Oven Providing Surge Mode Cleaning

Abstract

A cleaning system for an oven having shelves which provide for distributed jets of heated air, allows water accumulation within the shelves during cleaning by reducing airflow through the shelf, and then provides rapid expulsion of the water in cohesive streams after accumulation to provide high inertial cleaning.

What we claim is: 
     
         1 . An oven comprising:
 a housing providing a cooking volume surrounded by insulated outer walls and at least one door that may open and close to provide access to the cooking volume;   a water inlet communicating with a water valve to introduce cleaning water into the cooking volume;   a drain for discharging cleaning water from the cooking volume;   at least one fan for circulating air and water through the cooking volume;   a steam generator for generating steam for introduction into the cooking volume; and   a controller communicating with the water valve, the fan, and the steam generator to provide a cleaning cycle including the steps of:   (a) opening the water valve to allow water to flow in through the water inlet while operating the fan to circulate water and a detergent material through the cooking volume;   (b) allowing a draining of detergent and water from the cooking volume; and   (c) introducing steam into the cooking volume to dissipate accumulated detergent foam.   
     
     
         2 . The oven of  claim 1  wherein the controller further operates to include a step before step (a) of introducing steam into the cooking volume to soften accumulated grease. 
     
     
         3 . The oven of  claim 2  wherein the controller further operates to include a step of providing a rinse cycle after step (b) in which additional water is introduced through the water inlet into the cooking volume and circulated by the fan and then allowed to drain from the cooking volume. 
     
     
         4 . The oven of  claim 3  wherein the controller further operates to include a step of providing a rinse cycle after step (c) in which additional water is introduced through the water inlet into the cooking volume and circulated by the fan and then allowed to drain from the cooking volume. 
     
     
         5 . The oven of  claim 1  further including a heater for heating the cleaning water and where in the controller operates to activate the heater during step (a). 
     
     
         6 . The oven of  claim 1  further including a display and wherein the controller operates to instruct a user to introduce of detergent material into the cooking cavity before step (a). 
     
     
         7 . The oven of  claim 1  further including
 a set of dividers dividing the cooking volume into at least two cavities; 
 an exhaust conduit associated with each chamber having an exhaust conduit valve and leading between each chamber and air outside of the housing; and 
 a controller communicating with the heaters, fans, and exhaust conduit valves to operate during a cooking mode to independently control heating of each cavity and exhaust from each cavity according to separate cooking schedules and to operate during a cleaning mode to open the exhaust conduit valves and water inlet valve to allow circulation of cleaning water by the fan through the cavities and at least a portion of the exhaust conduits. 
 
     
     
         8 . The multi-cavity oven of  claim 7  wherein the exhaust conduit valve is displaced from a respective chamber by a portion of the exhaust conduit. 
     
     
         9 . The multi-cavity oven of  claim 8  wherein the portion of the exhaust conduit exits downwardly from the cooking cavity. 
     
     
         10 . The multi-cavity oven of  claim 7  wherein each exhaust conduit provides a separate channel from a respective chamber to outside air. 
     
     
         11 . The multi-cavity oven of  claim 7  wherein the exhaust conduits exit to outside air at openings separated from each other by a divider wall extending along a direction of airflow from the conduits from the openings and beyond the openings.