JP7511246B2 - Apparatus for coring and dividing spherical foods - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a spherical food core removal and division device that removes the core of spherical foods such as onions, cabbages, etc., and further divides the spherical foods into two from the center.

The spherical food is divided into two parts from the center in the spherical food core removal and division device of the present invention in order to make the spherical food easier to process by improving the positioning of the spherical food during subsequent processing (e.g., slicing the spherical food).

(Patent Document 1)
A conventional core removing device for spherical foods is disclosed in Patent Document 1. In this core removing device, a core removing blade is inserted from diagonally above into and removed from the upper core portion of an onion, which is a spherical food, and a core removing blade is inserted from diagonally below into and removed from the lower core portion of the onion. The upper and lower cores are removed from the main body of the onion by the action of these core removing blades. However, this core removing device does not disclose any technology for dividing the onion while removing the core.

(Patent Document 2)
A conventional spherical food coring and dividing device is disclosed in Patent Document 2. In this conventional spherical food coring and dividing device, a disk is provided which rotates about a center line passing through the disk. A supply position, a core removal position, a cutting position and a standby position are set around the periphery of the disk. Four cylindrical cutters for cutting out the cores of onions as spherical food are provided along the outer periphery of the disk. In addition, four cutting blade units for dividing the spherical food are provided on the outer periphery of the disk. Pressing plates for pressing the onions against the cutting blade units are provided opposite each cutting blade unit.

The cylindrical cutter moves up and down relative to the disk by moving along a rail groove formed by a guide plate provided above the disk. The pressure plate also moves up and down relative to the cutting blade unit by moving along a rail groove formed by a guide plate provided above the disk.

The disk rotates between a supply position, a core removal position, a cutting position, and a standby position. The onion to be processed is placed on the outer circumference of the disk at the supply position. As the disk rotates, the onion moves sequentially to the core removal position, the cutting position, and then the standby position. When the onion reaches the core removal position, the cylindrical cutter descends and the onion core is cut and removed. When the onion reaches the cutting position, the pressure plate descends and presses the onion against the cutting blade unit. This pressing causes the cutting blade unit to divide the onion. These divided onions become the finished onions. In this way, the core removal and division processes are performed on the onions that are sequentially supplied onto the disk.

This conventional spherical food coring and dividing device has a complex structure, making it expensive, prone to malfunctions, and difficult to maintain.

(Patent Document 3)
A conventional spherical food core removing and dividing device is disclosed in Patent Document 3. This conventional spherical food core removing and dividing device has a core removing tool and a dividing blade located above a table. The core removing tool and the dividing blade can each be raised and lowered relative to the table. An operator places the food to be processed (an apple in this document) on the table, lowers the core removing tool to cut out the apple's core, and further lowers the dividing blade to divide the apple.

This conventional spherical food coring and dividing device has a complex structure, so it is expensive, breaks down frequently, and is difficult to maintain. In addition, since workers must place each apple on a table and then perform the core and division processes, it is inefficient, meaning that it is not possible to process a large number of apples in a short period of time.

(Patent Document 4)
A conventional spherical food core removing and dividing device is disclosed in Patent Document 4. This conventional spherical food core removing and dividing device has a belt conveyor arranged in a straight line. Chinese cabbage, which is the food to be processed, is transported in a straight line by the belt conveyor, and during the transport, the coring process is performed in a core removing booth, and the dividing process is performed in a dividing booth. The divided Chinese cabbage is discharged one by one from the belt conveyor at the turning point of the belt conveyor in the transport direction.

In this conventional spherical food core removal and division device, the conveyor belt used as the transport means is installed in a straight line, so a large area is required for the installation area of the device. In addition, after the division process is completed, the Chinese cabbage is discharged one by one from the conveyor belt, which is inefficient, meaning that a large number of Chinese cabbages cannot be processed in a short period of time.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-115953 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-236463 JP 2012-080851 A JP 2014-068640 A

The present invention was made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems with conventional devices, and has as its first object to provide a spherical food coring and dividing device that can perform the coring and dividing processes continuously. A second object of the present invention is to provide a spherical food coring and dividing device that can be installed in a small area. A third object of the present invention is to provide a spherical food coring and dividing device that can process a large number of spherical foods in a short period of time. A fourth object of the present invention is to provide a spherical food coring and dividing device that is simple in structure, inexpensive, and easy to maintain.

