JP7428422B2 - Fixing method of pipe nozzle in drying equipment for producing non-fried noodles - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for fixing a pipe nozzle in a drying device for producing non-fried noodles , and more specifically, the present invention relates to a method for fixing a pipe nozzle for constructing a hot air injection unit in a drying device for producing non-fried noodles. This invention relates to a method for fixing a pipe nozzle in a drying device for producing non-fried noodles that is used when installed on a surface.

Generally, instant noodles are made by kneading grain flour and water to produce dough, rolling the dough into noodle strips, cutting out the noodle strips, forming noodle strips into individual servings, placing them in a retainer, and drying them. After being processed to remove moisture, it goes through a cooling process and is turned into a product. At that time, there are two methods of drying: frying in oil to remove moisture, and drying with hot air to remove moisture; the latter method is called non-fried noodles.

In the production of non-fried noodles, a method is generally adopted in which the noodle blocks, each serving of which is placed in a retainer and transported by a conveyor, are dried by blowing hot air from above and below. As an apparatus for this purpose, a pipe nozzle type drying apparatus is known, for example, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-146401 and Japanese Patent No. 5666260. This pipe nozzle type drying device is constructed by disposing chambers equipped with a large number of pipe nozzles for blowing out hot air above and below a conveyor that continuously conveys a large number of retainers containing noodle blocks for one meal.

In the case of this device, each pipe nozzle is attached so as to protrude downward from the bottom surface of the upper chamber, and is also attached so as to protrude upward from the top surface of the lower chamber. A hot air duct extending from a hot air blower equipped with a heater is connected to one side of each of the upper chamber and the lower chamber, and hot air from the hot air blower is blown through the hot air duct.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2000-146401 Patent No. 5666260

As mentioned above, hot air is injected into the upper and lower chambers from the hot air ducts installed on the sides, but the dynamic pressure of the hot air increases as it moves away from the injection port, which is related to the speed of ejection from the pipe nozzle. The static pressure will be lower. Each pipe nozzle is placed across the bottom of the upper chamber and the top of the lower chamber, so the dynamic pressure received by each nozzle varies greatly depending on its placement position, and the dynamic pressure that is blown out from the pipe nozzle As a result of the non-uniform wind speed distribution, variations occur in the drying state of the noodle blocks. In particular, in the case of a mass-produced machine that is divided into 8 to 20 servings in the width direction of travel and has a width of 1200 to 3200 mm, the variation becomes large.

In order to deal with this problem, it is conceivable to provide a wind direction plate in the chamber to disperse the dynamic pressure, thereby making the flow velocity of each blowout pipe from the chamber uniform. However, in order to achieve uniformity of dynamic pressure using this method, the chamber height needs to be increased as the number of pipes increases. Specifically, if the length of the chamber is 1.5 m in the direction of movement, its height needs to be about 700 mm, which is about half the length, and these are placed above and below, and the protruding pipes Adding the length of the nozzle, the total height is approximately 2 m.

In the case of current non-fried noodle equipment, the drying time takes more than 40 minutes, so it needs to be longer than the equipment for fried noodles. Therefore, there is a problem that a large space is required for the new introduction, and the cost is also increased. In order to save installation space, it is possible to have multiple chambers, but due to the requirement to increase the height of the chamber as mentioned above, it is not practical to use chambers with the conventional configuration and create multiple layers. isn't it.

In order to solve these problems with conventional devices, the inventors of the present invention blow out the hot air supplied into the upper and lower chambers using only static pressure from a large number of pipe nozzles arranged over a wide area. This makes it possible to equalize the flow rate of hot air ejected from all pipe nozzles toward the noodle mass, making it possible to dry the noodle mass evenly, while keeping the height of the upper and lower chambers low. We have devised a drying device for producing non-fried noodles that can be installed in a not-so-wide space because the equipment can be configured with multiple chambers.

An object of the present invention is to provide a pipe fixing method suitable for constructing a hot air injection unit in a drying device for producing non-fried noodles.

