U.S. patent application number 10/955530 was filed with the patent office on 2005-02-24 for method of and apparatus for forming food.
This patent application is currently assigned to Kobird Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Fukiage, Toru, Kobayashi, Hironori, Kobayashi, Masao.
Application Number | 20050042350 10/955530 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 27531867 |
Filed Date | 2005-02-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20050042350 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Kobayashi, Masao ; et
al. |
February 24, 2005 |
Method of and apparatus for forming food
Abstract
There is provided a method of and apparatus for forming a food
by wrapping an inner material with an outer skin material, and the
method of and apparatus for sealing the outer skin material more
surely in a state where the inner material is disposed on the outer
skin material. The food forming apparatus comprises a first shutter
(1), a second shutter (2) disposed under the first shutter (1), and
support means (6) disposed under the second shutter (2) wherein an
operation start timing of the second shutter (2) subsequent to
starting of the operation of the first shutter (1) is adjusted
appropriately, and a position of the support member (60) is
adjusted appropriately, thereby adjusting the amount of collection
of the peripheral portion of the curst material (F), thereby
wrapping an inner material (G) with the outer skin material (F) in
response to the different sizes of the curst material (F) and the
inner material (G), thereby surely forming the food.
Inventors: |
Kobayashi, Masao;
(Fukui-shi, JP) ; Kobayashi, Hironori; (Fukui-shi,
JP) ; Fukiage, Toru; (Fukui-shi, JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
FLYNN THIEL BOUTELL & TANIS, P.C.
2026 RAMBLING ROAD
KALAMAZOO
MI
49008-1699
US
|
Assignee: |
Kobird Co., Ltd.
|
Family ID: |
27531867 |
Appl. No.: |
10/955530 |
Filed: |
September 30, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10955530 |
Sep 30, 2004 |
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10203955 |
Aug 14, 2002 |
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6817850 |
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10203955 |
Aug 14, 2002 |
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PCT/JP02/03474 |
Apr 8, 2002 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
426/549 ;
426/496 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A21C 9/063 20130101;
A23P 20/20 20160801; A23P 30/25 20160801 |
Class at
Publication: |
426/549 ;
426/496 |
International
Class: |
A21D 006/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 9, 2001 |
JP |
2001-110297 |
May 14, 2001 |
JP |
2001-143043 |
Aug 10, 2001 |
JP |
2001-244194 |
Sep 11, 2001 |
JP |
2001-274801 |
Dec 18, 2001 |
JP |
2001-384276 |
Claims
1. A food forming method comprising a disposition step for
disposing an inner material on an outer skin material, a shutter
step for operating a first shutter and a second shutter provided
under the first shutter so as to wrap the inner material with the
outer skin material.
2. The food forming method according to claim 1, wherein the second
shutter starts its operation after the first shutter starts its
operation during the shutter step.
3. The food forming method according to claim 2, wherein the first
shutter collects a peripheral portion of the outer skin material
when it effects a close operation so as to wrap the inner material
with the outer skin material, and the second shutter seals the
collected peripheral portion of the outer skin material when it
effects a close operation during the shutter step.
4. The food forming method according to claim 2, wherein the first
shutter operates to collects the peripheral portion of the outer
skin material at an area where a plurality of shutter members of
the first shutter surround the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material, and the second shutter operates to seal the collected
peripheral portion of the outer skin material during the shutter
step.
5. The food forming method according to claim 1, wherein the outer
skin material is formed in a bowl shape during the disposition
step.
6. The food forming method according to claim 5, wherein the outer
skin material is supplied onto the shutter members of the second
shutter and the outer skin material is formed in a bowl shape by
recessing a central portion of the outer skin material in a state
where the first shutter is opened during the disposition step.
7. The food forming method according to claim 6, wherein the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material is held on the
shutter members of the second shutter during the disposition
step.
8. The food forming method according to claim 5, wherein the outer
skin material is supplied to a receiving member disposed over the
shutter members of the second shutter, and the outer skin material
is formed in a bowl shape by recessing the central portion of the
outer skin material in a state where the first shutter is opened
during the disposition step.
9. The food forming method according to claim 8, wherein the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material is held on the
receiving member during the disposition step.
10. The food forming method according to claim 7, wherein the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material is partially held
during the disposition step.
11. The food forming method according to claim 6, wherein the
shutter members of the second shutter are opened and outer skin
material forming means is advanced into an opening of the second
shutter to recess the central portion of the outer skin material
during the disposition step.
12. The food forming method according to claim 6, wherein the
shutter members of the second shutter are opened and the outer skin
material forming means draws the central portion of the outer skin
material through the opening of the second shutter to recess the
central portion of the outer skin material during the disposition
step.
13. The food forming method according to claim 6, wherein first
shutter is operated before the outer skin material is formed in a
bowl shape to adjust a position of the outer skin material during
the disposition step.
14. The food forming method according to claim 5, wherein the outer
skin material is supplied to the shutter members of the first
shutter and the central portion of the outer skin material is
recessed to form the outer skin material in a bowl shape during the
disposition step.
15. The food forming method according to claim 1, wherein the outer
skin material is supported at least during the shutter step.
16-28. (Canceled).
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates to a method of and apparatus for
forming a food, particularly to a method of and apparatus for
forming a food by surely wrapping an inner material such as bean
jam, cooked meat and vegetables and the like with an outer skin
material such as bread dough, bun dough and the like without
damaging the dough.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] As a technique for the formation of a food by wrapping an
inner material with an outer skin material, it has been carried out
conventionally that the cylindrical outer skin materials provided
outside the inner materials formed in a rod shape are continuously
formed in a food, which are narrowed by an open/close operation of
a shutter mechanism, then the food is cut (e. g. Japanese Utility
Model Publication No. 63/29433). However, when dough such as bread
dough and the like having fermentation property is used as an outer
skin material and formed in a cylindrical shape, a pressure or
twist is applied to the outer skin material so as to damage the
dough. After the dough is cut and formed in a food, the dough is
not sufficiently swelled up, thereby rendering the food hard and
non-elastic in the outer skin material, and hence the forming
process is manually carried out at present. There is proposed a
method of forming a food using a sheet-shaped outer skin material
to avoid the cylindrical formation of the outer skin material. For
example, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 7-18299 discloses
that bread dough and bean jam are filled in a cup and the bread
dough is sealed by a sealing gate. Further, Japanese Patent
Laid-Open Publication No. 2000-50854 discloses that an outer skin
material is formed in a bowl shape along an inner wall surface of a
cup-shaped female mold which is opened at the upper surface, and an
inner material is supplied to the inside of the outer skin material
which was formed in a bowl shape, then an upper peripheral portion
of the outer skin material is narrowed by a shutter comprised of
plural shutter members, thereby sealing the upper peripheral
portion of the outer skin material with which the inner material is
wrapped. When the outer skin material is narrowed and sealed by the
shutter members, a plug is disposed in an opening of the female
mold, thereby preventing the narrowed outer skin material from
protruding toward the upper portion of the shutter members.
