VARIABLE PEAK WAVELENGTH COOKING INSTRUMENT WITH SUPPORT TRAY

• US 20170223774A1
• Filed: 04/18/2017
• Published: 08/03/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Brava Home, Inc. (Middleby Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Brava Home, Inc. (Middleby Corporation)
• Inventors: Cheng, Shih-yu, Janoff, Mark, Yue, Dan, Metzler, Richard
• Granted Patent: US 10,064,244 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 15/16 Shelves, racks or trays inside ovens; Supports therefor
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 15/22 Reflectors for radiation heaters
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 7/046 Ranges
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 7/065 with reflectors reflectors per se F24C15/22
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 7/085 on baking ovens
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/181 for receiving images from a plurality of remote sources
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/06 adapted for operation in multiple networks or having at least two operational modes, e.g. multi-mode terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 3/0076 for cooking, e.g. in ovens lamps specially adapted for non-metallic cooking plates H05B3/742, H05B3/744
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/6417 Door interlocks of the microwave heating apparatus and related circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/6441 allowing the input of coded operation instructions, e.g. bar code reader
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/6452 the sensors being in contact with the heated product
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/6455 the sensors being infrared detectors
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/6482 combined with radiant heating, e.g. infrared heating

Abstract

Several embodiments include a cooking appliance/instrument (e.g., oven). The cooking appliance/instrument can include a cooking chamber, a support tray adapted to hold food in the cooking chamber; and a heating system comprised of at least a heating element. The heating system is adapted to emit waves according to a particular configuration such that the emitted waves is substantially transparent or substantially opaque to the support tray and thus enabling the cooking instrument to select what to heat.

Claims

1. An oven comprising:

a cooking chamber;

a support tray adapted to hold food in the cooking chamber;

a heating system comprised of a heating element capable of emitting waves at different peak emission wavelengths and an envelope for the heating element;

wherein the material of the support tray has an absorption band that is at least partially different from an absorption band of the envelope; and

a control system configured to;

receive an instruction to cook food in the cooking chamber according to a digital recipe; and

vary, according to the instruction, a peak wavelength emitted by the heating system to specifically and directly transfer heat to the support tray, the envelope of the heating element, a specific type of edible material in the food, or any combination thereof.

2. The oven of claim 1, wherein the heating system includes:

one or more filaments;

a tubular containment vessel, as the envelope of the heating element, surrounding the filaments; and

an electric signal driver or modulator to drive the one or more filaments.

3. The oven of claim 1, further comprising a reflector for the heating element to reflect emission of the heating element.

4. The oven of claim 3, wherein the reflector is a coating on an outer surface of the heating element that faces away from the support tray.

5. The oven of claim 3, wherein the material of the reflector is substantially ceramic.

6. The oven of claim 3, wherein the reflector is adapted to be spaced apart from the heating element at a distance such that, together the heating element and the reflector have anti-fouling characteristics and are capable of disintegrating any food debris in the space therebetween.

7. The oven of claim 1, wherein the absorption band of the support tray substantially lacks overlap with the absorption band of the envelope.

8. A cooking instrument comprising:

a cooking chamber;

a support tray adapted to hold food in the cooking chamber;

a heating system comprised of a heating element capable of emitting waves at different peak emission wavelengths; and

a control system configured to drive the heating element to emit at a first peak wavelength such that the support tray is substantially opaque to waves emitted from the heating element and at a second peak wavelength such that the support tray is substantially transparent to waves emitted from the heating element.

9. The cooking instrument of claim 8, wherein the first peak wavelength is 3 microns or longer.

10. The cooking instrument of claim 8, wherein the second peak wavelength is shorter than 3 microns.

11. The cooking instrument of claim 8, wherein the control system is configured to drive the heating element at a third peak wavelength such that the emitted waves directly transfer heat to the support tray without directly transferring heat to the food on the support tray.

12. The cooking instrument of claim 8, wherein the support tray has an optically transparent region enabling visible light to substantially travel through two opposing surfaces of the support tray.

13. The cooking instrument of claim 12, wherein the support tray includes a reflective portion to enable a top side camera to capture a bottom view of the food resting on the support tray.

14. The cooking instrument of claim 8, wherein the support tray is comprised of glass.

15. A cooking instrument, comprising:

a cooking chamber;

a support tray adapted to hold food in the cooking chamber; and

an infrared-based heating system comprised of a heating element, wherein the heating element is capable of emitting waves according to a particular configuration such that the support tray is substantially transparent to the emitted waves, an envelope of the heating element is substantially transparent to the emitted waves and the emitted waves directly transfer energy to the food.

16. The cooking instrument of claim 15, wherein the infrared-based heating system includes a plurality of heating elements with at least a first set of one or more heating elements disposed directly above the support tray and a second set of one or more heating elements disposed directly below the support tray.

17. The cooking instrument of claim 16, wherein each heating element of the first set is longitudinally extended in an angle that is substantially perpendicular to each heating element of the second set.

18. The cooking instrument of claim 16, wherein each heating element of the first set are non-uniformly spaced apart.

19. The cooking instrument of claim 15, wherein the support tray is composed of one or more materials;

and wherein the peak wavelength of waves emitted by the heating system at the particular configuration is outside of the absorption band of the one or more materials.

20. The cooking instrument of claim 15, wherein the heating system is capable of emitting waves according to an emission spectrum specified by the particular configuration;

and wherein an area under the emission spectrum is outside of an absorption band of the one or more materials.

21. A cooking instrument, comprising:

a cooking chamber;

a support tray adapted to hold food in the cooking chamber; and

an infrared-based heating system comprised of at least a heating element, the heating system capable of emitting waves according to a particular configuration such that the support tray is substantially opaque to the emitted waves and an envelope of the heating element is substantially transparent to the emitted waves.