Aos Holding Company

Caterpillar Inc.

Modine Manufacturing Company

Robert F Poehlman, Jr

Dennis R Hughes

Marc W Akkala

Kevin Mark Field

Charles James Rogers

James T Haasch

Hyungsik Lee

Raymond D Stratton

Stanley F Meizelis, Jr

A method, and a system using the method, of controlling a heating device. The method includes combusting a mixture of fuel and air in a sealed combustion chamber thereby forming a reaction zone in which the fuel reacts with the air, and also forming outside of the reaction zone an ion zone in which ions are formed as a result of combustion. The method also includes positioning an ion detecting member in the ion zone, and generating an electrical signal at the ion detecting member in response to an ion concentration in the ion zone. The method also includes detecting a direction reversal of the electrical signal at the ion detecting member, and stopping combusting the mixture in response to the reverse of the direction of the electrical signal.

Gas heating device control

A water heater includes a water tank, a combustion chamber below the tank and communicating with the flue tube, and a flue system. The flue system includes a flue tube, and V-shaped fins that are metallurgically bonded to the flue tube wall to divide the flue tube into four flue chambers extending substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the flue tube. The V-shaped fins include radially extending apertures that reduce the thermal expansion of the V-shaped fins with respect to the flue tube to reduce stress at the joint between the fins and the flue tube. The flue system also includes a removable baffle hanging in each flue chamber. The baffles include adjustable turbulation surfaces to control the quality of combustion in the water heater.

Water heater flue system

A water heater includes a water tank, a combustion chamber below the tank and communicating with the flue tube, and a flue system. The flue system includes a flue tube, and a cruciform fin metallurgically bonded to the flue tube wall and dividing the flue tube into four flue chambers extending substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the flue tube. The flue system also includes a removable baffle hanging in each flue chamber. The baffles include adjustable turbulation surfaces to control the quality of combustion in the water heater.

Difficulty in heat exchanger module replacement and the cost of plural manifolds in a modular heat exchanger useful in heavy duty vehicles or the like is avoided in a construction that includes an elongated manifold (20) having spaced interior inlet and outlet channels (84, 86) along with a plurality of spaced inlet and outlet ports (68, 70) in fluid communication with respective ones of the inlet and outlet channels (84, 86). An elongated frame member (14) is spaced from and parallel to the manifold (22) and has a plurality of spaced retaining formations (42). A plurality of heat exchanger modules (12) are mounted between the frame member (14) and the manifold (20) in side by side relation and each module has spaced tanks (34, 36; 50, 52) with a plurality of finned tubes (30, 32) extending between and in fluid communication therewith. One tank (34, 36) has a mating retaining formation (40) for receipt within the retaining formation (42) in the frame member (14) while the other tank (50, 52) has inlet and outlet ports (62, 64) aligned with and in fluid communication with corresponding inlet and outlet ports (68 and 70) in the manifold (20). A baffle (60) is disposed in the tank (50, 52) between the inlet and outlet ports (62, 64) thereof.

Growing community of inventors

South Milwaukee, WI, United States of America

Robert F Poehlman, Jr