Household Appliance Control Panel With Underside Display Recesses
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Solution Overview
Problem
The complex structure of operating and display units in household appliances, particularly the arrangement of these elements next to each other, poses a disadvantage in terms of compactness and ease of integration.
Innovation Solution
A device featuring a carrier element with recesses on its underside for the display device and an operating device on its upper side, where the recesses are filled with a translucent material to allow light transmission and create a compact, space-saving design, with the carrier element serving as both a light mask and a structural support for the display device.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If the operating device and display device are arranged next to each other on the same surface, then the structure is straightforward, but the device complexity increases and compactness deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a two-dimensional arrangement where operating and display elements are placed side-by-side on the same surface to a three-dimensional configuration where display elements are positioned in recesses on the underside of the carrier element. This dimensional change allows light to pass through the translucent carrier element from below, enabling the display to be viewed from the upper side while maintaining a compact overall structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The display device is nested within recesses formed in the carrier element itself. The carrier element acts as both the structural support and the light-transmitting medium, with display elements embedded in cavities on its underside. This nesting approach eliminates the need for separate housings and reduces overall device complexity while maintaining compactness.
2Ease of manufacture
If the display device is arranged on the upper side of the carrier element, then the structure is simple, but light transmission is blocked by the carrier element
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of placing the light source above the display elements and having light pass through the carrier element downward, the patent inverts this arrangement by positioning the light source below the carrier element. The display elements are arranged in recesses on the underside, and light passes upward through the translucent carrier element to illuminate the display from below, making the display visible from the upper side.
3Reliability
If separate components are used for carrier element, light mask, and support structure, then each component can be optimized, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple functions into a single integrated carrier element. The carrier element simultaneously serves as the structural support for mounting the operating device, the light mask that transmits and diffuses light, and the housing that provides the recesses for embedding the display elements. This merging of functions reduces the number of separate components while maintaining the ability to optimize each function through careful design of the integrated structure.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design achieves a simple and compact construction of the control and display unit, allowing for efficient light transmission and a modular, robust assembly that can be easily integrated under glass ceramic surfaces, enhancing the operational and display capabilities of household appliances.
Implementation Method 1
the through-opening being closed and/or at least partially filled with the light-transmitting material
Data Source
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AI summary
The household appliance device has a support element (3) with an upper side (O) and a lower side (U). An operating device (4) has an operating element (21) and an indicating device (5) has indicating elements (31,32), where the support element has recesses at the lower side. The operating device is arranged on the upper side of the support element and the indicating device is arranged on the lower side of the support element in the recesses. The support element has another recess (10) at the upper side.