JP3193685B2 - Food molding machine - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a food molding machine,
More specifically, the present invention relates to a food molding machine which is not only small and easy to handle but also can easily cope with a shape change of a molded article to be molded, and is excellent in safety and hygiene, particularly suitable for producing rice balls. .

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, fast food has been sold well in convenience stores and the like, and among them, rice balls are relatively preferred as Japanese food. In order to meet this large demand, rice ball forming machines have been introduced as automatic mass production machines.

Conventionally, most rice ball forming machines employ a turntable system. That is, using a turntable in which a plurality of, for example, triangular shaped concave portions are formed on the same circumference, rotating the turntable, and sending each of the formed concave portions to a cooked rice supply stage, a compression stage, a component drilling stage, and the like. By this, the onigiri compact is continuously produced.

Even if the same turntable is used, a number of compression molds corresponding to each molding recess are provided so as to be able to move up and down, and after the rice is supplied to each molding recess, the compression molding mold is lowered at once. There is also a method for producing a rice ball molded body.

[0005]

The most important problem in food production is hygiene. Therefore, it is required to be able to clean cleanly and in a short time, that is, to be able to clean easily and cleanly in its shape and structure.

However, in the above-described conventional rice ball forming machine, since a plurality of forming recesses are formed in the turntable, it takes a considerable amount of time and effort to clean each of them to every corner.

Further, since a large number of molded concave portions are allocated on the same circumference of the turntable, the turntable becomes large. Further, in order to change the shape of a rice ball from, for example, a triangle to a round shape in order to provide a variety of shapes, it is necessary to prepare several types of turntables and replace the entire turntable.

[0008] Furthermore, in the former method of forming each molding recess around each stage, it is necessary to provide a compression mold and a hole forming mold for each stage. Even in the latter batch compression method, it is necessary to dispose the compression molds by the number of each molding recess, so that the structure is complicated and the number of parts used is large, resulting in poor productivity and high cost. I can't deny it.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and has as its object the purpose of not only being compact and easy to handle in terms of safety and hygiene, but also changing the shape of a molded article to be molded. It is an object of the present invention to provide a food molding machine which can easily cope with the problem.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention comprises a cooked rice storage section and a cooked rice forming section for compressing cooked rice supplied from the cooked rice rice storage section into a predetermined shape. In the food molding machine, the cooked rice forming section is a push-type guide having a concave groove extending in a predetermined direction disposed below the outlet of the cooked rice storage section, and base ends are located on both sides of the concave groove, A pair of left and right rotary molding dies, the tip side of which is openable and closable, and the rotomolding die, which is slidably disposed in the concave groove of the pressing die guide and supplied from the rice storage section into the concave portion. Extruded in the direction, together with its rotary molding die, a pressing die to make the rice rice into a molded body of a predetermined shape,
A vertically movable compression mold that compresses the molded body in the molded part surrounded by the pair of rotary molding dies and the pressing die to a predetermined thickness from above, and a hole in the molded body in the molded part. And a tool hole forming die to be formed.

In this configuration, when cooked rice is supplied from the cooked rice storage section into the recess, the cooked rice is extruded in the direction of a pair of left and right rotary molding dies. Along with the movement of the pressing die, the tip side of the rotary forming die is closed, and cooked rice is formed into, for example, a triangular shape in a forming part of two surfaces of the rotary forming die and one surface of the pressing die.

Next, the compression mold descends into the molding part, compresses the molded body to an appropriate thickness, and also descends the hole forming mold to form a hole in the molded body. Thus, according to the present invention, the molding of cooked rice, the compression of the molded product, and the drilling of the components are performed in one stage.

[0013] In the present invention, the pressing die can be used also as a shutter for opening and closing the discharge port of the cooked rice storage section. According to this, the number of parts can be further reduced, and the configuration can be simplified and the cost can be reduced.

[0014] A cam plate having a cam groove for rotating and driving the rotary mold is connected to the press mold, and a cam follower is provided on the rotary mold side. One of the features of the present invention is that the rotary mold is opened and closed with the reciprocation.

[0015] It is preferable that the hole forming die penetrates the compression molding die and protrudes into the molding portion. According to this, the structure of the compression molding die and the hole forming die is more improved. Can be compacted.

In the present invention, the compression molding die and the tool hole molding die are capable of adjusting the vertical movement stroke by their drive control means, whereby the molding die is replaced each time. Without this, molded articles having different thicknesses can be obtained.

Further, the present invention is provided with a cooked rice amount control means for controlling the amount of cooked rice supplied from the cooked rice storage section into the recess according to the movement stroke of the compression mold. According to this, the degree of compression of cooked rice, that is, from hard to soft, can be arbitrarily obtained.

