Vibrating Cooktop Vessel for Even Heating Without Stirring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cooking systems, such as those using vibrating devices, have been ineffective in ensuring even heating and minimizing manual stirring during food preparation, particularly for tasks like popcorn cooking, leading to unevenly cooked and burned kernels.
Innovation Solution
A cooktop system combining induction heating with a vibrating device and a thermally insulating, elastically deformable pad to create an oscillating magnetic field and horizontal movement, ensuring consistent heat distribution and reducing manual stirring requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a vibrating device is used to mix food during cooking, then manual stirring is reduced and cooking efficiency is improved, but the food may be subjected to excessive mechanical stress or displacement
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies mechanical vibration through a piezoelectric element that vibrates the cooking vessel at controlled frequencies. This vibration agitates the food contents to promote even heating and prevent burning without requiring manual stirring, thereby improving cooking efficiency while minimizing mechanical stress through controlled vibrational motion rather than direct mechanical contact
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical stirring with an automated vibration-based system. The piezoelectric element generates high-frequency vibrations that substitute for manual stirring actions, eliminating the need for human intervention while achieving the same mixing and heating distribution effects through vibrational energy transfer
2Use of energy by moving object
If induction heating is used to cook food, then heating efficiency is improved and energy consumption is reduced, but uniform heat distribution across the food may be difficult to achieve
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines induction heating with mechanical vibration from a piezoelectric element. The vibration agitates the food and cooking medium, promoting convective heat distribution and preventing hot spots. This synergy maintains the energy efficiency of induction heating while achieving uniform heat distribution through vibrational mixing
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges induction heating technology with piezoelectric vibration technology in a single cooking system. The induction coil provides efficient energy transfer to the cooking vessel, while the piezoelectric element adds vibrational motion, creating a combined system that achieves both energy efficiency and uniform heat distribution simultaneously
3Productivity
If a vibrating device is coupled directly to the cooking surface, then vibration effectiveness is improved, but the device complexity and difficulty of cleaning increase
Solution Approach 1:
The cooking vessel serves multiple functions: it acts as both the cooking container and the vibration transmission medium. The piezoelectric element couples to the vessel to generate vibrations, making the vessel itself part of the vibration system. This multi-functionality reduces overall system complexity while maintaining vibration effectiveness
Solution Approach 2:
The cooking vessel itself serves as the vibration transmission element, eliminating the need for separate vibration transmission components. The vessel's own structure is utilized to conduct and distribute vibrations to the food, simplifying the system design and reducing the number of parts that require maintenance and cleaning
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 system achieves uniform cooking of food, such as popcorn, by preventing kernel burning and ensuring all kernels pop evenly, with automatic control of heat and vibration frequency, enhancing cooking efficiency and quality.
Implementation Method 1
a coil for creating an oscillating magnetic field that interacts with and generates an amount of heat in the cooking vessel
Implementation Method 2
a coil for creating an oscillating magnetic field that interacts with and generates an amount of heat in the cooking vessel
Implementation Method 3
a vibrator coupled to the surface for vibrating the surface
Implementation Method 4
a pad formed of a thermally insulating, elastically deformable material on the surface and underneath the cooking vessel
Data Source
AI summary
A cooking system that utilizes vibration to improve the convenience of preparing food and the quality of the finished product. The system uses a vibrating device coupled to a cooking vessel with a pad and/or isolation blocks disposed between the vibrator and the vessel. The cooking system can be adapted to prepare specific foods in specific quantities, such as popcorn in pre-packaged containers.