US20100175678A1

US20100175678A1 - Built-in cooking appliance

Info

Publication number: US20100175678A1
Application number: US12/448,593
Authority: US
Inventors: Soo Cheol Yi; Jung-Ho Bae
Original assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Current assignee: LG Electronics Inc
Priority date: 2006-12-29
Filing date: 2007-11-15
Publication date: 2010-07-15
Also published as: RU2009124902A; EP2097679B1; MX2009007143A; WO2008082074A1; EP2097679A1; AU2007339666A1; EP2097679A4; RU2415346C1; AU2007339666B2

Abstract

A built-in cooking appliance is provided. The built-in cooking appliance includes a body frame of a main body, a heating body, a top plate, a cabinet, a support in a contact space between the cabinet and the top plate, and a plurality of channels provided in the support. The top plate is disposed in an upper portion of the body frame to support a dishware to be heated. The cabinet supports the top plate. The plurality of holes are provided in the support to discharge air flowing out from the body frame. A size of each of the channels is small enough to prevent flow of water while allowing flow of air. Accordingly, cooling efficiency, safety and convenience of the built-in cooking appliance in using and cleaning it can be improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a built-in cooking appliance, and more particularly, to a built-in cooking appliance with a top plate on which food is cooked.

BACKGROUND ART

A built-in cooking appliance is a kitchen appliance installed on a cabinet (a kind of a built-in case). That is, the built-in cooking appliance is associated with kitchen furniture so that a user can conveniently use the same. The built-in cooking appliance makes the interior of the kitchen beautiful.
In recent years, a built-in cooking appliance having a top plate, which can cook the food using heat transmitted to the food through the top plate, has been developed. Such a built-in cooking appliance having the top plate is called a hot plate, a hob, a range, or a cook-top. Regardless of the name, a concept of the present invention may be applied to any cooking appliances having the top plate. In the following description, a terminology of a cooking appliance means a cooker having the top plate.
In order to operate components of the cooker under a thermally stable state, a typical cooking appliance is designed such that air flows in and out of the cooking appliance. To realize this, the top plate is mounted protruding above the top surface of the top plate by a predetermined height. In this case, it is difficult to clean a portion around the top plate and an outer appearance is deteriorated.
In the typical cooking appliance, water may flow into a main body of the cooking appliance through an air passage hole formed on the top plate or a portion around the top plate. The water flowing into the main body of the cooking appliance may cause a short circuit or malfunction of the cooking appliance. This problem must be most considered in designing the cooking appliance as the cooking appliance is used in the kitchen where the water is frequently used. In addition, the cooking appliance such as a hot plate has a heating element therein. Accordingly, such a cooking appliance is designed to resist to heat. However, when the temperature is raised too high, the cooking appliance may overwork, which may be a cause of malfunction of the cooking appliance. To resolve this, a cooking appliance has been developed that has a cooling channel connecting an inner part of the cooking appliance to the outside for discharging hot air in the cooking appliance to the outside. However, when water flows into the cooking appliance through the cooling channel, it may be another cause of malfunction of the cooking appliance.
Further, since the cooking appliance is designed to cook food in a state where a dishware such as a cook pot is disposed on a flat surface of the top plate, the dishware must be stably secured on the flat surface. However, although a location where the dishware will be located is graphically marked on the top plate, the cooking appliance does not have any means for physically securing the dishware on the top plate. Therefore, when the top plate is slippery due to, for example, oil, the dishware disposed on the top surface of the top plate may inadvertently move to an undesired location or fall down from the top plate to the cabinet.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

Technical Problem

Embodiments provide a built-in cooking appliance that is configured to effectively cool an inside of the cooking appliance without protruding the top plate above the cabinet. Embodiments also provide a built-in cooking appliance that can be used safely and is free from the possibilities that the cooking appliance is damaged by internal heat and water flows into the cooking appliance.
In short, embodiments provide a built-in cooking appliance that is configured to improve operation reliability and user's convenience in using and cleaning it.

Technical Solution

In one embodiment, a built-in cooking appliance includes a body frame of a main body; a heating body in the body frame; a top plate disposed in an upper portion of the body frame to support a dishware to be heated; a cabinet configured to support the top plate; a support in a contact space between the cabinet and the top plate; and a plurality of channels provided in the support to discharge air flowing out from the body frame, a size of each of the channels being small enough to prevent flow of water while allowing flow of air.
In another embodiment, a built-in cooking appliance includes a top plate; a cabinet configured to support the top plate; and a support configured to support at least a portion of the top plate, the support having at least one vertical airflow hole through which air flows.
In further another embodiment, a built-in cooking appliance includes a body frame of a main body; a top plate disposed in an upper portion of the body frame; and a support configured to support a lower side of the top plate, and wherein the support has a close adhesion unit with one surface contacting the top plate and the other surface contacting the cabinet, and the close adhesion unit has at least one airflow hole through which air flows.

