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Meals on the go: Heinz USB powered mini-microwave

By Paul Ridden
18:33 June 16, 2009 PDT

The Beanzawave - providing piping hot meals wherever you are

Heinz, famous the world over for its ketchup and baked beans, claims to have come up with a quick and easy solution for the legions of stressed out workers who are missing out on meals because they are tied to their desks. A portable microwave oven amusingly called the Beanzawave might not sound that impressive, but add its miniature dimensions and USB connectivity to the mix then this could be a recipe for success.
Petite and portable

The world's smallest microwave was thought to measure just 267mm x 254mm x 305mm, until Heinz approached GAMA Microwave Technology Limited and rewrote the rule book that is. The prototype Beanzawave is just 150mm x 160mm x 190mm, the itty-bitty dimensions being achieved by the use of mobile phone radio frequencies to heat the food both inside and out. Safety features like protective walls and the power being cut when the door is opened means that it also conforms to all safety standards expected of a microwave oven. And it's power is provided by connecting it to a USB port on a desktop PC or laptop, offering numerous scenarios for enjoying hot meals on the go. On the train, on the bus, at work, on the way to meetings - the list is as large as the device is small.
But the mini-microwave wasn't developed just to be the smallest in the world, according to Heinz it was developed to help make sure an increasing number of stressed out workers didn't skip meals. According to a recent survey of just over 2000 British adults conducted by Opinium, about 20% of the population are too busy to take time for lunch. This "all work and no eat" culture no doubt contributes to the 78% of those surveyed who also felt lethargic and stressed by the end of the day.
Heinz already make a range of tiny microwave meals and it's no accident that these Snap Pots snuggly fit into the Beanzawave. John Alderman, Marketing Manager for Heinz Beanz says, "Beanzawave is the perfect partner to Heinz Snap Pots, allowing a nutritious snack to be whipped up anywhere in just 60 seconds!" Of course there are numerous other minute meal solutions you could choose such as soups or pasta or a hot sandwich in a bun.
Will it reach the market?

There are rumblings that a truly portable battery powered version may be developed too, but as the Beanzawave is in the prototype phase at the moment there is no indication at this as to whether either version will ever make it to the marketplace. Heinz says that any such decision will be made based on feedback from the public.
Given that the handy portable oven has been developed to help stressed out workers eat regularly in these bleak economic times, the current potential price tag of £100/$165 (based on current component costs) might just be too high for it to become a must-have gizmo.
If you want to know more visit Heinz.com and fill in the information request form.


Could it be made to run off a bike battery, pehaps via Powerlet?

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Seek Truth

15 countries in 40 days. Tanks, crashes, minefields and Kalashnikovs

Cool

I wonder if you can use it to RF weld plastics too

I bet it does nasty things to an R1200GS's security system if you start cooking dinner on the tank though .

Oh well, looks like it's pot noodle or cuppa soup from the kelly kettle for a while yet anyhoo. Stone age cooking to go with my stone age bike!

Andy

I thought with those boxer twins you could cook everything on the cylinders?

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15 countries in 40 days. Tanks, crashes, minefields and Kalashnikovs

You can wrap meat like bacon in tin foil and cook on the exhaust system while riding but its messy, would,nt dare try it on a cyclinder as well as the fat seaping into the fin gaps your losing alot of surface area for cooling on a air cooled bike.

mmmmm.... microwaved baked beans

is that for real or an april fool joke?
USB is only 150mA at 5V, enough to power a microwave?

we need geek input, someone wheel out a tame boffin.

if its for real, im avin it

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dave

Sounds both unlikely and useless even if it worked to me, but down to the numbers...

Snap pots = 200g according to Google
Baked beans are 65% water (again according to Google)
Specific heat of water is 4.2 J/gram/deg

Forget the rest, and assume we're heating 130g of water from 20degC to 90degC

Energy = 70deg * 130g * 4.2J/gram/deg
Energy = 38220 Joules

USB power (from info above) = 5V * 0.15A = 0.75 J/s

Therefore time to cook baked beans = 38220 / 0.75
= 50960 seconds
= around 14 hours.

So either my numbers are wrong somewhere or the thing doesn't work.

Ben

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Vladivostok - Denmark 2008... Finished.
Denmark - South Africa 2010-2011... Finished.