U.S. patent application number 15/265349 was filed with the patent office on 2017-03-23 for oven and control method thereof.
This patent application is currently assigned to Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. The applicant listed for this patent is Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Sang-jin JEONG, Tae-hun KIM, Woo-joo KIM, Han-jun SUNG.
Application Number | 20170082296 15/265349 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 58276942 |
Filed Date | 2017-03-23 |
United States Patent
Application |
20170082296 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
JEONG; Sang-jin ; et
al. |
March 23, 2017 |
OVEN AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF
Abstract
An oven and a control method thereof are provided. The oven
includes a case including a cooking chamber in an inside thereof, a
door hinge-coupled to the case and configured to open and close the
cooking chamber, a cooling fan disposed in an upper portion of the
inside of the case and configured to discharge air toward a front
of the cooking chamber, and a heat blocking unit configured to form
a wind shield which blocks high-temperature heat and water vapor
discharged from an inside of the cooking chamber by changing a
direction of the air discharged through the cooling fan to a lower
side of the cooking chamber. In response to the door being closed,
a portion of the heat blocking unit is pressed through an upper
portion of the door and non-interferes the air discharged toward
the front of the cooking chamber and in response to the door being
opened, the portion of the heat blocking unit pressed by the upper
portion of the door is released and interferes the air discharged
toward the front of the cooking chamber to form the wind
shield.
Inventors: |
JEONG; Sang-jin; (Yongin-si,
KR) ; KIM; Woo-joo; (Suwon-si, KR) ; KIM;
Tae-hun; (Seoul, KR) ; SUNG; Han-jun; (Seoul,
KR) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. |
Suwon-si |
|
KR |
|
|
Assignee: |
Samsung Electronics Co.,
Ltd.
Suwon-si
KR
|
Family ID: |
58276942 |
Appl. No.: |
15/265349 |
Filed: |
September 14, 2016 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
F24C 15/006 20130101;
F24C 15/28 20130101; F24C 15/02 20130101 |
International
Class: |
F24C 15/00 20060101
F24C015/00; F24C 15/28 20060101 F24C015/28 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Sep 23, 2015 |
KR |
10-2015-0134288 |
Claims
1. An oven comprising: a case including a cooking chamber in an
inside thereof; a door hinge-coupled to the case and configured to
open and close the cooking chamber; a cooling fan disposed in an
upper portion of the inside of the case and configured to discharge
air toward a front of the cooking chamber; and a heat blocking unit
configured to form a wind shield which blocks high-temperature heat
and water vapor discharged from an inside of the cooking chamber by
changing a direction of the air discharged through the cooling fan
to a lower side of the cooking chamber, wherein in response to the
door being closed, a portion of the heat blocking unit is pressed
through an upper portion of the door and non-interferes the air
discharged toward the front of the cooking chamber and in response
to the door being opened, the portion of the heat blocking unit
pressed by the upper portion of the door is released and interferes
the air discharged toward the front of the cooking chamber to form
the wind shield.
2. The oven as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cooling fan rotates
at a first speed in cooking and rotates at a second speed faster
than the first speed in response to door being opened after the
cooking.
3. The oven as claimed in claim 1, wherein the heat blocking unit
includes: a blocking plate hinge-coupled to a portion of the case
close to an upper end of an opening of the cooking chamber; and an
elastic member configured to operate the blocking plate according
to opening and closing of the door.
4. The oven as claimed in claim 3, wherein the blocking plate is
pressed through the door and set to a first position which
non-interferes the air discharged toward the front of the cooking
chamber in response to the door being closed and the blocking plate
pressed through the door is released and set to a second position
which interferes the air discharged toward the front of the cooking
chamber in response to the door being opened.
5. The oven as claimed in claim 4, wherein the blocking plate is
obliquely disposed downward toward the inside of the cooking
chamber in the second position.
6. The oven as claimed in claim 4, wherein the second position is
located at an angle rotated by 50 to 90 degrees from the first
position.
7. The oven as claimed in claim 3, further comprising at least one
buffer member provided in the portion of the case to absorb a shock
of the blocking plate which moves from the second position to the
first position.
8. The oven as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a door
open/close detector configured to detect the opening and closing of
the door, wherein the cooling fan rotates at a first speed in
response to the closing of the door being detected through the door
open/close detector and rotates at a second speed faster than the
first speed in response to the opening of the door being detected
through the door open/close detector.
9. An oven comprising: a case including a cooking chamber in an
inside thereof; a door configured to open and close the cooking
chamber; a cooling fan configured to change speed of air discharged
toward a front of the cooking chamber by changing rotation speed;
and a heat blocking unit configured to form a wind shield by
changing a moving direction of the air through interference of the
air discharged through the cooling fan according to opening of the
door, wherein in response to the door being closed, a portion of
the heat blocking unit is pressed through an upper portion of the
door and non-interferes the air discharged toward the front of the
cooking chamber and in response to the door being opened, the
portion of the heat blocking unit pressed by the upper portion of
the door is released and interferes the air discharged toward the
front of the cooking chamber to form the wind shield.
