JP2007511423A - Separable packaging and laminating machine therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

  In one aspect of the invention, a material such as a plastic film (14) is used to separate the independent food elements. The stand-alone food element and the separating material are packaged together using an integral shell (12). When the customer decides to eat the food, the outer package (12) is opened and the film separating the different food elements (14) is removed either manually or automatically. This represents the first time when the separate elements touch each other. Thus, the food product is maintained at the highest integrity level until it is used by the customer. A method and machine for laminating the contents of a package to form a finished combination of the elements to be packaged is also described.

Description

  The present invention relates to a separable package and a method and machine for delivering the contents of a separable package, preferably in layers. More specifically, it is a sandwich or other food with at least two independent elements such as cheese, meat, or vegetables, or spaghetti and tomato sauce, salad and salad dressing, or the aforementioned spaghetti and tomato sauce and just mixed It relates to packaged food products such as spaghetti and other food-related items having related elements such as bowls for holding sauces. The present invention also relates to a method and machine for delivering the contents of a separable package, preferably in layers, to form a finished combination of the delivered contents of the package. The present invention is particularly advantageous for automatic machine preparation and sale of multi-element food products.

  Currently, such food products are often packaged in a fully assembled state, where separate elements come into contact with other elements when the contents of the package are combined. For example, in a simple cheese sandwich, the cheese comes into contact with the bread, and after a while the bread absorbs moisture from the cheese and the bread becomes moist, leading to poor quality product and texture degradation. If the tomato sauce is mixed with the pasta at the time and place of packaging, the pasta can absorb moisture from the tomato sauce and the texture and taste are degraded. Existing methods of laminating food products include doing it manually, as done daily in restaurants, or by automated machines that can be delivered from a large storage area. These methods are due to the fact that various parts of the ingredients are exposed to ambient air and other environmental conditions and become obsolete during handling and storage time until all ingredients are used up when the finished product is made, or It is required to be discarded for corruption. In addition, the environment in which the kitchen or element is laminated and the object or hand in contact with the food element are difficult to keep hygienic at all times. Freshness and hygiene are important concerns. In addition, corruption and labor requirements are other issues that must be considered.

  In one aspect of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, materials such as plastic films are used to separate independent food elements that can form more complex or multi-element food products. Independent food elements and separating materials are packaged together using an integral skin. The sheath can be vacuum sealed to help maintain the freshness of the food product and provide significant shelf life. When the customer decides to eat the food, the outer packaging is opened and the film separating the different food elements is removed either manually or automatically. This represents the first time when the separate elements touch each other. Thus, individual food elements are maintained at the highest integrity level until they are used by the customer.

  In a further aspect of the invention, the separating material can be part of or attached to the outer body and the outer body comprises a pull strip that can separate the package into two separate halves. By using, it can be opened.

  Furthermore, a package opening machine can be used for the separable packaging having these aspects to automatically pull the pull strip to separate the outer package. Next, when the two halves of the outer package are pulled apart, the package opening machine does not move the food contents in the package relative to each other and slid out from between the food elements to remove the separation material. Pressure can be applied to the outer packaging so that it can be removed and thereby the separated food elements can finally be brought into contact with each other.

  In one embodiment of the invention, there may be a primary food element such as a piece of bread or a quantity of pasta that can be placed on a sanitary substrate surface such as a plastic film or bowl. In one embodiment of the invention, the main food element can be packaged in a vacuum sealed plastic film pouch with the surface of each sanitary substrate and both are adjacent to the package opening mechanism from the pouch. Can be delivered onto the prepared surface. The hygienic preparation surface can be stationary, or can be moved to multiple locations, such as by a conveyor, turntable, or moving platform. Primary food elements such as the aforementioned bread pieces can be placed on the sanitary substrate surface adjacent to the package opening mechanism. The second food element is placed over the main food element when the package opening mechanism delivers the second food element from the additional pouch. These steps can be repeated multiple times until the desired lamination process results in a complete combination of food products. If the preparation surface can be moved as described above, the various ingredients and their respective pouches can be placed in specific positions, and the food element is vacuum sealed on the preparation surface for the next ingredient to be laminated. You can move to the pouch.

  In an alternative embodiment, the pouches can be moved to a common station where they are automatically opened and delivered in the desired order and thereby stacked. In further embodiments, a plurality of package opening mechanisms can be positioned adjacent to a common moving or fixed preparation surface, and one or more package opening mechanisms can be in a lamination process to produce the final food product. Can contribute.

  In a preferred embodiment, a series of pouches can be connected to each other so that they can be connected sequentially by forming them from at least two plastic wrapping films and each pouch can be opened separately. . In one aspect of the invention, such separable opening of each pouch is accomplished by a roller mechanism having one each of two rollers connected to each of at least two layers of film forming the outer layer of the food element pouch. Can be achieved. The film is wrapped around the roller so that when the roller rolls up the film, the pouch is thereby separated / opened and the product in the pouch is released or ejected from the pouch. In this way, many elements can be laminated hygienically and freshly without the need for human contact and while dramatically reducing the cost and health risks of corruption. Alternatively, the packages can be provided to the package opening machine one at a time.

  FIG. 1 shows a detachable package 10 for containing various independent elements such as food elements. The package 10 includes a variety of independent elements (various independent elements not shown in FIG. 1) and an outer body barrier 12 that completely seals the internal partition arrangement 14 therein. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the partition arrangement 14 is a single plastic sheet that is folded to provide physical separation between the laminated regions or zones 2, 4, 6, and 8 inside the package barrier 12. A continuous web or film of a material such as More particularly, in FIG. 1, the partition arrangement 14 begins with a layer 16 near the end A of the package 10, extends to the opposite side B of the package 10, is folded back as a layer 17, and is then attached to the A side. It is illustrated as including. It then extends from the A side to the B side as a layer 18 and then folds as a layer 19. Since there are other elements that need to be separated inside the package 10, a curved portion 20 is formed at the end of the layer 19 near the A end so that the layer 19 is folded 180 degrees toward the B end. The configuration of layers 16-19 is then repeated to form laminated film divider configurations 24 and 26. Thus, as shown in FIG. 1, by repeating this process, four separate lamination zones 2, 4, 6, and 8 are established.

  The package barrier 12 includes, for example, a “pull / tear strip” 22 that surrounds the package 12 in the barrier 12, or so that pulling the ends A and B of the package 10 separates the barrier material 12 along the perforations. It is noted that the two parts can be easily separated using any of several well-known techniques, such as by using linear perforations in the material forming the package barrier 12.

The package 10 can be used to contain food elements useful therein for making more complex food products such as sandwiches, for example,
a. Deli meat,
b. cheese,
c. Vegetable ingredients (lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions, olives, etc.)
d. Bread products (sliced rolls, bagels, pita bread, rye bread, etc.),
e. Liquid seasonings (ketchup, mayonnaise, oil and vinegar, etc.),
A separate zone can be used to hold

  In a further aspect of the invention, if one of the layers is intended to hold an element having a high liquid content, the layer is replaced with a separable sealing pouch instead of a partition configuration such as layers 16-19. Can do. In this case, the separable pouch (not shown) is similar to the package barrier 12 but is smaller and is located inside one of the zones, as in zone 4. Both ends of the pouch can be fixed to both ends A and B of the package 10, and after separation of the package barrier 12, the internal pouch having a high liquid content becomes separable or unsealed and spills its contents Or the portion near the center of the pouch or along the length of the pouch so that it can contact the food element placed in the zone adjacent to it in other ways or Alternatively, it can have a flap that seals the opening.

  FIG. 2 shows the food elements placed in the package of FIG. 1 to make a sandwich, where zones 2, 4, 6, and 8 are for example the respective food elements d, a, b, And d can be retained. More or fewer separable zones and one or more separable internal seals for high liquid content or other food elements where a more complete separation of food cost elements is desirable until the final combination of multi-element food products Many variations are possible, such as the use of a pouch.

  In operation, packages having food elements and divider configurations therein can be manufactured using standard and conventional food handling and packaging equipment. It may also be desirable to vacuum seal the package barrier 12, similar to the internal pouch contained therein. To open the package barrier 12, a pull strip 22 is used, and when the ends A and B are pulled apart, the package 10 is separated into two halves. When they are pulled apart and the packaging barrier 12 is separated, the layers 17 and 18 are pulled from the layers 16 and 19 adjacent to one of the food elements, and when they are pulled, the partition arrangement 14 is completely removed and the zone is removed. Layers 16 and 19 are also pulled until the food elements in 2 and 4 are no longer separated.

