US2811996A - Fruit crusher and juice separator - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 5, 1957 E. F. B. CASTELLANOS 2,811,996

FRUIT CRUSHER AND JUICE SEFARATOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 29 19 \1 WV 7 an BUENZDIA CAST LLANoswwmmh BY W 1 0% 1957 E. F. B. CASTELLANOS 2,811,996

FRUIT CRUSHER AND JUICE SEPARATOR Filed July 29, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 F B EN CAST'ELLANOS INVENIOR.

BY M,XJ- U United States Patent v FRUIT CRUSHER AND JUICE SEPARATOR Eduardo Francisco Buendia Castellanos, Madrid, Spain Application July 29, 1954, Serial No. 446,632

3 Claims. (Cl. 146-76) The main object of this new automatic filtering extractor is to provide means for extracting from fruits, under economical conditions and by means of a hitherto unknown process, all kinds of vegetable oils, with a minimum of acidity, which is accomplished by operating the new extractor at a very reduced pressure so that with regard to olives, their elaboration is much improved both when grinding them with their stones, or after the stones have been removed.

The essence of the automatic filtering extractor according to the invention is constituted by a container provided with perforated walls and having mounted therein a plurality of small pistons which perform the dual function of cleaning the perforations in the container walls and serving to provide a jagged backing against which the fruits are crushed by blades rotating inside said extractor.

The following description is made with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: I

Fig. lis a cross section elevational view of the apparatus, showing its most vital elements;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the apparatus along line II.II of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the apparatus of Fig. 1 showing the chamber in an inverted position for the discharge of the pressed mass;

Fig. 4 is a detail showing the perforations in the chamber and through which the oil passes;

Fig. 5 is a detail of one of the pistons showing the piston arranged by way of an example, in the shape of a comb;

Fig. 6 is a detail of the relative position of the blades, the filtering wall and the pistons.

As shown inthese figures, the apparatus consists of a chamber 1, provided on the inside with perforations as shown in Fig. 4. On this chamber 1 there are mounted a series of pistons 2 with tooth-like elements thereon, as shown in detail in Figs. 5 and 6, having a reciprocating movement and which perform a continuous cleaning of the orifices or perforations in the chamber 1. These pistons 2 are held by bridges 3 (Figs. 1 and 5) provided at their ends with rods or bars 6 (Figs. 2 and 3) connected to an eccentric 7 (Figs. 2 and 3) and driven by the main shaft 8 (Fig. 2). The tooth-like elements on the pistons 2 fit the perforations in the chamber 1 quite closely, and when the pistons 2 are reciprocated by the bridges 3, the tooth-like elements slide back and forth through the perforations. The pressure exerted from within the chamber 1 forces a small amount of oil or the like through the small space left between the tooth-like elements and the edges of the perforations. The reciprocating motion of the tooth-like elements not only promotes the passage of a small amount of oil, but also removes whatever solid material may collect on the edges of the perforations. The reciprocating tooth-like elements in cooperation with the perforations thus operate as a self-cleaning filter, passing only oil or the like therethrough.

2,811 Patented Nov. 5, 1957 This shaft 8 is furthermore provided with the laminated springs 5 and blades 4 (Figs. 1, 2 and 6) that whirl and apply pressure to the mass being treated, which is introduced [into the apparatus through the hopper 10 (Figs. 1, 2 and 3).

The extractor can be fitted with a heating system constituted, by a tubing 9 (Fig. 2) the water inlet and outlet of which are positioned at the ends of the main shaft 8, or any other appropriate system.

Fig. 6, as has already been stated, shows the relative position of the perforated wall of the chamber 1, the pistons 2 and the blades 4 held by the laminated springs 5. The dotted line in Fig. 6 is the path along which the extremity of the laminated springs 5 with their blades 4 pass. Therefore, the blade 4 will not rub against the pointed ends of the tooth-like elements on the pistons 2.

Fig. 5 shows an embodiment of the pistons 2 the elements of which are shaped to correspond with the shape of the perforations (Fig. 4) of the chamber 1. The pistons 2 maybe shaped somewhat like combs, as shown in these figures, or any other appropriate shape, as found most convenient in each case. One piston thus spans one channel member making up the casing 1.

The body of the apparatus is mounted on frames 11 provided with wheels 12 to enable a displacement of the apparatus along rails; however, it can also be constructed without these elements.

The operation of the apparatus is as follows:

The previously ground oleaginous fruits, should this be required in accordance with the product to be treated, are dropped either mechanically or manually and as desired, into the hopper 10 of the apparatus, and upon filling the extractor, which should be set in motion simultaneously with the filling, the fruits are pressed by the blades 4 describing a circular movement as indicated in Fig. 1 against the pointed piston ends to grind and crush the fruit. Immediately thereafter the oil will drop through the chamber wall as pistons 2 are reciprocated by rotation of the eccentric 7. The pistons also remove pulp from the perforations. Thus the apparatus will operate without need of any further care than that of only one laborer to attend to the working of the apparatus during a determined period of time depending on the fruit being treated and until an insignificant amount of fats drops from said filters.

After the oil has been extracted, the resultant pulp or paste is discharged by turning the chamber 1 upside down, as shown in Fig. 3, that is to say, without stopping the apparatus, the pulp thus being discharged automatically by rotating said chamber to an angle of for which purpose the necessary mechanism is provided.