The spherical food core removal and division device of the present invention is a spherical food core removal and division device that removes the core of spherical food and further divides the spherical food into two, and comprises a table on which the spherical food is placed and rotates, four positions set at equal angular intervals of 90° relative to the table, namely a spherical food supply position, a spherical food core removal position, a spherical food division position, and a spherical food discharge position, spherical food holding means provided on the outer periphery of the table at equal angular intervals of 90°, a core removal device installed at the spherical food core removal position, a division device installed at the spherical food division position, and a spherical food holder. The system has an ejection device installed at a ejection position and a table drive means for intermittently rotating the table at an angle of 90°, the spherical food holding means holds multiple spherical foods in a juxtaposed manner, the core removal device simultaneously performs a core removal process on the multiple spherical foods held in a juxtaposed manner by the spherical food holding means, the dividing device simultaneously performs a dividing process on the multiple spherical foods held in a juxtaposed manner by the spherical food holding means, and the ejection device simultaneously performs an ejection process on the multiple spherical foods held in a juxtaposed manner by the spherical food holding means.

In another aspect of the spherical food coring and dividing device of the present invention, the spherical food holding means is a plurality of holes for inserting spherical food, which are arranged side by side on the outer periphery of the table. The worker only needs to place the spherical food in the holes, making the operation very easy.

In the spherical food coring and dividing device of the present invention, the coring device comprises a movable plate provided above the table, a movable plate air cylinder for raising and lowering the movable plate, a food presser provided at the lower end of the movable plate, a pair of coring air cylinders attached to the movable plate, and a coring blade driven by the coring air cylinder, the pair of coring air cylinders being fixed to the side surfaces of the movable plate, the side surfaces of the movable plate extending radially of the table.
According to this corer and dividing device, the side of the movable plate extends in the radial direction of the table and a corer blade is provided on that side, so that multiple corers can be installed together within a narrow area for spherical foods arranged side by side on the outer peripheral edge of the table.

In yet another aspect of the present invention, the dividing device has a dividing blade having a width greater than the total width of the plurality of food products arranged side by side, which allows the plurality of food products arranged side by side to be divided simultaneously.

In yet another aspect of the spherical food core removing and dividing device of the present invention, the ejection device has a food lifting device that lifts the food slightly above the table, and a push plate that pushes out the food lifted by the food lifting device. This configuration makes it possible to stably and reliably eject the spherical food outside the table.

In yet another aspect of the spherical food corer and divider of the present invention, the table drive means comprises an air cylinder equipped with an output rod that performs a rectilinear reciprocating motion, and a power transmission device that converts the rectilinear reciprocating motion of the output rod into rotational motion of the table. With this configuration, the drive means for intermittently rotating the table at an angle of 90° can be easily configured. Moreover, highly reliable intermittent rotation can be obtained.

Yet another aspect of the spherical food coring and dividing device of the present invention has a table speed regulating means for regulating the rotational speed of the table, the table speed regulating means having a braking roller contacting one side of the table and a pressing piece facing the braking roller across the table, and regulating the rotational speed of the table by clamping the table between the braking roller and the pressing piece.
If the driving device for driving the table is configured using an air cylinder, large vibrations may occur in the table when the table stops upon completion of the 90° intermittent rotation. According to the centering and dividing device of this aspect of the present invention, the rotation speed of the table that moves in intermittent rotation can be reduced as necessary, preventing vibrations from occurring in the table, and as a result, the multiple spherical foods arranged side by side on the table can be maintained in a stable state.

In still another aspect of the spherical food core removing and dividing device according to the present invention, the table speed regulating means clamps the table between the braking roller and the pressing piece for a predetermined time before the table completes a 90° rotation. This configuration makes it possible to prevent vibrations from occurring in the table when the table is stopped.

In still another aspect of the present invention, the spherical food corer and divider has a recess on the outer circumferential side of the table and a roller that is pressed against the outer circumferential side with a predetermined pressure, and the angular position of the table is determined by the roller fitting into the recess. This configuration makes it possible to prevent variation in the stopping position of the intermittently rotating table.

According to the centering and dividing device of the present invention, the feeding position, centering position, dividing position, and discharging position are set around the rotating table, so the centering and dividing device can be made smaller than when a linear conveyor belt is used, and therefore the centering and dividing device can be installed in a narrow space.
Furthermore, since a plurality of foods (e.g., onions) are placed on the outer periphery of the table and processed simultaneously by the core removing device, dividing device, and discharging device, a large number of foods can be cored and divided in a short period of time.

1 is a perspective view showing an entire embodiment of a centering and dividing device according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a main body unit housed inside the core removing and dividing device of FIG. 1 . FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the main unit of FIG. 2 as viewed from above. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the main unit as viewed obliquely from below, according to the arrow H in FIG. 3. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main unit mainly showing a positioning device. 4 is a view showing a side portion of the main unit as viewed from the direction of arrow H in FIG. 3. 4 is a diagram showing the main unit as viewed from the bottom side in the direction of arrow J in FIG. 3. 1 is a perspective view of the main unit showing two onions placed on a table. FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main unit mainly showing the core removing device. FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the core removing device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the core removing device from another direction. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main unit mainly showing a dividing device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing one operating state of the dividing device. FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing another operating state of the dividing device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the structure of the rear side of the dividing device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main unit mainly showing a discharge device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing one operating state of the ejection device; FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the structure of the lower part of the discharge device. FIG. 19 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 18 .

