EP2359735A2 - Household appliance with door and handle - Google Patents

Abstract

The appliance has a housing (1), and an upper door (2) moved against the housing, and an interior space (4) e.g. cooking space, formed by the housing and the door. A handle (10) with a handle element (11) is arranged at the door and actuates the door. The handle is moved between two positions, and the handle element is arranged in one of the positions at the door closer than another one of the positions. An air space (22) is arranged at the door. The handle is pivoted around a pivoting axis (17), which runs parallel to an outer surface of the door, and comprises a locking plate (21).

Description

Field of the invention

The invention relates to a household appliance having a housing, a door movable relative to the housing, an interior formed by the housing and the door and a handle arranged on the door.

background

Devices of this type are known, e.g. as cooking appliances (such as ovens, steamer, microwave ovens), refrigerators, dishwashers or warming drawers.

On the door, a handle is attached in each case, which has a grip element which is gripped by the user to open the door. However, the handle is often considered in practice for technical and / or visual reasons as disturbing.

There are therefore also known solutions in which the handle is formed by a recess in the door, in which the user engages to open the door. However, this solution is disadvantageous because the recess in the door is expensive to manufacture, takes up space and, especially with a thermally insulating door (such as an oven or a refrigerator), affects the insulation.

Presentation of the invention

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an alternative to a household appliance, in which the handle also does not disturb as possible.

This object is achieved by the household appliance according to claim 1.

Accordingly, the household appliance has a housing and a door movable relative to the housing. From the door and the housing, an interior space is formed, e.g. a cooking space or a laundry room. On the door a handle with a handle element is arranged. To operate the door, the user can grasp the handle element. Further, the handle may be moved between a first and a second position with the handle member being closer to the door in the first position than the second position.

In this way, the handle can be brought to the second position when the user is to grip the grip element. If, on the other hand, the grip element is not needed, the grip can be brought into the first position, where it disturbs less mechanically and optically.

Preferably, in the first position, the handle member is at least partially recessed into the door, e.g. by at least partially inserting it into a recess provided in the door. On the other hand, in the second position, the grip member is spaced from the door so that it can be easily grasped.

In a further preferred variant, an air gap is arranged on or at the door through which air can pass, e.g. to ventilate the interior of the unit or the niche where the unit is located, as needed. The handle can now be designed so that it at least partially closes the air gap in its first position, while in the second position, the air gap less (or in the first position) does not close. In this way, the handle can fulfill two functions, on the one hand as a closure element and on the other hand as a control element.

In an advantageous embodiment, the household appliance further has a drive to transfer the handle, for example automatically (ie without direct user intervention) from the first to the second and / or from the second to the first position. This way the user can For example, when it can or should open the device.

The present idea can basically be applied to a wide variety of household appliances, e.g. for appliances whose interior is heated, e.g. in cooking appliances (ovens, steamer, etc.), dishwashers or in devices for heating dishes. Further, it is suitable e.g. also for refrigerators or dishwashers.

Brief description of the drawings

• Fig. 1 einen Schnitt durch einen Backofen,
• Fig. 2 eine erste Ausführung eines beweglichen Griffs,
• Fig. 3 eine zweite Ausführung eines beweglichen Griffs,
• Fig. 4. eine dritte Ausführung eines beweglichen Griffs,
• Fig. 5 eine vierte Ausführung eines beweglichen Griffs und
• Fig. 6 eine fünfte Ausführung eines beweglichen Griffs mit Antrieb.

Further embodiments, advantages and applications of the invention will become apparent from the dependent claims and from the following description with reference to FIGS. Showing:

• Fig. 1 a section through an oven,
• Fig. 2 a first embodiment of a movable handle,
• Fig. 3 a second embodiment of a movable handle,
• Fig. 4 , a third embodiment of a movable handle,
• Fig. 5 a fourth embodiment of a movable handle and
• Fig. 6 a fifth embodiment of a movable handle with drive.

Ways to carry out the invention EXAMPLES

Fig. 1 shows an oven with a housing 1, on which two doors 2, 3 are arranged.

The upper door 2 is pivotally mounted about a horizontal axis on the housing 1 and forms with the housing 1 together a first interior 4 in the form of the muffle of the oven. The muffle is in a known manner with a heater (not shown) equipped with the food can be heated.

The lower door 3 is formed by the front panel of a drawer 6 held in the housing 1. The second door 3 forms with the housing 1 a second interior space 7, which accommodates the inserted drawer 6. Advantageously, the second internal space 7 is also heatable with a heater, e.g. for heating dishes.

Both doors 2, 3 will be in Fig. 1 shown in both closed and (dashed) in at least partially open position.

At both doors 2, 3, a handle 10 is arranged. This handle possesses, as dotted in Fig. 1 shown, two possible positions. In the following, the handle 10 of the door 2 will be described in detail with reference to various embodiments. It should be noted that the handle 10 of the door 3 can be constructed in the same way and that, as mentioned above, doors with handles of this type can also be used in other household appliances.

A first embodiment of the handle 10 is shown in FIG Fig. 2 shown. In this embodiment, the handle 10 has a handle member 11 which can be grasped by the user, and a curved guide member 12, wherein the handle member 11 is arranged on the guide member 12. The guide element is held in a guide, for example consisting of rollers 13a, 13b in the door 2, in such a way that it is movable along a curved path. In this way, the handle 10 can assume a first and a second position, wherein the first position in Fig. 2 in solid lines and the second position are shown in dashed lines.

In the first position, the handle member 11 is at least partially recessed in a recess 14 in the door 2. By the handle 10 shown in dashed lines second position is transferred, the handle member 11 exits from the recess 14 and comes to rest in a spaced position from the door 2, where it can be easily grasped by the user.

In the first execution after Fig. 2 the handle is substantially pivotable about an axis 17, which runs parallel to the outer surface 18 of the door. With horizontally extending handle element 11, this axis 17 preferably also extends horizontally.

Also in the second version after Fig. 3 the handle 10 is pivotable about an axis 17 extending parallel to the outer surface 18 of the door. In this embodiment, the handle 10 is pivotally mounted thereto in a pivot bearing 20 on the door 2. He in turn has a handle member 11 which forms the first leg of an L-profile in this case. The second leg of the L-profile is attached to the pivot bearing 20 and also forms a closure plate 21st

In the in Fig. 3 shown in solid lines with the first position of the handle 10, the handle member 11 comes to rest in a recess 14 of the door 2 and is approximately perpendicular to the outside 18 of the door 2 arranged. The closure plate 21 runs approximately parallel to the outer side 18 and comes to lie over an air gap 22 which runs along the upper edge 23 of the door 2. Thus, the handle 10 at least partially closes the air gap 22 in the first position. The air gap 22 is connected to the interior 4 and / or other parts of the device. Preferably, the household appliance has a blower, with which air can be blown through the air gap 22.

In the in Fig. 3 shown with dashed lines the second position of the handle 10, the handle member 11 comes to rest outside the door 2 at a distance from the door, so that it can be easily taken. It runs approximately parallel to the outside 18. The closure plate 21 is now however approximately perpendicular to Outside 18 and releases the air gap 22, so that more air can flow through the air gap.

As the execution Fig. 3 can be removed, the pivot axis 17 is preferably parallel to the air gap 22, so that the air gap during pivoting of the handle 10 can be released over its entire length.

In the Fig. 4 The embodiment shown is similar to that according to Fig. 3 in that the handle 10 can be pivoted about a pivot axis 17 in a pivot bearing 20. The handle member 11 is connected via a curved bracket 24 with the pivot bearing 20. In the first position (in Fig. 4 drawn in a solid line), the grip element is in turn in a recess 14 of the door 2, while in the second position (in Fig. 4 shown in dashed lines) spaced from the door 2 is.

