FI63329C - FOERFARANDE FOER TILLVERKNING AV RUNDA GROENSAKSPRODUKTER - Google Patents

Description

63329

Method for the preparation of round vegetable products Förfarande för ti11verkning av Runda σrönsaksprodukter

The invention relates to a process for the preparation of round or almost round vegetable products, as further defined in the preamble of claim 1. A special field of application of the invention is the so-called manufacture of potatoes from Paris. However, the invention can also be applied to the treatment of other vegetables, such as, for example, manure, carrots, beets, and the like.

In particular, the so-called Parisian potatoes, which are round or almost round in shape, usually about 2 cm in size, are very popular. However, their more general use has hitherto been limited by the fact that the potatoes are made by hand using a special tool, in which case the round potatoes of Paris are removed from the larger potato by means of a hemispherical blade of the tool. Handicraft limits production volumes and raises the price of the product, leaving the use and distribution of potatoes in Paris low.

The object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus for use in the method, in which case potatoes and other round or almost round vegetable products of Paris can be produced industrially by machine. The invention offers a new possibility of further processing for potatoes and other vegetables on a large scale. In this case, the price of Parisian potatoes and other vegetable products will become cheaper and their availability on the market will increase.

The method according to the invention is characterized in that in the first step the vegetable is cut into cubes or nearly cubes and in the second step the corners and edges of the cube or nearly cube are subjected to abrasive stress, grinding and resulting in a round or almost round vegetable product in at least one cut.

63329

By carrying out the invention in accordance with the feature, the advantage is obtained that in the first step the blanks of the finished product are clearly separated and the vegetable can be utilized accurately. In the second stage, the advantage is obtained that the blanks can be processed in large batches continuously, whereby their edges and corners are ground away in a random order during abrasive stress.

The invention is further illustrated by a schematic example of the device shown in the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing, reference numeral 1 shows a cube-forming device in which whole vegetables 2, e.g. potatoes - either unpeeled or peeled - are placed. The device cubes the vegetables or forms elongated blanks of the vegetables 3. This step can be carried out using devices known per se, in which the vegetable is first pressed through a grid of rectangular or square parts, the blade immediately after the grid cutting the vegetable cut through the grid, e.g. e.g., in an elongate shape.

After the device 1, the blanks 3 are subjected to a wear step 4, which according to the drawing is realized by a conveyor screw structure 5 »driven e.g. by a belt drive 6 by an electric motor 7 · The blanks 3 are ground into round or almost round vegetable products 8, eg just Parisian potatoes -aan 9 »allowing them to be transferred to the packaging stage, for further processing or to consumers.

The inner wall of the conveyor screw tube 10 according to the figure and the walls of the screw 5 are roughened, whereby as the blanks 3 pass through the screw the blanks are subjected to abrasive stress - especially at corners and edges - as the blanks rub against each other and especially against the inner wall of the screw In order to remove the ground vegetable parts from the pipe 10, the pipe is placed in an oblique position so that the outlet opening 11 is higher than the blank inlet opening 12. In order to facilitate the outlet, a flow of water can be arranged in the vicinity of the outlet and opposite the outlet of the water and mixed vegetable parts.

It is also conceivable for an embodiment in which a screw 5 with a roughened surface is fitted inside a tube with a dense perforation and the tube 10 acts as a jacket tube. In this case, the abrasive products can be removed from the space between the perforated pipe and the pipe 10 in which they find themselves, e.g. by air blowing. An additional embodiment may be one in which only a collecting trough is arranged below the perforated tube, into which the grinding products fall. The perforated tube can even be a dense network surrounding the screw 5, which, when rubbed against the edges of the holes, wear the edges and corners of the blanks.

Instead of the conveyor screw, discs can also be used, which are arranged in an oblique position with respect to the tube or the corresponding longitudinal axis and which are adapted to rotate about their central axis and thus to move the blanks forward.

One possibility of implementing the device according to the invention is to use the centrifugal principle in such a way that, by means of vertical, rotating guides mounted inside the drum, the blanks are consumed against the roughening of the guides and the inner walls of the drum. In this case, the grinding products are removed by blowing air through the drum.

It is also possible to separate the vegetable products and the grinding products only after consumption step 4, e.g. by means of a vibrating sieve.

The method according to the invention can be implemented with several different device solutions and embodiments of the invention may vary within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (3)

Claims: 1. Method for the production of round or almost round vegetable products, for example the so-called for making Parisian potatoes from vegetables, characterized in that in the first step the vegetable is cut or formed into at least one cubic or nearly cubic blank (3) and in the second step the edges and corners of the blank (3) are subjected to abrasive stress, grinding and resulting in at least one cut round or almost round vegetable product (8). Method according to Claim 1, characterized in that the resulting grinding products are separated from the vegetable products (8) in a second stage by means of water rinsing or air blowing. Method according to Claim 1, characterized in that the resulting grinding products are separated from the vegetable products (8) after the second stage, e.g. by means of a vibrating sieve.