WO2024128991A1

WO2024128991A1 - A rotary knob with a snap-fit cover for a cooking device

Info

Publication number: WO2024128991A1
Application number: PCT/TR2022/051495
Authority: WO
Inventors: Burhanettin TURAN; Nafiz CELIK; Aysegul BALLI; Tuncay CIHAN
Original assignee: Femas Metal Sanayi ve Ticaret AS
Current assignee: Femas Metal Sanayi ve Ticaret AS
Priority date: 2022-12-13
Filing date: 2022-12-13
Publication date: 2024-06-20
Anticipated expiration: 2025-06-13

Abstract

The invention relates to a rotary control knob for a cooking device comprising a rigid body (10) in the shape of a cap having a flat disk-shaped front wall (12) provided with a hub part (14) extending outward from the center and a cylindrical skirt part (16) extending inward from the outer periphery of the front wall (12), and a corresponding cover (20) that completely surrounds the hub part (14) from an inner circumferential edge (23) of a frame (22) and covers the front wall (12). The cooking device further comprises an integrated tab (24), which is provided with a wide tip part (242) and configured to hold the cover (20) adjacent to the front wall (12) by extending through a hole (13) in the front wall (12) in a flexible manner.

Description

A ROTARY KNOB WITH A SNAP-FIT COVER FOR A COOKING DEVICE

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a rotary control knob arranged on the control panel of a cooking device, specifically a rotary control knob with an outer cover.

STATE OF THE ART

In a cooking device, such as a stove or oven, a rotary control adjustment knob on the control panel adjusts the temperature or operation by rotation. The rotary control knob typically includes a body containing a sleeve that fits onto a rod. The body has a cap-like structure to allow the user to grasp it. A plastic cover for aesthetic or functional purposes is adhered to the front face of the cap-shaped body. The cover is fixed to the cap-shaped body made of sheet metal with silicone-based adhesives or double-sided adhesive tapes.

EP2798425 publication discloses a knob with a body having at least one recess and a support and base with multiple openings and protrusions at the bases. The protrusions are passed through the openings to fix the support on top with a cover having tabs, each resting on the edge of a recess after being passed through the recess using a snap-fit method.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a rotary control knob for a cooking device, comprising a rigid capshaped body with a flat disk-shaped front wall provided with a hub part extending outward from the center and a cylindrical skirt part extending inward from the outer periphery of the front wall, and a corresponding cover that completely surrounds the hub part from an inner circumferential edge of a frame and covers the front wall. The rotary control knob includes an integrated tab with a wide tip part configured to hold the cover adjacent to the front wall by extending through a hole in the front wall in a flexible manner. In this way, a cover with a flexible tab provides structural integrity to the body in a rigid cap form.

Different covers can be mounted on bodies of similar cap forms, providing variants of covers. In a possible embodiment, the cover is made of plastic material and is mounted on a durable metal cap, allowing different visual indicators to be adapted to the body.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tip part of the tab is formed in the shape of an outward-facing arrowhead. This way, the cover can be simply aligned with the hole in the tab tip and pushed against the front wall for mounting. Thus, the gradual entry of the tab, which is wider than the hole, is facilitated, providing space for the back part to expand over a distance larger than the hole width.

The tab is integrally formed from plastic injection on the cover in a preferred embodiment of the invention. This way, the tab is ensured to be long-lasting and to show high strength at the connection part to the cover.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the hub part is substantially circularly formed, and the inner circumferential edge of the cover is adjusted to completely lean against the hub part from the outside. This way, the alignment of the cover in a frame form with the hub and its radial fixation is ensured. The cover, axially fixed with the tab, is immobilized on the body of the control knob.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the hub part includes a projection extending radially outward on the upper part and surrounded by the inner circumferential edge. The projection, together with the tabs, prevents the cover from rotating on the hub and applying torsional stress to the tabs.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the skirt part includes an extended section equal to the thickness of the cover extending outward from the part adjacent to the front wall. This way, a groove is provided in the front wall for the cover to settle in. When the cover is settled, the outer edges of the front wall cover it, preventing dirt from entering the joint part between the cover and the body.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the hole is provided adjacent to the outer periphery of the front wall. Thus, the radial forces applied by the tabs to the cover are balanced with a long moment arm. Also, in a structure where the skirt part is extended forward, the holes are hidden in the corner.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tab is adjusted to extend inward from an outer periphery of the cover. In this case, the tab applies a higher counteracting moment against stresses in the radial direction, such as those that may occur during assembly or use.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the tab includes a handle part carrying the tip part and having a length equal to the thickness of the front wall. In this case, when the cover is pushed against the front wall for mounting, the tab extends through the hole, and the handle part provides fixation within the front wall without any play in the cover.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the cover includes at least one auxiliary tab of the same shape and spaced apart from the tab to provide support to the tab. The auxiliary tab or tabs ensure that the cover remains fixed in the body even if a tab breaks. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the body is made of metal material. This way, a long-lasting control knob is obtained, and the replaceability of the cover diversifies the low color variance that metal can offer with different cover colors.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Figure 1 is a front perspective view of a representative structure of the rotary adjustment knob of the subject of the invention, with the cover in a disassembled state.

Figure 2 is a side view of the cover given in Figure 1 .

Figure 3 is a rear perspective view of a representative structure of the rotary adjustment knob with the cover mounted on the body.

