Steam treatment drawer, household cooking appliance and process

Abstract

The invention relates to a steam treatment drawer (3) comprising a permanently installed evaporator tray (6) with a closed base (7), a heating device provided for heating the base of the evaporator tray, a removable food tray (4) which can be inserted into the evaporator tray at a distance from it, a lid (15) covering the food tray and which, together with the food tray, delimits a steam treatment chamber (24), wherein, when the food tray is inserted, an intermediate space (20) remains between the evaporator tray and the food tray, and the intermediate space (20) opens into the steam treatment chamber (24).The invention also relates to a household cooking appliance (1), comprising at least one drawer housing (2) and a respective steam treatment drawer (3) which can be extended and retracted from the associated drawer housing (2), and to a method for filling the steam treatment chamber (24) of the steam treatment drawer (3) with steam (D), in which water (W) filled onto the bottom (7) of the evaporation tray, in particular into its water receiving recess (8), is heated by means of the heating device until evaporation and steam (D) thus generated is passed through the intermediate space (20) into the steam treatment chamber (24).

Description

The invention relates to a steam treatment drawer, comprising a permanently installed trough with a closed base, a heating device provided for heating the base of the trough and a cover which together with the trough delimits a steam treatment space. The invention also relates to a household cooking appliance, comprising at least one drawer housing and a respective steam treatment drawer that can be extended and retracted from the associated drawer housing. The invention also relates to a method for filling the steam treatment space of the steam treatment drawer with steam.WO 2021228647 A1 discloses a steam cooking appliance for treating, in particular for thawing, for heating and / or for cooking food products by means of steam, which has at least one evaporator unit for providing steam which is exposed to a defined temperature, and at least one cooking chamber for subjecting the food products to the steam which is provided by the evaporator unit, wherein the steam cooking appliance is designed as a drawer and has a drawer compartment which is designed to accommodate the cooking chamber and the evaporator unit, the evaporator unit and the cooking chamber are arranged separately from one another in the drawer compartment, and the cooking chamber is formed by an food product container which can be arranged in the drawer compartment and is designed to accommodate food products.CN 203723885 U discloses a drawer steam oven consisting of a housing, a steam drawer, a steam generator, a water tank, slide rails, a control panel, a touch-on device and a drawer panel. At the bottom of the steam drawer is the steam generator; a drawer body of the steam drawer has an opening facing upward and is in the form of a frame frame; a suspension type top cover is disposed on the steam drawer, and the drawer plate is disposed at the outer end of the steam drawer; the water tank is disposed at the inside of the drawer panel; the two sides of the steam drawer are erected by slide rails on the inner walls of the two sides of the housing. The steam drawer is supported by the slide rails and can be extended and retracted horizontally. A water pipe is disposed at the bottom or side of the water tank, and the water tank is for supplying water to the steam generator via the water pipe via an electromagnetic valve or a mini water pump. The electrically heated steam oven is integrated into an electrically heated steam drawer that can be used separately or combined with kitchen utensils such as a dish disinfection cabinet, an integrated oven, and the like, such that the single function disinfection cabinet has multiple functions. The drawer steam oven is equipped with a touch-on device, and the cabinet is electrically neutral after the steam drawer is pulled out, so that the drawer steam oven is safe and reliable to use and food can be conveniently taken out.EP 1 806 538 A2 discloses a thermal drawer for mounting in a cabinet capable of maintaining the temperature in the thermal drawer at a fermentation temperature, a warm-up temperature or a slow cooking temperature. The thermal drawer may also include a housing having opposing sidewalls and at least one spacer extending from each of the sidewalls to space the sidewalls from the cabinet when the thermal drawer is mounted in the cabinet to form dead air spaces between the sidewalls and the cabinet.DE 10 2021 201 943 A1 discloses a household cooking appliance. This has a stationary furnace chamber which can be closed by a furnace door, a steam treatment drawer arranged separately therefrom and an evaporator for generating steam, wherein the steam treatment drawer has a damper trough with an upper-side feed opening which can be closed by means of a lid, wherein the damper trough and the lid form a steam treatment chamber which can be acted upon by the steam.DE 10 2021 201 950 A1 discloses a food carrier. This has a receiving carrier for receiving food to be cooked, on which a respective upwardly projecting handle is arranged on two opposite sides, wherein the two handles are pivotable inwardly. A food treatment system has a food treatment tray, the open top side of which constitutes a feed opening, and at least one food carrier which can be inserted into