Household appliance having a mounting system for a middle door glass

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9429329-B2
Application number	US-201213484735-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 31, 2012
Priority date	May 31, 2012
Publication date	Aug 30, 2016
Grant date	Aug 30, 2016

Abstract

A household cooking appliance including a housing having an oven chamber accessible through an opening, the opening having a seal surrounding a perimeter of the opening, and a door covering the opening and moveable about a hinge between an open position and a closed position. The door includes an outer door skin forming an outer surface of the door, the outer door skin including an outer glass panel, a full glass inner panel forming an inner surface of the door, the full glass inner panel abutting the seal when the door is in a closed position, a middle glass panel disposed between the outer glass panel and the inner glass panel, and a middle glass support system that supports the middle glass panel at a predetermined position between the outer glass panel and the full glass inner panel.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A household cooking appliance comprising:
a housing having an oven chamber accessible through an opening, the opening having a seal surrounding a perimeter of the opening; and
a door covering the opening and moveable about a hinge between an open position and a closed position,
wherein the door includes:
an outer door skin forming an outer surface of the door, the outer door skin including an outer glass panel;
a full glass inner panel forming an inner surface of the door, the full glass inner panel abutting the seal when the door is in a closed position;
a middle glass panel disposed between the outer glass panel and the inner glass panel, the middle glass panel including a front surface, a rear surface, a top edge, a bottom edge, a first side edge, and a second side edge; and
a middle glass support system that supports the middle glass panel at a predetermined position between the outer glass panel and the full glass inner panel;
wherein the middle glass support system includes:
a first bracket on a first side of the door and a second bracket on a second side of the door; and
a top reflector extending across a top portion of the door and securing the middle glass support in two dimensions; and
a lower retainer extending across a bottom portion of the door and securing the middle glass support in two dimensions;
wherein the top reflector is coupled to a top of the first bracket and a top of the second bracket thereby fixing an upper position of the first bracket with respect to the second bracket; and
wherein the lower retainer is coupled to a bottom of the first bracket and a bottom of the second bracket thereby fixing a lower position of the first bracket with respect to the second bracket;

wherein the first bracket and the second bracket secure the middle glass panel in a first dimension extending in a side-to-side direction with respect to the door and a second dimension extending in an upward direction toward a top surface of the door;
wherein the door further comprises:
a flexible metal part disposed between the middle glass panel and the full glass inner panel, the flexible metal part resiliently and movable supporting the full glass inner panel in a position spaced apart from the middle glass panel;
wherein a top portion of the flexible metal part is suspended from the top reflector in a position below the top reflector and a lower portion of the flexible metal part is coupled to the lower retainer in a position above the lower retainer;
wherein the flexible metal part is suspended between and spaced away from the top reflector and the lower retainer; and
wherein the flexible metal part is disposed between and spaced away from the first bracket and the second bracket.

2. The household cooking appliance of claim 1 , wherein the top reflector extends across the top edge of the middle glass panel and secures each of the first bracket and the second bracket in two dimensions.

3. The household cooking appliance of claim 2 , wherein the top reflector extends across the top edge of the middle glass panel and reflects heat toward the oven chamber.

4. The household cooking appliance of claim 2 , wherein the door further comprises:
a first hinge assembly on a first side of the door and a second hinge assembly on a second side of the door,
wherein the top reflector has a first end and a second end, wherein the first end is coupled to a top of the first hinge assembly and the second end is coupled to a top of the second hinge assembly thereby fixing a position of the first hinge assembly with respect to the second hinge assembly.

5. The household cooking appliance of claim 2 , wherein the door further comprises:
a plurality of top vents on the top surface of the door for permitting air flow through the door; and
a first insulation layer between the middle glass panel and the full glass inner panel,
wherein the top reflector extends across a top portion of the door and conceals the first insulation layer from view through the plurality of top vents.

6. The household cooking appliance of claim 2 , wherein the door further comprises:
a first insulation layer between the middle glass panel and the full glass inner panel,
wherein the top reflector forms a stop that prevents the first insulation layer from moving toward a top surface of the outer door skin in a direction parallel to a surface of the full inner glass panel.

7. The household cooking appliance of claim 2 , wherein:
the flexible metal part is disposed between the rear surface of the middle glass panel and the full glass inner panel,
wherein the top reflector supports the top portion of the flexible metal part.

8. The household cooking appliance of claim 2 ,
wherein the top reflector is coupled directly to the first bracket and the second bracket thereby fixing a position of the first bracket with respect to the second bracket.

9. The household cooking appliance of claim 1 , wherein the lower retainer extends across the bottom edge of the middle glass panel and secures each of the first bracket and the second bracket in two dimensions.

10. The household cooking appliance of claim 9 , wherein the door further comprises:
a bottom surface having a plurality of bottom vents for permitting air flow through the door; and
a first insulation layer between the rear surface of the middle glass panel and the full glass inner panel,
wherein the lower retainer conceals the first insulation layer from view through the plurality of bottom vents.

11. The household cooking appliance of claim 9 , wherein the door further comprises:
a first insulation layer between the rear surface of the middle glass panel and the full glass inner panel,
wherein the lower retainer forms a stop that prevents the first insulation from moving toward a bottom surface of the door in a direction parallel to a surface of the full inner glass panel.

12. The household cooking appliance of claim 9 , wherein:
the flexible metal part is disposed between the rear surface of the middle glass panel and the full glass inner panel,
wherein the lower retainer supports a lower portion of the flexible metal part.

13. The household cooking appliance of claim 1 , wherein the first bracket and the second bracket fix the middle glass panel with a predetermined spacing away from the full glass inner panel to provide an air gap that provides a predetermined thermal insulation between the full glass inner panel and the middle glass panel.

14. The household cooking appliance of claim 1 , wherein the first bracket and the second bracket extend along the first side edge and the second side edge respectively of the middle glass panel and support the middle glass panel at a predetermined distance away from the outer door skin.

15. The household cooking appliance of claim 1 , wherein the first bracket is a mirror image of the second bracket.

16. The household cooking appliance of claim 1 , wherein a front side of each of the first bracket and the second bracket includes a Z-shaped base portion,
wherein a first portion of the Z-shaped base portion is coupled to the outer door skin and a second portion of the Z-shaped base portion presses a surface of the outer glass panel against the outer door skin.

17. The household cooking appliance of claim 16 , wherein the door further comprises a set of stud strips coupled to the outer door skin on the first side and the second side of the door,
wherein the first bracket and the second bracket each engage a stud strip of the set of stud strips to secure the first bracket

Assignees

• Delozier Ryan
• Dorsten Russell
• Harward Samuel
• Hendricks Donald
• Parker Rose Marie
• Bsh Home Appliances Corp

Inventors

• Delozier Ryan
• Dorsten Russell
• Harward Samuel
• Hendricks Donald
• Parker Rose Marie

Classifications

• F24C15/04 Primary

  with transparent panels · CPC title