MXPA99004373A

MXPA99004373A - Procedure and molding apparatus of congela repostery articles

Info

Publication number: MXPA99004373A
Application number: MXPA/A/1999/004373A
Authority: MX
Inventors: Delande Bruno; Igorcathenaut Philip; Marjanovic Nicolas
Original assignee: Nestec Sa
Priority date: 1998-05-13
Filing date: 1999-05-12
Publication date: 2000-08-01

Abstract

The present invention relates to frozen confectionery articles with molds of two halves transported inside a thermally insulated compartment and in which a cryogenic gas is applied to the molds for the frozen product dosed in the molds. Each half of the mold is integral with a bar to provide the bar and sets of mold halves and the assemblies are transported so that the first bar of each set is driven so that it contacts and pushes the second bar and so that the mold halves are fixed together to form a mold that defines a cavity to receive and contain a product to be molded and so that after having frozen the product in the molds and under dry conditions, the bar and the half of the The mold is transported so that the second bar is driven and the first bar is transported so that the second bar and the second half of the mold are separated from the first bar and the first mold to separate the two halves of the mold from each other and the frozen product. so that the article of the frozen product formed by freezing can be transported away from the mole halves

Description

PROCEDURE AND MOLDING APPARATUS OF FROZEN PASTRY ITEMS DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention describes a method and apparatus for molding small frozen confectionery articles, particularly frozen pallets. It is known from US-A-5359858 or US-A-5394707 a method and apparatus for molding single or composite frozen pallets, the latter comprising chocolate covers, in which molds are precooled at a very low temperature, introduced A composition will freeze liquid in the molds, which are advanced through a cooling environment to form a crust on the surface, insert a stick in the center still soft, and then unmold. The set of operations of pre-cooling of the molds, the filling, placing of the stick and of freezing until the demolding takes place in a very cold environment, in which the speed of cooling of the ice cream is controlled, so that the pallets can be easily unmoulded without re-heating the molds.

