EP3038507A1

EP3038507A1 - Improved blade tool for use in a kitchen appliance and kitchen appliance having the same

Info

Publication number: EP3038507A1
Application number: EP13756873.9A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Onur Yaman; Ahmet Yorukoglu; Ahmet SOZEN; Ersin Donmez; Sefa Hazir; Yagiz TEZEL
Original assignee: Arcelik AS
Current assignee: Arcelik AS
Priority date: 2013-08-29
Filing date: 2013-08-29
Publication date: 2016-07-06
Also published as: CN105705070A; WO2015028079A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a blade tool (1) suitable for use in a kitchen appliance, the blade tool (1) comprising a first arm (2) and a second arm (3) each forming a blade for processing food a shaft (4) supporting the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), wherein the shaft (4) has a coupling (5) for engaging with a rotary drive shaft of the kitchen appliance. In the blade tool (1) according to the present invention, a sharp cutting edge (6) is formed at a leading edge (7a) of the first arm (2) with respect to a first rotation direction and a paddle (8) is formed at a leading edge (7b) of the second arm (3) with respect to a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction. The present invention also relates to a kitchen appliance for processing food, comprising a control unit for controlling rotation of a blade tool (1).

Description

IMPROVED BLADE TOOL FOR USE IN A KITCHEN APPLIANCE AND KITCHEN APPLIANCE HAVING THE SAME

The present invention relates to a blade tool for use in a kitchen appliance for processing food, in particular for comminuting and/or agitating food, and a kitchen appliance which has means for rotating a blade tool in accordance with a food processing program and/or a user input.
Kitchen appliances which provide assistance for preparing food greatly facilitate cooking. Such kitchen appliances are usually endowed with several functions and tools which, for example, enable heating, cutting, mixing, stirring of food. Thereby, the customer can perform almost all necessary steps of a cooking process by using a single appliance.
In contrast to the aforementioned ordinary kitchen appliances, smart kitchen appliances are also programmable to carry out the aforementioned functions in accordance with a recipe which includes instructions to activate or deactivate the functions, and to initiate or terminate the operation of a tool. Therefore, smart kitchen appliances even further facilitate cooking. However, the aforementioned kitchen appliances have also several drawbacks.
Depending on the particular type of processing that is going to be applied to the food, the customer is occasionally urged to exchange the tools when using a kitchen appliance. For example, there may be instances where the food must be initially cut and subsequently mixed. Thus, a change of a tool may become inevitable. However, detaching and attaching tools generally require a series of complicated steps to be undertaken which, for example, typically include the manual removal of a cover and the manual release of one or more locks. Therefore, replacing a tool generally incurs additional labor for the customer. Moreover, the total time spent for cooking increases.
In addition, in a number of recipes, food must be heated to relatively high temperatures before subjecting to any further mechanical treatment with the tools. However, hot food is generally a potential for serious accidents, especially when replacing a tool. Consequently, smart kitchen appliances cannot offer every recipe in view of the aforementioned difficulties. Therefore, the customer cannot fully enjoy smart-cooking and must put up with the current limitations.
EP 1430824 A1 discloses a multi-functional catering equipment which includes utensils for mixing, blending, cutting, and scraping food placed in a container. The multi-functional catering equipment also comprises means for heating the container. The cutting utensil of the multi-functional catering equipment includes a pair of flat blades which are supported by a rotatable shaft.
An objective of the present invention is to provide a blade tool for use in a smart kitchen appliance, and a smart kitchen appliance having the same which overcome the aforementioned problems.
This objective has been achieved by the blade tool according to the present invention as defined in claim 1, the use of the blade tool according to the present invention as defined in claim 12, and the kitchen appliance according to the present invention as defined in claim 13. Further achievements have been attained by the subject-matters respectively defined in the dependent claims.
