GB2453730A

GB2453730A - Domestic appliance

Info

Publication number: GB2453730A
Application number: GB0720146A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Peter David Gammack; David Campbell
Original assignee: Dyson Technology Ltd
Current assignee: Dyson Technology Ltd
Priority date: 2007-10-16
Filing date: 2007-10-16
Publication date: 2009-04-22
Also published as: WO2009050423A1; GB0720146D0

Abstract

A domestic electrical appliance, for example, a toaster, a kettle, a beverage maker, television, DVD or CD player, comprises a base 50 having a lower surface 52 shaped to define a channel 70 for receiving and storing a mains cable of the appliance. The channel 70 comprises a plurality of openings 74, 76, 78 located about the peripheral surface of the base 50 and from a selected one of which the cable may extend from the base, a first portion 80 for retaining a length of the cable, and a second portion 82 for guiding the cable from the first portion 80 to a selected one of the openings 74, 76, 78. The openings 74, 76, 78 and the second portion 82 of the channel 70 are shaped to enable part of a mains cable of another appliance to be located within the channel 70 to reduce the amount of that cable which is exposed, for example, on a work counter. The present invention also provides domestic equipment comprising a fist and second domestic appliance, each having a different function. The openings located about the bases of one of the appliances may be aligned with an opening on the base of one of the other appliances. This allows the mains cables of appliances arranged back-to-back or side-to-side to be located wholly beneath the appliances before extending form a single opening in the base of one of the appliances towards a bank of sockets.

Description

Domestic Appliance The invention relates to a domestic electrical appliance. Particularly, but not exclusively, (he invention relates to a worktop, or free standing, domestic electrical appliance for the preparation of foodstuffs.

Domestic electrical appliances for the preparation of foodstuffs, which term includes both food and drink, have a wide range of different shapes and sizes. Whilst common colours, materials and/or styling features may be applied to appliances by manufacturers in order to distinguish their appliances from those of other manufacturers, each appliance tends to have a conventional shape. For example, kettles are traditionally in the form of either a jug or a dome, having a lid, a handle for lifting the kettle, arid a spout from which hot water is poured from the kettle. Toasters, on the other hand, are traditionally in the form of a box having a curved upper surface in which slots are located for inserting bread slices into the toasting chambers, and side surfaces accommodating control features such as a timer and a bread ejector.

A user will generally leave the more frequently operated appliances, such as toasters and kettles, on a work counter when they are not in use so as to avoid the inconvenience of storing these appliances between uses. Due to their various different shapes and sizes, these appliances can not be closely packed together on the counter, resulting in an amount of wasted counter space between the appliances which can not be used for other purposes, such as food preparation. It is also common practice to leave a "footprint" around each appliance so that handles and control features can be readily accessed, which can further reduce the amount of available counter space.

Each appliance has a mains cable connected to an electrical plug for supplying power to the appliance. For convenience, a user will tend to leave the mains cables of those appliances which are left on a counter connected to one or more banks of sockets, resulting in various lengths of cables trailing over the work counter. In addition to further reducing the amount of usable counter space, these exposed cables can pose a safety hazard. For example, dragging an item across a work counter could result in a mains cable of an appliance being accidentally caught by the item and pulled across the counter, which could cause the appliance to fall over and spill its contents over the counter.

It is an aim of at least the preferred embodiment of the present invention to seek to solve these and other problems.

The present invention provides a domestic electrical appliance comprising a base having a lower surface shaped to define a channel for receiving and storing a mains cable of the appliance, the channel comprismg a plurality of openings located about the periphery of the base and from a selected one of which the cable may extend from the base, a first portion for retaining a length of the cable, and a second portion for guiding the cable from the first portion to a selected said opening, and wherein the openings and the second portion of the channel are shaped to enable part of a mains cable of another electrical appliance to be located within the channel.

