TWI618489B - Needle-free liquid injection device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a device and a method for injecting liquid without inserting a needle into a food. This device includes a liquid ejecting mechanism, a driving mechanism, and a control means. The liquid ejecting mechanism includes: a liquid holding member that holds the liquid inside; and a liquid accelerating member that provides a speed to the liquid in the liquid holding member; and At the position facing the food, the nozzle that makes the liquid sprayed by the liquid accelerating member toward the food toward the food, the driving mechanism is used to move the liquid accelerating member, and the control means can control the driving mechanism to move the liquid accelerating member from The movement speed of the movement stroke from the start position to the movement end position can be freely changed.

Description

Needle-free liquid injection device and method

The present invention relates to food processing technology, and more particularly, to a needle-free liquid injection device and method for injecting liquid into food without using a needle.

In the field of food processing, in order to season foods such as meat or fish, multi-needle liquid injection devices have been widely used to inject liquids such as brine or seasonings into foods. A multi-needle type liquid injection device is generally a device that inserts a plurality of needles directly into food such as meat or fish and injects liquid into the food through the needle. By using a multi-needle type liquid injection device, liquid can be uniformly injected into food.

However, the multi-needle type liquid injection device is known to have various problems such as food damage due to needle insertion into food, food becoming unsanitary due to needle insertion into food, and foreign matter mixed into food due to broken needle insertion. Possibility, maintenance costs increase due to needle washing or exchange.

In order to solve these problems, a device and method for injecting a liquid into a food without inserting a needle into the food are proposed.

For example, Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent No. 3264481) discloses a device capable of injecting a liquid substance such as a pickle liquid or a seasoning liquid into an edible meat block such as pork, beef, and poultry without using a needle. The feature of this device is that when the liquid substance is injected into the food block by the spraying portion having a linear water jet nozzle, the injection pressure is controlled to gradually increase from zero or low pressure, thereby uniformly injecting the liquid substance into the food. Further, Patent Document 2 (Japanese Patent No. 3636279) also discloses a device for injecting a liquid substance into an edible meat block. The characteristic of this device is that when the liquid substance is injected into the food piece by the spraying portion having a linear water jet nozzle, the injection pressure is controlled to gradually decrease from zero or low pressure.

Furthermore, Patent Document 3 (Japanese Patent No. 4198191) discloses a device for injecting a pickling liquid into raw meat such as ham. The characteristic of this device is that the rotating body touches the raw meat on the conveyor belt, and the pickling liquid is sprayed out along with the rotation of the rotating body, thereby injecting the pickling liquid into the raw meat. The rotating system is configured to spray the pickling through a plurality of small holes. liquid.

[Prior technical literature] [Patent Literature]

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent No. 3264481

[Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent No. 3636279

[Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent No. 4198191

The technologies described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 are not optional A structure that changes the speed of the liquid sprayed by a nozzle. Therefore, these technologies have different conditions such as the type or internal state of the food to be injected into the liquid, the type or physical properties of the liquid to be injected, such as the use of foods with varying hardness in the thickness direction of the food or various viscosity In the case of liquids, etc., it is not easy to respond to the differences appropriately and inject the liquid evenly into the food. In addition, in the case of the prior art including the technology in which the velocity of the liquid to be ejected described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 cannot be arbitrarily changed, it is not easy to change the injection conditions according to the type or state of the food to be injected into the liquid, and the liquid is ejected with respect to the liquid. It is difficult to increase the ratio of the liquid stored in the food (the liquid yield). When the liquid yield is low, it will not only increase the cost of the liquid-injected product, but also increase the burden on the environment, so it is not good.

And, with the goal of increasing the added value of food, When a predetermined amount of liquid is poured into a predetermined position of a food, the technologies described in Patent Documents 1 and 2 cannot inject a predetermined amount of liquid into an arbitrary position of the food in accordance with the type of food and liquid.

Furthermore, as in the technologies described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, The control method in which the injection pressure from the nozzle gradually rises from zero or low pressure, or the control method in which the injection pressure gradually decreases from zero or low pressure, must be matched with the pressure provided by a so-called piping or injection section with a pressure adjustment valve or a pressure buffer mechanism. Control agency. However, the use of such a mechanism makes it difficult to achieve the desired pressure control corresponding to the type of food and liquid, and such a mechanism complicates the structure of the device and increases the cost of device maintenance. In addition, in this technique, it is necessary to set the highest reaching pressure to a high pressure, which is also difficult from this viewpoint. In order to control the pressure, it becomes a problem such as the manufacturing cost of the device.

Techniques described in Patent Document 3 and Patent Document 1 Similar to the above-mentioned problem described in 2, it is not a structure that can arbitrarily change the speed of the liquid sprayed from the nozzle. Therefore, it is difficult to uniformly inject the liquid or improve the liquid yield according to the type of food and liquid, and it is impossible to change A large amount of liquid is poured into an arbitrary position of the food, and there is a possibility that the raw meat may be damaged by the rotating body.

An object of the present invention is to provide a needle-free liquid injection device and The method is a device and method for injecting liquid without contacting food, which can easily inject liquid evenly into food and improve liquid yield according to the state and type of food and liquid, etc., and can further inject a given amount of liquid Any kind of food.

The inventors have found that the above problems can be solved by controlling the speed of the liquid sprayed from the nozzles, and have completed the present invention.

According to a first aspect of the invention, the invention provides a device for injecting a liquid into a food product. This device is characterized by including a liquid ejecting mechanism, a driving mechanism, and a control means, the liquid ejecting mechanism including: a liquid holding member that holds the liquid inside; and a liquid accelerating member that provides a speed to the liquid in the liquid holding member; And a nozzle provided at a position facing the food, so that the liquid sprayed by the liquid accelerating member toward the food is sprayed toward the food, the driving mechanism is used to move the liquid accelerating member, and the control means can control the driving mechanism to make the liquid accelerating member From the start bit The movement speed of the movement stroke to the movement end position can be freely changed. In one embodiment, it is preferable that the diameter configuration of the nozzle can be arbitrarily changed.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the moving stroke of the liquid acceleration member may be divided into a plurality of intervals each having the same or different distance. The control means can control the driving mechanism so that the moving speeds of the respective liquid acceleration members that are divided into a plurality of sections are respectively changed.

