WO2004083083A1

WO2004083083A1 - Dispenser for food products

Info

Publication number: WO2004083083A1
Application number: PCT/FI2004/000153
Authority: WO
Inventors: Seppo GRÖNLUND
Original assignee: Robotiikka Oy
Priority date: 2003-03-19
Filing date: 2004-03-17
Publication date: 2004-09-30
Also published as: FI20030409A0; FI115515B; FI20030409A

Abstract

A dispenser for food products, which dispenser comprises a container (2) for food products and means (3) for portioning food products from the container (2) in batches of desired size, which are intended to be cooked in a separate cooking device placed apart from the dispenser. The device is particularly suitable for automatic dispensing of frozen food products. The dispenser is formed of a freezer (1), inside which the container (2) and the portioning means (3) have been placed and which, in addition to a door opening, has been provided with at least one opening (10) through which the food batches that have been portioned can be brought outside the freezer (1). In one embodiment, inside the freezer (1) there is a bin (2) for food in bulk form and a conveyor (3) has been coupled with the bin (2) for portioning a food product batch of desired size from the bin (2) into a compartment (7) connected with the opening (10) in a wall of the freezer (1) such that the compartment (7) can be emptied through the opening (10) to outside the freezer (1). The freezer may also be provided with means for storage and dispensing of food products to be dispensed one at a time.

Description

Dispenser for food products

The invention relates to a dispenser for food products, which dispenser comprises a container for food products and means for portioning food products from the container in batches of desired size, which are intended to be cooked in a separate cooking device placed apart from the dispenser. The device is particularly suitable for automatic dispensing of frozen food products.

Food products are generally delivered to the restaurant in large packaging batches, which for use must be portioned into smaller batches for preparation and/or for sale. This portioning can be accomplished manually or automatically. The storage and handling of frozen products in a hot and cramped kitchen is problematic. US patents 5,191,918 and 6,305,573 BI describe automatic dispensers for portioning bulk food products, such as French fries in fast food restaurants. EP patent application 335 698 A2 and EP patent 455 477 BI describe robotized food preparation systems, which comprise the same type of automated dispenser apparatus for food products. EP patent application 335 698 A2 also describes an arrangement for dispensing food products dispensed one at a time, such as patties.

In all of the above-mentioned automatic dispenser systems, food products are stored and portioned at room temperature, no matter whether they are frozen or fresh. Even though the container part of the dispenser would be provided with heat insulation, a frozen food product can nevertheless partly melt during storage and dispensing. It may lead to disturbances in the operation of the portioning device, a lowering of the quality of the food product and a lowering of the hygiene level of the portioning environment. For this reason, the portioning device must be emptied and cleaned often, in practice, every day. Moreover, only a small amount of the product can be accommodated at a time in the container of the known dispensers, wherefore the container must be filled often. The aim of the invention is to provide a new device for storage and dispensing of food products, by means of which it is possible to reduce problems associated with known arrangements.

To achieve this aim the dispenser for food products according to the invention is characterized by what is stated in the characterizing part of claim 1.

The dispenser in accordance with the invention is formed of a freezer, inside which a container for food products and means for portioning food products are placed and which, in addition to a door, is provided with at least one opening through which the food batches portioned by the portioning means can be brought outside the freezer.

In one embodiment of the invention, inside the freezer there is a bin for food in bulk form. A conveyor is coupled with the bin for portioning a desired quantity of food from the bin into a compartment, which is connected to the opening in a wall of the freezer such that the compartment can be emptied through the opening to outside the freezer.

In one embodiment, the compartment comprises a front wall and side walls that are movable with respect to a separate bottom part. This kind of compartment can be moved between two positions, of which in the first position the front wall closes the opening in the wall of the freezer and the compartment rests inside the freezer on support of the bottom part and in the second position the compartment is at least partly outside the freezer and at least partly without the bottom. The bottom part can be attached fixedly or movably to the freezer and the compartment can be attached movably to the bottom part, for example, by means of slide rails.

