Heat duct support assembly for a food preparation oven and method

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The present invention provides a heat duct support assembly and method wherein the heat ducts may be easily removed and installed manually for cleaning or replacement, and wherein a majority of the support assembly also may be easily removed manually for cleaning.
The present invention is particularly useful in those food preparation ovens having a plenum with a plurality of openings and heat ducts extending horizontally from the openings for receiving from the plenum hot air for subsequent impingement upon food to be cooked.
The heat duct support assembly of the present invention provides for the heat ducts to be easily removed manually by providing a peripherally disposed flange about each of the plenum openings and a horizontally disposed elongated bracket spaced apart from the plenum for supporting the remote ends of the heat ducts.
An individual heat duct is installed by inserting one end about the flange of a plenum opening and resting the remote opposite end on the elongated bracket.
Preferably, the duct end is inserted over the flange so as to prevent the escape of hot air between the interfacing of the heat duct and the plenum.
Because the heat duct remote opposite end is supported on the bracket, it may be easily removed by lifting the remote end up and drawing the heat duct from about the plenum opening flange, thus satisfying the requirement of Standard 2 of NSF for manual removal for cleaning.
In addition, the elongated support bracket is uniquely constructed so as to be easily removed manually, thereby also satisfying Standard 2.
The elongated bracket has on each of its ends a bracket support having one slot in its bottom edge and another second slot in its top edge.
Mounted on opposite sides within the oven are a pair of studs about which each of the bracket supports are rotated so as to engage the slots with respective ones of the studs, thereby supporting the bracket between the oven opposite sides in a spaced apart manner from the plenum openings.
The bracket is easily removed manually by grasping it and rotating it in an opposite direction to disengage each of the slots from a respective stud and then withdrawing the bracket from the oven interior