Refrigeration – Processes – Treating an article
Patent
1997-09-26
1998-11-10
Capossela, Ronald C.
Refrigeration
Processes
Treating an article
62380, F25D 1306
Patent
active
058327347
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention generally relates to a method and a device for the air treatment of products conveyed on a foraminated conveyor belt. Such air treatment may, for instance, involve cooling, heating or drying of the products. To be more specific, the invention concerns a method and a device in which air is blown upwards towards the underside of the conveyor belt, the latter being adapted to convey the products through a housing in which the air treatment proper is carried out.
One object of this invention is to improve the efficiency of the method and the device mentioned above.
Another object of the invention is to enable such an improvement of existing devices, for instance a device of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,415,013.
In accordance with the invention, these objects are attained by a method and a device exhibiting the distinctive features recited in the appended independent claims. Preferred embodiments of the invention exhibit the distinctive features recited in the appended dependent claims.
Since the air blown upwards through the conveyor belt and between the products is, transitionally and at a distance above the conveyor belt, diverted in directions essentially contained in the plane of the conveyor belt owing to the provision of slit-shaped openings extending transversely of the longitudinal direction of the conveyor belt, air flows will be generated along the upper side of the products, which has the aimed-at effect of expediting the air treatment as a result of the treatment air coming into better contact with the upper side of the products.
In order to optimise the inventive effect, the air flows generated along the upper side of the products have to sweep past this side as closely as possible without the flow resistance becoming too considerable. This can be achieved by the provision of air-diverting means which can be vertically adjusted above the conveyor belt according to the thickness of the product at issue.
In order to render the air treatment even more effective, the upper side of the conveyor belt may be formed with grooves for diverting along the underside of the products the air blown upwards towards said underside. The conveyor belt may then be formed with throughholes, said-grooves connecting each such hole with every adjacent hole.
The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view, and
FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section of an embodiment of the conveyor belt and the air-diverting means according to the invention.
To be more specific, the Figures illustrate a conveyor belt 1, which is foraminated and thus presents a plurality of throughholes 2. On its upper side, the conveyor belt 1 is further formed with grooves 3, which connect each hole 2 with every adjacent hole 2. The conveyor belt 1 may advantageously be of the general type described in SE 9200448-0.
The conveyor belt 1 is intended to convey products 4, such as hamburger patties, in a direction A through a housing (not shown), in which air is blown towards the underside of the conveyor belt 1, as indicated by an arrow B in FIG. 2. The air thus blown upwards towards the underside of the conveyor belt 1 will pass through the conveyor belt 1, not only through the holes 2 not covered by the products 4 but also through the holes 2 covered by the products 4 via the channels formed by the grooves 3 and the subjacent products 4 and opening into the area outside each product 4.
According to the invention, an air-diverting means 5 in the form of a grating is stationarily arranged at a distance above the conveyor belt 1 in a plane essentially parallel to the plane of the belt. More specifically, the illustrated grating 5 consists of crossbars 6 extending transversely of the longitudinal direction of the conveyor belt 1 and being spaced apart in this direction, such that the grating 5 is formed with slit-shaped openings 7 extending transversely of the longitudinal direction of the conveyor belt 1. The crossbars 6 are supported by a
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Capossela Ronald C.
Frigoscandia Equipment AB
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