JP7339653B2 - Rotating blade structure of food mixer - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a food mixer, and more particularly, it comprises a first rotary blade for stirring and kneading the food material to be stirred and a second rotary blade for promoting convective movement of the food material to be stirred in the stirring vessel. , relates to the structure of rotary blades of food mixers provided in multiple layers.

2. Description of the Related Art In the food manufacturing industry, a large-sized vertical mixer for foodstuffs, which has a rotating blade at the center of the bottom of the stirring container of the mixer, as shown in the attached FIG. 9, is often used. Such a mixer mainly includes a stirring container a in which the food material to be stirred and kneaded is performed, a rotary blade b provided substantially at the center of the bottom of the stirring container a, an electric motor and a reduction gear mechanism for rotating the rotary blade b, and the like. and a control section d provided with various electronic circuits for controlling the mixing operation and an operation panel. In addition, stainless steel is mainly used for each part of the mixer for foodstuffs from the viewpoint of strength, corrosion resistance, and sanitation of foodstuffs.

In the mixer, the rotating blade b has the role of crushing, breaking, and shredding the food material to be stirred and directly stirring and kneading the food material to be stirred, and various shapes are used. That is, a rotary blade having an appropriate shape is selected according to the type of food material to be stirred and the food application, and is attached as an attachment to the rotating portion a2 protruding into the stirring container a from substantially the center of the bottom of the stirring container a. Incidentally, one example of a specific shape of the rotary blade b is shown in FIG. 10 attached herewith.

When mixing various foodstuffs such as cream and cake dough using the mixer, first, after putting various foodstuffs into the stirring container a, after closing the opening and closing lid a1 at the top of the stirring container, a predetermined operation is performed from the control unit d. give instructions. As a result, inside the stirring container a, the rotary blade b is rotationally driven by an electric motor, a reduction gear, etc., incorporated in the driving part c, and the food material to be stirred and kneaded is stirred and kneaded based on a predetermined process for a predetermined time. Processing will be performed.

In the stirring/kneading process by such a mixer, the stirring/kneading operation of the stirring blade b directly on the material to be stirred and the inside of the stirring container a as shown by the flow of the solid-line arrow in the stirring container in FIG. The formation of convection in the food material itself to be stirred has a great influence. That is, as the stirring and kneading process by the rotary blade b progresses, the food material to be stirred in the stirring vessel a progresses in fluidization and emulsification, and the food material to be stirred that is fluidized with the rotation of the rotary blade b is stirred. A convective motion is started inside the container a.

The generation of such convection further promotes the stirring/kneading process of the food material to be stirred. It should be noted that the flow path and flow direction of the convection generated in the agitation vessel also change depending on the shape of the rotary blade b, its rotation direction, its rotation pattern, etc., and the directions of the arrows shown in FIG. - Needless to say, it is not uniquely limited to the flow path.

By the way, since the main function of the rotary blade b is to crush and shred the food material to be stirred, it is designed to prevent interference between the bottom surface of the stirring container and the rotary blade during stirring and kneading operations, and to reduce the increase in rotational load. , is provided at a certain distance in the vertical direction from the bottom surface of the stirring vessel as shown in FIG.

Therefore, when the food material to be stirred contains a large amount of powder components, such as bread dough or cake dough, unstirred powder tends to adhere to the bottom and side walls of the stirring container, which is a so-called powder accumulation. When the ingredients to be stirred are highly solid, such as fruits and vegetables, there is a drawback that unstirred solid ingredients that are not sufficiently stirred and kneaded tend to accumulate on the bottom of the stirring container.

In order to prevent such accumulation of powder and accumulation of unstirred ingredients, countermeasures such as extending the stirring time in the mixer or increasing the rotation speed of the rotary blade have been taken. However, if the food material to be stirred is a food material with a delicate texture, such as sponge cake dough, an increase in the mixing time or mixing speed may cause deterioration of the food material itself or a decrease in the taste or texture of the finished food. I could invite you.

Inventions such as those shown in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, for example, are disclosed in order to improve such drawbacks. In such a disclosed invention, a plurality of rotating blades having different blade bending directions, bending angles, or blade shapes are provided in multiple layers in the center of the bottom of the rotating container of the food mixer, and mixing is performed by these rotating blades. , is intended to improve the stirring and kneading properties in food mixers.