10. The oven as claimed in claim 9, wherein the wind shield is
obliquely formed directed to a lower portion of the inside of a
cooking chamber from an upper portion of an opening of the cooking
chamber.
11. The oven as claimed in claim 9, wherein the portion of the
blocking plate is set to a position which non-interferes the air
discharged by the cooling fan in response to the door being closed,
the oven further comprising at least one buffer member configured
to absorb a shock generated by an operation according to a movement
of the portion of the heat blocking unit to the position which
non-interferes the air from a position which interferes the
air.
12. A method of controlling an oven, the method comprising: setting
a blocking plate disposed in an upper portion of an opening of a
cooking chamber to a first position by closing a door; setting the
blocking plate to a second position by opening the door after
cooking is completed; and forming a wind shield from the upper
portion of the opening of the cooking chamber to a lower portion of
the opening through collision of air continuously discharged toward
the blocking plate with the blocking plate.
13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein discharging speed of
the air discharged toward the blocking plate set to the second
position is larger than that of air discharged in response to the
blocking plate being set to the first position.
14. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the discharged air
is provided through a cooling fan, and rotation speed of the
cooling fan in the first position is larger than that of the
cooling fan in the second position.
15. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein the discharged air
is provided through a cooling fan, the method further comprising:
rotating the cooling fan at a first speed in response to closing of
the door being detected; and rotating the cooling fan at a second
speed faster than the first speed in response to opening of the
door being detected.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority from Korean Patent
Application No. 10-2015-0134288, filed on Sep. 23, 2015, in the
Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is
incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Field of the Invention
[0003] Apparatuses and methods consistent with exemplary
embodiments relate to an oven and a control method thereof, and
more particularly, to an oven capable of blocking high-temperature
heat and water vapor which are discharged upwardly from a cooking
chamber through a wind shield formed in door opening and a control
method thereof.
[0004] Description of the Related Art
[0005] Ovens may be apparatuses which cook cooking materials by
sealing and heating the cooking materials and may be typically
divided into electrical ovens, gas ovens, and electronic ovens
according to a heat source. The electrical ovens may use an
electrical heater as the heat source, the gas ovens may use heat by
gas as the heat source, and the electronic ovens as microwave ovens
may use frictional heat of water molecules due to high frequency as
the heat source.
[0006] In cooking using the oven in the related art, the
temperature in the inside of the cooking chamber may be increased
to about 300.degree. C. Accordingly, in response to the door being
opened to withdraw the cooking materials to the outside of the
cooking chamber from the cooking chamber after the cooking being
completed, the heat-temperature heat and water vapor may be
discharged upwardly. Since the user who opens the door in front of
the oven is directly exposed to the high-temperature heat and water
vapor discharged upwardly from a cooking chamber, the user may
suffer burns.
[0007] To overcome the problem, an oven, which blocks
high-temperature heat and water vapor through an air curtain formed
by discharging the cooling air to a direction substantially
perpendicular to a plurality of air discharge holes formed over a
front of a cooking chamber, has been developed. However, the air
curtain has limits in blocking the high-temperature heat and water
vapor which are rapidly discharged from the cooking chamber at the
same time that the door is opened.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] Exemplary embodiments may overcome the above disadvantages
and other disadvantages not described above. Also, an exemplary
embodiment is not required to overcome the disadvantages described
above, and an exemplary embodiment may not overcome any of the
problems described above.
[0009] One or more exemplary embodiments relate to an oven capable
of efficiently blocking high-temperature heat or water vapor
emitted toward a front of the cooking chamber from the cooking
chamber through a wind shield formed through simultaneous
operations of a blocking plate and a cooling fan in door opening
and a control method thereof
[0010] One or more exemplary embodiments relate to an oven capable
of removing noise generated by a blocking plate in door
closing.
[0011] According to an aspect of an exemplary embodiment, there is
provided an oven including a case including a cooking chamber in an
inside thereof; a door hinge-coupled to the case and configured to
open and close the cooking chamber; a cooling fan disposed in an
upper portion of the inside of the case and configured to discharge
air toward a front of the cooking chamber; and a heat blocking unit
configured to form a wind shield which blocks high-temperature heat
and water vapor discharged from an inside of the cooking chamber by
changing a direction of the air discharged through the cooling fan
to a lower side of the cooking chamber. In response to the door
being closed, a portion of the heat blocking unit may be pressed
through an upper portion of the door and may non-interfere the air
discharged toward the front of the cooking chamber and in response
to the door being opened, the portion of the heat blocking unit
pressed by the upper portion of the door may be released and may
interfere the air discharged toward the front of the cooking
chamber to form the wind shield.
[0012] The cooling fan may rotate at a first speed in cooking and
may rotate at a second speed faster than the first speed in
response to the door being opened after the cooking.
[0013] The heat blocking unit may include a blocking plate
hinge-coupled to a portion of the case close to an upper end of an
opening of the cooking chamber and an elastic member configured to
operate the blocking plate according to opening and closing of the
door.