Advantageous Effects

According to the embodiments, a cooling efficiency of the cooking appliance can be improved and safety and convenience in using the cooking appliance can also be improved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a built-in cooking appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention, when a cooker is being installed.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the built-in cooking appliance of FIG. 1, when the cooker is completely installed.

FIG. 3 is a partly broken perspective view of the built-in cooking appliance of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line I-I′ of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a support illustrated in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a modification of the support illustrated in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a built-in cooking appliance according to another embodiment of the present invention, when a cooker is completely installed.

FIG. 8 is a partly broken perspective view of the built-in cooking appliance of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line II-II′ of FIG. 7.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a support illustrated in FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a modification of the support illustrated in FIG. 10.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to accompanying drawings.

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a built-in cooking appliance according to an embodiment of the present invention, when a cooker is being installed, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the built-in cooking appliance of FIG. 1, when the cooker is completely installed.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a built-in cooking appliance according to this embodiment includes a cabinet 1 installed in a kitchen, a depressed portion 2 formed on a surface of the cabinet 1, and a cooker 5 having a first portion received in the depressed portion 2 and a second portion seating on a top surface of the cabinet 1.
In more detail, the depressed portion 2 is depressed to a predetermined depth from the top surface of the cabinet 1 to receive the first portion of the cooker 5.
The depressed portion 2 is smaller than an area of the top surface of the cooker 5. Therefore, when the cooker 5 is received in the depressed portion 2, an edge portion of the cooker 5 seats on the top surface of the cabinet 1. In more detail, a top plate (51 in FIG. 3) provided on an upper end of the cooker 5 seats on the top surface of the cabinet 1.
Therefore, since the top plate 51 seats on the top surface of the cabinet 1, only the top plate 51 protrudes above the top surface of the cabinet 1. Accordingly, the protruding height of the cooker 5 above the cabinet 1 can be minimized. Here, when the cooker 5 is installed on the cabinet 1, a rear end portion of the top plate 51 seats on a support (7 in FIG. 3) provided on the top surface of the cabinet 1. A portion of the top surface of the cabinet 1 may be depressed to receive the support 7 on which the rear end portion of the top plate 51 seats.
In this case, a front edge portion and both side edge portions of the top plate 51 seat on the top surface of the cabinet 1 and a rear edge portion of the top plate 51 seats on the support 7, thereby sealing up the depressed portion 2. Then, heat inside the cooker 5 cannot be discharged to the outside.
Therefore, the support 7 according to this embodiment is provided with a structure for discharging heat inside the cooker 5 to the outside, which will be described later.
As the top plate 51 seats on the cabinet 1 as described above, dishware can be stably set on the top surface of the top plate 51. In addition, since only the top plate 51 protrudes above the top surface of the cabinet 1, an outer appearance of the cooking appliance can be improved.
Meanwhile, although a bottom of the depressed portion 2 is closed, air may be introduced into the depressed portion 2 through other clearances of the cabinet 1 and the introduced air may be directed into the cooker 5.
FIG. 3 is a partly broken perspective view of the built-in cooking appliance of FIG. 1, FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line I-I′ of FIG. 2, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a support illustrated in FIG. 4.
Referring to FIGS. 3 through 5, the cooker 5 includes a top plate 51 functioning as a support plate on which a dishware is located and a main body 52 disposed under the top plate 51.
Outer appearance of the main body 52 is defined by a body frame. A heater 54 for generating heat and a fan 53 for discharging the heat generated in the main body 52 to the outside are provided inside the main body 52. Any types of heaters such as a direct heating type or an induction heating type may be used as the heater 54.
As described above, since the front and side edge portions of the top plate 51 seat on the top surface of the cabinet 1, only the top plate 51 protrudes above the cabinet 1.
On the other hand, the rear edge portion of the top plate 51 is supported by the support 7 installed on the cabinet 1. In more detail, the support 7 has a plate-like shape and is coupled to the cabinet 1 at the portion of the top surface of the cabinet 1 on which the rear end portion of the top plate 51 is placed.
Therefore, a top surface of the support 7 is coupled to a bottom surface of the top plate 51 and a bottom surface of the support 7 is coupled to the top surface of the cabinet 1.
A coupling member may be used to couple the support 7 to the top plate 51 and the cabinet 1. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, an adhesive may also be used.
A plurality of airflow holes 72 may be formed horizontally in the support 7 to discharge heat inside the cooker 5 to the outside. The plurality of airflow holes 72 are horizontally arranged at predetermined intervals.
Preferably, the size of the airflow hole 72 is small enough to prevent the entry of foreign materials, especially fluid, while permitting air to be discharged. Accordingly, the airflow hole 72 may also be regarded as a kind of micro-channel.
