CA1042302A - Root crowner - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
In a root crowner, centrifugal force is used for guiding and turning the root in the machine as well as for keeping the product in place during the cropping operation, allowing the operation to take place quickly and independently of the shape of the root-vegetable.

Description

In the commercial preparation of edible roots, for example carrots, there is often a portion of the top left after machine peeling. This portion differs in colour from the rest of the carrot and must be removed. ~uring peeling and other industrial processes, both ends of the carrot are sub-jected to a greater surface pressure than is the rest of the carrot and because of this handling, damage most often appears at the ends. As a result the damaged ends must be cut away.
The removal of the end portions of the carrot result in a loss of raw material. The value of the raw material increases as the refining process , ~ 10 proceeds. Minimum raw material losses may be achieved by the use of manual ~ i labour. However, since the cutting stage is preceded by mechanical processes, ~1 for example by steam peeling, which cannot be carried out manually, and since -i the capacity of the steam peeling equipment is in the order of three to eight ~:.
,~ - tons per hour, the subsequent use of manual labour for crowning is impractical.
Also, the increased use of manual labour tends to increase the overall proces-sing costs.
Mechanization of the cutting operation ~also referred to as crown-~t~ ing) has been a subject of interest for some time. One known solution is based on the generally conical shape of the carrot and the machine cuts off a specified portion from the thicker end of the carrot only. This machine has not been particularly successful. Also, plant breeders, in an effort to : ~i :
increase harvest yields, have been attempting to eliminate the conical shape of the carrots through selective breeding.
Another known method makes the use of a cylinder radially placed in walls of a drum, which rotates on a horizontal axis. At the bottom of the drum there is a fixed cutting edge which carries out the crowning operation.

The use of this machine presupposes rather small differences in carrot size, .
~ since the support and guiding during the cutting operation is accomplished by .~ cylinders.

A third known solution is based on a method in which there are slots in the walls of a drum which rotates on a horizontal axis. The carrots : ~

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drop through these slots into compartments which are moving at the same speed as the slot. The compartment moves under a transversely moving brush and the carrot is moved ~owards a cutting edge where the end is cut-off as the carrot moves past. Then the compartment moves under a brush moving in the opposite direction and the carrot is then brought towards another cutting edge to remove the other end of the carrot. Unfortunately this machine also has a rather narrow margin for differences in carrot size. If the slots in the drum are too largeJ the same slot will feed several small carrots into the same compart-ment and proper crowning will not take place. Further, the capacity of this ::
particular type of machine is limited.

Most often the food industry has made use of a conveyor with a plur-ality of compartments. A carrot is manually placed in each compartment and when the compartments are tilted towards one edge or the other of the conveyor, the crowning takes place. A modification of this method lies in brushing the carrot towards one edge or the other instead of a tilting operation.
,, The present invention teaches a machine which operates correctly irrespective of the size of the carrot. It crowns both ends and can handle a large number of carrots per unit time. Compared to the use of manual labour, there is a greater waste of raw material with the present machine. However, `~ 20~ the overall production costs are less than with a process which makes use ;:~
~ of a large aunt of manual labour. Also, since the top and bottoms are `~:
cut off in equal lengths, the determination of whether the top or the bottom is being cut-off is not necessary. Further, this does not double the raw material losses since the volume of raw material removed from the small end of the carrot is minimal in comparison to that at the top end.
The invention is a root crowner machine for removing a desired length from the ends of root-vegetables of the type wherein the length of the root is greater than its diameter, and wherein centrifugal force is used to move and turn the root in the machine and for holding the root in place during the cutting operation, said machine comprising an annular series of 1~4Z302 first guides, means for receiving a supply of roots and delivering one root from said supply to each of said first guides by centrifugal force and gravity, a first stationary guard plate spaced from one end of said guides and adapted to be abutted by the ends of any roots in said first guides, means for rotating said series of first guides, a first cutting blade disposed between said first guides and the plane of said first guard plate to cut one end off the roots in the first guides as the series of first guides is rotated, an annular series of second guides adapted to receive cut roots from said first guides and adapted to be driven at the same speed as said first guides, a ~, 130 second stationary guard plate spaced from one end of said second guides and adapted to be abutted by the uncut ends of any roots in said second guides, a second cutting blade disposed between the second guides and the plane of said second guard plate to cut the uncut ends of the roots in the second guides as the series of second guides is rotated, the first and second guides being inclined at opposite angles to the vertical, the angles being such that, taking into account centrifugal force, gravity and friction between root and guide, the resultant force acting on a root in a guide has two components, one acting to urge the root against the associated guard plate and the other acting to urge the root against the back of the groove so that it is securely held i~; 20 for cutting.
For the purpose of illustration, but not of limitation, an embodi-::;
ment of the present invention will be hereinafter described with reference to ' the accompanying drawings, in which:

- ~ Figure 1 is a plan view of the machine showing successive positions ~.:
of a carrot;

`~ Figure 2 is a sectional view of Figure 1 showing the essential , components and successive positions of the carrot (the positions being indica-ted by alphabetic references A through Q);
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Figure 3 shows a sectional view of the machine; and ;, 30 Figure 4 shows an enlarged view of one of the grooves.

