Abstract: An oven for cooking foods, and especially for browning foods, has heated, radiant walls. Heat may be supplied by a gas burner flame in a plenum behind the walls, with products of combustion thus being isolated from the food in the oven chamber. In one embodiment food products are continuously conveyed through the oven chamber and, depending on oven temperature, are either cooked or simply browned in the oven by the radiant wall heat. Fats and other materials rendered from the food products, if not fully incinerated in the oven chamber, may be transferred along with exhaust air from the oven chamber to a separate combustion chamber, for incineration, the heat from which is used to contribute to heat requirements for the plenum. Steam or other inert gas is introduced to the oven chamber to minimize oxidation and prevent flame, and the steam can be produced by heat exchange with exhaust plenum gases. An alternative wall heating system uses electric resistance heat elements inside a thin ceramic wall.

Abstract: An oven for cooking and browning foods has heated, radiant walls. Heat may be supplied by a gas burner flame in a plenum behind the walls, with products of combustion thus being isolated from the food in the oven chamber. In one embodiment food products are continuously conveyed through the oven chamber and are either cooked or simply browned in the oven by the radiant wall heat. Fats and other materials rendered from the food products, if not fully incinerated in the oven chamber, may be transferred along with exhaust air from the oven chamber to a separate combustion chamber, for incineration. Steam or other inert gas is introduced to the oven chamber to minimize oxidation and prevent flame. An alternative wall heating system uses electric resistance heat elements inside a thin ceramic wall. In another embodiment a web-like metal conveyor of a radiant wall oven is returned through the oven in order to heat the conveyor sufficiently to put grill stripes on a product being browned, such as meat.

Abstract: A belt grill or belt cooking apparatus, of the general type previously known for rapidly cooking meat, grilled sandwiches, etc. in a travelling path through the apparatus, has improvements enabling the belt cooking grill to impart grill stripes or grill patterns on the product as it is cooked. In one embodiment the improved belt cooking apparatus has upper and lower heat platens with ridges or other types of embossings, with the moving belts being formed of a flexible material capable of good heat transfer and good wear resistance at elevated temperatures. The ridges or embossings press the belt into the food product, causing greater heat transfer at the ridges than between them, and thus forming a series of grill stripes on the product while the product is also cooked.

Abstract: A cooking and browning system and method for chicken, turkey, roasts or meat patties includes a first slow cooking step wherein the food products are cooked slowly at about 160.degree. F. to 220.degree. F. in a high humidity or steam environment, in a continuous movement. Next, the food products are put through a browner wherein, for a relatively short period of time, the products are subjected to high velocity, high temperature air which browns the outside of the product. The hot air in the browner is not recirculated but is exhausted to a heat exchanger/boiler, where heat is exchanged with water to produce steam which goes to the slow cooker, for the cooking of the products in the slow cook step.

Abstract: An ear cushioning device is disclosed for use with plug type earphones mounted on a springable carrier, as are commonly dispensed on commercial airplanes. The cushioning device is of a soft, resilient foam material which provides comfort through a spreading of the pressure from the earphones over the entire ear of the user. A preferred embodiment of the device is formed integrally from a single foam pad, with the ear cushions at the ends and a stretchable band between the cushions, for extension over the top of the user's head. The stretchable band is preferably a convoluted formation which acts as a light spring, tending to pull the ear cushions toward one another. Openings through the ear cushions receive the plug type earphones, so that the latter do not extend into the user's ears. In another embodiment, a semi-rigid head band fits over the head with a pair of soft foam ear cushions slidably mounted on the ends of the head band.

Abstract: A controlled atmosphere broiler has a horizontal tunnel mounted on a frame and enclosing one run of a continuous, open-work conveyor traveling from an inlet end toward an outlet end. An air fan near the inlet end supplies air through a supply air duct to nozzles near the outlet end and discharging into the tunnel, both from above and from below, toward the conveyor. The supply air duct air is heated and provided with hot water vapor. The air is further heated by infrared heaters in the tunnel above and below the conveyor. Infrared radiation is reflected toward the conveyor by a reflector, preferably a common wall between the tunnel and the supply air duct. Air from the tunnel is aspirated through a return air duct by the fan. There is a damper control vent from the tunnel to the atmosphere, and air flow in the supply air duct is also controlled by a damper. The conveyor is supported by water-cooled cross tubes, and there is a drain pan below the conveyor.

Abstract: A patty cooker particularly for use in finishing precooked meat patties having a predetermined transverse dimension has a frame on which a conveyor made up of rather widely spaced, small diameter cross bars advances in a predetermined direction. A nozzle or preferably a plurality of nozzles having outlet openings elongated in the direction of conveyor advance are arranged side by side transversely of the conveyor and close to the patty. A jet of hot air issues from each nozzle and impinges upon the patty in a restricted area. The jets leave untouched zones between such areas. The effect is to provide browned or seared marks or parallel stripes on the patty like grill marks. Preferably nozzles are arranged above and below the conveyor and directed toward the patty from opposite directions, simultaneously to provide sear marks both top and bottom.