Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
`6 5 8 3/DNM ~ a~D~
~ACO SHELL FORMING AND COOKIN~;~ I~PARATUS P~NO METEIOD
This invention rela es genera:lly to ~ood cooking and more
particularly concern~ an improved appa:ratuç: and m~thod for
forr~iRg ~nd ~ookirlg taco shells at high speed~ by forming
5 the tortilla starting material into a predetenTined Coll-
figuratioR and maintaialing the materi2l1 in that configura~
tion during the ::ooking operationO
Taco ~hell ~ooking mechanism of variolls type~ have been
kno~m and used :~or many y~ars~ Amorlg he va:~ious device~
1~ which wer}~ employed are those diselosed in U.S. Pa~ents
to S~enz 2~603,143, Ford 2~67~474 and Yepi. 3J267~36.
Each of ~hese devic~s rela~e~ ~o a m~ans for fo ~ ng and
cooking a tortllla ~o ~hat i~ m~y be u ed in the prepara~
tion o~ taco~ and ~imilar food products. ~owe~er, ~a~h of
the devices suffer from the di~advantag~ ~hat ~ithex
require~ individual loading or ha~ inheren~ capaci~y
limitations~ or ~ay r~uire an ~ndue vol~ of cooking
oil or ~ail to meet th~ high standards or product
u~iformity re~uired in GOn~e~pOrary produc~ion. The
device dis~lo52d in the U~S. Patent~ to Stickle~
3,880,065, 3,928,638, 3,7~5,273 and 4,154,153 concern
appara~u3 having a flex.i~le, plia~le belt deformed by a
plunger mounted tran~versely abov~ the belt which clamps
~h~ tortllla against the belt forming ~ pocke~ in th~
2~ b~lt~ The mode of operation required intermit en~ b~l~
~ction both when th~ tor~ was ini~ially form~d i~
th~ pocket and wh~n ~he tor~illa was remov~d frGm the
belt pocket when the plunger separ~ted from th~ belt.
~n in~ermi~tent action w~ also pre~n~ a~ ~he pocke~
~2
moYed through the fryer. An improvement on the Stickle~
concept minimized ~he intermittent motion by having ~
s~condary conveyor disposed in the ~ryer to convey the
pr~mary ~onveyor through th fr~er duxing ~he fryer
5 operation~ This eliminated the intermit~ent mo~ion during
that period. A urther limi~ation o the Stickle~ equip-
ment wa~ their dedication to a specific ~ize of tortilla
and the resulting taco shell. ThP machines were unabl~ to
aecommodate in~rchangeably tor~illa~ of diferent diameter~
wi~hou~ sub~tan~ial redesiyn. ~hese machines, a~ well a~
that disclos~d in U.5. Patent to Schy, 3,57Q,393, w~re
mechanically ingeniou~ but were unduly complex machine~
~o fabricate, operate, maintain and clean~ Consequently,
their adop~iorl in snost oases has been limi ted tc~ applica
15 tions where low production may be tolerated in ~he range,
for example ~ of from 75 to 325 taes: shells pex minute .
Unionmity of product i5 a requiremen in high ~olume
commercial production of taeo shell~ This ha~ heen diffi~
cult o a~hiev~ WithQUt ~evexal operator3 at a vi~ual in-
spection station po~itioned at the discharge of the taco~hell ~onming machine causing high labor cos~ for operation.
Thi~, as well a~ ~ loss in ~crap taco ~hell~ from r~jec~ed
product, was a negative influenc~ in the overall economy o
3pexation in the prior art taco shell form1ng machine~.
An impoxtant objert o~ th~ present invention i~ ~o provide
an improved taco 3hel~ cooking and orming appara~u~ cr ~he
like whlch is operable at a high produ~tion rate to produce
a taco shell of i~proved quali~y wlth a minimum o im~er~ct
taco ~hell reject~.
~nother object of *h~ inYention i~ to provide an improved
taco shel~ eooking apparatu~ or ~h~ like which i~ adap~
abl~ in design over a wid~ rang~ bo h to u e economically ~n
a 1GW prsduc~ion operation ~say 7 produc~:ion .ra~ on the ord2r
3~
o 75 to 150 units per minute " as well 2S in a high produc-
tion operation" production rate for example, 350 to 75Q taco
hell~ pex minute.
~other object of the invention is to pxovide a taco shell
5 cooking apparatus wherein khe flat tortillas are formed
into a U~shape about a vertical plarle ~o~ext2nsive with the
path of travel.
Another ob; ct of the inventiorl is to provide an appar~tu~
o the type de~cribed, adaptable or orming tacc: shells
10 from a ~ariety c~f different diamel:ers o:E ~ortillasD
P~nother object of the invention i~3 to provide an improtTed
taco shell fonning and cooking appara~us which has a high
density o product contained within the mechanism when fully
loaded, ~hereby ~chieving efficien ::ies in u~P of ~hf~ cooking
lS oi 1 ~
Another ob~ect of the ia~vention i~ ~ provide an im~rovPd
taco shell formialg and cooki~g apparatus which operate~
economically at a high turrlover ra~e of cooking oil, thus to
achieve a low~3r free fat~y aeid c:orl~en~ in the cookiny oi 1
20 absorbed by th~ produc~c, giving a be~er product 6helf life
by maintaining a high quality in the oil.
