FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT 1970
[39 OF 1970]
&
THE PATENTS (AMENDMENT) RULES, 2006 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
[See Section 10; rule 13] "KITCHEN HOOD WITH SPOT COOLING FEATURE"
Franke Faber India Private Ltd, an Indian company, of 1086/1/2, Sanaswadi, Tal-Shirur, Pune - 412208, Maharashtra, India,
The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed:

Kitchen hood with spot cooling feature
Description
The present invention relates to a kitchen hood, which comprises a spot cooling feature providing comfort to the user while cooking.
Kitchen hoods - also referred to as kitchen extractor hoods - are known in a number of different configurations. Those kitchen hood configurations are generally provided with a suction device which can operate in two different modes. A first operation mode is a suction mode, wherein fume-laden air is sucked in from the environment in which the kitchen hood is located and is completely exhausted to the external world (the exterior) via an exhaust duct; a second operation mode is a filtering operation, wherein the flow of fume-laden air from the environment in which the kitchen hood is located is filtered and reinjected into this environment.
During operation the kitchen hood sucks in the fume-laden air and prevents the spread of fume-laden air in the environment. At the same time the hob, e.g. of an electric cooker or a gas cooker, in the vicinity of which the kitchen hood is located, generates radiant heat which acts on the body of the user leading to a thermal load. This thermal load is often perceived as unpleasant as it promotes the emergence of sweat production.
Even though conventional kitchen extractor hoods are able to produce a large scale flow in order to suck in ail fume-laden air, residuals of fume-laden air can reach the user resulting in unwanted deposits on clothing and on the body of the user.
A purpose of the present invention is therefore to provide a kitchen extractor hood that reduces the thermal load, especially in the face of the user, improves the air circulation in the environment of the kitchen extractor hood in order to improve the extraction of ail fume-laden air and further to prevent unwanted deposits on clothing and the body of the user while cooking.

These objects are solved by a kitchen hood having the features according to appended claim 1. Preferred and advantageous embodiments are defined in the dependent claims.
According to the present invention, a kitchen hood by which fume-laden air is intended to be captured comprises at least one chassis portion with a hob-facing side and at least one user-facing side, means for generating and controlling a first flow in at least one first duct configured to capture the fume-laden air from the hob-facing side, and means for generating and controlling at least one second flow in at least one second duct, separated from said first duct, wherein the first flow and the at least one second flow are independently controllable and wherein the at least one second flow is configured to provide at least one airflow exhausted on the at least one user-facing side, said airflow being directable on or toward the user.
The hob-facing side is usually at the bottom of the chassis portion and directed to a hob, for example of an electric cooker or gas cooker, while comprising at least one opening for the first flow. The first flow is operated to withdraw the fume-laden air by suction from the environment in which the kitchen hood is located. The second flow is completely autonomous from the first flow and provides said at least one airflow which is exhausted on the at least one user-facing side and directed on or toward the user. The airflow impinges the user resulting in a so-called spot cooling feature. In the sense of this disclosure the at least one user-facing side can be any side of the chassis portion which is directed towards an internal environment, preferably a front side, a longitudinal side or a top side of the chassis portion. Said internal environment denotes the same environment in which the cooker and the kitchen hood are installed, in contrast to the exterior or external environment.
Moreover, it is advantageous if the second duct for guiding the second flow comprises at least one inlet and at least one vent, whereby the at least one inlet and the at least one vent are located in the same internal environment in which the kitchen hood is located. The air transported through the second duct for the second flow is removed from the internal environment of the kitchen hood and blown back into that internal environment resulting in a comfortable temperature of the airflow, because the airflow has about room temperature. Due to a so-called wind-chill-effect, however, the user feels a cooling effect. Further, one or more

