EP2384126A1

EP2384126A1 - Automatic machine for pineapples processing

Info

Publication number: EP2384126A1
Application number: EP09744209A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Vincenzo Di Prisco; Giovanni Parlato
Original assignee: PND Costruzioni Elettromeccaniche Srl
Current assignee: PND Costruzioni Elettromeccaniche Srl
Priority date: 2008-09-23
Filing date: 2009-09-18
Publication date: 2011-11-09
Also published as: ITSA20080030A1; WO2010035300A1

Abstract

The present invention proposes an automatic machine, having one processing station in which the whole fruit composed also of arboreal part, is manually- loaded, topped and tailed on command and simultaneously peeled, decored and cut in cylinder, in fast, practice and sure way for operator, such that the machine can be used in different field, such as processing industry and food canning industry or in sales points and consumption points like supermarkets, business canteens or big restaurants.

Description

Pineapples processing automatic machine.

Description

Technical field

This invention refers to a pineapples processing automatic machine to peel and core having a cylinder as result.

This invention can work in the agro-alimentary industry, in processing industry and in canning industry, but for its characteristics of simplicity and lower cost also in sales point and consumption points like supermarkets, business canteen or big restaurants.

State of the technique

On the market manual equipments which attest pineapples and equipments which die-cut pineapples separately exist, in practice an operator cuts the superior and inferior part of the fruit to have two plain sides to the extremity. Then, a further operator loads fruits in a machine which simultaneously peel and core the fruit. These equipments require long and unsafe operations. The operators that use them have their hands in contact with blades. The patents US 4497245 and US5373781 are examples which use a manual cutting and coring system.

Besides there are automatic machines which process great quantities of pineapples, his prototype is the so-called and very famous GINACA machine, their name comes from their inventor, that in several patents US 1039926; 1060247, 1060248, 1060249; 1060250; 1065309; 1075031 ; and 1112130 describes various procedures and mechanisms. Several improvements to these premiere machines have been made thanks to the patents US 3638696; US 3780641 ; US 3874280; US 4108059; UK 1569019; US 5373781.

One of the common characteristics in all these patents is that the fruit is processed in different station and subsequently the fruit is peeled and the inside pulp is gotten in a final cylinder. They are always characterized by a processing phase that is composed of the peeling operation before of the cutting operation. As the applicant knows, an automatic machine with small dimensions and low cost, easy to use, with a high hourly capacity of processed fruits and completely safe for the operator, is not on the market.

Purposes and advantages of the invention

Purpose of this invention is to propose an automatic machine, having just one processing station in which the whole fruit is manually introduced and with hand drive is topped and tailed, that is it will be private of the superior and inferior part, and simultaneously peeled, cored and shaped in a cylinder, in fast, practical and sure way for the operator, so that the machine can be used in different environments as processing industry and agro-alimentary canning industry or in sales point and consumption points like supermarkets, firm canteen or big restaurants.

Description of the designs and way to realize the invention

These and other characteristics as well as advantages will ensue clear thanks to the following description and from the enclosed drawings furnished just as an indication, in which: in a frontal schematic view fig. 1 shows the machine waiting for the fruit; in a frontal schematic view fig. 2 shows the machine with whole fruit; in a frontal schematic view fig. 3 shows the machine with topped and tailed fruit; in a frontal schematic view fig. 4 shows the machine with topped and pressed fruit by pusher; in a frontal schematic view fig. 5 shows the machine with the pusher in the end point of its translation;

Fig. 6 shows a side schematic view of the machine.

Figures 7a, 7b, 7c respectively show the frontal view, the left lateral view, the right lateral view of the regulation group and cut with sabre blades.

Accordingly to the drawings the machine object of the present invention includes a one loading and processing station where at first the pineapple is cut and simultaneously peeled, cored and shaped in a cylinder. More specifically the machine, entirely built in stainless steel, is composed of a positioning crib (1) where the single pineapple fruit (2) is manually set in horizontal with the whole arboreal lock; a group of two conformed sabre blades, of which one fixed (3) and one adjustable (4) on the axle (5) that with a synchronous movement of 180° left-hand rotation, driven by an electric motor (6), change end limit position from up to down low, and with a further 180° rotation come back to the initial/starting position; to the rotation of sabre blades it is accompanied the rotation (with more of 90° of difference) of the rectangular bar (7) that determines the precise positioning of the pineapple on the crib (1) in such way the pineapple tail is at 20 mm in comparison with fixed blade and such to reduce to the least one the waste; on a side of the positioning crib (1) there is a pushing mechanism composed of a push (8) conformed in techno-polymer that is transfer axially in horizontal, thanks to an electric motor (9) applied to a rack (10), so to meet the pineapple top and to push it toward a circular tubular cut (11) in stainless steel for knife fixed to the machine frame, and provided with of support (12) for processed pineapple outing from the cut. Both the push and the cut have a known structure.

