JPS5837825B2 - Broiler cooling method and device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for cooling a broiler, and more particularly, a method for cooling a broiler carcass or a hollow carcass from which internal organs have been removed, and a method for use in carrying out the method. Regarding a cooling device.

In general, a broiler is a young chicken between 8 and 12 weeks old, but in this invention, it is not limited to those of this age, and includes all young chickens, and a carcass generally refers to a young chicken of 8 to 12 weeks old. Although this refers to a device that includes a built-in part, in this invention it also includes a so-called hollow part in which the built-in part is removed, and a divided part called a cut-up part.

Conventionally, if this type of broiler carcass is left at room temperature, deterioration will begin several hours after slaughter, so it is preferable to cool the carcass immediately after finishing the post-slaughter process and keep the carcass body temperature below 10°C. is being lowered to near 0°C.

In order to maintain the quality of the carcass, it is desired that the carcass be cooled rapidly but not even partially frozen.

Therefore, conventionally, the method of cooling using cold water or ice water is most often used.

One typical method is to install a drum in a long and narrow cold water tank so that it can rotate freely, and add crushed ice to the water in the tank to make ice water.No sand ice enters the drum, but the cold water flows into the drum. A carcass is put into the drum from one end of the drum, the drum is rotated in cold water, the carcass is sequentially transferred while being cooled by a vortex of cold water in the drum, and the carcass is taken out from the other end of the drum. Spin
Chill methods are known.

According to this method, the cooling can be done quickly, so the quality is good, and there is no problem of deterioration of taste because it does not freeze during cooling. Because the bodies are immersed in sequence, in other words, carcasses that are contaminated with bacteria, carcasses that have not been sufficiently exsanguinated, or carcasses that have mud on their legs etc. are sloppily destroyed. Unless the water is replaced, which is uneconomical and requires a large sewage treatment device, there is a problem in that the cleanly treated carcass becomes contaminated through the cold water.

Among the bacteria mentioned above, the problem is cold-temperature bacteria, and if the carcass is contaminated with these bacteria, even if the carcass is cooled, it will not be able to sufficiently inhibit the growth of bacteria. The smell becomes worse, and the surface of the body becomes discolored.

However, to deal with this problem, particularly bacterial contamination, it is possible to add antibiotics to the cold water, but this is undesirable from a food hygiene perspective and is not currently permitted in Japan.

On the other hand, methods are also known in which the carcass is cooled in cold air in a cooling chamber.

One method is to use vertically sloping racks and hang the carcasses at intervals so that they do not come into contact with each other.
It is known that the carcass is cooled by placing the rack in a cooling chamber and exposing the carcass to the cold air so that the carcass is evenly exposed to the cold air. A blowing cooling method is known in which a carcass is forcibly fed into a cooling chamber and the carcass hung on the rack is cooled by cold air.

However, compared to the cold water cooling method, the air cooling method described above prevents mutual contamination of carcasses and allows for more hygienic cooling, but on the other hand, the former air cooling method reduces the cooling time. The latter air cooling method has the disadvantage that the cooling time is longer and the quality of the carcass cannot be maintained at a high level.Although the latter air cooling method can shorten the cooling time compared to the former air cooling method, it is difficult to cool the entire carcass uniformly and evenly. There was a problem that it could freeze partially.

Therefore, the present invention was invented in view of the problems of the air cooling system as described above, and the main purpose is to
To provide a cooling method that can cool a carcass hygienically, efficiently cool the carcass, shorten the cooling time, and even cool the entire carcass uniformly without freezing any part of the carcass. Another object of the present invention is to provide a cooling device which is used in carrying out the above-described cooling method and is capable of cooling a carcass continuously, efficiently and uniformly with a simple device.

That is, the invention of the present application generally has the shape of a carcass, as schematically shown in FIG. , the cross-sectional area and surface area of each part are also different; therefore, when cold air is blown perpendicular to the axis of the carcass, the wind speed will be lower, especially on the back side of the carcass, that is, on the opposite side to the blowing direction. Focusing on the fact that the temperature is significantly low, which is undesirable from the point of view of evenly cooling the entire carcass,
By supplying cold air parallel to the axis of the carcass, the above-mentioned problem was solved and cooling could be carried out evenly and effectively.