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple and flexible method and apparatus that allows the industrial production, with high productivity, of small frozen confectionery articles, particularly frozen pallets by rapid freezing at very low temperature, which provides at the same time a fine texture to the frozen pastry. The invention relates to a method of manufacturing small frozen confectionery articles, particularly frozen pallets, in which molds are previously cooled to very low temperature, a composition to be frozen is introduced into the molds, which are advanced through the molds. a cooling environment to form a crust on the surface, insert a stick in the center still soft, and then unmold them without heating them again, characterized by the fact that molds are used formed two mold halves vertical solidarity of two mold halves of the molds, that the freezing of the articles takes place in a thermally insulated chamber in which a very low temperature reigns, by application of a cryogenic gas on the surface of the molds, and that the demolding has place in dry, by extraction of the articles after the separation of the bar halves of the molds. The invention also relates to a device for molding small frozen confectionery articles, particularly frozen pallets, comprising a freezing chamber, a station for the filling of the molds, a station for the deposit of a stick and a station for the extraction of the articles, characterized in that the molds are two mold halves, integral with bar halves transported by a conveyor with two lateral chains advancing step by step in line, that the container is heat-insulated and cooled by means of a cryogenic gas applied on the surface of the molds, and maintaining a very low temperature throughout the container, comprising a section of molding in which the mold halves are pressed against each other, comprising a section of demolding in which a device for extracting the articles comprises means for opening the mold halves of the molds and extraction n of the articles for their sticks. The invention will be described more in detail by way of illustration with the help of the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a schematic and sectional view of the apparatus, Figure 2 is a schematic partial and perspective view of the apparatus, whose cover elements have been removed, and Figure 3 and 4 are schematic views in detail of the apparatus, which show the unmolding operation. In Figure 1, a dispenser placed in position 1, distributes an aqueous mixture, water ice or based on an emulsion of fatty material and protein, more or less increased in volume, which contains the legacy case inclusions, hereinafter referred to as "ice cream", in the molds 2 consisting of two mold halves and integral with bars 3, 4 of the molds, themselves consisting of two halves of bar forming a set of bars, the bar halves are opposed against each other by the mediation of the conveyor step by step 5. The vertical configuration of the molds allows the dosing of liquid products. Thus, the apparatus comprises a molding section X and a demolding section Y. Preferably, a "firm" ice cream can be dispensed at -6 ° C, -7 ° C, whose frozen water percentage is at least 50% , by means of a special pressurized hopper doser, such as that described in the European patent application Not entitled "Method and device for molding frozen confectionery articles, deposited at the same time as the present application, and whose content is incorporated in the present application by reference Thus, the device serves to harden the article up to the temperature of -18 ° C in the central part.In position 6, a stick applicator, placed at a short distance from station 1, inserts the sticks, made of wood or material plastic at the center of the half-hardened ice-cream mass After full hardening, the pieces 7 are demolded dry, thanks to the action of the elements described below, after their extraction in position 8, by means of a system 9 of two ups and downs, the pieces 7 are taken by pliers integral with extraction bars, and transferred by means of the conveyor 10 to the usual operations of coating, for example of a fat or granita covering, and of placement in sachet. The apparatus is in a heat-insulated chamber, with the exception of the dispenser in station 1, of the applicator of sticks in station 6 and of the extraction system in station 8. Chamber 11 comprises openings 12, 13 and 14 on the part superior, to allow the passage of the equipment in question. Preferably, the openings are defined so that the equipment makes a hermetic seal with the camera, to minimize the loss of cold. The camera can be used to facilitate access to the interior. The thermal insulation of the chamber can be, for example, obtained by double wall with vacuum between the walls. The molding and unmolding operations are detailed below. As shown in Figure 2, the transport system of the molds 2 depends on the configuration of the bars 3, 4 of the molds, and their mode of opening for the demolding. The conveyor 5 thus comprises two parts, an upper part dedicated to molding, and a lower part dedicated to the unmolding of the articles. In the molding section X, the molds 2 are transported in the closed position, and all the sets of bars 3 are touched, in order not to lose space and to keep the cold. In the demolding section Y, much shorter than the molding section X, the molds 2 are transported in the open position. To effect the opening of the molds 2, the conveyor 5 is constituted by two double chains with stops. The stops 15 have the function to promote each set of bar halves 3, 4 which, however, are not fixed on these stops. The pitch, ie the distance between two stops is such that all the sets of bars are in contact in the molding section X. In the demolding section Y, the pitch is increased by the distance of separation of the halves of the bars. the molds necessary for the extraction of the pieces 7. This operation is carried out easily thanks to the transport by two double chains. For this, the conveyor 5 comprises a wheel assembly / primary drive means 16, which exerts a pulling action at the end of the line, as for a conventional conveyor (the drive system is not shown). The double primary chain 17 transports the molds in the open position in the demolition section Y. Fixed on the primary chain 17, the thrust stops 18 of the bars of the molds are at a distance from each other of two passages. The pair of primary chains 17 draw a pair of secondary chains 19 by means of two intermediate cogwheels 20. On the pair of secondary chains 19 the driving stops 15 are fixed, which are at a distance from each other equal to the width of a set of bars, or a step. The primary chains 17 are on the inner side of the wheels intermediary 20, while the secondary chains 19 are on the outer side of the intermediate wheels 20. Thus, the double chains can not be rolled over one another. The opening of the bar halves 3, 4 takes place in the following manner, schematized in Figures 3 and 4: at the level where the chains cross, the stops 18 of the primary chain 17 come to be coupled in the channel provided between the bar halves 3 and 4. At the next push, the bar half 3 of the secondary chain 19 advances one step, while the previous bar half advances two steps, which represents the distance between two stops 18 which are followed by the primary chain. Relatively to the bar halves, the expressions "" back "or" before "designate the xelative position of the bar halves in relation to the forward direction of the bars.The chain change is made possible by the continuous guide rails ( not shown), used conventionally in the chain conveyors, and in that the stops 15 and 18 can be crossed at the level of the intermediate wheel 20. In the molding section X, the molds are dragged by the stops 15, which drive the halves of rear bar 3, and the latter drag on their return the former bar halves 4. In the demolding section Y, it is the anterior bar halves 4 that drive the rear bar halves 3 of the preceding set. At the level of the separation of the molds, an element 21, for example a hammer, allows to generate small shocks that help the demoulding in dry "pieces 7. It is understood by dry demolding the fact that the ice cream is not reheated in the surface and thus melted, there is no formation of liquid On the return branch 22 of the primary chain 17, the closure of the mold halves of the molds is carried out in the opposite direction to that described for the outward branch. , the mold halves of the molds are thus taken into account by the active stops 18 driving the front half of the bar 4 turn by return a half of the rear bar 3 'A variant of this pulling system could be a primary pulling element constituted by a single pair of wheels 20, a wheel 20 is toothed outwardly to draw the secondary chain 19 of the molding section, and carries inwards stops of separation of the bar halves of the molds for the demolding. The extraction of the pieces 7 out of the molds is carried out in the following manner: the extraction bars 23, of classical design, carry clamps 24, and are integral with the conveyor 10. The bars 23 descend by means of the rise and fall. and the clamps 24 that take the pallets by their stick 26. At the next impulse, the pallet 7 is released by the advance and the relative separation of the bar halves of the molds 3 and 4, possibly with the help of the element 21 , however, that the extraction rod 23 is driven by the stem 27 of the hydraulic jack 28, placed horizontally in front of the extraction device 9. The mobility of the extraction rods 23 is ensured by the fixed wheels 29 at their two ends, and that roll on a pair of short lanes 30. At the point in release position, the extraction bar 23 returns to raise the pieces 7 thanks to the ups and downs 31, to be coupled in the two chains of the conveyor 10, what catches Its displacement towards the subsequent treatment, for example the coating stations with chocolate or sorbet, deposit of dry annexes and wrapping (not shown).