[0014] The blocking plate may be pressed through the door and set
to a first position which non-interferes the air discharged toward
the front of the cooking chamber in response to the door being
closed and the blocking plate pressed through the door may be
released and set to a second position which interferes the air
discharged toward the front of the cooking chamber in response to
the door being opened.
[0015] The blocking plate may be obliquely disposed downward toward
the inside of the cooking chamber in the second position.
[0016] The second position may be located at an angle rotated by 50
to 90 degrees from the first position.
[0017] The oven may further include at least one buffer member
provided in the portion of the case to absorb a shock of the
blocking plate which moves from the second position to the first
position.
[0018] The oven may further include a door open/close detector
configured to detect the opening/closing of the door. The cooling
fan may rotate at a first speed in response to the closing of the
door being detected through the door open/close detector and may
rotate at a second speed faster than the first speed in response to
the opening of the door being detected through the door open/close
detector.
[0019] According to an aspect of an exemplary embodiment, there is
provided an oven including a case including a cooking chamber in an
inside thereof; a door configured to open and close the cooking
chamber; a cooling fan configured to change speed of air discharged
toward a front of the cooking chamber by changing rotation speed;
and a heat blocking unit configured to form a wind shield by
changing a moving direction of the air through interference of the
air discharged through the cooling fan according to opening of the
door. In response to the door being closed, a portion of the heat
blocking unit may be pressed through an upper portion of the door
and may non-interfere the air discharged toward the front of the
cooking chamber and in response to the door being opened, the
portion of the heat blocking unit pressed by the upper portion of
the door may be released and may interfere the air discharged
toward the front of the cooking chamber to form the wind
shield.
[0020] The wind shield may be obliquely formed directed to a lower
portion of the inside of the cooking chamber from an upper portion
of an opening of the cooking chamber.
[0021] The portion of the blocking plate may be set to a position
which non-interferes the air discharged by the cooling fan in
response to the door being closed. The oven may further include at
least one buffer member configured to absorb a shock generated by
an operation according to a movement of the portion of the heat
blocking unit to the position which non-interferes the air from a
position which interferes the air.
[0022] According to an aspect of an exemplary embodiment, there is
provided a method of controlling an oven, the method including
setting a blocking plate disposed in an upper portion of an opening
of a cooking chamber to a first position by closing a door; setting
the blocking plate to a second position by opening the door after
cooking is completed; and forming a wind shield from the upper
portion of the opening of the cooking chamber to a lower portion of
the opening through collision of air continuously discharged toward
the blocking plate with the blocking plate.
[0023] Discharging speed of the air discharged toward the blocking
plate set to the second position may be larger than that of air
discharged in response to the blocking plate being set to the first
position.
[0024] The discharged air may be provided through a cooling fan,
and rotation speed of the cooling fan in the first position may be
larger than that of the cooling fan in the second position.
[0025] The discharged air may be provided through a cooling fan,
and the method may further include rotating the cooling fan at a
first speed in response to closing of the door being detected and
rotating the cooling fan at a second speed faster than the first
speed in response to opening of the door being detected.
[0026] Additional aspects and advantages of the exemplary
embodiments are set forth in the detailed description, and will be
obvious from the detailed description, or may be learned by
practicing the exemplary embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
[0027] The above and/or other aspects of the present invention will
be more apparent by describing certain exemplary embodiments of the
present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, in
which:
[0028] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an oven according
to an exemplary embodiment;
[0029] FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional diagram illustrating an oven
according to an exemplary embodiment;
[0030] FIG. 2B is an enlarged diagram illustrating a portion II
indicated in FIG. 2A;
[0031] FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged perspective view illustrating
a heat blocking unit provided in an oven according to an exemplary
embodiment;
[0032] FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a blocking plate
of a heat blocking unit and a buffer member provided in the
blocking plate according to an exemplary embodiment;
[0033] FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional diagram
illustrating a first position of a blocking plate of a heat
blocking plate in door closing according to an exemplary
embodiment;
[0034] FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional diagram
illustrating a second position of a blocking plate of a heat
blocking plate in door opening according to an exemplary
embodiment;
[0035] FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a door
open/close detector disposed in an upper end portion of a door and
a lower end portion of a control panel according to an exemplary
embodiment;
[0036] FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional diagram illustrating a
state that a wind shield is formed through a heat blocking unit and
a cooling fan according to door opening according to an exemplary
embodiment;
[0037] FIGS. 9 to 10 are a diagram and a graph illustrating CAE air
flow data which compares discharge degree of heat and water vapor
in an oven which has no blocking plate in the related art and an
oven according to an exemplary embodiment in response to a door of
the oven being opened after cooking is completed; and
[0038] FIG. 11 is a flowchart sequentially illustrating a control
process of an oven according to an exemplary embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS
[0039] Various embodiments will now be described more fully with
reference to the accompanying drawings in which some embodiments
are shown. The techniques described herein are exemplary, and
should not be construed as implying any particular limitation on
the present disclosure. It should be understood that various
alternatives, combinations and modifications could be devised by
those skilled in the art. In the following description, unless
otherwise described, the same reference numerals are used for the
same elements when they are depicted in different drawings.
