CA1193135A - Taco shell forming and cooking: apparatus and method - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT

A machine forms tortillas into cooked taco shells using a conveyor with a plurality of complementary, vertically extending forming elements which shift from a nested to an open condition as the conveyor sprockets are traversed for feeding and discharging the product. On the lower conveyor run the forming elements pass through a channel of cooking oil and then on to a station where cooked taco shell are discharged. A loading conveyor feeds tortillas in a spaced column towards the forming elements and an acceleration conveyor operates between the loading conveyor and forming conveyor for positioning the tortilla for engagement with a forming element.

Description

`6 5 8 3/DNM ~ a~D~

~ACO SHELL FORMING AND COOKIN~;~ I~PARATUS P~NO METEIOD

This invention rela es genera:lly to ~ood cooking and more particularly concern~ an improved appa:ratuç: and m~thod for forr~iRg ~nd ~ookirlg taco shells at high speed~ by forming 5 the tortilla starting material into a predetenTined Coll-figuratioR and maintaialing the materi2l1 in that configura~
tion during the ::ooking operationO

Taco ~hell ~ooking mechanism of variolls type~ have been kno~m and used :~or many y~ars~ Amorlg he va:~ious device~
1~ which wer}~ employed are those diselosed in U.S. Pa~ents to S~enz 2~603,143, Ford 2~67~474 and Yepi. 3J267~36.
Each of ~hese devic~s rela~e~ ~o a m~ans for fo ~ ng and cooking a tortllla ~o ~hat i~ m~y be u ed in the prepara~
tion o~ taco~ and ~imilar food products. ~owe~er, ~a~h of the devices suffer from the di~advantag~ ~hat ~ithex require~ individual loading or ha~ inheren~ capaci~y limitations~ or ~ay r~uire an ~ndue vol~ of cooking oil or ~ail to meet th~ high standards or product u~iformity re~uired in GOn~e~pOrary produc~ion. The device dis~lo52d in the U~S. Patent~ to Stickle~
3,880,065, 3,928,638, 3,7~5,273 and 4,154,153 concern appara~u3 having a flex.i~le, plia~le belt deformed by a plunger mounted tran~versely abov~ the belt which clamps ~h~ tortllla against the belt forming ~ pocke~ in th~

2~ b~lt~ The mode of operation required intermit en~ b~l~
~ction both when th~ tor~ was ini~ially form~d i~
th~ pocket and wh~n ~he tor~illa was remov~d frGm the belt pocket when the plunger separ~ted from th~ belt.
~n in~ermi~tent action w~ also pre~n~ a~ ~he pocke~

~2 moYed through the fryer. An improvement on the Stickle~
concept minimized ~he intermittent motion by having ~
s~condary conveyor disposed in the ~ryer to convey the pr~mary ~onveyor through th fr~er duxing ~he fryer 5 operation~ This eliminated the intermit~ent mo~ion during that period. A urther limi~ation o the Stickle~ equip-ment wa~ their dedication to a specific ~ize of tortilla and the resulting taco shell. ThP machines were unabl~ to aecommodate in~rchangeably tor~illa~ of diferent diameter~
wi~hou~ sub~tan~ial redesiyn. ~hese machines, a~ well a~
that disclos~d in U.5. Patent to Schy, 3,57Q,393, w~re mechanically ingeniou~ but were unduly complex machine~
~o fabricate, operate, maintain and clean~ Consequently, their adop~iorl in snost oases has been limi ted tc~ applica 15 tions where low production may be tolerated in ~he range, for example ~ of from 75 to 325 taes: shells pex minute .

Unionmity of product i5 a requiremen in high ~olume commercial production of taeo shell~ This ha~ heen diffi~
cult o a~hiev~ WithQUt ~evexal operator3 at a vi~ual in-spection station po~itioned at the discharge of the taco~hell ~onming machine causing high labor cos~ for operation.
Thi~, as well a~ ~ loss in ~crap taco ~hell~ from r~jec~ed product, was a negative influenc~ in the overall economy o 3pexation in the prior art taco shell form1ng machine~.

An impoxtant objert o~ th~ present invention i~ ~o provide an improved taco 3hel~ cooking and orming appara~u~ cr ~he like whlch is operable at a high produ~tion rate to produce a taco shell of i~proved quali~y wlth a minimum o im~er~ct taco ~hell reject~.

~nother object of *h~ inYention i~ to provide an improved taco shel~ eooking apparatu~ or ~h~ like which i~ adap~
abl~ in design over a wid~ rang~ bo h to u e economically ~n a 1GW prsduc~ion operation ~say 7 produc~:ion .ra~ on the ord2r

3~

o 75 to 150 units per minute " as well 2S in a high produc-tion operation" production rate for example, 350 to 75Q taco hell~ pex minute.

~other object of the invention is to pxovide a taco shell 5 cooking apparatus wherein khe flat tortillas are formed into a U~shape about a vertical plarle ~o~ext2nsive with the path of travel.

Another ob; ct of the inventiorl is to provide an appar~tu~
o the type de~cribed, adaptable or orming tacc: shells 10 from a ~ariety c~f different diamel:ers o:E ~ortillasD

P~nother object of the invention i~3 to provide an improtTed taco shell fonning and cooking appara~us which has a high density o product contained within the mechanism when fully loaded, ~hereby ~chieving efficien ::ies in u~P of ~hf~ cooking lS oi 1 ~

Another ob~ect of the ia~vention i~ ~ provide an im~rovPd taco shell formialg and cooki~g apparatus which operate~
economically at a high turrlover ra~e of cooking oil, thus to achieve a low~3r free fat~y aeid c:orl~en~ in the cookiny oi 1 20 absorbed by th~ produc~c, giving a be~er product 6helf life by maintaining a high quality in the oil.

Still other objects of ~he inventiorl will become apparellt to those ~killed in the ield after havl3lg r~ad ~he follow-ing det iled description of a preferred embodimeFIe: o:~ th~
25 invention which is il lustrated in the drawings .

