CA2139606A1 - Juice extractor - Google Patents
Juice extractorInfo
- Publication number
- CA2139606A1 CA2139606A1 CA002139606A CA2139606A CA2139606A1 CA 2139606 A1 CA2139606 A1 CA 2139606A1 CA 002139606 A CA002139606 A CA 002139606A CA 2139606 A CA2139606 A CA 2139606A CA 2139606 A1 CA2139606 A1 CA 2139606A1
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- aforementioned
- juice
- grinder
- plate
- lower plate
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
- A47J—KITCHEN EQUIPMENT; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; APPARATUS FOR MAKING BEVERAGES
- A47J19/00—Household machines for straining foodstuffs; Household implements for mashing or straining foodstuffs
- A47J19/02—Citrus fruit squeezers; Other fruit juice extracting devices
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- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Food Science & Technology (AREA)
- Apparatuses For Bulk Treatment Of Fruits And Vegetables And Apparatuses For Preparing Feeds (AREA)
Abstract
The present invention relates to a grinder-type juicer having a new design. A grinder-type juicer proposed by the Applicant in a previous application was easy to manufacture and highly durable and it allowed effective grinding, but it had the problem of requiring an independent separator for separating the juice and residue. In the present invention, the upper plate has a spiral-shaped guide groove or elongated guide land, the lower plate is equipped with a juice-squeezing groove, the juice is squeezed by the oblique action between the two grooves when the upper and lower plates rotate relative to each other, the juice drops under its own weight, and the residue is discharged at the outer edge of the lower plate.
Description
A GRINDER-TYPE JUICER
The present invention relates to a juicer which extracts juice from vegetables, etc., by means of the compression method, and specifically to a grinder-type juicer which extracts juice by grinding and squeezing vegetables between upper and lower plates.
Squeezing-type juicers are used to extract juice from vegetables, tubers or fruits by the compression method. Such squeezing-type juicers have been initially proposed by the Applicant of the present invention (for example, in Utility Model Registration Application No. 86-17672), but in the past centrifugation has been the main method of juice extraction used. The centrifugation method is suitable for use in juicers for extracting juice from fruit, etc., but in the case of extraction of juice from vegetables or tubers, which are high in fiber but have a low water content, the materials must be sliced, and even at a considerably high rotation speed, the extraction rate is not very favorable, moreover, materials such as heavy metals are discharged together with the residue due to centrifugal force, among other problems.
In contrast, the juicer proposed by the Applicant of the present invention, i.e., a squeezing-type juicer which uses a pair of gears, has the advantage of being designed so that the material may be sliced and then squeezed or simultaneously sliced and squeezed in order to extract the juice, the juice extraction rate is several times higher than in juicers using the centrifugation method, and heavy metals do not become mixed in with the juice. Such dual-gear squeezing-type juicers currently account for the majority of market demand.
Having thus generally described the invention ~ 21396~6 reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings wherein:
Fig. 1 shows a summarized sectional-view of the dual-gear type juicer previously registered by the present Applicant;
Fig. 2 shows a summarized sectional view of the grinder-type juicer previously applied for by the present Applicant;
Fig. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing the basic structure of the grinder-type juicer of the present invention;
Figs. 4(A) and 4(B) are a plane projection and plane view respectively showing the composition of the upper and lower plates in Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 is an explanatory conceptual diagram showing the principle of action of the upper and lower plates shown in Fig. 4;
Fig. 6 shows the composition and comparison examples of various residue discharge m~h~n;sms which can be applied to the upper and lower plates, with (A) through (D) and (E) through (H) showing pattern diagrams of the composition of the lower plate;
Fig, 7 is a conceptual diagram showing another composition of the grinder-type juicer of the present invention;
Fig. 8 is a sectional view showing a preferred practical example of a grinder-type juicer based on the composition shown in Fig. 7;
Fig. 9 is a projected plane view showing the composition of the upper plate in Fig. 8;
Fig. 10 is a plane view showing the composition of the lower plate in Fig. 8;
Fig. 11 is an oblique view showing the structural principles of another slicing device appropriate for use in the grinder-type juicer of the present invention; and .
2139~0~
~_ 3 Figs. 12(A) through (C) are summarized sectional views and projected plane views showing examples of various compositions of the grinding device used in the present grinder-type juicer shown in Fig. 11.
In the drawings reference numeral 10 represents an upper plate; 20 a lower plate; 30 a (material) insertion opening; 40 a grinding device (grinder protuberances); 50 a (juice) discharge outlet; 60 a filter net; 11 a (spiral-shaped) guide groove (or elongated guide land); and 21 represents a juice-squeezing groove.
-Fig. 1 shows a completed juicer which expands onthe above-mentioned proposal of the Applicant of the present invention and embodies the device of Utility Model Registration No. ~9191.
In Figs. l(A) and l(B), by means of a drive gear group (T) from a drive motor (M), a pair of mutually interlocking rotary grinding gears (K) grind inserted material (I) inserted via a hopper (H), and when the ground material is moved into a juice-squeezing net (D) and squeezed, the squeezed juice (J) drops into a receptacle (V) via a juice-squeezing guide (Gl), and the residue (R) is discharged via said residue guide (G2).
However, in this type of juicer, as grinding and squeezing of the inserted material (I) is carried out by means of grinding gears (K), a considerable load is placed on the grinding gears (K), making a comparativèly high-output drive motor (M) and drive gear group (T) necessary.
Moreover, as the grinding gears (K) must be in the form of helical gears comprising a spiral-shaped cutting edge (E), high-precision mach;n;ng is required, and in order to prevent abrasion of the cutting edge (E) with use, special high-quality material of considerable strength must be used.
Furthermore, in the case of inserted materials cont~;n;ng large amounts of fiber such as pine needles or arrowroot, unless the material to be inserted is divided up into small amounts, it is not only impossible to carry out proper squeezing of the juice, but the residue ground up between the grinding gears (K) or juice-squeezing net (D) becomes jammed, giving rise to the risk of damage to the mech~n;cm, and the use of the juice-squeezing net (D) causes various problems in handling and washing.
On the other hand, at household appliance and health food stores where squeezing-type juicers are used, as grains or nuts such as soy beans, adzuki beans or adlai must be soaked in water or cooked before they can be used for producing juice by means of conventional juicers or other kitchen purposes, this has an adverse effect on grinding efficiency.
In order to solve the above problems, the Applicant of the present invention proposed a grinder-type juicer as shown in Fig. 2 in Patent Application No. 93-10436 (6-14-93). This grinder-type juicer is equipped with various cutting lands (L1, L2) and it is designed so that inserted material (I) such as vegetables can be inserted and ground between the grinding surfaces of an upper plate (P1) and a lower plate (P2) which rotate relative to each other.
