the opening, whilst enabling reflected light to pass through the opening, as will be explained.

The flame effect arrangement 20 comprises an array of reflectors 50 mounted around a central rotation shaft 52, the rotation of which is selectively driven by the drive means 22. The reflectors 50 may comprise metallic or other reflective material. A light source 54 is located adjacent the reflectors 50, such that when light is emitted from the light source 54 the reflectors act to reflect light through the window 48 in the fuel bed 46 onto the surface of a viewing screen 56. The light source 54 comprises one or more LED's and/or other suitable light sources. An additional reflector 58 may be provided beneath the reflectors 50 at a position to help reflect light back toward the reflectors 50 and preferably through the window 48. The reflector 58 also acts to prevent light escaping through the front of the apparatus 10 from a position beneath the fuel bed support 46.

In use, the heating apparatus 10 presents a flame effect electric fire that can be used as a means of heating the likes of a domestic room. The housing 12 would typically locate within a recess of a wall (not shown) of the room, generally with the front 26 of the housing 12 being generally flush with or closely aligned to the surface of the wall in which the housing 12 is recessed. Alternatively the apparatus 10 can be located with the rear 24 against or close to a wall. Still further, the heating apparatus 10 can be used as a generally freestanding appliance.

A particular advantage of the present invention is presented by the relative positions of the fan 16 and the heat source 14 being in spaced configuration either side of the flame effect arrangement 20. This configuration enables the apparatus to be relatively compact, particularly in its depth dimension (the distance between the front 26 and the rear 24), when compared to certain conventional flame effect fires.

To activate the apparatus 10, the fan 16 is actuated typically using conventional actuation means such as a switch or similar (not shown) associated therewith. Upon actuation, the fan 16 rotates within the housing 42 to draw air in from outside the chamber 40 through the inlet 44 and drive the air up through the passage 18 to pass over and/or through the heater 14, which is typically activated with the fan 16 but could be activated separately.

The general flaw of air is shown by the bold arrows in the drawings. As it passes over the heater 14 the air is heated and continues to be driven to exit the apparatus 10 through the heated air outlet 36, into the room to be heated.

The location of the heater 14 in close proximity to the outlet 36 helps ensure that the air exiting the apparatus remains heated. Too long a distance between the heater 14 and the outlet 36 could result in an unacceptable decrease in the temperature of the air over that distance. It will be appreciated that although the heater 14 is illustrated as being a short distance from the outlet 36, it could be at or closer to the outlet 36 if desired.

The flame effect arrangement 20 can be separately activated, again via switching means (not shown) or other suitable means. In certain embodiments, the fan 16, heater 14 and flame effect arrangement 20 can all be activated together via a switch or similar activating means.

When activated, the drive means 22 drives rotation of the rotation shaft 52 to drive the reflectors 50 in a rotational motion. The light source 54, when actuated, emits light that is reflected by the reflectors 50, up through the window 48 in the fuel bed support 46 to reflect against the screen 56 to provide a flickering light effect that simulates the flickering light of real flames.

Although not illustrated in the drawings for ease of illustration, simulated or real solid fuel would typically be located on the fuel bed support 46, through or behind which reflected tight would travel to further enhance the simulated fire effect.

It is an important feature of the present invention that the fan 16 does not drive the movement of the flame effect arrangement 20, but solely provides the source of driven air to be heated and expelled through the heated air outlet 36. The movement of the flame effect arrangement is driven and controlled by the separate drive means 52 which has no involvement in driving the air to be heated. This provides for a relatively simple configuration to be achieved when compared to conventional flame effect fires. It allows independent and precise control over the volume of air being driven through the passage 18 and through the heater 14, allowing heater output and the air volume throughput to be controlled to provide the desired heat output from the apparatus 10. The arrangement further allows the independent operation of the flame effect arrangement 20 and the fan 16 and heater 14. The flame effect arrangement can therefore be actuated to provide the visual effect without the need to have the fan 16 and heater 14 actuated. Conversely, it allows for the independent operation of the fan 16 and the heater 14 to provide heating without the visual flame effect.

Various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. As shown in Fig 2, the apparatus 110 can be configured such that the fan 16 is located at or toward the top of the apparatus 10 and operable to drive air down the passage 18, over and/or through the heater 14 located beneath the flame effect arrangement 20 and out through the heated air outlet 36 located at or near the bottom of the housing 12. Other than the inversion of the configuration of these components, features of the heating apparatus shown in Fig 2 are generally the same as those shown in Fig 1, and the apparatus operates in essentially the same way. The same or corresponding features are therefore referenced with the same numerals as used in Fig 1.

Whilst endeavouring in the foregoing specification to draw attention to those features of the invention believed to be of particular importance it should be understood that the Applicant claims protection in respect of any patentable feature or combination of features hereinbefore referred to and/or shown in the drawings whether or not particular emphasis has been placed thereon.

Claims

Claims 1. Heating apparatus comprising a housing in which is located a heat source to heat air in the apparatus, a fan to drive the movement of air through and out of the housing, a passage through which air driven by the fan is directed to be heated by the heat source and a flame effect arrangement located between the heat source and the fan and having separate drive means to drive movement thereof to present a simulated flame effect.
2. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 1, in which the flame effect arrangement is located outside of the passage.
3. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, in which the flame effect arrangement is located in an area isolated or generally isolated from the fan and the passageway.
4. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the air driven by the fan does not influence movement of the flame effect arrangement.
5. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the drive means drives rotational movement within the flame effect arrangement.
6. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the drive means drives movement of one or more reflectors.
7. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 6, in which the or one or more of the reflector(s) is rotatable.
8. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the drive means comprises an electric motor.
9. Heating apparatus as claimed in any of claims 6 to 8, in which the flame effect arrangement comprises one or more light sources arranged so that light emitted therefrom is reflected by the or at least one of the reflectors.
10. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 9, in which the apparatus comprises one or more surfaces on which reflected light reflects to create a visual effect that may resemble or emulate real flames.
11. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 10, in which the or at least one of the surfaces is presented on a screen.
12. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 10 or claim 11, in which the or at least one of the surfaces generally face the in use front of the apparatus to be viewable from outside of the front of the apparatus.
13. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the fan is located, in use, beneath the flame effect arrangement, and the heat source located above the flame effect arrangement.
14. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the heat source is located at or near the in use top of the housing.
15. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the fan is located at or near the in use base of the housing.
16. Heating apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 12, in which the fan is located, in use, above the flame effect arrangement and the heat source located beneath the flame effect arrangement.
17. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 16, in which the fan is located at or toward the in use top of the housing.
18. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 16 or claim 17, in which the heat source is located at or toward the in use base of the housing.
19. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the passage extends, in use, generally upwardly in the housing between the fan and the heat source.
20. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the passage extends up an in use rearmost region of the housing.
21. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the passage extends up a rear wall of the housing.
22. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the passage has an air inlet through which the fan can draw air to be blown through the passage.
23. Heating apparatus as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the heat source comprises an electrical heater that generates heat from electrical energy.
24. Heating apparatus as claimed in claim 23, in which the heat source is an electrical resistance heater.
25. Heating apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
26. Any novel subject mailer or combination including novel subject mailer disclosed herein, whether or not within the scope of or relating to the same invention as any of the preceding claims.