JP2002002890A - Food manufacturing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a device for manufacturing either juice-like or semi-solid food and attain a technical issue to develop a food manufacturing device in which a preparation work is simple and various kinds of foods can be manufactured in a rapid manner. SOLUTION: A food-manufacturing device 1 is made such that three segments, i.e., a refrigerator segment, a mixing segment and a cleaning segment 5 are integrally formed at a main body segment to constitute one device, wherein a releasing time of an opening or closing valve 24 is adjusted and an amount of distribution is kept constant.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an apparatus for producing juice-like or semi-solid food. In particular, the food manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is suitable for a sales form in which food materials are individually selected and stirred according to the tastes of customers and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Cold foods containing mixed fruits and vegetables such as shake foods are widely used as standard products in coffee shops, hamburger shops or convenience stores. The items such as juices and shake foods sold at these stores are, for example, about three items such as mixed juice, lemon juice, and strawberry juice, and at most about five items. In large-scale stores such as juice specialty stores and hamburger shops, the stirring container of a large mixer is set on a machine, and liquid materials such as fruits and vegetables and milk, which are used as raw materials for juice and shake food, are placed in the stirring container. From 10 cups or more of juice at a time. Then, according to the customer's order, open and close the stopper of the mixer and pour the desired juice or the like into the cup. Also, when the inside of the mixer is empty, fresh raw materials are charged, juices and the like are manufactured and stored. In such a large-sized store, the frequency of the setup operation when producing juice or shake food is low. In other words, when manufacturing juice or shake food, it is necessary to set the mixing vessel of the mixer on the machine or to put the ingredients into the mixing vessel. Infrequently performed. In a small-scale coffee shop, etc., the mixer is set one by one according to the customer's request, and the raw materials are put into a stirring container to produce juice, etc. Therefore, the frequency of setup work is also low.

[0003]

In recent years, environmental problems and health problems have become a major concern, and more and more people have a particular commitment to food. Therefore, the present inventors have perceived this tendency, and have conceived a new product and a new sales form that have never existed before. The products considered by the present inventors are to select individual ingredients according to the health condition and tastes of the visitor, and to agitate and provide these in front of the visitor. However, when this product was specifically developed at stores, it faced new problems that had not existed before. That is, in the above-mentioned products, ingredients are individually selected and stirred according to a visitor's health condition and tastes. Therefore, ingredients to be put into the mixer are different for each cup. Therefore, the ingredients must be weighed and put into the mixer for each cup. In addition, since it is necessary to provide a wide variety of ingredients, it is not possible to make a profit unless there are a considerable number of customers, and it is necessary to set the stirring container simply and efficiently. Therefore, the present invention aims at realizing the above-mentioned new products and new sales forms, and has as a technical object the development of a food manufacturing apparatus capable of quickly manufacturing a wide variety of foods with a simple setup operation. Things.

[0004]

When a predetermined amount of food is discharged, it is ideally desirable to directly measure the weight of the food or to detect the amount of the food passed by a flow meter. However, since the above-mentioned products in the new form are prepared by blending individual ingredients one by one and pulverizing and stirring, for example, milk or yogurt which is a liquid ingredient is very small. Therefore, weighing the weight or detecting the passing amount with the flow meter requires a highly accurate balance or flow meter, which is not practical. Therefore, in the present invention, an on-off valve is provided in the piping path, and the measurement of food is performed by controlling the on-off time of the on-off valve. However, if the discharge amount is controlled by the opening / closing time of the on-off valve in this manner, the flow rate per hour changes due to the difference in the remaining amount of the tank and the like in the cooling unit. Emissions change. Therefore, in the present invention, in order to correct this error, the time during which the on-off valve is opened is changed in accordance with the remaining amount of food material in the tank or the like. The invention according to claim 1 completed in this way has a cold storage section for chilling food, a food discharge section for discharging the food of the cold storage section, and an on-off valve provided between the cold storage section and the food discharge section. The food is weighed by controlling the opening / closing time of the on-off valve, and the time during which the on-off valve is opened is changed according to the remaining amount of the food in the cooling unit. is there.

[0005] According to the present invention, the difference in the amount of food discharged per hour due to the difference in the amount of stored food in the cool storage unit can be corrected, and an appropriate amount of food can be discharged. The invention also provides
It is simple with few components, easy to manufacture and has few failures. As a method of knowing the remaining amount of the food in the tank, for example, a method of storing the number of times the food is discharged and performing a calculation of subtracting the total discharge amount from a full state, or a method of calculating the remaining amount of each time is considered. Can be As the number of times the food is discharged increases, the amount of food in the tank decreases and the discharge pressure decreases, but in the food manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, as a result, the opening time of the on-off valve increases according to the number of times the food is discharged. Therefore, a desired amount of food is always discharged.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cooling unit for chilling foods and a mixing unit for stirring the foods, and discharges the foods in the cooling unit provided near the mixing. It has a food discharge unit and an open / close valve provided between the cool unit and the food discharge unit.Measurement of the food is performed by controlling the open / close time of the open / close valve, and the remaining amount of the food in the cool unit is determined. A food manufacturing apparatus characterized in that the time during which the on-off valve is opened is changed accordingly.

[0007] In the food production apparatus of the present invention, the difference in the amount of food discharged per unit time due to the difference in the amount of food in the cold storage unit is corrected, and an appropriate amount of food can be discharged. In addition, the present invention has few components, is simple, is easy to manufacture, and has few failures. In addition, according to the present invention, a mixing unit for stirring the food is provided, and the food discharging unit for discharging the food is provided near the mixing. Therefore, in the food manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, the stirring operation can be started immediately after the weighing of the food material, and the working efficiency is high.