This kind of grinder-type juicer is relatively easy to manufacture, shows high durability, and can efficiently grind and squeeze juice out of high-fiber inserted materials or grain, but it does have one 21396~6 structural problem. Specifically, in this type of juicer, the grinding surface between the upper plate (Pl) and the lower plate (P2) faces upward and is in the shape of a convex cone. The juice and the residue from the ground inserted material cannot be separated and thus drop together under their own weight. For this reason, in order - to separate the juice from the ground material (I') , a filtering sieve (S) or another independent separating device such as a centrifuge (not shown) becomes necessary.
In the final analysis, therefore, no matter how favorable the grinding efficiency of the upper and lower plates (P1, P2), the juice- squeezing efficiency of conventional grinder-type juicers depends on the efficiency of the separating device used.
In order to resolve these problem areas, the inventor of the present invention conducted research in a wide variety of areas in order to provide a grinder-type juicer which was capable of separating the juice and residue without reguiring an independent separating device.
As a result, the inventor of the present invention arrived at a grinder type juicer characterized by having a grinding surface between its upper and lower plates which faces upward and is designed in the shape of a concave funnel.
In the juicer of the present invention, the juice and residue are separated from each other by means of the characteristic separating device of the invention, the squeezed juice drops through the center of the grinding surface under its own weight and is discharged, and after extraction of the juice, the residue moves to the outer edge of the grinding surface and is discharged.
2139~06 The following is a detailed explanation of the structural principles and preferred practical examples of the grinder-type juicer of the present invention, referring to the attached drawings.
As shown in Fig. 3, the grinder-type juicer of the present invention has an upper plate (10) and a lower plate (20) which rotate relative to each other between its upper and lower grinding surfaces, which face upward and having a convex conical shape. In the upper plate (10), there is an insertion opening (30) through which material to be ground up such as vegetables is inserted, and either the upper (10) or lower plate (20), or both, may be equipped with a grinding device composed of multiple protuberances (40), etc. The center of the lower plate (20) is equipped with a discharge outlet (50) having a filter net (60), and in the figure, the broken line/dotted arrows indicate the discharging of the juice. On the other hand, the grinding surface between the upper and lower plates (10, 20) is equipped with the separating device which is characteristic of the present invention, and as - the juice and residue are separated, the residue is discharged at the outer edge of the grinding surface as indicated by the dotted arrows.
As the separating device of the present invention is based on the structural principle of oblique spiral operation, we will now discuss this principle and action based on Figs. 4 and 5.
First, Fig. 4(A) shows a projected plane view of the upper plate (10), with a spiral-shaped guide groove or elongated guide land (11) which acts as a residue guide mec-h~n;sm being installed on the grinding surface on the underside of said upper plate (10). In the figure, in ~_ 7 order to avoid confusion concerning the relationship to the lower plate (20), the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) is shown projected from the upper surface of the upper plate (10). The guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) extends outward from the insertion opening (30); for example, it may have the shape of an Archimedes' screw, have a specified tangent angle ((0) in Fig. 5) with respect to an imaginary circumference having the center of the upper plate (10) as its center, and may extend outward in a clockwise direction.
Fig. 4(B) shows the grinding surface of the lower plate (20). This grinding surface is equipped with multiple juice-squeezing grooves (21) which extend radially outward from the filter net (60) at its center, and said grinding surface is equipped with multiple protuberances (40) for grinding up the inserted material. The juice-squeezing groove (21) is in the shape of curved line having a specified curvature in order to make squeezing and discharging of the juice more convenient, and in the practical example shown, the juice-squeezing groove (21) is designed so that its end rotates counter-clockwise.
The juice-squeezing groove (21) may have the same width and depth from the center to its end, i.e. it may show an identical section, but it should preferably be designed so that either the width or depth gradually decreases in order to further increase efficiency.
The fiber is gradually thinly ground, which is effective in getting the full nutritional value from the fiber.
Thus the upper and lower plates (10, 20), rotate relative to each other, and when the inserted material is 21~9CO6 ground up by means of the grinding protuberances (40) on the grinding surface between said upper and lower plates, by means of the action of a separating device formed by the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10), and the juice-sgueezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), the juice and residue are separated from the ground materia~. Looking at the direction of relative rotation of the upper plate (10) and lower plate (20), the upper plate (10) rotates counter-clockwise as shown in Fig. 4(A), or the lower plate (20) rotates clockwise as shown in Fig. 4(B). Looking at the direction of this rotatlon, the device is designed so as to rotate in a direction such that the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) pushes the ground material outward while squeezing out the juice along the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), i.e.
the direction opposite to the direction followed by the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) when it describes a spiral. In the practical example shown, as the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) rotates in a clockwise direction, this condition is met if the upper plate (10) rotates in a counter-clockwise direction or the lower plate (20) rotates in a clockwise direction.
We will now investigate the principle by which squeezing of the juice and discharging of the residue takes place by means of this separating mechanism consisting of the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) and the juice-squeezing groove (21), with reference to Fig. 5. In the figure, the solid arrows show a case in which the upper plate (20) rotates clockwise, and the broken-line arrows indicates a case in which the upper plate (10) rotates counter-clockwise. In either case, the principle of operation by which the juice and the residue are separated 21~960~
~ g through the oblique action of the spiral is identical.
In Fig. 5, the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) and the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate intersect with each other diagonally. Material to be ground by means of the grinding protuberances (40 in Fig. 4(B)) (I') is positioned between the guide groove of the upper plate (10) and the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), or it is positioned on the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), and it is pushed against the side wall of the guide groove of the upper plate (10) or the wall of the tip of the guide protuberances. (In the following, we will proceed with our explanation assuming that the guide groove is installed in the upper plate (10)).
Due to the relative rotation of the lower plate ~20), the juice-squeezing groove (21) which was positioned on the solid line (I), after having received the ground material (I'), moves to the position of the broken line II.
At this time, the ground material (I'), which was in a specified position in a radial direction in the juice-squeezing groove (21), moves along the guide groove (11) of the upper plate (10), which has a specified tangent angle (e)~ and taking Sl as the direction of movement on the circumference of the juice-squeezing groove (21), it moves outward in a radial direction along the juice-squeezing groove (21) by the approximate distance of rl = Sl x tan ~.
At this point, as the ground material (I') is compressed against the side walls of the two grooves (11, 21)j the juice contained in the ground material (I') flows inward in a radial direction along the juice-squeezing groove (21).
This process takes place due to the relative rotation between the upper plate (10) and the lower plate (20), and the squeezed juice is continuously extracted under `~- 10 pressure, it then flows into the discharge outlet (l5), and the more the residue of the ground material (I') can move outward along the juice-squeezing groove (21), the more solid components are left. It is finally discharged at the outer edge of the lower plate (20). As shown in Fig. 4(A), the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) follows a spiral for approximately three turns, and when the upper plate (10) and lower plate (20) have completed three revolutions relative to each other, when the extraction of the juice is completed, the residue the ground material (I') containing solid components only is discharged at the outer edge of the lower plate (20).
