EP0464695A2

EP0464695A2 - microwave oven comprising equipment for discharging overflow

Info

Publication number: EP0464695A2
Application number: EP91110700A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Yung Hwa Kim
Original assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 1990-06-30
Filing date: 1991-06-27
Publication date: 1992-01-08
Anticipated expiration: 2011-06-27
Also published as: DE69122676D1; DE69122676T2; EP0464695B1; EP0464695A3

Abstract

A device for discharging overflow in a microwave oven (1) includes a base of a cooking compartment (2) declined from the middle to sides and guide grooves (2a) formed along said base. At least one of the guide grooves (2a) is deeper than the others to receive fluid materials from the others, and has at least a discharge opening (2b) leading to outside. A receiving vessel (4) is provided under the compartment (2) to cover the discharge openings (2b) and is slidably supported by a supporting means (3).

Thereby, the cooking compartment (2) keeps clean and the overflow can no longer be scorched or burnt on the base.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

This invention relates to an equipment for discharging overflows and water which are flooded over from a cooking ware in a cooking compartment of a microwave oven during cooking.

Description of the Related Art

In cooking a food to be boiled such as rice and a pot stew with a microwave oven, the cooking materials and water may be generally boiled over and fallen down to be scorched or burnt on the flat bottom of the cooking compartment by cooking heat.
A ventilation system for exhausting water vapor generated in the cooking compartment has been known from example Japanese Utility Model Laying-Open 78-44339, which discloses a microwave oven including a cabinet having a ceiling, which is provided with openings matched with exhaust openings in an oven ceiling, an exhaust opening plate formed with openings for preventing electric wave leakage and inserted in the oven ceiling, and a door formed with openable and shutable openings and having an upper end close to the openings in the cabinet ceiling and a lower end mounted on the oven ceiling. The microwave oven can, however, exhaust water vapor generated in the cooking compartment outwards, but can not discharge the cooking materials and water overflowed on the bottom of the cooking compartment .
In the existing microwave ovens, the overflows fallen on the bottom are left as they are to be scorched thereon by heating in the cooking compartment, requiring herd scrubbing to be removed. Moreover, in electrostatic focusing areas, the overflows may be burnt to generate sparking carbon particles leading to the shortened life and deteriorated reliablity of the system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide a device enabling overflows in a microwave oven to be drained out of a cooking compartment.
The object is attained according to the invention by a device for discharging overflows, comprising:
a bottom of a cooking compartment declined from the middle to the sides except for the region of a tray;
guide grooves formed along the bottom sides to receive fluid materials;
at least a discharge opening formed downwards in the guide groove and leading to the outside of the compartment;
a receiving vessel provided under the compartment and covering the discharge opening to receive the fluid materials therethrough; and
a supporting means
formed under the compartment and supporting the receiving vessel.
Preferred embodiments are described in the subclaims. Further objects and advantages of the invention can be more fully understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a microwave oven according to the invention;
Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the mounting of a receiving vessel on the microwave oven according to the invention;
Fig. 3 is a schematic sectional view illustrating the construction and function of the invention; and
Fig. 4 is a schematic front view of Fig. 3.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As can be seen in Fig. 1, showing a microwave oven 1 according to the invention in a perspective view, a cooking compartment 2, whose door is removed to provide easy observation, has a bottom declined from the middle to the sides except for the region of a tray 8. The four sides of the bottom are formed with guide grooves 2a, and the front side has also a plurality of discharge openings 2b formed therein. The guide grooves 2a in the right and left sides are declined from the rear side toward the front side to make it easy for overflows flooded over during cooking to find their way to the front side. Thereby, the overflows run down along the guide grooves 2a and are led to the front guide groove 2a.
The discharge openings 2b provided in the front guide groove 2a, which is the lowest one of the guide grooves 2a, discharge the overflows accumulated in the front guide groove 2a to outside of the microwave oven 1, and have, preferably, a diameter less than 1cm to prevent high frequency radio waves from leakage.