In 3ummary, the present lnventiorl comprises apparatus for ~haping and cooking ood product~ including ~ fr~me havin~
thexeon a va containing a cooklng mediurn throush which tile food produc~ may b~ passed for cooking. P~n endles~
5 ~onveyor i5 arrangea on ~he frame for carrying the food product through ~he cooking rnedium and par~icularly from a product fs: nTIlng sta~ion ~co a produc~ discharge s~ation.
The endless corlvey3r include~ a pluraiity o:~ fonning elemerlts each having complementary c:oncave and convex 10 :Eorming surfaces with the convex form;ng surface being disposed on the leading edgP o each forming element ~o t:hat when ~he adjacen~ forming e:Lemen~ are disposed in a close together relationship t~e mold surfaces are spaced apart ~o that the product interposed therebetweerl i~
15 restxained, shaped and ::arried ~hrough the cooking medium.
The orming station includes means for supplying ~heet-like food elements, orle ~ a time, where each i~ engaged by the convex ~urface o:E ~he formirlg slement and carried in a downward curve for enclosure within the concave 20 portion of th~ preceding :fo~r ing elemen~ ~o be held there between during the cookillg operation. The produc~s are discharged as th~ o~ning el~m~nts are spaced apar~ in an open corldition and the product~3 are receiv~d on a suppor~
mechani~m for rPmoval from he apparatus.

25 The me~hod of the present inven~io~ especially useful fs)r forming a taco shell fr~m a tortilla by preparing a spaced-apart proces~ion of tortilla~ and moving ~hem in a 3ubstantially flat planeP Then accelerating ~he to:ctilla~
individually to ~ forming station without charlging 30 ~ tankially their attitude. Th~ tor~illa i~ deceler~ted into ~ubstantially stat;onary ~ondition wlhereirl it i~
fold~d upon itselE and simul~n~ou~ly ~ved in ~he foîded condi~ion in ~ path curved away from a:he f 1~ plan~ and pla~ed ~nto a cooking mediuan and coo3ced ~o ~h~ prodllc~: end 35 point, and then removed, Figure ~ a ~ide elevation ~iew of the taco shell forming a~d cooking ~pp~ratu~ of the presen~ inv~ntion;

Figure 2 i~ a plan view o~ the apparatu~ ~hown :In ~igure 17 Figure 3 i~ a tran~verse ~ectional view ~aken IE~ the 5 direction o ~he axrow~ 3 3 o~ Fi~ure 1;

Figure 4 i~ an enlarged detail Yie~ ~aken from Figuxe 3 at the rrircled portiQn;

~igure 5 i6 an ~nlargedd fragmenta~ plan Vi2W in the direc ion of t21~ arrows 5~5 of Figure 1, 10 Figure 6 i a ragmen~ary, sectional ~riew taken in the direction vf the arrows 6-6 of Figure 5;

Fi~ure 7 i~ an erllarged ~ectional lJi2W ~:akerl in th~3 direc~ion o~ ~ arrows 7~7 of Figure 5;

Figur~ 8 is an enlarged fragmen~aryO developed vi~w ~ake 15 generally in the direc:~ion of ~ rzow~ 8-8 o Figure 2 7 Figure 8A i~ an end YieW takeII in the directiorl of the arrows 8A-8~ of Figure 8 7 Figure 9 i~ 2U~ enlarged detail view Df the formirlg e:Lements or mold~ of th~ presen ;: invenltiol~;

2~ Figure :LO i~ a plan view of the element~ shown in Figure 9, Figure 11 i~ an enlarged~ fragmentary ~c~iona:l vi~w taken in th@ direc~io~ of the arrow~ f Figure l; ~n~

Figure 1~ i8 an enlargedD fragm~3n~a~y ~;ec~ion~l view ~ake ân ~he direction of t}le arxow~ 12~12 of Figure 2.

The hi~h ~peed taco 8hell ;Er~er 10 o~ the pre~ent :~nvention is ~hown àn the drawing~ and re~erring paxticularly to ~igure 1 ~nd 2 include~ 2~ loading corlveyor ~ pan or v~t 7 2 for containing a ~upp:Ly of c:ooking oil, produet S forming 8t2~tions 13, foll:r ndiess conveyc:r~ 14" each equip~
ped with ~ plurality of complementar3r forrrling elements 16 for carrying the tortillas 17 from the forminy ~tations 13 thrs:~ugh ~e par~ 12 o ~n ~anloading ~ation 18, ~t be.ing under tood the fc: regolrlg component~ are suitably aExanged 10 upon a ~tructural :Erame 19. Although foux ~ndless conveyors 14, iE~rmirlg 8 tations 13 ~nd Imloading ~tations 1~ are illu~trated herein, ~he invention may be used wi~h the ~ingle line of such ~omponent~ or with ~everal ~onveyors 14 laterally coupled togeth~r for conveying ~he produc 15 through the cooking medium. Although the cookirlg medium desoribed h rein is cooking oil ~ other cooking meaiums may be practically used with thi~ inven~ion in luding those disclosed in U.S. Patents 39947,241 ~nd 4~167~$85 issued respec~ively on March 30 ~ 1976 and Septernber 11, 1979 ~

20 The tor~illa carryirlg loading conveyor 11~ shown in 9?igures 1~ 2, 5 ~nd 11, includes 2m endless, fla " flexible wire belt 21 having pro~isions for maintairling and positionirlg the tortillas 17 in colwT~ extending in the dixec~ion of travel as ~hown irl Figure 2. The~e provi~ions include an 25 arrangemeslt in alterna~e wire elements (a~ ~hown in Figure 6) of th~ ~elt having outwardly projecting shoulders 22 as ~hown in ~igure 11. The shoulders ~2 are ~paced apart later~lly of th~ convsying path just slightly farther thar the dian1eter of th~ tortillaJ ~ay 5 to 5 1,~8 inch~s~ It i~
30 reco~nized thal: tortillas distor~ rom ~he id~l diameter of de~ign and tak~ on ~ variety of e:Lipltical ~hape~ and ~ize~ ~n ordinas:y productio~, The present appar~tu~
acconunodate~ theæe di~cr~pancie~. When disposed between the wire ~houlders 22 the *orti lla~ 17 ~ill be maintained 35 in alignme~t with the forrning ~tation a~3 ~he loading conveyor 11 move~ the prsduct forward j, to the :c ighl~ een in 3 ~