The invention as set forth in claim 1 for solving the above problem is provided by installing a conveyor that continuously conveys a large number of vertically ventilated retainers into which noodle blocks for one meal are placed, and by sandwiching the conveyor between the conveyors and the upper and a drying device for producing non-fried noodles comprising a hot air injection unit disposed on the lower side, the upper hot air injection unit is applied downward from the bottom surface of the chamber, and the lower hot air injection unit is applied from the upper surface of the chamber. A method for installing pipe nozzles through a pair of speed washers so as to respectively project upward, the method comprising:
The pipe nozzles, in which one speed washer has been moved and fitted to a predetermined position, are inserted into the upper and lower chambers until the one speed washer hits the bottom or top surface of the chamber, and the pipe nozzle that protrudes into the upper and lower chambers is inserted into the upper and lower chambers until the one speed washer hits the bottom or top surface of the chamber. Slide the other speed washer onto the pipe nozzle until it hits the inner bottom surface or inner top surface of the chamber, and fit it, and the inner bottom surface or inner top surface of the chamber is sandwiched between the pair of speed washers to remove the pipe nozzle. A method for fixing a pipe nozzle in a drying device for producing non-fried noodles, characterized in that the pipe nozzle is fixed to the inner bottom surface or inner top surface of the chamber .

In the case of the method according to the present invention, when installing the pipe nozzle for constructing the hot air injection unit in the drying device for producing non-fried noodles on the bottom or top surface of the chamber, the pipe nozzle is placed in a state in which it projects vertically. The fixing work can be performed easily and quickly, and there is an effect that it is easy to ensure a predetermined amount of protrusion of the nozzle pipe from the bottom or top surface of the chamber , that is, to easily set the amount of rise.

FIG. 1 is a front view of main parts of a drying device for producing non-fried noodles manufactured using the method according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a front vertical cross-sectional view of main parts of a drying device for producing non-fried noodles manufactured using the method according to the present invention. 1 is a side longitudinal sectional view of a main part of a drying device for producing non-fried noodles manufactured using the method according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the structure of a closing cover and the method of installing a pipe nozzle in the drying device for producing non-fried noodles manufactured using the method according to the present invention.

The pipe fixing method according to the present invention involves installing a conveyor that continuously conveys a large number of vertically ventilated retainers into which one meal's worth of noodle blocks are placed, and then jetting hot air to the upper and lower sides of the conveyor. In the drying device for producing non-fried noodles, the upper hot air injection unit projects downward from the bottom surface of the chamber, and the lower hot air injection unit projects upward from the top surface of the chamber. A method for installing a pipe nozzle through a pair of speed washers , comprising:
The pipe nozzles, in which one speed washer has been moved and fitted to a predetermined position, are inserted into the upper and lower chambers until the one speed washer hits the bottom or top surface of the chamber, and the pipe nozzle that protrudes into the upper and lower chambers is inserted into the upper and lower chambers until the one speed washer hits the bottom or top surface of the chamber. Slide the other speed washer onto the pipe nozzle until it hits the inner bottom surface or inner top surface of the chamber, and fit it, and the inner bottom surface or inner top surface of the chamber is sandwiched between the pair of speed washers to remove the pipe nozzle. A method for fixing a pipe nozzle in a drying device for producing non-fried noodles, characterized in that the pipe nozzle is fixed to the inner bottom surface or inner top surface of the chamber .

FIG. 1 is a front view of a main part of a drying apparatus for producing non-fried noodles manufactured by implementing the method according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front sectional view of the main part, and FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the main part. As shown in the drawings, this drying device is equipped with a conveyor 3 that continuously conveys a large number of vertically ventilated retainers 1 into which noodle blocks 2 for one meal are placed in a stand (not shown). A hot air injection unit 4 is arranged on the upper side with the hot air injection unit 3 in between, and a hot air injection unit 5 having the same configuration as the hot air injection unit 4 but oriented upside down is arranged on the lower side.

For example, the conveyor 3 has retainer receiving plates, on which a large number of retainers 1 are set side by side, arranged in series in the direction of travel. The retainer 1 has a mesh plate on the bottom and a sieve-like structure with an open top, and is covered with a mesh lid if necessary during the hot air drying process.

The upper hot air injection unit 4 has an upper chamber 6 in which a large number of hot air injection pipe nozzles 7 projecting downward are arranged on the bottom surface 6a. The rear end of the pipe nozzle 7 penetrates through the bottom surface 6a and protrudes into the upper chamber 6, and the rear end opening 7a is covered with a closing cover 8 at an appropriate distance h (see FIGS. 2 and 3).

