AU2003208138B2

AU2003208138B2 - Apparatus for warming liquids

Info

Publication number: AU2003208138B2
Application number: AU2003208138A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Werner Luke
Original assignee: WIK Far East Ltd
Current assignee: WIK Far East Ltd
Priority date: 2002-07-23
Filing date: 2003-07-07
Publication date: 2008-05-29
Anticipated expiration: 2023-07-07
Also published as: EP1385184B1; CN2708799Y; DE20211099U1; DE50305467D1; ES2274145T3; HK1055057A2; EP1385184A1; AU2003208138A1; ATE343845T1

Abstract

The water vessel (2) is electrically heated through a base unit (9). It has a switch arrangement which is put into the open state by a catch (7). This has a hook (8) engaging a part of the base unit such that when lifted the catch is moved to switch off the electrical supply.

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT

ORIGINAL

Applicant(s): WIK FAR EAST LTD Actual Inventor(s): Werner Ltike Address for Service: PATENT ATTORNEY SERVICES 26 Ellingworth Parade Box Hill Victoria 3128 Australia Title: APPARATUS FOR WARMING LIQUIDS Associated Provisional Applications: No(s).: The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us:- APPARATUS FOR WARMING LIQUIDS The invention relates to a device for warming liquids, comprising a liquid container with an electrical heating for warming the liquids in the container, a control unit having a switch arrangement for switching the heating on and off, and with an electric connection plug for releasably contacting an opposing connecting plug, and comprising a base station carrying the opposing connecting plug.

Such devices are also known as water kettles and comprise a wireless liquid container that can be lifted from a base station. The base station is connected with a voltage source.

Connecting plugs thus can be brought into engagement with each other, one of which is on the side of the liquid container and the other as the opposing connecting plug is on the side of the base station, to secure a current supply of an immersion heater placed within the liquid container. On the side of the container furthermore a control unit is provided, with which the heating can be switched on and off. Furthermore, such a control unit comprises a shut down automatic to cut down the electrical current supply of the heating when the liquid in the container is cooking. In general, the immersion heater and the control unit together with the electrical connecting plug for contacting the opposing connecting plug form one construction unit which for example is received in a container made from plastic. This construction unit is arranged in the lower area of the side wall of the container so that the immersion heater enters into the inside of the container from the side. The switch arrangement in general is an on-switch, used to switch the device on. Switching off can be affected automatically by the cut-off automatic, usually controlled via a bi-metal. At the same time water kettles have become known the control unit of which is provided with a switch arrangement which additionally can be switched into the off-position manually. A water kettle of the described type is known for example from EP 0 719 464 B 1.

These water kettles, however, have the danger during use. that after switching the immersion heater on and after lifting the liquid container from the base station the power supply that is necessary for running the immersion heater is interrupted due to the separation of the two plug connections that were in engagement before, but that after placing the liquid container on the base station due to engaging the two plug connection elements the heating is switched on. Since such water kettles sometimes are provided with a dry overheating switch-off automatic, which, however, has a time lag becoming bigger and bigger with growing chalk deposition, it would be desirable if such a water kettle could not be placed on the appropriate base station if in a switched-on state.

In WO 01/56437 A2 a control unit for water kettle is described wherein the switch arrangements for switching the heating on and off is actively switched off in the case that a liquid container is lifted from the base station. This control unit serves for running a resistance heating, located under the bottom of the liquid container. A lever, extending radially from the control unit, carries an activation knob on its free end by which the heating can be switched on. This lever, the activation knob of which can be used as an activation element, can be brought into an on-state by pushing it down. To make sure with a water kettle provided with such a control unit that a power cut will occur when the water kettle is lifted from the base station, the electrical contacts of the control unit that are provided are biased by a spring tension. The aforementioned are biased by means of the weight of the liquid container placed on the base station and are opened due to the energy stored in the spring element, as soon as the liquid container is lifted from the base station. Switching off occurs by means of immediate actuation of the electrical contacts, therefore.

The control units known from this document cannot be used for such water kettles, however, that are provided with an immersion heating extending from the side wall into the container. Moreover, the switch-off automatic by means of lifting the liquid container from the base station, is difficult to realise.

OThe above discussion of prior art is not an admission that such prior art constitutes common general knowledge in Australia.

00 From the state of the art discussed above, the object of the invention is to develop 00 N a device for warming liquids of the category as described above further such that, in particular independently of the kinds of the heating used, it can be provided with a switch-off automatic for cutting the power supply of the heating when the liquid container is lifted from the base station, and preferably in a way that can be readily realised.

