RU2261642C2 - Automatic apparatus for fast preparing of dry food products under atmospheric pressure - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: equipment for fast programmable preparing of dry food products, such as macaroni and leguminous products, under atmospheric pressure.

SUBSTANCE: automatic apparatus has at least four working chambers communicating with one another and disposed in cascade manner one above another. Hot water supplying pipeline is connected to lower part of each of said working chambers. Water is heated by boiler. Working chambers are communicating with main pipeline. Each of working chambers is furnished with drain valve positioned in its upper part. Drain valves are connected to single pipe for transfer of steam into heat-exchanger. Charge valve is positioned in upper part of first working chamber in the course of flow, and discharge valve is positioned in lower part of working chamber in the course of flow. Each of lower working chambers is furnished with gate arranged in its lower part and adapted for discharge of chamber contents. Food product is prepared under pressure of 8 bar and at temperature of 140-150°C.

EFFECT: improved pressurizing of apparatus construction and increased efficiency.

7 cl, 2 dwg

Description

The present invention relates to an automatic device that provides the ability to quickly and programmatically prepare dry food products, in particular pasta and legumes, at atmospheric pressure.

Cooks of restaurants, spaghetti shops and other similar catering establishments, where speed of service is essential and where a large number of prepared dishes are served, have always felt the need for quick preparation of dry food products, in particular pasta.

Known automatic devices for the preparation of dry pasta at a pressure exceeding atmospheric. For example, such devices are described in Italian patent No. 1207735 and in US patent No. 5142966. Obviously, such known devices are not free from the typical disadvantages of high-pressure equipment. These disadvantages, for example, include the lack of tightness, which becomes a particularly serious problem when cooking is carried out at a pressure of seven or eight bar and at a temperature of 140-150 ° C.

Thus, the aim of the present invention is to provide an automatic device that allows the rapid preparation of pasta and other types of dry food products, free from these disadvantages of devices operating at a pressure above atmospheric. This goal is achieved according to the present invention using a device whose features are given in claim 1. Other features of the device are defined in the following claims.

An advantage of the instant cooking device according to the present invention is the ability to control it by simply pressing the buttons located on the control panel, which is controlled by appropriate software.

Another advantage of the device according to the present invention is the wide possibilities of compliance with hygienic rules, since neither pasta, nor water and a water container made waterproof are never in contact with the hands of the operator.

Another advantage of the device according to the present invention is the uniformity of cooking, which is maintained with high accuracy throughout the life of the device.

These and other objectives and advantages of the automatic device according to the present invention for specialists will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of one embodiment of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, where:

Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a device according to the present invention;

Figure 2 is a similar view of two identical devices connected to distribute two different types of pasta and thereby increase the assortment of dishes, such as spaghetti and rigatoni, which require different cooking times.

Figure 1 shows the device according to the present invention, equipped with a container 1, in which pasta is laid, which will be further prepared by order. The container is equipped with a pusher 2, driven by an electric motor (not shown), which pushes up the pasta stored in the container 1. The pasta is pushed until it enters the gutter equipped with a vibrator mechanism, from which they fall onto a tray equipped with scales . When the weight of pasta in the tray reaches the programmed value, the valve (not shown) closes and the pneumatic overturning device 3 rises, making the movement shown in figure 1 by an arrow. When the inverting device 3 takes a vertical position, the pasta in the tray is poured down in the direction shown by the other arrow in the drawing, and enters the first working chamber 4.

In the working chamber 4, a loading valve 5 is located at the top in the course of the technological process, and an unloading valve is located at the bottom in the technological process 6. The upstream valve 5 in the open position passes pasta sliding off the tray of the inverting device 3 into the working chamber 4. After ingress of pasta into the working chamber 4, the valve 5 is immediately closed to enable the first stage of cooking.

Inside the chamber 4, hot water is supplied through a pipe 7 connected to the boiler 8. The flow of hot water supplied to the chamber 4 is controlled by a valve 9. In addition, a drain valve 10 is located at the top of the chamber 4 to prevent pressure build-up in the chamber.

When the pasta in the chamber 4 has reached the programmed first degree of readiness, the valve 6 opens, controlled by the corresponding control signals generated by the device software. Pasta falls into the container 11, the design of which is similar to the design of the chamber 4, but which has a different configuration. The chamber 11 has a diameter approximately twice that of the chamber 4, since inside the chamber 4 the pasta, for example long pasta, is in a vertical position, while in the chamber 11 they are in a horizontal position, since they have already reached partial readiness. Water 11 is also supplied to the chamber 11 from the same boiler 8 via a pipe 12, but mainly in order to fill the chamber 11. In addition, the water forms a vertical flow inside the chamber 11. Thus, the usual cooking of pasta inside the chamber 15 in suspension and mixed with a vertical stream of water.

The lower part of the chamber 11 is closed by a guillotine shutter 13, which is controlled by a pneumatic piston 14. The guillotine shutter 13 closes the chamber 11 waterproof and when it opens, pasta and water enter the chamber 15 below.

Hot water is supplied to the chamber 15 through the pipe 16, which in this case not only fills the chamber 15, but also forms a vertical flow.

The chamber 15 is also equipped with a guillotine shutter 17, which is controlled by the pneumatic piston 14. In the chamber 15, the pasta reaches almost full programmed readiness. Bringing to full readiness takes place in the chamber 19 located below, also equipped with a shutter 20 and a pipe 21 for supplying water. And in this case, the water not only fills the chamber 19, but also forms a vertical flow supporting the pasta in suspension.