vents can be arranged also on different sides of the chassis portion, for example on front sides and on at least one longitudinal side, in order to intensify said cooling effect.
Further, the means for generating and controlling the first flow comprise a first blower and a first user interface to control a power level of the first blower, and the means for generating and controlling the second flow comprise a second blower and a second user interface to control a power level of the second blower. The first blower preferably is a suction motor for the kitchen hood and may comprise an AC-motor. In a preferred embodiment, the first blower has a suction capacity of 800 m3 per hour at highest RPM. It is possible to choose other suction capacities in the range from 100 m3 per hour to about 1000 m3 per hour or even above, especially for industrial kitchens or large scale kitchens.
According to the present invention, the kitchen hood further may further comprise an air purification unit which can be arranged within the second duct. The air purification unit captures impurities, dust and grease in the air coming from the interna! environment and removes these unwanted ingredients from the air of the second flow. The air of the corresponding airflow is thus purified and builds a protective air layer to protect the user from any unwelcome odours and impurities.
The air purification unit can further comprise at least one filter comprising at least one of a pre-filter, a charcoal filter and a HEPA-filter. The pre-filter preferably is a mesh filter or a non-woven filter used for separating the biggest dust particles from the air of the second flow. The pre-filter captures impurities and grease in the air and has an excellent impurity retention rate while leaving a volume rate of the second flow essentially constant. The charcoal filter acts like an odour eliminator removing unpleasant odours of the second flow like roasting smell, fatty smell and so on.
HEPA-filters, also known as high efficiency particulate air filters, are widely used to remove even the smallest particles. The HEPA-filter works like an antibacterial filter by forcing air through a fine mesh that traps harmful particulates such as pollen, pet dander, dust mites and tobacco smoke.
In another preferred embodiment the air purification unit comprises more than one and up to three different filters in a row - in a particular embodiment - so that the

second airflow passes at first the pre-filter, next the charcoal filter and finally the HEPA-filter.
According to a further preferred embodiment, the at least one vent comprises at least one guide vane. The at least one guide vane can be positioned in the second flow in order to predefine a specific flow direction of the second flow. The at least one guide vane can be aerodynamically shaped to reduce flow resistance and to improve the overall performance.
The at least one guide vane can be a variable guide vane and can further comprise an operating element to control the direction of the exhausted air, for example a knob. For this purpose, the guide vane can be rotatably supported in the flow channel, and the user can individually adjust the flow direction of the airflow. This setting allows taller and smaller users, respectively, to adjust the airflow to their body size and personal liking. The variable guide vane can preferably be configured to direct the second airflow in all directions.
According to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the vent may further comprise a movable nozzle, which can be a pivoted relative to the canopy by at least one axis. In contrast to the variable guide vane mentioned earlier, in this embodiment the entire flow channel of the moveable nozzle is directable to the user, hence the flow cross section of the airflow remains constant. The movable nozzle can be arranged substantially inside the chassis portion on any side thereof or can be set up on the chassis portion and thus stand out therefrom. Thus the moveable nozzle can be twisted or swivelled in every direction. The at least one movable nozzle preferably can be positioned on any internal environment-oriented side of the chassis portion. In the case of the plurality of nozzles, one or more nozzles can be arranged on one side or on different sides of the chassis portion.
in another preferred embodiment, an insulation is arranged between the first duct for the first flow and a second duct for the second flow. This insulation prevents heat exchange between both ducts. The insulation prevents a heating of the second flow by the hot fume-laden air of the first flow resulting in a pleasant and tempered airflow. Thus the temperature of the airflow has about ambient temperature of the internal environment. The insulation can be realized by using heat-insulating materials for the duct of the first and/or the second flow, respectively, or by the use of additional heat-insulating layers between the ducts.

According to a further preferred embodiment, the chassis comprises a canopy and a chimney which is placed on top of the canopy. The at !east one vent is positioned on at least one of the user-facing sides of the canopy and the inlet of the second flow is positioned at the chimney or on the top side of the canopy. On the one hand, the chimney surrounds the first duct of the first flow and leads the first flow away from the hob. On the other hand, the inlet on the chimney is well separated from the fume-iaden air at the hob-facing side of the chassis portion which results in less particles in this area of the internal environment, hence less particles to be removed from the second flow by the purification unit. There is also more room in the chimney for arranging the purification unit which allows to use larger diameters for the corresponding duct and the filters. Especially large diameters are preferred as large diameters correlate with small pressure losses, hence better performance and less energy consumption. The second flow which, as is known, can be operated independently from the first flow, thus forms an independent air purification device for the air inside the kitchen.
Preferably, the first user interface and the second user interface comprise at least one of a touch control, a push button and/or a rotary knob for controlling the first flow and the second flow, respectively. Preferably, the first user interface and the second user interface have three variants or settings for controlling flow rates which can be selected by manual input. The number of variants is not limited per se, but years of experience have shown that users however prefer three variants with different volume rates, for example low, medium and maximum. Also, a stepless adjustment of the flow rate of the first flow and/or the second flow is possible, especially by using a touch control or a rotary knob. Additionally or as an alternative to manual input, the first user interface and/or the second user interface can respectively have a voice control, gesture control or a remote control.
In another preferred embodiment the first user interface and the second user interface and the at least one vent for the second flow are positioned on a common (same) user-facing side of the canopy or the chassis portion. As users usually operate the hob from a centered position, the at least one vent is preferably positioned between the first user interface and the second user interface in the middle of the canopy or the chassis portion. This is a typical arrangement for a wall-mounted kitchen hood. In other embodiments, like an island kitchen extractor

