FR2775882A1 - Juice press for citrus fruit - Google Patents

Abstract

The hand press for extracting juice from fruits has a hollow casing (1) with a base (4) and an open upper end supporting a press body (2) against which the fruit is pressed. The press body has grooves (5) to duct away the fruit juice. The gap between the press body and casing (11) forms a filter.

Description

I

HAND CITRUS PRESS

  The object of the present invention is to provide a hand-operated citrus press, intended for extracting the juice of citrus fruits, and more precisely an apparatus comprising a rigid hollow body closed by an element of lesser hardness serving as a pressing body, and which can also make

  filter office when combined with the hollow body.

  Commercial juicers generally include a pressing body having the approximate shape of a semiellipsoid (hereinafter for simplicity, cone) which has ribs on its peripheral surface, as well as receptacles for juice and / or filters to retain the pulp of pressed fruit. On this pressing body, we press by hand the fruit halves we want

  express the juice and rotate them relative to the cone.

  Due to the forces generated during pressing, it is necessary to hold the juicer with the other hand to prevent rotation, sliding or even tilting of the device. This has the effect of limiting the force used to squeeze the citrus fruit to that produced by one hand, and forces the apparatus to have to rest on a level

fixed.

  In addition, the position of the hand, for good stability of the device, is generally located near the cone, which exposes the hand to possible projections of

citrus-like juice.

  These filter citrus presses are relatively complex, unattractive, and often composed of several coaxial elements requiring their adjustment by means of pins, using notch and lug system allowing the rotation of these

  aforementioned elements, with respect to each other.

  In addition, they are subject to difficult maintenance, particularly at the level of the filter, which is quickly obstructed during their use by excessive production of waste, such as

than pulp residue.

  Finally, they do not allow the juice extracted from

  several citrus fruits (3 or 4), conveniently, in their own juice receptacle.

  The present invention aims to solve these problems by proposing a citrus press of the type mentioned above, which has the following characteristics: - simplicity of design; - convenience of use and maintenance; - pleasing to the eye; - total freedom from the work plan; - use of mechanical force with both hands; splash protection; - reduction in the production of waste;

- use as a drinking glass.

  These objectives are achieved in accordance with the invention, thanks to the fact that the citrus juicer comprises a rigid body provided with a bottom which can be grasped with full hand and the upper part of which flares in the shape of a guard, on which is positioned coaxially an ellipsodfdal pressing body partially closing it, the shape of which is hollowed out by grooves, according to a number of generatrices leading the liquids to the bottom of the hollow body, and separating the shape into oblong bulges which make it possible to crush the pulp of citrus fruits without

shred it.

  It is therefore understood that this citrus press is of an extremely simple design, since it is composed of only two parts, namely a hollow body or rigid receptacle, preferably made of glass or metal in particular, and a full pressing body, rubber or synthetic rubber, or any other material soft enough to adhere to the hollow body and adapt to its defects, without further deforming

  measure and question its form and usefulness.

  Thus when the fruit halves are pressed, the vertical pressure exerted by the hand, through the fruit, crushes the material of the pressing body against the more rigid material of the hollow body, blocking the rotation of the first relative to the second. , ensuring a

  good adhesion and the holding of the parts of the device together.

  Therefore, by holding the device with one hand, you can oppose the

  rotation of the citrus fruit that we are screwing with the other hand.

  It is also possible because of the characteristic of the hollow body to be graspable with the full hand, to use with both hands, each in a contrary gyratory gesture to screw the citrus and the apparatus, one with respect to the other, and cumulate advantageously

  the work of both hands to press the citrus.

  In a preferred embodiment, the citrus press has the general form of a circular revolution, the hollow body and the pressing body being both forms of circular revolution, arranged coaxially the first closed by the second like a cap. Furthermore the possibility of an elliptical revolution of the two

parts is not to be excluded.

  In addition, in accordance with the invention, the bulges of the pressing body generated by the hollowed out grooves which have the function of recovering and conducting the juice, once combined with the walls of the hollow body, release a series of openwork acting as filtered;

  openwork which allows the passage of liquids but retains what is larger.

  In order to reduce the production of waste essentially responsible for plugging the filters, the pressing body has domed bulges with rounded sides, the sole purpose of which is to compress the pulp of the fruit and to burst the multiple pockets of juice thereof, without trying to shred it or tear it off, like the

  most ribbed citrus juicers.