Still other objects of ~he inventiorl will become apparellt
to those ~killed in the ield after havl3lg r~ad ~he follow-
ing det iled description of a preferred embodimeFIe: o:~ th~
25 invention which is il lustrated in the drawings .
In 3ummary, the present lnventiorl comprises apparatus for
~haping and cooking ood product~ including ~ fr~me havin~
thexeon a va containing a cooklng mediurn throush which
tile food produc~ may b~ passed for cooking. P~n endles~
5 ~onveyor i5 arrangea on ~he frame for carrying the food
product through ~he cooking rnedium and par~icularly from
a product fs: nTIlng sta~ion ~co a produc~ discharge s~ation.
The endless corlvey3r include~ a pluraiity o:~ fonning
elemerlts each having complementary c:oncave and convex
10 :Eorming surfaces with the convex form;ng surface being
disposed on the leading edgP o each forming element ~o
t:hat when ~he adjacen~ forming e:Lemen~ are disposed in a
close together relationship t~e mold surfaces are spaced
apart ~o that the product interposed therebetweerl i~
15 restxained, shaped and ::arried ~hrough the cooking medium.
The orming station includes means for supplying ~heet-
like food elements, orle ~ a time, where each i~ engaged
by the convex ~urface o:E ~he formirlg slement and carried
in a downward curve for enclosure within the concave
20 portion of th~ preceding :fo~r ing elemen~ ~o be held there
between during the cookillg operation. The produc~s are
discharged as th~ o~ning el~m~nts are spaced apar~ in an
open corldition and the product~3 are receiv~d on a suppor~
mechani~m for rPmoval from he apparatus.
25 The me~hod of the present inven~io~ especially useful
fs)r forming a taco shell fr~m a tortilla by preparing a
spaced-apart proces~ion of tortilla~ and moving ~hem in a
3ubstantially flat planeP Then accelerating ~he to:ctilla~
individually to ~ forming station without charlging
30 ~ tankially their attitude. Th~ tor~illa i~ deceler~ted
into ~ubstantially stat;onary ~ondition wlhereirl it i~
fold~d upon itselE and simul~n~ou~ly ~ved in ~he foîded
condi~ion in ~ path curved away from a:he f 1~ plan~ and
pla~ed ~nto a cooking mediuan and coo3ced ~o ~h~ prodllc~: end
35 point, and then removed,
Figure ~ a ~ide elevation ~iew of the taco shell forming
a~d cooking ~pp~ratu~ of the presen~ inv~ntion;
Figure 2 i~ a plan view o~ the apparatu~ ~hown :In ~igure 17
Figure 3 i~ a tran~verse ~ectional view ~aken IE~ the
5 direction o ~he axrow~ 3 3 o~ Fi~ure 1;
Figure 4 i~ an enlarged detail Yie~ ~aken from Figuxe 3 at
the rrircled portiQn;
~igure 5 i6 an ~nlargedd fragmenta~ plan Vi2W in the
direc ion of t21~ arrows 5~5 of Figure 1,
10 Figure 6 i a ragmen~ary, sectional ~riew taken in the
direction vf the arrows 6-6 of Figure 5;
Fi~ure 7 i~ an erllarged ~ectional lJi2W ~:akerl in th~3
direc~ion o~ ~ arrows 7~7 of Figure 5;
Figur~ 8 is an enlarged fragmen~aryO developed vi~w ~ake
15 generally in the direc:~ion of ~ rzow~ 8-8 o Figure 2 7
Figure 8A i~ an end YieW takeII in the directiorl of the
arrows 8A-8~ of Figure 8 7
Figure 9 i~ 2U~ enlarged detail view Df the formirlg e:Lements
or mold~ of th~ presen ;: invenltiol~;
2~ Figure :LO i~ a plan view of the element~ shown in Figure 9,
Figure 11 i~ an enlarged~ fragmentary ~c~iona:l vi~w taken
in th@ direc~io~ of the arrow~ f Figure l; ~n~
Figure 1~ i8 an enlargedD fragm~3n~a~y ~;ec~ion~l view ~ake
ân ~he direction of t}le arxow~ 12~12 of Figure 2.