Although the support 7 is described to have a plate-like shape in the above description, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the support 7 may also have a Γ shape such that a horizontal portion of the support 7 contacts the top surface of the cabinet 1 and a vertical portion of the support 7 contacts a surface of the cabinet 1 that is formed by the depression. In this case, the horizontal portion of the support 7 may serve to support the top plate 51 and the vertical portion of the support 7 may serve to couple the support 7 to the cabinet 1.
Although the support 7 may have a variety of shapes, it is preferable that a top surface of the support 7 contacts the top plate 51, a bottom surface of the support 7 contacts the cabinet 1, and the plurality of airflow holes are formed between the contacting surfaces to minimize a protruding height of the cooker 5.
The following will describe an airflow process for cooling the inside of the cooker 5.
First, when the fan 53 operates, cool air is introduced into the cooker 5. The cool air may be introduced through an air inlet 55 formed on a bottom of the main body 52 aligned with the fan 53.
The cool air introduced through the air inlet 55 may be sucked through the clearance of the cabinet 1, which is formed on a front portion of the depressed portion 2. Needless to say, when the bottom of the depressed portion 2 has an opening, the cool air may be sucked through the bottom of the depressed portion 2.
The air sucked by the fan 53 flows into an air outlet 56 formed on the rear portion of the main body 52 via a control unit (not shown) and the heater 54.
The air flowing out through the air outlet 56 is discharged to the outside through the airflow hole 72.
In order not to direct the air flowing out through the air outlet 56 to other spaces in the depressed portion 2 but to the airflow hole 72, an airflow guide 65 may be further provided on a rear portion of the main body 1.
In the drawing, a plurality of the airflow guides 65 are provided corresponding to a plurality of the air outlets 56. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, only one airflow guide 65 extending toward the airflow holes 72 may also be provided.
As described above, since the airflow holes 72 are provided in the support 7, the air heated in the cooker 5 can be discharged to the outside through the airflow holes 72. The size of the airflow hole 72 is small enough to prevent the entry of foreign materials while permitting air to be discharged
In addition, since the airflow holes 72 are too small to be seen by the naked eye, the airflow holes 72 do not disfigure the cooking appliance.
The following will describe relationship between the cooker according to this embodiment and fluid around the cooker 5.
First, since the cooker 5 is installed in a place such as the kitchen where the water is frequently used, it must be considered to prevent the water from flowing into the cooker 5. To realize this, the bottom surface of the top plate 51 and the corresponding surface of the cabinet 1 are sealed together at front and both sides of the top plate 51 by a sealing member. Therefore, only the support 7 in which the airflow holes 72 are formed is a weak point through which the external fluid may be introduced into the cooker 5.
However, since the airflow holes 72 are so small that the external fluid cannot substantially flow through them. In addition, the external fluid around the airflow holes 72 may evaporate by heat emitted from the cooker 5 itself or air discharged through the airflow holes 72. Even though a great quantity of water is poured around the airflow holes 72 especially when upsetting a kettle, for example, penetration of the water into the airflow holes caused by capillary effect can also be prevented. Therefore, the external fluid never flows into the cooker 5.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a modification of the support illustrated in FIG. 5.
Only different features from the foregoing embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 6.
Referring to FIG. 6, the support 8 includes a plurality of airflow holes 82 provided on a top surface or a bottom surface of the support 8, which is different from the support 7 of FIG. 5 including the plurality of airflow holes 82 provided through the support 7.
That is, the airflow holes 82 are depressed to a predetermined depth from the top or bottom surface of the support 8. Accordingly, the top or bottom surface of the support 8 has an unevenness shape, which makes the support 8 to be more easily manufactured in comparison to the support 7 having through airflow holes 72.
Although the airflow holes 82 are illustrated to be provided on a surface of the support 8 contacting the cabinet 1 in FIG. 6, the airflow holes 82 may also be formed on a surface of the support 8 contacting the top plate 51.
Furthermore, the supports 7 and 8 may also be formed by bending a plate-like member up and down a number of times to form a channel (not shown). In this case, the ridges and valleys formed by the bendings contact the top plate and the cabinet to support them and the airflow holes are formed between the ridges and valleys.
The following will describe modifications of the above described embodiment.
First, the support 7 is described to be exposed to the surroundings in the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, a separate top frame can be provided around the support 7 to cover the support 7 and improve the outer appearance of the cooking appliance. In this case, the top frame includes an opening through which air discharged through the airflow holes can flow further to the outside.
Although the airflow holes are described to have square cross sections in the drawings, they may also have semicircular or circular cross sections to reduce resistance to air flow.
In addition, the rear edge of the main body may extend to the top surface of the cabinet to replace the support. In this case, airflow holes are formed in the extended portion of the main body and include a vertical portion and a horizontal portion extending from the vertical portion to facilitate airflow.
Although the support is described to be provided between the top plate and the cabinet in the drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto and the invention may be embodied in many different forms. The following will describe modifications of the support in detail. The same elements as those of the above described embodiment are referred to by the same reference numerals and detailed descriptions thereof are omitted.

