JP2000189072A - Method and apparatus for continuously molding konjak - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus for continuously molding konjak, in which the heat coagulation of a mixed konjak raw material can be carried out without requiring a large quantity of high-pressure steam and both miniaturization and compactification can be realized. SOLUTION: This apparatus has platform conveyors 2 and 3 placed up and down, and heating pipelines 4 and 5 housed in the conveyors 2 and 3, respectively, emitting steam to a konjak raw material placed on carriers 38 of conveyors. The konjak raw material is overturned when transferred from the upper conveyor 3 to the lower one 2 and is made to cause heat coagulation by steam discharged from the pipelines 4 and 5.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a konnyaku in which lime water adjusted to a konnyaku raw material is mixed and kneaded, and then continuously extruded mixed konnyaku raw material is heated and solidified to form a desired shape. The present invention relates to a continuous molding method and an apparatus therefor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a method for producing board konjac,
First, konnyaku raw material is made, lime water is mixed while kneading the konnyaku raw material to make a mixed konnyaku raw material, and the mixed konnyaku raw material is heated and solidified to obtain a raw konnyaku mass. Next, the original konnyaku mass is cut into a plurality of pieces of konnyaku to form a board konnyaku product.

[0003] The boiling of the mixed konjac raw material is carried out by passing it through hot water heated by high-pressure steam. A hot water tank for storing the hot water usually has a gutter-like structure having a length of about 10 m. In order to make the water stored in the hot water tank a predetermined hot water, a fixed amount of high-pressure steam is supplied to the hot water tank beforehand to adjust the temperature of the hot water before introducing the mixed konjac raw material. There is a need.

[0004] A cutter provided with a rotary blade is disposed at the outlet of the hot water tank, and the solidified konjac mass is cut into predetermined konjac product dimensions.

[0005] In a conventional continuous molding machine for continuously cutting the boiled mixed konjac raw material and the solidified konjac raw mass, the mixed konnyaku raw material is boiled in hot water with good thermal efficiency, and the mixed konnyaku raw material is molded. Unlike the method of filling individual boxes, the structure is extremely simple,
There is an advantage that the size of the width and the thickness can be changed.

[0006]

However, in the conventional continuous molding machine, a large amount of high-pressure steam is required to raise the temperature of water before the operation is started, and the production cost of konjac is high. . In addition, since a hot water tank is used to coagulate the mixed konjac raw material, the height is bulky, reaching approximately 2 m, and the length is long, so that space cannot be saved. There is.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems in the conventional continuous molding machine, and can heat and coagulate a mixed konjac raw material without requiring a large amount of high-pressure steam and save space. It is intended to provide a konjac continuous molding method and apparatus capable of realizing compactness.

[0008]

According to the konjac continuous molding method of the present invention, the conveyors whose transport directions are opposite to each other are arranged in multiple stages in the vertical direction, and the konnyaku raw material continuously discharged is transported to the uppermost conveyor. It is necessary to transfer the konjac raw material from the upper conveyor to the lower conveyor, invert the konjac raw material while heating and solidifying the konjac raw material, while supplying steam on the body and releasing the steam from the heating pipes stored in each conveyor. And

A continuous konjac molding apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention comprises a conveyor arranged in multiple stages in a vertical direction, and a heating pipe for discharging steam for heating konnyaku raw materials housed in each conveyor and transported by the conveyor. The gist is that the konjac raw material is inverted by transferring the konjac raw material from the upper conveyor to the lower conveyor, and the konjac raw material being conveyed is heated and solidified by steam released from the heating pipe.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a continuous konjac molding apparatus, wherein a conveyer body is formed in a gutter-like shape by plates laid on a plurality of chains circulating in parallel and side walls of both sides of the plates rising substantially vertically. The gist of the present invention is as follows.

[0011] The konjac continuous molding apparatus according to claim 4 is characterized in that it is configured to discharge low-pressure steam from a heating pipe.

