Additive manufacturing system and method for printing customized chocolate confections

• US 9,215,882 B2
• Filed: 03/28/2012
• Issued: 12/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Barry Callebaut AG (Jacobs Stiftung)
• Original Assignee: Stratasys Incorporated
• Inventors: Zimmerman, Aidan, Walczyk, Daniel F., Crump, S. Scott, Batchelder, J. Samuel
• Primary Examiner(s): Malekzadeh, Seyed Masoud
• Application Number:
  US13/432,424
• Publication Number:
  US 20120251688A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,364 Days
• Field of Search: 425/375, 425/97, 425/100, 425/112, 425/113, 425/143, 425/145, 425/169, 425/378.1, 426/231, 426/512, 426/519, 426/660, 700/118, 700/119, 700/196, 101/368
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A21C 15/002 Apparatus for spreading granular material on, or sweeping or coating the surface of baked articles of pieces of dough A21C9/04; for confectionary A23G3/28
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 1/0066 Processes for laying down material in moulds or drop-by-drop on a surface, optionally with the associated heating, cooling, portioning, cutting cast-tail, anti-drip processes
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 1/042 Manufacture or treatment of liquid, cream, paste, granule, shred or powder
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 1/18 Apparatus for conditioning chocolate masses for moulding
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 1/205 Apparatus in which the material is shaped at least partially in a mould, in the hollows of a surface, a drum, an endless band or by drop-by-drop casting or dispensing of the material on a surface, e.g. injection moulding, transfer moulding
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 1/206 Apparatus for laying down material in moulds or drop-by-drop on a surface, optionally with the associated heating, cooling, portioning, cutting cast-tail, anti-drip device
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 1/50 characterised by shape, structure or physical form, e.g. products with an inedible support liquid products, solid products in the form of powders, flakes or granules for making liquid products A23G1/56
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 3/0097 Decorating sweetmeats or confectionery
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 3/28 Apparatus for decorating sweetmeats or confectionery
• CPC Class Codes: A23P 20/15 Apparatus or processes for coating with liquid or semi-liquid products
• CPC Class Codes: A23P 2020/253 Coating food items by printing onto them; Printing layers of food products
• CPC Class Codes: A23P 30/20 Extruding
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 30/00 Apparatus for additive manufacturing; Details thereof or accessories therefor

Abstract

An additive manufacturing system for printing a chocolate confection, the system comprising a platen, a recirculation loop configured to circulate a flow of a chocolate material, and further configured to maintain a temper of the chocolate material; and a print head the print head being configured to receive at least a portion of the chocolate material from the recirculation loop, and further configured to extrude and deposit the chocolate material onto the platen to print at least a portion of the chocolate confection based on the commands from a controller.

Claims

1. An additive manufacturing system for printing a three-dimensional chocolate confection, the additive manufacturing system comprising:

at least one controller configured to receive instructions for printing the three-dimensional chocolate confection, and further configured to relay commands relating to the received instructions;

a platen configured to move in a z direction;

a recirculation loop configured to circulate a flow of a chocolate material, and further configured to maintain a temper and a shear of the flow of the chocolate material wherein the recirculation loop comprises;

a shear tank configured to heat and shear the chocolate material; and

a pump configured to pump the flow of the chocolate material from the shear tank to the print head;

a print head in signal communication with the at least one controller, the print head being configured to receive at least a first portion of the chocolate material from the recirculation loop, and further configured to extrude and deposit the first portion of the chocolate material onto the platen to print at least a portion of the three-dimensional chocolate confection in an x-y build plane such that the portion of the three-dimensional chocolate confection is printed in a layer by layer manner with at least a portion of a subsequent layer printed on top of at least a portion of a previous layer based on the commands from the at least one controller; and

a re-melter configured to receive a second portion of the flowable chocolate material from the print head and to direct the second portion of flowable chocolate material to a reservoir, wherein the re-melter is further configured to heat the second portion of the flowable chocolate material to fully melt the second portion of the flowable chocolate material, and is configured to allow the second portion of the flowable chocolate material to be re-tempered during a print operation to maintain the second portion of the flowable chocolate material in a liquefying temperature.

2. The additive manufacturing system of claim 1, wherein the shear tank is maintained at a set point temperature ranging from about 82°

F. to about 90°

F.

3. The additive manufacturing system of claim 1, wherein the shear tank is configured to receive a cartridge of tempered solid chocolate material.

4. The additive manufacturing system of claim 1, wherein the recirculation loop is configured to re-temper the second portion of the flowable chocolate material in a batch operation.

