CONVEYOR OVEN WITH ENERGY SAVING BAFFLE MECHANISM AND METHOD

摘要

A conveyor oven with improved energy efficiency. The energy efficiency is achieved by providing baffles at an inlet and an outlet of the conveyor oven. The baffles are individually controlled to be closed during cooking operations except for the time required for the passage of a food product through the respective inlet and outlet. The baffles can be operated manually or by electrically driven devices such as solenoids or electric motors. A controller can be used to control the open and closed times of the baffles based on sensor inputs as well as the speed of the conveyor, a predetermined length of the oven cavity between the inlet and outlet and a size of the food product.