In another embodiment, the compartment is attached to a hatch placed in connection with the opening and pivotably fastened to a wall of the freezer such that in the first position the hatch covers the opening and the compartment is ready to receive food coming from the conveyor and in the second position the hatch has pivoted outwards such that the food in the compartment can be removed to outside the freezer.

The freezer can be additionally provided with a transfer device which is placed outside and which supports at least one receiving basket and moves it from a storage position to a filling position in which the receiving basket is ready to receive the food discharging from the compartment.

In a further embodiment of the invention, inside the freezer there is at least one magazine in which food products in piece form are stacked one on top of another or one after another. In a wall of the freezer there is for each magazine an opening that can be closed with a hatch. A pushing member is connected to each magazine for moving food products in batches of desired size through the opening to outside the freezer.

The embodiments described above can be combined with one another such that the dispenser simultaneously includes both one or more bins for food in bulk form and one or more magazines for food products dispensed one at a time.

Advantageously, the container containing food products and possibly also the means for portioning food products to outside the freezer are detachably attached to the freezer, which facilitates the cleaning of the dispenser.

In the food dispenser in accordance with the invention, frozen food products can be kept at the right storage temperature until they are needed in food preparation. The portioning of food products into preparation batches takes place inside the freezer, whereby the quality and the hygiene level of the products remain high and premature defrosting of products does not disturb the operation of the dispenser. The device also reduces the daily work load of kitchen personnel because the emptying, washing and refilling of the device can be carried out at longer intervals than in conventional dispensers that operate without refrigeration.

In the following, the invention will be described with reference to the figures in the appended drawings, but the invention is not meant to be limited to the details of them.

Figure 1 is a front view of a dispenser for food products.

Figure 2 shows the dispenser of Fig. 1, viewed obliquely from above.

Figure 3 is a front view of another embodiment of the dispenser.

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional side view of the dispenser of Fig. 3.

The dispenser for frozen food products shown in Figs. 1 and 2 comprises a conventional upright freezer 1 provided with additional devices required by storage, portioning and dispensing of food products, of which devices at least some can be detached from the freezer for cleaning. The freezer 1 is shown with a door 4 opened.

In the upper part of the freezer 1 there is a detachable bin 2 for food in bulk form. Below the bin 2 there is a conveyor 3, which forms the bottom of the bin 2. The conveyor 3 is advantageously a scraper conveyor, but other known conveyor types also come into question. When the conveyor 3 is operating, it transfers food in bulk form from the bottom part of the bin 2 towards an outlet opening that remains between the bin 2 and the conveyor 3. A plate 6 of flexible material closes the outlet opening when the conveyor 3 has stopped and regulates the quantity of the food discharging through the outlet opening when the conveyor 3 is operating. To improve flexibility, the lower part of the plate 6 can be shaped or cut. The food in bulk form drops from the conveyor 3 into a compartment 7 awaiting below the conveyor 3, the location of the compartment in a filling position being shown with broken lines in Fig. 1. Both in Fig. 1 and in Fig. 2, the compartment 7 is shown in a pulled-out i.e. discharge position.

The compartment 7 comprises a front wall 8 and side walls movably coupled to a separate bottom part 9, which is in turn attached to the freezer 1 either fixedly or movably. The compartment 7 is disposed in the opening 10 in the wall of the freezer 1 such that the front wall 8 of the compartment 7 is always outside the freezer 1. The compartment 7 is advantageously disposed on support of horizontal rails, by means of which it is movable between two extreme positions. In the first, i.e. filling position, the front wall 8 of the compartment 7 closes the opening 10 in the wall of the freezer 1 and the bottom part 9 inside the freezer 1 forms the bottom of the compartment 7. In that case, the compartment 7 is ready to receive the food dropping into it from the conveyor 3. When the compartment 7 is pushed by means of an actuator to its other position, i.e. discharge position, the separate bottom part 9 remains partly or totally inside the freezer 1. In that connection, the food products in the compartment 7 are transferred, while guided by the moving walls of the compartment 7, through the opening 10 out of the freezer 1 and drop into a receiving basket 20 awaiting outside. If the receiving basket 20 is not in the immediate vicinity of the opening 10 (see Fig. 1), it is advantageous that the bottom part 9 of the compartment 7 can slide partly out, so that it covers the gap that remains between the receiving basket 20 and the opening 10.