In other embodiments of the present invention, the movement stroke of the liquid acceleration member may be divided into: a first interval between the liquid acceleration member moving from the movement start position to a predetermined position, and a first interval from the predetermined position to the movement end position. Second interval. The control means can control the driving mechanism so that the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member in the first section is faster than the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member in other sections.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the device may also be provided with a plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms. In this embodiment, each of the plurality of liquid acceleration members may be connected to each other by a connecting member, and the connecting member is connected to the driving mechanism. Preferably, the plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms are arranged side by side so that the outlets of the plurality of nozzles are located on the same horizontal plane. The plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms can be divided into at least two arrays each containing a plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms. In the case of this embodiment, at least two arrays are arranged side by side at a predetermined interval, so that the outlets of the plurality of nozzles are preferably located on the same horizontal plane.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the liquid holding member preferably includes an opening portion provided at a position facing the food, and a spray stopper which closes the opening portion and is provided with a nozzle.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the device may be further modified. The step includes a liquid supply mechanism for supplying liquid to the liquid holding member. The liquid supply mechanism is provided with a passage connecting the inside and the outside of the liquid holding member, and a backflow prevention member is provided in the middle of the passage. The backflow prevention member is constituted so that when the liquid holding member becomes negative pressure with the movement of the liquid acceleration member, The introduction of liquid into the liquid holding member is prevented, and when the liquid holding member becomes positive pressure with the movement of the liquid accelerating member, the liquid is prevented from flowing back to the outside of the liquid holding member.

According to a second aspect of the invention, the invention provides a To inject liquid into food. This method is characterized by comprising a step of supplying a liquid to the liquid holding member, and a liquid ejecting step for directing the liquid held in the liquid holding member toward the food from a nozzle provided at a position facing the food. In this liquid ejecting step, the liquid system in the liquid holding member is given a speed by the liquid acceleration member, and the liquid acceleration member is controlled so that the movement speed in the movement stroke from the movement start position to the movement end position is free地 变。 Ground change.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the The moving stroke can be divided into plural intervals each having the same or different distance. The liquid acceleration members are controlled so that the moving speeds of the respective liquid acceleration members in a plurality of sections can be changed respectively.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the liquid acceleration member The moving stroke of can be divided into a first section until the liquid acceleration member moves from the movement start position to a predetermined position, and a second section from the predetermined position to the movement end position. Liquid acceleration component, controllable The moving speed in one section is faster than the moving speed in the other sections.

According to the present invention, by setting the moving speed and moving distance of the liquid acceleration member arbitrarily, the occurrence time of the maximum load applied to the liquid can be freely changed. As a result, the speed of the liquid sprayed from the nozzle and the liquid-to-food can be arbitrarily changed. Of injection status. Therefore, according to the present invention, the problems of the conventional multi-needle liquid injection device and method and the needle-free liquid injection device and method are solved, and regardless of the state and type of food and liquid, not only can it be easily set to make the liquid uniform The conditions for injecting food into the ground or improving the yield of liquids can also correspond to a wide range of foods and liquids. The most suitable position for injecting liquids into foods is not to be found on the sanitary, safety, and management surfaces of the device. Problems arise and foods with high added value can be provided.

1‧‧‧ Needleless liquid injection device

10‧‧‧Food delivery agency

12‧‧‧ Recycling body

14‧‧‧ Motor

20‧‧‧Liquid ejection mechanism

22‧‧‧Liquid holding member

22a‧‧‧ opening

22b‧‧‧ opening

23‧‧‧Inner space

24‧‧‧Liquid accelerating member

26‧‧‧Nozzle

26a‧‧‧Export

26b‧‧‧ entrance

27‧‧‧jet stop

30‧‧‧ Nozzle position adjustment mechanism

32‧‧‧ support member

34‧‧‧ movable pillar

36‧‧‧ support member

38‧‧‧ fixed pillar

40‧‧‧Drive mechanism

42‧‧‧Servo motor

44‧‧‧Servo motor

46‧‧‧Connecting components

48‧‧‧ Slider

50‧‧‧control means

51‧‧‧means of memory

52‧‧‧Control Panel

54‧‧‧Frame

60‧‧‧Liquid supply mechanism

62‧‧‧ liquid tank

64‧‧‧flow

66‧‧‧Liquid injection section

67‧‧‧Access

68‧‧‧ access

69‧‧‧Backflow prevention member

D‧‧‧ Arrow

FIG. 1 is a schematic front view of a needleless liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of a needleless liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic enlarged view of a liquid ejecting mechanism of a needleless liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a needle-free liquid injection device according to another embodiment of the present invention Sketchy side view.

FIG. 5 is a control flowchart of a needleless liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6A shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the moving distance and speed of the liquid acceleration means are changed.

FIG. 6B shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 6C shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 7A shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 7B shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the moving distance and speed of the liquid acceleration means are changed.

FIG. 7C shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the moving distance and speed of the liquid acceleration means are changed.

FIG. 8A shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 8B shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the moving distance and speed of the liquid acceleration means are changed.

FIG. 8C shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 9A shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention in accordance with a movement distance and a speed of a liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 9B shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 9C shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the moving distance and speed of the liquid acceleration means are changed.

FIG. 10A shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a movement distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 10B shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 11A shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the moving distance and speed of the liquid acceleration means are changed.

FIG. 11B shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the moving distance and speed of the liquid acceleration means are changed.

FIG. 12A shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 12B shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 13A shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the moving distance and speed of the liquid acceleration means are changed.

FIG. 13B shows a change in load when a liquid is injected into a food using a needle-less liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention, along with a change in a moving distance and a speed of the liquid acceleration means.

FIG. 14 is a photograph showing an example of a cross section after a liquid is injected into a muscle in a pig using a needle-free liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a photograph showing an example of a cross section after a liquid is injected into pork belly using a needle-free liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a photograph showing an example of a cross section after a liquid is injected into a chicken breast using a needleless liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a photograph showing an example of a cross section after a liquid is injected into a flowering branch using a needle-free liquid injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The needleless liquid injection device 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below, but the apparatus for implementing the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

1 and 2 are schematic front and side views of a needleless liquid injection device 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic enlarged view of a part of the liquid ejecting mechanism 20 of the device 1. FIG. In this device 1, the food is transported in a predetermined direction by the food transport mechanism 10. When the food reaches the liquid injection position, the operation of the food transport mechanism 10 is temporarily stopped, and the liquid ejected by the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is injected into the food by the operation of the driving mechanism 40. After the liquid is poured into the food, the food transfer mechanism 10 operates again, and stops the food transfer after a predetermined distance. Thereafter, similarly, food is transported and stopped by the food transport mechanism 10, and the liquid ejected by the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is injected into a plurality of positions at predetermined intervals whenever the food is stopped. After the liquid injection into the food is completed, the food to be injected is transported by the food transport mechanism 10 in a direction away from the liquid injection position.

