Cooking appliance

Abstract

A cooking appliance includes a component box having side walls and a resting flange extending from a top of the side walls and resting on the supporting surface in an installed state of the cooking appliance in the opening. A top plate has a top plate perimeter covering the resting flange. A magnetic connecting element arranged between the resting flange and the top plate perimeter connects the top plate perimeter to the resting flange over at least part of an appliance perimeter. At least one of the resting flange and the top plate perimeter is made of ferromagnetic material, so that the connecting element is connected to a top face of the resting flange and/or to a bottom face of the top plate perimeter by a magnetic force and the top plate is separable from the component box when the cooking appliance is in a mounted state in the opening.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A cooking appliance installable in an opening of a supporting surface, in particular of a kitchen worktop surface, the cooking appliance comprising:
 a component box designed to house functional components of the cooking appliance, said component box including a base, side walls and a resting flange which extends in an outer direction of the component box from a top of the side walls and resting on the supporting surface in an installed state of the cooking appliance in the opening;   a top plate arranged on the component box and having fixed thereon at least one cooking hob, said top plate having a top plate perimeter covering the resting flange of the component box; and   a magnetic connecting element arranged between the resting flange and the top plate perimeter to connect the top plate perimeter to the resting flange over at least a part of an appliance perimeter of the cooking appliance,   wherein at least one of the resting flange and the top plate perimeter is made of a ferromagnetic material, so that the connecting element is connected to a top face of the resting flange and/or to a bottom face of the top plate perimeter by a magnetic force and separation of the top plate from the component box is enabled when the cooking appliance is in a mounted state in the opening.   
     
     
         2 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , further comprising a fastener designed to connect the connecting element when one of the resting flange and the top plate is not made of ferromagnetic material. 
     
     
         3 . The cooking appliance of  claim 2 , wherein the fastener is a clip or a screw. 
     
     
         4 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the connecting element is substantially flat with a thickness smaller than 3 millimetres. 
     
     
         5 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the connecting element is substantially flat with a thickness smaller than 2 millimetres. 
     
     
         6 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the connecting element is substantially flat with a thickness smaller than 1 millimetre. 
     
     
         7 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the top plate has a polygonal outer perimeter and the connecting element is arranged at at least one vertex of the polygon. 
     
     
         8 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the top plate has an outer perimeter substantially in a form of a rectangle, said connecting element being arranged at at least one vertex of the rectangle. 
     
     
         9 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the component box and the resting flange are each made of a sheet and formed together in one piece with the side walls. 
     
     
         10 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein at least the top plate and the top plate perimeter are made of a sheet and in one piece with the side walls. 
     
     
         11 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the connecting element is composed of a plurality of magnets. 
     
     
         12 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , wherein the connecting element is made of a material which comprises neodymium, samarium, alnico, ferrite or any other similar magnetic material. 
     
     
         13 . The cooking appliance of  claim 1 , embodied as a gas cooking appliance.