Slicer Movable Protective Body for Safe Cleaning

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Solution Overview

Problem

Existing slicers require laborious and risky manual cleaning of the arcuate surface opposite the cutting edge, especially for less dense food products, as waste material accumulates and is difficult to remove without disassembly, posing a risk of injury.

Innovation Solution

A slicer design featuring a bow-shaped protective body that can be manually shifted between positions, allowing easy access and cleaning of the entire internal surface without disassembling the blade or protective elements, ensuring the cutting edge remains shielded during the process.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If the protective panel is fixed and the blade is removed for cleaning, then complete cleaning of the arcuate surface is achieved, but the risk of injury increases and the procedure becomes more complex

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecleaning accessibilityVSAvoidsafety risk
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The protective panel is made movable rather than fixed, allowing it to be shifted between a first position during operation and a second position during cleaning. This dynamic configuration enables the cutting edge to be exposed for cleaning while the blade remains in place, eliminating the need for blade removal and reducing safety risks.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Solution Approach 2:

The protective panel is divided into a movable portion and a fixed portion, allowing selective movement of only the necessary segment (the movable portion) to enable cleaning access, while the fixed portion remains stationary to maintain structural integrity and safety.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Productivity

If manual cleaning of the arcuate surface is performed, then waste material is removed, but the cleaning procedure becomes long and laborious

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecleaning efficiencyVSAvoidcleaning time
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The movable protective panel can be quickly shifted to the second position to expose the arcuate surface for cleaning, and then quickly returned to the first position. This dynamic adjustment significantly reduces cleaning time compared to fixed panel designs that require blade removal or complex disassembly procedures.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

3Ease of operation

If the blade is removed for cleaning, then complete access to the cutting area is achieved, but the device complexity increases and safety risks are elevated

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecleaning accessibilityVSAvoiddisassembly complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The movable protective panel provides simple mechanical movement to expose the cutting area for cleaning, eliminating the need for complex disassembly or blade removal procedures. The mechanism maintains ease of operation while reducing device complexity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentEP2938469B1slicer
Publication Date: 2017.05.24 OMAS SRL
  • EP2938469B1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP2938469B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP2938469B1 patent drawingFigure 5~6

AI summary

A slicer comprising: a circular blade (2), which is rotatable about a respective axis of rotation (X); a protective body (6) for protection of the blade (2) and that encircles at least one zone (A) of the cutting edge (3) of the blade (2) and is substantially arcuate in shape, the protective body (6) having an internal surface (7) facing the cutting edge (3) of the blade (2); and a movement member (9) for moving the protective body (6), so as to shift the same body (6) between a first position, wherein the cutting edge (3) is located opposite a substantially central zone of the internal surface (7), and a second position, wherein the cutting edge (3) is located opposite a substantially peripheral zone of the internal surface (7).