The spherical food core removing and dividing device according to the present invention will be described below based on an embodiment. It is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. Furthermore, in the drawings attached to this specification, the components may be shown at different ratios than in actuality in order to clearly show the characteristic parts.

(Overall structure of the core removal and division device)
FIG. 1 shows the overall structure of an apparatus 1 for removing cores and dividing onions as a spherical food. The apparatus 1 has a machine frame 5 consisting of a support 2, side panels 3, a top panel 4, etc. A main unit 8 shown in FIG. 2 is housed inside the machine frame 5. A control unit 9 is attached on the top panel 4. An outlet 10 is provided on the left side panel 3. The control unit 9 and the main unit 8 are connected by an electric cable 11. Considering the case where the main unit 8 is taken out of the machine frame 5, the electric cable 11 can be deformed from a contracted state shown in the figure to a state in which it extends outward. The control unit 9 contains a control circuit including a programmable logic controller (PLC). As is well known, a PLC is a device that controls the operation of various operating devices by a processing unit that operates according to a program. The control unit 9 may be formed by a relay circuit that does not have a programmable processing unit.

(table)
The main unit 8 has a table 13 in Fig. 2. The table 13 is a substantially circular metal plate-like member as shown in Fig. 3. Around the periphery of the table 13, an onion supply position A, an onion core removal position B, an onion dividing position C, and an onion discharge position D are set at equal angular intervals of 90°. In Fig. 1, the outer peripheral edge of the table 13 at the onion supply position A is visible from outside the machine frame 5.

In FIG. 2, the center of the table 13 is fixed to the upper end of the support 14. The lower part of the support 14 is rotatably supported by a support base 15. As shown in FIG. 4, a table drive device 18 is provided on the underside of the support base 15 as a table drive means. The table drive device 18 has an air cylinder 19 and a power transmission device 20. As is well known, the air cylinder 19 is a device that converts pneumatic energy into linear reciprocating motion of an output rod 19a.

The power transmission device 20 is a device that converts the linear reciprocating motion of the output rod 19a into the rotational motion of the support 14. More specifically, when the output rod 19a extends a predetermined distance, the power transmission device 20 rotates the support 14 about its own central axis in the clockwise direction as viewed from the arrow E (i.e., counterclockwise as viewed from the arrow F). Then, when the output rod 19a returns from the extended position into the cylinder body, the power transmission device 20 maintains the support 14 in a stationary state and returns only the output rod 19a. As a result, the table drive device 18 intermittently rotates the table 13 in FIG. 2 in 90° increments in the counterclockwise direction around the joint point with the support 14 (i.e., the center point of the circle of the table 13) as viewed from the arrow F direction.

(Positioning device)
Fig. 5 shows the main unit 8 as viewed from the direction indicated by the arrow G in Fig. 3. In Fig. 5, a plurality of (four in this embodiment) notched recesses 21 are provided at equal angular intervals of 90° on the outer peripheral side surface of the table 13. Note that one of the four notched recesses 21 is hidden by other equipment and cannot be seen in Fig. 5. A positioning device 22 is provided at a side position of the table 13. The positioning device 22 is fixed to the support 15 or the machine frame 5 in Fig. 1 and is stationary.

The positioning device 22 has a rotatable roller 23 and an air cylinder 24. The roller 23 is pressed against the outer peripheral side of the table 13 with a predetermined pressure by extending the output rod 24a of the air cylinder 24. When the notched recess 21 of the table 13 reaches the roller 23 being pressed against it, the roller 23 fits into the notched recess 21. At this time, if no power is transmitted from the table drive device 18 in FIG. 4 to the table 13, the table 13 is positioned by the roller 23 (see FIG. 5) that fits into the notched recess 21. When the table 13 starts to rotate as driven by the table drive device 18 in FIG. 4, the air cylinder 24 of the positioning device 22 in FIG. 5 is turned OFF, and the roller 23 is released from pressing against the side of the table 13.

(Table speed regulation means)
In Fig. 3, a braking roller 25 is provided on a portion of the table 13 near the supply position A. The braking roller 25 is fixed to the support 15 or the machine frame 5 in Fig. 1 and is stationary. Fig. 6 is a view showing a side portion of the main unit 8 as seen from the direction of arrow H in Fig. 3. As shown in Fig. 6, a pressing device 28 is provided at a position facing the braking roller 25 with the table 13 in between. The pressing device 28 is fixed on the support 15. The pressing device 28 has a support pillar 29 fixed to the support 15, an air cylinder 30 supported by the support pillar 29, and a pressing piece 31 attached to the air cylinder 30.

