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US 9,006,619 B2Granted
Cooking appliance including combination heating system
AssigneeACP, Inc.
InventorsRobert McNamee, Robert A. Schulte, Thomas Miller, Roger W. Carlson, James A. Goranson, Edward R. Cook
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A combination cooking appliance controls a radiant heating element provided in an oven cavity, both a blower and a convection heating element provided in an air plenum, and microwave energy sources to provide for numerous potential operating modes. The present invention is particularly concerned with the manner in which the various cooking components are configured and flexibly controlled to provide for short cook cycles in a variety of operational modes.
Claims17
A cooking appliance for cooking food items using multiple cooking techniques comprising:
- a cabinet;
- an oven cavity arranged in the cabinet, said oven cavity including top, bottom, rear and opposing side walls;
- an oven rack supported in the oven cavity, said oven rack being spaced from the bottom wall of the oven cavity;
- a radiant heating element positioned between the oven rack and the bottom wall of the oven cavity;
- a microwave cooking system for generating microwaves which are introduced into the oven cavity from at least one of the opposing side walls, close to the top wall, for selectively performing a portion of a cooking operation;
- an airflow delivery system including:
- an air intake including a plurality of openings located in the rear wall of the oven cavity behind the oven rack, wherein the air intake extends both above and below the oven rack, as well as both above and below the radiant heating element;
- an air plenum including a return plenum portion exposed to the air intake, a blower plenum portion, and a discharge plenum portion extending over the oven cavity;
- a blower including a fan unit located in the blower plenum portion and adapted to draw an air stream from the return plenum portion and direct the air stream into the discharge plenum portion;
- a catalyst positioned in the discharge plenum portion for removing airborne particles from the air stream;
- a convection heating element interposed between the fan unit and the catalyst;
- and
- a plurality of discharge nozzles leading into the oven cavity from the discharge plenum portion for directing the air stream toward the oven rack;
- and
- a user interface for programming the cooking appliance for operating in each of a microwave only mode, a bake mode, a combination bake and convection mode and a full combination mode with microwave, radiant and hot air convection for high speed food cooking.
12 more elements
In a cooking appliance including a cabinet having an internal oven cavity adapted to be closed by a door, and having an oven rack adapted to support food to be cooked and selectively heated by microwave, radiant and convection heating systems including separate radiant and convection heating elements, a method of operating the cooking appliance comprising:
- establishing a microwave only mode in which the radiant heating element is not activated, while both the microwave and convection heating systems are activated, with the convection heating system being operated on a low speed;
- establishing a combination bake and convection mode in which the radiant heating element and the convection heating system are activated, while an operating temperature range in the order of 250°-450° F. is established for the oven cavity;
- and
- establishing a full combination mode in which each of the radiant heating element, the microwave heating system and the convection heating system is activated, while an operating temperature range in the order of 450°-525° F. is established for the oven cavity,
- wherein, whenever the convection heating system is operated air is drawn through an air intake which extends both above and below the oven rack, as well as both above and below the radiant heating element.
2 more elements
In a cooking appliance cooking appliance for cooking food items using multiple cooking techniques including:
- a cabinet;
- an oven cavity arranged in the cabinet, said oven cavity including top, bottom, rear and opposing side walls;
- an oven rack supported in the oven cavity, said oven rack being spaced from the bottom wall of the oven cavity;
- a radiant heating element positioned between the oven rack and the bottom wall of the oven cavity;
- a microwave cooking system for generating microwaves which are introduced into the oven cavity from at least one of the opposing side walls, close to the top wall;
- an airflow delivery system having:
- an air intake including a plurality of openings located in the rear wall of the oven cavity behind the oven rack;
- an air plenum including a return plenum portion exposed to the air intake, a blower plenum portion, and a discharge plenum portion extending over the oven cavity;
- a blower including a fan unit located in the blower plenum portion and adapted to draw an air stream from the return plenum portion and direct the air stream into the discharge plenum portion;
- a catalyst positioned in the discharge plenum portion for removing airborne particles from the air stream;
- a convection heating element interposed between the fan unit and the catalyst;
- and a plurality of discharge nozzles leading into the oven cavity from the discharge plenum portion for directing the air stream toward the oven rack;
- and a user interface for programming the cooking appliance for operating in each of a microwave only mode, a bake mode, a combination bake and convection mode and a full combination mode with microwave, radiant and hot air convection for high speed food cooking, a method of operating the cooking appliance comprising:
- establishing a microwave only mode in which the radiant heating element is not activated, while both the microwave and convection heating systems are activated, with the convection heating system being operated on a low speed;
- establishing a combination bake and convection mode in which the radiant heating element and the convection heating system and activated, while an operating temperature range in the order of 250°-450° F. is established for the oven cavity;
- and
- establishing a full combination mode in which each of the radiant heating element, the microwave heating system and the convection heating system is activated, while an operating temperature range in the order of 450°-525° F. is established for the oven cavity,
- wherein, whenever the convection heating system is operated, air is drawn through an air intake which extends both above and below the oven rack, as well as both above and below the radiant heating element.
15 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.