The hi~h ~peed taco 8hell ;Er~er 10 o~ the pre~ent :~nvention
is ~hown àn the drawing~ and re~erring paxticularly to
~igure 1 ~nd 2 include~ 2~ loading corlveyor ~ pan or
v~t 7 2 for containing a ~upp:Ly of c:ooking oil, produet
S forming 8t2~tions 13, foll:r ndiess conveyc:r~ 14" each equip~
ped with ~ plurality of complementar3r forrrling elements 16
for carrying the tortillas 17 from the forminy ~tations 13
thrs:~ugh ~e par~ 12 o ~n ~anloading ~ation 18, ~t be.ing
under tood the fc: regolrlg component~ are suitably aExanged
10 upon a ~tructural :Erame 19. Although foux ~ndless conveyors
14, iE~rmirlg 8 tations 13 ~nd Imloading ~tations 1~ are
illu~trated herein, ~he invention may be used wi~h the
~ingle line of such ~omponent~ or with ~everal ~onveyors
14 laterally coupled togeth~r for conveying ~he produc
15 through the cooking medium. Although the cookirlg medium
desoribed h rein is cooking oil ~ other cooking meaiums may
be practically used with thi~ inven~ion in luding those
disclosed in U.S. Patents 39947,241 ~nd 4~167~$85 issued
respec~ively on March 30 ~ 1976 and Septernber 11, 1979 ~
20 The tor~illa carryirlg loading conveyor 11~ shown in 9?igures
1~ 2, 5 ~nd 11, includes 2m endless, fla " flexible wire
belt 21 having pro~isions for maintairling and positionirlg
the tortillas 17 in colwT~ extending in the dixec~ion of
travel as ~hown irl Figure 2. The~e provi~ions include an
25 arrangemeslt in alterna~e wire elements (a~ ~hown in Figure
6) of th~ ~elt having outwardly projecting shoulders 22 as
~hown in ~igure 11. The shoulders ~2 are ~paced apart
later~lly of th~ convsying path just slightly farther thar
the dian1eter of th~ tortillaJ ~ay 5 to 5 1,~8 inch~s~ It i~
30 reco~nized thal: tortillas distor~ rom ~he id~l diameter
of de~ign and tak~ on ~ variety of e:Lipltical ~hape~ and
~ize~ ~n ordinas:y productio~, The present appar~tu~
acconunodate~ theæe di~cr~pancie~. When disposed between
the wire ~houlders 22 the *orti lla~ 17 ~ill be maintained
35 in alignme~t with the forrning ~tation a~3 ~he loading conveyor
11 move~ the prsduct forward j, to the :c ighl~ een in
3 ~
~7~
Fiyure~ 1 and 2~ Product re-positioning means 23 sexviny
to ~i~gle the wire belt 21 iE; ~hown in Figure 11, The
ol: jective i~ Ito roc:k the wire belt 21 l~e:rally througll the
~ction of ~n adjus~able eccerl~ric 24 ro atably ~unl:ed on a
S ~hat 25 driven by a variable ~peed fflotor 26. A s:levis 27
on the eocentric 24 i~ at~aehed to a corJnec~ing rod 28
b~ich extends benea~h the ~op run of ~he wire belt 21 to an
o~cillating plate 29 which when ~hi f~ed back and for~h in
lthe direction of ~he ~rrow~ 31 impar~ a ~ iggling or re~ck-
ing aotion to the wire belt 21 to s::au~e ~ny tortilla 17
~hich may Ibe mi~po~itioned ~nd lodgecq uEson a ~houlder 22
(a5 indicated by Ibro~en lînes in ~igure 113 ~o ~;lide intc?
the space ibetween the sonfrorlting ~houlder~ 22 and ~hus be
properly po~itioned for receipt 3by the produc~ forming
statior~ 13,.
The loading conveyor ~ driven from a ~haft 32 equipped
~ith wire bel~c engagia~g ~ee~h 33 po~i~ioned along ~he
l~ngth of ~he haft 32 ~ ~igure~ 5 ~nd 6 ~ The ~haft 32 is
driven from a $haft 34 of a product a~celeration conveyor
36 arranged in the product formin~ station 13~ Figures 5
and 6. The ~haf~cs 32 and 34 ~re driv~n in the direcltion
of the arr~ a~ shown in Figure 6 by mean~ of ~1 d:rive
~hain 37 reeved about sprocke~ 38 ~nd 39 ~n ~he respective
~hafts 32 and 34 which are mounted in ~uitab~ e bearings
41 ~ecured to a frame member 42. Thu~ as ~haft 32 i5
driven in the direction of ~he as~row ~ indicated irl Figure
6, the ~ortill~ 17 ~r~ moved from lef t ~o right as vlewed
in Figure~ 2 and 5 and ~hu~ ad~anc~ in orderly row5 ~oward~;
the accelera~.ion conveyor 36 ~o be described mo.re fully
3n below.
I~ will be apprecia~ed ~h~ he high ~peed t~eo ~hell ryer
10 rn~y be ¢on~truc~ed ~nd arranged ~o accon~oda~ but a
~ingle c:o~wnn of to:rtil 1~3 17 wherein the conveyor belt 21
would be provided with bu~ ~wo pair of ~hou~der~ 22 fs~r
defining ~ ~ortill~ receiving channelO Or ora the other
~8
h~nd the taco hell f:rye.r 10 may be desi~ned and ~onstruct-
ed to receive a plurality o:e rows of toxtillas 17, there
being fs~ur rc~ws of torti llz~s illustrated herein . Note~
~orthy i~ t ~e present s~e gn i~ adapt~ble to form
5 ta(::o ~hel3 ~ ~imultaneousl~ e~eral rows ~ithout
enc:ountering mechanieal llmitations associated with prior
;machines. The present apparatus retains ~he qualities and
zldvantages o~ the de~igrl wh~n exnploying either a ~ ngle row
or several rows of tortilla forming mechani~ms.
