US20210207810A1

US20210207810A1 - Free-standing patio heater

Info

Publication number: US20210207810A1
Application number: US17/137,155
Authority: US
Inventors: Sandra Vlock
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2020-01-02
Filing date: 2020-12-29
Publication date: 2021-07-08

Abstract

An outdoor, free standing area heater comprises a vertically extending housing defining an interior and a heat producing source for producing a flame that heats air and at least one glass tube directing at least a portion of the heated air upwardly inside the housing. An upper hood is located above the housing at a position for the heated air conducted by the at least one glass tube to impinge on the upper hood, the upper hood being shaped to redirect the heated air in a direction away from the housing and in a general downward direction from the upper hood. The glass tube is substantially surrounded by side panels that are provided with a plurality of cutouts in a wall defining each of said side panels, wherein the cutouts leave a percentage closure of the wall in the range from 1 to 65 percent.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present non-provisional patent application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/956,378, filed Jan. 2, 2020, by Sandra Vlock, and entitled “IMPROVED FREE-STANDING PATIO HEATER,” the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention is directed to increasing ambient temperature for outdoor patio heaters by enhancing heat distribution and radiation.
Outdoor free standing patio heaters conventionally include a propane gas tank held in the base of the patio heater fueling a flame which rises through a glass heat tube to the top or hood of the heater which is shaped to reflect the rising heat downwardly to heat the area where people are located.
FIG. 1 is an illustration of a prior art outdoor patio heater having a body or housing 10 and a top or hood 12. The patio heater heats a glass tube 13 by a flame located inside the housing 10. The housing 10 may comprise a frame including uprights at four corners that are joined at the bottom and top to each other by horizontal struts. Conventionally, propane gas or the like fuels the fire. The propane tank is carried in the lower section 14 of the patio heater.
Conventionally, patio heaters are surrounded by a safety screen or grill 18 of a uniform design having openings along the sides allowing heat from the heated tube to escape outwardly. The openings 19 are horizontal and spaced.
The size and shape of the hood 18 spreads the heat beyond the patio heater.
The primary heat dispersion for heating ambient air is the reflection of the heat downward from hood 12. But much of the heat in heat tube 13 escapes through grill 18 before it reaches hood 12. Additionally, conventional hoods are fairly small and reflect a limited amount of heat.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In a preferred embodiment, this invention is directed to a new screen as well as a larger hood or top, each of which, individually and jointly, increases the heat distribution of the patio heater.
In accordance with preferred embodiments of the invention, the heat spreading capabilities of conventional space heaters is enhanced by adding to conventional heaters side screens, which can be made to present decorative designs or facades, that guide more of the heat upwards to impinge on the heater's heat reflecting top or hood which redirects the heat down and laterally to reach a wider area.
Preferably, the heater's conventional hood has mounted to it a top screen that has a larger area than the convention hood and is furthermore decorative. In a preferred embodiment, the outdoor, free standing area heater comprises a vertically extending housing defining an interior and a heat producing source for producing a flame that heats air and at least one glass tube directing at least a portion of the heated air upwardly inside the housing. An upper hood is located above the housing at a position for the heated air conducted by the at least one glass tube to impinge on the upper hood, the upper hood being shaped to redirect the heated air in a direction away from the housing and in a general downward direction from the upper hood. The glass tube is substantially surrounded by side panels that are provided with a plurality of cutouts in a wall defining each of said side panels, wherein the cutouts leave a percentage closure of the wall in the range from 1 to 65 percent.
Preferably, the side panels surround the at least one glass tube, the cutouts render the remaining wall in the panels into artistic and decorative shapes and panels are rendered in the shape of decorative screens. Also, the panels are removably attached to enable changing the over visual appears of the area heater to meet individual artistic styles and the upper hood is defined by a peripheral edge that imparts to the upper hood a give shape and area dimension and including a generally laterally extending hood screen extending beyond the peripheral edge of the upper hood. The hood screen comprises a plurality of hood screen cutout that impart to the hood screen an artistic style similar to that of the panels.
For example, the upper hood is three-sided, imparting to it a general triangular shape, the upper hood cutouts leave a percentage closure of the upper hood in the range from 1 to 65 percent and the panels taper upwardly and inwardly as they extend from a bottom toward the upper hood. Also, the housing comprises a frame with at least three corner uprights and the cutouts form in the panels one or more of spiral, tree leave, and flower shapes.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of the invention which refers to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a prior art outdoor space heater.

FIG. 2 illustrates side screens mounted to a conventional heater to increase its heat spreading functionalities.

