Food processing apparatus, control device and operating method
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Solution Overview
Problem
Convection-based food processing appliances, such as air fryers and convection ovens, are cumbersome for inexperienced users to operate, particularly in achieving a desired doneness level for fat-containing foods like meat, fish, and poultry, often resulting in over-cooked products that are dry and tough due to excessive fat and water content reduction.
Innovation Solution
A food processing apparatus equipped with a weight sensor and control device that monitors weight loss to estimate initial and resulting fat content, allowing for automatic or semi-automatic operation by correlating weight loss rates with cooking parameters like temperature and time to ensure optimal doneness and flavor, using empirical studies to establish relationships between weight loss characteristics and fat content changes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If convection-based cooking is used to reduce fat content, then healthiness is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates and cooking quality becomes inconsistent
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically monitors weight loss during cooking and uses this data to control the cooking process, eliminating the need for user expertise. The apparatus self-regulates cooking parameters based on real-time weight measurements, making the healthy cooking method accessible to inexperienced users while maintaining consistent results
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors weight loss during cooking and uses this feedback to automatically adjust or determine cooking time and temperature. This closed-loop control ensures that the fat reduction goal is achieved while maintaining cooking quality, resolving the contradiction between healthiness and ease of operation
2Loss of substance
If extended cooking time is used to achieve desired doneness, then fat content reduction is improved, but cooking quality deteriorates due to over-cooking
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses real-time weight monitoring to provide feedback on the cooking progress. By measuring the rate of weight loss, the system can determine when the desired fat reduction has been achieved and automatically stop or adjust the cooking process, preventing over-cooking while ensuring adequate fat removal
Solution Approach 2:
The system determines cooking parameters in advance based on the initial weight and type of food. This preliminary setup includes pre-calculated cooking time and temperature profiles that are designed to achieve optimal fat reduction while maintaining food quality, eliminating the need for extended trial-and-error cooking
3Manufacturing precision
If manual monitoring of cooking parameters is used, then cooking quality can be controlled, but ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus automatically performs all monitoring and control functions using weight sensors and embedded processing. The system independently determines cooking parameters and adjusts the cooking process without user intervention, providing expert-level cooking quality control while maintaining simple operation for inexperienced users
Solution Approach 2:
The system replaces manual monitoring and decision-making with automated electronic sensors and control algorithms. Weight sensors continuously measure food mass, and the control unit processes this data to automatically adjust cooking parameters, substituting mechanical user actions with electronic automation to achieve both precision and ease of use
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
Simplifies the operation of food processing appliances, ensuring consistent cooking quality and taste by accurately determining cooking time and temperature based on weight loss data, reducing the risk of over-cooking and maintaining a healthier fat content in prepared foods.
Implementation Method 1
a weight sensor (44) arranged to monitor the weight of the processed food substance
Implementation Method 2
a flow of hot air is then circulated around the food preparation chamber to heat the food
Implementation Method 3
Conventional ovens, which do not have fans, rely primarily on radiation from the oven walls
Implementation Method 4
the fans in convection ovens allow more heat to be transferred via convective heat transfer
Implementation Method 5
During the heating process, steam is generated from water contained in the food, which causes the pressure in the food preparation chamber to increase
Data Source
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AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a control device for a food processing apparatus, and to a food processing apparatus, the apparatus comprising a food processing compartment (3) for a food substance, a heating unit (15) arranged to apply a heating procedure to the food substance, a weight sensor (44) arranged to monitor the weight of the processed food substance, and a control device (40) that is arranged to obtain weight information for the food substance, compute a derivative signal that is indicative of a weight loss rate of the food substance, compute a characteristic value of the derivative signal, and in an initial stage of the heating procedure, based on the characteristic value, determine an estimate for an initial fat content of the food substance, for the ongoing heating procedure, and/or an estimate for a resulting fat content change for the food substance. The present disclosure further relates to a method of operating a food processing apparatus.