[0040] It will be understood that the terms first, second, third,
etc. may be used herein to describe various elements and/or
components regardless of the order and/or importance, and these
elements and/or components should not be limited by these terms.
These terms are only used to distinguish one element or component.
For example, a first user apparatus and a second user apparatus may
refer to user apparatuses different from each other regardless of
the order or importance. Thus, without departing from the scope in
the document, a first element and/or component discussed below
could be termed a second element and/or component, and vice
versa.
[0041] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing
particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of
the present inventive concept. As used herein, the singular forms
"a," "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as
well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Unless
otherwise defined, all terms including technical and scientific
terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by
one of ordinary skill in the art to which this inventive concept
belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those
defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as
having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the
context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an
idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined
herein. In some cases, the terms defined in the document should not
be interpreted to exclude embodiments herein.
[0042] Hereinafter, a configuration of an oven according to an
exemplary embodiment will be described in detail with the
accompanying drawings.
[0043] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an oven according
to an exemplary embodiment, FIG. 2A is a cross-sectional diagram
illustrating an oven according to an exemplary embodiment, and FIG.
2B is an enlarged diagram illustrating a portion II indicated in
FIG. 2A.
[0044] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2A, an oven 10 according to an
exemplary embodiment may include a case 11, a cooking chamber 20, a
door 30, a control unit 38, a convection fan 41, a cooling fan 50,
a heat blocking unit 100, and a door open/close detector (see 160
of FIG. 7).
[0045] The cooking chamber 20 may be provided in the inside of the
case 11 and a plurality of inhalation holes 11a may be formed to
inhale the air in the outside of the case 11 to the inside of the
case 11 according to driving of the cooling fan 50. The inhalation
holes 11a may be formed in both sides, a bottom, and a rear of the
case 11. The case 11 may form an outer appearance of the oven 10
together with the door 30 rotatably coupled to a lower end of the
case 11.
[0046] The cooking chamber 20 may be a cooking space formed by a
top plate 21, a bottom plate 22, both side plates 23, and a rear
plate 24, and various parts constituting the oven 10 may be built
in a space between the outside of the cooking chamber 20 and the
case 11. Heat-insulating members 44 configured to heat-insulate the
cooking chamber 20 from the outside may be disposed in outer sides
of the top plate 21, the bottom plate 22, and the side plates 23
constituting the cooking chamber 20 and a fan cover 40. A control
panel 38a configured to control an operation of the oven 10 may be
installed in an upper end portion of the case 11. The convection
fan 41 which the fan cover 40 is coupled thereto and is configure
to circulate the air through the cooking chamber 20 may be built in
an outer side of the rear plate 24. A plurality of inlet holes 25
may be formed around the center of the rear plate 24 facing the
convection fan 41 to allow the air inside the cooking chamber to
flow in, and a plurality of outlet holes 26 may be formed to supply
the heat to the cooking chamber in an edge of the rear plate
24.
[0047] At least one rack 15 configured to allow food to be placed
thereon may be disposed in the inside of the cooking chamber 20.
Rails 23a which the rack 15 is attachable/detachable
thereto/therefrom may be installed in inner side of the side plates
23. The user may move the rack 15 through the rails 23a and may
take out the food or place the food on the rack 15.
[0048] The door 30 may be hinge-coupled to the lower end portion of
the case 11 and may be installed to open/close the cooking chamber
20 by the user. A handle 27 configured to easily rotate the door 30
by the user may be attached to an upper portion of the door 30.
[0049] The user may place the food on the rack 15 supported by the
rails 23a and close the cooking chamber 20 by closing the door 30.
The user may operate the control panel 38a to allow an electrical
heater 42 to generate heat and the convection fan 41 may be rotated
through a driving motor 43. Accordingly, the air in the inside of
the cooking chamber 20 may flow in through the inlet holes 25,
heated through the electrical heater 42, and then supplied to the
cooking chamber 20 through the outlet holes 26. The heated air
supplied through the outlet holes 26 may be circulated in the
inside of the cooking chamber 20 to cook the food.
[0050] Temperature in the inside of the cooking chamber 20 in the
cooking process may be largely increased and the heat of the
cooking chamber 20 may be transfer to the door 30 located in a
front of the cooking chamber 20. Since the door 30 is a part which
is frequently touched by the user, it is important for the user not
to suffer burns by the door 30 heated by the heat of the cooking
chamber 20. Accordingly, the oven 10 may include the cooling fan 50
configured to cool the door 30.
[0051] The cooling fan 50 may be disposed to an outer side of the
top plate 21 of the cooking chamber 20. The cooling fan 50 may
allow the external air to flow in the inside of the case 11 through
the plurality of inhalation holes 11a of the case 11 and allow the
air to be discharged to the front of the oven 10 again. For the
operation of the cooling fan 50, a cooling motor 52 may be coupled
to one side of the cooling fan 50. As the air is circulated through
the cooling fan 50, the door 30 and the whole inside of the case 11
may be cooled.