[0012] The konjac continuous forming apparatus according to claim 5 is characterized in that the structure of the heating pipe is formed in an H-shape in the first half of the conveyor and the second half of the conveyor in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor.

The konnyaku continuous molding apparatus according to claim 6 is characterized in that a cutting device for cutting the solidified konnyaku lump into a predetermined product size is provided at the outlet of the lower conveyor.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cutting device for receiving a chunk for receiving an original konnyaku lump sent from a lower conveyor, a roller conveyer disposed on an outlet side of the chute, and a chunk for konnyaku original lump disposed on the roller conveyer. It can be composed of a vertically-rotating rotary blade that cuts in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor, and a transverse cutting blade that is disposed near the rotary blade and cuts the konnyaku lump in the width direction of the conveyor.

According to the konjac continuous molding method of the first aspect, the steam is released from the heating pipe housed in each conveyor,
Moreover, the konjac raw material is inverted when transferring from the upper conveyor to the lower conveyor, so that the konjac raw material can be uniformly heated and solidified.

According to the konnyaku continuous forming apparatus of the second aspect, the konnyaku raw material is transferred from the upper conveyor to the lower conveyor in the step of heating and coagulating the konjac raw material, so that the installation space of the continuous forming apparatus can be saved. . Also, without the need for a water tank, directly by the steam released from the heating pipe,
Since the konnyaku raw material being conveyed is solidified by heating, energy saving and a compact apparatus can be achieved.

According to the konnyaku continuous molding apparatus of the third aspect, when the original konjac mass is transferred to the lower conveyor and turned over, the upper surface of the konnyaku original mass contacts the plate surface of the lower conveyor, so that the original konjac mass can be made smoother. Can be formed on a surface having a good appearance. In addition, the konjac raw material discharged from the continuous body discharging machine is arranged in a sheet having a constant width.

According to the konjac continuous molding apparatus of the fourth aspect, since the heating and coagulation are performed with low-pressure steam, energy saving can be achieved as compared with the case where the temperature of the water in the boiler tank is raised with high-pressure steam.

According to the konjac continuous molding apparatus of the fifth aspect, the conveyor body can be heated uniformly.

According to the konjac continuous forming apparatus of the sixth aspect, since the conveyor and the cutting device are formed separately, the cutting dimension can be easily adjusted according to the product size.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on one embodiment shown in the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a front view showing the structure of a continuous konjac molding apparatus used for carrying out the continuous konjac molding method of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG.

In both figures, the konjac continuous molding apparatus 1 comprises a lower conveyor 2 and an upper conveyor 3 which are arranged vertically.
A heating pipe 4 that discharges and heats the konjac raw material stored in the lower conveyor 2 and conveyed by the conveyor, and a heating pipe that is stored in the upper conveyor 3 and also discharges steam. 5 is provided.

The lower conveyor 2 is fixed on a shallow box 20a of the gantry 20, and has a floor level F. It is supported at a predetermined height above L. A motor 21 is provided below the right end corresponding to the outlet of the lower conveyor 2,
The drive gear 23 of the lower conveyor 2 is rotated in the direction of arrow A via the chain 22. The motor 21 is fixed to a support member 25 suspended from the shallow box 20a.

A motor 31 for driving the upper conveyor 3 is provided below the left end of the lower conveyor 2. The drive gear 33 of the upper conveyor 3 is rotated in the direction of arrow B via a chain 32. It is made to let.

The upper conveyor 3 is slightly shorter than the lower conveyor 2 and a plurality of leg members 3
And the lower conveyor 2 via the leg members 34.
Is mounted on the frame 24. In the upper conveyor 3, near the right end corresponding to the konjac raw material introduction side,
A conventionally known konjac continuous discharge machine (not shown) is arranged. This continuous konjac discharge machine mixes lime water adjusted while kneading the konnyaku raw material, and discharges the konnyaku raw material from the discharge nozzle N onto a carrier (described later) of the upper conveyor 3. Reference numeral 5 denotes a workbench on which an operator gets on and off to operate the konjac continuous discharger 4.

