DE102021201957A1 - food drawer - Google Patents

Abstract

A food drawer (5; 5a) has a food receiving tray (20) which has a loading opening (20b) on the top side, and a vapor-tight cover (27) for covering the loading opening (20b), the cover (27) being placed on the food drawer ( 5; 5a) is horizontally displaceable such that, when the food drawer (5; 5a) is extended, it can be displaced from a closed position covering the loading opening (20b) to an open position uncovering the loading opening (20b), and the cover (27) has a plurality of lamellas (35) connected to one another by at least one flexible, waterproof and heat-resistant carrier film (34a, 34b), which lamellas (35) are at least partially stowed in a storage space (28) of the cooking drawer (5) when the cover (27) is in the open position is. A household cooking appliance (1) has at least one food drawer (5). The invention can be applied particularly advantageously to steam cooking drawers, specifically to a steam cooking drawer of a multi-cavity domestic cooking appliance.

Description

The invention relates to a cooking product drawer, having a cooking product receiving trough, which has a loading opening at the top, and a vapor-tight cover for covering the loading opening. The invention also relates to a household cooking appliance which has at least one such food drawer. The invention can be applied particularly advantageously to steam cooking drawers, specifically to a steam cooking drawer of a multi-cavity domestic cooking appliance.

Oven/steaming drawer combinations are known in which a steaming drawer is located below an oven. A loading opening on the upper side of the damper tray that is permanently installed in the drawer can be covered by means of a pivoting cover. The disadvantage here is that the steam treatment drawer can collide with an open oven door when the lid is folded up, which can lead to damage to the lid and/or the oven door. In addition, such steam treatment drawers are difficult to clean thoroughly. Another disadvantage is that when the lid is opened after a steam treatment process, it is difficult to release the steam that is still present in a controlled manner

It is the object of the present invention to at least partially overcome the disadvantages of the prior art.

This object is solved according to the features of the independent claims. Preferred embodiments can be found in particular in the dependent claims.

The object is achieved by a food drawer having a food receiving pan with a loading opening on the top and a vapor-tight cover for covering the loading opening, the cover being horizontally displaceable on the cooking food drawer in such a way that, when the cooking goods drawer is extended, it moves from a closed position covering the loading opening to an open position , the loading opening releasing position is movable, and wherein the cover has a plurality of slats connected to one another by at least one flexible, waterproof and heat-resistant carrier film, which slats are stowed in a storage space of the cooking product drawer when the cover is in the open position.

This cooking drawer has the advantage, especially compared to a tilting glass plate, of better defined and safer guidance of the steam escaping when the cover is opened. Furthermore, the opening is particularly user-friendly because the dead weight of the cover does not have to be overcome when the cover is brought into an open position. In addition, motorization of the movement of the cover can advantageously be simplified in this way. In addition, there is the advantage that the cover can be made particularly thin, since there is no need to take account of any mechanical stress that occurs if the cover falls down. In addition, a particularly simple contacting of conductor tracks integrated into the cover is made possible.

In a further development, the food drawer can be extended horizontally out of a drawer housing and moved into the drawer housing, specifically by motor and/or manually.

The food receiving tray is used to hold and treat food, e.g. for cooking and/or keeping it warm. Cooking may include boiling, steaming (with wet steam and/or superheated steam), etc., for example. The food to be cooked can be poured into and removed from the food tray through the loading opening on the top. The food receiving pan together with the closed cover forms a food treatment space.

The fact that the cover can be moved horizontally on the food drawer can mean in particular that it rests on the (remaining) food drawer, e.g. on the food receiving tray and/or a support frame, and can be moved thereon.

It is a further development that the cover can be displaced horizontally in the direction of movement of the cooking product drawer. This can include, in particular, that if (in a front view) the cooking product drawer can be extended from the back to the front out of a drawer housing and can be moved into the drawer housing from the front to the rear, the cover can also be placed on the cooking product drawer from the back to the front or in the opposite direction is movable.

