Beautifully engraved certificate from the American Novelty Company, Inc. of Massachusettes issued in 1920. This historic document has an ornate border around it with a vignette of an allegorical woman holding an American flag and a bald eagle with its wings spread. This item is hand signed by the company's president and treasurer, Napoleon H. Ferland and it is over 83 years old. UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE. NAPOLEON H. FERLAND, OF NORWOOD, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERICAN NOVELTY COMPANY, INCORPORATED, OF NORWOOD, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS. COMBUSTION-PROMOTING DEVICE FOR STOVES. 1,377,010. Specification of Letters Patent, Patented May 3, 1931. Application filed September 19, 1919. Serial Ho. 324,824. To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, Napoleon H. FeeLand, a citizen of the United States, residing .at Norwood, in the county of Norfolk and 5 State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Combustion-Promoting Devices for Stoves, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like char 10 acters on the drawings representing like parts. The invention to be hereinafter described relates to stoves and other heaters, and more particularly to devices for promoting the 15 combustion of the unconsumed products of combustion in the course of their transit from the fire box to the chimney of the stove. Heretofore, devices have been employed for this purpose, but they have been 20 of a bulky, complicated nature, and of .special construction which prevents the same to be readily adapted to standard stoves without material alteration in the construction of the latter. One of the purposes of 25 the present invention, therefore, is to provide a simple, cheap and efficient device for promoting the combustion, which may be readily placed in operative position in the flue or combustion chamber leading from the 30 fire box to. the chimney of the stove, without interference from the internal construction of the stove. Another object of the invention is to provide a combustion promoting device which 35 may have a length sufficient to supply_ air and promote .combustion of the entire width of the stream of the gases of combustion in their transit from .the fire box to the chimney. . 40 Another purpose of the invention is to provide a combustion promoting device having a row or series of air outlet ports for delivering .the air to the gases of combustion, and to provide adjusting means for 45 varying the effective openings of said ports properly to- conform to the draft conditions of the stove to which the device is applied. Another purpose of the invention _ is to provide a combustion promoting device in 50 the. form of an elongated box having a bottom adapted to rest directly on the floor of the flue or chamber between the fire box and the chimney, and to provide the series pf air ports on the top of the elongated box, the construction being such that the gases 55 of combustion must flow in a stream over the top of the box and not beneath the latter. As a consequence, air is efficiently introduced into the entire stream of the gases of combustion, and combustion of unconsumed 60 products thereof is efficiently promoted. With the aforesaid and other objects in view, the character of the invention will be best understood by reference to the following description of one good form there- 65 of shown in the accompanying drawing, wherein :·-- ...... Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of an ordinary cooking stove with a portion of the top of the stove broken away 70 to disclose the location of a combustion promoting device embodying.the invention; , Fig. 2 on an enlarged scale is a perspective view of the combustion prompting device; certain parts thereof being, shown in 75 section; Fig. 3 is a sectional detail taken on line 3--3 of Fig. 2; and - · ·! ; Fig. 4 is a plan of a stove lid appropriate for use with the attachment. 80 Referring to the drawing, in Fig; 1 is shown an ordinary or standard form of stove 1 having the usual fire box beneath the front lids 3, and a flue or chamber 5 above the oven for conducting the gases of 85 combustion from the fire box to the chimney 7. The combustion promoting device shown herein as one good form of the invention, comprises an elongated box 9 (Fig. 2) which 90 may conveniently be in the form of a casting having a bottom 11, sides 13 and ends 15 preferably all closed throughout. Rising from the top 17 of the box preferably adjacent one end thereof is an air in- 95 let neck 19. Cooperating with this neck is a collar 21 depending from a lid section 23, said collar being disposed eccentrically with respect to the lid section for a purpose hereinafter described. The section 23 may con- 100 stitute the inner section of a lid having an outer ring section 25 (Fig. 1) and an intermediate ring section 27 (Fig. 4), it being customary to employ such sectional lids to accommodate cooking utensils of different 105 sizes. The central section 23 may have nubs or rounded buttons 29 rising therefrom to prevent a utensil from setting so closely on 1,377,010 said section as to cover the opening in the collar and prevent entrance of air therein. Preferably the collar 21 should be substantially larger than the neck 19 so as to leave 5 an air space 31 through which the air may enter and tend to prevent overheating of the parts. The outside air may enter the elongated box through the collar and neck described. 10 To. distribute this air to the stream of gases of combustion passing from the fire box to the chimney, the top 17 of the box may be provided with a row or series of ports 33 at intervals in the length of the top of the 15 box between the neck 19 and the opposite end of the box. Standard stoves vary with respect to the draft effect thereof, and in some instances it may be desirable to supply a greater 20 amount of air to the gases of comfcustio1! than in other instances. Accordingly, the ports 33 may be sufficiently large to supply the maximum amount of air required, and means. may be provided for varying the e f 25 fective openings of these ports. This means, in the present instance of the in raition, comprises a slide plate 35 superposed on the top of the box and guided by longitudinal flanges 37 rising from the sides 9 of 30 the box and conveniently formed integral therewith. This slide plate is provided with a row or series of ports 39 corresponding to the ports 33 in the top plate of the box. When it is desired to supply the maximum 35 amount of air through the ports 33, the slide plate is adjusted longitudinally to bring its . ports in registration with .the top plate ports, but if it is desired to reduce the amount .of air supplied, the ports 33 may be throttled 40 somewhat by adjustment of the slide, plate longitudinally thereof to a position, for example, such as shown in Fig. 3. In use, the elongated box may be placed in the flue or chamber 5 so as to extend in 45 a general front to rear direction, and occupy , the position transverse to the path, of the. gases of combustion in their transit from the fife box to the chimney. In order that the device may have most efficient effect, it 50 is desirable that it should have a length at least equal to the width of the stream of gases. The device is placed with its bottom resting directly on the floor of the chamber 5, and no devices are required to attach.the 55 box to the floor of said chamber, but on the contrary, it remains in position merely by resting on the floor of said chamber. The elongated box should be placed in a position such .that the neck 19 thereof will 60 be beneath the central section of the stove lid. The neck should project up into or telescope with the collar 21 of the central section 23 which may be substituted for the usual central section which is in the form of £5 a plain disk. It may be desirable longitudinally to adjust the box somewhat in order that it may properly conform to the path of the gases of combustion, or to avoid interference with the walls or other parts of the internal con- 70 struction of the stove. This may be readily accomplished by rotative adjustment of the section 23. Since the collar 21 is eccentric with respect to this section, the box will be longitudinally adjusted by the rotative ad- 75 justment of said section. AlsOj it may be desirable angularly to adjust the box, in order desirably to position the same or avoid interference with walls or other parts of the internal'construction of the stove. To accom- 80 plish this, the box may be swung about the axis of the collar 21 to different positions of adjustment as desired. .''-', After the combustion promoting device has been positioned as required, the gases of 85 combustion from the fire box will flow over the top of the box in the form of a stream, as indicated in Fig. 1. Air will enter the box through the collar and neck and flow along the body of the box and issue in the 90 form of a series of streams from the ports in the top thereof. These air streams will be desirably distributed and meet the stream of gases as they flow over the top of the device. The air thus supplied to the gases 95 will promote the combustion thereof, produce flames at the ports, and materially increase the heating effect of the products of combustion. Thus, products are utilized for heating effect which otherwise/would escape 100 unconsumed up through the chimney, and an important economy in fuel is obtained. The construction and location of the combustion promoting device is such that the additional combustion takes place between 105 the top of the oven and the rear lids of the stove, with the result that the temperature of the stove adjacent the rear lids will be materially increased, as will also the temperature of the oven. 110 The device described is extremely simple : and strong in construction and cheap to manufacture. It may be quickly and readily introduced into its proper position in the stove by the user thereof without re- 115 quiring the services of a stove expert. If, after prolonged use of the device, matters from the products of combustion should enter the elongated box, the latter may be readily freed therefrom by simply 120 removing the box from the stove, tipping the box on end, and dumping such matters from the neck 19. However, in practice accumulation of such matters in the box is unlikely to occur, since streams of air is- I25 suing through the ports tend to prevent entrance of such matters into the box. The telescoping relation of the lid section collar and the box neck facilitates location of £he box in chambers of yarying depth. 130. The bottom of the box may always rest on the floor of the chamber and the neck of the box will assume a higher or lower position with respect to the collar according 5 to the depth of the chamber. The overlap of the collar and neck is sufficient to allow for the variations in depth of the chamber above the oven in different standard stoves. It will be understood that the invention 1,377,010 10 is not limited to the specific embodiment shown, and that various deviations may be made therefrom without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims. What is claimed is:-- 15 1. A combustion promoting device for stoves, comprising an elongated box provided with closed sides and ends and having a^ row of outlet ports in its upper face, said box constructed to be positioned with 20 in a stove and be supported on the top of . the oven, and arranged to extend across the path of travel of the gases passing from the fire-box to the chimney, an inlet neck rising from the top of the box and communi 25 eating with the interior of the box, and a stove top section haying a collar depending therefrom for admitting air into said inlet neck and telescopically adjusted on the neck so that the box may be positioned in 30 chambers of different depths between the oven and the top of the stove. 2. A combustion promoting device for stoves, comprising an elongated box provided with closed sides and ends and having 35 a row of outlet ports in its upper face, said box constructed to be positioned within a stove with its lower face in direct engage ment with the top of the oven and arranged to extend across the path of travel of the gases passing from the fire-box to the chim- 40 ney, an inlet rising from the top of the box adjacent one end thereof and communicating with the interior of the box, a lid section having a collar depending therefrom for admitting air into said inlet neck, said 45 collar having telescopic engagement with the inlet neck to allow relative adjustment axially therebetween, and an adjustable damper on the top of the box for regulating the flow of air through said box. 50 ' 3. In combination with a cook-stove having lid receiving openings in the top thereof, and a composite licl for one of said openings consisting of an outer ring section having smaller removable sections therein; 55 a combustion promoting device comprising an elongated box provided with sides and ends and having a row of outlet ports in its upper face, said box constructed to be positioned within the stove with its lower 60 face in direct engagement with the top of the oven and arranged to extend across the path of travel of the gases passing from the fire-box to the chimney, an inlet neck rising from the box and communicating 65 with the interior of the box, and a lid section having a collar defending therefrom for admitting air into said inlet neck, said lid section constructed to replace the innermost section of said composite lid. 70 In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification. NAPOLEON H. FERLAND.