JP6414930B2 - Food supply device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a food supply apparatus, and more particularly to a technique effective when applied to prevent drying of supplied food.

  A food metering device is known as a food supply device for supplying cooked rice to a food container such as a lunch box or a bowl when making a lunch box or bowl. The food metering device is a device that automatically supplies a certain amount of cooked rice to the food container by measuring the cooked rice stored in the hopper.

  In a food supply device such as a food metering device, the rice (food) in the hopper (food storage unit) supplied by the supply screw (supply means) is unwound and unwound by the supply roller (supply unit). It is dropped while being dropped and supplied to the food container.

  In addition, about the foodstuff metering apparatus, the thing of Unexamined-Japanese-Patent No. 2004-196382 etc. are known, for example.

JP 2004-196382 A

  Here, the surface where the rice is broken by the unrolling supply roller is located at the position where the cooked rice falls, that is, in the vicinity of the exit of the cooked rice, and is particularly susceptible to the influence of outside air. Then, if there is time before the supply of cooked rice to the next food container, the temperature of the cooked rice on the break-down surface will be lower than that of other portions and will be dried.

  Since the dried rice that has been dried up is not suitable for eating, it has been necessary to discard a predetermined amount of cooked rice using a cleaning mode provided in the apparatus. This wastes the amount of cooked rice.

  The present invention has been made from the above technical background, and an object of the present invention is to provide a food supply device that can prevent the food from being broken down by the supply unit.

In order to solve the above-described problem, the food supply device according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a food storage unit including a supply unit that supplies the input food material obliquely upward, and a rotating shaft provided by the supply unit. It is arranged so as to intersect with the food supply direction , opens and closes the unrolling supply roller that supplies the food supplied from the food storage unit while breaking down, and opens and closes the dropping path of the food supplied from the unwinding supply roller , Humidified air is allowed to pass through a gap between an opening / closing portion that performs a supply operation to the food container and a supply stop operation, and the unwinding supply roller and a break-off surface of the food material at a position opposite to the unwinding supply roller. A humidifying unit that humidifies the dislodged surface , a food metering unit that measures the weight of the food supplied from the unrolling supply roller to the food container, and the food metering unit that the food for the target set value is measured Detected by If was, said closing portion is operated to stop the food supply operation of the supply means and the loosened feed roller, and means for controlling supplying ingredients target setpoint min to the food container It is characterized by having.

  The food supply device according to a second aspect of the present invention is the food supply apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the humidifying unit further humidifies the food in the food storage unit in addition to the break-up surface. .

  A food supply device according to a third aspect of the present invention is the food supply device according to the first or second aspect, wherein a first jet outlet is formed below the break-up surface, and the steam generated in the humidifying section is the first It further has the 1st guide way which guides to the jet nozzle of this.

  A food supply device according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the food supply device according to the third aspect, wherein a second spout is formed on the bottom surface of the food storage section, and the steam generated in the humidifying section is supplied to the second supply outlet. It further has the 2nd guide way guided to a spout.

  A food supply device according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the food supply device according to the first or second aspect, wherein a third jet outlet is formed above the break-up surface, and the steam generated in the humidifying section is the third. It further has the 3rd guide way which guides to the jet nozzle of this, and the spout part which spouts a vapor | steam toward the said withdrawal surface below from the said 3rd jet port, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  The food supply device according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is the food supply device according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, wherein the humidifying unit includes a tank in which water is stored and water supplied from the tank. And a heating unit that generates steam by heating

  According to the present invention, since the food break-up surface is humidified by the humidifying unit, even if there is time before the supply of the food to the next food container, the food on the break-down surface drops in temperature and dries. Is prevented.

It is a perspective view which shows the foodstuff metering apparatus as an example of the foodstuff supply apparatus which is this invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the food material metering device of FIG. 1. It is a perspective view which shows the hopper and the tearing roller which are the components of the foodstuff metering apparatus of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the shutter unit which is a component of the foodstuff metering apparatus of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the humidification part which is a component of the foodstuff metering apparatus of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the internal structure of the humidification part of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the foodstuff measurement part which is a component of the foodstuff metering apparatus of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the flow of operation | movement in the foodstuffs metering apparatus of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the flow of the operation | movement following FIG. 8 in the foodstuff metering apparatus of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the flow of the operation | movement following FIG. 9 in the foodstuff metering apparatus of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the flow of the vapor | steam from the humidification part in the foodstuff metering apparatus of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the flow of the vapor | steam from the humidification part in the foodstuff metering apparatus of FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the flow of the vapor | steam from the humidification part in the foodstuff metering apparatus as a modification. It is explanatory drawing which shows the flow of the vapor | steam from the humidification part in the foodstuff metering apparatus as another modification.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment as an example of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that components having the same function are denoted by the same reference symbols throughout the drawings for describing the embodiment, and the repetitive description thereof will be omitted.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the food metering apparatus 1 includes a food supply unit A and a food metering unit B.