hood, at least one vent can be positioned on each of the free sides of the island. Also, the first and the second user interface can be arranged redundantly.
Moreover, the second blower for the second flow can be a brushless DC-motor. In one preferred embodiment, the brushless DC-motor works on 24V, 1A rating with variable speed. Brushless motors are known to be very powerful and extremely silent. It is also preferred that the electronic power supply of the second blower is a switch-mode power supply (SMPS) that incorporates a switching regulator to convert electrical power efficiently.
The kitchen hood may also comprise at least one hob lighting to illuminate the hob and to facilitate cooking. The at least one hob lighting is preferably an energy saving and bright LED lamp.
Also, the first flow may comprise at least one baffle-filter. The baffle-filter functions by forcing grease-saturated air to quickly and repeatedly change direction as it rises through. The baffle-filter may consist out of two, three or even more layered stainless steel baffle-filters.
Finally, the first duct for the first flow may be connected to the external world (i.e., the exterior), or the first flow can be re-injected via the first duct into the internal environment in which the kitchen hood is located.
The above features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon reading the following detailed description of preferred embodiments along with the accompanying drawings.
Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a kitchen hood with spot cooling feature
according to one preferred embodiment;
Fig. 2 is a perspective sectional view of a kitchen hood as shown in Fig. 1;
and
Fig. 3 is a block diagram of the kitchen hood as shown in Fig. 1.
The invention as claimed is not limited to the following examples which are intended to explain preferred embodiments only.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a kitchen hood 1 with spot cooling feature according to one preferred embodiment of the invention. The kitchen hood 1 is configured as a conventional wall mounted model type, in form of an overturned-T, having a chassis portion 10 which constitutes a substantial part of the exterior of the kitchen hood 1 in the internal environment 3 of a kitchen 2.
The chassis portion 10 comprises a canopy 11 and a chimney 16. The canopy 11 has a hob-facing side 12 which is directed - in its installed state - downward toward hob 4 of an electric cooker or a gas cooker (see Fig. 2), which is located below the canopy 11. The chimney 16 is positioned on a top side 17 of the canopy 11 facing away from the hob 4.
The kitchen hood 1 is a wall mounted hood and further comprises user-facing sides 13 and a backside (not shown) directed to the wall. Said user-facing sides 13 are all sides of the chassis portion 10 directed towards the internal environment 3 and comprise a front side 14, two longitudinal sides 15 (only one shown) and the top side 17 of the canopy 11. On the front side 14 of the canopy 11, a first user interface 25 and a second user interface 35 are located. The first user interface 25, as shown in Fig. 3, controls appropriate means 20 for generating a first flow 21 and the second user interface 35 controls means 30 for generating a second flow 31.
Referring now to Fig. 2, the kitchen hood 1 comprises a first duct 22 for the first flow 21, which connects the hob-facing side 12 with the exterior. The fume-laden air 5 is sucked from the internal environment 3 at the hob-facing side 12 and is completely exhausted via the first duct 22 to the exterior.
The first duct 22 comprises, on the hob-facing side 12, an opening 23 with a three layered baffle-filter 29. The three layered baffle-filter 29 functions by forcing the fume-laden air 5 to quickly and repeatedly change direction as it rises through the filter. Within the first duct 22, a first blower 26 is arranged having about 250 W electric power and a suction capacity of 800 m3/h at highest RPM. An operating point of the first blower 26 is controlled by the first user interface 25.
The kitchen hood 1 includes a second duct 32 for the second flow 31 having an inlet 33 and multiple vents 34 forming an outlet. The vents 34 are centrally positioned on the front side 14 of the canopy 11 between the first user interface 25

