Pressure monitoring arrangement for heating system of a convection cooking appliance
AssigneeMaytag Corporation
InventorsJohn Scott Brown, Richard O. Cavener
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A convection cooking appliance includes an oven cavity surrounded by an air channel assembly. The appliance includes heating units and a microwave generator arranged in the air channel assembly. A blower assembly is provided to generate a recirculating flow of air through the air channel assembly and the oven cavity. A controller, responsive to operator inputs, as well as signals from both temperature and pressure sensors located in the air channel assembly, regulates the activation/deactivation state of each of the components. One of the heating units in the air channel assembly is preferably constituted by an open coil heating element which is de-activated when the pressure is sensed to be below a specified threshold.
Claims14
In a cooking appliance including an oven cavity adapted to be used in convection cooking of food products, a heating system comprising:
- an air channel assembly extending about at least a portion of and being in fluid communication with the oven cavity;
- a blower element for developing a flow of air within the air channel assembly for delivery to the oven cavity;
- a heating unit positioned in the air channel assembly for heating the flow of air prior to entry into the oven cavity;
- and
- a pressure sensor located downstream of the blower element and directly adjacent the heating unit in the air channel assembly, wherein operation of the heating unit is controlled based on a pressure sensed by the pressure sensor.
In a cooking appliance including an oven cavity adapted to be used in convection cooking of food products, a heating system comprising:
- an air channel assembly extending about at least a portion of and being in fluid communication with the oven cavity;
- a blower element for developing a flow of air within the air channel assembly for delivery to the oven cavity;
- a heating unit positioned in the air channel assembly for heating the flow of air prior to entry into the oven cavity;
- a pressure sensor positioned in the air channel assembly;
- and
- a controller for regulating the operation of the heating unit, said pressure sensor being linked to the controller for signaling the pressure to the controller, wherein the controller interrupts power to the heating unit when the pressure, as sensed by the pressure sensor, is below a threshold value.
In a cooking appliance including an oven cavity adapted to be used in convection cooking of food products, a method of controlling the beating of the oven cavity comprising:
- directing a flow of air within an air channel assembly extending about at least a portion of and being in fluid communication with the oven cavity:
- activating a heating unit positioned in the air channel assembly for heating the flow of air prior to entry into the oven cavity;
- sensing an air pressure in the air channel assembly directly adjacent the heating unit;
- and
- controlling the heating unit based on the sensed air pressure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.