EP-4737803-A1 - COOKING APPLIANCE AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF

EP4737803A1EP 4737803 A1EP4737803 A1EP 4737803A1EP-4737803-A1

Abstract

An invention relating to a cooking appliance and a control method thereof is disclosed. The disclosed invention includes a fan motor capable of rotating a fan at three or more speeds, wherein, in a normal operation mode, the fan motor rotates the fan at a first speed or at a second speed lower than the first speed, and, in a Sabbath mode, the fan motor rotates the fan at a third speed lower than the first speed and the second speed.

Inventors

YANG, HAK SOON
PARK, KYOUNG-JOON
YANG, JAEKYUNG
KWAG, DONGSEONG
LEE, SuYong

Assignees

LG Electronics Inc.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260506
Application Date: 20251023

Claims (13)

A cooking appliance comprising: a main body having a cooking chamber; and a heating device including a fan module operable to supply hot air into the cooking chamber, wherein: the fan module is operable in one of a normal operation mode and a Sabbath mode, in the normal operation mode, the fan module operates at either a first output or a second output lower than the first output, and in the Sabbath mode, the fan module operates at a third output lower than the second output.
The cooking appliance of claim 1, wherein: the fan module comprises a fan rotatable to supply hot air into the cooking chamber, and when operating at the third output, the fan module rotates the fan at a speed lower than when operating at the first output or the second output.
The cooking appliance of claim 1, wherein: the fan module comprises a fan rotatable to supply hot air into the cooking chamber and a fan motor for rotating the fan, in the normal operation mode, the fan motor rotates the fan at either a first speed or a second speed lower than the first speed, and in the Sabbath mode, the fan motor rotates the fan at a third speed lower than the second speed.
The cooking appliance of claim 3, wherein the fan motor comprises a BLDC motor.
The cooking appliance of claim 1, wherein: the fan module comprises a fan rotatable to supply hot air into the cooking chamber and a fan motor for rotating the fan, the fan motor comprises a BLDC motor configured to rotate the fan at three or more different speeds, and in the Sabbath mode, the fan motor rotates the fan at a speed equal to or lower than a third lowest speed among the three or more speeds.
The cooking appliance of one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: the heating device comprises a convection heater disposed adjacent to the fan module at a rear side of the cooking chamber and a bake heater disposed below the cooking chamber, and in the Sabbath mode, at least one of the convection heater and the fan module operates, while the bake heater does not operate.
The cooking appliance of one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: the fan module comprises a fan rotatable to supply hot air into the cooking chamber and a fan motor configured to rotate the fan in a forward direction and a reverse direction, and in the Sabbath mode, the fan motor alternately drives the forward rotation and the reverse rotation of the fan.
A control method for a cooking appliance comprising a main body forming a cooking chamber and a heating device including a fan module operable to supply hot air into the cooking chamber, the method comprising: an input determining step; and an operation control step of controlling an operation of the fan module according to a type of the input operation mode, wherein: when the operation mode determined in the input determining step is the normal operation mode, the operation control step operates the fan module at either a first output or a second output lower than the first output, and when the operation mode determined in the input determining step is the Sabbath mode, the operation control step operates the fan module at a third output lower than the second output.
The method of claim 8, wherein, when the operation mode determined in the input determining step is the Sabbath mode, an operation of an input unit for generating a signal to manually operate at least one of lighting and the heating device implemented in the cooking appliance is disabled.
The method of claim 8 or 9, wherein, when the operation mode determined in the input determining step is the Sabbath mode, the operation control step disables a control for changing an operation of the cooking appliance even if the door is opened or closed or the input unit is operated.
The method of one of claims 8 to 10, wherein the fan module comprises a fan rotatable to supply hot air into the cooking chamber and a fan motor for rotating the fan, wherein: when the operation mode determined in the input determining step is the normal operation mode, the operation control step drives the fan motor to rotate the fan at either a first speed or a second speed lower than the first speed, and when the operation mode determined in the input determining step is the Sabbath mode, the operation control step drives the fan motor to rotate the fan at a third speed lower than the second speed.
The method of one of claims 8 to 11, wherein: the heating device comprises a convection heater disposed adjacent to the fan module at a rear side of the cooking chamber, and a bake heater disposed below the cooking chamber, and when the operation mode determined in the input determining step is the Sabbath mode, the operation control step operates at least one of the convection heater and the fan module without operating the bake heater.
The method of one of claims 8 to 12, wherein: the fan module comprises a fan rotatable to supply hot air into the cooking chamber and a fan motor configured to rotate the fan in a forward direction and a reverse direction, and when the operation mode determined in the input determining step is the Sabbath mode, the operation control step switches the fan between forward and reverse rotation.