In the blade tool according to the present invention, a sharp cutting edge is formed at a leading edge of the first arm with respect to a first rotation direction; and a paddle is formed at a leading edge of the second arm with respect to a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction. Thereby, the blade tool of the present invention, can be used for comminuting food by rotating the same in a first direction. The blade tool of the present invention, can also be used for agitating food without cutting the food, by rotating the same in a second direction opposite to a first direction. Consequently, the blade tool of the present invention can be utilized for different purposes by selectively changing a rotation direction of a motor of a kitchen appliance, onto which the blade tool is mounted. The kitchen appliance according to the present invention has a control unit which is configured to rotate, in accordance with a food processing program and/or a user input, the blade tool of the present invention in a first rotation direction to comminute the food and to rotate, in accordance with a food processing program and/or a user input, the blade tool of the present invention in a second rotation direction which is opposite to a first rotation direction to agitate the food.
In an embodiment, the first arm is provided in form of a blade which has the sharp cutting edge exclusively formed on the leading edge thereof with respect to the first rotation direction. In this embodiment, the second arm is provided in form of an inclined blade which configures the paddle with no cutting edges thereon.
In another embodiment, the first arm is provided in form of an inclined blade which configures a paddle having the sharp cutting edge exclusively formed on the leading edge thereof with respect to the first rotation direction. In this embodiment, the second arm is also provided in form of an inclined blade which configures the paddle with a sharp cutting edge which is exclusively formed on a leading edge thereof with respect to the first rotation direction.
In another embodiment, the first arm is provided in form of a blade having the sharp cutting edge which is exclusively formed on the leading edge thereof in the first rotation direction. In this embodiment, the second arm is also provided in form of a blade having a sharp cutting edge which is exclusively formed on a leading edge thereof in the first rotation direction. In this embodiment, the paddles are pivotally mounted on the blades at the leading edges thereof with respect to the second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction. In this embodiment, the pivotal motion of the blades are restricted such that the paddles trail horizontally when the blade tool is rotated in the first direction. In this embodiment, the pivotal motion of the blades are further restricted such that the paddles lean substantially vertically against a rotation direction when the blade tool is rotated in the second direction. In this embodiment, the pivotable paddles reduce the load on the motor when the blade tool is rotated in the first rotation direction. Therefore, the blade tool of this embodiment can be used at relatively high rotational speeds in the first rotation direction without producing overcurrent.
Additional advantages of the blade tool according to the present invention will become apparent with the detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 - is a schematic side view of a blade tool when rotated in a first rotation direction according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 - is a schematic side view of a blade tool when rotated in the first rotation direction according to another embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3 - is a schematic side view of a blade tool when rotated in the first rotation direction according to another embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 4 - is a schematic side view of the blade tool shown in Fig. 3 when rotated in a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction.
Figure 5 - is a schematic top view of the blade tool shown in Fig. 3 when rotated in the first rotation direction.
Figure 6 - is a schematic top view of the blade tool shown in Fig. 4 when rotated in the second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction.
The reference signs appearing on the drawings relate to the following technical features.

