US20190128535A1

US20190128535A1 - Range hood

Info

Publication number: US20190128535A1
Application number: US16/175,690
Authority: US
Inventors: Wei-Min Chien; Shi-Wen Lin; Wei-Cheng Lo; Shang-Hsuang Wu
Original assignee: Coretronic Corp
Current assignee: Coretronic Corp
Priority date: 2017-10-30
Filing date: 2018-10-30
Publication date: 2019-05-02
Also published as: CN207422301U; TWM561761U

Abstract

A range hood includes a housing, a cover, an exhaust pipe and at least two vacuum fans. The housing has a top and bottom openings opposite to each other. The cover is disposed in the housing and adjacent to the bottom opening. The cover has an air inlet facing the bottom opening. The exhaust pipe is disposed in the housing and located between the top opening and the cover. The exhaust pipe has an air outlet adjacent to the top opening and communicates with the cover. The vacuum fans are disposed in the cover and located between the air inlet and the exhaust pipe. Each vacuum fan has an air flow inlet adjacent to the air inlet and an air flow outlet adjacent to the air outlet. An area of the air inlet is greater than or equal to an area of the air flow inlets.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

THIS APPLICATION CLAIMS THE PRIORITY BENEFIT OF CHINA APPLICATION (CN201721416490.9 FILED ON 2017 Oct. 30). THE ENTIRETY OF THE ABOVE-MENTIONED PATENT APPLICATION IS HEREBY INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE HEREIN AND MADE A PART OF THIS SPECIFICATION.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a range hood, and more particularly to a low-noise range hood.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

As society develops and changes, the composition of the family has changed from a large-size family in the past to small-size family nowadays. Particularly in Asian countries with high population density, the spatial boundary between a living room and a kitchen/dining room in a house trends to become increasingly blurred. With the popularization of mobile devices such as smart phones, functions of a living room are gradually being replaced. Most family members used to spend time chatting in a living room, however, they now get used to doing so in a kitchen/dining room. In light of general cooking habits, frying food by way of raging fire and hot oil makes loud noise; meanwhile, it also produces an unpleasant smell of fumes. Therefore, a range hood equipped with a fume exhaust system is a fundamental domestic appliance in a kitchen/dining room. Noise control for range hoods sold on the market nowadays is set as 65 dB (deci-Bell), and most range hoods, while operating, make noise of approximately 65 dB. Nonetheless, when exceeding 55 dB, the noise interferes with regular conversations, and is prone to discomfort people. Even though most range hoods are equipped with a multi-section adjustable system so that users can turn down air flow according to usage requirements in an attempt to keep noise made by a range hood less than 55 dB, fan's air flow and static pressure will simultaneously lower dramatically resulting in incapability of exhausting fumes thoroughly.
The information disclosed in this “BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION” section is only for enhancement understanding of the background of the invention and therefore it may contain information that does not form the prior art that is already known to a person of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, the information disclosed in this “BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION” section does not mean that one or more problems to be solved by one or more embodiments of the invention were acknowledged by a person of ordinary skill in the art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

One objective of the invention is to provide a range hood with both of low noise and high fume-exhausting performance.
Other objectives and advantages of the invention can be further understood from the technical features disclosed in the invention.
In order to achieve one or a portion of or all of the above objectives or other objectives, the invention provides a range hood, which includes a housing, a cover, an exhaust pipe and at least two vacuum fans. The housing has a top opening and a bottom opening opposite to each other. The cover is disposed in the housing and adjacent to the bottom opening of the housing. The cover has an air inlet facing the bottom opening. The exhaust pipe is disposed in the housing and located between the top opening of the housing and the cover. The exhaust pipe has an air outlet adjacent to the top opening and communicates with the cover. The at least two vacuum fans are disposed in the cover and located between the air inlet and the exhaust pipe. Each of the at least two vacuum fans has an air flow inlet adjacent to the air inlet and an air flow outlet adjacent to the air outlet. An area of the air inlet of the cover is greater than or equal to an area of the air flow inlets of the at least two vacuum fans.
In summary, according to the embodiments of the invention, the structure of the range hood optimizes the airflow field of the inflow and outflow of air. The airflow field during the whole fume-exhausting process is tapered in a multi-section manner so as to achieve smooth exhaustion of fumes, improve the flow resistance of the range hood, and further reduce noise. In addition, by the components such as the blower fan and the baffle, the range hood of the embodiments of the invention prevents the fumes from diffusing to the outside of the range hood so as to improve the efficiency of fume exhausting.
In order to make the aforementioned and other features and advantages of the invention comprehensible, several exemplary embodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the structure of a range hood in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic bottom view of the range hood shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the resistance difference between the range hood of the invention and the conventional range hood;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the noise flow curve difference between the range hood of the invention and the conventional range hood;