~7~

Fiyure~ 1 and 2~ Product re-positioning means 23 sexviny to ~i~gle the wire belt 21 iE; ~hown in Figure 11, The ol: jective i~ Ito roc:k the wire belt 21 l~e:rally througll the ~ction of ~n adjus~able eccerl~ric 24 ro atably ~unl:ed on a S ~hat 25 driven by a variable ~peed fflotor 26. A s:levis 27 on the eocentric 24 i~ at~aehed to a corJnec~ing rod 28 b~ich extends benea~h the ~op run of ~he wire belt 21 to an o~cillating plate 29 which when ~hi f~ed back and for~h in lthe direction of ~he ~rrow~ 31 impar~ a ~ iggling or re~ck-ing aotion to the wire belt 21 to s::au~e ~ny tortilla 17 ~hich may Ibe mi~po~itioned ~nd lodgecq uEson a ~houlder 22 (a5 indicated by Ibro~en lînes in ~igure 113 ~o ~;lide intc?
the space ibetween the sonfrorlting ~houlder~ 22 and ~hus be properly po~itioned for receipt 3by the produc~ forming statior~ 13,.

The loading conveyor ~ driven from a ~haft 32 equipped ~ith wire bel~c engagia~g ~ee~h 33 po~i~ioned along ~he l~ngth of ~he haft 32 ~ ~igure~ 5 ~nd 6 ~ The ~haft 32 is driven from a $haft 34 of a product a~celeration conveyor 36 arranged in the product formin~ station 13~ Figures 5 and 6. The ~haf~cs 32 and 34 ~re driv~n in the direcltion of the arr~ a~ shown in Figure 6 by mean~ of ~1 d:rive ~hain 37 reeved about sprocke~ 38 ~nd 39 ~n ~he respective ~hafts 32 and 34 which are mounted in ~uitab~ e bearings 41 ~ecured to a frame member 42. Thu~ as ~haft 32 i5 driven in the direction of ~he as~row ~ indicated irl Figure 6, the ~ortill~ 17 ~r~ moved from lef t ~o right as vlewed in Figure~ 2 and 5 and ~hu~ ad~anc~ in orderly row5 ~oward~;
the accelera~.ion conveyor 36 ~o be described mo.re fully 3n below.

I~ will be apprecia~ed ~h~ he high ~peed t~eo ~hell ryer 10 rn~y be ¢on~truc~ed ~nd arranged ~o accon~oda~ but a ~ingle c:o~wnn of to:rtil 1~3 17 wherein the conveyor belt 21 would be provided with bu~ ~wo pair of ~hou~der~ 22 fs~r defining ~ ~ortill~ receiving channelO Or ora the other ~8 h~nd the taco hell f:rye.r 10 may be desi~ned and ~onstruct-ed to receive a plurality o:e rows of toxtillas 17, there being fs~ur rc~ws of torti llz~s illustrated herein . Note~
~orthy i~ t ~e present s~e gn i~ adapt~ble to form 5 ta(::o ~hel3 ~ ~imultaneousl~ e~eral rows ~ithout enc:ountering mechanieal llmitations associated with prior ;machines. The present apparatus retains ~he qualities and zldvantages o~ the de~igrl wh~n exnploying either a ~ ngle row or several rows of tortilla forming mechani~ms.

10 The pan 12 i~ essentially a va~ for holding a ~upply of c:ooking oil 20 maintained a~ the cooki~g ~empera~ure--or the order o 275 to 425UF--~y ~ system inclllding a heat exchanger 43 and pump 44 dri~en by the motor 46 with the pump 44 circula1:ing oil between ~e hea~ excllangex 43 and pan 12 ~l~ough a sui~able piping ~ystem 47, Figure 1. To achieve operatit)n with minim~n vclume ~f ~::c)oking oil 20 ~nd thereby the advantage~ og~ a high turnover r~Lke of cooking oil which gives an impro~r~d quali ty of oil with lower f:;ree fat~y acid values, the p~n 12 i~ conigu:red as 20 ~os~ in Figure 3. Thi~ includes a plurali~y of channels 48 whic:h surroulld the :0r7llin~ elemen~3 16 and ~rough which the forming ~lemen~L~ on the endles~ conveyor 14 are passed with one channel per conveyor ~y~tem 14, a~
~hown in Figure 3. The channel~ 48 are ~nterconnected ~t ea~h end to a header or manifold 4~ Figure 1, ~o that a uniform flow ~f cooking oil m~y be maint~ined through each o~ the channelR 48 wi~hin the taco hell fryer 10.

Th~ four endle~ conveyor~ 14 illu~tra~ed herein may b~
similarly construct~d and as mentionPd previou~ly, thi~
inv~ntion may b~ pxacticed through th~ u~e of only one endles~ con~eyor 14 ~nd in that si~uati~n in ~he a~ociated loading COnVeyOI 11, p~n 12 t and forming ~k~ion 13 will b@
similarly adapked ~or the number oE conveyor~ 14 ~elected for u~e in ~he high ~peeZ t~co ~hell fry~r.

