JP2003235527A - Sterilizing and packaging apparatus for solid ingredient - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To sterilize individual solid ingredients under the condition suitable for each ingredient in the production of a retorted food, etc., and pack the sterilized ingredients directly into a sterilized pouch without transferring the ingredients to other apparatuses such as a filling apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: A filling and packaging chamber 10 for sterilizing a pouch and filling the pouch with solid ingredients is provided with a steam valve 13 for introducing steam into the chamber and a temperature sensor 15. The ceiling 16 of the packaging chamber 10 has three ingredient sterilizing cells 20 for separately sterilize solid ingredients with steam. The ingredient sterilizing cell 20 is provided with an openable bottom cover 23, a perforated bottom cover 25, a steam valve 27 and a temperature sensor 29. The filling and packaging chamber 10 contains a pouch holder 30 to hold a pouch keeping the opening of the pouch in opened or sealed state. A heat sealer 40 for heat-sealing the opening of the pouch is placed near the pouch holder 30. An ingredient chute 50, in which the solid ingredient dropped from the ingredient sterilizing cell 20 is guided to the pouch, is placed above the heat sealer 40. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sterilizing and packaging apparatus for solid ingredients used in the production of foods containing solid ingredients in the food industry and food processing industry.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, regarding sterilization packaging of solid ingredients,
Various techniques have been proposed, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-237.
No. 745, in order to prevent the packaging container from becoming soiled during the heat sterilization treatment, a solid food is filled in an upper open type retainer and sterilized by heating, and after cooling, the solid food is sterilized into a sterilized packaging container. A method of transferring and aseptically hermetically packing is proposed.

Further, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-84567, a pretreated solid substance is weighed into a cup one by one and filled in small portions, and a plurality of the cups are stored in a cassette, and then the cassette is sterilized. Directly sterilize the solid matter with steam in the sterilizer, and after sterilization, remove the cup from the cassette in the clean room / clean booth and fill the solid matter together with the sterilized seasoning liquid into the bag or container. A method of hermetically packing has been proposed.

[0004]

However, in the method proposed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-237745, when a plurality of ingredients are mixed and sterilized by heating, optimum sterilization conditions are different for each ingredient. Since the sterilization conditions have to be adjusted to the solid ingredients having a long heating time, other ingredients have a problem in that they are boiled down or deteriorated due to overheating, or the flavor is reduced.

Further, the method proposed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-84567 discloses a method in which a pretreated solid material is filled in a cup, put into a sterilizer, and after sterilization, it is taken out in a clean booth and put into a bag or container. Therefore, there is a problem that the device becomes large in size and a clean room / clean booth is required.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, and by sterilizing several kinds of solid ingredients individually, each solid ingredient can be sterilized under optimum sterilization conditions. Thus, to minimize the collapse or deterioration of the ingredients due to overheating or the reduction of flavor, and, by sterilized solid ingredients, by directly filling the sterilized pouch,
It is an object of the present invention to provide a solid ingredient sterilization packaging device that does not require a clean room / clean booth.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a plurality of ingredient sterilization cells and sets a plurality of solid ingredients to a sterilization time and temperature suitable for each solid ingredient. It is possible to set, and it is possible to directly fill the sterilized pouch with solid ingredients from the ingredient sterilization cell, it is possible to complete multiple steps of sterilization treatment, aseptic filling packaging in one device. As configured.

That is, the solid ingredient sterilization packaging apparatus according to the present invention includes a filling and packaging chamber for steam sterilizing the pouch disposed therein, a pouch holder for holding the pouch provided in the filling and packaging chamber, and the filling and packaging chamber. A plurality of ingredient sterilization cells for dropping and filling the pouches in the filling and packaging chamber after sterilizing the solid ingredient materials provided in the ceiling and the opening of the pouch filled with the solid ingredient materials from the ingredient sterilization cells And a sealing means for sealing the.

In the solid ingredient sterilization packaging apparatus of the present invention, the pouch is set in the pouch holder in the filling and packaging chamber, and steam is introduced into the filling and packaging chamber in this state to sterilize the pouch with steam. In the ingredient sterilization cell, after the solid ingredients that have been put in each are steam sterilized, the solid ingredients are dropped and filled in the pouch in the filling and packaging chamber. After the opening of the pouch filled with the solid ingredient is closed by the pouch holder, the pouch is sealed and the solid ingredient is hermetically filled in the sterilized pouch.

