Cooking appliance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cooking appliances face challenges in effectively cooling control devices within the door, leading to potential component damage and malfunction due to heat transfer, which existing cooling methods fail to adequately address.
Innovation Solution
A cooking appliance design featuring a separate component cooling flow path within the door, utilizing dual cooling fans and strategically positioned air inlets and outlets to enhance cooling performance and reduce noise, with a barrier to direct airflow effectively towards the door outlet, thereby isolating the control device's cooling flow from the door's cooling flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a single cooling flow path is used for both door cooling and control device cooling, then the structure is simple, but the control device components cannot be adequately cooled leading to potential damage and malfunction
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is divided into two separate cooling flow paths: a first cooling flow path for cooling the door, and a second cooling flow path for cooling control device components. This segmentation allows each path to be optimized independently, ensuring adequate cooling for control components without compromising door cooling, thereby resolving the contradiction between reliability and structural simplicity.
2Reliability
If cooling air flow is directed through the control device housing, then component cooling is improved, but noise from the cooling fans increases
Solution Approach 1:
A barrier is introduced as an intermediary element within the control device housing to redirect cooling air flow. The barrier guides the air flow along a longer path that passes over heat-generating components without requiring high-velocity direct flow, thereby reducing fan noise while maintaining effective cooling. This resolves the contradiction by mediating between cooling effectiveness and noise reduction.
3Temperature
If the control panel is blocked from the door air gap, then heat transfer from the cooking chamber to the control panel is reduced, but heat generated in control panel components cannot be dissipated
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is segmented into two independent flow paths: the first cooling flow path protects the control panel from cooking chamber heat by blocking it with the control panel bracket, while the second cooling flow path penetrates through the control device housing to actively cool heat-generating components. This dual-segmentation approach simultaneously achieves both heat protection and heat dissipation, resolving the contradiction between temperature protection and component reliability.
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 improves cooling performance for control device components, reduces noise from cooling fans, and prevents heat transfer issues, ensuring reliable operation by maintaining components at a safe temperature.
Implementation Method 1
a first cooling fan and a second cooling fan positioned on the air inlet side
Implementation Method 2
a component cooling flow path configured to allow air to pass through the control device to cool one or more components within the control device
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A cooking appliance includes a body that defines a cooking chamber therein; a door rotatably connected to the body and configured to open or close at least a portion of the cooking chamber; a hinge mechanism that rotatably connects the door to the body; and a control device disposed in the door, wherein the control device comprises: a component cooling flow path configured to allow air to pass through the control device to cool one or more components within the control device.