The fact that the cover has a plurality of slats connected to one another by at least one carrier film includes, in particular, that the slats or bars are arranged parallel and spaced apart from one another with respect to their longitudinal direction and are connected to one another by the at least one carrier film. This arrangement can also be referred to as a "venetian blind" or "roller shutter" type. The carrier film(s) present between adjacent lamellae(s) act(s) as flexible joints ("film joints"), through which adjacent lamellae can be attached while maintaining their parallel arrangement can be arranged bent against each other.

In a further development, the lamellae are arranged or embedded between two carrier foils

Due to the fact that the carrier foils are watertight and heat-resistant, they are also particularly suitable for using the cooking item receiving pan as a steaming pan or for steam treatment of items to be cooked located in the cooking item treatment space.

The fact that at least some of the lamellae are stowed away or can be stowed away in a storage space in the cooking drawer when the cover is in the open position results in the advantage that the cover can be stowed away compactly in the cooking drawer itself and therefore, e.g. in contrast to a rigid cover, Drawer housing does not need to be designed to accommodate the open cover.

It is a further development that the cover protrudes from the storage space with a front section in its open position. This can simplify handling. It is a further development that the cover is completely stowed in the storage space in its open position. In this way, a particularly large area that is accessible from the top is advantageously provided.

In one embodiment, the cover can be stowed rolled up in the storage space or is stowed at least partially rolled up in the open state. In this way, a compact and mechanically reliable option for storing the cover can advantageously be provided. For this purpose, in a further development, a rotatable axle can be arranged in the storage space, onto which the cover can be rolled up. In particular, the cover may be attached to the axle by its rear edge, e.g., clamped and/or glued thereto.

In one embodiment, the cover can be folded and stowed in the storage space, or is stowed at least partially folded in the open state, in particular in the manner of a blind. In this way, a particularly easy-to-implement option for stowing the cover can advantageously be provided. In particular, the rear edge of the cover can be fastened in the storage space.

In one embodiment, the slats of the cover are guided in a slotted guide, at least outside the storage space. In this way, the advantage is achieved that the slats do not lift off the support of the cover, as a result of which a particularly reliable vapor tightness and displaceability of the cover can be achieved. This configuration can be implemented in such a way that pins or bolts protrude from the end or front sides of the slats, which engage in a respective—advantageously smooth-running—running or guide rail of the cooking product drawer on the left and right. The guide rail can extend into the storage space and thereby ensure suitable folding or rolling up there. In particular, if the guide rail in the storage space is designed in a spiral shape, an axis for rolling up the slats can be dispensed with.

In one embodiment, the cover has, in the area of its front edge, two rigid gripping elements that protrude laterally outwards or pointing away from the cover and are guided in a respective guide of the cooking product drawer so that they can be displaced in the direction of travel. As a result, the cover can be easily opened and closed manually, in particular by pressing and closing. This also makes it possible for an open cover to be closed automatically when the drawer is moved into its housing. Due to the fact that the handle elements protrude outwards, when the cover is opened after a steam treatment operation, the fingers of a user typically used for actuation are advantageously located outside of a front-side spatial area in front of the cover from which steam escapes. This configuration can be designed in such a way that the link guide is open on the left and right longitudinal side. In particular, the pin or bolt, in particular of the frontmost slat, can then be passed through the link guide and designed as a grip element on its outer section.

It is generally a development that the cover can be moved manually. This makes it particularly easy and inexpensive to move the food drawer.

In one configuration, the cover can be moved by a motor. In this way, the advantage is achieved that the traversing process can be implemented in a particularly user-friendly manner. Another advantage is that it can then be ensured that the forces acting on the cover are applied in a particularly gentle manner. For example, a jerky displacement of the cover with great force can be reliably avoided. Another advantage is that after a cooking, steaming or warming process it can be ensured that the cover is initially only opened a certain gap in order to release heat and/or steam, thus advantageously avoiding that Uncontrolled release of heat and/or steam.

In one configuration, the lamellae and the at least one carrier film are made of transparent material. This results in the advantage that a user can see into the food receiving pan even when the cover is closed. The slats can be made of glass or plastic, for example.

In a further development, there is at least one wiper behind the loading opening and in front of the entry opening into the storage space, which wiper is pressed onto an underside of the cover. This advantageously allows for the possibility of condensate removal during retraction of the cover. The wiper can, for example, be designed as a plastic wiper lip. The scraper can be designed and arranged in such a way that condensate scraped off it flows back into the cooking item receiving pan.