Second Embodiment

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a built-in cooking appliance according to another embodiment of the present invention, when a cooker is completely installed.
Referring to FIG. 7, the built-in cooking appliance includes a cabinet 1 installed in a kitchen, a depressed portion 2 depressed downward from a surface of the cabinet 1 to provide a space for receiving a cooker, a seating portion 3 stepped from edges of the depressed portion 2, and a cooker 5 at least a portion of which is seated on the seating portion 3.
In detail, the seating portion 3 is depressed downward from edges of the depressed portion 2 to support at least a portion of edge portions of the cooker 5.
In more detail, the seating portion 3 supports hot top plate (51 in FIG. 3) provided on an upper top end of the cooker 5.
The depth of the seating portion 3 depressed downward from the edges of the depressed portion 2 is substantially the same as the thickness of the top plate 51. Accordingly, a top surface of the top plate 51 is at a level with a top surface of the cabinet 1.
The seating portion 3 is provided on a portion on which a front edge portion and both side edge portions of the cooker 5 seat except a portion on which a rear edge portion of the cooker 5 seats. This is because a space through which internal heat of the cooker 5 is discharged should be provided between the rear edge portion of the cooker 5 and the cabinet 1. In other words, this is because the top surface of the cooker 5 is substantially at a level with the top surface of the cabinet 1 and therefore there is no channel to discharge the internal heat of the cooker 5 to the outside if even the rear edge portion of the cooker 5 seats on the receiving portion 3.
As the top surface of the top plate 51 is at a level with the top surface of the cabinet 1 as described above, a dishware can be stably set on the top surface of the top plate 51. Furthermore, since the top plate 51 does not protrude above the top surface of the cabinet 1, outer appearance of the cooking appliance can be improved.
Meanwhile, although a bottom of the depressed portion 2 is closed, air may be introduced into the depressed portion 2 through other clearances of the cabinet and the introduced air may be directed into the cooker 5.
FIG. 8 is a partly broken perspective view of the built-in cooking appliance of FIG. 7, FIG. 9 is a sectional view taken along line II-II′ of FIG. 7, and FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a support illustrated in FIG. 9.
Referring to FIGS. 8 through 10, since the front and side edge portions of the top plate 51 seat on the seating portion 3 and the seating portion 3 is depressed to a predetermined depth from the top end of the cabinet 1 as described above, the top surface of the top plate 51 is at a level with the top surface of the cabinet 1.
On the other hand, the rear edge portion of the top plate 51 is supported by the support 7 provided on the cabinet 1. In more detail, the support 700 is coupled to a surface of the cabinet 1 that is formed by the depression. The rear edge portion of the top plate 51 seats on the support 700 such that a side surface of the rear edge portion of the top plate 51 contacts the support 700. In other words, one surface of the support 700 contacts the side surface of the rear edge portion of the top plate 51 and the other surface of the support 700 contacts the cabinet 1.
Therefore, since a space between the top plate 51 and the cabinet 1, if any, is occupied by the support 700, foreign materials can be prevented from being introduced into the cooker 5.
In this case, through airflow holes are provided in the support 700 so that internal heat of the cooker 5 can be discharged to the outside.
The following will describe the support 700 in more detail.
Referring to FIG. 10, the support 700 has a ┘ shape including a coupling portion 720 coupled to the cabinet 1 and a supporting portion 740 supporting a portion of the top plate 51.
In more detail, the coupling portion 720 contacts a side surface of the rear edge portion of the top plate 51 to prevent foreign materials from being introduced into the cooker 5. Therefore, the coupling portion 720 may also be regarded as a close adhesion unit.
The coupling portion includes a plurality of airflow holes 730 for discharging air heated in the cooker 5. The airflow holes 730 vertically pass through the coupling portion 720 so that air can flow therethrough.
That is, since the coupling portion 720 is a vertical portion of the ┘ shaped support 700 which is coupled to the cabinet 1, the airflow holes should be formed vertically to discharge air heated inside the cooker 5 to the outside.
Preferably, the size of the airflow hole 72 is small enough to prevent the entry of foreign materials while permitting air to be discharged. Accordingly, the airflow hole 72 may also be regarded as a kind of micro-channel.
The coupling portion 720 further includes a plurality of coupling holes 750 to which coupling members are coupled. Although substantially numerous airflow holes 730 can be provided through the coupling portion 720, the number of airflow holes 730 are preferably restricted so as not to cause interferences between the airflow holes 730 and the coupling holes 750.
Meanwhile, the supporting portion 740 extends horizontally from the coupling portion 720 to support the rear edge portion of the top plate 51. Since the seating portion 30 can provide substantially sufficient support to the top plate 740, there is substantially no limitation on a length of the supporting portion 740 as far as it can provide any support to the top plate 740.
The following will describe an installing process of the cooker 5.
First, the support 700 is installed on the cabinet 1. At this point, the support 700 is installed at a location where the rear portion of the cooker 5 is supported. In more detail, the coupling members are coupled to the coupling holes 750. Then, one surface of the coupling portion 720 contacts a surface of the cabinet 1 that is formed by the depression.
In this state, a lower portion of the cooker 5, i.e., the main body 52 of the cooker 5, is inserted into the depressed portion 2. Then, the front and both side edges of the top plate 51 seat on the seating portion 3 and the rear edge portion seats on the support 700, thereby completing the installation of the cooker 5.
The following will describe an airflow process for cooling the inside of the cooker 5.
First, when the fan 53 operates, cool air is introduced into the cooker 5. The cool air may be introduced through an air inlet formed on a bottom of the main body 52 aligned with the fan 53.
The cool air introduced through the air inlet 55 may be sucked through the clearance of the cabinet 1, which is formed on a front portion of the depressed portion 2. Needless to say, when the bottom of the depressed portion 2 has an opening, the cool air may be sucked through the bottom of the depressed portion 2.
The air sucked by the fan 53 flows into an air outlet 56 formed on the rear portion of the main body 52 via a control unit (not shown) and the heater 54.
The air flowing out through the air outlet 56 is discharged to the outside through the airflow hole 730.
In order not to direct the air flowing out through the air outlet 56 to other spaces in the depressed portion 2 but to the airflow hole 730, an airflow guide 65 may be further formed on a rear portion of the main body 1.
In the drawing, although a plurality of the airflow guides 65 are formed corresponding to a plurality of the air outlets 56, only one airflow guide 65 extending toward the airflow holes 730 may also be provided.
As described above, since the airflow holes 700 are provided in the support 700, the air heated in the cooker 5 can be discharged to the outside through the airflow holes 730. The size of the airflow hole 72 is small enough to prevent the entry of foreign materials while permitting air to be discharged.
In addition, since the airflow holes 730 are too small to be seen by the naked eye, the airflow holes 730 do not disfigure the cooking appliance.
As the airflow holes 730 are provided in the support 700, the top surface of the top plate 51 is at a level with the top surface of the cabinet 1, improving an outer appearance of the cooking appliance.
The following will describe relationship between the cooker according to this embodiment and fluid around the cooker 5.
First, since the cooker 5 is installed in a place such as the kitchen where the water is frequently used, it must be considered to prevent the water from flowing into the cooker 5. To realize this, the bottom surface of the top plate 51 and the corresponding surface of the seating portion 3 are sealed together at front and both sides of the top plate 51 by a sealing member. Therefore, only the support 700 in which the airflow holes 730 are formed is a weak point through which the external fluid may be introduced into the cooker 5.
However, since the airflow holes 730 are so small that the external fluid cannot substantially flow through them. In addition, the external fluid around the airflow holes 730 may evaporate by heat emitted from the cooker 5 itself or air discharged through the airflow holes 730.
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a modification of the support illustrated in FIG. 10.
Only different features from the foregoing embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 11. Referring to FIG. 11, the support 800 includes a plurality of airflow holes 810 provided on one surface of the support 800, which is different from the support 700 of FIG. 10 including the plurality of airflow holes 730 provided through the support 7.
That is, the airflow holes 810 are depressed to a predetermined depth from the one surface of the support 800. Accordingly, the one surface of the support 800 has an unevenness shape, which makes the support 800 to be more easily manufactured in comparison to the support 700 having through airflow holes 730.
Although the airflow holes 810 are illustrated to be provided on a surface of the support 800 contacting the cabinet 1 in FIG. 11, the airflow holes 810 may also be provided on a surface of the support 800 contacting the top plate 51.
The following will describe modifications of the above described embodiment.
First, although the seating portion 3 is described as a continuously stepped portion of the cabinet 1 itself in the drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the seating portion 3 can be a separate member coupled to the cabinet 1 or a plurality of members fixed to the cabinet 1 with predetermined intervals.
In addition, the support is described to be exposed to the surroundings in the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, a separate top frame can be provided around the support to cover the support and improve the outer appearance of the cooking appliance. In this case, the top frame includes an opening through which air discharged through the airflow holes can flow further to the outside.
In addition, it is also possible to couple the support 700 to all of the four depressed side surfaces of the cabinet to support the cooker instead of forming the seating portion 3. In this case, the installation process may be more complicated, however, manufacturing of the cabinet may be more convenient because the seating portion need not to be formed and operation thereof may also be more convenient.
In this case, it is preferable to form airflow holes only in a support coupled to a rear edge of the top plate as described in the embodiment, instead of forming them in all of the supports.
While the present invention has been described and illustrated herein with reference to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications and variations of this invention that come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