At the outlet side of the lower conveyor 2, there is arranged a cutting device 6 for cutting the konjac raw mass heated and solidified during the conveyor conveyance to a product size.

Hereinafter, the configuration of each section will be described in detail.

In FIG. 2, the upper conveyor 3 has a rectangular frame 35, and a drive shaft 33 is provided at the left end thereof. The drive shaft 33 is provided with a drive gear 33a and sprockets 33b, 33c. I have. A driven shaft 36 having sprockets 36a and 36b is provided at the right end of the frame 35.

Endless chains 37a and 37b are respectively stretched in parallel with the sprockets 33b and 36a and the sprockets 33c and 36b, and a carrier plate 38 as a carrier is attached to the chains 37a and 37b. Have been.

As shown in FIG. 3, the carrier plate 38 has a band-shaped plate portion 38a and its plate portion 38a.
And a side wall portion 38b vertically raised on both sides in the width direction of the upper conveyor 3, and a tub-like passage is formed by continuously forming a plurality of the upper conveyors 3 in the longitudinal direction. At both ends of the plate portion 38a, mounting plates 38c, 38c for fixing the carrier plate 38 to the chains 37a and 37b are provided outward.

A heating pipe 5 for discharging low-pressure steam into the conveyor is provided inside the upper conveyor 3. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the heating pipe 5 is branched from the main pipe section 5a at a substantially central portion of the upper conveyor 3, and the branched pipe sections 5b and 5c are parallel to each other in the conveyor width. Is inserted in the upper conveyor 3 in the direction of
° and extends in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor, and is connected to the first H-shaped pipe portion 5d.

The first H-shaped pipe portion 5d is connected to the upper conveyor 3
Are arranged so as to be able to uniformly heat the entire upper conveyor 3. Similarly, the branch pipe part 5c is bent and extended in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor by 90 ° in the same manner as described above, and the second H-shaped pipe part 5e arranged symmetrically with the first H-shaped pipe part 5d. Is connected to

Further, as shown in the sectional view of FIG. L at a position 30 ° downward from the vertical center line V.L. The steam discharge holes 5f, 5f are provided symmetrically about L. The steam discharge holes 5f, 5f are formed at regular intervals in the peripheral wall of the heating pipe 5.

As described above, the upper conveyor 3 has its upper and lower surfaces closed by the carrier plate 38 and both side surfaces are closed by the frames 35, 35, and the heating pipe 5 is inserted therein. By discharging steam from the pipe 5, the entire upper conveyor 3 can be uniformly heated.

The lower conveyor 2 also houses a heating pipe 4 basically having the same configuration as the heating pipe 5 stored in the upper conveyor 3. However, since the lower conveyor 3 is configured to be longer than the upper conveyor 3, the H-shaped tube accommodated in the lower conveyor 2 is formed longer than that accommodated in the upper conveyor 3 (FIG. 2). Medium, 4d, 4e). The H-shaped tube 5
The tube 5g connected to d and 5e extends from the frame 35 to support the H-shaped tube portion 5e.

Next, the structure of the cutting device 6 will be described with reference to a front view shown in FIG. 5 and a right side view shown in FIG. In FIG. 5, the cutting device 6 includes a chute 60 that receives the original konnyaku lump sent out from the exit side of the lower conveyor 2, a roller conveyor 61 disposed on the exit side of the chute 60, and disposed on the roller conveyor 61. A vertical rotating blade 62 for cutting the konjac raw mass in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor, and a transverse cutting blade 63a disposed near the vertical rotary blade 62 for cutting the konjac raw mass in the width direction of the conveyor.

The guide plates 6 are provided on both sides of the chute 60 in the width direction.
0a is formed vertically, and a guide plate 60b is formed so that both sides on the roller conveyor 61 are continuous with the guide plate 60a. To the cutting position.