10 The pan 12 i~ essentially a va~ for holding a ~upply of
c:ooking oil 20 maintained a~ the cooki~g ~empera~ure--or
the order o 275 to 425UF--~y ~ system inclllding a heat
exchanger 43 and pump 44 dri~en by the motor 46 with the
pump 44 circula1:ing oil between ~e hea~ excllangex 43 and
pan 12 ~l~ough a sui~able piping ~ystem 47, Figure 1. To
achieve operatit)n with minim~n vclume ~f ~::c)oking oil 20
~nd thereby the advantage~ og~ a high turnover r~Lke of
cooking oil which gives an impro~r~d quali ty of oil with
lower f:;ree fat~y acid values, the p~n 12 i~ conigu:red as
20 ~os~ in Figure 3. Thi~ includes a plurali~y of channels
48 whic:h surroulld the :0r7llin~ elemen~3 16 and ~rough
which the forming ~lemen~L~ on the endles~ conveyor 14
are passed with one channel per conveyor ~y~tem 14, a~
~hown in Figure 3. The channel~ 48 are ~nterconnected ~t
ea~h end to a header or manifold 4~ Figure 1, ~o that a
uniform flow ~f cooking oil m~y be maint~ined through each
o~ the channelR 48 wi~hin the taco hell fryer 10.
Th~ four endle~ conveyor~ 14 illu~tra~ed herein may b~
similarly construct~d and as mentionPd previou~ly, thi~
inv~ntion may b~ pxacticed through th~ u~e of only one
endles~ con~eyor 14 ~nd in that si~uati~n in ~he a~ociated
loading COnVeyOI 11, p~n 12 t and forming ~k~ion 13 will b@
similarly adapked ~or the number oE conveyor~ 14 ~elected
for u~e in ~he high ~peeZ t~co ~hell fry~r.
~-9~
~eferring ~peciPically now to ~igures ~, 6 and 8, the end-
less ~onveye)x 14 in~l udes a drive ~haf t 51 dxiven througb a
drive chaln and ~procke~ asselllbly 52 from a mo~or 53
coupl~d to a phase shifting device 55 0 the ~hak 51 being
~uita~ly ~upported by 3?i110W ~10G~CS Or ~he like bearin~s S4
moun~ed to ~h~ frame 199 To s::arzy ~:he forming element~ 16
on ~e conveyor 14, ~he drive ~ha~t Sl and the idler shaft
56 lFi~ur~ 8) at the opposite end of ~he unit 10 are each
equipped w.ith tWQ ~paced ~part drive ~prock~s 57 to
::ooper~te with two endle~ lineal drivs3 elemerlts 9 for
example roller chain~ 58 for each conveyc)r 14. The
formin~ elemen~: 16 are mounted ~o the pair of xoller
c:hains 58 by n~eans of a carrier 59 pivo~ally connec~ed
to the two roller chains 513 i:~y a pair of GrOSs rods 61,
Figures 4, 5, 8 and 9. Ea~h carrier 59 i~ equipped to
receive one c:ros~ rod 6 ï ~hrough ~he aligned circ:ular
hole~; 62 ~n the tan~ 64 and another ~ross rod through
the elongated alot 63 which telescs~pes over the tang
poxtion of the ~followin~W carrier 59 ha~tin~ ~ sim:ilar
pair of tang~ 64 equipped with align d opening 62,
~I?igure 9 a l!~s may be ~en from Figures 6 and B, the
~prockets 57 are of a relatively ~snall diametPar, say,
on the order of 2 inches in diamete:r. The forming
element~ which pivot into an operl ~ondition a~ their
asso~iated cross rods 61 traverse the procket 57 at
eith~r the loading or unloading station~ extend out-
wardly fr~m the axis of th~ sprocket~ 57 a substantial
distance, say, on the order of 8-1~2 inches, ~his
relationship between a sprocket of ~mall diameter and
:~orming element~ having a ~ubstantial ~'arm leng h~
provide the opening or Z1window~ for loading a ~or'$illa
between consecutiv~3 :Eorming e lemen~s 16 and or removing
a cooked tortill~ or aco ~hel:L 17a a~ th~ unloading
~t~1:ion " a~ shown in Figur2 8 ~
The fs:)rTnin~ element~ 16 have a gener~ hap~ o:E pa:rtial:Ly
opened cl~m ~hell3 and individually are sui ~ably see~ured to
their ~s~ocia~ed carriers 59 as by w*lding. Each formlng
33~
~lesnent includes a ir~t Ibody 16a having ~ generally v~rti~
~ally arrarlged ~orlv~g forming ~urface 66, ~igure 9, and a
~econd l~dy 161~ having al conca~fe forming ~urface 67. The
~wo bodi~ lSa, 16b ar~ ixedly ~ecured ~oge~h~r by w21din
5 a~nd arrang~d a~ ~hown in Fi~ure ~I. Th~ trailing ed~e o:f
th6s body 16b ~ urved ~o ~a~ ~ the form1ng element~ 1
proceed through ~h~ ~ormin~ opera~ion a~ hown in Figure 6
~he tra~ling @dye al8 c:urved prQvlde3 ~he maxim~ ~window~