In the chamber 19, the pasta reaches the programmed final degree of readiness and is simultaneously salted. To do this, there is a container of salt water 22, connected by a small tube 23 to a pipe 21 downstream of valve 9. When the valve 9 is open for passing hot water into the chamber 19, the programmed amount of water is sucked from the container 22 through a small tube 23. Obviously, the percentage of salt contained in the water in the container 22 must be pre-selected in accordance with the needs and other variables of the cooking process and in accordance with the generally accepted taste.

Each of the working chambers 11, 15 and 19 is equipped with a draining valve 10, which performs the same role as described with reference to the working chamber 4. The outlet tubes located behind each of these valves along the process stream form a single line 25 supplying steam to heat exchanger 26. In the same heat exchanger 26 comes the pipe 27, which removes the water used for final preparation from the chamber 19 with the help of a pump out 28.

A suction pump 28 is connected to the control panel so that it is possible to collect a certain amount of water used for preparing pasta so that the pasta still remains immersed in water to bring to the desired degree of readiness and to keep them wet for subsequent operation add the sauce. The pasta is displayed through the bottom of the chamber 19, preferably onto a dish 32 located below it, and after adding the sauce, it is ready for use.

The machine is preferably equipped with a heat exchanger 26, which allows you to recover most of the heat of the drained water used for cooking. In addition, the pipeline 30, which supplies water from the main water supply to the boiler 8, enters the heat exchanger 26. Inside the heat exchanger 26, the tap water is heated by the utilized heat used to prepare the water, and it is pumped through the pipeline 24 to the boiler 8, where it is additionally warms up for a cooking cycle.

Before entering the heat exchanger 26, tap water is preferably demineralized. All working chambers are naturally equipped with the necessary insulation and thermostats. All control elements, valves and other similar parts are connected to the control panel, on which you can set the cooking time and, thus, the degree of readiness, as well as the number of pasta taken from the container 1.

Water used for cooking is discharged from the device through the drain pipe 18.

Figure 2 shows that for the automatic preparation of two different types of pasta dishes requiring different cooking times, the device according to the present invention is connected to an identical device. As shown in the drawing, the two devices are connected so that they are mirror images of each other and both are served by the same boiler 8. The corresponding water used for preparation, through the corresponding pipelines 27 and 33 and under the influence of pumping pumps 28 and 35, enters the heat exchanger 26, also unique to both devices. The same design can be provided for three or more different dishes from pasta or from other dry food products. The simplified device shown in figure 2, you can simultaneously fill dishes 32 and 34 with different pasta, for example, one - spaghetti, and the second - rigatoni.

An essential feature of the device according to the present invention is the presence of four working chambers arranged in a cascade. With this design, it is possible to partially prepare four different portions, which allows you to get the finished portion every 50-80 seconds, depending on the type of feedstock. Obviously, the number of working chambers can be even greater, for example, five or six, which will increase the cost of the device, but will reduce the time for preparing each portion. Using a device with three working chambers will require too much time to prepare a portion, and such a device will not be competitive.

The cascade arrangement of the four working chambers has the additional advantage that it prevents the breakdown of long pasta, such as spaghetti, when passing from one chamber to another, as well as during operations for their preparation.

As already mentioned above, the device according to the present invention is intended for the automatic preparation of pasta and legumes, but it can also be used to prepare other dishes from dry food products. To do this, you can change the device, adapting it to a specific type of cooked food. Skilled artisans may make changes and modifications to the design shown, given that this is a preferred, but not limiting embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (7)

1. An automatic device for the preparation of dry food products, in particular legumes and pasta, formed by at least four working chambers communicating with each other (4, 11, 15, 19), mounted cascade one above the other, to the bottom of each of which a pipeline (7, 12, 16, 21) was supplied for supplying hot water heated by a boiler (8) communicating with the main pipe (29), and in the upper part of each of them the same number of drainage valves (10) connected with a common pipe (25) for transferring steam to a heat exchanger (26), while in the upper part along the technological process of the first working chamber (4) a loading valve (5) is installed, and in the lower part along the technological process there is a discharge valve (6), and each of the working chambers located below ( 11, 15, 19) in the lower part is equipped with a shutter (13, 17, 20) for unloading the contents of the camera. 2. The device according to claim 1, in which the container for dry food products to be prepared is located upstream of the first working chamber (4), the container (1) equipped with an automatic weighing device and a device for automatically feeding the original food products into the upper hole of the first working chamber (4). 3. The device according to claim 2, in which the container (1) is equipped with a device (2) for pushing the food products to be cooked onto the overturning device (3), which pours the food products to be cooked into the opening of the first working chamber (4) . 4. The device according to any one of claims 1 and 2, in which the automatic weighing device in the container (1) is connected to the device control panel. 5. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, which is equipped with a pump (28) for supplying hot water to the heat exchanger (26), which is supplied with tap water, and the water heated in the heat exchanger (26) is supplied with a pump (31) to boiler (8). 6. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, which contains a container (22) with salt water, which is mixed in hot water supplied to the last working chamber (19) through a tube (21). 7. A device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, which contains at least one similar automatic device for preparing dry food products, moreover, hot water is supplied to these devices from one common boiler (8), and these devices are connected to one common heat exchanger (26) through two separate pipelines (27, 33) and two separate pumps (28, 35).

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