When the air cylinder 30 is activated and the pressing piece 31 moves upward, the pressing piece 31 presses the table 13 against the roller 25. This applies a braking force, i.e., a stopping force, to the table 13. This prevents the table 13 from rotating at an excessive speed. In this embodiment, the table speed regulating means for regulating the rotation speed of the table 13 is composed of the braking roller 25 and the pressing piece 31. The braking force by the air cylinder 30 is applied only for a predetermined time just before the table 13 completes a 90° rotation. If the air cylinder 30 is suddenly stopped, vibrations may occur in the table 13, causing the onions to shift position, but if the table speed regulating means applies a braking force to the table 13 just before the end of the 90° rotation, vibrations in the table 13 can be prevented.

(Food Support Board)
3, a plurality of food support plates 34 (four in this embodiment) are fixed at equal angular intervals of 90° to the outer periphery of the table 13. When one food support plate 34 is located at the supply position A in FIG. 3, the other three food support plates 34 are located at the core removal position B, the division position C, and the discharge position D, respectively.

The table 13 has a number of circular holes 35, 35 (two in this embodiment) in the portion where the food support plate 34 is fixed. The food support plate 34 has a number of circular holes 36, 36 (two in this embodiment). Figure 7 shows the main unit 8 as viewed from the bottom side, following the arrow J in Figure 3. As shown in Figure 7, the holes 35, 35 in the table 13 and the holes 36, 36 in the food support plate 34 overlap each other in terms of position. As a result, the holes 36, 36 in the food support plate 34 pass through the table 13.

When removing the core and dividing the onion, as shown in FIG. 8, onion Ta is placed in the left hole of holes 36, 36 in food support plate 34, and onion Tb is placed in the right hole. In other words, in this embodiment, the spherical food holding means for holding multiple onions (two in this embodiment) side by side is realized by holes 36, 36 provided in food support plate 34.

The onions Ta, Tb may be placed on the table 13 manually or automatically by an automatic machine. The sizes of the onions put in are not uniform but vary. Figure 8 shows an example in which a large onion Ta is placed on the left side and a small onion Tb is placed on the right side. When the onions Ta, Tb are placed in the holes 36, 36 of the food support plate 34, the tops of the lower ends of the onions Ta, Tb protrude downward beyond the holes 35, 35 of the table 13 in Figure 7.

(Core removal device)
The centering device 39 is installed at the centering position B in Fig. 3. The centering device 39 has two upper movable plates 40a, 40b arranged above the table 13. The upper movable plates 40a, 40b are supported by output rods 41c, 41d of movable plate air cylinders 41a, 41b, respectively, as shown in Fig. 9. The air cylinders 41a, 41b are fixed to the top plate 4, which serves as the machine frame 5, as shown in Fig. 1. The centering device 39 also has lower fixed plates 42a, 42b below the table 13 in Fig. 9. The lower fixed plates 42a, 42b are both fixed to the upper surface of the support 15 and are immovable.

Food pressers 43a and 43b are provided at the lower ends of the upper movable plates 40a and 40b, respectively. The food pressers 43a and 43b are formed in a ring shape and press the tops of the food (onions Ta and Tb in this embodiment) in a ring shape. This holds the onions Ta and Tb in place. The air cylinders 41a and 41b are devices that use air pressure energy to extend and return the output rods 41c and 41d. The extension movement of the output rods 41c and 41d stops when a predetermined pressure is applied to the tips of the output rods 41c and 41d. This pressure can be adjusted by the operator using a regulator. In this embodiment, the "predetermined pressure" is a pressure that can hold down the onions Ta and Tb without crushing them. Therefore, if the onions Ta and Tb vary in size, the air cylinders 41a and 41b will have different strokes (i.e., travel distances) of the output rods 41c and 41d, but they can hold down the onions Ta and Tb with a constant pressure.

As shown in FIG. 10, a pair of air cylinders 46a and 46b for core removal are fixed to the side of the upper movable plate 40a on the upstream side. The side of the upper movable plate 40a extends in the radial direction of the table 13. Core removal blades 47a and 47b are attached to the tips of the output rods of these air cylinders 46a and 46b. The core removal blades 47a and 47b are formed as blades with a U-shaped cross section, i.e., semi-cylindrical blades. Each of the air cylinders 46a and 46b moves the output rod forward and backward at a predetermined inclination angle from an obliquely upward direction. The inclination angles of the forward and backward movements of the output rods of the air cylinders 46a and 46b are the same, and the inclination directions are opposite to each other. Therefore, the core removal blades 47a and 47b attached to the tips of each output rod cut into the upper top of the onion Ta from opposite directions to each other. The timing of the cutting action of the core removal blades 47a and 47b into the onion Ta may be simultaneous or there may be a time lag.