FIG. 5 is a schematic bottom view of a range hood in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic bottom view of a range hood in accordance with another embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the structure of a range hood in accordance with another embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. In this regard, directional terminology, such as “top”, “bottom”, “front”, “back”, etc., is used with reference to the orientation of the Figure(s) being described. The components of the invention can be positioned in a number of different orientations. As such, the directional terminology is used for purposes of illustration and is in no way limiting. On the other hand, the drawings are only schematic and the sizes of components may be exaggerated for clarity. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including”, “comprising”, or “having” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Unless limited otherwise, the terms “connected”, “coupled”, and “mounted” and variations thereof herein are used broadly and encompass direct and indirect connections, couplings, and mountings. Similarly, the terms “facing”, “faces”, and variations thereof herein are used broadly and encompass direct and indirect facing, and “adjacent to” and variations thereof herein are used broadly and encompass directly and indirectly “adjacent to”. Therefore, the description of “A” component facing “B” component herein may contain the situations that “A” component facing “B” component directly or one or more additional components is between “A” component and “B” component. Also, the description of “A” component “adjacent to” “B” component herein may contain the situations that “A” component is directly “adjacent to” “B” component or one or more additional components is between “A” component and “B” component. Accordingly, the drawings and descriptions will be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as restrictive.
Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the structure of a range hood 1 in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. FIG. 2 is a schematic bottom view of the range hood 1 shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the range hood 1 of the embodiment includes a housing 10, a cover 11, an exhaust pipe 12 and at least two vacuum fans. In the embodiment, the number of vacuum fans is illustrated by two for the following description. However, the number of the vacuum fans of the invention may be more than two and the invention does not limit the number of the vacuum fans. The range hood 1 of the embodiment includes a first vacuum fan 13 and a second vacuum fan 14. The housing 10 has a top opening 101 and a bottom opening 102 opposite to each other. The cover 11 is disposed in the housing 10 and adjacent to the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10. The cover 11 has an air inlet 111 facing the bottom opening 102. The exhaust pipe 12 is disposed in the housing 10 and located between the top opening 101 of the housing 10 and the cover 11. The exhaust pipe 12 has an air outlet 120 adjacent to the top opening 101 of the housing 10. The exhaust pipe 12 and the cover 11 communicate with each other. The first vacuum fan 13 and the second vacuum fan 14 are disposed in the cover 11 and located between the air inlet 111 and the exhaust pipe 12. The first vacuum fan 13 has an air flow inlet 131 adjacent to the air inlet 111 and an air flow outlet 132 adjacent to the exhaust pipe 12. The second vacuum fan 14 has an air flow inlet 141 adjacent to the air inlet 111 and an air flow outlet 142 adjacent to the exhaust pipe 12. As shown in FIG. 1, the first vacuum fan 13 and the second vacuum fan 14 are disposed side by side and adjacent to each other. When the first vacuum fan 13 and the second vacuum fan 14 start to exhaust air, air enters the cover 11 through the air inlet 111 and then enters the air flow inlet 131 of the first vacuum fan 13 and the air flow inlet 141 of the second vacuum fan 14 and then enters the exhaust pipe 12 through the air flow outlet 132 of the first vacuum fan 13 and the air flow outlet 142 of the second vacuum fan 14. It should be noted that the number of the air flow inlets 131 of the first vacuum fan 13 and the number of the air flow inlets 141 of the second vacuum fan 14 are not limited in the invention. The number of the air flow inlets 131, 141 may be more than one according to actual requirements.
The detailed configuration of the range hood 1 of the embodiment will be further described below.
As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the range hood 1 of the embodiment further includes at least one baffle. In the embodiment, the number of baffles is illustrated by two for the following description. However, the number of the baffles is not limited in the invention. The range hood 1 of the embodiment includes a first baffle 15 and a second baffle 16. The first baffle 15 is disposed between the first vacuum fan 13 and the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10. The second baffle 16 is disposed between the second vacuum fan 14 and the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10. The first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16 are respectively inclined with respect to a plane F formed by the air inlet 111 of the cover 11, and the first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16 are, for example, inclined toward the center of the air inlet 111 and into the cover 11. A first angle θ1 is formed between the first baffle 15 and the plane F, and a second angle θ2 is formed between the second baffle 16 and the plane F. It should be noted that the position of the first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16 is not limited in the invention. In other embodiments, the first baffle 15 may be disposed between the first vacuum fan 13 and the air inlet 111 of the cover 11, and the second baffle 16 may be disposed between the second vacuum fan 14 and the air inlet 111 of the cover 11.
