Meraki Health™ Medical Dispenser
Meraki Health™ Medical Dispenser
ZHENG TIAN
"Taste" Steampot Design
Kitchenware Design
Project Overview:
When steampot users are taking out their plates and food from the steampot, they often faces the problem that it is not easy to take the hot food out of the steampot when there are hot steam around. I was designing a steampot that can provide effortless, reliable and versatile cooking experience for steampot users.
When:
2020.1 - 2020.3
Role:
Product Designer
Skills Gained:
3D modelling (Solidworks, Rhinoceros)
3D Rendering (Keyshot 7)
Usability Testing
User Research
Ideating
Steam \ˈstēm\
Steaming is a method of cooking using steam. Some people believes that steaming is the cooking method that can best preserve the original taste of the food. So I decided to name my design 'Taste'. Overcooking or burning food is easily avoided when steaming it. Individuals preferring to avoid additional fat intake may prefer steaming to methods which require cooking oil.
Boiling water in the bottom layer produces steam that goes into the upper layer
Steam with high-heat will them accumulate in the food holder/plate holder layer and "cook" the food
THe problem:
In order to understand the pain point of current steampot designs, I interviewed 11 steampot users and discovered the following pain points.
When the plate is hot, the user needs to use assistant tools or gloves in order to get the food out of steampot. For assistant tools as shown to the left, the user needs to put in a lot of force and effort in order to hold the plate steady. For gloves, users sometimes might spill the sauces to the glove when transporting the food.
But if the plate is big and the edge of the plate is too close to the side of the steampot, it is really hard to stick assistant tools or gloves into the steampot.
None of the current design on the market can properly address this issue. So I decided to design the steampot that can solve this problem.
Early Iterations/Mockups:
The idea of 'Taste' is creating an opening in the middle of the plate holder so that the opening can hold the plates. Some of the early mockups and prototypes were created to use for usability test and field tests. The feedback I got from these early designs helps me to shape my final design
THe final solution:
Taste 品
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The steampot is composed of three parts: the lid, the plate holder and the bottom.
Because the bottom of the steampot needs to endure open fire and hold boiled water for a long period of time. I chose casserole as the material. Casserole is rustless, light-weighted and elegant so it is the perfect material to use for the bottom of this steampot design. Also, the glazing on top of the casserole can resists chipping, staining and cracking.
The lid of the steampot is composed of two materials: casserole and bamboo. I choose casserole material for the body of the lid because it can endure heat and coordinates with the bottom. The bamboo handle of the lid can effectively prevents the heat conduction from the steampot so the users can lift up the lid easily without burning their hands.
The plate holder of the steampot is made of bamboo and cedar wood. Plate holder contains a hollow in the middle so the plate will sinks into the hollow when the plate is placed in the plate holder. The bottom of the plate will stick out of the bottom of plate holder so when the plate can sit tight on the table when the user place the plate holder and the plate on the dinning table.
The plate holder is also separable and this design enables the user to easily take the plate out from the plate holder without touching the hot plate.
The handle of the plate is composed of curves that matches human's hand grip so the users can grip the handler firmly
The using process of 'Taste' is shown below:
Step 1: Cooking...
Step 2: Take the lid off the steampot when food is done
Step 3: Take the plate holder and the plate out of the steampot and place them on the table
Step 4: Take the plate holder apart and leave the plate on the table
Step 5: Finish the food!
Further Implementation:
The current design solves the problem of steaming food with big plates. But smaller plates and bowls might not be suitable for this steampot. So adding another layer of plate holder is necessary. In the design below, 'Taste' has two plate holders, one with the hollow in the middle, which can be used for cooking large plate of food, the another one with no hollow, which can be used for cooking smaller plate of food. The plate holders are stackable during cooking and the user can cook large plate of food and small plate of food at the same time.
