FREE-STANDING PATIO HEATER

Abstract

An outdoor, free standing area heater comprises a vertically extending housing defining an interior and a heat producing source for producing a flame that heats air and at least one glass tube directing at least a portion of the heated air upwardly inside the housing. An upper hood is located above the housing at a position for the heated air conducted by the at least one glass tube to impinge on the upper hood, the upper hood being shaped to redirect the heated air in a direction away from the housing and in a general downward direction from the upper hood. The glass tube is substantially surrounded by side panels that are provided with a plurality of cutouts in a wall defining each of said side panels, wherein the cutouts leave a percentage closure of the wall in the range from 1 to 65 percent.

Claims

1. An outdoor, free standing area heater, comprising: a vertically extending housing defining an interior; a heat producing source for producing a flame that heats air and at least one glass tube directing at least a portion of the heated air upwardly inside the housing; an upper hood located above the housing at a position for the heated air conducted by the at least one glass tube to impinge on the upper hood, the upper hood being shaped to redirect the heated air in a direction away from the housing and in a general downward direction from the upper hood; and the at least one glass tube being substantially surrounded by side panels that are provided with a plurality of cutouts in a wall defining each of said side panels, wherein the cutouts leave a percentage closure of the wall in the range from 1 to 65 percent.

2. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the side panels surround the at least one glass tube.

3. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the cutouts render the remaining wall in the panels into artistic and decorative shapes.

4. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the panels are rendered in the shape of decorative screens.

5. The outdoor area heater of claim 4, wherein the panels are removably attached to enable changing the over visual appears of the area heater to meet individual artistic styles.

6. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the upper hood is defined by a peripheral edge that imparts to the upper hood a give shape and area dimension and including a generally laterally extending hood screen extending beyond the peripheral edge of the upper hood.

7. The outdoor area heater of claim 6, wherein the hood screen comprises a plurality of hood screen cutout that impart to the hood screen an artistic style similar to that of the panels.

8. The outdoor area heater of claim 7, wherein the upper hood is three-sided, imparting to it a general triangular shape.

9. The outdoor area heater of claim 7, wherein the upper hood cutouts leave a percentage closure of the upper hood in the range from 1 to 65 percent

10. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the panels taper upwardly and inwardly as they extend from a bottom toward the upper hood.

11. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a frame with at least three corner uprights.

12. The outdoor area heater of claim 1, wherein the cutouts form in the panels one or more of spiral, tree leave, and flower shapes.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] FIG. 1 shows a prior art outdoor space heater.

[0015] FIG. 2 illustrates side screens mounted to a conventional heater to increase its heat spreading functionalities.

[0016] FIG. 3 illustrates the heater of FIG. 3 with a novel hood that further enhances the heat spreading functionality of the novel outdoor heater of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

[0017] This invention, as noted above, is directed to a new screen as well as a larger hood or top, each of which, individually and jointly, increases the heat distribution of the patio heater.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a perspective photograph of the patio heater 20 of the invention employing a protective vertical screen made up of one or more panels 22 connected together, preventing access to the heated tube in the interior of the patio heater. The panels 22 are flat and tapered upwardly and inwardly. The panels 22 or screens 22 are of irregular design as illustrated in FIG. 2. The irregularity and opacity of vertical screen panels 22 maintains more of the heat from heat tube 13 within the screens 22 and, therefore, more heat is carried upward to the hood. The panels may consist of panels that have been carved out to present decorative designs or motifs, to be more pleasant to the eyes.

[0019] The panels 22 of the present invention cover more of the sides around the glass tube 13 and therefore capture more heat inside the panels. That heat is reflected by the panels themselves outwardly through the inner area between the panels. Additionally, the panels retain more heat and radiate that heat outward because the sides of the patio heater are more closed-in. Thus, the panels 22 improve the radiation and propagation of heat to increase the ambient temperature outside the patio heater as well as carrying more heat upwardly to the hood. At the same time, the metal panels 22 absorb and radiate heat to the immediate surroundings.

[0020] The amount of closure created by the panels 22 must be balanced against the temperature of the sides to prevent the panels becoming too warm to the touch. The preferred range of percentage closure of the panels 22 is between 15-65% of the total area of the panels surrounding the glass tube 13.

[0021] FIG. 3 illustrates a novel design for a cover for the top 30 of the patio heater. An irregular design is provided which overlays a triangular hood 32, the combination of which more widely radiates heat from the top to the surrounding area, increasing the ambient temperature.

[0022] Prior art patio heaters primarily rely on the reflector hood 12 to redirect heat from the glass tube downwards, which limits the area of heat distribution. The present invention provides a safe and efficient area of ambient warmth but increases the area of ambient warmth distributed by the irregular vertical steel grates 22, alone or in combination with the novel hood 32 of a triangular shape in conjunction with an irregular design for the top 30.

[0023] By increasing the size of the hood 32 which enhances heat reflectivity downwards, the resulting heat delivered raises the ambient air temperature as compared with the prior art.

[0024] As another feature of the present invention, the heat rising from the glass tube fire heating element is more evenly distributed and less concentrated at the top because of the enlarged hood 32, thereby minimizing safety problems. The present invention more widely distributes the heat at the hood and thereby reduces the heat on the surface area of the hood, providing a safer freestanding patio heater.

[0025] While FIG. 3 shows a hood 32 of a triangular shape, the hood could also be round or any other shape as desired.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment, a triangular hood is 15 inches on each side.

[0027] The metals preferably employed for both the hood and/or the steel panels 22 can be steel or steel powdered coated stainless steel.

[0028] It should be understood that the preferred embodiment was described to provide the best illustration of the principles of the invention and its practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

[0029] As described above, existing reflector hood of the Prism style patio heaters are limited in size or diameter, thus minimizing reflectivity or heat delivery. This is principally a shipping and packaging issue, not determined by functionality. The dimension of the triangular hood of the Prism patio heater is determined by its tapered shape. As such, there is very little surface area to reflect heat downwards. By increasing the size of the reflector with a design that maximizes reflectivity downwards, the resulting heat delivery and functionality is significantly improved.

[0030] The existing reflector hood of the Bell Top patio heaters is limited in size or diameter, thus minimizing reflectivity or heat delivery. This is principally a shipping and packaging issue, not determined by functionality. The dimensions of the hood of the Bell Top patio heater is determined by its cylindrical shape and base diameter. As such, there is limited surface area to reflect heat downwards. By increasing the diameter of the reflector with a design that maximizes reflectivity downwards, the resulting heat delivery and functionality is significantly improved.

[0031] In each case, the limited surface area of the existing hood design creates a considerable safety hazard as the hood gets very hot. By increasing the surface area of the hood, heat rising from the glass tube fire heating element may be evenly distributed and so less concentrated at the top.

[0032] Although the present invention has been described in relation to particular embodiments thereof, many other variations and modifications and other uses will become apparent to those skilled in the art. It is preferred, therefore, that the present invention be limited not by the specific disclosure herein, but only by the appended claims.