[0003] In the case of forming a food using a sheet-shaped outer
skin material as set forth above, it is necessary to consider that
the sizes of the outer skin materials are differentiated depending
on the sizes of foods to be formed or the shapes of the outer skin
materials are varied even if they have the same size. This is
caused by the fact that although the outer skin material is
frequently rolled by a pair of rotary rollers so as to form the
outer skin material in a sheet-shape, it is difficult to render the
shapes of the outer skin materials constant because dough has
flexibility. However, the conventional food forming method using
the above mentioned sheet-shaped outer skin material cannot
sufficiently cope with the change of the shapes of the outer skin
materials. For example, according to Japanese Utility Model
Publication No. 7-18299, since the cup is used, an opening area of
the cup is determined beforehand, and hence when both the outer
skin material and inner material become large in the case of
forming a large food, there is a likelihood that the outer skin
material extrudes from the upper surface of the sealing gate when
the outer skin material is sealed by the sealing gate. Although
there was described the provision of a dough support height
adjusting mechanism to cope with a large or small capacity of a
product, which is however limited to the adjustment inside the cup,
and hence the sufficient adjustment is not always assured. It is
considered that a large cup is replaced by the cup depending on the
size of a food, but it is not practical to change the cup every
time when manufacturing various kinds of foods in a mass production
process. Further, in the case of sealing the dough piece by the
sealing gate which is placed on the peripheral portion of the cup,
if the shapes of the dough pieces are varied, it is not avoidable
that the surplus dough piece is extruded from the upper portion of
the sealing gate and separated from the dough piece and remains as
refuse. This is caused by the fact that since the size of the
opening of the cup is determined, if the shapes of the dough pieces
are varied, the width of the peripheral portion of the dough piece
which is held by the opened edge of the cup is not uniform, so that
the peripheral portion of the dough piece having the large width
extrudes from the upper portion of the sealing gate when it is
sealed by the sealing gate. The extruded dough piece is separated
by the sealing gate and it remains on the upper surface of the
sealing gate or dropped from the sealing gate and left inside the
apparatus as refuse. If the remaining refuse of the dough piece is
not removed, it enters a food to render the food defective, or it
enters the apparatus to cause a trouble. It is conceived to uniform
the shapes of the dough piece in advance to cope with such
problems, which however results in addition of a process line,
which causes the problem of taking much manufacturing time and
increasing damage to be applied to the dough. Japanese Patent
Laid-Open Publication No. 2000-50854 also uses a cup-shaped female
mold, which has however a limit to cope with the sizes of the outer
skin material and inner material because the food is formed using
the cup as set forth above. Although the outer skin material is
prevented from being protruded by the plug so as avoid the
extrusion of the dough, a gap has to be provided between the
shutter and the plug for operating the shutter because the plug is
set in position by the vertical movement thereof. Accordingly, it
is not avoidable that the dough clamped between the shutter members
is pushed toward the gap between the shutter and the plug and
extruded when the shutter is closed. As mentioned above, if the
food is formed using the cup and the like, the formation is limited
by the cup and the like, and hence such a method cannot flexibly
cope with the dough pieces which are not constant in sizes, shapes
and properties.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] The invention has been developed in view of the problems of
the conventional food forming apparatus, and it is an object of the
invention to provide a food forming method and a food forming
apparatus capable of simply coping with the sizes, shapes, and
properties of outer skin materials and inner materials to be formed
in foods, and capable of surely wrapping the inner material with
the outer skin material while reducing damage to be applied to the
outer skin material.
[0005] The food forming method of the invention comprises a
disposition step for disposing an inner material on an outer skin
material, a shutter step for operating a first shutter and a second
shutter provided under the first shutter so as to wrap the inner
material with the outer skin material. The food forming apparatus
of the invention comprises a first shutter comprised of a plurality
of shutter members, a second shutter disposed under the first
shutter and comprised of a plurality of shutter members, and
shutter control means for operating the first and second shutters
respectively so as to wrap an inner material with an outer skin
material.
[0006] Since the invention has a structure set forth above, a food
is formed wherein the inner material can be surely wrapped with the
outer skin material, thereby preventing the occurrence of refuse
caused by the separation of the outer skin material. That is, when
the opening areas of the first and second shutters are set
appropriately corresponding to the sizes, shapes and properties of
the outer skin materials and the inner materials and the first and
second shutters are operated, the inner material can be surely
wrapped with the outer skin material. Further, since the first
shutter and the second shutter are operated respectively, both the
first and second shutters are coordinated with each other in
response to the sizes, shapes and properties of the outer skin
materials and the inner materials and cope with them so that the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material can be surely
collected and sealed. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the
occurrence of refuse caused by the separation of the outer skin
material.
[0007] In the shutter step, it is preferable that the operation of
the second shutter is started after the operation of the first
shutter was started. Further, it is preferable that the shutter
control means comprises first shutter control means for operating
the first shutter in a state where the inner material is disposed
on the outer skin material, and second shutter control means for
controlling operation start timing of the second shutter and also
operating the second shutter so as to seal a peripheral portion of
the outer skin material after an operation of the first shutter is
started. In such a manner, if the first shutter is operated earlier
than the second shutter disposed under the first shutter, a series
of operations extending from the collecting operation to the
sealing operation of the outer skin material can be effected
smoothly.
[0008] Further, during the shutter step, it is allowed that the
first shutter collects a peripheral portion of the outer skin
material when it effects a close operation so as to wrap the inner
material with the outer skin material, and the second shutter seals
the collected peripheral portion of the outer skin material when it
effects a close operation. By doing so, the sealing operation is
effected by the second shutter after the peripheral portion of the
outer skin material was collected by the first shutter, so that the
inner material can be surely wrapped with the outer skin material.
And the first shutter is rendered in a close state when the second
shutter effects the sealing operation, thereby preventing the outer
skin material from extruding.
[0009] During the shutter step, it is allowed that the first
shutter operates to collects the peripheral portion of the outer
skin material at an area surrounded by a plurality of shutter
members of the first shutter, and the second shutter operates to
seal the collected peripheral portion of the outer skin material.