~-9~

~eferring ~peciPically now to ~igures ~, 6 and 8, the end-less ~onveye)x 14 in~l udes a drive ~haf t 51 dxiven througb a drive chaln and ~procke~ asselllbly 52 from a mo~or 53 coupl~d to a phase shifting device 55 0 the ~hak 51 being ~uita~ly ~upported by 3?i110W ~10G~CS Or ~he like bearin~s S4 moun~ed to ~h~ frame 199 To s::arzy ~:he forming element~ 16 on ~e conveyor 14, ~he drive ~ha~t Sl and the idler shaft 56 lFi~ur~ 8) at the opposite end of ~he unit 10 are each equipped w.ith tWQ ~paced ~part drive ~prock~s 57 to ::ooper~te with two endle~ lineal drivs3 elemerlts 9 for example roller chain~ 58 for each conveyc)r 14. The formin~ elemen~: 16 are mounted ~o the pair of xoller c:hains 58 by n~eans of a carrier 59 pivo~ally connec~ed to the two roller chains 513 i:~y a pair of GrOSs rods 61, Figures 4, 5, 8 and 9. Ea~h carrier 59 i~ equipped to receive one c:ros~ rod 6 ï ~hrough ~he aligned circ:ular hole~; 62 ~n the tan~ 64 and another ~ross rod through the elongated alot 63 which telescs~pes over the tang poxtion of the ~followin~W carrier 59 ha~tin~ ~ sim:ilar pair of tang~ 64 equipped with align d opening 62, ~I?igure 9 a l!~s may be ~en from Figures 6 and B, the ~prockets 57 are of a relatively ~snall diametPar, say, on the order of 2 inches in diamete:r. The forming element~ which pivot into an operl ~ondition a~ their asso~iated cross rods 61 traverse the procket 57 at eith~r the loading or unloading station~ extend out-wardly fr~m the axis of th~ sprocket~ 57 a substantial distance, say, on the order of 8-1~2 inches, ~his relationship between a sprocket of ~mall diameter and :~orming element~ having a ~ubstantial ~'arm leng h~
provide the opening or Z1window~ for loading a ~or'$illa between consecutiv~3 :Eorming e lemen~s 16 and or removing a cooked tortill~ or aco ~hel:L 17a a~ th~ unloading ~t~1:ion " a~ shown in Figur2 8 ~

The fs:)rTnin~ element~ 16 have a gener~ hap~ o:E pa:rtial:Ly opened cl~m ~hell3 and individually are sui ~ably see~ured to their ~s~ocia~ed carriers 59 as by w*lding. Each formlng 33~

~lesnent includes a ir~t Ibody 16a having ~ generally v~rti~
~ally arrarlged ~orlv~g forming ~urface 66, ~igure 9, and a ~econd l~dy 161~ having al conca~fe forming ~urface 67. The ~wo bodi~ lSa, 16b ar~ ixedly ~ecured ~oge~h~r by w21din 5 a~nd arrang~d a~ ~hown in Fi~ure ~I. Th~ trailing ed~e o:f th6s body 16b ~ urved ~o ~a~ ~ the form1ng element~ 1 proceed through ~h~ ~ormin~ opera~ion a~ hown in Figure 6 ~he tra~ling @dye al8 c:urved prQvlde3 ~he maxim~ ~window~
~or insertion of ~he ~ort~ . R~ferring ~o ~igures 9, 10 and 12, th~ o~ning g~iement~ 16 ~r~ o h2Lped that when the c~rriers 59 of c:on~ecu~iv~ elemen~ 16 ~r~ arr~an~ed so tha th~ align~d hol~ 62 ~nd ~lot~ 6~ are ~ po~ed Yubstan'cially in the ~ame plane y there 1~ ~ product ~ lo~ing ~pace pro~
vided b~twe~ra ~he ~:oncave forming sur~ace 67 orl the forward 15 c~r3:i@r and th~ convex fo g ~urface 66 on the crail~ng or ~ollowing c~rrier9 Thi3 $pace l:~ween ~h~ confrontiny fQ~ng ~urface~ ~I!io 67, serve~ to r~cei~e ~nd enclose a tortilla to hold it i1n the ~olded condition when it i~
c:arried tllrough the c:ool6ing oil 20 . Th~ ~pace b~tween . he 20 cc~ rorl~ing Porming ~urac~ ligh~ly wider ~chan th~
thickne~ of the tortilla and the forTning ~ur~aces arQ
~us:h thal: She tersdency o~ the product ~o slide out from th~ ~lot or ~pace i~ minimal du~ lto good urface s:ontact:
and product buoy~nc:y i~ th~ cooking oil 20. It i~ al~
25 appar~nt tha~ Zl i?lural~ ~y og ~p~rtur~ 69 ar~ p:æovided in tll~ or~ng ~lemenlt~ 16~, 16~ 9 aford~ng ~cces~ o the cooking oil to th product ~ well a3 to p3~0vid~ esc~pe of wa~e~ v~por ~ro~ ~h~ product in th~ c~kirlg c~pera~ion.
Cooking wit~ the product vertically oriented promotes 30 rapld e~ape o~ ~team and minimize~ trappin~ of moi~ture vapor 2md con~equerl~ pr~duct bli~teringO

Tr~Gk m~n~ 70 a:e~ provld~d ~n ~ tortilla ~hell fry r 10 ~or ~Intaini~g con~ec~ative formis~g ~lem~n~ the ne~ l o.r clo~ relal:ion~laip by re~3~r~1nirlg mov~m~n~ o~
35 th~ rvller eh~in 58 ~o whi~::h ~he c~r~ier~ 59 ~re co~FIected ~h~ug~ t~ x~8 r~3d~ ho~ Ll~
~o~ iP~al~y ~ ~h~ ~a~8~ m~d~n~ p~v~ ~