Further, the invention according to claim 3 is characterized in that the food is liquid, a tank for storing the food is stored in the cooling section, and the food is discharged from the tank to the outside through a pipe. 3. The food manufacturing apparatus according to 1 or 2.

[0009] In the food manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, a tank is stored in the cooling section, and a liquid food material is stored in the tank. The above-mentioned products in the new form are obtained by pulverizing and mixing fruits and vegetables such as oranges and bananas with liquid ingredients such as milk, but when comparing the fruits and vegetables with the liquid ingredients, there are more kinds of fruits and vegetables. Therefore, in the present invention, a liquid food material is stored in the cooling part.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, a plurality of tanks are provided, and an opening / closing valve is provided for each tank. The individual remaining amount of each tank is used as the remaining amount of food in the cooling unit. The food manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the time during which each on-off valve is opened is changed.

In the food manufacturing apparatus of the present invention, a plurality of tanks are provided. Therefore, for example, a plurality of types of food materials such as milk and yogurt can be stored. Further, in the present invention, the remaining amount of the individual ingredients of the tank is regarded as the remaining amount of the ingredients in the cooling unit,
Since the time during which each on-off valve is opened is changed according to the remaining amount, the accuracy of the correction is high.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, a plurality of tanks are provided, and an on-off valve is provided for each tank. The individual remaining amount of each tank is used as the remaining amount of food in the cooling unit. The remaining amount is calculated by subtracting the discharge amount to be discharged from the individual tank at a time by a predetermined value from the individual remaining amount of the tank at a time, and calculating the time during which each open / close valve is opened according to the remaining amount. 4. The food manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein?

[0013] The food production apparatus of the present invention is also provided with a plurality of tanks, and can store a plurality of types of food materials such as milk and yogurt. In the present invention, since the individual remaining amount of the tank is used as the remaining amount of food in the cool storage unit, and the time during which each on-off valve is opened is changed according to the remaining amount, the accuracy of the correction is high. However, in practice, in view of the fact that there is often no significant difference in the consumption of the liquid raw material in each tank, in the present invention, the individual remaining amount of the tank (for example, the last remaining amount or the last remaining amount) is individually changed once. The calculation is performed by subtracting a value obtained by dividing a discharge amount (for example, the previous or current discharge amount) discharged from the tank by a predetermined value. In addition, the discharge amount discharged from each tank is a set value in many cases, and it is not necessary to use an actually measured value. The “predetermined value” is
It is a constant determined by experiment. According to the present invention, it is possible to perform a correction that does not substantially cause a problem by a relatively simple calculation.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below. FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a food manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view of the food manufacturing apparatus of FIG. FIG. 3 is a side view of the food manufacturing apparatus of FIG.
FIG. 4 is an AA cross-sectional view of the food manufacturing apparatus of FIG. FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line BB of a food manufacturing apparatus according to a modified embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a front view around the mixing section of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a side view around the mixing section of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8 is a front view and a side view of the mixing unit of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, and shows a state where the clutch storage unit and the stirring container are separated. FIG. 9 is a front view and a side view of the mixing unit of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, showing a state where the clutch storage unit and the stirring container are joined. FIG.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a mechanism for raising and lowering a rotating shaft and a clutch of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG.
FIG. 3 is a front view, a side view, and a front view of a mechanism for raising and lowering a rotating shaft and a clutch of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of a mechanism for raising and lowering a rotating shaft and a clutch of a food manufacturing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 13 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of an end portion of the clutch storage portion and the stirring container of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention,
It shows a state where both are separated and a state where they are joined. FIG.
It is a graph showing rotation speed and time of the stirring blade of the food manufacturing apparatus of the example of the present invention. FIG. 15 is a configuration diagram of the foodstuff selection device.

In each of the figures, reference numeral 1 denotes a food manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, a cool unit 2, a mixing unit 3, and a washing unit 5 are integrated into a main unit 6 to constitute one device. Explaining one by one, the cold insulator 2 is located at the uppermost position of the main body 6 and is a kind of refrigerator or freezer. The cold insulator 2 is covered with a heat insulating wall 7 as shown in FIG. The cold insulation unit 2 has a main body box 8 having an opening on one side and a door 9 covering the opening, and the front side can be opened and closed. Specifically, the door part 9 is made of a member different from the main body box 8, and the door part 9 and the main body box 8 are formed.
Are joined by a link mechanism 10. Therefore, the door part 9 can be flipped upward as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. The door 9 is provided with a handle 14 for easy opening and closing. Also, many parts of the door part 9. It is fitted with glass and you can see inside from outside.

A cool air circulation path 11 is provided inside the main body box 8, and a circulation fan 12 is attached to an end of the cool air circulation path 11. Further, a heat exchanger 13 is disposed in an intermediate portion of the cool air circulation path 11. Heat exchanger 1
3 is cooled by a thermoelectric module 15 using a Peltier element. A heat exchanger 16 for exhaust heat and a fan 17 are provided outside the main body box 8, and are connected to the thermoelectric module 15 by a refrigerant pipe (not shown).

At the bottom inside the main body box 8, three tank installation seats 19 are provided.
a, 18b and 18c are provided. Each of the tanks 18 is made of a transparent or translucent resin so that the inside can be seen, and a valve (not shown) is provided at the bottom. Therefore, when the tanks 18a, 18b, 18c are installed in the tank installation seat 19, the valve of the tank 18 is opened, and the liquid food supply pipe 20 provided in the tank installation seat 19 communicates with the tank 18. In addition, the liquid foodstuff supply pipe 20 is provided individually for each tank 18.

