Pivoting Blade Platform for Automated Blending and Self-Cleaning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current food processing systems lack automation and efficiency in blending various food types, including whole foods and frozen items, often requiring manual handling and lacking effective cleaning mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
An automated food processing system with a blade assembly, blade shield, and processor that automatically blends food solids into emulsions, cleans components, and manages fluid dispensing, featuring a blade platform that pivots between engaged and disengaged positions for blending and cleaning cycles.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manual handling is used for food processing, then device complexity is reduced, but productivity and ease of operation deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The blade assembly is designed to automatically return to its initial position after completing a blending cycle, and the container platform automatically moves between loading and processing positions. The system performs self-cleaning operations without requiring manual disassembly or intervention, enabling the device to serve itself and thereby improving ease of operation while managing complexity through automated sequences.
Solution Approach 2:
The blade assembly incorporates a pivotable blade platform that can move between engaged and disengaged positions relative to the container. This dynamic positioning allows the system to adapt its configuration for different operational phases (blending vs. cleaning), improving operational flexibility and ease of use while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure through controlled movement rather than multiple fixed components.
2Productivity
If automated blending is implemented, then productivity is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The blade assembly serves multiple functions: it acts as both the blending mechanism during processing and the cleaning surface during cleaning cycles. The same blade platform that processes food also receives cleaning fluid and is cleaned by rotating in reverse. This multi-functionality improves productivity by eliminating the need for separate cleaning mechanisms while managing device complexity through functional integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The system combines the blending and cleaning operations into a single integrated sequence using the same hardware components. The container platform movement, blade assembly rotation, and fluid dispensing are merged into one automated cycle that performs both processing and cleaning, thereby improving productivity without proportionally increasing device complexity.
3Reliability
If cleaning mechanisms are added, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A fluid dispensing system acts as an intermediary to deliver cleaning fluid to the blade assembly without requiring direct mechanical contact or complex disassembly mechanisms. The fluid medium enables effective cleaning by flowing over the blade surfaces and being drained away, improving reliability of the cleaning function while maintaining relatively simple system structure through the use of a fluid mediator rather than mechanical cleaning components.
Solution Approach 2:
The cleaning mechanism utilizes hydraulic principles by dispensing cleaning fluid through a dispensing system that delivers liquid to the blade assembly. The fluid flow, driven by pressure differential, effectively cleans the blades without requiring complex mechanical or pneumatic actuators, thereby improving cleaning reliability while keeping the added system complexity minimal.
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
Enables efficient, automated blending of diverse food types directly in containers, ensuring cleanliness and ease of use by automating the blending and cleaning processes, enhancing user experience and operational efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
a blade assembly (400) configured to process the foodstuff
Implementation Method 2
a cleaning fluid injector configured to inject a volume of cleaning fluid into the lumen
Implementation Method 3
a drain adjacent the blade actuator and receiving the volume of cleaning fluid from the blade shield via the spout
Data Source
AI summary
A system for food preparation, including a system body, a blade actuator retained by the system body; a set of blades; a blade platform rotatably mounting the set of blades, the blade platform pivotally connected along a first edge to the system body and operable between an engaged position and a disengaged position; and a container platform defining a container receptacle, the container platform pivotally connected along a first edge to the system body and operable between a loading position and a processing position.