In the present invention, as the food, for example, edible meat, fish, vegetables, fruits, and the like, various foods can be used. Further, in the present invention, as the liquid, for example, saline, a seasoning liquid, a preservation liquid, a coloring liquid, and the like, various liquids can be used.

[Food delivery agency]

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, in the device 1, a liquid food is injected, It is conveyed by the food conveyance mechanism 10. In this embodiment, the food conveying mechanism 10 includes a circulating conveying body 12 such as a conveyor belt, and a motor 14 that advances the circulating conveying body 12 in the direction of the arrow D. The liquid-filled food is transported from the right side to the left side in FIG. 1 by the circulating transport body 12.

As shown in FIG. 1, the food transfer mechanism 10 may be divided into two adjacent portions at a predetermined interval at a position where the liquid is sprayed on the food. In this case, each of the two parts is provided with the circulating conveyance body 12 and the motor 14. When the food transport mechanism 10 has such a structure, the liquid does not stay on the circulating transport body 12 even when the liquid passes through the food. A sensor is preferably provided in the food transport mechanism 10 to detect that the food has reached the liquid injection position.

[Liquid ejection mechanism]

The liquid injected into the food conveyed by the food conveyance mechanism 10 is ejected by the liquid ejection mechanism 20. As shown in FIG. 3, the liquid ejection mechanism 20 includes an internal space 23 that holds liquid for injecting food, such as a liquid holding member 22 such as a syringe, and a speed of applying liquid to the internal space 23 of the liquid holding member 22. For example, a liquid acceleration member 24 such as a pressure cylinder; and a nozzle 26 for ejecting liquid. The liquid held in the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22 is inserted into the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22 by the liquid accelerating member 24 and moves along the inner wall of the liquid holding member 22 toward the nozzle 26, and is removed from the nozzle 26 jets.

The device 1 may include a plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms 20, that is, may include a plurality of liquid holding members 22 and a liquid acceleration member 24. And the nozzle 26, and the plurality of liquid ejecting mechanisms 20 may be configured to: between the width corresponding to the width of the circulating conveyance body 12 of the food conveying mechanism 10, that is, in a direction intersecting the moving direction of the conveyed food, and Line up. Each of the outlets 26a of the nozzles 26 of the plurality of liquid ejecting mechanisms 20 is preferably configured to be positioned on the same horizontal plane. That is, the distance between each of the outlets 26a and the surface of the circulation conveyance body 12 is preferably a certain distance. However, the distance between the outlet 26a and the surface of the circulating conveyance body 12 is not limited to a certain distance, and the distance between the outlet 26a and the surface of the circulating conveyance body 12 may be set in a plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms as necessary. 20 are different in composition.

The plurality of liquid holding members 22 may be formed as a single body. In this case, the inside of the liquid holding member 22 is divided into a plurality of internal spaces 23 in response to the number of the liquid accelerating members 24, and a plurality of nozzles 26 are provided below the liquid holding member 22, and the plurality of nozzles The liquid in each inner space 23 of 26 is ejected by the movement of the corresponding liquid acceleration member 24.

Liquid holding member 22 and nozzle of liquid ejecting mechanism 20 26, the system can be formed as a whole or individually. For example, when the liquid holding member 22 is integrated, the inner space 23 is surrounded by a wall surface, only the insertion opening of the liquid acceleration member 24 becomes the opening portion 22b, and the nozzle 26 is provided on the wall surface facing the food ( That is, it corresponds to the wall surface of the bottom wall of the liquid holding member 22). In the case of being formed separately, for example, the liquid holding member 22 may be configured to have two opening portions 22a and 22b, and the opening portion 22a facing the food may be detachably mounted. A spray stopper 27 having a nozzle 26 is installed. The gap between the opening portion 22a and the ejection stopper 27 is preferably sealed with, for example, a sealing material. As in the latter case, when the liquid holding member 22 has a spray stopper, for example, when the spray stopper 27 is removed during cleaning, there is an advantage that maintenance of the device is easier.

The diameter of the nozzle 26 can be adapted to the type of food to be injected into the liquid. The conditions such as the type, the type of liquid to be injected, and the injection position are arbitrarily set. For example, in the case of the nozzle 26 having a larger diameter, the liquid sprayed by the nozzle 26 is easier to diffuse than in the case of a smaller diameter, and therefore, it is suitable for a wider range of applications for injecting liquid. On the other hand, in the case of the nozzle 26 having a smaller diameter, the liquid is less likely to diffuse than in the case of a larger diameter, and therefore, it is suitable for the application in which the liquid is injected at a more accurate position.

The diameter of the nozzle 26 can be changed, for example, in the following manner Further: A plate provided with holes of various sizes is prepared, and the plate is arranged at the bottom of the liquid holding member 22 in a state where the hole is aligned with the inlet 26b of the nozzle 26 as necessary. Alternatively, the injection stopper 27 provided with the nozzles 26 of various diameters is prepared, and the injection stopper 27 is changed as necessary, whereby the diameter of the nozzle 26 can be changed.

The plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms 20 are as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. As shown, it is not limited to the structure which is lined up in the direction which intersects the conveyance direction of food. According to another embodiment of the present invention, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms 20 may be formed into two arrays each side by side, and the two arrays may also be configured in a food conveying direction. Side by side at a given interval. In this case, a plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms The outlets 26a of the nozzles 20 of 20 may be arranged on the same horizontal plane, and the distance between the outlets 26a and the surface of the circulating conveyance body 12 may be different from each other in the plurality of liquid ejecting mechanisms 20. In addition, the outlets 26a of the nozzles 26 adjacent to each other in the direction intersecting the food conveyance direction in each of the two arrays may be arranged so as to be located in the direction of travel of the food staggered from each other.

[Nozzle position adjustment mechanism]

The device 1 is provided with the nozzle 26 of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 at a position facing the food. The height at this position can be determined by the nozzle position adjusting mechanism 30. The nozzle position adjusting mechanism 30 is capable of adjusting the height of the nozzle 26 of the liquid ejecting mechanism 20, that is, the distance between the outlet 26 a of the nozzle 26 and the surface of the circulating conveyance body 12. The nozzle position adjusting mechanism 30 may include a support member 32 for supporting the liquid holding member 22, a plurality of movable pillars 34 connected to the support member 32, and a support member 36 connected to the movable pillar 34 and supporting a servo motor; And a fixed pillar 38 fixed to a frame 54 to be described later, and a movable pillar 34 penetrating therethrough. The movable pillar 34 is configured to move up and down inside the fixed pillar 38 and is fixed to the fixed pillar 38 at a necessary position. Therefore, in the device 1, the movable stay 34 is moved up and down within the fixed stay 38 so that the necessary distance between the outlet 26a of the nozzle 26 and the surface of the circulating conveyance body 12 is fixed to the fixed stay 38. This can adjust the position of the nozzle.