5. The additive manufacturing system of claim 1, and further comprising a gantry mechanism configured to move the print head along at least one axis relative to the platen.

6. The additive manufacturing system of claim 1, and further comprising a platen gantry configured to move the platen with at least five degrees of freedom.

7. An additive manufacturing system for printing a three-dimensional chocolate confection, the additive manufacturing system comprising:

a recirculation loop configured to circulate a flow of a chocolate material, and further configured to maintain a temper and a shear of the flow of the chocolate material;

a reservoir configured to shear and heat the chocolate material to a temperature ranging from about 82°

F. to about 90°

F. to provide a flowable chocolate material;

a pump configured to pump the flowable chocolate material from the reservoir;

a platen configured for movement in an x-y build plane;

a print head configured to receive the pumped flowable chocolate material, and further configured for movement in a z direction and relative to the platen to extrude a first portion of the received chocolate material in a layer by layer manner for printing at least a portion of the three-dimensional chocolate confection;

a heating line configured to heat the pumped flowable chocolate material as the pumped flowable chocolate material flows through the pump to the print head; and

a re-melter configured to receive a second portion of flowable chocolate material from the print head and to direct the second portion of flowable chocolate material to the reservoir, wherein the re-melter is further configured to heat the second portion of the flowable chocolate material to fully melt the second portion of the flowable chocolate material, and is configured to allow the second portion of the flow of the chocolate material to be re-tempered during a print operation to maintain the second portion of the flowable chocolate material in a liquefying temperature.

8. The additive manufacturing system of claim 7, wherein the temperature that the reservoir is configured to heat the chocolate material to a temperature ranging from about 85°

F. to about 87°

F.

9. The additive manufacturing system of claim 7, wherein the heating line is configured to heat the pumped flowable chocolate material to a temperature ranging from about 87°

F. to about 89°

F.

10. The additive manufacturing system of claim 7, wherein the re-melter is configured to heat the second portion of the flowable chocolate material to a temperature ranging from about 100°

F. to about 110°

F.

11. The additive manufacturing system of claim 7, further comprising a conduit interconnecting the pump and the print head, the conduit being configured to relay the pumped flowable chocolate material from the pump to the print head, and wherein the heating line comprises an outer tube encasing at least a portion of a length of the conduit, the outer tube being configured to relay a heated fluid to the print head.

12. The additive manufacturing system of claim 7, further comprising a temper meter configured to monitor a viscosity of the pumped flowable chocolate material.

13. An additive manufacturing system for printing a three-dimensional chocolate confection in a layer by layer manner, the additive manufacturing system comprising:

at least one controller configured to receive instructions for printing the three-dimensional chocolate confection, and further configured to relay commands relating to the received instructions;

a recirculation loop configured to circulate a flow of a chocolate material, and further configured to maintain a temper and a shear of the flow of the chocolate material;

a platen movable along a z-axis;

a reservoir configured to shear and heat a chocolate material to provide a flowable chocolate material;

a pump configured to pump the flowable chocolate material from the reservoir;

a print head movable relative to the platen and in an x-y build plane in signal communication with the at least one controller, the print head being configured to receive the pumped flowable chocolate material, and further configured to extrude and deposit a first portion of the chocolate material onto the platen to print at least a portion of the three-dimensional chocolate confection based on the commands from the at least one controller, the commands comprising moving the print head in the x-y build plane relative to the platen which is moved incrementally along the z-axis for printing the chocolate confection in a layer by layer manner; and

a re-melter configured to receive a second portion of flowable chocolate material from the print head and to direct the second portion of flowable chocolate material to the reservoir, wherein the re-melter is further configured to heat the second portion of the flowable chocolate material to fully melt the second portion of the flowable chocolate material, and is configured to allow the second portion of the flow of the chocolate material to be re-tempered during a print operation to maintain the second portion of the flowable chocolate material in a liquefying temperature.

14. The additive manufacturing system of claim 13, wherein the reservoir is maintained at a set point temperature ranging from about 28°

C. to about 32°

C.

15. The additive manufacturing system of claim 13, wherein the reservoir is configured to receive a cartridge of tempered solid chocolate material.

16. The additive manufacturing system of claim 13, wherein the print head comprises an auger-based pump.

17. The additive manufacturing system of claim 13, and further comprising a conduit interconnecting the pump and the print head, the conduit being configured to relay the pumped flowable chocolate material from the pump to the print head, and an outer tube encasing at least a portion of a length of the conduit, the outer tube being configured to relay a heated fluid to the print head.

18. The additive manufacturing system of claim 13, and further comprising a temper meter configured to monitor a viscosity of the pumped flowable chocolate material.