Stackable Food Dehydrator Trays with Nesting and Splash Guard
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing food dehydrators face challenges in simplifying loading and unloading processes, storage, and increasing safety and service life, with a need for improved designs that enhance even heat distribution and reduce storage footprint.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates stackable dehydrating trays that define a circulation plenum during operation and nest for storage, along with a base portion featuring a removable splash guard and a fan wheel with impeller blades for efficient airflow and protection from liquids and solids, allowing for efficient heat distribution and reduced storage height.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If trays are designed to be stackable for operation, then productivity is improved through efficient heat distribution, but device complexity increases due to nested configuration requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements nesting by designing trays with peripheral fins that engage with corresponding grooves in the base and each other. When not in use, trays nest vertically within the base unit, reducing storage footprint. During operation, trays are stacked horizontally in a circular arrangement around the central air supply, creating multiple dehydration levels that improve productivity through efficient heat distribution.
Solution Approach 2:
The tray system transitions between two dynamic states: a compact nested configuration for storage and transport, and an expanded operational configuration for dehydration. The peripheral fins and grooves provide mechanical guidance that enables smooth transition between these states, allowing users to easily assemble and disassemble the trays without complex fastening mechanisms.
2Reliability
If a fixed guard structure is used to prevent liquid entry, then reliability is improved through protection of mechanical components, but ease of operation deteriorates due to cleaning difficulty
Solution Approach 1:
The guard structure is segmented into a removable portion and a fixed base portion. The removable portion can be detached from the base unit, allowing users to access and clean the mechanical space underneath. The fixed base portion remains in place to continue providing protection. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by enabling both reliable protection during operation and easy cleaning when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The removable portion of the guard is designed to be temporarily removed (discarded from its protective position) during cleaning operations, then reinstalled (recovered) to restore protection. This temporary removal and reinstallation cycle allows the system to switch between its protective function and its cleanability, resolving the contradiction between reliability and ease of operation.
3Volume of moving object
If trays are made stackable for storage, then volume is reduced for storage footprint, but ease of operation worsens due to loading and unloading complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The trays are designed to nest vertically within the base unit when not in use, significantly reducing the storage footprint. Each tray fits within the perimeter defined by the base and other nested trays, creating a compact vertical stack. This nesting arrangement maintains ease of operation because the trays can be easily inserted and removed in a sequential manner, with the peripheral fins providing guidance throughout the process.
Solution Approach 2:
The nested configuration creates a stable, gravity-assisted stacking system where trays naturally settle into position within the base. The peripheral fins and grooves provide mechanical guidance that ensures proper alignment without requiring precise manual positioning, making the loading and unloading process simple despite the compact storage arrangement.
4Temperature
If airflow is directed through central apertures, then heat distribution is improved for even drying, but reliability decreases due to potential blockage by debris
Solution Approach 1:
The guard structure provides localized protection at the central aperture where debris is most likely to enter the airflow path. By positioning the guard specifically at this critical location, the system maintains reliable airflow through the central aperture while allowing the rest of the tray design to focus on heat distribution uniformity. The guard acts as a selective filter that blocks debris but permits airflow.
Solution Approach 2:
The guard structure serves as an intermediary element between the external environment and the central aperture. It mediates the conflict between maintaining open airflow for heat distribution and preventing debris blockage by providing a physical barrier that allows air passage while blocking solid particles. This intermediary structure resolves the contradiction by filtering the airflow before it enters the mechanical space.
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
This configuration enhances safety, extends service life, and significantly reduces storage height while maintaining efficient and uniform heat distribution during the dehydration process.
Implementation Method 1
The fan wheel can have top and bottom sides, each having impeller blades with specified heights to promote performance for both fresh and returning air streams.
Implementation Method 2
a heater assembly for supplying heated air flow across the plurality of stacked trays
Implementation Method 3
the process of dehydrating food involves the removal of water from food
Implementation Method 4
the carrying and second trays cooperatively define an air supply plenum extending up a circumferential perimeter of a tray portion so as to efficiently direct air across each tray level for even heat distribution throughout the food dehydrator
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus and related methods for adding increased functionality to a food dehydrator through the use of stackable drying trays that define a circulation plenum during operation and then nest within one another during disassembly so as to reduce an overall storage size of the food dehydrator. The food dehydrator can further include a base portion having a removable splash guard to prevent the introduction of liquids or solids into a mechanical space within the base portion.