Kit, kitchen appliance and method for spiralizing food

Abstract

A kit (100) for providing a spiraling function to a kitchen appliance having a rotating drive system in its base unit is provided. The spiraling function enables food to be sliced ​​into one or more strips. The kit includes a food engaging member (102) engaged with the drive system. The food engaging member further engages with the food so that the food can be rotated by the drive system. The kit includes a handheld vessel (108) having a housing (110). The outer surface of the housing can be grasped by a user so that the handheld vessel can be pressed onto the rotating food. The inner surface of the housing defines a cavity (112) for receiving the rotating food. A cutter (114) is mounted in the cavity. When the handheld vessel is pressed onto the rotating food, the cutter contacts the food and slices the food into one or more strips. A kitchen appliance including the kit is also provided, as well as a method for slicing food into one or more strips.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a kit, a kitchen appliance and a method for spiralizing food products. Background Art

[0002] The process of spiralizing food products such as fruits and vegetables has become increasingly popular in recent years. This is driven by the need to consume healthy, fresh food in everyday life. As the name suggests, spiralizing involves slicing food products into spiral-like strips. This effect is achieved by propelling the food product towards the cutter while rotating the food or the cutter.

[0003] Various devices for spiralizing food have entered the market. These devices can be divided into manually operated tools that do not include a motor and electric spiralizing appliances.

[0004] In order to obtain a suitably long strip, continuous rotation is required and, therefore, is considered a high-quality spiralization result. One disadvantage of manually operated tools is that the length of the strip may be limited by the maximum continuous twisting that can be performed by hand, for example using an appropriate handle or simply grasping the food and twisting it against the cutter. Interruptions in twisting due to the user having to re-grasp the handle or the food may also result in undesirable unevenness in the sliced ​​product. Such unevenness may correspond to variations in diameter or length of the strip, bends in the strip, flat non-spiral portions in the strip, etc.

[0005] Conventional electric spiralizing appliances have a rotating cutter, or use a rotating food engaging tool mounted on a handheld electrical device. Such devices can offer advantages over manually operated tools because the motor-driven rotation of the cutter or food is continuous, but such appliances also have certain disadvantages.

[0006] In particular, rotary cutters pose a risk of injury and are difficult to clean. Cleaning a cutter often requires first separating the cutter from the drive shaft of the appliance, which can be difficult and dangerous.

[0007] On the other hand, handheld electrical devices with rotating food engaging tools require the user to hold the device (including the motor and associated circuitry) and the food being engaged in their hands. Having to manually support the device and food in this manner can be difficult, particularly due to the weight of the device. Operating the device during food rotation can also be difficult, and thus user friendliness and slicing performance of the device can be compromised.

[0008] The present invention seeks to address at least some of the above-mentioned problems encountered with conventional spiralizing instruments. Summary of the invention

[0009] The invention is defined by the claims.

[0010] According to one aspect, a kit is provided for providing a kitchen appliance with a spiralizing function, the kitchen appliance having a rotary drive system in its base unit, the spiralizing function enabling food to be sliced ​​into at least one strip, the kit comprising: a food engaging member adapted to engage with both the drive system and the food so that the food can be rotated by the drive system; and a hand-held utensil for pressing onto the food while rotating the food, the hand-held utensil comprising: a shell having an inner surface and a grippable outer surface, the inner surface defining a cavity for receiving the rotating food; and a cutter mounted in the cavity, the cutter being arranged to contact the food when the hand-held utensil is pressed onto the rotating food so as to enable the food to be sliced ​​into at least one strip.

[0011] The kit enables spiralizing of foods such as fruits and vegetables using a kitchen appliance having a base unit equipped with a rotary drive system. The food engaging piece allows the food to be rotated by the drive system. Since the cutter is mounted in the cavity, the housing of the handheld vessel effectively protects the user from being injured by accidental contact with the cutter. In addition, the handheld vessel enables the user to safely adjust the pressure applied to the rotating food, because the cavity in which the rotating food is located helps to minimize the risk of the food detaching from the handheld vessel during spiralization.

[0012] The handpiece may include an aperture defined by the housing adjacent the cutter to allow the at least one strip to exit the handpiece.

[0013] The food engaging member may include a plurality of protrusions for penetrating into the food. These protrusions may allow the food to be easily engaged with the food engaging member and any un-spiralized remainder of the food to be conveniently removed from the food engaging member after spiralization.

[0014] The grippable outer surface may include a gripping portion including a non-slip plastic or rubber. The gripping portion may help a user grip the handheld vessel to enhance user control and safety during spiraling.

