Abstract: Apparatus for illuminating the interior of a microwave oven cooking cavity, including a light bulb and socket assembly that are inserted into the cavity interior through an opening in a side wall of the cavity during assembly of the oven and a metallic shield member mounted to the cavity wall to surround the bulb. The shield is dimensioned to permit user access to the bulb from within the cavity while preventing the propagation of microwave energy to the region where the bulb is located.

Abstract: An air circulation system for a microwave oven is provided which includes air inlet openings in the front wall, bottom wall and rear wall of the oven cabinet to cause air to flow over the various electrical components within the oven cabinet prior to passing through an air blower. All the air passing through the blower passes over the magnetron for cooling purposes and then the air flow is split into three air streams, one air stream passing through the cooking cavity for removal of humidity, a second air stream passing through the cooking cavity above a protective cover for cooling a light bulb and a third air stream passing directly out of the oven cabinet. The air outlets are provided in the front wall of the cabinet to avoid the necessity of providing a separate air ducting system if the oven is mounted in a recessed or built-in manner. An air baffle is used within the cabinet to keep the third air stream separate from the air streams which have passed through the cooking cavity.

Abstract: A door latch interlock system for use in a microwave oven in selectively securing a closure door in a closed position across the opening to the microwave oven cavity. The structure for selectively securing the door in the closed position includes a guide on the cabinet, a slider member movably carried by the guide, catch structure carried by the slider member, latch structure carried by the closure and engageable with the catch structure as an incident of the closure being disposed in the latching position, an actuator carried by the closure for operating one of the switches of the electrical circuit for controlling delivery of electric power to the microwave energy generator of the oven to permit operation of the generator only when the door is latched in the closed position, and manually operable structure carried by the closure for arranging the actuator to cause the one switch to prevent operation of the generator and concurrently move the slider member to the released disposition.

Abstract: An energy transmission and distribution system for use in a microwave oven wherein a waveguide member is provided for guiding microwave energy from a generator to an inlet opening to the oven cavity. An impedance matching device is mounted within the waveguide for matching the impedance of the oven cavity and waveguide to that of the generator. A deflector shield is mounted within the cavity adjacent the inlet opening for deflecting microwave energy passed through the inlet opening and effectively preventing direct illumination of the cavity by the microwave energy. A rotating stirrer is mounted within the cavity adjacent the inlet opening and adjacent the deflector shield and cooperates with the deflector shield to provide improved uniform distribution of the microwave energy in the oven cavity.