Bread Slicing Device with Movable Blade Axis
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing bread slicing methods and devices fail to safely and efficiently slice oblong-shaped breads like baguettes and rolls over their entire length while adapting the depth of cut to their width, leading to user safety issues, hygiene concerns, and environmental mess from crumbs.
Innovation Solution
A device with a movable blade support axis and elastic guide fins allows for adjustable slicing depth and width, ensuring the bread is sliced longitudinally over its total or partial width, with a rotating circular blade and a compartmentalized housing for crumb separation, eliminating manual handling and reducing crumb dispersal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual slicing is used, then the operator can control the cutting process, but the operator is at risk of injury and hygiene is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The bread itself is guided through the cutting device by its own weight and shape, eliminating the need for manual handling. The guide fins direct the bread automatically as it is pushed into the cutting compartment, allowing the system to serve itself without human intervention during the critical cutting phase.
Solution Approach 2:
Guide fins act as an intermediary between the operator and the bread. These fins automatically direct the bread into the cutting compartment and position it for slicing, mediating the interaction between the operator and the bread to eliminate direct hand contact while maintaining control over the cutting process.
2Ease of operation
If manual slicing is used, then the operator can adjust cutting depth, but crumbs are scattered and hygiene is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The cutting compartment is separated from the collection compartment by a partition wall with a slot. This segmentation allows the cutting area to be isolated from the collection area, containing crumbs within the device and preventing them from scattering into the environment while maintaining separate functional zones.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide fins serve as an intermediary mechanism that controls bread positioning and cutting depth automatically. By guiding the bread through fixed fins, the system achieves consistent cutting depth without requiring manual adjustment, thereby preventing crumb scattering while maintaining operational control.
3Device complexity
If a fixed blade position is used, then the device structure is simple, but the slicing depth cannot be adapted to different bread widths
Solution Approach 1:
The blade support axis is made movable along the longitudinal axis of the cutting compartment, transforming the fixed structure into a dynamic one. This allows the blade position to be adjusted according to different bread widths and slicing depth requirements while maintaining a relatively simple overall device structure through linear movement along a defined path.
Solution Approach 2:
The position parameter of the blade support axis is made variable along the longitudinal direction. By changing the axial position of the blade support, the system adapts to different slicing depths and bread widths without requiring complex reconfiguration mechanisms, achieving versatility through a single parameter adjustment.
4Productivity
If the blade rotates in the housing, then the cutting is efficient, but the operator is exposed to injury risk
Solution Approach 1:
The guide fins act as an intermediary barrier between the operator and the rotating blade. These fins guide the bread through the cutting zone and physically separate the operator's hands from the blade area, allowing efficient cutting to occur while preventing direct exposure of the operator to injury risks.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses the bread's own movement and the guide fins to automatically position and guide it through the cutting zone, eliminating the need for the operator to manually handle the bread near the blade. The self-guiding mechanism maintains cutting efficiency while removing the operator from the hazardous zone.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enhances user safety by avoiding direct contact with bread, maintains hygiene, and reduces environmental crumb dispersal, while allowing for efficient and precise slicing of bread over its entire length and desired width.
Implementation Method 1
a circular blade (8) for cutting, said blade being capable of rotating on itself under the impulse of a motor (not shown) fixed on said axis (9) so as to drive the rotation of the blade in question in the direction indicated by the arrow
Implementation Method 2
a guide means comprising several portions of additional walls attached to the inside of the housing, one of these portions possibly being opposite the slot, each said additional wall being capable of elastic deformation
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The method of slicing a bread in oblong shape, comprises introducing the bread in a first compartment such as an overflow weir (5) of a casing (1) comprising side walls (2), and cutting the bread in a second cutting compartment of the casing. A longitudinal slit is rotationally mounted around external axis of the casing, and is arranged for passage of a circular blade, which turns in anti-clockwise direction. A unit is arranged for guiding the bread during the rotation of the blade. The bread undergoes movement along its total or partial length by applying a drive force in the blade. The method of slicing a bread in oblong shape, comprises introducing the bread in a first compartment such as an overflow weir (5) of a casing (1) comprising side walls (2), and cutting the bread in a second cutting compartment of the casing. A longitudinal slit is rotationally mounted around external axis of the casing, and is arranged for passage of a circular blade, which turns in anti-clockwise direction. A unit is arranged for guiding the bread during the rotation of the blade. The bread undergoes movement along its total or partial length by applying a drive force in the blade. The distance inside the casing between ends of the blade is adapted by modifying the position of the guiding unit and/or support axis of the blade. The position of the guiding unit is modified by displacing it inside the casing according to the perpendicular axis of the blade. The position of the support axis of the blade is changed by moving the external axis of the casing from a distal end to a proximal end position and vice versa. An independent claim is included for a device for slicing a bread in oblong shape.