COOKING DEVICE FOR A MICROWAVE OVEN

Abstract

The cooking device for a microwave oven comprises an assembly (1) including a micro-wave heatable cooking element (10) and two handles (20) made of a thermo-insulating material transparent to microwaves removably attached to opposite end sections of the cooking element (10). The cooking element (10) comprises a sheet metal plate (11) defining a cooking surface (4a) on a first side thereof and a heat absorbing surface (4b) on an opposite second side thereof, and an induction layer (12) made of a microwave-absorbing material laid on the heat absorbing surface (4b) of the sheet metal plate (11) in thermal contact therewith. The sheet metal plate (11) has a smooth continuous perimetral edge (13) with no vertexes and a shaped perimetral region (14) adjacent to the perimetral edge (13). The shaped perimetral region (14) is bent, preferably more than 180 degrees, towards one side of the sheet metal plate (11).

Claims

1. A cooking device for a microwave oven, the cooking device comprising an assembly including a micro-wave heatable cooking element and two handles made of a thermo-insulating material transparent to microwaves removably attached to opposite end sections of the cooking element, the cooking element comprising: a sheet metal plate defining a cooking surface on a first side thereof and a heat absorbing surface on an opposite second side thereof; and an induction layer made of a microwave-absorbing material laid on the heat absorbing surface of the sheet metal plate in thermal contact therewith, characterized in that: the sheet metal plate of the cooking element has a smooth continuous perimetral edge with no vertexes and a shaped perimetral region adjacent to the perimetral edge, the shaped perimetral region being bent towards one side of the sheet metal plate.

2. The cooking device according to claim 1, wherein the shaped perimetral region is bent more than 180 degrees towards the second side of the sheet metal plate and the perimetral edge is facing the heat absorbing surface or the shaped perimetral region is bent more than 180 degrees towards the first side of the sheet metal plate and the perimetral edge is facing the cooking surface.

3. The cooking device according to claim 1, wherein the shaped perimetral region is not covered with the induction layer.

4. The cooking device according to claim 1, wherein the sheet metal plate has two opposite end sections not covered with the induction layer, and the handles are removably attached to the opposite end sections.

5. The cooking device according to claim 4, wherein the shaped perimetral region of the sheet metal plate defines a smooth continuous curved contour section encompassing each of the opposite end sections.

6. The cooking device according to claim 4, wherein the shaped perimetral region of the sheet metal plate defines straight contour sections connecting the ends of the curved contour sections, the curved contour sections being tangent to the straight contour sections.

7. The cooking device according to claim 5, wherein the sheet metal plate has at least one retaining aperture in each of the opposite end sections, the retaining aperture having a shaped edge bent towards one side of the sheet metal plate.

8. The cooking device according to claim 4, wherein the cooking surface (4a) of the sheet metal plate has a central depressed cooking region having a flat bottom with parallel ridges.

9. The cooking device according to claim 5, wherein each handle (20) has a smooth continuous arched groove complementary of the curved contour section of the shaped perimetral region of the sheet metal plate.

10. The cooking device according to claim 9, wherein the handles are made of an elastic material and the arched groove has an inner space and an entrance slit narrower than the inner space, the inner space being configured to receive the curved contour section of the shaped perimetral region of the sheet metal plate by elastic deformation and recovery of the handle.

11. The cooking device according to claim 7, wherein each handle has a covering section extending on the corresponding end section of the sheet metal plate and a retaining protrusion configured to be inserted in the retaining aperture.

12. The cooking device according to claim 11, wherein the retaining protrusion comprises a retaining head connected to the covering section by a connection shank, wherein the retaining head is wider than the retaining aperture and the connecting shank is thinner than the retaining aperture.

13. The cooking device according to claim 1, wherein the assembly is a lower assembly, the cooking element is a lower cooking element and the handles are lower handles, the cooking device further comprising an upper assembly including a micro-wave heatable upper cooking element and two upper handles made of a thermo-insulating material transparent to microwaves removably attached to opposite end sections of the upper cooking element, wherein the upper cooking element has the same features than the lower cooking element as defined in any one of claims 1 to 8 and wherein the upper handles have the same features than the lower handles as defined in any one of claims 9 to 12.

14. The cooking device according to claim 13, further comprising elastic retaining elements configured to retain the lower and upper assemblies joined together in an assembled position in which the respective lower and upper handles are in mutual contact and the cooking surfaces of the respective lower and upper cooking elements are facing each other without contact.

15. The cooking device according to claim 14, wherein the retaining heads of the retaining protrusions of the lower handles have a convex top surface that fits in a concave top surface of the retaining heads of the retaining protrusions of the upper handles when the lower and upper assemblies are joined in the assembled position.

