Kitchen Appliance Water-Loss Sensor for Automated Meat Cooking Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing kitchen appliances struggle to control the cooking process of meat products effectively, leading to nutrient loss and human error in achieving desired cooking temperatures and textures, especially when high temperatures are required for browning and flavoring, while ensuring safety from bacterial survival.
Innovation Solution
A kitchen appliance equipped with a heating element, a sensor for detecting water loss from the meat product's contact surface, and a controller that processes sensor signals to generate control signals for adjusting cooking temperature and flipping the meat product, minimizing nutrient loss and human error through automated cooking processes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If high temperatures are used for cooking the meat product, then browning and flavoring are improved, but nutrient loss increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooking process alternates between high-temperature phases (for browning and flavoring) and lower-temperature phases (for nutrient preservation). The controller periodically adjusts the heating element to create cycles of searing followed by gentler cooking, achieving both Maillard reactions and nutrient retention through time-varying temperature control.
Solution Approach 2:
The appliance pre-heats the cooking surface to a high temperature before the meat product is placed, enabling immediate browning and flavor development. This preliminary high-temperature action occurs only at the surface level, while the interior remains protected from excessive heat, thus achieving flavor enhancement without proportional nutrient loss.
2Reliability
If the meat product is cooked thoroughly to ensure safety, then bacterial survival is prevented, but cooking time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The high-temperature pre-heating of the cooking surface performs preliminary cooking action on the surface regions first, creating a protective layer and reducing the time needed for heat penetration to the core. This preliminary surface treatment accelerates the overall cooking process while ensuring safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller dynamically changes temperature parameters during cooking - starting with high temperatures for surface treatment and browning, then adjusting to optimized lower temperatures for even heat distribution to the core. This parameter variation ensures thorough cooking for safety while minimizing total cooking time compared to consistently low-temperature methods.
3Ease of operation
If the cooking process is manually controlled, then flexibility is maintained, but human error increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor continuously monitors water loss from the meat product surface and provides feedback to the controller. The controller uses this feedback to automatically adjust heating power and timing, ensuring consistent cooking results without human error. The feedback loop maintains optimal cooking conditions by detecting when the meat reaches desired doneness based on water loss characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
The appliance performs self-monitoring and self-adjustment of the cooking process through the sensor-controller system. The system automatically detects cooking status via water loss measurement and adjusts parameters without user intervention, eliminating human error while maintaining cooking flexibility through programmable profiles for different meat types and desired doneness levels.
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 appliance ensures precise control over the cooking process, reducing nutrient loss and human error by monitoring water loss parameters to adjust cooking conditions, achieving desired cooking characteristics and safety standards.
Implementation Method 1
a heating element adapted to heat a medium for transferring heat to the meat product
Implementation Method 2
a sensor for detecting loss of water from a contact surface of the meat product with the medium
Data Source
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AI summary
A kitchen appliance (10) is disclosed for cooking a meat product (1). The kitchen appliance comprises a heating element (11) adapted to heat a medium (13) for transferring heat to the meat product; a sensor (15, 25) for detecting loss of water from a contact surface of the meat product with the medium; and a controller (17) conductively coupled to the sensor. The controller is adapted to process a sensor signal produced by the sensor; and generate a control signal indicative of the meat product reaching a defined cooking state in response to the processed sensor signal being indicative of a loss of water associated with the desired cooking state from the contact surface of the meat product. A method of monitoring cooking of a meat product by such a kitchen appliance is also disclosed.