KR20020038043A - A spoon having counting function - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A spoon with a counting function is provided to improve the convenience of use of a spoon used to accurately measure a certain material, for example powdered milk. CONSTITUTION: The spoon with a counting function consists of a handle portion(112), a bowl portion(114) provided at the tip end of the handle portion so as to receive a content, and a counting device(120) installed in the handle portion in order to automatically count the number of spoon use. The counting device comprises a sensing part for detecting the action of a spoon for pouring the received content in the bowl portion of the spoon, a display part(124) exposed from the top surface of the handle portion so as to display the number of spoon use detected by the sensing part, a control part for generating an alarm signal by determining whether the detected use numbers of the spoon reach a predetermined value or not, and an alarm part.

Description

Spoon with Counting Function {A SPOON HAVING COUNTING FUNCTION}

The present invention relates to a spoon having a counting function, and more particularly to a spoon having a countable that allows the user to accurately and easily check the number of times the spoon is used.

Infants or young children should eat the right amount of formula mixed with water several times each day, with the correct amount of formula provided.

Mothers feed the right amount of formula according to the number of days of birth or development of infants by mixing milk and water in the proper ratio. In general, milk powder is removed from the milk bottle using a measuring spoon and transferred to a bottle. One or more milk powders are placed in a bottle (milk bottle) at a time with a measuring spoon. At this time, mothers have to pay special attention and count the number of times of use of the measuring spoon (count) correctly, so there is an inconvenience that requires attention at all times. If the amount of powdered milk supplied at a time or the mixing ratio with water is not constant, there is a problem that the infants do not have sufficient nutrition or infants are reluctant to eat powdered milk.

The present invention has been made to solve such a conventional problem, and an object thereof is to provide a spoon having a new type of counting function capable of automatically counting the number of times the spoon is used.

1 is a perspective view of a spoon having a counting function according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

2 is a view for explaining a process of burning powdered milk with a spoon;

3 is a block diagram of the counting means of a spoon according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

4 is a flow chart for sequentially explaining the counting process;

5A to 5C are perspective views of a spoon according to a modification of the present invention, a block diagram of the counting means, and a view for explaining the operation of the counting means.

* Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings *

112: handle 114: bowl

120: counting means 122: sensing unit

122a: vibration sensor 124: display unit

126 control unit 128 notification unit

130: first switch 132: second switch

According to a feature of the present invention for achieving the above object, the spoon is a hand grip; A bowl formed concave so as to contain contents at the tip of the handle; And counting means installed in the handle and for automatically counting the number of times of use of the spoon.

In the present invention as described above, the counting means includes a sensing unit for sensing the operation of the spoon containing the contents and tilting the spoon upside down pouring the contents in the bowl; A display unit exposed to the upper surface of the handle and displaying the number of times of use of the spoon detected by the sensing unit; The control unit receives the detection signal from the sensing unit and displays it on the display unit, and compares whether the number of times of use of the spoon detected from the sensing unit reaches a preset number and generates an alarm signal according to the control signal and the alarm signal received from the control unit. It has a notification unit that sounds the alarm by. And the counting means comprises: a first switch capable of setting a desired number of times of use by the user; It may further include a second switch for turning on / off the counting function.

In the present invention as described above, the sensing unit may be made of a vibration sensor that senses a change in the operation of pouring the contents of the spoon to pour out the contents by tilting the spoon upside down. The sensing unit may be a shock sensor for detecting a shock generated when the spoon hits the bowl when the contents of the bowl are poured into another bowl. The sensing unit is installed on the upper surface corresponding to each other of the bowl, to detect the contact with the weighing frame when removing the contents accumulated in the bowl over the bowl to the weighing frame of the container in order to lift the contents only the amount of the bowl It may be a contact sensor. The sensing unit may include a first ground plane and a second ground plane that are installed on top surfaces of the bowl corresponding to each other.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, FIGS. 1 to 5C. In the drawings, the same reference numerals are given to components that perform the same function.

1 shows a spoon having a counting function according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a view for explaining the process of burning powdered milk with a spoon. 3 is a block diagram of the counting means of a spoon according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the spoon 100 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is a measuring spoon that is used to take the milk powder from the milk bottle 10 to the bottle 20, handle 112, bowl 114 and the counting means 120. At the tip of the handle 112, a bowl 114 is formed that is concave so as to contain the contents.

On the other hand, the most constitutive feature of the present invention is to have a counting means 120 to automatically count the number of times the spoon is used. 3 shows the configuration of the counting means 120 in a block diagram. As shown in FIG. 3, the counting means 120 includes a sensing unit 122, a display unit 124, a control unit 126, and a notification unit 128. The counting means 120 has a first switch 130 for setting the number of times the user wants to use and a second switch 132 for resetting the counting value of the display unit to "0".

The sensing unit 122 is intended to detect a series of spoon motions (shown in FIG. 2) for pouring powdered milk in a bowl by tilting the spoon upside down and containing the powdered milk (shown in FIG. 2). 122a). As shown in FIG. 2, the vibration sensor 122a removes the milk powder from the milk powder container 10 (in operation) and tilts the spoon 100 upside down to feed the milk powder in the bowl 114 into the baby bottle 20. The pouring ("multi" action) senses a series of spoon changes.

For example, in addition to the vibration sensor, the sensing unit 122 may be understood as a shock sensor or an acoustic sensor or a touch sensor that senses a shock or sound generated when a spoon strikes the bottle when pouring powdered milk into the bottle.

