Patent Description:
Many food processors, e.g. blenders or smoothie makers, operate by the rotation of a blade arrangement in a food processing chamber such as a jug or the like. To this end, the blades typically outwardly extend from a central shaft, which central shaft may be mechanically driven by a motor in a base on which the food processing chamber can be mounted, or may be magnetically driven, such as for example disclosed in <CIT>, which discloses a processing device of food products and drinkables using a space-varying magnetic field for blade rotation. Further food processing devices are known from <CIT> and <CIT>.

In order to achieve the desired cutting action, e.g. to achieve a substantially homogenous cutting of the ingredients within the food processing chamber, the blade arrangement must be rotated at relatively high speed and with sufficient power to avoid large chunks of food jamming the blade arrangement. This means that the blade arrangement and the motor (and its gear box) typically are quite noisy. For instance, such high speed rotation of the blade arrangement typically introduces unwanted vibrations of the blades, which adds to the noise levels produced by the food processing apparatus. In addition, to prevent such motors from overheating, some form of ventilation to the base in which the motor is housed needs to be provided, e.g. a fan-driven air flow through the base, which further adds to the noise produced by the food processing apparatus. The resulting noise levels produced by such food processing apparatuses are generally perceived as being unpleasant or undesirable by most users.

In addition, the rotating blades generate a centrifugal force in the food medium that is being processed in the food processing chamber, which causes chunks of food to be thrown onto the walls of the food processing chamber, such chunks of food can stick to the walls for a prolonged period of time and be only released therefrom by collision with another chunk of food or by gravity. This can lead to the final processed food product or the food processing chamber still containing chunks of food upon completion of the food processing operation, both of which are undesirable and can lead to a user considering the food processing apparatus to be imperfect or even inadequate. In addition, during operation, the vortex created in the food by the blade rotation tends to take food chunks away from the cutting blades due to the cutting blades extending outwardly, which compromises cutting efficiency and increases cutting blade wear.

The present invention seeks to provide a food processing apparatus that can produce an improved food processing operation at reduced noise levels.

According to an aspect, there is provided a food processing apparatus having a food processing chamber comprising a blade arrangement and a motor arranged to drive the blade arrangement, wherein the blade arrangement comprises a body having a surface arrangement delimiting a cavity and a plurality of cutting blades extending from said surface arrangement into said cavity.

The provision of such a blade arrangement benefits from the fact that the blades are not attached to a central shaft but are distributed around a body, such that interferential amplification of vibration noise generated by blades attached to a common shaft is suppressed. Moreover, due to the blades extending inwardly into the cavity within the body of the blade arrangement, a more efficient cutting action is achieved in which the inward direction of the blades causes food to be pushed towards the centre of the food processing chamber rather than to its one or more walls as is the case with outwardly pointing blades, thereby avoiding the risk of chunks of food being thrown towards such walls. The more efficient cutting action further allows for the food processing apparatus to be operated at lower rotation speeds if so desired because by moving the blade arrangement more towards the periphery of the food processing chamber, a higher torque is generated with the blade arrangement such that a required torque can be achieved at lower rotation speeds. This further aids reduction of the noise levels produced by the food processing apparatus. In addition, because the blade arrangement is arranged around the rim of the the food processing chamber, the food processing chamber may be widened without compromising cutting efficiency, thus allowing larger chunks of food to be processed.

In a particular embodiment, the body is a cylindrical body, which for instance is preferable for ease of operation and cleaning purposes. However, in alternative embodiments, the surface arrangement may be multi-faceted, e.g. have a polygonal cross-section.

In an embodiment, the cutting blades are offset to each other along a central axis of the body. This increases the cutting volume of the blade arrangement, thereby further improving its cutting efficiency, whilst the distribution of the blades over the inner surface of the body such that the blades lie in different horizontal planes when the central axis of the cylindrical body is an a vertical orientation furthermore provides a particularly quiet blade arrangement.

The body preferably is arranged proximal to the rim of the food processing chamber. According to the invention, the food processing apparatus comprises a securing ring arranged to secure the blade arrangement on a bottom portion of the food processing chamber, which securing ring for instance may be screwed onto the bottom portion of the food processing chamber.