FIG. 3 illustrates the heater of FIG. 3 with a novel hood that further enhances the heat spreading functionality of the novel outdoor heater of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

This invention, as noted above, is directed to a new screen as well as a larger hood or top, each of which, individually and jointly, increases the heat distribution of the patio heater.
FIG. 2 is a perspective photograph of the patio heater 20 of the invention employing a protective vertical screen made up of one or more panels 22 connected together, preventing access to the heated tube in the interior of the patio heater. The panels 22 are flat and tapered upwardly and inwardly. The panels 22 or screens 22 are of irregular design as illustrated in FIG. 2. The irregularity and opacity of vertical screen panels 22 maintains more of the heat from heat tube 13 within the screens 22 and, therefore, more heat is carried upward to the hood. The panels may consist of panels that have been carved out to present decorative designs or motifs, to be more pleasant to the eyes.
The panels 22 of the present invention cover more of the sides around the glass tube 13 and therefore capture more heat inside the panels. That heat is reflected by the panels themselves outwardly through the inner area between the panels. Additionally, the panels retain more heat and radiate that heat outward because the sides of the patio heater are more closed-in. Thus, the panels 22 improve the radiation and propagation of heat to increase the ambient temperature outside the patio heater as well as carrying more heat upwardly to the hood. At the same time, the metal panels 22 absorb and radiate heat to the immediate surroundings.
The amount of closure created by the panels 22 must be balanced against the temperature of the sides to prevent the panels becoming too warm to the touch. The preferred range of percentage closure of the panels 22 is between 15-65% of the total area of the panels surrounding the glass tube 13.
FIG. 3 illustrates a novel design for a cover for the top 30 of the patio heater. An irregular design is provided which overlays a triangular hood 32, the combination of which more widely radiates heat from the top to the surrounding area, increasing the ambient temperature.
Prior art patio heaters primarily rely on the reflector hood 12 to redirect heat from the glass tube downwards, which limits the area of heat distribution. The present invention provides a safe and efficient area of ambient warmth but increases the area of ambient warmth distributed by the irregular vertical steel grates 22, alone or in combination with the novel hood 32 of a triangular shape in conjunction with an irregular design for the top 30.
By increasing the size of the hood 32 which enhances heat reflectivity downwards, the resulting heat delivered raises the ambient air temperature as compared with the prior art.
As another feature of the present invention, the heat rising from the glass tube fire heating element is more evenly distributed and less concentrated at the top because of the enlarged hood 32, thereby minimizing safety problems. The present invention more widely distributes the heat at the hood and thereby reduces the heat on the surface area of the hood, providing a safer freestanding patio heater.
While FIG. 3 shows a hood 32 of a triangular shape, the hood could also be round or any other shape as desired.
In a preferred embodiment, a triangular hood is 15 inches on each side.
The metals preferably employed for both the hood and/or the steel panels 22 can be steel or steel powdered coated stainless steel.
It should be understood that the preferred embodiment was described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.
As described above, existing reflector hood of the Prism style patio heaters are limited in size or diameter, thus minimizing reflectivity or heat delivery. This is principally a shipping and packaging issue, not determined by functionality. The dimension of the triangular hood of the Prism patio heater is determined by its tapered shape. As such, there is very little surface area to reflect heat downwards. By increasing the size of the reflector with a design that maximizes reflectivity downwards, the resulting heat delivery and functionality is significantly improved.
The existing reflector hood of the Bell Top patio heaters is limited in size or diameter, thus minimizing reflectivity or heat delivery. This is principally a shipping and packaging issue, not determined by functionality. The dimensions of the hood of the Bell Top patio heater is determined by its cylindrical shape and base diameter. As such, there is limited surface area to reflect heat downwards. By increasing the diameter of the reflector with a design that maximizes reflectivity downwards, the resulting heat delivery and functionality is significantly improved.
In each case, the limited surface area of the existing hood design creates a considerable safety hazard as the hood gets very hot. By increasing the surface area of the hood, heat rising from the glass tube fire heating element may be evenly distributed and so less concentrated at the top.
Although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof, many other variations and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is preferred, therefore, that the present invention be limited not by the specific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. An outdoor, free standing area heater, comprising:

a vertically extending housing defining an interior;

a heat producing source for producing a flame that heats air and at least one glass tube directing at least a portion of the heated air upwardly inside the housing;

an upper hood located above the housing at a position for the heated air conducted by the at least one glass tube to impinge on the upper hood, the upper hood being shaped to redirect the heated air in a direction away from the housing and in a general downward direction from the upper hood; and

the at least one glass tube being substantially surrounded by side panels that are provided with a plurality of cutouts in a wall defining each of said side panels, wherein the cutouts leave a percentage closure of the wall in the range from 1 to 65 percent.

2. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the side panels surround the at least one glass tube.

3. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the cutouts render the remaining wall in the panels into artistic and decorative shapes.

4. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the panels are rendered in the shape of decorative screens.

5. The outdoor area heater of claim 4, wherein the panels are removably attached to enable changing the over visual appears of the area heater to meet individual artistic styles.

6. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the upper hood is defined by a peripheral edge that imparts to the upper hood a give shape and area dimension and including a generally laterally extending hood screen extending beyond the peripheral edge of the upper hood.

7. The outdoor area heater of claim 6, wherein the hood screen comprises a plurality of hood screen cutout that impart to the hood screen an artistic style similar to that of the panels.

8. The outdoor area heater of claim 7, wherein the upper hood is three-sided, imparting to it a general triangular shape.

9. The outdoor area heater of claim 7, wherein the upper hood cutouts leave a percentage closure of the upper hood in the range from 1 to 65 percent

10. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the panels taper upwardly and inwardly as they extend from a bottom toward the upper hood.

11. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a frame with at least three corner uprights.

12. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the cutouts form in the panels one or more of spiral, tree leave, and flower shapes.