JP2000189083A - Sushi robot - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To diffuse and develop a Sushi robot capable of producing rolled vinegared rice without being noticed by a customer. SOLUTION: This Sushi robot is equipped with a hopper 4 for feeding vinegared cooked rice for Sushi (a), a robot body 3 fixed to a pedestal 1, a mechanism 8 for compressing and transporting the vinegared cooked rice for Sushi (a) from the bottom to the top, a forming hole 18 through which the compressed and formed vinegared cooked rice for Sushi (a) is passed into a fixed shape, a forming block 17 arranged on the top of the mechanism for compressing and transporting the vinegared cooked rice for Sushi, a detecting sensor 43 for detecting the length of compressed and formed vinegared cooked rice (a1) for Sushi pushed out and a pair of shutters 27 and 28 which are opposingly arranged at both the sides of the forming hole 18 on the forming block 17, opened and closed by receiving a detection signal of the compressed and formed vinegared cooked rice (a1) by the sensor 43 and cut the compressed and formed vinegared cooked rice (a1). All these members are built in a Sushi tub 2 stood on the pedestal 1 to constitute the Sushi robot.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sushi robot for automatically producing sushi balls by compressing sushi rice into a predetermined shape and hardness.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, nigiri sushi, which is called Edomae, is a sushi chef holding sushi rice, which is a bite-sized piece of sushi rice, with sushi seeds such as fresh seafood with wasabi on top. It is formed into a predetermined shape by tightening from all sides using the palm and fingers of the hand.

[0003] However, as described above, if the production of nigiri sushi relies on the skills of sushi chefs, the production cost increases. Therefore, sushi balls are automatically manufactured by a machine according to the recent shortage of craftsmen and demands for lowering the cost of manufacturing, etc.
A so-called sushi robot has been developed and is currently used in sushi restaurants and restaurants.

[0004]

However, customers still have a tendency to avoid mechanization, which is a major factor in the spread of sushi robots.

[0005] As a countermeasure, a large number of sushi balls are made using a sushi robot in a place invisible to customers, and the sushi balls are put into a stocker or the like and brought to a shop where sushi is held. There is a problem that time elapses from making a sushi ball to making a nigiri sushi and the quality is deteriorated.

[0006]

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and enables the production of sushi balls using a sushi robot at a sushi restaurant or a restaurant without the customer's knowledge. It aims to develop.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a sushi robot of the present invention is fixed on a pedestal and has a main body provided with a hopper for feeding sushi rice, and a sushi rice moving upward from a lower portion. A sushi rice compression / conveying mechanism for compressing / conveying, a sushi rice molding block disposed on the sushi rice compression / conveying mechanism, and provided with a forming hole for forming the sushi rice to be compressed and conveyed into a predetermined shape; A sensor for detecting the length of the sushi rice extruded, and disposed opposite to both sides of the molding hole on the molding block, receiving the detection signal of the compression molded sushi rice by the sensor and opening and closing to cut the compression molded sushi rice. And a pair of shutters for manufacturing sushi balls, all of which are housed in a sushi tub that is erected on the pedestal.

[0008]

When the switch is turned on, the motor starts and the sushi rice compressing and conveying mechanism operates, and the sushi rice in the hopper is conveyed from the lower part to the upper part, and is pushed into the forming hole of the upper forming block. Since the sushi rice compression transport mechanism has a screw conveyor arranged in a vertically installed sushi rice transport circular hole, sushi rice transported upward from the circular hole is located below a molding hole of the molding block. By pushing the lower end into a large diameter substantially the same as the inner diameter of the circular hole and the upper end into a small diameter and into a tapered hole formed in a substantially truncated conical shape,
While being further compressed, it is pushed into the upper forming hole, and is pushed upward through the forming hole.
The compressed sushi rice is formed into a predetermined shape by the forming hole.

[0009] The length of extrusion of the molded sushi rice from the molding hole is determined by detecting the upper end of the molded sushi rice by a sensor, so that a detection signal from the sensor is transmitted to the controller, and the controller makes a pair of signals. The start and stop, forward rotation, and reverse rotation of the motor, which is the drive source of the shutter, are controlled, so when the sensor detects the upper end of the molded sushi rice, the motor is started, a pair of shutters are closed, and the molded sushi rice is closed. Is cut at a predetermined position to produce a sushi ball having a uniform weight (length) and a predetermined shape and size with uniform compression (sushi rice density).

