Oven Air-Fry Control Using Staged Fan and Dual-Heater Timing

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional ovens using multiple heat sources for air-fry methods face complex control processes, long cooking times, and risk of surface burning due to fixed convection fan speeds, leading to inefficient and uneven cooking.

Innovation Solution

An oven utilizing a combination of a radiant heat source and a convection heat source, with a convection fan driven before the convection heater, and adjustable driving times and speeds for the broil and convection heaters to achieve uniform and crispy cooking, including a three-stage heat process where the convection fan is prioritized in the first stage and the broil heater in subsequent stages.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Power

If three heat sources (broil heater, bake heater, convection heater) are used for air-fry method, then heating capability is improved, but control process complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveheating capabilityVSAvoidcontrol process complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

PowerVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts and removes the bake heater from the heating system, keeping only the broil heater (radiant heat source) and convection heater. This simplifies the control process while maintaining effective air-fry functionality through the combination of radiant and convection heating.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The broil heater serves multiple functions by operating in different modes: it provides radiant heat for direct heating and can also function as a convection heater when combined with the convection fan, eliminating the need for a separate bake heater.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Stability of the object's composition

If two or three pre-heat stages are performed before cooking, then heating uniformity is improved, but cooking time increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveheating uniformityVSAvoidcooking time

Core Design Contradiction:

Stability of the object's compositionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The convection fan is operated at high speed before the convection heater is activated, pre-circulating air in the cooking chamber to establish uniform convection currents. This preliminary action ensures heating uniformity when cooking begins, eliminating the need for separate pre-heat stages.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The broil heater and convection heater are operated alternately in periodic cycles during cooking. This periodic switching between radiant and convection heating modes maintains heating uniformity while continuously cooking the food, avoiding extended pre-heat periods.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #19Periodic action

3Ease of operation

If convection fan is driven at fixed revolutions per minute, then control simplicity is improved, but risk of surface burning increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontrol simplicityVSAvoidsurface burning

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The convection fan speed is made variable rather than fixed. The control unit adjusts the fan speed according to cooking stage and conditions: high speed during pre-circulation phase, and adjusted speed during cooking to prevent surface burning while maintaining effective heat distribution.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses temperature sensors to monitor cooking chamber temperature and provides feedback to the control unit, which adjusts convection fan speed accordingly. This feedback mechanism prevents surface burning by reducing fan speed when temperatures become excessively high while maintaining simple automated control.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

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 approach allows for efficient, uniform, and crispy cooking of both meat and non-meat ingredients by optimizing heat transfer and temperature control, reducing the complexity of control processes and preventing surface burning.

Implementation Method 1

a broil heater disposed on the cooking chamber and configured to generate radiant heat toward an inner portion of the cooking chamber

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectRadiant heat: Thermal Radiation

Implementation Method 2

a convection module including a convection fan and a convection heater and configured to supply hot wind into the cooking chamber

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectConvection heat: Convection

Implementation Method 3

an air-fry method is a cooking method of frying a cooking ingredient using a convection phenomenon of hot air

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectConvection phenomenon: Convection

Data Source

PatentEP4033154A1Oven and method for controlling the same

Publication Date: 2022.07.27 LG ELECTRONICS INC

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AI summary

An oven and a method of controlling the same are disclosed. The disclosed oven may perform a heat stage for implementing an air-fry. In this case, the oven may uniformly cook a cooking ingredient to be crispy by driving a convection fan earlier than a convection heater in at least some heating sections, adjusting a driving time of each of a broil heater and a convection heater and revolutions per minute (RPM) of the convection fan, and correcting a target temperature of a cooking chamber to be higher than a set temperature input by a user.