Solar food dryer

Claim 1

A solar food dryer comprising: a box-shaped housing having a pair of mutually space-opposed side walls, a pair of mutually space-opposed end walls individually joining respective end margins of said side walls, a back wall the peripheral margins of which are joined with the corresponding rear margins of said side and end walls to close the rear of said housing and the forward margins of said side and end walls defining an opening extending substantially across the front of said housing, with the material of said walls being substantially opaque to sunlight; a cover dimensioned to span said opening and of a material substantially transparent to sunlight; means for securing said cover in removable closing relationship to said opening; a plurality of shelves each of a width substantially spanning the distance between said side walls and of a depth to span substantially the distance between said rear and forward margins of said side walls when tilted at a predetermined angle with respect to said end walls; means for removably mounting said shelves within said housing in spaced succession between said end walls with each shelf tilted at said angle; means for supporting said housing in a stationary position with said rear wall tilted backwardly from its top to orient said shelves substantially in a horizontal position; means defining apertures in said housing for enabling air flow upwardly therethrough when said housing is in said stationary position, said defining means establishing a first plurality of apertures distributed in said side walls with individual different one thereof being adjacent to respective different ones of said shelves and a second plurality of apertures distributed in the one of said end walls uppermost when said housing is in said stationary position, and said apertures being so distributed and having a total cross-sectional area of an amount enabling a flow of said air at a rate limiting the temperature within said housing, with said cover in said closing relationship and exposed to direct sunlight, to a minimum value of approximately one hundred-forty degrees Fahrenheit; screening disposed across said apertures and of a mesh transmissive of air flow but protective against the passage of insects, said screening being in the form of a continuous layer of mesh material; an inner wall of said housing disposed to sandwich said mesh material against the inner surfaces of said side walls; and said mounting means including elongated lugs projecting integrally from said inner wall into the interior of said housing.