Pivotable Chopper Blade Assembly for Low-Force Uniform Comminution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing food choppers struggle with efficiently processing hard, fibrous, and wet materials, often resulting in unsatisfactory chopping results and requiring excessive force, with limitations in handling large quantities and achieving uniform comminution.
Innovation Solution
A processing unit with pivotable blades arranged on a support shaft, allowing for adjustable pivot angles and the use of deflectors to ensure effective cutting and material conveyance, combined with a cord pull mechanism for efficient operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a conventional chopper with a pushbutton and plunger is used, then the device is simple to operate, but it requires great force to chop hard vegetables and cannot effectively process fibrous vegetables
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the dynamics principle by making the blade holder pivotable relative to the support shaft, allowing the blade to dynamically adjust its position during operation. The blade holder can pivot within a limited angle range, enabling the blade to engage and disengage from the material automatically during rotation, which reduces the force required by the user while maintaining effective chopping of hard and fibrous vegetables.
2Adaptability or versatility
If blades with cutting edges on both sides are used to cut in both directions, then the device can process material bidirectionally, but the structural size becomes extremely limited and cannot accommodate larger quantities of material
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the cutting function into multiple blades arranged at different angular positions around the support shaft. Instead of relying on bidirectional rotation of a single blade, multiple blades are positioned to cut material as the assembly rotates in one direction, thereby maintaining versatility while accommodating a larger container volume for processing greater quantities of material.
3Power
If all four blades cut simultaneously during cord pull operation, then the chopping action is intensive, but blockage occurs when processing too much or too large-sized material
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by enabling the blade holder to pivot relative to the support shaft during rotation. This pivoting motion allows the blades to automatically adjust their engagement with the material, preventing all four blades from cutting simultaneously. The dynamic adjustment distributes the cutting action more evenly, maintaining high cutting power while reducing the likelihood of blockage when processing large or excessive amounts of material.
4Manufacturing precision
If the blades are arranged to process material efficiently, then the chopping results are satisfactory, but the device cannot handle large quantities of material within a sensible amount of time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies continuity of useful action by arranging multiple blades at different angular positions around the support shaft, ensuring that cutting action is continuous throughout the rotation cycle. As the blade holder and shaft rotate, different blades sequentially engage the material, maintaining constant cutting action without idle periods. This continuous cutting action improves both the uniformity of chopping results and the overall processing speed, enabling efficient handling of large quantities of material.
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to a working unit or a device that includes a working unit of this type for processing foodstuffs. The working unit can be driven and made to rotate by means of a drive unit of said device. The working unit preferably has at least two working elements that are situated on a working axis and that act in the peripheral direction of said working axis. At least one of the working elements can be pivoted about the working axis in relation to at least one additional working element within a restricted pivoting angle. The pivoting mobility of the blades, which are preferably interspaced and positioned axially one above the other, permits said blades to be brought into a common radial resting position in order to fill the container with the product to be cut, in such a way that practically the entire container volume is exposed and can be filled. The pivoting mobility of the second blade on the bearing axis allows the initial expenditure of energy to be significantly reduced in the start phase, as not all the blades are required to start cutting simultaneously.