The closing cover 8 is composed of a top plate 8a having a U-shaped cross section, and end-face closing members 9 that close both longitudinal ends of the top plate 8a (see FIG. 4). The top plate 8a is a long plate extending across the rear end openings 7a of the plurality of pipe nozzles 7, and side plates 8b are extended on both long sides thereof. The end blocker 9 includes a bottom plate 9a provided with an opening 9b through which the rear end of the pipe nozzle 7 located at the end facing the upper chamber 6 is inserted, an end plate 9c rising from the bottom plate 9a, and an upper end of the end plate 9c. It consists of a top plate fixing part 9d extending to. The distance h between the rear end opening 7a of the pipe nozzle 7 and the top plate 8a of the closing cover 8 is maintained by the end plate 9c.

Here, the pipe nozzle 7 is fixed to the bottom surface 6a of the upper chamber 6 by fastening together using a pair of speed washers 11 and 12. The speed washers 11 and 12 are metal plates having a cut in the radial direction from a central opening, and are available in various shapes. As will be described later, in this device, the amount of protrusion of the pipe nozzle 7 into the upper chamber 6 (rise amount H ₀ ) and the gap distance between the rear end opening 7a of the pipe nozzle 7 and the top plate 8a of the closing cover 8 are determined. h is important, but if the fixing method using the speed washers 11 and 12 according to the method of the present invention is used, it is easy to ensure the predetermined amount of protrusion, that is, to set the rising amount _H0. becomes.

In that case, first, the pipe nozzle 7 is inserted into the lower speed washer 11, which will be located on the lower side, and moved to a fixed position (a predetermined distance from the rear end opening 7a) (see FIG. 4). The rear end of the pipe nozzle 7 is inserted through the insertion hole 6b of the bottom surface 6a of the upper chamber 6 until the lower speed washer 11 hits the bottom surface 6. In this state, the upper speed washer 12, which will be located above the other pipe nozzle 7, is fitted to the rear end of the pipe nozzle 7, and the upper speed washer 12 is moved downward until it touches the bottom surface 6a, making fine adjustments as appropriate. In this way, the pipe nozzle 7 is supported by the pair of speed washers 11 and 12 with the bottom surface 6a in between, and is fixed to the bottom surface 6a while protruding into the upper chamber 6 by a predetermined amount.

The pipe nozzles 7 are arranged at regular intervals vertically and horizontally on the bottom surface 6a of the upper chamber 6, but for the pipe nozzles 7 at both ends of the long row, before fitting the upper speed washer 12, the rear end of the pipe nozzle 7 is The end face closing material 9 is placed by passing it through the opening 9b of the bottom plate 9a of the end face closing material 9. Thereafter, the upper speed washer 12 is fitted in the same manner as described above. Therefore, the pair of speed washers 11 and 12 that support and fix the pipe nozzle 7 at both ends sandwich the bottom plate 9a of the end face closing member 9 and the bottom surface 6a of the upper chamber 6 (see FIGS. 2 and 4).

The lower hot air injection unit 5 has basically the same configuration as the upper hot air injection unit 4, and is arranged upside down from the upper hot air injection unit 4 with the conveyor 3 in between. That is, the lower hot air injection unit 5 is provided with a large number of pipe nozzles 7 for hot air injection that protrude upward on its top surface.

The upper and lower chambers 6, 6a in which the pipe nozzle 7 is installed have an injection port (not shown) into the interior thereof, and from this injection port, hot air is emitted in a small area relative to the chamber volume. Since the air is injected at high speed, the dynamic pressure of the injected flow rate causes the air volume distribution to the pipe nozzles 7 in the chambers 6, 6a to be biased. Therefore, in the present invention, a closing cover 8 is provided in order to eliminate the influence of this dynamic pressure and to equalize the flow velocity of hot air sent out from a large number of pipe nozzles 7.