[0015] The cutter may be fixedly mounted in the cavity. Such fixed mounting may also (i.e., in addition to enclosing the cutter in the cavity) help prevent accidental injury and thus provide advantages over conventional spiralizers with rotating blades. In addition, a fixedly mounted cutter may eliminate the need for any motorized components within the hand-held vessel, allowing the hand-held vessel to be relatively lightweight.

[0016] The cutter may be mounted at the base of the cavity. Food may initially enter the cavity via the opening. Thus, the cavity may extend from the opening to the base of the cavity, the base being opposite the opening. By positioning the cutter at the base of the cavity, the risk of accidental injury from contact with the cutter may be reduced.

[0017] For example, the cutter may include a conical slicing disk arranged so that the cone narrows in the direction of the base of the cavity. The conical shape of the slicing disk may help to keep the rotating food in the cavity during spiralization and center the food in the cavity during spiralization.

[0018] The cavity can be slidably fitted over the food engaging member. This can achieve a more thorough spiraling of the food because the advancement of the cutter in the direction of the rotating food does not terminate with contact between the bottom of the hand vessel (extending around the opening of the cavity) and the top of the food engaging member. Rather, the slidably fitting can ensure that spiraling continues beyond the point at which the bottom of the hand vessel is aligned with the top of the food engaging member, thereby spiraling more food.

[0019] According to another aspect, there is provided a kitchen appliance having a spiralizing function capable of slicing a food product into at least one strip, the kitchen appliance comprising: a base unit having a rotary drive system; and a kit as defined above.

[0020] The kitchen appliance may include a pressure switch adapted to trigger rotation of the drive system in response to pressure applied to the food via the hand-held vessel. The pressure switch may also be adapted to stop the drive system from rotating when pressure is no longer applied to the food via the hand-held vessel. For example, the pressure switch may include a simple spring-loaded on / off switch that is activated by a user pressing the hand-held vessel onto the food causing the food engaging member to move downward relative to the base unit.

[0021] Alternatively or additionally, the kitchen appliance may include a sensor for sensing pressure applied to the food via the handheld vessel, and a controller in communication with the sensor, the controller being configured to control the drive system in response to the pressure sensed by the sensor. The sensor may, for example, be mounted in the base unit. Thus, the pressure applied to the food by the user may be used to control the drive system. This may, for example, enhance the safety and ease of operation of the kitchen appliance during spiralization.

[0022] The controller may be configured to trigger rotation of the drive system when the pressure sensed by the sensor reaches or exceeds a threshold pressure, and to stop or prevent rotation of the drive system when the pressure sensed by the sensor is below the threshold pressure.

[0023] Thus, the rotation of the food can be initiated only when the handheld vessel is pressed onto the food, as long as the pressure is sufficient to reach or exceed a predetermined threshold pressure, or to trigger a spring-loaded on / off switch. Once the pressure applied to the food is reduced below the predetermined threshold pressure, i.e., when the user stops pressing the food via the handheld vessel, the controller stops the rotation of the food. This is particularly advantageous because the user can manipulate the handheld vessel with both hands, rather than, for example, needing to remove the hand from the handheld vessel to operate a switch on the base unit that triggers the drive system to rotate. Being able to keep both hands in contact with the handheld vessel means that the user can exert greater control over the pressure applied during spiralization. Two-hand control of the handheld vessel can also enable safer spiralization using a kitchen appliance.

[0024] The kitchen appliance may comprise a container for receiving at least one strip from the handheld vessel, wherein the container is detachably mounted on the base unit. After spiraling, the container may be detached from the base unit and, for example, used to serve the spiralized food.

[0025] According to another aspect, a method for slicing food into at least one strip using a kitchen appliance is provided, the kitchen appliance comprising a rotary drive system in a base unit thereof, a food engager, and a handheld vessel, the handheld vessel comprising an outer surface and an inner surface, the inner surface defining a cavity, a cutter being mounted in the cavity, the method comprising: engaging the food engager with the drive system; engaging the food engager with the food so that the food can be rotated by the drive system; grasping the outer surface of the handheld vessel; receiving the engaged food in the cavity of the handheld vessel; applying manual force to the outer surface so that the cutter is pressed onto the food; and rotating the food with the drive system so that the cutter slices the food into at least one strip.

[0026] The method may further include sensing a pressure applied during the applying, wherein rotating includes controlling the drive system in response to the sensed pressure.