JP-A-2004-305539 Japanese Patent Publication No. 2012-531245

However, for example, the prior art disclosed in Patent Document 1 is mainly intended to improve the crushability of relatively hard ingredients to be stirred such as beans and ice chips by devising the bending angle of the rotary blade. is. Further, the prior art disclosed in Patent Document 2 is mainly aimed at achieving an arrangement configuration of rotary blades that uniformly cuts a food material to be stirred. Therefore, these prior arts do not suggest a drastic solution to the promotion of convective motion for fluidized/emulsified food material to be stirred in a large vertical food mixer.

An object of the present invention is to solve such problems, and promotes the convective motion of the ingredients to be stirred that are fluidized and emulsified during mixing in the stirring vessel of a large vertical food mixer. To provide a rotary blade structure of a mixer for foodstuffs capable of achieving complete stirring and kneading of foodstuffs to be stirred within a short period of time.

The structure of the rotary blade attached to the food mixer according to the first aspect of the present invention is
Equipped with a first rotary blade for stirring and kneading the ingredients to be stirred and a second rotary blade for promoting convection movement of the ingredients to be stirred in the stirring container of the mixer,
The first rotary blade crushes and stirs the food material to be stirred to make it fluid, and has a plurality of rotary blades radially extending from the central axis of rotation,
The second rotary blade has a plurality of rotary blades that generate convection in the fluidized food material to be stirred and extend radially from the central axis of rotation,
The blade surface of the rotary blade provided on the first rotary blade has a lattice shape or a porous shape, and has a predetermined inclination angle with respect to the horizontal plane of rotation,
The range of inclination angles of the rotary blades provided on the first rotary blade is 20 degrees to 60 degrees,
The rotary vane provided on the second rotary blade has a cross-sectional shape formed into an airfoil shape, and the airfoil shape is provided with a predetermined angle of attack,
The angle of attack of the rotary vane provided on the second rotary blade is in the range of 5 degrees to 30 degrees .

According to the present invention, which is equipped with the above solutions, it is possible to effectively eliminate so-called powder accumulations and retention of unstirred food materials that occur on the bottom and walls of the stirring vessel of the food mixer without increasing the mixing time and mixing speed. It is possible to realize a rotating blade structure of a large food mixer that can be practically solved.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments that are the best mode for realizing the present invention will be described below based on the drawings attached to the specification.

(1) Structure of rotary blade of food mixer according to the present invention First, the structure of the rotary blade (hereinafter simply referred to as "main rotary blade") 1 of the food mixer according to the present invention is shown in the perspective view of Fig. 1 attached. show.

As shown in the figure, the rotary blade 1 mainly comprises a first rotary blade 11, a second rotary blade 12, and a holder 13. As shown in FIG. Regarding the members used in each component of the rotary blade 1, it is preferable to mainly use stainless steel materials from the viewpoint of strength, corrosion resistance, and sanitation of foods that are ingredients to be stirred. .

Next, FIG. 2 attached herewith shows a perspective view of the first rotary blade 11 alone. The first rotary blade 11 is mainly intended for pulverizing, breaking, and stirring the food material to be stirred, and has a plurality of radially rotating blades around its central axis. Incidentally, in the example shown in FIG. 2, the first rotary blade 11 is provided with three rotary blades at intervals of 120 degrees with respect to the central axis of rotation. The number of rotary blades provided on the first rotary blade 11 is not limited to this example, and any number of blades can be set according to the actual embodiment.

However, as the number of rotary blades provided on the first rotary blade 11 increases, the rotational load during stirring increases accordingly. As a result, it is necessary to increase the rotational torque of the rotary drive motor (not shown) installed in the mixer, and as a result, there is a risk of causing problems such as an increase in power consumption of the motor and replacement with a large machine. There is Therefore, the setting of the number of rotary blades for the first rotary blade 11 must be comprehensively determined in consideration of these problems.

As shown in FIG. 2, the structure of the rotary wing in the first rotary blade 11 is formed in a so-called lattice shape, in which ladder-like lattices 111 are provided in a plurality of stages in the radial direction of rotation with respect to the frame of the rotary wing. ing. Although the grating 111 is obliquely provided with respect to the frame of the rotor blade in FIG. It shall be possible to have an oblique angle.

The reason why the structure of the rotary blades of the first rotary blade 11 is made into such a grid pattern is mainly that when the first rotary blade 11 stirs and kneads the food material, the rotary blades are placed in the food material to be stirred. This is in consideration of promoting the dispersion/pulverization of the material to be stirred when moving the . As a secondary effect, the rotation load of the first rotary blade 11 during stirring and kneading is also reduced.

