US2271076A

US2271076A - Portable oil heater

Info

Publication number: US2271076A
Application number: US360783A
Authority: US
Inventors: Julius H Hupfer
Original assignee: BUNSEN Inc
Current assignee: BUNSEN Inc
Priority date: 1940-10-11
Filing date: 1940-10-11
Publication date: 1942-01-27
Anticipated expiration: 1959-01-27

Description

Jan. 27, 1942. J. H. HUPFER PORTABLE OIL HEATER Filed Oct. 1lI 1940 l 111,1', ,1, ,I 1 I 7 Patented Jan. 27, 1942 2.271.073 PORTABLE OIL HEATER Julius H. Hupfer, Glastonbury,

Conn., assignor to Bunsen Incorporated of Hartford, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Application October 11, 1940, Serial No. 360,783

5 Claims.

The invention relates to portable oil burning heaters of the distillate type which areespecially adapted for keeping warm the motors of automobiles and airplanes when stored in unheated garages or parked in the open in localities subject to low temperatures, so that the cooling liquids will not freeze, the lubricants will not solidify, and the motors will start without delay.

The object of the invention is to provide a small, inexpensive portable heater which will utilize common readily procured fuel, and that is easily lighted, starts burning quickly, generates high heat, is safe from explosion and free from liability of being extinguished even by strong drafts when once lighted.

In the accompanying drawing Fig. 1 shows on a side elevation with part of the snulng cylinder broken away, of a heater that embodies the invention.

Fig. 2 shows on larger scale, a vertical section on plane denoted by dotted line 2-2 on Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section looking down on l plane denoted by dotted line 3 3 on Fig. 2.

wick and snufing cylinder The heater has a reservoir i, preferably of metal, for containing the heating fuel which may be ordinary kerosene. The reservoir may have a handle 2. and a illling cap 3 with a small orlce 4 to permit the entrance of air as the fuel is consumed. Around a central opening through the top of the reservoir is an upwardly projecting wail 5 and encircling this wall and bounded on the outside by a wall 6 is a channel 1. This channel is designed to receive a small quantity oi readily combustible fuel such as alcohol, which when ignited will generate heat for producing an initial vaporization of the heating fuel and for lighting the burner. The channel l desirably contains a wick 8.

Set into the wall 5 below its upper edge is a burner head which consists of a disk 9 that has an upwardly extending flange I0 around a central opening and an upwardly extending flange Ii that encircles and is spaced from the ilange lil. The disk 9 rests on a ledge I2 formed around the inside of the wall 5 and is desirably retained in place by a spring ring i3. The disk 9 has a plurality of perforations I4 between the flanges Ill and Il and also a plurality of perforations l5 outside of the flange Il. and extending across the under face of the disk is a fine mesh wire screen It.

A tube I1 passes through the center of the 05 disk and a wick "8, woven of the usual absorbent material in the shape of a solid cylinder, is arranged to extend through the tube from slightly below the upper end of the tube into the reservoir.

Fitted upon and extending upwardly from the wall S that extends upward from the reservoir is a relatively short perforated metal cylindrical shell i9. Fitted to the flange il that extends upward from the burner head is a relatively short perforated metal shell 20. The perforations through these shells are substantially the same diameter. The upper end oi the shell 20 is tightly closed by a plate 2| which is shown as having outwardly extending fingers 22 that engage against the outer shell i9 and center the upper end of the shell 20 without practical interference space 24 between the shells functions as a combustion chamber when the heater is in use.

From the center of the plate 2l which closes the top oi the inner shell is an upwardly extend ing spindle 25 that at its upper end has a perforated metal dispersion disk 2B of substantially the same diameter as the diameter oi' the outer shell. A cylindrical fine mesh wire safety screen 2l with its vertical Wall protected by a metal grill 2B is placed over the burner with its lower end closely fitted within and attached to the wall I that extends around the ignition channel 'l by a common bayonet joint 29.

Over and enclosing the screen is a removable cup-shaped snufing cylinder 30. The side and top Walls of this cylinder are closed and the lower open end loosely rests upon the edge of the wall 6. Perforated lugs 3| project outward from the wall 6 for the purpose of receiving the ends of-a bail 32 by which the heater may be hung under the hood from any convenient bar or other projection of an automobile or other motor in position to keep the motor warm.

To use the heater described the snuillng cyl- Inder is removed and set one side, the reservoir supplied with fuel, usually kerosene, the screen slightly raised and a small quantity of ignition fluid, such as alcohol, is injected into the channel 1 at the top of the reservoir around the outside of the burner head and ignited. As soon as the ignition fluid is lighted the screen is lowered into place. The burning of the ignition iluid continues only long enough to heat the burner head and cause a volatilization of the heating fuel in the inner shell. or vaporizing chamber 23. and

ignite the vapor which escapes from the vaporising chamber to the combustion chamber 24 or space between the two perforated shells. The small quantity of ignition fuel is soon exhausted and the burner continues to function with a hot name in the combustion chamber. Air for supporting combustion and providing the proper mixture and drafts for generating a hot flame is drawn through the screen and through the perforations in the sleeves and burner head, and the resulting heat is spread throughout the entire interior of the screen by the dispersion disk 2B. As air can enter through the screen but flame cannot pass from the interior to the exterior of the screen there is no liability of explosion or danger of accidental fire.

The perforations through the shells i9 and 20 permit of a draft across the wick which assists the capillary action of the wick so that the stronger the draft the greater the volume of fuel drawn up and ignited, and yet the flame is so protected that it cannot be blown out or extinguished by any wind to which it may be ex' posed when in use.

