DE29806304U1 - Press accessory for kitchen machine - Google Patents

Description

GRÜNECKER, KINKELDEY, STOCjKtflATfc AjS(StAAWAN^AU

LAW FIRM TA T

LAW FIRM MAXIMIUANSTRASSE 58 D-80538 MUNICH GERMANY LAWYERS

DR. HERMANN SCHWANHÄUSSER
DR. HELMUT EICHMANN
GERHARD BARTH
DR. ULRICH BLUMENRODER, LL.M.
CHRISTA NIKLAS-FALTER

YOUR REF.

OUR REF.

G3840-40/IW

PATENT ATTORNEYS . EUROPEAN PATENT ATTORNEYS

AUGUST GRÜNEECKER

DR, HERMANN KINKELDEY

DR. WILFRIED STOCKMAIR (-1996)

DR. KLAUS SCHUMANN

PETER H. JAKOB

DR. GUNTER BEZOLD

WOLFHARD MEISTER

HANS HILGERS

DR. HENNING MEYER-PLATH

ANNE EHNOLD

THOMAS SCHUSTER

DR. WALTER LANGHOFF

DR. KLARA GOLDBACH

MARTIN AUFENANGER

GOTTFRIED KUTZSCH

DR. HEIKE VOGELSANG-WENKE

REINHARD KNAUER

DIETMAR KUHL

DR. FRANZ-JOSEF ZIMMER

BETTINA K. REICHELT

DR. ANTON K. PFAU

DR. UDO WElGELT

DATE

06.04.98

ELECTRODOMESTICOS SOLAC ₁ SA

Poligono Industrial Jundiz Zuazobidea, s/n 01195 VITORIA (Alava) Spain

PRESS ACCESSORY FOR KITCHEN MACHINE

TEL 089 / 21 23 50 ■ FAX (GR 4) 089 / 21 86 92 93 ■ FAX (GR 3) 089 / 22 02 87 · http://www.grunecker.de · e-mail: postmaster@gainecker.de ■ TELEX 529 380 MONA D MAXIMILIANSTRASSE 58 · D-80538 MUNICH DEUTSCHE BANK MUNICH, NO. 17 51734, BLZ 700 700 10 SWIFT: DEUT DE MM

DESCRIPTION
SUBJECT OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a citrus fruit press accessory which can be used in a kitchen machine and which can be adapted to the latter in such a way that the output shaft of this machine represents the drive shaft of the actual press, the actuation being carried out by means of an externally mounted, manually operated rocker lever.
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The aim of the invention is therefore to provide a press that uses an automatic device for its operation, whereby this automatic device is set in motion by means of the tilting movement of a lever attached to the outside of the press and is used as a pressing element for the citrus fruit onto the actual pressing head or pressing cone.

HISTORY OF THE INVENTION

The simplest known citrus presses are those that consist of a housing on which a rotating pressing cone is placed, which is connected to the shaft of an electric motor, designed in such a way that when half a citrus fruit is placed on the upper part of this cone and pressed against it, the motor is started and consequently the shaft is set in rotation, which in turn causes the pressing head or cone to rotate, and thus the juice is pressed out of this half of the citrus fruit, while the pressure on the pressing cone or head is maintained.

In general, presses of this type are operated by hand, i.e. by pressing the citrus fruit half to be squeezed against the press cone or head by hand.

A more advanced solution is that described in European Patent No. 0 623 201, which consists in a device based on the above-mentioned principle

based press, but with two pressing heads or cones and an upper tilting lid for squeezing both halves of the citrus fruit, the actuation of the motor being carried out in exactly the same way, that is to say when pressure is exerted on the citrus fruit, and therefore against the pressing cone, in this case via the aforementioned upper tilting lid. This solution is an advance in terms of actuation, since in this case the pressure is not exerted directly on the citrus fruit half, but on the upper tilting lid.

Mention may also be made of international design No DM 036 324, which relates to a household press in which the pressure on the citrus fruit half to be squeezed is exerted by means of an upper lever, that is to say that in this case the pivoting lid already mentioned in the European patent becomes a lever with a kind of conical pan that can be adapted to the convex shape of the citrus fruit half to be squeezed, this lever being mounted on a support on which the general housing or the press itself is arranged.

In any case, this type of press has a disadvantage, namely that the motor power used is always low and as soon as a higher pressure than normal is applied, the motor brakes, which is why the pressing does not take place with the desired efficiency and speed.

On the other hand, there are classic multifunctional machines on the market that are used for chopping, beating, slicing, etc. However, these types of devices cannot be used as presses, i.e. they cannot be used to squeeze citrus fruits.

