GB2312152A - Kettle with lid-controlled switching device - Google Patents

Description

2312152 WATER KETTLE WITH LID-CONTROLLED SWITCHING DEVICE The present

invention relates to a water kettle.

When the user of a water kettle forgets to close the lid of the kettle after filling of the water vessel several disadvantages can result. On the one hand, steam can escape from the vessel to a substantial degree in undesired manner. On the other hand, if the kettle falls over, hot water can spill out completely unhindered. Moreover, the operation of a steamrespons i ve switching-off device is impaired due to the opened lid because a sufficient quantity of steam is no longer sensed by the device but flows past the device and out of the upwardly open water pot. This leads to an undesired boiling dry of the kettle.

It would thus be desirable to avoid one or more of these disadvantages.

According to the present invention there is provided a water kettle comprising a water vessel, heating means, at least one manually actuable switching device for switching the heating means, and a hinged lid pivotable between a closed setting closing the vessel andanonen.setting opening the vessel and arranged in its open setting to block manual actuation of the switching device.

Thus, when the lid is open, the switching device or actuating means thereof cannot be moved into an on-setting, because it is, for example, covered by the lid. Access to the switching device can be obstructed for the user and/or the actuating means can be mechanically locked in that the lid in the open setting is arranged in the actuating path of the actuating means. After filling of the water vessel with the water, it can be put into operation, i.e. the heating means switched on,,-6,i'y.,After' the user pivots the lid out of the open setting. It is,,'thdreby,-ade certain that the user, before putting the kettle into opp'ration.,.-close. s 2 the lid so that the switching device, if of the steam-responsive kind, can function.

Advantageously, the lid in its open setting actuates the switching device and thereby switches off the heating means. If the switching device was actuated before the opening of the lid and the heating means switched on, the switching device is actuated again by the opening of the lid to be brought into its off-setting and thus switch off the heating means.

In a preferred embodiment, the kettle comprises releasable detent means for retaining the lid in its closed setting and resilient means effective on release of the detent means to pivot the lid against its own weight into the open setting. In this embodiment, faulty operation is almost excluded, because the lid can normally be disposed in only one of two possible settings, one being the closed setting, in which steam can pass in adequate quantity to the switching device, and the other being the open setting, in which switching-on of the water kettle by means of the switching device is prevented by the lid. Intermediate settings are ordinarily excluded by the resilient means, for example a spring. Moreover, spilling-out of boiling water is prevented if the kettle is tipped over.

In order to simplify actuation of the switching device and to keep the actuating force low, the switching device can comprise an on-off rocker switch. In the open setting, the lid can impinge on the switch in such a manner that it is actuated by the lid and the heating means is thereby switched off. It is particularly advantageous if the lid in the open setting bears on the rocker switch and thereby tilts the switch into its off setting. A tilting-back or actuation of the switch into the on - 3 setting is not possible, since the lid mechanically blocks the tilting movement of the switch.

In order to relieve the spring and, if desired, to simplify the blocking of the switching device, the lid in the open setting can assume a substantially vertical position. The lid thus pivots out of a substantially horizontal position, in which it frees the actuation of the switching device into a substantially vertical position, in which it obstructs the actuation of the switching device.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be more particularly described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. la is a schematic view of the upper portion of a water kettle embodying the invention, in which a lid of the kettle is situated in a closed setting; Fig. 1b is a view similar to Fig. la, but in which the lid is situated in an opening setting; Fig. 2 is a plan view of the kettle; Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a switch rocker of the kettle; Fig. 4 is a plan view of a cover part of the kettle; Fig. 5a is a front view of an opening spring of the kettle, showing the spring in an unloaded state; Fig. 5b is a side elevation of the spring in the closed setting of the lid; and Fig. 5c is a side elevation of the spring in the open setting of the lid.