In a development, the cover can have a lotus effect coating to reduce fogging, in particular on its underside facing the cooking item receiving pan.

The cover can also be printed in a simple way, e.g. with conductor tracks, e.g. for heating, for contacting electronic components (e.g. an IR sensor mounted on the glass plate for measuring the temperature of the food to be cooked) and/or as a barrier print for design purposes, etc.

In one configuration, the food drawer has a support frame that can be extended horizontally from a drawer housing and into which the food receiving tray can be removably inserted, the support frame having lateral cheeks on which the food receiving tray used rests and on which the cover can be slidably guided, and wherein the storage space is arranged behind the side panels. For example, at least sections of running rails can be integrated into the lateral cheeks.

The object is also achieved by a household cooking appliance having at least one cooking product drawer as described above. The household cooking appliance can be designed analogously to the food drawer and has the same advantages.

In one embodiment, in addition to the at least one steam treatment drawer, the household cooking appliance also has at least one other functional unit of a different type that treats the food to be cooked and has its own cooking space separate from the food drawer, e.g. an oven. This may also be referred to as a "multi-cavity" cooker. The oven can be, for example, an oven, a microwave oven or a combination thereof.

In one embodiment, the steam treatment drawer is arranged below the further functional unit that treats the food to be cooked, in particular an oven, since particularly good accessibility and easy handling of the steam treatment drawer are advantageously achieved in this way.

In one embodiment, the domestic cooking appliance has an oven arranged above the cooking product drawer in addition to the cooking product drawer.

• 1 zeigt als Schnittdarstellung in Seitenansicht eine Skizze eines Haushalts-Gargeräts mit einer Dampfbehandlungsschublade;
• 2 zeigt in einer Ansicht von schräg oben einen Ausschnitt aus einer möglichen Variante des Haushalts-Gargeräts aus 1 mit ausgezogener Dampfbehandlungsschublade, die detaillierter in Explosionsdarstellung dargestellt ist;
• 3 zeigt in Ansicht von schräg oben eine Dämpferwanne der Dampfbehandlungsschublade aus 2;
• 4 zeigt in einer Ansicht von schräg oben eine Skizze einer Dampfbehandlungsschublade mit Abdeckung;
• 5 zeigt als Schnittdarstellung in Seitenansicht eine Skizze einer Dampfbehandlungsschublade mit einer teilgeöffneten Abdeckung; und.
• 6 zeigt als Schnittdarstellung in Seitenansicht eine Skizze einer Variante der Dampfbehandlungsschublade aus 5 mit einer teilgeöffneten Abdeckung.

The characteristics, features and advantages of this invention described above, and the manner in which they are achieved, will become clearer and more clearly understood in connection with the following schematic description of an exemplary embodiment, which will be explained in more detail in connection with the drawings.

• 1 shows a sectional side view sketch of a household cooking appliance with a steam treatment drawer;
• 2 shows a section of a possible variant of the household cooking appliance in a view obliquely from above 1 with the steam treatment drawer extended, shown in more detail in an exploded view;
• 3 shows a steamer pan of the steam treatment drawer in an oblique view from above 2 ;
• 4 shows a sketch of a steam treatment drawer with cover in a view obliquely from above;
• 5 shows a sectional side view sketch of a steam treatment drawer with a partially opened cover; and.
• 6 shows a sketch of a variant of the steam treatment drawer as a sectional view in side view 5 with a partially open cover.

1 shows a sectional side view of a sketch of a multi-cavity household cooking appliance 1 with a stationary oven chamber 2a of an oven 2, the front loading opening of which can be closed by means of a pivoting oven door 3, as by the curved double arrow indicated. Inside a housing 4 of the household cooking appliance 1 below the oven compartment 2a or oven 2 there is a food drawer arranged separately from the oven compartment 2a in the form of a steam treatment drawer 5, which can be manually and/or mechanically supported horizontally in and out of a stationary drawer housing 9 is as indicated by the straight double arrow. The steam treatment drawer 5 has a lower height than the oven space 2a and is arranged below the oven 2 or oven space 2 .