In FIG. 10, a pair of air cylinders 48a, 48b for core removal are fixed to the side of the lower fixed plate 42a on the upstream side. The side of the lower fixed plate 42a extends in the radial direction of the table 13. Core removal blades 49a, 49b are attached to the tips of the output rods of these air cylinders 48a, 48b. The core removal blades 49a, 49b are formed as blades with a U-shaped cross section, i.e., semi-cylindrical blades. Each of the air cylinders 48a, 48b moves the output rod forward and backward at a predetermined inclination angle from a diagonal downward direction. The inclination angles of the forward and backward movement of the output rods of the air cylinders 48a, 48b are the same, and the inclination directions are opposite to each other. Therefore, the core removal blades 49a, 49b attached to the tips of each output rod are designed to cut into the lower top of the onion Ta from opposite directions to each other. The timing of the cutting action of the core removal blades 49a and 49b into the onion Ta may be simultaneous or there may be a time lag.

Figure 11 shows the structure of the main unit 8 when viewed from the direction of the arrow K in Figure 5. Note that the positioning device 22 in Figure 5 is omitted in Figure 11. In Figure 11, a pair of air cylinders 52a, 52b for core removal are fixed to the side of the upper movable plate 40b on the downstream side. Core removal blades 53a, 53b are attached to the tips of the output rods of these air cylinders 52a, 52b. The core removal blades 53a, 53b are formed as blades with a U-shaped cross section, i.e., semi-cylindrical blades. Each of the air cylinders 52a, 52b moves the output rod forward and backward at a predetermined inclination angle from an obliquely upward direction. The inclination angles of the forward and backward movements of the output rods of the air cylinders 52a, 52b are the same, and the inclination directions are opposite to each other. Therefore, the core removal blades 53a, 53b attached to the tips of each output rod cut into the upper top of the onion Ta from opposite directions to each other. The timing of the cutting action of the core removal blades 47a and 47b into the onion Tb may be simultaneous or there may be a time lag.

A pair of air cylinders 54a, 54b for core removal are fixed to the side of the lower fixed plate 42b on the downstream side. Core removal blades 55a, 55b are attached to the tips of the output rods of these air cylinders 54a, 54b. The core removal blades 55a, 55b are formed as blades with a U-shaped cross section, i.e., semi-cylindrical blades. Each of the air cylinders 54a, 54b moves the output rod forward and backward at a predetermined inclination angle from a diagonal downward direction. The inclination angles of the forward and backward movement of the output rods of the air cylinders 54a, 54b are the same, and the inclination directions are opposite to each other. Therefore, the core removal blades 55a, 55b attached to the tips of each output rod cut into the lower top of the onion Tb from opposite directions to each other. The timing of the cutting operation of the core removal blades 55a, 55b into the onion Tb may be simultaneous, or there may be a time difference.

In this embodiment, the side surfaces of the upper movable plates 40a, 40b extend in the radial direction of the table 13. The side surfaces of the lower fixed plates 42a, 42b also extend in the radial direction of the table 13. As a result, the core removing blades 47a, 47b, 49a, 49b, 53a, 53b, 55a, 55b for removing the cores of the two onions Ta, Tb arranged side by side, and the core removing air cylinders 46a, 46b, 48a, 48b, 52a, 52b, 54a, 54b for driving the core removing blades, can be installed in a small area. As a result, it has become possible to perform the core removing process of two (i.e., multiple) onions Ta, Tb arranged close to each other on the table 13 without any problems.

(Splitting device)
A dividing device 58 is installed at dividing position C in Fig. 3. The dividing device 58 has an air cylinder 59 as shown in Fig. 12. The air cylinder 59 is fixed to the top plate 4 of the machine frame 5 in Fig. 1. In Fig. 12, a lifting member 60 is attached to an output rod 59a of the air cylinder 59. A dividing blade 61 is fixed to the lifting member 60. The dividing blade 61 is a thin, rectangular blade having a width greater than the length of two onions lined up side by side. The lifting member 60 and the dividing blade 61 are driven by the air cylinder 59 to move up and down between an upper position (i.e., a standby position) shown in Fig. 13 and a lower position (i.e., a cutting position) shown in Fig. 12.

As shown in FIG. 14, food pressers 64a and 64b are provided around the split blade 61. Back plates 65a and 65b are fixed to the backs of the food pressers 64a and 64b as shown in FIG. 15. A linear track 66 of a linear guide device (linear guide device) is fixed to the outward surface of the back plates 65a and 65b as shown in FIG. 12. The linear track 66 extends in the vertical direction. As shown in FIG. 13, a moving piece 67 of the linear guide device is fixed to the back of the lifting member 60. Two moving pieces 67 are provided, one for each of the back plates 65a and 65b. The moving piece 67 moves along the linear track 66 , so that the back plates 65a and 65b (and therefore the food pressers 64a and 64b) can move up and down relative to the lifting member 60.