Accordingly, the first invention described in claim 1 is a method for cooling a broiler carcass by attaching an air cooling device to a cooling chamber, wherein the air cooling device is connected to the upper surface of the cooling chamber. An outlet for blowing out the supplied cold air downward is provided, and an inlet for returning air to the air cooling device is provided at the lower part of the cooling chamber, and the carcass is placed in the downward cold air area of the cooling chamber. This method is characterized in that the carcass is cooled by hanging the carcass so that its legs are on top and the body axis is directed upward and downward, and the carcass can be cooled hygienically and quickly using cold air. What's more, the entire carcass can be cooled uniformly without causing partial freezing.

In addition, the second invention stated in claim 2 is:
The carcass according to the first invention can be cooled continuously and efficiently, and is provided with a transfer device that continuously transfers the carcass and continuously transfers the carcass to the cooling chamber. A transfer device is provided, and an air chamber communicating with the air cooling device is provided in the upper part of the transfer device, and the cold air supplied from the air cooling device is provided on the lower surface of the air chamber along the path of the transfer device and is supplied from the air cooling device. A slit is formed to blow air downward toward the transfer device, and a suction port is provided at the lower part of the cooling chamber through which the cold air returns to the air cooling device. It is characterized by the provision of a shirtcle that suspends the shaft in the vertical direction.

Each of these inventions will be described in detail below based on embodiments shown in the drawings.

First, the first invention, which is the basic invention, will be explained based on FIG.

What is shown in FIG. 1 is a cooling device for a broiler used in the method of the present invention, in which a cooling chamber 3 includes a mounting stage 2 for arranging a broiler carcass A, and an air cooling system for supplying cold air to the carcass A. A device 1 is provided, and the cold air supplied from the air cooling device 1 is blown parallel to the body axis of the carcass A.

As is generally known, the air cooling device 1 is a direct expansion type air cooling device that is connected to a condensing unit (not shown) and includes an evaporator 11 and a fan 12. Cold air is forcibly sent from the outlet of the evaporator 11 of the device 1 into the cooling chamber 3 through the cold air passage 4 and blown onto the carcass A, and the cold air passage 4 is placed in the upper part of the cooling chamber 3. An air outlet 14 for blowing out cold air downward is provided on the lower surface of the cold air passage 4, in other words, on the upper surface of the cooling chamber 3, and a suction port 14 is provided in the lower part of the cooling chamber 3 for returning air to the air cooling device 1. A mouth 41 is provided.

As a result, a uniform downward cold air area can be formed in the cooling chamber 3 from the upper part to the lower part of the chamber 3.

Furthermore, the carcass A is suspended in this downward cold air region with its legs upward, so that the body axis of the carcass A is directed in the vertical direction.

That is, the downward cold air is supplied to the carcass A from the leg side along the body axis.

The mounting stage 2 for the carcass A may be fixedly arranged in the cooling chamber 3 or movably, but as shown in FIG. Erect the hanging rod 21
A shirtcle 53, which will be described later, as shown in FIG. This is done so that the results are at the top.

That is, the hook portion 53b of the supporter 53a provided on the shirtcle 53 is configured so that the legs can be hooked thereon, and by suspending the legs above the carcass A.
It is possible to supply cold air most effectively and evenly to the entire surface of the carcass, and since the internal organs are removed from the base of the legs, it is also possible to send bath air to the body, which can cool the entire body. This means that the speed can be increased.

The air cooling device 1 may be an indirect expansion type air cooling device that supplies brine from a fly chiller (not shown) to the evaporator 11, or may be a one-piece type that further includes a compressor, a condenser, etc. If the cooling chamber 3 is formed as shown in Fig. 1 and a separate type is used in which the air cooling device 1 is connected to a condensing unit or pline chiller, a condensing unit or a ply chiller may be used. The cooling unit or brine chiller is installed outdoors.

In addition, if the speed of the cold air that is blown parallel to the body axis of the carcass A is too high when the temperature of the cold air is below 0°C, there is a risk that the head and legs of the carcass, which have a small cross-sectional area, will freeze. In addition, if the speed is too low, the cooling will be poor and the cooling time will be longer, so in practical terms, the weight of carcass A should be adjusted to the average weight (
0.5 to 5771/sec preferably 2
It is set at ~3.5 m/sec.