[0027] Controlling may include triggering rotation of the drive system when the sensed pressure reaches or exceeds a threshold pressure, and stopping or preventing rotation of the drive system when the sensed pressure is below the threshold pressure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] Embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail below by way of non-limiting examples in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0029] Figure 1 A kit according to one embodiment is shown;

[0030] Figure 2 A kitchen appliance according to one embodiment is shown;

[0031] Figure 3A kitchen appliance according to another embodiment is shown;

[0032] Figure 4 Show Figure 3 Use of kitchen appliances shown;

[0033] Figure 5 A block diagram showing a kitchen appliance according to one embodiment;

[0034] Figure 6 a flow chart showing a method according to one embodiment; and

[0035] Figure 7 A general computer architecture suitable for implementing a controller for use in a kitchen appliance is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating exemplary embodiments of the apparatus, system and method, are intended for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These and other features, aspects and advantages of the apparatus, system and method of the present invention can be better understood through the following description, the appended claims and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the drawings are merely schematic and are not drawn to scale. It should also be understood that throughout the drawings, the same reference numerals represent the same or similar parts.

[0037] A kit for providing a spiralizing function to a kitchen appliance having a rotating drive system in its base unit is provided. The spiralizing function enables slicing of food into one or more strips. The kit includes a food engaging member engaged with the drive system. The food engaging member further engages with the food so that the food can be rotated by the drive system. The kit includes a handheld utensil having a housing. The outer surface of the housing can be grasped by a user so that the handheld utensil can be pressed onto the rotating food. The inner surface of the housing defines a cavity for receiving the rotating food. A cutter is mounted in the cavity. When the handheld utensil is pressed onto the rotating food, the cutter contacts the food and slices the food into one or more strips.

[0038] The kit enables food such as fruits and vegetables to be spiralized using a kitchen appliance having a base unit equipped with a rotary drive system. The food engaging member allows the food to be rotated by the drive system. Since the cutter is mounted in the cavity, the housing of the handheld vessel effectively protects the user from being injured by accidental contact with the cutter. In addition, the handheld vessel enables the user to safely adjust the pressure applied to the rotating food, because during spiralization, the cavity in which the rotating food is located helps to minimize the risk of the food detaching from the handheld vessel. The handheld vessel further benefits from being easy to clean after use. The kit enables a kitchen appliance to be converted into a spiralizer in a simple manner while keeping the number of required components to a minimum.

[0039] Figure 1 A kit 100 is shown according to one embodiment. The kit 100 is compatible with kitchen appliances ( Figure 1 The kitchen appliance 100 is not shown in the figure, and the kitchen appliance has a rotary drive system, which is installed in the base unit of the kitchen appliance. In this aspect, the kit 100 includes a food engaging member 102 engaged with the drive system. The food engaging member 102 is Figure 1 is shown in the left hand pane.

[0040] For example, the food engaging member 102 may include a coupling 104 that couples with a drive shaft ( Figure 1 The food engaging member 102 is connected to the food engaging member 102 by the drive system. The drive shaft is driven by the drive system. The coupler 104 may, for example, include a recess and a releasable locking mechanism, the size of the recess being set to receive at least a portion of the drive shaft, and the releasable locking mechanism is used to keep the drive shaft in the recess during rotation. In this way, the drive system can rotate the food engaging member 102. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that the drive system is connected to the food engaging member 102 to realize the rotation of the food engaging member 102 by the drive system.

[0041] like Figure 1 As shown, the food engaging member 102 includes a plate 105 carrying a plurality of protrusions 106. The protrusions 106 penetrate into the food to be spiralized and thereby enable the food engaging member 102 to engage with the food. Using the protrusions 106 to engage the food can easily engage the food with the food engaging member 102 and conveniently remove any unspiralized remainder of the food from the food engaging member 102 after spiralization.

[0042] The protrusions 106 may include any suitable shape, as long as they are capable of penetrating the food and thereby transmitting the rotation of the drive system to the food. For example, the protrusions 106 may be in the form of ribs or beads on the surface of the plate 105. Figure 1 In the example shown, at least some of the protrusions 106 have a shape that tapers gradually in the direction of the food, thereby facilitating the protrusions 106 to penetrate into the food.

[0043] The projections 106 are not necessarily all of the same size and shape. For example, a larger projection 106 (e.g., having a cross shape) may be located in the central region of the plate 105, while smaller additional projections 106 are positioned more toward the periphery of the plate 105. In this case, the larger projection 106 may be primarily responsible for transmitting the rotation from the drive system to the food. The smaller additional projections 106 may provide auxiliary anchoring of the food to the food engaging member 102. Alternative arrangements, sizes, and shapes of projections 106 will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

[0044] As Figure 1 Other means for engaging the food product may also be considered in lieu of or in addition to the protrusions 106 shown. For example, the food product engaging member 102 may include a clamp, a vise, a chuck, etc. for securing the food product to the food product engaging member 102. While such components may result in a more complex and expensive design, they may ensure a more secure engagement of the food product because the rotating food product is less likely to slide on the food product engaging member 102 during slicing, thereby facilitating spiralization.

