Patent ID: 7208704

Claim:
A circuit for controlling an electrical heating element in an appliance, said circuit comprising: a heating element including a first element terminal and a second element terminal; a pilot light including a first pilot terminal and a second pilot terminal; a thermostat switch including: an element contact electrically connected to said second element terminal; at least one power contact, a pilot contact connected to a first pilot terminal, a sensing device for detecting a temperature of said heating element, an element switch for intermittently electrically connecting and disconnecting one of said at least one power contact to said element contact; a control device adapted for receiving a temperature setting of a desired temperature of the electrical heating element, wherein said control device controls said element switch based on a temperature detected by said sensing device and also based on the temperature setting, wherein said control device is also adapted for preventing said element switch from making electrical contact between said one of said at least one power contact and said element contact when said control device is set in an off position, and a pilot switch for electrically connecting said one or an additional one of said at least one power contact to said pilot contact when said control device is not in an off position and disconnecting said one or said additional one of said at least one power contact from said pilot contact when said control device is in the off position; and a split-phase power supply including: a first voltage source electrically connected to said first element terminal bypassing said thermostat switch, a second voltage source electrically connected to said one of said at least one power contact, and a neutral terminal electrically connected to said second pilot terminal.