Patent ID: 7874289

Claim:
A cooking appliance comprising: an oven cavity having an frontal opening; a control panel for selecting a desired cooking operation; at least one heating element for heating the oven cavity based on the desired cooking operation; and a door assembly for selectively closing the frontal opening for the desired cooking operation, said door assembly including a door panel having an outermost surface provided with a central opening, an outer transparent pane arranged in the central opening, an inner transparent pane spaced from the outer transparent pane, said inner and outer transparent panes defining an outer dead air space therebetween, an upper dead air space arranged above the outer transparent pane, a lower dead air space arranged below the outer transparent pane and an inner window pack having first and second, substantially parallel window panes spaced one from the other to establish an inner dead air space, said inner window pack being spaced from the outer transparent pane so as to establish a passage, including an inlet portion arranged below the lower dead air space, for receiving a flow of ambient air that passes from outside the cooking appliance through the door assembly, wherein the upper, lower and inner dead air spaces, in combination with the passage, establish a thermal barrier so as to minimize heat transfer from the oven cavity to the outermost surface of the door panel.