To receive the overflow discharged through the discharge openings 2b, as shown in Fig. 2, a receiving vessel 4 is provided under the front end region of the microwave oven 1. The receiving vessel 4 is made from a material which can isolate penetration of high-frequency wave, and has a opened top side having a length and width enough to cover all of the discharge openings 2b in the front guide groove 2a.
The mounting of the receiving vessel 4 on the microwave oven 1 is attained by a web 4a extended rearwards from the top side of the receiving vessel 4 along the longitudinal direction thereof, and a guide flange 3 having a cross section of "L" shape is correspondingly provided under the microwave oven 1 to be engaged with the web 4a. When mounting the receiving vessel 4 on the microwave oven 1, the receiving vessel 4 is inserted into the guide flange 3 with its web 4a from the right or left side of the microwave oven 1. To this end, the right or left end of the guide flange 3 is opened to allow the insertion of the receiving vessel 4 and the other end is closed to form a stopper wall 7 for defining the insertion position. In addition, under the front end region of the microwave oven 1, a supporting flange 9 is provided being analog with but opposite to the guide flange 3 to prevent the receiving vessel 4 from escaping from the guide flange 3.
The depth of the receiving vessel 4 shall be naturally lower than that of legs of the microwave oven 1, so that it can be easily mounted on or dismounted from the microwave oven 1 left on a table.
The device according to the invention for discharging overflows in cooking compartment 2, having the construction as described above, functions as follows:
A cooking ware 5 provided with a cover 6 and containing food to be boiled such as rice or pot stews is put on the tray 8 in the cooking compartment 2 to be heated by turning-on the microwave oven. With the lapse of time, the heated water and cooking materials come to the point of boiling over to overflow on to the base of the cooking compartment 2, as shown in Fig. 3.
The fallen overflow of the water and cooking material run down the declined base to the four guide grooves 2a and then along the also both declined side guide grooves 2a to accumulate in the front guide groove 2a. The overflow reached in the front guide groove 2a is discharged through the discharge openings 2b to be received by the receiving vessel 4 provided under the space of the front guide groove 2a.
The receiving vessel 4 slidably mounted in the guide flange 3 by its web 4a can be easily dismantled therefrom, so that the user can do away with the accumulated overflow therein on demands and then slide it into the guide flange 3 to remount it. The supporting flange 9 formed opposite to the guide flange 3 prevents the inserted receiving vessel 4 from moving forward.
In another embodiment of the invention, it is of course possible that the discharge openings are provided in all of the four guide grooves 2a or in one or more of them, not restricted to the front guide groove 2a as in the above-described embodiment. At this time, the receiving vessel(s) 4 is(are) correspondingly disposed under the microwave oven 1.
The receiving vessel 4 may also have different constructions from the illustrated embodiment, for example a front drawing out and pushing back mechanism in the mounting, an application of discharging tubes extended from the discharge openings 2b to an exterior receiving vessel.
As stated above, the equipment according to the invention enables overflow, flooded over from the cooking ware in cooking to be run down along the bottom sides of the cooking compartment 2 to the receiving vessel 4 under the microwave oven 1, so that the cooking compartment 2 keeps clean and the overflow can no longer be scorched or burnt.

Claims

An equipment for discharging overflows in a microwave oven (1) with a cooking compartment (2) and a tray (8) supporting a cooking ware (5) in the cooking compartment (2), comprising:
- a bottom of said cooking compartment (2) declined from a middle to sides except for the region of said tray (8);

- guide grooves (2a) formed along said bottom sides to receive fluid materials;

- at least a discharge opening (2b) formed downwards in said guide groove (2a) and leading to outside of said cooking compartment (2);

- receiving means (4) provided under said cooking compartment (2) covering said discharge opening (2b) to receive said fluid materials therethrough; and

- a supporting means (3, 9) formed under said compartment (2) for supporting said receiving means (4).
An equipment according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said guide grooves (2a) is deeper than the others.
An equipment according to claim 2, wherein said guide groove (2a) with said discharge opening (2b) is deeper than the others.
An equipment according to claim 2 or 3, wherein said guide grooves (2a) running down to said deeper guide groove (2a) are declined toward said deeper guide groove (2a).
An equipment according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said discharge opening (2b) has an inner diameter less than 1 cm.
An equipment according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the supporting means consist of a set of guiding flanges (3, 9).
An equipment according to claim 6, wherein said receiving means (4) is supported slidably at said guiding flanges (3, 9).