Advantageously, the operations of the conveyor 3 and the compartment 7 are coupled with each other such that the compartment 7 cannot be opened when the conveyor 3 is in operation and, similarly, the conveyor 3 cannot be used when the compartment 7 is in the discharge position.

The dispenser is additionally provided with a transfer device 21 that is coupled to the side of the freezer 1 and which is provided with attachment means 22 to detachably attach one or more receiving baskets 20 or equivalent to the transfer device 21. By means of the transfer device 21 the receiving basket 20 can be moved from a storage position situated above the opening 10 to the filling position situated below the opening 10. Besides vertical, the path of travel of the transfer device 21 can also be horizontal or in some other direction.

Figs. 3 and 4 show a second embodiment of the dispenser for food products. This dispenser also comprises a bin 2 placed inside a freezer 1 for food in bulk form and a conveyor 3 serving as the bottom of the bin 2. Fig. 4 shows a motor 5, which is placed outside the rear wall of the freezer 1 and by means of which the conveyor 3 can be operated intermittently for moving food in bulk form from the bin 2 through an outlet opening defined by a flexible plate 6 into a compartment 17. By changing the operation time of the conveyor 3, it is possible to adjust the size of the food portion to be dispensed from the bin 2 to the compartment 17. Advantageously, the size of the portion can be selected from a menu in a front panel of the freezer 1.

The compartment 17 comprises a front wall and a rear wall attached to each other at an angle of about 90° and two sector-shaped ends forming the side walls of the compartment. The front wall of the compartment 17 is attached to or integrated with a hatch 18 pivotably fastened close to the lower edge of the opening 10 in a wall of the freezer 1. The hatch 18 and the compartment 17 attached to it have two operating positions between which it can be moved by means of an actuator 19. In the first i.e. filling position, the hatch 18 closes the opening 10 in the wall of the freezer 1 and the compartment 17 inside the freezer 1 is ready to receive the food dropping from the conveyor 3. In the second i.e. discharge position, the hatch 18 and the compartment 17 attached to it are pivoted around their pivot shaft outwards so far that the food in the compartment 17 can drop into a receiving basket 20 awaiting outside the freezer. Fig. 3 shows both the filling position (17', 18') and the discharge position (17, 18). In addition to the bin 2 intended for bulk food products, in the lower part of the freezer 1 there are a number of magazines 11 for storage and dispensing of different patties and other food products dispensed one at a time. The magazines 11 are dimensioned according to the measurements and shape of the patties stored in them and the patties are stored in them as stacked one on top of another. In the rear wall of the freezer there is an opening 15 at the bottom part of each magazine 11. Each opening 15 is closed with a separate hatch 14. Adjacent to the bottom part of each magazine 11 there is a plate-like pushing member 12, which can be moved into the magazine 11 by means of an actuator 13 placed outside the freezer. In that connection, the pushing member 12 displaces the lowermost patty in the magazine 11 and pushes it out from the opposite side of the magazine 11. Each hatch 14 cooperates with the respective pushing member 12 such that the hatch 14 of the respective magazine 11 opens when the pushing member 12 moves. The actuating members 13 for moving the pushing members 12 and for opening the hatch 14 are shown as placed below the freezer 1 in Figs. 3 and 4. As the actuating members it is possible to use, for example, pneumatic cylinders, electric actuators or other equivalent known devices. Advantageously, in connection with the rear wall of the freezer 1 there is a receiving trough or a receiving conveyor for the patties dropping from the opening 15.