By doing so, the sealing operation is effected by the second
shutter after the peripheral portion of the outer skin material was
collected by the first shutter, so that the inner material can be
surely wrapped with the outer skin material, and also the outer
skin material is separated and no refuse is occurred because the
first shutter and the second shutter are not rendered in a
completely close state.
[0010] During the disposition step, it is preferable that the outer
skin material is formed in a bowl shape. By doing so, the operation
extending from the collecting operation of the peripheral portion
of the outer skin material to the sealing operation during the
shutter step can be smoothly effected. It is allowed that the
formation of the outer skin material in a bowl shape is made by
supplying the outer skin material onto the shutter members of the
second shutter to recess a central portion of the outer skin
material in a state where the first shutter is opened or supplying
the outer skin material onto the shutter members of the first
shutter to recess a central portion of the outer skin material.
[0011] When the outer skin material is supplied onto the shutter
members of the second shutter and the central portion of the outer
skin material is recessed so as to be formed in a bowl shape in a
state where the first shutter is opened, it is preferable that the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material is held on the
shutters of the second shutter. By doing so, the outer skin
material can be surely formed in a bowl shape. Further, it is
allowed that the outer skin material is supplied to a receiving
member disposed over the shutter members of the second shutter so
that the peripheral portion of the outer skin material is held on
the receiving member. When the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material is held, it is allowed to be partially held. Further, it
is allowed that holding means is provided with protuberances for
partially holding the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material. By doing so, the thickness of the outer skin material
which was sealed by the shutters can be thinned.
[0012] In the case of forming the outer skin material in a bowl
shape, it is allowed that the shutter members of the second shutter
is opened and outer skin material forming means is advanced into an
opening of the second shutter to recess the central portion of the
outer skin material or the central portion of the outer skin
material is drawn by the crust forming means through the opening of
the second shutter to recess the central portion of the outer skin
material. It is allowed that the curst material forming means is
provided with pushing means for pushing the outer skin material
into an opening area of the second shutter or provided with suction
means for drawing the outer skin material through the opening area
of the second shutter. It is allowed that the pushing means is
provided with inner material supply means for supplying the inner
material. By doing so, the forming process can be effected
efficiently.
[0013] In such a manner, if the outer skin material is formed in a
bowl shape using the shutter members, the shutter step can be
effected immediately after the outer skin material was formed in
the bowl shape, and it is not necessary to provide a space
separately for forming the outer skin material in the bowl
shape.
[0014] Still further, it is preferable that the first shutter is
operated before the outer skin material is formed in a bowl shape
to adjust a position of the outer skin material. By doing so, the
positional displacement of the outer skin material after the supply
of the outer skin material is adjusted in advance, so that the
forming process can be more surely effected.
[0015] More still further, it is preferable to provide support
means disposed under the second shutter for supporting the outer
skin material and the support means supports the outer skin
material at least during the shutter step. By doing so, the outer
skin material can be kept in a stable state during the shutter
step. Yet, it is allowed that the support means comprises a support
member disposed under the second shutter for supporting the outer
skin material and support interval adjusting means for adjusting an
interval between the second shutter and the support member. If the
interval between the second shutter and the support member is
adjusted appropriately to form the food, it can cope with the sizes
and the properties of the outer skin materials and inner materials
to meet the situation.
[0016] Still further, it is preferable to provide plural pairs of
the first shutter and the second shutter which are paired with each
other. By doing so, the forming process can be effected at the same
time, thereby enhancing the productivity.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] FIG. 1 is a partial sectional front view of a food forming
apparatus embodied in the present invention;
[0018] FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a first shutter and a
second shutter of the food forming apparatus embodied in the
present invention;
[0019] FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing a driving mechanism
of the second shutter of the food forming apparatus embodied in the
present invention;
[0020] FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view showing a driving mechanism
of the first shutter of the food forming apparatus embodied in the
present invention;
[0021] FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram explaining respective
control means of the food forming apparatus embodied in the present
invention;
[0022] FIGS. 6 to 14 are plan views and schematic side views of
shutters explaining food forming process by use of the food forming
apparatus embodied in the present invention;
[0023] FIG. 15 is a diagram showing movement of the first shutter,
the second shutter and a support member with elapse of time;
[0024] FIG. 16 is schematic side views explaining another food
forming process by use of the food forming apparatus embodied in
the present invention;
[0025] FIG. 17 is a plan view and a schematic side view of shutters
of the food forming apparatus provided with a receiving member;
[0026] FIG. 18 is schematic side views explaining a food forming
process by use of the food forming apparatus provided with the
receiving member;
[0027] FIG. 19 is views explaining a case where an outer skin
material is held partially;
[0028] FIG. 20 is schematic side views explaining a food forming
process by use of the food forming apparatus provided with no
holding means;
[0029] FIG. 21 is schematic side views explaining another food
forming process by use of the food forming apparatus provided with
no holding means;
[0030] FIG. 22 is schematic views explaining a still another food
forming process by use of the food forming apparatus embodied in
the present invention;
[0031] FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a final product formed by
the food forming process in FIG. 22;
[0032] FIG. 24 to FIG. 29 are schematic side views explaining food
forming process by use of the food forming apparatus provided with
suction means;
[0033] FIG. 30 is a schematic plan view showing a modified example
of a shutter;
[0034] FIG. 31 is schematic plan views showing another modified
example of a shutter;
[0035] FIG. 32 is schematic plan views showing still further
modified example of a shutter;
[0036] FIG. 33 is schematic plan views showing more still further
modified example of a shutter;
[0037] FIG. 34 is a schematic view showing a modified example
provided with plural pairs of first and second shutters.
[0038] FIG. 35 is a schematic view showing a modified example
provided with plural pairs of shutters.
BEST MODE FOR CARRYIHNG OUT THE INVENTION
[0039] In FIG. 1, depicted by 1 is a first shutter 1 comprised of
four pieces of shutter members 10, 10 . . . which are closable and
combined with one another as shown in the plan view of FIG. 2. FIG.
2 is the plan view taken along a surface S in FIG. 1. As shown in
FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the first shutter 1 is structured such that the
shutter members 10, 10 . . . fixed to drive shafts 11, 11 . . . are
respectively reciprocally swung about the drive shafts 11, 11 . . .
and respective tips of the shutter members 10, 10 . . . are
slidably moved along the adjacent respective sides of the shutter
members 10, 10 . . . so as to open and close an opening area which
is formed by surrounding the respective sides of the shutter
members 10, 10 . . . . In FIG. 1, depicted by 2 is a second shutter
comprised of four pieces of shutter members 20, 20 . . . which are
structured to be opened and closed combined with one another as
shown by the plan view in FIG. 2 and is disposed under the first
shutter 1. The respective shutter members 20, 20 . . . of the
second shutter 2 are disposed such that the upper surfaces thereof
have no space relative to the lower surfaces of the shutter members
10, 10 . . . of the first shutter 1. The shutter members 20, 20 . .
