GB1277741A - A method of and apparatus for peeling pineapples - Google Patents

Abstract

1277741 Apparatus for peeling pineapples ATLAS PACIFIC ENG CO 10 June 1969 29465/69 Heading A4C A method of peeling pineapples comprises rotating the fruit through at least one substantially complete turn while performing a first cutting operation to remove substantially all the rough peel portions and subsequently rotating the fruit through at least one substantially complete turn while performing a second cutting operation to remove substantially all the uncut peel material remaining after the first cutting operations. The cutting operations may be performed, using helical or annular cuts, at one location or at two spaced zones or the first operation may be performed in two stages at spaced locations 39, 41, Fig.2, at a first zone 38 and the second operation may be performed in two stages at spaced locations 43, 45 at a second zone 40. Before peeling a fruit is centred with respect to a hollow, finned spindle 49, which makes a first core cut, by fingers 57, the fruit being then passed stepwise to locations 39, 41 where cutters 65 and (67), (69), Fig.3 (not shown) and (71, 72) respectively make first and second sets of spaced annular cuts. The fruit is then moved stepwise to locations 43, 45 where similar spaced cuts are effected to perform the second cutting operation. The spindle 49 is rotated through substantially one revolution at each location and each cutter makes a cut in a place substantially parallel to the plane of the tangent to the fruit surface adjacent that cutter. The cut peel is collected separately from zones 38 and 40. The peeled fruit is removed from spindle 49 by a pusher (75), Figs.1, 8 (not shown) and forced on to a coring tube (77) which makes a second core cut, an annular section then being cut from the periphery by a stationary or rotated cutting tube (83), Fig.9 (not shown), this annular section being cut into segments by radial blades (85). Each cutter may comprise a cutter head 91, Fig.4, having a cutter 119 rotated on a shaft 109 in a stationary housing 93, a cut-depth gauge 123, adjustable relative to cutter 119 but movable therewith parallel to the shaft axis towards, or away from, a fruit by an actuating cylinder 97, or a spring 101, respectively. Cutter 119 has a flat face 120 for riding over the fruit, peripheral cutting teeth (121), Figs. 5, 6 (not shown), and sharpened projections 126 on the opposite face to face 120 which separate the cut peel into segments. The cutter heads may move from one work zone to the next with the spindles 49.