Sensor-Guided Cooking Assistant for Consistent Meal Preparation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Home cooking is often laborious and time-consuming, leading to a decline in home meal preparation as people prefer the convenience of eating out, due to the effort and uncertainty of achieving desired meal outcomes.
Innovation Solution
A portable cooking assistive device equipped with sensors, a network interface, and a processor that monitors cooking operations, communicates with mobile devices, and provides controlled responses, such as dispensing substances or adjusting cooking parameters, to assist in preparing personalized meals while preventing foodborne illnesses and ensuring proper cooking.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If home cooking is performed, then personalized meals can be prepared, but the process becomes laborious and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The cooking assistive device autonomously monitors cooking conditions using sensors and automatically communicates with cooking devices to adjust parameters, enabling the system to serve itself without requiring continuous human intervention or expertise during the cooking process
Solution Approach 2:
The device continuously obtains readings from sensors disposed on the food item, compares these readings to target values stored in a database, and provides real-time feedback by communicating with the cooking device to adjust cooking parameters, ensuring the food reaches the desired state without manual monitoring
2Adaptability or versatility
If home cooking is performed, then personalized meals can be prepared, but uncertainty of achieving desired outcomes increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device continuously monitors cooking conditions using sensors and automatically communicates with cooking devices to adjust parameters in real-time, providing closed-loop control that ensures consistent achievement of desired cooking outcomes regardless of variations in cooking conditions or user expertise
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-stores target cooking parameter values and conditions in a database before the cooking process begins, allowing the assistive device to guide the cooking process toward known successful outcomes based on pre-established criteria for different food items and cooking methods
3Manufacturing precision
If monitoring and control systems are added to assist cooking, then cooking precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooking assistive device integrates multiple functions including sensing, data storage, data processing, communication, and control into a single portable unit, allowing one device to perform all necessary functions for monitoring and controlling the cooking process without requiring separate complex systems for each function
Data Source
AI summary
A cooking assistive device comprises a portable housing configured to be disposed on or proximate a food item. The device includes a plurality of sensors situated within the housing, a dispenser, and a utensil holder. The device has a memory storing computer-readable instructions, and a processor. The processor is configured to execute the instructions to: (a) obtain a wireless input from a mobile device; (b) access data stored in a remote database; (c) obtain a reading from at least one of the plurality of sensors; and (d) cause the dispenser to dispense a substance in response to the reading.