Fire Starter and Method for Making and Using the Same

Abstract

A fire-starter device for survival, emergency, or convenience that incorporates a paper cup portion filled with wax with one (1) or more wicks embedded in the hardened wax with tinder material comprising the top layer. The paper cup is designed and built to allow it to hold hot liquid wax without leaking. The wax is paraffin and/or beeswax and/or other blend. The wicks are of jute or similar material. The tinder is made of fatwood shavings or similar combustible.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The invention relates to a solid-fuel fire starter. More particularly, it relates to a fire generating source that can be used to ignite flammable material to generate a self-sustaining fire having particular application in outdoor, camping, sporting, home fireplace, home fire pit, emergency/survival, and military environments.

2. Description of the Related Art

Emergency fire starters are typically included as equipment for many civilian and military occupations, as well as for recreational outdoor use. In its simplest form, a fire is achieved when the three elements necessary for fire—heat, fuel, and oxygen—are minimally present. As oxygen and fuel sources are readily found in most emergency situations, the remaining necessary element, a heat source, is the chosen carry component for emergency/survival situations. Simply stated, a sustained source of flame is used to supply enough heat of adequate duration to indigenous fuel material, (e.g., wood), to allow for a sustainable fire that would then be maintained by adding additional indigenous fuel.

Currently, many fire starters use tinder compositions that allow for a heat source long enough to ignite indigenous fuel sources under optimal conditions. The principal operation of such fire starters is to use an ignition source like a match or lighter to initiate the burn of the fire starter for a period of time in order to provide a heat source to allow for the sustained ignition of indigenous fuels.

For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 2,622,017 issued to Bramhall et al on Dec. 16, 1952, discloses a fire kindling device, particularly for use in fireplaces, produced from a wax material and having a peripheral wick. Horizontal wick-like layers are also provided to support and separate color producing chemicals in separate layers.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,671,330, issued to Ajello on Mar. 9, 1954, discloses a candle, particularly useful as a roadside flare, a heat source for grilling or cooking, or as a fireplace lighter. Ajello's candle has a cylindrical housing filled with candle wax and an inner cylindrical, slowly combustible inner wall to create a broad cylindrical flame.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,327,505 issued to Brown on Jun. 27, 1967, discloses a solid fuel unit, comprising a molten wax poured into a paper container, for use as a portable heat source particularly adapted for protecting plants from frost damage.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,414,365, issued to Cranston on Dec. 3, 1968, discloses a safety kit for sportsmen that includes, among other things, a match and candle unit. Cranston's candle has a jacket of combustible material.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,186,721, issued to Campana on Feb. 16, 1993, discloses a self-kindling fuel package for starting charcoal briquettes. The combustible container receives fuel, such as a pre-measured charge of charcoal briquettes, an igniter, and a wick.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,830,245 issued to Raddon on Nov. 3, 1998, discloses a portable fuel element made from stacked corrugated cardboard impregnated with paraffin wax, and preferably, having at least one match contained therein. Raddon's fuel blocks also include a wick for lighting the fuel block.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,858,036, issued to Chandaria on Jan. 12, 1999, discloses an artificial fireplace log formed of compressed particulate and a binder. Chandaria's fireplace log is stored in a flammable wrapper that serves as a wick for lighting the artificial fireplace log.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,958,090 issued to Chandaria on Sep. 28, 1999, discloses a fire starter that is an extruded mixture of paraffin wax and sawdust.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,967,769 issued to Thompson on Oct. 19, 1999, discloses a portable, contained, fueled ready to use campfire assembly. The fire resistant container disclosed by Thompson contains a mixture of mineral spirits, paraffin wax, and hardwood chips. The fire resistant container includes a lid for extinguishing the fire contained therein.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,136,053 issued to Sullivan on Oct. 24, 2000, discloses an ignitable fire starting system that includes a rolled up strip of cloth soaked in a liquid fuel having a plurality of matches rolled in the cloth as well. Sullivan discloses that melted paraffin wax can be the liquid fuel.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,755,877, issued to Perlman on Jun. 29, 2004, discloses a combustible fire starting assembly that includes a combustible liquid, free burning, alcohol-based fuel contained within a combustible thermoplastic container.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,216,322 issued to Schweickhardt on Jul. 10, 2012, discloses a solid fuel fire starter having a wicking element constructed from corrugated cardboard with an exposed end for ignition in which the corrugated cardboard is molded with a paraffin wax. The wax molded corrugated cardboard is contained within a non-combustible housing.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,365,907, issued to Mooney et al on Feb. 5, 2013, discloses a survival package that includes, among other things, a wax fire starter with a combustible tube to be used for fire making.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,439,668, issued to Ambroggio on May 14, 2013, discloses a container for holding a combustible, such as a candle, that includes an extinguishing substance adapted to extinguish the candle if a predefined temperature is exceeded. Finally, published U.S. Patent Application No. 2005/0005508 filed by Hayden and published on Jan. 13, 2005, discloses a fire starter made from strips of pressed wood fiberboard dipped in a paraffin solution.

