Composite Cooking Apparatus

This invention relates to a composite cooking apparatus comprising a compact combination of at least two different kinds of cooking heaters.

Recently, induction heaters have been used as a household electric cooking heater. When in cooking with the induction heater, it is necessary to use a cooking tool made of iron, for instance an iron pan or an enameled pan. However, aluminum pans are comparatively frequently used in home cooking. Therefore, the electric heater and gas heater adapted for use of the aluminum pans are indispensable in the kitchen as well as the induction heater.

Therefore, the space of the home kitchen is generally occupied by a number of different kinds of cooking heaters, which is very inconvenient in view of the layout of the kitchen.

An object of the invention is to provide a composite cooking apparatus, which comprises a compact combination of at least two different kinds of cooking heaters and permits ensuring a satisfactory state of use of the individual heaters and also effective utilization of the kitchen space.

According to the present invention there is provided a composite cooking apparatus comprising a first casing including a first heating section disposed at the top thereof, and at least a second casing including a second heating section arranged at the top thereof, the second casing being hinged to the first casing such that it can be opened and closed with respect to the first casing, one of the first and second heating sections having an induction heater while the other of the first and second heating sections having a heater which is different from the induction heater.

FIG. 1A is a perspective view showing one embodiment of the composite cooking apparatus according to the invention in a state of use as an electric heater;

FIG. 1B is a perspective view showing the same embodiment in a state of use as an induction heater;

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view showing the internal construction of the same embodiment in the state of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a control system for permitting selective use of the embodiment as the induction heater or electric heater;

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing the entire circuit construction of the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a different embodiment of the composite cooking apparatus in a state of use as the induction heater; and

FIG. 6 is a schematic sectional view showing the internal construction of the embodiment of FIG. 5.

Referring to FIG. 1A, there is shown one embodiment of the composite cooking device 1, which essentially comprises a first casing 2 and a second casing 3. FIG. 1A shows the cooking device with the second casing 3 placed on the first casing 2. The casing 2 is provided at the front with an operating panel 6 having a power switch 4, a power control knob 5, etc. The casing 3 is provided at its front with a handle 7 and its top with an electric heater 8. FIG. 1B shows the cooking device 1 in an open state. The casings 2 and 3 are provided near the rear end of their opposite sides with a pair of hinges 9a and 9b and are provided at the rear end with a shaft 9A. The hinges 9a, 9b and the shaft 9A serve to hold the casing 3 in its upright position in the open state of the device shown in FIG. 1B. The casings 2 and 3 are provided on the side provided with the hinge 9a and near the hinge 9a with respective see-through holes 2 a and 3a. A lead 10 is led out from the casing 2 through the hole 2a and into the casing 3 through the hole 3a. The lead 10 is used to supply power from a heater drive circuit to be described later to the electric heater 8.

The casing 3 may be brought from its horizontal state shown in FIG. 1A to its upright state shown in FIG. 1B by gripping the handle 7 provided at its front. In the state of FIG. 1B, a top plate 11 of a cooking unit of the induction heating type, which is provided on top of the casing 2, is exposed. In this state, the casing 3 is steadily held upright by the hinges 9a, 9b and the shaft 9A with its rear end flat surface in close contact with the top flat surface of the casing 2. The top of the casing 2 is formed near its front edge with a recess 12, and the underside of the casing 3 is provided at a position corresponding to the recess 12 with a projection 13. At the bottom of the recess 12 a microswitch to be described later is provided, and the projection 13 serves as an actuator for this microswitch.

FIG. 2 shows the internal construction of this embodiment. The electric heater 8 includes a spiral electric heating wire 8c which is received in a sprial groove 8b formed in the upper surface of a heatresistant insulator 8a. The heat-resistant insulator 8a serves as a support for the electric heating wire 8c, and the underside of the heat-resisting insulator 8a is supported by a metal support plate 8d in order to increase its mechanical strength and also reduce radiation of heat of the electric heating wire 8c to the top plate 11 of the induction heating type cooking unit through the bottom plate 3b of the casing 3. The edge of the metal support plate 8d is secured to the underside of the top plate 3c of the casing 3.

In the state of the cooking device shown in FIG. 2, an operating button 14a of the microswitch 14 provided in the recess 12 is held downwardly urged by the lower end of the projection 13, and thus the movable contact of the microswitch is held in contact with one of its fixed contacts. In this state, the output of a power unit 15 provided inside the casing 2 is supplied to the electric heater 8 according to the output of the microswitch 14, and the electric heating wire 8c is supplied with power through the lead 10. This function is provided by a heater drive circuit to be described later.