~or insertion of ~he ~ort~ . R~ferring ~o ~igures 9, 10
and 12, th~ o~ning g~iement~ 16 ~r~ o h2Lped that when the
c~rriers 59 of c:on~ecu~iv~ elemen~ 16 ~r~ arr~an~ed so tha
th~ align~d hol~ 62 ~nd ~lot~ 6~ are ~ po~ed Yubstan'cially
in the ~ame plane y there 1~ ~ product ~ lo~ing ~pace pro~
vided b~twe~ra ~he ~:oncave forming sur~ace 67 orl the forward
15 c~r3:i@r and th~ convex fo g ~urface 66 on the crail~ng
or ~ollowing c~rrier9 Thi3 $pace l:~ween ~h~ confrontiny
fQ~ng ~urface~ ~I!io 67, serve~ to r~cei~e ~nd enclose a
tortilla to hold it i1n the ~olded condition when it i~
c:arried tllrough the c:ool6ing oil 20 . Th~ ~pace b~tween . he
20 cc~ rorl~ing Porming ~urac~ ligh~ly wider ~chan th~
thickne~ of the tortilla and the forTning ~ur~aces arQ
~us:h thal: She tersdency o~ the product ~o slide out from
th~ ~lot or ~pace i~ minimal du~ lto good urface s:ontact:
and product buoy~nc:y i~ th~ cooking oil 20. It i~ al~
25 appar~nt tha~ Zl i?lural~ ~y og ~p~rtur~ 69 ar~ p:æovided in
tll~ or~ng ~lemenlt~ 16~, 16~ 9 aford~ng ~cces~ o the
cooking oil to th product ~ well a3 to p3~0vid~ esc~pe
of wa~e~ v~por ~ro~ ~h~ product in th~ c~kirlg c~pera~ion.
Cooking wit~ the product vertically oriented promotes
30 rapld e~ape o~ ~team and minimize~ trappin~ of moi~ture
vapor 2md con~equerl~ pr~duct bli~teringO
Tr~Gk m~n~ 70 a:e~ provld~d ~n ~ tortilla ~hell fry r
10 ~or ~Intaini~g con~ec~ative formis~g ~lem~n~ the
ne~ l o.r clo~ relal:ion~laip by re~3~r~1nirlg mov~m~n~ o~
35 th~ rvller eh~in 58 ~o whi~::h ~he c~r~ier~ 59 ~re co~FIected
~h~ug~ t~ x~8 r~3d~ ho~ Ll~
~o~ iP~al~y ~ ~h~ ~a~8~ m~d~n~ p~v~ ~
~3~
~h~ ~wo rolles chain ~et~ 58 ~ ~ a ver~ical~y ~pac:ed palr
of bar~ 71 defining a guid~ ~lo~ 72 ~h~reb~'cween lnto
wl~ch the roller chaln llnk~ 58 tr2lv~1 ~rom ~h~ fs~ g
~tatior~ 13 to the unloading ~ ion 18. When ~e roll~r
5 driv~ chain~ Si~ are freed from ~he guide ~lot 72, a~ when
the ~procket~ ~7 (~iyure~ 6 arJd 8~ 2~re traYer6ed by the
roller chain and carrier~ 59, the forwardmo~t fo~ning
e~ement 16 ~ccelerate$ ~ lt reaches ~ point of t~ngency
to the ~procket 57 ~t ~ mome3lt when the ollowing forming
10 element 16 Xem21inB at the linear ~peed e~f th~ rolïer chain
58~ P~t thi~ moment the forward earri~r 59 ~nd it fo~ng
elem2nt 16 moY~ away ;rom ~he ~railing c~rrieE ~9 ~nd
el~ment t31U~ ~t the w~loading 3ta~ciorl 18 . xpo~in-3 on, the
c:onvex for~ng surface 66 a cooked tortilla now ~ taco
~h ll 170 (~i~ure 8). Th@ elongated aperturf3 or ~310t 63
in the carris~r 59 p~rmi~ ~he ::rO5S rod~ spacing ~o be ::ome
~horter ~o 213 ~C9 a~co~runod~te the movement s~f ~h~ c~rrier
over the ~prookets 57 a~ each end of ~he conYeyor 1~,
Considexi~ag at thi~ time th~ di~harg~ or unloadin5~ i~3 ItatLoE
2 o lB Zl~ ~hown in ~i~ure 8, m~ans are provided ~o en ur~ that
tbe t~co ~h~ll 170 i~ po it~vely di~engaged from th@ conYex
orming ~u~a~e 66~, To th~ end ~r~ i~ arranged on each
~ide of th~ unloading ~tation ~ power driv~n ~rray 7~ of
bris~le-lik~ or ~ingeE like ~lement~ 7~ ~ount~d on t~e fr~
19 with e~ch ~it 7d b~ing driv~n by ~n ele~tric motor or
the lik~ ~n th~ d:Lrection o the arrow~ 77 ~ ln~ic~ted in
Figur~ 8A. Th~ ~ri t~ ~lexren. ~ 7~ provide ~u~ficienlt
fr~ctlorlal foxce~ to flrmly but ~ently uxg~ th~ t~co 170
in ~ fo~ard Ibu~ downward direc~:ion ~o that a ~aco ~sh~ll
170 m~y b~ r~c~ived upon the f~ed conveying men~ber 79 for
removal onto the di~charge corlv~yor 81~ ~3 ~hown in Flg~e
~1~2~n~iv~1y, a!l ~omp~3~e~ a~d ~
~lo~dislg ~tation 18 (not ~hown~ cc uld ~erv~ ~o ~ct ly
di~eng~ge th~ i:acca ~h~ll 170 fro~ tA~ convex fonming 8ur-
face 66. A p~n 82 ~ provided at th~ di~charg@ or unlo~;ding
~tation 18 . e~ r~turn any oll (~ippirlg8 from ~/la ~co ~hel:l
170 ~nd convsyoE l~t b~k into the GOo~ing va~ 12~ Th~ drlp
~12-
pan 82 1~ posi~ioned ju~t below ~he produc~ eonveyor 14 and
also acts to ensure that tortillas/taco shells do not fall
from the enclosur~ defined by the orming ele~ents 16
should this event for any reason occur.
