The present subjection matter relates generally to cooktop appliances, such as cooktop appliances with gas burners.
Range appliances generally include a cooktop portion and an oven portion. The cooktop portion of certain range appliances includes gas burners for heating cookware, such as griddles. Recently, gas cooktop appliances with integrated griddles have become popular. Integrated griddles on gas cooktop appliances are positioned over a gas burner and are heated by combustion of gaseous fuel and air at the gas burner.
Providing an integrated griddle can have drawbacks. For example, certain gas cooktop appliances with integrated griddles include an elongated burner for more evenly heating the integrated griddle. However, elongated burners can provide limited utility outside of heating griddles, and consumers generally only use griddles occasionally. As another example, a size of integrated griddles may be limited due to the need to center the integrated griddle over the gas burners. Integrated griddles can also block a significant portion of airflow to the gas burner as well as exhaust from the gas burner, which leads to poor combustion and excessive heating of cooktop components.
Accordingly, a gas cooktop appliance with features for evenly heating a griddle would be useful. In particular, a gas cooktop appliance with features for evenly heating a large griddle would be useful.
The present subject matter provides a cooktop appliance. The cooktop appliance includes a plurality of gas burners positioned at an outer surface of a panel. A griddle plate may be positioned over at least one gas burner of the plurality of gas burners. An electric heating element is mounted to the griddle plate. A socket on the panel may receive a plug of the electric heating element. A switch configured for obstructing gas fuel flow to the at least one gas burner of the plurality of gas burners when the griddle plate is positioned over the at least one gas burner of the plurality of gas burners. Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the following description, or may be apparent from the description, or may be learned through practice of the invention.
In a first exemplary embodiment, a cooktop appliance is provided. The cooktop appliance includes a panel having an outer surface. A plurality of gas burners is positioned at the outer surface of the panel. A griddle plate is positioned over at least one gas burner of the plurality of gas burners. The griddle plate has a bottom surface that faces the outer surface of the panel. An electric heating element is mounted to the griddle plate. The electric heating element has a plug. A socket is mounted to the panel. The socket receives the plug of the electric heating element. A gas conduit extends to the at least one gas burner of the plurality of gas burners. A switch is coupled to the gas conduit. The switch is configured for obstructing gas fuel flow to the at least one gas burner of the plurality of gas burners when the griddle plate is positioned over the at least one gas burner of the plurality of gas burners.
In a second exemplary embodiment, a cooktop appliance is provided. The cooktop appliance includes a panel having an outer surface. A plurality of gas burners is positioned at the outer surface of the panel. A plurality of grates has a first grate. The first grate is configured to be positioned on the panel over a first gas burner of the plurality of gas burners in a gas burner cooking configuration. A griddle assembly is configured to be positioned on the panel over the first gas burner of the plurality of gas burners in a griddle cooking configuration. The griddle assembly includes a griddle plate and an electric heating element mounted to griddle plate. The electric heating element includes a plug. A socket is mounted to the panel. The socket is configured for receiving the plug of the electric heating element in the griddle cooking configuration. A gas conduit extends to the first gas burner. A switch is coupled to the gas conduit. The switch is configured for obstructing gas fuel flow to the first gas burner in the griddle cooking configuration.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including the best mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is set forth in the specification, which makes reference to the appended figures.
Reference now will be made in detail to embodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the drawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention, not limitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used with another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.
Cooktop appliance 100 may be installed at any suitable location. For example, cooktop appliance 100 may be mounted to a countertop and used as a standalone cooktop appliance in certain exemplary embodiments. In other exemplary embodiments, cooktop appliance 100 may be utilized in a range appliance. In addition, while described in greater detail below in the context of cooktop appliance 100, it should be understood that the present subject matter may be used in any other suitable cooktop appliance in alternative exemplary embodiments. Thus, cooktop appliance 100 is provided by way of example only and is not intended to limit the present subject matter to any particular gas burner arrangement.
