Garlic Press Scraper Mechanism for Complete Clove Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing garlic crushing devices fail to efficiently crush and retain garlic cloves, often leaving behind uncrushed portions and requiring manual effort to extract the crushed garlic.
Innovation Solution
A garlic press with pivotally attached handles, a hopper, and a piston with protrusions and holes, along with a scraper mechanism that rotates to collect and hold the crushed garlic, ensuring complete crushing and easy extraction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a traditional garlic crushing device is used, then the device structure is simple, but the crushing efficiency is low and uncrushed portions remain
Solution Approach 1:
The crushing surface is segmented into multiple protrusions that correspond to multiple holes in the plate, creating multiple crushing points simultaneously. This segmentation allows the garlic to be crushed more thoroughly and efficiently, reducing uncrushed portions while maintaining a relatively simple overall device structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The piston with protrusions is nested within the hopper, and the plate with holes is positioned within the cavity. The scraper is nested within the hopper and can move in and out. This nested arrangement allows multiple functional elements to be integrated in a compact design, improving crushing efficiency without significantly increasing device complexity.
2Ease of operation
If manual extraction of crushed garlic is required, then the device structure is simple, but manual effort is increased and time is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The scraper is designed to automatically collect and hold the crushed garlic within its concave shape after pressing. The scraper can be rotated to a position where it holds the crushed garlic, making it ready for easy removal. This self-service mechanism reduces manual effort and time required for garlic extraction.
Solution Approach 2:
The scraper is configured to rotate along with the piston after initial rotational travel. This dynamic movement allows the scraper to automatically position itself to collect and hold the crushed garlic, improving ease of operation and reducing the time needed for garlic extraction without requiring additional manual manipulation.
3Ease of repair
If the piston remains in the cavity after pressing, then the device structure is simple, but cleaning becomes difficult and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The protrusion plate is configured to rotate upward with the piston after an initial amount of rotational travel. This dynamic movement automatically positions the protrusion plate in a more accessible location for cleaning, making it easier to remove and clean the plate without disassembling the entire device, thereby reducing cleaning time and effort.
Solution Approach 2:
The scraper is designed to scrape along the lower surface of the cavity and abut the holes that receive the projections, removing crushed garlic remnants before the piston is fully retracted. This preliminary cleaning action reduces the amount of residue that would otherwise require manual cleaning, easing the cleaning process and reducing time required.
4Ease of operation
If a scraper mechanism is added to collect crushed garlic, then the ease of garlic collection is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The scraper is integrated with the piston assembly, sharing the same pivot point and rotational mechanism. The scraper and piston work together as a combined unit, where the scraper's rotation is coupled with the piston's movement. This merging of functions improves garlic collection ease while minimizing the increase in device complexity by utilizing existing structural elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The scraper serves multiple functions: it scrapes the lower surface of the cavity to collect crushed garlic, holds the collected garlic in its concave shape, and can be rotated to a convenient position for removal. This multi-functionality improves ease of garlic collection without requiring multiple separate components, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity.
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 device effectively crushes garlic cloves, ensuring all portions are pressed through the holes and retained for easy collection, reducing manual effort and waste.
Implementation Method 1
the piston includes an upper cavity shaped to receive and retain garlic passing from the hopper into the cavity as the garlic is pressed
Implementation Method 2
the projections are pushed through the holes, pushing portions of garlic through the holes
Implementation Method 3
the scraper is sized and configured to scrape along a lower surface of the cavity, abutting the plurality of holes that receive the projections
Data Source
AI summary
Described herein is a garlic press which includes a pair of handles joined together at a pivot point so that the handles may be rotated apart and towards each other. A first (piston) handle includes a hopper for receiving a garlic clove to be pressed, while the opposing second (hopper) handle is formed with a complementary piston that is sized and configured to be forced into the cavity to crush the clove of garlic.