Oven Camera Zone Segmentation for Cooking Uniformity Detection

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional oven appliances often result in uneven cooking due to the placement of heating elements, leading to some areas of food cooking faster or receiving more heat than others, which is not effectively monitored or addressed by current detection systems.

Innovation Solution

An oven appliance equipped with a camera within the cooking chamber that captures images, uses machine learning image recognition to evaluate the doneness level of food items divided into zones, and compares these levels across different zones to ensure even cooking.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Temperature

If heating elements are placed at varying locations within the cooking chamber to provide heat to food items, then heating coverage is improved, but uneven cooking occurs across different areas of the food items

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveheating coverageVSAvoidcooking uniformity

Core Design Contradiction:

TemperatureVSManufacturing precision

Solution Approach 1:

The image of the cooking chamber is divided into multiple zones, with each zone corresponding to a specific heating element's influence area. This segmentation allows independent monitoring and analysis of cooking uniformity across different regions, enabling targeted adjustments to resolve uneven cooking caused by varying heating element placements

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system captures images at multiple time points during cooking, analyzes cooking uniformity in each zone, and provides feedback by comparing uniformity metrics across zones. This feedback mechanism enables real-time monitoring and adjustment of heating parameters to achieve uniform cooking across all zones despite different heating element configurations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

2Reliability

If conventional detection means are used to monitor cooking progression, then overall cooking status is detected, but localized cooking uniformity across different zones cannot be effectively monitored

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecooking monitoringVSAvoidlocalized doneness detection

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The detection system segments the cooking chamber into multiple zones and independently analyzes cooking progression in each zone. This segmentation enables precise measurement of localized doneness levels, transforming a single overall detection approach into multiple zone-specific measurements that reveal cooking uniformity patterns

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system transitions from single-point or single-zone detection to multi-zone spatial detection by dividing the cooking chamber into multiple regions. This dimensional expansion from 0D/1D detection to 2D spatial mapping enables comprehensive monitoring of cooking uniformity across the entire cooking surface

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Data Source

PatentUS20230134081A1Systems and methods for monitoring a cooking operation using a camera

Publication Date: 2023.05.04 HAIER US APPLIANCE SOLUTIONS INC

AI summary

A method of operating an oven appliance includes capturing an image of a cooking chamber of the oven appliance, defining a plurality of zones within the cooking chamber as shown on the captured image, analyzing the image using one or more computer processors and image recognition features to determine at least one characteristic of an item within the cooking chamber within each zone, and comparing the at least one characteristic across the plurality of zones.