A smoker flame-control insert with paired recirculation flanges
This is a metal insert for a smoker or grill that creates a combustion cavity with a lower air inlet and an upper inlet flanked by two recirculation channels. When a flame begins, hot convective flow pulls smoke into the side channels and across the upper inlet to reduce incoming air and help extinguish the flame, so the unit favors smoldering over flaming; it's aimed at barbecue/smoker makers and backyard cooks.
(57) What the patent covered
The main independent claim covered an assembly of two plates (or walls) that form a combustion cavity with a lower inlet to the air source, two flanges that create first and second recirculation channels open to the cavity's top, and an upper inlet defined by the gap between those two flanges placed between the recirculation channels.
The distinctive part: The design uses paired flanges that form side recirculation channels and an upper inlet between them so convective flow diverts hot gases across the upper inlet to throttle air when a flame is present.
Novelty 3/5. Smoker inserts and air-control vents were common, but using symmetrical flanged recirculation channels explicitly arranged to use the flame's convection to reduce upper air inlet flow is a clever improvement on familiar airflow-control features.
Making it
Stamped or laser-cut steel plates formed and bent to create walls and flanges, then spot-welded or fastened together; common for sheet-metal smoker components.
Materials: stainless steel sheet, mild steel sheet (coated), high-temperature aluminized steel
Manufacturability 4/5. Several simple stamped/bent parts with spot welding or rivets; tooling is standard for sheet-metal fabrication and assembly is low-tech.
Is anyone buying?
Comparable products are on sale; this exact design wasn't found. Typical retail price: $179–$1149. Two listings show insert/plate style components used to manage airflow and combustion in smoking appliances; one is a dedicated heat-management plate for offset pits, the other a high-end insert/liner for integrated exhaust and recirculation in custom hoods.
- 24-inch Heat Management Plate (Offset) - Durango 24 & Kingman models · Yoder Smokers$179.00 + shipping
- XOIL Pro Insert/Liner (XO Appliance) – 30/36/42/48 inch widths · XO Appliance$1,149
This demand check was run with a web search in the week of Oct 5, 2026. Listings change often, so treat it as a starting point for your own research.
Who buys it: backyard smokers and grill manufacturers, barbecue enthusiasts replacing firebox parts
Sourcing
We didn't find factories listing this product on the big supplier marketplaces, so it would likely need custom tooling or a manufacturer you approach directly. No factories or close-equivalent listings for a smoker flame-control insert with paired recirculation flanges were found on Alibaba.com, Made-in-China.com, Global Sources, or DHgate based on targeted search terms. Related concepts (e.g., general smoker shutters or combustion-channel components) appear in broader grill parts catalogs, but not as the specific insert described here on the listed marketplaces.
Supplier prices come from public listings found with a web search and are usually quoted before customization, shipping and duties, so use them to judge whether a product is worth a quote request.
Before you make it
We didn't find any related continuation or divisional patents still in force, although that doesn't rule out design patents, trademarks or unrelated patents covering the same product.
Practical risks include heat and corrosion resistance requirements for materials and crowded market for aftermarket smoker parts; specification is mainly geometric and could be narrow in scope.
Owners occasionally revive lapsed patents (about 1.5% are), and this page is a research lead rather than legal advice, so get a freedom-to-operate opinion before you manufacture anything.