Dehydrator

• US 3,943,842 A
• Filed: 08/19/1974
• Issued: 03/16/1976
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/1974
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Edward Leroy France, Jay P. Bills
• Original Assignee: Edward Leroy France, Jay P. Bills
• Inventors: France, Edward LeRoy, Bills, Jay P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Blum, Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): Henderson, Arthur O.
• Application Number:
  US05/498,809
• Time in Patent Office: 575 Days
• Field of Search: 99/476, 99/331, 99/378, 99/450, 99/467-468, 99/473-474, 99/483-484, 4/131, 34/46, 34/192, 34/195, 34/197, 34/229, 34/231-232, 219/443, 219/445
• US Class Current: 99/473
• CPC Class Codes: A23L 3/00 Preservation of foods or foodstuffs, in general, e.g. pasteurising, sterilising, specially adapted for foods or foodstuffs preserving foods or foodstuffs in association with packaging B65B55/00
• CPC Class Codes: A23L 3/3418 in a controlled atmosphere, e.g. partial vacuum, comprising only CO2, N2, O2 or H2O
• CPC Class Codes: A23L 3/40 by drying or kilning; Subsequent reconstitution
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 39/003 with forced air circulation

Abstract

A cabinet dehydrator for long term preservation of food under close control of time temperature and humidity. Intake air is obtained from the surrounding atmospher and displaced into the dehydrator over electrical heating elements by a blower. This heated air is ported upwardly adjacent the shelves and thereafter normally laterally between the shelves. Baffles are manually set to control the amount of hot air displaced across a given shelf. Humidity controls function to regulate the rate at which moisture is caused to be withdrawn from the food being dehydrated.

Claims

1. A dehydrator for home utilization comprising:

a cabinet having a food access door and defining influent air passageway means, air distribution means, a dehydrating enclosure and effluent air pathway means;

blower means for continuously displacing air from the surrounding atmosphere seriatim through the passageway means, the air distribution means, the dehydrating enclosure and the pathway means;

heating means disposed within the passageway means for elevating the temperature of influent air being displaced therethrough;

an electrical control system comprising a thermostat disposed within the cabinet which connects to and regulates the heating means to cause air temperature not to exceed 145°

F.;

a plurality of shelf supports attached to the interior of the cabinet;

a plurality of removable shelves, each resting in vertically spaced relation one to the next upon said shelf supports within the dehydrating enclosure, the space between adjacent shelves comprising a horizontal corridor for heated air to pass across food resting upon the top of the lower of said adjacent two shelves to dry the same; and

a plurality of selectively settable air flow control means disposed within the dehydrating enclosure to respectively determine the amount of air from the air distribution means permitted to reach each horizontal corridor.

2. A dehydrator according to claim 1 wherein the influent air passageway means are disposed at one vertical wall of the cabinet and comprise a constricted conduit in which the heating means are disposed and a progressively divergently enlarged confinement having air diffusing means therein.

3. A dehydrator according to claim 1 wherein the air distribution means comprise a hollow chamber spanning essentially the entire bottom of the cabinet.

4. A dehydrator according to claim 1 wherein the blower means are disposed upstream of the passageway means and comprise a variable speed motor to control the rate at which air is displaced through the dehydrator.

5. A dehydrator according to claim 4 wherein the electrical control system comprises a humidity sensor located within the cabinet downstream of the horizontal corridors which connects to and regulates the rate of dehydration by controlling the speed of the variable speed motor of the blower means.

6. A dehydrator according to claim 1 wherein the effluent air pathway means comprise a chimney extending above the top of the cabinet and a vertical channel below the chimney, the vertical channel being in fluid communication with each horizontal corridor.

7. A dehydrator according to claim 1 wherein at least some of said shelves are porous, accommodating rise of air therethrough.

8. A dehydrator according to claim 1 wherein at least some of said shelves are non-porous, thereby channeling air solely parallel to each horizontal corridor between shelves receiving hot air.

9. A dehydrator for home utilization comprising:

a cabinet having a food access door and defining influent air passageway means, air distribution means, a dehydrating enclosure and effluent air pathway means;

blower means for continuously displacing air from the surrounding atmosphere seriatim through the passageway means, the air distribution means, the dehydrating enclosure and the pathway means;

heating means disposed within the passageway means for elevating the temperature of influent air being displaced therethrough;

an electrical control system comprising a thermostat disposed within the cabinet which connects to and regulates the heating means to cause air temperature not to exceed 145°

F.;

a plurality of shelf supports attached to the interior of the cabinet;

a plurality of removable shelves, each resting in vertically spaced relation one to the next upon said shelf supports within the dehydrating enclosure, the space between adjacent shelves comprising a horizontal corridor for heated air to pass across food resting upon the top of the lower of said adjacent two shelves to dry the same;

selectively settable air flow control means disposed to determine the amount of air from the air distribution means permitted to reach each horizontal corridor; and

the air flow control means comprise a plurality of rotatable damper means, one disposed adjacent each shelf, each damper means having manual selectively settable means for placing said damper means in an orientation between off and on thereby diverting all or a desired part of air striking said damper means to the adjacent horizontal corridor.

10. A dehydrator according to claim 9 wherein said air flow control further comprises juxtaposed apertured plates disposed at the air intake to each horizontal corridor, one said plate being displaceable in respect to the other whereby apertures of each may be aligned or misaligned in whole or in part to control the amount of air entering said horizontal corridor.