The liquid food supply pipe 20 is provided with an electromagnetic valve (open / close valve) 24 at an intermediate portion, and is opened to a food discharge 21 provided in the mixing 3. That is, a foodstuff discharging unit 21 is provided adjacent to a position where the clutch storage unit 30 described below is hung, and the foodstuff discharging unit 21 includes
Three nozzles 21a, 21b, 21c are attached. And the tank 18a communicates with the nozzle 21a,
The tank 18b communicates with the nozzle 21b and the tank 18c
Communicates with the nozzle 21c. Of course, each tank 18 communicates with a corresponding nozzle 21 through an individual liquid food supply pipe 20, and each liquid food supply pipe 20 is provided with an individual solenoid valve (open / close valve) 24.

The details of the mixing section 3 of FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The mixing unit 3 has only a top surface 25, a bottom surface 26, and a vertical surface 27 on the back side, and the front side and both side surfaces are open. For this reason, the mixing portion 3 has a substantially U-shape as shown in the figure when viewed from the side, and the middle portion is largely empty.

The details of the mixing section 3 will be further described with reference to FIG. That is, the mixing section 3 is configured such that the clutch housing section 30 is hung down from the top surface 25, and the stirring vessel 31 and the stirring blades 32 are disposed below the clutch housing section 30. The clutch storage section 30 is a cylindrical box as shown in the figure, and a handle 33 is provided outside. Further, a motor 35 is built in the clutch storage section 30. And motor 3
The clutch 37 is attached to the tip of the rotation shaft 36 of No. 5. The clutch 37 is one of the meshing clutches, and has a convex shape as shown in FIG.

A bottom plate 38 is provided at the bottom of the clutch housing portion 30, and only the clutch 37 is exposed from an opening provided in the bottom plate 38. Also, the clutch storage unit 30
As shown in FIG. 13, the peripheral portion of the bottom plate 38 is recessed, and an annular groove 63 is formed by the outer wall 62 of the clutch housing 30 and the recess on the outer periphery of the bottom plate 38. And the groove 63
Is provided with an engagement detecting means 65 for detecting that the clutch 37 and the stirring blade 32 are engaged. In the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the engagement detecting means 65 includes a detecting pin 66, a link member 67, and a limit switch 68 as shown in the figure.

The detection pin 66 is slidable in the vertical direction with respect to the bottom plate 38, and its tip is exposed on the lower surface of the groove 63, and its upper surface is located inside the clutch housing 30.
The link member 67 is a rod-shaped member. The center of the link member 67 is swingably supported by a pin 72 on a bracket 69 provided in the clutch storage section 30. The link member 67 is constantly urged counterclockwise by the spring 60. However, a stopper (not shown) is provided, and the link member 67 is provided as shown in FIG.
As shown in (a), the vehicle is stopped in a posture inclined at about 30 °.

The limit switch 68 is attached to a bracket 71 provided on the bottom plate 38.

The link member 67 includes a detection pin 66
Between limit switch 68 and one end of detection pin 6
6, and the other end can contact the detection unit of the limit switch 68. That is, when the detection pin 66 moves upward, it comes into contact with the link member 67, and the link member turns clockwise to push the limit switch 68.

Both the output when the limit switch 68 is on and the output when the manual switch (not shown) is on are output from the CPU 12.
In this system, the motor 35 is activated when it is input to 0. Next, a mechanism for raising and lowering the rotating shaft 36 and the clutch 37 of the food manufacturing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The power line 34 of the motor 35 is drawn out of a pipe 39 shown in FIG. The end of the pipe 39 reaches the inside of the top plate 25 in FIG.

The entire clutch housing 30 is suspended by a shaft 40. The shaft 40 extends upward from the center of the clutch storage unit 30 and enters the inside of the top surface 25 as shown in FIG. The configuration inside the top surface 25 is as shown in FIGS.
2, vertical walls 43a and 43b and a guide rod 48 are provided, and a slider 50 is engaged with these.

That is, a support plate 41 is provided on a part of the top surface 25, and a linear guide 4 is provided at the center of the support plate 41.
2 are provided. 2 so as to surround the linear guide 42.
Two vertical walls 43a, 43b are erected. Vertical wall 4
More specifically, 3a and 43b are obtained by bending the plate into a U-shape and fixing the plate to the upper surface of the support plate 41 with screws (not shown). Guide grooves 45a and 45b are provided in the vertical walls 43a and 43b, respectively. Guide groove 45
Are horizontal portions 47a, 47b at both ends of the vertical portion 46.
Is provided. The horizontal portions 47a and 47b extend in the same direction. Therefore, the guide groove 45
Has a generally U-shape. Vertical walls 43a, 43
The guide grooves 45a and 45b provided in b are located at positions symmetrical with respect to the center of the linear guide 42 described above.

Guide rods 48 are provided further outside the vertical walls 43a and 43b.

The slider 50 is formed by bending a steel plate in a “H” shape, and has a flange portion 52 at the open end of the concave portion 51. Each of the flange portions 52 is provided with a long hole 53. The axis of the long hole 53 draws an arc, and its center coincides with the center of the slider 50.

A tongue piece 54 is provided on the inner surface of the vertical wall of the concave portion 51 of the slider 50. The tongue piece 54 hangs downward from the flange 52, and a pin 55 projects further inward.

