Extractor hood

Abstract

This invention provides a portable extractor hood comprising a base, a support column and a primary housing acting as an extractor hood supported by the support column above the base. The unit may reside on a tabletop and allow cooking underneath the extractor hood on a table by small cooking appliances. The primary housing supported at the top of the support column may be able to be disassembled with the electrical components such as the motor and similar contained in a separable secondary housing so that all the primary housing surfaces in contact with grease-laden air can be washed.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This invention relates to extractor hoods being appliances generally positioned above or adjacent cooking apparatus such as stove tops or heated elements for the capture and cleaning of exhaust fumes from the cooking process. In particular, although not necessarily solely, this invention is related to a portable extractor hood suitable for placement on a tabletop or similar.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

[0002] Extractor hood appliances have traditionally been provided as fixed appliances positioned above fixed cooking areas such as a stovetop or similar. Such extractor hoods draw air from the region of the cooking area to remove steam and odour or grease-laden fumes from the cooking.

[0003] Extractor hoods are typically provided as fixed appliances and connected to an exhaust outlet to exhaust the fumes outside of the building. In other circumstances where such external exhaust is not possible, the air from the region of the cooking area may be filtered and cleaned and returned to the air immediate environment. In either case, such extractor hoods are generally fixed to a wall, ceiling or similar above a fixed cooking area.

[0004] With some styles of cooking it is desirable to be able to cook food at the dining table. Such styles of cooking include fondues and similar styles where the diners themselves may have some control over the cooking performed. Naturally, although such cooking still generates odours or grease, fixed extractor hood appliances are not positioned over the dining table itself.

[0005] A German patent publication No. DE 19810818 A1 proposes a form of portable extractor hood. However, as can be evident from this publication, the apparatus is rather clumsy and requires positioning of the extraction unit and filters in a large box-like structure positioned on the floor adjacent the table. Essentially the apparatus rests on the floor itself and is cantilevered over the table and takes considerable room away from potential sitting positions around the table. The unit is also far from aesthetically pleasing.

[0006] A further difficulty with both fixed appliances and the portable appliance as shown in DE 19810818 A1 is that cleaning of the appliances may prove exceedingly difficult. If a normal extractor hood is somehow provided as a portable unit, it will be appreciated that the unit itself is not designed to have the majority of the components cleaned. Such extractor hoods are normally cleaned by merely cleaning external surfaces on the outside of the housing and perhaps cleaning of removable filters. The ducting throughout the apparatus through which the grease-laden air may be drawn is not removable for cleaning.

[0007] One of the reasons for restricting access to the interior of an extractor hood is that such apparatus are generally powered by an electric motor and contain a variety of electrical internal components that may prove hazardous for a user to try to disassemble or clean.

[0008] It will be appreciated that any extractor hood intended for tabletop use may have an even higher degree of requirement for cleaning as the extractor hood itself remains present as the food is consumed around the table and any build-up of grease or other materials from the cooking that have collected within an extractor hood can act as a source for the build-up of bacteria or the creation of odours. Although the build-up of odours may be less noticeable when an extractor hood is only in operation above a cooking area and well away from the dining area, such considerations may be more important where the cooking and dining areas are combined.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

[0009] It is an object of the present invention to provide an extractor hood that may overcome some of the disadvantages of the prior art by being provided as a portable appliance and/or provide the provision for cleaning of the air ducts through the extractor hood or that would at least provide the public with a useful choice.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Accordingly, in a first aspect, the invention may broadly be said to consist in an extractor hood comprising:

[0011] a base for residing on a tabletop or similar surface;

[0012] at least one support column connected to said base and extending upward;

[0013] at least one extractor hood connected to said support column having a main housing, an air inlet, an air outlet, filtration apparatus between said air inlet and said outlet and air driving means to move air from said inlet to said outlet and a motor to drive said air driving means.

[0014] Preferably said at least one support column is eccentrically positioned on said base.

[0015] Preferably said at least one support column is positioned adjacent an edge of said base and said extractor hood housing is cantilevered from said at least one support column to a position substantially above said base.

[0016] Preferably said base provides a substantially planar upper surface for receiving cooking appliances or dishes containing food.

[0017] Accordingly, in a second aspect, the invention may broadly be said to consist in an extractor hood comprising:

[0018] a primary housing;

[0019] an air intake into said primary housing;

[0020] an air outlet from said primary housing;

[0021] filtration means at or intermediate of said air inlet or said air outlet to provide some filtration to air moving from said inlet to said outlet;

[0022] air driving means to drive air from said air inlet to said air outlet;

[0023] a motor to power motion of said air driving means; and

[0024] wherein said motor is contained within a separable secondary housing to isolate electrical components within said secondary housing and allow attachment and washing of at least some internal parts of said primary housing.

[0025] Preferably said motor drives a shaft extending from and rotatable with respect to said secondary housing to engage said air driving means.

