Multi-Point Meat Thermometer for Center Temperature Estimation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing meat thermometers struggle to accurately estimate the center temperature of meat, leading to inconsistent culinary quality and potential hygiene issues, while being costly to manufacture.
Innovation Solution
An intelligent meat thermometer with a stainless steel probe of specific thickness and sensor spacing, utilizing at least three sensors to measure temperatures at multiple points, including one on the far side of the center, and an external unit for data calculation and display, employing Lagrange polynomials or Newtonian algorithms to estimate the center temperature.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If a thin-walled stainless steel probe is used to minimize heat conduction, then measurement accuracy improves, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent specifies a precise thickness range (0.05-0.30 mm) for the stainless steel probe wall, optimizing the balance between heat conduction minimization and manufacturing feasibility. This parameter optimization allows the probe to be thin enough to reduce heat conduction errors while remaining manufacturable with standard tolerances.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different material properties to different parts of the probe system: the probe wall uses thin stainless steel for thermal isolation, while the sensor housing and connection elements use thicker, more robust materials for mechanical strength and manufacturing ease, allowing each component to be optimized for its specific function.
2Device complexity
If multiple temperature sensors are placed close together to reduce probe size, then device complexity decreases, but heat conduction errors increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent specifies an optimal distance range between sensors (5-20 mm) that balances probe compactness with thermal isolation. This parameter optimization ensures sensors are close enough to maintain a simple probe structure but far enough apart to minimize heat conduction interference between them.
Solution Approach 2:
The thin stainless steel probe wall acts as a thermal intermediary that isolates each sensor from the others, allowing them to be positioned relatively close together while maintaining measurement independence. The probe material serves as a thermal barrier that prevents heat conduction errors between adjacent sensors.
3Measurement precision
If extrapolation from polynomial functions is used to estimate center temperature, then measurement precision improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements calculation units (either in the thermometer device itself or in external computing devices) that automatically perform polynomial interpolation and extrapolation calculations using the measured temperature data. This self-service approach enables sophisticated mathematical processing without requiring manual intervention, achieving high center temperature estimation accuracy while keeping the user interface simple.
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
Achieves high precision in estimating the center temperature, reducing manufacturing costs and minimizing heat conduction errors, ensuring accurate cooking and hygiene standards.
Implementation Method 1
measure the temperature at three or more points in the meat by at least one temperature sensor at each point
Implementation Method 2
heat conduction along the walls of the probe
Data Source
AI summary
An intelligent meat thermometer with the possibility of performing temperature measurements at three or more points in the meat, where at least one is measured on the far side of the center of the meat opposite the point of insertion, so that the center is between two points of measurement after insertion, so that the center temperature can be estimated, the meat thermometer, furthermore, being designed to be cheap to manufacture, and it can include an external unit for doing calculations, possibly via wireless connection, on received measurement data, and displaying of these calculations, and setting of parameters for use with the calculations.