Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B26—HAND CUTTING TOOLS; CUTTING; SEVERING
  • B26D—CUTTING; DETAILS COMMON TO MACHINES FOR PERFORATING, PUNCHING, CUTTING-OUT, STAMPING-OUT OR SEVERING
  • B26D3/00—Cutting work characterised by the nature of the cut made; Apparatus therefor
  • B26D3/24—Cutting work characterised by the nature of the cut made; Apparatus therefor to obtain segments other than slices, e.g. cutting pies
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B26—HAND CUTTING TOOLS; CUTTING; SEVERING
  • B26D—CUTTING; DETAILS COMMON TO MACHINES FOR PERFORATING, PUNCHING, CUTTING-OUT, STAMPING-OUT OR SEVERING
  • B26D1/00—Cutting through work characterised by the nature or movement of the cutting member or particular materials not otherwise provided for; Apparatus or machines therefor; Cutting members therefor
  • B26D1/0006—Cutting members therefor
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B26—HAND CUTTING TOOLS; CUTTING; SEVERING
  • B26D—CUTTING; DETAILS COMMON TO MACHINES FOR PERFORATING, PUNCHING, CUTTING-OUT, STAMPING-OUT OR SEVERING
  • B26D3/00—Cutting work characterised by the nature of the cut made; Apparatus therefor
  • B26D3/18—Cutting work characterised by the nature of the cut made; Apparatus therefor to obtain cubes or the like
  • B26D3/185—Grid like cutters
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B26—HAND CUTTING TOOLS; CUTTING; SEVERING
  • B26D—CUTTING; DETAILS COMMON TO MACHINES FOR PERFORATING, PUNCHING, CUTTING-OUT, STAMPING-OUT OR SEVERING
  • B26D1/00—Cutting through work characterised by the nature or movement of the cutting member or particular materials not otherwise provided for; Apparatus or machines therefor; Cutting members therefor
  • B26D1/0006—Cutting members therefor
  • B26D2001/006—Cutting members therefor the cutting blade having a special shape, e.g. a special outline, serrations

