Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
1060304
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Fie!d of the Invention
This invention relates to food processing and, more particularly,
to a process of treating fruit with a caustic solution to facllitate separation
of peel from the fruit.
Description of the Prior Art
Utilization of fruit for certain purposes requires that the peel be
separated from the fruit as a part of the processing operation. This operation
has been somewhat difficult to mechanize, yet the cost of manually removing
the peel would make the cost of peeled fruit prohibitive. Consequently there
is a need for an apparatus which is capable of automatically removing peel at a
high rate of speed. Although attempts have been made in the past to utilize a
caustic treating solution to loosen the peel from the fruit, such techniques have
generally carried the fruit through the solution on an elongated conveyor which
does not sufficiently agitate the fruit to rapidly loosen the peel. Furthermore,
these conveyors do not carry a sufficient volume of fruit thereby limiting the
capacity of this technique, and the conveyors generally require a great deal of
maintenance and are difficult to clean.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the invention to provide an apparatus for effectively
loosening peel from fruit in order to facilitate peel separation.
It is another object of the invention to provide an apparatus capable
of treating fruit to facilitate peel separation at a relatively high rate of speed
and increased volume.
It is still another object of the invention to provide an apparatus for
facilitating the separation of peel from fruit which does not unduly damage the
fruit.
These and other objects of the invention are provided by an apparatus
having a multi-pocketed reel rotating about a horizontal axis which carries the
fruit down and through a caustic treating solution. The pockets are formed by
spaced apart, perforated paddles which allow the solution flow through the
paddles and through the fruit contained in each pocket thereby agitating and
moving the fruit so that the solut70n is extremely effective in loosening the peel.
As the reel rotates the fruit is submerged in the treating solution for at least
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200 degrees of rotation of the reel to provide a relatively long retention time of
the fruit in the solution and substantially increases the quantityt of fruit which
may be processed in a given period of time. Incoming fruit is conveyed into a
receiving tank containing the solution so that the solution cushions the fall of the
fruit to minimize damage. The solution is continuously heated and recirculated
into the receiving tank thereby carrying the fruit over a weir and into the
pockets in the rotating reel. The reel has a relatively large hub so that the
radial dimension of the pockets is about half the radius of the reel and fruit
loaded into the pockets floats in the pockets in the area adjacent the hub. Thusthe inventive apparatus is capable of effectively loosening peel at a relativelyhigh rate of speed while minimizing damage to the fruit.
A principal object is to provide a devic~ for facilitating separation
of peel from product, comprising: a liquid holding tank having an infeed end
and a discharge end, said tank containing a treating solution, said treating
solution having a density greater than the density of said product, a holding reel
suspended for rotation in said tank through said treating solution, said reel
having a cylindrical hub and a series of open-ended pockets spaced around said
cylindrical hub and extending outwardly therefrom between a pair of annular
sidewalls, said pockets being formed by a plurality of spaced apart paddles
extending between said hub and the outer periphery of said sidewalls, each of
said paddles having a perforated inner portion and a non-perforated outer
portion to allow said treating solution to flow sequentially through the productwithin the inner portion of said pockets as said reel rotates thereby agitating
said product within said pockets, infeed means for sequentially loading said
product into said pockets as each of said pockets rotates pas a fixed loading
point, powered means for rotating said reel such that said product contained in
said pockets is carried downwardly into said treating solution, and outfeed
means for sequentially unloading product from said pockets as each of said
pockets rotates past a fixed discharge point.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 is an isometric view oF the inventive fruit treating apparatus;
Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the apparatus taken along the
line 2-2 of Figure 1;
Figure 3 7s a cross-sect70nal view of the fruit treating apparatus
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taken along the line 3-3 of Figure 2;
Figure 4 is a s7de elevational view 711ustrating the manner in which
solution is drained from the pockets in the reel at the discharge end of the tank;
Figure 5 is an isometric view of a paddle which forms the
fruit-receiving pockets in the wheel; and
Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view further illustrating the drive
mechanism for the rotating reel.
i~ETAlLED DES~RIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The apparatus 10 for treating fruit is illustrated in Figures 1-3
includes a holding tank having a rectangular lower portion 12 and an elongated
upper portion 14 having an inlet 16 and an outlet 18. The lower tank 12 contains
a caustic treating solution 20 having a concentration which will varry according
to the particular application, but in one operational embodiment the concentration
for processing applies is approximately 14%. Access is provided to the lower
tank 12 through a pair of removable doors 22, 24 for inspection and cleaning.
A hydraulic power unit 26, described in greater detail hereinafter, is secured
to the outside wall of the tank lower portion 12.
The elongated upper portion 14 is vented through a pipe 28, and its
interior is accessible through an inspection and cleaning door 30. The upper
portion 14 is not provided for the purpose of containing the caustic treating
solution, but rather is provided to prevent noxious fumes from contaminating the
air inside the building housing the treating apparatus 10.