Alternatively, it may be constituted that: The driving means and the measuring means for measuring the distance between the nozzle outlet 26a and the food are provided in the nozzle position adjusting mechanism 30, and based on the distance measured by the measuring means, the operation of the driving means is controlled by a control means 50 described later. Then, the movable stay 34 is automatically operated.

[Drive mechanism and control means]

The liquid acceleration member 24 of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is connected to the drive mechanism 40. The drive mechanism 40 may include a servo motor 44 that drives the slider 48 by the servo motor 42 and a connection member 46 between the slider 48 of the servo motor 44 and the liquid acceleration member 24, but is not limited to this structure. For example, the drive mechanism 40 may be a crank press, a hydraulic press, or the like, and may be configured to arbitrarily change the moving speed and position of the liquid acceleration member 24 of the liquid ejection mechanism 20. When the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is plural, as shown in FIG. 2, each of the plurality of liquid acceleration members 24 of the plural liquid ejection mechanism 20 is preferably connected to each other by a connecting member 46, and the connecting member 46 is connected to each other.至 48。 Sliding member 48 of the servo motor 44.

The servo motor 44 is used to rotate the servo motor 42 The motion is converted into a linear motion mechanism, and the slider 48 can be moved linearly. The servo motor 42 is controlled by a pulse signal from the control means 50. The slider 48 is connected to the liquid acceleration member 24 through the connection member 46. Therefore, the liquid acceleration member 24 can freely control the moving speed and position of the liquid acceleration member 24 as the servo motor 42 is driven by the slider 48. The mechanism of servo motor and its operation are well known to those skilled in the art, so this book It is not explained in detail in the written statement. The servo motor that can be used in the present invention is not particularly limited as long as it can achieve the purpose of the present invention. The servo motor 44 is only required to freely change the moving speed of the slider 48 from the start of the movement to the end of the movement, and it is possible to freely set one or a plurality of positions for changing the moving speed, and a commercially available one can be used. Servo motor (for example, a servo motor manufactured by Daiichi Dentsu Co., Ltd.).

The slider 48 of the servo motor 44 is It has a driving force of 42, and can move at any speed at any speed in the vertical direction, that is, from the top to the bottom of the drawing. Therefore, the liquid acceleration member 24 connected to the servo motor 44 by the connection means 46 can move vertically in the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22 with the movement of the slider 48, and can be pushed out and held by the nozzle 26. Liquid in space 23.

The servo motor 44 may include: controlling the rotation of the servo motor 42 The control means 50 for turning and the memory means 51 for storing various data. For example, the control means 50 including a programmable logic controller (PLC) can control the servo motor 42 based on various data memorized in the memory means 51 to make the liquid acceleration member 24 from the movement start position to the movement end position. The moving speed of the moving stroke can be freely changed. The control means 50 and the memory means 51 are preferably housed in a control panel 52, for example.

The control means 50 may be configured to control not only the driving mechanism 40, the entire control of the device 1 is performed. That is, the control means 50 can be configured to be linked with the operation of the drive mechanism 40, and can control the operation of the food conveyance mechanism 10 shown in the flow of FIG. 5 described later. In addition, control The means 50 may be configured to control the operation of the nozzle height adjustment mechanism that is automated as necessary and the operation of a flow rate adjustment valve that will be described later as necessary.

The device 1 is preferably provided with parameter setting means as described later. It is preferable to set parameters of information for operating the device 1. The parameter setting means may be a setting screen implemented by software, or a button, knob, or meter implemented as hardware. In the setting screen realized by software, it can be configured to set parameters using an input field or a pull-down menu for inputting the setting values of the parameters.

[Liquid supply mechanism]

The device 1 includes a liquid supply mechanism 60 for supplying liquid to the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22. The liquid supply mechanism 60 includes a liquid tank 62 that holds the liquid, a flow path 64 that circulates the liquid supplied from the liquid tank 62 to the liquid holding member 22, and a liquid injection portion provided in the liquid holding member 22 or the ejection stopper 27. 66. The liquid injection portion 66 preferably includes a first passage 67 communicating with the flow path 64, a second passage 68 communicating with the outlet of the first passage 67 and having a larger diameter than the passage 67, and a countercurrent flow preventing the liquid from flowing backward. Preventing member 69. At the exit of the second passage 68, a member (not shown) that restricts the operation of the backflow prevention member 69 is provided.

When the liquid acceleration member 24 is inside the liquid holding member 22 When the space 23 moves upward, the inner space 23 becomes negative pressure, and the backflow prevention member 69 moves upward from the exit of the first passage 67. Therefore, the liquid system passes from the liquid tank 62 through the flow path 64, the first passage 67, and the second passage 68, The inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22 is introduced. When the liquid acceleration member 24 moves downward in the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22, the inner space becomes a positive pressure, and the backflow prevention member 69 blocks the outlet of the first passage 67, thereby preventing the liquid from flowing back.

The liquid supply mechanism 60 may further include a branching head (not shown), which temporarily stores liquid from the liquid tank 62 and branches the liquid toward each of the liquid holding members 22. In the case where the liquid ejecting mechanism 20 is implemented in the form of a plurality of arrays, some of the constituent elements of the liquid supply mechanism 60 may be configured as the same plural elements. For example, in the case where the liquid ejection mechanism 20 is configured as a matrix of two rows in the forward and backward directions with respect to the food moving direction caused by the circulating conveyance body 12, as shown in FIG. The 22 supply liquid flow path 64 has two routes, and the liquid can be individually supplied to the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22 by the respective routes. At any position from the liquid tank 62 to the inlet of the flow path 67, a flow control valve (not shown) may be provided, which can control the opening and closing state by the control means 50 to control the liquid retention from the liquid tank 62 to the liquid The flow rate of the liquid supplied by the member 22.

In the device 1, the food conveying mechanism 10, the liquid ejecting mechanism 20, the nozzle position adjusting mechanism 30, the driving mechanism 40, and a control panel 52 provided as necessary are preferably supported by a frame 54.

[Device operation]

Next, a liquid injection method according to an embodiment of the present invention and a device for implementing the liquid injection method will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG. 5. action. The liquid injection method in this embodiment includes a parameter setting step, a food carrying-in step, a liquid injection step, and a food carrying-out step.

