The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 27, 1999
Filed:
Dec. 19, 1997
James Bonnema, Middleton, MA (US);
Wen Der Wang, Wilmington, MA (US);
Scott W Demarest, Caledonia, WI (US);
Paul E Furner, Caledonia, WI (US);
Donald W Hildebrandt, Yorkville, WI (US);
The Schawbel Corporation, Boston, MA (US);
Abstract
A device for dispensing a volatile substance includes a gas-fueled, portable heat source. The device includes a catalyst support structure to flamelessly combust liquid or gaseous fuel and thereby provide a lower temperature heat source than a heat source that combusts fuel via flame. The fuel is ignited inside the catalytic support structure by a spark electrode. A spark jumps from the electrode to an interior surface of the structure and ignites the fuel inside the structure, causing a flame to propagate. The flame heats the catalytic structure to an activation temperature, after which the fuel is combusted flamelessly on the surface of the catalytic structure. The device includes a heating plate for heating the volatile substance and for receiving heat from the catalytic structure. A heat box substantially surrounds the catalytic structure and heating plate. The heat box has a window through which volatile substances released from the heating plate may escape. The device also has a housing within which the heat box is held in spaced relation from the housing, the housing having a housing window adjacent to the heat box window. By use of the device, the catalytic structure heats the heating plate to volatilize a volatile substance placed thereon, which may then escape into the atmosphere through the heat box window, with the housing remaining cool.