As another feature of the present invention, the compression molding die is connected to a first lifting / lowering means via a first drive shaft, and the hole forming die is inserted into the first drive shaft. The second drive shaft is connected to a second elevating means via a second drive shaft, and the second drive shaft is formed of a feed screw shaft, and the female screw thereof is connected to the first screw shaft.
It can be mentioned that it is fixed to the drive shaft side.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the bottom surface of the molded portion is formed by a part of the turntable. According to this, the compact is formed on the turntable, and the compact is sent to the carry-out position with the rotation. According to the present invention, no forming recess is required in the turntable.

[0020]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings for better understanding of the technical concept of the present invention.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a food molding apparatus according to this embodiment. First, the overall configuration will be described based on the sectional view. According to this, the food forming apparatus includes a hopper 10 as a cooked rice storage unit and a cooked rice forming unit 20 that forms cooked rice supplied from the hopper 10 into a predetermined shape (in this embodiment, a triangular rice ball). Have.

In the hopper 10, cooked rice R cooked by a rice cooker (not shown) is stored. In the lower part of the hopper 10, there is provided a stirring feed rod 12 for stirring and leveling the cooked rice R and sending it to the discharge port 11 of the hopper 10.

In this embodiment, the hopper 10 includes:
There is provided a rolling unit 13 for appropriately compressing the cooked rice R and sending it to the cooked rice forming unit 20. That is, in the rolling section 13,
For example, a pair of left and right feed rollers 13 having a bar shape with a star cross section
A plurality of pairs are arranged in multiple stages in the up-down direction, and the distance between them becomes narrower downward.

Thus, the cooked rice R in the hopper 10 is
It is supplied to the cooked rice forming section 20 through the rolling section 13, but in some cases, the rolling section 13 is omitted and the hopper 1
The cooked rice R may be supplied directly to the cooked rice forming section 20 from the outlet 11 of the cooked rice.

The cooked rice forming part 20 is provided with a pressing die 21, a pair of left and right rotary forming dies 23, 23, a compression forming die 25, and a hole forming die 27. First, FIGS.
Mold 21 and a pair of left and right rotary molding dies 2 based on
Configurations 3 and 23 will be described.

FIG. 2 is an initial state diagram before molding, FIG. 3 is a state diagram during molding, and FIG. 4 is a state diagram after molding. In this embodiment, a turntable 30 is used as a molding table. ing. That is, the rice R is formed on the turntable 30, and after the forming, the turntable 30 is rotated and the formed body is sent to the unloading stage.

As shown in FIG. 2A, press-type guides 212 having a concave groove 211 extending toward the center of the turntable 30 are provided below the outlet 132 of the rolling section 13. The pressing die 21 is provided so as to be slidable in the concave groove 211.

The groove 211 terminates at a position short of contacting the turntable 30, and a pair of left and right rotary molds 23 are provided on both sides of the terminal. The rotary molds 23 are provided with a rotating shaft 23 provided on the base end side thereof.
It is rotatable around 1,231.

Referring to FIG. 2B, which is a plan view of a drive mechanism of the pressing die 21 and the rotary molding dies 23, 23, and FIG. 1
A motor 221 and a cam plate 222 are provided. An arm 223 is attached to the output shaft of the first motor 221, and a driving cam roller 224 is provided at the tip of the arm 223.

The cam plate 222 is reciprocally movable in the same direction as the pressing die 21 by guide means (not shown). The cam plate 222 has a driven cam groove 225 as a cam follower for the driving cam roller 224. . In this case, the driven cam groove 225 is formed in a direction substantially orthogonal to the moving direction of the cam plate 222, and the cam plate 222 makes one reciprocation by one rotation of the arm 223 or reciprocating rotation within a range of 180 degrees.

The cam plate 222 is connected to the pressing die 21 via a connecting pin 226. In addition, the cam plate 222 has a rotating mold 23,
Drive cam grooves 227 for opening and closing 23 are formed.

That is, each drive cam groove 227, 227
Is provided with first cam grooves 227a, 227a parallel to the moving direction of the cam plate 222, and second cam grooves 227b, 227b that spread in a C-shape in the pushing direction A of the pushing die 21. , 23 have driving cam grooves 22.
Driven roller 2 as a cam follower for 7,227
32 and 232 are provided.

In the initial state of FIG. 2, the cam plate 222 is moved to the left side of FIG.
As a result, the pressing die 21 is also at the left position in the figure, the discharge port 132 of the rolling section 13 is opened, and the cooked rice R is supplied into the concave groove 211. Also, the rotary molds 23, 23
The cam grooves 227b, 227b are held in an "open" state which is expanded to each other.

