1995-11-08
1997-07-01
Little, Willis
Butchering
Modelling
A22C 700
Patent
active
056430752
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The invention relates to a shaping machine for dividing a deformable mass, such as a meat product, into separately shaped portions, comprising a stock container, at least two piston-cylinder units for alternately feeding in the mass from the stock container to a shaping plate provided with shaped recesses, end also means for removing the shaped portions from the shaping plate.
Such a shaping machine is known from U.S. Pat. No. 4372008. In this case a meat mass is kept ready in a container, end is conveyed in the direction of a number of vertically disposed screw conveyors by means of a conveyor belt on the bottom of the container. These screw conveyors force the meat mass downwards to the entrance to the cylinders. Finally, the meat mass is pushed up into the cylinders by appropriate pistons end extruded in a shaping plate.
In order to ensure that the meat product ultimately obtained has an acceptable texture, it is desirable to handle the meat mass carefully. Too rough handling leads to too great disintegration, which adversely affects the quality of the end product. In this respect the known shaping machine is not very satisfactory, owing to the conveyance movement produced by conveyor belt end conveyor screws. The meat mass is often compressed too much in the vicinity of the conveyor screws, while parts of said mass also carry out a circular movement.
The object of the invention is therefore to provide a shaping machine of the above-described type which does not have these disadvantages. This is achieved through valve means being provided for connecting the cylinders alternately to the stock container. The meat mass can be fed into the appropriate cylinder by way of the valve means, which ensures a more uniform treatment. The result of this is that the texture of the meat mass remains better preserved. The two cylinders are filled alternately, end they also convey the meat mass alternately to the shaping plate. Despite the intervals in the feed per cylinder, a sufficiently constant feed for the entire shaping machine can still be obtained in this way.
The cylinders are accommodated next to each other in a housing which has a chamber which connects to the shaping plate at one side end to the cylinders at the other side, while the valve means also operate the connection between chambers and cylinders. The valve means fulfil a dual function, namely connecting the cylinders alternately to the stock container or to the shaping plate. For this purpose, the valve means can be moved between two positions, in each of which the connection between one of the cylinders and the chamber is shut off and the connection between that cylinder and the stock container is opened each time.
According to a preferred embodiment, a swivellable valve element is provided in the chamber, which valve element has a passage whose one end is permanently connected to the stock container by way of an opening in the top wall of the chamber, and whose other end in both positions of the valve element is connected to the appropriate cylinder in each case. The passage provides a good uniform guidance of the meat mass to the appropriate cylinder.
The chamber can be designed with a rectangular cross-section, in that case the valve element having a bottom and top base plate with circular periphery which interacts in a sealing manner with the bottom chamber wall. The valve element also has a top base plate with circular periphery which interacts in a sealing manner with the top chamber wall.
In order to improve the sealing action of the valve element, each base plate is accommodated in a correspondingly shaped recess in the appropriate wall of the chamber.
The swivellable valve element can be designed in various ways. According to a preferred possibility, provision is made for a channel which is bent through 90.degree. and one end of which is concentric in relation to each base plate, while the other end can be connected to one of the cylinders in each case.
A special embodiment can have two pairs of piston-cylinder units and also a valve means
REFERENCES:
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patent: 3964127 (1976-06-01), Holly
patent: 4356595 (1982-11-01), Sandberg et al.
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patent: 4801097 (1989-01-01), Fitch
patent: 5021025 (1991-06-01), Wagner
patent: 5022888 (1991-06-01), Lindee
patent: 5149293 (1992-09-01), Lindee
Little Willis
Tetra Laval Food Koppens B.V.
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