According to the invention, this object is achieved by providing the switch arrangement with an operating element which can be operated manually by a switching movement extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the container and can be switched in the direction towards the lower end of the container into its OFF position and being equipped with an actuation member which acts mechanically on the operating element such that, during lifting of the container from the base station of the switch arrangement, the operating element is moved into its OFF position by means of a movement of the actuation member which is operably coupled to the lifting movement of the container and as a result the switch arrangement is switched into its OFF position.

In this device that for example can be made as a water kettle, the switch-off automatic for switching the heating off when the liquid container is lifted from the base station is constructed such that the operating element of the switch arrangement that is provided anyway to switch the heating on and off, is used to switch the control unit off during the process described above to provide for the desired power cut. With this the concept of additional mechanics acting on electrical contacts can potentially be done 00 away with. To this extent the device is provided with an actuation member, arranged 00 such that it can act on the operating element of the switch arrangement mechanically (Ni Osuch that when the liquid container is lifted from the base station, the operating element necessarily is moved into the off-position so such the switch arrangement is switched into the off-position. In this respect the operating element of the switch arrangement is supported movably in direction of the lower end of the container into the off-position, wherein the operating element can be supported both relocatable as well as pivotable.

Therefore, the actuation member provides a mechanical coupling between the offswitching movement of the operating element and the lifting movement of lifting the container from the base station. By providing the actuation member it can be made sure that at least by lifting the liquid container the switch arrangement will be switched into the off-position by means of the operating element. Depending upon the form of the actuation member it can furthermore be provided that a switching-on of the control unit, when the liquid container is not placed on the base station, can be avoided at least continuously and/or that when the liquid container is placed on the base station a mandatory switching-off of the control unit comparable to that of the lifting process takes place.

According to a first aspect of the invention a switch spring is provided as operating element which is supported on the base station when the container is placed upon the base station and is maintained in its biased state by means of this support, the operating element being switched into its OFF position by means of the stored energy 00 thereof during lifting of the container from the base station.

00 ,I The switch spring according to one embodiment comprises an adjustment Sportion which encompasses the operating element at the top and has a support portion at the bottom, on which adjustment portion there is moulded on at least one spring portion which is fixed by its free end on the container and has spring properties which act in the direction of the longitudinal extension of the adjustment portion. For storing the necessary energy, the adjustment portion advantageously has two spring portions that have spring characteristics acting in the direction of a longitudinal extension of the adjustment section.

According to another aspect at least one switch rib is provided as operating element which is associated with the base station and which is resilient in the transverse direction relative to the lifting movement of the container from the base station, which rib engages over the operating element at least partially at the top when the container is placed upon the base station, the forces which are provided by the switch rib and act upon the operating element during a lifting movement of the container from the base station being greater than those required for moving and retaining the operating element in its ON position. Two switch ribs may be provided. The switching ribs can be made from plastic and can be part of an assembly module of the liquid container.

OPossible and preferred features of the present invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. However it is to be understood 00 that the features illustrated in and described with reference to the drawings are not to be 00 oO construed as limiting on the scope of the invention. In the drawings: iFig. 1 a schematic longitudinal section of a wireless water kettle with an actuation member for forcibly switching the heating of the water kettle off, when it is lifted from the base station, Fig. 2 a three-dimensional representation of the actuation member of the water kettle according to fig. 1, Fig. 3 a cut-out of the representation of the water kettle according to fig. 1, showing a situation during lifting the liquid container.

Fig. 4 a schematic longitudinal section through another wireless water kettle with an actuation member for forcibly switching the heating of the water kettle off when lifted from the base station.

Fig. 5 a three-dimensional representation of the actuation member of the water kettle according to fig. 4, Fig. 6 a cut-out of the representation of the water kettle according to fig. 4, showing a situation during lifting the liquid container.

Fig. 7 a schematic longitudinal section through another wireless water kettle with an actuation member for forcible switching the heating of the water kettle off when lifted from the base station.

Fig. 8 a section along line A-A through the water kettle according to fig. 7, and Fig. 9 a three-dimensional representation of the actuation member of the water kettle according to fig. 7 and 8.

A water kettle 1 serving as a device for warming liquid comprises a liquid container 2 with an immersion heating not depicted in the figures, connected to a control unit that is depicted just as little. The heating device crosses a side wall 3 of the liquid container 2 in an opening 4. On the outside of the liquid receptacle of the liquid container 2 the control unit is placed. It comprises a switch arrangement for switching the heating on and off, as well as a switch-off automatic for switching the heating off when the liquid is cooking or is absent.