[0045] The food engaging member 102 may be formed of any suitable material, such as plastic, metal, or a metal alloy such as stainless steel. When the food engaging member 102 includes a protrusion 106, the material forming the protrusion 106 may be the same or different than the material used for the other components of the food engaging member 102. In one non-limiting example, the entire food engaging member 102 is formed of plastic, such as by a suitable molding process.

[0046] The kit 100 also includes a handheld device 108, which is Figure 1 The handheld vessel 108 includes a housing 110 having an outer surface and an inner surface. The outer surface corresponds to the surface that is grasped or held by the user during spiraling. Thus, the outer surface can, for example, be shaped in the following manner: so that the handheld vessel 108 is comfortable for the user to grasp. In this regard, as Figure 1 The illustrated hand vessel 108 has an approximately hyperbolic shape and can therefore be particularly easy to grasp and hold during spiraling.Alternative ergonomic outer surface designs are conceivable, for example including recessed portions for accommodating a user's fingers.

[0047] The inner surface of the housing 110 defines a cavity 112 for receiving the rotating food during spiralization. A cutter 114 is mounted in the cavity 112. When the handheld vessel 108 is pressed onto the rotating food, the cutter 114 contacts the food and slices the food into one or more strips. Disposing the cutter 114 in the cavity 112 provides the following advantages: a user who grasps the handheld vessel 108 through the outer surface of the housing 110 is protected from injury due to accidental contact with the cutter 114. The housing 110 effectively provides a barrier between the user (e.g., the user's hand) and the cutter 114.

[0048] In one embodiment, the cutter 114 is fixedly mounted in the cavity 112. Such fixed mounting can also (i.e., in addition to encapsulating the cutter 114 in the cavity 112) help prevent accidental injuries, and thus provide advantages over conventional spiralizers with rotating blades. In addition, the fixedly mounted cutter 114 eliminates the need for any motorized components in the hand-held vessel 108, so that the hand-held vessel 108 can be relatively lightweight. By ensuring that the hand-held vessel 108 is relatively lightweight, the ease and safety of the user manipulating the hand-held vessel 108 during use can be enhanced.

[0049] Food is first allowed to enter the cavity 112 through the opening. The cavity 112 extends from the opening to the base of the cavity 112, which is opposite the opening. In one embodiment, the cutter 114 is mounted at the base of the cavity 112. By positioning the cutter 114 at the base of the cavity 112 in this manner, the risk of accidental injury caused by contact with the cutter 114 can be reduced because the user is less likely to accidentally extend his hand / fingers all the way to the base of the cavity 112.

[0050] Alternatively, the cutter 114 may be mounted between the opening of the cavity 112 and the base such that the cutter 114 is sufficiently accessible for cleaning after spiraling.

[0051] For example, the cutter 114 may include a tapered slicing disk that is arranged such that the cone narrows in a direction along the base of the cavity 112. The tapered shape of the slicing disk may help to keep the rotating food within the cavity 112 during spiralization and to center the food within the cavity 112 during spiralization. Such centering is particularly useful when it is desired to spiralize relatively thin (i.e., relatively small diameter) food, such as carrots. Otherwise, such relatively thin food may be misaligned relative to the cutter 114, thereby risking obtaining less or incomplete spiralization results.

[0052] exist Figure 1 In the non-limiting example shown, the handpiece 108 has an aperture 116 defined by the housing 110. The aperture 116 is adjacent to the cutter 114 to allow one or more strips to exit the handpiece 108 during spiraling. In this example, the aperture 116 is an elongated slot in the housing 110 that extends from a point proximal to the opening of the cavity 112 toward the base of the cavity 112.

[0053] The cutter 114 can extend along the length of the elongated slot within the cavity 112. The slot can be wide enough to allow one or more strips to exit the handheld vessel 108, but narrow enough to prevent a user's finger from entering the cavity 112 via the slot. In this regard, the slot can, for example, have a width of 3 to 10 mm, such as a width of about 5 mm. As such, the size of the slot can help minimize the risk of accidental contact with the cutter 114. Alternative hole shapes, i.e., shapes other than slot shapes, such as circular, oval, square, etc. are also conceivable.

[0054] The cutter 114 may include a suitable blade for slicing the rotating food into one or more strips. Such a blade may be made, for example, of metal, metal alloy, ceramic, etc. The blade may be serrated or may not have any serrations, depending on the type of food to be spiralized, the desired shape and size of the spiralized food, etc. The handheld vessel 108 may, for example, be equipped with different (e.g., detachable) cutters 114, depending on the desired shape and thickness of the strips. In other words, different cutters 114 may be used to cut the food into "noodles" of different sizes: spaghetti, ribbons, etc.