When a predetermined amount of cooked rice R is supplied into the concave groove 211, as shown in FIGS.
The motor 221 rotates 180 degrees, and the cam plate 222 moves in the direction of the arrow A on the right side in the figure. Thereby, the pressing die 21 also moves in the direction of arrow A, and pushes the cooked rice R in the concave groove 211 in the direction of the rotary forming die 23, 23, and the rolling unit 1.
The third outlet 132 is closed. That is, the press die 21 also functions as a shutter of the discharge port 132 of the rolling unit 13.

As the cam plate 222 moves in the direction of arrow A, the driven rollers 232 and 232 move from the second cam grooves 227b and 227b to the first cam grooves 227a and 227b.
7a (see FIG. 3 (b)), the rotary molds 23, 23 rotate in the direction of arrow B, and the tip side is closed.

Thus, the pressing die 211 and the rotary molding die 2
3, 23 form a triangular shaped part, and the cooked rice R is turned into a triangular shaped body (rice ball) RA on the turntable 30.

Thereafter, as shown in FIGS. 4A to 4C, the first motor 221 further rotates by 180 degrees, and the cam plate 222 moves to the initial position in the direction of arrow C, that is, the left direction in FIG. Move toward. As a result, the pressing die 21 also returns to the initial position as shown by the arrow C, opens the discharge port 132 of the rolling section 13, and prepares for the next extrusion. The rotary molds 23 also rotate in the direction of arrow D, and return to the initial state of FIG.

Next, the compression mold 25 and the hole forming mold 27
And their driving mechanisms will be described with reference to FIG. 5 and FIG. FIG. 6 is a left side view of the drive mechanism of the compression mold 25 in FIG.

In this embodiment, the compression mold 25 is
It is formed in a substantially triangular shape corresponding to a molding portion surrounded by the pressing die 21 and the rotary molding dies 23, 23. The compression mold 25 is attached to the upper end of a drive shaft 252 via an arm 251. The drive shaft 252 extends downward through a rotation shaft 301 of the turntable 30 as a bearing cylinder.

Referring also to FIG. 6, an inverted L-shaped drive plate 253 is attached to the lower end of the drive shaft 252. The driving plate 253 has an elongated cam groove 254.
Are formed with the major axis of the horizontal direction. A second motor 255 is disposed at a position facing the drive plate 253, and an arm 256 is connected to an output shaft thereof. A driving cam roller 257 that engages with the cam groove 254 is provided at the tip of the arm 256.

In this embodiment, a round bar is used for the hole forming die 27. The tool hole forming die 27 can penetrate through the compression forming die 25 and can be protruded and retracted into the formed portion. This tool hole forming die 27 is driven by an arm 271 to drive shaft 272.
It is supported on the upper end. In this case, the drive shaft 272 is rotatable with respect to the arm 271.

The drive shaft 272 extends downward through the drive shaft 252 of the compression mold 25 as a bearing cylinder. In this embodiment, a male screw 272a is formed below the drive shaft 272. This male screw 2
A female screw 272b is screwed into 72a. In this case, the female screw 272b is fixed to the drive plate 253 on the compression mold 25 side.

A spur gear 273 is attached to the lower end of the drive shaft 272. Opposite to the spur gear 273, the third
A knurl gear 275 driven by a motor 274 is provided in parallel. That is, the spur gear 273 is movable in the axial direction thereof while meshing with the knurl gear 275.

Next, the operation of the compression mold 25 and the hole forming mold 27 will be described with reference to FIGS. First, until the cooked rice R is formed into the rice ball-shaped formed body RA by the pressing die 21 and the left and right rotary dies 23, 23, the compression forming die 25 and the hole forming die 27 are driven by their respective motors 255, 274. Thus, as shown in FIG. 7, it is held at a predetermined height position on the molded portion.

As shown in FIG. 3, when the pressing die 21 and the left and right rotary dies 23, 23 are closed and the cooked rice R is formed into a rice ball-shaped formed body RA, the second motor 255 is started,
By the cam operation of the drive cam roller 257 and the cam groove 254, the compression mold 25 descends via the drive shaft 252, and compresses the formed body RA to a predetermined thickness as shown in FIG.

In this case, the rotation angle of the second motor 255 can be arbitrarily set by an operation section (not shown), whereby the thickness of the molded body RA can be appropriately changed. In this embodiment, the supply amount of the cooked rice R supplied from the rolling section 13 into the concave groove 211 is also variable according to the thickness of the molded body RA to be obtained. , Various molded products RA having different hardnesses can be arbitrarily obtained.