. are fixed to hollow drive shafts 21, 21 . . . provided
concentrically with the drive shafts 11, 11 . . . of the first
shutter 1 and they are reciprocally swung about the hollow drive
shafts 21, 21 . . . and respective tips of the shutter members 20,
20 . . . are slidably moved along the adjacent respective sides of
the shutter members 20, 20 . . . so as to open and close an opening
area which is defined by being surrounded by the respective sides
of the shutter members 20,20 . . . .
[0040] FIG. 4 is a plan view as viewed from a surface U in FIG. 1,
and shows a drive mechanism of the first shutter 1. The drive
mechanism of the first shutter 1 comprises, as shown in FIG. 1 and
FIG. 4, flanges 12 fixed to the lower ends of the drive shafts 11,
11, links 13, 13 . . . pivotally fixed to the flanges 12 for
interconnecting between the flanges 12, and a motor 14 for driving
the links 13, 13 . . . , wherein when the rotary direction, a
rotary angle and the like of the motor 14 are controlled by first
shutter control means, described later, so that the links 13, 13 .
. . are interlocked with one another to open and close the first
shutter 1 appropriately. FIG. 3 is a plan view taken along a
surface T in FIG. 1 and shows a shutter drive mechanism of the
second shutter 2. The drive mechanism of the second shutter 2
comprises, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, flanges 22 fixed to the
lower ends of the hollow drive shafts 21,21 . . . , and links 23,
23 . . . pivotally fixed to the flanges 22 for interconnecting
between the flanges 22, and a motor 24 for driving the links 23, 23
. . . , wherein when a rotary direction, the rotary angle and the
like of the motor 24 are controlled by second shutter control
means, described later, so that the links 23, 23 . . . are
interlocked with one another to open and close the second shutter 2
appropriately.
[0041] In FIG. 1, depicted by 3 is pushing means for forming an
outer skin material into a bowl shape. The pushing means 3
according to the embodiment of the invention comprises, as shown in
FIG. 1, a pushing member 30 fixed to a stay 31, a feed screw
mechanism 32 for vertically moving the stay 31 and a motor 33 for
driving the feed screw mechanism 32. When a rotary direction, a
rotary angle and the like of the motor 33 are controlled, the
pushing member 30 is moved up and down appropriately. Described in
detail again, when the pushing member 30 is lowered to advance into
an opening area of the second shutter 2, each central portion of
the sheet-shaped outer skin material which is supplied to the
shutter members 20, 20 . . . of the second shutter 2 is recessed so
as to be formed in a bowl shape.
[0042] Further, according to this embodiment, there is provided
inner material supply means for supplying an inner material to the
bottom of the outer skin material which was formed in a bowl shape
in addition to the formation of the outer skin material in a bowl
shape. That is, the pushing member 30 comprises a cylindrical body
having a discharge port at the lower end thereof through which the
inner material is discharged, and a valve 40 provided therein for
opening and closing the discharge port. The inner material
introduced into a hopper 45 is supplied under pressure into the
cylindrical body of the pushing member 30 through a supply pipe 43
by a conventional known pump 44, and the valve 40 is moved up and
down via a rod 41 by driving an air cylinder 42 fixed to the stay
31, thereby opening and closing the discharge port appropriately
through which a required amount of inner material is supplied to
the bottom of the outer skin material formed in the bowl shape.
[0043] In FIG. 1, depicted by 5 is holding means for holding the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material onto the shutter
members 20, 20 . . . of the second shutter 2. The holding means 5
comprises, as shown in FIG. 6(b), a ring-shaped stay 52 having a
plurality of through holes is fixed to the pushing member 30,
wherein a plurality of support rods 51, 51 . . . are fitted into
the through holes of the stay 52 to be vertically slidably inserted
thereinto, and they have heads which are engageable with the stay
52 at the upper end thereof. A ring-shaped press member 50 which
surrounds the pushing member 30 is fixed to the lower ends of the
support rods 51, 51 . . . and coil springs 53 are positioned
between the press member 50 and the stay 52, and fitted around the
support rods 51, 51 . . . for urging the press member 50 downward.
Described in detail again, when the pushing member 30 is lowered
for forming the outer skin material, the press member 50 presses
and holds the peripheral portion of the outer skin material over
the shutter members 20, 20 . . . of the second shutter 2.
[0044] In FIG. 1, depicted by 6 is support means which is disposed
under the second shutter 2 for holding the outer skin material. The
support means 6 comprises, as shown in FIG. 1, a support member 60
and a belt conveyor 63 wherein a belt is moved up and down by the
support member 60. The support member 60 is connected to a rack and
pinion mechanism 62 via a support rod 61 wherein when the rack and
pinion mechanism 62 is driven by a motor 64, the support member 60
is moved up and down appropriately via the support rod 61 so that
an interval between the support member 60 and the second shutter 2
is adjusted. According to this embodiment, support interval
adjusting means includes the support rod 61,the rack and pinion
mechanism 62, the motor 64 and motor control means of the motor 64,
described later.
[0045] FIG. 5 shows first shutter control means, second shutter
control means and the motor control means of the motor 64. The
first shutter control means comprises a motor controller 15 for
controlling the driving of the motor 14, a detector 16 for
detecting the rotary direction and the rotary angle of the motor 14
and a setting unit 70 for setting driving data such as a start
timing, the rotary direction and the rotary angle of the motor 14.
An optical sensor 72 is disposed over the first shutter 1 for
detecting the presence of the outer skin material, and an output
signal from the optical sensor 72 is processed by a detector 71 and
is inputted to the setting unit 70. The setting unit 70 inputs a
set signal to the motor controller 15 based on the detected signal
from the detector 71 and set driving data. The motor controller 15
starts the rotation of the motor 14 at the start timing which is
set in response to the set signal and controls the rotation of the
motor 14 in response to the set signal from the setting unit 70
based on the detected signal from the detector 16.
[0046] The second shutter control means comprises a motor
controller 25 for controlling the driving of the motor 24, a
detector 26 for detecting the rotary direction and the rotary angle
of the motor 24 and a setting unit 70 for setting driving data such
as a start timing, the rotary direction and rotary angle and the
like of the motor 24. If the set signal from the setting unit 70 is
inputted to the motor controller 25 in the same manner as the first
shutter control means, the motor controller 25 starts the rotation
of the motor 24 at the set start timing, and controls the rotation
of the motor 24 based on the detected signal from the detector
26.