The switch arrangement further comprises a manipulation element 5 supported pivotably; the pivoting axis is referred to as 6 in figure 1. Accordingly, the manipulation element 5 can be pivoted according to the arrow in fig. 1. Formed onto the manipulation element 5 is an actuation member 7 that is constructed in the depicted embodiment as the switching hook and is provided with a protruding hook element 8 on the lower side. Fig. I shows the liquid container 2 of the water kettle 1 placed on the base station 9. The base station is connected to a power supply. For simplification of the representation the necessary electrical plug connection parts, one of which is on the side of the liquid container 2 and another one is on the side of the base station 9, are not shown. In the arrangement shown in fig. 1 the two plug connection parts are shown in engagement with one another so that the heating can be supplied with power. Fig. 1 shows the manipulation element 5 and thus the switch arrangement in the on-position. For manually switching the heating off, the manipulation element 5 must be moved to the lower end of the liquid container 2 so that it will follow the pivoting movement described above. The manipulation element 5 is kept in the on-position shown in fig. 1 by means of a snap-in and is kept under spring tension so that for switching the switch arrangement off, the manipulation element 5 only has to be moved over the snap-in. The rest of the switching off movement takes place automatically supported by the spring tension.

The actuation member 7 with its hook element 9 is in engagement with a recess of the base station 9 that, in the embodiment shown is integrated into the roof of the power supply unit.

The manipulation element 5 with the switching hook 7 formed therein and the hook element 8 is shown again in fig. 2.

When the liquid container 2 is lifted from the base station 9 the in engagement position of the switching hook 7 or the hook element 8 with the base station 9 shown in the fig. taking place due to the lifting movement of the liquid container 2 in the vertical direction upwards due to the hook element 8 being in engagement with the recess, has the result that a torque acts on the manipulation element 5 so that the latter can be moved over the snap-in into the off-position shown in fig. 3. Through this lifting movement mechanically coupled to the switching off of the manipulation element 5 a switching off of the switch arrangement actuated by means of the manipulation element 5 takes place as well and an interruption of the power supply of the heating. Accordingly, the water kettle 1 will be switched off automatically when the liquid container is lifted.

The same happens when the liquid container 2 is placed on the base station 9, should the switch arrangement be switched on. To this extent, the hook element 8 of the switching element 7 is provided with a ramp 10 so that when the liquid container is set down, the hook element 7 provides a torque on the manipulation element 5 for switching the latter off.

Fig. 4 shows another water kettle 11 that in principle is constructed as the water kettle 1 of fig. 1-3 that is different from the latter insofar, however, as the actuation member 12 for switching the heating of the liquid container 13 off is concerned, when it is lifted from the base station 14. The actuation member 12 is constructed as a switching spring having a frame-like adjustment section 15 and a lower support section 16. The adjustment section on the upper side frames the manipulation element 17 of the liquid container 13. Formed onto the adjustment section 15 two spring sections 18, 18' are provided. They are connected with the liquid container 13 of the water kettle 11 with the free ends, as can be taken schematically from fig. 4. The support section 16 sits on the upper side of a cover of the power supply unit of the base station 14, when, as is shown in fig. 4, the liquid container 13 is placed on the base station 14. To this extend, the support section is provided with a support foot 19 on the lower side. The spring sections 18, 18' are made as tension springs and are under tension as shown in fig. 4 and are thus extended. The extension of the spring sections 18, 18' is due to positioning the liquid container 13 on the base station 14 where the adjustment section 15 and the support section 16 are moved upwards, relative to the fixation of the spring sections 18, 18' on the liquid container 13. The switching spring 12 with its single elements is shown in fig. 5 again.

When the liquid container 13 is lifted from the base station 14, the support of the support foot 19 of the support section 16 of the switching spring 12 is released from the base station 14 so that the spring sections 18, 18' relax and by this movement the adjustment section 15 that is placed over the manipulation element 17 is moved down, according to the arrow in fig. 6. Accordingly, the manipulation element 17 is brought into its off-position and the switch arrangement of the heating is switched off accordingly.

In the embodiment described, a continuos switching on of the manipulation element 17, when the liquid container 13 is lifted from the base station 14, is impossible. The energy stored or to be stored in the spring sections 18, 18' in any case is bigger as necessary for keeping the manipulation element 17 in its on-position by means of the snap-in device, only by means of the support section 16 and the adjustment section 15 of the switching spring 12, pushing against the base station, when the liquid container 13 is placed on the latter, the return force, provided by the spring sections 18, 18' is overcome so that a movement of the actuation element 17 into its on-position is possible.

Fig. 7 shows another water kettle 20, the liquid container 21 is placed on a base station 22. In this embodiment two switching ribs 23, 23' on the liquid container 21 that have the same function as the actuation member 12 of fig. 4-6 serve as the actuation member. The switching ribs 23, 23' are part of the liquid container 21 and have two switching bridges 25, 25', extending over the manipulation element on the other side.