The slider 50 is provided on the vertical wall 4 as shown in FIGS.
3a and 43b so as to cover the vertical walls 43a and 43b.
The guide rod 48 erected outside is inserted. A spring 60 is provided between the flange portion 52 of the slider 50 and the support plate 41. The spring 60 is inserted through the guide rod 48 and constantly presses the slider 50 upward.

The guide rod 48 is provided with a locking member 56 serving as a guide for the slider 50.

On the other hand, since the pin 55 provided on the tongue piece 53 of the slider 50 is engaged with the guide grooves 45a and 45b provided on the vertical walls 43a and 43b, the slider 50 is provided at an intermediate position. It is movable only in the vertical direction at the height, and is movable only in the rotational direction at the upper limit position and the lower limit position. Therefore, the clutch storage unit 30 that is interlocked with the slider 50
Also, at the upper limit position and the lower limit position, there is a degree of freedom only in the rotation direction, and at the intermediate height, the movement only in the vertical direction. Further, since the slider 50 is constantly urged upward by the spring 60, the clutch storage section 30 is always stopped at the upper limit position. The height of the lower limit position of the clutch storage portion 30 is equal to the height of the upper end of the stirring container 31 when the stirring container 31 of FIG. 7 is installed as described later.

Next, the structure of the mixing section 3 will be described with reference to FIGS.
This will be described with reference to FIGS. Bottom surface 2 of mixing section 3
6, a stirring container installation seat 73 (FIG. 2) is provided at a position directly below the clutch storage portion 30. The stirring container installation seat 73 is a bottom portion of a stirring container 31 (FIG. 4) described later. It is an annular frame that matches. However, the stirring container installation seat 73 is provided with a cutout portion 75 (FIG. 6) in a part of the front portion. The notch 75 is provided for engaging the handle of the stirring vessel 31.

Hereinafter, description will be made with reference to FIG. In the mixing section 3, a stirring vessel 31 and a stirring blade 32 are arranged as shown in FIG. The stirring vessel 31 is a pot-like member made of a transparent material such as glass. That is, the outer shape of the stirring vessel 31 is a bottomed cylindrical shape. Stirring vessel 31
Has a constant inner diameter except for a spout provided at the open end. At the center of the inner bottom of the stirring vessel 31, a projection is provided. The stirring container 31 is provided with a removable upper lid 79. And the top lid 79
An opening 80 is provided at the center of the opening. Stirring vessel 3
1, a handle 78 made of resin (FIG. 4) is attached.

The stirring blade 32 has two rotating blades near the lower end of the shaft member 81. An engaging portion 83 that engages with the clutch is provided at the upper end of the shaft member 81. The engagement portion 83 is specifically a groove. Further, a hole 84 is provided at the lower end of the shaft member 81. The stirring blade 32 is inside the stirring vessel 31, and the hole 84 at the lower end is in the stirring vessel 31.
And the upper part is engaged with the hole 84 of the upper lid 79. Therefore, both ends of the stirring blade 32 are supported, and the stirring blade 32 stands upright in the stirring container 31 and is rotatable.

The above-mentioned stirring vessel 31 and stirring blade 32 are
It is detachable from members belonging to the main body 2 described above.

Next, the structure of the cleaning section will be described with reference to FIG. The lower washing section 5 is a dishwasher. Cleaning unit 5
The front side is a door 85, and the lower end door 85 is attached to the main body by a hinge (not shown). Inside the washing section 5, shower nozzles 8 are provided at the top and bottom.
6,87 are provided. The washing unit 5 is provided with a water heater 88, and hot water in a hot water tank of the water heater 88 is jetted from the shower nozzles 86 and 87. The shower nozzles 86 and 87 rotate similarly to a known dishwasher.

A shelf 89 is provided inside the cleaning section 5. A drainage channel 77 is provided at the bottom of the washing unit 5. In addition, in the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the cooling unit 2
, A liquid crystal panel 110 is fitted between the mixing units 3. The liquid crystal panel 110 is used when a user selects a food material and sets a discharge amount.

Next, the function of the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment will be described by taking as an example a case where the above-described new food is manufactured.

The foodstuffs used in the food production apparatus 1 of the present invention include frozen fruits and vegetables, which are obtained by cutting fruits and vegetables into a predetermined size and then frozen, liquid foods composed of liquid beverages, and medicinal auxiliary foods having a medicinal effect. Select used.

Here, the frozen fruits and vegetables are made of fruits such as banana, strawberry, apple, peach, pineapple, melon, mango, orange, grapefruit, raspberry, blueberry, cabbage, celery, carrot, beet, parsley, lettuce, spinach, watercress. Vegetables such as garlic are cut into a predetermined size and frozen. According to the applicant's plan, for example, orange is one bunch unit, one strawberry is intact, and pineapple and apple are 20 to 20 units.
Cut into pieces of about 60 mm square and freeze. Freezing is performed at about −20 °, and the inside is completely frozen.

According to the store plan of the present inventors, frozen fruits and vegetables are cut and frozen at a factory, carried to a store, and displayed in a frozen showcase. In some cases, the food is stored in the cooling unit 2 of the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment. Furthermore, a predetermined combination is set in advance and placed in a container. For example, banana, orange, and spinach are weighed so as to be equivalent to one cup, and stored as frozen set fruit. In any case, at the time of use, the temperature of the food material is -5 ° C or lower, more preferably -10 ° C.
Below, it is desirable that the inside is completely frozen.

