Automated food frying device and method

• US 20050061160A1
• Filed: 08/23/2004
• Published: 03/24/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Curtis Clarence Pinnow, Doug Jones, Gerald A. Sus, Glenn Schackmuth, Henry T. Ewald, James Lozouski, Jenny Hong, Jerry Sank, John M. Corliss, Joseph Gerstmann, Keith Stanger, Mario G Ceste, Roberto Nevarez, Ron Dorsten, William Day
• Original Assignee: Curtis Clarence Pinnow, Doug Jones, Gerald A. Sus, Glenn Schackmuth, Henry T. Ewald, James Lozouski, Jenny Hong, Jerry Sank, John M. Corliss, Joseph Gerstmann, Keith Stanger, Mario G Ceste, Roberto Nevarez, Ron Dorsten, William Day
• Inventors: Corliss, John M., Jones, Doug, Lozouski, James, Sank, Jerry, Ceste, Mario G., Gerstmann, Joseph, Nevarez, Roberto, Schackmuth, Glenn, Hong, Jenny, Dorsten, Ron, Ewald, Henry T., Stanger, Keith, Day, William, Pinnow, Curtis Clarence, Sus, Gerald A.
• Granted Patent: US 7,891,289 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 99/404
• CPC Class Codes: A47J 37/1228 Automatic machines for frying and dispensing metered amounts of food
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 43/305 specially adapted for boxes, cartons or carton blanks

Abstract

An automated food processing system is provided that allows food to be dispensed, fried and packaged in a container, for example, an individual portion-sized container. The system includes separate automated modules for dispensing, frying and packaging food. An automated dispensing device dispenses a predetermined portion of food from a bulk storage container or food dispensing magazine. Food is dispensed from the automated dispensing device to an automated fry device that can include at least one circular fry wheel having a plurality of food containing compartments. After the food is fried, it is dispensed from the fry device to an automated packaging device. The automated packaging device dispenses food to a container, for example, an individual portion-sized container that is retrieved, erected and held in position for filling by an automated container handling system. After a food container is filled, a conveyor system transports the container to a pick-up location.

Claims

1. A device for the automated frying of foods comprising:

(a) a fry vat for containing and heating cooking oil;

(b) at least one fry wheel having at least a generally circular perimeter and a plurality of compartments, each compartment having an opening towards the perimeter, the fry wheel mounted for rotational movement relative to the radial axis of the wheel, which radial axis is disposed above the normal operating level of the frying oil in the fry vat;

(c) a drive mechanism for rotating the fry wheel;

(d) a sensing device for sensing the level of cooking oil in the fry vat;

(e) a control system for operating the drive mechanism to rotate the fry wheel in one direction to cause food deposited into one of the compartments to travel through the cooking oil in the fry vat over a period of time to fry the food and out of the cooking oil for subsequent discharge of the food from the compartment, wherein the control system adjusts the speed of rotation based on the level of cooking oil in the fry vat.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the control system causes incremental rotation of the fry wheel and the control system adjusts the period of time between incremental rotation based on the level of cooking oil sensed in the fry vat.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein the control system adjusts the period of time between incremental rotation based on the temperature of the cooking oil in the fry vat.

9. The device of claim 1 wherein the periodic incremental rotation is based on 360 degrees divided by the number of compartments.

10. The device of claim 1 wherein the drive mechanism comprises a rotatable drive member for imparting rotational movement to said fry wheel by rotational contact with the periphery of the fry wheel.

11. The device of claim 10 further comprising an outlet slide disposed to receive food discharged from the fry wheel after frying in said vat.

12. The device of claim 11 wherein said control system causes a compartment of said wheel having food therein to be aligned with said outlet slide to permit the slide to receive food discharged from said compartment.

13. The device of claim 12 further comprising a flexible lip at a peripheral end of each of said fry wheel compartments for minimizing any gap between the outlet slide and each fry wheel compartment that is rotated into position adjacent the outlet slide for discharging food from that compartment and onto the outlet slide.

14. The device of claim 1 further comprising small perforations in each compartment to permit cooking oil to flow therethrough.

15. The device of claim 14 further comprising a curved baffle disposed in the fry vat which is disposed adjacent the axial periphery of the portion of the fry wheel that is disposed in the cooking oil for preventing food contained in one or more of the fry wheel compartments from falling out of the compartments, wherein said curved baffle is perforated to allow cooking oil to flow therethrough.

16. The device of claim 1 wherein the fry wheel comprises a rim, the drive member comprises a roller, and the drive member comprises means for urging the roller against the rim.

17. The device of claim 1 further comprising a hood structure located over said fry wheel.

18. The device of claim 17 wherein said hood structure comprises an air filter located at an air exit of said hood structure and a drip pan to collect cooking oil from the filter, the drip pan located below the filter.

4. An automated method of frying food comprising:

(a) placing food in a fry wheel compartment of a fry wheel having at least a generally circular perimeter and a plurality of compartments, each compartment having an opening towards the perimeter, the fry wheel mounted for rotational movement relative to the radial axis of the wheel which radial axis is disposed above the normal operating level of the frying oil in a fry vat having heated cooking oil therein;

(b) sensing the level of cooking oil in the fry vat;

(c) rotating the fry wheel in one direction to cause the food deposited into one of the compartments to travel through the cooking oil in the fry vat over a period of time to fry the food and to move the food out of the cooking oil for subsequent discharge of the food from the compartment, wherein the speed of said rotating is related to the level of cooking oil in the fry vat.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein said rotating comprises incremental periodic rotating of the fry wheel and adjusting the period of time between incremental periodic rotating based on the level of cooking oil sensed in the fry vat.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising adjusting the period of time between incremental periodic rotation based on the temperature of the cooking oil in the fry vat.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the wheel comprises a rim and said rotating comprises urging a rotating drive wheel against the rim to cause said rotating the fry wheel.

8. The method of claim 4 further comprising moving air having small cooking oil particles upwardly from the vicinity of the fry wheel through a hood structure containing a filter and collecting cooking oil collected by said filter.

19. The method of claim 5 wherein said incremental periodic incremental rotating is based on 360 degrees divided by the number of compartments.

20. The method of claim 4 further comprising aligning a compartment of said fry wheel with an outlet slide to permit the outlet slide to receive food discharged from said compartment.