S A guide bar 86, ~igur~ 6, po~i~ioned ~t ~he forming ~ation
1.3 below the lower run of ~he conveyor 14 ~exves ~o lim
downward movem~nt of ~ny ~ortilla which may for ~ome reaso~
proj~ct ~elow the lower per.imeter of ~he forming RlementS
16O Thus~ the provi~ion of the ~r BS and he pan 82
obvia~e~ ~he po~sible clogging or ~on~aminating the ~ooklng
medium 20 from product dxopp~ng into ~he cookin~
has been observed that the buoya~cy of the ~or~illa in the
~oking oil a~sists in retaining the tortilla between con~
ecutive forming elements in he fonmed conditionO
The de~ails of thi~ formung ~tation 13 ~re shown in Figure~
5 ~hrough 7. Pxovi~ion~ ~re inoluded ~o en~ure ~ha~ each
tortilla 17 transf~rs onto the product acceleration
conveyor 3~ in a dir~c~, positiYe manner and ~o ~hi~ end co-
ac~ing pairs of acceleration roll~ 90, 91 for each conveyor
20 14 are ~rranged on a sha~ g2 superimposed o~er ~he ~er~inal
or turnaround portion of ~he lo~ding conv yor 11, best
showm in Fiyure 50 The upper ~nd lower accelera~ion roll~
90, ~1 are ~paced apart late.rally ~o ~5 to grlp the central
portion o ~he tortill~ 17~ moving it in a ~raight line
2S on~o th~ 3cceleration conveyor 36 which maintain~ and
carr.ies the tortill~ in accelerated motion until flnally
khe tor~illa i~ arrested by the spaced abutmen~ or ~kop~
93. The~e proj~ct vertic~lly upward rom ~long~ide ~he
accel~ration conveyor chain~ or b@l~ 94 and 8~rv ~0 po~i~
tion ~nd maint~in khe tortilla 17 centered ~or the e~uing
oper~tion. Thi~ obviate~ taco hell ~longhorn~; where the
shell~ ~r ~ormed unsymmetrically, one ~.ide belng longer
than ~he o~her. The acceler~t.ion roll~ 90, 91 and the
product ~cceleration conveyor 36 ~re driven from the ~ha~t
3~
~13 ~-
51 o:~ *he p~oduct forming conveyor 14 through ~ d~rive chain
~S which reeves over sprvcke~ on the ~haft 9~ Figure 6.
idler ~procket ~ss~rbly 97 maintain~ the cha:~n 96 at
proper tension. The product acceleration canveyor 36 i~
~riven from ~haft 92 ~hrough a dri~e chain ~8 which reeves
at the lower portion over an idler ~procket ~sembly 990
l'he pair of f :Lexible belt~ 94 of the produc~ acceleratis:r
conveyor 36 xeeves throu~h ~heaves 101 on an upper c:ro~s
~haft 102 and runs downwardly to a lower cross ~haft :103
îO carrying ~heav s 104 0 ~ hown in ~lgure 7, the be~ ts 94
~re ~.lpported verticaïly by a ~rack 106 ts~ define p:recisely
the plane of t}le belt 94 a~ ~he fo~rJg ~cation. The cros~
~haf~s 102 ~ 103 are supporked by ~ U-shaped ~ fr~e 107
~ecured to a t:ro~s mernber 108 which forms a componen~c of ~he
framework 19, Figure 6.
