FR2462253A1 - Prod. release station for cheese demoulding machine - grips mould in vibratory frame resiliently mounted on fixed structure - Google Patents

Abstract

The machine comprises a prod. release station where each mould is subjected to vertical vibrations, i.e. along the axis of the mould, in order to release the prod. at its interface with the mould. Releasing force should be 50 daN-500 daN, pref. 150 daN. The vibrations should have an amplitude of 1 mm-15 mm, pref. 4 mm, and frequency 8-50 Hz. pref. 25 Hz. The machine pref. comprises a fixed structure which carries a vibratory frame on resilient mountings. Each mould assembly in turn is raised clear of the supply conveyor and clamped in the vibratory frame for a releasing operation. The machine can have two or more vibratory release stations in series.

Description

 The present invention relates to a machine for demolding pasty products, in particular cheeses, these products being contained in sets of molds open on both sides, of practically uniform cross-section, and rigid.

 Until now, to release very sticky products such as certain cheeses, machines have been used which operate according to different principles but none of which were entirely satisfactory. We know for example suction cup machines, which come to suck the cheese inside the molds, to extract them. Piston machines are also known which, on the contrary, eject the cheeses from the molds by exerting a push on them. Other machines of the membrane type are also known, which maintain and push the cheeses.

 The reason why these different machines have never been entirely satisfactory essentially lies in the fact that they required adaptation to each type of mold used, in particular when the dimensions or the shape of the molds varied, which frequently occurs during on the same production day. This leads to the need for frequent interventions and adjustments and affects production performance by giving rise to numerous downtimes.

 Consequently, the object of the invention is to obtain a machine which allows automatic and rapid demolding of the molds without it being necessary to carry out any adaptation, adjustment or dismantling, in order to pass from the demolding of certain assemblies to the demolding of molds. '' sets of molds of a different module.

 To this end, a machine according to the invention, of the general type defined at the start, is characterized in that it comprises at least one detaching station essentially comprising vibrating means capable of successively subjecting each of said assemblies, which are brought to the machine by a conveyor along an essentially horizontal path, with vibratory movements of determined force, amplitude and frequency, and of essentially vertical direction, namely along the axis of the openings of said molds, this to effect detachment between said pasty products and the walls of the corresponding molds.

 Such a machine defined here only in broad outline makes it possible to achieve the aim which the invention has set for itself, owing to the fact that the vibratory treatment of a set of molds can always be carried out identically, without adjustment, neither disassembly nor adaptation, whatever the module of the molds which constitute said assembly. It will suffice for example to provide, although this is not absolutely mandatory, that said assemblies have roughly constant external dimensions.

 Advantageously, such a machine according to the invention can also be characterized in that said vibrating means are arranged so that the forces which are exerted vertically on said pasty products to be removed from the mold during said vibratory movements are between approximately 50 daN and around 500 daN, preferably around 150 daN.

 Likewise, it can also be characterized in that said vibrating means are arranged so that the amplitude of said vibratory movements is between approximately 1 mm and approximately ~ 15 mm, preferably being around 4 mm.

 Finally, it will be possible, concurrently with the values defined above, to provide that said vibrating means are arranged so that the frequency of said vibratory movements is between approximately 8.34 cycles / s (or Hz) and approximately 50 cycles / s, by preferably around 25 cycles / s.

 All the above-mentioned values have been found to give perfect and rapid demoulding under optimal conditions (in a few seconds for a set of molds).

 For what is the realization of a machine including any one of the preceding provisions, one can advantageously provide that the detachment station comprises a vibrating blackcurrant connected to a fixed chassis of the machine by means of silent blocks or similar, said vibrating frame being associated with selectively actuable clamping means, capable of temporarily securing it to a determined set of molds.

 These clamping means can for example comprise jacks or mechanically actuated jaws, or other means having similar functions.

It will also be particularly advantageous to use as vibrating means of a detachment station at least two identical motors, of the same power and rotating in opposite directions at the same speed, mounted in parallel on said vibrating frame. It is also possible to use, as vibrating means, a single motor fixed to the assembly by means of a pendular assembly transmitting unidirectional pulses,
It turned out that such means were particularly well suited to obtaining the above-mentioned preferential values concerning the force, the amplitude, the frequency and the direction of the vibrations which will have to be exerted on the assemblies to be demolded.

 To, in particular in the case of particularly sticky cheeses, to be sure of obtaining a mold release which is still perfect and complete, a machine according to the invention may comprise at least two successive detaching stations.

 As for the preferred mode of operation of a machine according to the invention, in which said sets of molds are carried by plates normally resting themselves on said conveyor, for example a chain conveyor, a such a machine could also be characterized in that it comprises, at the level of said detachment station (s), means for lifting the plate, able to move it away from said conveyor and to stop it at said station, means for controlling said means of tightening, for maintaining the high position of the corresponding set of molds, after which said lifting means cease to be actuated and allow the plate to descend to its initial low level, all of said molds are vibrated for a determined period , the cheeses are peeled from the walls of the molds and come down to rest again on said tray still stopped, said means for clamping the set of molds cease to be actuated, and the whole is evacuated out of said station, on said conveyor.