~3~

~h~ ~wo rolles chain ~et~ 58 ~ ~ a ver~ical~y ~pac:ed palr of bar~ 71 defining a guid~ ~lo~ 72 ~h~reb~'cween lnto wl~ch the roller chaln llnk~ 58 tr2lv~1 ~rom ~h~ fs~ g ~tatior~ 13 to the unloading ~ ion 18. When ~e roll~r 5 driv~ chain~ Si~ are freed from ~he guide ~lot 72, a~ when the ~procket~ ~7 (~iyure~ 6 arJd 8~ 2~re traYer6ed by the roller chain and carrier~ 59, the forwardmo~t fo~ning e~ement 16 ~ccelerate$ ~ lt reaches ~ point of t~ngency to the ~procket 57 ~t ~ mome3lt when the ollowing forming 10 element 16 Xem21inB at the linear ~peed e~f th~ rolïer chain 58~ P~t thi~ moment the forward earri~r 59 ~nd it fo~ng elem2nt 16 moY~ away ;rom ~he ~railing c~rrieE ~9 ~nd el~ment t31U~ ~t the w~loading 3ta~ciorl 18 . xpo~in-3 on, the c:onvex for~ng surface 66 a cooked tortilla now ~ taco ~h ll 170 (~i~ure 8). Th@ elongated aperturf3 or ~310t 63 in the carris~r 59 p~rmi~ ~he ::rO5S rod~ spacing ~o be ::ome ~horter ~o 213 ~C9 a~co~runod~te the movement s~f ~h~ c~rrier over the ~prookets 57 a~ each end of ~he conYeyor 1~, Considexi~ag at thi~ time th~ di~harg~ or unloadin5~ i~3 ItatLoE
2 o lB Zl~ ~hown in ~i~ure 8, m~ans are provided ~o en ur~ that tbe t~co ~h~ll 170 i~ po it~vely di~engaged from th@ conYex orming ~u~a~e 66~, To th~ end ~r~ i~ arranged on each ~ide of th~ unloading ~tation ~ power driv~n ~rray 7~ of bris~le-lik~ or ~ingeE like ~lement~ 7~ ~ount~d on t~e fr~
19 with e~ch ~it 7d b~ing driv~n by ~n ele~tric motor or the lik~ ~n th~ d:Lrection o the arrow~ 77 ~ ln~ic~ted in Figur~ 8A. Th~ ~ri t~ ~lexren. ~ 7~ provide ~u~ficienlt fr~ctlorlal foxce~ to flrmly but ~ently uxg~ th~ t~co 170 in ~ fo~ard Ibu~ downward direc~:ion ~o that a ~aco ~sh~ll 170 m~y b~ r~c~ived upon the f~ed conveying men~ber 79 for removal onto the di~charge corlv~yor 81~ ~3 ~hown in Flg~e ~1~2~n~iv~1y, a!l ~omp~3~e~ a~d ~
~lo~dislg ~tation 18 (not ~hown~ cc uld ~erv~ ~o ~ct ly di~eng~ge th~ i:acca ~h~ll 170 fro~ tA~ convex fonming 8ur-face 66. A p~n 82 ~ provided at th~ di~charg@ or unlo~;ding ~tation 18 . e~ r~turn any oll (~ippirlg8 from ~/la ~co ~hel:l 170 ~nd convsyoE l~t b~k into the GOo~ing va~ 12~ Th~ drlp ~12-pan 82 1~ posi~ioned ju~t below ~he produc~ eonveyor 14 and also acts to ensure that tortillas/taco shells do not fall from the enclosur~ defined by the orming ele~ents 16 should this event for any reason occur.

S A guide bar 86, ~igur~ 6, po~i~ioned ~t ~he forming ~ation 1.3 below the lower run of ~he conveyor 14 ~exves ~o lim downward movem~nt of ~ny ~ortilla which may for ~ome reaso~
proj~ct ~elow the lower per.imeter of ~he forming RlementS
16O Thus~ the provi~ion of the ~r BS and he pan 82 obvia~e~ ~he po~sible clogging or ~on~aminating the ~ooklng medium 20 from product dxopp~ng into ~he cookin~
has been observed that the buoya~cy of the ~or~illa in the ~oking oil a~sists in retaining the tortilla between con~
ecutive forming elements in he fonmed conditionO

The de~ails of thi~ formung ~tation 13 ~re shown in Figure~
5 ~hrough 7. Pxovi~ion~ ~re inoluded ~o en~ure ~ha~ each tortilla 17 transf~rs onto the product acceleration conveyor 3~ in a dir~c~, positiYe manner and ~o ~hi~ end co-ac~ing pairs of acceleration roll~ 90, 91 for each conveyor 20 14 are ~rranged on a sha~ g2 superimposed o~er ~he ~er~inal or turnaround portion of ~he lo~ding conv yor 11, best showm in Fiyure 50 The upper ~nd lower accelera~ion roll~
90, ~1 are ~paced apart late.rally ~o ~5 to grlp the central portion o ~he tortill~ 17~ moving it in a ~raight line 2S on~o th~ 3cceleration conveyor 36 which maintain~ and carr.ies the tortill~ in accelerated motion until flnally khe tor~illa i~ arrested by the spaced abutmen~ or ~kop~
93. The~e proj~ct vertic~lly upward rom ~long~ide ~he accel~ration conveyor chain~ or b@l~ 94 and 8~rv ~0 po~i~
tion ~nd maint~in khe tortilla 17 centered ~or the e~uing oper~tion. Thi~ obviate~ taco hell ~longhorn~; where the shell~ ~r ~ormed unsymmetrically, one ~.ide belng longer than ~he o~her. The acceler~t.ion roll~ 90, 91 and the product ~cceleration conveyor 36 ~re driven from the ~ha~t 3~

~13 ~-51 o:~ *he p~oduct forming conveyor 14 through ~ d~rive chain ~S which reeves over sprvcke~ on the ~haft 9~ Figure 6.
idler ~procket ~ss~rbly 97 maintain~ the cha:~n 96 at proper tension. The product acceleration canveyor 36 i~
~riven from ~haft 92 ~hrough a dri~e chain ~8 which reeves at the lower portion over an idler ~procket ~sembly 990 l'he pair of f :Lexible belt~ 94 of the produc~ acceleratis:r conveyor 36 xeeves throu~h ~heaves 101 on an upper c:ro~s ~haft 102 and runs downwardly to a lower cross ~haft :103 îO carrying ~heav s 104 0 ~ hown in ~lgure 7, the be~ ts 94 ~re ~.lpported verticaïly by a ~rack 106 ts~ define p:recisely the plane of t}le belt 94 a~ ~he fo~rJg ~cation. The cros~
~haf~s 102 ~ 103 are supporked by ~ U-shaped ~ fr~e 107 ~ecured to a t:ro~s mernber 108 which forms a componen~c of ~he framework 19, Figure 6.

