Clamshell Folding Camping Stove With Split Manifold Fuel Feed
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Solution Overview
Problem
Larger portable stoves are bulky, require a separate table for use, and have exposed components that need protection during storage and transport, limiting their convenience and portability.
Innovation Solution
A folding camping stove with a clamshell configuration, separate fuel trains, and a regulator and manifold assembly that splits gas to opposite sides, allowing the stove to fold compactly without a flexible fuel line, and features like offset cooking grates and protective clamshell design for control knobs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If a suitcase-style portable stove is used, then the stove can be folded into a box configuration, but it remains bulky for travel and storage
Solution Approach 1:
The stove is divided into two separate clamshells that fold outward from a central pivot point, allowing each half to be independently positioned. This segmentation enables a more compact folded configuration while maintaining cooking functionality when deployed.
Solution Approach 2:
The stove transitions from a flat box configuration to a three-dimensional clamshell structure that folds outward in multiple directions. This dimensional change allows the stove to achieve a more compact profile when folded while providing adequate cooking surface area when open.
2Ease of operation
If a flexible fuel line is used to extend through pivot points, then the stove can be folded, but manufacturing complexity increases and fuel loss may occur
Solution Approach 1:
The fuel line is extracted from the pivot point area and positioned along the outer edges of the clamshells. This extraction eliminates the need for flexible fuel lines to pass through rotating joints, simplifying the fuel delivery system and reducing the risk of fuel loss during folding operations.
Solution Approach 2:
A manifold assembly acts as an intermediary device that distributes fuel from a single source to multiple burners located on different clamshells. This mediator eliminates the need for complex flexible fuel line configurations by providing a centralized fuel distribution point.
3Ease of operation
If control knobs and fuel line attachments extend outside the box configuration, then the stove functions properly, but these components need protection during storage and transport
Solution Approach 1:
The control knobs and fuel line attachments are positioned within the boundaries of the clamshell structure when folded. The clamshells nest together in a compact configuration that protects exposed components from damage during storage and transport, while still allowing proper functionality when deployed.
Solution Approach 2:
The clamshell structure provides protective coverage for control knobs and fuel line attachments before folding occurs. The design anticipates potential damage risks by positioning these components within the protective envelope of the folded clamshells, cushioning them from external impacts during transport.
4Device complexity
If a single regulator system provides fuel to two opposite sides, then the system is simplified, but fuel pressure management becomes more challenging
Solution Approach 1:
A manifold assembly serves as an intermediary between the single regulator system and multiple burners. The manifold distributes fuel pressure evenly to burners on opposite sides of the stove, maintaining fuel pressure stability while allowing a simplified single-point regulation system.
Solution Approach 2:
The regulator system is positioned at a specific location (one end of the stove) while the manifold distributes fuel to multiple locations. This local quality approach allows centralized pressure regulation while providing reliable fuel delivery to distributed burners through the manifold's branching structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A folding camping stove. The folding camping stove may be formed in a clamshell configuration, having two clamshells that fold outward to expose at least two cooking surfaces. Two pivot points are provided on the folding camping stove. Each of the clamshells folds about a separate pivot point. Fuel trains for the clamshells are positioned at the pivot points. A regulator and manifold assembly is provided for providing gas from a canister to the folding stove. The manifold splits the gas coming from the regulator and directs it to opposite sides of the folding stove. Each of the clamshells includes a cooking grate. The cooking grates appear symmetrical from a top view, but are slightly offset relative to one another so that the clamshells may be folded inward relative to each other and the grates may nest together.