JPH022260Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed explanation of the invention] (Field of industrial application) This invention is a tempura material made by mixing ingredients such as shrimp, thin squid pieces, and vegetable pieces into a paste-like dough made of flour and fish paste. This invention relates to an automatic tempura frying machine that continuously frys tofu in an oil tank.

(Prior art) This type of automatic tempura frying machine was developed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 1973-
There is one disclosed in Publication No. 57870.

This tempura frying machine has a horizontal bucket conveyor that receives and transfers a fixed amount of paste-like tempura material into a bucket and throws it into an oil tank, and a belt conveyor equipped with a large number of saucers that circulates inside the oil tank. The tempura ingredients supplied in fixed quantities to each bucket on the horizontal bucket conveyor are transferred to the oil tank as the bucket rotates downward from the end of the upper linear moving part of the bucket conveyor to the starting end of the lower linear moving part. The tempura ingredients are placed on the upper surface of a tray on a belt conveyor moving through oil, and the tempura ingredients on each tray are transferred into the oil and brought to a semi-fried state.

(Problem to be solved by the invention) In this conventional tempura frying machine, as described above, a bucket conveyor is used to transfer the paste-like tempura material supplied to each bucket in a fixed quantity to the upper linear moving part of the bucket conveyor. When the bucket rotates downward to make a U-turn from the end of the bucket, the tempura ingredients are discharged from the rotating bucket and dropped onto each saucer on a belt conveyor moving in oil. Since the contents of the bucket are not solid but a paste-like fluid, they are expelled all at once when the bucket turns into a certain sideways position, for example, when it turns from a vertical position to a sideways position. Rather, the contents are discharged during the transition from the stage before reaching this sideways position to this sideways position or further turned stage, and furthermore, the rotation of each bucket is not due to rotation, but rather due to sprocket etc. Since the rotation is centered around the rotation axis of the conveyor drive wheel and the radius of rotation is quite large, the tempura material that is dropped from each bucket of this bucket conveyor onto the belt conveyor in the oil tank is discharged as the bucket rotates. Due to the change in position, the tempura ingredients are dropped spread out over a considerable length in the longitudinal direction of the conveyor, so the tray on this belt conveyor has a fairly large receiving surface for the amount of tempura ingredients being dropped. Therefore, the number of trays disposed on this belt conveyor is limited. In addition, in this case, the tempura material discharged from the bucket is dropped into oil, received by a flat tray on a belt conveyor, and then fried as is, so the finished tempura product is extremely rough in shape. You can only get things with a fixed shape.

In addition, in this tempura frying machine, each bucket of the bucket conveyor drops the tempura ingredients through oil onto a tray on the belt conveyor, and then moves along the lower linear moving part of the conveyor while facing vertically. Therefore, during this movement, the residue of the paste-like tempura material falls directly into the oil from each bucket in the downward vertical position, resulting in the inconvenience that a large amount of fried crumbs are generated in the oil.

The object of the present invention is to provide an automatic tempura frying machine that can solve the problems of the conventional tempura frying machine as described above.

(Means for Solving the Problems) That is, the tempura frying machine 5 of this invention is attached to an endless chain 9 for driving around the forming mold, circulates in the oil tank 1a, and transfers the stored tempura ingredients to the oil 29.
It is equipped with a large number of molds 10 for molding by immersion therein, and an endless chain 6 for driving the cup around.
A part of the linear moving part in the chain 6 is disposed in parallel with a part of the linear moving part in the forming mold rotation driving chain 9 in close proximity, and one end side is disposed in the forming mold circulation driving chain 6. The parallel moving part M of both chains 6 and 9 is pivoted at
It is equipped with a large number of transfer cups 7 that rotate in synchronization with the mold and transport the quantitatively supplied tempura material to the addition position A directly above the mold 10,
A guide pin 17 is attached to each transfer cup 7, and a guide rail 18 is arranged along the orbit of the transfer cup 7 to slide on the guide pin 17 and support the transfer cup 7 in a horizontal state. At position A, there is a section C ₁ where guide rail 18 is not installed.
is provided, and an upwardly inclined portion 18b for return is formed on the guide rail 18 following the non-arranged section _C1 , and the guide pin 17 comes off the guide rail 18 at the addition position and rotates downward under its own weight from the transfer cup 7. When the tempura material is added to the mold 10 directly below, the transfer cup 7 after the addition returns to the horizontal state via the upwardly inclined portion 18b of the guide rail 18.

