Hard Taco Shell Artificial Weak Points Rotary Cutter
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Solution Overview
Problem
Hard taco shells tend to break at unintended locations during consumption, leading to a messy eating experience as fillings fall out, due to their natural weak points rather than at predetermined artificial weak points.
Innovation Solution
A rotary cutter is used to create predetermined weak points in the form of arcuate and straight lines of depressions on the taco shell, which break when bitten, rather than at the shell's natural weak points, minimizing filling loss.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a hard taco shell is made with uniform structure, then it maintains structural integrity, but it breaks at unintended locations causing fillings to fall out
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-creating controlled weak points in the taco shell structure before use. These weak points are formed during manufacturing as raised ridges that will break first when the shell is bitten, guiding the breakage pattern to prevent filling spillage. The weak points are prepared in advance at specific locations where breakage would be most beneficial.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the taco shell structure into regions with different structural properties. The shell contains raised ridges (stronger regions) and flat areas (weaker regions), creating a segmented structure that controls where breakage occurs. This segmentation ensures the shell breaks at the flat areas between ridges, maintaining control over the breaking pattern.
2Reliability
If a rotary cutter creates multiple lines of depressions, then weak points are distributed throughout the shell, but the manufacturing process becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing a single rotary cutter that performs multiple functions simultaneously. The cutter includes both an outer blade for cutting the dough and multiple inner blades for creating the depression patterns. This multi-functional cutter consolidates what could be separate operations into one device, reducing overall system complexity while achieving reliable breakage control.
Data Source
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AI summary
A taco shell (600) is produced using a rotary cutter (120) including a shaft (200), an outer blade (220) extending radially outward from the shaft (200) and a first inner blade (221-223) extending radially outward from the shaft (200). The outer blade (220) defines an interior area (230), enclosed by the outer blade (220), and an exterior area (235). The first inner blade (221- 223) is located in the interior area (230) and includes a plurality of teeth (240). A dough piece (125, 126) is cut from a dough sheet (100) with the outer blade (220), and a first arcuate line of depressions (520-522) is created in the dough piece (125, 126) with the plurality of teeth (240). The dough piece (125, 126) is folded to form a shaped dough piece, and the shaped dough piece is baked to produce a hard taco shell (600).