[0047] The motor control means of the motor 64 comprises a motor
controller 65 for controlling the driving of the motor 64, a
detector 66 for detecting the rotary direction and the rotary angle
of the motor 64 and the setting unit 70 for setting driving data
such as start timing, the rotary direction and the rotary angle and
the like of the motor 64. When the set signal from the setting unit
70 is inputted to the motor controller 65 in the same manner as the
first shutter control means, the motor control unit 65 starts the
rotation of the motor 64 at the set start timing and controls the
rotation of the motor 64 based on the detected signal from the
detector 66.
[0048] Described hereinafter with reference to FIG. 6 to FIG. 14 is
the food forming process by use of the food forming apparatus
according to this embodiment of the invention. FIG. 6(a) to FIG.
14(a) show plan views of the first and second shutters respectively
in each process shown in FIG. 6(b) to FIG. 14(b). This embodiment
is exemplified for the case where dough is used as an outer skin
material F, and bean jam is used as an inner material G.
[0049] First, driving data relating to operations of the first
shutter 1, the second shutter 2 and the support member 60 are
inputted to the setting unit 70 shown in FIG. 5 so as to render the
first and second shutters 1 and 2 in an initial set state, wherein
the first shutter 1 is opened and the second shutter 2 is closed as
shown in FIG. 6(a) so that the sheet-shaped outer skin material F
is placed on the shutter members 20, 20 . . . of the second shutter
2 in a state where the pushing member 30 is raised as shown in FIG.
6(b). Although not illustrated, the support member 60 is also
disposed under the second shutter 2 in an initial set interval.
When the outer skin material F is placed on the shutter members 20,
20 . . . , the optical sensor 72 shown in FIG. 5 detects it, and
the detected signal from the detector 71 is inputted to the setting
unit 70. Drive control signals are inputted sequentially from the
setting unit 70 to the respective motor controllers 15, 25, and 65
in response to the detected signal. According to this embodiment,
although the outer skin material F is placed in the initial state
where the second shutter 2 is completely closed so as to stably
place the outer skin material F on the shutter members 20, 20 . . .
, it is preferable that the outer skin material F is placed on the
second shutter 2 in a state where the second shutter 2 is opened to
the extent that the outer skin material F does not drop from the
second shutter 2. Further, if the shutter members 10, 10 . . . are
operated in a direction to be closed to reduce an opening area
after the outer skin material F is placed on the shutter members
20, 20 . . . , the outer skin material F can be set on the shutter
members 20, 20 . . . conforming to the reduced opening area of the
shutter members 10, 10 . . . , so that the outer skin material F
can be adjusted in its position so as to be accommodated in the
shutter members 20, 20 . . . at a given position.
[0050] Next as shown in FIG. 7(a), the second shutter 2 is opened
by the previously set amount corresponding to the size of the outer
skin material F and the amount of the inner material, and the
support member 60 is raised so that an interval between itself and
the second shutter 2 is adjusted to the previously set interval.
Then, as shown in FIG. 7(b), when the pushing member 30 is lowered,
the press member 50 mounted on the pushing member 30 is brought
into contact with the peripheral portion of the outer skin material
F. Subsequently, when the pushing member 30 is further lowered, the
interval between the press member 50 and the stay 52 fixed to the
pushing member 30 is decreased because the press member 50 is fixed
to the support rods 51, 51 . . . . Since the interval between press
member 50 and stay 52 is decreased, the press member 50 is pressed
toward the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F by the
urging force of the coil spring 53 so that the outer skin material
F is held on the shutter members 20, 20 . . . of the second shutter
2. In a state where the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F is held by the press member 50, if the pushing member 30
further advances into the opening of the second shutter 2 to recess
the central portion of the outer skin material F, the outer skin
material F is formed in the bowl shape. At this time, the outer
skin material F is recessed to reach a position where it is
supported by the support member 60 so that the outer skin material
F is formed in a given bowl shape.
[0051] Next, as shown in FIG. 9(b), when the valve 40 inside the
pushing member 30 is raised to open the discharge port of the
pushing member 30 while raising the pushing member 30, the inner
material G is discharged and is disposed on the bottom of the outer
skin material F which is formed in the bowl shape. At the time when
a given amount of inner material G is discharged, the valve 40 is
lowered to close the discharge port. The inner material G expands
to an area substantially corresponding to the opening of the second
shutter 2. According to this embodiment, the outer skin material F
can be formed in the bowl shape corresponding to the amount of
inner material G while the width of the outer skin material F at
the peripheral portion needed for sealing is secured by the holding
means by adjusting the position between the opening of the second
shutter 2 and the support member 60. Since the inner material G is
supplied through the pushing member 30 while raising the pushing
member 30, the outer skin material F made of dough can be prevented
from being shrunk as the pushing member 30 is raised, and also the
outer skin material F can be formed in the bowl shape, and still
also the inner material G can be efficiently supplied. Then, the
pushing member 30 is raised so as to move the press member 50 away
from the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F as shown
in FIG. 10(b).
[0052] Then, the first shutter 1 is operated in the direction to be
closed at the previously set operation start timing as shown in
FIG. 11(a) so that the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F is collected (see FIG. 11(b)). Then, as shown in FIG.
12, the second shutter 2 is operated in the direction to be closed
at the previously set operation start timing after the operation of
the first shutter 1 is started, so as to further collect the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material F which was collected
by the first shutter 1. At this time, since the peripheral portion
of the outer skin material F can be collected at the center thereof
along the inner material G, the inner material G can be wrapped
with the outer skin material F while air between the outer skin
material F and the inner material G is escaped.
[0053] As shown in FIG. 13(a) and FIG. 14(a), when the second
shutter 2 is operated in the direction to be closed further, the
peripheral portion of the collected outer skin material F can be
surely sealed, so that the inner material G is wrapped with the
outer skin material F, thereby obtaining a final product H (see
FIG. 13(b) and FIG. 14(b)). Since the first shutter 1 is completely
closed at this time, the outer skin material F does not extrude
from the second shutter 2 when the outer skin material F is sealed
by the second shutter 2. Thereafter, the support member 60 which
supports the final product H is lowered and the final product H is
placed on the belt, and finally it is conveyed by the belt conveyor
63 when the belt conveyor 63 is driven.