(Parameter setting procedure)

First, in the parameter setting step, the liquid injection specifications are determined in accordance with conditions such as the type, size, or quality of the food to be injected with the liquid, and the type or physical property of the liquid to be injected (s1 in FIG. 5). The liquid injection specification may be, for example, a condition for uniformly injecting liquid into a food, or a condition for achieving a predetermined injection position and amount of liquid in a food. Next, in order to implement the determined liquid injection specification, the information required for determining the operation of the device 1, that is, parameters, is set to the device 1 (s2). The control means 50 of the device 1 operates each mechanism and means of the device 1 based on the set parameters.

In the present apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, the following parameters are set.

‧ Number of food transfers in the liquid injection step (hereinafter referred to as the number of transfers)

‧Food transportation distance in the liquid injection step (hereinafter referred to as the transportation distance)

‧Number of injections of liquid at the same position (hereinafter referred to as number of injections at the same position)

‧Number of sections for changing the speed of the liquid acceleration member (hereinafter referred to as the number of sections)

‧ Movement speed of liquid acceleration member in individual liquid acceleration member speed change section (hereinafter referred to as movement speed)

‧Movement distance of liquid acceleration member (hereinafter referred to as movement distance)

‧Distance between nozzle and circulating conveyance body (hereinafter referred to as nozzle position)

‧Nozzle diameter (hereinafter referred to as nozzle diameter)

The meaning of these parameters will be explained as necessary in the following description.

In the parameter setting step, after the necessary parameters are set, the food system is placed on the circulating transport body 12 of the food transport mechanism 10, and the food is started to be transported in the direction indicated by arrow D in FIG. When the food reaches an appropriate liquid injection position, the travel of the circulating conveyance body 12 is temporarily stopped (s5). This stop can be performed manually, but when a sensor is provided to sense that the food reaches an appropriate liquid injection position, it may be configured to stop the travel of the circulating conveyance body 12 by a signal from the sensor ( s4 and s5). The position where the food is stopped is determined in advance by the operator in consideration of the type and size of the food, the type of liquid to be injected, the amount of liquid, and the position of the liquid to be injected, and it is preferable to memorize it in the memory means 51.

The nozzle position (that is, the height from the upper surface of the circulating conveyance body 12 to the outlet 26a of the nozzle 26) is preferably adjusted in accordance with the thickness of the food into which the liquid is injected and the liquid injection position. The nozzle distance can be adjusted manually in this embodiment by operating the nozzle position adjusting mechanism 30 in advance. In another embodiment, it is constituted by: a sensor for measuring the height of the food, and a driving mechanism that can change the height of the liquid ejection mechanism 20 in response to a signal from the sensor, The signal from the detector automatically changes the height of the outlet 26a.

When the food stops at the liquid injection position (s5), according to The signal from the control means 50 causes the drive mechanism 40 to operate and performs a liquid injection step (s7 to s18). Before performing the liquid injection step, it is preferable to perform a liquid injection preparation step (s6). The liquid injection preparation step is a step of moving the liquid acceleration member 24 from the device origin position which becomes the reference position of the liquid acceleration member 24 in the device 1 to the liquid acceleration member starting acceleration liquid movement start position. In this embodiment, this step is performed after the food reaches the liquid injection device, but it is not limited to this. The food may be placed before the circulating carrier 12 is placed, after the food is placed, and the movement is started. At any time during food movement.

Prepare the liquid injection preparation step (s6) as necessary After that, the liquid injection step is started. In the liquid injection step, from the movement start position to the movement end position, the liquid acceleration member 24 of the liquid ejecting mechanism 20 moves toward the nozzle 26 in the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22 to accelerate the liquid. As a result, the liquid from the The nozzle 26 injects food into the food. After a predetermined amount of liquid is ejected from the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22, the circulating carrier 12 moves only the predetermined amount to move the food, and the liquid is similarly injected at other positions of the food. This series of operations is repeated until the liquid injection step is completed. The movement start position can be set at any position between the inlet 22b of the liquid holding member 22 and the inlet 26b of the nozzle 26, and the movement end position can be set at any position between the movement start position and the inlet 26b of the nozzle 26.

The invention is characterized by controlling the liquid injection step The travel of the cyclic conveying body 12 and the movement of the liquid acceleration member 24 from the movement start position to the movement end position are not limited to the state and type of the food and liquid, and the liquid can be evenly injected into the food or raised in the food. The ratio of the amount of liquid stored to the amount of liquid ejected (the yield of the liquid), and it is possible to further inject a predetermined amount of liquid into an arbitrary position of the food. In order to achieve this feature, in the device 1, the number and the distance of the moving cycle conveying body 12 can be arbitrarily set (that is, the above-mentioned "number of conveying times" and "conveying distance"), and the movement start position of the liquid acceleration member 24 is set to The section up to the end of the movement is divided into a plurality of sections (that is, the "number of sections" described above), and the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member 24 (that is, the "moving speed" described above) and the liquid can be set arbitrarily The moving distance of the acceleration member 24 (that is, the "moving distance" described above).

In the liquid injection step, based on the The signal causes the driving mechanism 40 to operate, thereby causing the liquid acceleration member 24 to move from the liquid injection start position (that is, the start position of the first section of the plurality of sections) to the end position of the first section, that is, the first movement Distance, moving at the first speed (s7). When the liquid acceleration member 24 moves at the first speed in the first interval (that is, the first distance), the liquid system provided with the speed by the liquid acceleration member 24 is ejected from the nozzle 26 toward the food. Then, when the liquid acceleration member 24 reaches the end position of the first section (that is, the start position of the second section) (s8), the liquid acceleration member 24 is at the end position of the second section (that is, the start position of the third section). The second distance up to this point moves at the second speed (s9). When the liquid acceleration member 24 moves at the second speed in the second interval (that is, the second distance), The liquid system whose velocity is imparted by the liquid acceleration member 24 is ejected from the nozzle 26 toward the food. When the above steps are repeated a necessary number of times (s10 to s11), when the liquid acceleration member 24 reaches the end position of the Nth section (that is, the movement end position of the liquid acceleration member) (s12), the space 23 inside the liquid holding member 22 The retained liquid is completely ejected from the nozzle 26.

For example, the liquid acceleration member 24 is moved from the movement start position to The movement stroke to the movement end position is divided into two sections, that is, it can be divided into a first section from the movement start position to a predetermined position, and a movement from the predetermined position, that is, the end position of the first section, to the movement of the liquid acceleration member 24 The second interval up to the end position. In these two sections, the control device 50 can control the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member 24 in one section to be faster than the moving speed in the other section. By controlling the moving speed and moving distance of the liquid acceleration member 24 as described above, the speed at which the liquid is ejected from the nozzle 26 when the liquid acceleration member 24 moves in the first and second sections can be changed, respectively.

