Unified Oven Control Assembly for Gas and Electric Heating
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing domestic cooking ovens lack a unified control system for both gas and electric heating elements, making it difficult to transition control mechanisms between electric and gas ovens, and resulting in separate and costly control systems for each type.
Innovation Solution
A domestic cooking oven with a common electrical control assembly that includes an electronic power control device and a gas supply management control device, allowing for the simultaneous control of electric heating elements and gas burners using standardized components, enabling the same control panel for both electric and gas ovens.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If separate control systems are used for gas and electric ovens, then each control system can be optimized for its specific heating mechanism, but the manufacturing cost increases and the complexity of the overall system increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing a single control system that can manage both gas and electric heating mechanisms. The control unit receives temperature feedback and selectively activates either the gas burner or electric heating element based on the selected cooking mode, eliminating the need for separate control systems while maintaining optimized control for each heating type.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges previously separate gas control and electric heating control into a single integrated control system. The control unit consolidates the functions of both control systems, using a unified temperature sensing and control mechanism to manage both heating types through a single control panel and processing unit.
2Ease of manufacture
If separate control systems are used for gas and electric ovens, then each system can be independently designed, but the manufacturing cost increases due to lack of component standardization
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is designed with universal components that can handle both gas and electric heating functions. The same control panel, processing unit, and temperature sensing mechanism are used regardless of whether the oven operates in gas mode, electric mode, or both, allowing manufacturers to standardize components across different oven models and reduce production costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system dynamically adapts its operation based on the selected heating mode. The control unit can switch between controlling gas flow, electric power delivery, or both simultaneously, providing design flexibility while using the same physical hardware platform, thereby reducing manufacturing complexity.
3Device complexity
If a unified control system is used for both gas and electric heating, then manufacturing costs are reduced and component standardization is achieved, but the control system must handle multiple heating mechanisms simultaneously
Solution Approach 1:
The control system is designed to be dynamic and reconfigurable based on the selected cooking mode. It can selectively activate and control only the necessary heating mechanism (gas, electric, or both) for each cooking operation, providing full versatility while maintaining a unified control architecture that reduces manufacturing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system changes its operational parameters based on the selected heating mode. It adjusts control variables such as gas flow rate, electric power delivery, and temperature setpoints according to whether gas heating, electric heating, or combined heating is selected, enabling versatile control of multiple heating mechanisms through a single unified system.
4Reliability
If separate control systems are used, then gas control can be optimized for gas-specific requirements, but the overall system becomes more expensive and harder to maintain
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges gas control and electric heating control into a single integrated control system with unified components. This consolidation reduces the number of separate control systems that need to be maintained, diagnosed, and repaired, while still providing optimized control for gas-specific requirements through dedicated control algorithms and sensors within the unified system.
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 solution allows for cost-effective production of cooking ovens with interchangeable gas and electric heating modules, reducing manufacturing costs and simplifying the design of ovens that can operate either with gas or electric heating, while maintaining precise temperature control between 35°C and 510°C.
Implementation Method 1
one or more gas burners being adapted to heat the air contained in the muffle
Implementation Method 2
one or more electric heating elements being adapted to heat the air contained in the muffle
Data Source
AI summary
The oven has a cooking chamber (2), and an electric control assembly (16) constituting a control interface (17) and an electronic power control device (18). The control interface has an electronic and/or electromechanic control unit (19). The device (18) controls an electric heating element (10), a gas supply management control device (21), and a gas burner (9) by a switching unit (20), where the gas burner is adapted to heat the cooking chamber. The assembly (16) controls an electric baking oven or a gas baking oven.