Provided is a cooking device capable of being provided with a radio communication device so that the radio communication device establishes a satisfactory communication, instead of (i) further providing any special configuration in which the radio communication device is provided and (ii) making any change in structure of the cooking device. According to a cooking device (1), a space for providing a radio communication adapter is secured in a frame (3b) of a door (3) or in a circuit storing section (50), made of a nonmetal, which is configured to store a driving circuit of a display operation section (5).

There is provided a method for monitoring and control of heating food portions in heaters, each installed in communication with a respective client computer in communication with a same server, the method performed by the server comprising: receiving from the client computers, RF signatures, each RF signature being based on measured reflections of RF signals transmitted within a cavity of one of the heaters containing therein a food portion, analyzing the RF signatures, determining for each heater based on the analysis of the RF signatures, at least one heating instruction to operate each heater to heat the food portion therein; and transmitting to each of the client computers, the respective at least one determined heating instruction comprising instructions to generate RF signals and transmit the RF signals to the food portions using heating antennas of the heater.

Provided is a cooking device capable of being provided with a radio communication device so that the radio communication device establishes a satisfactory communication, instead of (i) further providing any special configuration in which the radio communication device is provided and (ii) making any change in structure of the cooking device. According to a cooking device (1), a space for providing a radio communication adapter is secured in a frame (3b) of a door (3) or in a circuit storing section (50), made of a nonmetal, which is configured to store a driving circuit of a display operation section (5).

A household appliance includes: a magnetron for generating microwaves during operation; a power supply unit; and a controller for specifying to the power supply unit a power level for the operation of the magnetron. The controller temporarily reduces, in a coexistence mode, the power level specified to the power supply unit for the operation of the magnetron in a manner that reduces or prevents disturbance of communication in a wireless network using beacon frames due to the microwaves generated by the magnetron.

The present invention relates to a system for preparing and/or performing an automatic cooking process. The system is adapted to at least one user. The system comprises at least one communication device (10) and at least one automatic or semi-automatic cooking appliance (12). The cooking temperatures, cooking powers and/or cooking times of the cooking process are automatically controllable. The communication device (10) and the cooking appliance (12) are interconnected via at least one signal connection. The communication device (10) includes or has access to individual personal data of the user. The individual personal data of the user relates to the nutrition, tastes and/or health situation of said user. The system comprises at least one automatic or semi-automatic conveying means, preferably a robot, for positioning and removing cookware in and/or on the cooking appliance (12) and/or for delivering food to the cookware. Further, the present invention relates to a method for preparing and/or performing an automatic cooking process.

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 network-compatible household appliance includes a communications facility for coupling via a data link to an external database. The household appliance is configured to receive operating parameters relevant for an operating sequence from the database via the communications facility, to store the operating parameters for implementing the operating sequence by the household appliance, and, when triggered by a user, to automatically transfer the operating parameters for the operating sequence to the database via the communications facility.

An apparatus configured to apply electromagnetic energy to an object may include an energy application zone adapted to receive at least a portion of an object and a source configured to supply RF energy to the energy application zone. The apparatus may also include at least one processor configured to: cause the source to supply RF energy to the energy application zone; determine a value indicative of a rate of energy absorption by a load, including at least a portion of the object, during a first period of time; and determine, based on the value indicative of the rate of energy absorption by the load, an estimated amount of time to obtain a desired characteristic in at least a portion of the object.

A information processor of a terminal apparatus reads from a memory identification information of a food handling apparatus and a table, identifies a function associated with the identification information of the food handling apparatus received by a information receiver in accordance with the table, and starts up the function.

A cooking system is disclosed. The cooking system includes a microwave and a display device. The microwave is configured to in response to a received user command, generate a first image by photographing a cooktop located below the microwave through a first camera or generate a second image by photographing an inside of the microwave through a second camera. The microwave is also configured to transmit at least one of the first image and the second image to the display device. The display device is configured to receive the at least one of a first image and the second image from the microwave and display the received at least one image.