The modular microwave ablation system of the present disclosure includes a microwave instrument, a microwave generator, and one or more auxiliary modules that include circuitry for performing functions related to the operation of the microwave generator. The one or more auxiliary modules are removably connected to the microwave generator. The microwave generator includes a microwave signal generator that generates a microwave signal; a microwave generator controller in communication with the microwave signal generator; one or more terminals that connect to the one or more auxiliary modules, respectively; and a power supply and/or a power distribution module coupled to the microwave signal generator, the microwave generator controller, and the one or more terminals. The one or more terminals provide (1) power from the power supply and/or power distribution module to the one or more respective auxiliary modules and (2) communication signals to and from the one or more respective auxiliary modules.

A microwave treatment device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a heating chamber, a microwave generator, an amplifier, a feeder, a detector, a controller, and a storage. The microwave generator generates a microwave having an arbitrary frequency in a predetermined frequency band. The amplifier amplifies the microwave and outputs the amplified microwave as incident microwave power. The feeder supplies the incident microwave power to the heating chamber. The detector detects the incident microwave power and reflected microwave power that returns from the heating chamber to the feeder. The storage stores the incident microwave power and the reflected microwave power in association with the frequency of the microwave and time elapsed since the start of heating. The controller causes the microwave generator to execute a frequency sweep over the predetermined frequency band. The controller controls the microwave generator and the amplifier on the basis of the incident microwave power and the reflected microwave power detected during the frequency sweep.

According to the present aspect, the heating evenness can be improved.

A cooking apparatus including: a cabinet including a cooking chamber; an electromagnetic wave generating device provided to transmit electromagnetic waves into the cooking chamber; a photographing device provided to photograph an inside of the cooking chamber; an opening formed in the cabinet to correspond to the photographing device; and a resonance avoiding chamber provided between the cooking chamber and the photographing device to avoid resonance caused by the electromagnetic waves, the resonance avoiding chamber provided to reduce the electromagnetic waves inside the cooking chamber from leaking through the opening.

The modular microwave ablation system of the present disclosure includes a microwave instrument, a microwave generator, and one or more auxiliary modules that include circuitry for performing functions related to the operation of the microwave generator. The one or more auxiliary modules are removably connected to the microwave generator. The microwave generator includes a microwave signal generator that generates a microwave signal; a microwave generator controller in communication with the microwave signal generator; one or more terminals that connect to the one or more auxiliary modules, respectively; and a power supply and/or a power distribution module coupled to the microwave signal generator, the microwave generator controller, and the one or more terminals. The one or more terminals provide (1) power from the power supply and/or power distribution module to the one or more respective auxiliary modules and (2) communication signals to and from the one or more respective auxiliary modules.

Systems and methods include a cooking appliance comprising a heating element disposed within a cooking chamber and operable to selectively emit waves at any of a plurality of powers and/or peak wavelengths, a camera operable to capture an image of the cooking chamber, and a computing device operable to supply power to the heating element to vary the power and/or peak wavelength of the emitted waves and generate heat within the cooking chamber, and instruct the camera to capture the image when the heating element is emitting at a stabilized power and/or peak wavelength. The computing device is operable to generate an adjusted captured image by adjusting the captured image with respect to the stabilized power and/or peak wavelength. The computing device comprises feedback components operable to receive the adjusted captured image, extract features, and analyze the one or more features to determine an event, property, measurement and/or status.

A microwave oven having a cabinet, a door, a programming interface, a magnetron tube that capable of being dynamically controlled, a controller configured to control the magnetron tube, and a microwave generating system is described. A method of dynamically controlling the magnetron tube in the microwave oven by utilizing a magnetron power supply is also described. By monitoring a current to the magnetron power supply, determining the current to the magnetron power supply at which the magnetron tube conducts, calculating a time base, and adjusting the time base as the power level required is increased, the control produces consistent power when the magnetron tube is cycled at less than a 100% power level and to compensate for a slow start of the magnetron tube during a short cook cycle.

A heating cooker includes heating chamber configured to house a food, through-hole formed in a wall surface of heating chamber, an imager configured to capture an image in heating chamber through through-hole, air blower configured to blow air on an outside of heating chamber, and wind guide configured to guide wind generated by air blower. Thus, wind guide is disposed so that the wind from air blower forms an air curtain passing through space between the imager and through-hole.

In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, a cooking apparatus includes a casing, a cooking chamber formed inside the casing, a duct member formed outside the cooking chamber to extend from a first plate of the cooking chamber to a second plate forming an upper surface of the cooking chamber, a heater installed inside the duct member, and a fan installed inside the duct member and configured to blow air in the duct member, wherein the cooking chamber is formed to cook food using high-temperature air discharged into the cooking chamber through a first outlet part formed at the second plate.

A microwave appliance provides safe heating of packaged food products at an efficiency greater than 90%. A temperature sensor positioned about a product holder is configured to sense a temperature of the package. A product identification scanner identifies a type of food product, a type of packaging, and/or a size of packaging being inserted into the microwave appliance. The product identification may be used to obtain a dielectric constant and/or electrical conductivity of the product. An electric field detector verifies that a suitable product has been inserted into the microwave appliance and is used to estimate a volume of the packaged food product. Accordingly, even partially full packaged food products may be safely re-heated to a desired temperature. As opposed to a time-based operation with traditional microwave appliances, operation of the microwave appliance may be adjusted based on the product identification scanner, temperature sensor, and electric field detector.

A method of uniform RF-heating within a chamber is disclosed, which includes cyclically varying electromagnetic properties of a chamber according to a plurality of configuration, transmitting an alternating RF signal about a first frequency range between a first frequency and a second frequency from a transmitter into the chamber, measuring electromagnetic power at a random receiver location in the chamber for each of the plurality of configurations and at a predetermined resolution of frequency thereby generating a statistical distribution vs. frequency, applying a statistical test to the generated statistical distribution based on a predetermined statistical function, determining a standard deviation of the average received power as a function of frequency, choosing a third frequency range associated with a standard deviation lower than a second threshold, and choosing an operational frequency in the third frequency range which provides maximum heating depending on the material being heated.