[0055] Alternatively or additionally, the kit 100 may include a plurality of hand-held utensils 108, wherein each respective cutter 114 of the hand-held utensils 108 is capable of producing a spiralizing effect different from that of the other (one or more) cutters. Suitable cutter designs and blades for spiralizing food products are known per se and will not be further described herein for the sake of brevity only.

[0056] The housing 110 can be formed of any suitable material, such as plastic, rubber, metal, or metal alloy. These materials can help the housing 110 protect the user from the cutter 114. In one embodiment, the outer surface includes a grip portion 118, which includes a non-slip plastic or rubber. Thus, the material used to make the housing 110, or at least the material included in the outer surface, can help the user grip the handheld vessel 108. Figure 1 As shown, the non-slip plastic or rubber may be present in only a portion 118 of the outer surface, for example to guide the user where to place their hands / fingers when grasping the handheld vessel 108. Alternatively, the non-slip plastic or rubber may be present on the entire outer surface, for example.

[0057] In one embodiment, cavity 112 is a sliding fit over food engaging member 102. In other words, cavity 112 may be sized to receive food engaging member 102. This may allow for a more thorough spiraling of the food product because advancement of cutter 114 in the direction of rotating the food product does not terminate with contact between the bottom of hand vessel 108 (extending around the opening of cavity 112) and the top of food engaging member 102. Rather, this sliding fit may ensure that spiraling continues beyond the point at which the bottom of hand vessel 108 is aligned with the top of food engaging member 102, thereby spiraling more food product.

[0058] Figure 2 A kitchen appliance 200 according to an embodiment is shown. The kitchen appliance 200 includes the above Figure 1 The described kit 100. The kitchen appliance 200 also includes a base unit 202, which is designed to be placed on, for example, a kitchen worktop during use. To this end, the base unit 202 may include suitable feet (not shown), such as rubber suction feet, which contact the worktop and can prevent the base unit 202 from sliding on the worktop during use.

[0059] The base unit 202 includes a rotary drive system 204. Thus, the components of the rotary drive system 204 can be housed within the base unit 202. The rotary drive system 204 can include, for example, an electric motor. The motor can be powered by a mains or battery. The continuous rotation provided by the drive system 204 can ensure a smooth and continuous cutting process, thereby producing long and delicious spiral fruits and vegetables.

[0060] exist Figure 2 2, the food engaging member 102 is engaged with the drive system 204. The rotation provided by the drive system 204 is transmitted to the food engaging member 102 via the drive shaft 205. In this example, the drive shaft 205 is engaged with the food engaging member 102 via the coupling 104, for example, by locking the drive shaft 205 into an appropriately sized recess in the food engaging member 102 as previously described.

[0061] The drive shaft 205 preferably extends upward from the operating surface on which the base unit 202 is mounted. Therefore, the kitchen appliance 200 can be considered a "bottom-driven food processing appliance". This means that during spiralization, the user presses the hand-held vessel 108 downward onto the rotating food. This arrangement benefits from gravity, which helps the user press the hand-held vessel 108 onto the rotating food. In this non-limiting example, the kitchen appliance 200 thus does not require other components for advancing the food, such as a feed slide or a screw feeder.

[0062] From the user's point of view, slicing from top to bottom in this manner can be more logical and intuitive. The slicing process is also visually apparent to the user, i.e., by observing how far the hand-held vessel 108 has been advanced toward the base unit 202, to help the user control the pressure they apply during spiraling. In addition, when the kitchen appliance 200 is converted to use the kit 100 for spiraling, the intuitive ordering of the hand-held vessel 108, the food, and the food engagement member 102 can be used to motivate the user to correctly operate the kitchen appliance 200 for spiraling.

[0063] Providing the kit 100 and the base unit 202 as separate components can have advantages in cleaning the kitchen appliance 200 after spiraling. Thus, the food engaging member 102 and the handheld utensil 108 can be cleaned after use separately from the base unit 202. In addition to being easy to operate during the spiraling process, the components of the kit 100 can also facilitate cleaning the kitchen appliance 200 after use.