The lattice structure of the rotary blades in the first rotary blade 11 is not limited to the shape shown in FIG. 2, and various variations such as those shown in FIG. It is possible. For example, as shown in FIG. 3A, the installation direction of the lattice 111 may be parallel to the frame of the rotary blade. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3(b), grids 111 may be provided vertically and horizontally within the frame of the rotary blades to form a literal grid shape.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 3(c), a stainless steel thin plate 112 may be stretched over the entire frame of the rotary blade, and a large number of holes may be bored in the entire thin plate to form a so-called perforated rotary blade. In this case, regarding the shape of the hole drilled in the plane of the rotor blade, it is possible to take any other shape (for example, star shape, heart shape, etc.) instead of the simple round hole shown in the figure. Needless to say.

Further, the rotary blades provided on the first rotary blade 11 are provided with a predetermined inclination angle θ with respect to the horizontal plane of rotation of the rotary blade as shown in FIG. 4 attached herewith. When considering the effect of stirring the food material to be stirred, it is considered that the state where the blade surface of the rotary blade is perpendicular to the horizontal plane of rotation of the first rotary blade 11, that is, the state where θ=90 degrees is most effective. Conceivable.

This is because, if the rotating blades are perpendicular to the horizontal plane of rotation, the food materials to be stirred are brought into contact with the blade surfaces of the rotating blades in the vertical direction when the rotating blades rotate and move in the ingredients to be stirred during stirring. This is because the effect of breaking/crushing/dispersing the food material to be stirred by the frame and lattice of the rotating blades is maximized. On the other hand, if the rotary blades are inclined with respect to the horizontal plane of rotation, the food material to be stirred does not hit the blade surfaces of the rotary blades in the vertical direction, but slides on the blade surfaces while crossing the blade surfaces obliquely. , the effect of breaking and crushing the food material to be stirred by the rotating blades is reduced.

However, when the rotary vane of the first rotary blade 11 is provided perpendicular to the horizontal direction of rotation of the rotary blade, the rotational load of the rotary vane during stirring becomes extremely large, driving the first rotary blade 11. For this purpose, it is necessary to increase the torque of the rotating electric motor (not shown). An increase in rotational torque causes various problems such as an increase in power consumption of the electric motor and replacement with a large machine.

In other words, the value of the inclination angle θ cannot be uniquely determined, and must be empirically determined from the trade-off relationship between the stirring effect and the actual economy. In this embodiment, the inclination angle θ is set to about 35 degrees. Incidentally, the angle of the inclination angle θ according to the present invention is, based on the actual usage,
It is preferable to set in the range of about 20 degrees < θ < 60 degrees.

In the present invention, there are no particular limitations on the cross-sectional shape of the stainless steel rod-shaped member used for the frame and the lattice that constitute the rotor blade of the first rotary blade 11, but the versatility of the material and the ease of processing can be considered. In view of this, it is preferable to use a simple square or round material as the cross-sectional shape of these rod-shaped members.

Next, FIG. 5 attached herewith shows a perspective view of the second rotary blade 12 alone. The main purpose of the second rotary blade 12 is to promote convection and flow of the ingredients to be stirred that have been fluidized and emulsified in the mixing vessel of the mixer.

As shown in the figure, the second rotary blade 12 has a plurality of rotary blades radiating radially around its central axis in the horizontal direction of rotation of the rotary blade. Incidentally, in the example shown in FIG. 5, the second rotary blade 12 is provided with three rotary blades at intervals of 120 degrees with respect to the central axis of rotation. In a metaphorical analogy, this can be said to be the rotating wing of the Sanxiang structure in the propeller blade of a reciprocating engine aircraft. However, in the present invention, the number of rotary blades in the second rotary blade 12 is not limited to the three-shot structure.

Generally, in propeller blades, when the rotational torque applied to the central axis of rotation increases, it is necessary to provide the number of rotor blades corresponding to the magnitude of the torque in order to efficiently absorb the rotational torque. Therefore, also in the present invention, it is possible to adopt a structure in which two or four or more rotary blades are provided according to the power (rotational torque) of the rotary electric motor. However, regardless of the power of the rotary electric motor, the number of blades provided on the second rotary blade 12 is arbitrarily determined according to the actual embodiment, that is, according to the type and properties of the food material to be stirred. It goes without saying that it is possible.

Further, the cross section of the rotary vane provided on the second rotary blade 12 is formed in a so-called "wing shape". Therefore, when such a blade of airfoil moves in a fluid, a mechanical reaction is exerted from the blade surface on the fluid flowing above and below the blade surface of the rotary blade. Such a mechanical reaction from the blade surface to the fluid promotes convective motion in the fluid (stirred food material) flowing around the blade rotor.

