Oven Exhaust Baffle Bracket Layout to Prevent Top Plate Distortion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing exhaust baffle designs for domestic ovens are either costly due to elaborate structures or lack strength, often requiring expensive connections and risking distortion of the top plate under weight-bearing conditions.
Innovation Solution
A simple and inexpensive exhaust baffle design featuring a support bracket with angled tabs and bridging elements that distribute weight effectively, allowing the baffle top to direct hot gases while avoiding distortion, with attachment brackets securing the baffle to the appliance base.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a multitude of welds or expensive connections are used to provide strength, then the strength and reliability of the baffle is improved, but the manufacturing cost and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The baffle is divided into multiple modular sections (top baffle, bottom baffle, side baffles) that can be independently manufactured and then assembled together. This segmentation allows each section to be optimized for strength without requiring the entire structure to be over-engineered with numerous welds and connections.
Solution Approach 2:
The support bracket and baffle structure are merged into an integrated design where the bracket serves dual functions of supporting the oven weight and providing mounting points for the baffle sections. This merging eliminates the need for separate connection elements and reduces overall complexity.
2Strength
If the top plate of the baffle is used to transfer the weight of the oven, then the structural integrity is improved, but the top plate may become distorted and appearance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The weight-bearing function is extracted from the top plate and transferred to dedicated support brackets positioned at the corners or along the edges of the baffle. This extraction allows the top plate to focus solely on its enclosing and directing functions without the stress that would cause distortion.
Solution Approach 2:
The support brackets are strategically positioned at specific locations (corners or edge points) where they can locally bear the oven's weight. This localized support approach ensures that the top plate maintains its shape and appearance while the structure as a whole supports the required load.
3Ease of manufacture
If a simple and inexpensive baffle design is used, then the manufacturing cost is reduced, but the strength and ability to support oven weight decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The baffle system is segmented into simple, easily manufactured sections that can be produced using cost-effective processes. Each section is optimized for its specific function, allowing the use of simpler materials and construction methods while maintaining overall structural adequacy through the modular assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
Support brackets serve as intermediary elements between the oven and the baffle structure. These brackets are designed to be simple and inexpensive to manufacture yet provide the necessary strength to transfer the oven's weight to the baffle's anchoring points, enabling the main baffle body to remain simple and cost-effective.
Data Source
AI summary
An exhaust baffle is provided for a domestic appliance. The exhaust baffle includes a support bracket having two tabs, the tabs being configured to slide into engagement with slots formed in the base of the domestic appliance, two support elements, each of the support elements extending from one of the tabs at an angle and having a bearing surface, and a bridging element that extends from the two support elements at an angle, the bridging element connecting the two support elements; a baffle top having a hot gas directing portion that rests on the bearing surfaces of the support bracket and an opening that receives the bridging element; and a baffle bottom having a substantially flat member, the baffle bottom holding the support bracket in the slots when the baffle bottom is in an operating position.