In a case where the upper plate (10) rotates in a counter-clockwise direction, the above action is carried out in the same manner. Specifically, in Fig. 5, if the guide groove (11) which was positioned on the dotted line II of the juice-squeezing groove (21) moves by distance of S2 in a counter-clockwise direction along the circumference, then the ground material (I') moves by a distance of r2 = S2 x tan e along the juice-squeezing groove (21) in a radial direction. As in the above mentioned case, the action of separating the juice and the discharged residue is carried out in the above mentioned manner. In this manner, concerning the separating m~ch~n;sm which is characteristic of the present invention, the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land installed in the upper plate (10) carry out squeezing of juice~from the material to be ground and discharging of the residue by means of an oblique action in which the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land installed in the upper plate (10) diagonally intersect with the juice-squeezing groove (21) installed in the lower plate.
On the other hand, Fig. 6 shows examples of 213~606 various groove patterns which may be selected for the grinder-type juicer of the present invention.
First, Figs. 6(A) through (D) show examples of spirals which may be selected for the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land of the upper plate (10). These - spirals are defined by the following general formula.
r = am . e ...... ..(1) where r = distance from the center in a radial direction, a and m are constants, and 0 is a central angle from a specified baseline. Here, a case were m = o is equivalent to a unit circle having a radius of 1, and a case where m = 1 is applicable for an Archimedes' screw.
In the composition of the grinder-type juicer of the present invention, the condition required for the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land of the upper plate (10) is as follows:
am > 1 .......... (2) Accordingly, the radius r must increase as e increases.
Moreover, the upper plate (10) equipped with a guide groove (11) or guide protuberances must rotate in a relative manner with respect to the lower plate (20) in a direction opposite to the direction of expansion of this spiral, i.e., a direction -0 which is opposite to the direction in which ~ increases.
Figs. 6(A) through (D) show cases the spiral has 1 to 4 arms. In this case, an upper plate (10) equipped with a guide groove (11) or elongated guide land has spirals which corresponds to the above equations (1) and (2), and it rotates relative to the lower plate (20) in a counter-clockwise direction -e, which is opposite to the clockwise direction in which ~ increases.
~ 12 On the other hand, Figs. 6(E~ through (H) show various ~h~peC of the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), and by means of the oblique action with respect to the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land of the upper plate (10), the ground material is compressed, and as long as the squeezed juice and residue are induced to move in opposite directions, any appropriate arrangement may be used. Figs. (E) through (H) show various juice-squeezing grooves (21) having spirals which develop in a counter-clockwise direction, and Fig. (H) shows a juice-squeezing groove (21) composed of straight radial lines.
-Thus the grinder-type juicer of the present invention, as shown in Fig. 7, can also contain an additional slicing device. Specifically, on the underside of the insertion opening (30) a slicing device (70) may also be installed which rotates at a speed greater than the relative rotation speed of the upper and lower plates (10, 20), and when inserted material such as vegetables inserted through the insertion opening (30) is finally cut, by inserting such material into the grinding surface between the upper and lower plates (10, 20), the actions of grinding and separation are promoted, as shown from Fig. 3 onward. This type of design always allows effective action, particularly in cases where the material inserted is of the bulk type, such as fruit or tubers or vegetables cont~;n;ng long fibers or high amounts of fiber.
Figs. 8 through 10 show practical examples embodying the composition shown in Fig. 7 in particular.
In the figures, a lower plate (20) eguipped with a juice--squeezing groove (not shown in Fig. 7) and grinding protuberances (40) is connected in a detachable manner to a gear ring (22) which is connected to a drive motor (M) by means of a drive me~h~n;cm such as a gear train, and on its 213960~
central lower part, it is equipped with the slicing device of a high-rpm cutter (71) which is driven by the drive motor (M) using drive me~-h~nicms such as pulleys and belts (T2).
This cutter (71) is roughly cone-shaped, and it is equipped on its outer periphery with multiple cutting edges (72). For example, it is preferable to form this cutting edge (72) into a conical plate by means of lancing or sheet metal processing into a V shape.
In~the central part of the lower plate (20), a round opening is formed which allows the cutter (71) to protrude, this opening is equipped with a ring-shaped filter net (61), and its inner part is attached to the rim (71a) of the outer edge of the cutter (71). This ring-shaped filter net (61) plays the role of filtering juice which drops into the lower plate (20) under its own weight, and it is equipped at the bottom with a ring-shaped juice-receiving gutter (52) which guides the juice which drops along the circumference of the filter net (61) into the discharge outlet (51). On the lower part of the discharge outlet (51), a container (V1) which receives the juice is located. Preferably, the juice should enter and be discharged from a cavity formed on one side of the casing (1), and the outer wall of this cavity should form part of the outside of the casing (1).
The lower plate (20) extends at a specified upward angle of inclination from the outer edge of the cutter (71), and according to the characteristics of the present invention, it forms a concave upward shape which is approximately funnel-shaped, and on the surface of the grinding surface, which forms the upper surface of this plate, there are multiple grinding protuberances.(40) and multiple juice-squeezing grooves (21). At this point, the grinding protuberances (40), as needed, can also be formed in the upper plate (10), or they may be formed in both the upper and lower plates (10, 20). On the other hand, on the outer edge of the lower plate (20), the unit is equipped with a ring-shaped residue receiving gutter (23) which receives the accumulated residue discharged from this area, and there is at least one squeegee (S1) installed on the outer edge of the lower plate (20), and the residue formed on the bottom of one side of the residue-receiving gutter (23) is pushed out through the residue discharge outlet (24). In order to guarantee smooth discharging of the residue with respect to the residue-receiving gutter (23), the outer edge of the iower plate (20) is bent downward, and the outer part of the opening inside the lower plate (20) should preferably be bent downward in order to ensure smooth discharge via the juice-receiving gutter (52). On the lower part of the residue discharge hole (24) of the residue-receiving gutter (23) there is a residue receptacle (V2), and this residue receptacle (V2) should preferably be designed so that it can be inserted in or removed from the casing (1), as is the case for the juice receptacle (V1).
- On the outside of the residue receptacle (V2) and the juice receptacle (Vl), there should preferably be a holding recess (H) or handle, etc., as shown in the figure, in order to make holding convenient for the user.
An upper plate (10) corresponding to the shape of the lower plate (2) and the cutter (71) is installed above said lower plate, and its center protrudes upward in a convex shape in order to conform to the conical shape of the cutter (71), thus forming a cone portion (lOa). Around the circumference of this cone portion, there is a grinding portion (lOb) having a convex funnel shape so as to conform to the shape of the lower plate (20), and along its 2~39606 ~_ 15 underside, which is the grinding surface, there is a spiral-shaped guide groove (1}) or elongated guide land as shown in the projection of Fig. 9.
Sweeping of the filter net (61) of the lower plate (20) is carried out in the curved area between the cone (lOa) and the grinding area (lOb) in order to facilitate the downward movement of the juice. The unit is equipped with at least one squeegee (S2) which guides the ground material on the filter net (61) into the juice-squeezing groove (21), and with respect to a flat surface, this squeegee (S2) should preferably be designed so as to have a specified inclination in a radial direction relative to the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land.
