MEAT MINCING APPARATUS AND MEAT MINCING ACCESSORY

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a meat mincing apparatus, or a meat mincing accessory for attachment to a kitchen appliance having a motor.

Background Art

Meat mincers are apparatus for processing raw meat into meat stuffing, and are widely applicable to the processing of meat products in various meat product processing industries and households. However, during use of an existing meat mincer, the mincing cutter head and the conveying screw are still rotating if the front cover is screwed off and the blade plate is removed, which is prone to injure the user and poses safety hazards.

Therefore, there is a need to provide a new-type meat mincing apparatus, which provides higher safety, overcomes or partially overcomes the above defect, and provides an alternative to the existing products.

Summary of the Invention

The features and advantages of the present disclosure will be illustrated in the following description, partial content of which will be apparent from the following description, or may be learned by practice of the principle disclosed herein. The features and advantages of the present disclosure may be implemented and obtained by virtue of the means and combinations specified in the specification.

According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, provided is an apparatus for meat mincing, comprising: a drive, a meat mincing chamber, one or more blades, a transmission shaft, a mincer head, and a transmission mechanism. Wherein, the blades are placed in the meat mincing chamber for mincing meat; the transmission shaft is used for rotating the blades; the mincer head is positionable at an outlet of the meat mincing chamber in a retaining position, in which the transmission shaft is retained in the meat mincing chamber; and the transmission mechanism is used for coupling the transmission shaft to the drive. Wherein the transmission mechanism comprises at least two mutually repelling magnets including a first magnet coupled to the transmission shaft and a second magnet coupled to the drive. The two magnets are arranged to decouple the transmission shaft from the drive when the mincer head is moved away from the retaining position.

The mincer head is removably attached to the outlet of the meat mincing chamber.

The at least two mutually repelling magnets may urge the transmission shaft away from the drive and against the mincer head or against a member held in place by the mincer head when the mincer head is in the retaining position.

The transmission mechanism may comprise: a shaft clutch coupled to the transmission shaft; and a drive clutch coupled to the drive, the first magnet being coupled to the shaft clutch and the second magnet being coupled to the drive clutch.

The first magnet may be coupled to a shaft clutch by a first screw, and the second magnet may be coupled to a drive clutch by a second screw.

The first magnet may have a first aperture and is attached to the shaft clutch by a first attachment member extending through the first aperture; and the second magnet may have a second aperture and is attached to the drive clutch by a second attachment member extending through the second aperture.

The shaft clutch may comprise a plurality of teeth which interlock with a plurality of teeth of the drive clutch when the shaft clutch and drive clutch are engaged; and the shaft clutch moves in a direction along the axis of the transmission shaft so that the plurality of teeth of the shaft clutch are disengaged from the plurality of teeth of the drive clutch when the mincer head is moved away from the retaining position.

One of the shaft clutch and the drive clutch may comprise a male part and the other may comprise a female part, the male part extends into the female part when the shaft clutch and drive clutch are engaged.

The mincer head may be a threaded nut which screws onto the meat mincing chamber.

A blade plate may be arranged between the mincer head and the one or more blades.

The one or more blades (30) may be arranged between the blade plate (20) and a positioning bracket (35).

The one or more blades may include a plurality of blades arranged at the end of the transmission shaft proximate the mincer head.

A worm like blade may extend around the transmission shaft for feeding meat through the meat mincing chamber.

According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, provided is a meat mincing accessory, for attachment to a kitchen appliance having a motor; the meat mincing accessory comprises: a meat mincing chamber; one or more blades placed in the meat mincing chamber for mincing meat; a transmission shaft being engaged toan output end of the motor of the kitchen appliance and rotating the one or more blades; a mincer head positionable at an outlet of the meat mincing chamber in a retaining position, in which the transmission shaft is retained in the meat mincing chamber; and a first magnet coupled to the transmission shaft, wherein the first magnet is arranged to be mutually repelled by a second magnet provided on the kitchen appliance so as to decouple the transmission shaft from a drive when the mincer head is moved away from the retaining position.