(Example) This invention will be explained below based on the illustrated example.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 1 denotes a horizontally long box-shaped oil tank body, in which a net conveyor 2 is arranged with the main part of its lower forward moving part side 2a shallowly immersed in oil. At the same time, a paddle conveyor 3 is installed at the front, and an inclined net conveyor 4 extending from the oil to the product outlet 1a is installed at the rear. Reference numeral 5 denotes a tempura material addition device, in which a large number of transfer cups 7 are attached to an endless chain 6 for driving the cups around. Reference numeral 8 denotes a tempura raw material molding device, in which a large number of molds 10 are attached to an endless chain 9 for driving the molds around, which is disposed on the oil tank body 1b.

Both the chains 6 and 9 of the addition device 5 and the forming device 8 are arranged so that a portion of their respective linear moving parts are parallel to each other in close proximity to each other, and are connected via a synchronous transmission part 11 by gear transmission or chain transmission. They are designed to be driven synchronously. Note that a parallel movement portion in which a portion of each linear movement of both chains 6 and 9 is close to and parallel to each other is indicated by M in the figure. The mold 10 is a parallel moving part M of both chains 6 and 10.
The parallel moving portion M is located directly below the transfer cup 7 and is set to move synchronously, and there is an addition position A at which the tempura material is transferred from the transfer cup 7 to the mold 10. Further, a discharge position B of the molded material is set on the opposite side of the orbit of the mold 10 from the addition position A and close to the paddle conveyor 3. 12 is an air nozzle installed just before the paddle conveyor 3 in the oil tank 1b; 13 is a material supply device that supplies a fixed amount of pasty dough such as flour or fish paste from a piston type injection part 13a to the transfer cup 7; and 14 is a transfer device. This is a water washing device for cup 7. 15 is an addition device 5 and a material supply device 13
It is a trolley to which an oil tank body 1 is attached, and can be moved away from the oil tank body 1 during repairs, inspections, cleaning, etc.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the transfer cup 7
is formed of aluminum die-casting or the like into a container shape that is approximately inverted triangular in side view and approximately rectangular in plan view and is open upward, and has protrusions 7a and 7b at the lower front and near the rear of the bottom, respectively, and has a front protrusion. It is rotatably connected to the chain 6 via a horizontal pivot pin 16 pivotally connected to the lower protrusion 7a.
A horizontal guide pin 17 fixed to b is connected to a guide rail 1 disposed along the orbit of the transfer cup 7.
By placing it on 8, it is kept in a horizontal state.

The horizontal pivot pin 16 has a narrow diameter portion 16a at one end inserted into a mounting bracket 6a fixed to the chain 6 and fixed by tightening with bolts 19, 19, and a narrow diameter portion 16b at the other end has a base portion. Stopper pin 16
c protrudes in the radial direction, has a circumferential groove 16d on the tip side, and has a circumferential groove 1 on the circumferential surface from the tip to an intermediate position between the circumferential groove 16d and the stopper pin 16c.
A cutout flat surface 16e is formed which is on the same level as the bottom surface of 6d. On the other hand, the forward protrusion 7 of the transfer cup 7
a has a circular hole 20 corresponding to the narrow diameter portion 16b of the pivot pin 16, and a vertical locking pin 20a is embedded in the front protrusion 7a so as to pass through a part of the circular hole 20. A notch 20b is provided in the upper half of the protrusion 7a at a position corresponding to the stopper pin 16c of the pivot pin 16 in the fitted state. Therefore, the pivot pin 16 is connected to the surface of the cutout flat surface 16e and the locking pin 20.
The narrow diameter portion 16b is inserted into the circular hole 20 at a relative angle where the directions of a coincide with each other, that is, at an angle where the rear part of the transfer cup 7 is lifted and the stopper pin 16c comes into contact with the front surface of the transfer cup 7, as shown by the imaginary line in FIG. It can be inserted, and is set so that the locking pin 20a and the circumferential groove 16d are in the circumferential position in this inserted state. Therefore, if the transfer cup 7 is placed in a horizontal state as shown by the solid line in FIG. And it becomes possible to rotate around the pivot pin. Furthermore, if it becomes necessary to remove the transfer cup 7, it is only necessary to lift the rear part of the transfer cup 7 into the same position as when it was inserted and inserted as described above, and it can be easily pulled out from the pivot pin 16.

In addition, 17a is a retaining ring for the guide pin 17, 22 is an angle member that serves as a mounting base for the guide rail 18, 22a is a U-shaped bracket for mounting the same, and 6d is a roller attached to the lower surface of the chain 6. It is in rolling contact with the rail 5a made of angle material. Reference numeral 21 denotes a guide rail supported at the intermediate portion of the pivot pin 16, and the angle member 2
1a, the transfer cup 7 is disposed over its entire orbit.