The liquid ingredients are milk, yogurt, fruit juice, honey, liquid sugar and the like. The liquid food material is put in the tank 18 and stored in the cool part 2 of the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment. However, this is not essential and may be kept in another refrigerator.

Supplementary ingredients having a medicinal effect include, for example, various vitamins, caffeine, alcohol, dietary fiber, nutritional supplements such as calcium, dick, kakkon, iris grass, pine needles, konkon, kuku, peonies, fukujuso, and souvenir. It is a Chinese medicine such as ginseng, ginseng, chlorella, or the like, or an extract thereof, and is an additive having some medicinal effect. These are put in a predetermined container.

In the plan of the present inventors, a foodstuff selection device is additionally used. As shown in FIG. 15, the food selection device includes an information input unit for inputting information about the user, a food information storage unit for storing information about the held food, and an appropriate foodstuff based on the information about the user. And a computer is utilized. Means for inputting information about the user include, for example, the visitor's gender, height, weight, physical characteristics such as chest measurement,
Age, heart disease, kidney disease, pre-existing conditions such as diabetes, tastes like sweets and spicy things,
The visitor himself / herself inputs the medical history of the relative, the current physical condition, the mood, and the like. Specifically, a keyboard and a touch panel are used.

On the other hand, the means for storing the information on the ingredients held is to store the type of ingredients to be stocked, the taste, the medicinal effect, and the appropriate amount of addition. Specifically, a hard disk drive or the like is used. Is done.

Means for selecting an appropriate one from the possessed ingredients is, for example, storing various combinations of model cases and appropriate ingredients, and selecting a model close to the condition inputted by the visitor. .

For example, a 42-year-old man, 167 cm tall,
Weight 67kg, no history, grandfather has cerebral infarction, lack of sleep,
If you enter the information that you are feeling depressed and prefer sour food to the food selection device, you will select pineapple and orange for frozen fruits and vegetables, yogurt and fruit juice for liquid ingredients, vitamins, supplements caffeine,
Dietary fiber is selected. The amount of one cup of these glasses is calculated at the same time. These calculated values are displayed on output means such as a CRT or a liquid crystal screen.

Then, based on the composition calculated by the food selection device, the frozen fruits and vegetables and the auxiliary foods are weighed with a measuring spoon or the like and placed in the stirring vessel 31. In addition, in the stirring container 31,
The stirring blade 32 is attached in advance (the upper lid 85 is removed). In our plan, no water or ice is contained. Subsequently, the stirring container 31 is connected to the nozzle 21 of the foodstuff discharging section 20.
The liquid food material and its quantity are input by operating the liquid crystal panel 110 while holding the liquid food directly below a, b, and c. According to the plan of the present inventors, the input of the amount is about three stages of large, medium, and small according to the cup.

When the input is completed and a predetermined switch is turned on, a desired amount of liquid food is dropped from the nozzles 21a, 21b, 21c of the food discharge unit 20. Here, in the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the measurement of the liquid food material is performed by increasing or decreasing the opening time of the solenoid valve. For example, if the setting is "Cup large", the three solenoid valves are opened for a total of about 5 seconds. If the setting is "Cup", the three solenoid valves are opened for a total of about 4 seconds. If so, the three solenoid valves open for a total of about 3 seconds. However, in the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, since the liquid food is dropped by gravity,
The flow rate per unit time differs between the case where the liquid food material is in a full state of the tank and the case where the remaining amount is small. Therefore, it is desirable to make a correction to increase or decrease the opening / closing time of the solenoid valve according to the remaining amount of the tank. That is, when it is expected that the number of times of supply of the liquid food material is large and the remaining amount of the liquid food material in the tank is small, the opening time of the solenoid valve 24 is made longer. The empirical formula adopted by the present inventors is as follows.

[0052]

(Equation 1)

In the above equation, the time during which the on-off valve is opened is changed according to the remaining amount of food in the tank. The remaining amount of the food in the tank is calculated by, for example, storing the number of times the food is discharged and subtracting the total discharge from the full state, or calculating the remaining amount of each time. In the above equation, the remaining amount is calculated by calculating the remaining amount each time. That is, in the above formula, the individual remaining amount of each tank 18 is used as the remaining amount of food in the cool storage unit. The individual remaining amount of each tank 18 is a value obtained by dividing the previous “amount of liquid discharged from each tank (desired amount setting value of discharging)” by a constant from the individual remaining amount (computed value) of the tank two times before. Is calculated by subtracting. And each on-off valve 2 according to the remaining amount
4 is changed. “Two times before, last time” means, in short, a specific time and the next time,
The calculation may be performed based on the values of “last time” and “this time”.

In the present invention, a value obtained by dividing a discharge amount (eg, the previous or current discharge amount) discharged from an individual tank at a time from an individual remaining amount of the tank (eg, the last remaining amount or the previous remaining amount) by a predetermined value. Is calculated by subtracting. In addition, the discharge amount discharged from each tank is a set value in many cases, and it is not necessary to use an actually measured value. The “predetermined value” is a constant obtained by an experiment.
Of course, instead of the simple calculation described above, the individual remaining amount of each tank is used as the remaining amount of food in the cooling unit 2, the remaining amount of each tank is accurately calculated, and each open / close valve is opened according to the remaining amount. You may change the time that is performed.

