Packaging

Bexter7 LLC Announces the Bagelpod, an Innovation in Bagel Slicing

Friday 12. December 2008 - The Bagelpod is the product of a design process that sought to address the shortcomings of alternate designs.

One of the problems is scraping off of toppings when the bagels are inserted into slicers. The Bagelpod’s side covers are hinged at the bottom and close in on the bagel. Because the bagel is not scraped as it is inserted, there is minimal topping losses. In addition, each side cover has a stretched elastic component that gently grips the bagel and positions it for slicing. The elastic member exerts both horizontal and radial forces. The radial forces help to keep the bagel from collapsing when sliced. Further, since the inner walls are elastic, the design can handle a wide range of bagel sizes – including mini-bagels.

The slicing system is a patented dual arc blade system that provides the user with compound leverage. Moving the slicing lever causes the blades to counter rotate and eventually mesh at the center of the cutting circle. One lever is formed by the slicing lever and another by the blade as it pivots around a point. Since the slicing lever moves through an angle of 120 degrees while the blades only rotate through an angle of 60 degrees, the effective slicing force applied by the user is doubled.

The blades are pinned at both ends in slots that allow them to slide as they are moved through their range of motion. This sliding motion adds to the slicing effectiveness.

The blades are designed to optimize the slicing performance for the motion geometry. It took over two years to develop the manufacturing process to make the blades. Both the blade design and manufacturing process are patent pending.

Safety interlocks prevent the blades from being moved while either one or both of the side covers is open. Another safety interlock prevents the side covers from being open while the blades are exposed. With the covers open, the blades are locked behind the inner structure of the Bagelpod so that they can’t be accidentally touched by the user.