Home cooking appliance with a side swing oven door having a friction hinge

• US 10,077,906 B2
• Filed: 03/01/2017
• Issued: 09/18/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: BSH Home Appliances Corporation (Robert Bosch GmbH)
• Original Assignee: BSH Home Appliances Corporation (Robert Bosch GmbH)
• Inventors: Gayle, James, Geiger, Joseph, May, George, Rueter, Felix
• Primary Examiner(s): Huson, Gregory
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mashruwala, Nikhil
• Application Number:
  US15/446,047
• Publication Number:
  US 20170176020A1
• Time in Patent Office: 566 Days
• Field of Search: 126194, 126190, 126197, 16334, 16286
• CPC Class Codes: E05C 1/08 with latching action
• CPC Class Codes: E05D 11/08 Friction devices between relatively-movable hinge parts E05D7/086 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E05F 1/08 spring-actuated , e.g. for horizontally sliding wings counterbalancing sliding or lifting wings E05D; springs per se F16F, e.g. gas-springs F16F9/00
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 15/02 Doors specially adapted for stoves or ranges
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 15/023 Mounting of doors, e.g. hinges, counterbalancing

Abstract

A home cooking appliance with a side swing door is provided. The home cooking appliance includes a housing having a cooking cavity and a side swing door movable about at least one hinge between a closed position and an open position to provide access to the cooking cavity, wherein the at least one hinge includes a friction hinge configured to impede rotational motion of the side swing door, wherein the friction hinge is a variable torque friction hinge configured to provide a variable torque throughout at least a part of a range of motion in at least one of an opening direction and a closing direction of the of the side swing door.

Claims

1. A home cooking appliance comprising:

a housing having a cooking cavity; and

a side swing door movable about at least one hinge between a closed position and an open position to provide access to the cooking cavity,

wherein the at least one hinge includes a friction hinge configured to impede rotational motion of the side swing door,

wherein the friction hinge is a variable torque friction hinge configured to provide a variable torque throughout at least a part of a range of motion in at least one of an opening direction and a closing direction of the of the side swing door, such that no detents are required and a tactile perception of the side swing door by a user is enhanced, while improving safety of the side swing door.

2. The home cooking appliance of claim 1, wherein the friction hinge is a variable torque friction hinge configured to provide a first variable torque throughout at least a part of a first range of motion in an opening direction and a second variable torque throughout at least a part of a second range of motion in a closing direction of the side swing door, and

wherein the first variable torque is different than the second variable torque.

3. A home cooking appliance comprising:

a housing having a cooking cavity; and

a side swing door movable about at least one hinge between a closed position and an open position to provide access to the cooking cavity,

wherein the at least one hinge includes a friction hinge configured to impede rotational motion of the side swing door,

wherein the friction hinge is configured to provide a first torque during a commencement of rotation of the side swing door from a resting position,

wherein the friction hinge is configured to provide a second torque during the rotation of the side swing door, and

wherein the first torque is different than the second torque, such that no detents are required and a tactile perception of the side swing door by a user is enhanced, while improving safety of the side swing door.

4. A home cooking appliance comprising:

a housing having a cooking cavity; and

a side swing door movable about at least one hinge between a closed position and an open position to provide access to the cooking cavity,

wherein the at least one hinge includes a friction hinge configured to impede rotational motion of the side swing door,

wherein the friction hinge is configured to provide a predetermined amount of free motion of the side swing door about the friction hinge in a first direction after an external force is applied to the side swing door before the friction hinge provides a torque in a second direction that is opposite to the first direction, such that no detents are required and a tactile perception of the side swing door by a user is enhanced, while improving safety of the side swing door.

5. The home cooking appliance of claim 4, wherein the predetermined amount of free motion of the side swing door about the friction hinge in a first direction continues for a time after the external force applied to the side swing door is removed before the friction hinge provides a torque in a second direction that is opposite to the first direction.