In the molding section X, the ice cream is frozen in the molds, preferably stainless steel 0.5 to 1 mm thick, composed of two mold halves. The manufacture of the mold halves by die cutting allows to minimize the thickness of the metal wall, and thus improve the thermal transfer. The molds can be nickel, to make a better heat exchange, but its manufacture is less easy than in the case of stamped stainless steel. The mold halves can not be exactly symmetrical, but complementary, that is, one of them can be slightly embedded in the other, to improve the connection by contact. Finally, the inner wall of the mold can be coated with a food grade non-wetting material such as Teflon, polyethylene, polished electrolytic molds that have an internal surface polish made by electrolysis, or by any other means that allow to obtain a "mirror polish", or any other similar material. The mold halves can be welded over the wide or angled stainless steel bar halves, to ensure the rigidity and orthogonality of the molds on their rails (not shown). Several sets of molds can be provided together on a set of mold bars, doing for example 8 to 14 bands. The molds can be identical or different on the different bands, which can allow to manufacture different articles at the same time on the same machine. Due to the fact that the molds comprise two parts, articles can be manufactured, for example in relief called "three-dimensional or indelible". The freezing of the ice cream to the central part can take place in the molding section X of the apparatus, but this is not necessary. The molds are already very cold when dosing the ice cream, which provides the advantages of immediate freezing of the ice cream on the surface, which prevents it from leaving between the two halves of mold and adhering to the walls of the molds. However, we have verified that since the stick is sufficiently fixed in the mass to be frozen, that is to say, as soon as the adhesion of the stick is sufficient to be able to extract the article, there is a cold reserve of low temperature that allows to finish the freezing the product while it comes out of its mold. There is a decrease in the thermal gradient between the surface and the center of the article and its freezing to the central part can be continued after demolding.