As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, in the embodiment, the first angle θ1 between the first baffle 15 and the plane F is, for example, greater than or equal to 0.1 degrees and less than or equal to 10 degrees, and the second angle θ2 between the second baffle 16 and the plane F is, for example, greater than or equal to 0.1 degrees and less than or equal to 10 degrees. A first projection area R1 and a second projection area R2 are formed on the plane F by the first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16 respectively. The first projection area R1 of the first baffle 15 on the plane F and the second projection area R2 of the second baffle 16 on the plane F do not overlap each other. A gap G is formed between the first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16. The gap G is a distance between the first projection area R1 and the second projection area R2, and is greater than or equal to 2 cm and less than or equal to 10 cm. In addition, the cover 11 of the embodiment further has an inner wall surface 112. An edge of the inner wall surface 112 surrounds to form the air inlet 111 of the cover 11. A first gap G1 is formed between the first baffle 15 and the edge of the inner wall surface 112 of the cover 11. A second gap G2 is formed between the second baffle 16 and the edge of the inner wall surface 112 of the cover 11. Specifically, in the embodiment, the first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16 are rectangular. The first gap G1 is formed between a first edge E1, a second edge E2 and a third edge E3 of the first baffle 15 and the respective edge of the inner wall surface 112. The second gap G2 is formed between a fourth edge E4, a fifth edge E5 and a sixth edge E6 of the second baffle 16 and the respective edge of the inner wall surface 112. When the first vacuum fan 13 and the second vacuum fan 14 start to exhaust air, air flows into the cover 11 through the gap G, the first gaps G1 and the second gaps G2, and the first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16 are, for example, inclined toward the center of the air inlet 111 and into the cover 11 so that most of the air flows into the cover 11 along the incline direction from the gap G. In other embodiments, different gaps are formed between the first edge E1, the second edge E2 and the third edge E3 of the first baffle 15 and the respective edges of the inner wall surface 112, and different gaps are formed between the fourth edge E4, the fifth edge E5 and the sixth edge E6 of the second baffle 16 and the respective edges of the inner wall surface 112, and the invention is not limited thereto.
In the embodiment, it should be noted that the area of the air inlet 111 of the cover 11 is A, the area of the air flow inlet 131 of the first vacuum fan 13 is B1, the area of the air flow inlet 141 of the second vacuum fan 14 is B2, the area of the first baffle 15 is C1, the area of the second baffle 16 is C2, and A, B1, B2, C1 and C2 satisfy the equation: A−(C1+C2)≥B1+B2. That is, the total air inlet area of the air inlet 111 of the cover 11 is greater than or equal to the sum of the air inlet area of the first vacuum fan 13 and the air inlet area of the second vacuum fan 14. If the first vacuum fan 13 has two air flow inlets, B1 is referred to as the air inlet area of the two air flow inlets. If the second vacuum fan 14 has two air flow inlets, B2 is referred to as the air inlet area of the two air flow inlets.
It should be noted that the numbers of vacuum fans and baffles are not limited in the invention. The number of the vacuum fans being two and the number of baffles being two are only one of the embodiments of the invention. In other embodiments, only one baffle may be disposed; that is, the second baffle 16 is removed and only the first baffle 15 is left in FIG. 1. In such a case, the area of the air inlet 111 of the cover 11 is A, the area of the air flow inlet 131 of the first vacuum fan 13 is B1, the area of the air flow inlet 141 of the second vacuum fan 14 is B2, the area of the first baffle 15 is C1, and A, B1, B2, and C1 satisfy the equation: A−C1≥B1+B2. In yet another embodiment, no baffle may be provided; that is, the first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16 in FIG. 1 are removed. In such a case, the area of the air inlet 111 of the cover 11 is A, the area of the air flow inlet 131 of the first vacuum fan 13 is B1, the area of the air flow inlet 141 of the second vacuum fan 14 is B2, and A, B1, and B2 satisfy the equation: A≥B1+B2.
