Solid material comminution or disintegration – Apparatus – Helical pusher inside tube moves material toward perforated...
Utility Patent
1999-09-28
2001-01-02
Rosenbaum, Mark (Department: 3725)
Solid material comminution or disintegration
Apparatus
Helical pusher inside tube moves material toward perforated...
C241S260100, C427S433000
Utility Patent
active
06168101
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to food choppers and mixer-grinders, and more particularly, to a stainless steel worm for a food chopper or mixer-grinder having improved resistance to fatting.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Mixer-grinders and choppers are routinely used in the preparation of ground meat and similar food products. Conventional choppers and mixer-grinders employ a worm for moving meat forwardly to a grinding head where the meat is cut by a chopper knife and forced through a chopper plate having a plurality of apertures. The use of worms for such purposes is well known as represented by U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,607,113 and 3,984,056. In the past, the worms utilized in such choppers and mixer-grinders have been formed of cast iron or ordinary steel. In order to prevent corrosion of the cast iron or ordinary steel, it is known to coat the cast iron or ordinary steel worm with tin using a hot dip tin coating process.
Worms have also been formed of stainless steel and, due to the resistance of stainless steel to corrosion and rusting, tin coatings have not been used on such stainless steel worms. One problem experienced with stainless steel worms is the occurrence of “fatting.” Fatting is a term of art referring to the build up of meat fat on the working surface of the worm, and results in reduced productivity of the chopper or mixer-grinder. In other words, when fat builds up on the working surface of the worm, the worm is less effective at moving meat forward to the chopper knife and chopper plate. Fatting may be caused by a combination of factors including surface finish and surface adhesion. A smoother surface finish results in less fatting, and a less surface adhesion results in less fatting. Accordingly, in order to reduce fatting of stainless steel worms attempts have been made to smoothly polish the surface of the stainless steel worm and, while somewhat effective, such fine polishing significantly increases the manufacturing cost of stainless steel worms.
Accordingly, it would be desirable and advantageous to provide a stainless steel worm constructed to effectively and relatively inexpensively reduce the occurrence of fatting.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In one aspect of the present invention, a method of reducing fatting on the surface of a stainless steel worm involves applying a coating of tin to a meat contacting outer surface portion of the stainless steel worm. Applicants have recognized the ability to reduce fat build up on the surface of stainless steel worms by applying a tin coating. The application of such tin coating to a stainless steel part is counterintuitive in view of the fact that tin coatings have heretofore only been recognized for prevention of corrosion and rust, and stainless steel worms are not subject to corrosion or rust.
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Premark FEG L.L.C.
Rosenbaum Mark
Thompson Hine & Flory LLP
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