EP4579135A1

EP4579135A1 - A steam oven with humidity control

Info

Publication number: EP4579135A1
Application number: EP24208658.5A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Funda ERDEM; Gunay KARDAS; Deryanur KALKAVAN; Filiz CELIK; Mehmet Marasli
Original assignee: Arcelik AS
Current assignee: Arcelik AS
Priority date: 2023-12-26
Filing date: 2024-10-24
Publication date: 2025-07-02

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cooking device (1) comprising a cooking chamber (3) which is defined by first and second side walls, a rear wall, a top wall (2), a bottom wall and a door; a user interface (5) which is configured to enable the user to select the degree of dryness of the foodstuff and/or the degree of doneness of the foodstuff; a control member (6) which is responsive to the user interface (5) and which is configured to control the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) in line with an algorithm including the determined degree of doneness and/or degree of dryness of the foodstuff; and a chimney group having a chimney orifice (7.2) which directly opens to the cooking chamber (3), a covering member (7.3) which moves on the chimney orifice (7.2) so as to control the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) and which enables the opening of the chimney orifice (7.2) to be adjusted and a vertically or horizontally movable movement driver (7.3) which provides the movement of the covering member (7.3) on the chimney orifice (7.2) with the command received from the control member (6).

Description

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a cooking device structure which can dynamically adjust the internal cooking balance and the golden-brown color of the bottom/top surface of the foodstuffs to be baked.

State of the Art

The amount of humidity in the cooking chamber of the oven is a very important parameter for the cooking processes performed in the oven. Too much or insufficient humidity in the oven causes problems in the quality of the cooked foodstuff. The humidity should be controlled in order to achieve the most suitable cooking performance, texture and image quality, especially in pastries. In order for the dough to rise properly, the environment should be humid, and then the humidity should be removed so that the dough does not soften and collapse.
The humidity in the oven is also affected by the movement of humidity emitted from the foodstuff to the environment. The humidity is also a determinant of the baking speed. In case the humidity is low, the water in the foodstuff is released from the foodstuff more quickly, thus making the baking and drying of the foodstuff faster. By considering this effect of humidity, the foodstuff can be baked with the desired sensory properties. The humid environment also keeps the surface of the foodstuff moist, which increases the flexibility of the upper surface, thus achieving a more uniform and homogeneous rise.
While the humidity in the oven during the baking process has its benefits, these benefits can also have negative consequences towards the end of the process which adversely affect the quality of the foodstuff. Especially in crusty foods such as bread, if the environment continues to have high humidity after the crust forms on the outer surface, the crust may soften and lose its crispy texture, and the bread rising during the baking process may collapse and lose its volume.
The humidity in the oven is largely caused by the water evaporating from the foodstuff baked in the oven. In order for the dough to rise and bake while maintaining the form, it needs to maintain its elasticity, which can be achieved by keeping the oven interior humid. Therefore, it is important to keep the oven interior humid, especially in the first minutes, during the baking process in the oven. When the humidity is low, the crust of the dough forms quickly, hardens and limits the rise. However, when the surface temperature of the dough exceeds the dew point temperature, the drying begins. After this stage, the humidity in the oven does not affect baking much. In order to obtain a shiny crust, it is important that the oven interior is humid only in the first phases of the baking process. Moreover, in another example, in processes such as drying in the oven, ensuring that humidity is removed quickly from the foodstuff enables the drying process to speed up and more water to be released from the foodstuff in unit time.
However, the humidity evaporating from the surface of the foodstuff removes the heat from the foodstuff and makes the foodstuff colder than the ambient temperature. This may cause the baking process to slow down in pastries.
Considering the problems encountered in the state of the art explained above, there is a need for a cooking device which provides baked foodstuffs with optimum quality by controlling the humidity in the cooking chamber, keeping the cooking chamber humid when the baking process needs humidity and removing the humidity when no humidity is needed.

Brief Description of the Invention

The aim of the present invention is the realization of an oven which can control the oven chimney and the humidity value in the oven by using the cooking function and food type data as input.
Another aim of the present invention is the realization of an oven which can control the discharge of humidity in the oven and thus prevent the quality losses encountered in the foodstuff due to high humidity in the oven and provide higher volume cooking without drying the foodstuff to be cooked.
Another aim of the present invention is the realization of an oven which reduces energy consumption.
Said figures are:

Figure 1: is the inner perspective view of a cooking device.
Figure 2: is the view of the chimney group.
Figure 3: is the view of the chimney orifice and the covering member.
Figure 4: is the schematic view of block diagram of a cooking device.

The following numerals are referred to in the description of the present invention:

1. Cooking device
2. Upper wall
3. Cooking chamber
4. Casing
5. User interface
- 5.1 Screen
- 5.2 Selection member
- 5.3 Storage
6. Control member
7. Chimney group
- 7.1 Movement driver
- 7.2 Chimney orifice
- 7.3 Covering member
  - 7.31 Hole
  - 7.32 Cover
- 7.4 Gearwheel
- 7.5 Gear bearing
8. Temperature sensor
9. Humidity sensor
10. Timer

Detailed Description of the Invention

The cooking device (1) the present invention comprises a cooking chamber (3) which is defined by first and second side walls, a rear wall, an upper wall (2), a lower wall and a door.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a user interface (5) having at least one screen (5.1) and at least one selection member (5.2) for displaying user interface windows and receiving one or more inputs from the user and a memory (5.3), and a control member (6) which is in direct communication with the user interface (5). In an embodiment of the present invention, the screen (5.1) comprises menus which enable the user to select the type of foodstuff to be cooked, which automatically adjust the temperature and cooking time depending on the foodstuff type selection and which are recorded in the memory (5.3). In an embodiment of the present invention, a cooking time and/or cooking temperature selected by the user can also be entered manually by means of at least one selection member (5.2). In other embodiments of the present invention, the selection member (5.2) can be a button, a touch-sensitive screen or a keypad to provide additional inputs by the user. In an embodiment of the present invention, the screen (5.1) is a touch screen for displaying graphical user interfaces and receiving inputs. In an embodiment of the present invention, additional touch-sensitive buttons are provided next to the screen (5.1). In particular, it is not required to integrate the user interface (5) into the cooking device (1) and/or the control member (6). In some embodiments, the user interface (5) is physically separate from the cooking device (1) and communicates with the cooking device (1) wirelessly, for example using a communication protocol such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, near-field communication (NFC), etc. Such a remote user interface (5) can be a dedicated user interface (5) or a user interface (5) function implemented on a mobile communication device, for example a smartphone, tablet, etc.
In at least some embodiments, the user interface (5) provides the user with a plurality of selection options for selecting the desired degree of doneness, the desired degree of dryness and, preferably, the type of foodstuff to be cooked in the cooking device (1). The user interface (5) comprises a first set of options (S 1) for the desired degree of doneness of a given foodstuff. These options are provided, but not limited to, as "LIGHT", "MEDIUM" and "DARK". The user interface (5) further comprises a second set of options (S2) for the desired degree of drying of a given foodstuff. These options are provided, but not limited to, as "SOFT" and "CRISPY". However, the sets (S1) and (S2) and the options may be named differently and/or may be offered in different numbers.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the user interface (5) is in communication with a control member (6) which configures a preset control algorithm wherein the doneness degree and/or drying degree of the foodstuff to be cooked determined by the user are parameters and which is configured to control the cooking device (1) in line with this algorithm. The control algorithm may also comprise at least one of the foodstuff type determined by the user and the cooking type of the foodstuff to be cooked which is determined by the user.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the preset control algorithm may be fixedly coded to the control member (6). Alternatively, in an embodiment of the present invention, the control member (6) may be in communication with the memory (5.3). Any suitable type of memory (5.3) wherein the preset control algorithm is stored is in the form of a lookup table from which the control member (6) obtains the control parameters for the cooking device (1) based on the information determined by the user by means of the user interface (5). The control member (6) may be implemented in any suitable manner. The control member (6) may be implemented in one or more specialized hardware devices, for example, embodiment-specific integrated circuits, microcontrollers, etc., or at least in part, in software on a general-purpose processor embodiment in the cooking device (1).
In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) may comprise a timer (10), which, although shown as a separate component, may form, in some embodiments, part of the control member (6), which provides the control of the operating time where the cooking chamber (3) is heated and the humidity is regulated in line with a preset algorithm with parameters.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a cooking chamber (3) which is defined by first and second side walls, a rear wall, a top wall (2), a bottom wall and a door; a user interface (5) which is configured to enable the user to select the degree of dryness of the foodstuff and/or the degree of doneness of the foodstuff; a control member (6) which is responsive to the user interface (5) and which is configured to control the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) in line with an algorithm including the determined degree of doneness and/or degree of dryness of the foodstuff; and a chimney group having a chimney orifice (7.2) which directly opens to the cooking chamber (3), a covering member (7.3) which moves on the chimney orifice (7.2) so as to control the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) and which enables the opening of the chimney orifice (7.2) to be adjusted and a vertically or horizontally movable movement driver (7.3) which provides the movement of the covering member (7.3) on the chimney orifice (7.2) with the command received from the control member (6). Thus, the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) is dynamically controlled, and the desired doneness degree and foodstuff dryness degree can be provided for the selected foodstuff.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a chimney orifice (7.2) which is positioned on the upper wall (2) and which is directly connected to the cooking chamber (3); a covering member (7.3) which is positioned on the chimney orifice (7.2) so as to completely cover the chimney orifice (7.2), which moves in a circular manner and which has holes (7.31) in a circular form and positioned at a certain distance from each other with different diameters; and at least one movement driver (7.1) which moves vertically in connection with the covering member (7.3) and which changes the position of the covering member (7.3) on the chimney orifice (7.2).
In an embodiment of the present invention, the movement driver (7.1) is a valve or motor.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a chimney orifice (7.2) which is positioned on the upper wall (2) and which is directly connected to the cooking chamber (3); a covering member (7.3) which moves horizontally on the chimney orifice (7.2) so as to enable the opening of the chimney orifice (7.2) to be adjusted and which completely covers the chimney orifice (7.2); at least one movement driver (7.1) which drives the movement of the covering member (7.3) on the chimney orifice (7.2); at least one gearwheel (7.4) which is connected to the movement driver (7.1) and which transmits the movement received from the movement driver (7.1); and a gear bearing (7.5) whereon the gearwheel (7.4) moves, which is at least partially connected to the covering member (7.3) and which provides the horizontal movement of the covering member (7.3).
In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a control member (6) which runs the control algorithm including the parameters of the duration of opening or closing the chimney orifice (7.2) and/or the opening area of the chimney orifice (7.2) adjusted by means of the covering member (7.3) and/or the duration for which the chimney orifice (7.2) is desired to remain open or closed, and which is configured to control the chimney group (7) in line with this algorithm.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a cooking chamber (3) having at least one temperature sensor (8) or at least one humidity sensor (9) which is in communication with the control member (6) so as to accurately control the temperature or humidity in the cooking chamber (3) in line with the preset temperature or humidity corresponding to the preferences determined by the user for cooking the foodstuff in the cooking chamber (3).
In an embodiment of the present invention, the control member (6) communicates with the movement driver (7.1) and enables the covering member (7.3) to move on the chimney orifice (7.2), in response to a sensor signal received from the temperature sensor (8) or the humidity sensor (9), for example, in order to reduce the difference between the actual temperature in the cooking chamber (3) obtained from the temperature sensor (8) signal by the control member (6) and the desired temperature in the cooking chamber (3) determined by the preset algorithm with parameters or in order to reduce the difference between the actual humidity value in the cooking chamber (3) obtained from the humidity sensor (9) signal and the desired humidity value in the cooking chamber (3) determined by the preset algorithm with parameters, and thus, the opening of the chimney orifice (7.2) is changed to provide the required doneness degree and/or drying degree and the temperature or humidity in the cooking chamber (3) is adjusted.

