Reusable chemically heated chafing dish
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional chafing dishes with collapsible metal support frames are bulky, expensive, and unstable, with methanol or ethanol burners posing risks of excessive heat and fuel inefficiency, leading to environmental pollution and waste.
Innovation Solution
A disposable, thin-walled aluminum or plastic chafing dish assembly featuring a support pan with a suspension tray and calcium-oxide packets that generate steam for heating, maintaining food temperature without direct contact and minimizing fuel usage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If collapsible metal support frames are used, then the chafing dish can be stored more compactly, but the frame becomes more expensive and the joints degrade over time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs disposable support frames made of inexpensive materials that are discarded after a single use. This eliminates the need for complex collapsible mechanisms with rotating joints, while still achieving compact storage by simply discarding the frame after use. The disposable nature resolves the contradiction between storage convenience and structural complexity.
2Temperature
If methanol or ethanol burners are used, then the food can be heated to desired temperature, but the burners create excessive heat that can burn food or make the chafing dish too hot to handle
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces water as an intermediary substance between the burner flame and the food. The burner heats water in an outer pan, which then generates steam that cooks the food indirectly. This steam-mediated heating process distributes heat uniformly and prevents localized overheating, eliminating the burning problem while maintaining effective food heating.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the phase transition of water from liquid to steam to transfer heat. The burner heats water until it boils and generates steam, which then contacts the food tray to cook the food. This phase change mechanism provides controlled, uniform heating at a consistent temperature (100°C at atmospheric pressure), preventing the excessive heat and burning issues associated with direct flame heating.
3Power
If the support frame raises the food trays high off the support table, then the burners can be positioned for heat generation, but the assembly becomes unstable and wobbly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the support function from a complex elevated frame structure and replaces it with simple outwardly extending lips on the support pan. These lips directly support the food trays at an optimal height without requiring tall support legs, thereby maintaining heating capability while achieving stability through a low-profile design.
4Strength
If reusable heavy gauge metal pans are used, then the food trays are durable, but they are expensive for those using them only one or two times a year
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces expensive reusable metal food trays with disposable aluminum or plastic trays. Since the trays are single-use, there is no need for heavy-gauge construction, and the disposable versions are significantly cheaper to manufacture. This resolves the contradiction between durability and manufacturing cost by matching the tray lifecycle to the usage frequency.
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 solution provides a cost-effective, stable, and efficient food heating system that reduces waste and pollution, maintaining food temperature for extended periods while avoiding excessive heat and fuel inefficiencies.
Implementation Method 1
Water in each pocket reacts with a calcium-oxide packet in each pocket to boil the water and generate steam that heats the food trays
Implementation Method 2
generate steam for cooking food in the food tray(s) or to maintain pre-cooked food in the food tray(s) at a suitable temperature
Data Source
AI summary
A disposable support pan has a sidewall with a top lip that support the lips of rectangular food trays above a support surface. A disposable suspension tray inside the support pan has a flange resting on a support pan shoulder so the bottoms of two pockets in the suspension tray are between the support surface and the bottom of the food trays. Water in each pocket reacts with a calcium-oxide packet in each pocket to boils a predetermined amount of water to generate steam that heats the food trays without having the packets contact the food trays. One or two tray supports on each side of the pan may extend from the shoulder to a top support flange extending outward around a periphery of the support pan. The suspension tray has corresponding recesses to mate with the tray supports to keep steam from entering the area below the suspension tray.