JPH1033111A - Water sprinkling thawing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a water sprinkling thawing machine capable of suppressing the water absorption into a food at a minimum limit in thawing by sprinkling water, stabilizing the thawing efficiency and quality of the food by controlling a water temperature, suppressing the deterioration of water quality due to a foam and a harshness, and also avoiding the food from being caught by a case, etc. SOLUTION: This water sprinkling thawing machine is obtained by supporting a case 13 of a freezing block 10 by a rail 14 directly below a water sprinkling device 12, installing a chute 15 formed by mounting a water draining plates 30 at the rear surface of rods arranged at a prescribed interval in the lower direction of the case 13, arranging a water vessel 11 thereunder, installing a filter 23 in the vicinity of the center of a taper like lid 22 of the water vessel, and also providing a partitioning plate 25 in the water vessel 11 and a water pouring nozzle 26 so as to supply a supplementary water in the almost right angle to a dam and almost horizontal direction, at a close position to liquid surface thereof in the vicinity of the dam. Also, the case 13 is constituted by an approximately U-shaped from 27 and a support 28, and the temperature of the sprinkling water is controlled within 10-15 deg.C.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a watering and thawing machine for thawing frozen blocks of frozen food.

[0002]

[Prior Art] Seafood such as shrimp, shellfish, small fish,
It is widely practiced to arrange on a shallow and wide container containing water and freeze it together with water to form a frozen block. By using a frozen block in this way, oxidation and drying of food can be prevented, damage during transportation can be prevented, and handling becomes easier.

As a method of thawing the frozen food thus frozen in a market or the like, a method of placing a frozen block in running water and melting the ice around the food over time has been widely used. ing. However, this method takes a long time to defrost, which is inefficient and
There is a problem that food absorbs water and the quality is reduced.

[0004] In the case of thawing frozen food, such as meat or tuna, which is frozen without using water, a high-frequency thawing machine is also used. However, in the case of thawing a frozen block frozen with water, it is not practical to melt ice with high frequency,
Therefore, the high-frequency thawing machine is not effective for thawing the frozen block.

[0005] In some cases, such a frozen block is thawed using a watering and thawing machine as disclosed in JP-B-56-27231. Sprinkler thawing machine
FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing a method in which water is sprinkled from above on a frozen block of frozen food, and the ice is thawed and thawed using the impact force of water and the retained heat. According to this sprinkling thawing, thawing can be performed in a shorter time than in running water thawing, the water absorption of the food being thawed can be reduced, and water consumption can be reduced by circulating water.

In FIG. 9, reference numeral 1 denotes a water pump. Reference numeral 2 denotes a sprinkler pipe, and small holes are provided in the lower part of the sprinkler pipe so as to be arranged in the longitudinal direction. A block fixing device 4 on which the frozen block 3 is placed is provided immediately below the sprinkler tube 2. The block fixing device 4 is composed of two pipes which are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the sprinkler pipe 2 and on which the frozen block 3 is placed, and pipes which are arranged at positions abutting on the side walls so as to prevent the frozen block 3 from skidding. I have. Further, a slope plate 5 is provided directly below the block fixing device 4, and a gutter-like flowing water channel 6 is attached to a front end thereof. The gutter-shaped flow channel 6 is inclined in one direction and is arranged so that the outlet faces the defrosted product recovery tank 7. In this watering and thawing machine, water is sprayed from the watering pipe 2 to the freezing block 3 by operating the water supply pump 1, and the frozen block is thawed by the impact of water and the retained heat. Then, the thawed food falls apart and falls on the slope plate 5, slides on the slope plate 5 with water, enters the gutter-like flowing water channel 6, and further flows into the thawed product recovery tank 7.

[0007]

As described above, watering and thawing can thaw in a shorter time than running water thawing, reduce the absorption of water in the food being thawed, and use water in circulation. This can save water consumption. However, in the conventional watering and thawing machine, the thawed food slides on the slope plate together with the water and enters the thawed product recovery tank, and is in a state of being immersed in the water even after thawing, due to the absorption of moisture of the food. Quality deterioration could not be prevented sufficiently. Rather than a flat sloped plate, for example, a thawed food can be separated from water by using a wire mesh, but it is difficult for the thawed food to be caught by the wire mesh and quickly taken out of the sprinkled portion hit by water, It does not solve the problem.

In the case of watering and thawing, if the water temperature is too low, the thawing takes a long time, and if the water temperature is too high, the quality of the food is impaired. Therefore, it takes too much time to defrost in winter, and there is a risk of quality deterioration in summer.

[0009] In addition, foaming and acne are generated at the time of thawing in watering and thawing. Therefore, when circulating water is used, it is necessary to remove foam and acne to maintain good water quality. It was not possible to completely discharge such bubbles and acne.

[0010] In watering and thawing, a label or sheet attached to a frozen block, sand attached to food,
Mud and the like may enter the water tank and be circulated with the water, clogging the small holes of the sprinkler pipe, but the conventional sprinkler thawing machine has no countermeasure.

[0011] In addition, as in a conventional watering and thawing machine, a frozen block is placed on two rail-shaped pipes of a block fixing device, and another two pipes are brought into contact with a side wall to prevent a side slip. The stability of the frozen block during watering is poor,
During thawing, blocks that have become smaller may fall through gaps in the pipe. Furthermore, if the thawed food is easily caught on the rail of the block fixing device and the thawed and separated food is shaped like a lobster like a frozen block of shrimp, do not fall while caught. Often occurred.

[0012] Therefore, it is an object to stabilize the quality of food by minimizing the moisture absorption of the food during watering and thawing.

It is another object of the present invention to prevent thawing efficiency and food quality from being affected by changes in the temperature of water used for watering and thawing.

It is another object of the present invention to minimize the deterioration of water quality due to bubbles and bubbles generated during thawing.

Another object is to eliminate clogging of the water sprinkling hole due to foreign matter.

Another object is to prevent the thawed food from being caught on the rails of the block fixing device.

An object of the present invention is to solve these problems.

[0018]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to minimize the water absorption of food during watering and thawing, the rods are inclined and arranged in parallel at small intervals to form a chute, which is used in a case where a frozen block is placed. By placing it below, the food can be separated from the water and only the food can be slid and collected in a container. However, simply tilting the bars and arranging them at intervals may cause water to travel down the bottom of the bars and flow into the container where the food was collected. When water flows down the chute rod and flows into the food collection container in this way, the food may be flooded with water and water absorption of the food may proceed, resulting in a loss of quality. As a result, water consumption increases. Therefore, in order to completely separate the water, it is preferable to attach a drain plate to the back surface of the chute bar at right angles to the bar, and to block the water flowing along the lower surface of the bar. The height of the draining board is preferably about 50 mm in order to prevent water from flowing over the draining board, and it is effective to cover the lower part from the center of the rod cross section. The draining plate is preferably attached to the lowermost part of the chute, and is further preferably attached to a few places.

In watering and thawing, thawing and thawing is performed using the heat of water together with the impact power of water. When the water temperature falls below 10 ° C., the thawing speed decreases. Almost no thawing effect is seen. In addition, in watering and thawing, water in which ice is melted is circulated, so that the water temperature tends to decrease. Therefore, for example, a water temperature sensor is attached to a pipe near the water sprinkling pipe, and a heater is attached to the discharge side of a water circulation pump, and the water temperature is adjusted to 1 by a temperature controller.
It is preferable to control the temperature to 0 ° C. or more. However, it is not preferable that the water temperature is too high in terms of the quality of food, and it is desirable that the temperature be 15 ° C. or lower.

In order to maintain good water quality, a partition plate constituting a weir is provided in the water tank, and a small amount of water is supplied to the water tank.
It is advisable to let the bubbles and water accumulated on the surface of the water overflow from the weir of the partition plate. However, in the normal method of replenishing water from the lower part of the water tank and raising the liquid level to overflow the weir from the weir, the bubbles and aku near the weir can be discharged, but the foam at the distant place from the weir can be discharged. , The water remains without being removed, and particularly, the foam and water attached to the side surface of the water tank cannot be easily discharged, so that the water in the water tank needs to be replaced frequently. Therefore, instead of simply raising the liquid level and causing it to overflow,
It is preferable to create a flow of water on the liquid surface and to actively guide bubbles and water to the weir. Specifically, a water injection nozzle is placed near the liquid surface near the weir of the partition plate. By supplying make-up water in a substantially horizontal direction at a substantially right angle to the weir, a flow of water is generated on the liquid level of the tank, and the generated flow of water guides and discharges bubbles on the liquid level of the tank to the weir of the partition plate. Is good. By doing so, it is possible to completely eliminate the bubbles and scum floating on the surface of the water tank.

Further, in order to prevent foreign substances such as sand and mud adhering to the labels and sheets attached to the thawing block and the food from entering the water and clogging the sprinkling holes and the like, the water dropped from the chute must be removed. Is passed through a filter to remove foreign substances in the water, and then collected in a water tank. Also, specifically, it is preferable to provide a tapered water tank lid on the water tank, and to provide a filter near the center of the water tank lid, so that water spray is collected near the center by the tapered water tank lid. Foreign matter can be removed by filtering with a filter. Also, by collecting the water spray in the vicinity of the center in this way, the removal of the above-mentioned bubbles and acne becomes easy. Further, the chute preferably has a structure in which the chute can be lifted with the upper portion serving as a fulcrum. In such a case, the filter can be easily removed from the aquarium lid, and cleaning becomes easy.

Further, in order to prevent the thawed food from being caught on the rail of the block fixing device, it is desirable that the position of the rail is not lower than the freezing block. Therefore, it is preferable to manufacture a case in which the frozen block is placed, and to support the case by a rail arranged at a higher position than the frozen block in the case. In addition, the case may be specifically composed of, for example, a frame that supports the lower part of the frozen block and a rod that supports the side of the frozen block. In particular, the rod that supports the side has a diameter of 1 to 3 mm.
It is preferable that the bottom plate of the frame is not a flat plate but an upwardly convex shape, so that the thawed food can be prevented from being caught. If a large number of such cases are prepared, the next thawing preparation can be made during thawing.

[0023]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a watering and thawing machine according to the present invention. This watering and thawing machine has a water tank 11 at the bottom of the apparatus as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, and a watering apparatus 12 at a position directly above the water tank 11 at the top.
Is installed. A rail 14 for supporting the case 13 containing the frozen block 10 in a predetermined arrangement is installed immediately below the watering device 12, and at a position below the case 13 supported by the rail 14, the thawed case 1 is placed.
A chute 15 is provided so that the food falling from 3 can be slid to the front of the device for recovery. In addition, a pump 16 is installed at the bottom of the device beside the water tank 11, and the pump 16
The pipe 17 on the suction side is disposed horizontally and connected to a strainer 18 in the water tank 11, and the pipe 19 on the discharge side is disposed upward and connected to the sprinkler pipe 12. A heater 20 is provided in the middle of the pipe 19 on the pump discharge side. In the figure, reference numeral 21 schematically shows the frame structure of the main body of the sprinkler / thawing machine.

A water tank 11 is provided with a tapered water tank lid 22, and a filter 23 is provided at the center of the water tank lid 22. Further, a partition plate 25 constituting a weir 24 is provided at the rear of the water tank 11. And the partition plate 25
At a position near the liquid level near the weir 24, a water injection nozzle 26 is provided so as to supply the make-up water in a substantially horizontal direction at a substantially right angle to the weir 24. The outside of the partition plate 25 is connected to a drain pipe 35 having a valve 34 as described later.

The water sprinkling device 12 is connected to the pipe 19 on the pump discharge side, and has a pair of left and right water sprinkling pipes 12a, 12a, each of which is long in the left and right directions and arranged at predetermined intervals in the front and rear and left and right directions. A plurality of (twelve in the illustrated example) sprinklers 12b, 12b, which are divided into left and right groups and connected at the center to the sprinklers 12a, 12a of each group.
.. Of the water sprinkling device 12 are provided with small holes (water sprinkling holes) at predetermined intervals below the water sprinkling portions 12b.

As shown in FIG. 4, the case 13 has a frame 27 having a shape in which a portion supporting the lower part of the freezing block 10 is bent in a substantially U-shape and both ends are opened outward so as to form a mounting portion. It comprises a plurality of (two in the illustrated example) supports 28 which are bent into a rectangular ring shape to support the side of the block 10 and are attached to the frame 27 at intervals up and down. For the support 28, a rod (a round bar or a square bar) having a diameter of 1 to 3 mm is used, and the number and intervals are designed in consideration of the size of the defrosted product. The frame 27 is formed of a flat plate or a round bar. In the case of a flat plate, as shown in FIG. 4, the bottom has a convex shape so that the thawed food does not catch.

Each of the rails 14 is provided with a sprinkler 1 of the sprinkler 12.
A plurality of cases 13 (four to eight in the examples of FIGS. 2 and 3) are arranged in pairs so as to arrange the cases 13 one by one directly below 2b, 12b. The rails 14 to be back-to-back may be integrated as shown.

The case 13 includes a pair of rails 14, 14.
And the sprinklers 12b, 12b
Are arranged directly below. In the example shown, case 1
3 is directly attached to the rail 14, but a plurality (3 to 4)
) Case 13 may be attached to a portable frame in advance, and the frame 13 may be attached to the rail 14 as a set.

As shown in FIG. 5B, the chute 15 has a large number of rods (round or square) 29 which are inclined and arranged in parallel at narrow intervals. The interval and the inclination angle of the bars 29 are designed in consideration of the type and size of the thawed food. For example, thawing shrimp block frozen product, shoot 15
When a 6mm diameter round bar is used, the gap between the round bars should be 3 ~
It is preferable that the angle is about 4 mm and the angle is about 40 °. The chute 15 is provided with a chute support portion 15a such as a hinge on the lower surface of the upper portion, and is configured to be lifted with the upper portion serving as a fulcrum. With the configuration in which the chute 15 can be lifted in this way, when cleaning the filter 23, the lower portion of the chute 15 can be lifted and the filter 23 can be easily removed from the water tank cover 22, thereby facilitating cleaning. Also, on the back surface of the rod 29 of the chute 15, a rod 2
Stick 29 to block the water flowing down the back of 9
A draining plate 30 is attached at right angles to the above. Drain board 30
Is mounted at a height of, for example, about 50 mm so as to cover a portion below the center of the bar cross section as shown in FIG. Then, as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B, it is attached to the lowermost part of the chute 15, and two more parts are attached above it with a space therebetween. In addition, the draining plate 30 may be attached to the lowermost part and another one place.

In this watering and thawing machine, a frozen block 10 such as a shrimp is placed in a case 13 and the case 13
Is mounted on the rail 14 in a predetermined arrangement. Then, the pump 16 is operated to pump up the water in the water tank 11, and the water sprinkler 1
Spray water from 2 onto the freezing block 10. By doing so, the ice is thawed and thawed by the impact of water and the retained heat by watering, the thawed food and water fall from the case 13, and the water falls from the gap between the rods 29 of the chute 15,
On the other hand, the food separated from the water slides on the chute 15 and is collected in the moving basket 31 arranged in front of the apparatus. Further, the water flowing along the rod 29 of the chute 15 is blocked by the draining plate 30 and falls. Then, the water falls on the water tank lid 22 and is collected by the filter 23 near the center to remove foreign substances, collected in the water tank 11 and circulated again by the pump 16. The arrow in FIG. 5A shows the flow of falling water when such a draining plate 30 is provided. On the other hand, when there is no draining plate 30 or when the height of the draining plate 30 is not enough, water flows along the back surface of the chute 15 in a state indicated by 32 in FIG. As shown by the arrow in a), a part flows into the moving basket 31 and falls on the food. In the test results, the loss of water, which was about 15% of the amount of water sprayed without the draining board 30, became almost negligible due to the provision of the draining board 30.

Here, the watering temperature is controlled so as not to be lower than 10 ° C. and not to be higher than 15 ° C. Therefore, a water temperature sensor (not shown) is attached near the watering device 12, and a temperature controller 33 is attached to the front of the device. Then, the heater 20 is controlled by the temperature controller 33 to control the water temperature.

The water tank 11 is provided with the above-described water injection nozzle 26.
Supplies a small amount of makeup water. FIG. 7 shows the flow of makeup water and the flow of water overflowing from the weir 24 of the partition plate 25 by arrows in plan view (a) and side view (b). On the liquid level of the water tank 11, a flow circulating in the water tank 11 is formed by the replenishing water from the water injection nozzle 26, so that even if water containing bubbles and water drops from the filter 23 near the center, All bubbles and water overflow from the weir 24 of the partition plate 25 together with water. And the valve 34
Is discharged from the drain pipe 35 to the outside.
The reason why all bubbles and water are discharged together with water is that the water injection nozzle 26 is connected to the weir 24 of the partition plate 25 as described above.
This is because the replenishing water is supplied in a substantially horizontal direction at a substantially right angle to the weir 24 at a position close to the nearby liquid level, and the corner of the water tank 11 has a curved surface and no liquid pool is generated. . On the other hand, the flow of water when water is replenished from the lower part of the water tank as in the prior art is as shown by arrows in FIGS. 8A and 8B, and in this case, the bubbles flow away from the weir 24. , Aku remain as shown at 36 in FIG. FIG. 8A shows a case where the partition plate 25 has no cutout and the whole is a weir 24, and FIG. 8B shows a case where a part of the partition plate 25 is a weir 24.

[0033]

The present invention has the following remarkable effects.

By using a chute in which the rods are inclined and arranged in parallel at a narrow interval and a baffle plate is attached to the back surface, it is possible to minimize the moisture absorption of the food during watering and thawing and to stabilize the quality of the food. it can.

By controlling the water temperature from 10 ° C. to 15 ° C., thawing time can be averaged and food quality can be stabilized.

A partition plate having a weir is provided in the water tank, and a water injection nozzle is arranged at a position near the liquid surface near the weir of the partition plate to supply replenishing water substantially perpendicularly to the weir in a substantially horizontal direction. Bubbles and water floating on the surface can be completely eliminated, and deterioration of water quality can be minimized.

By providing a tapered water tank lid on the water tank and installing a filter near the center of the water tank lid, foreign substances can be removed by the filter and clogging of the water spray holes can be eliminated. Bubbles and water can be collected at the center to facilitate discharge from the weir.

[0038] By supporting the case in which the frozen block is placed by the rail arranged at a higher position than the frozen block in the case, the thawed food can be prevented from being caught on the case and the rail supporting the case.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side structural view of a watering and thawing machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front structural view of a watering and thawing machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan structural view of a watering and thawing machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of a case for a frozen block attached to the watering and thawing machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an essential part enlarged view for explaining the structure and operation of the chute of the watering and thawing machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating the structure and operation of a chute according to a comparative example.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a main part for explaining a flow of a liquid in a water tank of the watering and thawing machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of a flow of a liquid in a water tank of a comparative example.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a conventional watering and thawing machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Freezing block 11 Water tank 12 Sprinkler 13 Case 14 Rail 15 Chute 16 Pump 20 Heater 23 Filter 24 Weir 25 Partition plate 26 Water injection nozzle 30 Drain plate

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A watering and thawing machine for watering a frozen block of frozen food from above and thawing and thawing using the impact force of water and retained heat, while holding the frozen block at a predetermined position and thawing the frozen block. A case in which the food that can be dropped is placed at a predetermined position, and a chute having a stick inclined and arranged in parallel at a predetermined interval and a draining plate attached to the back surface at right angles to the stick is arranged below the case, and thawing is performed. A sprinkler thawing machine wherein the food falling with the water from the case is received on the chute and separated from the water, and only the food is slid and collected in a container. 2. The watering and thawing machine according to claim 1, wherein water is circulated. 3. A watering and thawing machine that sprays circulating water from above onto a frozen block of frozen food and uses the impact of water and the retained heat to thaw and thaw the water, so that the watering temperature is from 10 ° C. to 15 ° C. Controlling during の 間 に C, a removable case that holds the frozen block and allows the thawed food to fall freely is supported at a predetermined position by a rail arranged at a higher position than the frozen block in the case, At a position below the case, a chute for receiving the food that is thawed and falling with water from the case and separating it from the water and sliding only the food and collecting it in a container is arranged, and a water tank is arranged below the chute. Place a filter above the level of the water tank,
A partition plate constituting a weir was provided in the water tank, and a water injection nozzle was disposed at a position near the liquid surface near the weir of the partition plate, and water dropped from the chute was passed through the filter to remove foreign substances in the water. Thereafter, the water is recovered in the water tank, and a supply of water is supplied from the water injection nozzle in a substantially horizontal direction at a substantially right angle to the weir to generate a flow of water on the liquid level of the water tank. By sprinkling water through a weir of the partition plate.