the food treatment tray through the feed opening, wherein the projections of the handles are pivoted through the food treatment tray and / or through projections of a handle of an adjacently inserted food carrier in the direction of the receiving carrier when the food carrier is inserted. The food carrier is applicable for use in a damper trough of a steam treatment drawer.US 11 402 105 B2 discloses a heat drawer insert which can be inserted into and removed from a heat drawer without tools via a series of flanges positioned along the walls of the heat drawer insert. These flanges also hang the heat drawer insert in the heat drawer and create an air gap to allow heated air to flow into the heat drawer through a series of air vents along the walls of the heat drawer.It is the object of the present invention to at least partially overcome the disadvantages of the prior art and in particular to provide a particularly cost-effective, energy-efficient, easy to clean and low-maintenance possibility for generating steam in a steam drawer and to lead it into a steam treatment space.This object is achieved according to the features of the independent claims. Preferred embodiments can be found in particular in the dependent claims.The object is achieved by a steam treatment drawer havinga fixedly installed evaporator trough with a closed base,a heating device provided (i.e. set up and arranged) for heating the bottom of the evaporator tray,a removable cookware tray which can be inserted into the evaporator tray at a distance,a cover covering the food trough, which together with the food trough delimits a steam treatment chamber,whereinan intermediate space remains between the evaporator trough and the food trough when the food trough is inserted; andthe intermediate space opens into the steam treatment space.This steam treatment drawer has the advantage that it has a simple structure and is therefore cost-effective to produce and low-maintenance. In addition, both the cooking product trough and the evaporation trough can be easily cleaned, for example also decalcified. Due to the removability of the cooking product trough, cooking product can easily be introduced and positioned therein, in particular since the cooking product can be brought from a setup location to the steam drawer. In addition, the hot steam located in the interspace transfers energy to the food trough, as a result of which condensate forming in the food trough is vaporized again. This in turn enables a particularly high temporal range of water addition.The steam treatment drawer corresponds in particular to a steam treatment unit which can be extended horizontally and retracted from a drawer housing of a domestic cooking appliance. For this purpose, the steam treatment drawer can be connected to the steam treatment drawer, for example, via a pull-out system, e.g., comprising a plurality of telescopic rails. The extension and retraction can be effected manually (e.g. by extension or insertion), power-driven (e.g. by means of a motor) or power-assisted (e.g. extension or insertion using a spring).The two trays each have an open top side which, in the case of the evaporator tray, serves for use of the food tray from above and, in the case of the food rolls, as a feed opening for steam treatment material, in particular food. Because the food trough can be inserted into the evaporator trough at a distance, the intermediate space between the two troughs is formed when the food trough is inserted. In particular, the evaporator trough is deeper, longer and wider than the food trough for this purpose. In one development, the inserted cooking product tray rests with its (upper) edge on the evaporator tray, so that advantageously no spacers need to be provided between the cooking product tray and the evaporator tray. In one refinement, at least one of the troughs is made of metal, e.g., stainless steel. In one refinement, at least one of the troughs is made of plastic or glass.Essentially the food trough and a cover directly or indirectly covering the food trough delimit a steam treatment space which can be supplied with steam and can be charged with steam treatment material. In a further development, the steam treatment chamber also has other wall regions-in particular to a comparatively small extent-for example also a border between the food trough and the support surface of the lid.In one refinement, the closed cover rests on a vapor-tight seal. The cover can be made of plastic or glass. In one refinement, the cover is transparent at least in regions. In one development, a user-detachable cover is provided. In one development, the cover is a cover pivotably articulated on the steam treatment drawer. In a further development, the cover is arranged in the drawer housing and can slide thereon or be raised or lowered there, for example, as the drawer is retracted and extended.The base of the evaporator trough can be filled at least in regions with water. The heating device is provided to cause water (which may optionally be mixed with aromatic compounds or the like) located in the evaporator trough by the heating to evaporate, which water then spreads in the intermediate space. The steam is conducted through the intermediate space to the steam treatment space.In one refinement, the heating device has at least one electrically operated resistance heating element, e.g., a tubular heater, arranged below the floor. In a further development, the heating device has at least one electrically operated heating element attached to the outer