Stove top cover
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Solution Overview
Problem
Stovetops are prone to spills, leaks, and hot surfaces, leading to messy clean-ups, contamination, and potential injuries or damage due to the inevitable splashing of food or liquids during cooking, which existing solutions fail to adequately address.
Innovation Solution
A stove top cover with a top surface, bottom surface, and border, made from fire-resistant, heat-resistant, and non-permeable materials, featuring cutouts to accommodate burners and a flange that projects inwardly to cover a portion of the burner, providing a safe and spill-proof barrier.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If a stove top cover is used to prevent spills and contamination, then cleanliness and safety are improved, but the complexity of the device increases due to additional components like flanges and cutouts
Solution Approach 1:
The stove top cover is divided into multiple functional segments: a main cover body with cutouts for burner access, a flange extending inward to cover burner edges, and a border extending outward to contain spills. This segmentation allows each part to perform its specific function while maintaining overall simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The cover serves multiple functions simultaneously: it contains spills within the cooking area, shields the stove top surface from heat and scratches, provides a barrier against contamination, and allows burner access through cutouts. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate protective devices.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the flange extends inwardly to cover a portion of the burner, then spill containment is improved, but the burner access and heat distribution may be restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The flange is designed with specific local properties: it extends inwardly only to the extent needed to contain spills while stopping before obstructing burner access. The cutouts in the cover provide localized openings that maintain burner functionality in critical areas while providing spill containment in other areas.
3Reliability
If the cover is made from fire-resistant and heat-resistant materials, then safety and durability are improved, but the manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cover is constructed from composite materials that combine fire resistance, heat resistance, and non-permeability. This composite approach allows a single component to meet multiple performance requirements, simplifying the overall system while maintaining high safety and durability standards.
4Object-affected harmful factors
If the border extends outwardly from the top surface, then spill containment is improved, but the area available for placing objects on the stove top is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The border extends outwardly only to the extent necessary to contain typical spills, rather than covering the entire stove top surface. This partial action provides adequate spill containment while minimizing the reduction of available cooking and object-placing area.
Data Source
AI summary
A stove top cover includes a top surface and a bottom surface and forming a cutout extending there through and having a periphery that defines the cutout. Still further, the stove top cover can include a flange or a series of flanges formed on the top surface that extends around the periphery of the cutout and projects outwardly from the top surface to a height and extends inwardly a distance toward and over an edge of a burner of the stove top. By using a nonflammable material (i.e., silicone, polyvinyl fluoride or PTFE-coated fiberglass) and overlapping the flange over the periphery of the burner, any contents that may overflow a pot or pan placed on the burner is entirely diverted onto the surface of the cover. With the cover, being easier to clean than the stove top, or even disposable, stove top cleaning is reduced or mitigated.