Under-sink waste processing appliance

Abstract

An under-sink waste processing appliance includes a waste separator which extracts liquid from organic waste and passes such extracted liquid to a residential drain line. The remaining solid, in the form of organic pulp, is dried in a dryer and deposited in a removable collection receptacle.

1 . An apparatus for processing organic waste from a sink, comprising:
 a waste separator comprising (i) a waste inlet coupled to a drain of the sink, (ii) a motor-driven cutter operable to cut organic waste received through the waste inlet, (iii) a liquid outlet for dispelling liquid extracted from organic waste during operation of the motor-driven cutter, and (iv) a pulp outlet for dispelling pulp extracted from organic waste during operation of the motor-driven cutter, the pulp outlet being fluidly isolated from the liquid outlet,   a dryer comprising (i) a pulp inlet coupled to the pulp outlet of the waste separator, (ii) a drying chamber positioned to receive pulp advanced through the pulp inlet, (iii) a heating element operable to heat and dehydrate pulp positioned in the drying chamber to generate dried solid waste, (iv) a temperature sensor operable to sense the temperature in the drying chamber, and (v) a dried waste outlet for dispelling dried solid waste from the drying chamber, and   a removable collection receptacle positioned to receive dried solid waste expelled from the dried waste outlet of the dryer.   
     
     
         2 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the motor-driven cutter comprises an augur. 
     
     
         3 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the motor-driven cutter comprises one or more centrifugal cutting disks. 
     
     
         4 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the dryer is operable to generate powder waste. 
     
     
         5 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the liquid outlet of the waste separator is configured to be coupled to a residential drain. 
     
     
         6 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the waste separator further comprises a filter to prevent pulp from escaping the waste separator through the liquid outlet during operation of the motor-driven cutter. 
     
     
         7 . A domestic kitchen assembly, comprising:
 a kitchen sink having a drain,   a faucet operable to fill the kitchen sink with water,   a waste separator comprising (i) a waste inlet coupled to the drain of the kitchen sink, (ii) a motor-driven cutter operable to cut organic waste received through the waste inlet, (iii) a liquid outlet for dispelling water from the kitchen sink and liquid extracted from organic waste during operation of the motor-driven cutter, the liquid outlet being configured to be coupled to a drain, and (iv) a pulp outlet for dispelling pulp extracted from organic waste during operation of the motor-driven cutter, the pulp outlet being fluidly isolated from the liquid outlet, and   a dryer comprising (i) a pulp inlet coupled to the pulp outlet of the waste separator, (ii) a drying chamber positioned to receive pulp advanced through the pulp inlet, (iii) a heating element operable to heat and dehydrate pulp positioned in the drying chamber to generate dried solid waste, and (iv) a temperature sensor operable to sense the temperature in the drying chamber, and (v) a dried waste outlet for dispelling dried solid waste from the drying chamber.   
     
     
         8 . The kitchen assembly of  claim 7 , further comprising a removable collection receptacle positioned to receive dried solid waste expelled from the dried waste outlet of the dryer. 
     
     
         9 . The kitchen assembly of  claim 7 , wherein the motor-driven cutter comprises an augur. 
     
     
         10 . The kitchen assembly of  claim 7 , wherein the motor-driven cutter comprises one or more centrifugal cutting disks. 
     
     
         11 . The kitchen assembly of  claim 7 , wherein the dryer is operable to generate powder waste. 
     
     
         12 . The kitchen assembly of  claim 7 , wherein the waste separator further comprises a filter to prevent pulp from escaping the waste separator through the liquid outlet during operation of the motor-driven cutter. 
     
     
         13 . A method for processing organic waste from a kitchen sink, comprising:
 advancing organic waste through a drain of the kitchen sink and into a waste separator positioned below the kitchen sink,   operating a motor-driven cutter positioned in the waste separator to generate pulp and a separated liquid from the organic waste,   advancing the pulp from the waste separator to a dryer,   draining the separated liquid from the waste separator to a drain via a fluid path which bypasses the dryer, and   actively controlling heating the pulp in the dryer via a sensor-based control scheme to form a dried solid waste.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , further comprising advancing the dried solid waste into a removable collection receptacle positioned below the dryer. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein heating the pulp comprises heating the pulp in the dryer to form solid waste powder. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein operating the motor-driven cutter comprises operating an augur to cut and squeeze organic waste to separate liquid therefrom and generate the pulp. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 13 , wherein operating the motor-driven cutter comprises operating one or more centrifugal cutting disks to cut and squeeze organic waste to separate liquid therefrom and generate the pulp.