As best illustrated in Figure 2, the fruit 32, such as applies, is
preferably pre-washed and ls conveyed through the inlet 16 by a conventional
conveyor 34 and is dropped into the caustic treating solution 20 in a receiving
tank 36 formed by horizontal plate 38 and a weir 40. The treating solution 22 in
the receiving tank 36 cushions the fall of the fruit 32 thereby minimizing damage
to the fruit. It should be noted that the specific gravity of the fruit 32 is less
than the specific gravity of the solution 22 so that the fruit 32 floats near the
surface of the solution 20. Recirculated solution 42 is discharged into the
receiving tank 36 thereby carrying the fruit 32 over the weir 40 and, as
explaTned hereinafter, into one of several pockets 46 extending along the circum-
ference of a rotating reel 44. The recirculation rate will vary depending on the
specific application of the devlce, but in one operational embodiment the solution
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is recirculated at a rate of 450 gallons per minute.
The rotating reel 44 includes a plurality of pockets 46 formed by a
plurality of spaced apart paddles 48 extending between sidewalls 49 from a
relatively large hub 50 to the outer periphery of the reel 44. The paddles 48
intersect the hub at an angle so that the pockets 46 extend downwardly at the
inlet 16 end of the tank 10 so that the fruit 32 is retained in the pockets 46.
The hub 50 displaces the inner end of the pockets 46 outwardly so that the
radial dimension of the pockets 48 is substantially less than the radius of the
wheel 44. The hub 50 is supported on a cylindrical shaft 52 by radial spokes 54
extending between the shaft 52 and the hub 50. The shaft 52 is rotatably secured
to the tank 12 by conventional sealed bearings 56 (Figures 1 and 3). The reel 44
is rotated by power means, also illustrated in Figure 6, which includes a
hydraulic motor 58 having an output shaft 60 rotating a sprocket 62 which engages
a plurality of lugs 64 equally spaced apart along a sidewall 49 of the reel 44 at a
constant distance from the shaft 52. The lugs 64 may be formed by bolts 66
(Figure 6) extending through sleeves 68 and fastened to the sidewall 49 of the
reel 44 by a nut 72. The bolt 64 also passes through a reinforcing ring 74
extending around the sidewall of the reel 44. Power is aupplied to the
hydraulic motor 58 through supply and return lines 76, 78, respectively,
extending to the hydraulic power supply 26. The speed at which the reel rotates
will of course depend upon the specific application of the device including
treating solution concentration and temperature, but in one operational embodi-
ment the reel 44 rotates one revolution every four minutes.
The structure of the paddles 48 is illustrated in further detail in
Figure 5. Each of the paddles 48 include a right angle flange 76 which closes
the inner end of the pockets 46 and a triangular reinforcing strip 78 is provided
at the other end of the paddle 48. The inner portion of the paddle 48 is perfora-
ted with holes 80 while the outer portion 82 is solid. The perforations 80 allow
fluid flow through the paddles 48 as the reel 44 rotates in the solution 20. Since
only the inner portions of the padde 48 contain perforations 80, the flow of
solution through the pockets 46 is most prevalent toward the hub 50.
During operation of the apparatus 10 the solution 20 is recirculated
as mentioned above by a suljmersible flu1d pump 84 which conveys the caustic
treating solution 20 through a conduit 86 and discharges it into the chute 36 as
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expalined above. The fluid pump 84 is driven through a shaft 88 by a conven-
tional hydraulic motor 90 connected to the hydraulic power supply 26 by supply
return lines 92, 94, respectively.
As best illustrated in Figure 3, the solution 20 in the lower tank 12
is heated by a radiator 96 formed by a plurality of pipes which communicate with
a steam supply through supply pipe 98. The temperature of the treating solution
will, of course, depend upon the specific application of the device, but in one
operational embodiment the temperature has been kept at approximately 150F.
In operation the fruit 32 is discharged into the receiving tank 36 and
the recirculated solution 42 carries the fruit 32 over the weir 40 into the pocket
46 adjacent the upper edge of the weir 40. The reel rotates in a counterclock-
wise direction as illustrated in Figure 2 thereby carrying the fruit in the pocket
46 into the solution 20 which is below the level of the solution 22 in the receiving
tank 36. A fixed cylindrical Plate 100 extending about the periphery of the reel
44 maintains the fruit 32 in the pocket 46. The fruit 32 in the pockets 46 is urged
toward the hub S0 by buoyant forces since the specific gravity of the solution is
greater than the specific gravity of the fruit. Since the inner portions of the
paddles 48 are perforated, solution flows through the inner portions of the
paddles 48 and through the fruit thereby agitating the fruit and facilitating
separation of the peel from the fruit. Toward the discharge end of the tank 12
the fruit is lifted from the treating solution and, before the fruit 32 is discharged
from the reel 44, the solution is drained from the pockets through a perforated
portion 102 of the fixed plate 100 as best illustrated in Figure 4. The lower
edge of the perforated portion 102 is positioned above the level of the treating
solution so that all of the treating solution has been removed from the pockets
46 before the fruit 32 is discharged onto a shelf 104 adjacent the outlet 18. The
fruit is then conveyed to a peel removing device such as a scrubber or high
pressure water jets. The inventive fruit processing apparatus thus effectively
loosens the peel from fruit at a relatively high volume while minimizing damage
to the fruit.
