Cleaning and liquid contact with solids – Processes – Including work heating or contact with combustion products
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-21
2002-02-19
Gulakowski, Randy (Department: 1734)
Cleaning and liquid contact with solids
Processes
Including work heating or contact with combustion products
C134S001000, C134S005000, C134S032000, C134S042000, C134S095100, C134S095200, C118S013000, C118S070000, C118S323000, C118S016000, C118S025000, C118S314000, C510S218000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06348105
ABSTRACT:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims the benefits of co-pending German patent application number 198 48 766.5 entitled “Verfahren zum Reinigen einer Überziehmaschine sowie reinigbare Überziehmaschine”, filed on Oct. 22, 1998, and of co-pending German patent application number 199 20 589.2 entitled “Verfahren zum Reinigen einer Überziehmaschine sowie reinigbare Überziehmaschine”, filed on May 4, 1999.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention generally relates to a method of cleaning a coating apparatus for coating articles with chocolate masses and the like with hot water. The present invention also relates to a coating apparatus for coating articles with chocolate masses and the like being cleanable with substantially unpressurized hot water.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Generally, a coating apparatus serves to coat articles being located on a driven grating conveyor belt with tempered chocolate mass. Surplus chocolate flows through the coating apparatus and through the grating conveyor belt. The chocolate mass or the similar mass gets in contact to a majority of the elements of the coating apparatus, and it sticks to these elements. The coating apparatus includes a coating station in which melted liquid chocolate freely falls down onto the articles to be coated. The coating apparatus also includes a base coating station for coating the bottom sides of the articles. Furthermore, it includes a fan to blow surplus chocolate off the articles. Other masses than chocolate, for example fat containing masses, frosting masses, caramel masses and the like may also be processed in such a coating apparatus.
In case of a change of the mass in the coating apparatus, for example, when dark chocolate has been processed first and the following articles will have to be covered with light chocolate or even a white coating mass, there is the problem of removing the first mass from the coating apparatus, and to clean all elements of the coating apparatus that did get in contact to the mass. It is necessary to clean these elements of the coating apparatus before the new mass, for example the white coating mass, enters the coating apparatus.
To conduct such a change of the mass, it is known in the art to heat the coating apparatus up with the first mass, and to remove the first mass from the coating apparatus. The first mass is pumped out of the coating apparatus by a return pump. After the first mass has been pumped out of the coating apparatus, the interior of the coating apparatus and all aggregates and elements being arranged inside the coating apparatus and being accessible are mechanically cleaned. This means that the rests of the first mass are removed from the coating apparatus with tools, for example with a spattle. The mechanical removal of the chocolate mass takes a lot of time, and it is hard to get access to all the aggregates and elements being arranged in the interior of the coating apparatus. Additionally, the coating apparatus is not thoroughly cleaned, so that a second cleaning step has to be conducted. In this second cleaning step, either pressurized water or cocoa butter is utilized.
It is also known in the art to clean a coating apparatus utilizing pressurized water. A common cleaning device utilizing highly pressurized water is used to apply water onto the aggregates and elements of the coating apparatus at extremely high pressures. The rest of the mass sticking to the aggregates and elements of the coating apparatus are removed due to the pressure of the water. Practically, this method is also based on a mechanical cleaning effect, and it is only successful as long as the aggregates and elements to be cleaned are directly accessible to the water jet. The water being used in the cleaning device may be hot, but it quickly cools down soon after it exits through the nozzle of the cleaning device. Consequently, such a cleaning device utilizing highly pressurized water is not capable of substantially increasing the temperature of the aggregates and elements of the coating apparatus to be cleaned. Additionally, hardly accessible locations in the coating apparatus, for example the bottom side of shafts, rollers, protrusions and the like, are not thoroughly cleaned. Due to the great velocity of the pressurized water, the mass tends to be washed off and spray onto inaccessible locations in the coating apparatus. Utilizing the pressurized water makes it necessary to conduct a drying operation afterwards. The pressure cleaning device consumes a lot of water since the water tends to flow and spray out of the coating apparatus, and consequently, it cannot be reused. Consequently, a discharge opening for the water has to be arranged below the coating apparatus. The application of a cleaning device utilizing hot pressurized water makes it necessary to continuously feed the device with hot water resulting in a high consumption of energy and increased costs. The operating staff conducting the cleaning action has to wear appropriate clothing and safety goggles. Utilizing water at a high pressure also results in the operation time of bearings, shafts and other aggregates and elements being reduced since the lubricant material is at least partly removed.
To overcome the above described disadvantages of cleaning a coating apparatus with water at high pressures, it is known in the art to use a cleaning mass, for example cocoa butter or another fat containing mass. The cleaning mass is introduced into the coating apparatus, and the coating apparatus is actuated without articles being located on the grating conveyor belt. The cleaning mass circulates through the coating apparatus, for example, it flows through a coating station. The cleaning mass gets in contact to some aggregates and elements of the coating apparatus to which chocolate mass sticks, and the cleaning mass cleans these aggregates and elements more or less by melting at least parts of the chocolate off the coating apparatus. Nevertheless, not all aggregates and elements of the coating apparatus to be cleaned get in contact to the cleaning mass, so that the cleaning effect is insufficient. At the end of the cleaning process, the cleaning mass exits the coating apparatus, and, for example, it is used in the normal chocolate production process. Next, the new coating mass is introduced into the coating apparatus.
It is also known in the art to form all essential aggregates and elements of the coating apparatus of stainless steel, and to clean the coating apparatus with hot pressurized water after the first mass has exited the coating apparatus. Due to the great velocity and the high speed of the water contacting the aggregates and elements to be cleaned, the water tends to spray. Especially, when the water contacts the grating conveyor belt, the aggregates being arranged below the upper portion of the grating conveyor belt are not thoroughly cleaned. Due to the hot water, a contamination of the coating apparatus occurs. The contamination has the effect that there is a great danger of bacteria. To prevent this danger, it is known to dry the coating apparatus by blowing hot air onto its aggregates and elements after the cleaning operation. Nevertheless, not all aggregates and elements of the coating apparatus are sufficiently dried, and it is not possible to check if all aggregates and elements are really dry.
It is also known in the art to cut open the grating conveyor belt transverse to its conveying direction, to open the grating conveyor belt in this way, and to clean the aggregates and elements being arranged below the upper portion of the grating conveyor belt. For this cleaning action, cleaning masses have to be used. The cleaning mass is either cocoa butter or hot pressurized water. Additionally, it takes a lot of time to cut the grating conveyor belt and to put it together again after the cleaning action.
A cleanable coating apparatus is known from German Patent No. DE 42 43 814 C1. The coating apparatus includes a clamping device to lift the grating conveyor belt. The grating conveyor belt may be suppo
Häring Horst
Heyde Hans
Hochapfel Reiner
Gulakowski Randy
Kornakov Michael
Sollich GmbH & Co. KG
Thomas Kayden Horstemeyer & Risley LLP
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