That is, the hot air injected into the chambers 6, 6a flows in a direction perpendicular to the pipe nozzle 7, hits the opposing wall, and flows in various directions. The hot air whose flow direction has changed to be parallel to the pipe nozzle 7 (vertical direction) will be discharged from the pipe nozzle 7 at a much higher flow velocity, but if the blocking cover 8 is provided, Since the portion corresponding to the inlet of the pipe nozzle 7 is closed, hot air is no longer directly discharged from the pipe nozzle 7. In addition, the hot air that is about to flow into the pipe from around the entrance of the pipe nozzle 7 in a direction perpendicular to the pipe nozzle 7 is different from the hot air that is injected into the chambers 6, 6a and flows in a direction perpendicular to the pipe nozzle 7. Because they are the same, they are affected by it. In order to avoid this influence, side plates 8b are extended on both sides of the top plate 8a of the closing cover 8.

In order to make the entire chambers 6, 6a uniform, it is conceivable to increase the ventilation resistance by narrowing the area of the passage flowing into the pipe nozzle 7, but in that case, the pressure loss to the blower will increase. efficiency deteriorates. Therefore, the size and installation of the blocking cover 8 are determined so that the hot air inflow passage area, that is, the passage area between the side plate 8b of the top plate 8a and the pipe nozzle 7, is as similar to the discharge cross-sectional area of the pipe nozzle 7 as possible. It is preferable to design the position. In this case, there will be a uniform resistance pressure drop, and the flow rate will be obtained from the pipe due to the pressure difference due to static pressure. If the static pressure inside the chambers 6, 6a is constant, the discharge flow velocity will be the same everywhere.

In the case of the drying device for producing non-fried noodles manufactured using the method according to the present invention having the above configuration, a large number of retainers 1 loaded with noodle blocks for one meal and set on the retainer receiving plate 2 are continuously conveyed to the conveyor 3. and passes through the hot air injection area sandwiched between the upper and lower pipe nozzles 7, 7.

The hot air that is continuously injected from the upper pipe nozzle 7 is injected from above toward the noodle lumps 2 in the retainer 1 to dry the noodle lumps 2, and after passing through the retainer 1 and the conveyor 3, it is transferred to the lower chamber. 5 as return air through the gap between the pipe nozzles 7 (see FIG. 1). Similarly, the hot air continuously jetted from the lower pipe nozzle 7 is jetted from below toward the noodle mass 2 in the retainer 1 to dry the noodle mass 2, and after passing through the retainer 1 and the conveyor 3, , exits as return air through the gap between the pipe nozzles 7 of the upper chamber 4.

In the case of the method according to the present invention, when installing the pipe nozzle for constructing the hot air injection unit in the drying device for producing non-fried noodles on the bottom or top surface of the chamber, the pipe nozzle is placed in a state in which it projects vertically. The fixing work can be done easily and quickly, and the nozzle pipe has the effect of ensuring a predetermined amount of protrusion from the bottom or top of the chamber , that is, easily setting the amount of rise, and its industrial applicability. is large.

1 Retainer 2 Noodle mass 3 Conveyor 4 Upper hot air injection unit 5 Lower hot air injection unit 6 Upper chamber 6a Lower chamber
7 Pipe nozzle 7a Rear end opening 8 Closure cover 8a Top plate 8b Side plate 9 End blocker 9a Bottom plate 9b Opening 9c End plate 9d Top plate fixing part 11, 12 Speed washer

Claims (1)

For manufacturing non-fried noodles, a conveyor is installed to continuously convey a large number of vertically ventilated retainers containing noodle blocks for one meal, and hot air injection units are placed on the upper and lower sides of the conveyor. In the drying apparatus, a pipe nozzle is connected through a pair of speed washers so that the upper hot air injection unit projects downward from the bottom surface of the chamber, and the lower hot air injection unit projects upward from the top surface of the chamber. A method for installing a
The pipe nozzles, in which one speed washer has been moved and fitted to a predetermined position, are inserted into the upper and lower chambers until the one speed washer hits the bottom or top surface of the chamber, and the pipe nozzle that protrudes into the upper and lower chambers is inserted into the upper and lower chambers until the one speed washer hits the bottom or top surface of the chamber. Slide the other speed washer onto the pipe nozzle until it hits the inner bottom surface or inner top surface of the chamber, and fit it, and the inner bottom surface or inner top surface of the chamber is sandwiched between the pair of speed washers to remove the pipe nozzle. A method for fixing a pipe nozzle in a drying device for producing non-fried noodles, characterized in that the pipe nozzle is fixed to an inner bottom surface or an inner top surface of the chamber .

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