As shown in FIG. 1, the exhaust pipe 12 of the embodiment includes a first sub pipe 121 and a second sub pipe 122. The first sub pipe 121 has a first extending portion P1 and a first joining portion CN1 connected with the first extending portion P1. The second sub pipe 122 has a second extending portion P2 and a second joining portion CN2 connected with the second extending portion P2. The first extending portion P1 of the first sub pipe 121 communicates with the air flow outlet 132 of the first vacuum fan 13. The second extending portion P2 of the second sub pipe 122 communicates with the air flow outlet 142 of the second vacuum fan 14. The first joining portion CN1 of the first sub pipe 121 is connected with the second joining portion CN2 of the second sub pipe 122. The first joining portion CN1 has a first opening O1 adjacent to the air outlet 120 of the exhaust pipe 12. The second joining portion CN2 has a second opening O2 adjacent to the air outlet 120 of the exhaust pipe 12. The first opening O1, the second opening O2 and the air outlet 120 communicate with each other.
In the embodiment, the cross-sectional area CA1 of the first extending portion P1 of the first sub pipe 121 is less than or equal to the area B1 of the air flow inlet 131 of the first vacuum fan 13, and the cross-sectional area CA2 of the second extending portion P2 of the second sub pipe 122 is less than or equal to the area B2 of the air flow inlet 141 of the second vacuum fan 14. In the embodiment, the first extending portion P1 of the first sub pipe 121 extends from the first vacuum fan 13 toward the first joining portion CN1 so as to have a first extending length L1. The second extending portion P2 of the second sub pipe 122 extends from the second vacuum fan 14 toward the second joining portion CN2 so as to have a second extending length L2. The first extending length L1 and the second extending length L2 are respectively greater than or equal to 20 cm and less than or equal to 60 cm. In the embodiment, the area of the air outlet 120 of the exhaust pipe 12 is D, the area of the first opening O1 of the first joining portion CN1 is D1, the area of the second opening O2 of the second joining portion CN2 is D2, and D, D1 and D2 satisfy the equation: D1+D2≥D; that is, the sum of the area D1 of the first opening O1 and the area D2 of the second opening O2 is greater than or equal to the area D of the air outlet 120 of the exhaust pipe 12. In the embodiment, an angle θ is formed between an outer wall of an end of the first extending portion P1 of the first sub pipe 121 and an outer wall of an end of the second extending portion P2 of the second sub pipe 122, and the angle θ is an acute angle. Specifically, the first extending portion P1 of the first sub pipe 121 and the second extending portion P2 of the second sub pipe 122 are connected at their ends, and the end of the first extending portions P1 and the end of the second sub pipe 122 are respectively connected with the first joining portion CN1 and the second joining portion CN2. After the first vacuum fan 13 and the second vacuum fan 14 supplies airflow into the first sub pipe 121 and the second sub pipe 122, the airflow from the first vacuum fan 13 is directed toward the first opening O1 sequentially along the first extending portion P1 and the first joining portion CN1, the airflow from the second vacuum fan 14 is directed toward the second opening O2 sequentially along the second extending portion P2 and the second joining portion CN2, and then the airflow from the two sub pipes is collected in the air outlet 120. By the design of the first extending portion P1, the second extending portion P2, the first joining portion CN1 and the second joining portion CN2, the exhaust path can be lengthened and the airflow in the exhaust pipe 12 can be collected and exhausted from the air outlet 120 in a multi-sectional manner, which can effectively reduce the flow resistance and noise generated by the airflow in the range hood.
As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the range hood 1 of the embodiment further includes at least one blower fan. In the embodiment, the blower fan is a cross flow fan for example, but the invention is not limited thereto. In the embodiment, the number of blower fans is explained by taking three as an example, but the invention does not limit the number of the blower fans. That is, the range hood 1 of the embodiment includes a first blower fan 17, a second blower fan 18 and a third blower fan 19. In the embodiment, the housing 10 includes a first side edge 103, a second side edge 104, a third side edge 105 and a fourth side edge 106. For the housing 10, the first side edge 103 is opposite to the second side edge, the third side edge 105 is opposite to the fourth side edge 106, the third side edge 105 is adjacent between the first side edge 103 and the second side edge 104, and the fourth side edge 106 is adjacent between the first side edge 103 and the second side edge 104. The first side edge 103, the second side edge 104, the third side edge 105 and the fourth side edge 106 surround to form the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10. The first blower fan 17, the second blower fan 18 and the third blower fan 19 are respectively located between the housing 10 and the cover 11. The first blower fan 17 is disposed on the first side edge 103 of the housing 10, the second blower fan 18 is disposed on the second side edge 104 of the housing 10, and the third blower fan 19 is disposed on the third side edge 105 of the housing 10. The first blower fan 17 has a gas outlet 171 adjacent to the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10 and a gas inlet 172 away from the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10. Likewise, the second blower fan 18 has a gas outlet 181 adjacent to the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10 and a gas inlet 182 away from the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10, and the third blower fan 19 has a gas outlet 191 adjacent to the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10 and a gas inlet (not shown) away from the bottom opening 102 of the housing 10. In the embodiment, the gas inlet 172 of the first blower fan 17, the gas inlet 182 of the second blower fan 18 and the gas inlet of the third blower fan 19 are respectively opposite to the openings of the gas outlets 171, 181 and 191. However, in other embodiments, the openings of the gas inlets may be perpendicular to the openings of the gas outlet, and the invention is not limited thereto.