Each roller 61a of the roller conveyor 61 is provided with a sprocket 61b (see FIG. 6).
A chain 61c meshes with each sprocket 61b.
The chain 61c is provided with a driving force by a driving gear 64a fixed to a driving shaft of a motor 64, and is driven by a driven gear 6 disposed at both ends in the transfer direction of the roller conveyor 61 in a state where tension is applied by a tension gear 61d.
When the chain 61c goes around via 1e and 61f,
The rollers 61a meshed with the chain 61c simultaneously rotate in the same direction.

The vertical cutting blade 62 is mounted on a rotating shaft 62a arranged in parallel with the roller 61 at an interval corresponding to the product size. A driven gear 62b is fixed to one end of the rotating shaft 62a. I have. The driven gear 62b meshes with a drive gear 65b fixed to a drive shaft 65a of the motor 65. On the other hand, as for the roller 61g disposed below the vertical cutting blade 62, a concave groove 61g 'for forming a part of the cutting edge of the vertical cutting blade 62 is formed.

A transverse mechanism 63 for moving the transverse blade 63a up and down in the direction of arrow D is provided downstream of the vertical rotating blade 62 in the direction of conveyor movement.

More specifically, the traversing mechanism 63 has a band-shaped transverse cutting blade 63a and an air cylinder 63b for raising and lowering the transverse cutting blade 63a. The crossing blade 63a is attached through the intermediary. This cross cutting blade 6
3a descends between the rollers 61g.
In the drawing, 63e is a support member for supporting the air cylinder 63b, and 66 is a gantry for supporting the roller conveyor 61.

The above-mentioned vertical cutting rotary blade 62 can be easily removed from the rotary shaft 62a, and the vertical cutting rotary blade 62 can be easily removed from the rotary shaft 62a. It can be replaced with a cutting rotary blade. However, in that case, the roller 61g is also replaced with a roller having a concave groove formed at a position corresponding to the vertical cutting rotary blade.

An encoder 7 is attached to a portion of the lower conveyor 2 near the frame outlet, and counts the number of times the side wall portion 38b of the carrier plate 38 passes and outputs the signal as a signal. Then, the count signal is given to the controller 8 and the controller 8
Calculates the moving distance of the konjac chunk based on the count signal, and instructs the air cylinder 63b of the crossing mechanism 63 to cut the konjac chunk. The air cylinder 63b opens and closes a valve by the operation of an electromagnetic solenoid to supply and discharge air.

Next, the operation of the konjac continuous molding machine having the above configuration will be described.

In FIG. 1, when the controller 8 of the continuous konjac molding machine 1 is turned on, the carrier plate 38 of the upper conveyor 3 moves in the direction of arrow E and the carrier plate 38 of the lower conveyor 2 moves in the direction of arrow F. .

In this state, the konjac raw material discharged onto the carrier plate 38 from the discharge nozzle N of the continuous discharger is transported in the direction of arrow E. At this time, the carrier plate 38 of the upper conveyor 3 is heated to approximately 70 ° C. by the low-pressure steam discharged from the heating pipe 5, and the konjac raw material solidifies during the transportation.

The konjac raw material transferred to the left end of the upper conveyor 3 is transferred onto the carrier plate 38 of the lower conveyor 2, and at this time, the konjac raw material is inverted.

The inverted konjac raw material is conveyed in the direction of arrow F, is heated by the steam released from the heating pipe 4 during the conveyance, and is substantially solidified when it reaches the outlet of the lower conveyor 2.

The heated and coagulated konnyaku lump is transferred to the roller conveyor 61 of the cutting device 6 via the chute 60 as shown in FIG.

The original konnyaku lump transferred to the roller conveyor 61 is conveyed in the direction of arrow G, and is first cut in the longitudinal direction of the sheet-like konnyaku lump by passing through the vertically rotating rotary blade 62, and then the transverse cutting blade 63a. Will be cut into product size.