Even in state-of-the-art fire starters, however, quite often the heat/time ratio is insufficient to allow indigenous fuels to reach self-sustained burn phase. In ideal fire conditions, any number of simple methods may work to build a self-sustained fire. In practical outdoor applications—especially in survival situations—indigenous fuels are typically not in a condition to allow for crossover from assisted ignition from the fire starter to a self-sustained burn; this is due to size and moisture content of the readily available indigenous fuels. Moreover, environmental conditions must also be considered. In the windy/rainy conditions that are often found in a survival setting, generating enough heat to achieve crossover to a self-sustained burn becomes virtually impossible using known standard fire-starters. In these state-of-the-art fire-starting devices, the heat/time ratio is simply insufficient to be relied upon to satisfactorily perform in the range of conditions to be expected in the field. Hence, in the known prior art fire-starters, it is often necessary for the user to seek from the environment, indigenous fuel that is dry, small, and of enough quantity to allow crossover to self-sustained burn for the predominantly available fuel, whatever its size and moisture content. Eliminating this need to procure dry tinder in adequate supply to produce a fire that reaches the self-sustain phase is a challenge many products attempt to address; however, nothing suitable has yet been proposed and developed.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a fire starter that is simple in design and usage, compact, reliable, and overcomes the drawbacks of conventional fire starters, as described above. That objective includes eliminating the need to procure adequate supplies of dry timber, under survival conditions, to succeed. A further object is to provide a fire starter survival tool that is compact and simple and does not require special additional materials, yet can reliably achieve a self-sustaining fire using only indigenous fuels under most outdoor conditions—notably, in a survival situation in which the ability to start a fire is crucial to sustain life.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, and as will be described in greater detail below, a cup-based fire starter is comprised of a paper cup of a selected shape and size adapted to hold hot liquid wax without leaking. The fire starter of the present invention further includes at least one wick and dry tender material carried at the top surface of the hardened wax. In practice, lighting the wicks and surface tinder on the cup allows the hardened wax inside to quickly complete its first phase transition, when the solid wax transitions to the liquid state in the cup. The wicks and surface tinder continue to heat the wax, approaching the second transition from the liquid phase to the vapor phase and combustion. The fire starter kit of the present invention produces a flame between 12-18″ high that will consistently burn with intensity for 12-15 minutes. This size flame, supported by surface tinder allows indigenous fuel, gathered under most outdoor/survival conditions, to ignite and support a self-sustaining fire.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The above-mentioned features of the invention will become more clearly understood from the following detailed description of the invention read together with the drawings in which:

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the fire starter kit of the present invention;

FIG. 1B is a perspective view of another exemplary embodiment of the fire starter kit of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the exemplary embodiment of the fire starter kit illustrated in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the exemplary embodiment of the fire starter kit illustrated in FIG. 1 in which the wicks have been lit and the fire starter kit is fully lit and burning.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIGS. 1-3 illustrate a fire starter kit constructed in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, and as will be described in greater detail below, includes a cup-based fire starter comprised of a paper cup of a selected shape and size adapted to hold hot liquid wax without leaking, at least one wick for igniting the fire starter kit, and pre-packaged tinder material to serve as kindling. In the exemplary embodiments, the cup is fabricated of paper. It will be understood that as used herein, the term paper refers to a thin sheet of material produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags, or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets, and excludes thermoplastic materials.

