Raised-level built-in cooking appliance

• US 6,904,905 B2
• Filed: 06/28/2004
• Issued: 06/14/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgerã¤Te GmbH (Robert Bosch GmbH)
• Original Assignee: BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgerã¤Te GmbH (Robert Bosch GmbH)
• Inventors: Kuttalek, Edmund
• Primary Examiner(s): Basichas, Alfred
• Application Number:
  US10/879,790
• Publication Number:
  US 20050005927A1
• Time in Patent Office: 351 Days
• Field of Search: 126/273.A, 126/19.M, 126/337.A, 126/198, 126/335, 126/339, 126/340, 312/247, 312/272, 219/391, 211/103, 211/104, 211/117
• US Class Current: 126/273.00A
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 15/027 located at bottom side of housing
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 15/162 Co-operating with a door, e.g. operated by the door

Abstract

A raised-level cooking appliance has a heating chamber with a lowerable trapdoor and a drive device. The drive device is configured to lower and lift the trapdoor. The drive mechanism is subject to a tension force, counteracting a weight of the trapdoor. The drive for moving the trapdoor may be switched off when the trapdoor comes into contact with an upper or lower stop in a simpler and more reliable manner. A control device controls the drive device in dependence on a magnitude of the tension force acting on the drive mechanism.

Claims

1. A wall-mounted cooking appliance, comprising:

a housing defining a heating chamber and having a bottom muffle opening;

a lowerable bottom door for selectively closing said muffle opening;

a drive mechanism for hoisting the bottom door, said drive mechanism including at least one tensile element, connected to said bottom door and stressed against a weight of said bottom door with a given tensile force; and

a control device connected to and controlling said drive mechanism in dependence of a magnitude of the given tensile force.

2. The cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein said control device is configured to interrupt said drive mechanism when an upper threshold value of the tensile force is exceeded.

3. The cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein said control device is configured to interrupt said drive mechanism when a lower threshold value of the tensile force is undershot.

4. The cooking appliance according to claim 1, which comprises a spring disposed to pre-tense said drive mechanism for detecting the tensile force, said spring moving over a spring path with a change in the tensile force, and wherein said control device is configured to determines the magnitude of the tensile force in dependence on a magnitude of the spring path.

5. The cooking appliance according to claim 4, wherein said tensile element has an end moving over the spring path and said spring is disposed to pre-tense said end moving over the spring path.

6. The cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein said control device is configured to detect an angle of inclination of said bottom door and to control said drive mechanism to reduce the angle of inclination in dependence on a magnitude of the angle of inclination of said bottom door.

7. The cooking appliance according to claim 6, wherein said at least one tensile element is one of a first tensile element and a second tensile element stressed with first and second tensile forces, respectively, and wherein said control device is configured to detect the angle of inclination in dependence on a tensile force difference between the first and second tensile forces.

8. The cooking appliance according to claim 7, wherein said control device, for detecting the tensile force difference, includes at least a first and a second switch, generating a first and a second switch signal, respectively, by shifting said spring over the spring path, and said control device detects a time delay between generating the first and second switch signal and, depending on the magnitude of the time delay, fixes the tensile force difference.

9. The cooking appliance according to claim 8, wherein said control device is configured to reverse said drive mechanism when an upper threshold value of the time delay is undershot.