Invertible Tray Mechanism for Simulated Cooking State Change
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing model toys that simulate kitchen products, such as ovens, do not allow users to easily simulate the state change of food before and after cooking, as the process of cooking is time-consuming and does not allow for immediate visualization of the transformation.
Innovation Solution
A model toy and cooking toy design that includes a main body portion with a standing wall portion and a tray with a placement surface, where the standing wall portion has a cutout portion in an arc shape to facilitate the inversion of a figure body on the tray, allowing users to easily simulate the state change of food by pushing the tray into the oven and then drawing it out.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If a simulated bread is introduced into a simulated oven to cook, then the simulated bread can be transformed to imitate cooking, but it takes time from introduction to acquisition of the simulated bread after cooking
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies inversion by making the tray itself invertible rather than transforming the simulated bread. The tray includes a first tray body and a second tray body that can flip between positions, with the figure body (simulated bread) placed on different surfaces (first surface or second surface) to represent before-cooking and after-cooking states. This inverted approach eliminates the need for time-consuming transformation of the food model while still simulating the cooking process visually.
2Ease of operation
If the tray is made invertible to show before and after cooking states, then the cooking process can be visualized immediately, but the device structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the tray into distinct components: a first tray body with a first surface for before-cooking state, a second tray body with a second surface for after-cooking state, and a flipping mechanism connecting them. This segmentation allows each part to have a specific function while maintaining overall simplicity. The figure body is also segmented into a first body portion and second body portion that correspond to different cooking states.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs nesting by placing the figure body (simulated bread) within the tray structure, where the first body portion is disposed on the first surface and the second body portion is disposed on the second surface. The flipping mechanism is nested within the tray assembly, allowing the entire invertible structure to be compact while providing the cooking simulation function.
Data Source
AI summary
A model toy includes: a main body portion; and a tray including a placement surface, the tray being stored inside the main body portion and configured to be drawn out from the main body portion. The main body portion includes a standing wall portion extending along a draw-out direction of the tray from an inner side of the main body portion to a position on or above the placement surface. The standing wall portion has a cutout portion that is cut out in an arc shape to face a draw-out side of the tray.