Burger Press Plunger and Lifter Shape for Even Cooking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing burger presses produce a disk-shaped form that is not ideal for cooking, limiting the cooking efficiency and quality of formed burgers.
Innovation Solution
A burger press design featuring a base with upward extending sidewalls, a lifter with a dome-shaped central portion, and a plunger with a handle and surface features like ribs, which compresses the meat into a more suitable shape for cooking, allowing for improved cooking performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a traditional circular plunger is used to form burgers, then the burger press is simple in structure, but the burger shape is not ideal for cooking
Solution Approach 1:
The plunger surface is equipped with pressing elements (ribs, raised portions, or other surface features) at specific locations to create indentations in the burger. This local modification of the plunger surface allows the burger to have a cooked shape with improved heat distribution while keeping the overall press structure simple and manufacturable.
2Shape
If a plunger with surface features is used to form burgers, then the burger shape is improved for cooking, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The plunger surface is segmented into multiple independent pressing elements (ribs, raised portions, or other features) rather than using a complex overall plunger design. This segmentation allows for simpler manufacturing of individual elements while achieving the desired burger shape through their combined effect.
3Reliability
If a burger press with pressing elements is used, then the burger cooks more evenly, but the manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The pressing elements are designed with optimized parameters (spacing, height, shape) that can be adjusted to achieve the desired burger indentation pattern. By carefully selecting these parameters, the system achieves reliable even cooking while maintaining reasonable manufacturing precision requirements through standard fabrication capabilities.
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 new design enhances cooking efficiency by forming burgers into a shape that cooks more evenly and effectively, improving the overall cooking quality.
Implementation Method 1
compresses the burger between the plunger and the lifter
Implementation Method 2
a plurality of feet formed of a non-slipping material that provides frictional resistance to sliding movement
Data Source
AI summary
A burger press includes a base having upward extending sidewalls, a lifter sized and shaped to fit within the base, and a plunger having a handle attached to a first side of a generally planar plate that is sized and shaped to fit within the base. At least one of a second side of the plunger plate and the lifter are shaped to include a surface feature selected from a plurality of ribs and a raised portion, the plurality of ribs and the raised portion being structured to press into a burger as the burger is formed in the burger press by compressing the burger between the plunger and the lifter.