When a predetermined amount of the liquid food material is discharged from the nozzles 21a, 21b, 21c, the upper lid 85 is attached to the stirring container 31, and the stirring container 31 is immediately set on the stirring container installation seat 73 of the mixing section 3. That is, the stirring container 31 is placed in an annular frame, and the handle 78 of the stirring container 31 is engaged with the notch 75. In this embodiment, since the handle 78 is engaged with the notch portion 75, the stirring container 31 does not rotate even if a rotational force is received from the main body. In the present embodiment,
Since the food discharging unit 21 is provided adjacent to the position where the clutch storage unit 30 is suspended, the stirring operation can be started immediately after the food is measured.

Then, the clutch storage section 3 of the mixing section 3
0 is pressed down by hand to bring the lower surface of the clutch housing 30 into contact with the upper surface of the stirring vessel 31. Since the slider 50 moves only vertically in the clutch housing 30 along the vertical portion 46 of the guide groove 45, the clutch housing 30 moves in parallel without rotating. Then, when the clutch storage section 30 is at the lower limit position, the lower end of the clutch storage section 30 is in contact with the upper end of the stirring vessel 31. More specifically, the edge of the stirring container 31 enters the annular groove 63 on the lower surface of the clutch storage unit 30.

At the same time, since the stirring vessel 31 is set on the stirring vessel installation seat 73 and positioned in the horizontal direction, the clutch 37 exposed on the lower surface of the clutch storage section 30 is attached to the stirring vessel 31 by the upper cover 85. And comes into contact with the engaging portion 83 of the stirring blade 32 projecting from Then, the clutch 37 and the engaging portion 83 of the stirring blade 32 are engaged. As described above, in the present embodiment, the clutch 37 is moved, and the stirring vessel 31 is positioned at the moved position, so that the connection of the clutch 37 is easy.

Next, the clutch storage section 30 is rotated in the screw tightening direction. As a result, the pin 5 of the upper slider 50
5 moves horizontally along the horizontal portion 46 of the guide groove 45,
The pin 55 leaves the position of the vertical portion 46. As a result, the slider 50 cannot move upward, and the clutch housing 30
Stops at the bottom. Therefore, the engaging portion 83 between the clutch 37 and the stirring blade 32 continues to maintain the engaged state.

At this time, the detection pin 66 of the engagement detection means 65 comes into contact with the upper surface of the stirring vessel 31 and the detection pin 66
Push up. As a result, the upper end of the detection pin 66 comes into contact with the link member 67, and the link member turns clockwise to push the limit switch 68. As described above, the motor 35 is started when both the output when the limit switch 68 is turned on and the output when the manual switch (not shown) is turned on are input to the CPU 120. When (not shown) is turned on, the motor 35 rotates and the agitating blade rotates via the clutch, and the food in the agitating container is crushed and agitated. However, in the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, even if the switch is turned on,
Suddenly, the motor 35 does not perform the continuous operation, but performs the intermittent operation first as shown in FIG. Specifically, the motor 35 is rotated about three times at intervals of 0.5 to 3 seconds for 0.1 to 0.3 seconds after the switch is turned on. That is, 0.5
A pause of about 3 seconds is inserted. The pause time is ideally about 0.8 to 1.2 seconds. After an interval of about 1 to 3 seconds, the motor 35 is continuously operated.

As described above, the reason why the motor 35 is first intermittently operated is to prevent the rotary blade from being caught in the food and to smoothly grind the food. That is, in the present embodiment, foods obtained by frozen fruits and vegetables are used, and the ratio is very high. Therefore, when the motor 35 is continuously rotated, the rotary blade bites into the food material, and the rotary blade does not rotate. Therefore, in the present embodiment, first, the stirring blade is intermittently rotated, and the food is cracked by using an impact.

When the rotary blade is rotated, the food is repelled upward. However, when the rotary blade is intermittently rotated as in the present embodiment, the food that escapes at the moment when the rotary blade stops falls and falls again. Then, the rotary blade returns to a position where it can contact. Therefore, the food material is further pulverized by the re-rotation. After several intermittent operations, the food is cut into small pieces, and there is no longer any concern that the rotary blade will bite, flip, or escape. Therefore, in this embodiment, the motor 35 is continuously rotated after several intermittent operations. In the present embodiment, even when the motor 35 is continuously rotated,
The initial rotation speed is increased, and then the rotation is slightly reduced, and the mixture is stirred for a certain period of time. Finally, the mixture is stirred at a maximum speed for a certain time. That is, the continuous operation is performed for a preset time after the intermittent rotation, and during the continuous operation, it is preferable that the motor rotates at a rate of 30% or more lower than the maximum rotation speed for a quarter or more of the continuous operation. In addition, the continuous operation is performed for a preset time after the intermittent rotation. When the continuous operation time is divided into three equal parts, the total number of rotations in the intermediate time period is smaller than the total number of rotations in other time periods. Is desirable.

That is, according to the plan of the present inventors, water and ice are not added to the food material during stirring. In addition, the plan of the present inventors is to select individual ingredients according to the health condition and taste of the visitor as described above, and to provide them by stirring them in front of the customer, The amount of ingredients to be stirred is small. Therefore, if the stirring is continued at a high speed, the foodstuffs scatter during the stirring, and it becomes difficult to sufficiently grind the foodstuffs.
On the other hand, when the stirring blade is decelerated in the middle of the continuous rotation as described above, the scattering of the food material is suppressed, and the food material can be uniformly pulverized and dispersed.

