Cooking appliance cooling fan with optical speed sensor
AssigneeMidea Group Co., Ltd.
InventorsVern A. Neal, John Hooker, Daniel J. Trice
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An optical sensor is used in a cooling system of a cooking appliance to sense rotation of the cooling fan. For example, in one aspect a cooking appliance is disclosed as including a housing with a cooking enclosure and cooling passage for venting heat generated within the cooking enclosure; a cooling fan in fluid communication with the cooling passage in order to provide a directed airflow within the cooling passage; and an optical sensor to sense rotation of the cooling fan.
Claims20
A cooking appliance, comprising:
- a housing including a cooking enclosure and a cooling passage for venting heat generated within the cooking enclosure;
- a cooling fan in fluid communication with the cooling passage to provide a directed airflow within the cooling passage;
- and
- an optical sensor positioned to sense rotation of the cooling fan.
A method of cooling a cooling passage of a cooking appliance, the cooking appliance including a heating element, a cooling fan, an optical sensor and a controller coupled to the heating element and the cooling fan, the method comprising:
- providing, by a cooling fan, a directed airflow within the cooling passage;
- sensing, by the optical sensor, a rotation of the cooling fan;
- and
- selectively disabling, by the controller, the heating element in response to the optical sensor sensing a lack of rotation of the cooling fan.
A cooling system for use in a cooking appliance of a type including a cooking enclosure and a cooling passage for venting heat generated within the cooking enclosure, the cooling system comprising:
- a cooling fan in fluid communication with the cooling passage to provide a directed airflow within the cooling passage;
- and
- an optical sensor positioned to sense rotation of the cooling fan.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.