According to the invention, the "cryogenic gas" is constituted by cryogenic fluid mixed with a carrier gas cooled by the cryogenic fluid. The carrier gas consists of recycled steam or dry air cooled by the recycled steam, or a mixture of dry air and recycled steam. The application of cryogenic gas on the surface of the molds can be carried out continuously or by pulsation. It takes place by means of longitudinal ramps 32, placed between each band and of tubes 33. The tubes 33 have the property of spraying a cryogenic fluid, for example liquid nitrogen, horizontally over an angle of 360 °, and thus ensuring the complete evaporation of the fluid, to ensure the best possible turbulence of the cryogenic gas upon mold contact. The presence of carrier gas distribution ramps 34 (of which only one element is represented for the clarity of the scheme) makes it possible to improve the turbulence and atomization of the cryogenic fluid. Another advantage of the carrier gas lies in the fact that it is constituted by the same as the sucked and recycled vapors of cryogenic fluid, which allows saving the amount of cryogenic fluid consumed. The condensation is also limited, because the vapors are dried. The Vapors can also be recycled in an exchanger to cool the dry air under controlled pressure, to improve the atomization of the cryogenic fluid and increase the turbulence, the combined use of cryogenic fluid atomization tubes and carrier gas projection tubes allows to limit the number of tubes while ensuring the best possible exchange. The combination of the two circuits allows the flexibility of temperature control, from -40 ° C to -150 ° C, to find the best medium term between productivity and energy efficiency. It can thus be foreseen, by a temperature control in the chamber regulating the spraying of the liquid fluid, for example nitrogen, and the gas extraction (by a means not shown), freezing the ice cream to the central part, in 0.5 to 6. minutes according to the form, the volume and the recipe of the article, for example in 1.5 to 2 minutes for a current frozen cane, with a cadence of 20 to 30 impulses / minute. With 12 bands, the device can thus produce, for example, more than 20,000 ice sticks / hour.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. Method of molding small frozen confectionery articles, particularly frozen pallets, in which molds are previously cooled to very low temperature, a composition is introduced to freeze in the molds, which are advanced through a cooling environment until it forms a crust on the surface, a stick is inserted in the center still soft, and then they are demoulded without heating them again, characterized by the fact that molds formed of two vertical mold halves are used solidary of two bar halves of the molds, that the freezing of the articles takes place in a chamber-thermoisolated, in which a very low temperature reigns, by application of a cryogenic gas on the surface of the molds, and that the demoulding takes place in dry , by extraction of the articles after the separation of the bar halves of the molds.
2. Process according to claim 1, characterized in that the cryogenic gas is constituted by a mixture of cryogenic fluid and carrier gas cooled by the cryogenic fluid.
3. Process according to claim 1, characterized in that the carrier gas consists of recycled steam or of dry air cooled by the recycled steam, or of a mixture of the two.
4. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the inner wall of the molds is coated with a non-wetting material, or treated by polishing, to obtain a mirror polish.
5. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the molds are filled with an ice cream, of which at least 50% of the water is already frozen.
6. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the cryogenic gas is applied to the surface of the molds continuously or by pulsation.
7. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the freezing from the central part takes place in 0.5 to 6 minutes according to the shape, volume and recipe of the article, and because the freezing of the central part can be continued after the product is unmoulded, since the adherence of the stick is sufficient for its extraction.
8. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the molding and the extraction of the molded articles takes place in line in parallel tracks.
9. Method according to claim 8, characterized in that the molds are similar or different on the different tracks.
10. Apparatus for molding small frozen confectionery articles, particularly frozen pallets, comprising a freezing chamber, a filling station for the molds, a pallet inserting station, and a station for extracting the articles, characterized in that the molds are two halves of mold, solidary of halves of bar, transported by a conveyor of two lateral chains that advances step by step and in line, because the chamber is thermoisolated and cooled by means of a cryogenic gas applied on the surface of the molds, and which maintains a very low temperature throughout the chamber, because it comprises a section of molding, in which the mold halves are pressed against the other, because it comprises a demolding section, in which a device for extracting the articles comprises means for opening the mold halves of the molds, and for extracting the articles by the sticks.
11. Apparatus according to claim 10, characterized in that the mold halves of the molds are held against each other in the molding section by the interposition of stops transported by a secondary chain.
12. Compliance device. with claim 10, characterized in that the opening means of the bar halves of the molds comprise a double primary chain that transports the separation stops of the bar halves.