P. guide chute or cavity 111 i5 arranged in each product formîng station 1~ to recei~Te thexein ~e processiorl of formiIlg element~ and tor~:illa~ as ~he fs~ ing elemen~s 16 and l~h2ir ~ssociated carrier~ 59 proceed downwardly w~aen the earrier 59 traver e ~he ou~er periphe~ of ~he sprocke~ 57, Figure 6, in ~he turnarou~d mode. The con~
~ecutive forming elements 16 at tu:rnaround ~eparate to an angular displacement of abou~ 86~, leading edge ~o leading edge of the f3rming el~mDnts 16 a5 ~hos~m both :in Figure 6 and in Figure 8. ~eerring ~pecific~lly to Figure 6, ~
~ap o:f about 33 e~ists between l:he trailing ed~e o~ the forming el~ment hown in the lower pordcion of the dr~wing and the leading edge o~ ~he for~r ing elemen~ ~bou~ ~o ~ngage th~ tor1:illa 17. The available tin-e s:~r ~he tortill~ to arri~re a~ the loading po3ition prior to :Eorming i~ 00 22~
aecond~ w.ith the product convsyor 14 ~peed ~ 200 inches pe:~ minuteO

It h~ been found de~irab:Le to restrain ~nd corltroï the do~rnward movemen~ of ~che ~or~ a ~ i~ uxged downwaxd ~nd orrned against the convex 0r7ning ~sur:face 66~ To this elld, ~e guide chute or cavi~y 111 is equipped with re-~training mean~ compri~ing an array of bri~le~:l ike elem2n~s 116 disposed on each fiide of the ver'cical ly downward moving formirlg element 16, the free ends of the bri~tles being ~pAced apar~ a di~tanee ~lightly le~s than ~e width ~f the forrning element 16 ~ Thu~ ~ the nose cjf the descendiny forming elemerlt urge~ the ts:)rtiïla downwardly, as lndic~ed in Figure 7~ into contact with and again~t the bias of the bristles 116 ~5 the tor~illa i~ moved into the concave forming surface 67~ Subse~3uer~ he con~iecu~ive for~Ling elements Bra held toge~her in pxoper forlTing conditic~rl for shaping a aeo shell frolo the ~ortilla as ~e associated carrier cr~s rods Çl allter the guide slo~ 72 wi~h the chain~ 58. The bri~tle~ or brush~-lik2 elemen~s 116 pre/Jerl~:
the tortilla 17 from f:ree fal~ ing irl~o the guiae chute o~
~avity 111 ~nd ~o maintain con~rol of ~he de~cen~ of the tortilla being urged into the guide chute or cavity 111 by tha convex portion c~f ~he forming elemen~ paced pair of ~aticsnary rods 117 ex~end longitudin211y ~105lg ~he top portioFa of the guide ~hute or eavity 111 and establish contour or guide ~urf~ce :~or the descending tortilla 17.
The surface of the rod~3 117 act effq~c:tively ~o relie~e the tc)rtilla almost simultaneously rom th2 accelera~ ion belk 94 upon engagement o:E ~he ~ortilla by the no.~e o~ îeading portion of the forr~Ling element 16. This ai:fords additional control to ~he descending motion of the tort.illd.

To operate the hi~h ~peed taco shell fryer 10 ~nd produce 100 finished taco ~hell~ per minute per product conveysr 1 ~0 th~ oper~tor fir~t ~ring~ ~he body sf oil 2U ~orat~ ed ~n the parl 12 to th2 desired opera~ing ~emperal:uxe :~r exarr~le in the rzlFIge of 275 t~ 425~3Fo Th~ tortilla ~ootc tilnP ~
abou~c 30 ~ecorlds. Th~ heat exchang2r ~3, pump 44 and mo~or 4Z6 are energized 't3 reali2e the de~ixed tempe~a~ure of 1:h2 ~5 oil 200 TAe principal drive motor 53 :L3 actua~ed tZ7 Y~e't.

3~
,~5 into D~Otion the ~;everal cor~veyor6 of the Lnit 10, including the produc t conveyor 14 whieh sDoves at 200 lnche~ per ~nute carrying 162 eleanenc~ 16, ~he loading collYeyor 11 whieh ~noves at 600 inch2s per llunute, l:he product acc~lex-5 atiorl cc)rlYeyor 36 and the acceleration roll~ 91 which moveZ!~t 1, 500 inches per m~nut2, Figures S ~nd ~ . The tortilla re-posil:ioning mechani~m 23 i~ ~ctuated to imparl~ general side-to-side action 'co the conveyor belt 21 for lodging any mispo~itioned ~ortilla 17 between ~he ~paced apart lû 5houlders 22 which define the c~nnel on the wir! b~lt 21 in which the tortillas 17 ~re conveyed l:owards the forming ~tation 130 The S inch diameter tor~illa5 17 are regularly ~paced at abou~ 6 ~ns::h cen~ers in rows on the wir~ belt 21 ~rtlng 15 from ~ designated or indexing wire ~elt element (not ~hown) " bu~ the spacing is not critical in ~:hiY ~y~tem because of ~he speed relationsllips betwe2n the accelera~lor conveyor 36 and the product conveyor 11 which coordinate wi~h ~e formirlg cGnveyor 14 in a manner 8uch ~ha the 20 variation in ~paGing be~ween adjacen~ ~ortilla~ 17 may be on the ord~r of p L'll5 or minlls 1 inch from the 6 inch pitchn The phase ~hif~cing devic~ 55 may bç~ actuated ~o ensure that ~e product conveyor 11 receives ~ortilla~ 1~ from the tortilla forming apparatus ~not ~howsl) properly timed for 25 the operation o ~e high speed taco ~:hell forming Imit lOo The ~peed of the accele:ra~ion ro 116 and ~cc~le~ating conveyor 36 ensures that a tortilla ~ill k>e lodged a~ ~he formirlg ~kation 13 a~ the forming element~ approach ~Lhe guide chute or cavity 111 to cornrnence ~he ~aeo shell formirlg 30 oper2ltiGn. ~lention~d above wa~ the gap k?etween ~uccessive forming element~ 16 (irl the loadins po~i~ion~ at ~he product fo~ng ~tation 13 ~nd in term~ of time thi~ wa~; about 0. 2~5 ~ee~ond~ Thi~ gap ha~ been ;found suf~icien~ ~o permi~
accurate lodging of the kortilla again~ he a~utm2nt~ 93 35 to ~e carriee~ downwardly in a curved pa~h in~o ~.he ~oncave fo~ng ~llrface 67 di6posed ~erebelow.