15, protruding plates 68, 68 are provided on the upper part of the back plates 65a, 65b. These protruding plates 68 extend from the back plates 65a, 65b to a length that allows them to hit the upper surface of the lifting member 60. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 14, when the lifting member 60 is driven by the air cylinder 59 to the upper position (i.e., the standby position), the back plates 65a, 65b are in the upper position (i.e., the standby position) while being suspended from the lifting member 60 by the protruding plate 68 (see FIG. 15). When the lifting member 60 is driven by the air cylinder 59 to descend, the back plates 65a, 65b (and therefore the food pressers 64a, 64b) simultaneously descend under their own weight. When the descending food pressers 64a, 64b reach the onions Ta, Tb as shown in FIG. 12, the descent of the food pressers 64a, 64b stops. In this state, the food pressers 64a and 64b press down the onions Ta and Tb with their own weight. This holds the onions Ta and Tb so that they do not move. The lifting member 60 and the dividing blade 61 then continue to descend, and the dividing blade 61 divides the onions Ta and Tb into two from the center, as shown in FIG. 12.

(Discharge device)
A discharge device 71 is installed at the discharge position D in Fig. 3. The discharge device 71 has a push plate 72 at a position above the table 13 as shown in Fig. 16. The discharge device 71 also has a food lifting device 70 at a position below the table 13. The push plate 72 is fixed to the tip of an output rod 74a of an air cylinder 74 as shown in Fig. 15. The push plate 72 is driven by the air cylinder 74 to move forward and backward between a retracted position (i.e., a waiting position) shown in Fig. 8 and a projected position (i.e., a discharge position) shown in Fig. 17. When the push plate 72 is in the retracted position in Fig. 8, the onions Ta, Tb can reach the discharge position D as the table 13 rotates. When the push plate 72 moves to the projected position in Fig. 17, the onions Ta, Tb are pushed by the moving push plate 72 and pushed out to the outside of the food support plate 34. The pushed out onions Ta, Tb are discharged to the outside through the discharge port 10 in Fig. 1. In FIG. 17, the lower end 72a of the pressure plate 72 is shaped to protrude forward so as to be able to accurately fit into the lower ends of the onions Ta and Tb.

The food lifting device 70 in FIG. 16 has a push-up arm 73 and an air cylinder 76. The push-up arm 73 has a bifurcated tip as shown in FIG. 18. Circular onion receiving members 75a, 75b are provided at the bifurcated tip. The distance between the pair of onion receiving members 75a, 75b is the same as the distance M between the two holes 36, 36 provided in the food support plate 34 in FIG. 3. The outer diameter of the onion receiving members 75a, 75b is large enough to pass through the circular holes 36, 36 in the food support plate 34 in FIG. 3.

In FIG. 16, the push-up arm 73 is fixed to the tip of the output rod 76a (see FIG. 19) of the air cylinder 76. The push-up arm 73 is driven by the air cylinder 76 to move up and down between the lower position (i.e., standby position) shown in FIG. 18 and the upper position (i.e., push-up position) shown in FIG. 19. In the lower position in FIG. 18, the onion receiving members 75a, 75b are located below the table 13. In the upper position in FIG. 19, the onion receiving members 75a, 75b are located slightly above the table 13. The reason why the onion receiving members 75a, 75b are raised to a position slightly higher than the table 13 is to make it easier for the lower end 72a of the push plate 72 to enter the lower end portion of the onions Ta, Tb when the push plate 72 pushes the onions Ta, Tb outward in FIG. 17.

(motion)
Since the core removing and dividing device 1 of this embodiment is configured as described above, an operator places a plurality of onions Ta, Tb (two in this embodiment) as spherical food on the food support plate 34 at the supply position A in Fig. 1. The task of placing the onions may be performed manually by the operator or automatically by an automatic machine.

The onions to be added may be in various states, such as those with the top and bottom cores and membrane still attached, those with the top and bottom ends cut off and the membrane removed, and those with the top and bottom cores attached and the membrane removed. Note that "with the top and bottom ends cut off" means that only the ends have been cut off and the top and bottom cores remain.

When the onions Ta, Tb are placed on the table 13, the table drive device 18 in FIG. 4 is activated and the table 13 rotates counterclockwise by an angle of 90° in FIG. 8. This causes the onions Ta, Tb to move to the core removal position B in FIG. 3 and stop there. The table 13 is prevented from rotating at an excessive speed by the action of the pressing device 28 and braking roller 25 in FIG. 6. Furthermore, the table 13 is accurately positioned by the action of the positioning device 22 and the notched recess 21 in FIG. 5. As a result, the onions Ta, Tb stop accurately at the core removal position B.

