Household electronic toaster

• US 6,429,407 B1
• Filed: 10/06/1997
• Issued: 08/06/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hamilton Beach Brands Incorporated (Hamilton Beach Brands Holding Co.)
• Original Assignee: Hamilton Beach/Proctor-Silex Incorporated (Hamilton Beach Brands Holding Co.)
• Inventors: Prager, Helmut G., Blankenship, Paul M., Garber, Alan M.
• Primary Examiner(s): PELHAM, JOSEPH MOORE
• Application Number:
  US08/944,521
• Time in Patent Office: 1,765 Days
• Field of Search: 219/413, 219/491, 219/492, 219/493, 219/501, 219/518, 219/519, 993/29.P, 993/29.R, 993/29.RT
• US Class Current: 219/413
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 37/0814 with automatic bread ejection or timing means A47J37/0857 takes precedence

Abstract

A toaster having an electronic circuit including a chip-on-board ASIC that controls the operation of toaster heating elements and an electromagnet to which relatively high voltage is applied to hold an armature carried by a bread carriage and toaster-operating assembly. The armature is freely suspended from a bread carriage and toaster-operating assembly and accurately guided onto the electromagnet when the bread carriage is lowered. The toaster has a one-piece main frame that includes both a base frame plate and a rear frame plate. Several economies are obtained by virtue the construction of the toaster. A one-piece control support member is mounted on the base frame plate that supports both mechanical and electronic assemblies for controlling the operation of the toaster in predetermined relative positions. The armature can move upward relative to the bread carriage at the end of a toasting cycle if the bread carriage accidentally becomes stuck so that the power switches will assuredly be opened at the end of toasting cycle. A barrier is provided between live electricity and the toaster cover. A crumb tray is provided that may be mounted on the base frame member without the use of tools or additional parts.

Claims

1. A toaster having a toast control chamber and a toaster control circuit including an electromagnet and a chip-on-board ASIC mounted in said control chamber, said toaster control circuit including circuit components for converting approximately 120 volts AC household current to lower, half wave rectified DC current across the input terminal of the ASIC, and operating said electromagnet with an AC voltage less than 120 volts with a duty cycle of less than 25%.

2. A toaster in accordance with claim 1 wherein said electromagnet is operated with approximately 70 volts AC.

3. A toaster in accordance with claim 2 wherein said ASIC includes a relay driver which controls the duty cycle of the voltage across the electromagnet.