Control arrangement for cooking devices

• US 5,710,409 A
• Filed: 10/06/1995
• Issued: 01/20/1998
• Est. Priority Date: 10/07/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Gecko Alliance Group Inc.
• Original Assignee: Convotherm Elektrogerate GMBH (Ali Holding Srl)
• Inventors: Schwarzbacker, Werner, Ziarko, Boguslaw
• Primary Examiner(s): Paschall, Mark H.
• Application Number:
  US08/539,989
• Time in Patent Office: 837 Days
• Field of Search: 219/506, 219/502, 219/501, 219/714, 219/497, 219/508, 219/509, 219/491, 219/412, 219/413, 340/825.69, 340/825.72
• US Class Current: 219/506
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 7/082 on ranges, e.g. control panels, illumination

Abstract

The control arrangement for cooking devices with an embedded control for regulating cooking process whose various parameters can be set by actuating elements at the cooking device is characterized by an external programming unit comprising a hand programming device for setting and storing, independently from the embedded control of the respective cooking devices, different cooking programs, diagnostic programs and user functions which can be called, checked and changed optionally and for transmitting such programs to every embedded control of every optional cooking device.

Claims

1. A control arrangement for cooking devices each with an embedded control for regulating cooking processes whose various parameters can be set by actuating elements at the respective cooking device, comprising:

an external programming unit comprising hand-held programming means for setting and storing, independently from the embedded controls of the respective cooking devices, different simple cooking programs and/or optional combination cooking programs or complex cooking programs, diagnostic programs and user functions which can be called, checked and changed optionally and for transmitting such programs to the embedded control of each cooking device, said hand-held programming means including a plain text display, a user guide, and a wireless transmitter for transmitting the set cooking programs and user functions, said hand-held programming means as a program unit including means for storing optionally combined cooking programs or complex cooking programs under an identification code and transmitting the stored combined cooking programs or complex cooking programs to each of the embedded controls, each of the embedded controls including means for activating the transmitted combined cooking programs or complex cooking programs by the same adjustable identification code.

2. The control arrangement according to claim 1, including means in the external programming unit for transmitting cooking programs to the embedded control and which can be activated at the embedded control.

3. The control arrangement according to claim 1, wherein said external unit includes means for blocking every optional actuating element of the cooking device serving to trigger a user function.

4. The control arrangement according to claim 1, including means for connecting the external programming unit via modem to a central, main programming unit.