Definitions

• This invention relates to cutting blade assemblies for hydraulic food cutting apparatus. More particularly it relates to a cutter blade assembly which defines a core area and a peripheral scrap area wherein the core area of the food product is cut into a recognisable.decorative form.
• Background Art Many food products, and par ⁇ ticularly vegetables and fruits are processed prior to sale either by canning or freezing. Unless the product involved is of a naturally occurring edible size, for example peas, the product is usually trimmed and sliced, or diced, to edible size prior to preservation process ⁇ ing such as canning or freezing.
• a typical hydraulic cutting apparatus wherein potatoes are to be cut, they are dropped into a tank filled with water and then pumped through conduit into an alignment chute wherein the potatoes are aligned and accelerated to high speed before impinging upon a cutter blade assembly where the potato core is cut into a plurality of smaller pieces.
• Hydraulic cutting ap ⁇ paratus or as they are known in the trade, hydroknives, can be utilized to cut extremely high volumes of potatoes if the potatoes can be properly aligned and accelerated to high speed immediately prior to impact with the cutter blade assembly.
• FISHER ET AL., Patent No. 4,372,184, discloses a cutter blade assembly for use in coring a potato.
• None of the prior art discloses or teaches a method of utilizing a hydroknife apparatus for cutting the core of a potato into a decorative form so as to enhance the marketing value of the processed food product, such as fish-shaped french fries for fast food seafood res ⁇ taurants. Or, to enhance the edible appeal of the product in relationship to a particular market group such as alphabet french fries for small children.
• Decorative shaped food products have been developed and successfully marketed for many years. However, as a universal rule, they are formed products as opposed to directly cut from food product in original cellular form. Examples include cookie and pasta dough which is then either extruded and then cross sliced or sheet cut by cookie cutter type apparatus. The direct cutting of a decorative shape of a product core, which can then be cross sliced has not been attempted before. Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to produce a cutter blade assembly which can be utilized in a hydraulic cutting apparatus to cut the core of food product passing through the cutter blade assembly into a decorative, recognizable shape.
• Fig. 1 is a schematic representation of a hydraulic cutting apparatus.
• Fig. 2 is the top plan view of a cutter blade assembly for cutting a decorative M.
• Fig. 3 is a representational perspective view of a partially cut potato core in the shape of an M.
• Fig. 4 is a representational perspective view of the cutter blade assembly for cutting a decorative core M.
• Fig. 5 is a representational side view of a cutter blade ring and blade.
• Fig. 6 is a representational view of the cutter blade assembly for cutting a single decorative fish shaped core.
• Fig. 7 is a representational view of the cutter blade assembly for cutting two decorative fish shaped cores.
• Fig. 8 is a representational view of the cutter blade assembly for cutting a decorative A shaped core.
• Fig. 9 is a representational view of the cutter blade assembly for cutting an decorative X shaped core.
• Fig. 10 is a representational view of the cutter blade assembly for cutting a decorative K shaped core.
• Fig. l shows, in sche atical format, the main components of a hydraulic cutting apparatus for use in cutting potatoes.
• Potatoes 17 are dumped into the water filled receiving tank 20.
• Food pump 21 usually a single impeller centrifugal pump, draws its suction from receiving tank 20, and pumps water and the suspended potatoes 17 from the tank into nozzle gun 22.
• Nozzle gun 22 functions as a venturi which is used to accelerate and align potatoes 17 immediately prior to impinging upon the knife blades of cutter blade assembly 10.
• normal speeds at the point of impingment upon the knife blades of cutter blade assembly 10 range from forty feet per second to sixty feet per second.
• the cut product which in this case is a decora- tively shaped potato core 18, and the peripheral scrap 19 exit cutter blade assembly 10 into deceleration loop 23 which in effect is the second half of the venturi.
• the deceleration loop returns to a point above receiving tank 20 where the water, cut cores IS and scrap 19 are deposited onto chain separator 24.
• the water passes through chain separator 24 and returns to receiving tank 20.
• Chain separator 24 is typically an endless loop chain or dewatering shaker which is used to mechanically remove the potatoes from the hydraulic cutting apparatus assembly.
• the decorative cores 18 and scrap 19 are then usually mechanically separated by means of a sizer conveyor, not shown.
• the cores 18 are then sliced, - again usually mechanically, into appropriate thicknesses for further processing by blanching, freezing and packaging for sale.
• the cutter blade assemblies in use today normally run at capacities of 30,000 pounds per hour to 50,000 pounds per hour, and can be operated at capacities of up to 100,000 pounds of product per hour.
• my cutter blade assembly in an embodiment designed to produce a potato core in the shape of an M, as shown in Fig. 3, is disclosed.
• a plurality of strip knives must be utilized to cut away peripheral segments of the potato in order to define an M in the core area of the potato.
• the end tabs of strip knives 15 as is shown in Figs. 4 and 5 are inserted into notches 14 of rings 11, 12 and 13, and together, define a multisegmented peripheral volume of the longitudinal passageway.
• Fig. 5 is a representational side view which shows a feature of my invention which results in a minimiza ⁇ tion of wobble of the strip knives in the cutter blade assembly.
• the end tab sections of strip knife 15 are slightly elevated above_ _he plane surface of ring 13 so that when all of the rings containing the strip knives are bolted together by use of bolts passing through holes 1G, strip knives 15 will be tightly clamped into place.
• This design as is shown in Figs. 4 and 5 results in a cutter blade assembly which can be quickly disas ⁇ muld for purposes of removing and sharpening strip knives 15.
• Figs. 6 through 10 show other configurations of the strip knives which are designed to produce decorative shaped cores in a variety of different configurations. Figs.
• FIG. 6 and 7 disclose strip knife configurations which result in a decorative core in the shape of fish.
• Fig. 6 uses six strip knives to configure the core in the shape of a single fish. It requires the use of three sectional rings to hold six strip knives.
• Fig. 7 discloses a strip knife configuration which results in the product core being cut into two decorative fish sections, and requires the use of eight strip knives and four ring sections.
• Figs. 8, 9 and 10 disclose other configurations of strip knives which result in core shapes in the forms of an A, X and K. In practice it has been found that virtually all of the letters of the alphabet as well as decorative geometric shapes such as stars and triangles can ⁇ e easily produced by varying the configurations of the strip knives.

Landscapes

• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Forests & Forestry (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Preparation Of Fruits And Vegetables (AREA)
• Control And Other Processes For Unpacking Of Materials (AREA)
• Scissors And Nippers (AREA)
• Knives (AREA)

Priority Applications (1)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=22024100

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (7)

Families Citing this family (15)

Family Cites Families (5)

• 1987
  • 1987-09-09 WO PCT/US1987/002263 patent/WO1988009711A1/en active IP Right Grant
  • 1987-09-09 DE DE8787906261T patent/DE3780175T2/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1987-09-09 EP EP87906261A patent/EP0366650B1/de not_active Expired
  • 1987-09-09 AT AT87906261T patent/ATE77789T1/de active
  • 1987-09-09 JP JP62505680A patent/JPH02504242A/ja active Pending
  • 1987-09-09 AU AU80207/87A patent/AU619727B2/en not_active Expired
• 1988
  • 1988-01-07 CA CA000556040A patent/CA1297762C/en not_active Expired - Lifetime

Non-Patent Citations (1)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events