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown a water kettle 1 comprising a water vessel 3, the contents of which are heatable directly 4 or indirectly by means of heating equipment. At its upper rim the vessel 3 has a pouring spout 5 and a handle 7, which are disposed opposite one another. In the transition region between the vessel 3 and the handle 7, a switch rocker 9, which comprises a switching-off key 11 and a switching-on key 13, is formed on the grip. The vessel 3 is closable by a lid 15 with a pouring opening 17 in the region of the pouring spout 5. In Fig. la, the lid 15 is closed, the switching-on key 13 is depressed and the switching-off key 11 projects out of the surface outline of the handle 7. In Fig. lb, the lid 15 is open and projects vertically upwards, the switching-off key 11 is pressed down by the lid 15 and the switching-on key 13 projects out of the surface of the grip 7. According to Fig. lb, the kettle 1 cannot be put into operation for as long as the lid 15 prevents actuation of the switching-on key 13, in that the lid bears on the switching-off key 11. This is explained in more detail below.

According to Fig. 2, the vessel 3 has a rim 19, on which the lid 15 rests in the closed setting. In prolongation of the handle 7, a vapour antechamber 21 projects into the vessel 3. This is open at least downwardly towards the base of the vessel 3 so that steam arising during boiling of water can pass by way of the antechamber 21 and by way of a vapour channel, which is optionally present, to a steam-sensing detector (not shown). This detector switches off the heating equipment when it is exposed to a sufficient quantity of vapour.

The lid 15 is, in correspondence with the vessel 3, formed in substantially circular shape, wherein the region facing the handle 7 is cut out in the shape of a sickle. At this location, two L-shaped arms 24 project away from the lid 15. These extend initially substantially parallelly to the lid and are then bent upwardly at right angles. At their upper ends, the arms 24 each carry a respective bearing spigot 26 for the lid, which spigots extend perpendicularly to the two parts of the arm 24. The lid 15 is mounted by way of the spigots 26 in the region of the handle 7 on the antechamber 27 as described below. An opening spring 28 brings the lid 15 into the open setting according to Fig. 1b whenever a detent device 32 (Fig. 1b), which is retained in the lid 15 and can be of a known kind, has been unlatched by way of a lid-latching handle 30 mounted at the upper side of the lid 15. For example, two mutually opposite spigots of the detent device 32, which are initially retained in depressions (not shown) in the upper region of the rim 19, are drawn into the lid and this is thus unlatched by the actuation of the handle 30.

At the lid 15, the region facing the handle 7 is formed as an abutment edge 34. Two first bearing grooves 38 and, slightly spaced laterally therefrom, two second bearing grooves 42 are formed on ribs 40 on a cover 36 of the antechamber 21. The bearing spigots 26 of the lid are mounted in these grooves 38 and 42. Underneath the cover 36, a projecting step 44 with an opening 46 is formed at each arm 24 along its part extending parallelly away from the lid 15. The spring 28, which is U-shaped, is plugged by two rectilinear portions 48 into this opening 46 and is also plugged onto the spigots 26 of the lid 15 by several spring turns defining cylinder portions 51. A U-shaped bracket 53, which interconnects the two cylinder portions 51, is bent downwardly through about 1800 in the closed setting of the lid 15 (Fig. 1a) so as to extend substantially parallelly to the portion 48. In this loaded state according to Fig. 5b, sufficient energy is stored in the spring 28 to pivot the lid 15 upwardly into the open setting according to Fig. 1b 6 against the own weight of the lid after unlatching by way of the handle 30. The bracket 53 in that case bears against a wall 55 extending vertically towards the base of the vessel 3, whilst the two plugs 48, which are plugged into the openings 46, of the spring 28 are arranged substantially horizontally and perpendicular to the lid 15 in its setting according to Fig. lb. The bracket 53 and the portions 48 are disposed at about a right angle.

