FR2774857A1 - Stainless steel rack and dividers for holding and turning maturing cheeses - Google Patents

Abstract

A stainless steel rack (1) for holding and turning maturing cheeses has stainless steel dividers (10) welded onto it. The dividers are steel wires shaped into a series of Vs. The four corners of the rack have stainless steel wire feet (7) which allow the racks to be stacked.

Description

 The present invention relates to a wire partitioning which is an integral part of racks used for automatic turning when ripening cheeses.

 The current partitioning is on the one hand a removable element and on the other hand made of plastic.

However, these partitions are not entirely satisfactory. In fact, during their use, they deteriorate and fragments of plastic material can become integrated into the food product (cheese, etc.
The principle in itself implies a certain fragility which results in a limited lifespan leading to their frequent replacement, and significant maintenance and renewal costs.

 The present invention proposes to remedy these drawbacks by integrating the partitioning on the rack itself, this partitioning being of the same nature as the rack, namely stainless steel wires and welded thereon.

 Thanks to this principle and to the material used, any risk of fragmentation and pollution of the food product is eliminated on the one hand, and on the other hand the lifetime of the partition becomes that of the stainless steel rack, that is to say a thirty years minimum.

 Furthermore, in the event of an incident, the consequences are limited to the simple twisting of part of the wire or the breaking of a welding spot, damage that is very easily repairable.

 In addition, the proposed invention has the advantage of directly meeting the requirements of hygiene and sanitation standards in the food industry (ease of cleaning, minimum retention, etc.).

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below, by way of nonlimiting example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which,
- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a rack
ripening according to the invention.

- Figure 2 is a perspective view of the part
partitioning according to the invention.

- Figure 3 is a detail of the wire (11) 3 mm bent in V
forming the partitioning.

- Figure 4 is a detail of the wire (12) 3 mm bent in V
forming the partitioning.

 - Figure 5 is a drawing of the foot (7) of the rack.

- Figure 6 is a perspective view of 2 racks
stacked one above the other at the time of
automatic turning, conform to the invention.

 The ripening rack which is shown in FIG. (1) has been designed more particularly for the ripening of cheeses, but there is nothing to prevent it being used for other purposes.

 It consists of a grid part (1) made of stainless steel wires (3 and 4) spot welded on a welding press or with filler, ie MIG or TIG, etc., and 4 feet (7) , all welded in a frame (2).

 The grid (1) consists of wires (4) of 2.4 mm, spaced apart by a certain value which depends on the product produced (for example 19 mm), and welded on wires (3) perpendicular to 3 mm.

 The frame (2) is formed by 2 wires (5) of 6 mm welded on 2 perpendicular crosspieces (6) of the same diameter.

 These 2 crosspieces (6) have a form of loop at each end intended to receive, when superimposing other racks (Figure 6), the feet (7) of the upper rack.

 The 4 feet (7) (figure 5) consist of 2 or 3 elements (8 and 9) of 5 mm stainless steel wire bent and welded together on the 4 loops of the frame (2) of the rack so that they allow the superposition by penetration of the feet (7) into each other, and this, on a fixed depth and identical to all the feet (7). The elements (8) and (9) constituting these feet (7) are 2 wires bent in a V, one of which (8) with returns positioned upside down with respect to the other (9) is welded thereon. ci (Figure 5, the height spacing each rack being delimited by the distance between the upper part of the feet (7) and the returns of the wire (8) placed upside down.

 Throughout the manufacturing and ripening process, the cheeses are placed on the rack (1) of the racks.

 To keep them in position during automatic turnarounds, removable plastic partitions are currently used.

 The proposed invention shows for its part (Figure 1, Figure 2, and Figure 6) the partitioning part (10), consisting of stainless steel wires (11) of 3 mm longitudinal with folds forming waves welded on wires (12 ) in stainless steel of the same diameter and linked in the same way, forming waves and placed perpendicular to the first cities.

 These wires (11) and (12) are in turn welded to the grid part (1) of the rack as in FIG. 1.

 The perpendicular waves thus welded delimit spaces inside which the cheeses will be positioned and maintained during the manufacturing process (Figure 6).

The dimensions of the different folds make it possible to manufacture racks with partitions (10) intended for all kinds of cheeses varying by their shape (square, round, etc.), by their dimensions (diameter, etc.), etc.
On the other hand, this partitioning (10) presented by the invention could also be produced from stainless steel dishes (or any other shape), welded together perpendicularly, or made up of elements of stainless steel wires which are not folded, welded perpendicularly to form storage spaces always intended for positioning and maintaining cheeses, in turn connected to the grid part of the rack by a multitude of ends of straight wires of height equivalent to that of the waves of the elements folded in function of the manufactured product.

Claims (9)

 1) ripening rack intended more particularly for ripening cheese, but which can find other applications in the food industry of the type comprising a grid (1) welded into a frame (2) resting on 4 feet (7) characterized in that this grid (1) receives a partition (10) welded thereon.  2) Refining rack according to claim 1 characterized in that the partition (10) includes stainless steel wire elements (11) and (12) welded perpendicularly to each other forming storage spaces.  3) Refining rack according to claim 2 characterized in that the partition (10) comprises elements in folded son so that the folds form a succession of V connected together in their upper part by welding.  4) Refining rack according to claim 3 characterized in that the lower parts of the V formed are in contact with the grid (1) and welded at these locations.  5) Refining rack according to claims 3 and 4 characterized in that the upper parts of the V form the partitions space (10).  6) Refining rack according to claim 1 characterized in that the frame (2) has at its four angles a form of loop formed by bending the son (6) inside which penetrate the end of the feet (7) .  7) Refining rack according to claim 6 characterized in that the feet (7) made of elements (8 and 9) bent in V and welded, so that they allow the superposition by penetration into the loops of the frame (2), one inside the other by defining a precise height.  8) Refining rack according to claim 1 characterized in that the elements are all interconnected by spot welding on a welding press or by welding with MIG or TIG type input.  9) Refining rack according to claim 2 characterized in that the elements may consist of all or part of elements in stainless steel dish or any other starting form.