In the present invention, the conveyors arranged in multiple stages in the vertical direction are configured in two stages in the above embodiment, but may be more than two stages. Further, the arrangement of the heating pipe 5 is not limited to the H-shape as long as it can uniformly heat the conveyor, and another arrangement can be used.

[0053]

As is apparent from the above description,
According to the konjac continuous molding apparatus of the first aspect, the konjac raw material is directly heated by the steam discharged from the heating pipe stored in each conveyor, and the konjac raw material is inverted when the konjac raw material is transferred from the upper conveyor to the lower conveyor. Therefore, the konjac raw material can be uniformly heated and solidified.

According to the konjac continuous molding apparatus of the second aspect, the installation space of the continuous molding apparatus can be saved. Further, since the konjac raw material being conveyed is directly heated and solidified by the steam discharged from the heating pipe without the need for a water tank, energy saving and a compact apparatus can be achieved.

According to the continuous konjac molding apparatus of the third aspect, the konjac surface can be smoothed to obtain a product having a good appearance.

According to the konnyaku continuous molding apparatus of the fourth aspect, since the heating and coagulation is performed with low-pressure steam, energy can be saved as compared with the case where the temperature of the water in the boiler tank is raised with high-pressure steam.

According to the konjac continuous molding apparatus of the fifth aspect, the conveyor body can be heated uniformly.

According to the continuous konjac molding apparatus of the sixth aspect, since the conveyor and the cutting device are formed separately, the cutting dimension can be easily adjusted according to the product size.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a continuous konjac molding apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the continuous konjac molding apparatus according to the present invention, which has a cutout.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main part showing a shape of a carrier plate of the conveyor shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the heating pipe shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged front view of a cutting device provided at a conveyor outlet.

FIG. 6 is a right side view having a partial cutout of FIG. 5;

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Konjac continuous forming apparatus 2 Lower conveyor 3 Upper conveyor 4,5 Heating pipe 6 Cutting device 38 Carrier plate 60 Vertical cutting rotary blade 61 Roller conveyor 63 Crossing mechanism 63a Crossing blade

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. Conveyors whose transport directions are opposite to each other are arranged in multiple stages in the vertical direction, and konjac raw materials that are continuously discharged are supplied onto a carrier of an uppermost conveyor, and are stored in each conveyor. A method for continuously forming konjac, comprising transferring the konnyaku raw material from an upper conveyor to a lower conveyor while inverting the konnyaku raw material in a state where steam is released from a pipe, and heating and solidifying the konnyaku raw material. 2. A conveyor arranged in multiple stages in a vertical direction;
A heating pipe for discharging steam for heating the konjac raw material transported by the conveyor, which is stored in each conveyor, and the konjac raw material is inverted by transferring the konjac raw material from the upper conveyor to the lower conveyor. A konjac continuous molding apparatus characterized in that konjac raw material being conveyed is heated and solidified by steam released from a heating pipe. 3. The conveyor according to claim 1, wherein the conveyor is formed in a gutter shape by a plate laid on a plurality of chains that circulate in parallel, and side walls that rise substantially vertically on both sides in the width direction of the plate. 2. The konjac continuous molding apparatus according to 2. 4. The konjac continuous molding apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the apparatus is configured to discharge low-pressure steam from the heating pipe. 5. The continuous konjac forming apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the heating pipes are arranged in an H-shape in the first half of the conveyor and the second half of the conveyor in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor. . 6. The continuous konjac molding apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a cutting device for cutting the solidified konjac mass to a predetermined product size is provided at an outlet of the lower conveyor. 7. A chute for receiving an original konnyaku lump sent from the lower conveyor, a roller conveyor arranged on an outlet side of the chute, and a konjac original lump disposed on the roller conveyor. 7. The konjac continuous forming apparatus according to claim 6, comprising a longitudinally cutting rotary blade for cutting in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor, and a transversely cutting blade arranged near the rotating blade for cutting the original konjac lump in the width direction of the conveyor.