Culinary Slicer Worm Drive Thickness Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing culinary slicers face challenges in adjusting food thickness over a wide range without increasing the slicer's length, as they either require excessive movement of the adjustment body or necessitate frequent screw tightening and loosening, making the process cumbersome.
Innovation Solution
A culinary slicer design featuring a movable first receiving part with a deflection mechanism and a worm drive mechanism that allows for vertical translation of the receiving part, enabling adjustable thickness without the need for additional securing means, using inclined faces and engagement parts to ensure stable operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the angle of inclination of the two facing inclined faces is increased to allow wide range adjustment without increasing slicer length, then the adjustable range is improved, but the first receiving part moves downward during use due to food pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The worm gear mechanism automatically locks the adjustment body in position due to its self-locking property, eliminating the need for separate securing means. The mechanism serves itself by using the adjustment force to create a locking condition that maintains position stability during food slicing operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the mechanical parameter of the transmission mechanism from direct inclined face contact to worm gear engagement. This parameter change enables the system to achieve both wide adjustment range and position stability simultaneously, as the worm gear's self-locking characteristic prevents backward movement under load while allowing easy adjustment during idle periods.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a screw is used to secure the first receiving part to prevent downward movement, then position stability is improved, but the operation becomes cumbersome requiring frequent tightening and loosening
Solution Approach 1:
The worm gear mechanism automatically locks the adjustment body in position due to its self-locking property, eliminating the need for separate securing means. The mechanism serves itself by using the adjustment force to create a locking condition that maintains position stability during food slicing operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the securing function from a separate screw mechanism and integrates it into the worm gear transmission itself. The self-locking characteristic of the worm gear inherently provides the securing function, eliminating the need for additional securing components and simplifying the overall structure.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the length of the slicer is increased to allow greater travel of the adjustment body, then the adjustable range is improved, but the slicer becomes unduly long
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the mechanical parameter of the transmission mechanism from direct inclined face contact to worm gear engagement. This parameter change enables the system to achieve both wide adjustment range and position stability simultaneously, as the worm gear's self-locking characteristic prevents backward movement under load while allowing easy adjustment during idle periods.
Solution Approach 2:
The worm gear mechanism transforms the adjustment motion from linear sliding along a long inclined face to rotational motion of the adjustment body. This dimensional change allows the same adjustment range to be achieved in a more compact configuration, reducing the overall length of the slicer while maintaining full adjustability.
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
Enables precise adjustment of food thickness without the slicer becoming excessively long and eliminates the need for frequent screw adjustments, providing a simpler and more stable slicing experience.
Implementation Method 1
a means for moving the adjustment member is a worm provided on a drive part
Implementation Method 2
a deflection mechanism is present between the adjustment member and the first receiving part, for converting the motion of the adjustment member into motion that changes the height of the first receiving part with respect to the slicing blade, the deflection mechanism comprising inclined faces provided on the first receiving part and the adjustment member
Data Source
AI summary
A slicer with which the thickness of sliced food can be varied includes a movable receiving part that receives sliding food and is subjected to downward pressure from the food, the movable receiving part not moving downward due to the pressure even if a means for securing the receiving part in place is not separately provided. An adjustment member for moving a vertically mobile first receiving part is mounted in a frame of the slicer so as to be forwardly and rearwardly movable. A means for moving the adjustment member is a worm that is provided on a drive shaft. A deflection mechanism is present between the adjustment member and the first receiving part which converts the forward and rearward motion of the adjustment member into vertical motion of the first receiving part.