Next, the control means 50 operates the moving mechanism 40, The liquid acceleration member 24 is returned to the start position of the first section (s13). When the liquid acceleration member 24 moves in a direction away from the nozzle 26, the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22 becomes a negative pressure. With this negative pressure, the liquid ejected by one movement under the liquid acceleration member 24 is introduced into the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22 through the flow path 64, the first passage 67, and the second passage 68. It can also be structured: a flow control valve is provided in the device 1, the flow control valve (s17) is opened before the liquid acceleration member 24 moves, and sprayed when the liquid acceleration member 24 moves once under the liquid acceleration member 24 When a certain amount of liquid is introduced into the inner space 23 of the liquid holding member 22, the valve is closed (s18). By providing the flow regulating valve in this manner, waste of liquid use can be prevented.

Next, the control means 50 determines that it is at the same position as the food The number of times of the liquid injection (the "number of injections at the same position" mentioned above) (s14), has reached the set number of times. The number of injections at the same position refers to the number of repetitions of a stroke that moves the liquid acceleration member 24 from the acceleration start position to the movement end position without moving the food. That is, when a plurality of injections at the same position are set, a plurality of liquid injections are performed at the same position of the food. By forming the structure described above, a predetermined amount of liquid can be more surely injected into a predetermined position of the food. The number of injections at the same location is determined by considering the thickness of the food. When the food is thick, the liquid can be injected to a deeper position of the food by increasing the number of injections at the same location. In s14, when it is determined that the number of injections at the same position does not reach the set number, s7 to s13 are repeated (including s17 and s18 as necessary).

In s14, when it is determined that the number of injections at the same location reaches the set When the predetermined number of times is reached, it is then determined whether the number of injections of the liquid in the food conveying direction (the "number of conveyances" described above) has reached the set number of times (s15). The number of conveyances is the number of times the circulating conveyance body 12 travels in the liquid injection step. That is, the food conveyed by the circulating conveyance body 12 is filled with liquid at plural positions at a certain or different intervals in the conveying direction, and the number of times is the number of conveyances. In this way, the entire food in the food conveying direction is repeatedly filled with liquid, so that a predetermined amount of liquid can be injected into the food. The intended location. The number of transfers is determined by considering the amount of liquid injected into the food and the uniformity. When the number of transfers is increased, the liquid can be injected more uniformly in the longitudinal direction of the food (as a result, the amount of liquid injected increases). The product of the number of injections at the same location and the number of transfers described here is the total number of injections into the entire food. For example, when the number of in-situ injections is two and the number of transfers is ten, liquid injection into the entire food is performed 20 times.

In s15, when it is judged that the number of transfers has not reached the set number In the case of the number of times, the control means 50 causes the cyclic conveying body 12 to travel a predetermined distance (the "conveying distance" described above). The conveying distance is determined by the length of the liquid-injected food in the conveying direction and the number of conveying times (that is, the number of injections in the length direction). For example, when a liquid having a length of 200 mm is poured into the liquid 10 times, the transfer distance is 20 mm. Each of the plural conveying distances may be the same distance or a different distance.

In s15, when it is judged that the number of transfers reaches the set number After several hours, the liquid injection step is ended, and in the unloading step, the food is unloaded from the liquid injection position in the direction of the arrow D shown in FIG. 1 by the circulating conveyance body 12 (s19).

[Example]

Hereinafter, an embodiment in which a liquid is injected into a food using the needleless liquid injection device according to the present invention will be described.

(Examples 1 to 7)

In Examples 1 to 7, a structure in which five liquid ejecting mechanisms are arranged side by side with respect to the food conveyance direction is used. In the five liquid ejecting mechanisms, the total amount of liquid held in the five liquid holding members (that is, the inner space of the liquid holding member) was 42 cc. As liquid-filled foods, chicken breasts and pork muscles are used. The size of the chicken breast is about 180 mm in the longest part in the conveying direction, about 100 mm in the longest part in the transverse direction to the conveying direction, and about 30 mm in the thickest part. The size of the muscle in the pig is about 200mm in the longest part in the conveying direction, about 90mm in the longest part in the transverse direction to the conveying direction, and about 50mm in the thickest part. The chicken breast is placed on the circulating carrier with the skin-contacting side in contact with the circulating carrier. The injection system used liquid 1 with a low viscosity (viscosity 8CP) and liquid 2 with a high viscosity (viscosity 22CP).

In Examples 1 to 7, the parameters are set as follows.

‧ Number of transfers: 30 times (the total shot volume is therefore 42cc × 30 times = 1,260cc)

‧Transportation distance: 5mm

‧Number of injections at the same location: 1

‧Number of sections: 2 sections (total distance of 2 sections is 26mm)

‧Movement speed and distance of liquid acceleration member: as shown in Table 2

‧Nozzle position: 120mm

‧Nozzle diameter: 0.3mm and 0.7mm

Table 1 shows the foods in Examples 1 to 7. Product, injection liquid, and nozzle diameter. Table 2 shows the movement speeds and distances of the liquid acceleration members in the first and second sections of Examples 1 to 7, and the force (load) applied to the liquid by the predetermined movement speed of the liquid acceleration members. ) The maximum value (maximum load). 6 to 13 are graphs showing the relationship (load mode) between the moving distance (horizontal axis (unit: mm)) of the liquid acceleration member and the load (vertical axis (unit: kN)). The moving speed of the liquid acceleration member in Table 2 is the maximum speed in each section, and the load is the value obtained from the torque of the servo motor calculated from the ratio of the current value at the constant torque of the servo motor to the actual current value.

Hereinafter, the results of observing the state of the liquid injection into the food are shown for Examples 1 to 7.

[Example 1]

In Example 1-A (Figure 6A), the liquid diffused in the upper part of the muscles in the pig (ie, the liquid was only injected into the upper part). In Example 1-B (FIG. 6B), compared with Example 1-A, the speed in the interval 2 is increased, and the distance in the interval 2 is further lengthened. As a result, although the liquid is injected into The lower part is not injected into the deep part, and most of the liquid is injected into the upper part of the muscle in the pig to the left and right parts. In Example 1-C (FIG. 6C), compared with Examples 1-A and 1-B, the speed in the section 1 was greatly increased, and the distance in the section 1 was shortened, so that the peak load was advanced. As a result, the liquid is uniformly diffused and injected into the entire lower portion of the food.