According to the invention, the motor is mechanically coupled to food processing chamber such as to rotate the food processing chamber including the blade arrangement, e.g. to increase movement of ingredients within the food processing chamber using gravitational and centrifugal forces. Such a driving mechanism may be used when the blade arrangement is integral to the food processing chamber as well as when the blade arrangement is detachable from the food processing chamber, e.g. when the blade arrangement is secured against the food processing chamber with the securing ring. In this set of embodiments, the motor may be mechanically coupled to the food processing chamber in any suitable manner, e.g. to the blade arrangement through an aperture in the bottom portion of the food processing chamber, to the sealing ring if present or directly to the food processing chamber, e.g. in case of a food processing chamber that is closed at the bottom such that the motor may interface with a bottom portion of the food processing chamber.

In this set of embodiments, the food processing apparatus may further comprise a protective cover at least partially covering the food processing chamber to prevent a user from being able to touch or otherwise access the rotating food processing chamber, which for instance may assist in preventing the user from accidental injury.

Where the blade arrangement is rotated together with the food processing chamber, the blade arrangement itself may not be rotatable. However, where the blade arrangement is to be rotated independent of the food processing chamber, or the food processing chamber is to be rotated independent of the blade arrangement, the blade arrangement may further comprise a further body, and the body may be rotatably mounted on said further body, in which case the body typically comprises a cylindrical outer surface to facilitate such rotation. To this end, the motor may be mechanically coupled to the body such as to rotate the body within the food processing chamber. Alternatively, the motor may be mechanically coupled to the food processing chamber such as to rotate the food processing chamber (and the further body) around the stationary body.

According to the invention, the mechanical coupling comprises a central shaft driven by the motor and at least one engagement member coupled to the central shaft arranged to engage with the securing ring or the body. Such a drive mechanism may simply comprise a central shaft or alternatively the at least one engagement member may be mounted on a further cylindrical body attached to said central shaft or may comprise a plurality of engagement members individually mounted on respective arms that extend from said central shaft in a radial arrangement.

In the above embodiments, the blade arrangement is mechanically driven by the motor. However, in an alternative set of embodiments, the blade arrangement may be magnetically driven. To this end, the motor may comprise a stator arranged to create a rotating magnetic field, wherein the body is responsive to said rotating magnetic field. For instance, the body may be made of a paramagnetic material, e.g. a paramagnetic metal such as iron or the like, and comprise an arrangement of magnets or poles arranged around the body to make the body responsive to the rotating magnetic field having a direction of rotation perpendicular to the central axis of the body such as to induce rotation of the body around its central axis. The stator preferably is arranged around the body to optimize the coupling between the induced rotating magnetic field and the body.

In a particular embodiment, the food processing apparatus further comprises a docking station for the food processing chamber, said docking station including a base including the motor for engaging with a bottom portion of the food processing chamber including the blade arrangement, and a holder opposing the base for engaging with a top portion of the food processing chamber. Docking the food processing chamber in such a docking station further reduces operation noise of the food processing apparatus. Preferably, the food processing chamber is in a tilted orientation when docked in said docking station such that an orientation of the central axis of the body lies in between a vertical plane and a horizontal plane. This creates a tumbling effect of the food chunks within the food processing chamber, which aids cutting efficiency and reduces load force exerted on the cutting blades by food chunks.

The tilted orientation may be adjustable during operation of the food processing apparatus such that the tilt angle of the food processing chamber may be optimized as a function of progress of the food processing operation, e.g. to change the direction in which the ingredients move and alter movement speed of the ingredients such as to reduce the potential accumulation of ingredients in a particular location and consequently improve cutting efficiency.

The food processing apparatus may take any suitable shape. In particular embodiments, the food processing apparatus is a blender or a smoothie maker but other types of food processing apparatuses that implement a cutting function with blades, e.g. grinders, choppers or the like, may also be contemplated.

Embodiments of the invention are described in more detail and by way of non-limiting examples with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:.

<FIG> schematically depicts a top view of a blade arrangement <NUM> according to an example embodiment. The blade arrangement <NUM> comprises a body <NUM> from which a plurality of cutting blades <NUM> extend inwardly from a surface arrangement <NUM> of the body <NUM> into an internal space or cavity <NUM> delimited by the surface arrangement <NUM> towards the center of the body <NUM>. The body <NUM> and the cutting blades <NUM> may be made of any suitable material, e.g. stainless steel, a suitable plastic and so on. The body <NUM> may be made of the same material as the cutting blades <NUM> or may be made of a different material to the cutting blades <NUM>. The cutting blades <NUM> may have any suitable shape. For example, the cutting blades <NUM> may be predominantly planar or may have a curved or angled shape instead. The shape of the cutting blades <NUM> may be optimized depending on their orientation within a food processing chamber of a food processing apparatus. In some examples, cutting blades <NUM> may be mounted on the surface arrangement <NUM> of the body <NUM> in an adjustable manner, such that the configuration of the cutting blades <NUM> may be adjusted, e.g. to optimize the configuration for a particular food processing task or as a function of a chosen orientation of the food processing chamber comprising the blade arrangement <NUM>.