Blade tool
First arm
Second arm
Shaft
Coupling
Cutting edge

7a-7d. Edge
8. Paddle
9. Projecting plane blade
10. Chamfered surface
11. First abutment
12. Second abutment
The blade tool (1) is suitable for use in a kitchen appliance (Figs. 1 to 6). The blade tool (1) comprises a first arm (2) and a second arm (3) each forming a blade for processing food, a shaft (4) supporting the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), wherein the shaft (4) has a coupling (5) for engaging with a rotary drive shaft of the kitchen appliance (Figs. 1 to 6).
According to the present invention, the blade tool (1) comprises at least one sharp cutting edge (6) is formed at a leading edge (7a) of the first arm (2) with respect to a first rotation direction (i.e. in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig. 1) and at least one paddle (8) is formed at a leading edge (7b) of the second arm (3) with respect to a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction.
In an embodiment of the present invention, the first arm (2) of the blade tool (1), is a flat blade which is arranged parallel to a plane of rotation (Fig. 1). When the blade tool (1) is rotated in the first rotation direction, the food is cut by the sharp cutting edge (6). By virtue of the flat blade, a load on the motor (not shown) of the kitchen appliance is substantially reduced when the blade tool (1) is rotated. In this embodiment, the paddle (8) is configured by an inclined plane blade arranged at a blade angle (Ɵ) ranging between 30° to 40° relative to the plane of rotation. The paddle (8) has no sharp cutting edges (6). In this embodiment, the leading edge (7d) of the first arm (2) in the second rotation direction has no sharpened cutting edge (6). Therefore, the food is agitated by the paddle (8) without cutting when the blade tool (1) is rotated in the second rotation direction. The blade angle (Ɵ) of the paddle (8) which ranges between 30° to 40° has proven to be optimal for reducing the load on the motor without compromising agitation of food.
In another embodiment of the present invention , the cutting edge (6) of the blade tool (1), follows a contour along the first arm (2) which extends in a radial direction as well as a circumferential direction (Fig. 1). By virtue of the curved contour, the food can be effectively cut when the blade tool (1) is rotated in the first rotation direction (Fig. 1). In this embodiment, the paddle (8) has a projecting plane blade (9) formed at an outer end of the second arm (3), which extends in a radial direction and a circumferential direction (Fig. 1). The projecting plane blade (9) improves agitation of food when the blade tool (1) is rotated in the second rotation direction (Fig. 1). In this embodiment, the projecting plane blade (9) has also no sharp cutting edges (6) and serves solely the purpose of agitating food (Fig. 1).
In another embodiment of the present invention, a chamfered surface (10) of the blade tool (1), is formed on the first arm (2) which adjoins on one side the flat blade and on the other side the cutting edge (6) (Fig. 1). The chamfered surface (10) improves the cutting performance of the flat blade (Fig. 1).
In another embodiment of the present invention, a further sharp cutting edge (6) of the blade tool (1), is formed at a leading edge (7c) of the second arm (3) with respect to a first rotation direction (Fig. 2). When the blade tool (1) is rotated in the first rotation direction, the food is cut by both of the sharp cutting edges (6) of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) (Fig. 2). Thereby, a cutting performance is increased when the blade tool (1) is rotated in the first rotation direction. In this embodiment, a further paddle (8) is formed at a leading edge (7d) of the first arm (2) with respect to a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction (Fig. 2). Thereby, an agitation performance is increased when the blade tool (1) is rotated in the second rotation direction. In this embodiment, the leading edge (7d) of the first arm (2) as well as the leading edge (7b) of the second arm (3) in the second rotation direction have no sharpened cutting edges (6) (Fig. 2). Therefore, the food is agitated by the paddles (8) without cutting when the blade tool (1) is rotated in the second rotation direction (Fig. 2).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the paddles (8) of the blade tool (1), are respectively configured by inclined plane blades which are arranged at a blade angle (Ɵ) which ranges between 30° to 40° relative to a plane of rotation (Fig. 2).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the cutting edges (6) of the blade tool (1), formed at the leading edges (7a, 7c) of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) respectively follow a contour along the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), which extend in a radial direction and a circumferential direction (Fig. 2). In this embodiment, a chamfered surface (10) is formed on each of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), which respectively adjoins on one side the inclined plane blade and on the other side the cutting edge (6) (Fig. 2). In this embodiment, each paddle (8) has a projecting plane blade (10) which is formed at an outer end of a respective one of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) (Fig. 2). The projecting plane blades (10) extend in a radial direction and a circumferential direction (Fig. 2).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the paddles (8) of the blade tool (1), are pivotally mounted respectively on the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) (Figs. 3 to 6). In this embodiment, a limiting means is utilized for restricting a pivotal motion of each paddle (8) between a horizontal alignment and a substantially vertical alignment, wherein in said horizontal alignment each paddle (8) projects horizontally away from the respective one of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) to which it is pivotally mounted (Figs. 3 and 4). The paddle (8) projects, under the action of the driving force of the rotary drive shaft, horizontally away from the respective one of first arm (2) and the second arm (3) to which it is pivotally mounted when the blade tool (1) is being started to rotate in the first rotation direction (Figs 3 and 5). Consequently, when the blade tool (1) is quickly rotated in the first rotation direction, the food is cut by both of the sharp cutting edges (6) of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) without being agitated by the paddles (8) (Figs 3 and 5). When the blade tool (1) is rotated in the second rotation direction, a pivotal motion of the paddle (8) towards the respective one of first arm (2) and the second arm (3) to which it is pivotally mounted is restricted by the limiting means such that the paddles (8) lean substantially vertically against a rotation direction (Figs. 3 and 4). Consequently, when the blade tool (1) is rotated in the second rotation direction, the food is agitated by the paddles (8) which face the food, without the food being cut (Figs. 4 and 6).