[Example 2]

Example 2 is a result of a case where the nozzle diameter is larger than that of Example 1. In Example 2-A (Figure 7A), the liquid penetrated the muscles in the pig. In Example 2-B (FIG. 7B), as a result of lowering the speed of the liquid acceleration means to inject liquid into the muscles in the pig, the liquid is mainly injected into the upper part of the muscle in the pig, and less liquid reaches the lower part. In Example 2-C (FIG. 7C), compared with Example 2-B, the speed of section 1 is made faster, the speed of section 2 is set to be the same, and the distance of section 1 is set to be greater than that of example 2 -B performs the implantation longer. As a result, the liquid is injected and diffused beyond the central portion to the lower portion having a thickness. Therefore, in order to inject the liquid into, for example, the whole muscle of the pig, evenly, it is known that after the injection is performed at a faster speed in the interval 1, the decrease speed is preferably in the interval 2. Moreover, the nozzle diameter of the second embodiment is larger than that of the first embodiment, so the resistance of the liquid acceleration means from the liquid is small, so the speed of the liquid acceleration means becomes faster.

[Example 3]

Example 3 is a result of a case where the viscosity of the liquid used is higher than that of Example 1. In Example 3-A (Fig. 8A), the liquid penetrated the pork muscles meat. In Example 3-B (FIG. 8B), as a result of the injection at a lower speed of the liquid acceleration means in the interval 2, the injection was performed and diffused beyond the central portion to the lower portion having a thickness. In Example 3-C (FIG. 8C), the injection was performed at a predetermined injection speed. As a result, until the entire liquid was injected into the lower part of the muscles in the pig, the diffusion of the liquid was not confirmed. Therefore, the liquid is injected to a specific position from the upper part of the muscle in the pig to the left and right. In the case of Example 3-C, the maximum load is the same as the case of Example 3-B, but compared to the case where the load is gradually raised from the injection and reaches the maximum load, Example 3-B is in the injection The maximum load level was reached almost immediately after the start, and the load at that level was maintained approximately thereafter. According to the results, it is thought that by reaching the vicinity of the maximum load immediately after the start of the injection, and then continuing the injection with a load close to the maximum load, the liquid can be more evenly spread to the muscles in the pig. When comparing Example 1 and Example 3, it was observed that a liquid with a lower viscosity was more likely to diffuse into the food. Therefore, when a liquid with higher viscosity is used in the device, the liquid can be more accurately injected into any position of the food.

[Example 4]

Example 4 is a result of a case where the nozzle diameter is larger than that of Example 3. In Example 4-A (Figure 9A), the liquid penetrated the muscles in the pig. In Example 4-B (FIG. 9B), the speed of section 2 is reduced, and the distance of section 1 is shortened. As a result, although the liquid was not injected into the lower portion in the central portion having the thickness, the liquid spread widely. In Example 4-C (FIG. 9C), the distance in the interval 1 is set to be longer than that in Example 4-B. As a result, the maximum load changes High and the liquid reaches the lower part.

[Example 5]

Example 5 is a result of the case where a liquid was poured into chicken breast. In Example 5-A (Fig. 10A), the liquid was injected only into the upper part of the chicken breast. In Embodiment 5-B (FIG. 10B), the speed of the liquid acceleration means is increased as a whole, and the distance in the interval 1 is shortened. As a result, the liquid diffuses to the whole.

[Example 6]

Example 6 is a result of a case where the nozzle diameter is larger than that of Example 5. In Example 6-A (Fig. 11A), the liquid penetrated the chicken breast. In Example 6-B (FIG. 11B), the speed of the liquid acceleration means is reduced. As a result, the liquid spreads over the entire chicken breast.

[Example 7]

Example 7 is a result of a case where the viscosity of the liquid used is higher than that of Example 5. In Example 7-A (FIG. 12A), the liquid was injected only to the upper part of the chicken breast. In Example 7-B (FIG. 12B), the speed of the liquid acceleration means is increased, and the distance in the interval 1 is shortened. As a result, the liquid spreads over the entire chicken breast.

(Example 8 to Example 11)

Examples 8 to 11 show that even when the total load (that is, the total energy) given to the liquid by the liquid acceleration member is the same, the liquid is changed by The moving mode of the acceleration member, that is, changing the moving speed and moving distance, can easily change the yield of the liquid. In the eighth to eleventh embodiments, a device having the same structure as that of the first to seventh embodiments is used. The total amount of liquid held by the five liquid holding members was 41.2 g (38 cc). As a liquid-infused food, pork muscle and pork belly are used. The size of the muscle in the pig is about 45 mm in the longest part in the conveying direction, about 90 mm in the longest part in the transverse direction to the conveying direction, about 80 mm in thickness at the thickest part, and 350 g in weight. The size of pork belly is about 45mm in the longest part in the conveying direction, about 80mm in the longest part in the transverse direction to the conveying direction, about 60mm in thickness at the thickest part, and 250g in weight. The viscosity of the injected liquid was 22CP.

In Examples 8 to 11, the parameters are set as follows. Moreover, in these embodiments, the food conveyance mechanism is not driven.

‧Number of injections at the same location: 1

‧Number of sections: 2 sections (total distance of 2 sections is 32mm)

‧Movement speed and distance of liquid acceleration member: as shown in Table 3

‧Nozzle position: set the distance between food and nozzle to about 5mm

‧Nozzle diameter: 0.3mm

In Example 8 and Example 10, the muscle The pork and pork belly are filled with liquid in the load pattern shown in FIG. 13A. In Examples 9 and 11, the muscles of pigs and pork belly are filled with liquid in the load pattern shown in FIG. 13B. In FIGS. 13A and 13B, the horizontal axis represents the moving distance (unit: mm) of the liquid acceleration member, and the vertical axis represents the load (unit: kN) applied to the liquid by the liquid acceleration member. The total area under the line showing the load pattern shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B corresponds to the energy imparted to the liquid in each case, and the energy of Example 8 and Example 10 is the same as that of Example 9 and implementation. The energy of Example 11 was set to be substantially the same. Moreover, Example 9 and Example 11 are controlled so that the speed of the liquid acceleration member is gradually increased. This control method is a control for gradually increasing the load from zero as shown by a dotted line in FIG. 13B. , Similarly achieved by the apparatus and method of the present invention.

In Example 8, with respect to the sprayed liquid 41.2 g, The weight increase of the muscle in the pig injected with liquid is 16.8g, and the liquid yield, that is, the ratio of the amount of liquid injected into the food to the amount of liquid sprayed is about 40%. On the other hand, in Example 9, since the weight increase of the muscles in the pig was 6.1 g, the liquid yield was about 15%. same In Example 10, since the weight increase of pork belly was 30.9 g, the liquid yield was about 75%. On the other hand, in Example 11, since the weight increase of pork belly was 20.0 g, the liquid yield was about 48%. From the results of Example 8 to Example 11, as long as the device and method of the present invention are used, the device can be easily optimized, and the liquid is accelerated by changing the moving speed and moving distance of the liquid acceleration member. The type of food achieves a higher yield.