As a result of this, sludge (fiber) accumulating on the net is scraped off by the grinding plate, causing it to be more finely ground, preventing the net from becoming plugged, and ensuring continuous operation.
Moreover, there is an insertion opening (30) for the insertion of materials such as vegetables in the side of the conical portion (lOa) of the upper plate, and so that the cover (2) can be conveniently installed, this insertion opening (30) has a sleeve (31) which extends upward. This sleeve (31) should preferably be designed so that it can be connected to the sleeve (3a) of a hopper (3) located in the cover (2).
In the composition described above, after the inserted material is sliced by the cutter (71), it is ground up between the lower surface of the upper plate (10) and the upper surface of the lower plate (20), i.e. between the protuberances (40) of the grinding surface and the corresponding plates. For this purpose, the upper plate (10) and the lower plate (20) should preferably come into contact with each other at a specified and adjustable pressure. In order to provide this adjustable pressure, the upper plate (10) should preferably be connected to the cover (2) with a specified degree of elastic strength. The outer edge of the upper plate (10) has a rim (lOc) and springs at the ends of multiple adjusting screws (4) fitting into screw bosses (2a) located in the cover (2) are used to hold the rim (lOc) of the upper plate (10) in =- 10 place. In order to prevent the springs (5) from comingloose, the ends of the springs (5) should preferably be attached to~protuberances (lOd) on the rim (lOc). By turning the knobs (4a), the user can adjust the repelling force of the springs in order to adjust the compression strength between the upper plate (10) and the lower plate (20).
The following is a summarized presentation of the action of the above-described grinder type juicer of the present invention.
The user inserts material to be juiced such as vegetables into the hopper (3) in the cover (2) and then puts the juicer into operation. The material inserted through the sleeves (3a. 31) is sliced up by means of a cutter (71) rotating at a high speed, and it is then moved to the grinding surface of the upper and lower plates (10, 20) by means of the centrifugal force of the cutter (71) and the guidance of the squeegee, where it is ground up by the grinding protuberances.
The juice is squeezed out of the ground up material between the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land of the upper plate (10) and the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate as shown in Fig. 5, the squeezed juice moves downward under its own weight, the juice is squeezed out of the residue by means of the oblique action between the two grooves (11, 21) and the residue is pushed upward toward the outer edge of the grinding surface.
The juice drops down and is filtered through the filter net (61), it drops into the juice-receiving slot (52), is discharged through the discharge outlet (51), and is then collected in the juice receptacle (V1). On the other hand, the residue which has been pushed up to the outer edge of the lower plate (20) falls into the residue receiving slot (23) and is then pushed by the squeegee (Sl) through the discharge outlet (24), falls into the residue receptacle (V2), and is discharged outside the unit.
This type of arrangement not only makes it possible to effectively grind husked grain, nuts, and high-fiber vegetables, but also to carry out separation of the juice and residue during this grinding, allowing the juice and residue to be separated and discharged by different routes. This makes it possible to effectively squeeze out the juice without requiring an independent separator.
In the preceding, we have described the grinder-type juicer of the present invention by means of one specific practical example, but this example was used only for the purpose of a simple explanation and does not restrict the invention in any way. The grinder-type juicer of the present invention can be of various types as needed, and it may contain a slicing device as shown in Fig. 11, for example. The slicing device shown is particularly well-suited for the grinder-type juicer of the present invention, but because the device features a new composition proposed by the inventor, it can be considered to constitute a separate characteristic of the invention.
213960~
~ 18 Fig. 11 shows the two components of the slicing device, which move towards each other: a cutter array (80) consisting of multiple cutting blades (81) and a supporting plate (90) having multiple slits (91) through which the cutting blades (81) of the cutter array (80) can pass.
When the cut material is placed between the cutter array (80) and the supporting plate (90), as the cutting blades (81) of the cutter array (80) pass through the slits (91) of the supporting plate (90), the material is cut into lo slices having a thickness equal to the width between the cutting blades (81) or slits (91).
Figs. 12(A) through (~C) show examples of the grinder type juicer of the present invention equipped with a slicing device.
First, Fig. 12(A) shows an example of the slicing device shown in Fig. 11 installed in the juicer shown in Fig. 3. The device has a cutter array (80) with multiple cutting blades (81) and a corresponding supporting plate (sO) with slits (91) installed between the upper plate (10) and the lower plate (20), arranged so that the material inserted via the insertion opening (30) is sliced as the upper and lower plates (10, 20) rotate relative to each other. In this case, the supporting plate (90) is installed on the upper plate (10), and its tip should preferably be equipped with a squeegee (9Oa) which sweeps the filter net (60) of the lower plate (20).
.
On the other hand, Fig. 12(B) shows an example of an arrangement in which the juicer shown in Figs. 7 through 10 is equipped with the slicing device shown in Fig. 11.
In this arrangement, instead of cutting edges, the unit is equipped with one or more supporting plates (90), and the cone section (lOa) of the upper plate (10) is equipped with 2l396o6 a corresponding cutter array (80). In this arrangement, the cutter (73) can be driven at high rotation speeds independently of the lower plate (20), or can move continuously with the lower plate (20) at relatively low rotation speeds.
In the practical example shown in Fig. 12(B), the arrangement shown in Fig. 12(C) may be more suitable.
Specifically, slits (91) having a specified pitch are formed in the cutter (73), which is also equipped with one or more supporting plates (so)~ and the upper plate has multiple cutter arrays (A, B, C) located on its conical portion. The various cutter arrays (A, B, C) are set up with the pitch between the cutting blades (81) and their position in various arrangements. Cutter array A has the cutting blades (81) arranged with a pitch of 2, while cutter array B has the cutting blades (81) arranged with a pitch of 2 so as to intersect with cutter array A. On the other hand, cutter array C has the cutting blades (81) arranged with a pitch of 1. By means of this kind of arrangement, the material inserted through the insertion opening (30) is pushed into the supporting plate and sliced as it successively passes through cutter arrays A, B and C.
This design can be expected to improve slicing efficiency.
As we have seen in the pr~cP~;ng, this invention provides a highly effective grinder-type juicer which can be easily manufactured, is highly durable, can effectively grind high-fiber materials, grains, etc., and allows simultaneous separation of the juice and residue without requiring an independent separator.
The present invention relates to a juicer which extracts juice from vegetables, etc., by means of the compression method, and specifically to a grinder-type juicer which extracts juice by grinding and squeezing vegetables between upper and lower plates.
Squeezing-type juicers are used to extract juice from vegetables, tubers or fruits by the compression method. Such squeezing-type juicers have been initially proposed by the Applicant of the present invention (for example, in Utility Model Registration Application No. 86-17672), but in the past centrifugation has been the main method of juice extraction used. The centrifugation method is suitable for use in juicers for extracting juice from fruit, etc., but in the case of extraction of juice from vegetables or tubers, which are high in fiber but have a low water content, the materials must be sliced, and even at a considerably high rotation speed, the extraction rate is not very favorable, moreover, materials such as heavy metals are discharged together with the residue due to centrifugal force, among other problems.
