US4043048A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Laboratory drying oven and method
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1976-01-28
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Granted: 1977-08-23
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Expires: 1996-01-28
Abstract
Abstract One or more infrared heat lamps provide radiant heat at the top of a laboratory oven structure having a permanently open front and ventilation openings rearwardly thereof, so air will be drawn across a mass of discrete matter constituting a test sample being exposed to radiant heat within the oven. The interior of the oven structure is lined with a heat-resistant material, such as sheet asbestos, and a height-adjustable shelf arrangement within the oven provides for placing the test sample to be dried either closer or farther away from the infrared lamp or lamps. The oven is especially useful for drying samples of asphaltic road-building materials for highway construction or maintenance.
Inventors
- 👤 Vallon C. Veater
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-30 16:27
CPC Classifications
F; F26; F26B; F26B3/00; F26B3/28; F26B3/283
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 12
Claim 1
Independent Claim
194 words
A laboratory drying oven for drying test samples of massed discrete matter, comprising oven structure having side, back, bottom, and top walls defining a heating chamber with its front entirely and permanently open over the area extending between said side, bottom, and top walls and with ventilation openings disposed in said back wall at spaced intervals and comprehending a substantial portion of the area of said back wall rearwardly of the open front, so a draft of air will sweep through said chamber from and substantially throughout the area of the open front thereof, across the test samples, and out of said chamber through said ventilation openings rearwardly of said open front during operation of the oven; at least one infrared heating lamp arranged at the top of the chamber for directing radiant heat downwardly through the chamber; interior surfaces of said oven structure that are exposed to heat being heat resistant; and substantially horizontal, height-adjustable, material-supporting means of the nature of a shelf arranged within the chamber for receiving, through said open front, a test sample of material to be dried and for height adjustment by an operator working through said open front.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
194 words
A laboratory drying oven for drying test samples of massed discrete matter, comprising oven structure having side, back, bottom, and top walls defining a heating chamber with its front entirely and permanently open over the area extending between said side, bottom, and top walls and with ventilation openings disposed in said back wall at spaced intervals and comprehending a substantial portion of the area of said back wall rearwardly of the open front, so a draft of air will sweep through said chamber from and substantially throughout the area of the open front thereof, across the test samples, and out of said chamber through said ventilation openings rearwardly of said open front during operation of the oven; at least one infrared heating lamp arranged at the top of the chamber for directing radiant heat downwardly through the chamber; interior surfaces of said oven structure that are exposed to heat being heat resistant; and substantially horizontal, height-adjustable, material-supporting means of the nature of a shelf arranged within the chamber for receiving, through said open front, a test sample of material to be dried and for height adjustment by an operator working through said open front.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
54 words
A laboratory drying oven in accordance with claim 1, wherein the at least one infrared heating lamp has its own protective housing and is positioned within an opening in the top wall of the oven structure, rising thereabove and having its heat radiant face substantially flush with the interior face of said top wall.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
41 words
A laboratory drying oven in accordance with claim 1, wherein the ventilation openings are a series of relatively narrow, elongate openings formed through the back wall of the oven structure and extending approximately from bottom to top of the heating chamber.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
34 words
A laboratory drying oven in accordance with claim 1, wherein the oven structure and heating chamber therein are of rectangular box-like configuration, the open front being substantially equivalent in size with the back wall.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
27 words
A laboratory drying oven in accordance with claim 4, wherein the walls of the oven are of wood lined interiorly of the oven with heat insulating material.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
53 words
A laboratory drying oven in accordance with claim 1, wherein the height-adjustable, material-supporting means within the heating chamber comprises transversely slotted strips secured in opposing, vertical relationship at interior wall faces of the heating chamber, and removable and replaceable shelf means for selective engagement with corresponding slots of said strips at desired heights.
Claim 8
Independent Claim
155 words
A method of drying a mass of discrete matter constituting a test sample, comprising placing said mass on material-supporting means of the nature of a shelf below one or more infrared heat lamps in a drying oven having side, back, bottom, and top walls defining a heating chamber with its front entirely and permanently open over the area extending between said side, bottom, and top walls and with ventilation openings disposed in said back wall at spaced intervals and comprehending a substantial portion of the area of said back wall rearwardly of the open front; energizing said heat lamps so a draft of air will sweep through said chamber from and substantially throughout the area of the open front thereof across the test sample and out of the chamber through said ventilation openings rearwardly of said open front; and removing the test sample from the drying oven through said open front following the drying thereof.
Claim 9
Independent Claim
155 words
A method of drying a mass of discrete matter constituting a test sample, comprising placing said mass on material-supporting means of the nature of a shelf below one or more infrared heat lamps in a drying oven having side, back, bottom, and top walls defining a heating chamber with its front entirely and permanently open over the area extending between said side, bottom, and top walls and with ventilation openings disposed in said back wall at spaced intervals and comprehending a substantial portion of the area of said back wall rearwardly of the open front; energizing said heat lamps so a draft of air will sweep through said chamber from and substantially throughout the area of the open front thereof across the test sample and out of the chamber through said ventilation openings rearwardly of said open front; and removing the test sample from the drying oven through said open front following the drying thereof.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
19 words
A method in accordance with claim 7, wherein the test sample is stirred periodically during the infrared irradiation thereof.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
34 words
A method in accordance with claim 7, wherein the temperature of the test sample is determined during the course of the heat treatment by means of a thermometer placed in the test sample mass.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
85 words
A method in accordance with claim 7, wherein the test sample is an asphaltic road material in which the bitumen content has been dissolved by a solvent therefor; the oven is placed with its ventilation openings in front of an exhaust system; the solvent is first extracted from the sample by applying infrared heat radiation to the sample at a selected height placement thereof within the oven; and the moisture is thereafter extracted from the sample at a higher height placement thereof within the oven.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1980-08-22 | 1981-02-21 | 1981-08-23 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1984-08-22 | 1985-02-21 | 1985-08-23 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1988-08-22 | 1989-02-21 | 1989-08-23 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |