JPH08308546A - Cylindrical freezer for business use of continuous conveyance type - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide an inexpensive freezer for business use of a continuous conveyance type which is small in size, high in operation efficiency and suitable for cooling and freezing small lots of various kinds of products. CONSTITUTION: The freezer chamber 1 is double circular-cross section tubes in which a heat-insulating material is filled in the space between the two tubes, a conveying inlet 6 and an outlet 9 are opened on its both ends in the longitudinal direction, and the wall 16 is set so that it can open around an opening shaft equipped with a weight balancer 13 in the longitudinal direction. The freezer chamber 1 is further provided inside with a washing solution-feeding pipe 18 having a plurality of spray-jetting nozzles 17 and, inside the bottom, a steam-jetting pipe 40 connected through a steam- sterilizing control valve 39 to a steam-feeding pipe 24 is provided. Net conveyers 2, 3 are set so that they are allowed their starting edges to face to the conveying inlet 6 and the end edges to the conveying outlet 9, respectively and they are separately controlled. A couple of cool air circulator 4 are set below the conveying net conveyer 3 so that the cooling air passes through the net conveyers and convectively circulates. The washing solution-feeding pipe 18 and the steam-feeding pipe 40 are connected with a C.I.P washing unit and a steam sterilizing unit 5.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a freezer for continuously cooling and freezing foods. More specifically, the freezer is suitable for high-mix low-volume production and can handle small amounts of energy-saving operation and small volume. The present invention relates to a continuous conveyance type commercial freezer which is excellent in installation economy by ratio.

[0002]

^2. Description of the Related Art A conventional continuous transfer type commercial freezer has a rectangular cross section in a direction perpendicular to the transfer direction, and the food to be treated is placed in a freezer chamber having an opening area of 6 m ² or more and a length of 12 to 30 m. A single transfer net conveyor for continuous transfer is provided, and a plurality of cold air circulation devices including a freezing unit and a blower are provided above or below the transfer net conveyor in the freezer chamber. A large-sized structure that circulates cold air in the freezer room and has a CIP cleaning pipe inside for cleaning and sterilization, and processes a large amount of objects to be cooled or frozen (one-way structure) Has become.

Further, in order to process fish meat having a large amount of water quickly without freeze-bonding frozen products to each other by stacking, a large freezer room equipped with a long one-way transport net conveyor is used. In order to solve the problem, a return type two-stage freezing device has been developed (Japanese Patent Publication No. 55-
36904).

[0004]

However, the above-described conventional one-way continuous transport type commercial freezer is convenient when a large amount of the same food is always required to be cooled and frozen. When cooling and freezing treatment of a wide variety of foods to be processed is required, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, the equipment is large and requires a large installation space, the equipment cost is high, and the food to be treated There is a problem to be solved in that not only the production line needs to be changed every time the product type is changed, but also the operation efficiency is lowered by processing a small amount of food to be processed with a large freezer.

Further, in the conventional two-stage freezing device, the food processing line cannot be set linearly because the feed inlet and the feed outlet of the food to be treated are on the same side.
Also, compared to the former one-way device, the installation space is smaller, but it is a very large device for cooling and refrigerating foods for processing a small amount of many types of food, so it is still a small space for small and medium enterprises. Problems such as insufficient profitability in terms of cost, manufacturing line settings, and operating efficiency have come to the fore.

Furthermore, in addition to the increase in size, with the enforcement of the PL law (Product Liability Law), the contamination, adhesion, microbial adhesion and proliferation of foreign substances to foods, which are generally required for food manufacturing, processing and processing machinery, CIP cleaning to ensure pollution prevention, etc.
Since the apparatus is equipped with a steam sterilizer, the apparatus becomes larger and more complicated, resulting in an increase in cost.

The present invention is excellent in strength and can cope with temperature changes at the time of temperature rise, and is most suitable for cooling and freezing of a small amount of a variety of foods to be processed, and in particular, a plurality of conveyors can be selected. Continuous operation type commercial freezer that can be operated and individually controlled, and can cool and freeze single foods as well as different foods at the same time in the same freezer. It is possible to lower the equipment cost, reduce the installation space,
The purpose of the present invention is to improve the operating efficiency, to visually confirm the cleaning state in the freezer room, to ensure the hygienic quality of the food to be treated, and to provide it at a low cost.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A continuous transfer type commercial cylindrical freezer according to the present invention has been made to solve the above problems and achieve the object, and is a cylinder surrounded by a heat insulating wall. -Shaped or vertically elongated cylinder, both ends of which are closed by end plates, and a horizontal pipe freezer chamber with a transfer inlet at one end plate and a transfer outlet at the other end plate, and the transfer direction and transfer speed are independent From a controlled multi-stage transfer net conveyor, a pair of cold air circulation units consisting of a refrigeration unit and a blower installed under the bottom transfer net conveyor, and a CIP cleaning and steam sterilizer that controls cleaning. In the freezer chamber, along the longitudinal direction of the upper wall, an open / close support shaft is provided with a heavy load balancer on one side edge for assisting the opening / closing operation, and an open / close handle with an open / close handle fixed to the outer surface of the other side edge. Single or multiple possible A number of open / close walls are provided, and a cleaning liquid supply pipe equipped with a large number of spray injection nozzles is installed on the inner upper wall surface, and a multi-stage transfer net conveyor transfers the start end and the end. It is configured to be stretched and supported at a predetermined vertical interval so as to face the inlet and the transport outlet, and a pair of cold air circulation units are symmetrically arranged and fixed so as to convect cold air, and the cleaning liquid supply pipe is used for the CIP cleaning and steam. It is characterized in that it is connected to a sterilizer, and the plurality of transfer net conveyors are arranged in two or three steps that move in the same direction, and a transfer inlet and a transfer outlet are opened commonly or selectively. The continuous transport type commercial freezer of the first invention and the first-stage transport net conveyor horizontally arranged with the transport inlet of the freezer chamber as the starting end are sequentially received by the lower-stage transport net conveyors. A second continuous transfer having a configuration in which three stages of transfer net conveyors are arranged so as to pass, and a terminal end of the third-stage transfer net conveyor is faced to a transfer / transport outlet opened on the opposite side of the freezer chamber from the transfer inlet. There are two types of commercial-use tubular freezer.

In order to facilitate the production, assembly, storage and transportation of the freezer chamber, the pipe type freezer chamber is composed of a freezer lid body formed vertically in the longitudinal direction and a freezer body, and the freezer lid body is opened and closed. A wall may be provided in some cases.

[0010]

The continuous-conveying commercial-use tubular freezer constructed as described above is superior in strength as compared with the rectangular tubular one because it is formed into a cylinder or a vertically elongated cylinder surrounded by a heat insulating wall. Since it also supports thermal expansion and contraction due to temperature change due to temperature rise during steam sterilization, it can be made of a thin plate material and can be made lightweight, and the freezer room cleaning liquid can easily flow down along the curved wall for cleaning. In addition to being reliable, the sterilization can be surely performed by steam sterilization using low-pressure steam, and the cleaning and sterilization work can be reduced.

In particular, in the first invention, the transfer net conveyors provided in a plurality of stages arranged in the longitudinal direction in the freezer chamber can be operated simultaneously or selectively at the same transfer speed by the independent control. In addition to cooling and freezing single foods, different foods can be transported by different transporting net conveyors and cooled and frozen at the same time in the same freezer. It acts so as to be able to quickly and economically respond to the cooling and freezing processing of the target food.

Further, the transfer net conveyors are arranged in three stages so that they are sequentially transferred from the transfer net conveyor of the first stage horizontally arranged with the supply section of the freezer chamber as a starting end to the transfer net conveyors of lower stages. Then, the end portion of the transfer net conveyor of the third stage is made to face the transfer transfer outlet opened on the opposite side of the freezer chamber from the transfer inlet, and the speed of the transfer net conveyor of each stage is controlled to be changed. By
Not only can cooling and freezing processing of all foods to be processed intervening without disturbing the directionality of the line of manufacturing, processing, processing, etc., but also a transfer inlet is provided at the start end of the third stage transfer net conveyor. In the case, when the food to be treated is small, only the third-stage transport net conveyor can be used to cool or freeze the food without destroying the shape of the food to be treated, and the freezer has a small volume, It works to save energy, reduce equipment costs, reduce installation space, and improve operating efficiency.

The opening of the opening / closing wall provided on the upper wall of the freezer chamber makes it possible to check the results of CIP cleaning, internal cleaning with a steam sterilizer, and sterilization, thus ensuring the hygienic quality of the food to be treated. It is possible to surely prevent contamination such as contamination, adhesion, adhesion of microorganisms, and proliferation of foreign matter to the food to be processed next time, and to deal with the PL method.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a schematic front view showing a continuous transfer type commercial freezer according to an embodiment of the first invention with a part thereof broken, FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of an inlet side, and FIG. A-A in FIG.
It is a cross-sectional schematic diagram which abbreviate | omitted one part in a line.

As shown in FIG. 1, a freezer chamber 1 which is formed into a cylindrical shape surrounded by a heat insulating wall or a vertically elongated cylindrical shape and whose both ends are closed by end plates, and a freezer chamber 1 which is horizontally stretched and supported in the longitudinal direction. It is composed of two-stage transport net conveyors 2 and 3, a pair of cold air circulation device 4, and a CIP cleaning and steam sterilization device 5 for controlling cleaning.

The freezer chamber 1 has an inner diameter of 160 cm and a length of 10 m.
A stainless steel inner tube and a stainless steel outer tube with an outer diameter of 180 cm and a length of 10 m are supported by openings at both ends to form a double tube, and the space formed by the difference in inner and outer tube diameter is vacuum or heat insulating material (porous material). ..Filled glass, foamed plastic, lightweight castable) are formed into a heat insulating wall structure (not shown) that has a cylindrical shape or a vertically long cylindrical shape, and the opening faces at both ends in the longitudinal direction fully open the opened transfer inlet 6. Alternatively, an inlet end plate 8 having an inlet lid 7 that moves vertically to open / close or swing open / close to make a selective opening, and an outlet that vertically opens / closes or swings to open / close an opened transport outlet 9 or make a selective opening. It is closed by an outlet end plate 11 provided with a lid 10, and a cleaning waste liquid outlet 12 is provided at the inner bottom portion.

On the front side upper wall of the freezer chamber 1, an opening / closing support shaft 14 is provided at four locations along the longitudinal direction, one side edge side having a heavy load balancer 13 for assisting the opening / closing operation, and the other side edge outer surface. Freezer room 1 with open / close handle 15 fixed to
An opening / closing wall portion 16 having the same heat insulation structure as the peripheral wall of the above is provided, a cleaning liquid supply pipe 18 equipped with a large number of spray injection nozzles 17 is provided on the inner upper wall surface, and a steam injection is provided on the inner bottom portion. The pipe 40 is connected to the steam supply pipe 24 via the steam sterilization control valve 39, and is supported by the installation leg 19.

The transfer net conveyors 2 and 3 are independently driven in the same direction, and a vertical interval H is secured to allow the food to be processed to be transferred. Is horizontally stretched and supported in the freezer chamber 1 so as to face the transport outlet 9, and is controlled by independent drive motors 20 and 21 to a transport speed corresponding to the food to be treated.

The cool air circulation device 4 comprises an air cooler 22 and a blower 23. A pair of the cool air circulation device 4 is provided in the freezer chamber 1 and below the transport net conveyor 3 in the lower stage. They are arranged and fixed so as to face each other, and cool air is circulated in the freezer chamber 1 in a convection state by the blower 23.

5 is a CIP cleaning and steam sterilizer,
Cleaning liquid supply pipe 18 and steam supply pipe 2 in the freezer chamber 1
4, a water tank 26 having a water supply control valve 25, a detergent tank 28 having a detergent supply control valve 27, a hot water tank 30 having a hot water supply control valve 29, a steam supply control valve 31 and a steam supply pipe 24. Steam generator 3 connected
2, an air compressor 34 having a compressed air supply control valve 33,
It is composed of a cleaning and sterilization control board 36 that controls the pump 35 and each control valve that are piped to each tank and that mix and supply each liquid and compressed air to the cleaning liquid supply pipe 18, and the conventional CIP cleaning. The same as sterilization means.

The continuous transfer type commercial freezer provided with the transfer net conveyor according to the above-described embodiment in two stages is used for cooling or freezing one kind of food to be processed, and the upper or lower transfer is performed. When only the production net conveyors 2 or 3 are driven, and when the production amount is large or when two kinds of foods to be processed are cooled or frozen, both transportation net conveyors 2 and 3 are processed respectively. The food to be treated is cooled or frozen by cold air by the cold air circulation device 4 while passing through the freezer chamber 1 by controlling and driving the speed of the transfer net conveyor to the moving speed required for cooling or freezing food. To do so.

The CIP cleaning and the cleaning by the steam sterilizer 5 are carried out when the food to be processed is changed or when the processing work is finished. An example of the procedure of the internal cleaning will be described. After inspecting the room 1 for abnormalities, fresh water is showered for a few minutes from the top of the air cooler 22 to defrost, and then hot water is used to clean the transfer net conveyors 2 and 3 and the inner surface of the freezer room 1. After washing off, wash with a washing solution (in the case of forming washing,
Let it stand for 5 to 10 minutes with the detergent foam adhering thereto, and finally rinse with warm water to completely wash away the washing liquid and discharge it from the washing waste liquid outlet 12.

The CIP cleaning and sterilization by the steam sterilizer 5 are controlled by the cleaning and sterilization control board 36 through the steam supply pipe 24 from the steam generator 32 while operating the transfer net conveyors 2 and 3 after cleaning. The low-pressure steam is injected from the steam injection pipe 40 into the freezer chamber 1 via the steam sterilization control valve 39, and the temperature inside the freezer chamber 1 is adjusted to 85 to 9
The temperature is raised to 5 ° C.

In the above embodiment, the case where the carrying net conveyor is provided in two stages has been described. However, three types of foods to be treated are treated simultaneously as three stages, that is, an upper stage, a middle stage and a lower stage which are independently controlled and driven. With such a configuration, it is possible to use any one or two of them, and the treatment options can be widened, and efficient and economical measures can be taken.

FIG. 4 is a schematic front view of a continuous transfer type commercial freezer according to the second embodiment of the present invention, in which the transfer inlet 6 of the freezer chamber 1 is horizontally arranged at the first stage. The food to be processed is delivered from the transport net conveyor 2 of FIG. 2 to the transport net conveyor 3 of the second stage with the transport direction reversed, and is further delivered to the conveyer 37 of the third stage which transports in the same direction as the first stage. Arranged in three stages,
The end portion of the third-stage transfer net conveyor 37 faces the transfer outlet 9 opened on the opposite side of the freezer chamber 1 from the transfer inlet 6. 3, 37 are independently controlled, the conveyance speed is adjusted and set, and in some cases, a delivery slope plate (not shown) is provided at the delivery portion of the food to be treated to prevent the food to be processed from being deformed. In addition, when the transport inlet 6a is provided at the starting end of the third-stage transport net conveyor, only the third-stage transport net conveyor is used,
It is possible to deal with the case where the amount of food to be treated is small, and it is possible to perform cooling or freezing treatment without breaking the shape of the food to be treated.

In the freezer chamber 1 of each of the above-described embodiments, a net conveyor for conveyance and a food to be treated are provided between a position near the conveyance inlet 6 and a position near the conveyance outlet 9 and between the pair of cold air circulation devices 4. A partition wall 38 is provided which also functions as a cool air escape guide and a cool air circulation guide so as not to obstruct the passage of movement.

Installation leg 19 for supporting the entire freezer
If you install legs with casters separately, for example, bamboo rings,
Move to either production line of Kamaboko, fried food,
It is possible to effectively use a single continuous transport type commercial freezer, and to conveniently transport and install the entire freezer.

Further, the plural-stage transport net conveyor is
By making each block, adding and removing it, and changing the setting position in the longitudinal direction, it is possible to change only the transporting net conveyor, and the continuous two-stage, three-stage according to the first invention required by the customer. The transport type commercial freezer or the continuous transport type commercial freezer according to the second aspect of the invention can be configured, and the manufacturing cost can be further reduced.

[0029]

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION The continuous transfer type commercial freezer of the present invention described above is formed in a cylindrical shape or a vertically elongated cylindrical shape surrounded by a heat insulating wall, so that it is stronger than a rectangular cylindrical shape. It is excellent and can cope with heat shrinkage due to temperature rise during steam sterilization, so it can be made of thin plate material or off-the-shelf pipe material, making it possible to reduce manufacturing costs, downsize the freezer, and reduce weight. .

Further, since a plurality of transfer net conveyors whose transfer directions and transfer speeds are independently controlled are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the freezer chamber, selective individual control operation is performed according to the type and property of the food to be treated. Because you can freely
In the case of cooling or freezing processing of one type of food to be processed, the transport speed is controlled to operate only the first-stage transport net conveyor, and in the case of different food to be treated, It is possible to drive a plurality of transfer net conveyors that are controlled and set to a transfer speed corresponding to the processing, and simultaneously perform cooling and freezing processing in the same freezer.

Further, a plurality of transfer net conveyors are sequentially transferred from the first transfer net conveyor horizontally arranged with the transfer inlet of the freezer chamber as the starting end to the lower transfer net conveyors. Cooling and freezing of the food to be treated is achieved by arranging three stages, and by facing the end part of the third stage transfer net conveyor to the carry-out port opened on the opposite side of the freezer chamber from the above-mentioned transfer port. The direction of the production line can be secured, and the freezer with a small volume can surely be used.

Therefore, cooling and freezing of a small amount of a variety of foods to be processed can be carried out efficiently and labor-savingly, and the size and volume of the freezer can be reduced to reduce the required installation area. Therefore, it is possible to provide an inexpensive continuous carrier type tubular freezer for business, which satisfies the requirements for cooling and freezing of a small amount of various kinds of food to be processed.

CIP cleaning and cleaning and sterilization of the interior of the freezer by a steam sterilizer can be performed reliably, and the upper wall of the freezer chamber can be opened and closed with a heavy load balancer for opening and closing operations and a handle for opening and closing. Since the open / close wall is provided, you can easily check the sterilization state by opening / closing operation, and change the food to be treated, contamination by foreign substances at the start of treatment, adhesion, adhesion of microorganisms, proliferation and other contamination. It is possible to surely prevent it, to ensure the hygienic quality of the food to be cooled and frozen, and to deal with the PL method.

Further, when the freezer chamber is composed of a main body having a semi-cylindrical cross-section in the longitudinal direction and a lid, the freezer chamber can be manufactured, assembled, stored and transported easily.
Manufacturing costs, transportation costs, and installation costs can be reduced.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is most suitable for the cooling and freezing treatment of a small amount of a variety of foods to be processed, and in particular, it is possible to selectively operate a plurality of conveyors and individually control the foods so that a single food can be processed. In addition to cooling and freezing, different foods can be cooled and frozen at the same time in the same freezer, and the freezer can be downsized, the energy can be saved, the equipment cost can be reduced, and the installation space can be reduced. Moreover, it is possible to inexpensively provide the continuous transport type commercial freezer for small and medium-sized enterprises, in which the cleaning state in the freezer chamber can be visually confirmed and the hygienic quality of the food to be treated can be ensured.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view showing a continuous transport type commercial-use tubular freezer according to an embodiment of the first invention, with a part thereof cut away.

2 is a schematic side view of an inlet side of the continuous transport type commercial freezer of FIG. 1. FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional configuration diagram with a part of line AA in FIG. 1 omitted.

FIG. 4 is a schematic front view showing a continuous transport type commercial freezer according to an embodiment of the second invention with a part thereof cut away.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Freezer Room 2, 3, 37 Transport Net Conveyor 4 Cold Air Circulator 5 CIP Cleaning / Steam Sterilizer 6, 6a Transport Inlet 7 Inlet Lid 8 Inlet End Plate 9 Transport Outlet 10 Outlet Lid 11 Outlet End Plate 12 Cleaning Waste Liquid Port 13 Heavy load balancer 14 Opening / closing support shaft 15 Opening / closing handle 16 Opening / closing wall part 17 Spray injection nozzle 18 Cleaning liquid supply pipe 19 Installation leg 20, 21 Drive motor 22 Air cooler 23 Blower 24 Steam supply pipe 25 Water supply control valve 26 Water tank 27 Detergent supply Control valve 28 Detergent tank 29 Hot water supply control valve 30 Hot water tank 31 Steam supply control valve 32 Steam generator 33 Compressed air supply control valve 34 Air compressor 35 Pump 36 Cleaning and sterilization control panel 38 Partition wall 39 Steam sterilization control valve 40 Steam injection pipe H vertical spacing

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A horizontally long pipe having a cylindrical shape surrounded by a heat insulating wall or a vertically elongated cylindrical shape, both ends of which are closed by end plates, and a conveying inlet is formed at one end plate and a conveying outlet is formed at the other end plate. -Shaped freezer chamber, a plurality of transfer net conveyors in which the transfer direction and transfer speed are controlled independently, and a pair of cold air circulation units consisting of a refrigeration unit and a blower arranged below the bottom transfer net conveyor. The freezer room is equipped with a heavy load balancer on one side edge to assist opening and closing, along with the longitudinal direction of the upper wall of the freezer room. A single or a plurality of openable / closable wall parts with a handle for opening / closing fixed to the outer surface of the other side edge as a support shaft, and inside,
The cleaning liquid supply pipe equipped with a large number of spray injection nozzles and the steam injection pipe are installed, and the multi-stage transfer net conveyor has a predetermined upper and lower end so that the start end and the end end face the transfer inlet and the transfer outlet. A pair of cold air circulation units are symmetrically arranged and fixed so as to convect cold air, and the cleaning liquid supply pipe and steam injection pipe are connected to the CIP cleaning and steam sterilizer. A continuous transport type commercial freezer that is characterized by the above. 2. A plurality of transfer net conveyors are arranged in two or three stages that move in the same direction, and a transfer inlet and a transfer outlet are opened commonly or selectively. The continuous transport type commercial-use freezer described in 1. 3. A plurality of transfer net conveyors are successively transferred from a first transfer net conveyor horizontally arranged with a transfer inlet of a freezer chamber as a starting end to a lower transfer net conveyor. 2. The continuous transfer type service according to claim 1, wherein the transfer net conveyor is arranged in three stages, and the end portion of the transfer net conveyor in the third stage is faced to a transfer outlet opened on the opposite side of the freezer chamber from the transfer inlet. Tube freezer. 4. The continuous transport type commercial freezer according to claim 3, wherein a transport inlet that can be opened and closed is provided so as to face the starting end of the third-stage transport net conveyor. 5. The continuous transfer according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the pipe type freezer chamber is composed of a freezer lid body formed vertically above and below and a freezer main body, and an opening / closing wall portion is provided on the freezer lid body. Type commercial tubular freezer.