The mounting of the cutting blades <NUM> in this manner means that each cutting blade <NUM> is individually mounted on a separate part of the surface arrangement <NUM> of the body <NUM> rather than having a blade arrangement in which outwardly directed cutting blades share a central shaft as is the case in prior art arrangements. This has the advantage that vibrations experienced by individual cutting blades <NUM> are transferred to other cutting blades <NUM> of the blade arrangement <NUM> to a far lesser degree than is the case with cutting blades sharing a central shaft. Consequently, there is less positive interference between the vibrations of individual cutting blades <NUM>. In addition, as each cutting blade <NUM> is individually mounted, this mounting mechanism can be made more robust or rigid compared to cutting blades sharing a central shaft, which further reduces the vibration of the cutting blades <NUM> during operation. Consequently, the blade arrangement <NUM> can be operated more quietly than blade arrangements having cutting blades sharing a central shaft.

The particular configuration of the cutting blades <NUM> on the surface arrangement <NUM> of the body <NUM> further improves the cutting efficiency of the blade arrangement <NUM>. Because of this configuration, the cutting action of the cutting blades <NUM> is inwardly directed, thus forcing food towards the center of the body <NUM>, i.e. into the cavity <NUM>, rather than to the periphery of a food processing chamber as is the case with cutting blades extending from a central shaft. This is further enhanced by the rotating cutting blades <NUM> creating a vortex that sucks the food into the center of the body <NUM> rather than pushing it towards the periphery of the food processing chamber. Moreover, because the loading force exerted by the food interacting with the cutting blades <NUM> is distributed across the surface arrangement <NUM> of the body <NUM>, this further enhances cutting efficiency and reduces noise.

In a particular embodiment, which is schematically depicted in <FIG>, the respective cutting blades <NUM> are offset relative to each other along the central axis <NUM> of the body <NUM> such as to distribute the cutting blades <NUM> as much as possible across the surface arrangement <NUM> of the body <NUM> such that a cutting action occurs throughout the entire volume of the body <NUM> in order to optimize the efficiency of the cutting action of the cutting blades <NUM>. The enhanced cutting efficiency of the blade arrangement <NUM> means that a food processing apparatus deploying the blade arrangement <NUM> may achieve the same food processing results as a food processing apparatus deploying a blade arrangement having cutting blades outwardly extending from a central shaft whilst operating at lower blade rotation speeds and therefore producing less noise than such a prior art food processing apparatus.

In <FIG>, the body <NUM> is a cylindrical body in which the surface arrangement <NUM> forms the inner surface of the cylindrical body and the further surface arrangement <NUM> forms the outer surface of the cylindrical body. In other words, the surface arrangement <NUM> and the further surface arrangement <NUM> each form a single (cylindrical) surface. However, other embodiments of the body <NUM> are also feasible. For example, as shown in <FIG>, the body <NUM> may have a multi-faceted surface arrangement <NUM>, e.g. a surface arrangement <NUM> having a polygonal cross-section, from which the cutting blades <NUM> extend into the inner space or cavity <NUM> delimited by the surface arrangement <NUM>. In this embodiment, the further surface arrangement <NUM> may still have a circular cross-section, i.e. be shaped as the outer surface of a cylinder, e.g. to facilitate rotation of the body <NUM> in a further body as will be explained in further detail below. However, as shown in <FIG>, the further surface arrangement <NUM> equally may be multi-faceted, e.g. have a polygonal cross-section, which for instance may be the case when the blade arrangement <NUM> is rotated together with the food processing chamber in which the blade arrangement <NUM> is mounted, as will be explained in more detail below.