Once tlle ~ucce~sive formirlg elements 16 go ~o th2 linested~
or ~elo~ed~ relatior~ship they are ~T~intained :i n a relatio ~hip tendinq to holtl the tortllla by ~eason o~ ~h~ drlve 5 ch~in~ 5B and cro~s rods 61 ~eîng carried ~moothly in the ~lst 72 o t}le spaced apart tracks 7~ as `the endles~ con~
~eyor 14 k~aver~es the oi:L ~on~aining channel~; 48 in the p~n L20 The track~ 71 ~re directed ~hrough a gen~le curve downwardly through ~e ~ookîng medilLm and ~hen uE~wardly out of the ~ooki3l9 med1um towards the unloadin~ ~tation 18 where ~e ~lot 72 end~ ~u~t before the ~urnaround sprocke~s 57 m3u2lted orJ the idler ~haft 56 " Figure~ 8 arld 12 0 At ~e unloading ~a~:ion 18~ ~s ~he cros~ rods 61 of ~ucceeding ~orrning el!ments lS traverse th~ ~urnar~d ~procke~ 570 15 the forwardmost element 16 accelerates away from ~he pxeceding form~ng element 16 expo5ing the fried taco shell 170 which rests on the ~onvex iEo~ing ~urace or elemen'c 16a whexeupon it may be engaged by ~che ro~a~ing brushe~ 74 and di~lodged ~o~lld it ~aot fall itse:lf by gravl~y onto the 20 guide bar 79 which ~erve~ to guide the taco ~hell 1~0 onto the di~charge or take away cor~veyor 81 for packaglng~
in~pecting ~nd the like~ Th now emp~y formirlg elen~rlt~ 16 xeturn ove3: ~he ~op of he frame 19 to~ard~ ~he fs~r}nirlg ~tation 13 for engag;ng ~nd orming ano~her ~or illa into 25 a fxied taco ~hell.

The t~co ~Ihell ryer o ~he present conigura~ion is adapt~
able ~Erom one of ~everal row~ of for~ling conveyors 14 with each rNW having a capacity on the order of rrom 75 I:o :150 taco ~hell~ per minute. There i~ no in~ermi~ten~ motioFI
30 in the ~veral ~oonveyln~ ~ystem~ employed in ~he ~aco ~hell ~er :lO in GOntraSt to the priar ar~ ~y~ems ~d ~h~
pr~ses~t de~ign permi~c8 ~a ïong ~ervice life w:L~h low mairl~:e~
nanc~0 A hood and hoi~t mechanism, well knol~ in ~he ar~
(not shown~ ~ would be E~upplied to the un~t 10. witl 3~

~7--substitution of 21 ~uitably eonfigurated bel'c 21, tortiLllas may be accor;unodated with the present unit w~th the outer range of tGlrtilla diameter being about: 1/2 ~nch less in di~meter than th2 vertical dimension of the fonning 5 element~ 16. Thu~ ~ 6 inch diameter ~ortilla may be as~co~nodated. Tortillas :L7 of ~maller diame~:er~ may ~e accorunodated in diameters a~ low as 3~1/2 ~o 4 inches 0 with use of a ui~able belt 2:1t the balarlce of ~he aystem remainin~ the same. Thi~ co~tra ~ wi~h the ta~o fo~ning 1~ appara us of ~he prior ar~c which g2nerall~f were limi~ed to accosnmodatirlg a single ~ize of ~or~illa.

Although the particular appara~u~ dis ::losed here ha~ been more or les~ directed to an elr~odimen~ for fo~ning alld coe:king taco shells ~ to ~e Imder~ood ~ha~ ~he forT~s 15 can be adapted to other shape~ so a~ deform any suitable configura~ion, and th~ inven~ion i3 not limited to fo~nirlg U~shaped article~. The ~mbodimen~ ~hown and descriked above i~ only exemplary. li~e do no~ claim ~o have invented all o'f ~he part~, elements or step~ descri~ed. ~arious modi~
20 fic~ion3 can be made in ~che constructic)n, ma~eri~l, arrangement and operation, and 81~ e wi~hin the ~cope o our inVentiQnc Th~ limi1:~ of th~ inven~iorl and the botand~ o the patent protection are measured l~y E~nd defined in the ollowing claim~. Th~ re~tricti~e de~crip~
25 tio~ and drawing~ o:~ ~h8 ~peci~ic ~xample a~ol~re do not point out wha an infringement o hi~ patent would be 3 t)Ut are to enable the reader ts~ make and use th~ inventionO

Claims (20)

What is Claimed is:

1. The method of forming and cooking a food product which have a substantial portion of heir respective surface areas disposed substantially parallel to a flat plane, the method comprising the steps of preparing a spaced apart procession of such product and moving them parallel to such flat plane, accelerating the products individually into a forming station without changing substantially the planar attitude of the product, decelerating the product into a substantially stationary condition, forming the product into a desired shape other than flat and simultaneously moving it in the formed condition in a path curved away from said flat plane, providing a cooking medium and moving the product into the medium in the formed condition, removing the product one by one from the cooking medium in a procession, along a path curved toward said flat plane.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the product in the forming step is folded upon itself and moved through the cooking step with the fold axis extending substantially vertically

3. The method of claim 2 wherein the product is folded upon itself upon an axis which is substantially perpendicular to the flat plane.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the procession of such product comprises a plurality of laterally spaced apart column of tortillas, and the product removed from the cooking medium are cooked taco shells.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein a procession of such product comprises a single line of substantially uniformly spaced tortillas, and the product removed from the cooking medium are cooked taco shells.