Strong blasts of air blown through the screen from any direction so circulate around in the space between the inner and outer shells that while on the side from which the blasts come be diverted it accumulates on the the heating fuel ignited. It has been demonstrated that the internal air drafts are in such direction and the name burns with such intensity that drafts having a velocity of many miles per hour against the screen will not extinguish the flame, and it is only when the supply of oxygen is completely shut oil' by the application of the snuer that the flame can usually be extinguished.

The combustion of fuel in this heater takes place in such a locality that the central wick does not become charred or burned sumciently to render it inefficient for a long period of time. and when this happens the wick and the burner head are, as a unit, removed and discarded and another unit substituted.

The invention claimed is:

l. A heater which comprises a reservoir with a central opening through the top. a burner head with annularly positioned perforations located in said reservoir opening, a wick tube with an imperforate side wall supported by and extending through said head. a cylindrical shell larger in diameter than the wick tube supported by said head 'and extending upward higher than the wick tube, said shell having a perforated side wall, a closed upper end and an open lower end encircling a portion of the annular-ly positioned perforations through said head and providing a vaporizing chamber above the wick tube. a cylindrical shell larger in diameter than, spaced from and encircling the vaporizing chamber shell and extending upward higher than the wick tube, said larger shell having a perforated side wall, an open upper end and an open bottom end encircling a portion of the annularly positioned perforations through said head and providing a combustion chamber that is open at top and bottom about the vaporising chamber. a fine mesh screen resting upon the top of the reservoir, spaced from and enclosing said shells and burner head. and a metal grill surrounding said screen.

2. A heater which comprises a reservoir with a central opening through the top, a burner head in said reservoir opening. a wick tube with an imperforate side wall supported by and extending through said head, a cylindrical shell larger in diameter than the wick tube supported by said head and extending upward higher than the wick tube, said shell having a perforated side wail, a closed upper end and an open lower end encircling a portion of the annular-ly positioned perforations through said head and providing a vaporising chamber above the wick tube. a cylindrical shell larger in diameter than, spaced from and enclrclingthe vaporizing chamber shell and extending upward higher than the wick tube, said larger shell having a perforated side wall, an open upper end and an open bottom end encircling a portion of the annularly positioned periorations through said head and providing a combustion chamber that is open at top and bottom about the vaporizing chamber, an annular ignition channel surrounding and spaced from the shell that forms the outer wall of the combustion chamber. a une mesh screen resting upon the top of the reservoir, spaced from and enclosing said shells, burner head and ignition channel, and a metal grill surrounding said screen.

3. A heater which comprises a reservoir with a central opening through the top, a disk with annularly positioned perforations loosely located in said reservoir opening, a wick tube with an imperforate side wall extending through and loosely supported by said disk, a cylindrical shell larger in diameter than the wick tube supported by said disk and extending upward higher than the wick tube, said shell having a perforated side wall. a closed upper end and an open lower end encircling a portion of the annularly positioned perforations through said disk and providing an enlarged vaporlzing chamber above the wick tube. a cylindrical shell larger in diameter than, spaced 0 from and encircling the vaporizing chamber shell,

and extending upward higher than the wick tube. said larger shell having a perforated side wall, an open upper end and an open bottom end encircling a portion of the annularly positioned perforations through said disk and providing a combustion chamber that is open at top and bottom about the vaporizing chamber, a line mesh screen resting upon the top of the reservoir, spaced from and enclosing said shells and a metal grill encircling said screen.

4. A heater which comprises a reservoir with a central opening through the top. a disk with annularly positioned perforations and an upwardly extending flange loosely located in said reservoir opening, a wick tube with an imperforate side wall extending through and supported by said disk ilange, a cylindrical shell larger in diameter than the wick tube supported by said disk and extending upward higher than the wick tube. said shell having a perforated side wall, a closed upper end and an open lower end encircling a portion of the annularly positioned perforations through said disk and providing an enlarged vaporizing chamber above the wick tube. a cylindrical shell larger in diameter than, spaced from and encircling the vaporizing chamber shell and extending upward higher than the wick tube. said larger shell having a perforated side wall, an open upper end and an open bottom end encircling a portion of the annularly positioned perforations through said disk and providing a combustion chamber that is open at top and bottom about the vaporizing chamber, a perforated with annularly positioned perforatlons located 'is dispersion disk of substantially the same diameter as that of the outer shell supported by and spaced from the closed top of the inner shell, a ne mesh screen resting upon the top of the reservoir, spaced from and enclosing said shells and disk, and a metal grill encircling said screen.

5. A heater adapted to be used where it will be subjected to strong blasts of wind, which comprises a reservoir for containing readily vaporized liquid fuel, said reservoir having a closed bottom and side wall and a central opening through its top, a burner head located in said reservoir opening, said head having inner and outer annular rows of perforations that communicate with the interior of the reservoir, a wick tube having an imperiorate side wall extending through the center of said head, said tube being less in diameter than the diameter of the inner row of said perforations through the head, a wick extending upward from the reservoir within the wick tube, a cylindrical vaporizing chamber that is larger in diameter than and that extends upward higher than the wick tube, said vaporizing chamber having a perforated side wall, a closed upper end, and having its lower end communicating with the reservoir through the inner annular row of perforations in the head, an annular combustion chamber that is larger in diameter than and encircles said vaporizing chamber. said combustion chamber having a perforated side wall. an open upper end and an open lower end that communicates with the reservoir through the outer annular row of perforations in the head, a ne mesh screen enclosing said vaporizing and combustion chambers, and a metal grill encircling said screen.

JULIUS H. HUPFER.