The meat mincing accessory may comprise a blade plate arranged between the mincer head and the one or more blades, wherein the blade plate comprises a plurality of through-holes for outlet of meat cut by the one or more blades.

In a working process of the meat mincing apparatus and the meat mincing accessory provided in the present disclosure, if the mincer head is moved away from the retaining position, the transmission shaft is decoupled from the drive such that the blades driven by the transmission shaft stops rotating, thereby ensuring the safety of users.

Brief Description of the Drawings

In order to describe the manner in which the above and other advantages and features of the present disclosure can be obtained, the principle briefly described above will be described in more detail with reference to the specific embodiments illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that these accompanying drawings only illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, and are therefore should not be considered limiting the scope thereof, and the principle herein will be described and explained with specific examples and details using the accompanying drawings. Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in further detail below by way of examples and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a schematic external view of an exemplary meat mincing apparatus.

Fig. 2 shows a schematic exploded view of a meat mincing apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment.

Fig. 3 shows a schematic exploded view of a transmission mechanism according to an exemplary embodiment.

Fig. 4 shows a partially schematic sectional view of the meat mincing apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment.

Detailed Description of Embodiments

Various embodiments of the present disclosure will be discussed in detail below. While specific implementations are discussed, it should be understood that this is for illustration purposes only. A person skilled in the related art will learn that other components and configurations may be used without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.

In the specification, “coupled” may include being directly connected and indirectly connected, where “a transmission shaft is coupled to a drive” means that rotation of the drive can cause rotation of the transmission shaft. “Decoupled” may include being decoupled from a direct connection or decoupled from an indirect connection, where “a drive shaft is decoupled from a drive” means rotation of the drive cannot cause rotation of the transmission shaft.

Like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the following description. The use of “first” and “second” in the specification are only for the purpose of denoting different components, rather than imposing any limitation on the components. Fig. 1 shows a schematic external view of an examplary meat mincing apparatus

100.

The meat mincing apparatus 100 as shown in Fig. 1 comprises a main body 1, a meat mincing accessory 2 connected to the main body 1, and a feed cylinder 3. A drive (not shown) is contained in the main body 1. The meat mincing accessory 2 comprises a meat mincing chamber 60. The meat mincing chamber 60 accommodates a blade and a transmission shaft (not shown) which is used for rotating a cutter head. A mincer head 10 is positioned at an outlet end of the meat mincing accessory, and used for retaining the blade and the transmission shaft in the meat mincing chamber.

In a working process of the meat mincing apparatus, when the mincer head 10 is removed, the blade will be exposed. At this point, if the transmission shaft is still rotating, the cutter head driven to rotate by the same may injure a user and cause a safety accident.

In the meat mincing apparatus provided by the present disclosure, two mutually repelling magnets are arranged in a transmission mechanism that couples the transmission shaft to the drive, a first magnet being coupled to the transmission shaft and a second magnet being coupled to the drive. When the mincer head of the apparatus is removed/opened, the transmission shaft may be decoupled from the drive under a repulsive force between the magnets, and then the blade stops rotating, thereby ensuring safety of the user.

Fig. 2 shows a schematic exploded view of a meat mincing apparatus 100. Fig. 3 shows a schematic exploded view of a transmission mechanism 70. Fig. 4 shows a partially schematic sectional view of the meat mincing apparatus 100.

As shown in Figs. 2-4, the meat mincing apparatus 100 comprises a mincer head 10, a blade plate 20, a blade 30, a positioning bracket 35, a transmission shaft 40, a worm like blade 50, a meat mincing chamber 60, a transmission mechanism 70, and a drive 90.