The temperature of the cold air blown onto the carcass may be set at a temperature at which the carcass does not freeze and below the temperature to be cooled, and is usually preferably 5°C to 3°C.

In the first invention, the carcass A is cooled using the cooling device configured as described above, and the air outlet 14 is provided on the upper surface of the cooling chamber 3 and blows cold air downward; The carcass A is placed in a downward cold air area formed between the lower part of the cooling chamber 3 and the suction port 41 that returns air to the air cooling device 1. The body axis of the carcass A is arranged so as to face in the vertical direction, and the cold air reaching the air outlet 14 and the suction port 41 is directed along the body axis of the carcass A.
The water is allowed to flow from the legs to the head, thereby cooling the carcass A.

Therefore, according to the method of the present invention for cooling the carcass A as described above, since the broiler carcass is cooled with cold air, the carcasses are not mutually contaminated with other carcasses, and the cooling can be carried out hygienically. In addition, an outlet is provided on the top of the cooling chamber to blow out cold air downwards, and an inlet is provided at the bottom.
A downward cold air area is formed in the cooling chamber, and as a result, the air distribution in the cooling chamber is made good.In other words, at each point in the cooling chamber, there is a In addition, the carcass was arranged in the downward cold air area with its legs upwards and its body axis facing in the vertical direction, that is, the cold air was applied parallel to the body axis of the carcass. In this way, it is possible to uniformly supply cold air to the surface of the carcass at an average wind speed, and therefore the carcass can be cooled quickly without freezing even partially. be.

Further, even when a large number of carcasses are hung vertically in the cooling chamber, the uniform downward cold air area can be formed in the cooling chamber, so the amount of air supplied to each carcass can be equalized. Each carcass can be uniformly cooled.

Therefore, cooling time can be shortened and cooling can be performed with less deterioration in quality.

Next, a second embodiment of the invention will be described based on FIGS. 3, 4, and 5.

This second invention enables continuous and efficient cooling of the fleur-de-lis carcass according to the first invention, and includes a transfer device 5 that continuously transfers the carcass A. The carcass A is transported along a predetermined transport route by the transport device 5, and in the middle of the transport route, cold air is supplied to the carcass A to continuously transport the carcass A. An air cooling device 1 for cooling the air is provided, and a cold air outlet communicating with the air cooling device 1 is provided at the top of the transfer device 5, so that the cold air is blown downward toward the transfer device 5. At the same time, a suction port 41 for returning air to the air cooling device 1 is provided at the lower part of the cooling chamber 3,
The carcass A is hung on the transfer device 5 with its legs facing upward, and is attached so that its body axis is directed in the vertical direction.

As shown in FIG. 2, the transfer device 5 includes a rail 51, a shirtcle 53 having a roller 52 that moves along the rail 51, and a drive chain that moves the shirtcle 53 along the rail 51. 54 and a drive device (not shown) for driving the chain 54, the rail 51 is formed in an endless shape, and the shirtcle 53 is circulated along a fixed path.

Further, the shirtcle 53 allows the carcass A to be hung vertically with its legs upward and its body axis in the vertical direction.

In the case shown in FIG. 3, a cooling chamber 3 of a required size is formed, a plurality of rows of the transfer devices 5 are disposed in this cooling chamber 3, and as shown in FIG. An air chamber 13 is formed in the upper part, and a plurality of rows of slits N 4a are formed on the lower surface of the chamber 13 along the transfer device 5.
The air cooling device 1 is connected to the air chamber 13 to direct the cold air from the air cooling device 1 downward toward the transfer device 5 through the slit N4a. It came out of nowhere.

Further, the lower part of the cooling chamber 3 is provided with the suction port 41 for returning air to the air cooling device 1 as described above, and the air outlet formed by the slot N4a creates a uniform downward flow in the cooling chamber 3. This creates a cold air area.

Although the transfer device 5 shown in FIG. 3 is continuous in a meandering manner, a plurality of independent transfer devices 5 may be arranged in parallel.