In the in Fig. 5 As shown, the handle 10 has first and second legs 30 and 31, respectively. A first end 30a of the first leg 30 and a first end 31a of the second leg 31 are movable, in particular pivotable, connected together. The opposite second ends 30b and 31b of the two legs 30, 31 are each pivotally connected to the door 2, in each case pivotable about pivot axes 33 which extend parallel to the outer surface 18 of the door 2 and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the legs 30, 31 , Further advantageously, at least one of the second ends 30b, 31b is movably connected to the door 2, so that it can be displaced in a direction 32 perpendicular to the axes 33 and parallel to the outside 18 of the door 2.

The thus configured handle 10 can, as in Fig. 5 shown, in a first position (shown in solid) and a second position (shown in phantom) are brought, wherein the internal angle α between the legs 30, 31 in the first position of the handle is greater than in the second position. In the Execution after Fig. 5 is the inner angle α in the first position about 180 °, ie, the two legs 30, 31 parallel to each other and the surface 18 of the door 2. In the second position, the inner angle α, for example 140 °, so that the first ends 30a, 31a form a spaced from the door 2 handle member 11, where the user can grip the handle 10.

Another version is in Fig. 6 shown. This is similar to those after Fig. 3 built, but with two differences.

On the one hand schematically a spring element 36 is shown, which extends between the door 2 and the handle 10. It is arranged so that the elastic energy stored in it has two minima, namely in the first and the second position of the handle, while being stretched elastically at the transition between these two positions. In this way, the handle is held bistable in the first or second position.

On the other hand, an electric drive 37 is provided, for example in the form of an electromagnet. In the present embodiment, this drive is used to transfer the handle 10 from the first to the second position. For this purpose, the drive 37 is equipped with a rod-shaped actuator 38 in the region of the outer edge 23 of the door 2. The actuator can be actuated by the drive and cooperates with the handle 10 to move it. In the execution after Fig. 6 For this purpose, a nose 39 is provided on the handle 10, against which the actuator 38 can be pressed from above to deflect the handle as far from the first position that it is then transferred by the spring 36 in the second position.

In the execution after Fig. 6 For example, the drive 37 may well transfer the handle from the first to the second position, but not from the second to the first position. Thus, by operating the drive 37, the user may be indicated that the door is now open can be. Further, the device can open the air gap 22 automatically when needed. The transfer of the handle back to the first position is done manually by the user in this embodiment.

In the embodiment shown, the drive 37 is arranged on the housing 1. This has the advantage that no cables for the drive in the door 2 must be placed. In addition, it is particularly advantageous in ovens to accommodate any electrical components in the door, since there can prevail relatively high temperatures. It is also conceivable, however, an arrangement of the drive in the door.

The operation of the handle with a drive can also be done in other ways. For example, the drive can act directly on the pivot axis of the handle.

Further, the drive may also be configured to transfer the handle from the second to the first position or to reciprocate between both positions.

Remarks:

The described grip element 11 of the handle is located in the first position of the handle 10 close to or in the door 2, while in the second position it is spaced from the door 2. In this way, the handle 10 of the door 2 can be cleared out of the way when not in use.

Furthermore, in the manner described above, an air gap arranged on or in the door 2 can be at least partially closed by the handle. This creates a smoother surface and, in addition, air exchange in the air gap can be affected by operating the handle.

The handle can, as mentioned, be operated manually or by motor. For manual operation, the handle can eg by pulling, pressing or a combination of these activities are moved back and forth between the two positions.

Is a drive, i. a motor control, provided, this can either be designed so that it can transfer the handle only from the first to the second position, or only from the second to the first position, or in both directions. If the drive can only move the handle in one direction, the user will move in the other direction. There may be detent mechanisms or spring mechanisms to fix the handle in one or both of the positions and / or to assist movement in one or the other direction.

With motor control, the device can be advantageously designed so that it automatically brings the handle when needed from the first to the second position. For this purpose, the device may e.g. be equipped with a presence sensor, with which the presence of a user can be detected. The presence sensor is preferably an approach or touch sensor on an optical, capacitive or inductive basis. If the presence of a user detected with the presence sensor, the handle is transferred from the first to the second position. If the user moves away again, the handle can be brought back into the first position.