0 As is known, the machines have a motor with significantly higher power than the usual presses, and by operating a switch, the said motor is put into operation and consequently the corresponding shaft on which a variety of devices (knives) are interchangeably placed, which can cut and perform various operations

can carry out operations such as chopping, cutting, beating, kneading, etc., all this with an accessory in the form of a glass or container that is attached and coupled to the top of the machine with a bayonet system or similar, in which glass or container the cutting tools are located, mounted on the corresponding shaft.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The press accessory recommended here has the particularity of using a vending machine as an operating element, for which a support for the vending machine is provided, from the base of which a column rises with an element used as a button, which is located at the top opposite the corresponding switch of the vending machine, a manually operated lever being articulated on the upper part of the column and connected to an internal shaft, in such a way that when a downward pressure is exerted on this lever and the element is actuated by means of said shaft, it comes to rest at the top opposite the switch, thus exerting pressure on this switch, thus starting the motor of the vending machine, this motor having on its upper part suitable means for squeezing the citrus fruits. These elements consist primarily of a pressing cone or head, between which and the corresponding rotation axis of the machine a connecting element is arranged so that the rotation of this axis can cause the pressing head to rotate, which is located opposite a kind of downward-facing cone or concave deformation provided in the actuating lever, so that when this lever is pivoted downwards after the citrus fruit has been placed on the upper part of the pressing head or cone, the latter begins to rotate, as a result of the lever actuating an element acting as a button, which in turn presses the switch of the machine, 0 thereby causing the citrus fruit to be squeezed.

The overall arrangement is also completed with a container for collecting the juice, which is connected to the upper part of the machine body and is equipped with a pouring spout, with filter elements

for the juice, as well as an upper ring-shaped lid, to avoid splashes, this lid being logically provided with the corresponding concentric passage for the press head and of course for the citrus fruit to be squeezed.

Based on these characteristics, the operation of this press is completely different from that of traditional presses, since the motor is not started by exerting pressure on the press cone, but rather by activating the external control switch of the machine, which is not operated manually, as is the case with traditional machines, but by activating an external lever that is independent of the machine itself.

The novelty of the invention therefore consists in the adaptation of a multifunctional machine in such a way that it can be used to squeeze citrus fruits, whereby the operation of the machine is not carried out by pressure on the pressing cone or head, but by pivoting an upper lever which starts the motor of the machine.

With the press described, you can obtain fruit juices quickly and effectively, as the machine's motor is more powerful than the motors of conventional household presses, and because it is operated by an external lever, the juices can be produced cleanly and conveniently, as the citrus fruits are not touched by hand during the pressing process.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

To complete the present description and for a better understanding of the characteristics of the invention in accordance with a preferred practical embodiment thereof, a set of drawings is attached as part of the above description, in which the following is shown in an illustrative but non-limiting manner:

Figure 1: An exploded perspective view of the various parts and elements making up the press accessory according to the invention, the body of the conventional machine to which the press accessory according to the invention is adapted being shown in dashed lines.
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Figure 2: It shows a general perspective view of the overall arrangement of the already assembled press accessories, in which the machine is also shown in dashed lines.

Figure 3: It shows a diametrical cross-section through a vertical plane of all the elements and accessories mounted in the upper part of the machine to carry out the pressing, as well as the collecting container for the produced juice.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

As can be seen from the above-mentioned drawings, the press accessory to be adapted to a multifunctional machine (1) or a kitchen machine, which is the subject of the invention, with its corresponding switch (2) and output shaft (3), comprises a series of elements and components, among which the base (4) on which the actual machine (1) is mounted is highlighted, said base (4) having suitable means (5) for locking the body of the machine (1) on said base (4), furthermore, from one side of said base a column (6) 5 rises, on the upper part of which a pivoting lever (7) is mounted, which has a deformation in the form of an inverted cone (8) in a region located approximately in the middle, which is concave and points downwards, a lever which rests on a projection (1) in its region (9) near the articulation or at the rear end thereof, which the upper end 0 of a rigid rod (11) which is arranged inside the column, wherein this lever ends at the lower end in a kind of finger or a similar element (12) which is suitable for actuating a button (13) which protrudes through a window of the actual column (6) and which comes to lie above the switch (2) of the machine (1) opposite it, so that when

this button (13) is pressed downwards by the pivoting movement of the lever (7), which results in pressure being exerted on the switch (2) by moving it downwards or pressing it, and thus the motor of the machine (1) is started.
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A spring (14) keeps the rod (11) pressed upwards, which makes the button (13) inactive.

