Breading machine

• US 20060032384A1
• Filed: 09/26/2005
• Published: 02/16/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bettcher Industries Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Bettcher Industries Incorporated
• Inventors: Whited, Jeffrey A., Bettcher, Lane, Muniga, Scott M.
• Granted Patent: US 7,614,360 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 99/494
• CPC Class Codes: A21C 9/04 Apparatus for spreading granular material on, or sweeping or coating the surfaces of, pieces or sheets of dough coating baked articles A21C15/002
• CPC Class Codes: A23P 20/12 Apparatus or processes for applying powders or particles to foodstuffs, e.g. for breading; Such apparatus combined with means for pre-moistening or battering

Abstract

A breading machine has a battering unit for applying a fluent batter to a food product. The battering unit includes a batter reservoir and a battering unit conveyor system for delivering food products from said batter reservoir to a battering unit conveyor discharge section that propels the food product from the battering unit. The combination units also include a breading unit for receiving food product from an associated battering unit. The breading unit includes a breading reservoir and breading unit conveyor system for applying particulate breading to the food product at a breading station by moving breading material from the breading material reservoir and food product coated with the batter to the breading station. A conveyor drive system includes a machine housing and a drive unit rotatably supported by the machine housing that provides motive power to the breading unit conveyor. A breading unit drive is coupled to the breading unit conveyor and is rotated by the drive unit to move said breading unit conveyor.

Claims

1. A machine for coating food products with a particulate breading material comprising:

a) a battering unit for applying a fluent batter to a food product comprising a batter reservoir and a battering unit conveyor system for moving food products through the batter reservoir and then discharge food product from the battering unit;

b) a breading unit for applying particulate breading to the food product after the food product moves through the battering unit comprising a breading material reservoir, a breading station at which breading is applied to the product and a breading unit conveyor for delivering food products received from said battering unit to said breading station; and

c) a conveyor drive system comprising a machine housing and i) a drive unit rotatably supported by the machine housing that provides motive power to said breading unit conveyor; and

ii) a breading unit drive coupled to the breading unit conveyor that is rotated by the drive unit to move said breading unit conveyor;

d) wherein one of said drive unit and breading unit drive defines a bore and another of said drive unit and breading unit drive defines a conforming outer surface sized to fit into said bore.

2. The machine of claim 1 wherein the drive unit comprises a) a coupling and b) a drive shaft supported by the machine housing, said coupling overlapping a conforming surface of the drive shaft.

3. The machine of claim 2 wherein said coupling includes a bore having an inner surface that engages a conforming outer surface of the breading unit drive.

4. The machine of claim 1 comprising a) first and second breading units having first and second breading unit conveyors and b) first and second battering units, said breading and battering units positioned on opposite sides of the machine housing;

further wherein the conveyor drive system supplies power to both said first and second breading unit conveyors.

5. The machine of claim 4 further comprising a second coupling that overlaps a portion of the drive shaft for supplying motive power to an additional one of the first and second breading unit drive systems.

6. The machine of claim 4 wherein the drive unit comprises a) a drive shaft supported by the machine housing and b) first and second couplings that overlap conforming surfaces of the drive shaft and extend beyond outer surfaces of the machine housing for engagement with first and second breading unit drives.

7. The machine of claim 2 wherein the coupling defines the bore which is part of a throughpassage that extends through the coupling.

8. The machine of claim 7 wherein the breading unit drive includes a driven shaft having an extension at one end that fits into the throughpassage of the coupling.

9. The machine of claim 1 wherein the drive unit comprises a drive shaft and a coupling and the breading unit drive comprises a driven shaft and wherein one of said driven shaft and the coupling defines a bore and another of said driven shaft and coupling defines a conforming outer surface that fits into said bore.

10. The machine of claim 9 wherein the coupling defines a bore having a chamfered entrance to facilitate insertion of the a driven end of the driven shaft.

