Cooking device

• US 8,604,397 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2008
• Issued: 12/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Isoda, Keiko, Tominaga, Hiroshi, Izutani, Tamotsu, Tabuchi, Sadatoshi, Sakakibara, Kuniaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Yuen, Henry
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, PHUONG T
• Application Number:
  US12/523,946
• Publication Number:
  US 20090303201A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,149 Days
• Field of Search: 219/443.1, 219/468.2, 219/507, 219/486, 219/489, 219/511, 219/627, 219/494, 219/667, 219/626, 341/33, 341/34, 341/27, 993/25, 993/29, 993/39
• US Class Current: 219/625
• CPC Class Codes: F24C 7/082 on ranges, e.g. control panels, illumination
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 17/962 Capacitive touch switches
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2017/9602 characterised by the type or shape of the sensing electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2017/9615 using three electrodes per touch switch
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/960705 Safety of capacitive touch and proximity switches, e.g. increasing reliability, fail-safe
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/96077 comprising an electrode which is floating
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/960775 Emitter-receiver or "fringe" type detection, i.e. one or more field emitting electrodes and corresponding one or more receiving electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H03K 2217/960785 with illumination
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 6/062 for cooking plates or the like

Abstract

There is provided a cooking device that prevents operation based on a control command assigned to a touch key from being executed when a user is not intending to operate the touch key. The cooking device includes an electrode unit which includes a key electrode (3a) provided on the lower surface of the top plate and a contact electrode (3b) electrically connected with the key electrode and inputs the assigned control command; a cancel electrode (5a) provided at the periphery of the contact electrode so that the distance between the contact electrode and the cancel electrode is smaller than the width of the finger of the user; and a control unit (8) for controlling conduction to a heating source based on the control command assigned to the electrode unit when detecting that the vicinity of the electrode unit is touched. The control unit (8) limits the operation based on the control command when detecting that the vicinity of the cancel electrode is touched.

Claims

1. A cooking device comprising:

a heating source operable to heat an object to be heated;

a top plate provided on an upper surface of the cooking device;

a metal frame provided at a periphery of the top plate and connected to the earth;

an electrode unit including a key electrode provided on a lower surface of the top plate and a contact electrode provided on the lower surface of the top plate and electrically connected with the key electrode, the electrode unit operable to input an assigned control command when the top plate in the vicinity of the key electrode is touched with a finger;

a control unit electrically connected with the contact electrode by means of a conductive connection member contacted with the contact electrode, the control unit being operable to apply a high frequency signal to the electrode unit and detect that the vicinity of the electrode unit is touched to control conduction to the heating source based on the control command;

a cancel electrode provided on the lower surface of the top plate around the key electrode and contact electrode except at a near side of the top plate so as to surround the key electrode and the contact electrode except at the near side of the top plate, wherein a distance between the contact electrode and the cancel electrode is smaller than a predetermined width; and

a light source provided on a lower side of the key electrode, wherein the light source irradiates a cutout portion formed by cutting out a part of the key electrode with light;

wherein the control unit is electrically connected to the cancel electrode by means of another conductive connection member to apply a high frequency signal to the cancel electrode, and limits an operation based on the control command when detecting that the vicinity of the cancel electrode is touched.

2. The cooking device according to claim 1,

wherein the limitation of the operation based on the control command when detecting that the vicinity of the cancel electrode is touched includes invalidating the conduction to the heating source based on the control command.

3. The cooking device according to claim 2,

wherein the control unit invalidates the conduction control on the heating source based on the control command transmitted from the electrode unit when detecting that the vicinity of the cancel electrode is touched within a predetermined time after detecting a change in a state of the vicinity of the electrode unit from being touched to not being touched and/or when detecting that the vicinity of the electrode unit is touched within a predetermined time after detecting a change in a state of the vicinity of the cancel electrode from being touched to not being touched.

4. The cooking device according to claim 1,

wherein the limitation of the operation based on the control command when detecting that the vicinity of the cancel electrode is touched includes making the detection that the vicinity of the key electrode is touched difficult.

5. The cooking device according to claim 4,

wherein the control unit makes the detection that the vicinity of the key electrode is touched difficult within a predetermined time after detecting a change in a state of the vicinity of the cancel electrode from being touched to not being touched.

6. The cooking device according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit includes a key input detection reference value which is a reference in detecting that the vicinity of the key electrode is touched, and

the control unit changes the key input detection reference value to a value difficult to detect the touching of the vicinity of the key electrode when detecting that the vicinity of the cancel electrode is touched.

7. The cooking device according to claim 1,

wherein the control unit includes a cancel input detection reference value which is a reference in detecting that the vicinity of the cancel electrode is touched, and

the control unit changes the cancel input detection reference value to a value difficult to detect the touching of the vicinity of the cancel electrode when detecting that the vicinity of the key electrode is touched.

8. The cooking device according to claim 1, further comprising an informing unit operable to inform when the detection that the vicinity of the cancel electrode is touched and the detection that the vicinity of the key electrode is touched are simultaneously made.

9. The cooking device according to claim 1, further comprising an informing unit operable to inform when the touching of the vicinity of the cancel electrode is continuously detected for longer than or equal to a predetermined time.

10. The cooking device according to claim 1, further comprising another key electrode,

wherein the control unit controls the conduction to the heating source based on the control command when detecting that the vicinity of the key electrode is continuously touched for longer than or equal to a first predetermined time, and invalidates the conduction control on the heating source based on the control command corresponding to a combination of the key electrode and the other key electrode when detecting that the vicinity of the other key electrode is touched before a second predetermined time longer than the first predetermined time has elapsed from when the vicinity of the key electrode is touched.

11. The cooking device according to claim 1, wherein the predetermined width is approximately 7 to 10 mm.