Conveyor for individual pieces of food

• US 5,234,098 A
• Filed: 11/23/1992
• Issued: 08/10/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 11/22/1991
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Scanvaegt A/S
• Original Assignee: Scanvaegt A/S
• Inventors: Pedersen, Bjorn H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dayoan, D. Glenn
• Application Number:
  US07/980,296
• Time in Patent Office: 260 Days
• Field of Search: 198/533, 198/611, 198/803.16, 198/836.3
• US Class Current: 198/533
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 47/1421 Vibratory movement
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 47/1457 Rotating movement in the plane of the rotating part
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 47/682 from a single conveyor lane consisting of one conveyor or several adjacent conveyors

Abstract

In particular in the food industry it is needed to provide a regular stream of in themselves irregular pieces, e.g. for weighing and packing, from a store of partly congealed deep frozen food. According to the invention the randomly discharged pieces from the store are delivered to the central area of a revolving table, immediately above which there is disposed an essentially stationary spiral-shaped body which due to the rotation of the table conducts the pieces outwards, thereby increasing their mutual distance, in order for them to be discharged in a single file to a conveyor. The spiral-shaped body is supported and driven to perform a horizontal shaking movement whereby disintegrating congealed lumps of food, so that their constituent parts may equally be distributed evenly along the spiral track. In case the pieces at full capacity are discharged without mutual separation such a separation may be obtained by discharging them to a conveyor having a speed which is faster than the peripheral speed of the rotating table.

Claims

1. A process for converting a stream of randomly supplied units, in particular hard, frozen pieces of food, consisting of individual pieces and possibly lumps of congealed pieces, into a single file of spaced pieces, comprising supplying the pieces or lumps of pieces to the centre of a revolving table above which there is provided a stationary spiral-shaped body which due to the rotation of the table conducts the centrally supplied pieces outwards while increasing the distance between the pieces and causing disintegration of lumps of pieces, said pieces being discharged from the outer end of the spiral to a discharge conveyor, the spiral-shaped body being forced to perform such lateral movements that its walls subject the pieces or lumps to a sideways shaking for breaking any lumps.

2. An apparatus for use in the process according to claim 1, comprising a revolving table with an essentiallly stationary spiral-shaped body disposed immediately above the table which due to the rotation of the table generates an outwardly conveying spiral track for pieces fed to a central area of the table and the spiral-shaped body, the spiral track having a tangential discharge in the proximity of which there are conveyor means for removal of the pieces fed from the spiral track, said spiral-shaped body being supported and controlled in such a manner that it may perform horizontal shaking movements, in particular paracyclic movements.

3. An apparatus according to claim 2, in which the spiral-shaped body consists of a strip on edge which is fixed to a number of radial arms and which preferably rests directly on the rotating table.