An electromagnetic cooking device and cooking method to perform zone cooking is disclosed. The method includes scanning a resonant cavity in which a food load has been placed with RF feeds that are coupled to respective high power amplifiers; identifying resonant frequencies and corresponding phases of the RF feeds; storing a resonance map; classifying symmetries in the resonant map; determining paths defining stirring routes between poles of different symmetries; determining midpoints in the paths with a maximum unbalance between reflected powers of the respective high power amplifiers; classifying the unbalance in terms of power steered to the left and right sides of the food load; synthesizing a heating strategy for zone cooking using the classified unbalance; and implementing the heating strategy by causing the plurality of high power amplifiers and RF feeds to introduce electromagnetic radiation at specific selected frequencies and phases into the cavity based on the heating strategy.

This disclosure includes methods and systems that utilize energy absorption monitoring for intelligent electronic ovens with energy steering. One disclosed method for heating an item in an electronic oven comprises introducing an application of energy into a heating chamber using an energy source coupled to an injection port, changing a distribution of the application of energy in the heating chamber by setting a configuration of the oven to a first configuration, and measuring an energy return from the heating chamber while the oven is in the first configuration. The measuring is conducted using a radio frequency directional power sensor. The method also comprises determining that the energy return from the heating chamber exceeds a level, adjusting, in response to determining that the energy return exceeds the level, the configuration of the oven from the first configuration to an altered first configuration, and saving the altered first configuration in a memory.

There is provided a technique that includes: a process chamber in which a substrate is processed; a gas supplier configured to supply a gas into the process chamber; a microwave supplier configured to supply a microwave into the process chamber; and a microwave stirrer configured to stir the microwave by being rotated due to a flow of the gas in the process chamber.

A seal for a cavity plate in a microwave oven is described herein. The seal includes a seal body having an outward sealing surface defined around a seal perimeter. The outward sealing surface is configured to seal against inward facing walls of a microwave oven. The seal body also includes an inward sealing surface spaced inward from the outward facing surface. The inward sealing surface is configured to seal against an outer edge of a cavity plate. The seal further includes a plurality of seal supports extending from the seal body on a cavity side of the seal body for maintaining cavity spacing between a bottom microwave oven surface and the seal body.

Method and systems for heating an item in a chamber comprising applying a first electromagnetic wave to an array of variable reflectance elements and corresponding array of variable impedance devices is disclosed. The corresponding array includes first and second variable impedance devices. The method also comprises reflecting, when the first device has a first impedance value, the first wave from the array to the item. The reflecting places a local maximum of energy at a first location on the item. The method also comprises altering an impedance of the first device. The method also comprises applying a second electromagnetic wave, and reflecting the second wave from the array to the item. The reflecting places the local maximum at a second location on the item. Altering the impedance of the first variable impedance device alters a reflectance of a first variable reflectance element in the array of variable reflectance elements.

Method and systems for heating an item in a chamber comprising applying a first electromagnetic wave to an array of variable reflectance elements and corresponding array of variable impedance devices is disclosed. The corresponding array includes first and second variable impedance devices. The method also comprises reflecting, when the first device has a first impedance value, the first wave from the array to the item. The reflecting places a local maximum of energy at a first location on the item. The method also comprises altering an impedance of the first device. The method also comprises applying a second electromagnetic wave, and reflecting the second wave from the array to the item. The reflecting places the local maximum at a second location on the item. Altering the impedance of the first variable impedance device alters a reflectance of a first variable reflectance element in the array of variable reflectance elements.

A microwave mode stirrer apparatus having a stirring member with microwave-transmissive regions is disclosed, along with methods of performing microwave stirring using the microwave mode-stirring apparatus. The microwave-transmissive regions can be in the form of holes or can include microwave-transmissive material. The stirring member can have a variety of configurations, and the microwave-transmissive regions can have a variety of sizes and shapes. A microwave oven that uses the mode stirrer apparatus for drying green ceramic-forming bodies is also disclosed.

In a heating cooker, when an image of an inside of heating compartment (12) is captured by imaging unit (19) before heating, controller (100) determines whether or not the image can be recognized by recognition unit (103). When the image cannot be recognized by recognition unit (103), controller (100) determines that capturing cannot be performed due to existence of a blade portion of stirrer blade (14a) in front of imaging unit (19), and drives motor (15a) by controlling rotation controller (102) thus rotating stirrer blade (14a) by a predetermined angle.

An electronic oven with a set of variable reflectance elements for controlling a distribution of heat in the electronic oven and associated methods are disclosed herein. The electronic oven includes a chamber, an energy source coupled to an injection port in the chamber, and a set of variable reflectance elements located in the chamber. In some of the disclosed approaches the variable reflectance elements are nonradiative. A control system of the electronic oven can be configured to alter the states of the variable reflectance elements to thereby alter and control the distribution of energy within the chamber.

Disclosed herein is a microwave oven having an improved structure with which foods can be effectively heated. The microwave oven includes: a housing including a cooking chamber having a bottom surface; at least one first reflective portion formed on the bottom surface of the cooking chamber; a magnetron provided to generate microwave radiation; and a tray disposed apart from the bottom surface of the cooking chamber and supporting food to be heated. The at least one first reflective portion extends a given height (h) above a reference level (RL).