  The food supply unit A includes a front plate 10, a back plate 11 located on the back of the front plate 10, and a side plate 12 located on both sides of the front plate 10 and the back plate 11, and an upper portion having an opening 13. Is formed. Also, a lid 14 connected to the upper end of the back plate 11 via a hinge (not shown) is provided, and the opening 13 is opened and closed by the lid 14.

  As shown in the figure, the front panel 10 is provided with a display unit 15 and operation buttons 16. The display unit 15 is a screen that displays operation commands, messages, and the like, and includes, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display). In addition, the operation button 16 is a button for performing an operation setting of the food material weighing and arranging apparatus 1. When the target measurement value is set by the operation button 16, the measurement of cooked rice R (FIGS. 9 to 14) as an example of food supplied to the food container S by a load cell (food measuring unit) 41 described later is performed. While being performed, the rotation operation of the supply screws 23 and 23 and the unwinding supply roller 24 and the opening / closing operation of the shutter (opening / closing part) 25 are controlled.

  Further, a recess 17 having a predetermined depth and height is formed below the front plate 10. The recess 17 has a sufficient space to accommodate the food container S when the cooked rice R is to be placed, and the cooked rice R falls from above and is supplied to the food container S.

  As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 5, the cooked rice R, which is a food material, is provided with two supply screws (supply means) 23, 23 arranged in parallel with each other inside the food material supply unit A. From a hopper (food storage unit) 22, a drum-type unrolling supply roller (feeding unit) 24 that feeds rice R supplied from the hopper 22 by rotating the supply screws 23, 23, and a unwinding supply roller 24 A shutter unit 26 having a pair of shutters 25 for opening and closing the falling path of the supplied cooked rice R and a humidifying unit 30 for humidifying the food supply unit A are provided.

  In FIG. 3, the hopper 22 includes an upper hopper 22 a having an upper end and a lower end opened, and a lower hopper 22 b that is fitted into the lower end opening of the upper hopper 22 a and forms the bottom surface of the hopper 22.

  The upper hopper 22a is formed with a tapered wall 22a-1 that gradually narrows downward from above, whereby the upper end becomes a wide opening and the lower end becomes a narrow opening. . A flange 22a-2 bent outward is formed in the opening at the upper end. The opening at the lower end of the upper hopper 22a is formed to a size that exposes only the supply screws 23 and 23 accommodated in the substantially semicircular accommodating grooves 22b-1 and 22b-1 of the lower hopper 22b and covers other portions. Has been.

  The lower hopper 22b is formed with the above-described substantially semicircular accommodation grooves 22b-1 and 22b-1 and opened upward. In addition, a roller support portion 22b-2 that opens downward and supports the supply roller 24 rotatably is formed at the front portion of the lower hopper 22b so as to communicate with the receiving grooves 22b-1 and 22b-1. Has been. A large number of claws 24 a are provided on the outer periphery of the supply roller 24, so that the rotation axis is orthogonal to the rotation axes of the supply screws 23 and 23.

  As a result, when the cooked rice R is introduced into the hopper 22, the cooked rice R is unwound by the rotation of the feed screws 23, 23 provided in the hopper 22 and supplied to the feed roller 24. The cooked rice R supplied to the breaking supply roller 24 is dropped and supplied while being broken by the rotation of the breaking supply roller 24.

  The hopper 22 is provided with a heat retaining heater (not shown) for maintaining the cooked rice R in the hopper 22 at a predetermined temperature.

  A shutter unit 26 shown in FIG. 4 is disposed below the hopper 22. A shutter guide 27 is formed in front of the shutter unit 26, and a pair of shutters 25 are attached so as to be opened and closed downward. The shutter 25 is positioned on the dropping path of the cooked rice R that is dropped and supplied by the above-described unrolling supply roller 24. Therefore, the shutter 25 opens when the cooked rice R is supplied to the food container S, and closes when the supply is stopped, whereby the supply operation of the cooked rice R to the food container S and the supply stop operation are performed.