[0026] Preferably said air driving means comprises a rotatable fan or turbine.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the following drawings in which:

[0028] FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional front elevation through an extractor hood in accordance with a first embodiment of the apparatus;

[0029] FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional front elevation of the extractor hood positioned on a table in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention;

[0030] FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional side view of the apparatus of FIG. 2; and

[0031] FIG. 4 shows an exploded cross-sectional side view through the apparatus in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0032] A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.

[0033] Referring to FIG. 1, this particular embodiment can be seen to provide an extractor hood 1 supported on a pedestal or support colunm 2.

[0034] The extractor hood itself provides a primary housing 3 having an air inlet 4 in or adjacent an underside 5 of the extractor hood 1.

[0035] When positioned above cooked food or a cooking appliance, air may be drawn through the air inlet 4 into the primary housing 3.

[0036] As shown in this preferred embodiment, the air inlet 4 is substantially centrally provided on the underside 5 of the primary housing 3. Of course, the air inlet might comprise multiple inlets and may be arranged in different locations around the housing 3. In general, such inlets are likely to be provided on the underside so as to be directly positioned above the cooked food or cooking appliance.

[0037] It can also be noted that the underside 5 of the primary housing 3 may be somewhat concave in nature so as to help capture rising gases from the cooking process beneath.

[0038] The primary housing 3 may also provide one or more air outlets 6. These outlets may be provided anywhere around the periphery of the housing 3 and are provided on the upper side of the housing in this preferred embodiment so as to exhaust air to a place above the extractor hood.

[0039] The primary housing 3 may also contain filtration means 7 such as a charcoal and grease filter in any desirable form. The filter may be placed at the inlet 4, outlet 6 or anywhere intermediate of these points so as to filter air passing from the inlet to the outlet.

[0040] Air is encouraged into the inlet 4 and from the outlet 6 by an air driving means 8. The air driving means would typically be provided as some form of fan, turbine or similar.

[0041] In this preferred arrangement, the inlet 4 may direct air internally of the rotatable fan 8 such that air is passed through the fan and out outlet 9 from the fan into the interior of the extractor hood. The pressure created by the air coming from the outlet 9 of the rotatable fan 8 will cause air to be forced through the filter 7 and out the outlet 6.

[0042] Rotation of the air driving means 8 is provided by an electrical motor 11.

[0043] The electric motor 11 and any other desirable electrical equipment may be contained within a secondary housing 12 that may be detachable from the primary housing 3. Such a separation allows the primary housing 3 and the internal components to be cleaned thoroughly including, if desired, removal of the fan 8, filter 7 and other portions as desired.

[0044] Upon detachment of the secondary housing 12, suitable openings may be provided in the primary housing 3 to allow access for cleaning the surfaces or the entire primary housing 3 containing all the components may be immersible in water. As a further alternative, the upper surface 14 of the primary housing 3 and the underside 5 may be separable to allow complete removal of the fan 8, filter 7 and thorough cleaning of all the individual components.

[0045] By utilizing a modular design approach so that the electrical parts are contained in a modular housing or a plurality of modular housings, the live electrical parts can be separated from the main or primary housing containing generally non-electrically live parts when the main housing is being cleaned so that the remaining parts without live electrical parts can be properly cleaned. Furthermore, as the live electrical parts can be contained within detachable modular housing which can shield the live electrical parts from the greasy fumes normally generated during operation of the extractor hood, the live electrical parts are substantially maintenance free and require no extensive cleaning, apart from being wiped clean with a damp cloth probably applied with detergents.

[0046] To provide a connection between the motor 11 and the rotatable air driving means 8, a shaft 15 may be employed to fit over a direct drive shaft 16 from the motor 11 and also engaged with a shaft or other engagement means 17 contained on the air driving means 8. Alternatively, the shaft 16 directly from the motor could protrude from the secondary housing although the extra provision of isolation of the shaft 16 direct from the motor may provide additional electrical isolation of the motor 11 from any portion outside the secondary housing 12. The shaft 15 may be made from a suitably insulating material and with all electrical components held within the secondary housing 12, the apparatus as a whole may be considered double-insulated.

[0047] The secondary housing 12 may be fitted within a suitable aperture 18 in the upper surface 14 of the primary housing 3 and be provided with a seal 19 so as to allow pressure to build up within the primary housing 3 such that air may be exhausted through the filter 7 and not leaked out through unnecessary gaps in the housing 3.

[0048] Referring to FIG. 2, the apparatus as a whole may be seen in more general terms.

[0049] As shown in FIG. 1, the extractor hood 1 is shown with its primary housing 3, secondary housing 12 and individual components supported on a support column 2. This support column itself may be connected to a base 20 on which it is intended to place cooked food or cooking appliances 21 as shown. Preferably, the base 20 is provided as a substantially planar base to hold the various items 21 or at least provides a planar upper surface. As an alternative, the base 20 could simply be an engaging means to engage on a table 22 whether this be by engagement at the upper surface of the table or by engagement such as clamping over the edge of the table. In either case, the primary purpose of the base 20 is to provide support for the column 2 and allow the primary housing 3 to be cantilevered over the intended cooking area.