[0010]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The filling / packing chamber is for sterilizing a pouch set inside with steam, and in order to facilitate setting of the pouch, it is divided into a fixed part and a movable part above the movable part. It is preferable that the pouch can be set by opening the portion.

The pouch holder can be moved back and forth horizontally.
In addition, a clip that holds both ends of the opening of the pouch is provided. After the solid material is filled in the pouch that has been opened and set in advance, the holder moves to close the pouch opening.

The sealing means seals the opening of the pouch, and a heat sealer or the like can be used.

The ingredient sterilization cell is for sterilizing the charged solid ingredient with steam and dropping the sterilized solid ingredient into the pouch set in the filling and packaging chamber. If at least one unit is provided. Although a plurality of solid ingredients are usually used, a plurality of solid ingredients are provided according to the number of solid ingredients.
Since the solid ingredients have different sterilization conditions (temperature, pressure, time, etc.) due to differences in size, physical properties, etc., the ingredient sterilization cell sets the sterilization conditions according to the solid ingredients to be sterilized. As a result, it is possible to sterilize while making the best use of the original taste of each solid ingredient.

The solid ingredient sterilized by the ingredient sterilization cell is dropped and filled into the pouch. When the opening of the pouch is small, it is preferable to provide a ingredient chute between the ingredient sterilization cell and the pouch. This ingredient chute may be provided for each ingredient sterilization cell, or one chute capable of covering all ingredient sterilization cells may be provided.

When a seasoning liquid is required in addition to the solid ingredients, it is preferable to provide a seasoning liquid filling nozzle so that the pouch in the filling and packaging chamber can be filled with the pre-sterilized seasoning liquid.

The pouch is preferably made of a material which has heat resistance enough to withstand steam sterilization (about 125 ° C.) and can be sealed by heat sealing.

As the solid ingredient material, it is preferable to use a material such as meat, carrots, potatoes, etc. that retains a certain shape even after heating and can be easily dropped into the sterilization cell without sticking.

The first of the solid ingredient sterilization packaging device according to the present invention
Embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic overall view of a solid ingredient sterilization packaging apparatus, and FIG. 2 is a schematic view of an ingredient sterilization cell used in the solid ingredient sterilization packaging apparatus.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 denotes a filling and packaging chamber for sterilizing the pouch and filling the pouch with a solid ingredient material. The fixing portion 11 and a movable portion provided on the upper surface of the fixing portion 11 so as to be horizontally movable. It is composed of 12 and. Then, a steam valve 13 for introducing steam is provided on the side wall of the movable portion 12, a discharge valve 14 for discharging condensed water is provided on the bottom of the fixed portion, and further, inside the fixed portion 11. A temperature sensor 15 is provided.

The ceiling portion 16 of the filling and packaging chamber 10 is provided with three ingredient sterilization cells 20 for individually evaporating and sterilizing solid ingredients (one ingredient sterilization cell is not shown). It can be used for the solid ingredients of. Further, the cooking and sterilizing condition can be set for each solid ingredient, and the solid ingredient can be set to fill the pouch at the same time or in the set order.

The ingredient sterilization cell 20 is, as shown in FIG.
It is configured in a double structure, and an upper lid 22 and a bottom lid 23 are provided on the upper and lower ends of the cylindrical outer wall 21 so as to be openable and closable, and further, the outer wall 21 is arranged so that the steam hits the solid ingredient evenly.
A porous inner wall 24 is provided on the inner side of the lower lid 2
A perforated bottom lid 25 is also provided above 3. The bottom lid 23 and the perforated bottom lid 25 are fixed to a rotary arm 26 that is rotatably provided on the top surface 16 of the filling and packaging chamber 10.
By rotating 6 the lower part of the ingredient sterilization cell 20 can be opened and closed. And, on the outer wall 21,
A steam valve 27 and a steam trap 28 are provided, and a temperature sensor 29 is introduced inside through the upper lid 22.

The fixed portion 11 of the filling and packaging chamber 10 is provided with a pouch holder 30 for opening or sealing the pouch in an upright state.
A clip 31 that holds both sides of the opening of the pouch, a fixed support 32 to which one clip 31 is attached, a moving support 33 to which the other clip 31 is attached, and this moving support 33 are moved back and forth in the horizontal direction. It consists of a pouch holder piston 34.

A heat sealer 40 is provided near the pouch holder 30 to seal the opening of the pouch by heat sealing. Above the heat sealer 40, an ingredient chute 50 for guiding the solid ingredient dropped from the ingredient sterilization cell 20 to the pouch while being fixed to the movable part 12 is provided.