  A plurality of slits (first jet ports) 34-1 extending in the vertical direction are formed on the back surface of the shutter guide 27. From this slit 34-1, the vapor | steam T (FIG. 5, FIG. 11-FIG. 14) which generate | occur | produced in the humidification part 30 spouts. As described above, since the shutter 25 is located on the dropping path of the rice R to be dropped and supplied by the supply roller 24, the steam T ejected from the slit 34-1 formed in the shutter guide 27 is dissolved. Then, the breaking surface F (FIGS. 12 to 14) of the cooked rice R and the cooked rice R in the hopper 22 are humidified. An opening / closing drive unit 28 for opening / closing the shutter 25 is disposed behind the shutter guide 27.

  A humidifying unit 30 shown in FIG. 5 is disposed below the shutter unit 26. In the humidifying unit 30, a tank 31 for storing water is detachably mounted on the tank mounting unit 30a-1 of the base table 30a shown in FIG. A heater (heating unit) 32 for heating the water supplied from the tank 31 to generate steam T is attached to the base table 30a at a position adjacent to the tank mounting unit 30a-1. Further, a groove portion 30 a-2 for guiding water from the tank 31 to the heater 32 is formed between the tank mounting portion 30 a-1 and the heater 32.

  Thereby, the water in the tank 31 is guided to the heater 32 through the groove 30a-2 and heated by the heater 32, and the steam T is generated.

  Furthermore, a first guide path 33-1 for guiding the steam T generated by the heating of the heater 32 to the slit 34-1 described above is attached to the humidifier 30 at the top of the heater 32. In the present embodiment, since the humidifying unit 30 is disposed below the shutter unit 26, a first guide path 33-1 for guiding the steam T of the humidifying unit 30 to the slit 34-1 is provided. However, the first guide path 33-1 may not be provided by a structure in which the humidifying unit 30 is directly attached to the slit 34-1 or the like.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the slit 34-1 is formed in the shutter guide 27 and this is used as the first jet outlet from which the steam T generated in the humidifying unit 30 is jetted. As long as the break-up surface F of the cooked rice R at the above position can be humidified, the formation location of the first jet nozzle is not particularly limited.

  Next, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 7, the food measuring unit B is located immediately below the shutter 25 in the food supply unit A, and a food container S such as a bowl or a lunch box is placed thereon. It is comprised from the mounting base 40 and the load cell 41 which measures the rice R supplied to the food container S mounted in the mounting base 40. As shown in FIG. A part of the load cell 41 is housed in a load cell cover 42 and protected.

  Here, the load cell 41 is a load transducer that uses, for example, a strain gauge as a detection element and converts strain due to load into an electrical signal. When the cooked rice R is put into the food container S, the weight of the cooked rice R is It is to be weighed. If the measured value by the load cell 41 reaches the target measured value, the shutter 25 is closed and the rotation operation of the supply screws 23 and 23 and the unlocking supply roller 24 is stopped.

  Next, operation | movement of the foodstuff weighing | positioning apparatus 1 of this Embodiment is demonstrated.

  First, in FIG. 8, the power is turned on with a power switch (not shown), the lid 14 of the food supply unit A is opened, the cooked rice R as the food is put into the hopper 22, and then the lid 14 is closed. Here, at the same time when the power is turned on, the heat retaining heater provided in the hopper 22 starts to operate, and the cooked rice R in the hopper is maintained at a predetermined temperature. At this time, when a humidification switch (not shown) for humidifying the cooked rice R is turned on, the heater of the humidifying unit 30 starts operating at the same time as the power is turned on, and steam T is generated and the shutter is generated. The ejection starts from the slit 34-1 formed in the guide 27.

  In this way, in the food weighing and setting apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, since it is possible to set whether or not to humidify the cooked rice R by turning on / off the humidification switch, the humidification switch is turned off when the power is turned on. It is also possible to perform the humidification by turning on at a desired timing (for example, when the rate of decrease of the cooked rice R in the hopper 22 is slow) without performing the humidification.

  Next, the food container S is mounted on the mounting table 40 of the food measuring unit B, and the operation button 16 for a desired target measurement value is pressed.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 9, the supply screws 23, 23 start rotating, and the cooked rice R filled in the hopper 22 (more specifically, the lower hopper 22 b of the hopper 22) is contained in the receiving grooves 22 b-1, 22 b. -1 is gradually moved forward along the direction -1 and sent to the unwinding supply roller 24 which has also started to rotate.

