Peltier cooling system for a domestic kitchen appliance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Modern domestic kitchen appliances face challenges in cooling sensitive areas, such as control electronics, due to heat tolerance limitations and regulations, where existing cooling systems are inefficient and often require larger fan sizes.
Innovation Solution
The use of a Peltier device with a hot-side and cold-side heat-sink configuration, along with a voltage supply, to absorb heat from the cold-side heat-sink and expel it into the hot-side heat-sink, providing effective cooling while potentially reducing the size of the fan required for air circulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If conventional cooling methods are used in kitchen appliances with heat-sensitive components, then adequate cooling can be provided, but the size of circulation fans increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is segmented into multiple Peltier devices, each with separate hot-side and cold-side heat sinks. This segmentation allows distributed cooling across different areas of the appliance, reducing the need for a single large fan to circulate cooling air throughout the entire space.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the conventional mechanical cooling system (large fan circulating air) with a solid-state Peltier cooling system. The Peltier devices directly transfer heat from hot sides to cold sides through electrical current, eliminating the need for large-volume air circulation and thus reducing fan size.
2Temperature
If the temperature of surrounding environment is limited, then heat-sensitive components are protected, but cooling effectiveness is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The Peltier devices act as intermediary heat transfer elements between the heat-sensitive components and the external environment. The cold-side heat sinks directly contact areas needing cooling, while the hot-side heat sinks transfer heat to the cooking chamber, providing an efficient heat transfer pathway that maintains component temperatures within acceptable limits.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the temperature parameters by using Peltier devices to create localized cold zones at the cold-side heat sinks while maintaining higher temperatures at the hot-side heat sinks. This parameter differentiation allows effective cooling of specific areas without requiring the entire appliance environment to be cooled, maintaining cooling effectiveness within environmental temperature limits.
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 provides adequate cooling to kitchen appliance areas while potentially reducing the size of circulation fans, effectively managing heat and maintaining temperature-sensitive components within safe limits.
Implementation Method 1
a peltier device having a hot side and a cold side; a hot-side heat-sink attached to the hot side of the peltier device, the hot-side heat-sink configured to remove heat from the hot side of the peltier device and transfer the heat removed from the hot side of the peltier device to the cooking chamber
Data Source
AI summary
A domestic kitchen appliance is provided. The domestic kitchen appliance includes a peltier device having a hot side and a cold side; a hot-side heat-sink attached to the hot side of the peltier device, the hot-side heat-sink configured to remove heat from the hot side of the peltier device and transfer the heat removed from the hot side of the peltier device to a cooking chamber; a cold-side heat-sink attached to the cold side of the peltier device, the cold-side heat-sink fluidly connected to an area to be cooled; and a voltage supply that supplies voltage to the peltier device to cause the peltier device to absorb heat from the cold-side heat-sink into the cold side of the peltier device and to expel heat from the hot side of the peltier device into the hot-side heat-sink. The area to be cooled is outside of the cooking chamber.