[0010] The sushi ball is placed on a pair of shutters that have been closed and moved, so the sushi ball is taken out with one hand, a sushi variety with wasabi on the upper surface is placed, and the sushi ball is gently held with the palm and finger of the hand. This makes it possible to form nigiri sushi.

Since the above sushi balls are manufactured in a sushi tub,
From the audience seat, it looks like the same operation as a sushi chef preforming and removing sushi balls in a sushi tub with one hand.

By moving the position of the sensor in the vertical direction and changing the detection position, a sushi ball having a desired weight and size can be manufactured. Further, when the sushi rice is taken out from the shutter, the detection by the sensor is not performed, so that the motor is controlled by the controller to rotate in the reverse direction, and when the pair of shutters is closed, the sushi rice is conveyed by the sushi rice compression transport mechanism. It is pushed upward, pushed upward through the forming hole, and detected by the sensor in the same manner as described above, the shutter is closed, and a sushi ball is manufactured. By repeating the above operation, sushi balls are sequentially manufactured.

[0013]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a sushi robot according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a longitudinal sectional front view of a sushi robot of the present invention, FIG. 2 shows a plan view of the same robot, FIG. 3 shows an enlarged sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 2, and FIG. FIG. 5 shows an exploded perspective view of a molding block, one guide block and one shutter in the robot.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the pedestal 1
A top plate 1a made of plastic or the like, a side plate 1b, and a detachable bottom plate 1c are formed in a flat circular hollow, and the upper part is formed as a fitting part 1d having a smaller diameter than the lower part, and the bottom part is opened. By fitting the lower part of the sushi tub 2, the sushi tub 2 is detachably fixed and erected on the pedestal 1.

The sushi tub 2 is formed, for example, of plastic or the like to have a lower portion having a small diameter and an upper portion having a gradually increasing diameter. For example, as shown in FIG. The patterns 2a arranged in a circle and the upper and lower sides 2b and 2b of the outer peripheral surface are respectively represented by printing or the like, so that they are formed so as to look like real tubs. In addition to the above-mentioned sushi tub 2, a real tub made of a wooden board may be used.

As shown in FIG. 1 to FIG.
On the top plate 1a, a main body 3 provided with a sushi rice hopper 4 from the center to one side is fixed upwardly and detachably with screws (not shown). This body 3
Is formed of plastic or the like. As shown in FIG. 2, the hopper 4 has a rectangular planar shape, and its upper portion is enlarged and formed into a large-diameter cylindrical portion 3a.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a screw conveyor 5 is provided at the lower center of the hopper 4 and a screw conveyor shaft 5a is rotatably mounted horizontally on a rear wall 3b of the hopper 4 with a bearing 6 interposed therebetween. The tip 5b is provided in a horizontal hole 7 opened horizontally in communication with a thick portion 3c, which is a front wall of the hopper 4, and in communication with a lower portion of a sushi rice compressing and conveying mechanism 8 described later. Are located in

Further, in the hopper 4, two pairs of sushi rice support and stirring blades 9, 10 are provided on the left and right sides of the upper portion of the screw conveyor 5, and both ends of both shafts 9a, 10a have the above-mentioned thickness. The meat portion 3a and the rear wall 3b are rotatably supported via bearings 11 and 12 and supported in parallel with the screw conveyor 5.

The screw conveyor shaft 5a and the pair of sushi rice support / stirring shafts 9a and 10a are connected to a shaft of a reduction gear (not shown) interlocked with a shaft of the motor 13 shown in FIG. 3 and a gear transmission mechanism (not shown). Are linked together.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the sushi rice compressing and conveying mechanism 8 has a screw conveyor 8b in a bottomed vertically long circular hole 8a formed in the thick portion 3c of the main body 3, and a shaft 8c. Is rotatably supported and arranged on the bottom wall 8d with a bearing 14 interposed therebetween. The end of the screw conveyor shaft 8c protruding downward from the bottom wall 8d is interlocked with the shaft 15a of the motor 15 fixed in the pedestal 1 by a gear transmission mechanism 16. The screw conveyor 8b is rotated in a direction in which the sushi rice a conveyed from the inside of the hopper 4 to the vertically long circular hole 8a through the horizontal hole 7 by the screw conveyor 5 is conveyed while being compressed upward from below. .