Since the rotor blades provided on the second rotary blade 12 are formed in the airfoil shape in this way, in order to make full use of the effect, the blades of the rotor blades have a so-called "angle of attack" (airfoil angle). There is provided an angle formed by a line connecting the leading edge and the trailing edge with the moving direction of the fluid, that is, with the horizontal direction of rotation of the rotary blade. In the example shown in FIG. 5, the angle of attack α is set to α=15 degrees. It is difficult to determine such an angle of attack value uniquely, and it is determined by empirical values in actual usage conditions, and in the present invention,
It is considered preferable to set the angle in the range of about 5 degrees < α < 30 degrees.

In addition, the aspect ratio (vertical length of rotary wing:horizontal width of rotary wing) of each rotary wing is set to about 3.2. However, the magnitude of the aspect ratio is not limited to such a value, and can take any value depending on the actual implementation.

In addition, each rotating blade is provided with a linear taper in which the width narrows as it goes from the base of the rotating blade near the center axis of rotation to the tip, and in the example shown in FIG. The width of the root of the wing: the width of the tip of the rotary wing) is set to about 1.5. It goes without saying that the magnitude of this taper ratio is not limited to such a value, similarly to the aforementioned aspect ratio.

On the other hand, as is clear from attached FIGS. 2 and 5, the central shaft portions of the first rotary blade 11 and the second rotary blade 12 have a hollow shaft structure. A rod-shaped member (not shown) extending downward in the vertical direction of the holder 13 is inserted into the hollow shaft portion, and both rotary blades are fastened together and fixed. The lower end portion of the holder 13 is connected to a rotating portion (not shown) of the mixer that protrudes into the agitating vessel from the center of the bottom of the agitating vessel.

(2) Operation of the rotary blade structure of the food mixer according to the present invention Next, the operation of the rotary blade structure of the food mixer according to the present invention during mixing will be described. A feature of the present invention is that the rotary blades of the food mixer are separated into two separate rotary blades, one for crushing and stirring and one for promoting convection, so that the effect of stirring and kneading the food to be stirred during mixing is further enhanced. It is heightened.

During stirring and kneading in the mixer, first, the first rotary blade 11 crushes, cuts, and stirs the ingredients to be stirred, thereby fluidizing and emulsifying the ingredients to be stirred. The fluidized food material to be stirred stays in the lower part of the stirring vessel of the mixer as the mixing operation progresses further. Then, the airfoil-shaped rotary vane provided on the second rotary blade 12 moves in the fluid accumulated in the lower part of the stirring vessel.

FIG. 6 attached herewith schematically shows such a relative movement between the rotating blades of the second rotary blade 12 and the surrounding fluidized food material to be stirred. As described above, the airfoil cross-section of the rotary vane of the second rotary blade 12 is given the angle of attack α. When a blade with such an angle of attack moves in a fluid, the fluid that collides with the leading edge of the airfoil cross section is divided into flows passing through the upper and lower sides of the blade surface, and when flowing through the blade surface, the angle of attack causes It will receive reaction from the resulting wing surface.

That is, the fluid passing over the upper side of the wing surface is guided along the wing surface from the trailing edge of the wing toward the lower side of the wing, as indicated by the solid line arrow in the figure. On the other hand, the fluid passing below the wing surface is guided from the leading edge of the wing toward the lower side of the wing, as indicated by solid arrows in the figure.

Therefore, when the blade surface of the rotary blade of the second rotary blade 12 rotates at a high speed in the fluid (stirred food material) around the rotary blade, the rotary surface is just like the propeller blade of a reciprocating engine aircraft when it rotates. A corresponding powerful flow of fluid (stirred food material) is generated toward the lower side of the second rotary blade 12 so as to generate a so-called "propeller wake" that flows backward from the second rotary blade 12 .

Such fluid flow produces a strong downward flow toward the bottom of the agitating vessel of the mixer, and this downward flow removes the aforementioned "powder" at the bottom of the agitating vessel of the mixer and the accumulation of unstirred ingredients. blow up. As a result, a strong convection of the fluid (the food material to be stirred) is generated throughout the stirring vessel, and the food material to be stirred is uniformly stirred and kneaded.

(3) Effect of rotary blade structure of food mixer according to the present invention Next, specific effects of the structure of the rotary blade according to the present invention will be described. First, the cake dough was put into a stirring container of a vertical food mixer, and was mixed for 30 seconds at a rotation speed of 750 rpm using a conventional rotary blade as shown in FIG. The resulting photograph of the interior of the mixer agitating vessel is shown in FIG.

