WO2012089478A1

WO2012089478A1 - A cooking device comprising a covering member

Info

Publication number: WO2012089478A1
Application number: PCT/EP2011/072147
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mehmet Baris Gocer
Original assignee: Arcelik Anonim Sirketi
Priority date: 2010-12-30
Filing date: 2011-12-08
Publication date: 2012-07-05
Also published as: AU2011351686B2; CN103415744A; AU2011351686A1; CN103415744B; EP2659193B1; ES2557599T3; PL2659193T3; EP2659193A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cooking device (1) comprising an oven cavity (2) wherein the objects to be cooked are placed, a door (3) providing access into the oven cavity (2), an outer panel (4) forming the surface of the door (3) in contact with the outer environment, an inner panel (5) forming the surface of the door (3) in contact with the oven cavity (2) and a frame (6) located between the outer panel (4) and the inner panel (5), at one side of which the outer panel (4) is disposed and at the other side the inner panel (5) so as to be parallel to each other, having profiles with quadrangular cross-sections forming at least three edges of the door (3), one of them being the upper edge, two of them side edges, and where the door (3) thereof is provided to be easily cleaned.

Description

A COOKING DEVICE COMPRISING A COVERING MEMBER

The present invention relates to a cooking device comprising a covering member.

In cooking devices, especially in ovens, doors that provide access into the oven cavity are produced multi-layered, generally double-layered in order to increase the efficiency of heat insulation. Leak-proofing that prevents liquid and dirt transmission at the junctures where the layers forming the door are joined cannot be provided and liquid and dirt passes into the gap inside the door, forming an unfavorable appearance. Since the ovens are generally situated below the counter level, the said problem is mostly observed at the upper surface of the door. While the user works on the counter, liquids may pass to the region where the oven is disposed and dust at the outer environment accumulates mostly at the upper region of the oven. Various door production methods are developed in order to solve this problem.

In the state of the art European Patent Application No. EP1291583, a cooking device is described, comprising a door protection member disposed at the upper side of the door to form the upper surface thereof. The door protection member is adhered to the outer panel from one end and mounted snap-fittingly to the inner panel from the other end. The door protection member has an inclined configuration that decreases from the outer panel towards the inner panel.

In the state of the art European Patent Application EP1726884, a cooking device is described comprising a door composed of two glass panels. In this embodiment, the cooking device comprises a hinge cover that covers the upper side of the panels and that extends from the inner surface of the outer panel towards the inner surface of the door facing the oven cavity.

The aim of the present invention is the realization of a cooking device wherein the door is prevented from easily getting dirty and the external appearance thereof is improved.

The cooking device realized in order to attain the aim of the present invention, explicated in the first claim and the respective claims thereof, comprises a door composed of an inner panel and an outer panel placed at two sides of a frame.

The cooking device of the present invention furthermore comprises a covering member in plate form, covering the upper sides of the inner panel and the frame, thus providing them to be seen as a single surface. The covering member comprises a body forming the upper surface of the door and at least one skirt extending from at least one of the edges of the body not facing the outer panel towards side edges of the frame or the inner panel.

In an embodiment of the present invention, two skirts are provided, that extend from the edges of the covering member coinciding with the side edges of the frame towards the side edges. In this embodiment, when the covering member is placed at the upper side of the door, the skirts apply pressure to the side edges and provide the covering member to be mounted to the door without requiring any connection member.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the covering member comprises the skirt extending towards the inner panel. Thus, liquids and dirt are prevented from entering into between the covering member and the inner panel and ease of cleaning is provided. In a variation of this embodiment, the covering member comprises the skirt extending towards the inner panel together with the skirts extending towards the side edges.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the covering member and the inner panel are fixed to each other and are used as a single piece. In this embodiment, the covering member is adhered to the inner panel from the inner side of the skirt extending towards the inner panel. By means of this embodiment, when being mounted to the frame, the inner panel can be aligned with the upper edge of the frame by the covering member and ease of assembly is provided.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the ends of the skirts that are situated on the inner panel and/or the side edges are inclined. The free edges of the skirt not connected to the body are shaped in an inclined manner so as to soften the transition from the inner panel and/or the side edges to the skirt.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the covering member is produced from stainless steel. Thus, both the covering member is provided to be easily cleaned and also an esthetic appearance is obtained.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a locking mechanism is disposed on the door which provides the inner panel and the outer panel to be detachably mounted to each other. The locking mechanism consists of a recess on the frame and a protrusion on the inner panel. Since the frame is fixed to the outer panel, the protrusion, when snap-fittingly inserted into the recess, provides the inner panel and the outer panel to be fastened to each other. In this embodiment, the covering member is preferably adhered to the inner panel. Thus, while being aligned towards the upper edge of the frame, the covering member aligns the protrusion towards the recess and provides the mounting process to be more easily performed.