In contrast, the juicer proposed by the Applicant of the present invention, i.e., a squeezing-type juicer which uses a pair of gears, has the advantage of being designed so that the material may be sliced and then squeezed or simultaneously sliced and squeezed in order to extract the juice, the juice extraction rate is several times higher than in juicers using the centrifugation method, and heavy metals do not become mixed in with the juice. Such dual-gear squeezing-type juicers currently account for the majority of market demand.
Having thus generally described the invention ~ 21396~6 reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings wherein:
Fig. 1 shows a summarized sectional-view of the dual-gear type juicer previously registered by the present Applicant;
Fig. 2 shows a summarized sectional view of the grinder-type juicer previously applied for by the present Applicant;
Fig. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing the basic structure of the grinder-type juicer of the present invention;
Figs. 4(A) and 4(B) are a plane projection and plane view respectively showing the composition of the upper and lower plates in Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 is an explanatory conceptual diagram showing the principle of action of the upper and lower plates shown in Fig. 4;
Fig. 6 shows the composition and comparison examples of various residue discharge m~h~n;sms which can be applied to the upper and lower plates, with (A) through (D) and (E) through (H) showing pattern diagrams of the composition of the lower plate;
Fig, 7 is a conceptual diagram showing another composition of the grinder-type juicer of the present invention;
Fig. 8 is a sectional view showing a preferred practical example of a grinder-type juicer based on the composition shown in Fig. 7;
Fig. 9 is a projected plane view showing the composition of the upper plate in Fig. 8;
Fig. 10 is a plane view showing the composition of the lower plate in Fig. 8;
Fig. 11 is an oblique view showing the structural principles of another slicing device appropriate for use in the grinder-type juicer of the present invention; and .
2139~0~
~_ 3 Figs. 12(A) through (C) are summarized sectional views and projected plane views showing examples of various compositions of the grinding device used in the present grinder-type juicer shown in Fig. 11.
In the drawings reference numeral 10 represents an upper plate; 20 a lower plate; 30 a (material) insertion opening; 40 a grinding device (grinder protuberances); 50 a (juice) discharge outlet; 60 a filter net; 11 a (spiral-shaped) guide groove (or elongated guide land); and 21 represents a juice-squeezing groove.
-Fig. 1 shows a completed juicer which expands onthe above-mentioned proposal of the Applicant of the present invention and embodies the device of Utility Model Registration No. ~9191.
In Figs. l(A) and l(B), by means of a drive gear group (T) from a drive motor (M), a pair of mutually interlocking rotary grinding gears (K) grind inserted material (I) inserted via a hopper (H), and when the ground material is moved into a juice-squeezing net (D) and squeezed, the squeezed juice (J) drops into a receptacle (V) via a juice-squeezing guide (Gl), and the residue (R) is discharged via said residue guide (G2).
However, in this type of juicer, as grinding and squeezing of the inserted material (I) is carried out by means of grinding gears (K), a considerable load is placed on the grinding gears (K), making a comparativèly high-output drive motor (M) and drive gear group (T) necessary.
Moreover, as the grinding gears (K) must be in the form of helical gears comprising a spiral-shaped cutting edge (E), high-precision mach;n;ng is required, and in order to prevent abrasion of the cutting edge (E) with use, special high-quality material of considerable strength must be used.
Furthermore, in the case of inserted materials cont~;n;ng large amounts of fiber such as pine needles or arrowroot, unless the material to be inserted is divided up into small amounts, it is not only impossible to carry out proper squeezing of the juice, but the residue ground up between the grinding gears (K) or juice-squeezing net (D) becomes jammed, giving rise to the risk of damage to the mech~n;cm, and the use of the juice-squeezing net (D) causes various problems in handling and washing.
On the other hand, at household appliance and health food stores where squeezing-type juicers are used, as grains or nuts such as soy beans, adzuki beans or adlai must be soaked in water or cooked before they can be used for producing juice by means of conventional juicers or other kitchen purposes, this has an adverse effect on grinding efficiency.
In order to solve the above problems, the Applicant of the present invention proposed a grinder-type juicer as shown in Fig. 2 in Patent Application No. 93-10436 (6-14-93). This grinder-type juicer is equipped with various cutting lands (L1, L2) and it is designed so that inserted material (I) such as vegetables can be inserted and ground between the grinding surfaces of an upper plate (P1) and a lower plate (P2) which rotate relative to each other.
This kind of grinder-type juicer is relatively easy to manufacture, shows high durability, and can efficiently grind and squeeze juice out of high-fiber inserted materials or grain, but it does have one 21396~6 structural problem. Specifically, in this type of juicer, the grinding surface between the upper plate (Pl) and the lower plate (P2) faces upward and is in the shape of a convex cone. The juice and the residue from the ground inserted material cannot be separated and thus drop together under their own weight. For this reason, in order - to separate the juice from the ground material (I') , a filtering sieve (S) or another independent separating device such as a centrifuge (not shown) becomes necessary.
In the final analysis, therefore, no matter how favorable the grinding efficiency of the upper and lower plates (P1, P2), the juice- squeezing efficiency of conventional grinder-type juicers depends on the efficiency of the separating device used.
In order to resolve these problem areas, the inventor of the present invention conducted research in a wide variety of areas in order to provide a grinder-type juicer which was capable of separating the juice and residue without reguiring an independent separating device.
As a result, the inventor of the present invention arrived at a grinder type juicer characterized by having a grinding surface between its upper and lower plates which faces upward and is designed in the shape of a concave funnel.
In the juicer of the present invention, the juice and residue are separated from each other by means of the characteristic separating device of the invention, the squeezed juice drops through the center of the grinding surface under its own weight and is discharged, and after extraction of the juice, the residue moves to the outer edge of the grinding surface and is discharged.
2139~06 The following is a detailed explanation of the structural principles and preferred practical examples of the grinder-type juicer of the present invention, referring to the attached drawings.
As shown in Fig. 3, the grinder-type juicer of the present invention has an upper plate (10) and a lower plate (20) which rotate relative to each other between its upper and lower grinding surfaces, which face upward and having a convex conical shape. In the upper plate (10), there is an insertion opening (30) through which material to be ground up such as vegetables is inserted, and either the upper (10) or lower plate (20), or both, may be equipped with a grinding device composed of multiple protuberances (40), etc. The center of the lower plate (20) is equipped with a discharge outlet (50) having a filter net (60), and in the figure, the broken line/dotted arrows indicate the discharging of the juice. On the other hand, the grinding surface between the upper and lower plates (10, 20) is equipped with the separating device which is characteristic of the present invention, and as - the juice and residue are separated, the residue is discharged at the outer edge of the grinding surface as indicated by the dotted arrows.
As the separating device of the present invention is based on the structural principle of oblique spiral operation, we will now discuss this principle and action based on Figs. 4 and 5.
