GB2144320A - Food processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A food processing apparatus (10), primarily for fast food restaurants, comprises a cylinder (17) which can be extruded by a power driven plunger (16) to form a processed food product. Extrusion may be through a spigot (19) threaded with sausage skin to form sausages or through a slide mechanism (22, Fig. 2) having a mould recess (26) to form the food into a hamburger. The build up of pressure in the cylinder may be arranged to operate a pressure sensitive switch means to interrupt the power transmission to the piston. The spigots, slide mechanisms pistons and cylinders are readily interchangeable to provide a versatile apparatus. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Food Processing Apparatus This invention relates to a food processing apparatus.

In a fast-food restaurant, large numbers of food items such as sausages and hamburgers are required. Hitherto, these food items have been supplied ready-prepared to the restaurant. This means that the exact daily requirement must be estimated, since such food items are perishable.

Alternatively, substantial refrigeration facilities are needed to cope with fluctuations in demand.

It would be desirable to have facilities in the restaurant to make the required food items but presently available machinery is too large and too expensive to be suitable and is not versatile.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a food processing apparatus which is suitable for relatively small-scale use, for example on restaurant premises, for making food items such as hamburgers or sausages.

According to the invention there is provided a food processing apparatus comprising: a stand; drive means; a parallel-sided vessel adapted to receive food to be processed and having an aperture at one end; a piston movable in said vessel to force the food from the vessel through said aperture; shaping means for shaping the food, said shaping means being disposed in communication with said aperture; the drive means being operable to move the piston in the vessel.

The drive means may be power means. Power transmission means may be interposed between the drive means and the piston.

Pressure-sensitive switch means may be provided to interrupt the power transmission means in response to a build-up of pressure in the vessel.

Alternatively, the drive means may comprise a stored energy device such as a spring or the like, capable of being used to store and release energy in a controlled manner to drive the piston.

The shaping means may comprise an extrusion spigot adapted to extrude the food into a sausage skin threaded onto said spigot.

Alternatively, the shaping means may comprise a slide means including a slide having a recess into which said aperture discharges, the slide being reciprocable to cut off a portion of food contained in said recess from the remainder of the food in the vessel, to form a hamburger.

The portion of the stand on which the vessel is mounted may be bifurcated and the shaping means may be disposed at least partly within the fork of said portion. Said portion may be inclined relative to the horizontal ir use, the axis of the vessel and the piston being inclined to the vertical by a similar amount.

The slide means may further include a slide housing in which the slide is mounted for reciprocating movement.

In a preferred embodiment, the shaping means is removable and replaceable. A plurality of slide means may be provided, having differently-sized recesses to form different weights of hamburger.

The piston and vessel may also be removable and replaceable by differently-sized alternatives.

The power transmission means may comprise a lead screw rotatable by said power drive means and acting in a fixed nut in said housing. The screw may be of stainless steel and the nut of low-friction material such as nylon.

A food processing apparatus embodying the invention will now be described in more detail by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of a food processing apparatus, the machine being fitted with a spigot for making sausages; Figure 2 is a side elevational view, partly in section, of the same apparatus fitted with a slide means for making hamburgers.

Referring firstly to Figure 1, a food processing apparatus is generally indicated at 10 and comprises a housing 11, containing an electric fractional horse-power motor 1 2 or stepper motor, and a gear train 13 which includes a clutch. The gear train drives a stainless steel lead screw 14, which acts in a nylon or other lowfriction nut 1 5 fixed in the housing 11, so that rotation of the lead screw 14 causes it to move through the nut 1 5.

The lead screw 14 carries a piston 16, which is rotatable on the lead screw. The piston is suitably sized to be a tight sliding fit in a cylinder 17 or other parallel-sided vessel. If necessary, an edge seal can be provided on the piston.

The foot of the cylinder rests on an inclined portion 18 of the housing, this portion being bifurcated so that a spigot 19, mounted on the foot of the cylinder 1 7 can pass between the limbs of the inclined portion. The spigot can be threaded in generally known manner with a sausage skin so that sausage filling contained in the cylinder can be extruded through the spigot 19 into the skin.

In use, the cylinder is removed from the machine and filled with sausage filling. The cylinder is then mounted on the inclined portion of the housing as shown and the piston is inserted into the upper end of the cylinder. The cylinder is mounted at an angle so that the insertion of the piston holds the cylinder in place without further fastening being required.

The motor 12 is operated to rotate the lead screw 14 via the gear train 13. This forces the piston downwardly into the cylinder, extruding the sausage filling through the spigot into the sausage skin.

It is preferred that a pressure-sensitive switch is associated with the piston or lead screw, so that any obstruction or excessive pressure inside the cylinder operates the switch to cut the drive to the lead screw 14.

Figure 2 of the drawings shows the same apparatus with some alternative parts fitted, to make hamburgers. Where the same parts are shown, they have the same numerals as before.

A cylinder 20 of a smaller diameter than the cylinder 1 7 is shown positioned on the bifurcated inclined portion 1 8 of the housing. A small piston 21 has also been fitted to the lead screw 14. At the foot of the cylinder, a slide means generally indicated at 22 has been secured to the inclined portion of the housing, and connected to a crank drive 23, operated by the motor 12. The crank drive transforms rotary movement from a shaft 24 to reciprocating linear movement of a slide 25.

