Come on, Heinz, catch up! Enterprising students create ketchup bottle that pours like milk (and it only took them two months)
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0 }% _; W0 v7 `os.tvboxnow.comPUBLISHED: 08:56 GMT, 23 May 2012 | UPDATED: 12:23 GMT, 23 May 2012tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb8 O1 |# ^; q# f# w, N p' c
& `" Y/ c6 U3 @4 TAny ketchup fan will tell you: Getting that last dollop of the red stuff out of the bottle is a headache - and it normally just ends up in the bin.tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb) E# E- U' H. s8 ?) _1 M# V
But now, a radical new bottle design could spell the end of that problem forever.os.tvboxnow.com! @* I4 H- n2 D. {( }& e2 F' Y
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The MIT university team came up with LiquiGlide, a 'super-slippery' coating which makes the insides of the bottle so frictionless that the sludgy goo inside just slides out like water.0 u0 o* b1 a4 m' P t( N, p
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The results are astonishing - and any burger and chips fan out there should prepare to be amazed.公仔箱論壇# B* i7 d6 _- ?' u0 i2 d1 p
& T2 O& a2 l. s, ?3 g9 Gtvb now,tvbnow,bttvbMIT PhD candidate Dave Smith and his team of mechanical engineers and nano-technologists at the Varanasi Research Group spent two months devising a solution.
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' z/ j( B* ]/ `1 s" z1 b4 DBurger fan Smith said: 'We were really interested in - and still are - using this coating for anti-icing, or for preventing clogs that form in oil and gas lines, or for non-wetting applications like, say, on windshields.3 S8 ?7 Q+ v9 i0 m$ s7 Z
: G' {- P/ E& j' k9 E'Somehow this sparked the idea of putting it in food bottles - it could be great just for its slippery properties.
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) q) c. K5 G, p; }: k; n'Plus, most of these other applications have a much longer time to market - we realised we could make this coating for bottles that is pretty much ready. I mean, it is ready, as you can see.
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'We had a limited amount of materials to pick from - I can’t say what they are, but we’ve patented the hell out of it.'
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/ r$ { J& b/ z- M" N& q! ^$ P公仔箱論壇Naturally, the team had to research their market before getting to work.tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb. p U" P$ J# p7 I+ g
; ^# h, [7 c( K: k' ~; Dtvb now,tvbnow,bttvbSmith, who is is pursuing a PhD in mechanical engineering and a minor in entrepreneurship, and already holds nine patents, told the FastCo website: 'It was never really a personal pain point for me, but I do hate struggling to get sauce out of the bottles.
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'I didn’t know about the tapping of the '57' until I started looking into this. It was all news to me.os.tvboxnow.com# c& ?4 L! n5 G, |! W
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'We have all types of sauces, jellies, and jams everywhere in our lab - It’s like a closet full of condiments.'
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For those who cannot see the video: See how the ketchup pours like milk towards the lip of the bottle, before landing neatly on your burger or chips
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The old way: Good luck getting that last piece out...os.tvboxnow.com4 U$ w; `: F, E
: o) j/ L. u W0 X1 bTVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。So why did the team pick sauces for their award-winning product?! L1 B/ e, y1 O* p. P& Y6 W
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Dave said: 'It’s funny: Everyone is always like, "Why bottles? What’s the big deal?"TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。" j) G5 w$ R( V$ M
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'But then you tell them the market for bottles - just the sauces alone is a $17billion market.
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'And if all those bottles had our coating, we estimate that we could save about one million tons of food from being thrown out every year.'
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: q6 ~, ? P. v M2 s' @The secret ingredient to the liquid coating is a heavily-guarded secret, but the team promise it is non-toxic and will be FDA approved.
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The $100,000 winner of MIT's contest was perhaps a bit less jaw-dropping, but hopefully just as useful.+ e; A7 ~$ O7 R1 k' X
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The product, called CloudTop, was created by 22-year-old undergraduate Brett van Zuiden, and aims to remove the 'Upload' button from the web, by linking all those different services - such as Facebook, Google Drive, DropBox, and Flickr - together.
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'I get my burger and proceed to add all the necessary condiments: lettuce, tomatoes, onions…but oh no!* k# `) C- @. M7 t. @! ~
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'The ketchup bottle is running low! I violently shake and slam on the bottle but only manage to get a small drop out (or even worse, I spray it all over my clothes!)'
. Y2 a8 @' S& E& V3 o9 D2 \tvb now,tvbnow,bttvbDave Smith, MIT, explains the problem
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For example, you could drag and drop a picture file between all the different photo services without needing to re-upload and re-tag on each occasion.5 b" C7 k' e$ t- }7 b3 c
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Team LiquiGlide was bestowed the Reader's Choice at MIT's Entrepreneurship Contest, winning a $2,000 prize - but their product is sure to reap them much more money in the future
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3 e( i) a+ f& ?; ?6 U4 D, {Not a fan of ketchup? Mayonnaise lovers can also enjoy the magical properties of LiquiGlide公仔箱論壇# U) D5 Q8 S8 j4 N, R$ J8 U. |8 i, E
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HOW TO GET THE LAST DROP
) S9 g2 a+ a7 W) z公仔箱論壇So while we wait for the MIT team's product to come to market, how can you get that last bit of ketchup?
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There are many tried and true methods - all of which involves some vigorous shaking, spinning or twisting, with swearing optional., C: ?; f: V0 P [
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There's the windmill approach: Swing your arm around in a semi-circle and let the centrifugal forces help you out.TVBNOW 含有熱門話題，最新最快電視，軟體，遊戲，電影，動漫及日常生活及興趣交流等資訊。2 Q/ J, a# H/ P- L! y
/ L: _- `; d! A0 D8 b' AOr, most common, is the 'tap-tap-tap' approach, where you hit the end of the bottle and wait for the ketchup to fall - but this normally either takes a while - or ends up covering your food with way too much sauce.tvb now,tvbnow,bttvb+ P; r. P3 h! Y0 ~1 F
( I. Z1 ]4 h' H% f' Y6 DHeinz recommends this tip: 'To release ketchup faster from the glass bottle, apply a firm tap to the sweet spot on the neck of the bottle - the '57'.
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- e, @. ~ t+ u! A* h+ I$ z# g'Very few people know this secret. Now you’re in-the-know.'公仔箱論壇& J/ z3 C$ I# s5 u1 ?! ]
2 v$ G1 D' J( V4 L; a( w" U! m1 otvb now,tvbnow,bttvbWhen the bottle is completely full, a vacuum keeps the sauce intact - so use a knife to get the first bit out, and it will get easier after that.# x: r; v7 j9 `$ d
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And store your bottle upside-down - at least that way the slow-moving sauce has less far to travel.os.tvboxnow.com' O. ?1 w/ w! w$ N5 R( p
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發表於 2012-5-24 08:03 AM
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