The transmission shaft 40, the worm like blade 50, the transmission mechanism 70, and the blade 30 are accommodated in the meat mincing chamber 60. The transmission shaft 40 is coupled to the drive 90 through the transmission mechanism 70, and the blade 30 is connected to the transmission shaft 40, for example, is arranged at the end of the transmission shaft 40 that is proximate the mincer head 10, so as to be driven to rotate by the transmission shaft 40. The worm like blade 50 extends around the transmission shaft 40 for feeding raw meat from an inlet of the meat mincing chamber 60 to the worm like blade 50 to be minced, and it can also implement part of the mincing function.

The mincer head 10 is removably attached to an outlet of the meat mincing chamber 60, for example, the mincer head 10 is a threaded nut which screws onto an outlet end of the meat mincing chamber 60. A blade plate 20 is arranged between the mincer head 10 and the blade 30. The blade 30 is arranged to rotate between the fastened blade plate 20 and a fastened positioning bracket 35. The positioning bracket 35 comprises a plurality of guide slots for controlling the feed amount of meat delivered from the worm like blade 50 to the region of the blade 30, so that the meat is supplied smoothly, and the minced meat has a uniform particle size. The blade plate 20 comprises a plurality of through-holes. Meat minced by the blade 30 is output from the meat mincing apparatus 100 via the through-holes on the blade plate 20.

As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the transmission mechanism 70 further comprises a shaft clutch 72 and a drive clutch 74. The shaft clutch 72 is coupled to the transmission shaft 40, and the drive clutch 74 is coupled to the drive 90. One of the shaft clutch 72 and the drive clutch 74 comprises a male part and the other comprises a female part, the male part extending into the female part when the two are engaged. For example, the shaft clutch 72 and the drive clutch 74 both comprises a plurality of teeth. The plurality of teeth of the shaft clutch 72 interlock with a plurality of teeth of the drive clutch 74 when the shaft clutch 72 and the drive clutch 74 are engaged, so that the transmission shaft 40 may be driven to rotate by the power output by the drive 90.

The transmission mechanism 70 further comprises two magnets 82 and 84, where the first magnet 82 has a first aperture 83, and a first screw 86 extends through the first aperture 83 to attach to the shaft clutch 72 so as to be connected to the transmission shaft 40; and the second magnet 84 has a second aperture 85, and a second screw 88 extends through the second aperture 85 to attach to the drive clutch 74 so as to be connected to the drive 90. There is a repulsive force between the two magnets 82 and 84, for example, the magnetic poles of the magnets 82 and 84 having same polarity are arranged facing each other. The repulsive force urges the shaft clutch 72 and the drive clutch 74 away from each other.

During use of the meat mincing apparatus 100, when the mincer head 10 is positioned in a retaining position, for example, it screws onto the outlet end of the meat mincing chamber 60, the transmission shaft 40 of the meat mincing apparatus is retained in the meat mincing chamber 60, and the transmission shaft 40 is driven to move in a direction close to the drive clutch 40, so that the drive clutch 74 and the shaft clutch 72 that is connected to the transmission shaft 40 are engaged through interlocking of a plurality of teeth. Then, the two mutually repelling magnets 82 and 84 urge the transmission shaft 40 away from the drive clutch 74 and against the mincer head 10 or against a member held in place by the mincer head 10, such as the blade plate 20.

If the mincer head 10 is moved away from the retaining position during use, for example, it is screwed off the outlet end of the meat mincing chamber 60, under the action of the repulsive force between the magnets 82 and 84, the shaft clutch 72 will move to the outlet of the meat mincing chamber 60 in a direction along the axis of the transmission shaft 40 so that the teeth of the shaft clutch 72 are disengaged from the teeth of the drive clutch 74, and the transmission shaft 40 is then decoupled from the drive 90 to stop rotating. This design can prevent injury to the user when the mincer head 10 is removed and the blade 30 or the worm like blade 50 is exposed to the outlet of the meat mincing chamber 60.

In an embodiment, the drive 90 is a motor. A gear unit may also be provided between the drive 90 and the transmission mechanism 70, where the drive clutch 74 is connected to an output shaft of the gear unit.