The display unit 124 is exposed to an upper surface of the handle 112, and the display unit 124 displays the number of times the spoon is detected by the vibration sensor 122a.

The control unit 126 has a microcomputer, which has an internal memory. This memory stores the program that counts the number of times the spoon is used and the value of the usage count. Referring to the flowchart shown in FIG. 4, the controller 126 receives the detection signal from the vibration sensor 122a and displays the number of times of use of the spoon on the display unit 124. And, comparing the number of times of use (N) of the spoon detected from the vibration sensor 122a has reached a predetermined value (M), and if the number of times of use (N) has reached the set value (M) the notification unit Generate an alarm signal at (128). The alarm unit 128 receives the alarm signal from the control unit 126 so that a warning sound sounds.

The structural feature of the present invention is that it has a counting means that can automatically count the number of times the spoon is used.

Referring to Fig. 4, the counting method of the spoon having the above-described configuration is as follows. First, a reset step (s10) of pressing the second switch 132 to set the counting value of the display unit to "0", setting a desired setting value M with the first switch 130 (s20), The vibration sensor 122a detects a series of motions of moving the milk powder from the milk bottle to the baby bottle with a spoon (s30), and receives a detection signal from the vibration sensor 122a at the controller 126 to check (accumulate) the Displaying the checked value (number of times of use) on the display unit 124 (s40), and comparing the number of times of use of the spoon detected by the vibration sensor with the control unit 126 to the preset value M; Step s50, and when the predetermined number of times of use of the spoon reaches the alarm is made to the step (s60).

Thus, according to the present invention, how many spoons of powdered milk in a bottle with a spoon is automatically counted. Then, when the number M set in advance before use is reached, a warning sound is made to sound. Thus, mothers can comfortably feed formula into the bottle without paying special attention.

5A to 5C are views showing a modification of the present invention.

The spoon of the present invention shown in Figures 5a to 5c has a handle 112, a bowl (114) and the counting means 120 and the like of the same configuration and function as the spoon described above, the description thereof Since it described in detail, it will be omitted in this modification.

However, the structural feature according to the present modification has a sensing unit 122 ′ composed of a first ground plane a and a second ground plane b to more accurately sense a series of spoon operations. The first ground plane (a) and the second ground plane (b) are provided on the top surface 114a corresponding to each other of the bowl 114.

Referring to FIG. 5B, in general, mothers place the bowl 114 against the weighing frame 12 (usually made of aluminum) of the milk powder container 10 in order to dispense a quantitative amount of powdered milk with a spoon 100. It is to remove the powdered milk that has accumulated more than quantitatively. At this time, a current flows from the first ground plane a to the second ground plane b through the conductor metering frame 12, and the controller 126 detects the current flow and counts it. . Therefore, the spoon 100 according to the present modification has an advantage of more clearly counting the number of times the spoon is used.

As with the above-described embodiment, it is obvious that a spoon with the present counting function can be of great help to mothers who need to count the number of times the weighing spoon is used with great care when taking milk powder. .

The spoon having a counting function according to the present embodiment has been described as a measuring spoon for baby food as an example, but it may be understood as a general spoon, a scoop for making broth, a measuring spoon for spice, and the like. In particular, if a woman who wants a diet using a spoon having a counting function, you can often check how much a spoon she used to eat food, can wake up the alarm of the diet.

In the above, the configuration and operation of the spoon having a counting function according to the present invention has been shown in accordance with the above description and drawings, but this is merely described by way of example, and various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Of course it is possible.

According to the spoon of the present invention as described above, it is possible to provide convenience to mothers who need to count the number of times of use of the measuring spoon accurately while paying particular attention when taking the milk powder.

Claims (7)

In a spoon: Handles held by hand; A bowl formed concave so as to contain contents at the tip of the handle; A spoon having a counting function, said counting means being provided in said handle and including counting means for automatically counting the number of times of use of the spoon. The method of claim 1, The counting means A sensing unit for sensing the motion of the spoon containing the contents and pouring the contents into the bowl by tilting the spoon upside down; A display unit exposed to the upper surface of the handle and displaying the number of times of use of the spoon detected by the sensing unit; A control unit which receives the detection signal from the sensing unit and displays the display unit on the display unit, and compares whether the number of times of use of the spoon sensed by the sensing unit reaches a preset number, and generates an alarm signal accordingly; A spoon having a counting function, characterized in that it comprises a notification unit for ringing the alarm by the alarm signal received from the control unit. The method of claim 2, The counting means A first switch capable of setting a desired number of times of use by the user; A spoon having a counting function, further comprising a second switch for turning on / off the counting function. The method of claim 2, The sensing unit A spoon having a counting function, characterized in that it is a vibration sensor that senses a change in the motion of a spoon that pours out the contents and tilts the spoon upside down. The method of claim 2, The sensing unit Spoon with a counting function, characterized in that the impact sensor for detecting the impact generated when the spoon hits the bowl when pouring the contents in the bowl to another bowl The method of claim 2, The sensing unit The contact sensor is installed on the upper sides of the bowls and detects contact with the weighing frame when removing the contents accumulated in the bowl by placing the bowl on the weighing frame of the container so as to lift the contents only as much as the amount of the bowl. A spoon having a counting function, characterized in that. The method of claim 2, The sensing unit has a first ground plane and a second ground plane which are installed on the upper surfaces corresponding to each other of the bowl. A spoon having a counting function, characterized in that it detects and counts the current flowing from the first ground plane to the second ground plane by the metering frame.