Allowing part of a mains cable of another electrical appliance to be arranged within the channel of the base reduces the amount of that cable which is exposed, for example on a The first portion of the channel preferably extends about a hub around which the cable may be wound, and preferably comprises a plurality of catches for holding the wound cable. This enables a chosen length of cable to be stored within the base to optimise the length of cable extending from the opening.

The plurality of openings preferably comprises at least three openings. In the preferred embodiment, a first opening is located on a first side of the base, and a second opening is located on a second side of the base opposite the first side and substantially opposite the first opening. A third opening may be located on a third side of the base which extends between the first and second openings, and which is located adjacent the rear surface of the housing. The third opening is preferably located mid-way between the first and second sides of the base The base may be either integral with or attached to the lower surface of a housing of the appliance. In the preferred embodiment the base comprises a plate attached to the lower surface of the housing and having a thickness no greater than 20 mm, more preferably no greater than 10 mm.

The appliance may be for the preparation of foodstuffs. The expression "preparation of foodstuffs" as used here includes dispensation, processing, heating and cooking of food and/or drink. An appliance for the preparation of foodstuffs preferably comprises one of a juice extractor, a toaster, a beverage maker, a hot water dispenser, a kettle and a coffee grinder.

Alternatively, the appliance may have a function which is other than for the preparation of foodstuffs. Examples of such an appliance include an audio/visual appliance, such as a television, a display screen, a radio, a DVD player or a CD player, a clock, a loudspeaker, a steriliser, or a drinks cooler.

The present invention also provides domestic equipment comprising a first domestic electrical appliance and a second domestic electrical appliance each as aforementioned and having a respective different function. The openings are preferably located about the bases of the appliances to enable the appliances to be juxtaposed on a support surface so that an opening of the base of one of the appliances is aligned with an opening of the base of one of the other appliances. This allows the mains cables of appliances arranged back-to-back, or side-to-side, to be located wholly beneath the appliances before extending from a single opening in the base of one of the appliances towards a bank of sockets.

The base of each appliance preferably comprises connecting means for connecting that appliance to the other appliance so that an opening of the base of that appliance is aligned with an opening of the base the other appliance. The connecting means preferably comprises a connector which is moveable relative to the base between a stowed position in which it does not protrude beyond the base, and a deployed position in which it is connectable to the base of another appliance. In the preferred embodiment the connector is pivotally moveable relative to the base, but alternatively it may be transversely moveable relative to the base. A manually-operable catch or other retaining element may be provided for retaining the connector in the stowed position.

The connecting means further comprises means for retaining a deployed connector of another appliance. In the preferred embodiment the retaining means comprises a profiled portion of the base shaped to receive a deployed connector of another appliance.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first arrangement of domestic equipment according to the invention; Figure 2 is a plan view of the lower surface of the base of an appliance of the equipment of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a perspective view of part of the lower surface of the base of Figure 2, showing the connector in a stowed position; Figure 4 is a plan view of the lower surfaces of the bases of two connected appliances of the equipment of Figure 1; Figure S is a plan view of the lower surfaces of the bases of two appliances of the equipment of Figure 1 arranged back-to-back; Figure 6 is a perspective view of a second arrangement of domestic equipment according to the invention; Figure 7 is a perspective view of a third arrangement of domestic equipment according to the invention; Figure 8 is a perspective view of a fourth arrangement of domestic equipment according to the invention; and Figure 9 is a perspective view of a cupboard storing domestic equipment according to the invention.

Figure 1 illustrates an example of domestic equipment 10 according to the invention.

The equipment 10 comprises a plurality of free standing, domestic electrical appliances.

Whilst the equipment 10 may comprise any number of two or more appliances, in the illustrated example the equipment 10 comprises three appliances 12, 14, 16.

At least two of the appliances 12, 14, 16 are for the preparation of foodstuffs, and may comprise a respective one of a juice extractor, a toaster, .a beverage maker, a hot water dispenser, a kettle and a coffee grinder so that each appliance has a respective different function. In the example illustrated in Figure 1, the first appliance 12 is a beverage dispenser and the second appliance 14 is a toaster. The third appliance 16 may also be for the preparation of foodstuffs. Alternatively, the third appliance may have a function other than the preparation of foodstuffs. For example, the third appliance 16 may be one of an audio/visual appliance, such as a television, a display screen, a radio, a DVD player or a CD player, a clock, a loudspeaker, a stenhiser, and drinks cooler. In the example illustrated in Figure 1, the third appliance 16 is a radio.

Each of the appliances 12, 14, 16 comprises an outer housing 18 generally in the shape of cuboid, or right parallelepiped. Each housing 18 has two side surfaces 20 and, extending between the side surfaces 20, an upper surface 22, a front surface 24, a rear surface 26 and a lower surface (not shown). Each of the upper, front and rear surfaces 22, 24, 26 is substantially flat. Whilst the edges between adjoining surfaces of each housing 18 may be chamfered, it is preferred that the radius of each chamfer is less than 1 mm, preferably around 0.75 mm.

One or more of the surfaces of the housing 18 may comprise a door or a lid which is moveable between a closed position, in which it is flush with the remainder of that surface, and an open position in which a user may access internal components of the appliance. For example, the first appliance 12 may include a panel rotatably or slidably mounted on its upper surface 22 for allowing a user to introduce ingredients to the first appliance 12, and the second appliance 14 may have a hinged front surface 24 for allowing a user to introduce products to be toasted to the second appliance 14.

Alternatively, or additionally, part of the housing 18 may be shaped to define one or more apertures. In this example, the front surface 24 of the first appliance 12 includes an aperture 28 through which a retractable dispensing spout may selectively extend, and the upper surface 22 of the second appliance 14 includes an aperture 30 through which steam and/or heat may be emitted from the housing 18 during use. A series of holes may be formed in the front surface 24 of the third appliance 16 for emitting sound from that appliance 16.

A control panel 32 for controlling the operation of the appliance 12, 14, 16 is located in a recessed portion of the upper surface 22 of each housing 18. To maintain the flatness of the upper surface 22 of the housing 18, the control panel 32 is sized and shaped to fit in the recessed portion of the upper surface 22 so the upper surface of the control panel 32 is substantially flush with the upper surface 22 of the housing 18. In this example, each control panel 32 comprises a plurality of user operable buttons 34 for controlling the operation of the appliance 12, 14, 16. Alternatively, or additionally, the control panel 32 may comprise a touch-sensitive screen providing a user interface for controlling operation of the appliance 12, 14, 16.

The housings 18 of the appliances 12, 14, 16 are substantially of the same height and same depth. The height of the appliances 12, 14, 16 is preferably in the range from 250 to 300 mm, and the depth of the appliances 12, 14, 16 is preferably in the range from to 230 mm. In this example, the appliances 12, 14, 16 are substantially of the same width, which is preferably in the range from 120 to 180 mm. However, one or more of the appliances 12, 14, 16 may have a different width than the others.

As illustrated in Figure 1, shaping the housings 18 of the appliances 12, 14, 16 in this manner enables the equipment 10 to be arranged in a row on a work counter 40 with contiguous side surfaces 20 and with no wasted counter space between, in front of or behind the appliances 12, 14, 16. The common shape for the housings 18 also enables the appliances 12, 14, 16 to be arranged in a row on a work counter 40 with not only substantially flush and co-planar upper surfaces 22, but also with substantially flush and co-planar front surfaces 24, and substantially flush and co-planar rear surfaces 26, allowing a user to quickly and easily wipe clean these surfaces.

The appliances 12, 14, 16 may be connected together in the configuration illustrated in Figure 1 to prevent one of the appliances from becoming displaced from its alignment with the other appliances, for example during cleaning or use, or accidentally. The appliances 12, 14, 16 may be connected together in one of a number of different ways.

For example magnets may be used to connect the side surface 20 of one appliance to an opposing side surface 20 of another appliance. Alternatively, the side surfaces 20 of the housings 18 may be formed or otherwise provided with complementary interlocking features.

In this example, each appliance 12, 14, 16 comprises a base 50 carrying a connector for connecting that appliance to one of the other appliances so that, when those appliances have been connected together, the upper, front and rear surfaces 22, 24, 26 of the housings 18 of those appliances are respectively co-planar. Each base 50 is in the form of a rectangular plate connected to the lower surface of the housing 18, and having a thickness of no greater than 20 mm, more preferably no greater than 10 mm. In this example, the base 50 has a thickness of around 8 mm. The base 50 is preferably shaped so that when it is connected to the housing 18, the long side surfaces 51 a, 51 b of the base 50 are each substal)tially flush with a respective side surface 20 of the housing 18, short side surface Sic of the base 50 is substantially flush with the rear surface 26 of the housing 18, and short side surface 5 Id of the base 50 is substantially flush with the front surface 24 of the housing 18.

Figure 2 illustrates the lower surface 52 of the base 50 of each appliance 12, 14, 16.

The lower surface 52 is shaped to have a raised periphery 54 for contacting the surface, for example counter 40, upon which the appliance 12, 14, 16 is placed. Female connectors 56 may be provided towards the corners of the lower surface 52 for receiving optional feet (not shown) for contacting the counter 40, for example if the counter 40 is uneven and the appliance 12, 14, 16 would otherwise undesirably rock if placed on that surface. The feet may be screwed into the female connectors 56 to provide the user with the ability to adjust the relative positions of the feet, through rotation thereof, so that the upper surface 22 of the housing 18 is substantially horizontal when the appliance is located on the counter 40. The feet preferably have a height of no more than 5 mm so that the periphery 54 of the base 50 is only slightly raised above the surface of the counter 40 by the feet.

A connector 58 for connecting the base 50 to the base of an adjacent appliance is located towards the long side surface 51 a of the base 50. Whilst in this example the connector 58 is d-shaped, the connector 58 may take any one of a number of different shapes. The connector 58 is moveable between a stowed position in which it does not protrude beyond the base 50, and a deployed position in which it is connectable to an adjacent appliance. Figures 2 and 3 illustrate the connector 58 in its stowed position, in which the connector 58 is located within a first recessed portion 60 of the lower surface 52 of the base 50 so that the connector 58 does not protrude either above the raised periphery 54 or beyond the side surface Sla of the base SO. A retaining member 62 integrally formed with the base 50 has a lug 64 for releasably retaining the connector 58 in its stowed position.

In this example, the connector 58 is connected to the base 50 so that it is pivotally moveable about an axis extending substantially parallel to, and displaced inwardly from, the side surface 51 a of the base 50. To release the connector 58 from its stowed position, a user presses against the lug 64 of the retaining member 62 with one finger to move it away from the connector 58. Simultaneously, using another finger hooked beneath a profiled rim 66 of the connector 58 the user rotates the connector 58 clockwise about the axis to move the connector 58 out from the first recessed portion 60 of the base 50. In this example, the connector 58 is rotated clockwise through approximately 180° to move it from its stowed position to its fully deployed position.

The base 50 is also shaped to retain a deployed connector 58 of the base 50' of an adjacent appliance, as illustrated in Figure 4. In this example the base 50 has a second recessed portion 66 located towards the other long side surface Sib of the base 50 for receiving a deployed connector 58 of another appliance. The second recessed portion 66 includes a centrally located protrusion 68 about which the connector 58 of the adjacent appliance is locatable, and which preferably forms an interference fit with the connector 58 to releasably retain the connector 58 in its deployed position. The second recessed portion 66 is positioned on the base 50 so that, as mentioned above, when two of the appliances 12, 14, 16 have been connected together the upper, front and rear surfaces 22, 24, 26 of the housings 18 of those appliances are respectively co-planar.