Reference numeral 60 denotes a control unit. The temperature sensor 15 and the temperature sensor 29 are connected to the control unit 60, and the steam valve 13 and the steam valve 27 are connected to the temperature sensor 15 and the temperature sensor 29. Opening and closing of the steam valve 13 and the steam valve 27 are controlled so that the temperature becomes a preset temperature by the temperature signal input from the. Further, the control unit 60 is connected to the drive units of the rotary arm 26, the pouch holder piston 34, and the heat sealer 40, and controls the respective operations so as to operate at a predetermined timing.

Next, the operation of the solid ingredient sterilization packaging apparatus as described above will be described. [Solid material sterilization step] The upper lid 22 of the ingredient sterilization cell 20 is opened, the bottom lid 23 is closed, and the solid ingredient is charged from the upper part of the ingredient sterilization cell 2, and then the upper lid 22 is closed. The state in which the upper lid 22 is closed is the standby state in which the automatic control can be started. At this time, the steam valve 27 is closed.

Next, the steam valve 27 is opened to fill the ingredient sterilization cell 20 with saturated steam to sterilize the solid ingredient. The saturated steam temperature correlates with the pressure, and in order to adjust the temperature inside the ingredient sterilization cell 20 to a temperature that is set arbitrarily, the control unit 60 controls the opening / closing state of the steam valve 27 by the temperature input from the temperature sensor 29. Automatically control. Pressure is 0-0.5MP
It can be controlled within the range of a, and it is converted to a temperature of about 100-
It is 160 ° C. Moisture generated by condensation of the vapor in the ingredient sterilization cell 20 is constantly discharged from the steam trap 2b to the outside of the cell.

[Pouch sterilization step] First, the movable part 12 is moved in the horizontal direction to open the upper part of the fixed part 11. Next, both ends of the upper end of the pouch 70 are clamped by the clips 31, and the pouch holder piston 34 clamps the clips 31.
After shortening the distance between them and opening the opening of the pouch 70, the movable part 12 is returned to its original position.

In this state, the steam valve 13 is opened to fill the filling and packaging chamber 10 with saturated steam, and the pouch 70
Is sterilized by this steam heat at an arbitrarily set temperature and time. Immediately after opening the steam valve 13, the filling and packaging chamber 1
The exhaust valve 14 is opened to exhaust the air in 0 and closed after several tens of seconds.

The filling and packaging chamber 10 can be pressurized and the vapor temperature can be raised up to about 120.degree. Filling and packaging room 1
The temperature of 0 is managed by the temperature sensor 15, and the control unit 6
By controlling the opening and closing of the steam valve 13 by 0, the temperature is maintained at a preset temperature. Moisture generated by the condensation of the vapor in the filling and packaging chamber 10 is discharged to the outside by periodically opening the discharge valve 14.

Incidentally, the sterilization of the solid ingredient in the solid ingredient sterilization step and the pouch 7 in the pouch sterilization step are completed.
Each start time is adjusted so that the sterilization of 0 is completed at the same time.

[Solid ingredient filling step] After the sterilization of the solid ingredient and the pouch 70 is completed by the solid ingredient sterilization step and the pouch sterilization step, the solid ingredient pouch 70 is filled. That is, the rotating arm 26 is rotated downward to open the bottom lid 23 and the perforated bottom lid 25, and the solid ingredient material is dropped. The dropped solid ingredients are gathered in the central portion by the ingredient chute 50 and then filled in the pouch 70. At this time, in the case of a food that needs to be filled with a liquid such as a seasoning liquid (using an ingredient sterilization packaging device having a seasoning liquid filling nozzle as shown in FIG. 3), the seasoning liquid that has been sterilized by the seasoning liquid filling nozzle is used. To fill.

[Sealing Step] After the filling of the solid pouch 70 with the solid ingredient in the solid ingredient filling step, the pouch 70 is sealed. First, drive the pouch holder piston 34 to move the clip 31 outward,
The pouch 70 is brought into a closed state in which the opening is in contact. Next, the heat sealer 40 heated by the electric heat inside is driven to sandwich the opening portion of the pouch 70 from both sides for about 3 seconds and heat seal.

Through the above steps, the work of hermetically filling the sterilized pouch 70 with the sterilized solid ingredient material is completed.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing a second embodiment of the solid ingredient sterilization packaging device according to the present invention.

