KR101144855B1 - The apparatus of giving temperature information using bimetal switch - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention is coupled to a cooking vessel or roasting plate and a frying pan, or mounted on the appliance coupled to the cooking vessel to display the heating state of the container suitable for cooking, the user grasps the temperature state of the container, safe to use from the image The present invention relates to a temperature range display device capable of saving energy by maintaining a temperature state suitable for cooking and preventing overheating. Temperature detection is achieved by using a bimetal switch, and the bimetal switch is manufactured to withstand high temperatures between 200 degrees and 400 degrees, and can be manufactured at a low cost by simplifying a conventional complicated structure and apparatus. It is a device that provides the user with the temperature condition discontinuously according to the preset useful temperature range. The display of the temperature range is indicated through the color of the LED, and a separate pictogram unit is used to easily indicate the temperature range to the user or to display the temperature range information using the company's logo or brand image. will be.

Description

Temperature range display device using bimetal for high temperature {The apparatus of giving temperature information using bimetal switch}

The present invention is coupled to a cooking vessel or roasting plate and a frying pan, or mounted on the appliance coupled to the cooking vessel to display the heating state of the container suitable for cooking, the user grasps the temperature state of the container, safe to use from the image The present invention relates to a temperature display device capable of saving energy by maintaining a temperature state suitable for cooking and preventing overheating. Temperature detection is performed using bimetal switches, which are designed to withstand high temperatures between 200 and 400 degrees, providing non-experts to the user by discontinuously providing the temperature of the vessel to a user according to a preset useful temperature range. The present invention relates to a simplified display device for simplifying the user to easily recognize the state of a cooking container and by directly connecting the bimetal to a display unit using an LED.

By providing a user with temperature information such as various cooking vessel heating plates, cooking chambers, and fried oil, many devices have been released to allow a user to select a temperature suitable for cooking at the time of manual cooking to create an optimal dish. They do not differ greatly from the concept of a normal thermometer, and the signal from the sensor unit composed of various temperature sensors is analyzed by the signal processor to express it as a digital value to convey the temperature information using the display unit. Mainly attach thermistor or thermocouple sensor to the heating plate to process the resistance change and generated electromotive force signal according to the temperature change and use it for auto cooking or to display the information mainly for the user during manual cooking. Efforts have been made to mount such display devices on various cooking-related appliances as known from Korean Utility Model Registration No. 0391155, but few products have been commercialized due to the limitation of the price and the complexity of the products.

As known in Korean Patent No. 200273172, a product that can be manufactured integrally with a frying apparatus such as a frying thermometer in a cooking vessel or attached integrally to a frying tongs can check the temperature of frying oil at any time. Patent 20027766 discloses a technique for displaying a temperature at the bottom side of a cooking vessel by mounting a power unit, a sensor unit, a signal processing unit, and a display unit in a frying pan. In Korean Utility Model Registration No. 20-0274258, a temperature sensor, a circuit, and an alarm buzzer are installed on the handle of the cooker, and when the container reaches a preset temperature, the cooker generates an alarm sound to induce the cooker to be uncontrolled.

Recently, the use of electric grills has also been released, a product for controlling the temperature of the heating plate has also been released, the content of the independent separation of the heating plate is known in the Patent No. 100648005, published by the present applicant improved the patent application 2011-46753 In this way, the temperature control is used to independently control each part of the grill heating plate to provide the user with temperature information of each part to provide convenience for the user to perform various dishes at one time.

These products include all the signal processing procedures received from the sensor unit, and the related parts and PCBs are essential, so there is an economic problem to mount them on low-cost products, and thus they are mainly installed only on expensive products. In the case of a novice cooker lacking the concept of for not having enough advantage of the transmitted temperature information.

Representative example of the low temperature product by providing limited temperature information to the user by using a simplified device or material is a color change paint in the center of the frying pan. Many products are sold on the market to help determine the frying pan's heat. Registered Utility Models 20-0345534 and 20-0356388 are known for handles for kitchen containers equipped with discoloration paint. This is attached to one side of the kitchen vessel using a color conversion film or color change paint that changes color according to a known temperature, or attached to the handle to be an indicator of the frying pan temperature. However, in the state of the art, the discoloration paint has a disadvantage in that it is not carbonized by the repetition of the temperature change or cover a wide range of temperature changes. Actually, the product sold in the market is equipped with a discoloration paint at the center of the cooking vessel, and the product that changes color at about 130 degrees can only display the degree that the container has started to be heated. In Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2006-0045645, one bimetal is mounted on a cooking handle part to adopt a method of displaying temperature in an analog manner by using a degree of bending of the bimetal according to a temperature change. However, analogue display of a wide range of temperatures from 70 degrees, which is the actual warming temperature to 250 degrees, suitable for high-temperature cooking, with a guide needle on one bimetal is almost impossible to manufacture, and the user can simply look at the scale It is very difficult to clearly determine the temperature state of the vessel. [0003] The present application discloses an apparatus and a method for setting a temperature range useful for cooking and providing only a specific temperature information to a user by using a bimetal switch adapted to the temperature range. This device also has a separate control unit, and commercially available bimetal switches that operate at more than 200 degrees for displaying the temperature range are generally very expensive. Thus, a device that provides temperature information using a bimetal switch at high temperatures is simple in structure but priced. This is an expensive disadvantage.

