A cooking apparatus capable of reading or detecting coded information printed on or otherwise associated with food packaging is provided. Food packaging capable of being read or detected by a cooking apparatus is also provided. The cooking apparatus sets cooking time and cooking temperature as a result of reading or detecting coded information printed on or otherwise associated with food packaging. The cooking apparatus is capable of interacting with a user of the cooking apparatus to further assist the cooking process started as a result of reading or detecting coded information printed on or otherwise associated with food packaging. The cooking apparatus capable of connecting to a remote computer and server and receiving and displaying web pages generated by the remote server to further assist the cooking process.

A control panel assembly for an appliance with features for securing a backing plate to a control panel frame to maintain a high quality fit, feel, and finish of the control panel assembly is provided. In particular, the backing plate includes a plurality of securing tabs for securing the backing plate against the control panel frame. The backing plate also may include a plurality of spring tabs for securing the backing plate against the control panel frame.

A management system includes: a management device; and a terminal device. The management device includes: an acquisition unit that acquires device identification information and usage information, the device identification information identifying a heat cooking appliance, the usage information being obtained according to usage of the heat cooking appliance; and a tabulation unit that tabulates, for each store in which the heat cooking appliance corresponding to the device identification information that has been acquired by the acquisition unit is installed, the usage information having been acquired by the acquisition unit. The terminal device acquires tabulated result tabulated by the tabulation unit, and outputs, to an output, the acquired tabulated result.

A knob assembly for a gas cooktop is provided that includes a receptacle mounted between a valve and a knob. The knob directly mounts to a knob control rod and is configured to mount in a vertical plane perpendicular to a plane defined by a horizontal support surface for a cooking receptacle. The receptacle includes a receptacle abutment wall, a receptacle wall extending from the receptacle abutment wall, and a control rod aperture wall formed through the receptacle abutment wall. The control rod aperture wall is sized and positioned to support insertion of the knob control rod therethrough. The receptacle abutment wall is configured to abut a back of a control panel when the knob assembly is mounted to the control panel. The receptacle wall is sized and positioned within a knob aperture wall formed through the control panel when the knob assembly is mounted to the control panel.

.[.The cooking appliance (1) having a control panel (2) is equipped with one or more gas flow (Q) regulating valves, wherein the rotary regulating plug (6) is provided with various peripheral through holes (16-19). The control knob (9) being interchangeable for fitting to the actuating shaft (7), is chosen from the two units available, one and the other permitting different angular limit positions of the regulating plug (6) for the supply of a constant minimum gas flow Qmin, adjusted each one for a different type of gas N gas or LP gas. The outlet conduit (5) of the valve is equipped with a further injector nozzle (21,23) for adjusting a constant gas flow Qmax to be fed into the conduit (25) of the correspondent burner, when the cooking appliance is supplied with a LP gas..]. .Iadd.A valve adapted to regulate the flow of both a natural gas and a liquefied petroleum gas. According to one implementation the valve includes a valve body having a rotatable regulating organ positioned between a valve inlet and a valve outlet, the valve outlet having a first restriction and a second restriction successive to the first restriction, the first restriction including a first hole calibrated to provide a given maximum flow rate of the natural gas at a first pressure in the absence of the second restriction, the second restriction removeably attached to the valve outlet, the second restriction including a second hole calibrated to provide a given maximum flow rate of the liquefied petroleum gas at a second pressure..Iaddend.

An apparatus includes a high-pressure tank, a controller, a valve, controlled by the controller, and a heater.

A modular hob system includes a control device for controlling all components of the hob system.

A digital cooktop system with six regular burners and a wok burner, allowing use of a reconfigurable control knob to control the cooktop burners for a wok mode, a griddle mode, and a six-burner mode.

A system for an appliance having a plurality of burners operated by a plurality of gas valves includes a plurality of selector buttons to assign a single control selector to a specified burner and a plurality of dedicated off buttons, assigned to the burners.

Aspects and features of a burner for a cooking appliance include a first plate defining flame ports arranged in flow-sharing groups around a periphery of a combustion surface and a second plate coextensive with the first plate. Each plate is contoured so that the plates define an annular void within the burner. The annular void is fluidly coupled to the flame ports. In some aspects, each flow-sharing group includes clusters of flame ports, with each cluster including flame ports of two different diameters. The plates can each be made using the same tool such as a die, stamp, or mold, and the burner can be sized and installed in a cooking appliance so that it extends to cover a large portion of a wall of the cooking cavity of the appliance.