The invention can be accomplished in many different ways such that the freezer includes one or more bins for bulk food products and/or one or more magazines for food products in piece form. The magazines need not necessarily be in an upright position but they can also be placed in a horizontal position or obliquely. The devices used for portioning food products can also differ from those described above only as an example.

The claims are presented in the following and the various details of the invention may vary within the inventive idea defined by said claims and differ from the details given above by way of example only.

Claims

1. A dispenser for food products, which dispenser comprises a container (2; 11) for food products and means (3; 12) for portioning food products from the container (2; 11) in batches of desired size, which are intended to be cooked in a separate cooking device placed apart from the dispenser, characterized in that the dispenser is formed of a freezer (1), inside which the container (2; 11) and the portioning means (3; 12) have been placed and which, in addition to a door opening, has been provided with at least one opening (10; 15) through which the food batches that have been portioned can be brought outside the freezer (1).

2. A device as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that inside the freezer (1) there is a bin (2) for food in bulk fonn and a conveyor (3) has been coupled with the bin (2) for portioning a food product batch of desired size from the bin (2) into a compartment (1; 17) connected with the opening (10) in a wall of the freezer (1) such that the compartment (7; 17) can be emptied through the opening (10) to outside the freezer (1).

3. A device as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the compartment (7) comprises a front wall (8) and side walls which are movable with respect to a separate bottom part (9), and the compartment (7) is movable between two positions, of which in a first position the front wall (8) closes the opening (10) in the wall of the freezer (1) and the compartment (7) rests inside the freezer (1) on support of the bottom part (9), and in a second position the compartment (7) is at least partly outside the freezer (1) and at least partly without the bottom.

4. A device as claimed in claim 3, characterized in that the bottom part (9) has been attached to the freezer (1) fixedly or movably and the compartment (8) has been attached to the bottom part (9) movably, for example, by means of slide rails.

5. A device as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that the compartment (17) has been attached to a hatch (18) placed in connection with the opening (10) and pivotably fastened to a wall of the freezer (1) such that in a first position the hatch (18) covers the opening (10) and the compartment (17) is ready to receive the food coming from the conveyor (3) and in a second position the hatch (18) has pivoted outwards such that the food in the compartment (17) can discharge to outside the freezer (1).

6. A device as claimed in any one of claims 3 to 5, characterized in that the operation of the compartment (7; 17) and that of the conveyor (3) are coupled with each other such that when the compartment (7; 17) is in the second i.e. discharge position, the conveyor (3) cannot operate, and when the conveyor (3) operates, the hatch (8; 18) and the compartment (7; 17) connected with it cannot be opened.

7. A device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that it additionally comprises a transfer device (21) which has been disposed outside the freezer (1) and which supports at least one receiving basket (20) and transfers it from a storage position to a filling position, in which the receiving basket (20) is ready to receive the food discharging from the compartment (7; 17).

8. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that inside the freezer (1) there is at least one magazine (11) in which food products in piece form have been stacked one on top of another or side by side, and in a wall of the freezer (1) there is an opening (15) closable by a hatch (14) for each magazine (11), and a pushing member (12) is connected to each magazine (11) for portioning food products from the magazine (11) in batches of desired size through the opening (15) to outside the freezer (1).

9. A device as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that each pushing member (12) cooperates with the hatch (14) that closes the respective opening (15) such that when the pushing member (12) pushes a food product out of the magazine (11), the hatch (14) has been arranged to open and when the pushing member (12) is in a pulled-back position, the hatch (14) closes the opening (15).

10. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the container (2; 11) that contains frozen food products has been detachably attached to the freezer (1).

11. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the means (3; 12) for portioning the food products placed in the container (2; 11) have been attached to the freezer (1) at least partly detachably.

12. A device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that inside the freezer (1) there are one or more bins (2) for food in bulk form and one or more magazines (11) stacked one on top of another or side by side for food products in piece form.