As shown in FIG. 6, the guide rail 18 has a non-disposed section _C1 at the addition position A, and a stepped upward section having a horizontal portion lower than the normal height in the forward direction of movement of the transfer cup 7. Inclined part 18
a, it returns to its normal height at the flushing device 14 position, and further ahead there is another non-installation section _C2 , and following this, it returns to its normal height after passing through a straight upward slope for return 18b. It returns to the height, and this height is maintained until it passes under the material supply device 13 and reaches the addition position A.

That is, in the case of the above-mentioned addition device 5, the material supply device 13 supplies a fixed amount of tempura material, which is a paste of dough such as flour or fish paste, to each transfer cup 7. Next, while the transfer cups 7 reach the addition position A, ingredients such as shrimp, squid, vegetables, etc. are added to each transfer cup 7. Incidentally, these ingredients may be mixed into the dough in advance as long as they do not lose their shape. As shown in FIG. 6, at the addition position A, the transfer cup 7, which had been moving horizontally until then, rotates downward under its own weight around the pivot pin 16 as the guide pin 17 comes off the guide rail 18. Then, the stored tempura material flows down into the mold 10 which is being synchronously driven directly below. Next, the empty molded cup 7 rotates slightly upward as the guide pin 17 comes into contact with the step-like upwardly sloped portion 18a of the guide rail 18, and the molded cup 7 is checked to see if there is any adhered residue such as a lump. The residue is then dropped with a brush or the like onto a waste receptacle 23 provided at the end of the oil tank 1c, and then the oil tank 1c is returned to its normal horizontal state and water is injected by a water washing device 14. The injected water dissolves the remaining tempura ingredients adhering to the inner surface, and is discharged downward in the next non-disposed section _C2 by rotating the transfer cup 7 downward in the same manner as described above. Ru. Subsequently, the guide pin 17 of the transfer cup 7 comes into contact with the returning inclined portion 18b of the guide rail 18, and returns to the original horizontal state, and thereafter the same operation as described above is repeated.

On the other hand, the mold rotation driving chain 9 of the molding device 8 is composed of an upper chain 9a and a lower chain 9b with rollers, as shown in FIG. Two upper and lower mounting members 25 and 26 are fitted into each guide shaft 24 so as to be movable up and down. The mold 10 also includes a short cylindrical body 10a having a flange portion on the outer periphery of the upper edge and forming a peripheral wall portion.
and a circular bottom plate 10b independent of this,
It is configured in a cup shape that is open upwards. A circular ring 10c having an inner diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the flange portion of the cylindrical body 10a is fitted onto the cylindrical body 10a. Further, the bottom plate 10b is fixed to the lower end of a band plate 26a that hangs down from the lower mounting member 26. In addition, mounting member 2
5 has a guide roller 25b, and the mounting member 26 has a guide pin 26b projecting inward, and a sliding member 10d is fixed to the lower surface of the mounting base of the bottom plate 10c.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2, the molding device 8 includes a guide that slopes upward, passes through a horizontal portion, and slopes downward sequentially along the advancing direction of the mold 10 from before the discharge position B to before the addition position A. rail 27
is arranged on which the guide roller 25b of the mounting member 25 rolls. Further, a guide rail 28 is arranged on the bottom surface of the oil tank 1b along the orbit of the mold 10, and the sliding member 10d of the bottom plate 10b is set to be in sliding contact with the guide rail 28, and the above-mentioned The upper surface height of the portion where the guide rail 28 is provided is set low.

Therefore, at the addition position A, the mold 10 takes the form of a container in which the cylindrical body 10a is placed under its own weight on the bottom plate 10b. The tempura material flowing in from the cup 7 is moved while being immersed in the oil 29. During this moving process, the tempura material is primarily fried and solidified, forming a shaped material that conforms to the inner surface shape of the cylinder 10a, here a circular shape.
Next, when the mold 10 reaches the discharge position B, the guide roller 25b rolls into contact with the guide rail 27 as shown in the phantom line in FIG. 3, the ring 10c rises, and the cylinder 10a is also supported by this. As the bottom plate 10b descends as it leaves the oil surface, it is divided into upper and lower parts. As a result, the molded material inside the mold separates from the mold and becomes a floating state, and is guided by the wind pressure of the air nozzle 12 and sent to the bottom of the net conveyor 2 via the paddle conveyor 3.
The tempura products are conveyed to the rear of the oil tank body 1 while being submerged under the oil surface by the net conveyor 2, and are fried for a second time during this conveyance process, and then pulled up from the oil 29 by the net conveyor 4, and the tempura products are taken out from the outlet 1a. is extracted as

In addition, in this invention, various design changes can be made to the detailed configuration, such as the structure of the mold, other than those of the above-mentioned embodiments. Further, the inspection section and cleaning section of the transfer cup may be omitted or a method other than the one shown in the example may be adopted. Furthermore, this invention can be similarly applied to an automatic tempura frying machine that produces tempura products as soon as they are discharged from the mold.

