Food Processor with Sequential Grinding and Drying to Reduce Spoilage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Leftover food ingredients spoil quickly when exposed to external air or water, making them difficult to store for an extended period and often leading to food waste.
Innovation Solution
A food processor with a grinding unit, drying unit, and discharge unit that processes leftover ingredients into a powder form, allowing for sequential grinding, drying, and storage, along with a seasoning storage unit for added convenience.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If leftover food ingredients are stored in their original form, then they can be stored separately and used later, but they spoil faster when exposed to external air or water
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state of food ingredients from whole pieces to ground powder form, and removes moisture through drying. This parameter transformation (from solid pieces to dry powder) prevents spoilage by eliminating the conditions that promote bacterial growth and degradation when food is exposed to air and water.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs grinding and drying operations in advance on leftover food ingredients before storage. By pre-processing the food into a stable, dry powder form, the system eliminates the need for refrigeration or special storage conditions, allowing long-term storage at room temperature without spoilage.
2Loss of substance
If leftover food ingredients are not used within a short period, then they are thrown out as food waste, but processing them requires additional time and effort
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary grinding and drying of food ingredients immediately after they become leftovers, transforming them into a stable stored form. This advance processing eliminates future food waste while the automated sequential operations minimize the time investment required from the user.
Solution Approach 2:
The automated processing system performs the grinding, drying, and storage operations autonomously once activated. The machine handles the entire transformation process without requiring continuous user intervention, making the waste prevention process as convenient as simply adding ingredients to the device.
3Reliability
If food ingredients are ground and dried to extend storage life, then they can be stored for a long time, but the processing requires multiple sequential steps
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the grinding unit, drying unit, and storage container into a single integrated food processing device. The grinding chamber connects directly to the drying chamber, which connects to the storage container, allowing all operations to be performed sequentially within one device without requiring multiple separate appliances or manual transfer of materials.
Solution Approach 2:
While integrating multiple functions, the device maintains distinct functional zones: a grinding chamber with grinder and screen, a drying chamber with heating element and fan, and a storage container. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently while working together as a unified system.
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
Extends the storage life of food ingredients by transforming them into a usable powder form, minimizing food waste through efficient processing and storage.
Implementation Method 1
a heating device configured to supply heated air to the drying container
Implementation Method 2
a grinder rotatably disposed in the grinding container... a grinding motor configured to rotate the grinder
Data Source
AI summary
A food processor is disclosed and includes a main body, a grinding container mounted in a portion of the main body and forming a space therein, a grinder rotatably disposed in the grinding container, a grinding motor for rotating the grinder, a drying container mounted under the grinding container inside the main body and forming a space therein, a heating device for supplying heated air to the drying container, and a discharge container detachably mounted under the drying container inside the main body and forming a space therein. The grinding container has a surface facing the drying container that is openable toward the drying container, and the drying container includes one side surface formed so as to be openable toward the discharge container.