Patent ID: 7185925

Claim:
An oven lock mechanism for locking a door of a self-cleaning oven in a closed position, the oven having a front and a rear, the oven door being mounted on a frame surrounding an opening of an oven compartment and being movable between an open and a closed position, the oven lock mechanism comprising: a mounting plate supported above the oven compartment, the mounting plate having a channel formed therein about an axis extending laterally relative to the front of the oven; a latch adapted to engage the oven door and being movable between a first position in which the oven door may be opened and a second position in which the oven door may not be opened; a pin extending from a fixed position on the latch, the pin extending through and being received for movement along the axis of the channel, the pin being configured to rotate within the channel facilitating rotation of the latch relative to the mounting plate from the first position to the second position; a motor; a rotor arm rotatably driven by the motor; a rod secured to the rotor arm at a first end and secured to the latch at a second end, the rod acts to convert rotary movement of the rotor arm into translational and rotational movement of the latch and acts to guide the latch toward the second position during translational movement of the latch; and a directional positioner, located between the latch and the rotor arm, to induce the rod to urge the latch towards the second position as the motor rotates the rotor arm to move the latch from the first position to the second position.