1) Manual Adjustment

In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a control member (6) which, in order to control the doneness degree, calculates that a time equal to a% of the t time selected by the user has elapsed if the cooking time t selected by the user by means of a selection member (5.2) on a screen (5.1) is equal to or higher than a predetermined t1 time, or calculates that a time equal to b% of the t time selected by the user has elapsed if the cooking time t is less than a predetermined t1 time, where a% of the t time selected by the user is higher than b% of the t time selected by the user, and which communicates with the movement driver (7.1) so as to move the covering member (7.3) horizontally or vertically on the chimney orifice (7.2) such that the chimney orifice (7.2) opening is equal to A1 units. Thus, the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) is reduced, fully achieving a dynamic humidity control and the desired doneness degree.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a control member (6) which, in order to control the drying degree, calculates that a time equal to c% of the t time selected by the user has elapsed if the cooking time t selected by the user by means of a selection member (5.2) on a screen (5.1) is equal to or higher than a predetermined t2 time, or calculates that a time equal to d% of the t time selected by the user has elapsed if the cooking time t is less than a predetermined t2 time, where c% of the t time selected by the user is higher than d% of the t time selected by the user, and which communicates with the movement driver (7.1) so as to move the covering member (7.3) horizontally or vertically on the chimney orifice (7.2) such that the chimney orifice (7.2) opening is equal to A3 units. Thus, the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) is reduced, fully achieving a dynamic humidity control and the desired drying degree.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the time elapsing as a% of the cooking time t is greater than the time elapsing as c% of the cooking time t. Moreover, the required chimney orifice (7.2) opening for the drying degree A3 units is greater than the required chimney orifice (7.2) opening for the doneness degree A1 units.