Preferably, the handle in the first and second positions is self-restrained, ie it remains in the respective position when neither the user nor any drive exerts a force on him. A self-locking of this kind can eg by spring elements (see. Fig. 6 ), magnetically and / or realized by a latching mechanism. In addition, the handle is preferably bistable, ie it is only in the first and the second position, but not inhibited in between.

The grip element 11 may be relatively far away from the door 2 in the second position, in particular further than in a conventional solution with a fixed grip element. Thus, the handle can be taken well, and also in any hot door (oven), the risk of injury is reduced.

An air gap 22 of the type described above is particularly useful in ovens, as well as dishwashers, where it can be used to extract moisture from the tub during the drying phase.

The door may have a locking mechanism, e.g. from the movement of the handle from the first to the second position can be unlocked. In another advantageous embodiment, however, the door does not have a locking mechanism or, although it has a locking mechanism, but the handle is movable between the first and the second position without actuation of the locking mechanism.

While preferred embodiments of the invention are described in the present application, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto and may be embodied otherwise within the scope of the following claims.

Claims (16)

Domestic appliance comprising a housing (1), a door (2, 3) movable relative to the housing (1), an interior formed by the housing (1) and the door (2, 3) and one on the door (2, 3) Handle (10) having a handle element (11) for actuating the door (2, 3), characterized in that the handle (10) between a first and a second position is movable, wherein the handle member (11) in the first position closer on the door (2, 3) is arranged as in the second position. Domestic appliance according to claim 1, wherein on or at the door (2, 3) an air gap (22) is arranged, and wherein the handle (10) in the first position, the air gap (22) at least partially closes and in the second position, the air gap (22) less or not closing. Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the handle (10) about a parallel to an outer surface (18) of the door (2, 3) extending pivot axis (17) is pivotable. Domestic appliance according to claims 2 and 3, wherein the handle (10) has a closure plate (21), wherein the closure plate (21) in the first position in the region of the air gap (22) to lie and not in the second position, and wherein the handle element (11) and the closure plate (21) are pivotable together about the pivot axis (17) and the pivot axis (17) extends parallel to the air gap (22). Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the handle (10) has a curved guide element (12) on which the handle element (11) is arranged, wherein the guide element (12) in a guide (13a, 13b) in the door (2 , 3) is movably held along a curved path. Household appliance according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the handle (10) has a first and a second leg (30, 31), wherein a first end (30a) of the first leg (30) movable with a first end (31a) of the second leg (31), and wherein a second end (30b) of the first leg (30) and a second end (31b) of the second leg (31) are pivotally connected to the door (2, 3), and wherein an interior angle ( α) between the legs (30, 31) in the first position of the handle (10) is greater than in the second position of the handle (10),
and in particular wherein at least one of the second ends (30b, 31b) is pivotally and movably connected to the door (2, 3). Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims, with a drive (37) for transferring the handle (10) from the first to the second and / or from the second to the first position, and in particular wherein the drive (37) on the housing (1). is arranged. Domestic appliance according to claim 7, wherein the drive (37) has an actuator (38) in the region of an outer edge (23) of the door (2, 3), which is actuated by the drive (37) and with the handle (10) for moving the Handle (10) cooperates. Domestic appliance according to one of claims 7 or 8, wherein with the drive (37) of the handle (10) is convertible from the first to the second position, but not from the second to the first position. Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the door (2, 3) relative to the housing (1) is pivotable, in particular about a horizontal axis. Domestic appliance according to one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the door (2, 3) on a in the housing (1) held drawer (6) is arranged. Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the handle element (11) in the at least partially recessed into the door (2, 3) and spaced apart from the door (2, 3) in the second position. Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims with a heater for heating the interior, and in particular wherein the household appliance is a cooking appliance, a dishwasher or a device for heating dishes. Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims with a presence sensor for detecting the presence of a user, in particular a proximity or touch sensor, wherein the household appliance is configured to transfer on detection of the presence of the user, the handle (10) from the first to the second position. Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the door (2, 3) has no locking mechanism or
Although the door (2, 3) has a locking mechanism, but the handle (10) is movable between the first and the second position without actuation of the locking mechanism. Domestic appliance according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the handle (10) in the first and the second position self-inhibited, in particular bistable, is.

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