As shown in the photograph of the same figure, on the side wall near the bottom of the inside of the stirring vessel, especially in the area shown at the tip of the support rod in the photograph, there was a belt-like powder puddle (the inside was still unstirred powder). It was confirmed that the portion covered with the emulsified material to be stirred) remained. Incidentally, in order to eliminate such accumulation of powder, it was necessary to continue mixing for twice as long at the same rotational speed.

Next, instead of the conventional rotary blade, the rotary blade structure according to the present invention was attached to the mixer, and mixing was performed under the same conditions as above. That is, the ingredients to be stirred are the same amount of cake dough as above, the rotation speed of the mixer is 750 rpm, and the mixing time is 30 seconds.

FIG. 8 attached herewith shows a photograph of the inside of the mixer agitating vessel after the mixing is completed. As is clear from the photograph in the same figure, no powder accumulation occurred in the mixer agitating container. In the case of the rotary blade structure according to the present invention, even when the rotation speed of the mixer was reduced to 300 rpm, which is less than half of the above, and the mixing was performed for 30 seconds, no powder accumulation was observed.

(4) Other Embodiments of the Present Invention Although one embodiment of the rotary blade structure according to the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to such embodiments. For example, the upper and lower combination of the rotary blades, that is, the combination of the first rotary blade and the second rotary blade may be reversed depending on the type and state of the food material to be stirred. Alternatively, a vertical spacer may be inserted between the upper and lower rotating blades to adjust the distance between the upper and lower blades as appropriate.

Further, instead of providing one each of the first rotary blade and the second rotary blade, a plurality of first rotary blades and a plurality of second rotary blades may be provided in the vertical direction of the rotary shaft. In this case, it goes without saying that the numbers and types of the respective rotary blades can be arbitrarily combined according to the actual embodiment.

As described above, if the rotary blade structure according to the present invention is used, the stirring and kneading processing of the food material to be stirred is completed by low-speed and short-time mixing without performing high-speed or long-time stirring and kneading. It does not impair the flavor and texture of food. It can also contribute to reduction of power consumption during mixing and improvement of work efficiency.

It should be noted that the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the examples described above, and for example, the shape and arrangement of each part constituting each example, the material thereof, etc. deviate from the gist of the present invention. Needless to say, modifications can be made as appropriate in accordance with the actual implementation.

The configuration of the present invention can be used in various food industries that require stirring and kneading of foodstuffs, including the dairy product industry and confectionery industry.

1 is a perspective view showing the structure of a rotary blade in a food mixer according to the present invention; FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the structure of a first rotary blade that constitutes the present invention; FIG. It is a figure which shows the modification of the rotary feather with which the 1st rotary blade was equipped. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an attachment angle of the first rotary blade to the rotary blade rotary shaft; FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the structure of a second rotary blade that constitutes the present invention; FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing the function of the second rotary blade in fluid (stirred food material). It is a photograph of an example result when stirring is performed using a conventional rotary blade. It is a photograph of an example of the result when stirring is performed using the rotary blade according to the present invention. It is explanatory drawing which shows the example of the mixer for large vertical foodstuffs. It is explanatory drawing which shows an example of the actual rotary blade in the mixer for foodstuffs.

Reference Signs List 1 Rotary blade structure 11 according to the present invention First rotary blade 12 Second rotary blade 13 Holder 111 First rotary blade grating 112 First rotary blade blade surface a Stirring container b Rotating blade c ... Rotation drive part d ... Rotation control part

Claims (1)

A rotary blade structure attached to a food mixer,
Equipped with a first rotary blade for stirring and kneading the ingredients to be stirred and a second rotary blade for promoting convection movement of the ingredients to be stirred in the stirring container of the mixer,
The first rotary blade crushes and stirs the food material to be stirred to make it fluid, and has a plurality of rotary blades radially extending from the central axis of rotation,
The second rotary blade has a plurality of rotary blades that generate convection in the fluidized food material to be stirred and extend radially from the central axis of rotation,
The blade surface of the rotary blade provided on the first rotary blade has a lattice shape or a porous shape, and has a predetermined inclination angle with respect to the horizontal plane of rotation,
The range of inclination angles of the rotary blades provided on the first rotary blade is 20 degrees to 60 degrees,
The rotary vane provided on the second rotary blade has a cross-sectional shape formed into an airfoil shape, and the airfoil shape is provided with a predetermined angle of attack,
A rotary blade structure for a food mixer, wherein the angle of attack of the rotary vanes provided on the second rotary blade is in the range of 5 degrees to 30 degrees.

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