2) Automatic Adjustment

In an embodiment of the present invention, the cooking device (1) comprises a control member (6) which, if the humidity value RH received from the humidity sensor (9) is equal to or greater than the humidity value RH1 determined by the user, communicates with the movement driver (7.1) and moves the covering member (7.3) horizontally or vertically on the chimney orifice (7.2) so as to adjust the chimney orifice (7.2) opening to the predetermined values of lowest chimney orifice (7.2) opening area, middle chimney orifice (7.2) opening area and highest chimney orifice (7.2) opening area.

Claims

A cooking device (1) comprising a cooking chamber (3) defined by first and second side walls, a rear wall, a top wall (2), a bottom wall and a door, characterized by a user interface (5) configured to enable the user to select the degree of dryness of the foodstuff and/or the degree of doneness of the foodstuff; a control member (6) responsing to the user interface (5) and configured to control the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) in line with an algorithm including the determined degree of doneness and/or degree of dryness of the foodstuff; and a chimney group having a chimney orifice (7.2) directly opening to the cooking chamber (3), a covering member (7.3) moving on the chimney orifice (7.2) so as to control the amount of humidity in the cooking chamber (3) and enabling the opening of the chimney orifice (7.2) to be adjusted and a vertically or horizontally movable movement driver (7.3) providing the movement of the covering member (7.3) on the chimney orifice (7.2) with the command received from the control member (6).
A cooking device (1) as in Claim 1, characterized by a chimney orifice (7.2) positioned on the upper wall (2) and directly connected to the cooking chamber (3); a covering member (7.3) positioned on the chimney orifice (7.2) so as to completely cover the chimney orifice (7.2), moving in a circular manner and having holes (7.31) in a circular form and positioned at a certain distance from each other with different diameters; and at least one movement driver (7.1) moving vertically in connection with the covering member (7.3) and changing the position of the covering member (7.3) on the chimney orifice (7.2).
A cooking device (1) as in Claim 1, characterized by a chimney orifice (7.2) positioned on the upper wall (2) and directly connected to the cooking chamber (3); a covering member (7.3) moving horizontally on the chimney orifice (7.2) so as to enable the opening of the chimney orifice (7.2) to be adjusted and which completely covers the chimney orifice (7.2); at least one movement driver (7.1) driving the movement of the covering member (7.3) on the chimney orifice (7.2); at least one gearwheel (7.4) connected to the movement driver (7.1) and transmitting the movement received from the movement driver (7.1); and a gear bearing (7.5) whereon the gearwheel (7.4) moves, which is at least partially connected to the covering member (7.3) and providing the horizontal movement of the covering member (7.3).
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized in that the movement driver (7.1) is at least a valve or motor.
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by a control member (6) running the control algorithm including the parameters of the duration of opening or closing the chimney orifice (7.2) and/or the opening area of the chimney orifice (7.2) adjusted by means of the covering member (7.3) and/or the duration for which the chimney orifice (7.2) is desired to remain open or closed, and configured to control the chimney group (7) in line with this algorithm.
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by a cooking chamber (3) having at least one temperature sensor (8) or at least one humidity sensor (9) which is in communication with the control member (6).
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by a control member (6) comparing a sensor signal received from the temperature sensor (8) or the humidity sensor (9) with a predetermined temperature or humidity value and configured to adjust the humidity level in the cooking chamber (3) according to the result of this comparison.
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by the user interface (5) configured to provide the user with a wide range of selection options for the degree of drying and degree of doneness of the foodstuff.
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims characterized by an oven.