Ribbed Spoon Agitator for Low-Speed Mixing of Pasty Foods
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing disposable agitators for mixed food products, such as ice creams and milkshakes, fail to ensure satisfactory mixing at lower rotation speeds, leading to splashes and breakage of whipping bonds, particularly in soft ice creams, and are not strong enough to handle pasty products without modification to existing mixers.
Innovation Solution
A disposable plastic agitator with a spoon-shaped blade and transverse ribs that can be removably fixed to a mixer's rotary shaft, featuring end jaws for secure engagement and longitudinal projections for mixing, allowing use as a utensil without compromising hygiene, and designed for use with existing mixers.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a simple spoon-shaped agitator blade is used, then the agitator can be made simple and economical for single-use, but satisfactory mixing cannot be achieved unless at relatively high shaft rotation speeds
Solution Approach 1:
The agitator blade is segmented into multiple functional elements: a central stem, longitudinal projections extending from the stem, and an end agitator blade. This segmentation allows each element to contribute differently to the mixing process, achieving effective mixing at lower speeds while maintaining a simple single-use design.
Solution Approach 2:
The agitator transitions from a simple two-dimensional spoon shape to a three-dimensional structure with longitudinal projections extending along the stem. This adds a vertical dimension to the mixing action, creating multiple mixing zones and improving mixing efficiency without increasing rotational speed.
2Manufacturing precision
If high shaft rotation speeds are used to achieve satisfactory mixing, then mixing quality improves, but unwanted splashes of product occur and whipping bonds may be broken
Solution Approach 1:
The agitator design creates dynamic mixing action through its longitudinal projections and blade configuration, which generate turbulent flow patterns and shear forces that effectively mix products at lower rotational speeds, avoiding the harmful effects of high-speed mixing.
Solution Approach 2:
The agitator changes the mixing parameters by introducing multiple mixing zones through its projections and blade structure, allowing effective mixing to occur at lower speed parameters while maintaining mixing quality.
3Ease of operation
If the agitator is made disposable and economical for single-use, then hygiene is maintained and cleaning is eliminated, but the agitator may not be strong enough to mix pasty products without breaking
Solution Approach 1:
The agitator is constructed as a composite structure combining a stem, longitudinal projections, and blade elements that work together to distribute mechanical stresses, enabling a disposable plastic agitator to handle pasty products without breaking.
Solution Approach 2:
The segmented structure with multiple projections and blade elements distributes the mechanical load during mixing, preventing stress concentration that would cause breakage in a simple monolithic disposable design.
4Ease of operation
If the agitator stem is hollow to allow shaft insertion and removal, then ease of coupling to existing mixers is achieved, but the stem requires fortification by the shaft inside its cavity
Solution Approach 1:
The hollow stem is designed with preliminary fortification features such as ribs or thickened walls that provide structural integrity before the shaft is inserted, eliminating the need for the shaft to strengthen the stem during operation.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
The disposable agitator (1; 1') for mixed food products has an elongated stem (3), which has, at a longitudinal end (4), an agitator blade (5) having the shape of a spoon, and can be removably fixed to the rotary shaft (6) of a mixer (7), so that the consumer can subsequently use the agitator (1; 1') as a utensil for eating the product previously mixed; the agitator (1; 1') has at least one longitudinal rib (13), projecting transversally from the stem (3) and/or from the agitator blade (5) and at the same time acting as an agitator (1; 1') stiffening element and an active element in the mixing action.