A home cooking appliance, such as a freestanding oven or built-in oven, commonly includes a door coupled to the appliance housing by two or more hinges such that the door can move between a closed position for sealing items to be cooked within the cooking cavity and an open position for placing items to be cooked into the cooking cavity or removing items from the cooking cavity.
One type of home cooking appliance commonly includes a horizontally hinged door that swings vertically about the horizontal axis hinges such that, when the oven door is in the open position, the door extends horizontally outward from a lower end of the oven in front of the cooking cavity. For such a door that swings vertically and outward over the lower part of the oven, the risk of inadvertent and premature closure of such a door from normal interaction of common activities around the appliance are at a minimal. A variety of types of hinges are employed in a horizontally hinged door that swings vertically to control its motion as well as provide a means of counter-balance, though the use of mechanical springs, etc, such that the door will maintain its position at a variety of angles between the fully open and fully closed positions. The design of a door in this conventional arrangement is mandated per nationally recognized safety regulations to not close on its own without the assistance of a force, external to that of the door, directed upon the door such that it rotates up towards the closed position. As a result, the risk of an individual using the cooking appliance, with respect to receiving injury, burn and otherwise, is held to a minimum.
Another type of home cooking appliance may include a side swing door that is vertically hinged and swings laterally about vertical axis hinges such that, when the oven door is in the open position, the door extends vertically outward from one side of the oven such that the door is positioned to the side of the cooking cavity. Since the door swings laterally away from the cooking cavity and is positioned alongside the cooking cavity when the door is in an open position, the operation of the door may be affected by, or interfered with by, adjacent cabinetry or appliances, or the door may interfere with the operation of one or more doors of such adjacent cabinetry or appliances. In addition, the door commonly is configured to be flush with any adjacent cabinetry or appliances. Due to the limited space available on the appliance housing, the conventional means for securing a vertical swing door to the appliance are not suitable for a side swing door and only a limited amount of different types of hinges can be used to secure the door without the door interfering with adjacent cabinetry or appliance. In operation, the vertically placed hinges provide a pivot point about which the door can rotate. The pivot point can be a fixed pivot point or varying pivot point using multiple linkages. In order to provide a smooth motion of the door, which exhibits a high quality tactile feel and meets a user's expectations of a high quality cooking appliance, the hinges that support the weight of the door must provide a smooth and quiet operation. As a result, the conventional side swing door commonly utilizes a robust, low friction hinge to provide such a smooth and quiet operation.
However, as explained in greater detail below, the present invention recognizes that a low friction hinge on a side swing oven door can increase a risk of unintended or unimpeded movement of the oven door, particularly in instances in which the home appliance is not installed perfectly level.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds