Oven Lighting Layout That Hides the Light Source From View
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional oven appliances' lighting systems are often positioned in a way that directs light into users' eyes when the oven door is opened, making it difficult to see inside the cooking chamber.
Innovation Solution
The oven appliance features a lighting system positioned adjacent to or extending through protrusions on the walls, obstructed from view along the central plane, ensuring that light is not directly directed into the user's eyes when the door is opened, utilizing LED light sources and optical features to provide illumination within the cooking chamber without visibility from outside.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If the light is positioned on the back wall or top wall of the cabinet, then the cooking chamber can be illuminated, but the light may be directed into the user's eyes when the oven door is opened
Solution Approach 1:
The lighting system is positioned asymmetrically within the cooking chamber, specifically on the rear wall offset from the central plane, so that light does not travel directly toward the door opening where the user stands. This asymmetric positioning resolves the contradiction by maintaining illumination while avoiding direct exposure to the user's eyes.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent positions the light source in a specific three-dimensional location within the cooking chamber (on the rear wall at a defined distance from the central plane), utilizing spatial dimensionality to redirect light paths. By changing the positional dimension of the light source, the system achieves both illumination coverage and user safety.
2Illumination intensity
If the lighting system is positioned to illuminate the cooking chamber effectively, then visibility within the chamber is improved, but the light source becomes visible from the cooking chamber opening
Solution Approach 1:
The lighting system is positioned asymmetrically relative to the central plane of the wall, creating an offset configuration where the light source is hidden from the direct line of sight from the cooking chamber opening. This asymmetric placement ensures the light source remains invisible from outside while still providing effective illumination within the chamber.
Solution Approach 2:
The wall structure itself acts as an intermediary element that obscures the light source from external view. By positioning the light behind or within the wall structure at an offset location, the wall serves as a physical barrier that blocks the direct line of sight from the cooking chamber opening to the light source, while allowing light to penetrate into the chamber.
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 allows for effective illumination of the cooking chamber without causing glare, enhancing user safety and visibility when accessing or observing food during cooking operations.
Implementation Method 1
The lighting system can include one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) and/or one or more optical features associated with the one or more LEDs
Data Source
AI summary
An oven appliance including a cabinet and a lighting system is provided. The cabinet defines a cooking chamber and includes a first wall and a second wall spaced along a lateral direction. The first wall defines a central plane (extending in a vertical direction and a transverse direction) and a protrusion. The protrusion extends outwardly from the central plane in a direction away from the second wall. The lighting system includes a portion positioned adjacent to a near section of the protrusion, the near section of the protrusion being closer to a cooking chamber opening than a far section of the protrusion. The lighting system may thus be obstructed from view generally along the central plane of the first wall as viewed from the cooking chamber opening.