In general, bimetal switch is mainly used as a switch for protecting a hot air balloon, similar to the contents of Korean Patent Publication No. 1994-10135, and serves to block a current when a certain temperature or more is reached. A switch structure that plays a protective role of various functions by using a plurality of bimetals and a plurality of contact parts in one switch structure is known in various forms in Korean Patent Registration No. 1991-7299 or 10-0773865. However, most of these bimetal switches are made of high-current products, and very low resistance contacts such as silver are required between the bimetal and the contact part, so cleaning of the contact part is also very important, and it is relatively expensive. It is not generally used at high temperature because the plastic material that is operated at 150 degrees or less is generally used for the bonding part with insulation property, and it is difficult to form and assemble when joining using ceramics. As a result, imported products are sold at high prices.

The present invention has been invented to compensate for the above drawbacks, and by using the low-cost bimetal switch that can be operated at high temperature and greatly simplified the apparatus of the Patent Publication No. 2011-52606 by the applicant, it is possible to attach to a low-cost high-temperature cookware The object is to provide a display of possible temperature ranges. In other words, by using a LED display device combined with a single high-temperature bimetal switch, the controller is simplified to omit the temperature state of the cooking vessel corresponding to a temperature range useful for preset cooking. will be.

In addition, according to an embodiment of the present invention by converting the conventional commercially available low-temperature bimetal switch to a high temperature by using a coating metal binder, it can be used even in an environment of 200 degrees or more, and reconfigured to meet the low-voltage low current specifications It is an object of the present invention to provide a plurality of temperature range display devices with low cost products using the single bimetal switch.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a single bimetal switch is used to determine a temperature section having a significant meaning and divides it by sections, and simply uses the color of the LED so that the user can easily recognize the temperature distribution display in each section. It is an object of the present invention to provide a temperature range display device that provides a temperature information or displays using a few pictograms so that the user can cook in an optimal container state.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, the display device displays a temperature section that can additionally obtain a visual brand image advertising effect by using a company logo or an advertising logo on the top of the light by using various color changes of the LED according to the temperature section. The object is to provide a device.

In order to achieve the above object, the temperature range display device according to the present invention includes a power supply unit for supplying power to a system, an LED display unit for displaying different colors according to a temperature section by receiving power from the power supply unit, and directly connecting the LED display unit. It is composed of a bimetal switch unit in contact with the temperature measurement target to perform the on-off operation according to a predetermined temperature section.

The LED display unit is mounted on a simple PCB consisting of only a resistor and LED, the bimetal switch unit is a bi-metal unit that changes the displacement according to the temperature and the contact portion for each color connected to the LED of the LED display unit expressing each color and the It consists of a bimetal part and an assembly part which mechanically couples each said contact part. The LED display unit may be composed of a plurality of LEDs having each color, or may be composed of a single LED that can represent RGB tricolor, and a pictogram indicating the current temperature state on the LED, or expressing a manufacturer's trademark. It may include a pictogram for advertising effects.

The bimetal part is composed of a cantilevered bimetal having one or more free ends. The bimetal part is coupled to each contact part made of copper or a copper alloy, an assembly part for fixing them, and a body according to a temperature change. And each of the contact parts are in contact with each other to make the LED blink. The assembly portion is made of a metal material suitable for high temperature, and forms a coating portion on the surface for electrical insulation.

The temperature range display device according to the present invention transmits the main temperature range of the cooking vessel to the user through the LED display using a color or a visually easy pictogram of the LED, so that the user can easily grasp the state of the cooking vessel. It is possible.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the cooking vessel user can prevent burn accidents due to involuntary contact by grasping the temperature state of the container, and the user can save money from the waste of unnecessary energy due to overheating and to cook. Appropriate energy use is possible.