Adapting the cup not to leak molten wax during operation is an important feature due to the phase transitions that the hardened wax within the cup will undergo in the course of normal operation. Phase transition or phase change is the transformation of a thermodynamic system from one phase or state of matter to another. A solid changing to a liquid, or a liquid achieving a boiling/vapor point, illustrates this principle. For the purposes of the present invention, the phase transition for wax is important. Wax (paraffin cited, but the principle applies for all waxes) transitions from a solid to a liquid between 115-154 degrees F.; this is the melting point of wax. The next transition for paraffin wax is from a liquid to a gas, at 248-370 degrees F.; this is paraffin wax's boiling/vapor point. It is equally important to understand the physical characteristics of paper as these two elements of the design have overlapping properties that together allow this device to function. Paper burns at between 424-475 degrees F. and also conducts heat much more readily than other products, say plastic or Styrofoam. At standard atmospheric pressure, a liquid cannot exceed the boiling point until all the liquid has vaporized. Thus, at standard atmospheric pressure, wax cannot exceed 248-370 degrees F. until all the liquid wax is vaporized. Because this temperature is below the burning-point for paper, 424-475 degrees F., and because paper is able to conduct heat, the paper cup will remain intact even though it is on fire. This is because the melted and vaporizing wax inside the cup controls the temperature at its phase transition point, which is far below paper's ignition, or burn temperature. In other words, the paper cup will sustain the flame without being consumed as long as liquid wax remains that is being transitioned from its liquid phase to its vapor state. This phenomenon, as will be understood by those skilled in the art, is what allows a candle's wick to support the flame without being consumed.

With reference to the FIGS. 1-3, the fire starter kit 10, adapted for use as a survival tool, is shown. Here, the fire starter kit 10 includes a cup 20 having an open top 25 and a closed base 27 and at least one wall member 28 extending upwardly from the base 27. The paper cup 20 in FIG. 1A is depicted as having a substantially rectangular, or square, horizontal cross-section and is approximately 2″×2″×1″. The present invention is not in any manner deemed to be limited to this shape or dimension. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1B, the paper cup 20′ is depicted as having an inverted frusto-conical shape having a substantially circular horizontal cross-section. The wax 30 is filled slightly below the open top 25 of the cup 20; this allows for a degree of self-leveling in the field, if needed. In this depiction, four (4) large wicks 40 and a secondary fuel adapted to have a slower burn rate than the wax fuel are provided within cup 20. In the exemplary embodiment, the secondary fuel is defined by the starter tinder 50, which in an exemplary embodiment is defined by fatwood shavings. In the exemplary embodiment, the secondary fuel layer is supported by, and rests on top of, the solid wax layer 30. It will be appreciated that in the exemplary embodiment, the fire starter kit 10 is enclosed with a suitable lid or cover (not shown) for enclosing the secondary fuel layer prior to use. While the present invention can be utilized with a single wick, it will be appreciated that having multiple wicks greatly reduces the time to create a large pool of molten, liquid wax 60 at, or near, the top of the fire starter 10. Those skilled in the art will recognize that other materials could be used as the starter tinder 50. In use, a preferred ignition source, for example a match, lighter, or flint and steel variation, is applied to wick(s) 40, or alternately the starter tinder 50, and the unit is allowed to burn for approximately one minute, after which indigenous fuel is stacked around and over the invention in accordance with standard fire building procedures.

In practice, lighting the wicks 40 and surface tinder 50 on the cup 20 allows the hardened wax 30 inside to quickly complete its first phase transition, in which the solid wax 30 transitions to liquid and a layer of molten wax 60 forms in the cup 20. The wicks 40 and surface tinder 50 continue to heat the molten wax 60, approaching the second phase change. The tinder 50 provides additional surface area for maintaining molten in the heat of the flame long enough to vaporize and combust. Vaporized wax is highly flammable and a fire starter constructed in accordance with the present general invention, holding approximately 2 oz. of paraffin wax, will produce a flame 70 between 12-18″ high that will consistently burn with intensity for 12-15 minutes. This size flame, supported by surface tinder 50 which supports sustained burning of the vaporized wax fuel without itself being consumed, allows indigenous fuel, gathered under most outdoor/survival conditions, to ignite and support a self-sustaining fire. And, by using a paper, or otherwise combustible, material for the cup 20, the cup 20 and the tinder 50 will be consumed by the flame after the wax fuel has been completely consumed, thus eliminating the need to retrieve and dispose of the non-combustible container of certain prior art devices. Further, the fire starter kit according to various embodiments of the present general invention provides a fire starter that is simple in design and usage, compact, reliable, and overcomes the drawbacks of conventional fire starters, as described above. That objective includes eliminating the need to procure adequate supplies of dry timber, under survival conditions, to succeed in building a self-sustaining fire.

