FR2490075A1 - Pivoting conveyor pocket for bakery continuous prover - has textile carrier band which presents fresh surface for each successive dough piece - Google Patents

Abstract

Pivotally suspended conveyor pocket is used for carrying a dough piece through a continuous proving chamber etc. in an industrial bakery. The pocket is of the type which carries the dough piece in a hammock-like valley formed in a textile material, endless band looped around a pair of parallel support bars. The textile band is free to be moved around the pair of support bars. The conveyor is designed to bring the textile band into contact with a flat, vertical or inclined fixed friction surface for a short stretch of the descending conveyor path between the pocket discharge and reload stations. This brief, frictional contact displaces the textile band a fraction of a revolution around its support bars. In this way a fresh area of textile band is used to contact successive dough pieces. The fixed friction surface is pref. vertical and is spring-loaded against the descending textile band. The dough piece is less likely to stick to a fresh area of textile band than one which has just carried a moist dough piece. Dough pieces are subjected to less damage and quality of prod. is improved.

Description

 InyentiQn relates to a perfected halancelle and to the device for advancing its carpet for swing chambers used in the industrial preparation of bread.

 In the industrial preparation of bread, the dough pieces are loaded on pivoting supports driven in slow motion by a chain conveyor inside a chamber. These pivoting supports, called swings, are made of a felt canvas fixed or wound by its longitudinal edges on two parallel carrying axes joined at each of their ends by a plate pivotally mounted on an axis transverse to the conveyor chain.

 At the end of the journey, an overturning stop tilts the swing which unloads its contents on another mobile support responsible for conveying the dough pieces to the shaping station.

 The dough always remains slightly moist and, by its consistency and character, has a tendency to adhere to its support, in particular if the latter still contains traces of wet dough from the previous load.

 This is particularly the case for the felt of the swing. We observe, in fact, a more or less repetitive partial bonding during prolonged continuous use that chalking, even intensive, cannot make it disappear.

 This irreversible phenomenon significantly affects the profitability of the installation and, to a lesser extent, the quality of the product.

Another technique consists in successively and alternately using the two faces of the felt by using symmetrical swings. In this case, the support pins are joined at each of their ends by a plate having, in the central part, a light perpendicular to the felt. The pivot axis rests on one or the other end of the light.
The swing works in the same way on one or the other side. When tilting unloading, it turns entirely to present the other side of the felt to the next load.

 If this technique makes it possible to push back the operating limits beyond which bonding appears, it does not completely avoid it.

 The risk of sticking remains and, moreover, the overturning of the swing and its vertical displacement along the lumen cause a brutal and noisy shock likely to cause deformations and rapid wear, sources of operating faults and, by thereafter, of immobilizations.

 The invention aims to remedy these disadvantages by proposing a movable felt swing around its support and a d-'a-vance device, which is remarkable in that the felt takes the form of a flexible sheath. loose rise around the support axes and in that the associated advance device is constituted by a vertical or inclined plane furnished with a non-slip material with which the swing comes into bearing contact during its downward movement to move the felt d 'a fraction of a turn around its support.

 The invention provides an interesting improvement to this technique because the risk of sticking disappears completely.

 Indeed, each new load is deposited on a sufficiently dry surface to avoid any sticking.

 It increases, on the other hand, the longevity of the felt because it works ~ only on a fraction of its total area at the time.

 We can possibly dispense with farinaceous because the surface which has just been occupied by a load will not be rtirt until the third following cycle.

 The risk of sticking is thus completely avoided without resorting to additional heat energy.

 Other technical characteristics and advantages will appear on reading the following description of an embodiment of the present invention, made with reference to the accompanying drawing in which the single figure represents the swing seen schematically in section in its main positions when unloading, advancing the felt and reloading.

 The swing 1 according to the ~ inyention is conventionally constituted by two support pins 2 and 3 held parallel by two identical end pieces, such as 4, u profiled contours 5.

 Each part 4 has a passage 6 for a pivot axis secured to the conveyor chain.

 A receiving mat in the form of a textile sheath 7, for example made of felt, is mounted in loose contact around the axes 2 and 3 so as to hold the dough pieces 8 on its upper surface which sags slightly under the weight.

 The loose contact allows the sheath 7 to move around the support formed by the two axes 2 and 3 by turning on itself by the effect of an external drive.

 This is the role of the advance device 9 with which the swing comes into contact when it descends along the small shank after tilting and unloading on an auxiliary conveyor 10 and before its new presentation at the loading station 11.

 The path of the swing is determined so as to present, just after tilting, a curve and a straight portion bringing it into bearing contact with the outer face 12 of the planar support 13 of the advancing device 9.

 The outer face is lined with a layer 14 of non-slip material, for example shaped in grooves 15 perpendicular to the direction of movement of the swing or marked with streaks or any other particular configuration or association of effects produced by the material and resulting from successions of shapes.

 The support, fixed to the frame of the swing chamber, has conventional means 16 for adjusting the contact pressure and for taking up wear. It is for example mounted in elastic thrust return by compression springs or any other means 17. An inclined ramp 18, present in the upper part, allows a gradual entry into contact.

 The total length of the support of the advance device is determined so as to represent, in the developed form, a fraction of the length of the perimeter of the sheath 7.

 We will now explain the different operating phases of the swing and its advance device according to the intention.

 At the end of the journey, the end pieces 4 each sort of it in thrust contact with a reversing stop (not shown) causing the swinging of the swing and thus its unloading.

 The sheath 7 released from the tension caused by the weight of the dough pieces returns to its loose position.

 The support of the advance device 9 is placed so that the swing comes into thrust contact with its external face 12 during the descent along the small shank.

 The loose contact at the level of the ramp 18 becomes narrower from the start of the non-slip surface 14 in order to carry out a non-slip drive which rotates the sheath on itself by a fraction of a turn corresponding, in developed, to the length contact with the flat support 13.

 The above description was made on an exemplary embodiment of the invention. It is understood that it cannot be limited thereto and that various simple modifications and substitutions in the field of equivalents fully fall within its scope.

Claims (5)

 1. improved swing with textile mat and its advancing device forming an assembly characterized in that the carpet of the swing (1) is mounted freely around its support and in that it comes into bearing contact with a flat support (13) vertical or inclined during its descent along the shank between its tilting and its reloading for the movement without sliding of a fraction of a turn of the textile carpet around its support.  2. Assembly according to claim 1 characterized in that the contact surface (12) of the planar support (13) is provided with a layer or a thickness of non-slip material.  3. An assembly according to claims 1 and 2 characterized in that the layer or the thickness of non-slip material (14) is shaped in grooves (15) parallel to the direction of movement of the swing or has streaks.  4. An assembly according to claim 1 characterized in that the planar support (13) comprises an inclined ramp (18) along its upper edge.  5. An assembly according to claim 1 characterized in that the textile carpet for receiving the dough pieces (8) assumes the shape of a sheath (7) mounted floating around the two parallel carrying axes so as to allow easy movement of the sheath around of the internal support formed of the carrying axes in order to offer, during the next loading, a new surface which is sufficiently dry to avoid any sticking.