P. guide chute or cavity 111 i5 arranged in each product
formîng station 1~ to recei~Te thexein ~e processiorl of
formiIlg element~ and tor~:illa~ as ~he fs~ ing elemen~s 16
and l~h2ir ~ssociated carrier~ 59 proceed downwardly w~aen
the earrier 59 traver e ~he ou~er periphe~ of ~he
sprocke~ 57, Figure 6, in ~he turnarou~d mode. The con~
~ecutive forming elements 16 at tu:rnaround ~eparate to an
angular displacement of abou~ 86~, leading edge ~o leading
edge of the f3rming el~mDnts 16 a5 ~hos~m both :in Figure 6
and in Figure 8. ~eerring ~pecific~lly to Figure 6, ~
~ap o:f about 33 e~ists between l:he trailing ed~e o~ the
forming el~ment hown in the lower pordcion of the dr~wing
and the leading edge o~ ~he for~r ing elemen~ ~bou~ ~o ~ngage
th~ tor1:illa 17. The available tin-e s:~r ~he tortill~ to
arri~re a~ the loading po3ition prior to :Eorming i~ 00 22~
aecond~ w.ith the product convsyor 14 ~peed ~ 200 inches
pe:~ minuteO
It h~ been found de~irab:Le to restrain ~nd corltroï the
do~rnward movemen~ of ~che ~or~ a ~ i~ uxged downwaxd
~nd orrned against the convex 0r7ning ~sur:face 66~ To this
elld, ~e guide chute or cavi~y 111 is equipped with re-
~training mean~ compri~ing an array of bri~le~:l ike elem2n~s
116 disposed on each fiide of the ver'cical ly downward moving
formirlg element 16, the free ends of the bri~tles being
~pAced apar~ a di~tanee ~lightly le~s than ~e width ~f
the forrning element 16 ~ Thu~ ~ the nose cjf the descendiny
forming elemerlt urge~ the ts:)rtiïla downwardly, as lndic~ed
in Figure 7~ into contact with and again~t the bias of the
bristles 116 ~5 the tor~illa i~ moved into the concave
forming surface 67~ Subse~3uer~ he con~iecu~ive for~Ling
elements Bra held toge~her in pxoper forlTing conditic~rl for
shaping a aeo shell frolo the ~ortilla as ~e associated
carrier cr~s rods Çl allter the guide slo~ 72 wi~h the
chain~ 58. The bri~tle~ or brush~-lik2 elemen~s 116 pre/Jerl~:
the tortilla 17 from f:ree fal~ ing irl~o the guiae chute o~
~avity 111 ~nd ~o maintain con~rol of ~he de~cen~ of the
tortilla being urged into the guide chute or cavity 111 by
tha convex portion c~f ~he forming elemen~ paced pair
of ~aticsnary rods 117 ex~end longitudin211y ~105lg ~he top
portioFa of the guide ~hute or eavity 111 and establish
contour or guide ~urf~ce :~or the descending tortilla 17.
The surface of the rod~3 117 act effq~c:tively ~o relie~e the
tc)rtilla almost simultaneously rom th2 accelera~ ion belk
94 upon engagement o:E ~he ~ortilla by the no.~e o~ îeading
portion of the forr~Ling element 16. This ai:fords additional
control to ~he descending motion of the tort.illd.
To operate the hi~h ~peed taco shell fryer 10 ~nd produce
100 finished taco ~hell~ per minute per product conveysr 1
~0 th~ oper~tor fir~t ~ring~ ~he body sf oil 2U ~orat~ ed ~n
the parl 12 to th2 desired opera~ing ~emperal:uxe :~r exarr~le
in the rzlFIge of 275 t~ 425~3Fo Th~ tortilla ~ootc tilnP ~
abou~c 30 ~ecorlds. Th~ heat exchang2r ~3, pump 44 and mo~or
4Z6 are energized 't3 reali2e the de~ixed tempe~a~ure of 1:h2
~5 oil 200 TAe principal drive motor 53 :L3 actua~ed tZ7 Y~e't.
3~
,~5
into D~Otion the ~;everal cor~veyor6 of the Lnit 10, including
the produc t conveyor 14 whieh sDoves at 200 lnche~ per
~nute carrying 162 eleanenc~ 16, ~he loading collYeyor 11
whieh ~noves at 600 inch2s per llunute, l:he product acc~lex-
5 atiorl cc)rlYeyor 36 and the acceleration roll~ 91 which moveZ!~t 1, 500 inches per m~nut2, Figures S ~nd ~ . The tortilla
re-posil:ioning mechani~m 23 i~ ~ctuated to imparl~ general
side-to-side action 'co the conveyor belt 21 for lodging
any mispo~itioned ~ortilla 17 between ~he ~paced apart
lû 5houlders 22 which define the c~nnel on the wir! b~lt
21 in which the tortillas 17 ~re conveyed l:owards the
forming ~tation 130
The S inch diameter tor~illa5 17 are regularly ~paced at
abou~ 6 ~ns::h cen~ers in rows on the wir~ belt 21 ~rtlng
15 from ~ designated or indexing wire ~elt element (not
~hown) " bu~ the spacing is not critical in ~:hiY ~y~tem
because of ~he speed relationsllips betwe2n the accelera~lor
conveyor 36 and the product conveyor 11 which coordinate
wi~h ~e formirlg cGnveyor 14 in a manner 8uch ~ha the
20 variation in ~paGing be~ween adjacen~ ~ortilla~ 17 may be
on the ord~r of p L'll5 or minlls 1 inch from the 6 inch pitchn
The phase ~hif~cing devic~ 55 may bç~ actuated ~o ensure that
~e product conveyor 11 receives ~ortilla~ 1~ from the
tortilla forming apparatus ~not ~howsl) properly timed for
25 the operation o ~e high speed taco ~:hell forming Imit lOo
The ~peed of the accele:ra~ion ro 116 and ~cc~le~ating
conveyor 36 ensures that a tortilla ~ill k>e lodged a~ ~he
formirlg ~kation 13 a~ the forming element~ approach ~Lhe
guide chute or cavity 111 to cornrnence ~he ~aeo shell formirlg
30 oper2ltiGn. ~lention~d above wa~ the gap k?etween ~uccessive
forming element~ 16 (irl the loadins po~i~ion~ at ~he product
fo~ng ~tation 13 ~nd in term~ of time thi~ wa~; about 0. 2~5
~ee~ond~ Thi~ gap ha~ been ;found suf~icien~ ~o permi~
accurate lodging of the kortilla again~ he a~utm2nt~ 93
35 to ~e carriee~ downwardly in a curved pa~h in~o ~.he ~oncave
fo~ng ~llrface 67 di6posed ~erebelow.