Beneath the top plate 11 which is mounted in the top plate 2b of the casing 2, an induction heating coil 11 a is supported on a support plate 11b such that it is suitably spaced apart from and extends substantially parallel with the top plate 11. The support plate 11b is insulated from the coil 11a. In the state of FIG. 2, no output from an induction heating coil drive circuit in the power unit 15 is supplied to the induction coil 11a. However, there is some heat radiation from the electric heating wire 8c and also there is heat generation from the power unit 15, and the effect of these heat fluxes on the electric parts in the power unit 15 cannot be ignored. Accordingly, in this embodiment a cooling fan 16 is provided in a front part of the interior of the casing 2 for withdrawing air from an air inlet 17 formed in a front portion of the bottom plate of the casing 2 and causing it to flow along the coil 11a and power unit 15 and be discharged through an air outlet 18 provided in a lower portion of the back plate of the casing 2. In this way, the coil 11a and power unit 15 can be effectively cooled. In the state of FIG. 2, by turning on the power switch 4 the heater drive circuit in the power unit 15 is immediately rendered operative to supply power through the lead 10 to the electric heating wire 8c, thus heating the heating wire 8c. At the same time, a blower motor is started to drive the cooling fan or blower 16. The quantity of heat generated from the heating wire 8c in this state can be controlled by operating the power control knob 5. In this way, cooking can be obtained with, for instance, an aluminum pan placed on the electric heater 8.

When the casing 3 is brought to the upright position shown in FIG. 1B, the operating button 14a of the microswitch 14 is separated from the projection 13, causing the movable contact of the microswitch to be switched into contact with the other fixed contact. When the power switch 4 is turned on in this state, the induction heating coil drive circuit in the power unit 15 is rendered operative to supply high frequency power to the induction heating coil 11a. The frequency at this time is set to, for instance, 20 to 30 kHz. When the high frequency power is supplied in this way, a high frequency magnetic field is generated from the coil 11a. This magnetic field penetrates the top plate 11, which is made of a non-magnetic material, and reaches the top thereof. Thus, by placing an iron pan, for instance, on the top plate 11, heating due to iron loss produced in the iron pan can be obtained for cooking. Again in this casing, the cooling fan 16 is driven as soon as the power switch 4 is turned on, and also the heating temperature can of course be controlled by operating the power control knob 5.

Now, the electric circuit of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4. In FIG. 3, the power unit 15 shown in FIG. 3 comprises a power source circuit 21, a control circuit 22 energized by the output of the power source circuit 21 and a drive circuit section 23 including an induction heating coil drive circuit 24 and a heater drive circuit 25.

The control circuit 22 has a power control circuit 22a for providing a power control signal of a level corresponding to the extent of operation of the power control knob 5 to a trigger pulse generating circuit 22b. The trigger pulse generating circuit 22b supplies a trigger pulse having a frequency corresponding to the level of the given power control signal to a selecting circuit 22c. For example, when the power control knob 5 is operated in the direction of increasing the output level from the heater 8c or coil 11a, the level of the power control signal is increased to correspondingly reduce the frequency of the trigger pulse. The trigger pulse that is produced in this way is coupled through the selecting circuit 22c, which is operated by the output of the microswitch 14, to the induction heating coil drive circuit 24 or heater drive circuit 25. For instance, when the casing 3 is in the state of FIG. 1A or 2, the microswitch 14 is set to the side of a fixed contact 14a, and the selecting circuit 22c transmits a trigger pulse output to the heater drive circuit 25. As a result, the output of the power source circuit 21 is supplied through the heater drive circuit 25 to the electric heating wire 8c. When the casing 3 is in the state of FIG. 1B, the microswitch 14 is set to the side of the other fixed contact 14b, and the selecting circuit 22c transmits a trigger pulse output to the induction heating coil drive circuit 24. Thus, the output of the power source circuit 21 is converted through the circuit 24 into a high frequency wave which is supplied to the induction heating coil 11a.

The quantity of power consumed in the electric heating wire 8c or induction heating coil 11a is detected in a load detecting circuit 22d provided in the control circuit 22. According to the detected output, the operation of the power control circuit 22a and trigger pulse generating circuit 22b is controlled, if necessary, for controlling the timing of a trigger pulse generated from the circuit 22b.

Now, the circuit construction shown in FIG. 3 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 4. Referring to FIG. 4, the power source circuit 21 includes a full-wave rectifying circuit 21a using a diode and a smoothing capacitor 21b for smoothing the rectified output. The AC input terminals of the full-wave rectifying circuit 21a are connected across the AC power source 30 via the power switch 4 and are also connected across the blower motor 16a for the cooling fan 16. The positive output terminal of the power source circuit 21 is connected through the collector-emitter path of a transistor 24a in the drive circuit section 23 to a positive line 23b and also connected to the positive input terminal of the control circuit 22. The negative output terminal of the power source circuit 21 is commonly connected to the negative line 23c of the drive circuit 23 and to the negative input terminal of the control circuit 22.