(Operations and effects of the invention) The automatic tempura frying machine of this invention has a chain for driving around the forming mold and a chain for driving around the cup, which are arranged so that a part of each linear moving part is close to each other and parallel to each other. At the same time, in this parallel movement section, both chains are driven so that each transfer cup is located directly above each mold (addition position) and moves in synchronization, and a guide pin is attached to each transfer cup. and a guide rail that supports the transfer cup in a horizontal state by slidingly contacting the guide pin is arranged along the orbit of the transfer cup, and a section where no guide rail is provided is provided at the above-mentioned addition position, and An upward slope for return is formed on the guide rail following the non-disposed section, so that the guide pin comes off the guide rail at the addition position and the tempura material is added into the mold directly below from the transfer cup which rotates downward under its own weight. Along with the eggplant, the transfer cup after addition returns to a horizontal state through the upwardly inclined part of the guide rail, so the paste-like tempura material fed in a fixed amount into the transfer cup is added into the mold. In this process, the transfer cup rotates downward with a minimum radius of rotation about the pivot point at one end of the transfer cup, thereby accurately and quickly transferring the pasty tempura material in the transfer cup to the mold below. In this case, the transfer cup and the mold move in synchronization and run in parallel, so after the transfer cup has finished rotating downward and once the contents have been introduced into the mold. Even if the pasty residue in the transfer cup drips, it can be received as is into the mold, so that no excess fried residue is left in the oil in the oil tank. In addition, as mentioned above, the transfer cup rotates downward at the minimum rotation radius around its own pivot point and spits out the contents, so the mold that receives the paste-like tempura material at the bottom. can sufficiently accommodate objects of the same size as the transfer cups, and therefore the pitch of the transfer cups and molds attached to each chain can be made as narrow as possible, allowing for a larger number of transfer cups and molds to be accommodated. It is extremely advantageous for mass producing tempura products.

In addition, the tempura material added from each transfer cup into each mold is directly molded into a predetermined shape within the mold, making it possible to obtain high-quality tempura products that are beautiful in shape and do not lose their shape. In addition, by changing the mold, tempura products of a desired shape can be manufactured.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

The drawings show an embodiment of the device for adding tempura material to the mold of the automatic tempura frying machine according to this invention, in which Figure 1 is a schematic longitudinal sectional front view of the main parts of the automatic tempura frying machine as a whole, and Figure 2 is the addition device. A schematic plan view of the main parts including the device, FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the main parts at the synchronized part of the transfer cup and the mold, FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway front view showing the mounting state of the mold cup, and FIG. 5 6 is a plan view showing the molded cup in a removed state, and FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the operation of the molded cup. 1a...oil tank, 5...addition device, 6...chain for driving around the cup, 7...transfer cup, 9...
...Chain for driving around the mold, 10...Mold, 17...Guide pin, 18...Guide rail, 18b...Upward slope for return, 29...
Oil, A...addition position, C ₁ ...non-installed section, M...
...Parallel moving part of both chains 6 and 9.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] It is equipped with a large number of molds that are attached to an endless chain for driving the molds and circulate in an oil tank, and immerse and mold the stored tempura ingredients in the oil.
An endless chain for driving around the cup is disposed such that a part of the linearly moving part of the chain is close to and parallel to a part of the linearly moving part of the chain for driving around the mold, and this mold A large number of parts are pivotally connected at one end to the orbiting drive chain, and rotate in synchronization with the mold in the parallel moving parts of both chains, and transport the fixed amount of tempura material to the addition position directly above the mold. A guide pin is attached to each transfer cup, and a guide rail is disposed along the orbit of the transfer cup to slide on the guide pin and support the transfer cup in a horizontal state. A section where a guide rail is not installed is provided at the position, and an upward slope for return is formed on the guide rail following the section where the guide rail is not installed, and the guide pin comes off from the guide rail at the added position and rotates downward under its own weight. An automatic tempura frying machine characterized in that the tempura material is added from the transfer cup to the mold directly below, and the transfer cup after addition returns to a horizontal state via the upwardly inclined portion of the guide rail. .