  Since the plastic layers can slide more easily relative to each other than when sliding against the food element, the layers 17 and 18 can be removed during delivery of the food element contained therein. This configuration of sliding with respect to the adjacent layers 16 and 20 is particularly advantageous. Furthermore, in another aspect of the present invention, a food grade lubricant is added to the package 10 to further assist in delivering the food element so that the food element does not stick to the film layer when the package 10 is separated. Can be used on the inside.

  It is noted that there are many different ways of achieving the functionality provided by the embodiment of FIG. For example, instead of using a continuous folded film to form a partition configuration that creates zones 2-8, each partition configuration is used using separately folded configurations 32, 34, and 36 as shown in FIG. 14, 24, and 26 can be formed.

  In addition, the partition configuration can be formed by attaching the film forming the partition layer not only to the end B of the package barrier 12 but also to both ends A and B. An example of this embodiment is shown in FIG. Here, the overlapping films / sheets 42/44 and 46/48 extend from both ends of the package 10 to form a partition configuration, creating zones 2, 4, and 6. In operation, the packaging is separated from the pull strip so that both ends A and B are pulled apart and sheets 42 and 46 remain at end B, while sheets 44 and 48 remain at end A, as in the previous embodiment. 22, whereby the food elements in zones 2, 4, and 6 are in contact with each other to form a finished food product.

  In a further alternative embodiment, it may be desirable to heat the food element in the package before serving it to the user. In that case, a microwave oven can be used to heat the contents of the package before it is opened, or the contents are overheated after the package is opened and the food elements are already combined. be able to.

  In yet another embodiment, each zone in the package does not necessarily have a food element stored therein, but instead has a food related item. For example, in one embodiment of the invention, the lower zone may include a bowl, the zone above that zone may include pasta, and the top zone may include an openable pouch with sauce.

  5, 6 and 7 will now be described, which are a machine for opening a separable package and a main substrate onto which the separable product is delivered during the preparation of a laminated product. Shows various orientations between. The separable packaging in the following description is not necessarily the same as the separable packaging 10 shown in FIGS. 1-4, in fact, in one embodiment, two adjacently disposed plastic films. It is noted that it can only include a pouch formed by sealing both ends of a rectangular sheet.

  More specifically, in FIG. 5, the stationary laminator 200 provides a package 202 that is separable in a direction perpendicular to the preparation surface 8 that moves in the direction of arrow 2. In FIG. 6, the preparation surface 8 moves simultaneously with the pouch being sent out by the laminator 200, and in FIG. 7, the preparation surface 8 is stationary with respect to the pouch delivery operation of the laminator 200.

  In FIG. 5, the package 202 includes the food element 6 packaged in the plastic film 5. The film 5 is wrapped around the roller 3 and when the rollers rotate in opposite directions with respect to each other, the food element 6 is ejected from the pouch and placed on a sanitary film substrate 7, for example on the main food element 4 Is done. The film substrate 7 rests on the preparation surface 8.

  In FIGS. 6 a, 6 b and 6 c, the packaging body 202 includes a food element 6 packaged in a plastic film 5. The film 5 is wrapped around the roller 3 and when the rollers rotate in the opposite direction relative to each other, the food element 6 is released from the package 202 and above the main food element 4 resting on the sanitary film substrate 7. Placed in. The film substrate 7 rests on the preparation surface 8.

  As described above, in FIGS. 7 a, 7 b and 7 c, the preparation surface 8 is stationary with respect to the food element delivery operation of the laminator 200.

  The system can be housed in a box like a vending machine, a desktop box for a store, or left in an open space in the case of a kitchen. The control system can be coupled to the delivery mechanism so that the customer can customize the food elements to be laminated. The entire process can be opened to be visible through a window or outlet. The unit can also receive payment and respond to customer input. The system can also be used for non-food products.

  Pouches can contain food elements such as vegetables, cheese, meat, bread, and liquids such as seasonings and sauces.

  The pouches can be stored folded back and forth in an accordion fashion, or can be stored in rolls or so that one pouch is separated from the other pouches at a time.

  If the pouch is made from foil material, the pouch can be transferred to a cooking environment, such as a clamshell hot cooking press where uncooked burgers or fillets can be cooked before the food element is delivered.

  If the pouch is a plastic film, the food element can be cooked in a variety of ways, including using microwave technology, before being sent out and placed on top of another element.

