Patent attributes
A babycare heating apparatus comprising a vessel (2;102) for containing water and a heating element (15;115) for heating water held in the vessel, characterized by: a temperature sensor (22;42,123) for sensing a temperature rise effected by operation of the heating element (15); and control means (25;125) for controlling the energizing of the heating element (15;115) in dependence on the output of the temperature sensor (22;42;123) and being configured to de-energize the heating element (15;115) if the change in the temperature, sensed by the sensor (22;42;123), meets a predetermined criterion. The apparatus can be used as a sterilizer or a bottle warmer, and its uses a measure of the rate of heating during operation to determine whether the apparatus has been correctly charged with water.