In the oven door 3 there is a common device control 6 including a control panel for the oven 2 and the steam treatment drawer 5. The device control 6 can be used to control the oven 2 and the steam treatment drawer 5 individually so that items to be treated, e.g etc. can be prepared independently. The furnace chamber 2a can be heated by means of energy supply devices in the form of a top heating element 7 shown as an example and a bottom heating element 8, in particular by clocking the respective power supply. The heaters 7 and 8 are actuated by the device control 6. The device control 6 is also set up in particular to coordinate treatment processes taking place in the oven chamber 2a and in the steam treatment drawer 5, in particular the end times of the treatment processes, energy inputs and/or an exhaust air control.

The household cooking appliance 1 is in particular so compact that it fits into a built-in niche of 60 cm x 60 cm (built-in height x built-in width).

Now also referring to 2 the steam treatment drawer 5 has an evaporator receiving area 11 which is arranged behind a front cover plate 10 and in which an evaporator 12 is present. The evaporator 12 is removably installed from the evaporator accommodating portion 11 .

In a front view behind the evaporator receiving area 11 there is a damper tray insertion area 15. The evaporator receiving area 11 and the damper tray insertion area 15 are areas of a horizontally extendable support frame 14 arranged one behind the other.

The damper pan insertion area 15 has the shape of a border with lateral cheeks 16, a front wall 17 and a rear wall 18. At least the cheeks 16 are designed as hollow profiles - here with a rectangular cross-section - which makes them particularly light and allow electrical lines (not shown) to be passed through in a protected manner, e.g. electrical lines for the power supply of heating means of the evaporator 12, and signal lines, for example for connection to a temperature sensor of the evaporator 12. In addition, rails (not shown), e.g. A further advantage of using hollow profiles is that they allow a wide support surface 19 on the upper side to be formed in a simple manner for supporting a cooking product receiving pan in the form of a steamer pan 20 . At least the cheeks 16 and the rear wall 18 have flat surfaces here, which supports their easy cleaning. The front wall 17 and the rear wall 18 can also be designed as hollow profiles or as simple walls without a hollow profile. Your tops can also serve as a support surface 19, but do not need it.

The damper trough 20 has a trough-shaped or shell-shaped metallic trough part 20a, specifically here with a cuboid basic shape that is open at the top. The trough part 20a has on its upper side a peripherally closed flange or edge region 21 which is bent over laterally outwards and via which it can be placed on the support surface 19 from above. The damper pan 20 can therefore be inserted into the damper pan insertion area 15 from above. The upper opening of the tub part 20a forms a loading opening 20b for the use of items to be treated with steam, e.g. items to be cooked. For this purpose, suitable inserts E can be used in the damper trough 20, on which the items to be treated can be placed. The use of such inserts E makes it easier to load and remove food, especially when the steamer pan 20 is used.

In the area bordered laterally by the cheeks 16 and the walls 17, 18, the damper pan insertion area 15 has no bottom. When the damper pan 20 is inserted, the base 22 of the pan part 20a forms a flush part of the base of the steam treatment drawer 5 within the border 16 to 18. As a result, the pan part 20a can be designed to be particularly deep and consequently large in volume. Furthermore, there is no bottom of the supporting frame 14, which advantageously results in a saving of material.

The damper trough 20 also has laterally protruding handles 23 for easy handling, which, when the damper trough 20 is in the inserted state, can be fitted into a respective recess in the lateral cheeks 16 that is open at the top in the form of respective depressions 24 .

The damper pan 20 also has a vapor inlet duct 25 made of plastic, which is elongated laterally in a horizontal orientation and is attached to a front side 31 of the pan part 20a and forms a section of a vapor connection with the evaporator 12 when the damper pan 20 is in place. The damper pan 20 also optionally has a steam outlet duct 26, which is attached to a rear side of the pan part 20a and which, when the damper pan 20 is inserted, provides a steam connection, e.g. can produce. The steam removal unit serves at least to divert steam or vapors discharged from the steamer pan 20 during a steam treatment process from the steam treatment drawer 5, for example to a vapor extractor or back into the evaporator 12.

