Apparatus for swelling and drying foods under reduced pressure

Details Apparatus for swelling and drying foods under reduced pressure Apparatus for swelling and drying foods under reduced pressure

1987-07-15

1989-03-07

Simone, Timothy F.

Foods and beverages: apparatus

Subjecting food to an enclosed modified atmosphere

Vacuum-producing means

34 15, 34 92, 99477, 99483, A23G 302

Patent

active

048095966

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to an apparatus for swelling and drying foods under reduced pressure (hereinafter called "a reduced pressure swelling and drying apparatus") and more particularly to a reduced pressure swelling and drying apparatus which can continuously manufacture dried foods such as snack foods having a crispy feeling pleasant to the palate or foods of which the original palete feeling can be restored in a short time by means of boiling water.


BACKGROUND ART

There has been proposed a dried food manufacturing apparatus, for example, such as that disclosed in Japanese Patent Public Disclosure No. 120973/1985. This apparatus is so constructed that foods to be dried are introduced into a chamber of reduced pressure and dried by an extreme infrared radiation heating apparatus. However, since a vacuum pump is not arranged in each of an inlet chamber, a drying chamber and an outlet chamber, it is impossible to continuously and effectively carry out the reduced pressure drying treatment of foods.
In addition, the above mentioned apparatus is so constructed that the water vapor derived from foods is introduced into the vacuum pump by a ventilating fan mounted in the heating apparatus at an upper portion thereof in order to expel the water vapor from the drying chamber. However, since the ventilating fan does not operate when the pressure within the drying chamber is reduced below 50 torr, the vaporizing rate of water contained in foods to be dried is reduced and therefore the drying effect is also lowered.
There are other known dried food manufacturing apparatuses, for example, such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Public Disclosure Nos. 31659/1984, 156272/1984 and 156273/1984. However, all of these apparatus esare formed as batch types and therefore it is impossible to carry out the continuous drying treatment of foods, and they adopt a single-stage pressure reduction system in which a vacuum chamber (a reservoir tank) is connected to the drying chamber. Accordingly, it is impossible to carry out the reduced pressure heating treatment in the drying chamber during evacuation of the vacuum chamber.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a reduced pressure swelling and drying apparatus which is able to continuously carry out the reduced pressure drying of foods and to eliminate the above mentioned problems of the prior art.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a reduced pressure swelling and drying apparatus which is able to effectively carry out the evacuation of the reduced pressure drying chamber.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a reduced pressure swelling and drying apparatus which is able to simply and effectively carry out the drying of foods in the drying chamber.


DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The characteristic feature of the present invention for achieving the above mentioned objects resides in that the apparatus comprises a reduced pressure treating chamber connected to a vacuum pump directly or through a reservoir tank, a drying chamber having a pressure reducing means, a heating means and a conveying means, and an outlet chamber having a pressure reducing means, and in that the reduced pressure treating chamber, the drying chamber and the outlet chamber are continuously arranged in this order.


BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention explaining a fundamental principal thereof,
FIG. 2 is the other embodiment of the present apparatus showing another arrangement thereof,
FIG. 3 shows a pipeline arrangement of the control system of the reservoir tank,
FIG. 4(a) is a cross-sectional view of the baffle structure of a first example,
FIG. 4(b) is a perspective view of the baffle structure of FIG. 4(a),
FIG. 5(a) is a partial cross-sectional view of the baffle structure of a second example,
FIG. 5(b) is a perspective view of the baffle structure of FIG. 5(a),
FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of the mechanical booster, and
FIG. 7(a) through FIG. 7(c) are explana

REFERENCES:
patent: 3970764 (1976-07-01), Karnofsky
patent: 4058904 (1977-11-01), Takida et al.
patent: 4127947 (1978-12-01), Webb et al.
patent: 4520574 (1985-06-01), Sugisawa et al.
patent: 4645698 (1987-02-01), Matsubara

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