Removable tiered basket
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Solution Overview
Problem
Cooking baskets used in the food service industry, particularly in fast food restaurants, tend to break easily due to severe heating cycles and mishandling, leading to frequent replacement of the entire basket when individual tiers or shelves fail.
Innovation Solution
A removable tiered basket design featuring a frame with coupling slots and shelves that are vertically stackable and pivotable, allowing for easy removal and replacement of shelves without tools, with a locking mechanism to secure the top shelf and a rear hook for support.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If the basket is designed as a single integrated unit, then structural strength is improved, but replacement cost and time increase when individual tiers break
Solution Approach 1:
The basket is divided into a frame and multiple removable tiers that can be independently replaced. Each tier is a separate component that attaches to the frame, allowing broken tiers to be replaced without replacing the entire basket structure.
Solution Approach 2:
Broken or damaged tiers can be discarded and replaced with new or refurbished tiers while retaining the frame and functional tiers. This extends the overall basket lifespan by allowing selective replacement of only the damaged components.
2Ease of operation
If the basket is designed to be light weight for easy handling, then ease of operation is improved, but durability decreases under severe heating cycles and mishandling
Solution Approach 1:
The basket frame and tiers are designed as separate removable components. This allows the frame to be optimized for strength and durability while tiers can be optimized for light weight and ease of handling, with the ability to replace tiers if they break without compromising the overall structure.
3Reliability
If the entire basket is replaced when individual tiers break, then reliability is maintained, but loss of substance and waste increase
Solution Approach 1:
The basket is designed with removable tiers that can be independently replaced. This segmentation allows only the broken tier to be discarded and replaced, while the frame and other functional tiers are retained and reused, significantly reducing waste compared to replacing the entire basket.
Solution Approach 2:
Only the damaged tier is discarded and replaced, while the frame and intact tiers are recovered and continue to be used. This selective replacement minimizes material waste and extends the overall basket lifespan.
4Ease of repair
If coupling slots are made accessible for tool-free removal, then ease of repair is improved, but structural integrity may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The coupling mechanism is designed with slots in the frame and corresponding members on the tiers that allow for tool-free attachment and detachment. The design balances accessibility for easy tier removal with sufficient structural strength to hold the basket contents during cooking and handling.
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of the present disclosure provide for a removeable tiered baskets having shelves that can be removed without tools. In some embodiments, the basket may comprise a frame having opposing first side wall and second side wall defining a space therebetween. The first side wall may define a first set of coupling slots and the second side wall may define a second set of coupling slots. The basket may comprise a plurality of shelves. The plurality of shelves may be vertically stackable between the first side wall and the second side wall, and may be pivotable between a substantially horizontal position and a substantially vertical position. Each shelf of the plurality of shelves may comprise coupling members extending through corresponding slots of the first set of coupling slots and the second set of coupling slots to provide for removing each shelf from within the frame without tools.