Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6636458
-
Patent Number
6,636,458
-
Date Filed
Wednesday, March 29, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, October 21, 200321 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 368 88
- 368 276
- 368 281
- 368 286
- 368 291
- 368 204
- 368 309
-
International Classifications
- G04B3700
- G04F1000
- G04F800
-
Abstract
A waterproof electronic kitchen timer having a casing that can withstand gentle washing under a kitchen faucet for removal by detergents of grease and other soils.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a waterproof electronic kitchen timer that is readily washable. It can withstand a gentle washing under a kitchen faucet, which greatly benefits in a kitchen environment where a timer is typically exposed to grease and various sorts of cooking and baking elements.
Prior kitchen timers currently in use have suffered from exposure to grease and other cooking and baking elements, which have been able to penetrate into the mechanical or other working elements within the timer casing. Endeavors to clean timers out after they have become soiled by the kitchen environment have often resulted in penetration of water and cleaning fluids into the timer interior shortening timer life.
It is an object of this invention to provide a kitchen timer which provides accurate electronic timing within a washable waterproof case, has a large easy-to-read time display and a loud extended alarm, and is capable of timing over an extended period.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a washable, waterproof timer having a non-slip base and an elevated viewing angle, and which can serve as a repeat timer operated by simple, one-finger setting.
It is another object of this invention to provide a timer which may be safely held under a kitchen faucet to clean it, without damaging the special electronic timer circuitry or causing any other damage.
These and other examples of advantages and benefits of the timer in accordance with this invention will become apparent in the specification hereafter, and in the drawings, of which:
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a face view of one specific form of timer embodying feature of this invention.
FIG. 2
is a sectional view taken along the lines and arrows II—II which appear in FIG.
3
.
FIG. 3
is a side view of the timer illustrated in FIG.
1
.
FIG. 4
is a sectional view taken along the lines and arrows IV—IV which appear in FIG.
5
.
FIG. 5
is a view in side section, taken along the lines and arrows V—V which appear in FIG.
6
.
FIG. 6
is a rear view of the timer of FIG.
1
.
FIG. 7
is a sectional side view taken along the lines and arrows VII—VII which appear in FIG.
6
.
FIG. 8
is a sectional top plan view taken along the lines and arrows VIII—VIII which appear in
FIG. 6
illustrating an internal battery casing which is a component of the timer of this invention.
FIGS. 9 and 10
are sectional fragmentary views thereof, taken along the lines and arrows IX—IX and X—X, respectively.
FIG. 11
is a further sectional view taken along the lines and arrows B—B which appear in
FIG. 5
illustrating the battery casing position in the timer.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Illustrated in the foregoing drawings, the number
21
designates the top cabinet, the number
22
designates the PCB, the number
23
designates the bottom cabinet,
24
is a screw and
25
designates the LCD support. The number
26
designates a sound generator for the timer, the number
27
designates an LCD and the number
28
designates magnetic rubber. A contact dome
29
is provided, while
30
designates a battery door (which, as shown in
FIGS. 3 and 4
, may comprise an access panel that may be a removable panel or a hinged door, for example),
31
a relay,
32
a battery contact plate (negative) and the number
33
a battery contact plate (positive). A battery here shown as (AAA) is shown in the battery housing appearing in
FIG. 8
of the drawings, electrically connected to operate the timer sound, connected between the battery terminals
12
,
13
.
As illustrated in
FIG. 5
, the top cabinet
21
in accordance with the present embodiment is generally cup shaped in configuration defining an upper wall
40
and a continuous side wall
42
connected at a first end to the upper wall and extending radially outward therefrom and terminating at a second end by a continuous channel
44
. The bottom cabinet
23
in the present embodiment is generally planar in configuration and includes within an upper surface
46
a continuous wall
48
at its perimeter and a continuous channel
50
adjacent the wall
48
at the perimeter. On. assembly of the timer of the present embodiment, the top and bottom cabinets
21
and
23
, respectively are coupled by positioning the wall
48
of the bottom cabinet
23
into the channel
44
of the top cabinet
21
. In addition, preferably the top cabinet
21
also includes a continuous wall
52
adjacent its cavity which is received into the channel
50
provided in the bottom cabinet
23
. The connection between the top cabinet
21
and bottom cabinet
23
provides a waterproof seal. Where desired, an adhesive, such as glue or other suitable material can be applied between the top and bottom cabinets
21
and
23
.