[0064] Figure 3 A kitchen appliance 200 according to another embodiment is shown. In this case, the kitchen appliance 200 includes a container 206 for receiving one or more strips from the handheld vessel 108. The container 206 can be removably mounted on the base unit 202. For example, the bottom plate 207 of the container 206 can follow the contour of the base unit 202 so that the drive system 204 can be accommodated. Figure 3 As shown, the side wall 208 of the container 206 abuts the bottom plate 207. The container 206 may include a handle 209 to help separate the container 206 (e.g., after spiraling) from the base unit 202. The container 206 may be made of any suitable material, such as plastic (e.g., transparent plastic), so that a user can observe the process of filling the container 206 with the spiralized food.

[0065] Figure 4 Schematically showing the use of Figure 3 The kitchen appliance 200 shown is spiralized. The food engaging member 102 is engaged with the drive system 204 of the base unit 202. The food engaging member 102 is further engaged with the food 302, in this case, via the protrusions 106 extending from the plate 105 of the food engaging member 102. In this way, the drive system 204 rotates the food 302 via the food engaging member 102.

[0066] like Figure 4As shown, the handheld vessel 108 is grasped in a user's hand 304. A food item 302 is received in the cavity 112 of the handheld vessel 108. The user applies a force to the outer surface of the housing 110, causing the rotating food item 302 to contact and be sliced ​​by the cutter 114 mounted within the cavity 112. The resulting strip 306 exits the handheld vessel 108 via the aperture 116. The strip 306 may then fall into a container 206 mounted on the base unit 202.

[0067] Figures 2 to 4 The kitchen appliance 200 shown does not include any additional components for anchoring the handheld utensil 108 to the base unit 202, which can enhance the maneuverability of the handheld utensil 108 during use. However, this is not limiting. For example, the kit 100 can include an attachment for fixing the handheld utensil 108 to the base unit 202. For example, the attachment can include a sliding element so that the attached handheld utensil 108 can be pushed toward the base unit 202 during spiralization.

[0068] After spiraling, the container 206 can be separated from the base unit 202 and, for example, used to serve the spiraled food. Other ingredients (such as appropriate seasonings for the spiraled food) can be added directly to the container 206 before serving or before spiraling.

[0069] Figure 5 A block diagram of a kitchen appliance 200 according to one embodiment is provided. In this case, the kitchen appliance 200 includes a sensor 310 for sensing pressure applied to a food product via the handheld vessel 108. The sensor 310 may be mounted, for example, in the base unit 202. Alternative locations for the sensor 310 are also contemplated, such as being located in the food engaging member 102.

[0070] Any suitable sensor 310 may be used for this purpose, so long as the sensor 310 is capable of sensing the pressure applied to the food by the user using the handheld vessel 108. The sensor 310 is in communication with the controller 312. The pressure information transmitted from the sensor 310 to the controller 312 is transmitted to the controller 312 at Figure 5 This is indicated by the arrow between the corresponding blocks 310 and 312.

[0071] The controller 312 is configured to control the drive system 204 in response to the pressure sensed by the sensor 310. To this end, the controller 312 may send a control signal to the drive system 204, such as Figure 5 As indicated by the arrow between the corresponding blocks 312 and 204 in FIG.

[0072] In one embodiment, controller 312 is configured to trigger the rotation of drive system 204 when the pressure sensed by sensor 310 reaches or exceeds a threshold pressure. Controller 312 is also configured to stop or prevent the rotation of drive system 204 when the pressure sensed by sensor 310 is below a threshold pressure. Thus, the rotation of food 302 can be initiated only when hand-held vessel 108 is pressed onto food 302, as long as the pressure is sufficient to reach or exceed a predetermined threshold pressure. Once the pressure applied to food 302 decreases below the predetermined threshold pressure, i.e., when the user stops pressing food 302 via hand-held vessel 108, controller 312 stops the rotation of food 302.

[0073] Alternatively or additionally, the kitchen appliance 200 may include a pressure switch (not shown) that triggers rotation of the drive system 204 in response to pressure applied to the food product via the handheld vessel 108. For example, the pressure switch may also include a function that stops the rotation of the drive system 204 when pressure is no longer applied to the food product via the handheld vessel 108. For example, the pressure switch may include a simple spring-loaded on / off switch that is activated by a user pressing the handheld vessel 108 onto the food product, causing downward movement of the food engaging member 102 relative to the base unit 202.

[0074] This is particularly advantageous because the user can use both hands to manipulate the handheld vessel 108, rather than, for example, needing to remove the hand from the handheld vessel 108 to operate a switch on the base unit 202 that triggers the rotation of the drive system 204. During spiraling, being able to keep both hands in contact with the handheld vessel 108 means that the user can exert greater control over the pressure they apply. Two-handed control of the handheld vessel 108 can also enable safer operation of the kitchen appliance 200.