In the embodiment, the gas outlet 171 of the first blower fan 17 extends along the first side edge 103 of the housing 10 so as to have an extending length L1′, and the extending length L1′ is greater than or equal to 70% and less than 100% of the length of the first side edge 103. The gas outlet 181 of the second blower fan 18 extends along the second side edge 104 of the housing 10 so as to have an extending length L2′, and the extending length L2′ is greater than or equal to 70% and less than 100% of the length of the second side edge 104. The gas outlet 191 of the third blower fan 19 extends along the third side edge 105 of the housing 10 so as to have an extending length L3′, and the extending length L3′ is greater than or equal to 70% and less than 100% of the length of the third side edge 105. In the embodiment, the air volume outputted from the gas outlets 171, 181 and 191 of the first blower fan 17, the second blower fan 18 and the third blower fan 19 within a fixed time period is less than the air volume inputted from the air flow inlets 131 and 141 of the first vacuum fan 13 and the second vacuum fan 14 within the above fixed time period respectively. The first blower fan 17, the second blower fan 18, and the third blower fan 19 input air from the outside of the range hood 1 and blow the air toward the bottom of the range hood 1 via the gas outlets 171, 181 and 191 so as to form a return air wall around the periphery of a cooking area under the range hood 1, so as to enclose the fumes generated in the cooking area and block the fumes from leaking out of the cooking area. Further, by the vacuum fans 13 and 14, the return air wall and the fume enclosed by the return air wall are directed to the gap G, the first gaps G1 and the second gaps G2 and into the housing 11, and finally are exhausted through the exhaust pipe 12.
It is to be noted that the number of the blower fans is not limited in the invention. The range hood 1 having three blower fans is only one of the embodiments of the invention. In other embodiments, the range hood 1 may have only one blower fan, and this blower fan may be disposed on any one of the first side edge 103, the second side edge 104, the third side edge 105 and the fourth side edge 106 of the housing 10. In still another embodiment, the range hood 1 may have only two blower fans, and the two blower fans may be disposed on any two of the first side edge 103, the second side edge 104, the third side edge 105 and the fourth side edge 106 of the housing 10.
Please refer to FIG. 3 and FIG. 4. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the resistance difference between the range hood 1 of the invention and the conventional range hood. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the noise flow curve difference between the range hood 1 of the invention and the conventional range hood. As shown in FIG. 3, at a flow rate of 500 cfm (cubic feet per minute), the conventional range hood has a system resistance of 30 mmH₂O (millimeters of water) and the range hood 1 of the invention has a system resistance of 24 mmH₂O; that is, the system resistance of the range hood 1 of the invention is improved about 20%, compared with that of the conventional range hood. As shown in FIG. 4, at the same airflow rate of 550 cfm for example, the range hood 1 of the invention reduces the noise of about 10 dB, compared with the conventional range hood. It can be seen that in the design of the range hood 1 of the invention, the lower system resistance not only allows the vacuum fan to be able to generate the same airflow volume at a lower speed, but also appreciably reduces the noise by having the characteristics of lower fan speed and smoother airflow field, thus achieving the purpose of having both low noise and high fume-exhausting performance at the same time.
Please refer to FIG. 5, which is a schematic bottom view of a range hood 1 a in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. The range hood 1 a of the embodiment is similar to the range hood 1 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, and the difference lies in that the range hood 1 a of the embodiment further includes a third baffle 20. As shown in FIG. 5, in the embodiment, the third baffle 20 is disposed adjacent to the first baffle 15 and the second baffle 16. The first baffle 15, the second baffle 16 and the third baffle 20 are, for example, inclined toward the center of the air inlet 111 and into the cover 11. However, the invention does not limit the arrangement of the first baffle 15, the second baffle 16 and the third baffle 20. The arrangement of the first baffle 15, the second baffle 16 and the third baffle 20 may vary according to the actual requirements. The first projection area R1 of the first baffle 15 on the plane F, the second projection area R2 of the second baffle 16 on the plane F and the third projection area R3 of the third baffle 20 on the plane F do not overlap each other.