Between the positive and negative lines 23b and 23c of the drive circuit section 23 a bidirectional thyristor 24b and resonant capacitor 24c are connected in series with the induction heating coil 11a, and between the lines 23b and 23c a series circuit consisting of the collector-emitter path of a transistor 25a and an electric heating wire 8c is connected. Further, the collector-emitter path of a transistor 24d is connected between the emitter of a transistor 24 a and negative line 23c. The transistors 24a and 24d, bidirectional thyristor 24b and resonant capacitor 24c constitute the drive circuit 24 for the induction heating coil 11a. The transistor 25a constitutes the drive circuit 25 for the electric heating wire 8c.

The control circuit 22 supplies conduction control outputs at predetermined timings to the control gates of the transistors 24a, 24d and 25a and bidirectional thyristor 24b. The current flowing through the positive line 23b is detected by a current transformer (CT) 23d, and the output of the CT 23d is supplied to the load detection circuit 22d in the control circuit 22.

Now, the operation of the circuit shown in FIG. 4 will be described. When the casing 3 of the cooking device is in the state of FIG. 1A, the transistor 25a is held "on" by the output from the control circuit 22. In this state, the bidirectional thyristor 24b and transistor 24d of "off". When the power control knob 5 is then set to the maximum output position, a continuous "on" signal is supplied from the control circuit 21 to the electric heating wire 8c. In this state, the power consumption in the electric heating wire 8c is 800 Watts.

By operating the power control knob 5 in this state, the control circuit 22 provides a pulse output with the pulse width thereof varying according to the extent of operation of the knob to the base of the transistor 24a, whereby the transistor 24a is correspondingly on-off controlled to on-off control the current flowing through the electric heating wire 8c so as to control the quantity of heat generated from the heating wire 8c.

When the casing 3 is in the position of FIG. 1B, the transistor 25a is held "off" and the bidirectional thyristor 24b is held "on" by the output of the control circuit 22. At this time, if the transistor 24a is "on" and the transistor 24d is "off", the DC current from the power source circuit 21 flows through the bidirectional thyristor 24b and induction heating coil 11a, whereby the resonant capacitor 24c is charged to the same polarity. Then, the transistor 24a is turned "off" and the transistor 24d "on" by the output of the control circuit 22, and the resonant capacitor 24c is discharged to cause current through the bidirectional thyristor 24b and transistor 24d to the induction heating coil 11a in the opposite direction to that mentioned above. In this way, the transistors 24a and 24d are repeatedly turned on and off alternately and at a high rate. Thus, high frequency current at 20 to 30 kHz is caused through the induction heating coil 11a. The high frequency current at this time is detected by the CT 23d, and the detection output is fed to the load detecting circuit 22d in the control circuit 22. As a result, the pulse width of the trigger pulse output from the trigger pulse generating circuit 22b is controlled such that it is increased when the charging current to the resonant capacitor 24c is less than a predetermined value.

With the induction heater and electric heater combined together such that they are placed one above another, it is possible to permit a plurality of different cooking heaters to be freely used in a narrow kitchen area without any space factor problem. In addition, with the upper heater hinged to the lower heater such that it is capable of being opened with respect to the lower heater, it is possible to sufficiently ensure the satisfactory state of use of each heater. Further, while the power supply to the electric heater is usually controlled stepwise through heater tap switching, in this embodiment the power supply to the electric heater and that to the induction heater are commonly controlled through on-off control according to a periodically recurring trigger pulse signal. Thus, the construction of the control circuitry can be simplified, and the output control particularly at the time of the cooking with the electric heater can be made finely similar to the output control at the time of the cooking with the induction heater, which is very convenient. Further, a single power control knob can be commonly used, and the operability is very satisfactory.

While in the above embodiment the induction heater is provided on the stationary side (i.e., lower side) and the electric heater is provided on the openable side (i.e., upper side), it is also possible to set the electric heater on the stationary side (i.e., lower side). This can be determined suitably depending upon the frequency of use of the individual heaters and status of the kitchen. Further, it is possible to incorporate a gas heater as a heating unit. Further, it is possible to provide one or two additional heaters on the upper and lower stage heaters as described.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are a perspective view and a sectional view showing a different embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the arrangement of the heaters in the embodiment of FIG. 1A is reversed. More particularly, electric heater 8 is provided in the casing 2, and induction heater is provided in the casing 3. In the Figures, corresponding parts to those in FIGS. 1A, 1B and 2 are designated by like reference numerals.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, the electric heater 8 is provided as a first heating section on top of the first casing 2, and the casing 2 is provided with an air outlet 41 and an air inlet 42 on the front and rear sides of the electric heater 8 respectively. Dampers 43 and 44 are provided on the innter side of the air outlet 41 and air inlet 42 respectively. In the opened state of the second casing 3, the dampers 43 and 44 are held in close contact with the air outlet 41 and air inlet 42 by the biasing forces of springs (not shown), thus blocking air flow with respect to the outside of the casing 2. In the closed state of the second casing 3, the dampers 43 and 44 are held open by damper opening pawls 45 and 46 to be described later against the spring forces of the springs, thus forming air passages between the casings 2 and 3 as shown.