16. A cooking device for a microwave oven, the cooking device comprising an assembly including a micro-wave heatable cooking element and two handles made of a thermo-insulating material transparent to microwaves removably attached to opposite end sections of the cooking element, the cooking element comprising: a sheet metal plate defining a cooking surface on a first side thereof and a heat absorbing surface on an opposite second side thereof; and an induction layer made of a microwave-absorbing material laid on the heat absorbing surface of the sheet metal plate in thermal contact therewith, wherein: the sheet metal plate of the cooking element has a smooth continuous perimetral edge with no vertexes and a shaped perimetral region adjacent to the perimetral edge, the shaped perimetral region being bent towards one side of the sheet metal plate; the sheet metal plate has two opposite end sections not covered with the induction layer, and the handles are removably attached to the opposite end sections; the shaped perimetral region of the sheet metal plate defines a smooth continuous curved contour section encompassing each of the opposite end sections, and each handle has a smooth continuous arched groove complementary of the curved contour section of the shaped perimetral region of the sheet metal plate; the sheet metal plate has at least one retaining aperture in each of the opposite end sections, the retaining aperture having a shaped edge bent towards one side of the sheet metal plate, and each handle has a covering section extending on the corresponding end section of the sheet metal plate and a retaining protrusion configured to be inserted in the retaining aperture; and the handles are made of an elastic material and the arched groove has an inner space and an entrance slit narrower than the inner space, the inner space being configured to receive the curved contour section of the shaped perimetral region of the sheet metal plate by elastic deformation and recovery of the handle.

17. The cooking device according to claim 16, wherein the shaped perimetral region is not covered with the induction layer and is bent more than 180 degrees towards the second side of the sheet metal plate and the perimetral edge is facing the heat absorbing surface, or the shaped perimetral region is not covered with the induction layer and is bent more than 180 degrees towards the first side of the sheet metal plate and the perimetral edge is facing the cooking surface.

18. The cooking device according to claim 16, wherein the shaped perimetral region of the sheet metal plate defines straight contour sections connecting the ends of the curved contour sections, the curved contour sections being tangent to the straight contour sections.

19. The cooking device according to claim 16, wherein the cooking surface of the sheet metal plate has a central depressed cooking region having a flat bottom with parallel ridges.

20. The cooking device according to claim 16, wherein the retaining protrusion comprises a retaining head connected to the covering section by a connection shank, wherein the retaining head is wider than the retaining aperture and the connecting shank is thinner than the retaining aperture.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] The present invention will be more fully understood from a detailed description of an illustrative and non-limitative preferred embodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0021] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cooking device for a microwave oven according to an embodiment of the present invention, including a lower assembly, an upper assembly and elastic retaining elements, in an assembled position;

[0022] FIG. 2 is a side view of the cooking device of FIG. 1;

[0023] FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the cooking device of FIG. 1;

[0024] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated IV-IV in FIG. 3;

[0025] FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated V-V in FIG. 3;

[0026] FIG. 6 is a top plan view of a lower cooking element belonging to the lower assembly, which is identical to an upper cooking element belonging to the upper assembly;

[0027] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated VII-VII in FIG. 6;

[0028] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated VIII-VIII in FIG. 6;

[0029] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated IX-IX in FIG. 6;

[0030] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of one lower handle belonging to the lower assembly, showing an upper and inner side thereof;

[0031] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the lower handle showing a lower and outer side thereof;

[0032] FIG. 12 is a front view of the lower handle showing the inner side thereof;

[0033] FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated XIII-XIII in FIG. 12;

[0034] FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated XIV-XIV in FIG. 12;

[0035] FIG. 15 is a perspective view of one upper handle belonging to the upper assembly, showing a lower and outer side thereof;

[0036] FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the upper handle showing an upper and inner side thereof;

[0037] FIG. 17 is a front view of the upper handle showing the inner side thereof;

[0038] FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated XVIII-XVIII in FIG. 17;

[0039] FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view taken by the plane indicated XIX-XIX in FIG. 17; and

[0040] FIG. 20 is a perspective view of one of the elastic retaining elements;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0041] Referring first to FIGS. 1 to 3, a cooking device for a microwave oven according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown, which is comprised of a lower assembly 1, an upper assembly 2 and elastic retaining elements 3.

[0042] The lower assembly 1 comprises a micro-wave heatable lower cooking element 10 and two lower handles 20 made of a thermo-insulating elastic material transparent to microwaves removably attached to opposite end sections of the lower cooking element 10.

[0043] The upper assembly 2 comprises a micro-wave heatable upper cooking element 30 and two upper handles 40 made of a thermo-insulating elastic material transparent to microwaves removably attached to opposite end sections of the upper cooking element 30.

[0044] The elastic retaining elements 3 are configured to retain the lower and upper assemblies 1, 2 joined together in an assembled position shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 as will be explained in greater detail below.

[0045] FIG. 6 separately shows the lower cooking element 10, which in this embodiment is identical to the upper cooking element 30. As better shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, the cooking element 10, 30 comprises a sheet metal plate 11 defining a cooking surface 4a on a first side thereof and a heat absorbing surface 4b on an opposite second opposite side thereof, and an induction layer 12 made of a microwave-absorbing material laid on the heat absorbing surface 4b of the sheet metal plate 11 in thermal contact therewith. The sheet metal plate 11 is made, for example, of iron with an aluminium coating and the induction layer 12 is made for example of silicone with ferrite charges.