The bimetal switch used in the temperature range display unit according to the present invention can be used at high temperature, its production is simple and suitable for low voltage switch, and various LED colors can be flickered using one switch, so that the switch can be reduced in cost and miniaturized. Therefore, there is an advantage of the cost reduction and miniaturization of the entire system.

Advertising LED display unit provided in the display device according to the present invention has the advantage that the user can maximize the brand advertising effect of the product or company by visual brand recognition effect as well as temperature section information recognition.

1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a conventional general temperature display device.
2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a temperature display device according to the present invention.
3 is an example of a multi-contact bimetal switch according to the related art.
4 is an embodiment of a multi-contact bimetal switch in accordance with the present invention.
Figure 5 is an embodiment of a bimetal switch using a combination portion according to the present invention.
6 is a structural diagram of a bimetal switch according to an embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a circuit diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In order to achieve the above object will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 illustrates a general temperature sensing and display system according to a conventional invention as described above, and is typically generated from a temperature sensor 1 and a temperature sensor 1 in which a thermistor or thermocouple is used. The control unit 2 receives a change in resistance or a change in electromotive force to process a signal, a temperature display unit 3 mainly expressing a current temperature state by numbers, and a power supply unit 4 supplying driving power. This configuration can inform the user of the correct temperature, but in reality it is very difficult in terms of price and structural mounting to be mounted on low-cost kitchen products. 2 is a block diagram according to the present invention for providing a minimum temperature information to the user to compensate for this disadvantage, the bimetal switch unit 5 using a bimetal that provides only the minimum temperature information to the temperature sensor 1 ), The control unit 2 is removed, and the temperature display unit 3 uses the LED display unit 6 to exclude the numerical approach and express only the color of the LED. The power supply unit 4 is composed of a battery having a minimum DC voltage for driving the LED display unit 6, and a battery of 1.9V or more is usually used. The LED display unit 6 may use a method of expressing the temperature section simply by changing the color of the LED, but by providing a pictogram unit 7 on the front surface of the light emitting LED to provide the current temperature section information in a simple picture, or the temperature It is also a preferred embodiment to insert a company's logo or brand image separately from the section information so that the user can have an advertising effect.

The core component of the embodiment according to the present invention having such a simple configuration is the bimetal switch unit 5 which operates at a high temperature and can transmit different contact signals by operating according to a temperature section, which basically has a displacement depending on temperature. The bimetal part 11 and the fixed contact part 12 which change is comprised. Figure 3 shows a bimetal switch according to the conventional invention shows an example of a product having a multi-contact point as in the embodiment according to the present invention. The bimetal parts 11 and 11 'are bent in contact with the temperature change so as to be in contact with the fixed contact parts 12 and 12' so that the switch is connected to or above a specific temperature or vice versa. In addition, the movable contacts 13 and 13 'mounted on the upper ends of the bimetal parts 11 and 11' and the fixed contacts 14 and 14 'mounted on the upper ends of the fixed contact parts 12 and 12' are directly connected to each other. In electrical contact, most bimetal switches are used as protectors to prevent accidents caused by short circuits and overheating, so most are made of a material such as silver with extremely low resistance for high current specifications. Most commercial protective switches do not use the bimetal continuous displacement as shown in the figure, but use the buckling phenomenon according to the temperature of the bimetal so that the movable contact and the fixed contact are instantaneously combined at a predetermined temperature or more. This is to reduce the contact resistance to a minimum. The construction of contacts using these expensive materials leads to an increase in parts prices, which makes it impossible to combine with low-cost kitchen appliances. Since the bimetal switch part according to the present invention uses a low voltage of 3 V or less intrinsically, the movable contact 13 and 13 'and the fixed contact 14 and 14' are not used to remove the switch, thereby simplifying and reducing the cost of the switch. Can be achieved.

FIG. 4 is an embodiment of the bimetal switch unit according to the present invention of the bimetal switch unit 5 for expressing the structure of FIG. 3 using two bimetals using two different color LEDs. The fixed contact portion 12, 12 is provided with only the embossed convex movable contacts 15, 15 'which are all removed from the contacts 13, 13' and the fixed contacts 14, 14 'and pressed using their own materials. Contact with ') and temperature change. Such electrical contact in high voltage high current applications is incomplete and risks of sparking, but applications in applications such as the present invention appear as a change in brightness of fine LED lights, making it applicable to commercial products. In addition, according to the embodiment of the present invention of Figure 4, the length of each bimetal is made different so that the two switches operate at different preset temperatures.