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Figure 1 shows, in plan view a machine embodying the present invention. The supply of carrots enter the center portion of the rotating drum 11 at A. The drum rotates about a vertical axis. The inside of the drum consists of a fixed double circuit screw track 12 inclined with respect to the drum. The rotating drum picks up the carrots leaning against it from the screw track and thus the carrots are lined up in a row before the screw track completes more than two circuits, at the position B. After the carrots are in a well-formed line they fall from the screw track, past the lower edge of the drum and are directed into a first cutter guide groove 3 which rotates at the ~` 10 same angular velocity as the drum. It is the combination of gravity and centrifugal force which directs the carrots to move in this manner through positions C, D, E, F, G, and H. As seen in position H, one carrot goes into - each of the first grooves. One end of the carrot presses against a fixed guard plate 7 until it meets the first cutter 2, which slices off the first end of the carrot. The first end sliced off can be either the top or the bottom end of the carrot. The length of the portion removed is controlled by the distance of the cutting edge of cutter 2 from the fixed guard plate.
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After the first cutting operation has been completed at position I, the carrot immediately comes into contact with a second fixed guard plate 6 (see Figures l and 2). As can be seen in Pigure 2 the orientation of the carrot is changed by the angle of the second guard plate 6 as seen in position J. When the rotation proceeds to the end of the second fixed guard plate 6, the carrot is flung into a second cutting guide groove 5 as shown by positions K and L.
In Figure l the first cut end 8 of the carrot l is seen at position K; the cut end 8 faces upwards (see Figure 2). The second guide groove has a fixed ....:, connection to the first guide groove 3. The second guide groove 5 is verti-~ cally oriented and inclined radially outwards from top to bottom. Due to -'~ this inclination and the centrifugal force, with gravity assisting, the carrot is forced in a downward direction until the uncut end of the carrot presses against a third guard plate 10 which is at right angles to the base 9 of , .
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groove 5. The centrifugal force not only pushes the carrot downwards towards the thirt guard plate 10 ~through positions L and M) but it forces the carrot toward the back 9 of the guide 5 ant thus provides firm support in this posi-tion while the other end of the carrot is cut off by a second cutter 4 at position N. The length of the portion removed may be the same as at position I at the first cutter 2. After this second cutting operation the carrot falls through positions O and P into a braking groove 13 at position Q. The speed of the carrot, with both ends removed, slows down in the brfaking groove and it fslls out of the groove onto a conveyor or similar collecting device.

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Claims (2)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:-

1. A root crowner machine for removing a desired length from the ends of root-vegetables of the type wherein the length of the root is greater than its diameter, ant wherein centrifugal force is used to move and turn the root in the machine and for holding the root in place during the cutting operation, said machine comprising an annular series of first guides, means for receiving a supply of roots ant delivering one root from said supply to each of said first guides by centrifugal force and gravity, a first stationary guard plate spaced from one end of said guides and adapted to be abutted by the ends of any roots in said first guides, means for rotating said series of first guides, a first cutting blade disposed between said first guides and the plane of said first guard plate to cut one end off the roots in the first guides as the series of first guides is rotated, an annular series of second guides adapted to receive cut roots from said first guides and adapted to be driven at the same speed as said first guides, a second stationary guard plate spaced from one end of said second guides and adapted to be abutted by the uncut ends of any roots in said second guides, a second cutting blade disposed between the second guides and the plane of said second guard plate to cut the uncut ends of the roots in the second guides as the series of second guides is rotated, the first and second guides being inclined at opposite angles to the vertical, the angles being such that, taking into account centrifugal force, gravity and friction between root and guide, the resultant force acting on a root in a guide has two components, one acting to urge the root against the associated guard plate and the other acting to urge the root against the back of the groove so that it is securely held for cutting.

2. A machine as claimed in claim 1 wherein the distances between the cutter blades and the guard plates are variable so that various lengths can be cut from the ends of the root-vegetable.