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the limiting means of the blade tool (1), includes a first abutment (11) and a second abutment (12) which are pairwise provided on each of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) (Figs. 3 and 4). In this embodiment, the first abutment (11) is arranged to abut against an upper surface of the respective paddle (8) when said respective paddle (8) is horizontally aligned and projects horizontally away from the respective one of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) to which it is pivotally mounted (Figs. 3 and 5 ). In this embodiment, the second abutment (12) is arranged to abut against a lower surface of the respective paddle (8) when said respective paddle (8) is vertically aligned and projects vertically downwards (Figs. 4 and 6).
In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the first abutment (11) and the second abutment (12) of the blade tool (1), are arranged differently (not shown) than in the previous embodiment. In this alternative embodiment, the first abutment (11) is arranged to abut against a lower surface of the respective paddle (8) when said respective paddle (8) is horizontally aligned and projects horizontally away from the respective one of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) to which it is pivotally mounted. In this alternative embodiment, the second abutment (12) is arranged to abut against an upper surface of the respective paddle (8) when said respective paddle (8) is vertically aligned and projects vertically upwards.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the paddles (8) of the blade tool (1), are plane blades (Figs. 3 to 6).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the paddles (8) of the blade tool (1), are rectangular-shaped plane blades (Figs. 5 and 6).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the cutting edges (6) of the blade tool (1), respectively follow a contour along the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), which extend in a radial direction and a circumferential direction (Figs. 3 to 6). In this embodiment, the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) are both flat blades which are arranged parallel to a plane of rotation (Figs. 3 to 6). In this embodiment, a chamfered surface (10) is formed on each of the first arm (2) and second arm (3), which adjoins on one side the flat blade and on the other side the cutting edge (6) (Figs. 3 to 6).
In another embodiment of the present invention, one or more than channel (not shown) of the blade tool (1), is formed in each of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) which fluidly communicates the upper and the lower surfaces.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) of the blade tool (1), are arranged close to a lower side of the shaft (Figs. 1 to 6). Thereby, the paddles (8) can also scrape a bottom of a vessel (not shown).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) of the blade tool (1), extend in diametrically opposed radial directions (Figs. 1 to 6).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) of the blade tool (1), are supported by the shaft (5) at a same level in an axial direction along the shaft (5) (Figs. 1 to 6).
In another embodiment of the present invention, the shaft (5) of the blade tool (1), has a cylindrical cross section (Figs. 1 to 6).
According to the present invention each of the above described blade tools (1) is intended for use in both rotation directions for processing food. The blade tool (1) is rotated in a first rotation direction to cut food. Whereas the blade tools (1) is rotated in a second direction opposite to first direction to agitate food. Thereby, food can be cut and/or agitated by using the same blade tool (1).
For the above-described use, the present invention also provides a kitchen appliance (not shown) which comprises: a motor unit including: a motor; and a rotary drive shaft connected to the motor, suitable for detachably coupling the blade tool (1); a vessel for processing food therein, wherein the vessel is arranged to rotatably receive the blade tool (1); and a control unit for controlling operation of the motor unit in accordance with a food processing program and/or in accordance with a user input. The control unit of the kitchen appliance according the present invention is configured to rotate the blade tool (1) in a first rotation direction to comminute the food, and to rotate the blade tool (1) in a second rotation direction which is opposite to a first rotation direction to agitate the food.
In another embodiment, the control unit of the kitchen appliance according to the present invention is configured to control the pivotal angle of the paddles (8) in accordance with a rotation speed of the motor. Thereby, a degree of agitation of food when comminuting the same can be regulated by the motor speed.
In another embodiment, the control unit of kitchen appliance according to the present invention determines the pivotal angle of the paddles (8) in accordance with a rotation speed of the motor in combination with a load of the motor. In this embodiment, the control unit determines the load of the motor by monitoring a current flowing through the motor.
In another embodiment, the kitchen appliance according to the present invention further comprises: a heating unit for heating the vessel; and a power supply means for connecting to the mains supply for operating said units. In this embodiment, the control unit is further configured to operate the heating unit in accordance with the food processing program and/or in accordance with a user input
In another alternative embodiment, the kitchen appliance is provided as a wireless kitchen appliance. In this alternative embodiment, a wireless power supply means is utilized instead of said power supply means. The wireless power supply means includes: receiver coil for sensing a time-varying electromagnetic field generated by an induction coil of an induction cooking appliance; and a rectifier and a regulator which are electrically connected to the receiver coil to generate a supply voltage for the overall operation of the units.
In another embodiment, the kitchen appliance is provided with a user interface for receiving a user input to comminute and/or to agitate the food.
In another embodiment, the kitchen appliance comprises, in an assembled or unassembled state, the blade tool (1) described in any one of the above embodiments.