  Since the unwinding supply roller 24 rotates in the clockwise direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. 9, the cooked rice R sent from the supply screws 23, 23 is moved downward by being rotated by the unwinding supply roller 24. It is dropped. As shown in FIG. 3, many claws 24 a are provided on the outer periphery of the unwinding supply roller 24, so that the cooked rice R is unraveled and unraveled and is located below the supply roller 24. It is thrown in.

  While the supply screws 23, 23 and the unwinding supply roller 24 are rotating and the cooked rice R is being put into the shutter guide 27, the shutter 25 is in the open position, and the uncooked rice R supplied by the unwinding supply roller 24 is Then, it passes through the shutter guide 27 and falls into the food container S placed on the placing table 40 and supplied. The weight of the cooked rice R supplied to the food container S is sequentially measured by the load cell 41. Since the slit 34-1 formed in the shutter guide 27 extends in the vertical direction, the cooked rice R falls along the slit 34-1 and the cooked rice R clogs the slit 34-1. It has become difficult.

  Thus, the rice R for the target measured value is supplied into the food container S, and when the weight is detected by the load cell 41, the rotation of the supply screws 23 and 23 and the unwinding supply roller 24 is stopped as shown in FIG. As a result, the introduction of the cooked rice R into the shutter guide 27 is stopped. At the same time, the shutter 25 is in the closed position.

  After the desired weight of cooked rice R is placed in the food container S as described above, the food container S is removed from the mounting table 40. Then, the next food container S is placed on the placing table 40, and the operation button 16 for a desired target measurement value is pressed. As a result, the above-described operation is executed again, and the desired weight of cooked rice R is placed in the food container S. Thereafter, the same operation can be repeated.

  Now, the breaking surface F of the cooked rice R by the unrolling supply roller 24 is located near the shutter 25 that is the dropping position of the cooked rice R, so that it is particularly susceptible to the influence of outside air compared to other places. Therefore, if there is time before the supply of the cooked rice R to the next food container S, the temperature of the cooked rice R on the break-up surface F will be lower than the other locations, and it will be easy to dry.

  As described above, the humidifying unit 30 (FIG. 5) is arranged in the foodstuff weighing and arranging apparatus 1 of the present embodiment. Then, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the steam T generated in the humidifying unit 30 is ejected from the slit 34-1 formed in the shutter guide 27 by being guided by the first guide path 33-1 and The break-up surface F of the cooked rice R located above the slit 34-1 is humidified.

  Therefore, even if there is time before the supply of cooked rice R to the next food container S, the cooked rice R on the break-up surface F will not drop in temperature and dry. Therefore, there is no waste of discarding the cooked rice R on the breaking surface F that has been dried.

  Here, in the food material weighing and arranging apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, since the space between the unrolling supply roller 24 and the tear-off surface F is connected to the space of the hopper 22, as shown in FIG. The steam T reaches the hopper 22 and the cooked rice R stored in the hopper 22 is humidified.

  Thereby, the heat retention temperature for suppressing deterioration of the cooked rice R in the hopper 22 can be lowered. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the deterioration of the resin material constituting the front plate 10, the back plate 11, the side plate 12, the lid 14, etc. of the food metering apparatus 1, and the heat retention provided in the hopper 22. It becomes possible to suppress the power consumption of the heater.

  In addition, although the space between the supply roller 24 and the tear-off surface F is connected with the space of the hopper 22 in the foodstuff metering apparatus 1 of this Embodiment, both spaces do not need to be connected. In this case, since the steam T cannot reach into the hopper 22, the cooked rice R stored in the hopper 22 is not humidified.

  Moreover, in the foodstuff metering apparatus 1 of this Embodiment, the 1st guide path 33-1 is provided, and it is the humidification part 30 from the slit 34-1 which is a 1st jet nozzle located under the breaking surface F. Although the generated steam T is ejected, as shown in FIG. 13, a second jet port 34-2 is further formed on the bottom surface of the hopper 22, and the steam generated in the humidifying unit 30 is transferred to the second jet port 34. -2 may be provided to guide to -2.

  According to such a structure, since more steam T is introduced into the hopper 22, the cooked rice R in the hopper 22 is evenly humidified in combination with the steam T from the slit 34-1. . Therefore, it is possible to further lower the heat retention temperature for suppressing the deterioration of the cooked rice R in the hopper 22.