[0075] Figure 6 A flow chart of a method 400 of slicing a food into one or more strips using a kitchen appliance having a rotary drive system in a base unit thereof, a food engaging member, and a hand-held vessel including an outer surface and an inner surface, the inner surface defining a cavity in which a cutter is mounted is provided. The method 400 may, for example, include using the kitchen appliance 200 as described above.

[0076] In step 410, the food engaging member is engaged with the drive system. Then, in step 420, the food engaging member may be engaged with the food so that the food can be rotated by the drive system. Alternatively, the order of steps 410 and 420 may be reversed, i.e., the food is engaged by the food engaging member before engaging with the drive system.

[0077] In step 430, the outer surface of the handheld vessel is grasped or held by a user. In step 440, the engaged food is received within the cavity of the handheld vessel. Then, in step 450, the user applies manual force to the outer surface so that the cutter is pressed onto the food. In step 470, the food is rotated using the drive system so that the cutter slices the food into one or more strips.

[0078] The method 400 may also include sensing the pressure applied during the applying step 450. In this embodiment, rotating 470 includes controlling the drive system in response to the sensed pressure.

[0079] In one embodiment, the control includes triggering the rotation of the drive system when the sensed pressure reaches or exceeds a threshold pressure, and stopping or preventing the rotation of the drive system when the sensed pressure is below the threshold pressure. This means that the user can keep both hands on the handheld vessel as described above. The sensing and triggering can be achieved, for example, using the above-mentioned pressure switch and / or sensor and controller arrangement.

[0080] Figure 7 An example of a computer 500 for implementing the above-described controller 312 is shown.

[0081] Computer 500 includes but is not limited to PC, workstation, notebook computer, PDA, handheld device, server, memory, etc. Generally, in terms of hardware architecture, computer 500 may include one or more processors 501, memory 502, and one or more I / O devices 503 communicatively coupled via a local interface (not shown). The local interface may be, for example but not limited to, one or more buses or other wired or wireless connections, as known in the art. The local interface may have additional elements, such as controllers, buffers (cache), drivers, repeaters, and receivers to enable communication. In addition, the local interface may include address, control and / or data connections to enable appropriate communication between the above components.

[0082] Processor 501 is a hardware device for executing software, which may be stored in memory 502. Processor 501 may be virtually any custom or commercial processor, central processing unit (CPU), digital signal processor (DSP), or auxiliary processor among several processors associated with computer 500, and processor 501 may be a semiconductor-based microprocessor (in the form of a microchip) or a microprocessor.

[0083] The memory 502 may include any one or a combination of volatile memory elements (e.g., random access memory (RAM), such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), etc.) and non-volatile memory elements (e.g., ROM, erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), magnetic tape, compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), magnetic disk, floppy disk, cassette tape, cassette tape, etc.). In addition, the memory 502 may include electronic, magnetic, optical and / or other types of storage media. It should be noted that the memory 502 may have a distributed architecture in which various components are remote from each other but can be accessed by the processor 501.

[0084] The software in the memory 502 may include one or more independent programs, each of which includes an ordered list of executable instructions for implementing logical functions. According to an exemplary embodiment, the software in the memory 502 includes an appropriate operating system (O / S) 504, a compiler 505, source code 506, and one or more application programs 507.

[0085] Application 507 includes many functional components, such as computing units, logical functional units, processes, operations, virtual entities and / or modules.

[0086] The operating system 504 controls the execution of computer programs and provides scheduling, input-output control, file and data management, memory management, and communications control and related services.

[0087] Application 507 may be a source program, an executable program (object code), a script, or any other entity including a set of instructions to be executed. When it is a source program, the program is usually interpreted by a compiler (such as compiler 505), an assembler, an interpreter, etc., which may or may not be included in memory 502, so as to connect to operating system 504 and operate correctly. In addition, application 507 may be written in an object-oriented programming language, which has classes of data and methods, or a procedural programming language, which has routines, subroutines and / or functions, such as, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Pascal, BASIC, API calls, HTML, XHTML, XML, ASP scripts, JavaScript, FORTRAN, COBOL, Perl, Java, ADA, .NET, etc.

[0088] I / O devices 503 may include input devices such as, but not limited to, a mouse, keyboard, scanner, microphone, camera, etc. In addition, I / O devices 503 may also include output devices such as, but not limited to, a printer, a display, etc. Finally, I / O devices 503 may further include devices for communication input and output such as, but not limited to, a network interface controller (NIC) or a modulator / demodulator (for accessing remote devices, other files, devices, systems, or networks), a radio frequency (RF) or other transceiver, a telephone interface, a bridge, a router, etc. I / O devices 503 also include components for communicating through various networks such as the Internet or an intranet.

