SILICON PADS FOR PROTECTING RANGES AND COOKTOPS

Abstract

A silicone sheet or multiple pads lie over electric heating elements. The sheet may be one continuous sheet, or it may be divided into separate components for each heating element. If it's a continuous pad, openings sized for the heating element and a cover sized for the opening cover the heating element. If separate pads are used, each pad has an opening, and a cover sized for the opening covers the heating element under the opening. When using one heating element, the user removes its removable cover and places the pot or pan in the opening. Any splatter lands on the pad, and cleaning the splatter from the pad does not damage the glass top.

Description

BACKGROUND

1. Field

Accessories for cooktops.

2. General Background and State of the Art

Radiant burners or heating elements of modern electric ranges mount heating coils beneath a glass or ceramic surface. Induction cooktops and ranges use an electromagnetic field to heat pots and pans. The induction elements also are embedded in the cooktop's or range's surface. Some cooktops and ranges use polished metal instead of glass or ceramics, and others may use other materials, but the text calls them “glass.”

Splatters often occur from heating, boiling or frying contents in pans or pots, and the splatters may dry and harden. Cleaning the top surface or a range or cooktop can be tedious if the splatter dries and hardens, and using an abrasive to help remove hardened food can scratch the glass top.

SUMMARY

A silicone sheet or multiple silicone pads together forming a sheet lie over a cooktop's or range's surface's burners or heating elements. If it's a continuous sheet, openings sized for the heating element align with each heating element. An opening cover with dimensions fitting within each opening covers the heating element. When using one heating element, the user removes its opening cover and places a pot or pan in the opening. Any splatter lands on the sheet or an opening cover where it can be cleaned more easily than cleaning the glass top. Cleaning splatters from the sheet does not damage the glass top.

Instead of having one continuous pad, the device can comprise separate small pads for covering one or more heating elements. The small pads are sized so they can cover with little or no open space the entire glass top and its heating elements. Each small pad has an opening cover to cover its heating element. Removing the opening cover provides access to the heating element for a pot or pan.

The smaller pads may have structure for keeping them together so they act as a larger sheet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top view of a range with applicants'sheet on the cooking surface. A smaller pad is shown as an alternative.

FIG. 2 is a top view of a range with applicants'sheet.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of two adjacent pad attached together.

FIG. 4 is a top perspective view of two pads adjacent each other.

FIG. 5 is a top view of cooktop that could use applicants'sheet or pads.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

When heating elements of a stand-alone or a range cooktop 2 range heating elements are not in use, a silicone sheet shields covers the heating elements. The heating elements are not visible in the figures. Silicone has a low thermal conductivity, so heat transfers at a low rate. Silicone resists extreme temperatures ranging from about −145° to 570° F. (≈−100° to 300° C.). Some companies' silicone cooking products claim a lower maximum temperature, however. Here, only the upper temperature is important because the silicone is exposed to heat from a heating element.

The drawings show two arrangements for heating elements. Manufacturers determine their size and arrangement. FIG. 5, for example, has four heating elements 82, 84, 86 and 88 on cooktop 80. Heating element 86 is the largest heating element, elements 82 and 88 are of intermediate diameters, and element 84 is the smallest. They are controlled by controllers 90. The range's cooktop 2 in FIG. 1 has five heating elements, which are under silicone sheet 4 and are not visible.

Silicone sheet 4 in FIGS. 1 and 2 has five separate pad sections 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18, one section for each heating element. The heating elements are not visible in the drawings, but they are below the pad sections See FIGS. 1 and 2. The pad sections may be part of a larger sheet, or they can be separate pads. Pad 18a in FIG. 1 is one such separate pad. Four more pads (not shown) would occupy the space of pad sections 10, 12, 14 and 16 in FIG. 2 if separate pads replaced the single sheet. The pads or pad sections may be any color especially colors that match or complement the color of the range/cooktop or the kitchen.

The heating elements'sizes and arrangement of the heating elements are choices of cooktops' manufacturers. The most common cooktop widths are 32 in. (≈81 cm) and 36 in. (≈91 cm). Some cooktops, especially larger ones, have six heating elements. The user cooks with a heating element that fits the pot or pan to be used. Larger heating elements may have more power to heat the pot or pan's contents more quickly.

Each pad or pad section has a removeable center cover 20, 22, 24, 26, and 28 that fit in respective circular openings 30, 32, 33, 36, and 38. See FIGS. 1 and 2. Separate pad 18a has a center cover 28a in opening 38a. The circular openings have diameters the same or somewhat larger than the diameter of the heating element intended to be below the pad. The opening should be large enough to accommodate the pot or pan using the heating element. Openings 36 and 38, therefore, have a diameter larger than the diameters of openings 30, 32 and 34. The user of a particular cooktop chooses pads he or she can arrange to cover the cooktop with the removeable center of each pad or pad section fitting over the intended heating element. If the user has a sheet with separate pad sections, he or she will choose a sheet with openings corresponding to the heating elements'sizes and positions. If a silicone sheet is used instead of separate pads, the user will purchase a sheet designed of the owner's cooktop or range's heating elements'sizes and positions.