(Examples 12 to 15)

Examples 12 to 15 show experimental results that can control the depth of liquid injection for different foods by changing the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member. In the twelfth embodiment to the fifteenth embodiment, a device having the same structure as that of the first to seventh embodiments is used. Among the five liquid holding members, each of the three liquid holding members in the center held 2.5 cc, for a total of 7.5 cc of liquid. Liquid-filled foods include pork belly, pork muscle, chicken breast and flower sticks. The thickness of the thickest part of each food is about 40 mm for pork belly, about 60 mm for pork muscles, about 40 mm for chicken breasts, and about 30 mm for flower branches. The viscosity of the injected liquid was 22 cp.

In Example 12 to Example 15, the parameters were set as follows. Moreover, in these embodiments, the food conveyance mechanism is not driven.

‧Number of injections at the same location: 1

‧Number of sections: 1 section (distance is 10mm)

‧Nozzle position: set the distance between food and nozzle to about 5mm

‧Nozzle diameter: 0.3mm

‧ Movement speed of the liquid acceleration member: as shown below

Muscle in pig Speed 1: 10mm / s, Speed 2: 20mm / s, Speed 3: 30mm / s

Pork belly pork Speed 1: 20mm / s, Speed 2: 25mm / s, Speed 3: 30mm / s

Chicken breast speed 1: 5mm / s, speed 2: 10mm / s, speed 3: 15mm / s

Flower speed 1: 10mm / s, speed 2: 20mm / s, speed 3: 30mm / s

Table 4 shows the distance between the liquid reaching the deepest position from the surface of the food when the moving speed of the liquid acceleration means is changed from speed 1 to speed 3 for Examples 12 to 15. The result is an average of 15 experimental results. 14 to FIG. 17 are photographs showing an example of a cross section of a food after the liquid is injected for Examples 12 to 15 respectively. As can be seen from these examples, the device according to the invention And method, by appropriately changing the speed of the liquid acceleration means according to the type of food, the depth of liquid reaching in each food can be easily and arbitrarily changed, and from the inlet of the liquid to the deepest part regardless of the speed Since the liquid is injected at substantially the same width, the liquid can be injected uniformly.

1‧‧‧ Needleless liquid injection device

10‧‧‧Food delivery agency

12‧‧‧ Recycling body

14‧‧‧ Motor

20‧‧‧Liquid ejection mechanism

22‧‧‧Liquid holding member

24‧‧‧Liquid accelerating member

30‧‧‧ Nozzle position adjustment mechanism

32‧‧‧ support member

34‧‧‧ movable pillar

36‧‧‧ support member

38‧‧‧ fixed pillar

40‧‧‧Drive mechanism

44‧‧‧Servo motor

46‧‧‧Connecting components

48‧‧‧ Slider

50‧‧‧control means

51‧‧‧means of memory

52‧‧‧Control Panel

54‧‧‧Frame

60‧‧‧Liquid supply mechanism

62‧‧‧ liquid tank

64‧‧‧flow

D‧‧‧ Arrow

Claims (11)

A needle-free liquid injection device is a device for injecting liquid into a food, and is characterized by including a liquid ejecting mechanism including a liquid holding member for holding a liquid inside, and applying liquid to the liquid holding member. A liquid accelerating member of velocity, and a nozzle provided at a position facing the food, so that the liquid sprayed by the liquid accelerating member toward the food is sprayed toward the food; and a driving mechanism for moving the liquid accelerating member; It can control the driving mechanism to move the stroke of the liquid acceleration member in a plurality of sections divided into plural sections each having the same or different distance and used to eject the entire amount of the liquid held in the liquid holding member, so that The moving speed of the liquid acceleration member in each of the plural sections varies. The needle-free liquid injection device according to claim 1, wherein the movement stroke is divided into a first section until the liquid acceleration member moves from a movement start position to a predetermined position, and movement from the predetermined position to the movement In the second section up to the end position, the control means controls the driving mechanism so that the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member in the first section is faster than the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member in the second section. The needle-free liquid injection device according to claim 1, wherein the movement stroke is divided into a first section until the liquid acceleration member moves from a movement start position to a predetermined position, and movement from the predetermined position to the movement The second interval up to the end position, the aforementioned control means are The driving mechanism is controlled so that the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member in the first section is slower than the moving speed of the liquid acceleration member in the second section. The needleless liquid injection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the diameter of the nozzle is configured to be changeable. The needleless liquid injection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the liquid ejection mechanism is plural, and each of the plurality of liquid acceleration members of the liquid ejection mechanism is connected by a connection The members are connected to each other, and the connecting member is connected to the driving mechanism. The needleless liquid injection device according to claim 5, wherein the plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms are arranged side by side so that the outlets of the plurality of nozzles are located on the same horizontal plane. The needleless liquid injection device according to claim 5, wherein the plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms are divided into at least two arrays each containing a plurality of liquid ejection mechanisms, and the at least two arrays are in a predetermined manner. Arranged side by side so that the outlets of the plurality of nozzles are located on the same horizontal plane. The needle-free liquid injection device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the liquid holding member includes an opening portion provided at a position facing the food, and the opening portion is closed and the nozzle is provided. Jet stop. A needle-free liquid injection method is a method for injecting liquid into food, and is characterized by containing: A step of supplying liquid to the liquid holding member, and a liquid ejecting step in which the entire amount of the liquid held in the liquid holding member is ejected from a nozzle provided at a position facing the food toward the food, so that The liquid in the liquid holding member is given a speed by a liquid accelerating member, and the liquid accelerating member is controlled to move the liquid accelerating member in a plurality of sections divided into plural sections each having the same or different distance, so that The respective moving speeds of the plural sections are changed respectively. The needle-free liquid injection method according to claim 9, wherein the movement stroke is divided into a first interval until the liquid acceleration member moves from a movement start position to a predetermined position, and movement from the predetermined position to the movement In the second section up to the end position, the liquid acceleration member is controlled so that the moving speed in the first section is faster than the moving speed in the second section. The needle-free liquid injection method according to claim 9, wherein the movement stroke is divided into a first interval until the liquid acceleration member moves from a movement start position to a predetermined position, and movement from the predetermined position to the movement In the second section up to the end position, the liquid acceleration member is controlled so that the moving speed in the first section is slower than the moving speed in the second section.