Although a detailed description for the construction of the low pressure automatic filtering extractor has been made in compliance with the accompanying drawings, it is stressed that this should only be considered as an example of the invention, and in practice the construction may be modified provided no alterations are introduced in the essence of the extractor constituted by mechanical movement applied to the automatic filter.

No drawings for other machines using high pressures have been included, as these are of very different types depending on the products being treated, whereas they are all fitted with the same filter as that applied to the low pressure extractor system shown in the accompanying drawings, that is to say, that the fundamental essence is identical for all types of extractors.

This new automatic filtering extractor constitutes an outstanding improvement of all hitherto known oil extraction processes, and particularly with respect to the elaboration of olives, for it relates to an apparatus the main parts of which and the filter elements of which are made of materials having a high resistance to oxidation and wear, and the filtering elements cannot be obstructed due to the fact that they are provided with an appropriate automatic movement to ensure a continuouscleaning, which likewise affords asystematically uniform passage for the oil being produced in the interior of the extractor.

The outstanding advantages that have practically been achieved and proved up to date with this new apparatus in comparison with the hitherto known methods, are as follows:

(a) The new automatic filtering extractor perfectly elaborates and extracts all kinds of vegetable oils. With regard to olives, it has already been shown that it produces an even better quality of oil in the final stage of operation than at the beginning thereof, thus ensuring that with fresh fruits the entire amount of oil complies with the indispensable characteristics of so-called pure oils.

(b) Oils produced with this apparatus are guaranteed to integrally retain all of the most essential characteristics which are considered to be contained in the fruit, due to being obtained with almost no pressure at all and at a low temperature, thus possessing the least possible degree of moisture and which are consequently apt to be kept clear and transparent, requiring no kind of centrifuging.

(c) Practice has shown that the depletion of the bagasse is entirely commercial and superior to that which usually remains after the extraction of oils by the known process which at present utilizes hydraulic presses.

(d) The complete exclusion of pressing bags for the extractionof oils, a need felt long ago due to the great increase in production costs by the present day old fashioned method, and the great difference attained in the quality of oils when compared with those obtained by other known processes based on centrifugal methods. Despite all this, the special and revolutionary characteristic of the new apparatus, found precisely at the other extreme of the technical processes universally used for the extraction of fats (extraction by means of solvents for the production of certain edible fats, and that of high pressure extraction which has been utilized since early times for the production of olive oil) permits an easy adjustment of its essential filter performance as compared to any other kind of continuous, intermittent or automatic duty machines, based on a high pressure system.

(e) An important economy of wages.

(f) A minimum consumption of energy.

The essence of the described extractor apparatus is the filter element, this being applicable in the construction of intermittently operating machines operating at low pressures, to intermittently operating machines operating at high pressures, and to continuous duty machines or any other types, apt to be utilized for oleaginous products.

Having made the foregoing description, it should be stressed that the details of the idea are variable without departing from the essence of the invention which is disclosed by the preceding description and defined in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. An automatic filtering extractor for fruit and vegetable oils comprising a chamber having a semicylindrical lower portion with a plurality of small perforations therein, a plurality of pistons having elements thereon slidably fitted in said perforations, a plurality of bridges extending transversely of said chamber on the outside thereof on which said pistons are mounted, a shaft rotatably mounted on said extractor and passing through said chamber along the axis of the semicylindrical portion, means to drive said shaft, an eccentric on 'said shaft outside of said chamber, connecting rods pivoted between the ends of said bridges and said eccentric, and a plurality of curved laminated springs on said shaft within said chamber extending to a point adjacent a wall of said chamber and having blades on the ends thereof, whereby on rotation of said shaft said blades press fruit and vegetable material toward the walls of said chamber, and said bridges and pistons mounted thereon reciprocate to slide said elements in said perforations.

2. An automatic filtering extractor for fruit and vegetable oils comprising a chamber having a plurality of small perforations in the lower portion thereof, a plurality of pistons having elements thereon slidably fitted in said perforations, means on said extractor for reciprocating said pistons to slide said elements reciprocally in said perforations comprising a plurality of bridges extending transversely of said chamber on which said pistons are mounted, a rotatable shaft on said extractor, means to drive said shaft, an eccentric on said shaft, and connecting rods pivoted between the ends of the bridges and the eccentric, whereby on rotation of the eccentric the bridges and pistons thereon are reciprocated, and means in said chamber to press fruit and vegetable material toward the walls of said chamber.

3. An automatic filtering extractor for fruit and vegetable oils comprising a chamber having a plurality of small perforations in the lower portion thereof, a plurality of pistons having elements thereon slidably fitted in said perforations, means on said extractor for reciprocating said pistons to slide said elements reciprocally in said perforations, and means in said chamber to press fruit and vegetable material toward the walls of said chamber comprising a shaft rotatably mounted through the chamber, a plurality of curved laminated springs on said shaft extending to a point adjacent the wall of the chamber and having blades on the ends thereof, and means on said extractor to rotate said shaft.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,097,213 Crine May 19, 1914 2,427,446 De la Roza Sept. 16, 1947 2,427,662 De la Roza Sept. 23, 1947 2,657,801 Quilling Nov. 3. 1953

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