When connected together, these two appliances preferably also have substantially parallel and contacting opposing side surfaces 20 so that there is substantially no gap between the appliances within which dirt and grease may accumulate.

Returning to Figure 2, the lower surface 52 of the base 50 is further shaped to define a channel 70 for receiving and storing the mains cable (not shown) of the appliance 12, 14, 16. The mains cable extends from the lower surface of the housing 18 into the channel 70 through an aperture 72 located towards the centre of the base 50.

The channel 70 comprises a plurality of openings located about the periphery 54 of the lower surface 52 of the base 50 and through a selected one of which the mains cable may extend from the base 50 when the appliance 12, 14, 16 is located in an upright position on the work counter 40. The relatively small size of the optional feet discussed above prevents the mains cable from otherwise protruding from the base 50 between two of the openings. In this example a first opening 74 is located on long side surface 51 a of the base and a second opening 76 is located on long side surface Sib of the base 50. As discussed in more detail below, the second opening 76 is located substantially opposite the first opening 74 so that when two appliances are connected together as illustrated in Figure 4, the first opening 74 of base 50 is aligned with the second opening 76 of base 50'. A third opening 78 is located on short side surface 51c of the base 50, preferably mid-way between the long side surfaces 5 la, 51 b of the base 50 so that when two similar sized appliances are positioned back-to-back with flush side surfaces 20, the third openings 78 of the bases 50, 50' of these two appliances are aligned, as illustrated in Figure 5. Further openings may be provided as required.

20. The channel 70 has a first portion 80 for retaining a length of the mains cable, and a second portion 82 for guiding the cable from the first portion 80 to a selected one of the openings 74, 76, 78. The first portion 80 of the channel 70 extends, about a hub 84 located adjacent to the aperture 72 through which the main cable enters the channel 70, and about which a selected length of the cable may be wound. The base 50 is preferably formed with a number of sets of co-operating catches 86 for retaining the wound cable within the first portion 80 of the channel 70. In this example the second portion 82 of the channel 70 is substantially 1-shaped to extend from the first portion 80 of the channel 70 to each of the three openings 74, 76, 78.

The openings 74, 76, 78 and the second portion 82 of the channel 70 are sized to enable part of a mains cable of another electrical appliance to be located within the channel 70.

in this example, the openings 74, 76, 78 and the second portion 82 of the channel 70 are sized to enable the channel 70 to accommodate parts of at least three additional mains cables each extending from a respective appliance. For example, in the arrangements illustrated in Figures 4 and 5 in which the opening of one base is aligned with the opening of another base, the mains cables of the two appliances may be arranged within the channels 70 of the bases 50, 50' so that both cables extend from the appliances through a common one of the openings 74, 76, 78 of base 50. This sizing of the channel of each base permits the mains cables of a number of juxtaposed appliances to be arranged wholly beneath the appliances before extending from a single opening in the base of one of the appliances towards a bank of sockets.

Returning to Figure 1, the equipment 10 may optionally include a water tank 100 for supplying water to at least one of the appliances, in this example the first appliance 12.

The water tank 100 has an outer housing 102 substantially of the same height and depth as the housings 18 of the appliances 12, 14, 16. This enables the water tank 100 to be positioned alongside the appliances 12, 14, 16 so that it blends in seamlessly with the appliances 12, 14, 16, that is, with the front, upper and rear surfaces of the water tank flush with the corresponding surfaces 22, 24, 26 of the appliances 12, 14, 16.