The blade arrangement <NUM> may be mounted in a food processing chamber <NUM> of a food processing apparatus <NUM> in any suitable manner. For example, as schematically depicted in <FIG>, the food processing chamber <NUM> of the food processing apparatus <NUM> may have an upper portion <NUM> delimiting an access into the food processing chamber <NUM>, which may be sealed with a lid <NUM> or the like. The blade arrangement <NUM> may be inserted into the food processing chamber <NUM>, e.g. a cup, jar, bowl or the like, through a central aperture <NUM> delimited by a bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> and clamped between the bottom portion <NUM> and a securing ring <NUM>, which may be screwed onto the bottom portion <NUM>. To this end, both an inner surface of the securing ring <NUM> and the outer surface of the bottom portion <NUM> may be threaded, which threads engage with each other when the securing ring <NUM> is screwed onto the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> as indicated by the curved block arrows. A seal <NUM>, e.g. a sealing ring or the like, may be clamped in between the blade arrangement <NUM> and the bottom portion of the food processing chamber <NUM> to prevent leakage from the food processing chamber <NUM> when a liquid is present in the food processing chamber <NUM>. The seal <NUM> may be secured between the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> and the blade arrangement <NUM> in any suitable manner. For example, the blade arrangement <NUM> may comprise a flange <NUM> around the body <NUM> for supporting the seal <NUM>, such that upon mounting the blade arrangement <NUM> against the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM>, the seal <NUM> is trapped between an edge of the bottom portion <NUM> and the flange <NUM>. Of course, it should be readily understood that the blade arrangement <NUM> may be sealed against the food processing chamber <NUM> in any suitable manner. Alternatively, the blade arrangement <NUM> may be mounted on a drive shaft of the motor of the food processing apparatus in some embodiments.

The food processing chamber <NUM> typically is mounted on a base <NUM> housing the motor <NUM> of the food processing apparatus <NUM>, together with any suitable cooling arrangement (not shown) for the motor <NUM> if required, e.g. a fan, a water cooling mechanism, a semi-conductive cooling mechanism or the like. Any suitable mounting mechanism may be used for this purpose. As such mounting mechanisms are well-known per se, they will not be discussed in further detail for the sake of brevity. A central shaft <NUM> typically extends from the motor <NUM> for driving the blade arrangement <NUM> as will be explained in more detail below. In a first set of embodiments, the body <NUM> of the blade arrangement <NUM> is arranged to rotate within a stationary food processing chamber <NUM>, or alternatively to allow for rotation of the food processing chamber <NUM> around a static body <NUM>. An example embodiment of such a blade arrangement <NUM> is schematically depicted in <FIG>, in which the blade arrangement <NUM> is mounted against the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> as previously described. In this example embodiment, the blade arrangement <NUM> comprises a static body <NUM> into which the body <NUM> is rotationally mounted, e.g. using bearings or the like. In this embodiment, the further surface arrangement <NUM> typically is cylindrical, although the surface arrangement <NUM> may take any suitable shape, e.g. a cylindrical shape or a multi-faceted shape as previously explained. The blade arrangement <NUM> may further comprise a bottom plate <NUM> from which the body <NUM> extends such that the cutting blades <NUM> extend inwardly over the bottom plate <NUM>. The bottom plate <NUM> seals the bottom of the blade arrangement <NUM> and may rotate together with the body <NUM> when being driven by the motor <NUM>. Alternatively, the bottom plate <NUM> may be a further static body such that the body <NUM> is rotationally mounted between an inner static body <NUM> and an outer static body <NUM>, in which case the surface arrangement <NUM> typically is also cylindrical in shape. Other suitable arrangement for rotationally mounting the body <NUM> in the blade arrangement <NUM> may of course be contemplated.

<FIG> and <FIG> further schematically depict an example drive mechanism of the blade arrangement <NUM> in which the motor <NUM> engages with the body <NUM>, e.g. a cylindrical body, through a further cylindrical body <NUM> on the central shaft <NUM>, with a plurality of engagement members <NUM>, e.g. teeth, ribs or the like, extending from an upper edge of the further cylindrical body <NUM> for engagement with further engagement members (not shown) on the bottom of the body <NUM>, e.g. slots, grooves or the like. This implementation for instance may be used to rotate the body within a stationary food processing chamber <NUM> or in which the blade arrangement <NUM> and the food processing chamber <NUM> are rotated in unison, i.e. together as a single unit, as will be explained in further detail below.

The engagement of the drive mechanism between the motor <NUM> and the cylindrical body <NUM> may take any suitable shape or form, as will be readily understood by the skilled person. For example, as schematically depicted in <FIG>, the drive shaft <NUM> may extend between the motor <NUM> and the blade arrangement <NUM>, in which case the drive shaft <NUM> may directly engage with a recipient structure on the bottom plate <NUM> of the blade arrangement <NUM>. This for example is a suitable implementation where the bottom plate <NUM> rotates with the body <NUM> in a static body <NUM> as previously explained or where the blade arrangement <NUM> and the food processing chamber <NUM> are rotated in unison. In yet another example embodiment, which is schematically depicted in <FIG>, a plurality of arms <NUM> may radially extend from the central shaft <NUM> of the motor <NUM>, with each arm <NUM> terminating in an engagement member <NUM> for engaging with a further engagement member at the bottom of the body <NUM> as previously explained. This implementation for instance may be used to rotate the body within a stationary food processing chamber <NUM> or together with the food processing chamber <NUM>.