[0050] Referring to FIG. 3 showing the side elevation, it can be seen that the support column 2 may be provided eccentrically on the base such as adjacent one edge of the base 20. Although it is desirable to provide the extractor hood 1 above the base 20 and this could be balanced by support columns or similar extending from all four corners of the base 20, such an arrangement may extract access to the cooking area. For this reason, it is preferred to support the primary housing 3 from one side so that the primary housing 3 is cantilevered from the support column 2.

[0051] In general, the support column 2 has been described as a single entity although obviously this could comprise multiple columns. Some compromise needs to be reached between providing sufficient support for the extractor hood, primary housing 3 and motor 11 while still providing ample access to the cooking area beneath the extractor hood. Although this preferred embodiment is a single column 2, multiple columns could be provided and may be arranged on more than one side of the base 20. For example, it may be possible to provide columns on two adjacent sides of the base 20 to provide additional support to the primary housing 3 while still allowing ample access to the cooking area through the other two sides.

[0052] Referring to FIG. 4, disassembly of the apparatus can be shown.

[0053] As shown, the base 20 and support column 2 may, if desired, be detachable from the base 20. Generally, the support column 2 and base 20 will be made from materials which are easy to be cleaned and it is only their external surfaces which may become dirty.

[0054] As shown in the remainder of FIG. 4, it can be seen that the lower hood or underside 5 may be separated from the support column 2. The connection between the support column 2 and the primary housing 3 made from the lower hood 5 and upper hood 14 can be of any convenient type. In this preferred embodiment, an aperture 28 is provided on a portion extending from the primary housing 3 to fit over an engaging portion 29 at an upper end of the support column 2. It should be noted that the connection between the primary housing 3 and the support column 2 may accommodate engagement at different heights if desired for greater flexibility in the amount of room provided underneath the extractor hood or its proximity to the cooking food.

[0055] By separating the primary housing 3 into a lower hood 5 and an upper hood 14, the fan 8 may be entirely removed for washing as well. The secondary housing 12 is detachable from the upper hood 14 and the seal 19 can be provided on the detachable secondary housing 12 or around the aperture 18 in the upper hood 14 as desired. The motor 11 is safely housed within the secondary housing 12.

[0056] As shown in FIG. 4, a control panel 30 may be provided on an exposed portion of the secondary housing 12 when the unit is completely assembled so as to allow control of the electrical apparatus within the secondary housing 12. The control panel 30 may control operation of the motor 11 such as a simple on/off switch or variable speed switches as well as having additional switches for the operation of any lights that may be incorporated into the apparatus. Again, it is preferred to keep the electrical operations within the secondary housing 12 although suitable lights could be provided having an electrical connection into the secondary housing 12 and yet be positioned around the perimeter of the primary housing 3 but detachable so as to allow cleaning of the primary housing 3.

[0057] The motor 11 and any other electrical components may be powered or remains power sourced through a plug 31 and lead 32.

[0058] Thus it can be seen that the present invention provides an extractor hood that can be disassembled to allow the areas in contact with the grease-laden fumes from the cooking to be wiped, washed or otherwise cleaned. Additionally, the apparatus is provided as a portable unit suspended from a base able to reside on a flat surface such as a tabletop.

[0059] This invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments which should not be considered limiting to the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Specific integers referred to throughout the description are deemed to incorporate known equivalents where appropriate.

Claims

1. An extractor hood comprising:

a base for residing on a tabletop or similar surface;

at least one support column connected to said base and extending upward;

at least one extractor hood connected to said support column having a main housing, an air inlet, an air outlet, filtration apparatus between said air inlet and said outlet and air driving means to move air from said inlet to said outlet and a motor to drive said air driving means.

2. An extractor hood as claimed in claim 1 wherein said at least one support column is eccentrically positioned on said base.

3. An extractor hood as claimed in claim 2 wherein said at least one support column is positioned adjacent an edge of said base and said extractor hood housing is cantilevered from said at least one support column to a position substantially above said base.

4. An extractor hood as claimed in anyone of the preceding claims wherein said base provides a substantially planar upper surface for receiving cooking appliances or dishes containing food.

5. An extractor hood comprising:

a primary housing;

an air intake into said primary housing;

an air outlet from said primary housing;

filtration means at or intermediate of said air inlet or said air outlet to provide some filtration to air moving from said inlet to said outlet;

air driving means to drive air from said air inlet to said air outlet;

a motor to power motion of said air driving means; and

wherein said motor is contained within a separable secondary housing to isolate electrical components within said secondary housing and allow attachment and washing of at least some internal parts of said primary housing.

6. An extractor hood as claimed in claim 5 wherein said motor drives a shaft extending from and rotatable with respect to said secondary housing to engage said air driving means.

7. An extractor hood as claimed in claim 6 wherein said air driving means comprises a rotatable fan or turbine.