The mounting of the lid 15 by means of the spigots 26 is completed by third bearing grooves 57 of a T-shaped cover part 59 (Fig. 4). The cover part 59 has been omitted for reasons of simplification in Fig. 2 and is shown in a plan view in Fig. 4. The bearing grooves 57 together with the bearing grooves 38 and 42 form two bearing openings receiving the spigots 26 of the lid 15. The cover part 59 on the one hand conceals the bearing of the lid 15 and on the other hand the base part of the switch rocker 9. For this purpose, it is set in a grip portion 61 onto a heightened rim 63 thereof and screw-fastened to the handle 7 after the switch rocker 9 has been installed.

The switch rocker 9 is, as stated, composed of the switch-off key 11 and the switch-on key 13 (Figs. 2 and 3). The switch-off key 11 has a first body 65, at the one end portion of which is formed a bearing cylinder 67. Disposed at the opposite end portion is a first bearing arm 69, which has bearing openings 71 at both sides, at and perpendicular to the underside of the first bdy 65. At the upper side of the first body 65, a switching spine 73 extends obliquely upwards and represents a ramp or abutment surface for the abutment edge 34 of the lid 15. In the interior, the body 65 has a bearing pin 75 at which a switch plunger (not shown) for the actuation of the switching device is retained. The T switching-on key 13 has a second body 77, from which two bearing arms 79 extend in fork shape towards the first body 65 of the key 11. The bearing arms 79 embrace the first body 65. The second body 77 is mounted in the bearing openings 71 at the first bearing arm 69 of the first body 65 by way of spigots 81 extending inwardly at an angle towards the arms 79. A respective rocker bearing spigot 82 extends at each of the two sides of the second body 77 parallelly to the bearing cylinder 67 of the key 11 and the spigots 81 of the key 13. Corresponding depressions for receiving the first bearing arm 69 during its movement and a passage opening for the switch plunger (not shown) are provided at a base 83 of the portion 61. Corresponding bearing grooves (not shown) for the cylinder 67 and the spigot 82 are present at the base 83. Similarly, fourth and fifth bearing grooves 85 and 86 are formed at the underside of the cover part 59 for reception of the bearing cylinder 67 and the spigot 82. The keys 11 and 13 project through two openings 87 to different extents from the surface of the cover part 59 in dependence on the respective switch position (Figs. la and 1b).

When the switch rocker 9 is mounted by the cylinder 67 and the spigot 82 in the corresponding bearing grooves between the base 83 of the portion 61 and the underside of the cover part 59, the rocker has two pivot axes, of which the first extends through the cylinder 67 and the second through the spigot 82. By pressure on the key 11, this tilts downwardly by way of the cylinder 67 and the key 13 thereby tilts upwardly (Fig. 1b). The rocker 9 behaves correspondingly in the case of pressure on the key 13. After the unlatching of the lid 15, this pivots into a substantially vertical position by virtue of the energy stored in the spring 28 and the abutment edge 34 of the lid hits the switching spine 73 of the first body 65 of the key 11 and presses this down. The heating equipment of the kettle 1 is switched off, which is indicated by the switching-on key 13 projecting out of the handle 7. In this setting of the lid 15, the key 13 cannot be pressed, since an upward pivotal movement of the key 11 is prevented by the abutment edge 34 disposed thereabove.

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Claims (8)

1. A water kettle comprising a water vessel, heating means, at least one manually actuable switching device for switching the heating means, and a hinged lid pivotable between a closed setting closing the vessel and an open setting opening the vessel and arranged in its open setting to block manual actuation of the switching device.

2. A kettle as claimed in claim 1, wherein the lid is further arranged in its open setting to actuate the switching device for switching-off of the heating means.

3. A kettle as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, comprising releasable detent means for retaining the lid in its closed setting and resilient means effective on release of the detent means to pivot the lid against its own weight into the open setting.

4. A kettle as claimed in claim 3, the resilient means comprising a spring.

5. A kettle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the switching device comprises a rocker switch with an off position and an on position.

6. A kettle as claimed in claim 5, wherein the lid in its open setting bears on the rocker switch and holds it in its off position.

7. A kettle as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the lid in its open position extends substantially vertically with respect to an intended orientation of the kettle in use.

8. A water kettle substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.