In the switch unit shown in FIG. 3, the assembly unit 18 serves to electrically insulate and mechanically couple the respective contact units using plastic or epoxy. Conventional commercial products have an application temperature limit of 150-200 degrees Celsius, which is a phenomenon inherent in the material limit of the assembly portion 18. However, a common kitchen vessel is possible at a cooking temperature of 200 degrees or less, but the temperature of the company 200-300 degrees can be reached from time to time due to the user's fault. Therefore, it is very difficult to apply the conventional commercialized products directly, and the high temperature products shown as a special specification use a structure in which the joining unit 18 is formed of a high temperature material such as ceramic and bonded using a special high temperature adhesive. Doing. Thus, the process is complicated and the materials are expensive, creating a price that is several times that of a bimetal switch operating at ordinary low temperatures.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view and a side view of the bimetal switch unit 5 according to the embodiment of the assembly unit 18 according to the present invention. The material is a ductile material and uses a material such as inexpensive aluminum. The surface of 18) is coated with an insulating paint for insulation or fluorine coated well with a metal, and the bimetal parts 11 and 11 'and the fixed contact parts 12 and 12' are shown in the sectional view on the left side of FIG. Is inserted into the space between the assembly portion 18 and pressed at a constant pressure to be mechanically coupled using the plastic deformation of the assembly portion 18. The bimetal switch portion 5 for low voltage and low current using such a simple structure, a low cost material, and a simple process can be manufactured, and economical and high temperature application is possible. Since the thickness between the bimetal parts 11 and 11 'and the fixed contact parts 12 and 12', which is a variable deeply related to the setting of each temperature section, is determined by the thickness of the coupling part 18, the actual temperature section The setting of is determined by the length of the bimetal parts 11 and 11 '. It is also possible to adjust the height of the embossing, which is a convex movable contact (15, 15 '), but this is deeply related to the electrical stability, it is preferable to set the temperature range by adjusting the length.

FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of the bimetal switch unit 5 according to the present invention, in which a single bimetal unit 11 and two contact units 20 and 21 are manufactured in a stacked manner to form an assembly 18. It is sectional drawing of the bimetal switch part 5 assembled using. In the case of using the LED display part 6 using three colors, it is obvious that additional contact parts should be installed. Referring to the operation in the left figure of FIG. 6, the bimetal part 11 is bent upward as the temperature rises and comes into contact with the first contact part 20 at a constant temperature, and the first contact part according to the temperature increase continues. 20 is in contact with the second contact portion 21 and is completely on. The length of the first contact portion is made relatively short as shown in the right side of FIG. 6 according to the temperature section design so that the bimetal portion 11 according to the temperature increase that continues after the bimetal portion 11 contacts the first contact portion 20. It is also possible to make direct contact with the second contact portion 21. Various lamination methods are apparent to those skilled in the art. However, in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention, all the contact portions between the metals having the extremely low resistance are treated with the convex portions having the embossing structure, and when the single bimetal is used, the bimetal portions 11 are connected to the first contact portions 20. Since the contact causes contact with the second contact portion 21 with slight friction between the two metals, the elastic modulus of the first contact portion 20 is preferably very small. In addition, since it is not desirable to bend the friction further and have a lot of displacement after the contact with the second contact portion 21, it is preferable that the second contact portion 21 has a very high elastic strength. . Preferably, the first contact portion 20 uses beryllium copper having a thin thickness and a narrow structure, and the second contact portion 21 preferably uses brass or aluminum, which is an economical material. The setting of the temperature section is determined by the lengths of the bimetal part 11 and the first contact part 20.

The temperature of the connection between the first contact portion 20 and the bimetal portion 11 is preferably 80 to 100 degrees, and this temperature is preferably used to prevent burns or to indicate that the cooking vessel is preheated. When using two contacts, the connection temperature of the second contact portion 21 and the bimetal portion 11 is preferably 180 to 200 degrees. The temperature is the upper limit temperature at which most of the cooking is performed, and thus there is no need for heating, and thus the temperature section is displayed to indicate that it is overheated. In addition, the installation of the contact portion is for informing the information of the temperature section, it is usually preferable to set the 130 ~ 160 degrees and 160 ~ 180 degrees.