In an embodiment, the transmission mechanism 70 may comprise more than two magnets, for example, including two or more groups of mutually repelling magnets.

In an embodiment, the first screw and the second screw are stop screws. In other embodiments, the magnets may be attached to the shaft clutch/drive clutch by other attachment members or in other manners.

In an embodiment, the blade 30 may include one or more blades. In an embodiment, the worm like blade 50 may also be a helical structure for feeding raw meat through the meat mincing chamber.

In an embodiment, the blade plate 20 may be replaced, and blade plates having through-holes of different sizes may be selected according to needs. In other embodiments, the blade plate 20 may be integrated in the mincer head 10 or be part of the mincer head 10, and the meat mincing apparatus may not comprise the positioning bracket 35.

In an embodiment, the mincer head 10 may be positioned at the outlet of the meat mincing chamber in the retaining position by means of thread screwing, snap- fitting design, etc., and may be completely removed and then moved away from the retaining position. In other embodiments, the mincer head may also be connected to the outlet of the meat mincing chamber by means of pivot snap-fitting, etc., and when being moved away from the retaining position, the mincer head does not need to be completely removed.

In an embodiment, the meat mincing chamber 60 is fixedly connected to the main body 1, and among members accommodated therein, at least the blade 30 and the worm like blade 50 can be removed from the meat mincing chamber 60.

In an embodiment, the meat mincing apparatus 100 may comprise two parts: a main body and an accessory. The main body comprises a motor/drive 90, a drive clutch 74, and a second magnet 84. The accessory comprises: a meat mincing chamber 60; a blade plate 20, a blade 30, a transmission shaft 40, a worm like blade 50 and a transmission mechanism 70, which are accommodated in the meat mincing chamber 60; and the mincer head 10 that screws onto the outlet of the meat mincing chamber 60. The accessory is removably attached to a base as a whole.

In the present disclosure, the magnets are used instead of a spring to produce an urging force to decouple the transmission shaft from the drive. As compared with the use of spring, the design of using the repulsive force between the magnets to disconnect the shaft clutch from the drive clutch has higher safety. This is because the repulsive force between the magnets may not change over time, whereas the spring may be fatigue or aging over time. Once the elasticity of the spring is reduced, an elastic force of the spring may be insufficient to disconnect the transmission shaft from the drive, and it is difficult for the user to predict when this situation will occur, thereby resulting in a potential danger.

In addition, as the spring force is a contact force, if the spring is used, the spring is required to be in physical contact with the transmission shaft and the drive mechanism that may generate a friction force between same and the spring, which may hinder the rotation of the transmission shaft. The repulsive force between the magnets is a non-contact force, the two magnets may not be in contact when the shaft clutch and the drive clutch are engaged, so as to prevent generating the friction force that hinders motion of the transmission shaft and thus achieve smooth operation.

Furthermore, the two magnets in the present disclosure are respectively fastened on the transmission shaft and the drive through the screws, and then are easy to be aligned in position, thereby making the installation more convenient and accurate.

Although the meat mincing apparatus in the present disclosure is used as the embodiment of the above structural design, it can be understood that the similar structural design may also be applied to other kitchen appliances. For example, the above structural design may be an accessory or a component of a kitchen appliance having a motor, such as a food mixer, a juicer, a dough maker, a stand mixer and a food processor.

The above embodiments are described herein by way of examples only. Numerous variations are possible without departing from the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims. Although various examples and other information are used to explain various aspects within the scope of the appended claims, the specific functions or arrangements in such examples should not be construed as limitations on the claims, because a person of ordinary skill in the art will be able to use the example claims to derive various implementations.

In addition, although some subject matters may be described herein in illustrative language of specific structural features and/or method steps, it should be understood that the subject matter defined in the claims is not necessarily limited to such described features or actions. For example, such functions may be distributed differently or performed in components other than those identified herein. The described features and steps are only disclosed as examples of components of the system and method within the scope of the appended claims.