Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Treating unshelled egg
Reexamination Certificate
1999-10-18
2001-05-01
Weier, Anthony J. (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Treating unshelled egg
92, C015S003100, C015S003120
Reexamination Certificate
active
06224929
ABSTRACT:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
Not Applicable
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not Applicable
REFERENCE TO A “MICROFICHE APPENDIX”
Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates in general to a comestible cleaning process, and it more particularly relates to a method of cleaning delicate comestibles such as eggs to avoid or greatly,reduce the possibility of breakage or damage during the cleaning process or transportation.
2. Background Art
There have been a variety of different cleaning processes for different types and kinds of objects to be cleaned and containers or the like for confining objects. For example, reference may be made to U.S. Pat. Nos. D 283,363; 2,528,404; 2,793,761; 3,760,823; 3,794,053; 3,935,958; 4,056,114; 4,058,233; 4,830,200; 5,404,610; 5,453,039; 5,456,357; 5,660,784; 5,850,542; 5,858,116; and 5,876,513. As disclosed in the foregoing patents, such processes and apparatus relate, at least in part, to emersing a porous container in a cleaning solution, or the possibility of different materials for corrosion resistance spraying a cleaning solution onto the objects to be cleaned.
When it is desirable to clean delicate comestibles such as eggs, foregoing patented processes would not be entirely satisfactory. It is undesirable to emerse the eggs in a harsh cleaning solution, which may be effective to remove debris but could damage the delicate egg shell, or at least be an undesirable pollutant being applied to it. Furthermore, such cleansing solutions may cause damage to the container. Also, the high pressure spraying processes for cleaning utensils and other objects in a washer such as a dishwasher, would not be acceptable for use in cleaning easily damaged eggs.
One simple technique or expedient for cleansing eggs has been to employ an open top wire frame basket for collecting the eggs, and then spraying the eggs in the wire basket to dislodge debris and the like for an initial or superficial cleaning process. However, the wires forming the basket can damage or crack the delicate egg shells when subjected to the spraying of a liquid such as water under pressure against the wire basket. In this regard, the eggs can be moved about within the basket and against the hard wires forming the basket. Also, the wire can deform inwardly through use and engage the eggs to damage them during transporting of the eggs.
Such a cleaning technique is not very thorough or complete, since the eggs are closely spaced and compacted within the wire basket. By spraying the eggs through the openings in the wire basket, the water under pressure does not thoroughly and completely come into contact with all or even an adequate number of the eggs in the basket. Thus, it would be highly desirable to have a new and improved method for enabling a more thorough and complete cleaning of the eggs or other delicate comestibles with little or no damage to the objects being cleaned.
The prior known wire basket is also used for transportation of a quantity of eggs stored therein. Damage to the eggs moving or bouncing against the wall of the wire basket can also result during the transportation or movement of the eggs.
Also, according to the prior known wire basket cleaning technique, the eggs moving about within the basket during cleaning or transportation can cause the wire basket to be bent out of shape by bending inwardly. Thus, the inside dimensions could be changed to cause fewer items to be stored, and even more importantly, the containers cannot be readily nested for storage.
Furthermore, the wires forming the basket can rust, and the rusty wires coming into contact with the comestibles stored therein are highly undesirable and unwanted. The rusty container being repeatedly subjected to a water spray can cause undesirable rust stains on floors or other supporting surfaces for the basket during storage. Moreover, the oxidized or severely corroded wire containers can become structurally fatigued and thus breakage can occur and damage to the contents.
Thus, it would be highly desirable to have a more thorough cleaning method which does not result in damage to the container, or the surrounding area, and which is safe for cleaning delicate comestibles.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, the principal object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved comestible cleaning process, which facilitates greatly the cleaning of delicate comestibles such as eggs to avoid or greatly reduce the possibility of breakage or damage during the cleaning process.
Briefly, the above and further objects of the present invention are realized by providing a new and improved comestible cleaning process, which enables the safe cleaning of delicate comestibles such as eggs, as well as to preclude the damage to the container for the comestibles.
A new and improved cleaning method and apparatus facilitates a more thorough cleaning of delicate comestibles such as eggs. The process includes using an open frame basket composed of thermoplastic or thermoset material to help prevent damage to the comestibles. The side wall of the basket has openings defined by axial and peripheral impact absorbing liquid-deflecting ribs. Once the comestibles to be cleaned are confined within the basket, a cleaning fluid under pressure is deflected from the ribs at the outer surface of the walls and into the openings to cause an agitation of the fluid to clean more thoroughly the comestibles confined therein. The side wall openings are critically dimensioned to be sufficiently small to retain the comestibles within the basket and sufficiently large to permit adequate agitation of the fluid entering the basket.
One of the advantages of the present invention is that by using plastic material for the container, the use of a variety of different cleaning solutions may be employed.
Further advantages relate to the use of the light weight container for gathering the products to be cleaned by manually carrying the filled container. Also, during the transportation of the delicate products such as eggs, impact against the container walls is greatly lessened and thus damage or breakage is greatly reduced. Moreover, by using the novel plastic container, the food products can be cleaned and then stored safely without the risk of rusty wires coming into contact with clean food products.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4033461 (1977-07-01), Nevai
patent: 4834125 (1989-05-01), Insalaco
patent: 5069360 (1991-12-01), Dingler et al.
patent: 5858116 (1999-01-01), Kim
patent: 5881906 (1999-03-01), Rogers et al.
Foley & Lardner
Kleinke Bernard L.
Weier Anthony J.
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