Food or edible material: processes – compositions – and products – Processes – Treatment or preparation of farinaceous dough – batter – or...
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-01
2001-03-27
Yeung, George C. (Department: 1761)
Food or edible material: processes, compositions, and products
Processes
Treatment or preparation of farinaceous dough, batter, or...
C425S320000, C425S335000, C425S36400B, C426S500000, C426S512000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06207212
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for conveying bar-like bread dough pieces. It especially relates to a method and apparatus in and by which bar-like bread dough pieces having a bent shape are modified to have a straight shape for producing bread for French bread such as baguettes.
2. Prior Art
In shaping bar-shaped bread dough pieces, say, for French bread, a dough mass is divided and cut into pieces at a first stage. Each piece is then stretched to make a bread dough sheet. It is then wound up by a winding up device, thereby a bar-like bread dough piece being shaped. Alternatively, each piece is rotated within a gap between a conveyor and a pressing board or a pressing belt disposed above the conveyor, thereby a bar-like bread dough piece being shaped.
In stretching the bar-like dough piece to elongate it in the axial direction, both its ends tend to be easily elongated as compared with its middle part. Therefore, the rolled bar-like bread dough piece
62
is not uniformly elongated, but has a curvature, as in FIG.
1
. This rolled bar-like bread dough piece
62
tends to become a bar-like bread dough piece
64
that has a bent portion, as in FIG.
7
.
This results in a manual modification being necessitated, so that a bar-like bread dough piece having a straight shape can be produced. This also leads to complex processes and high production costs.
Also, the rolled bar-like bread dough piece has a residual stress that results from applying an outer force caused by rolling the dough piece. After baking such a dough piece, a bar-like bread dough piece with a curvature or twist on its surface is produced. Therefore, defects have existed in that the bar-like dough piece had a bad appearance or a deformed shape due to the curvature or twist of the dough piece resulting from a residual stress within the dough.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention is intended to resolve the above problems. By one aspect of this invention a method of conveying bar-like bread dough pieces is provided. It comprises causing a bar-like bread dough piece being conveyed on the conveying face of a conveyor, with its axis being perpendicular to the direction of the conveyance thereof, to rotate about said axis, at a point downstream of said conveyor, and then allowing said bar-like bread dough piece to be moved to the next step.
By another aspect of this invention a method of conveying bar-like bread dough pieces is provided. It comprises providing an engaging means near the conveying face of a conveyor that conveys a bar-like bread dough piece, causing said bar-like bread dough piece to rotate about its axis, by a section of said conveying face and said engaging means, at a point downstream of said conveyor, and then allowing said bar-like bread dough piece to be moved to the next step.
By still another aspect of this invention an apparatus for conveying bar-like bread dough pieces is provided. It comprises a conveyor and an engaging member provided near the conveying face of said conveyor, at a point downstream of said conveyor, for allowing a bar-like bread dough piece being conveyed on said conveying face of said conveyor to rotate about its axis, while said engaging member contacts said bar-like bread dough piece, the distance between said engaging member and said conveying face being adjustable.
In this invention, a bar-like bread dough piece having a curvature is rotated at a point downstream of a conveyor, by engaging the bar-like bread dough piece with an engaging means, without subjecting the piece to any outer force resulting from an element such as a pressing board or pressing belt. Therefore, the residual stress within the piece is released, or disappears.
Thus, the piece becomes a bar-like bread dough piece having a straight shape. Namely, a bread dough piece with a twisted bar-like shape returns automatically to one having a straight shape. Therefore, the bar-like bread dough piece producing process is simplified. This leads to low production costs. Also, after baking the bar-like bread dough piece having a straight shape, bar-like bread with no curvature or twist on its surface, but that has a good appearance, is produced.
Further, by this invention a plurality of rows of bar-like bread dough pieces can be mass produced so that bread dough pieces having a bent shape can be modified to form straight bar-like bread dough pieces. Also, by the engaging means, a plurality of rows of bar-like bread dough pieces can be arrayed in regular intervals in the direction that a production line is moving.
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Ikeda Yasuhiko
Nanahara Kazuhide
Limbach & Limbach L.L.P.
Rheon Automatic Machinery Co. Ltd.
Yeung George C.
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