 Said means for lifting the plates can, for example, again comprise jacks having an action directed essentially vertically.

An embodiment of a machine according to the invention will now be described by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the figures of the accompanying drawing, in which
- The figures having the index a (Figures la to 5a) schematically represent, from the side, a machine according to the invention in different stages of its operation; and
- The figures having the index b (Figures 1b to 5b) are corresponding end views.

 In the various figures, there is shown a machine according to the invention, comprising a vibrating chassis 1 connected to a fixed chassis 2 by means of silent blocks or the like 3 to prevent the vibrations of the chassis 1 from being transmitted to the chassis. fixed 2.

 The central part 4 of the machine constitutes strictly speaking the essential part which has been designated above by "detachment station". The vibrating means, fixed to the vibrating frame 1, comprise two identical motors 5 of the same power, rotating in opposite directions at the same speed, and mounted in parallel on the vibrating frame. These motors 5 are thus likely to synchronize automatically.

 According to a variant, the vibrating means comprise a single motor connected to the vibrating frame 1 by means of a pendular assembly transmitting unidirectional pulses in the vertical direction.

 To obtain the above-mentioned preferential frequencies, namely between approximately 8.34 and approximately 50 cycles / s and preferably being around 25 cycles / s, these motors will rotate at a speed of between approximately 500 and about 3000 rpm, and preferably 1500 rpm. Likewise, it is provided for the motors such a power, having regard to the mass of the vibrating frame 1, that the forces which are exerted vertically on the cheeses of the molds are between approximately 50 daN and approximately 500 daN, preferably around of 150 daN, this with, as arrvplitude of the vertical vibratory movements, a course ranging between approximately 1 mm and approximately 15 mm, and preferably located around 4 mm.

 As for the transporter which has been mentioned above, it could for example be a transporter with chains shown in dashed lines, referenced in 6 and which can be associated, at least at the level of the detachment station 4 and at the level of the station evacuation according to 7 to carrying rollers 8.

 In the various figures, only one detachment station 4 has been shown, but it goes without saying that a machine in accordance with the present application, and which would comprise, one behind the other, two stations separation 4 instead of one, would not depart from the scope of the present invention.

 As for the molds containing the cheeses, which are joined according to sets as defined above, sets referenced in 9, they are carried by trays 10, the lateral parts of the lower face of which rest on the chains 6 and can also roll on level of the detachment station 4 and the evacuation station 7 on the aforementioned rollers 8.

 The molds can be joined according to the assemblies in question. According to another possibility, individual molds are used, or joined according to sub-assemblies, and the individual molds and / or sub-assemblies are joined together by means such as pliers or simply by clamping, during the peeling operation ; the individual molds and / or the sub-assemblies are then separated again.

 When a plate 10 arrives at the detachment station 4, it can be lifted so that its lower face comes out of contact with the chains 6 and the rollers 8, which causes it to stop at said station. The means provided for this can include, for example, one or more jacks such as 11 which can be actuated automatically and which can lift the plates 10 by means of a dried support frame matted at 12.

 Finally, the peeling station 4 comprises clamping means associated with the vibrating frame 1, and capable of enclosing between them, in the manner of jaws, the set of molds 9 then stopped at the station 4, when it is brought into position. high after actuation of the jack 11. These means can comprise for example movable stops 13 and 14 which can be actuated by the rod of a jack 15. Of course, one could also provide a jack on each side.

 Finally, there is provided, upstream of the detachment station 4, an erasable stop 16 which can also be controlled automatically by a jack shown diagrammatically at 17.

The machine which has just been described above schematically operates essentially in the following manner
The stop 16, having been erased, lets arrive at the detachment station 4, carried by the transport chains 6, a tray 10b loaded with a set of molds 9 secured to each other and filled with cheeses, tannais that the following tray lOc is stopped on the conveyor 6 by returning to the stop position of the stop 16. The plate carrying the molds already vibrated and arrived at the evacuation station 7 has been referenced in lOa (see FIGS. 1a and 1b).

 In this first operating phase, the lob plate still rests on the chains 6 and on the rollers 8 and, the jack 11 not being supplied, the support 12 is in the lowered position. A stop similar to the stop 16, controlled by a jack similar to the jack 17 or by the same jack, can make it possible to obtain the stop in the exact desired position of the lob plate at the detachment station 4. This same stop (not shown ), by deletion, can then authorize the lob plate, after vibration, to leave station 4 to come to evacuation station 7 and occupy position lOa. In this initial position lOb of the plate which carries the molds, the jack 15 is not supplied either, and the movable stops 13 and 14 are in the inactive or erased position.

 During the next phase of operation of the machine (FIGS. 2a and 2b), the tray following lOc is authorized to move towards the peeling station 4 by erasing the stop 16. The tray lob, which is at this station 4, is raised by the support 12, following the supply of pressure to the jack 11. As is understood then, the assembly of molds 9 also occupies a position slightly higher than their initial position. The underside of the lob plate comes out of the drive contact of the chains 6 of the conveyor and the auxiliary rollers 8.