When the onions Ta, Tb stop at the core removal position B, in Figures 10 and 11, the upper air cylinders 46a, 46b (Figure 10), 52a, 52b (Figure 11) for core removal are activated. This causes the core removal blades 47a, 47b (Figure 10), 53a, 53b (Figure 11) attached to the tip of the output rod of each air cylinder to be inserted into and pulled out from the upper tip of the onions Ta, Tb. This cuts and removes the upper cores of the onions Ta, Tb.

On the other hand, when the onions Ta, Tb stop at the core removal position B in Fig. 9, the lower air cylinders 48a, 48b (Fig. 10), 54a, 54b (Fig. 11) for core removal are actuated in Fig. 10 and Fig. 11. This causes the core removal blades 49a, 49b (Fig. 10), 55a, 55b (Fig. 11) attached to the tip of the output rod of each air cylinder to be inserted into and pulled out from the lower tip of the onions Ta, Tb. This cuts and removes the lower cores of the onions Ta, Tb.

When the core removal operation is completed, the table 13 in FIG. 3 rotates further by an angle of 90° counterclockwise, and the onions Ta and Tb are transported to the dividing position C and stopped there. The pressing device 28 in FIG. 6 and the positioning device 22 in FIG. 5 allow the onions Ta and Tb to stop accurately at the dividing position C. At this time, in FIG. 14, the lifting member 60 and the dividing blade 61 are placed in the upper position, which is the standby position. When the onions Ta and Tb stop at the dividing position C, the lifting member 60 is driven by the air cylinder 59 to descend. Then, the food pressers 64a and 64b descend under their own weight and come into contact with the upper ends of the onions Ta and Tb as shown in FIG. 12 and stop. This holds the onions Ta and Tb immovable. In this state, the dividing blade 61 is further driven by the air cylinder 59 to descend, and the onions Ta and Tb are divided into two from the center by the dividing blade 61.

When the dividing process is thus completed, the table 13 in FIG. 3 rotates further counterclockwise by an angle of 90°. As a result, the onions Ta and Tb are transported to the discharge position D and stopped there. Due to the action of the pressing device 28 in FIG. 6 and the positioning device 22 in FIG. 5, the onions Ta and Tb are stopped accurately at the discharge position D. At this time, the pressing plate 72 in FIG. 8 is in the retracted position as shown in the figure. Also, the onion receiving members 75a and 75b in FIG. 16 are in a position lower than the table 13.

When the onions Ta, Tb stop at the discharge position D, the onion receiving members 75a, 75b are driven by the air cylinder 76 and raised to a position slightly above the table 13 as shown in FIG. 19. As a result, the lower ends of the onions Ta, Tb in FIG. 8 are raised to a position slightly above the table 13. In this state, the air cylinder 74 is operated and the push plate 72 protrudes forward as shown in FIG. 17. As a result, the onions Ta, Tb are pushed forward by the push plate 72 and discharged to the outside through the discharge port 10 in FIG. 1.

The discharged onions Ta, Tb have their top and bottom cores removed, and are further divided into two parts from the center. These onions Ta, Tb then undergo a specified post-processing, for example slicing using a slicing device. Because the onions Ta, Tb undergoing this post-processing are divided into two, the flat divided surface can be placed on the processing table of the post-processing device. Because the divided surface is flat, the onions can remain stable, and as a result, they can undergo accurate and rapid post-processing.

In this embodiment, the processes of core removal and division are performed using a rotating table 13, so the core removal and division device can be installed in a smaller space than the device in Patent Document 4 (JP Patent Publication 2014-068640), which uses a linear conveyor belt.

In addition, in this embodiment, multiple onions (i.e., food) (two in this embodiment) are placed side by side on the outer edge of the rotating table 13, and the multiple foods are subjected to the processes of core removal, division, and discharge, so a large number of foods can be processed in a short time compared to processing the foods one by one.

In addition, this embodiment has a configuration in which the core removal device, the dividing device, and the discharge device are fixedly arranged around the rotating table 13, so compared to the devices disclosed in Patent Document 2 (JP Patent Publication 7-236463) and Patent Document 3 (JP Patent Publication 2012-080851), the structure is simpler, can be manufactured at low cost, and is easier to maintain.

In this embodiment, the onions are lifted by the onion receiving members 75a and 75b in FIG. 16, and pushed out by the parallel movement of the push plate 72, allowing the onions to be discharged from the discharge port 10 in FIG. 1 without losing their shape. This allows the onions to be transported to a post-processing device (e.g., a slicing device) in a stable and accurate manner.

Other Embodiments
Although the present invention has been described above with reference to preferred embodiments, the present invention is not limited to these embodiments and can be modified in various ways within the scope of the invention described in the claims.
For example, although onions are exemplified as food in the above embodiment, the food may be cabbage or other vegetables, or apples or other foods.
In addition, in the above embodiment, two foods are placed side by side on the outer periphery of the table 13 and the foods are subjected to the processes of core removal, division, and ejection, but the number of foods can be three or more.

