Dual-Platen No-Flip Flatbread Cooking With Uneven Heat Profiles

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional cooking devices for flat bread require flipping, which increases size and weight, making it impractical for compact portable appliances to cook both sides evenly without bulk.

Innovation Solution

A platen system with contiguous upper and lower platens, each with specific surface structures and heating mechanisms, allows for no-flip cooking by creating an uneven temperature profile, using conduction, convection, or radiation, and software-controlled movements to adapt to dough variations.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If flipping mechanism is added to cook both sides of flat bread, then cooking completeness is improved, but device size and weight increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecooking completenessVSAvoiddevice weight

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSWeight of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

Instead of flipping the dough product to cook both sides, the patent inverts the approach by having the dough remain stationary while both upper and lower platens move and cook simultaneously. The upper platen applies pressure and heat from above while the lower platen provides heat from below, eliminating the need for flipping mechanisms.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent makes both the upper and lower platens heating elements, allowing the system to cook both sides of the dough simultaneously without requiring separate flipping operations. This multi-functional heating approach ensures complete cooking while maintaining a compact, flip-free design.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Reliability

If flipping mechanism is added to cook both sides of flat bread, then cooking completeness is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecooking completenessVSAvoidmechanism complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent eliminates complex flipping mechanisms by inverting the conventional approach: instead of moving the dough to cook both sides, the system keeps the dough stationary and uses coordinated upper and lower platen movements to achieve cooking on both sides simultaneously, greatly simplifying the mechanism.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent combines the cooking functions for both sides of the dough into a single simultaneous operation. Both upper and lower platens are equipped with heating mechanisms and work together in one cooking cycle, eliminating the need for separate flipping and re-cooking steps.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

3Reliability

If conventional flipping method is used, then both sides can be cooked, but cooking time increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecooking completenessVSAvoidcooking time

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The patent enables continuous cooking action on both sides of the dough simultaneously. While conventional methods require sequential cooking (one side at a time with flipping in between), this system maintains continuous heat application to both surfaces at the same time, eliminating idle time during flipping transitions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #20Continuity of useful action

Solution Approach 2:

By inverting the conventional sequential cooking approach, the patent achieves parallel cooking of both sides. The upper platen presses and heats the top surface while the lower platen heats the bottom surface simultaneously, effectively doubling the cooking throughput without requiring flipping interruptions.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #13The other way round (Inversion)

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 efficient, compact, and even cooking of flat bread without flipping, replicating the uneven temperature profile of hand-rolled cooking, ensuring uniformity and speed in producing handmade-like flat bread.

Implementation Method 1

The heating means may be achieved using conductance, radiation and convection either individually or in combination

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectConduction: Conduction (thermal)

Implementation Method 2

The heating means may be achieved using conductance, radiation and convection either individually or in combination

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectRadiation: Thermal Radiation

Implementation Method 3

The heating means may be achieved using conductance, radiation and convection either individually or in combination

Methodology Applied

Scientific EffectConvection: Convection

Data Source

PatentUS9125421B2Platen apparatus, system and method for no-flip cooking mechanism for a food preparation appliance

Publication Date: 2015.09.08 ZIMPLISTIC

AI summary

The present invention is a cooking mechanism for a food preparation appliance which does not require any flipping of the dough product and achieves an irregular temperature profile during the cooking process. The platen system allows the flattened dough material to be transformed to flattened bread that is ready for consumption. The efficient platen system makes the automation and efficiency of the machine to increase and reduce the wait time for use rot get the cooked flattened bread. A system and method the apparatus functions and the response of the software to optimize cooking of the flat bread is dynamically adapted in response to variation flour quality, water content, and recipe selection (user input) by altering at least one of a distance, the sequence of movements and the temperature settings of the platens are performed.