Figure 4 is a close-up view of the tab in the structure shown in Figure 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In this detailed description, the subject matter of the invention is explained with references to examples without any limitation and only to better explain the subject matter.

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a rotary adjustment knob mounted on an adjustment bar on the cooking device's control panel (not shown). The knob is two-piece and essentially includes a metal body (10) and a cover (20) mounted thereon. The body (10) is of a cap structure, i.e. , it is in the form of a hollow cylinder with a circular part removed. The front wall (12) of the body (10), which has a solid circular plate structure, has a hub portion (14) in the middle with a narrower circular protrusion. Between the hub portion (14) and the skirt portion (16) there is a circular frame-like planar front wall (12). A protrusion (15) in the form of an extension extends radially outward from the center of the hub portion (14). The protrusion (15) extends outward at the same distance as the hub portion (14) and forms a rounded short rod. The front wall (12) of the body (10) extends peripherally to a rear circumferential edge (11), forming a skirt portion (16). The skirt portion (16) also has a short extension extending forward from the outer periphery of the front wall (12). Thus, it forms a channel by radially surrounding the front wall (12), with the hub portion (14) in between. A cover (20) has a flat and flat ring-shaped frame (22), and fits into this channel. The cover (20) is produced by plastic injection and has uniformly shaped short tabs (24, 27) extending inward from an outer periphery (21) of the frame (22). Each tab (24, 27) passes through a corresponding hole (13) in the front wall (12). The inner circumferential edge (23) of the frame (22) of the cover (20) is adjusted to surround the hub portion (14) completely and its protrusion (15) extension. To achieve this, an upper groove (25) is opened at the top of the inner circumferential edge (23) and adjusted to the outer diameter of the hub portion (14), completely surrounding the protrusion (15). As seen in Figure 2, the back wall (26) of the frame (22) is completely flat and leans directly against the flat front wall (12) with no gap in between. The tab (24) extending inward from the rear wall (26) consists of a shaft portion (241) extending as much as the hole (13) thickness of the front wall (12) thickness, and an arrowhead-shaped tip portion (242) provided at its free end. The auxiliary tab (27) is equal in size and shape to the tab (24).

As shown in Figure 3, when the cover (20) is leaned against the body (10), the tab (24) passes through the hole (13) by flexing and then mounts the cover (20) to the body (10) by taking its original shape so as not to come off. The hub portion (14) has the same wall thickness as the front wall (12), and a cylindrical sleeve (18) extends inward in the middle. The sleeve (18) is in the form of a cylinder with a hole in the middle, and a rod of a suitable shape of a control element (not shown) passes through the hole to be removably mounted. The length of the sleeve (18) is greater than the length of the skirt portion (16). Thus, the control knob can reach the rod extending through a hole in the control panel, for example, by passing through the hole. As shown in Figure 4, the width of the hole (13) extending adjacent to the corner between the outer extension of the skirt portion (16) and the outer periphery of the front wall (12) is set narrower than the widest part of the tip portion (242) of the tab (24). Thus, when the cover (20) is aligned and pushed against the body (10), the tab (24) flexes by leaning against the front part of the hole (13) with the pushing force, and the arrowheadshaped tip portion (242) can pass through the hole (13) as it flexes backward. Then, the tip portion (242) immediately returns to its original position and locks when the cover (20) is pulled back, with the tip portion (242) resting against the rear part of the front wall (12).

REFERENCE NUMBERS

10 Body

11 Rear circumferential edge

12 Front wall

13 Hole

14 Hub part

15 Projection

16 Skirt part

18 Collar

20 Cover

21 Outer periphery 22 Frame

23 Inner circumferential edge

24 Tab

241 Handle part 242 Tip part

25 Upper groove

26 Rear wall

27 Auxiliary tab

Claims

1- A rotary control knob for a cooking device comprising a rigid body (10) in the shape of a cap having a flat disk-shaped front wall (12) provided with a hub part (14) extending outward from the center, and a cylindrical skirt part (16) extending inward from the outer periphery of the front wall (12), and a corresponding cover (20) that completely surrounds the hub part (14) from an inner circumferential edge (23) of a frame (22) and covers the front wall (12), characterized in that an integrated tab (24) is provided with a wide tip part (242) and configured to hold the cover (20) adjacent to the front wall (12) by extending through a hole (13) in the front wall (12) in a flexible manner.

2- A control knob according to claim 1 , wherein the tip part (242) of the tab (24) is formed in the shape of an arrowhead facing outward.

3- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the tab (24) is integrally formed from plastic injection on the cover (20).

4- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the hub part (14) is substantially circularly formed and the inner circumferential edge (23) of the cover (20) is adjusted to completely lean against the hub part (14) from the outside.

5- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the hub part (14) includes a projection (15) extending radially outward on the upper part and surrounded by the inner circumferential edge (23).

6- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the skirt part (16) includes an extended section equal to the thickness of the cover (20) extending outward from the part adjacent to the front wall (12).

7- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the hole (13) is provided adjacent to the outer periphery of the front wall (12).

8- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the tab (24) is adjusted to extend inward from an outer periphery (21) of the cover (20). 9- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the tab (24) includes a handle part (241 ) having a length equal to the thickness of the front wall (12) and carrying the tip part (242). 10- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the cover

(20) includes at least one auxiliary tab (27) of the same shape and spaced apart from the tab (24) to provide support to the tab (24).

11- A control knob according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the body (10) is made of metal material.