  In addition, each bulge is terminated at its ends by a head allowing it to prick the half citrus fruit around its core, stabilizing the fruit before pressing. The guard due to the widening of the hollow body makes it possible to protect the hand holding the hollow body when it is positioned below it. Once combined with the ellipsoidal shape of the pressing body, it offers a peripheral groove for collecting possible waste, such as seeds and pulp residues, which can themselves be extracted if necessary, manually with an accessory provided for this purpose. effect or with a kitchen utensil

  current such as a spoon or knife.

  The characteristic of the pressing body to be an independent part, allows it to dissociate from the receptacle which enchases it and to offer the capacity, once it

  outlet, drink directly from the receptacle.

  Other advantages and characteristics of the invention are highlighted

  in the following description, given by way of nonlimiting example, with reference to the drawings

  attached in which: - Figure 1 is a general perspective view of a citrus juicer

  according to the invention, the latter being shown in the disassembled state.

  - Figure 2-3 are similar views of the same juicer, which is shown in the assembled state respectively in its position of use and in one of its

rest positions.

  - Figure 4 is a sectional view of the apparatus in the use position, according to

  the section plane designated A-B in FIG. 5.

  FIG. 5 is a top view of the device in the use position,

  showing the adjustment of the two parts generating the openwork series acting as a filter.

  - Figure 6 is a sectional view of the apparatus in the rest position, according to

  the section plane designated E-F in FIG. 7.

  - Figure 7 is a top view of the apparatus in the rest position.

  - Figures 8 to 10 are partial views of the juicer, showing

variant of the pressing body.

  - Figure 11 is a partial sectional view of the apparatus in the position of

  rest, along the section plane designated C-D in FIG. 4.

  - Figure 12 is a perspective view of the apparatus, showing the

  tilting of the pressing body relative to the receptacle.

  - Figures 13 to 15 are perspective views of the citrus juicer,

  representing modes of use of the citrus juicer.

  FIG. 16 is a cut perspective view of the juicer,

  representing a global vision of the invention.

  The juicer shown in Figures 1 to 7 is made in two

  part. A pressing body 2 is positioned on a hollow body I.

  The rigid body 1 receives the body 2 which is also rigid, but with a soft surface

  allowing it to adhere to body 2 under slight pressure.

  The body 1 has a cylindrical appearance, with an axis of revolution XX '.

  This axis is vertical, when the body is placed on a horizontal support.

  The body I has an open tubular wall and flared at one end. 3 (end turned upwards in Figures 1, 2, 4 and downwards in Figures 3, 6) and closed by a bottom 4 at the opposite end. It fits easily in the hand, as we

see in Figure 13.

  This body is preferably made of glass, but perhaps for example of steel

stainless or aluminum.

  The pressing body 2 has a general ellipsoidal shape ridged symmetrical along a plane equidistant from its two poles 6 and 7 (poles aligned vertically in position

  of use, figures 1-2-4 and aligned horizontally in the optional rest position, figures 3-

  6). The body 2 is made of food-grade plastic material having a hardness comparable to that of an eraser without being flexible, but sufficiently rigid to support crushing without being too deformed. It may be a solid piece cast in the middle, but shown in FIGS. 4 and 6 in hollow for reasons of saving material, the cavity 10 having to be isolated from the outside for ease maintenance. The production of the part can be carried out for example, by an injection process assisted by gas or by rotational molding. Other embodiments can be envisaged such as for example the use of a gum varnish on a rigid polymer body or else a bi-material injection meeting the requirements of tenderness on the surface of the part.

  for a first material and internal rigidity for the second.

  The ridges of the pressing body are made of grooves 5 hollowed out according to a number of generatrices (preferably presented in number eight, FIGS. 1 to 3,

but by way of example only).

  The section of these grooves 5 (FIG. 11) is rounded joining the bulges 8 side by side by a gentle curvature in order to avoid possible pulp waste from sticking to it. But without questioning the interest of the grooves of other section of the type

  triangular for example may be considered.

  These grooves arise from a cap 6 to join another symmetrical 7 forming a series of bulges 8 arranged radially around the axis of revolution XX '. Each end of the bulges ends with a rounded top (or head)

  9, forming a crown around the caps 7 and 6, as many heads as there are bulges.