Once tlle ~ucce~sive formirlg elements 16 go ~o th2 linested~
or ~elo~ed~ relatior~ship they are ~T~intained :i n a relatio
~hip tendinq to holtl the tortllla by ~eason o~ ~h~ drlve
5 ch~in~ 5B and cro~s rods 61 ~eîng carried ~moothly in the
~lst 72 o t}le spaced apart tracks 7~ as `the endles~ con~
~eyor 14 k~aver~es the oi:L ~on~aining channel~; 48 in the
p~n L20 The track~ 71 ~re directed ~hrough a gen~le curve
downwardly through ~e ~ookîng medilLm and ~hen uE~wardly out
of the ~ooki3l9 med1um towards the unloadin~ ~tation 18
where ~e ~lot 72 end~ ~u~t before the ~urnaround sprocke~s
57 m3u2lted orJ the idler ~haft 56 " Figure~ 8 arld 12 0 At ~e
unloading ~a~:ion 18~ ~s ~he cros~ rods 61 of ~ucceeding
~orrning el!ments lS traverse th~ ~urnar~d ~procke~ 570
15 the forwardmost element 16 accelerates away from ~he
pxeceding form~ng element 16 expo5ing the fried taco shell
170 which rests on the ~onvex iEo~ing ~urace or elemen'c
16a whexeupon it may be engaged by ~che ro~a~ing brushe~ 74
and di~lodged ~o~lld it ~aot fall itse:lf by gravl~y onto the
20 guide bar 79 which ~erve~ to guide the taco ~hell 1~0 onto
the di~charge or take away cor~veyor 81 for packaglng~
in~pecting ~nd the like~ Th now emp~y formirlg elen~rlt~ 16
xeturn ove3: ~he ~op of he frame 19 to~ard~ ~he fs~r}nirlg
~tation 13 for engag;ng ~nd orming ano~her ~or illa into
25 a fxied taco ~hell.
The t~co ~Ihell ryer o ~he present conigura~ion is adapt~
able ~Erom one of ~everal row~ of for~ling conveyors 14 with
each rNW having a capacity on the order of rrom 75 I:o :150
taco ~hell~ per minute. There i~ no in~ermi~ten~ motioFI
30 in the ~veral ~oonveyln~ ~ystem~ employed in ~he ~aco ~hell
~er :lO in GOntraSt to the priar ar~ ~y~ems ~d ~h~
pr~ses~t de~ign permi~c8 ~a ïong ~ervice life w:L~h low mairl~:e~
nanc~0 A hood and hoi~t mechanism, well knol~ in ~he ar~
(not shown~ ~ would be E~upplied to the un~t 10. witl
3~
~7--
substitution of 21 ~uitably eonfigurated bel'c 21, tortiLllas
may be accor;unodated with the present unit w~th the outer
range of tGlrtilla diameter being about: 1/2 ~nch less in
di~meter than th2 vertical dimension of the fonning
5 element~ 16. Thu~ ~ 6 inch diameter ~ortilla may be
as~co~nodated. Tortillas :L7 of ~maller diame~:er~ may ~e
accorunodated in diameters a~ low as 3~1/2 ~o 4 inches 0
with use of a ui~able belt 2:1t the balarlce of ~he aystem
remainin~ the same. Thi~ co~tra ~ wi~h the ta~o fo~ning
1~ appara us of ~he prior ar~c which g2nerall~f were limi~ed
to accosnmodatirlg a single ~ize of ~or~illa.
Although the particular appara~u~ dis ::losed here ha~ been
more or les~ directed to an elr~odimen~ for fo~ning alld
coe:king taco shells ~ to ~e Imder~ood ~ha~ ~he forT~s
15 can be adapted to other shape~ so a~ deform any suitable
configura~ion, and th~ inven~ion i3 not limited to fo~nirlg
U~shaped article~. The ~mbodimen~ ~hown and descriked above
i~ only exemplary. li~e do no~ claim ~o have invented all
o'f ~he part~, elements or step~ descri~ed. ~arious modi~
20 fic~ion3 can be made in ~che constructic)n, ma~eri~l,
arrangement and operation, and 81~ e wi~hin the ~cope
o our inVentiQnc Th~ limi1:~ of th~ inven~iorl and the
botand~ o the patent protection are measured l~y E~nd
defined in the ollowing claim~. Th~ re~tricti~e de~crip~
25 tio~ and drawing~ o:~ ~h8 ~peci~ic ~xample a~ol~re do not
point out wha an infringement o hi~ patent would be 3 t)Ut
are to enable the reader ts~ make and use th~ inventionO