The removeable center covers 20, 22, 24, 26, and 28 could be silicone, but a less heat-resistant material could suffice because the cover it may not be next to an active heating element. But using silicone for the covers is safer because the cover won't burn if left accidently on an “on” heating element.

The openings are circular in the figures because most pots and pans are round. Some cooktops have a heating element between adjacent heating elements to accommodate a rectangular grill heated by adjacent heating elements and an optional element between the adjacent elements. If a cook wants to use the grill arrangement, he or she would use a pad extending over the elements. The removeable opening could be rectangular, about the size of the grill. Alternatively, separate pads over the heating elements could extend to the heating elements' edges.

A cook wanting to heat a pot or pan on heating element 14, for example, removes center 34 of pad or pad section 24 so the pot or pan is on a heating element. See FIGS. 1 and 2. If the contents of the pot or pan splatters, some may land on pad or pad section 24 and other splatter may land on other pads or elsewhere on the sheet.

The pad openings can fit close to the outside of the pot or pan. Without a pad or pad section, some splatters can drop between the bottom of the pot or pan. Because the splatter is near the heating element, it can dry and burn. With the pads or pad sections, the opening can be closer to the pot or pan wall above the heating element where the splatter is less likely to dry and burn. The pads or pad sections also can be flexible. Bending pads at or near the splatter may make removing dried splatters more easily.

When the device uses separate pads, each pad may connect to one or more adjacent pads. Pads 70 and 72 (FIG. 4) are not attached to each other so the user can position them and they could hold their positions. In FIG. 3, pads 50 and 52 attach to each other. FIG. 3 shows connected, adjacent pads. Pad 50 mounts in support 54, and pad 52 mounts in support 56. Pad support 54 has a groove 58 into which shoulder 60 of pad support 56 fits. Wide groove 64 on support 54 receives a projection 62. This arrangement keeps the edges of adjacent pads together to prevent food or liquid from entering the space between the pads. A tongue and groove connection, a hook and loop fastener and other fasteners can secure adjacent pads. Having a secure connection between adjacent pads may be unnecessary because the position of each pad only must be positioned relative to its heating element when the users uses that heating element. Having flat edges for the pads can prevent spaces between adjacent pads, which may avoid having splatters go through a space between adjacent pads. Though small spaces between adjacent pads can lead to splatters reaching the cooktop's surface, splatters are more likely to land on the top of a pad.

The pads can be cleaned in a dishwasher.

One would buy the correct size pads with the correct size opening for the user's cooktop and with the proper size to cover the cooktop. If using a single sheet, it should have correct size openings for the cooktop's heating elements.

Pads 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 and 10 or removeable centers 30, 32, 34, 36, and 38 also can serve as trivets. One could remove the pad from the cooktop, place it on the table and place the pot, pan or roasting pan on the pad. Though silicone pads acting as trivets are known, applicants' pads already are within reach because they are adjacent to pot or pan.

The description is illustrative, not limiting and is for example only. Although this application shows and describes examples, those having ordinary skill in the art will find it apparent they can make changes, modifications or alterations. Many examples involve specific combinations of method acts or system elements, but those acts and those elements may be combined in other ways to achieve the same objectives. Acts, elements and features discussed only with one embodiment are not intended to be excluded from a similar role in other embodiments.

Claims

1. A device for protecting portions of the surface of a cooktop comprising: a sheet of low thermal conductivity material;at least a first opening through the sheet sized to accommodate a first heating element;at least a second opening through the sheet sized to accommodate a second heating element;a first piece of the low thermal conductivity material sized to fit inside at least one opening through the sheet.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the low thermal conductivity material is silicone.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein the sheet of low thermal conductivity material is divided into separate pads.

4. The device of claim 3 wherein at least one pad comprises an opening through the pad sized to accommodate a heating element under the pad.

5. The device of claim 3 wherein each pad has at least one edge, the pad further comprising attaching means along the at least one edge for attaching adjacent pads together.

6. The device of claim 5 wherein to attaching means on one pad comprises a groove adapted to receive a shoulder from an adjacent pad.

7. A device for protecting portions of the surface of a range comprising: at least a first pad having an outer region of low thermal conductivity material;at least a first opening through the first pad sized to accommodate a heating element;at least a second pad having an outer region of low thermal conductivity material;at least a second opening through the second pad to accommodate a heating element;wherein the first pad and second pad are attachable to each other.

8. The device of claim 7 wherein each of the first and second pads has at least one edge, and at least one of the first and second pads having a grove along at least one edge and the other of the first and second pads having a shoulder, the shoulder being receivable in the groove.

9. The device of claim 7 further comprising a first cover sized to fit in the first opening and a second cover sized to fit in the second opening.