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A plurality of gas burners 106 is mounted to top panel 102 and is positioned at outer surface 104 of top panel 102. Each gas burner of gas burners 106 may have any suitable shape and size, and a combination of variously sized and/or shaped gas burners 106 may be provided in order to facilitate heating of a variety of cooking utensils. For example, as shown in
A plurality of grates 110 is also positioned on top panel 102 at outer surface 104 of top panel 102 over gas burners 106. Grates 110 are configured for supporting cooking utensils, such as pots, pans, etc., over gas burners 106, and gas burners 106 are configured for combusting gaseous fuel and air in order to heat cooking utensils on grates 110. As shown in
Turning to
Griddle assembly 120 may be positioned over any suitable number of gas burners 106 when cooktop appliance 100 is in the griddle cooking configuration. For example, as discussed above, griddle assembly 120 is positioned over first gas burner 108 of gas burners 106 in the griddle cooking configuration. Thus, griddle assembly 120 is positioned over at least one gas burner in the griddle cooking configuration. In alternative exemplary embodiments, griddle assembly 120 may be positioned over at least two gas burners, at least three gas burners, at least four gas burners, etc. in the griddle cooking configuration. As shown in
As may be seen in
Griddle plate 122 may also have any suitable size relative to top panel 102. For example, outer surface 104 of top panel 102 may define an area, e.g., in a plane that is perpendicular to the vertical direction V. Cooking surface 124 of griddle plate 122 may also define an area, e.g., in a plane that is perpendicular to the vertical direction V. The area of cooking surface 124 of griddle plate 122 may be sized between fifty percent and one-hundred percent of the area of outer surface 104 of top panel 102. In particular, the area of cooking surface 124 of griddle plate 122 may be sized about sixty percent of the area of outer surface 104 of top panel 102. As another example, griddle plate 122 defines a width WG along a lateral direction L that is perpendicular to the vertical direction V, and top panel 102 also defines a width WP along the lateral direction L. The width WG of griddle plate 122 may be no less than half the width WP of top panel 102. Such sizing of griddle plate 122 relative to top panel 102 may assist with providing a large cooking surface 124 for food items when cooktop appliance 100 is in the griddle cooking configuration, e.g., while also allowing operation of at least one of gas burners 106.
Like socket 130, switch 132 may be mounted to top panel 102, e.g., below outer surface 104 of top panel 102. Switch 132 is coupled to a gas conduit 134. Gas conduit 134 extends to at least first gas burner 108 of gas burners 106 and is configured for supplying gaseous fuel, such as natural gas or propane, from a fuel supply 152 to first gas burner 108 of gas burners 106. Control valves 160 are also coupled to gas conduit 134. Each control valve of control valves 160 permits a user of cooktop appliance 100 to regulate a flow of gaseous fuel to a respective gas burner or combination of gas burners of gas burners 106.
As discussed above, switch 132 is coupled to gas conduit 134 and is configured for selectively obstructing gas fuel flow through gas conduit 134 to the first gas burner 108 or any suitable combination of gas burners 106 over which griddle assembly 120 is positioned. In particular, switch 132 is configured for obstructing gas fuel flow through gas conduit 134 to the first gas burner 108 when cooktop appliance 100 is in the griddle cooking configuration and for permitting gas fuel flow through gas conduit 134 to the first gas burner 108 when cooktop appliance 100 is in the gas burner cooking configuration. In such a manner, switch 132 may limit or prevent collection of gaseous fuel from first gas burner 108 below griddle assembly 120 when cooktop appliance 100 is in the griddle cooking configuration.
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Because griddle assembly 120 is electrically heated, heating of griddle plate 122 may be more efficient relative to heating griddle plate 122 with gas burners 106. In addition, heating of griddle assembly 120 does not give rise to concerns regarding poor combustion below griddle assembly 120 or excessive heating of top panel 102 by gas burners 106 when griddle assembly 120 is in place. In addition, griddle plate 122 may be larger than comparable gas heated griddle plates, e.g., at least twice as large.
This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they include structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal languages of the claims.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20170023254 A1 | Jan 2017 | US |