Electric kettle
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electric kettles face challenges with heat insulation performance, power consumption, ease of cleaning, and aesthetic appeal, particularly due to complex structures and material limitations such as plastic components that can contaminate water and compromise hygiene.
Innovation Solution
An electric kettle design featuring a double wall structure with an outer and inner body made of stainless steel, a simple upper body connection, and a handle with integrated control elements, enhancing heat insulation, reducing power consumption, and improving assembly and appearance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a plastic material is used for the main body to facilitate internal structure arrangement, then manufacturing ease is improved, but hygiene is deteriorated due to dissolution of harmful components and fine plastic particles in hot water
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a double wall structure where the inner body is made of food-grade stainless steel (hygienic material) and the outer body is made of plastic (easy to manufacture). This composite material approach allows each material to fulfill its optimal function: stainless steel ensures hygiene by preventing dissolution in hot water, while plastic provides manufacturing flexibility for internal structure arrangement.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a glass material is used for the main body to improve hygiene and appearance, then hygiene and aesthetics are improved, but durability is worsened due to vulnerability to impact damage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces glass with food-grade stainless steel for the inner body, maintaining hygiene properties while dramatically improving impact resistance. Stainless steel provides both the hygienic surface required for food contact and the mechanical strength to withstand drops and impacts, eliminating the fragility issue of glass.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If stainless steel is used for the main body to improve hygiene and durability, then hygiene and strength are improved, but manufacturing complexity increases due to difficulty in molding complex shapes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the kettle body into two separate components: an inner body made of stainless steel and an outer body made of plastic. The inner body is a simple cylindrical shape that is easy to manufacture with stainless steel, while the outer body can be molded into complex shapes with plastic. This segmentation allows each material to be used where it is most effective.
Solution Approach 2:
By combining stainless steel inner body with plastic outer body, the patent achieves both hygiene/durability benefits of stainless steel and manufacturing flexibility of plastic. The complex shapes, handles, and spouts are formed in the plastic outer body, while the stainless steel inner body maintains its simple, easy-to-manufacture cylindrical form.
4Temperature
If a double wall structure is used to improve heat insulation, then heat insulation performance is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The double wall structure is achieved by segmenting the body into inner and outer bodies with a gap between them. This gap creates air pockets that provide thermal insulation, reducing heat transfer from the hot water to the exterior. The segmentation approach integrates heat insulation functionality into the basic structure without adding separate insulation components.
Solution Approach 2:
The combination of stainless steel inner body, air gap, and plastic outer body creates a composite structure that provides thermal insulation. The stainless steel conducts heat from water, the air gap insulates, and the plastic outer body provides additional insulation and structural support, achieving heat insulation through material composition rather than complex added components.
5Ease of manufacture
If connecting portions are formed on the outer surface of the body to join components, then assembly is achieved, but appearance is worsened and cleaning difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The inner body is nested within the outer body, with the inner body's outer surface fitting into a cavity formed in the outer body. This nesting arrangement allows the inner body to be securely held without requiring external connecting portions or fasteners on the outer surface. The connection is achieved through the nested geometry, maintaining a smooth external appearance.
Solution Approach 2:
By dividing the body into separable inner and outer components that connect through nesting, the patent enables easy assembly and disassembly for cleaning while maintaining aesthetic appearance. The segmented design with internal nesting connection avoids external fasteners, screws, or clips that would mar the appearance and create cleaning difficulties.
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 design improves heat insulation performance, reduces power consumption, simplifies assembly and cleaning, and enhances the overall appearance by using a unified metal material for the body and base, ensuring better hygiene and user convenience.
Implementation Method 1
a body having a double wall structure formed by an outer body and an inner body... improves heat insulation performance
Data Source
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AI summary
An electric kettle includes a body made of a metal material, having a vertically opened cylindrical shape, and comprising an outer body forming an appearance and an inner body disposed inside the outer body, an upper body mounted on an upper end of the body and extending upward along the upper end of the body, a lid inserted into the upper body to open or close an opened upper surface of the body, a spout protruding from one side of the upper body to pour water, a handle connected to one side of the upper body facing the spout, a heating module provided inside the body to heat water contained in the inner body, and a base on which a lower surface of the body is seated and which supplies power to the heating module in a state in which the body is seated. The upper body includes a body top made of the same material as that of the body and extending upward along the upper end of the body, and a seating member configured to connect an inner surface of the body top and an inner surface of the inner body such that the upper body and the body are connected in an inside.