Food preparation control system
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Cooking methods often fail to accurately achieve desired textures and tastes due to variations in cooking time and temperature, making it difficult for cooks to consistently prepare food products like eggs, meat, and vegetables to specific doneness and consistency.
Innovation Solution
A processor-based food preparation guidance system that uses graphical prompts and user input to generate a cooking program for a cooking appliance, such as a sous vide cooker, to control temperature and time, ensuring precise cooking parameters based on user preferences and food characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional cooking methods are used with manual timing and temperature control, then cooking process is simple and easy to operate, but cooking precision and consistency of food texture and taste deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the parameters of cooking time and temperature from manual estimation to precisely controlled values. The processor receives specific time and temperature inputs and translates them into controlled cooking operations, ensuring exact parameter execution to achieve consistent food texture and taste results.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms where the cooking appliance monitors cooking progress and communicates status back to the user interface. The processor receives state information from the cooking appliance and can send modified cooking programs based on actual cooking conditions, enabling dynamic adjustment to maintain precision.
2Adaptability or versatility
If cooking time and temperature are varied to achieve different textures and tastes, then food customization options increase, but difficulty in achieving desired results increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-calculating and storing optimal cooking programs for different food types and desired outcomes. When a user selects a food item and desired texture, the processor retrieves the appropriate pre-determined time and temperature parameters, eliminating the need for users to experiment and achieve consistent results.
Solution Approach 2:
The system systematically varies cooking parameters (time and temperature) based on user selections. Different food products and desired textures correspond to specific parameter combinations stored in the system, allowing easy customization without requiring users to understand the complex relationships between parameters and outcomes.
3Ease of operation
If graphical prompts and user input are used to guide cooking parameters, then ease of operation improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables self-service by allowing users to independently select food items and desired textures through the user interface. The processor automatically generates appropriate cooking programs without requiring user intervention in the parameter selection process, making the system easy to operate while handling the complexity internally.
Solution Approach 2:
The user interface is designed to be universal and multi-functional, handling various food types and cooking scenarios through a consistent graphical prompt system. The same interface framework serves multiple purposes: displaying options, receiving input, showing status, and providing feedback, reducing the apparent complexity for users.
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 system allows for customized food preparation by generating and controlling cooking processes that consistently achieve desired textures and tastes, enhancing cooking precision and user satisfaction.
Implementation Method 1
a cooking program to be generated, the cooking program including at least one of instructions or data usable by a cooking appliance to perform a cooking process for the food product
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
Systems, methods, and articles to provide customized control of a cooking appliance, such as a sous vide cooker. A user provides a selection of one or more ending characteristics for a food product. A processor-based device determines one or more output food preparation parameters based on the user's selection of the one or more ending characteristics. Measurements of temperature, power delivery, or other characteristics may be obtained during cooking process. A cooking program controlling the cooking process may be revised or updated based at least in part on the obtained measurements or analysis of the measurements. Estimations or projections about the cooking process may be presented to a user via a user interface of the cooking appliance or a user interface of one or more computing devices (e.g., smartphone, tablet computer) associated with the user.