As shown in FIG. 3, a molding block 17 having a molding hole 18 vertically penetrated in the center thereof is provided above the sushi rice compressing and conveying mechanism 8, that is, above the upper thick portion 3c. A plurality of fixing pins 19, 19 # A projecting downward from the molding block 17 and a plurality of vertically-recessed holes 20, 20 # opening into the upper surface of the thick portion 3c to fit. It is detachably fixed.

The forming hole 18 in the forming block 17
Is provided with a tapered hole 21 having a lower end having substantially the same diameter as the inner diameter of the above-described elongated hole 8a, an upper end being substantially the same as the biaxial dimension of the forming hole 18, and being formed smaller than the lower end. ing.

On the upper surface of the forming block 17, a pair of two guide blocks long in the left-right direction (vertical direction in FIG. 2) are provided on both front and rear sides (left and right sides in FIGS. 2 and 3) of the forming hole 18. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the pair of fixing pins 23 and 24 project vertically downward from the lower surfaces of the blocks 22 and 22, respectively.
A recess 25 vertically recessed in the upper surface of the molding block 17;
26, it is detachably attached and fixed in parallel.

Between the pair of guide blocks 22, 22 on the molding block 17, a compression molded sushi rice a ₁ is provided at an opposing portion.
A pair of two shutters 27 and 28 having blade portions 27a and 28a protruding therefrom are arranged to be openable and closable.

The drive mechanism 29 for opening and closing the shutters 27 and 28 is formed as follows. As shown in FIG. 1, the lower ends of the bearings 3
0 and 31 are rotatably supported, penetrate the top plate 1a of the pedestal 1, the upper bottom 3d of the main body 3, and the upper part is inserted into the left and right shaft holes 17a and 17b of the molding block 17. A pair of rotating shafts 32, 33,
33, and eccentric pins 34a, 35a
And a pair of discs 34 and 35 rotatably fitted into recesses 36 and 37 formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the molding block 17 and a driving source 38 such as a reversible motor. , One of the pair of rotation shafts 32, 33,
In the illustrated example, the rotating shaft 33 is operatively connected to a driving shaft (not shown) of a driving source 38 by a gear transmission mechanism 39, and the pair of rotating shafts 32, 33 are moved in opposite directions by a gear transmission mechanism 40. It is linked so as to be rotated.

As shown in FIG. 2, guide holes 41 and 42 which are long in the front-rear direction (left and right directions in FIG. 2) are formed on the back surfaces of the pair of shutters 27 and 28, respectively. 35a is slidably engaged with the eccentric pin 34 by rotation of the disks 34 and 35.
The shutters 27 and 28 are formed to be opened and closed by the eccentric amounts of a and 35a.

As shown in FIG. 1, a sensor 43 is fixed on the pedestal 1 and extends upward through the upper bottom portion 3d of the main body 3, so that the sushi rice is compressed and conveyed. the mechanism 8 is fed from the bottom upwards, compression molded through molding hole 18, the sensor 43 so as to further detect the upper end of the molded sushi rice a ₁ to be pushed up is provided.

[0028] The sensor 43 is Yes and electrically connected to a drive source 38 described above shutter 27 via a controller (not shown), when the sensor 43 detects the upper end of the compression molding sushi rice a _1, the detection signal the controller is received by the drive source 38 is started control, a pair of shutters 27 and 28 compression molding sushi rice a ₁ by closing as shown in FIG. 4 is cut to length, sushi ball a ₂ Is formed, and the sushi ball a ₂ is taken out, so that the sensor 4
When the detection by 3 is not performed, the controller (not shown) stops receiving the detection signal, so that the drive source 38 is controlled, the pair of rotating shafts 32 and 33 are reversed, and the pair of shutters 27 and 28 are opened. It is configured.

As shown in FIG. 1, a slide shaft 43b having the sensor 43 fixed to the upper end thereof is slidably inserted vertically into a bearing member 43a fixed on the base 1, and the slide shaft 43a is As shown in FIG. 4, the position of the sensor 43 is changed by connecting the rotation shaft 43d of the operation knob 43c supported on the front surface of the base 1 by a link mechanism 43e or a crank mechanism (not shown), and rotating the operation knob 43c. vertically so as to be adjusted in multiple stages, and is configured to be able to produce a sushi ball a ₂ of desired size (weight).