The other components of the press accessory consist of the classic press head or cone (15) with wings (16) which can be completed with a larger second cone (16) which can be applied to the cone (15), the press cone (15) being provided concentrically with a polygonal neck (18) which is coupled to another complementary neck (19) which is provided for this purpose via a cylindrical and chamfered neck (21) on an intermediate piece (20) or a connecting piece, the said connecting piece (20) having axial elastic legs which have an outer and lower projection (33) provided as a locking element on the lower part of a disc-shaped part (23) which constitutes the base for a kind of container (24) or collecting tray for the juice produced, which in turn has a corresponding pouring spout (25). On the upper part of the disc-shaped base (23) of the bowl or container (24) there is mounted a filter element formed by the annular axially interconnected parts (26) and (27) which are arranged to rotate relative to one another, the rotation being achieved by the operation of a lateral lever (28), so that, since both parts (26) and (27) are provided with openings (29) at their base, the rotation of one with respect to the other by the operation of said lever (28) brings about the opposition or displacement between the openings (29) and thus the retention of the juice or the passage of the same towards the container or collecting bowl (24).

Finally, the accessory is completed by an upper cover (30) provided with a corresponding opening or passage (31), said cover (30) constituting a means of preventing the liquid from splashing during

production of the juice, that is to say during the actual pressing process. The parts (26) and (27) which constitute the filter also have a concentric passage (32) for the attachment of the aforementioned pressing head.
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According to what has been stated and described above and after the construction of the overall arrangement of the press accessory on the machine as shown in drawing 2, the way in which the citrus fruits are squeezed is as follows:

While the lever (7) is pivoted upwards, the citrus fruit half is placed on the upper part of the press head, more precisely, large citrus fruits on the press cone (17) which is coupled to the cone (15), and small citrus fruits directly on the press cone (15), and after the citrus fruit half has been placed in the manner described, the lever (7) is pivoted downwards, whereby the concave part of the deformation in the form of a cone pan (8) of the lever (7) comes to rest on the convex part of the citrus fruit half, so that when this is pressed down by hand, pressure is exerted on the extension (10) and thus the rod (11) is lowered, and the lower finger

(12) of this rod (11) presses the button (13), which logically exerts pressure on the switch (2) and thus starts the motor of the machine (1), causing the axis (3) of said machine to start rotating, whereby thanks to the connection between the axis (3) and the pressing head (15) the rotation of the latter takes place and therefore also the squeezing of the citrus fruit.

When no more pressure is exerted on the lever (7), the motor automatically stops, so that the rod (11) is pushed upwards by the spring (14) and no longer exerts pressure on the button (24), which then detaches itself from the switch (2). During the pressing process, the lid (30), as already mentioned, prevents the juice obtained in the actual pressing process from splashing out.

Claims (3)

• · -PATENT CLAIMS 1. Press accessory for a kitchen machine, forming an assembly that can be coupled to the upper part of a corresponding machine, this assembly including the classic rotary press cone or head, and the machine being properly mounted and secured on a lower support, characterized in that in addition to the press cone or head, there is also a collecting tray for the juice obtained during the pressing process, which can be attached directly to the upper part of the body of the machine, on which tray a filter element with an axial passage is mounted in order to enable the press cone or head to be mounted, connecting pieces being provided between the press head and the output shaft of the machine; with the additional special feature that the support for carrying and fastening the machine is equipped with a vertically upward column on the side, at the upper end of which a lever is articulated, with a concave central part in the form of an inverted conical pan, which comes to lie opposite the upper part of the pressing head, on which the corresponding half of the citrus fruit to be squeezed is placed, this column being equipped with a lateral button which protrudes from it and comes to lie above the corresponding switch of the machine opposite it, this switch being able to be operated by means of a shaft connected to the said pivoting lever. 2. Press accessory for kitchen machines according to claim 1, characterized in that the shaft arranged between the rocker lever and the button located above and opposite the switch of the machine consists of a rod that runs inside the column rising from the base for supporting and fixing the machine, said rod being constantly pushed upwards by means of a spring, so that when the lever is pushed down by hand in order to press the citrus half against the press head with the conical pan, said rod moves downwards, as does the button, whereby the latter presses on the switch of the machine to start it. 3. Press accessory for a kitchen machine according to the preceding claims, characterized in that an upper cover against splashes is also provided, which is attached to the corresponding edge of the filter element, said upper cover having an axial passage for the head with the citrus fruit.