Electrical household heating food-preparation appliance comprising a steamer basket

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Existing household food preparation appliances lack efficient storage solutions for interchangeable rotary tools and can be overstressed when multiple tools are mounted, leading to potential mechanical issues and complexity in design.

Innovation Solution

A heated household food preparation appliance design featuring a steamer basket with a hub that includes a drive portion for rotating tools and a receiving portion for additional tools, allowing for compact storage and preventing drive device overload, where the receiving portion does not have a rotational drive capability, simplifying the hub construction and reducing stress on the drive mechanism.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Quantity of substance

If multiple rotary working tools are mounted on the hub, then tool storage capacity is improved, but the drive device becomes overstressed

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvenumber of rotary working toolsVSAvoiddrive device stress
Core Design Contradiction:
Quantity of substanceVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The hub is segmented into two distinct portions: a drive portion with a drive member for rotating tools, and a receiving portion without a drive member for storing tools. This segmentation allows multiple tools to be mounted on the hub while only the drive portion tools are rotated, preventing drive device overload while maintaining tool storage capacity.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

2Reliability

If a receiving portion without drive member is added to the hub, then drive device stress is reduced, but hub construction complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedrive device stressVSAvoidhub construction
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The drive portion and receiving portion are merged into a single integrated hub structure. The hub includes both a drive portion with a drive member and a receiving portion without a drive member, allowing tools to be mounted on either portion. This integration achieves tool storage without drive device stress while maintaining a unified, relatively simple hub construction.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

3Quantity of substance

If rotary working tools are stored in the steamer basket, then storage space utilization is improved, but steamer basket functionality is reduced

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetool storage capacityVSAvoidsteamer basket functionality
Core Design Contradiction:
Quantity of substanceVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The steamer basket is designed with dynamic functionality: it can operate as a steaming basket when placed on the heating element, and as additional tool storage when placed on the hub in the upper part. This dynamic adaptability allows the steamer basket to serve dual purposes without compromising its primary steaming function, as it can be easily repositioned between the heating element and the hub for different operations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

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 design enables compact storage of multiple rotary tools within the appliance, prevents drive device overload, and simplifies the construction by eliminating the need for rotational drive mechanisms on all tools, enhancing usability and reducing mechanical stress.

Implementation Method 1

an electric motorization unit arranged above the working receptacle to drive the hub in rotation along an axis of rotation (58)

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectElectromagnetic induction: Electromagnetic Induction

Implementation Method 2

an electric heating device (6) for heating the food contained in the working container (2)

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectJoule heating: Joule Heating

Data Source

PatentEP3528678B1Electrical household heating food-preparation appliance comprising a steamer basket
Publication Date: 2021.09.08 SEB SA
  • EP3528678B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3528678B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3528678B1 patent drawingFigure 3~4

AI summary

- The invention concerns an electrical household heating food-preparation appliance comprising a top portion (7), a working vessel (2), an electrical heating device (6) for heating the foods contained in the working vessel (2), a steamer basket (50), a hub (51), a drive device (99) for rotating the hub (51) about an axis of rotation (58), at least two interchangeable rotary working tools, the hub (51) comprising a drive portion (51a) designed to rotate one of the rotary working tools below the steamer basket (50). - According to the invention, the hub (51) passes through the steamer basket (50) and has a receiving portion (51c) extending into the steamer basket (50), at least one other of the rotary working tools being capable of being mounted on the receiving portion (51c) when the top portion (7) closes the working vessel (2).