Please refer to FIG. 6, which is a schematic bottom view of a range hood 1 b in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. The range hood 1 b of the embodiment is similar to the range hood 1 a shown in FIG. 3, and the difference lies in that the range hood 1 b of the embodiment further includes a fourth baffle 21. As shown in FIG. 6, in the embodiment, the first baffle 15, the second baffle 16, the third baffle 20 and the fourth baffle 21 are arranged as an array. The first baffle 15, the second baffle 16, the third baffle 20 and the fourth baffle 21 are, for example, inclined toward the center of the air inlet 111 and into the cover 11. However, the invention does not limit the arrangement of the first baffle 15, the second baffle 16, the third baffle 20 and the fourth baffle 21. The arrangement of the first baffle 15, the second baffle 16, the third baffle 20 and the fourth baffle 21 may vary according to the actual requirements. The first projection area R1 of the first baffle 15 on the plane F, the second projection area R2 of the second baffle 16 on the plane F, the third projection area R3 of the third baffle 20 on the plane F and the fourth projection area R4 of the fourth baffle 21 on the plane F do not overlap each other.
Please refer to FIG. 7, which is a schematic view of the structure of a range hood 1 c in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. The range hood 1 c of the embodiment is similar to the range hood 1 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, and the difference lies in that the range hood 1 c of the embodiment further includes a first guard board 22 and a second guard board 23. The first guard board 22 is disposed between the first side edge 103 of the housing 10 and the cover 11, and the first guard board 22 is adjacent to the first blower fan 17. The second guard board 23 is disposed between the second side edge 104 of the housing 10 and the cover 11, and the second guard board 23 is adjacent to the second blower fan 18. In the embodiment, the first guard board 22 and the second guard board 23 respectively extend toward a lower side of the housing 10 so as to prevent the fume from leaking out of the cooking area under the range hood 1 c. It is to be noted that the first guard board 22 and the second guard board 23 of the embodiment may be accommodated in the housing 10.
In summary, according to the embodiments of the invention, the structure of the range hood optimizes the airflow field of the inflow and outflow of air. The airflow field during the whole fume-exhausting process is tapered in a multi-section manner so as to achieve smooth exhaustion of fumes, improve the flow resistance of the range hood, and further reduce noise. In addition, by the components such as the blower fan and the baffle, the range hood of the embodiments of the invention prevents the fumes from diffusing to the outside of the range hood so as to improve the efficiency of fume exhausting.
The foregoing description of the preferred embodiment of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form or to exemplary embodiments disclosed. Accordingly, the foregoing description should be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. Obviously, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in this art. The embodiments are chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its best mode practical application, thereby to enable persons skilled in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use or implementation contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by the claims appended hereto and their equivalents in which all terms are meant in their broadest reasonable sense unless otherwise indicated. Therefore, the term “the invention”, “The invention” or the like is not necessary limited the claim scope to a specific embodiment, and the reference to particularly preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention does not imply a limitation on the invention, and no such limitation is to be inferred. The invention is limited only by the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Moreover, these claims may refer to use “first”, “second”, etc. following with noun or element. Such terms should be understood as a nomenclature and should not be construed as giving the limitation on the number of the elements modified by such nomenclature unless specific number has been given. The abstract of the disclosure is provided to comply with the rules requiring an abstract, which will allow a searcher to quickly ascertain the subject matter of the technical disclosure of any patent issued from this disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. Any advantages and benefits described may not apply to all embodiments of the invention. It should be appreciated that variations may be made in the embodiments described by persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims. Moreover, no element and component in the disclosure is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of whether the element or component is explicitly recited in the following claims. Furthermore, the terms such as the first vacuum fan, the second vacuum fan, the first baffle, the second baffle and so on are only used for distinguishing various elements and do not limit the number of the elements.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A range hood, comprising:

a housing, having a top opening and a bottom opening opposite to each other;

a cover, disposed in the housing and adjacent to the bottom opening of the housing, wherein the cover has an air inlet facing the bottom opening;

an exhaust pipe, disposed in the housing and located between the top opening of the housing and the cover, wherein the exhaust pipe has an air outlet adjacent to the top opening, and the exhaust pipe and the cover communicate with each other; and

at least two vacuum fans, disposed in the cover and located between the air inlet and the exhaust pipe, wherein each of the at least two vacuum fans has an air flow inlet adjacent to the air inlet and an air flow outlet adjacent to the exhaust pipe, and an area of the air inlet of the cover is greater than or equal to an area of the air flow inlets of the at least two vacuum fans.

2. The range hood according to claim 1, further comprising at least one baffle disposed between the at least two vacuum fans and the bottom opening of the housing, wherein the least one baffle is inclined with respect to a plane formed by the air inlet of the cover so as to form an angle with respect to the plane.

3. The range hood according to claim 2, wherein the angle between the at least one baffle and the plane is greater than or equal to 0.1 degrees and less than or equal to 10 degrees.

4. The range hood according to claim 2, wherein the cover further has an inner wall surface, an edge of the inner wall surface surrounds to form the air inlet of the cover, and a gap is formed between the at least one baffle and the edge of the inner wall surface of the cover.

5. The range hood according to claim 2, wherein an area of the air inlet of the cover is A, an area of the air flow inlets of the at least two vacuum fans is B, an area of the baffle is C, and A−C≥B.

6. The range hood according to claim 2, wherein a number of the at least one baffle is plural, the at least one baffle comprises a first baffle and a second baffle, the at least two vacuum fans comprise a first vacuum fan and a second vacuum fan, the first baffle is located between the first vacuum fan and the bottom opening of the housing, and the second baffle is located between the second vacuum fan and the bottom opening of the housing.

7. The range hood according to claim 6, wherein a first projection area of the first baffle on the plane and a second projection area of the second baffle on the plane do not overlap each other.

8. The range hood according to claim 6, wherein a gap is formed between the first baffle and the second baffle, and the gap is greater than or equal to 2 cm and less than or equal to 10 cm.