In the solid ingredient sterilization packaging apparatus shown in this figure, a seasoning solution filling nozzle 80 for filling the heat-sterilized seasoning solution is provided in the ceiling portion 16 of the filling and packaging chamber 10 as in the ingredient sterilization cell 20. The seasoning liquid filling nozzle 8 is provided.
0 is connected to a seasoning solution overheating sterilization unit (not shown) for sterilizing the seasoning solution by overheating. Other configurations are the same as those in the first embodiment.

[0037]

[Example] Curry sterilization was performed using a curry material as a model.
Beef, carrots and potatoes are used for the ingredients. Beef is cut into about 15 mm squares and then boiled for 30 seconds, then carrots are cut into about 15 mm squares and potatoes are cut into about 15 mm square. Each was put into three ingredient sterilization cells 20 and cooked and sterilized. Sterilization was performed on beef at 130 ° C for 4 minutes, carrot at 120 ° C for 8 minutes, and potato at 120 ° C for 6 minutes. The pouch is 8 at 120 ° C in saturated steam.
A sterilization treatment was performed for a minute. The sterilized pouch was aseptically filled with sterilized beef, carrots and potatoes and sealed with a heat sealer.

The pouches produced as described above were opened and the taste of the solid ingredients was evaluated. As a result, beef, carrot and potato were retained, and the respective flavors were retained, which were preferable.

Also, sterility was confirmed. Confirmation of sterility was performed as follows. To confirm the sterility of the pouch, heat-resistant bacteria (Bacillus sp.) Were pre-inoculated on the inner surface of the pouch so that the amount of the heat-resistant bacteria (Bacillus sp.) Was 1 co / cm ^2, and sterilized with saturated steam. As a result, sterilization was possible by the treatment of F ₀ value of the atmosphere (an index of the bactericidal effect required to kill a certain number of bacteria at a certain temperature. The same applies hereinafter).

The sterility of the ingredients is checked by immersing each ingredient in the bacterial solution of the heat-resistant bacterium for 10 minutes to obtain 10 pieces per 1 g of ingredients.
^It was adjusted so that the heat-resistant bacterium of ² existed, and then cooked and sterilized. The result was that the F ₀ value of the ingredient center was 4 for beef, 4 for carrots, and 2 for potatoes, and sterilization was possible by heat sterilization.

[0041]

Since the present invention is constructed as described above,
Since different solid ingredients can be sterilized by a plurality of ingredient sterilization cells, the solid ingredients can be sterilized under conditions suitable for cooking and sterilizing conditions. Therefore, it is possible to sterilize while utilizing the original taste of the ingredients without impairing the taste of the solid ingredients. Further, since the sterilized solid ingredient can be directly filled into the sterilized pouch, a device such as a clean booth or a clean room is unnecessary, and the device can be downsized.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a first embodiment of a solid ingredient sterilization packaging device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway schematic view of an ingredient sterilizing cell used in the first embodiment of the solid ingredient sterilizing and packaging apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a second embodiment of the solid ingredient sterilization packaging device according to the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols] 10 ... Filling and packaging room 11 ... Fixed part 12 ... Movable part 13 ... Steam valve 15 ... Temperature sensor 20 ... Ingredient sterilization cell 22 ... Top cover 23 ... Bottom lid 24 ... Porous inner wall 25 ... Perforated bottom lid 27 ... Steam valve 28 ... Steam trap 30 ... Pouch holder 31 ... clip 34 ... Pouch holder piston 40 ... Heat sealer 50 ... Chute for ingredients 60 ... Control unit 70 ... Pouch 80 ... Seasoning liquid filling nozzle

Continued front page    F term (reference) 4B021 LA41 LP01 LT01 MC01 MK30                       MQ01                 4B036 LE05 LF05 LF07 LH29 LH38                       LP01 LT02

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A filling and packaging chamber for steam sterilizing a pouch arranged therein, a pouch holder provided in the filling and packaging chamber for holding the pouch, and a solid tool provided on a ceiling portion of the filling and packaging chamber. After sterilizing the material, a plurality of ingredient sterilizing cells for dropping and filling into the pouch in the filling and packaging chamber, and a sealing means for sealing the opening of the pouch filled with the solid ingredient from the ingredient sterilizing cell Sterilization packaging equipment for solid ingredients. 2. The solid ingredient sterilizing and packaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of ingredient sterilizing cells can individually set sterilization conditions according to the solid ingredients to be charged. 3. The solid ingredient according to claim 1, wherein a seasoning liquid filling nozzle is provided in a ceiling portion of the filling and packaging chamber, and the pouch is filled with the sterilized seasoning liquid from the seasoning liquid filling nozzle. Material sterilization packaging equipment.