side or underside of the base, for example a thick-film or thin-film heating line. In one development, the heating device has at least one induction coil which, during its operation, generates an alternating magnetic field which can at least locally inductively heat the base of the evaporation tray. For this reason alone, the steam treatment drawer can be regarded as an electrically operated steam treatment drawer. However, it can additionally also have further electrical consumers, for example a user interface, in particular with a display, specifically, touchscreen, etc.In one embodiment, the cooking product trough has a closed base. This achieves the advantage that condensate is prevented from returning from the steam treatment space to the heatable base of the evaporation tray, which promotes cleanliness and hygiene.In one embodiment, the intermediate space leads at least from a first intermediate region between the bases of the two troughs to a second intermediate region on opposite wall regions of the two troughs, and the second intermediate region opens into the steam treatment space. This achieves the advantage that the steam generated can be introduced into the cooking product trough from a comparatively high position. This in turn promotes uniform distribution of the steam in the steam treatment space. Furthermore, it is also possible to steam-treat goods which completely cover the bottom of the cooking-product trough, for example liquids, such as soup, or flowing goods, such as lasagne, etc.In one embodiment, the cooking product tray has a flange-like upper edge ("top edge"), which extends at least in sections and by means of which it can be placed, in particular onto the evaporation tray. This is particularly simple to implement, space-saving and results in a stable hold.In one embodiment, the evaporation tray has a flange-like, encircling upper edge ("support edge"), on which the top edge of the cooking product tray can be placed. This can be implemented particularly easily and produces a practically vapor-tight contact surface between the support edge and the top edge. In one development, a separate vapor seal is present between the support edge and the attachment edge, which may be arranged on the top side of the support edge, for example.In one embodiment, the cooking product trough has a completely encircling top edge, the support edge of the evaporator trough is wider than the top edge of the cooking product trough, and, where the second intermediate region opens into the steam treatment space, the support edge of the evaporator trough is lower than the top edge of the cooking product trough. Thus, an opening is advantageously created in a simple manner in the second intermediate region, which opening into the steam treatment space.In one embodiment, the food trough has a completely encircling top edge and, where the second intermediate region opens into the steam treatment space (and thus in at least one side wall), the food trough has at least one opening. In this way, too, at least one opening can advantageously be provided in a simple manner in the second intermediate region, which opening opens into the steam treatment space. In this case, the number, size, shape and / or position of the openings in the side wall can advantageously be embodied in multiple shapes.In one embodiment, the evaporation tray has an in particular dish-shaped depression ("water receiving depression") in its base, and the heating device is provided for heating the water receiving depression. This achieves the advantage that the water is localized and can be heated particularly effectively.In one embodiment, the evaporation tray has a border projecting from an edge of the support edge and a circumferential seal is present in the region of this upper edge for sealing the cover resting thereon. This enables the advantage of a vapor-tight attachment of the lid in a simple and cost-effective manner without the cooking product tray itself having to be provided with a seal for the lid.In one configuration, the upper edge of the border merges into an upper side of the steam treatment drawer. This advantageously enables a particularly flat construction of the steam treatment drawer.In one embodiment, at least one steam outlet opening opens into the steam treatment space. This achieves the advantage that the introduced steam does not produce any overpressure in the steam treatment space or the steam escapes in an uncontrolled manner. The excess pressure can be reduced or the excess steam can escape through the steam outlet, which is connected to the environment, if appropriate via a filter or a water bath. In one refinement, the vapor outlet opening is formed in the evaporator trough. The steam outlet opening is advantageously arranged opposite the side wall region having the at least one steam inlet opening and / or arranged above the cooking product trough.In one embodiment, one or more food inserts can be inserted into the steam cooking drawer, each of which inserts has at least one foot. This advantageously enables a particularly reliable separation of food to be cooked and condensate returning to the base of the food trough. The food inserts are in particular perforated or provided with openings, for example holes or slits, in order to effectively let steam reach the food located therein. In particular, a base of the food insert can also be perforated. In particular, the food inserts are not provided for conducting steam. The food inserts can consist, for example, of plastic. They can be