Description

The present invention relates to a cooking appliance, and more particularly, to a cooking appliance providing a Sabbath mode and a control method thereof. A cooking appliance is a home appliance installed in a kitchen space to cook food according to a user's intention. Such cooking appliances can be classified in various ways depending on the heat source, the type or form of the appliance, and the kind of fuel used. When classified according to how food is cooked, cooking appliances may be divided into open-type and closed-type appliances depending on the form of the space on which food is placed. Closed-type appliances include ovens and microwave ovens, and open-type appliances include a cooktop, a hob, and a griddle. A closed-type cooking appliance shields a space in which food is located and cooks the food by heating the shielded space. The closed-type cooking appliance is provided with a cooking chamber that is the space to be shielded when cooking is to be performed while food is placed therein. The cooking chamber thus becomes the space in which the food is actually cooked. In a closed-type cooking appliance, a door is provided rotatably to selectively open and close the cooking chamber. The door is rotatably installed at a main body by a door hinge provided between the main body in which the cooking chamber is formed and the door. The door opens and closes the cooking chamber by rotating about a portion coupled to the main body via the door hinge. A heat source is provided in the internal space of the cooking chamber opened and closed by the door to heat the cooking chamber. As the heat source, a gas burner or an electric heater may be used. Meanwhile, a convection device may further be provided at a rear side of the cooking chamber. The convection device circulates air inside the cooking chamber so that heat is evenly delivered throughout the cooking chamber. The convection device may include a fan cover installed at a rear wall of the cooking chamber and a convection fan installed in an internal space of the fan cover. The fan cover may be provided with an intake port and a discharge port. The intake port may be formed at a central portion of a front surface of the fan cover facing the door, and the discharge port may be formed at a side surface of the fan cover facing a side surface of the cooking chamber. The convection fan may rotate inside the fan cover to generate an airflow. By operation of the convection fan, an air-circulation flow may be generated in which air in the cooking chamber is drawn into the inside of the fan cover through the intake port and heated air inside the fan cover is discharged into the cooking chamber through an exhaust/discharge port. An object of the present invention is to provide a cooking appliance and a control method thereof capable of improving the uniformity of cooking quality. Another object of the present invention is to provide a cooking appliance and a control method thereof capable of offering an automatic cooking function that enhances the uniformity of cooking quality. A further object of the present invention is to provide a cooking appliance and a control method thereof capable of concentrating heating energy onto a target portion among various portions of a cooking subject. Preferably, a control method of a cooking appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object is characterized in that, based on an image obtained as a result of an imaging step of the cooking chamber, the cooking chamber is divided into a plurality of separate areas, the state of a cooking subject in each of the separate areas is determined, and the operation of the heating device is controlled so that hot air is supplied to an area selected based on the determination results. Another embodiment of the present invention is characterized in that the operation of the heating device is controlled so that hot air is supplied toward a selected area, which is one of the separate areas determined based on the state of the cooking subject, wherein the operation of the heating device is controlled such that at least one of a discharge position and a reach distance of a main stream of hot air discharged from the heating device is adjusted. According to one aspect of the present invention, a control method of a cooking appliance may include: an imaging step of imaging the cooking chamber with the camera; a state determination step of dividing the cooking chamber into a plurality of separate areas based on the image acquired by the camera and determining the state of the cooking subject in each of the separate areas; an area selection step of selecting, among the plurality of separate areas, a target area to which hot air is to be supplied, based on the state of the cooking subject determined in the state determination step; and a heating operation adjustment step of controlling the operation of the heating device so that hot air is supplied toward the