First, Fig. 4(A) shows a projected plane view of the upper plate (10), with a spiral-shaped guide groove or elongated guide land (11) which acts as a residue guide mec-h~n;sm being installed on the grinding surface on the underside of said upper plate (10). In the figure, in ~_ 7 order to avoid confusion concerning the relationship to the lower plate (20), the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) is shown projected from the upper surface of the upper plate (10). The guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) extends outward from the insertion opening (30); for example, it may have the shape of an Archimedes' screw, have a specified tangent angle ((0) in Fig. 5) with respect to an imaginary circumference having the center of the upper plate (10) as its center, and may extend outward in a clockwise direction.
Fig. 4(B) shows the grinding surface of the lower plate (20). This grinding surface is equipped with multiple juice-squeezing grooves (21) which extend radially outward from the filter net (60) at its center, and said grinding surface is equipped with multiple protuberances (40) for grinding up the inserted material. The juice-squeezing groove (21) is in the shape of curved line having a specified curvature in order to make squeezing and discharging of the juice more convenient, and in the practical example shown, the juice-squeezing groove (21) is designed so that its end rotates counter-clockwise.
The juice-squeezing groove (21) may have the same width and depth from the center to its end, i.e. it may show an identical section, but it should preferably be designed so that either the width or depth gradually decreases in order to further increase efficiency.
The fiber is gradually thinly ground, which is effective in getting the full nutritional value from the fiber.
Thus the upper and lower plates (10, 20), rotate relative to each other, and when the inserted material is 21~9CO6 ground up by means of the grinding protuberances (40) on the grinding surface between said upper and lower plates, by means of the action of a separating device formed by the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10), and the juice-sgueezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), the juice and residue are separated from the ground materia~. Looking at the direction of relative rotation of the upper plate (10) and lower plate (20), the upper plate (10) rotates counter-clockwise as shown in Fig. 4(A), or the lower plate (20) rotates clockwise as shown in Fig. 4(B). Looking at the direction of this rotatlon, the device is designed so as to rotate in a direction such that the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) pushes the ground material outward while squeezing out the juice along the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), i.e.
the direction opposite to the direction followed by the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) when it describes a spiral. In the practical example shown, as the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) rotates in a clockwise direction, this condition is met if the upper plate (10) rotates in a counter-clockwise direction or the lower plate (20) rotates in a clockwise direction.
We will now investigate the principle by which squeezing of the juice and discharging of the residue takes place by means of this separating mechanism consisting of the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) and the juice-squeezing groove (21), with reference to Fig. 5. In the figure, the solid arrows show a case in which the upper plate (20) rotates clockwise, and the broken-line arrows indicates a case in which the upper plate (10) rotates counter-clockwise. In either case, the principle of operation by which the juice and the residue are separated 21~960~
~ g through the oblique action of the spiral is identical.
In Fig. 5, the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) of the upper plate (10) and the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate intersect with each other diagonally. Material to be ground by means of the grinding protuberances (40 in Fig. 4(B)) (I') is positioned between the guide groove of the upper plate (10) and the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), or it is positioned on the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), and it is pushed against the side wall of the guide groove of the upper plate (10) or the wall of the tip of the guide protuberances. (In the following, we will proceed with our explanation assuming that the guide groove is installed in the upper plate (10)).
Due to the relative rotation of the lower plate ~20), the juice-squeezing groove (21) which was positioned on the solid line (I), after having received the ground material (I'), moves to the position of the broken line II.
At this time, the ground material (I'), which was in a specified position in a radial direction in the juice-squeezing groove (21), moves along the guide groove (11) of the upper plate (10), which has a specified tangent angle (e)~ and taking Sl as the direction of movement on the circumference of the juice-squeezing groove (21), it moves outward in a radial direction along the juice-squeezing groove (21) by the approximate distance of rl = Sl x tan ~.
At this point, as the ground material (I') is compressed against the side walls of the two grooves (11, 21)j the juice contained in the ground material (I') flows inward in a radial direction along the juice-squeezing groove (21).
This process takes place due to the relative rotation between the upper plate (10) and the lower plate (20), and the squeezed juice is continuously extracted under `~- 10 pressure, it then flows into the discharge outlet (l5), and the more the residue of the ground material (I') can move outward along the juice-squeezing groove (21), the more solid components are left. It is finally discharged at the outer edge of the lower plate (20). As shown in Fig. 4(A), the guide groove or elongated guide land (11) follows a spiral for approximately three turns, and when the upper plate (10) and lower plate (20) have completed three revolutions relative to each other, when the extraction of the juice is completed, the residue the ground material (I') containing solid components only is discharged at the outer edge of the lower plate (20).
In a case where the upper plate (10) rotates in a counter-clockwise direction, the above action is carried out in the same manner. Specifically, in Fig. 5, if the guide groove (11) which was positioned on the dotted line II of the juice-squeezing groove (21) moves by distance of S2 in a counter-clockwise direction along the circumference, then the ground material (I') moves by a distance of r2 = S2 x tan e along the juice-squeezing groove (21) in a radial direction. As in the above mentioned case, the action of separating the juice and the discharged residue is carried out in the above mentioned manner. In this manner, concerning the separating m~ch~n;sm which is characteristic of the present invention, the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land installed in the upper plate (10) carry out squeezing of juice~from the material to be ground and discharging of the residue by means of an oblique action in which the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land installed in the upper plate (10) diagonally intersect with the juice-squeezing groove (21) installed in the lower plate.
On the other hand, Fig. 6 shows examples of 213~606 various groove patterns which may be selected for the grinder-type juicer of the present invention.
First, Figs. 6(A) through (D) show examples of spirals which may be selected for the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land of the upper plate (10). These - spirals are defined by the following general formula.
r = am . e ...... ..(1) where r = distance from the center in a radial direction, a and m are constants, and 0 is a central angle from a specified baseline. Here, a case were m = o is equivalent to a unit circle having a radius of 1, and a case where m = 1 is applicable for an Archimedes' screw.
In the composition of the grinder-type juicer of the present invention, the condition required for the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land of the upper plate (10) is as follows:
am > 1 .......... (2) Accordingly, the radius r must increase as e increases.
Moreover, the upper plate (10) equipped with a guide groove (11) or guide protuberances must rotate in a relative manner with respect to the lower plate (20) in a direction opposite to the direction of expansion of this spiral, i.e., a direction -0 which is opposite to the direction in which ~ increases.
Figs. 6(A) through (D) show cases the spiral has 1 to 4 arms. In this case, an upper plate (10) equipped with a guide groove (11) or elongated guide land has spirals which corresponds to the above equations (1) and (2), and it rotates relative to the lower plate (20) in a counter-clockwise direction -e, which is opposite to the clockwise direction in which ~ increases.
~ 12 On the other hand, Figs. 6(E~ through (H) show various ~h~peC of the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate (20), and by means of the oblique action with respect to the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land of the upper plate (10), the ground material is compressed, and as long as the squeezed juice and residue are induced to move in opposite directions, any appropriate arrangement may be used. Figs. (E) through (H) show various juice-squeezing grooves (21) having spirals which develop in a counter-clockwise direction, and Fig. (H) shows a juice-squeezing groove (21) composed of straight radial lines.
-Thus the grinder-type juicer of the present invention, as shown in Fig. 7, can also contain an additional slicing device. Specifically, on the underside of the insertion opening (30) a slicing device (70) may also be installed which rotates at a speed greater than the relative rotation speed of the upper and lower plates (10, 20), and when inserted material such as vegetables inserted through the insertion opening (30) is finally cut, by inserting such material into the grinding surface between the upper and lower plates (10, 20), the actions of grinding and separation are promoted, as shown from Fig. 3 onward. This type of design always allows effective action, particularly in cases where the material inserted is of the bulk type, such as fruit or tubers or vegetables cont~;n;ng long fibers or high amounts of fiber.
Figs. 8 through 10 show practical examples embodying the composition shown in Fig. 7 in particular.
In the figures, a lower plate (20) eguipped with a juice--squeezing groove (not shown in Fig. 7) and grinding protuberances (40) is connected in a detachable manner to a gear ring (22) which is connected to a drive motor (M) by means of a drive me~h~n;cm such as a gear train, and on its 213960~
central lower part, it is equipped with the slicing device of a high-rpm cutter (71) which is driven by the drive motor (M) using drive me~-h~nicms such as pulleys and belts (T2).
This cutter (71) is roughly cone-shaped, and it is equipped on its outer periphery with multiple cutting edges (72). For example, it is preferable to form this cutting edge (72) into a conical plate by means of lancing or sheet metal processing into a V shape.
In~the central part of the lower plate (20), a round opening is formed which allows the cutter (71) to protrude, this opening is equipped with a ring-shaped filter net (61), and its inner part is attached to the rim (71a) of the outer edge of the cutter (71). This ring-shaped filter net (61) plays the role of filtering juice which drops into the lower plate (20) under its own weight, and it is equipped at the bottom with a ring-shaped juice-receiving gutter (52) which guides the juice which drops along the circumference of the filter net (61) into the discharge outlet (51). On the lower part of the discharge outlet (51), a container (V1) which receives the juice is located. Preferably, the juice should enter and be discharged from a cavity formed on one side of the casing (1), and the outer wall of this cavity should form part of the outside of the casing (1).
The lower plate (20) extends at a specified upward angle of inclination from the outer edge of the cutter (71), and according to the characteristics of the present invention, it forms a concave upward shape which is approximately funnel-shaped, and on the surface of the grinding surface, which forms the upper surface of this plate, there are multiple grinding protuberances.(40) and multiple juice-squeezing grooves (21). At this point, the grinding protuberances (40), as needed, can also be formed in the upper plate (10), or they may be formed in both the upper and lower plates (10, 20). On the other hand, on the outer edge of the lower plate (20), the unit is equipped with a ring-shaped residue receiving gutter (23) which receives the accumulated residue discharged from this area, and there is at least one squeegee (S1) installed on the outer edge of the lower plate (20), and the residue formed on the bottom of one side of the residue-receiving gutter (23) is pushed out through the residue discharge outlet (24). In order to guarantee smooth discharging of the residue with respect to the residue-receiving gutter (23), the outer edge of the iower plate (20) is bent downward, and the outer part of the opening inside the lower plate (20) should preferably be bent downward in order to ensure smooth discharge via the juice-receiving gutter (52). On the lower part of the residue discharge hole (24) of the residue-receiving gutter (23) there is a residue receptacle (V2), and this residue receptacle (V2) should preferably be designed so that it can be inserted in or removed from the casing (1), as is the case for the juice receptacle (V1).
- On the outside of the residue receptacle (V2) and the juice receptacle (Vl), there should preferably be a holding recess (H) or handle, etc., as shown in the figure, in order to make holding convenient for the user.
An upper plate (10) corresponding to the shape of the lower plate (2) and the cutter (71) is installed above said lower plate, and its center protrudes upward in a convex shape in order to conform to the conical shape of the cutter (71), thus forming a cone portion (lOa). Around the circumference of this cone portion, there is a grinding portion (lOb) having a convex funnel shape so as to conform to the shape of the lower plate (20), and along its 2~39606 ~_ 15 underside, which is the grinding surface, there is a spiral-shaped guide groove (1}) or elongated guide land as shown in the projection of Fig. 9.
Sweeping of the filter net (61) of the lower plate (20) is carried out in the curved area between the cone (lOa) and the grinding area (lOb) in order to facilitate the downward movement of the juice. The unit is equipped with at least one squeegee (S2) which guides the ground material on the filter net (61) into the juice-squeezing groove (21), and with respect to a flat surface, this squeegee (S2) should preferably be designed so as to have a specified inclination in a radial direction relative to the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land.
As a result of this, sludge (fiber) accumulating on the net is scraped off by the grinding plate, causing it to be more finely ground, preventing the net from becoming plugged, and ensuring continuous operation.
Moreover, there is an insertion opening (30) for the insertion of materials such as vegetables in the side of the conical portion (lOa) of the upper plate, and so that the cover (2) can be conveniently installed, this insertion opening (30) has a sleeve (31) which extends upward. This sleeve (31) should preferably be designed so that it can be connected to the sleeve (3a) of a hopper (3) located in the cover (2).
In the composition described above, after the inserted material is sliced by the cutter (71), it is ground up between the lower surface of the upper plate (10) and the upper surface of the lower plate (20), i.e. between the protuberances (40) of the grinding surface and the corresponding plates. For this purpose, the upper plate (10) and the lower plate (20) should preferably come into contact with each other at a specified and adjustable pressure. In order to provide this adjustable pressure, the upper plate (10) should preferably be connected to the cover (2) with a specified degree of elastic strength. The outer edge of the upper plate (10) has a rim (lOc) and springs at the ends of multiple adjusting screws (4) fitting into screw bosses (2a) located in the cover (2) are used to hold the rim (lOc) of the upper plate (10) in =- 10 place. In order to prevent the springs (5) from comingloose, the ends of the springs (5) should preferably be attached to~protuberances (lOd) on the rim (lOc). By turning the knobs (4a), the user can adjust the repelling force of the springs in order to adjust the compression strength between the upper plate (10) and the lower plate (20).
The following is a summarized presentation of the action of the above-described grinder type juicer of the present invention.
The user inserts material to be juiced such as vegetables into the hopper (3) in the cover (2) and then puts the juicer into operation. The material inserted through the sleeves (3a. 31) is sliced up by means of a cutter (71) rotating at a high speed, and it is then moved to the grinding surface of the upper and lower plates (10, 20) by means of the centrifugal force of the cutter (71) and the guidance of the squeegee, where it is ground up by the grinding protuberances.
The juice is squeezed out of the ground up material between the guide groove (11) or elongated guide land of the upper plate (10) and the juice-squeezing groove (21) of the lower plate as shown in Fig. 5, the squeezed juice moves downward under its own weight, the juice is squeezed out of the residue by means of the oblique action between the two grooves (11, 21) and the residue is pushed upward toward the outer edge of the grinding surface.