designed, for example, according to the "cooked food carriers" described in DE 10 2021 201 950 A1.The object is also achieved by a household cooking appliance, comprising at least one drawer housing and a respective steam treatment drawer, which can be selectively extended and retracted from the associated drawer housing, as described above. The household cooking appliance can be designed analogously to the steam treatment drawer, and vice versa, and has the same advantages.In a development, such a household cooking appliance can have only the steam treatment drawer as a cooking appliance. In a development, such a household cooking appliance can have the steam treatment drawer and at least one further cooking appliance as a cooking appliance, e.g. an oven and / or a microwave appliance. If the further cooking appliance is arranged above the steam treatment drawer, the household cooking appliance can also be referred to as a double-decker or "multi-cavity" appliance.The object is also achieved by a method for filling the steam treatment space of the steam treatment drawer according to one of the preceding claims with steam, in which water filled onto the base of the evaporation tray, in particular into its water receiving depression, is heated by means of the heating device until evaporation and steam thus generated is conducted through the intermediate space into the steam treatment space. The method can be embodied analogously to the steam treatment drawer and / or the household cooking appliance, and vice versa, and has the same advantages.The above-described characteristics, features and advantages of this invention and the manner in which these are achieved become clearer and more clearly comprehensible in conjunction with the following schematic description of an exemplary embodiment, which is explained in more detail in conjunction with the drawings. FIG. 1 shows an oblique view of a steam treatment drawer according to a first exemplary embodiment without a food trough drawn out of a drawer housing; FIG. 2 shows another oblique view of the steam treatment drawer according to the first exemplary embodiment, which is drawn out of the drawer housing, without the food trough; FIG. 3 shows in an oblique view the steam treatment drawer extended from the drawer housing with inserted food trough according to the first exemplary embodiment; FIG. 4 shows a sectional illustration in an oblique view of the extended steam treatment drawer with the inserted food trough according to the first exemplary embodiment; FIG. 5 shows an oblique view of a steam treatment drawer extended from the drawer housing with inserted food trough according to a second exemplary embodiment; FIG. 6 shows a sectional illustration in an oblique view of the extended steam treatment drawer with the inserted food trough according to the second exemplary embodiment; and FIG. 7 shows a sectional illustration in oblique view of the extended steam treatment drawer with inserted food trough and food inserts according to the first or second exemplary embodiment.FIG. 1 shows a view obliquely from the front of components of a household cooking appliance 1, namely of a steam treatment drawer 3 without a food trough 4 extended horizontally out of a drawer housing 2 (see FIGS. 4 to 7 in this respect). For retraction in y-direction y and extension against y-direction y, the steam treatment drawer 3 is connected to the drawer housing 2 via a pair of telescopic rails 5. In addition, the steam treatment drawer 3 can be supplied with electrical energy via the drawer housing 2, for example via a supply cable (see FIG. ).The steam treatment drawer 3 has a first tub ("evaporating tub" 6) which is fixedly installed and has an open top side. In the middle of a closed bottom 7 of the evaporation pan 6, a dish-shaped ("water absorption") depression 8 is present, which is provided to be filled with water W. The depression 8 can be heated in a targeted manner by means of a heating device (see the drawing). For this purpose, for example, electric heaters can be arranged on their underside, or the depression 8 can be inductively heated, etc. The water W located in the depression 8 can be heated by means of the heating device to such an extent that it evaporates.The evaporation pan 6 merges at its upper edge into a laterally outgoing, flange-like, completely encircling support edge 9. The support edge 9 is lowered in a section 11 which is located at a rear region 10 r("rear wall") of the side wall 10. An outer edge of the support edge 9 is adjoined by a circumferentially closed, vertically upstanding border 12 which merges at its upper edge into a planar upper side 13 of the steam treatment drawer 3. This can also be expressed in such a way that the upper side 13 of the steam treatment drawer 3 slopes down via the support edge 9 as a step into the evaporation tray 6.On the upper side 13 of the steam treatment drawer 3 adjacent to the border 12 there is a peripheral seal ("steam seal" 14), on which a cover 15 can be placed in a steam-tight manner. The cover 15 is here a transparent or opaque glass or plastic cover which is pivotably articulated, for example, via a hinge 16 to the upper side 13 of the steam treatment drawer 3.The front side of the steam treatment drawer 3 is formed by means of a front plate 17 which, in the retracted state of the steam treatment drawer 3, can close flush, for example, with a front side of the household cooking appliance 1.FIG. 2 shows the steam treatment drawer 2 pulled out of the drawer housing 3 without the cooking product trough 4 in a view obliquely from the rear. At least one vapor outlet opening 18 introduced in a front section of the border 12 and thus above a front region 10 vof the side wall 10 is now also shown.FIG. 3 shows, in an oblique view similar to FIG. 1, the steam treatment drawer 3 extended from the drawer housing 2 with the cookware tray 4 now inserted into the evaporation tray 6 from above; FIG. 4 shows, as a sectional view in an oblique view, the extended steam treatment drawer 3 with the cookware tray 4 inserted.The cooking product trough 4 has a basic shape similar to the evaporation trough 6, but is dimensioned smaller in all directions, so that it can be inserted into the evaporation trough 6 at a distance and consequently an intermediate space 20 is formed between them. The intermediate space 20 can be divided conceptually into two regions, namely into a first intermediate region 20 abetween the base 7 of the evaporator tray 6 and a closed base 21 of the food tray 4 and into a second intermediate region 20 bbetween the side wall 10 of the evaporator tray 6 and a side wall 22 of the food tray 4. The support edge 9 of the evaporator tray 6 is wider than the top edge 23 of the food tray 4.In order to fill the steam treatment space 24 with steam D, the water W located in the depression 8 is caused to evaporate. The vapor D which forms in the process spreads out in the intermediate space 20 and heats the cooking product trough 9 in the process. However, most of the steam D flows from the first intermediate region 20a through the second intermediate region 20b to the lowered section 11, and the lowered section 11 together with the narrower top edge 23 forms a steam inlet opening 25 which opens into the steam treatment space 24 and through which the steam D can escape into the steam treatment space 24, as indicated by the dashed arrow. Steam D located in the steam treatment space 24 can emerge again through the steam outlet opening(s) 18. Smaller amounts of steam possibly emerging between the top edge 23 and the support edge 9 outside the lowered section 11 are harmless.FIG. 5 shows, in an oblique view similar to FIG. 3, a steam treatment drawer 26 extended from the drawer housing 2 with the cookware tray 28 inserted from above into its evaporation tray 27; FIG. 6 shows, in a sectional view in an oblique view, the extended steam treatment drawer 26 with the cookware tray 28 inserted.The steam treatment drawer 26 has a basic structure similar to the steam treatment drawer 3, but the support edge 29 of the evaporation tray 27 now does not have a lowered section, but lies completely in one plane. In addition, the food trough 28 has at least one steam inlet opening 32, here in the form of a horizontal row of holes, on at least one region of its side wall 30 (shown here on the rear region 30 r). The at least one steam inlet opening 32 connects the second intermediate region 20 bof the intermediate space 20 to the steam treatment space 24.FIG. 7 shows a sectional illustration in oblique view of the extended steam treatment drawer 3 or 26 with inserted food trough 4 or 28 and a food insert 33 inserted into the food trough 4 or 28, respectively. the food insert 33 has a base designed as a perforated plate 34, on which food can be placed outside the steam treatment drawer 3, 26 and the food insert 33 can then be inserted into the food trough 4, 28 at upstanding handles 35. This can improve handling of the food to be cooked. In addition, two opposite edges 36 of the perforated plate 34 are bent downward, so that the remaining region of the perforated plate 34 is spaced apart from the base 21 of the cooking product trough 4, 28. This achieves the advantage that during a steam treatment process condensate which may form in the steam treatment chamber 24 and which flows to the base 21 does not come into contact with the food to be cooked.Of course, the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment.In general, "a", "an", etc., can be understood to mean a singular or a plurality, in particular in the sense of "at least one" or "one or more", etc., as long as this is not explicitly excluded, e.g. by the expression "exactly one", etc.A numerical indication can also comprise exactly the indicated number and a usual tolerance range, as long as this is not explicitly excluded.List of reference characters1 Household cooking appliance 2 drawer housing 3 steam treatment drawer 4 food pan 5 telescopic rail 6 evaporation pan 7 base of the evaporation pan 8 depression 9 support edge 10 side wall 10 rback region of the side wall 10 vfront region of the side wall 11 lowered section 12 border 13 top side 14 steam seal 15 lid 16 hinge 17 front plate 18 steam outlet opening 20 intermediate space 20 afirst intermediate region 20 bsecond intermediate region 21 base of the food pan 22 side wall of the food pan 23 top edge 24 steam treatment space 25 steam inlet opening 26 steam treatment drawer 27 evaporation pan 28 food pan 29 support edge 30 side wall 30 rback region 32 steam inlet opening 33 food insert 34 perforated plate 35 handle 36 edge of the perforated plate D steam w water x x direction y direction z directionReferences included in the specificationThis list of documents cited by the applicant has been produced in an automated manner and is only included for the better information of the reader. The list is not part of the German patent application or utility model application. The DPMA does not take any adhesion for any faults or omissions.Patent Literature citedWO 2021228647 A1

[0002] CN 203723885 U

[0003] EP 1 806 538 A2

[0004] DE 10 2021 201 943 A1

[0005] DE 10 2021 201 950 A1 [0006, 0028]U.S. Pat. No. 11 402 105 B2

[0007]

Claims

Steam treatment drawer (3; 26), having - a fixedly installed evaporator tray (6; 27) with a closed base (7), - a heating device provided for heating the base (7) of the evaporator tray (6; 27), - a removable cookware tray (4; 28) which can be inserted into the evaporator tray (6; 27) at a distance, - a cover (15) which covers the cookware tray (4; 28) and delimits a steam treatment space (24) together with the cookware tray (4; 28), wherein - when the cookware tray (4; 28) is inserted, an intermediate space (20) remains between the evaporator tray (6; 27) and the cookware tray (4; 28), and - the intermediate space (20) opens into the steam treatment space (24).Steam treatment drawer (3; 26) according to claim 1, wherein - the cooking product trough (4; 28) has a closed base (21), - the intermediate space (20) leads from a first intermediate region (20a) between the bases (7, 21) of the two troughs (4, 6; 27, 28) to a second intermediate region (20b) on opposite wall regions (10, 22, 30) of the two troughs (4, 6; 27, 28), and - the second intermediate region (20b) opens into the steam treatment space (24).Steam treatment drawer (3; 26) according to claim 2, wherein - the cooking product tray has a flange-like upper attachment edge which runs around at least in sections, and the evaporation tray has a flange-like, running around upper support edge on which the upper edge of the cooking product tray can be placed.Steam treatment drawer (3) according to claim 3, wherein - the food trough (4) has a fully encircling top edge (23), - the support edge (9) of the evaporator trough (6) is wider than the top edge (23) of the food trough (4) and - where the second intermediate region (20b) opens into the steam treatment space (24), the support edge (9) of the evaporator trough (6) is located lower (11) than the top edge (23) of the food trough (4).Steam treatment drawer (26) according to claim 3, wherein - the food trough (4; 28) has a completely encircling attachment edge (23) and - where the second intermediate region (20b) opens into the steam treatment space (24), the food trough (4; 28) has at least one opening (32).Steam treatment drawer (3; 26) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the evaporation tray (6; 27) has a water receiving depression (8) in its base (7) and the heating device is provided for heating the water receiving depression (8).Steam treatment drawer (3; 26) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the evaporation tray (6; 27) has a border (12) which projects upwards from an edge of the support border (9; 29), and wherein a circumferential seal (14) for sealing the cover (15) on which it rests is present in the region of an upper border of the border (12).The steam treatment drawer (3; 26) of claim 7, wherein an upper edge of the border (12) merges with an upper side (13) of the steam treatment drawer (3; 26).Steam treatment drawer (3; 26) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one steam outlet opening (18) opens into the steam treatment space (24).Household cooking appliance (1), having at least one drawer housing (2) and a respective steam treatment drawer (3; 26) according to one of the preceding claims, which can be extended and retracted from the associated drawer housing (2).Method for filling the steam treatment space (24) of the steam treatment drawer (3; 26) according to one of Claims 1 to 9 with steam (D), in which - water (W) which is introduced onto the base (7) of the evaporation tray (6), in particular into the water receiving depression (8) thereof, is heated by means of the heating device until evaporation, and - steam (D) which is thus produced is conducted through the intermediate space (20) into the steam treatment space (24).

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