METHOD AND COOKING APPLIANCE FOR COOKING ACCORDING TO THE C-VALUE

• US 20090061070A1
• Filed: 08/26/2008
• Published: 03/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rational AG
• Original Assignee: Rational AG
• Inventors: Breunig, Manfred, Greiner, Michael
• Granted Patent: US 8,344,294 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 426/665
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 7/08 Arrangement or mounting of control or safety devices

Abstract

A method for the cooking of a cooking product in a cooking appliance with a cooking chamber that comprises at least one heating device, a computer device, a memory device and at least one sensor device, is carried out, in dependence on a degree of cooking of a cooking product and/or of a cooking duration, in particular determined by the core temperature, the browning, the pH value and/or the cooking value, from values measured by the sensor device with consideration of the at least occasionally deposited values in the memory device via the computer device, wherein at least two steps separated from one another in time, comprising a pre-cooking step, which is interrupted when a determined intermediate value of the degree of cooking and/or of the duration of cooking, in particular a determined remaining time for reaching the cooking duration is reached, and a finishing cooking step, in particular a finishing step that is recalled at a later time point in order to end the cooking of the cooking product with consideration of the intermediate value.

Claims

1-33. -33. (canceled)

34. A method of cooking a cooking product in a cooking appliance including a cooking chamber, at least one heating device, a computer device, a memory device, and at least one sensor device, the method conducted by the computer device in dependence on at least one of a degree of cooking of a cooking product and a cooking duration, wherein the at least one of the degree of cooking of the cooking product and the cooking duration is determined from measured values of the at least one sensor device in particular by at least one of a core temperature, a browning, a pH value, and a cooking value, taking into account values stored at least temporarily in the memory device, the method comprising:

performing a pre-cooking step, which is interrupted upon reaching a certain intermediate value of the at least one of the degree of cooking and the duration of cooking; and

performing a finishing cooking step taking the intermediate value into account, wherein the finishing cooking step is separated in time from the pre-cooking step by being recalled at a time point later than performing the pre-cooking step in order to end the cooking of the cooking product.

109. The method of claim 34, comprising interrupting the pre-cooking step upon reaching a determined remaining time until reaching the cooking duration.

110. The method of claim 34, further comprising calculating the degree of cooking of the cooking product by performing at least one of (a) time summation and (b) a time integral of at least one of the measured values.

111. The method of claim 110, comprising determining at least one of the measured values by means of at least one of (a) a core temperature sensor, and (b) a gas sensor for the determination of the chemical state of the cooking product based on the atmosphere in the cooking chamber.

112. The method of claim 34, further comprising determining the intermediate value in dependence on the duration of a further cooking step.

113. The method of claim 112, comprising determining the intermediate value in dependence on the duration of the finishing cooking step.

114. The method of claim 34, further comprising at least one of altering, selecting, and storing at least one of (a) the intermediate value, (b) an end value of the degree of cooking, and (c) an end value of the cooking duration, by means of at least one of an operating device, a display device, and the memory device.

115. The method of claim 114, wherein at least one of altering and selecting an end value of the cooking duration comprises at least one of altering and selecting a duration of the finishing cooking step.

116. The method of claim 114, wherein at least one of altering and selecting an end value of the cooking duration comprises at least one of altering and selecting a duration of the finishing cooking step at the beginning of the method.

117. The method of claim 116, wherein at least one of altering and selecting an end value of the cooking duration occurs with a selection of at least one of:

(a) the cooking product,

(b) a cooking program,

(c) at least one parameter of at least one of (i) the cooking product, and (ii) the cooking program, and

(d) an at least partially predetermined finishing cooking step.

118. The method of claim 117, wherein

the parameter of the cooking product characterizes at least one of a size of the cooking product before cooking, a caliber of the cooking product before cooking, a weight of the cooking product before cooking, a temperature of the cooking product before cooking, an initial state of the cooking product before cooking, and a quality of the cooking product before cooking,

the parameter of the cooking program characterizes at least one of a humidity in the cooking chamber, an air circulation in the cooking chamber, a temperature in the cooking chamber, and a target value of the browning of the cooking product, and

the parameter of the finishing cooking step characterizes at least one of the humidity in the cooking chamber, the air circulation in the cooking chamber, and the temperature in the cooking chamber.

119. The method of claim 114, further comprising at least one of determining and displaying the intermediate value and the end value on at least one of the operating device and the display device by the computer device in dependence on at least one of the selected cooking product, the selected cooking program, and the selected finishing cooking step.

120. The method of claim 119, wherein at least one of determining and displaying the intermediate value and the end value comprises accessing the values stored in the memory device.

121. The method of claim 114, further comprising at least one of determining, selecting, displaying, and storing the intermediate value in the form of a percentage value relative to the end value.

122. The method of claim 114, comprising storing at least the intermediate value in the memory device upon reaching the intermediate value.

123. The method of claim 114, further comprising storing at least one of the measured values, the intermediate value, the end value, the cooking product, the cooking program, and the parameter in the memory device together with an identification.

124. The method of claim 123, further comprising at least one of selecting, altering, and storing one of (a) the identification and (b) the identification together with the degree of cooking of the cooking product.

125. The method of claim 123, further comprising at least one of selecting, changing, and storing the finishing cooking step via the identification.

126. The method of claim 34, further comprising performing at least one of a cooling step and a storage step between the pre-cooking step and the finishing cooking step. 127. (New) The method of claim 34, further comprising:

determining a correction term reflective of at least one of (a) a continuation of the cooking after the end of the pre-cooking step and (b) a continuation of the cooking after removal of the cooking product from the cooking chamber after the completion of the pre-cooking step.

