US 12,234,995 B2
On demand oven door lock
Richard W. Cowan, Louisville, KY (US)
Assigned to MIDEA GROUP CO., LTD., Guangdong (CN)
Filed by Midea Group Co., Ltd., Foshan (CN)
Filed on Jun. 29, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/853,164.
Prior Publication US 2024/0003550 A1, Jan. 4, 2024
Int. Cl. F24C 15/02 (2006.01); A47J 36/12 (2006.01); F24C 15/36 (2006.01)
CPC F24C 15/36 (2013.01) [F24C 15/022 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A cooking apparatus, comprising:
a housing;
an oven cavity disposed within the housing;
one or more cooking elements configured to beat the oven cavity;
a door coupled to the housing, wherein the door is movable from a closed position to an open position to provide external access to the oven cavity;
an electronic lock configured to selectively lock the door in the closed position;
a user interface configured to receive user input; and
a control circuit coupled to the electronic lock and the user interface, wherein the control circuit:
receives, from the user interface, first on demand lock user input to engage or disengage the electronic lock on demand while the oven is active;
selectively engages or disengages the electronic lock in response to the first on demand lock user input and while the oven is active;
receives, from the user interface, second on demand lock user input to engage or disengage the electronic lock on demand while the oven is inactive;
selectively engages or disengages the electronic lock in response to the second on demand lock user input and while the oven is inactive;
receives, from the user interface and while the electronic lock is engaged, cooking user input to start or stop an oven cooking operation; and
starts or stops the oven cooking operation while the electronic lock is engaged in response to the cooking user input.