As best illustrated in
FIGS. 3 and 6
, the bottom cabinet
23
further includes a bottom surface
54
and at least one, and in the present embodiment, three bosses
56
a
-
56
c
extended from its bottom surface
54
. As should be understood, any number of bosses can be utilized for the purpose described below. In this embodiment, the bosses
56
a
-
56
c
are generally hemispherical in cross section, however, it should be understood that other cross sectional shapes can also be utilized where desired, such as square. The bosses
56
a
-
56
c
operate as a stabilizer when the timer is mounted on a surface by the magnetic rubber
28
. Specifically, the bosses
56
a
-
56
c
limit pivotal rotation of the magnetic rubber
28
, in order that the face of the magnetic
28
will be maintained in engagement with the mounting surface. In the present embodiment, preferably at least one pair of the bosses
56
a
-
56
c
are substantially aligned and positioned opposing one another. In addition, as illustrated in
FIG. 3
, the terminating ends
58
of the bosses
56
a
-
56
c
and the terminating end
60
of the magnetic rubber
28
extending from the bottom cabinet
23
are preferably positioned substantially along the same plane for stabilization of the timer in use against a mounting surface. Similarly, in the present embodiment, preferably the terminating end
62
of the connector
34
distal the bottom cabinet
23
is positioned substantially along the same plane as the terminating ends
58
and
60
of the bosses and magnetic rubber
28
, respectively, for further stabilization.
As illustrated in
FIGS. 4 and 5
, the electronics are housed within the cavity provided between the top cabinet
21
and bottom cabinet
23
. The PCB
22
is general planar and includes most of the electronics for the timer in order to minimize space. As shown in
FIG. 5
, the display
66
of the LCD
27
in this embodiment is preferably positioned at a slight incline relative to the planar surface of the PCB
22
, which facilitates viewing of the display
66
by the user. For this purpose, the timer includes a platform
68
defining a bottom
70
end generally planar and seated against the planar surface of the PCB
22
and an incline
72
upon which the LCD display
66
is seated. In this embodiment, the platform
68
is generally rectangular in configuration with a central cavity, although other configurations can also be used for the same purpose.
It is important to observe that the timer in accordance with this invention is an electronic countdown timer, having a countdown time of 9 hours 59 minutes, for example. The LCD displays the count time, with three numeric digits as shown. There are three operating buttons providing settings for hours, tens of minutes and minutes. A start/stop button is provided, which can be operated by pressing and holding the reset counter.
The timer in accordance with this invention has watertight construction to provide environmental protection. It is important to observe that the housing of the timer is constructed of ABS, with a lexan overlay. The liquid crystal display is of 30×15.5 mm VA, and the ingress protection rating of the watertight structure of the timer is IP42.
The timer is connected to provide an extended timer “beep” sound of 80 decibels, for example, at 2 kHz after the designated time has elapsed.
With the construction shown and described herein, the timer can readily live up to a guaranteed usage of 10,000 cycles, assuming an average countdown duration of 2 hours and the use of an alkaline battery. Using the highly beneficial components employed in the timer, its storage temperature range is readily within the range of −20° C. to 55° C.
Operation
The operation of the timer in accordance with this invention is as follows: The user may press any key or insert a new battery to turn on the timer. The default initial display is “0:00,” flashing at 1 Hz. If the user does not press any key within two minutes, the electronic circuitry described in the drawings will automatically turn the unit off in order to save battery power.
The operator may use the “Hr” button or the “10s Min” button or the “Min” button to set the desired countdown duration. When the “Hr” button is pressed, only the left-most digit is scrolled to show that the hour is set. When the “10s Min” button is pressed, only the middle digit is scrolled to show that ten minutes is set. When the “Min” button is pressed, only the right-most digit is scrolled to show that the minutes are set. The operator may set any set value, which remains on display. As noted, if the user does not press any key within two minutes, the unit will auto-off in order to save battery power.