9. The range hood according to claim 6, wherein an area of the air inlet of the cover is A′, an area of the air flow inlet of the first vacuum fan is B1, an area of the air flow inlet of the second vacuum fan is B2, an area of the first baffle is C1, an area of the second baffle is C2, and A′−(C1+C2)≥B1+B2.

10. The range hood according to claim 2, wherein a number of the at least one baffle is plural, the at least one baffle comprises a first baffle, a second baffle and a third baffle, wherein the first baffle, the second baffle and the third baffle are disposed adjacent to one another, wherein a first projection area of the first baffle on the plane, a second projection area of the second baffle on the plane and a third projection area of the third baffle on the plane do not overlap each other.

11. The range hood according to claim 2, wherein a number of the at least one baffle is plural, the at least one baffle comprises a first baffle, a second baffle, a third baffle and a fourth baffle, wherein the first baffle, the second baffle, the third baffle and the fourth baffle are arranged as an array, wherein a first projection area of the first baffle on the plane, a second projection area of the second baffle on the plane, a third projection area of the third baffle on the plane and a fourth projection area of the fourth baffle on the plane do not overlap each other.

12. The range hood according to claim 1, wherein the at least two vacuum fans comprise a first vacuum fan and a second vacuum fan, the exhaust pipe comprises a first sub pipe and a second sub pipe, the first sub pipe has a first extending portion, the second sub pipe has a second extending portion, the first extending portion communicates with the air flow outlet of the first vacuum fan, the second extending portion communicates with the air flow outlet of the second vacuum fan, a cross-sectional area of the first extending portion is less than or equal to an area of the air flow inlet of the first vacuum fan, and a cross-sectional area of the second extending portion is less than or equal to an area of the air flow inlet of the second vacuum fan.

13. The range hood according to claim 12, wherein the first sub pipe has a first joining portion connected with the first extending portion, the second sub pipe has a second joining portion connected with the second extending portion, the first joining portion is connected with the second joining portion, the first joining portion has a first opening adjacent to the air outlet, the second joining portion has a second opening adjacent to the air outlet, and the first opening, the second opening and the air outlet communicate with each other.

14. The range hood according to claim 13, wherein the first extending portion extends from the first vacuum fan toward the first joining portion so as to have a first extending length, the second extending portion extends from the second vacuum fan toward the second joining portion so as to have a second extending length, and the first extending length and the second extending length respectively are greater than or equal to 20 cm and less than or equal to 60 cm.

15. The range hood according to claim 13, wherein an area of the air outlet is D, an area of the first opening of the first joining portion is D1, an area of the second opening of the second joining portion is D2, and D1+D2≥D.

16. The range hood according to claim 13, wherein an angle is formed between an end of the first extending portion and an end of the second extending portion, and the angle is an acute angle.

17. The range hood according to claim 1, further comprising at least one blower fan disposed between the housing and the cover, wherein the blower fan has a gas outlet adjacent to the bottom opening of the housing and a gas inlet away from the bottom opening of the housing.

18. The range hood according to claim 17, wherein an air volume outputted from the gas outlet of the blower fan within a time period is less than an air volume inputted from the air flow inlet of the vacuum fan within the time period.

19. The range hood according to claim 17, wherein the housing further has a plurality of side edges, the side edges surround to form the bottom opening, the blower fan is disposed on one of the side edges, the gas outlet of the blower fan extends along one of the side edges so as to have an extending length, and the extending length is greater than or equal to 70% and less than 100% of a length of one of the side edges.

20. The range hood according to claim 19, wherein the side edges comprise a first side edge, a second side edge, a third side edge and a fourth side edge, the first side edge is opposite to the second side edge, the third side edge is opposite to the fourth side edge, the third side is adjacent to the first side edge and the second side edge, the fourth side edge is adjacent to the first side edge and the second side edge, a number of the at least one blower fan is plural, the at least one blower fan comprises a first blower fan, a second blower fan and a third blower fan, the first blower fan is disposed on the first side edge, the second blower fan is disposed on the second side edge, and the third blower fan is disposed on the third side edge.