Further, the air cooling device 1 divides the cooling chamber 3 by a partition wall 33 to form a cooling section 35 in which the transfer device 5 is disposed, and a machine room 34 along the transfer path of the transfer device 5,
A plurality of air chambers 13 are installed in series in this machine room 34, and the air chamber 13 is formed by providing a ceiling 15 above the cooling section 35, and the air chamber 13 is formed by providing a ceiling 15 above the cooling section 35.
4a is formed on this ceiling 15.

Further, the slits tl4a are formed along the transfer direction of the transfer device 5, and the number thereof is not particularly limited as long as cold air can be supplied to each carcass A on average.
It is preferable to provide each transfer device 5 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

In addition, when a slit 14a is provided for each transfer device 5, if a partition 16 is provided for each slit N4a and a cooling chamber 17 is formed for each transfer device 5, the supply of cold air to the carcass is further ensured. I can do it.

Furthermore, if the carcass A' is passed through the cooling chamber 17 constructed as described above by being suspended vertically in multiple stages by the chassocle 53. If a cold air guide 18 is provided in the cooling chamber 17, the cold air can be rectified, and the cold air can be supplied to each carcass suspended from the shirtcle 53 even better.

Furthermore, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, an air chamber 13 is provided in the upper part of the transfer device 5, and this chamber 13
A slit 14a is formed on the lower surface of the transfer device 5, but an air pipe is provided at the top of the transfer device 5 without providing any other air chamber, and a lower air outlet is connected to the pipe along the transfer device 5. It may be provided.

Even in this case, it is preferable to provide a partition for each outlet as described above, to form a cooling chamber 17 for each transfer device 5, or to provide a cold air guide 18 in this cooling chamber 17.

As described above, according to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, since the carcass is continuously cooled while being transported, the cooling process can be carried out efficiently and quickly, which is the first effect of the invention. While this can be expected, quality can be maintained at a high level through rapid cooling.

In addition, in the embodiment described above, in order to more efficiently cool the carcass A, as shown in FIGS. A carcass attaching part 6 for attaching the carcass A to the transfer device is provided, and a carcass removing part 7 for removing the carcass A from the transfer device is provided on the exit side.

That is, what is shown in FIG. 3 is the cooling section 35 of the cooling chamber 3.
The rails 51 of the transfer device 5 are installed between the inlet 31 and the outlet 32 to form a transfer route for the carcass A within the cooling chamber 3, and the rails 51 arranged outside from the outlet 32 are It is connected to the inlet 31 through the outside of the cooling chamber 3, and the rail 51 is connected to the inlet side. The carcass attachment portion 6 is formed by making a detour.

In addition, the carcass removal part 7 has easier removal work than installation work.
Since this can also be done mechanically, there is no need to make a detour like in the case of the attachment part 6.

The attachment of the carcass to the shirtcle 53 is carried out by manually hooking the legs of the carcass A onto the hooks 53b provided on the support beam 53a of the shirtcle 53, as described above. Six carcasses A are attached to the shirtcle 53 in two rows and three tiers.

In FIG. 3, reference numeral 8 denotes a disinfection and sterilization device for the shirtcle 53, which supplies high-temperature water, steam, heated gas, etc. to the shirtcle 53.
3 to kill bacteria adhering to the shirtcle 53.

The disinfection and sterilization device 8 connects the outlet side of the transfer device 5 with the outlet 32 and inlet 31 of the cooling chamber 3, and
It is provided at a location outside the room, and its location is preferably near the carcass attachment portion 6 as shown in FIG.

As described above, in the implementation shown in FIGS. 3 and 5,
Since the carcass is cooled while being transferred, and the carcass can be attached to or removed from the transfer device outside the cooling process, the carcass can be cooled continuously, making the cooling process even more efficient. can be done.

In addition, in order to explain the method of the present invention, FIGS. 1 and 2 described above schematically show the cooling device used in the method, and
Although FIGS. 3 and 4 show one embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention, the cooling apparatus used in the method of the present invention and the apparatus of the present invention are not limited to those shown in FIGS. It may be configured as follows.

