Grooved Noodles Boiling Time Reduction via Capillary Water Absorption
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional noodles without grooves require a cooking time of 10 minutes, and even grooved noodles only reduce this time by half, with further reductions in boiling time yet to be achieved while maintaining appearance, taste, and texture.
Innovation Solution
The development of grooved noodles with a specific cross-sectional design featuring multiple V-shaped or U-shaped grooves that absorb water to swell and fill, reducing the overall thickness and boiling time to one-third or less of non-grooved noodles, while maintaining a circular or elliptical shape and favorable texture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If grooves are added to reduce boiling time, then boiling time is shortened, but the structural strength and integrity of the noodle may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating grooves with specific geometric characteristics (depth, width, shape) at specific locations on the noodle surface. The grooves are designed with controlled dimensions where the depth is 0.1-0.5 times the noodle diameter and width is 0.05-0.2 times the diameter, creating localized water absorption zones that shorten boiling time without compromising overall structural integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The grooves create a porous-like structure on the noodle surface that facilitates water penetration. The interconnected groove system allows water to rapidly enter the noodle interior through capillary action, effectively reducing boiling time while the solid matrix between grooves maintains structural strength.
2Loss of time
If deeper grooves are formed to further shorten boiling time, then boiling time is reduced, but the noodle band strength decreases and bending occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent systematically optimizes groove parameters including depth (0.1-0.5× diameter), width (0.05-0.2× diameter), and shape (V-shaped, U-shaped, or rectangular) to achieve the desired balance. By controlling these parameters within specific ranges, the patent reduces boiling time to 1/3 or less of non-grooved noodles while preventing excessive weakening of the noodle structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The grooves are designed to penetrate partially into the noodle cross-section rather than completely through it. This partial penetration is sufficient to create effective water absorption channels for rapid cooking, while leaving enough solid material to maintain structural stability and prevent noodle band bending during processing.
3Productivity
If multiple grooves are added to reduce boiling time, then cooking efficiency improves, but the manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple groove formation functions into a single extrusion die structure. The die incorporates multiple projection elements that simultaneously create all required grooves during the extrusion process, eliminating the need for separate grooving operations and keeping manufacturing complexity manageable while achieving high cooking efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The extrusion die is designed with universal functionality to create both the noodle cross-sectional shape and the groove patterns in a single operation. The die structure serves multiple purposes: forming the basic noodle geometry, creating groove projections, and controlling groove dimensions, thereby simplifying the overall manufacturing process despite the complexity of the groove pattern.
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 grooved noodles achieve a significantly shortened boiling time of 1 to 3 minutes for diameters ranging from 1.5 to 1.7 mm, maintaining comparable appearance, taste, and texture to non-grooved noodles, with grooves fully closing during cooking.
Implementation Method 1
The grooves are filled with water by capillary action when the noodle is placed in water for cooking
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3~4
Figure 5~6
AI summary
It is intended to provide noodles which require a highly shortened boiling time compared with non-grooved noodles and are still comparable to non-grooved noodles in appearance, taste, and texture after cooking. The above described problem is solved by providing grooved noodles in which a maximum diameter in the cross-section of a single noodle band is from 1.2 mm to 3.0 mm and the major outer shape thereof is an arc of a circle or ellipse, or the cross-section of a single noodle band has a rectangular or substantially rectangular shape, wherein: said noodles have a plurality of grooves formed along the longitudinal direction of said noodle band; and the total area of the section of said plurality of grooves in the cross-section of said noodle band is 20 to 50% of the area of the circle or ellipse formed by the major outer shape of the cross-section of said noodle band, or the rectangular or substantially rectangular shape of said cross-section.