[0089] When the computer 500 is running, the processor 501 is configured to execute software stored in the memory 502, to communicate data to or receive data from the memory 502, and generally control the operation of the computer 500 according to the software. The application program 507 and the operating system 504 are read in whole or in part by the processor 501, possibly buffered within the processor 501, and then executed.

[0090] When the application 507 is implemented in software, it should be noted that the application 507 can be stored on virtually any computer-readable medium for use by or in conjunction with any computer-related system or method. In the context of this document, a computer-readable medium can be an electronic, magnetic, optical or other physical device or means that can contain or store a computer program for use by or in conjunction with a computer-related system or method.

[0091] In the process of practicing the claimed invention, other variations of the disclosed embodiments may be understood and implemented by those skilled in the art by studying the drawings, the disclosure and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the indefinite article "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. The fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting the scope thereof.

Claims

1. A kit (100) for providing a kitchen appliance having a rotary drive system in its base unit with a spiralizing function, the spiralizing function enabling slicing of food into at least one strip, the kit comprising: a food engaging member (102) adapted to engage both the drive system and the food so as to enable the food to be rotated by the drive system; as well as A hand-held vessel (108) for pressing onto the food while rotating the food, the hand-held vessel comprising: a housing (110) having an inner surface and a grippable outer surface, the inner surface defining a cavity (112) for receiving the rotating food product; as well as A cutter (114) is mounted in the cavity, the cutter being arranged to contact the food product when the handheld vessel is pressed against the rotating food product so as to enable slicing of the food product into the at least one strip.

2. The kit (100) of claim 1, wherein the handheld vessel (108) includes an aperture (116) defined by the housing (110), the aperture being adjacent to the cutter (114) to allow the at least one strip to exit the handheld vessel.

3. The kit (100) of claim 1 or 2, wherein the food engaging member (102) comprises a plurality of protrusions (106) for penetrating into the food.

4. The kit (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the grippable outer surface includes a gripping portion (118) comprising a non-slip plastic or rubber.

5. The kit (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the cutter (114) is fixedly mounted in the cavity (112).

6. The kit (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the cutter (114) is mounted at a base of the cavity (112).

7. The kit (100) of any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein the cavity (112) is a sliding fit over the food engaging member (102).

8. A kitchen appliance (200) having a spiraling function, the spiraling function being capable of slicing food into at least one strip, the kitchen appliance comprising: A base unit (202) having a rotational drive system (204); as well as A kit (100) according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. The kitchen appliance (200) according to claim 8 comprises a pressure switch, which is suitable for triggering the rotation of the drive system (204) in response to the pressure applied to the food via the hand-held vessel (108), and the switch is also optionally suitable for stopping the rotation of the drive system when the pressure is no longer applied to the food via the hand-held vessel.

10. The kitchen appliance (200) according to claim 8 or 9, comprising: a sensor (310) for sensing the pressure applied to the food product via the handheld vessel (108); and A controller (312) in communication with the sensor, the controller being configured to control the drive system (204) in response to the pressure sensed by the sensor.

11. The kitchen appliance (200) according to claim 10, wherein the controller (312) is configured to: triggering rotation of the drive system (204) when the pressure sensed by the sensor (310) reaches or exceeds a threshold pressure; and When the pressure sensed by the sensor is below the threshold pressure, rotation of the drive system is stopped or prevented.

12. The kitchen appliance (200) according to any one of claims 8 to 9 and 11, comprising a container (206) for receiving the at least one strip from the handheld vessel (108), wherein the container is detachably mounted on the base unit (202).

13. A method (400) of slicing a food product into at least one strip using a kitchen appliance having a rotary drive system in a base unit thereof, a food engaging member, and a handheld vessel, the handheld vessel comprising an outer surface and an inner surface, the inner surface defining a cavity in which a cutter is mounted, the method comprising: engaging the food engaging member with the drive system (410); engaging the food engaging member with the food product (420) so that the food product can be rotated by the drive system; grasping the outer surface (430) of the handheld vessel; receiving (440) the engaged food product in the cavity of the handheld vessel; applying (450) manual force to the outer surface such that the cutter is pressed onto the food product; as well as The food product is rotated (470) with the drive system so that the cutter slices the food product into the at least one strip.

14. The method (400) of claim 13, further comprising sensing (460) a pressure applied during said applying (450), wherein said rotating (470) comprises controlling said drive system in response to said sensed pressure.

15. The method (400) of claim 14, wherein the controlling comprises: triggering rotation of the drive system when the sensed pressure reaches or exceeds a threshold pressure; as well as When the sensed pressure is below the threshold pressure, rotation of the drive system is stopped or prevented.

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