Oven Door Hinge Cable Disconnect to Prevent Damage During Removal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing oven appliances often damage cables connecting user interface elements on the door to the controller when the door is removed, leading to potential damage and operational issues.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a door removal bracket in the hinge that moves between locked and unlocked positions, disconnecting the cable connectors when transitioning from locked to unlocked, thereby allowing safe removal of the door without damaging the cables.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the door is made removable from the cabinet for cleaning and maintenance access, then ease of operation is improved, but the cable connecting user interface elements to the controller is damaged
Solution Approach 1:
The cable connection system is segmented into separate connector components (first connector on the cabinet side, second connector on the door side) that can be independently moved and disconnected. The door removal bracket is also segmented to independently control cable connector positioning separate from door positioning, allowing the door to be removed while maintaining cable connector engagement.
Solution Approach 2:
The door removal bracket acts as an intermediary mechanism between the door removal action and the cable connectors. It mediates the disconnection process by being connected to one connector and controlling its movement, ensuring that cable disconnection occurs as an intermediate step before complete door removal, thereby preventing cable damage.
2Reliability
If the door is made permanently fixed to the cabinet to prevent cable damage, then cable integrity is maintained, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from a static fixed connection to a dynamic controlled disconnection system. The door removal bracket provides dynamic control over the cable connector positioning, allowing the system to adapt between connected and disconnected states based on operational needs, enabling both door removability and cable protection.
3Reliability
If a cable protection mechanism is added to the hinge, then device complexity increases, but cable integrity is improved
Solution Approach 1:
The door removal bracket serves multiple functions: it controls door removal, positions cable connectors, and prevents cable damage. By making this single component multi-functional, the patent avoids adding separate dedicated mechanisms for each function, thereby limiting the increase in overall device complexity while achieving cable protection.
Data Source
AI summary
An oven appliance includes a cabinet and a chamber defined within the cabinet for receipt of food items for cooking. A door is rotatably mounted to the cabinet by a hinge. The oven appliance also includes a first cable extending within the cabinet and a second cable extending within the door. The hinge includes a door removal bracket which is movable between a locked position where the door is locked to the cabinet by the hinge and an unlocked position where the door is removable from the cabinet. The door removal bracket is connected to one of the first cable and the second cable such that the first cable and the second cable are disconnected by moving the door removal bracket from the locked position to the unlocked position.