The Frymaster Corporation

George M Price

L Frank Moore

Lewis Frank Moore

Gerald W Sank

James T Grob

Frank A Slade

Clement J Luebke

Elbert M Hubbard

Cooking oil contained in a fuel-fired deep fat frypot is heated utilizing a recirculating flow of combustion gas produced by an induced flow fuel-air burner. A squirrel cage type centrifugal fan draws a fuel-air mixture inwardly through the burner into an inlet chamber in which the combustion gas is formed. The hot combustion gas is discharged from the fan into a supply chamber, flowed from the supply chamber into and through external heating passages extending rearwardly along the opposite exterior side surfaces of the frypot, and then enters an external heating passage extending along the rear frypot wall. From this rear passage the combustion gas is drawn forwardly through generally triangularly shaped heating tubes extending horizontally through the frypot cooking zone, into and through a return plenum, into the fan where it is mixed with a fresh supply of combustion gas from the inlet chamber, and is then discharged into the supply chamber. During burner operation excess combustion gas is discharged to atmosphere through an appropriate vent stack. A motorized inlet damper is mounted on the inlet plenum and is operable to admit ambient air thereinto to rapidly lower the recirculating gas temperature to prevent oil temperature overshoot. Rigid insulation material is positioned in lower interior portions of the heating tubes to increase the gas flow velocity therethrough and to shield the lower 'cold zone' of the frypot from tube heat. In an alternate embodiment of the frypot the fuel-air burner is replaced with electric heating elements operatively disposed within the supply chamber.

High heating efficiency deep fat cooking frypot

In a fryer, a conduit extends through a frypot so as to be immersed in a frying oil. Combustion occurs in an inlet portion of the conduit. Products of combustion are exhausted through an outlet portion of the conduit and through serpentine channels along certain walls of the frypot. Insulative panels form outer walls of the channels. In a burner for the fryer, a vortex of air is provided, and a minor portion of gas is ignited before a valve controlling a major portion of gas is opened. Means provide a minimum delay of one to three seconds, when it has been sensed that combustion has been established, before the valve is opened.

Gas fired fryer and gas fired burner useful therefor

Frying apparatus including a fry pot and a filter system operable during a cleaning cycle for dislodging food particles which cling to the fry pot and for removing food particles suspended in the cooking oil is disclosed. The filter system includes a shower apparatus which discharges jets of cooking oil along the interior side surfaces of the fry pot to dislodge food particles clinging thereto. The cooking oil is drained into a drain pan, strained through a filter and means are provided for pumping the filtered cooking oil back to the fry pot where it is discharged through the shower apparatus. Food particles are continuously separated from the cooking oil as it is conveyed from the fry pot through the filter into the drain pot. In a preferred embodiment, a control circuit is provided for automatically turning off the fry pot heaters when the cooking oil is drained during the filter cycle. The control circuit includes means for locking the fry pot heating system in the off condition when the draining operation occurs. Reset is accomplished by first turning the fry pot off and then back on to insure that the operator exercises positive control before the heating system is energized.

Spray cleaning system for frying apparatus

Filter system for frying apparatus

A cooking system includes a frypot comprising heat transfer walls which are spaced to facilitate cleaning of the frypot. Each heat transfer wall comprises a lower vertically extending portion and an upper outwardly curved portion shaped to cause wastes to flow to the bottom of the frypot. A plurality of burners are provided for maintaining combustion in zones adjacent to the vertically extending portions of the heat transfer walls. This causes heated products of combustion to flow upwardly along the vertically extending and outwardly extending portions of the heat transfer walls, whereby heat transfer is effected through the walls to cooking oil in the frypot. Each burner comprises two or more orifices for discharging mutually interacting gas jets and a target for deflecting the gas jets and entrained air toward the heat transfer walls and for reflecting heat into the combustion zone and through the heat transfer walls. Baffles are provided for preventing recycling of the products of combustion into the combustion zone and for maintaining the cooking oil in the bottom of the frypot relatively cool.

Cooking system

Frying apparatus including a fry pot and rack handling means for inserting a vertical stack of frying racks into and withdrawing the frying racks from the fry pot is disclosed. The rack handling means includes a frying rack assembly and a rack support assembly movably suspended with respect to the open mouth of the fry pot. The rack support assembly includes portions defining an open channel detachably engaging the frying rack assembly and means for guiding the frying rack assembly for movement from an elevated position above the open mouth of the fry pot wherein the frying rack assembly may be inserted into the channel prior to a cooking cycle or withdrawn from the channel after completion of the cooking cycle, to an immersed position inside of the fry pot wherein food portions previously loaded onto the frying rack assembly may be fried during a cooking cycle. In a preferred embodiment, the frying rack assembly comprises an open basket frame and a plurality of frying racks stacked in vertical relation within the basket frame, and the rack support assembly comprises a pair of support arms pivotally coupled to the frying rack assembly defining a pantograph structure which stabilizes the movement of the frying rack assembly as it is inserted into or withdrawn from the fry pot.

Automatic fryer for breaded products

Positive reset safety control circuit for frying apparatus

Positive reset safety control system for frying apparatus

Solenoid valve with safety control circuit

In apparatus for deep fat frying, control circuitry is provided for regulating the temperature of heating elements. During cooking the heating elements are immersed in cooking fluid and are maintained at a selected temperature by an operating thermostat. Two high limit thermostats are provided to turn off the heaters if the temperature exceeds a predetermined safe limit. For cleaning, the heating elements are raised out of the cooking fluid and automatically disconnected from the operation and first high-limit thermostats. The heaters are cyclically actuated and deactuated by a thermal time delay relay, gradually raising the heater temperature to achieve pyrolytic cleaning of the heating elements. The second high-limit thermostat turns off the heating elements when a predetermined temperature is reached, ending pyrolytic cleaning.

Control system for frying apparatus

A frying apparatus includes a frypot for containing cooking oil positioned in a support housing. Heating elements are pivotally attached to said housing and suspended within the frypot to heat the cooking oil for deep fat frying. A thermostat is mounted to the front of the housing to extend into the frypot above the heating elements to regulate the cooking oil temperature. The thermostat is separate from the heating elements so that the elements may be pivoted upward to a cleaning position. A biasing heater is mounted to the front of housing directly below the thermostat to compensate for the distance between the thermostat and the heating elements by providing additional heat to the thermostat. A temperature selector is provided on the outside front of the housing to allow adjustment of the thermostat without reaching over the frypot.

Frying apparatus with compensated thermostat

Combustion method using gas flow interaction and heat reflection

In apparatus for deep fat frying, control circuitry is provided for regulating the temperature of heating elements. During cooking the heating elements are immersed in cooking fluid and are maintained at a selected temperature by an operating thermostat. Two high limit thermostats are provided to turn off the heaters if the temperature exceeds a predetermined safe limit. For cleaning, the heating elements are raised out of the cooking fluid and automatically disconnected from the operating and first high-limit thermostats. The heaters are cyclically actuated and deactuated by a thermal time delay relay, to gradually raising the heater temperature to achieve pyrolytic cleaning of the heating elements. The second high-limit thermostat turns off the heating elements when a predetermined temperature is reached, ending pyrolytic cleaning.

Growing community of inventors

Shreveport, LA, United States of America

George M Price