[0054] According to this embodiment of the invention, the first
shutter 1 first collects the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F (see letters A, A shown FIG. 12(b)), then the second
shutter 2 further collects and seals the peripheral portion of the
outer skin material F (see letters B, B shown in FIG. 12(b)) which
is different from the peripheral portion collected by the first
shutter 1. As a result, even if the outer skin material F is
dispersed in shape, the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F is first collected by the first shutter 1, then it is
sealed by the second shutter 2 so that the peripheral portion of
the outer skin material F can be sealed surely by stretching the
outer skin material F by both shutters to some extent.
[0055] FIG. 15 shows the operation of the shutters with time,
wherein the open/close operation of the first and second shutters
and the vertical movement of the support member 60 are represented
by a vertical axis as shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 14, while time is
represented by a horizontal axis. In an initial state as shown in
the left side of time t.sub.1, the support member 60 is located at
the lower position in a state where the first shutter 1 is opened
and the second shutter 2 is closed. When the outer skin material F
is first detected at time t.sub.1, the first shutter 1 is operated
in the direction to be closed and is further closed to the middle
position thereof so as to adjust the position of the outer skin
material F, then it is returned to an original open state. The
support member 60 is moved upward, thereby adjusting an interval
between itself and the second shutter 2 to a given interval. At
this time, the second shutter 2 is kept in a completely close
state. In time t.sub.2, the second shutter 2 is operated in the
direction to be opened at the timing where the first shutter 1 is
returned to the original open state, then it is stopped when it
reaches a given opening area, then the outer skin material F is
pushed into the opening area of the second shutter 2 by the pushing
means 3 during the period from time t.sub.3 to time t.sub.4, and
the inner material G is supplied into the outer skin material F.
The close operation of the first shutter 1 is started at time
t.sub.4, and the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F is
collected by the first shutter 1, and the first shutter 1 is
rendered in a completely close state at time t.sub.5, then the
second shutter 2 starts the operation in the direction to be closed
at time t.sub.5 so as to seal the peripheral portion of the outer
skin material F, and it is rendered in a completely close state at
time t.sub.6. Since the second shutter 2 is closed after the first
shutter 1 was closed at this time, the outer skin material F is
prevented from extruding from the upper surface of the second
shutter 2 which occurs when the outer skin material F is sealed by
the second shutter 2. The support member 60 is moved downward
corresponding to the operation of the second shutter 2 at time
t.sub.5, thereby assisting the sealing operation of the second
shutter 2. That is, the second shutter 2 is adjusted not to collect
the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F more than
necessity. Both the first and second shutters 1 and 2 are operated
once in an open state from time t.sub.6, then the second shutter 2
is returned to a close state, and thereafter returned to the
original state at time t.sub.7.
[0056] Described above is a series of operations for wrapping the
inner material G with the outer skin material F to form the final
product H. When adjusting the operation timings of the first and
second shutters 1 and 2 and the position of the support member 60
are adjusted, it can cope with various cases. For example, although
the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F is needed to be
much collected when the size of the outer skin material F is
smaller than a given size, the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F can be much collected by rendering the operation start
timing of the second shutter 2 earlier than time t.sub.5, namely,
at time t.sub.5' as shown by dotted line in FIG. 15. This is caused
by the fact that when the second shutter 2 is operated during the
operation of the first shutter 1, the second shutter 2 further
collects and seals the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F during the period when the outer skin material F which
is collected by the first shutter 1 is not returned to the
immediate earlier state, thereby enabling the reliable sealing.
That is, the earlier the operation start timing of the second
shutter 2 is, more the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F is collected. On the contrary, if the peripheral portion
of the outer skin material F is excessively collected, the downward
movement start timing of the support member 60 at time t.sub.5 is
rendered earlier, so that the outer skin material F is moved
downward at the time of the sealing operation of the second shutter
2, thereby adjusting amount of collection of the peripheral portion
of the outer skin material F. Accordingly, if the outer skin
material F is rich in stretching property, the second shutter 2
alone can effect the sealing operation as shown in FIG. 16. That
is, in FIG. 10, the support member 60 is moved downward after the
inner material G is supplied through the pushing member 30 (FIG.
16(a)) so as to adjust the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F to be positioned under the upper surface of the second
shutter 2 (FIG. 16(b)), then the second shutter 2 is operated to
seal the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F (FIG.
16(d)) after the first shutter 1 is closed (FIG. 16(c)). In this
case, since the second shutter 2 is closed in a state where the
first shutter is closed, the first shutter prevents the curst
material F from extruding from the second shutter 2.
[0057] Further, as shown in FIG. 17, since a thin plate 80 serving
as a receiving member for receiving the outer skin material F is
sandwiched between the first and second shutters 1 and 2, the outer
skin material F can be surely held by the press member 50 and thin
plate 80. An opening 81 is provided on the thin plate 80 as shown
by the plan view in FIG. 17(a). If the pushing member 30 advances
into the opening 81, the outer skin material F can be formed in a
bowl shape in the manner as the previous embodiment. If plural thin
plates 80 having openings 81 different in size are provided, they
can simply cope with the final product H having various sizes by
merely changing the thin plate 80 in correspondance with the sizes
of the final product H. When the operation timings of the first and
second shutters 1 and 2 and the position of the support member 60
are adjusted as mentioned above, the collection of the peripheral
portion of the outer skin material F and sealing operation can be
adjusted to become optimum. Further, in FIG. 17, although the
receiving member 80 is sandwiched between the first and second
shutters 1 and 2, it can be disposed adjacent to the lower surface
of the second shutter 2 as shown in FIG. 18. As shown in FIG. 10,
after the outer skin material F is disposed on the receiving member
80 and the inner material G is supplied through the pushing member
30 (FIG. 18(a)), the operation of the first shutter 1 is started,
then the second shutter 2 is operated to collect the peripheral
portion of the outer skin material F on the receiving member 80
(FIG. 18(b)). The peripheral portion of the outer skin material F
is further collected and sealed by the second shutter 2 (FIG.
18(c), (d)) in a state where the first shutter 1 is closed. Even in
the case shown in FIG. 18 where there is no room for the collection
of the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F because the
outer skin material F and inner material G are respectively small,
the sealing operation can be surely effected. Even in the case of
FIG. 18, if the interval between the second shutter 2 and support
member 60 is rendered small by adjusting the position of the
support member 60, the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F can be assured to a sufficient extent. Further, if the
operation timing of the second shutter 2 is rendered earlier, the
amount of collection of the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F can be increased.
[0058] The holding means 5 partially hold the peripheral portion of
the outer skin material F. In FIG. 19(a), presser protuberances
50a, 50a . . . serving as protuberances for partially holding the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material F are formed on the
ring-shaped press member 50. at equal intervals. As shown in FIG.