The juice drops down and is filtered through the filter net (61), it drops into the juice-receiving slot (52), is discharged through the discharge outlet (51), and is then collected in the juice receptacle (V1). On the other hand, the residue which has been pushed up to the outer edge of the lower plate (20) falls into the residue receiving slot (23) and is then pushed by the squeegee (Sl) through the discharge outlet (24), falls into the residue receptacle (V2), and is discharged outside the unit.
This type of arrangement not only makes it possible to effectively grind husked grain, nuts, and high-fiber vegetables, but also to carry out separation of the juice and residue during this grinding, allowing the juice and residue to be separated and discharged by different routes. This makes it possible to effectively squeeze out the juice without requiring an independent separator.
In the preceding, we have described the grinder-type juicer of the present invention by means of one specific practical example, but this example was used only for the purpose of a simple explanation and does not restrict the invention in any way. The grinder-type juicer of the present invention can be of various types as needed, and it may contain a slicing device as shown in Fig. 11, for example. The slicing device shown is particularly well-suited for the grinder-type juicer of the present invention, but because the device features a new composition proposed by the inventor, it can be considered to constitute a separate characteristic of the invention.
213960~
~ 18 Fig. 11 shows the two components of the slicing device, which move towards each other: a cutter array (80) consisting of multiple cutting blades (81) and a supporting plate (90) having multiple slits (91) through which the cutting blades (81) of the cutter array (80) can pass.
When the cut material is placed between the cutter array (80) and the supporting plate (90), as the cutting blades (81) of the cutter array (80) pass through the slits (91) of the supporting plate (90), the material is cut into lo slices having a thickness equal to the width between the cutting blades (81) or slits (91).
Figs. 12(A) through (~C) show examples of the grinder type juicer of the present invention equipped with a slicing device.
First, Fig. 12(A) shows an example of the slicing device shown in Fig. 11 installed in the juicer shown in Fig. 3. The device has a cutter array (80) with multiple cutting blades (81) and a corresponding supporting plate (sO) with slits (91) installed between the upper plate (10) and the lower plate (20), arranged so that the material inserted via the insertion opening (30) is sliced as the upper and lower plates (10, 20) rotate relative to each other. In this case, the supporting plate (90) is installed on the upper plate (10), and its tip should preferably be equipped with a squeegee (9Oa) which sweeps the filter net (60) of the lower plate (20).
.
On the other hand, Fig. 12(B) shows an example of an arrangement in which the juicer shown in Figs. 7 through 10 is equipped with the slicing device shown in Fig. 11.
In this arrangement, instead of cutting edges, the unit is equipped with one or more supporting plates (90), and the cone section (lOa) of the upper plate (10) is equipped with 2l396o6 a corresponding cutter array (80). In this arrangement, the cutter (73) can be driven at high rotation speeds independently of the lower plate (20), or can move continuously with the lower plate (20) at relatively low rotation speeds.
In the practical example shown in Fig. 12(B), the arrangement shown in Fig. 12(C) may be more suitable.
Specifically, slits (91) having a specified pitch are formed in the cutter (73), which is also equipped with one or more supporting plates (so)~ and the upper plate has multiple cutter arrays (A, B, C) located on its conical portion. The various cutter arrays (A, B, C) are set up with the pitch between the cutting blades (81) and their position in various arrangements. Cutter array A has the cutting blades (81) arranged with a pitch of 2, while cutter array B has the cutting blades (81) arranged with a pitch of 2 so as to intersect with cutter array A. On the other hand, cutter array C has the cutting blades (81) arranged with a pitch of 1. By means of this kind of arrangement, the material inserted through the insertion opening (30) is pushed into the supporting plate and sliced as it successively passes through cutter arrays A, B and C.
This design can be expected to improve slicing efficiency.
As we have seen in the pr~cP~;ng, this invention provides a highly effective grinder-type juicer which can be easily manufactured, is highly durable, can effectively grind high-fiber materials, grains, etc., and allows simultaneous separation of the juice and residue without requiring an independent separator.
Claims (8)
1. A grinder-type juicer equipped with upper and lower plates which rotate relative to each other and grind material between them, characterized by the fact that - the aforementioned upper and lower plates have a concave funnel shape which faces upward.
2. The grinder-type juicer of claim 1, characterized by the fact that the aforementioned upper plate has a spiral-shaped guide groove or elongated guide land having one or more arms, the aforementioned lower plate has multiple radial juice-squeezing grooves, and the juice and residue from the aforementioned material, which have been ground up by the relative rotation of the upper and lower plates, causing the aforementioned guide groove and the aforementioned juice-squeezing groove to exert an oblique action, can be simultaneously discharged.
3. The grinder-type juicer of claim 1, characterized by the fact that when the radius extending from the center of the aforementioned upper plate is taken as r, the central angle from a specified baseline is ?, and a and m are constants, and the aforementioned guide groove or elongated guide land corresponds to Equations (1) and (2) below:
r = amx?-------------(1) where am>1-----------(2).
r = amx?-------------(1) where am>1-----------(2).
4. The grinder-type juicer of claims 2 or 3, characterized by the fact that the direction of relative rotation of the aforementioned upper and lower plates is -? with respect to the aforementioned guide groove or elongated guide land of the upper plate.
5. The grinder-type juicer of claim 2, characterized by the fact that the aforementioned squeezed juice drops into the center of the aforementioned lower plate under its own weight, and the aforementioned separated residue is discharged toward the outer edge of the aforementioned lower plate while the juice is being squeezed out by means of the aforementioned oblique action.
6. The grinder-type juicer of claim 1, characterized by the fact that a slicing device is installed in the center of the aforementioned lower plate which rotates at a speed greater than the rotation speed of the upper and lower plates relative to each other.
7. A slicing device, characterized by being equipped with a cutter array containing multiple cutting blades arranged with a specified pitch and a supporting plate which moves relative to the aforementioned cutter array so as to intersect with it and having multiple slits through which the aforementioned cutting blades pass.
8. The slicing device of claim 7, characterized by the fact that the aforementioned cutting blades are installed on either the upper or lower plate, the aforementioned supporting plate is installed on the other plate, the aforementioned upper plate contains an insertion opening, and material inserted via the aforementioned insertion opening is sliced between the aforementioned cutter array and the aforementioned supporting plate due to the rotation of the aforementioned upper and lower plates relative to each other.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002139606A CA2139606A1 (en) | 1995-01-05 | 1995-01-05 | Juice extractor |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002139606A CA2139606A1 (en) | 1995-01-05 | 1995-01-05 | Juice extractor |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2139606A1 true CA2139606A1 (en) | 1996-07-06 |
Family
ID=4154983
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002139606A Abandoned CA2139606A1 (en) | 1995-01-05 | 1995-01-05 | Juice extractor |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA2139606A1 (en) |
-
1995
- 1995-01-05 CA CA002139606A patent/CA2139606A1/en not_active Abandoned
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| EEER | Examination request | ||
| FZDE | Discontinued | ||
| FZDE | Discontinued |
Effective date: 20000519 |