[0052] A cooling channel 55 may be installed in an upper side of
the top plate 21 to discharge the air inhaled through the cooling
fan 50 toward the front of the oven 10. The cooling channel 55 may
include an air discharge hole 57 in one end thereof close to the
door 30 so as to discharge the inhaled air.
[0053] The air discharge hole 57 may be located in rear of the door
30 so that the air passing through the cooling channel 55 is
discharged to the upper portion of the door 30. The cooling channel
55 may be formed to be gradually narrowed toward a side of the air
discharge hole 57 from a side of the fooling fan 50. Accordingly,
the speed of the air discharged from the narrowed air discharge
hole 57 may be increased. As the speed of the air is increased, the
pressure of the air may be reduced, and a venturi effect that
inhales the air of atmospheric pressure may be generated in a place
which the air passes through. Accordingly, the pressure in the
upper portion of the door 30 which the discharged air passes
through may be reduced, and thus the surrounding air may be
collected to the upper portion of the door 30.
[0054] The door 30 may be cooled using the force that the
surrounding air is collected to the upper portion of the door 30.
For example, at least one door channel 60 and 70 may be provided in
the inside of the door 30. The door channels 60 and 70 may be
installed so that the air inhaled in a lower end of the door 30 may
flow toward the upper end of the door 30 close to the cooling
channel 55 via the inside of the door 30.
[0055] To form the at least one door channel 60 and 70, the door 30
may include a plurality of piece of glasses 31, 32, and 33 provided
to be spaced from each other. The plurality of piece of glasses 31,
32, and 33 may include an outer side glass 33, a middle glass 32,
and an inner side glass 31 sequentially arranged at intervals. The
outer side glass 33 may be exposed to the outside, and a handle 37
provided to easily rotate the door 30 by the user may be attached
to the outer glass 33. The inner glass 31 may be installed to seal
the cooking chamber 20 and may be exposed to the outside in a state
that the door 30 is opened. The middle glass 32 may be located
between the inner glass 31 and the outer glass 33 and form the
plurality of door channels 60 and 70.
[0056] In the oven 10 according to the exemplary embodiment, only
one piece of middle glass 32 may be installed, and the door 30 may
include one piece of outer glass 33, one piece of middle glass 32,
and one piece of inner glass 31. Accordingly, the door channels 60
and 70 may include a first door channel 70 formed between the outer
glass 33 and the middle glass 32 and a second door channel 60
formed between the middle glass 32 and the inner glass 31.
[0057] The door channels 60 and 70 may be formed to have a width of
5 mm or more sufficient to move the air. For example, the plurality
of piece of glasses 31, 32, and 33 may be installed to be spaced at
an interval of 5 mm or more.
[0058] A cooling operation of the door 30 will be described below.
The door 30 may include the door channels which are coupled to the
front of the oven 10 and allow the air to flow in the inside of the
door, and the cooling fan 50 provided in an upper portion of the
inside of the oven 10 may inhale the external air and discharge the
air again. The air circulated through the cooling fan 50 may flow
from the rear to the front of the oven 10 along the cooling channel
55 and may be discharged at fast speed to the upper portion of the
door 30 through the air discharge hole 57 by the cooling channel 55
which is gradually narrowed toward the air discharge hole 57.
Accordingly, the external air which the pressure thereof is lowered
and is discharged to the upper portion of the door 30 may move from
the lower end of the door 30 to the upper end of the door 30
through the door channels 60 and 70 and may cool the door 30. After
the door 30 is cooled, the air moved to the upper end of the door
30 may pass through a plurality of exhaust holes (see 30c of FIG.
7) formed in a heat 30a of the door 30 and then exhaust toward the
front of the oven 10 as illustrated in FIG. 2B.
[0059] The control unit 38 which is separated from the door 30 by a
space that the air passing through the cooling channel 55 and the
door channels 60 and 70 can escape to the front of the door 30 may
be located over the door 30. For example, the control unit 38 may
be located in rear of the control panel 38a exposed to the outside.
The control unit 38 may perform a cleaning mode which removes
foreign materials through thermal decomposition by increasing the
temperature of the inside of the cooking chamber 20.
[0060] After the cooking through the heating of the food in the
cooking chamber 20, oil and the like derived from the food may be
attached and then stiffed to an inner wall of the cooking chamber
20, and thus the pyrolytic cleaning function may be used in
response to the cleaning being difficult. The pyrolytic cleaning
may be a method of burning and removing contaminants by keeping an
internal temperature of the cooking chamber 20 to high temperature
for a long time using the electrical heater 42. Since a temperature
larger than a cooking temperature is necessary for the pyrolytic
cleaning, it may prevent the door 30 from being heated using two
pieces of middle glass. Since the temperature of the cooking
chamber 20 in the cooking keeps higher than the temperature in the
pyrolytic cleaning, the cooling fan 50 may rotate at higher speed
in the pyrolytic cleaning than in the cooking so that the door 30
is substantially maintained to the cooling state in the
cooking.