1 also shows a cover 27, which can be placed on the upper side of the edge area 21 and possibly also on the bearing surface 19, preferably via a seal (not shown), in order to prevent steam from escaping through gaps between the damper pan 20 and the cover 27 Or at least make it difficult. The damper trough 20 and the cover 27 form or delimit a steam treatment chamber 29 in which the material to be treated can be subjected to steam. The cover 27 is arranged to be horizontally displaceable on the damper pan 20 or the support frame 14 . In a partially or fully open state, the cover 27 can be stowed at least partially in a storage space 28 arranged behind the damper pan 20 or behind the damper pan insertion area 15 .

3 shows the damper pan 20 in a view obliquely from above. The adapter-like steam inlet channel 25 is arranged on the front side 31 facing the front wall 17 below the edge area 21 . It is open on the underside and forms a coupling opening 25b there. It also has a rear steam inlet opening 25a, which opens into the damper trough 20 or the steam treatment chamber 29 and is slot-shaped here, through which steam D is introduced into the damper trough 20 during a steam treatment process.

The adapter-shaped steam outlet channel 26 (see 4 ) is arranged on the rear side 32 below the edge area 21. It also has a horizontally stretched basic shape and is open on the underside in the form of a coupling opening 26b (see Fig 4 ) educated. The steam outlet channel 26 can be shaped at least largely identical to the steam inlet channel 25 . It also has a front-side steam outlet opening 26a (not shown) that opens into the steamer trough 20 or the steam treatment chamber 29, here: slot-shaped, through which steam D is discharged from the steamer trough 20 during a steam treatment process and fed to the steam removal unit.

4 shows a sketch of the steam treatment drawer 5a with a partially open cover 27 in a view diagonally from above. The steam treatment drawer 5a can have the same basic structure as the steam treatment drawer 5 in the form of a running rail 33, which laterally guides the cover 27 in the direction of displacement to the rear or to the front.

The cover 27 has a plurality of slats 35 connected to one another by two flexible, waterproof and heat-resistant carrier films 34a, 34b. More precisely, the cover 27 has a plurality of transparent lamellae 35 aligned transversely to the direction of displacement (front-rear), which are arranged in a row spaced apart from one another in the direction of displacement and are embedded between a transparent upper carrier film 34a and a transparent lower carrier film 34b. The sections of the carrier foils present between adjacent lamellae 35 serve as flexible joints, by means of which adjacent lamellae 35 can be arranged bent relative to one another while maintaining their parallel arrangement. The lamellae 35 are designed in the form of a profile and can, for example, have a rectangular or oval cross-sectional shape.

Pins, buttons, bolts or the like (not shown) can protrude from the end faces of the slats 35 and engage in the respective running rail 33 . The running rails 33 are open on the left and right when viewed from the front. On the foremost slat 35 in a front view, its pins protrude through the rails 33 and are designed as gripping elements 36 on their end sections protruding outside of the rails 33, with which a user can manually slide the cover 27 forwards or backwards. There is the possibility that an open cover 27 is automatically closed when the steam treatment drawer 5 is moved into its drawer housing 9 if the drawer housing 9 is designed as a stop for the handle elements 36 . Alternatively, the cover 27 can be moved by a motor.

5 Fig. 5 shows a sketch of the steam treatment drawer 5a as a sectional side view with the cover 27 in a partially opened position State in which the slats 35 are at least partially stowed in the storage space 28.

A rotatable axis 37 can be arranged in the storage space 28, onto which the cover 27 can be rolled up. In particular, the cover 27 may be attached to the axle 37 by its rear edge, e.g., clamped and/or glued thereto.

As indicated, in one variant the running rails 33 can only be present outside of the storage space 28, which enables a particularly simple construction. Alternatively, the running rails 33 can extend into the storage space 28 and thereby ensure suitable storage there. worries. Thus, when the cover 27 is to be rolled up, the running rails can be designed in a spiral shape. The provision of the axis 37 can then optionally be dispensed with.