While the present invention has been illustrated by description of several embodiments and while the illustrative embodiments have been described in detail, it is not the intention of the applicant to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. Additional modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. The invention in its broader aspects is therefore not limited to the specific details, representative apparatus and methods, and illustrative examples shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of applicant's general inventive concept.

Claims

1. A fire starter kit for use as a survival tool, said fire starter kit comprising

a cup member, said cup member having a base member, at least one wall member extending upwardly from said base member, and an open top, wherein said cup member is fabricated from a combustible material and is adapted to contain molten wax without leaking;

a selected amount of wax fuel received within said cup member;

at least one wick member extending into said selected amount of wax fuel; and

a secondary fuel layer received by the cup member such that said secondary fuel layer is on top of said selected amount of wax fuel, whereby said secondary fuel layer has a slower burn rate than said wax fuel.

2. The fire starter kit of claim 1 wherein said cup member has a substantially rectangular horizontal cross-section.

3. The fire starter kit of claim 2 wherein said cup member has a substantially square horizontal cross-section.

4. The fire starter kit of claim 1 wherein said cup member has a substantially circular horizontal cross-section.

5. The fire starter kit of claim 1 wherein said wax fuel is paraffin wax.

6. The fire starter kit of claim 1 wherein said secondary fuel layer is comprised of wood tinder.

7. The fire starter kit of claim 1 wherein said fire starter kit comprises four wick members extending into said selected amount of wax fuel.

8. The fire starter kit of claim 1 wherein said cup member is fabricated from paper.

9. A fire starter kit for use as a survival tool, said fire starter kit comprising

a cup member, said cup member having a base member, at least one wall member extending upwardly from said base member, and an open top, wherein said cup member is fabricated from a combustible material and is adapted to contain molten wax without leaking;

a selected amount of paraffin wax fuel received within said cup member;

a plurality of wick members extending into said selected amount of wax fuel; and

a secondary fuel layer received by the cup member such that said secondary fuel layer is on top of said selected amount of wax fuel, whereby said secondary fuel layer has a slower burn rate than said wax fuel.

10. The fire starter kit of claim 9 wherein said cup member has a substantially rectangular horizontal cross-section.

11. The fire starter kit of claim 10 wherein said cup member has a substantially square horizontal cross-section.

12. The fire starter kit of claim 9 wherein said cup member has a substantially circular horizontal cross-section.

13. The fire starter kit of claim 9 wherein said secondary fuel layer is comprised of wood tinder.

14. The fire starter kit of claim 9 wherein said fire starter kit comprises four wick members extending into said selected amount of wax fuel.

15. A fire starter kit for use as a survival tool, said fire starter kit comprising

a cup member, said cup member having a base member, at least one wall member extending upwardly from said base member, and an open top, wherein said cup member is fabricated from a combustible paper material and is adapted to contain molten wax without leaking, wherein said cup member has a substantially rectangular horizontal cross-section;

a selected amount of paraffin wax fuel received within said cup member;

a plurality of wick members extending into said selected amount of wax fuel; and

a secondary fuel layer received by the cup member such that said secondary fuel layer is on top of said selected amount of wax fuel, whereby said secondary fuel layer has a slower burn rate than said wax fuel, wherein said secondary fuel layer is defined by wood tinder.

16. The fire starter kit of claim 15 wherein said cup member has a substantially square horizontal cross-section.

17. The fire starter kit of claim 15 wherein said wood tinder is fat wood.

18. The fire starter kit of claim 15 wherein said fire starter kit comprises four wick members extending into said selected amount of wax fuel.