G.s. Blodgett Corporation

James T Cole

Lorne B Alden

George McMahon

James E Lockridge

Thomas E Costello

A modular kiosk for use in the food service industry is described. The kiosk includes one or more structural units having upstanding sides and back, and a horizontal roof with couplings on the back thereof for coupling appliances disposed in the unit to sources of energy. The unit typically would have metal, upper and lower sections, each receiving a different appliance for cooking or storing food. The unit can include a hood disposed at eye level and a griddle or deep fat fryer disposed below the hood in the middle section. When a hood is included, the hood is intended to be coupled to a flue. The device is intended to be used in malls and open areas for cooking and dispensing food.

Modular food service kiosk

A conveyor oven is described which is compact and suitable for smaller commercial establishments. The device uses mutually spaced nozzles which extend across the upper and lower portion of the cooking chamber which direct heated air currents respectively downwardly and upwardly onto food passing therethrough. Each nozzle is a duct which extends perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the conveyor and has a foraminous plate on the side adjacent the conveyor for dispensing heated air currents therethrough. The nozzles are fed from a common plenum with heated air under pressure. As the air enters each nozzle, it encounters an angled diverter plate which is disposed at about a 30 degree angle to the longitudinal axis of the nozzle and downstream of the plate a flat stabilizer plate which extends a substantial length of the nozzle terminating about two inches before the end thereof. The plates insure that the flow of heated air through the foraminous plates is uniform along the entire length of the nozzle across the path of travel of the conveyor.

Conveyor oven with uniform air flow

An improved conveyor oven for cooking food products more efficiently is provided. The delivery system for hot convection currents includes a lower delivery system using tapered slot nozzles which are mutually spaced along the length of travel of the conveyor and extend laterally thereto. The upper heat delivery system utilizes an upper plenum with openings in the lower surface thereof which coincides with the upper surface of the heating chamber. The openings are initially in a first plate, rectangular mutually-spaced openings which extend both laterally and the length of the path of travel of the conveyor. Beneath the rectangular openings tapered slots are provided in registry therewith which extend laterally across the path of travel of the conveyor and open away from the entrance to the upper plenum for the heated air. The slots terminate in depending flanges which also extend substantially laterally to the path of travel of the conveyor and are angled outwardly whereby heated air is focused downwardly and laterally across the path of travel of the conveyor, but not parallel thereto. Finally, if desired, the heated air at the entrance to the conveyor may be further restricted by perforated strips overlying the rectangular openings to further reduce said openings.

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Essex Junction, VT, United States of America

James T Cole