[0061] A configuration of the heat blocking unit 100 will be
described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6. FIG. 3 is a
partially enlarged perspective view illustrating a heat blocking
unit provided in an oven according to an exemplary embodiment, FIG.
4 is a perspective view illustrating a blocking plate of a heat
blocking unit and a buffer member provided in the blocking plate
according to an exemplary embodiment, FIG. 5 is a partially
enlarged cross-sectional diagram illustrating a first position of a
blocking plate of a heat blocking plate in door closing according
to an exemplary embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged
cross-sectional diagram illustrating a second position of a
blocking plate of a heat blocking plate in door opening according
to an exemplary embodiment.
[0062] Referring to FIG. 3, the heat blocking unit 100 may block
high-temperature heat and water vapor discharged upwardly from the
cooking chamber 20 in response to the door 30 being opened after
the cooking so that the high-temperature heat and water vapor are
not directed to the user. The heat blocking unit 100 may include a
blocking plate 110, a hinge pin 130, and an elastic member 150.
[0063] The blocking plate 110 may be elastically hinge-coupled to a
portion of a rear of the control panel 38a. In response to the door
30 being closed, the blocking plate 110 may be pressed through a
pressing projection 30b disposed over the heated 30a of the door 30
and may be disposed in a first position (see FIG. 5) close to an
extension plate 386. The pressed state of the blocking plate 110 by
the door 30 may be released in response to the door being opened,
and thus the blocking plate 110 may be disposed in a second
position (see FIG. 6) away from the extension plate 38b.
[0064] The blocking plate 110 located in the second position may be
rotated by a fixed angle .alpha. and may block the high-temperature
heat and water vapor discharged from the cooking chamber 20. For
example, the angle .alpha. of the blocking plate 110 in the second
position may be set in a range of 50 to 90 degrees toward the front
of the cooking chamber 20 from the first position. In this example,
the angle .alpha. of the blocking plate 110 in the second position
may be set in a range of 50 to 70 degrees from the extension plate
38b. The direction of the wind shield may be changed according to
the set angle .alpha. of the blocking plate 110.
[0065] CAE air flow data with respect to the discharge degree of
the heat and water vapor in response to the door being opened after
the cooking is completed in an oven having no blocking plate in the
related art and the oven in the exemplary embodiment will be
compared with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10.
[0066] Referring to 9(a), in the oven having no blocking plate in
the related art, as the heat and water vapor are obliquely
discharged upwardly toward an upper end of an opening of the oven
1, the surrounding temperature of the upper end of the opening of
the oven 1 is increased to about 175.degree. C. or more due to the
discharged heat and water vapor at the same time that the door 3 is
opened. The surrounding temperature distribution in the upper end
of the opening of the oven 1 is represented in red in FIG. 9(a).
The colors represented in FIG. 9(a) represent the temperature
lowered in order of red, yellow, and cyan.
[0067] Accordingly, in response to the heat and water vapor
discharged from the oven 1 in the related art being directed to a
face of the user, the user may suffer burns.
[0068] In the exemplary embodiment, in response to the door 30
being opened, both in response to the set angle .alpha. of the
blocking plate 110 being 90 degrees as illustrated in FIG. 9(b) and
in response to the set angle .alpha. of the blocking plate 110
being 60 degrees as illustrated in FIG. 9(c), red is represented in
the inner side of the oven 10 and is not represented in the outer
side of the oven 10. In FIG. 9(c), a portion represented by cyan is
less distributed than a portion represented by cyan in FIG. 9(b).
It can be seen from the data that the set angle a of the blocking
plate 110 is preferably set to 60 degrees rather than 90 degrees.
In response to the set angle .alpha. of the blocking plate 110 in
front of the opening of the oven 10 being 60 degrees, the
surrounding temperature of the upper end of the opening of the oven
10 is about 45.degree. C., and thus the temperature more lowered by
130.degree. C. than the related art may be maintained.
[0069] The temperature over time after the door is opened will be
described with reference to FIG. 10. In the oven in the related
art, the temperature is increased close to about 180.degree. C.
until 0.5 second after the door is opened, and the temperature is
about 140.degree. C. at 1.5 seconds and then gradually reduced.
[0070] In the oven according to an exemplary embodiment, in
response to the set angle .alpha. of the blocking plate 110 being
90 degrees, the temperature is about 25.degree. C. at 0.5 second
after the door is opened, and the temperature is about 100.degree.
C. even at 1.5 seconds and then gradually reduced. Further, in
response to the set angle .alpha. of the blocking plate 110 being
60 degrees, the temperature is increased close to about 25.degree.
C. at 0.5 second after the door is opened, and the temperature is
maintained to about 25.degree. C. even about 1.5 seconds and the
temperature is maintained to about 40.degree. C. at about 3
seconds.
[0071] The blocking plate 110 may be disposed in a lower end
portion of the control panel 38a, for example, a bottom surface of
the extension plate 38b formed to extend toward the inner side of
the oven 10 from the lower end of the control panel 38a as
illustrated in FIG. 4. The blocking plate 110 may substantially
have a length larger than or equal to a width of the cooking
chamber 20.