In another set of embodiments, an example embodiment of which is schematically depicted in <FIG>, the blade arrangement <NUM> and the food processing chamber <NUM> are arranged to rotate as a unit, as indicated by the curved block arrows, or the food processing chamber <NUM> is rotated around a stationary body <NUM>. In this embodiment, the coupling mechanism coupling the motor to the food processing chamber <NUM> may interact with the blade arrangement <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> in any suitable manner for example as depicted in <FIG> and described in their detailed description, with the difference that the body <NUM> is not rotationally mounted in the blade arrangement <NUM>, but instead the body <NUM> is also static such that rotation of the body <NUM> by the motor <NUM> is translated to the food processing chamber <NUM> by virtue of the blade arrangement <NUM> being mechanically coupled to the food processing chamber <NUM>. Alternatively, the coupling mechanism coupling the motor <NUM> to the food processing chamber <NUM> may interact with the securing ring <NUM> instead, or directly with the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM>, for example in case of a food processing chamber <NUM> without an aperture <NUM>, in which the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> is closed. In the latter embodiment, the inner surface of the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> may have some mounting mechanism, e.g. a screw fit or bayonet fit, into which the blade arrangement <NUM> may be mounted, or the blade arrangement <NUM> may form an integral part of the food processing chamber <NUM>, e.g. define the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM>. It is also feasible to have a mechanism in which the body <NUM> of the blade arrangement <NUM> is locked in a fixed orientation whilst the food processing chamber <NUM> is rotated by the motor <NUM>. In this embodiment, the body <NUM> typically is rotationally mounted in the further body <NUM> such that the further body <NUM> is rotated together with the food processing chamber <NUM> whilst the body <NUM> is kept stationary. Optionally, the body <NUM> may be locked against the base <NUM> to ensure that the body <NUM> is kept stationary during rotation of the food processing chamber <NUM>.

In order to protect a user from touching the rotating food processing chamber <NUM> during operation of the food processing apparatus <NUM>, the food processing apparatus <NUM> may further comprise a protective cover or housing <NUM> as schematically depicted in <FIG>, which at least partially envelops the food processing chamber <NUM>. The protective cover <NUM> may be made of any suitable material, e.g. glass, metal or plastic. In <FIG>, the protective cover <NUM> also envelops the base <NUM>, but it should be understood that this is by way of non-limiting example only as it is equally feasible for the protective cover <NUM> to extend from the base <NUM> for example. Any suitable arrangement of the protective cover <NUM> may be contemplated.

In the foregoing embodiments, the motor <NUM> is arranged to mechanically invoke rotation of the blade arrangement <NUM>, either within the food processing chamber <NUM> or with the food processing chamber <NUM>. <FIG> schematically depicts a cross-sectional view across the food processing apparatus <NUM> according to an alternative embodiment in which the motor <NUM> is arranged to magnetically invoke rotation of the blade arrangement <NUM>, either within the food processing chamber <NUM> or with the food processing chamber <NUM>. This has the advantage of further noise reduction due to fewer mechanically moving parts in the design of the food processing apparatus <NUM>. To this end, the motor <NUM> may comprise a stator <NUM> arranged to generate a rotating magnetic field in any suitable manner. For example, the stator <NUM> may comprise a number of polar wound coils <NUM>, e.g. two or three of such coils equidistantly spaced around the blade arrangement <NUM>, which coils <NUM> may generate the rotating magnetic field by driving each of the coils <NUM> with a sine-wave alternating current with an appropriate phase difference between the currents driving the respective coils <NUM>, e.g. a <NUM>° phase difference in case of two coils <NUM> and a <NUM>° phase difference in case of three coils <NUM>.