According to the built-in cooking appliance of the present invention, the cooker can be effectively cooled while the top plate does not protrude above the cabinet. Therefore, reliability and outer appearance of the built-in cooking appliance and safety thereof in using and cleaning it can be improved. Furthermore, heat inside the cooking appliance can be effectively discharged to the outside.

Claims

1. A built-in cooking appliance comprising:

a body frame of a main body;

a heating body in the body frame;

a top plate disposed in an upper portion of the body frame to support a dishware to be heated;

a cabinet configured to support the top plate;

a support in a contact space between the cabinet and the top plate; and

a plurality of channels provided in the support to discharge air flowing out from the body frame, a size of each of the channels being small enough to prevent flow of water while allowing flow of air.

2. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein the support contacts the cabinet and the top plate.

3. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein the support contacts a top surface of the cabinet and a bottom surface of the top plate.

4. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein the support contacts at least a side surface of the cabinet and a side surface of the top plate.

5. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 4, wherein the support contacts a bottom surface of the top plate.

6. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein the channels are provided inside the support.

7. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein the channels are provided in an outer surface of the support.

8. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 1, wherein the channels extends horizontally or vertically.

9. A built-in cooking appliance comprising:

a top plate;

a cabinet configured to support the top plate; and

a support configured to support at least a portion of the top plate, the support including at least one airflow hole through which air flows, the airflow hole formed up and down.

10. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 9, wherein at least one through hole through which air flows is provided in a body frame.

11. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 9, wherein the air flowing through the airflow hole contacts the top plate or the cabinet.

12. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 9, wherein the support has a cross section of an unevenness shape.

13. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 9, wherein the body frame comprises at least one through hole through which air flows.

14. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 9, wherein the airflow hole comprises a micro-channel.

15. A built-in cooking appliance comprising:

a body frame of a main body;

a top plate disposed in an upper portion of the body frame; and

a support configured to support a lower side of the top plate,

wherein the support includes a close adhesion unit having one surface contacting the top plate and the other surface contacting the cabinet, and

the close adhesion unit includes at least one airflow hole through which air flows.

16. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 15, wherein the air flows horizontally through the support.

17. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 15, wherein the close adhesion unit has a cross section of an unevenness shape.

18. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 15, wherein the top plate covers at least a portion of a top surface of the cabinet.

19. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 15, wherein the body frame comprises at least one through hole through which air flows.

20. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 15, wherein the airflow hole comprises a micro-channel.

21. The built-in cooking appliance according to claim 15, wherein the support comprises an extended portion of the body frame.