Oven Door Assembly with Dual-Path Airflow for Cleaning and Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional ovens face challenges in efficiently cleaning the inner walls of the cooking chamber and the inner side of the door, as well as cooling the outer side of the door while maintaining the temperature of the inner walls of the cooking chamber, which affects cleaning efficiency and user safety.
Innovation Solution
The oven features a door assembly with a concaved handle groove, an inner plate to divide the inner space, a shielding member to shield airflow, an inlet for air inflow, and an outlet for air to move outside, along with a cooling fan unit and specific flow paths to manage airflow and temperature distribution.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If air is allowed to circulate in the inner space of the door to cool the outer surface, then the outer surface temperature decreases, but the inner surface temperature also decreases affecting cleaning efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The door assembly is divided into multiple functional zones using the inner plate that creates separate flow paths. The first flow path (between inner plate and rear plate) maintains high temperature for cleaning, while the second flow path (between inner plate and front plate) allows air circulation for cooling the outer surface. This segmentation enables simultaneous achievement of both high inner surface temperature for cleaning and low outer surface temperature for user safety.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the door assembly are given different thermal characteristics. The region near the rear plate is maintained at high temperature for cleaning effectiveness, while the region near the front plate is cooled for user safety. The shielding member further refines this by directing airflow to specific areas, ensuring localized temperature control matches the functional requirements of each zone.
2Shape
If the handle is formed inside the door for aesthetics, then appearance is improved, but the handle temperature becomes excessively high affecting user safety
Solution Approach 1:
The shielding member acts as an intermediary element that blocks hot air from reaching the handle area. By positioning the shielding member to obstruct the first flow path near the handle, it prevents high-temperature air from heating the handle, thereby maintaining user safety while preserving the aesthetic integrated handle design.
3Productivity
If the inner plate is positioned closer to the rear plate, then the cleaning effectiveness is improved, but the space for airflow management is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses dynamic airflow management to compensate for the reduced physical space. By optimizing the flow paths and using the shielding member to direct airflow efficiently, the system maintains effective temperature distribution and cleaning performance despite the constrained volume created by positioning the inner plate closer to the rear plate.
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 configuration enhances cleaning efficiency by maintaining the inner side temperature of the door assembly and cooling the handle, improving user safety and reducing the temperature of the door's outer side, thereby increasing the oven's overall cleaning effectiveness.
Implementation Method 1
a cooling fan unit and specific flow paths to manage airflow and temperature distribution
Implementation Method 2
a shielding member located between the inner plate and a rear side of the door assembly and configured to shield an air flow
Implementation Method 3
A cleaning systems may include a method of removing contaminants attached to inner walls of the cooking chamber and a front door using high-temperature heat inside the cooking chamber
Data Source
AI summary
An oven and a door assembly are provided. The oven includes a casing, a cooking chamber located inside the casing and having a shape with an open front, and a door assembly having an inner space therein and configured to close and open the open front of the cooking chamber. The door assembly includes a handle member, a shielding member located between the inner plate and a rear side of the door assembly and configured to shield an air flow, an inlet formed in a bottom of the door assembly and configured to allow an inflow of air from outside of the door into the inner space, and an outlet located on top of the door assembly at the rear of the handle member and configured to provide a space to allow air to move outside the door assembly.