[0072] Hinge units 111 may be formed to extend in both end portions
of the blocking plate 110, and the hinge units 111 may be
hinge-coupled to the rear of the control panel 38a through the
hinge pins 130. The hinge unit 111 may be coupled to the hinge pin
130 by passing through through holes 38c formed in the extension
plate 38b of the control panel 38a.
[0073] The hinge pin 130 may be coupled to a pair of brackets 38d
and 38e formed in the rear of the control panel 38a. For example, a
fixing ring, for example, an E-ring may be coupled to the hinge pin
130 to prevent the hinge pin 130 from being separated from the
brackets 38d and 38e.
[0074] The elastic member 150 may elastically support the blocking
plate 110 so that the blocking plate 110 rotates from the first
position (see FIG. 5) to the second position (see FIG. 6) in the
response to the door 30 being opened. For example, the elastic
member 150 may be configured of a torsion spring and may be coupled
to the hinge pin 130. In this example, one end 151 of the elastic
member 150 may be supported by the rear of the control panel 38a,
and the other end 153 of the elastic member 150 may be supported by
the blocking plate 110. Accordingly, the blocking plate 110 may
receive elastic force to a direction away from the extension plate
38b by the elastic member 150, and in response to the pressed state
of the blocking plate 110 by the pressing projection 30b being
released according to the opening of the door 30, the blocking
plate 110 may rotate to the second position.
[0075] The operation of the heat blocking unit 100 will be
described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.
[0076] As illustrated in FIG. 5, in a state that to the cooking
chamber 20 is being closed through the door 30, the portion of the
blocking plate 110 may be pressed through the pressing projection
30b provided in the heat 30a of the door 30 and thus the blocking
plate 110 may be disposed to the first position close to the bottom
surface of the extension plate 38b. The intensity of the elastic
force applied to the blocking plate 110 through the elastic member
150 may be maximized.
[0077] In response to the cooking chamber 20 being opened through
opening of the door 30 to withdraw the cooking material from the
cooking chamber 20 after the cooking is performed in the state that
the door 30 is closed as illustrated in FIG. 6, the pressed state
of the blocking plate 110 through the pressing projection 30b may
be released and thus the blocking plate 110 may rotate to a
direction away from the extension plate 38b step by step through
the elastic member 150 and move to the second position. The portion
of the blocking plate 110 may be interfered to a portion of the
lower end of the control panel 38a and thus the blocking plate 110
may not move any longer and stop.
[0078] A plurality of buffer members 200 may be disposed at
intervals along a length direction of the blocking plate 110 as
illustrated in FIG. 4. The buffer member 200 may prevent the
blocking plate 110 from directly colliding with the bottom surface
of the extension plate 38b in advance as illustrated in FIG. 5 in
response to the blocking plate 110 being moved from the second
position to the first position. For example, the buffer member 200
may be configured of a rubber material having elasticity to prevent
the blocking plate 110 from being broken in colliding with the
blocking plate 110 and to prevent noise from being generated
according to the collision.
[0079] A configuration of the door open/close detector 160 provided
in the oven 10 according to an exemplary embodiment will be
described with reference to FIG. 7. FIG. 7 is a schematic
perspective view illustrating a door open/close detector disposed
in an upper end portion of a door and a lower end portion of a
control panel according to an exemplary embodiment.
[0080] The door open/close detector 160 may include a magnetic
sensor 161 and a magnet 163 as a non-detection material detectable
through the magnetic sensor 161.
[0081] The magnetic sensor 161 may be disposed in an upper end
portion of the door 30, for example, the head 30a of the door 30
and the magnetic sensor 161 may be electrically coupled to the
control unit 38 and may transfer a door open/close signal to the
control unit 38.
[0082] The magnet 163 may be disposed in a portion of the lower end
of the control panel 38a so that the magnet 163 may be disposed in
a position corresponding to the magnetic sensor 161 in a state that
the door is closed.
[0083] The magnetic sensor 161 may be disposed in a position close
and corresponding to the magnet 163 in a state that the door 30 is
closed and may transfer a first voltage value to the control unit
38. In response to the first voltage value being received from the
magnetic sensor 161, the control unit 38 may determine that the
door 30 is closed.
[0084] In response to the door 30 being opened in a state that the
door is closed, the magnet sensor 161 may be away from the magnet
163 and may transfer a second voltage value smaller than the first
voltage value to the control unit 38. Accordingly, the control unit
38 may determine that the door 30 is opened. In response to being
determined that the door 30 is opened after the cooking is
completed, the control unit 38 may rotate the cooling fan 50 at
faster speed than speed in the cooking, for example, at the same
speed as speed that the cooling fan 50 is rotated in the pyrolytic
cleaning and may discharge the cooling air to the air discharge
hole 57.
