Dish Stacker with Ring and Leg Design for Stable Vertical Stacking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing dish stacking solutions are unstable, leading to easy toppling or spilling when carried or jostled, as they fail to provide sufficient support for vertically spaced dishes.
Innovation Solution
A dish stacker and holder stand system featuring legged stands that interpose between dishes, providing vertical clearance and stability, with each stand comprising a ring and elongate legs that fit around the bottom dish to prevent lateral movement and tipping, allowing for a freestanding stack that can be easily carried without collapsing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If dishes are stacked vertically without support structures, then space efficiency and presentation are improved, but stability deteriorates causing easy toppling or spilling
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces intermediary support structures (rims and feet) between the dishes to maintain vertical spacing and stability. The lower dish's upturned rim and the lower feet act as mediators that prevent direct contact between dishes while providing structural support, allowing the stack to remain stable without collapsing or toppling.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the vertical space between dishes by introducing discrete support elements (upturned rims and feet) at specific intervals. This segmentation creates distinct functional zones: the upturned rim provides lateral support, the feet provide vertical spacing, and the gaps between them allow serving access, thereby maintaining both stability and functionality.
2Volume of moving object
If dishes are stacked close together for space efficiency, then vertical clearance is reduced, but serving access deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating different structural characteristics at different locations. The upturned rim provides lateral support at the perimeter, while the feet provide vertical spacing at specific points, and the gaps between these elements create open spaces for serving access. This localized differentiation of structural properties allows simultaneous achievement of stability and serving accessibility.
3Ease of manufacture
If no lateral restraint is provided, then ease of assembly is improved, but lateral movement and tipping increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates equipotential stability by designing the upturned rim and feet to contact the upper dish at multiple points around its perimeter. This distributed contact creates equivalent support conditions at different locations, preventing lateral movement in any direction and providing uniform stability without requiring complex restraint mechanisms.
Data Source
AI summary
An innovative dish stacker and holder. The dish stacker and holder includes a ring and legs connected to the ring, the legs extending downwardly from the ring. The legs are operative to stand flush on a floor surface of a dish below the stacker and holder, and the ring is operative to receive a downwardly extending base of a dish above the stacker. A ledge connected to ring extends below and overlaps a portion of an area circumscribed by the ring. The ledge is operative to engage and support a bottom side of a dish base inserted through an opening in the area circumscribed by the ring.