In order to start the countdown, when the start button is pressed, the counter starts and the corresponding indicating colon flashes for each second elapsed until “0:01” is reached, next starts the second count, and the display shifts to “0:59” and each second countdown is then rolled out on the display.
When the countdown time has reached zero, the alarm sounds for ten seconds while the original setting is displayed and flashes at 1 Hz.
The user may press the stop button once, and this stops the alarm sound and the flashing. During countdown, the three buttons “Hr,” “10s Min” and “Min” are disabled.
By pressing the stop button at any time the user may stop the countdown temporarily, and may press again to continue with the remaining countdown. During the timer pause, the three buttons are disabled.
The original setting remains on display as a standby mode after countdown. This original setting can be used as the next countdown setting if desired. This can be done by simply pressing the start button once, which causes the timer to use this setting to count down again. If the user does not press any key in standby mode for two minutes, the unit will turn auto-off. The set value can be changed at the standby mode.
In order to reset the timer, the user can simply press and hold the “START/STOP” button at any time for more than two seconds, which resets the counter immediately and the values set will be cleared from memory, back to default. If no further action from the user is taken within two seconds, the unit will auto-off to save battery energy.
A QC mode is available; the user may merely press and hold the “START/STOP” button and then power up the unit to enter the QC mode. In QC mode, the unit will turn on all the LCD segments for one second and then generate a beep sound.
It will accordingly be apparent that the washable electronic timer in accordance with this invention is provided with washable waterproof case, is large and easy to read, can provide a loud extended alarm, and can monitor time ranges up to 10 hours or more. It has a useful magnetic refrigerator mount, a non-slip base, an elevated viewing angle, and can be handled by simple one-finger setting in the usual way or as a repeat timer. The rubber gasketing operates in conjunction with the lexan coating and the watertight construction to provide excellent environmental protection, and easy cleaning for the timer, and the ingress protection rating of the watertight design is as high as IP42 or above. Accordingly, the timer in accordance with this invention can withstand rough usage and can be cleaned repeatedly to bring it back to its as-new appearance and function.
Although this timer has been described in conjunction with one specific example, it will be apparent that various modifications of individual components may be performed, without interfering with the important advantages recited in this specification.
Claims
- 1. An electronic kitchen timer having a casing that can withstand gentle washing under a kitchen faucet for removal by detergents of grease and other soils, said timer comprising:a sealable container casing holding an electronic timing device and connected timer display, and an electric power source contained inside said casing; said casing having an access panel, positioned for access through an opening to said power source in a manner to substantially prevent entry of water into said casing when said panel is sealed in said opening; and a plurality of bosses and a magnet extending from a lower surface of said casing, all being positioned substantially on a single plane.
- 2. The kitchen timer of claim 1, wherein said access panel includes an outer surface positioned substantially on said single plane.
- 3. A substantially waterproof electronic kitchen timer comprising:an electronic countdown timer, said countdown timer being programmed to count from a selected time; a display in electronic communication with said countdown timer for displaying said count; a power source for powering said electronic countdown timer; a sealable container casing for containing said electronic countdown timer, said display, and said power source therein, said sealable container casing, wherein said casing defines a top cabinet and a bottom cabinet, with the top cabinet defining an upper wall and a substantially continuous side wall attached at a first end to said upper wall and said bottom cabinet defining a generally elongate member and a perimeter, wherein said bottom cabinet is attached proximate said perimeter to a second end of said substantially continuous side wall; an access panel in said sealable container casing positioned for accessing to said power source through an opening to substantially seal said opening when said panel is closed; and a plurality of bosses and a magnet extending from a lower surface of said bottom cabinet, wherein said plurality of bosses further comprises terminating ends and with said terminating ends of said bosses and said magnet each being positioned substantially on a single plane.
- 4. The kitchen timer of claim 3, wherein said access panel includes an outer surface positioned substantially on said single plane.
US Referenced Citations (11)