19(b), when the press member 50 is pressed against the peripheral
portion of the outer skin material F in the manner that the presser
protuberances 50a, 50a . . . are directed downward, the peripheral
portion of the outer skin material F can be held partially by the
press member 50. When the pushing means 3 is pushed toward the
outer skin material F in a state where the periphery portion of the
outer skin material F is held partially by the press member 50, the
outer skin material F is stretched at the portion where it is held
by the presser protuberances 50a, 50a . . . , thereby forming heels
f. If the shutter starts sealing operation, the amount of
peripheral portion of the collected outer skin material F is
reduced, thereby reducing the thickness of the outer skin material
F at the sealed portion. The presser protuberances 50a, 50a . . .
have any shape if they can partially hold the peripheral portion of
the outer skin material F, and they are not limited to the shape as
shown in FIG. 19(a).
[0059] Another embodiment of a food forming apparatus having no
holding means which is provided in the previous embodiment is
described next. FIG. 20 shows a food forming process in the order
of FIG. 20(a) to FIG. 20(e) in the same manner as the food forming
process shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 14. First of all, both a first
shutter 1 and a second shutter 2 are set to a state where they are
opened to such an extent that a sheet-shaped outer skin material F
does not drop from the first and second shutters 1 and 2, and a
support member 60 is set to a given position (FIG. 20(a)). The
outer skin material F be disposed in a state where the first
shutter 1 is closed. Then, both the first and second shutters 1 and
2 are opened to such an extent that a pushing member 30 can be
inserted into the openings of the first and second shutters 1 and
2, and the support member 60 is moved upward, then the pushing
member 30 is inserted into the openings of the first and second
shutters 1 and 2 (FIG. 20(b)). When the pushing member 30 is
inserted into the openings of the first and second shutters 1 and
2, the outer skin material F is formed in a bowl shape, then an
inner material G is supplied through the pushing member 30,
thereafter the pushing member 30 is moved away upward from the
openings of the first and second shutters 1 and 2 (FIG. 20(c)). At
this time, the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F is
brought into contact with the openings of first and second shutters
1 and 2. Then, the first shutter 1 starts a close operation to
collect the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F, then
the second shutter 2 starts operation to further collect the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material F and starts sealing
operation (FIG. 20(d), 20(e)). The amount of the collection of the
outer skin material F can be adjusting by controlling operation
start timings of the first and second shutters 1 and 2 in the same
manner as the previous embodiment. Further, the amount of
peripheral portion of the outer skin material F needed for sealing
can be adjusted by adjusting the position of the support member 60.
For example, FIG. 21 shows a case where a stretching property of
the outer skin material F is excellent and the amount of peripheral
portion of the outer skin material F needed for sealing is small.
In FIG. 20(c), the support member 60 is moved downward to increase
an interval between the support member 60 and second shutter 2,
thereby rendering the peripheral portion of the outer skin material
F to be brought into contact with only the opening of the second
shutter 2 (FIG. 21(a)). If the first shutter 1 is closed in this
state and then the second shutter 2 is closed (FIG. 21(b)), only
the second shutter 2 collects the peripheral portion of the outer
skin material F so that the amount of collection of the peripheral
portion of the outer skin material F is reduced, while since the
second shutter 2 is closed in a state where the first shutter 1 is
closed, the outer skin material F can be prevented from being
extruding from the second shutter 2 (FIG. 21(c)). In such a manner,
according to this embodiment, when the operation start timings of
the first and second shutters 1 and 2 and the position of the
support member 60 are adjusted in the same manner as the previous
embodiment, the operation of the second shutter for sealing the
outer skin material F can be surely effected, and the holding means
can be dispensed with so that the mechanism can be simplified and
the time taken by the food forming process can be reduced.
[0060] In the previous embodiment, although the first shutter 1 and
the second shutter 2 are completely closed, they not be completely
closed if they can seal the outer skin material F. As shown in FIG.
22(a) to 22(c), if the first shutter 1 is operated in the direction
to be closed in the same manner shown in FIG. 11 (FIG. 22(a)), and
the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F is collected at
an area where shutter members 10,10 . . . of the first shutter 1
surround the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F (FIG.
22(b)). At this time, the first shutter 1 is not rendered in a
completely close state, it collects the peripheral portion A of the
outer skin material F at an area where the shutter members 10,10 .
. . surround the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F so
as to cover the inner material G with the outer skin material F.
That is, the first shutter 1 is rendered in a state where it picks
up the peripheral portion of the outer skin material F so as to
wrap the inner material G. Then in this state, the second shutter 2
is operated to be closed and effects the sealing operation (FIG.
22(c)). At this time, the second shutter 2 collects a peripheral
portion B of the outer skin material F which is different from the
peripheral portion A of the outer skin material F and seals the
peripheral portion B of the outer skin material F, thereby surely
sealing the outer skin material F. Further, the second shutter 2 is
not completely closed and it stops its operation after sufficiently
sealing the outer skin material F, so that the outer skin material
F is not divided or cut, thereby reducing the damage to the outer
skin material F.
[0061] The final product H has a protrusion C on its upper surface
as shown in FIG. 23. If the protrusion C is smashed by a roller and
the like, not shown, and the final product H is turned upside down
while it is conveyed by the belt conveyor, the smashed portion of
the protrusion C is positioned on the bottom of the final product
H, the upper surface of the final product H is finally finished to
be a smooth surface of the outer skin material F.
[0062] Although the outer skin material F is formed in the bowl
shape by the pushing member 30 according to the previous
embodiments, but it can be formed in the same bowl shape by
providing suction means on the support member instead of the
pushing member 30. In this case, the outer skin material F is drawn
from the opening of the second shutter 2 by the suction means. FIG.