The LED display unit 6 according to the present invention is composed of an LED and a resistor capable of displaying two or three colors having different colors, and are directly connected to the bimetal switch unit 5 and the power supply unit 4, and thus, a bimetal switch. According to the operation of the bimetal part 11 of the unit 5, the LED is driven on and off to express different colors according to the temperature section. During the operation, the second contact portion and the bimetal portion (at a certain temperature or more) even when the second bimetal portion 11 and 11 'are separated as shown in FIG. 4 and the single bimetal portion 11 as shown in FIG. When 11) is in contact with the switch, the first contact part is also in contact with the bimetal part 11 to be in the switched on state. For example, when the first temperature section is expressed in green and the second temperature section is expressed using the red LED, the green LED also comes in when the red LED is in the state. Therefore, the user sees a color close to orange, which is a mixed color. This phenomenon can be solved by the difference in the internal resistance between each LED and by setting a separate resistance value.

FIG. 7 is a simplified circuit diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention and shows an embodiment represented in two colors for two temperature sections. The reason why it is possible to drive using a single resistor 30 as shown in the figure is that when the first contact portion 20 of the bimetal switch portion 5 is turned on, the green of the LED display portion 6 is first turned on. Will be. When the second contact portion 21 is turned on while the first contact portion 20 is turned on due to the temperature rise, both the red and green LEDs are electrically turned on. Due to the difference in brightness of each color according to the difference and the current difference, the red LED appears to be lit, and the green color is almost invisible. Of course, it is obvious to those skilled in the art to set and manufacture each resistor in each LED in a conventional manner, and the present embodiment using a single resistor makes it possible to manufacture an extremely simple and inexpensive temperature range display device. . In general, when expressing three temperature ranges using a single LED with all three RGB colors, there are some differences depending on the LED manufacturer, but it can be configured with one or two resistors.

The pictogram unit 7, which is a component of the present invention, uses a light emitted from the LED when the temperature range is simply displayed using only the color of the LED. It is desirable to indicate the temperature condition. Various pictures according to low temperature, medium temperature, and high temperature can be used, and various LED colors and pictures can be combined in consideration of design to provide a display effect suitable for cooking vessels attached with temperature information. In particular, in another embodiment, when the pictogram unit 7 contains contents such as a logo or a brand of a manufacturing company, the user may have an effect as a visual advertisement machine displaying various colors according to temperature change.

The structure and type change of the bimetal switch unit according to the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and if the contents of the combination and the assembly structure are the same, it will be regarded as belonging to the scope of the present invention. It will be seen that all of the contents of the present invention.

1-Temperature sensor 2-Control unit
3-Temperature display 4-Power supply
5-bimetal switch part 6-LED display part
7-pictogram part 11,11 '-bimetal part
12,12 '-Fixed contact 13,13'-Movable contact
14,14 '-Fixed contact 15,15'-Convex movable contact
18-assembly part 20-first contact part
21-2nd contact part 30-resistance

Claims (8)

In the temperature range display device mounted on a cooking vessel or a device mounted on the cooking vessel to grasp the temperature information of the cooking vessel and display it to the user,
The temperature information is classified into several useful sections, and the bimetal switch unit having a plurality of contact parts for obtaining the temperature information, the LED display unit connected to the bimetal switch unit and emitting light of different colors according to the temperature section, and the current are adjusted. It consists of a power supply for supplying resistance and power to
The bimetal switch part is composed of a single bimetal and a plurality of contact parts, and by using a metal bonded part coated with an electrical insulator, the single bimetal and the plurality of contact parts are laminated on the joined part and plastic deformation is performed by applying a constant pressure to the joined part. Temperature display device characterized in that the bimetal and the contact portion is fixed. delete The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of contact parts of the bimetal switch unit are connected to the LEDs of each color of the LED display unit, and by connecting the respective contact parts in sequence by the drive of the single bimetal to represent different colors. Temperature range display device. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a pictogram unit is installed on the front surface of the LED display unit so that the user can easily know the temperature section information through a simple figure or picture as well as the LED color. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a company logo or a brand image unit is installed in front of the LED display unit to convey temperature section information through LED colors as well as display a brand advertisement effect to a user. The temperature of claim 1, wherein the resistance has a single resistance, and when the LEDs having multiple colors are turned on at the same time, the brightness of each color is determined by using the internal resistance of the LEDs. Segment display. The method of claim 1, wherein the thickness of the bimetal switch is determined by the thickness of the metal assembly portion, the thickness between the bimetal and the contact portion and the contact portion and the contact portion thickness, and the first temperature section is determined by the length of the bimetal and the first contact portion, Temperature section display device characterized in that determined by the length of the contact portion and the contact portion. The display unit of claim 1, wherein the display of the temperature section is divided into two sections, a cooking conformation section and a heating section, wherein the cooking conformation section is set to 100 degrees or more and 200 degrees or less, and the overheat section is set to 200 degrees or more. Temperature range display device characterized in that to provide the user with temperature information using two colors of.

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