Next, the third motor 274 is started, and the drive shaft 272 is rotated via the knurl gear 275 and the spur gear 273. In this case, since the drive shaft 272 has the male screw 272a on the movable side and the female screw 272b on the fixed side feed screw shaft, the hole forming die 27 descends via the drive shaft 272, and FIG. As shown in
A tool hole is formed at a predetermined position of the molded body RA.

Thereafter, the second motor 255 and the third motor 2
74 rotates in the reverse direction, and the compression mold 25 and the hole forming mold 27
Rises and is raised to a predetermined height position on the molding section. Then, as described above with reference to FIG. 4, the pressing mold 21 and the rotary molding dies 23 are opened, and then the rotation of the turntable 30 causes the molded body RA to be sent to the carry-out section.

Note that, unlike the above embodiment, the operation order of the compression mold 25 and the hole forming mold 27 may be reversed. That is, after the tool forming mold 27 is first protruded into the molded body RA, the compression mold 25 may be lowered to compress the molded body RA to a predetermined thickness.

In the above-described embodiment, the turntable 30 is used as a molding table of the molding section. However, a belt-shaped conveying means may be used instead.

[0051]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since rice rice can be formed, compressed and drilled in one place, the whole device can be downsized and the structure can be simplified, and it is easy to clean. Is provided.

Further, it is possible to easily cope with a change in the shape of a molded article to be molded quickly by simply changing the rotary mold and the pressing mold.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing the overall structure of an embodiment of a food molding machine according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an initial state of a pressing die, a rotary molding die, and a driving mechanism thereof according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a state of the pressing die, the rotary molding die, and the drive mechanism of the embodiment at the time of molding.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a state after forming processing of the pressing die, the rotary forming die and the drive mechanism of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a compression mold, a tool hole mold, and a drive mechanism thereof according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a left side view of a drive mechanism of the compression mold shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view for explaining the operation of the compression mold and the tool hole mold in the above embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a sectional view for explaining the operation of the compression mold and the tool hole mold in the above embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view for explaining the operation of the compression mold and the tool hole mold in the above embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Hopper (cooked rice storage part) 13 Rolling part 20 Rice cookery section 21 Push mold 23 Rotation mold 25 Compression mold 27 Tool hole mold

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A23L 1/10

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] 1. A food molding machine comprising a cooked rice storage unit and a cooked rice molding unit configured to compress cooked rice supplied from the cooked rice storage unit into a predetermined shape, wherein the cooked rice molding unit includes the cooked rice storage unit. A push-type guide having a concave groove extending in a predetermined direction and arranged at a lower portion of the outlet of the portion;
A pair of left and right rotary molds whose base ends are located on both sides of the concave groove and whose front end is opened and closed, and are slidably disposed in the concave groove of the press die guide, and are the same as those from the cooked rice storage unit. The cooked rice supplied into the recess is extruded in the direction of the rotational molding die, and together with the rotational molding die, a pressing die for forming the rice rice into a molded body of a predetermined shape, and a pair of the rotational molding die and the pressing die are surrounded by the pressing die. A vertically movable compression mold that compresses the molded body in the molded part to a predetermined thickness from above,
A food forming machine comprising: a tool hole forming die for forming a tool hole in the molded body in the forming section. 2. The food molding machine according to claim 1, wherein the pressing die is also used as a shutter for opening and closing an outlet of the cooked rice storage unit. 3. The pressing die is connected to a cam plate having a cam groove for rotatingly driving the rotary die, and a cam follower is provided on the rotary die side to reciprocate the pressing die. The food molding machine according to claim 1, wherein the rotary mold is opened and closed with movement. 4. The food molding machine according to claim 1, wherein the hole forming die is capable of penetrating through the compression molding die and protruding into the molding portion. 5. The food according to claim 1, wherein a vertical movement stroke of the compression molding die and the tool hole molding die can be adjusted by their drive control means. Molding machine. 6. The cooked rice amount control means for controlling the amount of cooked rice supplied from the cooked rice storage section into the recess according to the movement stroke of the compression mold. Food molding machine as described. 7. The compression molding die is connected to first lifting / lowering means via a first drive shaft, and the tool hole molding die is connected via a second drive shaft inserted into the first drive shaft. The second drive shaft is composed of a feed screw shaft, and the female screw is fixed to the first drive shaft side, and the second drive shaft is fixed to the first drive shaft side. Food molding machine. 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the bottom surface of the molding is formed by a part of a turntable.
A food molding machine according to claim 1.