Extending from the switching ribs 23, 23' to the inside towards each other, furthermore two adjustment ribs 26, 26' are formed shown in fig. 8 pressing against the body of the power supply unit E, when the liquid container 21 is placed on the base station 22 and are thus pressed to the outside and when the liquid container 21 is lifted from the base station 22, the switching ribs 23, 23' are moved to each other due to a lack of splitting movements of the power supply unit E, so that the gap between the two switching bridges 25, becomes smaller and the switching bridges 25, 25' come into contact with the other side of the manipulation element 25 which is moved into its off-position due to the oblique position of the switching bridges 25, 25'. Through this movement, the switch arrangement of the heating is switched off as well. A switching on, at least a continuous one, is impossible with the water kettle 20 as well, when the liquid container 21 is lifted.

Fig. 9 shows the switching ribs 23, 23' of the embodiment of the fig. 7 and 8 with all its single parts. In the area of the foot 27 carrying the switching ribs 23, 23' a recess 28 is provided in which the body of the power supply unit E is introduced when the liquid container 21 is placed on the base station 22.

When used in this specification and claims, the terms "comprises" and "comprising" and variations thereof mean that the specified features, steps or integers are included. The terms are not to be interpreted to exclude the presence of other features, steps or components.

List of reference signs 1 Water kettle 2 Liquid container 3 Side wall 4 Opening Manipulation element 6 Pivoting axle 7 Actuation member 8 Hook element 9 Base station Ramp 11 Water kettle 12 Actuation member, switching spring 13 Liquid container 14 Base station Adjustment section 16 Support section 17 Manipulation element 18, 18' Spring section 19 Support foot Water kettle 21 Liquid container 22 Base station 23, 23' Switching rib 24 Manipulation element 25' Switching bridge 26, 26' Adjustment rib 27 Foot 28 Opening E Energy supply unit

Claims

1. Device for heating liquids, comprising a liquid container having an electrical Sheating mechanism associated with the container for heating liquid in the container, having a control unit which has a switch arrangement for switching the heating device on and off and having an electrical plug connection part for detachable contacting of an 00 M opposing plug connection part and comprising a base station on which the opposing plug 00 O connection part is arranged, the switch arrangement comprising an operating element Swhich can be operated manually by a switching movement extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the container and can be switched in the direction towards the lower end of the container into its OFF position and being equipped with an actuation member which acts mechanically on the operating element such that, during lifting of the container from the base station of the switch arrangement, the operating element is moved into its OFF position by means of a movement of the actuation member which is operably coupled to the lifting movement of the container and as a result the switch arrangement is switched into its OFF position, wherein a switch spring is provided as operating element which is supported on the base station when the container is placed upon the base station and is maintained in its biased state by means of this support, the operating element being switched into its OFF position by means of the stored energy thereof during lifting of the container from the base station.

2. Device according to claim 1, wherein the switch spring comprises an adjustment portion which encompasses the operating element at the top and has a support portion at the bottom, on which adjustment portion there is moulded on at least one spring portion which is fixed by its free end on the container and has spring properties which act in the direction of the longitudinal extension of the adjustment portion.

3. Device according to claim 2, wherein two spring portions are provided.

4. Device for heating liquids, comprising a liquid container having an electrical O heating mechanism associated with the container for heating liquid in the container, Shaving a control unit which has a switch arrangement for switching the heating device on 1 and off and having an electrical plug connection part for detachable contacting of an (N opposing plug connection part and comprising a base station on which the opposing plug 00 O M connection part is arranged, the switch arrangement comprising an operating element 00 Swhich can be operated manually by a switching movement extending parallel to the longitudinal axis of the container and can be switched in the direction towards the lower end of the container into its OFF position and being equipped with an actuation member which acts mechanically on the operating element such that, during lifting of the container from the base station of the switch arrangement, the operating element is moved into its OFF position by means of a movement of the actuation member which is operably coupled to the lifting movement of the container and as a result the switch arrangement is switched into its OFF position, wherein at least one switch rib is provided as operating element which is associated with the base station and which is resilient in the transverse direction relative to the lifting movement of the container from the base station, which rib engages over the operating element at least partially at the top when the container is placed upon the base station, the forces which are provided by the switch rib and act upon the operating element during a lifting movement of the container from the base station being greater than those required for moving and retaining the operating element in its ON position.

Device according to claim 4, wherein two switch ribs are provided.

6. Device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the switch rib is a plastic material part.

7. A device for warming liquids substantially as herein before described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. 16