  The food elements can be automatically cooked after they have been laminated and before being dispensed from the vending machine outlet, as in the case of pizza.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described, but is intended to include the full scope defined by the equivalents as well as the above description and alternatives. It should be understood that none of the food items can be packaged using the present invention.

It is the figure which showed one Embodiment of the packaging of this invention. FIG. 2 shows the embodiment of FIG. 1 with food elements packaged therein. FIG. 6 shows a further embodiment of the packaging of the present invention. It is the figure which showed another embodiment of the packaging of this invention. FIG. 4 shows a laminator using a separable packaging, wherein the separable packaging body is oriented in a direction perpendicular to the transfer preparation surface. It is the figure which showed the preparation surface which moves simultaneously with the delivery operation | movement of a lamination machine. It is the figure which showed the preparation surface which moves simultaneously with the delivery operation | movement of a lamination machine. It is the figure which showed the preparation surface which moves simultaneously with the delivery operation | movement of a lamination machine. It is the figure which showed the delivery operation | movement of the lamination machine with a stationary preparation surface. It is the figure which showed the delivery operation | movement of the lamination machine with a stationary preparation surface. It is the figure which showed the delivery operation | movement of the lamination machine with a stationary preparation surface.

Claims (15)

A separable package for containing food-related items therein,
Comprising pouches having first and second sheet-like barrier members disposed in a stack to form both ends and pouches therebetween,
A package comprising a separation structure in a portion of the first and second sheet-like barrier members that functions to separate the pouch into at least two parts when the separation structure is activated.   The separable package of claim 1, further comprising an additional sheet-like barrier member disposed therein to form a separation zone within the pouch for holding food related items.   The additional sheet barrier member is connected to at least one of the ends of the pouch such that when the end of the pouch is separated, the additional sheet barrier member remains at one of the pouch ends. The separable package of claim 2, wherein the separate zone for the food-related item inside the pouch is removed.   The at least one of the additional sheet-like barrier members includes at least two additional sheet-like members, each of the additional sheet-like barrier members extending from one end to the other end of the pouch. Separable packaging.   At least one of the additional sheet-like barrier members starts at one point connected to one end of the pouch, and toward the other end of the pouch inside the pouch, and thereby the far end of the separation zone formed thereby 4. The separable package of claim 3, further comprising a further sheet-like barrier member extending to a point that establishes, said further sheet-like barrier member then folding back and terminating near one end of said pouch.   In order to define one side of the separation zone inside the pouch, two further sheet-like barrier members, each folded back, are arranged in a stack, and the two further folded sheet-like barrier members form four sheet-like barrier members The separable package according to claim 5, wherein the two inner barrier members are connected to one end of the pouch.   7. The further sheet-like barrier member forming the bottom of one separation zone extends into the pouch so as to form an upper sheet-like barrier member for the separation zone disposed thereunder. The detachable package as described.   The separable packaging body according to claim 1, wherein the separation structure is connected to a part of the first and second sheet-like barrier members forming the pouch between the both ends of the pouch.   The separation structure includes a vulnerability incorporated into the first and second sheet-like barrier members such that the pouch separates into at least two portions when the ends are pulled in opposite directions. 9. The separable package according to 8.   The separable package according to claim 9, wherein the vulnerability is formed by perforation of the first and second sheet-like barrier members.   A machine for automatically opening a plurality of separable packages to form a laminated product of food elements, the machine comprising a configuration of opposing rollers, wherein the rollers are each one of the rollers; Functioning to open the separable package by rotating in opposite directions to wrap one each of the first and second sheet-like barrier members around, thereby delivering the food element The separable package according to claim 1.   12. The separable package according to claim 11, wherein the separation structure includes a portion of the pouch used to join the first and second sheet-like barrier members together. A machine for automatically opening a plurality of separable packages to form a laminated product, wherein the separable packages are formed from opposing first and second sheet-like barrier members and Comprising a pouch having a food element contained therein, the machine comprising:
Including a configuration of opposing rollers, the rollers being separable by rotating in opposite directions to wrap each one of the first and second sheet-like barrier members around each one of the rollers A machine that functions to open the package, thereby delivering the food element.   The machine of claim 13, further comprising an auxiliary device for individually providing the separable package to the machine.   The machine of claim 13, further comprising an auxiliary device for continuously providing the separable package to the machine.

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