When the rotation is stopped, the clutch housing 30 is rotated in a direction in which the screw is loosened, and the pin 55 of the upper slider 50 is rotated.
To the position of the vertical portion 46 of the guide groove 45. As a result, the slider 50 has a degree of freedom upward, and is automatically raised by the force of the spring 60. Therefore, the clutch storage section 30 moves up. Although the clutch storage unit 30 is constantly urged upward by the spring 60, since the position in the vertical direction is not stable, the clutch storage unit 30 rotates in the screw tightening direction at the upper end during the suspension of the device, It is desirable to move the pin 55 of the slider 50 to a position away from the vertical portion 46 of the guide groove 45.

Then, the stirring vessel 31 is moved to the stirring vessel installation seat 73.
And take out the food from the stirring container 31. The finished food has a low moisture content and good taste.
Also, it does not become watery after the elapse of the timer. In addition, ingredients are selected according to the health condition and mood of the visitor,
It feels particularly delicious and good for your health.

The used stirring vessel 31 and the stirring blade 32
Is placed in the lowermost cleaning section 5 for cleaning. That is, the door 85 of the washing unit 5 is opened, and the stirring vessel 31 and the stirring blade 3
Insert 2. And the upper and lower shower nozzles 86,
Hot water is sprayed from 87 to wash the stirring vessel 31 and the stirring blades 32.

When one day's work is completed, the tank 18
Take out the liquid ingredients inside. Then, the tank 18 is washed, and water is filled in the tank 18.
Attach to Then, the electromagnetic valve 24 is opened, and water is passed through the liquid food supply pipe 20 to clean the pipe.

In the embodiment described above, water is filled in the tank 18 mounted on the cold insulation section 2 and the liquid food supply pipe 2 is filled with water.
Although the configuration for washing the cleaning unit 0 has been disclosed, the food manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present invention includes the washing unit 5, so that the water or hot water of the washing unit 5 may be guided to the liquid food supply pipe 20 to wash the inside of the pipe. it can. FIG. 5 illustrates a configuration in which hot water can be guided from the cleaning unit 5 to clean the piping. The main parts of the food manufacturing apparatus 1 ′ shown in FIG. 5 are the same as those of the above-described food manufacturing apparatus 1. Therefore, the common parts are assigned the same reference numerals as those in the previous embodiment, and duplicate descriptions are omitted. .

In the food manufacturing apparatus 1 ′ shown in FIG. 5, a hot water supply pipe 91 is connected to a liquid food supply pipe 20 from a hot water tank of a water heater 88. A pump 92 is provided in the middle of the pipe 91, and the hot water in the tub is pressurized and supplied to the liquid food supply pipe 20. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the tank 18 'is integrated with the solenoid valve 24', and the discharge side of the solenoid valve 24 is a downward nozzle 93. An opening 94 is provided at the bottom of the main body 2 side, and the connection of the tank 18 'is completed by inserting the nozzle 93 into the opening 94. The aforementioned hot water supply pipe 91 for cleaning is connected near an opening 94 into which the nozzle 93 is inserted, and an electromagnetic valve 95 is provided at a position near the connection portion.

When cleaning the food supply pipe 20 of the food production apparatus 1 'of this embodiment, the electromagnetic valve 24' attached to the tank 18 'is closed and the electromagnetic valve 95 of the hot water supply pipe 91 is opened. Then, the pump 92 is activated to supply the hot water in the hot water tank to the food supply pipe 20. As a result, from the branch of the food supply pipe 20 to the nozzle 21 of the food discharge section 20
Hot water flows through a, b, and c, and the food supply pipe 20 is cleaned. Further, in the food manufacturing apparatus 1 'of the present embodiment, the solenoid valve 2
Since 4 'is integrated with the tank 18', the solenoid valve 2
Cleaning of the inside of 4 'is also easy.

In the above-described embodiment, the coil spring 60 is used to urge the clutch housing portion 30 upward, but the coil spring 60 has a remarkable change in the generated force with respect to a change in the overall length. Therefore, it is difficult to select the coil spring 60. If the coil spring 60 is too strong, it is difficult to push down the clutch housing portion 30, and if too strong, the clutch housing portion 30 does not move to the upper end. Therefore, it is also effective to employ a spiral spring (spring) having a small change in the generated force instead of the coil spring 60.

FIG. 12 illustrates a configuration employing a spiral spring (spring) instead of a coil spring. That is, in the present embodiment, the vertical walls 43a ', 43
A ceiling 96 is provided at b ′, and one end of a spiral spring 97 is attached to the ceiling 96. The slider 50 'has a U-shape when viewed from the front side, and a pin 55' projects outward from a vertical portion.
Further, a protrusion 98 is provided on the back side of the slider 50 'as shown in FIG. The protrusions 98 are provided together on the two vertical parts, and the two protrusions 98 face parallel to each other. A hole 99 is provided in the protruding portion 98, and a spiral spring (spring) 9 is
7 are attached. The aforementioned slider 50 'is inside the vertical walls 43a' and 43b ', and the pin 55' is engaged with a guide groove 46 'provided in the vertical walls 43a' and 43b '.

According to the present embodiment, the slider 50 'is always drawn to the ceiling 96 by the rewinding force of the spiral spring 97, and the clutch accommodating portion 30 which is interlocked with the slider 50' is always kept. It is biased upward. According to the present embodiment, the force for raising and lowering the clutch storage unit 30 is constant irrespective of the height of the clutch storage unit 30, and the usability is good.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the one provided with the stirring container is exemplified. However, for example, a configuration in which only the stirring blade is provided, the food is put into the drinking cup, and the stirring blade is directly inserted into the drinking cup can be considered. . According to this configuration, only the stirring blade 32 is cleaned by the cleaning unit 5. Also, an appropriate frozen fruit or vegetable may be stored in a cup or the like in advance, and milk or the like may be added immediately before stirring. In this case, only the stirring blade 32 is washed. Further, a suitable frozen fruit or vegetable may be stored in a cup or the like in advance, transferred to another container for use, and milk or the like may be added and stirred. In this case, only the stirring blade 32 is washed.

[0074]

As described above, according to the food manufacturing apparatus according to the first and second aspects, since the food can be measured and discharged, the mixing of the food in the case of manufacturing a very wide variety of foods is possible. The complexity is reduced. Therefore, the food manufacturing apparatus of the present invention has an effect that the setup operation is simple and a wide variety of foods can be manufactured quickly. Further, in the food manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, the difference in the amount of food discharged per unit time due to the difference in the amount of stored food in the cooling unit can be corrected, and an appropriate amount of food can be discharged. In addition, the present invention has few components, is simple, is easy to manufacture, and has few failures.

In particular, in the food manufacturing apparatus according to the second aspect,
Only the agitating blades that are easily soiled can be individually washed, the production items can be easily changed, the setup work is further simplified, and a wide variety of foods can be manufactured quickly.

Further, in the food manufacturing apparatus according to the third aspect, a frequently used liquid food material is stored in the cooling part. Therefore, when compounding foodstuffs, necessary items can be taken out from a nearby place, and the working efficiency is high.

Further, in the food manufacturing apparatus according to the fourth and fifth aspects, since a plurality of tanks are provided, a plurality of types of food materials can be stored. The invention according to claims 4 and 5 is:
Since the individual remaining amount of the tank is regarded as the remaining amount of food in the cooling unit, and the opening time of each open / close valve is changed according to the remaining amount,
There is an effect that the accuracy by the correction is high. The food manufacturing apparatus according to claim 5 employs a simple calculation method, but substantially,
Correction to such an extent that no trouble occurs can be performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a food manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the food manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the food manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of the food manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line BB of a food manufacturing apparatus according to a modified embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a front view around a mixing unit of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a side view around a mixing unit of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a front view and a side view of a mixing unit of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, showing a state where a clutch storage unit and a stirring container are separated.

FIG. 9 is a front view and a side view of the mixing unit of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, showing a state where the clutch storage unit and the stirring container are joined.

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of a mechanism for raising and lowering a rotating shaft and a clutch of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a front view, a side view, and a front view of a mechanism for raising and lowering a rotating shaft and a clutch of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is an exploded perspective view of a mechanism for raising and lowering a rotating shaft and a clutch of a food manufacturing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the clutch storage portion and the end portion of the stirring container of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, showing the separated state and the joined state.

FIG. 14 is a graph showing the rotation speed and time of the stirring blade of the food manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a configuration diagram of a foodstuff selection device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1, 1 'food manufacturing apparatus 2 cold insulation section 3 mixing section 5 washing section 17 tank installation seat section 18a, 18b, 18c tank 20 liquid food supply pipe 24, 24' solenoid valve (open / close valve) 30 clutch storage section 31 stirring vessel 32 Stirrer blade 35 Motor 37 Clutch 43a, 43b, 43a ', 43b' Vertical wall 45a, 45b Guide groove 50, 50 'Slider 55 Pin 60 Spring 65 Engagement detecting means 66 Detection pin 67 Link member 68 Limit switch 86, 87 Shower nozzle 88 Water heater 89 Shelf 91 Hot water supply pipe 97 Spiral spring 110 LCD panel

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Shohei Inamori 4-5-2-5 Takaidahondori, Higashiosaka-shi, Osaka Matsushita Refrigerator Co., Ltd. (72) Hirohiro Ueda 4-chome Takaidahondori, Higashiosaka-shi, Osaka No.2 No.5 Matsushita Refrigeration Co., Ltd. F term (reference) 3E047 AA03 AA10 FA04 GA01 3E082 AA01 BB04 CC05 DD02 EE02 FF01 FF09 4B053 AA01 BA14 BA19 BB01 BE03 BL02 BL03

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A cold storage unit for chilling food, a food discharge unit for discharging food in the cold storage unit, and an on-off valve provided between the cold storage unit and the food discharge unit. A food manufacturing apparatus, wherein the opening and closing time of the on-off valve is changed by controlling the opening and closing time of the valve, and the opening time of the on-off valve is changed in accordance with the remaining amount of food in the cooling unit. 2. A cold storage section for chilling foods, a mixing section for stirring the foods, and a food discharge section for discharging foods of the cold storage section provided near the mixing, and a cold storage section and a food discharge section. With an on-off valve provided between, the measurement of food,
A food production apparatus, which is performed by controlling the opening / closing time of an on-off valve, and changes the time during which the on-off valve is opened in accordance with the remaining amount of food in the cool insulation unit. 3. The food production according to claim 1, wherein the food is in a liquid state, a tank for storing the food is stored in the cooling section, and the food is discharged from the tank to the outside through a pipe. apparatus. 4. A plurality of tanks are provided, and an on-off valve is provided for each tank, and the remaining amount of each tank is determined as the remaining amount of food in the cooling unit, and the time for opening each on-off valve according to the remaining amount. 4. The food manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein? 5. A plurality of tanks are provided, and an on-off valve is provided for each tank. The individual remaining amount of each tank is used as the remaining amount of food in the cooling unit. It is calculated by subtracting a value obtained by dividing a discharge amount to be discharged from an individual tank at a time by a predetermined value from a remaining amount, and a time for opening each on-off valve is changed according to the remaining amount. The food manufacturing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein