Commercial cooking oven with combustion divider

Abstract

A cooking oven includes a cooking cavity with an opening for enabling food items to be moved into and out of the cooking cavity. A combustion area is located below the cooking cavity and a combustion gas flow space includes paths along left and right external sides of the cooking cavity. A burner is disposed in the combustion area and has a left burner segment disposed left of a centerline of the cooking cavity and a right burner segment disposed right of the centerline of the cooking cavity. A baffle arrangement is located in the combustion area. The baffle arrangement includes an upper baffle that has a low point substantially aligned with the centerline, and a lower baffle wall extending downward from the low point and between the left burner segment and the right burner segment.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A cooking oven, comprising:
 cavity walls defining an internal cooking cavity with an opening for enabling food items to be moved into and out of the cooking cavity;   at least one door mounted for providing access to the cooking cavity;   firewalls spaced from and disposed about the cooking cavity to define a space for flow of combustion gases around the cavity walls, including a combustion area below the cooking cavity, a left flow path externally along a left cavity wall and a right flow path externally along a right cavity wall;   a burner disposed in the combustion area and having a left burner segment disposed left of a centerline of the cooking cavity and a right burner segment disposed right of the centerline of the cooking cavity; and   a baffle arrangement in the combustion area, the baffle arrangement configured for directing combustion gases from the left burner segment along the left flow path and for directing combustion gases from the right burner segment along the right flow path.   
     
     
         2 . The cooking oven of  claim 1  wherein the baffle arrangement includes an upper baffle wall disposed above the burner, the upper baffle wall having a profile that includes a deep V-shaped segment substantially centered on the centerline. 
     
     
         3 . The cooking oven of  claim 2  wherein a bottom of the deep V-shaped segment is positioned between about ¼ inch and about one inch above a top of the burner. 
     
     
         4 . The cooking oven of  claim 2  wherein the deep V-shaped segment includes a left side and a right side extending upward from a bottom of the deep V-shaped segment, the left side and the right side are both offset from vertical by no more than about forty degrees. 
     
     
         5 . The cooking oven of  claim 4  wherein an upper end the left side joins with a more gradually inclined left baffle segment, an upper end of the right side joins with a more gradually inclined right baffle segment. 
     
     
         6 . The cooking oven of  claim 2  wherein the left baffle segment is offset from vertical by an angle of at least about fifty degrees, and the right baffle segment is offset from vertical by an angle of at least about fifty degrees. 
     
     
         7 . The cooking oven of  claim 2  wherein the baffle arrangement includes a lower baffle wall extending downward from a bottom of the deep V-shaped segment and between the left burner segment and the right burner segment. 
     
     
         8 . The cooking oven of  claim 7  wherein the lower baffle wall is connected to a removable cover plate at a front of the combustion area so as to be removable with the cover plate. 
     
     
         9 . The cooking oven of  claim 7  wherein the lower baffle wall is formed as part of a Y-shaped baffle structure, wherein the bottom of the deep V-shaped segment sits within the Y-shape to provide proper alignment between the lower baffle wall and the deep V-shaped segment. 
     
     
         10 . The cooking oven of  claim 1  wherein the baffle arrangement includes a baffle wall having a lower portion between the left burner segment and the right burner segment and an upper portion higher than the left burner segment and the right burner segment, the baffle wall connected to a removable cover plate at a front of the combustion area so as to be removable with the cover plate. 
     
     
         11 . A cooking oven, comprising:
 cavity walls defining an internal cooking cavity with an opening for enabling food items to be moved into and out of the cooking cavity;   at least one door mounted for providing access to the cooking cavity;   firewalls spaced from and disposed about the cooking cavity to define a space for flow of combustion gases around the cavity walls, including a combustion area below the cooking cavity, a left flow path externally along a left cavity wall and a right flow path externally along a right cavity wall;   a burner disposed in the combustion area and having a left burner segment disposed left of a centerline of the cooking cavity and a right burner segment disposed right of the centerline of the cooking cavity; and   a baffle arrangement in the combustion area, the baffle arrangement configured for directing combustion gases from the left burner segment along the left flow path and for directing combustion gases from the right flow segment along the right flow path, the baffle arrangement including an upper baffle that has a low point substantially aligned with the centerline, and a lower baffle wall extending downward from the low point and between the left burner segment and the right burner segment.   
     
     
         12 . The cooking oven of  claim 11  wherein the lower baffle wall is connected to a removable cover plate at a front of the combustion area so as to be removable with the cover plate. 
     
     
         13 . The cooking oven of  claim 12  wherein the lower baffle wall is supported at its front side by the cover plate and toward its rear side by a downwardly extending support foot. 
     
     
         14 . The cooking oven of  claim 12  wherein a front side of the lower baffle wall includes at least first and second alignment tabs that engage respectively with first and second alignment slots in the cover plate. 
     
     
         15 . The cooking oven of  claim 11  wherein the lower baffle wall is formed as part of a Y-shaped baffle structure, wherein the low point of the upper baffle sits within the Y-shape to provide proper alignment between the lower baffle wall and the upper baffle. 
     
     
         16 . The cooking oven of  claim 11  wherein the lower baffle wall extends along between about forty percent and about eighty percent of a length of the left and right burner segments. 
     
     
         17 . A cooking oven, comprising:
 a cooking cavity with an opening for enabling food items to be moved into and out of the cooking cavity;   a combustion area below the cooking cavity and a combustion gas flow space along left and right external sides of the cooking cavity;   a burner disposed in the combustion area and having a left burner segment disposed left of a centerline of the cooking cavity and a right burner segment disposed right of the centerline of the cooking cavity; and   a baffle arrangement in the combustion area, the baffle arrangement including a baffle wall having a lower portion between the left burner segment and the right burner segment and an upper portion higher than the left burner segment and the right burner segment.   
     
     
         18 . The cooking oven of  claim 17  wherein the baffle wall is connected to a removable cover plate at a front of the combustion area so as to be removable with the cover plate to provide access to the burner. 
     
     
         19 . The cooking oven of  claim 18  wherein the baffle wall is supported at its front side by the cover plate and toward its rear side by a downwardly extending support foot and is substantially aligned with the centerline. 
     
     
         20 . The cooking oven of  claim 17  wherein the baffle arrangement includes an upper baffle that has a low point substantially aligned with the centerline, and the baffle wall is formed as part of a Y-shaped baffle structure, wherein the low point of the upper baffle sits within the Y-shape to provide proper alignment between the baffle wall and the upper baffle.