und the second user interface 35, as this position ensures the closest distance between the vents 34 and the most likely position of a user. The vents 34 are provided and arranged for exhausting the second flow 31 into the internal environment 3 and are configured to direct a corresponding airflow 8 on the user for generating a spot cooling feature for the user.
The first duct 22 of the first flow 21 and the second duct 32 of the second flow 31 are divided as independent flow channels which are separated from each other in airtight manner. To prevent thermal exchange between the first duct 22 of the first flow 21 and the second duct 32 of the second flow 31, an insulation (not shown) can be provided there between.
Between the inlet 33 and the vents 34 - as shown in Fig. 2 - an air purification unit 40 is arranged within the second duct 32, which air purification unit 40 comprises three different types of filters, namely an pre-filter 41, a charcoal filter 42 and a HEPA-filter 43 as well as a second blower 36 which provides the airflow 8 for the user.
In the flow direction of the second flow 31 - as indicated via arrow-lines in Fig. 2 -the flow successively passes at first the pre-filter 41, then the charcoal filter 42 and finally the HEPA-filter 43 before the purified air passes through the second blower 36, which provides the means 30 for generating the second flow 31 as shown in Fig. 3. The second blower 36 is a brushless 24V DC-motor (BLDC), which are known to be extremely silent, reliable and powerful.
The pre-filter 41 is a non-woven filter and separates bigger dust particles from air, while the charcoal filter 42 eliminates odours and the HEPA-filter 43 works like an antibacterial filter, thus leading to an excellent air quality. Moreover, the arrangement of filters protects the second blower 36 from impurities which would otherwise reduce of the second blower 36 performance.
The vents 34 as shown in Fig. 2 comprise two guide vanes 37 and an operating element (not shown) for adjusting said guide vanes 37. The guide vanes 37 are rotatably held on a horizontal axis in the second duct 32 of the second flow 31 and actuated by the operating element, for example a knob or the like. The flow direction of the airflow 8 can be adjusted by a corresponding operation by means of the operating element. Furthermore, one or more of the guide vanes 37 can be

rotatably arranged on a vertical axis to control the airflow 8 in ail directions. Thus the airflow 8 is adjustable according to the user and his preferences.
The inlet 33 of the second flow 31 can be arbitrarily arranged on the chimney 16 or on the top side 17 of the canopy 11 and allows the air from the internal environment 3 of the kitchen 2 to flow into the second duct 32 of the second flow 31. In the illustrated preferred embodiment, as shown in Fig. 2, the inlet 33 of the second flow 31 is arranged on the top side 17 of the canopy 11. This arrangement allows the user, on the one hand, to place some objects on the top side 17 of the canopy 11 without affecting the second flow 31, and on the other hand reduces the likelihood that suspended particles that are created during cooking will be sucked in. This arrangement also the air purification unit 40 is placed inside the canopy 11.
A maintenance cover 45 is removably fixed on the top side 17 of the canopy 11 above the inlet 33 of the second duct 32. For maintenance reasons, especially for cleaning or for changing the filters 41, 42, 43 of the air purification unit 40, said maintenance cover 45 functions as an aesthetically shaped cover panel for hiding the inlet 33 or the pre-filter 41 which is placed within the inlet 33.
Fig. 3 shows a simplified block diagram of the kitchen hood 1. The kitchen hood 1 has a main power supply 50 supplying the means 20 for generating and controlling the first flow 21, the means 30 for generating and controlling the second flow 31 and a hob lighting 18 (shown in Fig. 1) with electric energy. The means 20 for
generating and controlling the first flow 21 comprise the first user interface 25 with controls to select the power level of the first blower 26. In the specific embodiment shown in Fig. 1, the first user interface 25 comprises four push buttons I/O, A, B, L arranged in line. Push button I/O is to turn on the first blower 26 at a low power level or to turn off the first blower 26, two push buttons A, B are for choosing among two further different blower power levels (medium and maximum) of the first blower 26, and one push button L is to turn on/off the hob lighting 18.
Said means 30 for generating and controlling the second flow 31 also comprise a second user interface 35 which is constructed analogously to the first user interface 25, but which has only three push buttons I/O, A, B. Via the second user interface 35, the power level of the second blower 36 of the second flow 31 can be adjusted. A switch mode power supply 52 incorporates a switching regulator to

convert electrical power for the second blower 36 efficiently. The first user interface 25 and the second user interface 35 may have push buttons (as shown), one or more rotary switches or at least one touch control unit, voice control unit, gesture control unit or the like.

List of reference signs
1 kitchen hood 25 first user interface
2 kitchen 26 first blower
3 internal environment 29 baffle-filter
4 hob 25 30 means
5 fume-laden air 31 second flow
8 airflow 32 second duct
10 chassis portion 33 inlet
11 canopy 34 vent
12 hob-facing side 30 35 second user interface
13 user-facing side 36 second blower
14 front side 37 guide vane
15 longitudinal side 40 air purification unit
16 chimney 41 pre-filter
17 top side 35 42 charcoal filter
18 hob lighting 43 HEPA-fiiter

20 means 45 maintenance cover
21 first flow 50 power supply
22 first duct 52 switch mode power supply
23 opening

Claims
1. A Kitchen hood (1) for capturing fume-laden air (5), comprising:
at least one chassis portion (10) with a hob-facing side (12) and at least one user-facing side (13),
means (20) for generating and controlling a first flow (21) with a first duct (22) configured to capture the fume-laden air (5) from the hob-facing side (12), and
means (30) for generating and controlling at least one second flow (31) with a second duct (32), separate from said first duct (22), - wherein the first flow (21) and the second flow (31) are independently controllable, and
wherein the at least one second flow (31) is configured to provide an airflow (8) exhausted on the at least one user-facing side (13), said airflow being directable on a user.
2. The kitchen hood (1) according to claim 1,
characterized in that
the second duct (32) of the second flow (31) comprises at least one inlet (33) and at least one vent (34), which are located in the same internal environment (3) in which the hood is located.
3. The kitchen hood (1) according to claim 2,
characterized in that
the at least one vent (34) comprises at least one guide vane (37).
4. The kitchen hood (1) according to claim 3,
characterized in that
the at least one guide vane (37) is a variable guide vane (37) and comprises at least one operating element to control a flow direction of the airflow (8).
5. The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of claims 2 through 4,
characterized in that
the at least one vent (34) is configured to be a movable nozzle which is substantially inside the chassis portion (10) or set up on the chassis portion (10).

6. The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of claims 2 through 5,
characterized in that
the at least one vent (34) is positioned on a front side (14) of the chassis portion (10).
7. The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of claims 2 through 6,
characterized in that
the chassis portion (10) comprises a canopy (11) and a chimney (12) and wherein the at least one vent (34) is positioned at the user-facing side (13) or on a front side (14) of the canopy (11), and the inlet (33) is positioned at the chimney (16) or on a top side (17) of the canopy (11).
8. The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that
the means (20) for generating and controlling the first flow (21) comprise a first blower (26) and a first user interface (25) controlling a power level of the first blower (26), and the means (30) for generating and controlling the second flow (31) comprise a second blower (36) and a second user interface (35) controlling a power level of the second blower (36).
9. The kitchen hood (1) according to claim 8,
characterized in that
the first user interface (25) and the second user interface (35) comprise at least one of a touch control, a push button, a rotary knob, a voice control, a gesture control and a remote control.
10.The kitchen hood (1) according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that
the first user interface (25) and the second user interface (35) are positioned on the user-facing side (13) or on a front side (14) of the canopy (11) or the chassis portion (10).
11.The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that
the second flow (31) comprises an air purification unit (40) with at least one filter (41, 42, 43).

12.The kitchen hood (1) according to claim 11, characterized in that
the at least one filter of the air purification unit (40) comprises at least one of a non-woven pre-fiiter (41), a charcoal filter (42) and a HEPA-filter (43).
13.The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that
an insulation is arranged between the first flow (21) and the second flow (31), which prevents heat exchange between the first flow (21) and the second flow (31).
14.The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that
the means (30) for generating and controlling the second flow (31) comprise a brushless DC-motor.
15.The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one hob lighting (18) is arranged on the chassis portion (10).
16.The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one baffie-fiiter (29) is positioned in the first flow (21).
17.The kitchen hood (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that
the duct (22) for the first flow (21) is connected to an exterior, or the "first flow (21) is re-injected via the duct (22) into the internal environment (3) in which the kitchen hood (1) is located.