1: Core removal and division device, 2: Support, 3: Side plate, 4: Top plate, 5: Machine frame, 8: Main unit, 9: Control unit, 10: Discharge port, 13: Table, 14: Support, 15: Support base, 18: Table drive device (table drive means), 19: Air cylinder, 19a: Output rod, 20: Power transmission device, 21: Notched recess, 22: Positioning device, 23: Roller, 24: Air cylinder, 25: Brake roller, 28: Pressing device, 29: support, 30: air cylinder, 31: pressing piece, 34: food support plate, 35: hole in table 13, 36: hole in food support plate 36 (means for holding spherical food), 39: core removal device, 40a, 40b: upper movable plate, 41a, 41b: air cylinder for movable plate, 41c, 41d: output rod, 42a, 42b: lower fixed plate, 43a, 43b: food presser, 46a, 46b: air cylinder for core removal, 47a, 47b: core removal blade, 48a, 48b: air cylinder for core removal, 49a, 49b: core removal blade, 52a, 52b: air cylinder for core removal, 53a, 53b: core removal blade, 54a, 54b: air cylinder for core removal, 55a, 55b: core removal blade, 58: dividing device, 59: air cylinder, 59a: output rod, 60: lifting member, 61: dividing blade, 64a, 64b: food holder, 65a, 65b: back plate, 66: straight line Track, 67: moving piece, 68: veneer, 70: food lifting device, 71: discharge device, 72: push plate, 72a: lower end, 73: push-up arm, 74: air cylinder, 74a: output rod, 75a, 75b: onion receiving member, 76: air cylinder, 76a: output rod, A: onion supply position, B: onion core removal position, C: onion division position, D: onion discharge position, M: onion hole spacing, Ta, Tb: onion

Claims (8)

A spherical food core removing and dividing device for removing the core of a spherical food and further dividing the spherical food into two, comprising:
A rotating table on which spherical food is placed;
four positions set at equal angular intervals of 90° with respect to the table, namely, a spherical food supply position, a spherical food core removal position, a spherical food division position, and a spherical food discharge position;
a spherical food holding means provided at equal angular intervals of 90° on the outer periphery of the table;
a coring device disposed at a coring position of the spherical food;
A dividing device installed at a dividing position of the spherical food;
an ejection device disposed at a position where the spherical food is ejected;
and a table driving means for intermittently rotating the table at an angle of 90°.
The spherical food holding means holds a plurality of spherical food in a juxtaposed manner;
the core removing device simultaneously performs a core removing process on a plurality of spherical food items held in a juxtaposed relationship by the spherical food holding means;
The dividing device divides the plurality of spherical foods held in parallel by the spherical food holding means simultaneously,
the discharge device performs a discharge process simultaneously on the plurality of spherical foods held in parallel by the spherical food holding means,
The centering device is
A movable plate provided above the table;
an air cylinder for a movable plate that moves the movable plate up and down;
A food press provided at the lower end of the movable plate;
A pair of centering air cylinders attached to the movable plate;
a centering blade driven by the centering air cylinder,
The pair of centering air cylinders are fixed to the side surfaces of the movable plate,
The side surface of the movable plate extends in the radial direction of the table.
1. An apparatus for coring and dividing spherical foods, comprising: The spherical food corer and divider according to claim 1, characterized in that the spherical food holding means is a plurality of holes for inserting spherical food arranged side by side on the outer periphery of the table. 3. The apparatus for coring and dividing spherical food according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the dividing device has a dividing blade having a width greater than the total width of the plurality of food products arranged side by side. The discharge device includes:
a food lifting device for lifting the food slightly above the table;
a push plate for pushing the food lifted by the food lifting device out of the table;
4. The spherical food coring and dividing device according to claim 1, further comprising: The table driving means is
An air cylinder having an output rod that performs reciprocating linear motion;
a power transmission device for converting the reciprocating translatory motion of the output rod into a rotational motion of the table;
5. The spherical food coring and dividing device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , further comprising: A table speed regulating means is provided for regulating the rotation speed of the table,
the table speed regulating means has a braking roller that contacts one surface of the table, and a pressing piece that faces the braking roller across the table,
6. The device for removing cores and dividing spherical food according to claim 1, wherein the table is clamped between the braking roller and the pressing piece to regulate the rotational speed of the table. 7. The spherical food coring and dividing device according to claim 6, wherein the table speed regulating means clamps the table between the braking roller and the pressing piece for a predetermined time before the table completes a 90° rotation. The table has a recess provided on an outer peripheral side surface, and a roller pressed against the outer peripheral side surface with a predetermined pressure,
8. The device for coring and dividing spherical food according to claim 6 or 7 , wherein the angular position of the table is determined by the rollers fitting into the recesses.

Images