[0085] It has been described in the exemplary embodiment that the
door open/close detector 160 includes the magnet sensor 161 and the
magnet 163, but this is not limited thereto. For example, the door
open/close detector 160 may include a switch such as a plunger
switch or a tactile switch. In this example, the magnet 163 as the
non-detection material which is detected through the magnet sensor
161 may be omitted. The switch may be disposed in the upper end
portion of the door 30 or the lower end portion of the control
panel 38a. The switch may be disposed in any position that the
switch is turned on/off by a neighboring structure in response to
the door 30 being opened and closed. For example, in response to
the switch being installed in the upper end portion of the door 30,
the neighboring structure may be installed in the lower end of the
control panel 38a that the portion of the switch may be pressed to
operate in response to the door being closed.
[0086] The oven 10 according to the exemplary embodiment may
include a locking device (not shown) configured to prevent the door
from being opened by an arbitrary behavior of the user during the
cooking. The locking device may be locked and unlocked through the
control unit 38.
[0087] Hereinafter, the operation of the oven 10 having the
above-described configuration according to an exemplary embodiment
will be described with reference to FIGS. 2, 8, and 11.
[0088] FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional diagram illustrating a
state that a wind shield is formed through a heat blocking unit and
a cooling fan according to door opening according to an exemplary
embodiment, and FIG. 11 is a flowchart sequentially illustrating a
control process of an oven according to an exemplary
embodiment.
[0089] First, the user may place the cooking material in the
cooking chamber 20 of the oven 10 to cook and close the door 30
(S1). While the door 30 is closed, the blocking plate 110 of the
heat blocking unit 100 may be pushed through the pressing
projection 30b of the door 30, may be elastically supported through
the elastic member 150, and may be rotated to the first position
(see FIG. 5). The blocking plate 110 may be rotated close to the
extension plate 38b, and one surface of the blocking plate 110 may
be supported through the plurality of buffer members 200.
Accordingly, the collision of the blocking plate with the extension
plate 38b may be prevented and thus the noise generation may be
basically blocked.
[0090] In response to the door 30 being closed, the door open/close
detector 160 may transmit the first voltage value to the control
unit 38. In response to the first voltage value being received from
the door open/close detector 160, the control unit 38 may determine
that the door 30 is closed and lock the door 30 through the locking
device.
[0091] In response to the setup for desired cooking time and
temperature being completed through the operation of the control
panel 38a by the user, the cooking may start through the control
unit 38 (S2). For example, in response to the starting of the
cooking, the control unit 38 may supply high-temperature air heated
through the electrical heat 42 to the cooking chamber 20 by
controlling the electrical heater 42 to generate heat and driving
the convection fan 41. Accordingly, the door 30 may also be heated
through the temperature of the cooking chamber 20 gradually heated,
and simultaneously the control unit 38 may rotate the cooling fan
50 at the first speed to cool the door 30 (S3).
[0092] As the cooling fan 50 is rotated at the first speed, the
external air may flow in the inside of the case 11, may be
collected to the cooling fan 50, and may be discharged to the air
discharge hole 57 through the cooling channel 55 via the cooling
fan 50. The negative pressure may be formed in the upper end of the
door 30 through the air discharged at the fast speed from the air
discharge hole 57. Accordingly, the external air may flow in the
door channels 60 and 70 from the lower end of the door 30 and move
to the upper end of the door, and thus the door 30 may be
cooled.
[0093] In response to the cooking being completed (S4), the control
unit 38 may release the locking of the door 30 by operating the
locking device so that the cooking chamber 20 is opened by opening
the door 30.
[0094] In response to the door 30 being opened (S5), the door
open/close detector 160 may transmit the second voltage value to
the control unit 38. The control unit 38 may determine that the
door 30 is opened through the second voltage value received from
the door open/close detector 160.
[0095] While the pressed state of the blocking plate 110 by the
pressing projection 30b of the door 30 is released through the
opening of the door 30, as illustrated in FIG. 8, the blocking
plate 110 of the heat blocking unit 100 may be rotated to the
second position from the first position (as a position in a state
that the door 30 is closed) through the elastic force of the
elastic member 150. Simultaneously, the control unit 38 may rotate
the cooling fan 50 at the second speed faster than the first speed
(S6).
[0096] The air discharged at the fast speed through the air
discharge hole 57 from the cooling channel 55 may collide with the
blocking plate 110 and form the wind shield to a downwardly
inclined direction to a direction toward the cooking chamber 20
(S7).
[0097] Accordingly, the high-temperature heat and water vapor
discharged upwardly from the cooking chamber 20 while the door is
opened may be blocked through the wind shield so as not to be
discharged toward the user in front of the door 30. The user may be
secured against a burn accident due to the high-temperature heat
and water vapor discharged from the cooking chamber 20.
[0098] The foregoing exemplary embodiments and advantages are
merely exemplary and are not to be construed as limiting the
present invention. The present teaching can be readily applied to
other types of apparatuses. Also, the description of the exemplary
embodiments of the present invention is intended to be
illustrative, and not to limit the scope of the claims, and many
alternatives, modifications, and variations will be apparent to
those skilled in the art.
* * * * *