Alternatively, the slide may be operated by a separate motor. The pressure-sensitive switch can then be arranged to co-ordinate the motions of the piston and the slide.

The slide 25 has a recess 26 of circular shape forming a mould for a hamburger. A closure plate 27, fixed to the cylinder at its foot, has an aperture 28 at one side, through which hamburger mix can be extruded into the recess 26.

A roll 29 of paper such as waxed or greaseproof paper is mounted below the slide means 22. Paper from the roll is fed through the slide, so that a thickness of paper is accessible in the recess in the slide.

In use, the cylinder 20 is filled with hamburger mix and mounted on the housing above the slide means 22 and the piston 21 is introduced at the top of the cylinder. The motor 1 2 is operated and the piston is forced downwardly as before.

Hamburger mix is extruded through the aperture 28 into the paper-lined recess 26 of the slide 25.

When the recess is full, a back pressure builds up in the hamburger mix in the cylinder and the pressure-sensitive switch is operated to cut the drive to the piston. The slide means is then operated by the crank drive 23. It will be appreciated that only a small portion of the hamburger being formed is still in communication with the mix in the cylinder through the aperture 28. Only this small portion needs to be sheared through by the slide, to separate the hamburger from the mix in the cylinder. This reduces distortion of the formed hamburger and the force needed to part it from the bulk of the mix in the cylinder. It is preferred that aperture 28 is close to slide 25 at the start of the shearing movement to minimise the volume of meat compressed by the shearing action.

The slide moves laterally to the left as shown in the drawings, to discharge the hamburger onto a plate 30 from which it can be removed. A knife 31 operates to cut off the paper on which the hamburger has been formed, before the slide 25 returns to its original position, leaving an end of paper in position for the next hamburger.

It is preferred that the paper used for the roll 29 is perforated or dimpled so as to have upward projections, to which the mix tends to adhere.

This assists in feeding the paper through the slide mechanism with the hamburger. There is a oneway barbed spring mechanism (not shown) through which the paper feeds to the knife position, but which grips the paper and prevents it from being drawn back by the slide on its return to the hamburger-forming position under the aperture.

Return of the slide restarts the piston drive, which continues until the recess has refilled.

In order to make hamburgers of different weights, a plurality of different slide means may be provided, differing in the thickness of the slide.

The apparatus can readily be converted from use for making sausages to use for making hamburgers, or from one size of hamburger to another, so providing versatility for restaurant use.

Cleaning of the machine is straightforward, since most of the parts such as the cylinder and piston can readily be removed.

A simpler, manually operated machine can be produced operating on similar lines, in which the power drive means is replaced by an energystoring means such as a spring. This can be "wound up" to provide a source of pressure for the piston operation, controlled either by the operator or by a pressure sensitive switch as before. The slide mechanism can be provided with a hand-operated crank.

Claims (14)

1. A food processing apparatus comprising: a stand; drive means; a parallel-sided vessel adapted to receive food to be processed and having an aperture at one end; a piston movable in said vessel to force the food from the vessel through said aperture; shaping means for shaping the food, said shaping means being disposed in communication with said aperture; the drive means being operable to move the piston in the vessel.

2. Apparatus according to Claim 1 wherein the drive means comprise power means.

3. Apparatus according to Claim 2 wherein power transmission means are interposed between the drive means and the piston.

4. Apparatus according to Claim 3 wherein pressure sensitive switch means are provided to interrupt the power transmission means in response to a build up of pressure in the vessel.

5. Apparatus according to Claim 1 wherein the drive means comprise a stored energy device such as a spring or the like, capable of being used to store and release energy in a controlled manner to drive the piston.

6. Apparatus according to any preceding claim wherein the shaping means comprises an extrusion spigot adapted to extrude the food into a sausage skin threaded onto said spigot.

7. Apparatus according to anyone of Claims 1 to 5 wherein the shaping means comprises a slide means including a slide having a recess into which said aperture discharges, the slide being reciprocable to cut off a portion of food contained in said recess from the remainder of the food in the vessel, to form a hamburger.

8. Apparatus according to any preceding claim wherein the portion of the stand on which the vessel is mounted is bifurcated and the shaping means is disposed at least partly within the fork of said portion.

9. Apparatus according to Claim 8 wherein said portion is inclined relative to the horizontal in use, the axis of the vessel and the piston being inclined to the vertical by a similar amount.

10. Apparatus according to any one of Claims 7 to 9 wherein the slide means further include a slide housing in which the slide is mounted for reciprocating movement.

11. Apparatus according to any preceding claim wherein the shaping means is removable and replaceable.

12. Apparatus according to Claim 7 and Claim 11 wherein a plurality of slide means are provided, having differently sized recesses to form different weights of hamburger.

1 3. Apparatus according to any preceding claim wherein the piston and vessel are removable and replaceable by differently sized alternatives.

14. Apparatus according to Claim 3 or Claim 4 wherein the power transmission means comprise a lead screw rotatable by said power drive means and acting in a fixed nut in said housing.

1 5. Apparatus according to Claim 14 wherein the screw is of stainless steel and the nut of low friction material such as nylon.

1 6. A food processing apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings.

1 7. A food processing apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings.