Patent Application
20160374515
Field of the Invention
A removable blender pad that limits the noise and vibration generated by a blender that is used for mixing and manipulating food.
Background—Prior Art
Blenders are popular mechanical devices to quickly mix or dice a variety of food items. Most blenders include a blender based or motor housing that contains an electric motor. The blender base has controls that control operation of an electric motor. A blender jar containing blades is located on the top of the blender base. In operation, a variety of food items can be placed inside the jar. The controls are then used to activate the electric motor. The electric motor turns the blades, mixing and dicing the food items.
To ensure the blender has the ability to mix and dice food, manufactures install powerful electrical motors. Many manufactures boast the strength of the electrical motors as an appeal to customers. While the powerful motors are an advantage, the motors do cause other drawbacks. The motor are the source of noise and vibrations. The noise generated may be so loud that it hurts the users ears or at the very least cause a nuisance the individuals near the blender. The vibration may cause the blender to move during operation, which can cause damage to the blender and a user. The vibrations between the blender and the surface that it is resting on causes additional noise.
Blenders required air flowing through the blender base to prevent overheating. The air is generally drawn through inlet and forced out of the blender through an air exhaust. Unfortunately, the movement of the air can amplify the sound of the motor. The airflow exiting the base of the food processor carries the loud noise to the exterior of the base and the noise is amplified by the surface the blender is sitting on.
When utilized in businesses, the noise and vibrations can disturb or distract customers. This has prevented business from utilizing blenders in business. At home, the noise and vibrations can disturb the household. Users may stop using the blender to altogether. While the manufactures have build blenders which limit the noise and vibration, such as placing insulation around a motor. the manufactures must balance the cost, power of the motor, and the size of the blender to match the average customer's desirers. If a consumer purchased a blender but wanted a blender which generated less noise or vibration, the only recourse for the consumer was to purchase another blender.
The present invention recognizes that it would be advantageous to allow the user to have device that the user could attached to a blender that would limit the noise and vibrations generated by the blender.
The invention relates to a blender pad that is removably attaching to the base of a blender. The device is design to reduce noise and vibration from the blender.
One embodiment of the invention is the pad includes one or more air inlet or exhaust openings, acoustic sound chamber, acoustic ridges and attenuating damping foam. The air inlet and exhaust openings correspond to the exhaust port and exhaust opening located on a blender base. The acoustic chamber, acoustics ridge and attenuating damping foam aid in reducing the noise generated by the blender. The blender pad is made of materials such as rubber that absorbers the sound and vibrations of the blender. The blender pad is releasably connected to a blender base. Other embodiments are described and shown below.
The invention may take form in certain parts and arrangement of parts and preferred embodiment of which will be described in detail in the specification and illustrated in the accompany drawing, which for a part hereof:
The present invention relates to a removable blender pad. In particular, the present invention relates to a device and methods that attaches to a blender to decreasing the noise and vibration produced by the blender.
In the flowing description of the invention, certain terminology is used for the purpose of reference only, and is not intend to be limiting. Terms such as “upper”, “lower”, “above”, and “below,” refer to directions in the drawings to which reference is made. Terms such as “inwards” and “outward” refer to directions towards and away from, respectively, the geometric center of the component described. Terms such as “side”, “top”, “bottom,” “horizontal,” “with in,” “inside,” and “vertical,” describe the orientation of portions of the component within a consistent but arbitrary frame of reference which is made clear by reference to the text and the associated drawings describing the component under discussion. Such terminology includes words specifically mentioned above, derivatives thereof, and words of similar import.
An embodiment of a blender pad 2 is illustrated in
The blender base 4 is generally made of any appropriate material, such as molded plastic or metal. The blender base 4 may include features designed to facilitate airflow through the blender base 4. In addition, the blender base 4 may include hollow portions, ridged portions and openings, to create air gaps and pathways to direct the flow of air through the blender base 4.
The blender base 4 may include one or more feet 30. The feet 30 may be any appropriate size or shape and are generally located on the bottom of the blender base 4. The feet 30 are generally composed of material that would create friction, such as rubber.
As illustrated in
The blender pad 2 generally has the same circumference shape as the blender base 4. The width and circumference of the blender pad 2, is slightly larger than the blender base 4. The blender pad 2 includes a top 11, at least one extension arm 14 and a bottom 13. Extending above the top 11, the extension arms 14 releasably clasps to the sidewall 36 of the blender base 4. When the extension arm 14 is placed against the sidewall 36, the resistance between the extension arm 14 and the sidewall 36 is such that a deliberate force is required to remove the blender pad 2. To ensure the blender pad 2 is coupled to the blender base 4, the extension arms 14 may comprise a small ridge 17 that matches grooves or the shapes in on the blender base 4. As shown in
The blender pad 2 has several cavity 26. The cavities 26 aid in damping the noise and provided structural support. The cavities 26, may extend into the extension arms 14. The bottom of the blender pad 2, has at least two pedestals 25.
As shown in
The blender pad 2, has an inlet opening 18 and an exhaust opening 20. The inlet opening 18 is position near the inlet port 32 such that air drawn through the inlet port 32 is not hindered by the blender pad 2. The size of the inlet opening 18 is at least the same as the inlet port 32. The number of inlet openings 18 vary, but in practice the number of inlet openings 18 will correspond directly to the number of inlet ports 32. The inlet openings 18 may form a handle 27 located around the outer circumference of the blender pad 2. The exhaust opening 20 is located near the exhaust port 34. The size of the exhaust opening 20 is generally larger than the exhaust port 34. Both the exhaust opening 20 and the inlet opening 18 have a sound wall 19 that forces the air flow to curve through the openings. The sound wall 19 assist in damping the noise from the blender base 4.
As illustrated in
Located between the air slot 29 and the exhaust opening 20 is at least one air channel 28. The air channel 28 contain an acoustic ridge 22. The acoustic ridges 22 form a corrugated edge along a portion of the air channel 28. While the acoustic ridge 22 shown have sharp angles, one skilled in the art will recognize that the acoustic ridges 22 may have other shapes. The acoustic ridge 22 is such as to absorbed any additional noise and to provide additional structural support for the blender pad 2. As shown in
The blender pad 2 is made from any material which will absorbed vibrations and noise such as rubber. With the exception of the acoustic foam 41, generally the entire blender pad 2 is made from the same material.
While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described herein, it should be understood, that although the description above contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. Thus, the scope of the embodiment should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents rather than by the examples given.