24 to FIG. 29 show a food forming process by use of a food forming
apparatus provided with the suction means. As shown in FIG. 24, a
stay 52 of holding means 5 is fixed to a cylinder 54, and the
holding means 5 is moved up and down in response to the
reciprocating motion movement of the cylinder 54. A support member
9 is formed of a tubular member 91 which has a plurality of
ventholes 90 at the tip ends, and connected to an air intake and
exhaust system, not shown. The support member 9 draws and holds the
outer skin material F thereon when it inhales air through the
ventholes 90, while it releases the outer skin material F which was
drawn and held by the support member 9 when it exhausts air through
the ventholes 90. In FIG. 24, a first shutter 1 is set to an open
state while a second shutter 2 is set to a close state and the
outer skin material F on which an inner material G is disposed is
supplied to the upper surface of the second shutter 2. In FIG. 25,
the holding means 5 which rendered the second shutter 2 open is
lowered so as to press the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F onto the upper surface of the second shutter 2. The
support member 9 is moved upward to contact the lower surface of
the outer skin material F and draws and holds the outer skin
material F thereon by inhaling air through the ventholes 90. In
FIG. 26, when the support member 9 is lowered while it draws and
holds the outer skin material F thereon, the outer skin material F
is drawn from the opening of the second shutter 2 to be formed in a
bowl shape. The downward moving distance of the support member 9
can be adjusted so as to optimize the necessary amount of the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material F in the same manner
as the previous embodiment. In FIG. 27, the holding means 5 is
raised and moved away from the outer skin material F and the first
shutter 1 starts the close operation to collect the peripheral
portion of the outer skin material F. In FIG. 28, the first shutter
1 is rendered in a close state and the second shutter 2 starts the
operation so that the second shutter 2 effects sealing operation
while further collecting the peripheral portion of the outer skin
material F. In FIG. 29, although the second shutter 2 completes the
sealing operation in a close state, the outer skin material F is
prevented from extruding from the second shutter 2 because the
first shutter 1 is in a close state. The operation timings of the
first and second shutters 1 and 2 are adjusted in the same manner
as the previous embodiments such that the operation timing of the
second shutter 2 is adjusted after the start of operation of the
first shutter 1, thereby adjusting the amount of collection of the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material F.
[0063] Although in the previous embodiment, the second shutter 2 is
operated until it is finally closed so as to seal the peripheral
portion of the outer skin material F, the second shutter 2 is not
needed to be finally closed as shown in FIG. 22, if it seals the
peripheral portion of the outer skin material F.
[0064] The food forming apparatus of the invention is not limited
to the foregoing embodiments but can be modified variously.
[0065] For example, although four shutter members are employed as
the first and second shutters 1 and 2 according to the foregoing
embodiments, the number of shutter members is not specifically
limited, and hence the number of shutter members of the first
shutter be different from that of the second shutter. Although the
driving mechanism for effecting an open/close operation of the
shutters when the shutter members effect reciprocal swinging motion
about a drive shaft is used for the shutter driving means, the
shutter driving means of the invention is not limited to such a
driving mechanism. It is possible to use various driving mechanisms
for the shutter driving means, for example, as shown in FIG. 30
wherein shutter members 101, 101 . . . slide in the direction of
arrows to effect linear motion, thereby effecting the open/close
operation or as shown in FIGS. 31(a), 31(b) wherein shutter members
102, 102 . . . effect linear motion and swing in response to a
rotary motion of operation pins 103 in the direction of arrows,
thereby effecting the open/close operation. Further, modified
examples shown in FIGS. 32 and 33 are cases where each rotary shaft
105 is continuously rotated in one direction to effect the
open/close operation of the shutters, wherein in the case shown in
FIG. 32, each shutter member 104 has sliding faces at both sides
thereof relative to the adjacent shutter members and each shutter
member 104 can effect two open/close operations when each rotary
shaft 105 makes one revolution. In the case shown in FIG. 33, each
shutter member 104 has a sliding face at one side thereof relative
to the adjacent shutter members and each shutter member 104 can
effect one open/close operation when each rotary shaft 105 makes
one revolution. Further, the shutter mechanism of the first shutter
1 and that of the second shutter 2 may be different from each
other. Further, it is possible to use various shapes of shutter
members such as those having linear sides as shown FIG. 30 or FIG.
31 corresponding to the shutter driving means other than those set
forth in the foregoing embodiment.
[0066] Although the first and second shutters 1 and 2 are disposed
not to have a gap therebetween according to the foregoing
embodiments, it is allowed to define a gap to some extent
therebetween if the sealing operation of the shutters for sealing
the outer skin material F is not troubled. Further, although the
first and second shutters 1 and 2 are in a plane state in a close
state thereof, the shutter members thereof have shapes having
curved surface if they can collect the peripheral portion of the
outer skin material and such states can be variously changed.
[0067] Although control data for driving the first shutter, the
second shutter and the supporting means are inputted to the setting
unit according to the foregoing embodiments, if the shape of the
outer skin material which is conveyed toward the food forming
apparatus is recognized by image taken by a video camera, and
control data is generated by the recognized shape and setting data
is automatically changed corresponding to the recognized shape,
thereby automatically more finely adjusting the positions of outer
skin material, the interval between the outer skin material and
shutters and openings of the shutters so that the outer skin
material can be more surely sealed.
[0068] Still further, according to the foregoing embodiments,
although the belt of the belt conveyor 63 is moved up and down by
the flat plate support member 60 serving as supporting means for
supporting the outer skin material F and final product H, it is
allowed that the belt conveyor 63 is moved up and down by
itself.
[0069] According to the foregoing embodiments, there is only one
pair of the first and the second shutters but plural pairs of the
shutters can be provided as shown in FIGS. 34 and 35. In FIG. 34,
the first and second shutters as shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4 are
replaced by two pairs of shutters, a first shutter 111, a second
shutter 112, a first shutter 113, a second shutter 114 which are
disposed in parallel with each other. Drive shafts of the adjacent
shutter members are shared and the adjacent shutter members are
swung by one drive shaft. FIG. 35 is a case where the drive shafts
of the shutter members are shared when the plural pairs of shutter
mechanisms are employed in which each rotary shaft is continuously
rotated as shown in FIG. 32. In this case, one shutter member is
shared by the adjacent shutter mechanisms and the sliding faces
formed on both sides of the shared shutter members are always used
for the open/close operation. The outer skin material forming means
such as the pushing means and the like, the holding means such as
the pushing means and the like, the inner material supply means of
the hopper and the like, the support means such as the support
member are respectively provided corresponding to the number of
pairs to be disposed. If the drive shafts of the plural pairs of
adjacent shutter members are shared in such a manner, not less than
three pairs can be disposed in parallel with one another in the
same way, thereby effecting simultaneously multiple processing of
the foods. Accordingly, the productivity is enhanced to a large
extent, and the food forming apparatus can be simplified in
structure and further rendered compact at the same time.
[0070] According to the prior art, it was necessary that the steps
extending from the step of forming the outer skin material into a
bowl shape by pushing it to the step of sealing the outer skin
material while a cup is moved. However, according to the invention,
a cup is not used, and hence the steps extending from the step of
forming the outer skin material into a bowl shape by pushing it to
the step of sealing the outer skin material can be effected at one
spot. Further, the sealed final product can be conveyed from the
support member as it is, thereby shortening the manufacturing time
to a large extent and reducing a space where the food forming
apparatus is installed to a large extent.
* * * * *