Claims

A blade tool (1) suitable for use in a kitchen appliance, the blade tool (1) comprising a first arm (2) and a second arm (3) each forming a blade for processing food, a shaft (4) supporting the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), wherein the shaft (4) has a coupling (5) for engaging with a rotary drive shaft of the kitchen appliance, characterized in that

- at least one sharp cutting edge (6) is formed at a leading edge (7a) of the first arm (2) with respect to a first rotation direction and

- at least one paddle (8) is formed at a leading edge (7b) of the second arm (3) with respect to a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction.
The blade tool (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the first arm (2) is a flat blade arranged parallel to a plane of rotation and the paddle (8) is an inclined plane blade arranged at a blade angle (Ɵ) ranging between 30° to 40° relative to the plane of rotation.
The blade tool (1) according to claim 2, characterized in that the cutting edge (6) follows a contour along the first arm (2), which extends in a radial direction and a circumferential direction and the paddle (8) has a projecting plane blade (9) formed at an outer end of the second arm (3), which extends in a radial direction and a circumferential direction.
The blade tool (1) according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that a chamfered surface (10) is formed on the first arm (2) which adjoins on one side the flat blade and on the other side the cutting edge (6).
The blade tool (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that a further sharp cutting edge (6) is formed at a leading edge (7c) of the second arm (3) with respect to a first rotation direction and a further paddle (8) is formed at a leading edge (7d) of the first arm (2) with respect to a second rotation direction opposite to the first rotation direction.
The blade tool (1) according to claim 5, characterized in that the paddles (8) are both inclined plane blades arranged at a blade angle (Ɵ) ranging between 30° to 40° relative to a plane of rotation.
The blade tool (1) according to claim 6, characterized in that the cutting edges (6) respectively follow a contour along the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), which extend in a radial direction and a circumferential direction, a chamfered surface (10) is formed on each of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), which respectively adjoins on one side the inclined plane blade and on the other side the cutting edge (6) and each paddle (8) has a projecting plane blade (10) respectively formed at an outer end of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), which extends in a radial direction and a circumferential direction.
The blade tool (1) according to claim 5, characterized in that the paddles (8) are pivotally mounted respectively on the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) and

by a limiting means for restricting a pivotal motion of each paddle (8) between a substantially vertical alignment and a horizontal alignment, wherein in said horizontal alignment the paddle (8) projects horizontally away from the respective one of first arm (2) and the second arm (3) to which it is pivotally mounted.
The blade tool (1) according to claim 8, characterized in that the limiting means includes a first abutment (11) and a second abutment (12) which are pairwise provided on each of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), wherein the first abutment (11) is arranged to abut against an upper surface of a respective paddle (8) when said respective paddle (8) is horizontally aligned and projects horizontally away from the respective one of the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) to which it is pivotally mounted and wherein the second abutment (12) is arranged to abut against a lower surface of said respective paddle (8) when said respective paddle (8) is vertically aligned and projects vertically downwards.
The blade tool (1) according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that the paddles (8) are plane blades.
The blade tool (1) according to any one of the claims 8 to 10, characterized in that the cutting edges (6) respectively follow a contour along the first arm (2) and the second arm (3), which extend in a radial direction and a circumferential direction, the first arm (2) and the second arm (3) are both flat blades arranged parallel to a plane of rotation and a chamfered surface (10) is formed on each of the first arm (2) and second arm (3), which respectively adjoins on one side the flat blade and on the other side the cutting edge (6).
A kitchen appliance comprising a blade tool (1) as defined in any one the claims 1 to 11.
The kitchen appliance according to Claim 12, characterized in that

- a motor unit including a motor and a rotary drive shaft connected to the motor, suitable for detachably coupling the blade tool (1),

- a vessel for processing food therein, wherein the vessel is arranged to rotatably receive the blade tool (1) and

- a control unit for controlling operation of the motor unit in accordance with a food processing program and/or in accordance with a user input, wherein the control unit is configured to rotate the blade tool (1) in a first rotation direction to comminute the food and to rotate the blade tool (1) in a second rotation direction which is opposite to a first rotation direction to agitate the food.
The kitchen appliance according to claims 12 or 13, characterized in that

- a heating unit for heating the vessel, wherein the control unit is configured to activate or deactivate the heating unit in accordance with the food processing program and/or in accordance with a user input and

- a power supply means for connecting to the mains supply for operating said units or

- a wireless power supply means including a receiver coil for sensing a time-varying electromagnetic field generated by an induction coil of an induction cooking appliance, a rectifier and a regulator which are electrically connected to the receiver coil to generate a supply voltage for operating said units.