Countertop heating apparatus

TL;DR: In this article, a domestic cooking unit consisting of a drip pan, a planar countertop containing at least one opening, and a heating plate located in the opening and to be heated by a gas burner positioned below the heating plate is described.

Abstract: Disclosed in one embodiment is a domestic cooking unit which includes a drip pan, a planar countertop containing at least one opening, and a heating plate located in the opening and to be heated by a gas burner positioned below the heating plate. The drip pan, countertop, and heating plate are advantageously formed from an infrared transmitting, heat-resistant, nonporous, glassceramic material having a low thermal expansion coefficient and a low thermal conductivity. The periphery of the heating plate is spaced inwardly from the periphery of the opening to permit flow of combustion products from the gas burner out from the drip pan and to prevent heat conduction between the heating plate and the countertop. A plurality of spaced support means extend between the drip pan and the heating plate for supporting and positioning the heating plate. The drip pan and the countertop can be formed as an integral unit. The cooking surface of the heating plate is flat and preferably disposed in the same plane as the surface of the countertop thereby presenging a flat area for general use when the unit is not being used for cooking.