Foods and beverages: apparatus – Mechanical – fluid or heat treatment of dairy food – With isolation of a watery constituent
Patent
1996-04-01
1997-12-30
Simone, Timothy F.
Foods and beverages: apparatus
Mechanical, fluid or heat treatment of dairy food
With isolation of a watery constituent
99452, 99456, A23C 1902, A23C 19064, A23C 19072, A01J 1100
Patent
active
057018090
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates to a plant for continuously processing cheese mass and comprising a first substantially horizontal conveyor conveying the cheese mass in one direction and a second substantially horizontal conveyor conveying the cheese mass in the opposite direction, said second conveyor being accommodated below the first conveyor and being adapted to receive the cheese mass from the exit end of the first conveyor via a guide plate arranged at the exit end of the first conveyor and adapted to receive the cheese mass therefrom and carry it obliquely downwards onto the second conveyor.
BACKGROUND ART
It is generally known in connection with continuous processing of cheeses that the cheese mass is advanced onto a conveyor belt after having left the curdling vessel. A continued draining of the whey from the curd is performed on the conveyor belt. The cheese mass drained off is advanced on additional conveyor belts, on which said cheese mass is subjected to a processing which is of decisive importance for the final texture, taste, and mechanical strength of the cheese. This processing includes among other things a so-called caking of the cheese mass because the cheese grains melt together while forming a coherent cheese cake. This processing requires a relatively long stay, such as for instance two hours, on the conveyor belt before the cheese cake is ready for the final cutting out.
In order to reduce the room requirements to the plant, a solution has in connection with large plants often been to let the stay on the conveyor belt be performed on several conveyor belts arranged above one another, whereby the cheese mass is initially placed on the uppermost conveyor belt and then carried downwards therefrom onto a conveyor belt there-below. The carrying from the uppermost conveyor belt must be performed relatively leniently. It has therefore been decided to let the cheese cake pass over the exit end of the first conveyor belt and directly by way of gravity downwards onto an inclining guide plate. At a relatively acute angle the inclining guide plate advances the cheese cake in the same direction as the one in which the second conveyor belt therebelow moves, said cheese cake leaving the guide plate immediately above said second conveyor belt. While passing from the first conveyor belt to the second conveyor belt the cheese cake is preferably turned over. While passing from the first conveyor belt onto the second conveyor belt the cheese cake is subjected to a stretching followed by a compression, said cheese cake initially being stretched out and subsequently being stopped and compressed again. Such an effect turned out to be advantageous for the final result. It turned out, however, that while passing from the exit end of the first conveyor belt and downwards onto the guide plate the cheese cake may have a tendency to go to pieces, which means that the cheese cake loses its continuous connection which in turn has a disadvantageous effect on the final cheese. Among other things the desired structure can be effected.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is to provide a plant ensuring that the cheese cake can pass leniently from one conveyor to the following conveyor while maintaining the favourable stretching and compressing effect.
The plant according to the invention is characterised in that transferring means are accommodated at the exit end of the first conveyor, said transferring means comprising guide surfaces supporting the cheese mass in a downwardly inclining path towards the guide plate. Such transferring means ensure that the cheese cake is not subjected to a free fall, but nevertheless moves by way of gravity downwards along the guide surface while being subjected to a predetermined stretching. When meeting the guide plate turning the moving direction of the cheese cake, said cheese cake is subjected to a compressing followed by an additional stretching during the continued advancing down said guide plate until the cheese cake meets the second conve
REFERENCES:
patent: 3797380 (1974-03-01), Tate
patent: 4217818 (1980-08-01), Hazen
patent: 4309941 (1982-01-01), Brockwell
patent: 4820540 (1989-04-01), Budahn
patent: 4879946 (1989-11-01), Blodgett et al.
patent: 4964334 (1990-10-01), Jay
patent: 4976981 (1990-12-01), Skovhage et al.
patent: 5384137 (1995-01-01), Bilioli et al.
APV Pasilac A/S
Simone Timothy F.
LandOfFree
Plant for continuously processing cheese mass does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Plant for continuously processing cheese mass, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Plant for continuously processing cheese mass will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-194091