Adjustable door hook assembly
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing door hook assemblies in cooking appliances, such as microwaves, do not efficiently minimize the distance the door assembly moves before disengaging from the interlock system, leading to suboptimal control over the magnetron's power delivery.
Innovation Solution
An adjustable door hook assembly with a base and a door hook that includes an engagement element and an adjustment assembly, such as an eccentric screw, rack and pinion gear set, or biasing member, allowing for linear translation and precise positioning of the door hook relative to the interlock system to adjust the engagement point.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the door hook assembly uses a fixed position design, then the structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the distance the door assembly moves before disengaging from the interlock system cannot be minimized efficiently
Solution Approach 1:
The door hook assembly transitions from a fixed position design to an adjustable position design. The adjustment assembly allows the door hook to be positioned at different locations along the door assembly, enabling dynamic optimization of the disengagement point relative to the interlock system. This resolves the contradiction by allowing the system to adapt its geometry to minimize travel distance while maintaining structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the positional parameter of the door hook relative to the door assembly. By adjusting the distance and orientation between the door hook engagement element and the interlock system, the system optimizes the disengagement characteristics. This parameter adjustment enables precise control over when the magnetron power is cut off, improving reliability without requiring a completely complex new structure.
2Productivity
If the door hook is positioned to minimize disengagement distance, then operational efficiency improves, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustment assembly provides a mechanism to fine-tune the door hook position after assembly, compensating for manufacturing tolerances. This allows the system to achieve the optimal disengagement distance in actual operation even if the base manufacturing precision is not extremely tight, thereby maintaining high productivity without prohibitively high manufacturing precision requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The adjustment assembly is designed to allow positioning optimization after the main assembly is manufactured. This preliminary adjustment capability means that the critical positioning can be finalized during installation or setup rather than requiring perfect precision during the manufacturing process itself, reducing the stringency of manufacturing precision requirements while still achieving optimal operational efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
A cooking appliance includes an outer housing defining a receiving opening and an interlock system disposed within the outer housing proximate to the interlock opening. The interlock system includes a rotating cam and an interlock switch. A door assembly is operably coupled to the outer housing. The door assembly includes an inner panel defining an access aperture and a base operably coupled to the inner panel. The base defines an upper opening. The door assembly also includes a door hook disposed in the upper opening of the base and an adjustment assembly operably coupled to the door hook. The adjustment assembly is configured to linearly translate the door hook relative to the inner panel to adjust a position of the door hook. The position of the door hook adjusts an engagement between the door hook and the interlock system.