Cooker Chamber Lighting for Color-Coded Keep-Warm Indication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cookers with a keep warm function do not allow users to easily confirm whether food is cooked or kept warm, and they have a complex structure due to separate illumination and heating sources.
Innovation Solution
A cooker design that uses a single illumination device emitting different colors for cooking and keep-warm modes, allowing users to easily distinguish between cooking and keep-warm states, and integrates heating and illumination functions for a simpler structure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If separate illumination source and heating source are provided, then the cooking chamber can be illuminated and food can be kept warm, but the number of parts is increased and structure becomes complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the illumination source and heating source into a single integrated device. The illumination source emits light that serves dual purposes: illuminating the cooking chamber and providing heat for keeping food warm. This merging eliminates the need for separate heating and illumination components, reducing part count while maintaining both functions.
Solution Approach 2:
The illumination source is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously. It acts as both an illumination device for visual observation of the cooking chamber contents and as a heating source for the keep-warm function. This multi-functionality allows a single component to replace what would traditionally require two separate components.
2Loss of information
If user wants to confirm food cooking or keep-warm state, then illumination is needed, but without color differentiation user cannot distinguish between cooking mode and keep-warm mode
Solution Approach 1:
The illumination source emits light of different colors according to the operating mode. In cooking mode, it emits a first color (e.g., warm white or yellow), and in keep-warm mode, it emits a second color (e.g., cool white or blue). This color differentiation provides visual feedback to the user about the current mode and food status without requiring additional indicators or displays, simplifying the device while improving information communication.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides visual feedback through color-coded illumination to indicate the current operating state. The change in light color serves as immediate feedback to the user about whether the cooker is in cooking mode or keep-warm mode, and about the status of the food, eliminating the need for separate displays or indicators.
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
Enables users to easily confirm food status and keeps food warm with a simpler, more efficient design by using a single device for both heating and illumination.
Implementation Method 1
at least one heating source providing heat supplied into a cooking chamber
Implementation Method 2
an illumination device illuminating the inside of the cooking chamber
Implementation Method 3
a light-converting member converting a color of the light emitted from one of the first and second illumination sources
Data Source
AI summary
A cooker is provided. According to an operation of the cooker, light having color different from each other is emitted into a cooking chamber according to whether it is in a cooking mode for cooking a food or a keep-warm mode for keeping the food warm. Thus, a user may easily confirm whether the food is cooked or kept warm. In addition, the food may be kept warm through a further simple structure.