Cooking apparatus

Abstract

A cooking apparatus including a main body; an inner case which forms a cooking chamber; a heating device configured to heat the cooking chamber; a transparent member configured as at least a portion of an upper wall of the inner case; and a camera disposed above the transparent member, wherein the camera and the transparent member are configured so that the camera is operable to capture an image, through the transparent member, of an inside of the cooking chamber, and a viewing angle (a) of the camera along a left and right direction of the main body is 80 degrees or more.

1 . A cooking apparatus comprising:
 a main body comprising an inner case which forms a cooking chamber;   a heating device configured to heat the cooking chamber;   a transparent member configured as at least a portion of an upper wall of the inner case; and   a camera disposed above the transparent member,   wherein the camera and the transparent member are configured so that:
 the camera is operable to capture an image, through the transparent member, of an inside of the cooking chamber, and 
 a viewing angle (a) of the camera along a left and right direction of the main body is 80 degrees or more. 
   
     
     
         2 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein
 the viewing angle (a) of the camera along the left and right direction of the main body, a width (f) of the transparent member along the left and right direction of the main body, and a distance (g) between the camera and the transparent member satisfy the following relationship:
   tan( a/ 2)= f /(2* g ). 
   
     
     
         3 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein
 a viewing angle (b) of the camera along a front and rear direction of the main body is 55 degrees or more.   
     
     
         4 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 one or more hangers formed in the cooking chamber; and   a shelf that is mountable to at least one hanger among the one or more hangers.   
     
     
         5 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein
 the shelf includes a shelf member configured to support food to be cooked, and   in response to the shelf being mounted to a highest hanger among the one or more hangers, the camera is configured to capture an image of an entire area of the shelf member.   
     
     
         6 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein
 while the shelf is mounted to the highest hanger among the one or more hangers, a width (f) of the transparent member along the left and right direction of the main body, a distance (g) between the camera and the transparent member, a width (w) of the shelf member along the left and right direction of the main body, and a distance (h) between the camera and the shelf member satisfy the following relationship:
     f/g≥w/h.    
   
     
     
         7 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a camera cooling fan configured to cool the camera; and   a housing including a camera receiving space in which the camera is positioned.   
     
     
         8 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 7 , wherein
 the housing includes:
 an inlet through which air flows into the housing, and 
 an outlet through which air flows out of the housing, and 
   the inlet and the outlet are formed at a higher position than the camera positioned in the camera receiving space.   
     
     
         9 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 7 , wherein
 the housing includes a lower opening formed in a lower portion of the camera receiving space.   
     
     
         10 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein
 a lower cooling flow path is formed in the housing to pass under the camera between the lower opening and the transparent member to allow the air in the camera receiving space to be transferred to the transparent member of the upper wall through the lower opening.   
     
     
         11 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 10 , further comprising:
 a sealing member disposed around the lower opening to seal the lower cooling flow path to prevent leakage of air from the lower cooling flow path.   
     
     
         12 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein
 the sealing member is formed of a rubber material and is in close contact between a lower surface of the housing and an upper surface of the upper wall.   
     
     
         13 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 11 , wherein
 the sealing member has a ring shape including a hollow, and   the camera is configured to capture an image of the inside of the cooking chamber through the hollow.   
     
     
         14 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 11 , further comprising:
 a base plate arranged between the upper wall and the housing, the base plate including a base plate opening formed so that the camera is operable to capture an image of the inside of the cooking chamber through the base plate opening,   wherein the sealing member is mounted to the base plate opening.   
     
     
         15 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 9 , wherein:
 a lens of the camera is disposed at a height corresponding to the lower opening.   
     
     
         16 . A cooking apparatus comprising:
 a main body including:
 a cooking chamber, and 
 an electronic compartment; 
   a heating device configured to heat the cooking chamber;   a camera configured to capture an image of an inside of the cooking chamber;   a housing including a camera receiving member which forms a camera receiving space in which the camera is positioned;   an electronic compartment cooling fan configured to form a first air flow that passes about an outer surface of the camera receiving member in a front and rear direction of the main body to cool the camera receiving member; and   a camera cooling fan configured to form a second air flow that passes through the camera receiving portion and around the camera in a left and right direction of the main body.   
     
     
         17 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 16 , wherein
 the housing includes a branch guide protruding from one surface of the camera receiving member to allow air in the first air flow, which flows from the electronic compartment cooling fan to the camera receiving member, to be diverged to both left and right sides of the camera receiving member.   
     
     
         18 . A cooking apparatus comprising:
 a main body including:
 an inner case which forms a cooking chamber, and 
 an electronic compartment formed outside the inner case; 
   one or more hangers formed in the cooking chamber;   a shelf that is mountable to at least one of the one or more hangers, the shelf including:
 a shelf member configured to support food to be cooked, and 
 a holder that is couplable to the at least one of the one or more hangers to mount the shelf thereto; 
   a transparent member configured as at least a portion of an upper wall of the inner case; and   a camera disposed above the transparent member;   wherein the camera and the transparent member are configured so that:
 the camera is operable to capture an image, through the transparent member, of an inside of the cooking chamber, and 
 the camera is operable to capture an image of an entire area of the shelf member while the shelf is mounted to any of the one or more hangers. 
   
     
     
         19 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein
 while the shelf is mounted to a highest hanger among the one or more hangers, a width (f) of the transparent member along a left and right direction of the main body, a distance (g) between the camera and the transparent member, a width (w) of the shelf member along the left and right direction of the main body, and a distance (h) between the camera and the shelf member satisfy the following relationship:
     f/g≥w/h.    
   
     
     
         20 . The cooking apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein
 a viewing angle in which the camera receives light through the transparent member is 80 degrees or more along a left and right direction of the main body, and 55 degrees or more along a front and rear direction of the main body.