6. The method of either claim 4 or 5 wherein the cooking medium is cooking oil in the temperature range of 275 to 425°F.

7. Apparatus for forming and cooking a food product com-prising, a frame, means on said frame to contain a cooking medium through which such food product may be passed for cooking, endless conveyor means on said frame for carrying such food product through said cooking medium, a product forming station on said frame, means for conveying and positioning individual product pieces at said forming station, said conveyor means including a procession of product forming element mounted thereon for motion between a closed nested position to an open position each element having complementary convex and concave molding surfaces configurated so that when adjacent forming elements are disposed in a nesting relationship the mold surfaces are spaced apart such that the product interposed therein is restrained, shaped and carried whereby through the cooking medium, said conveyor means including means adjacent to said forming station serving to move the forming elements individually from the nested to the open position thus to present to such product positioned at said forming station said convex molding surface serving to urge such product towards said concave molding surface of the preceding forming element; means at said forming station serving to restrain the product movement on its path towards the con-cave molding surface, guide means co-acting with said con-veyor mean for maintaining said forming elements in a nested relationship when moving through said cooking medium, unloading station means on said frame, said conveyor means including means adjacent to said unloading station means serving to move the forming elements individually from the nested to the open position thereby exposing the product for removal, and supporting means at said unloading station serving to receive product from said forming elements for removal from said apparatus.

8. The apparatus recited in claim 7 wherein said forming elements are so configurated and arranged with respect . o said conveyor means to form the product substantially into a U-shape about an axis extending substantially perpen-dicular go the path of conveyor movement with the folded portion of the product arranged in a vertical plane.

9. The apparatus for forming and cooking a food product as recited in claim 7 wherein mean are provided at said unloading station for repeatedly engaging the product for dislodging the same from said forming elements.

10. The apparatus for forming and cooking a food product as recited in claim 7 wherein said forming elements are a pair of curved, similarly configurated, cooperating, apertured mold surfaces.

11. The apparatus for forming and cooking a food product as recited in claim 7 wherein said means to contain a cooking medium includes at least one elongated channel for containing hot cooking oil, said channel serving to receive the forming elements as they move from the forming station to the unloading station.

12. The apparatus for forming and cooking a food product as recited in claim 7 and further including loading conveyor means serving to supply said conveying and positioning means with such uncooked food product and means on said loading conveyor means serving to maintain such product in a column aligned with respect to said conveying and positioning means.

13. The apparatus for forming and cooking a food product as recited in claim 12 wherein said loading conveyor means, said conveying and positioning means, and said forming element conveyor means are synchronized so as to supply an individual food product piece at the forming station after one forming element has passed therethrough andprior to the next successive forming element being positioned at the forming station to engage the food product.

14. Apparatus to form tortillas into cooked taco shells comprising the combustion, a frame, loading conveyor means on said frame including means to position tortillas later-ally of the path of conveyor travel serving to maintain the tortillas in an aligned column, a product forming station and a product unloading station on said frame, acceleration conveyor means serving to transfer tortillas individually from said loading conveyor means to said product forming station, a product forming conveyor including a conveyor drive shaft and a conveyor driven shaft, power means serving to drive said loading conveyor means, acceleration conveyor means and said product forming conveyor, said product form-ing conveyor including spaced-apart pairs of sprockets disposed at said product forming station and at said product unloading station, said sprockets being associated respec-tively with said drive and driven shafts, spaced apart endless lineal drive means reeved about said spaced sprockets, a plurality of taco shell forming elements mounted to said lineal drive means and projecting outwardly thereform, each taco shell forming element having comple-mentary convex and concave molding surfaces arranged so that when consecutive forming elements are in a nested relationship the concave molding surface of the forward forming element receives the convex molding surface of the next rearward forming element for forming and carrying the product between such molding surfaces, said forming elements co-acting with the lineal drive means and spaced pairs of sprockets so that as said lineal drive means traverses such sprockets, the forming elements adjacent to the sprockets shift from a nested to an open configuration for the receipt of tortillas at the loading station and for discharge of taco shells at the product unloading station, a vat serving to contain a supply of cooking oil arranged on said frame, said product forming conveyor extending on the lower run through said cooking vat for presenting the forming elements and product enclosed there-by to the cooking oil.

15. The apparatus to form tortillas into cooked taco shells as recited in claim 14 wherein a plurality of product form-ing conveyors are provided on said frame and said loading conveyor means are equipped to position laterally of the path of travel a plurality of columns of tortillas, each column being aligned with one of said product forming con-veyors.

16. The apparatus to form tortillas into cooked taco shells as recited in claim 14 wherein said forming station is provided with means serving to restrain the movement of the tortilla downwardly on its path towards the concave molding surface of the forming element which has just passed through the forming station.

17. The apparatus to form tortillas into cooked taco shells as recited in claim 15 wherein said cooking vat is formed to define a plurality of elongated channels serving to receive the forming elements on the path from the forming station to the unloading station.

18. The apparatus to form tortillas into cooked taco shells as recited in claim 17 wherein said forming elements extend substantially perpendicular to said lineal drive means and project downwardly into said elongated channels.

19. The apparatus to form tortillas into cooked taco shells as recited in claim 14 and further including means at said unloading station serving positively to disengage the cooked taco shell from the associated forming element.

20. The apparatus to form tortillas into cooked taco shells as recited in claim 19 wherein said last mentioned means include power driven means operative on both sides of said product forming conveyor repeatedly to engage he convex portion of the forming element as positioned at the unload;
ing station, and means to receive and support the taco shells as the taco shells are freed from the forming elements.