 It can also be seen in FIG. 2a that the tray 10a which is at the evacuation station 7 has been unloaded from the molds and the cheeses which they contained.

 During the next phase (FIGS. 3a and 3b), it can be seen that the next plate lOc has further advanced towards the detachment station 4, while the plates lOb and îOa remained in the same position, the plate lOb, as before, in a position slightly higher than its initial position, the pressure supply to the jack 11 being of course maintained. At this moment, the jack 15 can be supplied with pressure and the stops 13 and 14 enclose between them, as visible in FIG. 3b, the assembly of molds 9.

 Then (FIGS. 4a and 4b), the pressure supply to the jack 11 is cut off, the support 12 goes back to its initial position, and the plate 10b can return to its original level (same level as the plates 10a and vioc), resting again on the chains 6 and rollers 8. In other words, the jack 15 remaining supplied with pressure and now in position the mold assembly 9, there is then a play of a few mm or cm between the underside of this assembly of molds and the load-bearing surface of the tray lOb.

 Then, the motors 5 are started and subject the vibrating chassis 1, the stops 13 and 14, and the set of molds 9 to vibrations whose parameters have been defined above (they can however rotate continuously ).

 Under the effect of these vibrations, and after a very short period of time, of the order of six seconds, the cheeses peel off from the walls of the molds and return to contact with the load-bearing surface of the tray 10b. The amplitude of the separation is of course that which follows the choice that has been made of the difference between the low position and the high position of all of the molds 9, it may be equal to only one certain proportion of the height of the molds, for example three quarters of this height.

 Finally (Figures 5a and 5b), the cylinder 15 ceases to be powered, the stops 13 and 14 are erased, as is the stop which, if necessary, stops at the detachment station the plate 10b, and that -this, resting then on the chains 6 and roller can be evacuated freely from the detachment station 4 to the evacuation station 7.

 In this station, mold gripping means can automatically separate them from the cheeses on which they are still based (about a quarter of their height), and evacuate them separately from the cheeses. The means for gripping the molds to bring them on an evacuation path different from that of the cheeses, can, here again, comprise actuator systems. It is not necessary to describe these means in detail.

 As it goes without saying, and as it already follows from the above, the invention is by no means limited to those of its modes of application and embodiments which have been more especially envisaged, it embraces them, at otherwise, all variants.

Claims (11)

 1. Machine for demoulding pasty products, in particular cheeses, these products being contained in sets of molds open on both sides, of practically uniform cross-section, and rigid, characteristic that it comprises at least one station separation essentially comprising vibrating means capable of successively subjecting each of said assemblies, which are brought to the machine by a conveyor along an essentially horizontal path, to vibratory movements of determined force, amplitude and frequency, and of essentially vertical direction , namely along the axis of the openings of said molds, this to make a separation between said pasty products and the walls of the molds. correspondents.  2. Machine according to claim 1, characterized in that said vibrating means are arranged so that the forces which are exerted vertically on said pasty products to be demolded during said vibratory movements are between about 50 daN and about 500 daN, while being preferably situated around 150 daN.  3. Machine according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said vibrating means are arranged so that the amplitude of said vibratory movements is between about 1 mm and about 15 mm, preferably being around 4 mm.  4. Machine according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said vibrating means are arranged so that the frequency of said vibratory movements is between approximately 8.34 and approximately 50 cycles / s, preferably lying in the region of 25 cycles / s.  5. Machine according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the detaching station comprises a vibrating chassis connected to a fixed chassis of the machine by means of silent blocks or the like, said vibrating chassis being associated with means selectively actuable clamping devices capable of temporarily securing it to a determined set of molds.  6. Machine according to claim 5, characterized in that  that said clamping means comprise jacks, jaws or the like.  7. Machine according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that said vibrating means of the detachment station comprise two identical motors, of the same power and rotating in opposite directions at the same speed, mounted in parallel on said vibrating frame.  8. Machine according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that said vibrating means of the detachment station comprise a motor connected to the vibrating frame by means of a pendular assembly transmitting unidirectional pulses.  9. Machine according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises at least two successive detachment stations.  10. Machine according to any one of claims 5 to 9, in which said sets of molds are carried by plates normally resting themselves on said conveyor, for example a chain conveyor, characterized in that it comprises, at level of said takeoff post (s),. means for lifting the plate, able to move it away from said conveyor and to stop it at said station, control means of said clamping means, for maintaining the corresponding set of molds in the high position, after which said lifting means cease to be actuated and allow the tray to descend to its initial low level, all of said molds are vibrated for a determined period, the cheeses are peeled from the walls of the molds and descend to rest again on said tray still stopped , said clamping means of the mold assembly cease to be actuated, and the whole is removed from said station, on said conveyor.  11. Machine according to claim 10, characterized in that said means for lifting the plates comprise actuating cylinders in an essentially vertical direction.