11. The machine of claim 10 wherein a coupling engaging end of the driven shaft is chamfered.

12. The machine of claim 4 the conveyor drive system comprises a drive shaft and a bearing system that supports the drive shaft comprising first and second bearings spaced apart along a drive shaft axis of rotation that engage the machine housing.

13. The machine of claim 12 additionally comprising a sprocket mounted to the driven shaft that is rotated by a chain wrapped over the sprocket.

14. The machine of claim 12 additionally comprising first and second latches for securing the first and second breading units to either side of the machine housing.

15. The machine of claim 12 wherein the drive shaft is a generally solid metal shaft having lubrication fittings at opposite ends for delivering lubricant to a vicinity of the first and second bearings.

16. The machine of claim 12 additionally comprising first and second thrust bearings to allow side to side movement of the drive shaft as either said first or second breading unit is brought into engagement with as associated coupling.

17. The machine of claim 2 wherein the coupling is detachable from the drive shaft.

18. A food product breading machine comprising:

a breading reservoir having side walls for confining a breading material removably mounted to a breading machine base;

a breading conveyor comprising a conveyor belt disposed in said reservoir having one or more conveyor runs extending through the reservoir for moving breading material in said reservoir toward a breading station;

a driven shaft mounted by support bearings to the reservoir for moving the conveyor belt; and

a drive transmission for applying a torque to said driven shaft, said transmission including i) a motor drive shaft rotatably supported by a machine housing that provides motive power to said driven shaft;

ii) a coupling detachably connected to said drive shaft having a connection that overlaps a conforming surface of the drive shaft and iii) said driven shaft comprising a coupling engaging end for engagement with the coupling for transmitting power and thereby moving said conveyor belt.

19. A food product breading machine comprising:

a breading reservoir having side walls, a lower wall that spans between the side walls and slopes upwardly at one end, an end wall adjacent an upper end of said sloping wall, and an upper wall spaced from said end wall to provide an opening through which breading material is dispensed from the reservoir;

a breading conveyor comprising a conveyor belt disposed in said reservoir with a first conveyor run extending generally horizontally along said upper reservoir wall, and a second conveyor run extending along said sloping lower wall, said conveyor moving breading material in said reservoir along said sloping lower wall toward said end wall for delivery to a breading station above said upper wall;

a driven shaft mounted by support bearings to the reservoir for moving the conveyor belt; and

a drive transmission for applying a torque to said driven shaft comprising i) a motor drive shaft rotatably supported by a machine housing that provides motive power to said drive roller;

ii) a coupling detachably connected to said drive shaft having a connection that overlaps a conforming surface of the drive shaft and iii) said driven shaft engaging the coupling for rotation with said coupling to move said conveyor belt.

20. A method for use in breading a food product comprising:

providing a movable breading reservoir having side walls, a lower wall that spans between the side walls and an upper wall that spans the side walls above breading material within the reservoir;

providing a breading conveyor comprising a driven shaft coupled to a conveyor belt disposed in said reservoir for moving breading material in said reservoir to a breading station above said upper wall;

moving the conveyor belt through the reservoir to force breading material into contact with a food product at the breading station;

said step of moving the conveyor comprising i) coupling a drive shaft to the driven shaft by a coupling engagement having an internal bore having multiple facets and a drive having a multi-sided external shaft surface that transmit torque by engagement with the multiple facets of said bore; and

ii) rotating the drive shaft to transmit a torque to the driven shaft

21. The method of claim 20 where the driven shaft includes a multi-sided external shaft surface which is inserted into an internal bore of a coupling that rotates with said drive shaft and engages the driven shaft.

22. The method of claim 21 comprising chamfering an opening to the coupling'"'"'s internal bore to facilitate insertion of the external shaft surface.

23. The method of claim 21 comprising chamfering an external surface of the multi-sided external shaft surface to facilitate mating of said shaft surface with the internal bore.

24. The method of claim 21 where both the drive and the driven shafts are provided with multisided external shaft surfaces.

25. The method of claim 20 wherein breading units having conveyors are positioned on opposite ends of the drive shaft.