The second casing 3 is provided at the top with a top plate 11 of an induction heater as a second heating section, and an induction heating coil 11a is provided inside the casing 3 such that it faces the top plate 11. The bottom plate of the second casing 3 is provided on the front side with an air inlet 47 corresponding to the air outlet 41 of the first casing 2 and on the rear side with an air outlet 48 corresponding to the air inlet 42 of the first casing 2. In a front portion of the interior of the second casing 3, a lever 7b is pivotably mounted substantially at its central portion on the pin 7c. One end portion of the layer 7b constitutes a grip 7a which penetrates the front wall of the second casing 3 and is movable in the direction of arrow B-B'. The other end portion of the lever constitutes a damper opening pawl 45 penetrating the top wall of the casing 2 and bottom wall of the second casing 3. The damper opening pawl 45 is found inside the first casing 2 and tends to open the damper 43 against a spring biasing force (not shown) when closing the second casing 3. A damper opening pawl 46 is provided as a projection in a rear portion of the bottom plate of the second casing 3 in the neighborhood of the air outlet 48. The damper opening pawl 46 is found in the first casing 2 and opens the damper 44 against the spring biasing force when closing the second casing 3. Thus, the dampers 43 and 44 are rotated in the direction of arrows C and D about the respective pins 43a and 44a.

Inside the first casing 2, microswitches 14A and 14B for detecting the opening of the dampers 43 and 44 are provided, and a power supply control mode for the induction heater and that for the electric heater 8 are switched in the control section 15 with the operation of the switches 14A and 14B.

Now, the operation of the above construction will be described.

When in cooking with the induction heater, the second casing 3 is closed, and an iron or enameled pan containing the food to be cooked is placed on the top plate 11. At this time, the dampers 43 and 44 are opened with the closure of the second casing 3. Thus, air passages are formed between the first and second casings 2 and 3, and also the microswitches 14A and 14B are turned on to switch the control section 15 to the power supply control mode for the induction heater cooking. When the power source switch 4 is closed after the preparations for the cooking are completed, the control section 15 and induction heating coil 11a are energized to start the cooking of well-known induction heating. At the same time, the cooling fan 16 is operated, whereby air withdrawn from the air inlet 17 is supplied as cooling air to the control section 15 while part of the cooling air is supplied through the air outlet 41 and air inlet 47 to the induction heating coil 11a. The cooling air having passed by the induction heating coil 11a passes through the air outlet 48 and air inlet 42 and discharged together with the cooling air having passed by the control section 15 through the air outlet 18.

When in cooking with the electric heater 8, the second casing 3 is opened by raising the grip 7a, and a pan containing the food to be cooked is placed on the electric heater 8. With the opening of the second casing 3, the dampers 43 and 44 are closed for preventing the intrusion of dust or foodstuff particles into the first casing 2. At the same time, the microswitches 14A and 14B are turned off to switch the control section 15 to the power supply control mode for the electric heater cooking. When the power source switch is closed after the preparations for the cooking are completed, cooking by heat generated from the electric heater 8 is started. In this case, if a commercial AC power source, for instance of 100 V, 60 Hz, is directly used for the electric heater 8, the cooling of the control section 15 is not required, and thus the cooling fan 16 need not be operated.

It is to be understood that with the top plate 11 and induction heating coil 11a of the induction heater provided on the second casing 3 capable of being opened and closed and the control section 15 of the induction heater provided together with the electric heater 8 and cooling fan 16 in the stationary first casing 2, while also permitting air passages to be formed between the first and second casings 2 and 3 by the dampers 43 and 44 which are opened with the closing of the second casing 3, the cooling of the control section 15 and induction heating coil 11a at the time of the induction heater cooking can be done efficiently with the single cooling fan 16. Since there is no need of using two cooling fans, it is possible to adopt the function of the induction heater cooking incorporated in the stationary second casing without increase of cost and also without any problem in the construction.

While the above embodiment has concerned with a case where the electric heater 8 is used as the first heating section provided in the first casing 2, it is also possible to use other heaters such as a gas heater as the first heating section.

As has been described in the foregoing, with the above embodiment, in which air passages are formed between the stationary first casing and the second casing capable of being opened and closed by the dampers that are closed at the time of the closing of the second casing, it is necessary to provide only a single cooling fan. Thus, it is possible to provide a composite cooking apparatus, with which the function of the induction heater cooking can be provided in the casing capable of being opened and closed without need of increasing the cost and also without any problem in the construction.