US-20260126185-A1 - COOKING APPLIANCE AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF

US20260126185A1US 20260126185 A1US20260126185 A1US 20260126185A1US-20260126185-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

Hak Soon YANG
Kyoung-joon PARK
Jaekyung Yang
Dongseong KWAG
Suyong LEE

Assignees

LG ELECTRONICS INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20251008
Priority Date: 20241105

Claims (13)

1 . 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.
2 . 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.
3 . 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.
4 . The cooking appliance of claim 3 , wherein the fan motor comprises a BLDC motor.
5 . 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.
6 . The cooking appliance of claim 1 , 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.
7 . 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 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.
8 . 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.
9 . 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.
10 . The method of claim 8 , 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.
11 . The method of claim 8 , 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.
12 . The method of claim 8 , 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.
13 . The method of claim 8 , 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

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims priority to and the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2024-0155168, filed on 2024 Nov. 5, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. BACKGROUND 1. Field The present invention relates to a cooking appliance, and more particularly, to a cooking appliance providing a Sabbath mode and a control method thereof. 2. Background 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. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a cooking appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view showing the door-open state of the cooking appliance shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a side sectional view showing an internal structure of the cooking appliance shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view obtained by enlarging a part of the cooking appliance shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a side sectional view showing a structure of a convection device shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 are flowcharts showing a control process of a cooking appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION The above-described aspects, features and advantages are specifically described hereafter with reference to accompanying drawings such that one having ordinary skill in the art to which the disclosure pertains can embody the technical spirit of the disclosure easily. In the disclosure, detailed description of known technologies in relation to the subject matter of the disclosure is omitted if it is deemed to make the gist of the disclosure unnecessarily vague Hereafter, preferred embodiments according to the disclosure are specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, identical reference numerals can denote identical or similar components. The terms “first”, “second” and the like are used herein only to distinguish one component from another component. Thus, the components are not to be limited by the terms. Certainly, a first component can be a second component, unless stated to the contrary. Embodiments are not limited to the embodiments set forth herein, and can be modified and changed in various different forms. The embodiments in the disclosure are provided such that the disclosure can be through and complete and fully convey its scope to one having ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, all modifications, equivalents or replacements as well as a replaceme