135. The method of claim 34, further comprising testing a client input for the intermediate value for plausibility, the input being received through the at least one of the operating device and the display device.

136. The method of claim 135, wherein testing the client input comprises taking into account at least one of the selected cooking product, the selected cooking program, the at least one selected parameter, and the measured values captured by means of the sensor device.

137. The method of claim 136, wherein, in the case of a recognized lack of plausibility, the method further comprises at least one of:

outputting a message, and

automatically displaying a calculated intermediate value as a proposal, wherein the proposal can be at least one of changed and stored.

138. The method of claim 34, further comprising, during the pre-cooking step, determining a development of at least one property over time that determines the climate in the cooking chamber for the finishing cooking step.

139. The method of claim 138, wherein the at least one property comprises a property selected from the group consisting of humidity in the cooking chamber, temperature in the cooking chamber, and air circulation in the cooking chamber.

140. The method of claim 34, further comprising achieving at least one of (a) a predetermined end value of the degree of cooking of the cooking product and (b) the cooking duration, within at least one of (1) a predetermined duration of the finishing cooking step and (b) a duration entered through the at least one of the operating device and the display device.

141. The method of claim 34, further comprising entering a target time at which the finishing cooking step should be completed.

142. The method of claim 141, further comprising cooking several cooking products with the finishing cooking step to particular desired end values of the at least one of the degree of cooking and the cooking duration in such a way that the end values of all cooking products are essentially reached at the target time.

143. The method of claim 142, comprising cooking several cooking products that were pre-cooked in different pre-cooking steps.

144. The method of claim 142, further comprising at least one of entering and storing the target time, together with at least one of (a) the cooking product and (b) the cooking product for each of the several pre-cooked cooking products.

145. The method of claim 144, comprising entering and storing the target time using at least one of the identification and the intermediate value.

146. The method of claim 143, further comprising calculating a loading time point for each of the several pre-cooked cooking products at which the cooking product is loaded into the cooking chamber in such a way that the end value of the degree of cooking is reached at the target time.

147. The method of claim 146, further comprising displaying, on the at least one of the operating device and the display device, an invitation to load the cooking product at the loading time point.

148. The method of claim 147, wherein displaying comprises displaying the associated identification.

149. The method of claim 146, wherein calculating each loading time point comprises taking into account at least one of a caliber of the particular cooking product and the number of other cooking products to be loaded into the cooking chamber.

150. The method of claim 146, further comprising automatically calculating a sequence of at least one of the pre-cooking steps, a starting time points of each pre-cooking step, and each loading time point.

151. The method of claim 150, further comprising, during a first pre-cooking step, determining at least one of the duration of the finishing cooking step and the at least one parameter of the finishing cooking step.

152. The method of claim 141, further comprising issuing a warning when at least one of the following occurs:

(a) the entered target time cannot be reached, (b) when a combination of the different pre-cooked cooking products cannot yield satisfactory results in the finishing cooking step, and (c) when the pre-cooked cooking products require different climate parameters.

153. The method of claim 152, further comprising, with the issuance of the warning, displaying at least one of alternative possible target times, finishing cooking steps, pre-cooking steps, and enabling a selection of an alternative via the at least one of the operating device and the display device.

154. The method of claim 153, further comprising, during at least one pre-cooking step, determining at least one of a subsequent loading time point and a removal time point of at least one cooking product from the cooking chamber via at least one of the anticipated duration of the pre-cooking step and the property that determines development over time of the climate in the cooking chamber.

155. The method of claim 154, further comprising displaying a request for at least one of loading and removing the cooking product at at least one of each loading time point and each removal time point.

156. The method of claim 155, comprising displaying the request with the display of the associated identification, on the at least one of the operating device and the display device.

35-108. -108. (canceled)

128. The method of claim 127, comprising taking the correction term into account when determining at least one of an end of the pre-cooking step, an end of the finishing cooking step, and a duration of the finishing cooking step based on the correction term.

134. The method of claim 128, further comprising displaying at least one of the duration of the finishing cooking step before correction and the duration of the finishing cooking step after correction via at least one of the operating device and the display device.

129. The method of claim 127, wherein determining the correction term comprises considering at least one of the cooling step and the storage step.

130. The method of claim 127, wherein determining the correction term comprises calculating the correction term in dependence on the development over time of the measured values from the sensor device at least during the pre- cooking step.

131. The method of claim 130, wherein determining the correction term comprises calculating the correction term in dependence on a cooking product variable recognized during the pre-cooking step.

132. The method of claim 131, comprising determining the cooking product variable based on at least one of:

a cooking product caliber,

a cooking product size,

a cooking product weight,

a time of removal of the cooking product from the cooking chamber after completion of the pre-cooking step, and

a time point of introduction of the cooking product into the cooking chamber for the finishing cooking step.

133. The method of claim 132, further comprising determining at least one of the cooking product size and the cooking product caliber via a first and second derivative of a core temperature with respect to time.

157. A cooking appliance, comprising:

a cooking chamber;

a computer device;

a memory device;

at least one sensor device; and

at least one heating device, the cooking device programmed to the perform a method comprising;

performing a pre-cooking step, which is interrupted upon reaching a certain intermediate value of at least one of a degree of cooking and a duration of cooking, and

performing a finishing step separated in time from the pre-cooking step taking the intermediate value into account.

158. The cooking appliance of claim 157, further comprising at least one of an operating device and a display device.

159. The cooking appliance of claim 158, wherein the at least one of the operating device and the display device comprises at least one of keys, a rotary knob, and a touch screen.