That is, the cooling chamber 3 shown in FIG. A meandering transfer device 5 is disposed in the defined cooling section 35, and an air cooling device 1 equipped with an evaporator 11 and a fan 12 is installed in the machine room 34. An air chamber 13 communicating with the air chamber 13 is provided, and a slit 14 is provided on the lower surface of this chamber 13 for each transfer path of the transfer device 5 to blow out cold air downward, and a partition 16 is provided for each slit 14a. Cooling chamber 1
7, and each of these small chambers 17 is provided with a cold air guide 18, while the carcass A is further transferred to the rail 51 of the transfer device 5.
The carcass A is attached to the shirtcle 53 supported by the carcass A at the carcass attachment part 6 provided outside the cooling chamber 3 so as to be hung with the legs upward, and the carcass A is attached to the carcass removal part 7 at the end of cooling. An automatic removing device 71 is used to remove the carcass, and a shirtcle 53 from which the carcass has been removed is sterilized by a disinfection sterilizer 8.

In FIG. 5, 36 is a service door, 37 is a service door of the air cooling device 1, and 38 is an air curtain device.
Further, 19 is a cleaning spray pipe for cleaning the cooling chamber 17.

As described above, according to the invention of item 1, there is provided a method for cooling a broiler carcass by attaching an air cooling device to a cooling chamber,
An air outlet for blowing out cold air supplied from the air cooling device downward is provided on the upper surface of the cooling chamber, and an inlet for returning air to the air cooling device is provided in the lower part of the cooling chamber. The carcass is cooled by hanging the carcass in a downward cold air area with the legs of the carcass on top and the body axis facing in the vertical direction.In other words, the carcass is cooled in the cooling chamber After forming a uniform downward cold air area, the carcass is suspended and cooled as described above in this downward cold air area. Therefore, the cold air can be uniformly supplied to each carcass surface at an average wind speed, and each part of the carcass can be cooled uniformly and rapidly.

Moreover, when cooling a plurality of carcasses, each carcass can be cooled uniformly and rapidly.

According to the second aspect of the invention, a transfer device for continuously transferring the carcass to the cooling chamber is provided, and an air chamber communicating with the air cooling device is provided above the transfer device; A slit is formed on the lower surface along the path of the transfer device and blows the cold air supplied from the air cooling device downward toward the transfer device, and the cold air is directed to the air cooling device at the bottom of the cooling chamber. Since a suction port for returning air is provided in the transfer device, and a shirtcle is provided in the transfer device to suspend the body axis vertically with the legs of the carcass on top, the carcass cooling method according to the invention of item 1 can be continuously carried out. It can be done efficiently.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of an embodiment for explaining the first invention, FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view for explaining a transfer device, and FIGS. 3 and 4 are for carrying out the second invention. By way of example,
FIG. 3 is a sectional plan view of a portion of the air chamber, FIG. 4 is a sectional side view, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the second invention. 1... Air cooling device, 3... One cooling room,
4...Cold air passageway, 5...1 transfer device, 6
...Carcass attachment part, 7...Carcass removal part,
8...Disinfection sterilizer, 13...Air chamber, 14a...Slit, 16...
...Partition, 17...Cooling chamber, 18...
・・Guide, 53・・・・Shatkuru, A・・・・
... Carcass, 14... Air outlet, 41...
Suction port.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A method for cooling a broiler carcass A by attaching an air cooling device 1 to a cooling chamber 3, the method comprising directing the cold air supplied from the air cooling device 1 to the upper surface of the cooling chamber 3 in a downward direction. In addition, an air outlet 14 is provided at the lower part of the cooling chamber 3 for returning air to the air cooling device 1. A method for cooling a broiler, characterized in that the carcass A is cooled by suspending the carcass A so that the legs of the carcass A are on the upper side and the carcass A is placed so that the body axis faces in the vertical direction. 2 A cooling device for a broiler carcass A in which an air cooling device 1 is attached to a cooling chamber 3, a transfer device 5 for continuously transferring the carcass A to the cooling chamber 3 is provided, and a An air chamber 13 communicating with the air cooling device 1 is provided at the top, and an air chamber 13 is provided on the bottom surface of the air chamber 13 along the path of the transfer device 5 and communicating with the air cooling device 1.
In addition, a slot N4a is formed to blow out the supplied cold air downward toward the transfer device 5, and an inlet 41 is provided at the lower part of the cooling chamber 3 through which the cold air returns to the air cooling device 1. A cooling device for a broiler, characterized in that the transfer device 5 is provided with a shirtcle 53 for suspending the body axis of the carcass A in the vertical direction with the legs on top.