Pivot Arm Lever Adjustment for Controlled Kitchen Appliance Movement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing food processors face inflexibility and complexity due to the spring force exerted on the pivoting arm, which can lead to uncontrolled movements and an inability to secure the arm in a vertical position, resulting in unreliable operation and storage issues.
Innovation Solution
A kitchen appliance with an adjustable lever device featuring an actuator that interacts with a ratchet mechanism and elastic spring, allowing for precise adjustment of the pivoting movement to compensate for manufacturing and assembly-related tolerances, ensuring consistent support and user-friendly operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a spring force is used to support the pivoting movement of the extension arm, then the arm can be supported during movement, but the spring force exerts a corresponding torque that prevents the arm from being secured in a vertical position and leads to uncontrolled movements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the harmful torque effect from the spring force by introducing a separate damping means that counteracts the spring force. This allows the spring to provide necessary support during movement while the damping means prevents uncontrolled movements and enables secure positioning in vertical position.
Solution Approach 2:
The damping means acts as an intermediary between the spring force and the pivoting arm. It mediates the interaction by counteracting the spring force to prevent uncontrolled movements while allowing controlled pivoting, thus resolving the contradiction between support and control.
2Reliability
If a hydraulic damper with different degrees of damping is used to counteract spring force, then uncontrolled movements can be prevented, but the construction becomes inflexible and complicated
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using a complex hydraulic damper with adjustable damping parameters, the patent employs a simpler damping means that provides the necessary counteraction to spring force. The design focuses on achieving the required damping effect through a more straightforward mechanical construction, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining reliability.
3Volume of moving object
If the extension arm is mounted pivotably on the base housing to enable space-saving storage, then the appliance can be stored compactly, but component tolerances and friction effects prevent precise and safe support of the pivoting movement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an adjustable lever device that can be pre-adjusted to compensate for component tolerances and friction effects before the pivoting arm is used. This preliminary adjustment ensures that the lever device provides precise and safe support for the pivoting movement, maintaining reliability while enabling space-saving storage through the pivotable mounting.
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 adjustable lever device enhances the reliability and user-friendliness of the kitchen appliance by allowing fine-tuning of the pivoting movement, ensuring secure and controlled operation, and enabling space-saving storage.
Implementation Method 1
a force-active means, in particular an elastic spring (25), with the actuator (12) interacting with the elastic spring (25) in an engagement area (26)
Implementation Method 2
the bearing point can exhibit different friction behavior depending on the components used
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention discloses a kitchen appliance (1) having a base body (10), a pivot arm (11) which is arranged on the base body (10) such that it can pivot, and a lever device (20) for assisting a pivoting movement of the pivot arm (11), wherein a means for adjusting (17) the lever device (20) is provided, said means being designed to set the extent of assistance for the pivoting movement.