  Variants of the body 2 shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 can be envisaged: the bulges which can meet at two opposite extreme points, or have heads of different sizes, more or less high, or even heads merged with the cap ( Figure 8); the general shape can be asymmetrical, leaner at one pole and more swollen at the opposite pole, making it possible to adapt the juicer to different citrus gabari (Figure 9 and). The body 2 in its mode of use, closes off the body 1 (FIG. 4), and generates at their contact, either a closure 12 or an openwork 11 corresponding respectively to the contact of the flare 3 with a bulge 8 thus that the vacuum formed by the

  withdrawal towards the interior of the body 1 of the grooves 5 relative to the flare 3.

  Thus during the crushing of the citrus fruit in use mode (FIG. 4) the grooves 5 collect and conduct the juice through the flare 3 through the openwork 11 towards the bottom of the hollow body 1, while the waste and more particularly the glitches are blocked there, the space

  void of the openwork being of a size smaller than that of a glitch.

  The contact points 12, as numerous as there are bulges, make it possible to prevent the body 2 from falling into the body 1, the maximum outside diameter of the body 2 being greater than the minimum inside diameter of the body 1. The ellipsoid shape of the body 2 makes it possible to adjust from the conical flare 3 in which it is embedded, when the pole-to-pole axis YY 'of the body 2 is tilted forward (FIGS. 12 and 15) relative to the axis of XX 'revolution of the body 1, by a

pivot effect.

  After cleaning, the hollow body 1 is offered the possibility of being overturned

  in order to drain, as shown in Figure 3, flare 3 at the bottom and bottom 4 at the top.

  A slight cavity 13 is provided for this purpose (FIGS. 3 and 6) at the bottom of the hollow body 1 allowing the latter, once returned, to wedge the pressing body 2, bulge 8

  against cavity 13, pending a next use.

  In addition, we can consider rounding the bottom around its entire periphery in order to

facilitates maintenance.

  It goes without saying that many variants can be made, in particular by substitution of equivalent technical means, without departing from the scope of the invention. Such a pressing device can be used to press very different citrus fruits, such as for example oranges, lemons, clemantines but also all similar fruits

able to express a juice.

  It is clear that the materials used and the dimensions of the pressing body

  will be adapted to the nature of the fruit concerned.

  The same goes for the receptacle and the quantity of fruit to be pressed. As an indication, a variable volume of 150 ml to 250 ml may be provided for the receptacle, in order to contain a sufficient quantity of liquid to justify its particularity of

drink glass without moving away.

  In all cases, the pressing body must have a sufficient height relative to the flaring of the receptacle, to allow the pressing of the whole fruit, without

  that there is blocking by the flaring of the latter at a given time.

  As the constituent material of the receptacle, mention will be made, next to the metal and glass already mentioned, of plastics, transparent, translucent or opaque, colored or not, as well as porcelain. Moreover, it could be made of composite material, combining

  different materials in their nature and / or appearance.

  As already said, the nature of the pressing body makes it possible not only to meet the need to squeeze the semi-citrus fruits, but also to offer the filter service, and ultimately once extracted, to let the user drink directly in the receptacle. Drinking glass receptacle that allows the user to use both hands to

squeeze the citrus.

Claims (9)

  1. Citrus press, characterized in that it comprises a rigid hollow body (1) provided with a bottom (4) and a flaring in its upper part (3), in which a pressing body is blocked rigid (2) of soft surface adhering to the hollow body (1) under   the effect of manual pressure, hollowed out by a series of grooves (5) passing through the flare.   2. Citrus juicer according to claim 1, characterized in that   the grooves (5) run through the pressing body (2) from one top (6) to the other (7).   3. Citrus press according to claim I and 2, characterized in that the aforesaid grooves (5) release a series of openwork (11) between the pressing body (2) and the flare (3), and divide the pressing body in a series of bulges (8) locally in contact with the flare (3).   4. Citrus press according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in   that the above bulges (8) are rounded, completely devoid of sharp corners.   5. Citrus press according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in   that the bulges (8) end at each of their two ends with a rounded head (9) whose meetings crown the opposite vertices (6) and (7) of the body of pressing (1).   6. Citrus press according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in   that the pressing body (2) has the shape of an elongated ellipsoid of revolution.   7. Citrus press according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in   that the hollow body (1) is a form of revolution, coinciding with the pressing body (2).   8. Citrus press according to claim 1, characterized in that said   hollow body (1) is dimensioned so that it can be taken with the full hand.   9. Citrus press according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that   that the outside of the bottom (4) of the hollow body (1) is concave and adjusts to the bulges (8) of the   pressing body (2), wedging the latter.