Pineapples are selected on the basis of diameter, in this way the cut used gives as less waste as possible, while regarding on the right length for pineapple cut the machine is provided with an adjustment devise for cutting length. It is possible to make such operation loosening a knob (13) and letting the sabre blade flow (4) on the axle (5), in this way we vary the distance from the other blade

(3).

As you can see all the machine operations are concentrated on two axles: on an axle (5) you have the blades rotation for pineapple top and tail cut, and on another axle, parallel to the first one, the pineapple positioning and its translation can be cutting through the cut. The machine stops itself thanks to a safety limit switch micro-switch when the cutting cycle is completed. The machine works as follows:

Once positioned in horizontal the pineapple on the crib (1), the operator closes the safety door, resets the machine and gives the start input. The blades are set up and the delimitation bar (7) sets appropriately the pineapple tail, the toothed bar (14) keeps hold the fruit thanks to a spring and the two sabre blades (3) and (4) set in action by the electric motor (6) will turn down left-hand at 180°; in this way it is possible to cut top and tail of the fruit which will fall in the low part of the machine. A cam (15) lifts the bar (14) and a second motor (9) applied to the rack (10) let the push lift up (8) which must horizontally push the pineapple against the cutter (11) until to send it off completely, separating the fruit from the peel.

When the peeled pineapple will have gone out from the cutter (11) and will stop on the support (12), the sabre blades will turn 180° more to come back again to the initial/starting position together with the delimitation bar (7) and the mechanized push (8) turn in opposite rotation direction to come back to the first position, both ready for a new processing cycle.

As you can understand, the machine operation is simple and effective and allows to get a high hourly production of processed pineapple, with lowest maintenance and easily washable.

Besides, both cutter and push can be replaced with models of bigger or smaller dimensions according to pineapple size to process.

The machine or blade can be realized in cylindrical form at polygonal section or at star to get different forms at fruit cylinder.

Claims

1) Automatic machine for pineapple processing, characterized by the fact that in an only loading and processing station the single pineapple (2) is manually set horizontal, complete with its arboreal lock, on a positioning cradle (1) provided with a hinged bar (14), which bends down to hold the fruit, and a little bounding bar (7) of the position of the lower extremity and where at first the pineapple is cut by a group of two blades in sabre shape (3) and (4) depriving it of upper and lower extremity, and subsequently cleaned up simultaneously the bark by a die, cored and reduced in a cylindrical form.

2) Automatic machine for pineapple processing, as in claim 1) characterized by the fact that the group of two blades in sabre shape (3) and (4) fixed with pins on the axle (5) with a first simultaneous 180 ° rotation clockwise movement controlled by an electric motor (6), has an up and a down start position.

3) Automatic machine for pineapple processing, as in claim 1) characterized by the fact that the group of a blade in sabre shape (3) is fixed and the other one (4) is adjustable from the first in distance on the axle (5) one through a knob of regulation (13). 4) Automatic machine for pineapple processing, as in claim 1) characterized by the fact that at the same time of the sabre blades rotation, the rotation of the rectangular bar (7) starts (with a difference of 90° more). It determines the precise positioning of the pineapple on the cradle (1), in such way that the lower extremity of the pineapple is at 20mm. in regard to the fixed cutting blade (3). 5) Automatic machine for pineapple processing, as in claim 1) characterized by the fact that a pushing mechanism provided with a pusher (8) conformed in technopolymer material, is transferred axially in horizontal through an electric motor (9) applied to a rack (10), so to meet an extreme face of the pineapple and to push it toward a tubular die with circular section (11) in steel for knife fixed to the frame of the machine and supplied with a support tray (12) for the processed pineapple in output from the die.

6) Automatic machine for pineapple processing, as in claim 1) characterized by the fact that when the pineapple, cleaned up of peel, goes out from the die (11) and stands on the tray (12), the sabre blades make a further 180° rotation together with the little bounding bar (7) to return again to the initial position and the mechanized pusher (8) transfers back to come back to the original position, both ready for a new processing cycle.