Spice Mill with Integrated Crusher for Large and Hard Products
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current spice mills are inadequate for transforming dry, hard, and large spice products into a fine powder from their raw state, as they either produce coarse results or require multiple mills for different types of spices, and lack the ability to adjust fineness effectively.
Innovation Solution
A mill with a hollow cylindrical reservoir and a freely moving metal ball for fragmentation, combined with damping and adjustable grinding mechanisms, allowing for efficient reduction of spices into particles smaller than 500 μm, suitable for various spice types and ensuring user safety and longevity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a standard grinding mechanism is used, then it can grind products of a given size, but it cannot grind very different size products like cinnamon sticks or dried chilis
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a movable pestle that can be freely positioned and moved within the grinding chamber, allowing the user to adapt the grinding mechanism to different spice sizes and types. This dynamic positioning capability enables a single mill to handle various spices from cinnamon sticks to dried chilis, eliminating the need for multiple specialized mills.
Solution Approach 2:
The grinding mechanism is designed with universal applicability through the movable pestle and adjustable components, allowing one device to perform multiple functions across different spice categories. The system can process both large items like cinnamon sticks and smaller items like dried chilis using the same basic mechanism, achieving multi-functionality without requiring separate mills for each spice type.
2Manufacturing precision
If grating means are used, then they can transform spices into powder, but the obtained grinding remains too coarse with particles larger than 500 μm
Solution Approach 1:
The grinding process is segmented into multiple stages: initial crushing by the pestle, intermediate grinding by the teeth, and final refinement through the screen with 500 μm apertures. This segmentation allows the system to achieve fine particle size uniformity (80% of particles smaller than 500 μm) while maintaining reasonable grinding efficiency through the progressive reduction approach.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the grinding mechanism have specialized functions: the pestle provides crushing action for initial size reduction, the teeth provide intermediate grinding, and the screen provides final size control. This local specialization of functions allows each component to optimize its contribution to achieving the target particle size distribution.
3Reliability
If a robust structure is used to guarantee longevity and user safety, then the mill becomes more durable, but it may become less adaptable to different spice types
Solution Approach 1:
The pestle is designed to be movable rather than fixed, allowing it to be repositioned and reused across different spice types. This dynamic design maintains structural robustness while enabling adaptability, as the same durable pestle can handle various spices from cinnamon sticks to dried chilis without requiring structural modifications.
Solution Approach 2:
The mill employs a nested structure where the movable pestle operates within the grinding chamber, and the screen is integrated within the same structure. This nesting allows multiple functional elements to coexist in a compact, robust design that maintains durability while providing versatility for different spice types.
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 mill achieves a homogeneous fine grinding of at least 80% particles smaller than 500 μm, accommodating multiple spice types and ensuring robustness and user safety, eliminating the need for multiple mills and allowing for adjustable fineness.
Implementation Method 1
a freely moving metal ball for fragmentation
Implementation Method 2
crushing means of the spice product including at least one solid body positioned freely in the reservoir
Implementation Method 3
damping and adjustable grinding mechanisms
Data Source
AI summary
The mill for spice products, in particular such as cinnamon sticks, houses a reservoir for storing the spice product. The reservoir communicates through a passage, with a grinding mechanism. The reservoir includes a mechanism for fragmenting the spice product. The mechanism for fragmenting are defined by a crusher of the spice product.