The flat surfaces of the housings 18, 102 enable the equipment 10 to be positioned in a variety of different arrangements. As illustrated in Figure 1, the flat side surfaces 20 allow the equipment 10 to be arranged in a row with substantially flush upper and front surfaces 22, 24. The flat rear surfaces 26 allow the equipment 10 to be juxtaposed in a back-to-back arrangement as illustrated in Figure 6 with substantially flush upper surfaces 22. Figure 7 illustrates a similar arrangement to that of Figure 6 in which a water tank 100 is located between two of the appliances of the equipment 10, for example between a hot water dispenser and a beverage dispenser, for supplying water to both of these appliances. The flat upper surfaces 22 of the equipment 10 enable one appliance to be positioned at least partially on top of one of the other appliances. For example, Figure 8 illustrates an arrangement in which one row 103a of appliances is located partially on top of another row 103b of appliances. A support member 104 is located behind the lower row l03b of appliances to support the upper row 103a of appliances. The control panel 32 of each appliance is preferably on the upper surface 22 towards the front surface 24 to enable a row 103a of appliances to be located partially beneath another row I 03b of appliances, or partially beneath a shelf, cupboard or other item, without obscuring the control panels 32 of the appliances.

The shape of the equipment 10 also facilitates storage of the appliances when not in use.

As illustrated in Figure 9, the appliances may be arranged on a shelf of a wall cupboard in a configuration which makes optimum use of the available space, for example with no wasted storage space above or in front of the appliances.

The invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described in detail above.

Various modifications can be made to the details of the equipment shown in the attached figures without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims

I. A domestic electrical appliance comprising a base having a lower sw-face shaped to define a channel for receiving and storing a mains cable of the appliance, the channel comprising a plurality of openings located about the peripheral surface of the base and from a selected one of which the cable may extend from the base, a first portion for retaining a length of the cable, and a second portion for guiding the cable from the first portion to a selected said opening, and wherein the openings and the second portion of the channel are shaped to enable part of a mains cable of another electrical appliance to be located within the channel.
2. A domestic appliance as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first portion of the channel extends about a hub around which the cable may be wound.
3. A domestic appliance as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first portion of the channel comprises a plurality of catches for holding the wound cable,
4. A domestic appliance as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the plurality of openings comprises at least three openings.
5. A domestic appliance as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the plurality of openings comprises a first opening located on a first side of the base, and a second opening located on a second side of the base opposite the first side and substantially opposite the first opening.
6. A domestic appliance as claimed in claim 5, wherein the plurality of openings comprises a third opening located on a third side of the base which extends between the first and second openings.
7. A domestic appliance as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the base has a thickness of less than 20 mm, preferably of less than 10 mm.
8. A domestic appliance as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, the appliance being for the preparation of foodstuffs.
9. A domestic appliance as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the appliance is one of a juice extractor, a toaster, a beverage maker, a hot water dispenser, a kettle and a coffee grinder.
10. A domestic appliance as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the appliance is one of a television, a display screen, a radio, a DVD player, a CD player, a clock, a loudspeaker, a steriliser, and a drinks cooler.
11. A domestic appliance substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.
12. Domestic equipment comprising a first domestic electrical appliance and a second domestic electrical appliance each as claimed in any one of the preceding claims and having a respective different function.
[3. Domestic equipment as claimed in claim 12, wherein the openings are located about the bases of the appliances to enable the appliances to be juxtaposed on a support surface so that an opening of the base of one of the appliances is aligned with an opening of the base of one of the other appliances.
14. Domestic equipment as claimed in claim 13, wherein the base of each appliance comprises a connector for connecting that appliance to the other appliance so that an opening of the base of that appliance is aligned with an opening of the base the other appliance.
15. Domestic equipment as claimed in claim 14, wherein the connector is moveabte between a stowed position and a deployed position in which it is connectable to the other appliance.
16. Domestic equipment as claimed in claim 14 or claim 15, wherein the base of each appliance comprises a portion shaped to receive the connector of the other appliance.
17. Domestic equipment as claimed in any of claims 12 to 16, wherein the base of the first appliance is substantially identical to the base of the second appliance.
18. Domestic equipment substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.