In this embodiment, the body <NUM>, is made of a magnetizable material, e.g. a metal such as iron or the like, with a magnet arrangement <NUM> distributed on the further surface arrangement <NUM> of the body <NUM> such that the rotating magnetic field created by the stator <NUM> can induce rotation of the blade arrangement <NUM> by magnetizing the magnetizable material and causing the magnet arrangement <NUM> to follow the rotating magnetic field, as is well-known per se. The optional protective cover <NUM> may be placed around the stator <NUM>, e.g. in case the food processing chamber <NUM> is arranged to rotate together with the blade arrangement <NUM> as explained in more detail above. As shown in <FIG>, the stator <NUM> preferably is arranged in the base <NUM> such that it surrounds the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> including the blade arrangement <NUM>. Not only does this optimize the magnetic coupling between the stator <NUM> and the blade arrangement <NUM>, but it furthermore can provide a particular compact design of the food processing apparatus <NUM>.

The food processing chamber <NUM> may be vertically mounted on the base <NUM>, as shown in the foregoing embodiments. However, in an alternative embodiment schematically depicted in <FIG>, the food processing chamber <NUM> may be docked in a docking station <NUM> comprising a base portion <NUM> and an opposing cap portion <NUM> in between the food processing chamber <NUM> is docked. This allows the food processing chamber <NUM> to be docked in the docking station <NUM> in a tilted orientation or even in a horizontal orientation, which promotes tumbling of the food product in the food processing chamber <NUM>, which promotes crushing of the food chunks in the food processing chamber <NUM> and helps to reduce load forces exerted onto the cutting blades <NUM> by the food chunks, thereby extending the lifespan of the cutting blades <NUM>. In this embodiment, the blade arrangement <NUM> may be mechanically driven or may be magnetically driven as previously explained.

The food processing chamber <NUM> may be mounted in any suitable fashion within the docking station <NUM>. For example, a mounting post <NUM> or the like may extend from the bottom portion <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> to the base portion <NUM> of the docking station <NUM>, where the mounting post <NUM> may be secured in the base portion <NUM> of the docking station in any suitable manner. In case the blade arrangement <NUM> is mechanically driven, the mounting post <NUM> may form any of the previously described drive mechanisms between the motor <NUM> and the food processing chamber <NUM>. A further mounting post <NUM> or the like may extend from the lid <NUM> of the food processing chamber <NUM> and be secured in the cap portion <NUM> of the docking station in any suitable manner. Many other suitable docking mechanisms will be immediately apparent to the skilled person.

The food processing chamber <NUM> may be stationary in the docking station <NUM> may be rotatably mounted therein, e.g. in case the food processing chamber <NUM> is designed to rotate together with the blade arrangement <NUM> or rotate around a stationary body <NUM> of the blade arrangement <NUM> as previously explained. In the latter case, the protective cover <NUM> may extend between the base portion <NUM> and the cap portion <NUM> of the docking station <NUM> to prevent access to the rotating food processing chamber <NUM> during operation of the food processing apparatus <NUM>.

In some embodiments, the tilt angle of the food processing chamber <NUM> within the docking station <NUM> is fixed. However, in an alternative set of embodiments, the tilt angle of the food processing chamber <NUM> may be adjustable. To this end, the docking station <NUM> may comprise an adjustment mechanism that may be user-operated, e.g. prior to operation of the food processing apparatus <NUM>, or may be automatically adjusted during operation of the food processing apparatus <NUM>. For example, the base portion <NUM> and the cap portion <NUM> may form part of a bracket on an adjustable pivot (not shown), which pivot is adjusted in order to change the orientation of the bracket on the pivot such as to change the tilt angle of the food processing chamber <NUM>. The pivot may be motorized in order to facilitate automatic adjustment of this tilt angle. Of course, many other implementations of such as adjustable tilt mechanism for the food processing chamber <NUM> may be contemplated.

Claim 1:
A food processing apparatus (<NUM>) having a food processing chamber (<NUM>) comprising a blade arrangement (<NUM>) and a motor (<NUM>, <NUM>) arranged to drive the blade arrangement, whereby that the blade arrangement excludes a central shaft and comprises a body (<NUM>) having a surface arrangement (<NUM>) delimiting a cavity (<NUM>), and a plurality of cutting blades (<NUM>) extending from said surface arrangement into said cavity, wherein a securing ring (<NUM>) is arranged to secure the blade arrangement on a bottom portion (<NUM>) of the food processing chamber, the food processing apparatus being characterized in that the motor (<NUM>) comprises a mechanical coupling for coupling to food processing chamber such as to rotate the food processing chamber (<NUM>) including the blade arrangement, wherein the mechanical coupling comprises a central shaft (<NUM>) driven by the motor and at least one engagement member (<NUM>) coupled to the central shaft arranged to engage with a securing ring (<NUM>) or the body (<NUM>).