[0046] As better shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, in the lower cooking element 10 the cooking surface 4a is on the upper side and the heat absorbing surface 4b with the induction layer 12 is on the lower side of the sheet metal plate 11, and inversely in the upper cooking element 30, the cooking surface 4a is in the lower side and the heat absorbing surface 4b with the induction layer 12 is on the upper side of the sheet metal plate 11. In both the lower and upper cooking elements 10, 30, the cooking surface 4a of the sheet metal plate 11 has a central depressed cooking region having a flat bottom 5 with parallel ridges 6.

[0047] The sheet metal plate 11 has a smooth continuous perimetral edge 13 with no vertexes and a shaped perimetral region 14 not covered with the induction layer 12 adjacent to the perimetral edge 13. The shaped perimetral region 14 is bent more than 180 degrees towards one side of the sheet metal plate 11 corresponding to the heat absorbing surface 4b, so that the perimetral edge 13 is facing the heat absorbing surface 4b. In other words, the shaped perimetral region 14 is curved towards the heat absorbing surface 4b forming a partial pipe all around the whole perimeter of the sheet metal plate 11.

[0048] The sheet metal plate 11 has two opposite end sections 15 not covered with the induction layer 12, and the lower handles 20 are removably attached to the opposite end sections 15 as better shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. The shaped perimetral region 14 of the sheet metal plate 11 defines a smooth continuous curved contour section 16 encompassing each of the opposite end sections 15 and two straight contour sections 17 connecting the ends of the curved contour sections 16. The curved contour sections 16 are tangent to the straight contour sections 17 so that no sharp vertexes are present in the perimetral edge 13 and shaped perimetral region 14.

[0049] The sheet metal plate 11 has a pair of retaining apertures 18 formed in each of the opposite end sections 15. Each retaining aperture 18 has a shaped edge 19 bent towards one side of the sheet metal plate 11, for example towards the side of the sheet metal plate 11 corresponding to the cooking surface 4a.

[0050] As shown in FIGS. 13 to 22, each of the lower and upper handles 20, 40 has a smooth continuous arched groove 21 comprising an inner space and an entrance slit 24 narrower than the inner space. The inner space of the arched groove 21 is complementary to the curved contour sections 16 of the shaped perimetral region 14 of the sheet metal plate 11, and the inner space of the arched groove 21 receives the curved contour sections 16 of the shaped perimetral region 14 by elastic deformation and recovery of the entrance slit 24 when the lower or upper handle 20, 30 is removably attached to the corresponding sheet metal plate 11.

[0051] As better shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, each of the lower and upper handles 20, 40 has a covering section 22 extending on the corresponding end section 15 of the sheet metal plate 11 and a pair of retaining protrusions 23 projecting from the covering section 22 and configured to be inserted in the retaining apertures 18 of the corresponding sheet metal plate 11. Each retaining protrusion 23 comprises a retaining head connected to the covering section 22 by a connection shank. The retaining head is wider than the retaining aperture 18 and the connecting shank is thinner than the retaining aperture 18. The retaining protrusion 23 is inserted in and removed from the retaining aperture 18 by elastic deformation and recovery of the retaining head.

[0052] Each of the lower and upper handles 20, 40 further has a hooking post 25 located at central region thereof and each of the elastic retaining elements 3 is configured to be hooked to the hooking posts 25 of the lower and upper handles 20, 40 in order to retain the lower and upper assemblies 1, 2 joined together in the assembled position shown in FIGS. 1 to 3. In the assembled position, the respective lower and upper handles 20, 40 are in mutual contact and the cooking surfaces 4a of the respective lower and upper cooking elements 10, 30 are facing each other without contact.

[0053] As shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, each of the elastic retaining elements 3 is made of an elastic material, such as silicone, and has a lower section 31 where a lower hooking aperture 32 is formed, an upper section where 33 where an upper hooking aperture 34 is formed, and two connection strands 35 connecting the lower section 31 to the upper section 33. The upper section 33 extends into a grip section 36. The lower and upper hooking apertures 32, 34 are configured to be hooked to the hooking posts 25 of the lower and upper handles 20, 40.

[0054] The retaining heads of the retaining protrusions 23 of the lower handles 20 have a convex top surface that fits in a concave top surface of the retaining heads of the retaining protrusions 23 of the upper handles 40 when the lower and upper assemblies 1, 2 are joined in the assembled position, as better shown in FIG. 5.

[0055] Each of the lower handles 20 has a support element 26 configured to support the cooking device on a support surface. Each of the lower and upper handles 20, 40 has surface reliefs 27 for improving the grip and reducing heat transfer.

[0056] It is to be understood that while the device is designed to cook food on two sides thereof by using the upper and lower assemblies 1, 2 joined together by the elastic retaining elements 3 in the microwave oven, the food may be cooked on one side thereof by using only the lower assembly 1 in the microwave oven.

[0057] The scope of the invention is defined in the attached claims.