As shown in FIG. 5, the opposing surfaces of the pair of guide blocks 22 and 22 corresponding to the forming holes 18 are recessed in an arc shape in cross section as shown in FIG. .., 45, 4 being bent.
5 are connected in the longitudinal direction of the forming hole 18 so that the sushi rice a, which is compressed and conveyed to the forming hole 18 while being twisted by the screw conveyor 8b, is conveyed by the grooves 44, 44,.
The sushi rice a is restrained from being twisted by being guided to 5... And is vertically pushed up. The sushi rice a is formed into a good shape and a constant sushi rice density by the forming hole 18. it can be conveniently good to push up the sushi rice a ₁ to deform without a predetermined height.

Further, a pair of shutters 27 and 28
As shown in FIGS. 1, 4, and 5, the recesses 27 b, 28 b are recessed on the upper surface from the blade portions 27 a, 28 a to the rear, and the recesses 27 are on the lower surface, facing downward from the blade portions 27 a, 28 a. The concave portions 27c, 28c that are opened at the ends are curved down from the upper end to the curved surfaces 27d, 28d.
Is formed.

According to the pair of shutters 27 and 28, as shown in FIG.
There sushi ball _{a 2} prepared by compression molding sushi rice _{a 1} by closing is cut, the shutter 27, 28 the upper surface of the recess 27b, resting in 28b, tilting the sushi ball _{a 2} is ,
Without falling, or collapse sushi ball a ₂ upright, can be prevented from being deformed, easily taken out.

[0033] Also, when cutting the compression-molded sushi rice _{a 1,}
Curved surfaces 27d, 28d at the end of concave portions 27c, 28c described above
As a result, as shown in FIG. 4, the left and right angles of the cut portion of the compression-molded sushi rice a ₁ are suppressed and rounded, so that the compression-molded sushi rice a ₁ is subsequently pushed upward by a predetermined length, cut by, as shown in FIG. 6, the upper left and right angle (R), can be prepared sushi ball a ₂ good round shape of (R).

Furthermore, when the compression molding sushi rice a ₁ is being pressed all the way from right and left sides by a pair of shutters 27 and 28 sushi ball a ₂ is manufactured, as shown in FIG. 4, the left and right sides of sushi ball a ₂ When the lower end is pressed inward by the end surfaces of the recesses 27b and 28b, the center of the upper surface rises as shown in FIG. 6 to have a substantially kamaboko shape, similar to the shape held by a sushi chef. obtain a good sushi ball a _2.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 46 denotes a lid of the sushi tub 2, and in FIG. 4, reference numeral 47 denotes an on / off switch of the motors 13, 15 and the drive source 38, respectively.

[0036]

Since the present invention is configured as described in detail above, when the sushi robot is placed in a shop and viewed from a customer seat, a sushi chef takes out preformed sushi balls in a sushi tub. Since the operation is the same as that described above, it is possible to manufacture sushi balls using the sushi robot without being known by the customer, which can contribute to the spread and development of the sushi robot.

Further, the sushi rice is compressed and transported upward from the lower portion by the compression transport mechanism, and the sushi rice that has been compression-molded through the molding hole is cut by a pair of upper shutters to produce all sushi rice. Since the mechanism is housed in a sushi tub, it is structurally simpler and more versatile than one that manufactures sushi balls using a sushi robot at another location and transports it into a sushi tub with a belt conveyor or the like. By being compact, it fits well in a sushi tub, is easy to move by being integrated with the sushi tub, and can be installed in a narrow counter of a store or the like.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an embodiment of a sushi robot according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the same sushi robot.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a front view showing the sushi robot in a partially sectioned manner.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a forming block, one guide block, and one cutter in the sushi robot.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a sushi ball manufactured by the above sushi robot.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 base 2 hangiri 3 body 4 the hopper 8 sushi rice compressed transport mechanism 17 forming blocks 18 molded hole 27, 28 a pair of shutters a sushi rice a ₁ compression molding sushi rice a ₂ sushi ball

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A sushi rice compressing and conveying mechanism fixed to a pedestal and provided with a sushi rice charging hopper, a sushi rice compressing and conveying mechanism for compressing and conveying sushi rice upward from below, and a sushi rice compressing and conveying mechanism disposed above the sushi rice compressing and conveying mechanism. A sushi rice forming block provided with a forming hole for forming into a predetermined shape through the compressed and conveyed sushi rice, a sensor for detecting the extrusion length of the compression molded sushi rice, and a forming hole on the forming block. It comprises a pair of shutters that are arranged on both sides to face each other, receive a detection signal of the compression molded sushi rice by the sensor, open and close, cut the compression molded sushi rice and manufacture sushi balls, all of which are on the pedestal. A sushi robot characterized by being housed inside a sushi box set up vertically.