By means of the present invention, the esthetic appearance of the cooking device is improved and the door surfaces are provided to be more easily cleaned.

The cooking device realized in order to attain the aim of the present invention is illustrated in the attached figures, where:

Figure 1 – is the schematic view of the cooking device.

Figure 2 – is the exploded view of the door in an embodiment of the present invention

Figure 3 – is the cross-sectional view of the inner panel and the outer panel in an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 4 – is the view of detail A in Figure 3.

Figure 5 – is the sideways view of the door in an embodiment of the present invention

Figure 6 – is the view of detail A in Figure 5.

Figure 7 – is the perspective view of the covering member in an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 8 – is the sideways view of the covering member in an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 9 – is the sideways cross-sectional view of the inner panel and the outer panel while being mounted to each other in another embodiment of the present invention.

The elements illustrated in the figures are numbered as follows:

Cooking device
Oven cavity
Door
Outer panel
Inner panel
Frame
Covering member
Body
Skirt
Locking mechanism
Recess
Protrusion
Slit

The cooking device (1) comprises an oven cavity (2) wherein the objects to be cooked are placed, a door (3) providing access into the oven cavity (2), an outer panel (4) forming the surface of the door (3) in contact with the outer environment, an inner panel (5) forming the surface of the door (3) in contact with the oven cavity (2) and a frame (6) located between the outer panel (4) and the inner panel (5), at one side of which the outer panel (4) is disposed and at the other side the inner panel (5) so as to be parallel to each other, having profiles with quadrangular cross-sections forming at least three edges of the door (3), one of them being the upper edge, two of them side edges (Figure 1).

The frame (6) comprises at least three profiles with quadrangular cross-sections, disposed so as to be perpendicular to each other and joined so as to form a U-form or a quadrangle. The frame (6) is mounted to the outer panel (4) from its inner side. The inner panel (5) is disposed at the other side of the frame (6) so as to be parallel to the outer panel (4). In this case, the portions remaining outside of the profiles forming the side edges of the frame (6) form the side surfaces of the door (3).

The cooking device (1) of the present invention comprises a covering member (7) having a body (8) entirely covering the upper edges of the the frame (6) and inner panel (5) and at least one skirt (9) extending from the body (8) towards the inner panel (5) and/or the side edges. The body (8) of the covering member (7) is placed so as to entirely cover upper edge of the inner panel (5) and the upper edge of the frame (6) which are at the same level. When the door (3) is viewed from above, the upper edges of these two layers and the junctures are not seen, only the body (8) of the covering member (7) can be seen. This provides the cooking device (1) with a more esthetic appearance. Moreover, by forming a single upper surface comprising no layer, dirt accumulating at this region is prevented from entering into between the layers and from making the cleaning difficult and liquid droplets that may spill from the counter are prevented from entering into the door (3) and from causing stains there. (Figure 2)

In an embodiment of the present invention, the covering member (7) comprises two skirts (9) oppositely extending from the body (8) towards the side edges. The skirts (9) conceal especially the montage points at the upper sides of the side edges, providing a simpler and more esthetic appearance.

In a variation of this embodiment, the skirts (9) are produced as prestressed so as to apply pushing force towards the side edges and provide the covering member (7) to be fixed to the door (3). Since the skirts (9) disposed oppositely have flexible configurations, they apply a pressing force towards the side edges of the frame (6) and provide the covering member (7) to be mounted to the door (3) without utilizing any connection member (Figure 5, Figure 6, Figure 7).

In another embodiment of the present invention, the covering member (7) comprises the skirt (9) extending towards the inner panel (5). Thus, liquids and dirt are prevented from entering into between the covering member (7) and the inner panel (5) and ease of cleaning is provided. Moreover, by providing a visual unity between the door (3) and the covering member (7), the appearance of the cooking device (1) is improved (Figure 2, Figure 3, Figure 4).

In an embodiment of the present invention, the covering member (7) comprises a slit (13) disposed on the skirt (9) thereof extending towards the side edges and providing the covering member (7) to be more easily mounted to the door (3). Thus, the side edges can stretch outwards and enable the covering member (7) to be easily mounted to the door (3).

In a variation of this embodiment, the covering member (7) is adhered to the inner panel (5). The skirt (9) extending towards the inner panel (5) is adhered to the upper side of the inner panel (5), thus providing the inner panel (5) and the covering member (7) to move together. Thus, while the inner panel (5) is mounted on the frame (6), the covering member (7) is adjusted so as to cover the upper surface of the frame (6), providing guiding (Figure 9).

In another embodiment of the present invention, the ends of the skirts (9) of the covering member (7) are inclined. The ends of the skirts (9) on the inner panel (5) and the side edges are inclined so that the ending point of the skirt (9) has the minimum thickness. Thus, especially while the inner panel (5) is being cleaned, the cleaning cloth is prevented from getting stuck at the transition point from the inner panel (5) to the skirt (9) and a more convenient cleaning is provided (Figure 8).

In another embodiment of the present invention, the covering member (7) is produced from stainless steel. Thus, both the covering member (7) is provided to be easily cleaned and also an esthetic appearance is obtained.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the door (3) comprises a locking mechanism (10) providing the outer panel (4) and the inner panel (5) to be detachably mounted to each other and having a recess (11) on the frame (6) and a protrusion (12) on the inner panel (5) that are mounted to each other snap fittingly. In this embodiment, the covering member (7) is adhered to the inner panel (5). Since the frame (6) is also fixed to the outer panel (4), the assembly of the door (3) is completed by snap-fittingly joining the protrusion (12) on the inner panel (5) and the recess (11) on the frame (6). The door (3) can be dismounted by the user whenever desired and can be remounted afterwards. In this embodiment, while being aligned towards the upper edge of the frame (6), the covering member (7) aligns the protrusion (12) towards the recess (11) and provides the mounting process to be more easily performed (Figure 9).

By means of the present invention, the hardest to clean parts of the door (3), that is the upper and inner surfaces, can be more easily cleaned and the external appearance of the cooking device (1) becomes more esthetic.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited by the embodiments disclosed above and a person skilled in the art can easily introduce different embodiments. These should be considered within the scope of the protection postulated by the claims of the present invention.

Claims

A cooking device (1) comprising an oven cavity (2) wherein the objects to be cooked are placed, a door (3) providing access into the oven cavity (2), an outer panel (4) forming the surface of the door (3) in contact with the outer environment, an inner panel (5) forming the surface of the door (3) in contact with the oven cavity (2) and a frame (6) located between the outer panel (4) and the inner panel (5), at one side of which the outer panel (4) is disposed and at the other side the inner panel (5) so as to be parallel to each other, having profiles with quadrangular cross-sections forming at least three edges of the door (3), one of them being the upper edge, two of them side edges, characterized by a covering member (7) having a body (8) entirely covering the upper edges of the frame (6) and the inner panel (5) and at least one skirt (9) extending from the body (8) towards the inner panel (5) and/or the side edges.
A cooking device (1) as in Claim 1, characterized by the covering member (7) comprising two skirts (9) extending oppositely to each other from the body (8) towards the side edges.
A cooking device (1) as in Claim 1 or 2, characterized by two skirts (9) that are produced as prestressed so as to apply pushing force towards the side edges and that provide the covering member (7) to be fixed to the door (3).
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by the covering member (7) comprising the skirt (9) extending towards the inner panel (5).
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by the covering member (7) having a slit (13) that is disposed on the skirt (9) thereof extending towards the side edges and that facilitates the assembly thereof to the door (3).
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by the covering member (7) adhered to the inner panel (5).
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by the covering member (7), whereof the ends of the skirts (9) are inclined.
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by the covering member (7) produced from stainless steel.
A cooking device (1) as in any one of the above claims, characterized by the door (3) comprising a locking mechanism (10) providing the outer panel (4) and the inner panel (5) to be detachably mounted to each other and having a recess (11) on the frame (6) and a protrusion (12) on the inner panel (5) that are mounted to each other snap fittingly.