Behind the loading opening 20b and in front of the entry opening into the storage space 28 there is at least one scraper 13 which is pressed against the underside of the cover 27. This advantageously enables the possibility of condensate removal while the cover 27 is being pushed back. The scraper 13 can be designed, for example, as a scraping lip made of plastic. The scraper 13 can be designed and arranged in such a way that condensate scraped off on it flows back into the trough part 20a of the damper trough 20 .

6 Fig. 5 shows a sketch of a variant of the steam treatment drawer 5a 5 as a sectional side view with the cover 27 in a partially opened state.

Here the cover 27 can be folded and stowed in the storage space 28, for example in the manner of a blind. In this way, a particularly easy-to-implement option for stowing the cover 27 can advantageously be provided.

Instead of the folding shown in the vertical direction, the cover 27 can also be folded in the horizontal direction.

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment shown.

In general, "a", "an" etc. can be understood as a singular or a plural number, in particular in the sense of "at least one" or "one or more" etc., as long as this is not explicitly excluded, e.g. by the expression "exactly a" etc.

A numerical specification can also include exactly the specified number as well as a usual tolerance range, as long as this is not explicitly excluded.

Reference List

1

household cooking appliance

2

oven

2a

oven room

3

oven door

4

Housing of the household cooking appliance

5

steam treatment drawer

5a

steam treatment drawer

6

device control

7

Top heat radiator

8th

Bottom heat radiator

9

drawer housing

10

cover plate

11

Evaporator pickup area

12

Evaporator

13

wiper lip

14

supporting frame

15

Damper tray application area

16

Lateral cheek of the supporting frame

17

Front wall of the supporting frame

18

Rear wall of the support frame

19

bearing surface

20

damper pan

20a

bath part

20b

loading opening

21

edge area

22

bottom of the tub

23

Handle

24

deepening

25

steam inlet channel

25a

steam inlet port

25b

clutch opening

26

steam outlet channel

26a

steam vent

26b

clutch opening

27

cover

28

storage space

29

steam treatment room

31

front

32

back

33

running rail

34a

Upper carrier film

34b

Lower carrier foil

35

lamella

36

grip element

37

axis

D

steam

E

mission

Claims (10)

Food drawer (5; 5a), having a food receiving tray (20) with a top loading opening (20b) and a vapor-tight cover (27) for covering the loading opening (20b), wherein - The cover (27) on the food drawer (5; 5a) is horizontally displaceable in such a way that it - When the food drawer (5; 5a) is extended, it can be displaced from a closed position covering the loading opening (20b) into an open position releasing the loading opening (20b), and wherein - the cover (27) has a plurality of lamellas (35) connected to one another by at least one flexible, waterproof and heat-resistant carrier film (34a, 34b), - Which lamellae (35) is at least partially stowed away in a storage space (28) of the cooking product drawer (5) when the cover (27) is in the open position. Food drawer (5; 5a) after claim 1 , The cover (27) being rolled up and stowable in the storage space (28). Food drawer (5; 5a) after claim 1 , wherein the cover (27) in the storage space (28) is stowable foldable. Drawer (5a) for cooking according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the slats (35) of the cover (27) are guided in a link guide (33) at least outside the storage space (28). Drawer (5a) for cooking according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the cover (27) has two laterally protruding, rigid handle elements (36) in the area of its front edge, which are guided in a respective guide (33) of the drawer (5a) to be displaceable in the direction of travel . Drawer (5; 5a) for cooking according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the cover (27) can be moved by motor. Food drawer (5; 5a) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the lamellae (35) and the at least one carrier film (34a, 34b) consist of a respective transparent material. Food drawer (5; 5a) according to one of the preceding claims (5), having - A supporting frame (14) which can be extended horizontally from a drawer housing (9) and into which the cooking product receiving tray (20) can be removably inserted, wherein - The support frame (14) has lateral cheeks (16) on which the cooking product receptacle (20) rests and on which the cover (27) can be slidably guided, and wherein - The storage space (28) is arranged behind the lateral cheeks (16). Domestic cooking appliance (1) having at least one cooking product drawer (5) according to one of the preceding claims. Household cooking appliance (1) after claim 9 , wherein the household cooking appliance (1) has an oven (2) arranged above the cooking goods drawer (5) in addition to the cooking goods drawer (5).

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