Food Cutting Knife Geometry for Comminution and Emulsification
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cutting machine blades for food production, particularly for meat and fish, are inefficient in achieving the optimal balance between comminution and emulsification, leading to issues such as protein denaturation, particle size inconsistencies, and quality defects in the final product due to insufficient protein binding and excessive heating.
Innovation Solution
A cutting machine blade design featuring parallel side surfaces, inclined striking edges, and functional elements like projections, recesses, and openings that enhance comminution and emulsification by promoting turbulent flow and controlled particle size, reducing processing time, and improving protein binding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional steel knives are used for cutting food, then they provide basic cutting functionality, but they promote bacterial growth and contaminate food due to scratches and dents accumulating bacteria
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs disposable cutting blades made from biodegradable materials that are discarded after a single use or after a short service life. This eliminates the accumulation of bacteria in scratches and dents that occur with reusable steel knives, as each new blade starts with a clean, scratch-free surface. The disposable nature ensures food safety without requiring complex cleaning or maintenance protocols.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the material parameters from conventional steel to biodegradable materials such as plant-based polymers or biocomposites. This material substitution fundamentally alters the surface properties, making them resistant to bacterial adhesion and enabling safe disposal after use, thereby resolving the bacterial contamination issue while maintaining cutting functionality.
2Productivity
If reusable steel knives are used, then they provide durable cutting service, but they require frequent replacement due to dulling and damage
Solution Approach 1:
By using inexpensive biodegradable materials for blade construction, the patent makes disposable blades economically viable. Although each blade has a short service life, the low cost and rapid replaceability minimize productivity loss, as there is no downtime for cleaning, sharpening, or complex maintenance associated with reusable knives.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-stages multiple disposable blades ready for immediate replacement. When one blade becomes dull or damaged, a fresh blade is already available, eliminating any interruption in the cutting process. This preliminary preparation ensures continuous productivity without the time loss associated with maintenance or sharpening reusable blades.
3Strength
If traditional knife materials are used, then they provide structural strength, but they are not biodegradable and create environmental waste
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs composite materials combining biodegradable polymers with reinforcing fibers or fillers to achieve the necessary structural strength for cutting. These biocomposites maintain adequate durability for single-use applications while ensuring complete biodegradability after disposal, thus eliminating the environmental waste problem associated with traditional steel or plastic knives.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention fundamentally changes the material composition from non-biodegradable steel or plastic to biodegradable alternatives. This parameter change in material science properties enables the blade to maintain sufficient strength during its brief service life while automatically decomposing after use, converting from an environmental pollutant to a naturally recyclable substance.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a cutting machine knife for food production, having a cutting body and a fastening section for fastening the cutting machine knife to a rotary drive, the cutting body having two side faces, which run at least approximately parallel to each other, and at least one cutting edge on a front edge, in relation to an intended rotation direction during operation, of the cutting body. According to the invention, the cutting body also has at least one striking edge, which is formed by an end face, which is inclined by an angle between 60° and 120°, preferably between 70° and 90°, relative to a rotation plane of the cutting machine knife and extends transversely to the rotation plane of the cutting machine knife in relation to the intended rotation direction between two flat faces which run at an angle between 0° and 35° to the rotation plane, wherein a transition from the end face to the flat face trailing this end face in the rotation direction is sharp-edged.