  Moreover, the jet outlet of the steam T does not need to be below the break-up surface F. For example, as shown in FIG. 14, a third jet port 34-3 is formed above the break-up surface F of the cooked rice R, and the humidifying section It is also possible to provide a third guide path 33-3 for guiding the steam T generated at 30 to the third jet port 34-3. However, in this structure, since it is necessary to make the vapor | steam T ejected from the 3rd ejection port 34-3 reach | attain in the lower withdrawal surface F and the hopper 22, it is from the 3rd ejection port 34-3 to the withdrawal surface F. A fan (spouting part) 35 that spouts steam toward is provided.

  In the present embodiment, the humidifying unit 30 is a steam type in which water is heated by the heater 32 to generate steam, but is not necessarily a steam type, and is a vaporization type or a water spray type. Also good.

  Although the invention made by the present inventor has been specifically described based on the embodiment, the embodiment disclosed in this specification is an example in all respects and is limited to the disclosed technology. is not. That is, the technical scope of the present invention should not be construed restrictively based on the description in the above-described embodiment, but should be construed according to the description of the scope of claims. All modifications are included without departing from the technical scope equivalent to the described technique and the gist of the claims.

  For example, in the food weighing and allocating apparatus 1 according to the above-described embodiment, a so-called bottom weighing structure in which the load cell 41 for weighing the cooked rice R is provided on the mounting table 40 of the food container S is adopted. The so-called upper weighing structure 41 may be provided in the shutter unit 26.

  In addition, in the food weighing and arranging apparatus 1 according to the above-described embodiment, the food weighing and serving apparatus 1 is applied as an example of the food supply apparatus, but is not limited thereto, and food such as cooked rice R is used. Is sufficient as long as the apparatus can supply the food container S to the food container S, and the load cell 41 that is a measuring mechanism may be omitted.

  In the above description, cooked rice is applied as an example of food, but the present invention is not limited to this, and various foods such as chopped vegetables can be applied.

1 Food metering device 22 Hopper (food storage part)
22a Upper hopper 22b Lower hopper 23 Supply screw (supply means)
24 Unrolling roller (feeding section)
24a Claw 25 Shutter (opening / closing part)
26 Shutter unit 27 Shutter guide 30 Humidifying part 30a Base base 30a-1 Tank mounting part 30a-2 Groove part 31 Tank 32 Heater (heating part)
33-1 1st guide way 33-3 2nd guide way 33-3 3rd guide way 34-1 Slit (1st jet nozzle)
34-2 Second jet port 34-3 Third jet port 35 Fan (spout part)
40 Mounting table 41 Load cell (foodstuff weighing unit)
42 Load cell cover A Ingredient supply section B Ingredient metering section F Break-down surface R Cooked rice S Ingredient container T Steam

Claims (6)

A food storage unit comprising a supply means for supplying the input food material obliquely upward ;
An unwinding supply roller that is arranged so that a rotation axis intersects with a supply direction of the food by the supply means, and supplies the food supplied from the food storage unit while breaking down .
An opening / closing unit that opens and closes a dropping path of the food supplied from the unrolling supply roller , and performs a supply operation and a supply stop operation of the food to the food container;
A humidifying unit that humidifies the break-up surface by passing humidified air through a gap between the break-off supply roller and the break-off surface of the food at the position opposite to the unwind supply roller ;
A food metering unit for weighing the weight of the food supplied from the unrolling supply roller to the food container;
If the food metering unit detects that the food for the target set value has been weighed, the food supply operation of the supplying means and the unrolling supply roller is stopped and the opening / closing unit is operated to operate the food Means for controlling the supply of food for the target set value to the container;
A food supply device comprising: In addition to the break-up surface, the humidifying unit further humidifies the food in the food storage unit,
The food supply apparatus according to claim 1. A first jet port is formed below the break-up surface, and further includes a first guide path that guides the steam generated in the humidifying section to the first jet port.
The food supply apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein A second jet port is formed on the bottom surface of the food storage unit, and further includes a second guide path for guiding the steam generated in the humidifying unit to the second jet port;
The food supply device according to claim 3. A third jet passage formed above the break-up surface, and guiding the steam generated in the humidifying section to the third jet port;
And a jetting part for jetting steam from the third jetting port toward the withdrawal surface below,
The food supply apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein The humidifying part is
A tank in which water is stored;
A heating unit for heating the water supplied from the tank to generate steam;
It has, The foodstuff supply apparatus as described in any one of Claims 1-5 characterized by the above-mentioned.

Images