Laser cut edible decorating sheet and methods of manufacture
OwnerRichard Ellison, Ulrike M. Kogl +1inventors
InventorsRichard Ellison, Ulrike M. Kogl, Megan Leifson
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Abstract
An edible decoration is laser kiss cut from an edible decorating sheet by optically sensing at least one printed edible design on the edible decorating sheet relative to a laser cutting tool coordinate system and driving a laser along a circuit of cutting locations defined in the laser cutting tool coordinate system. The laser beam forms a separation channel by laser ablation of at least a portion of the edible decorating sheet at the cutting locations while leaving intact the non-adhesive releasable backing upon which the edible decorating sheet rests.
Claims11
A method for producing and cutting edible decorations from edible decorating sheets supported by a web of non-adhesive releasable backing sheets using a laser beam included in a laser cutting tool, the method comprising:
- scoring each non-adhesive releasable backing sheet from the web to create a plurality of traction marks on each of the non-adhesive releasable backing sheets to facilitate feeding processes;
- engaging, via a transport element, one or more of the plurality of traction marks on a selected non-adhesive releasable backing sheet of the non-adhesive releasable backing sheets;
- transporting, via the transport element, the selected non-adhesive releasable backing sheet to a decorating sheet deposition module;
- depositing, via the decorating sheet deposition module, one or more base layers of edible material on the selected non-adhesive releasable backing sheet to form an edible decorating sheet;
- engaging, via the transport element, one or more of the plurality of traction marks on the selected non-adhesive releasable backing sheet;
- transporting, via the transport element, the selected non-adhesive releasable backing sheet with the edible decorating sheet from the decorating sheet deposition module to a cutting chamber of the laser cutting tool so that, during laser ablation of the edible decorating sheet, the edible decorating sheet is positioned to be exposed to the laser beam;
- obtaining spatial positions for several datums contained on the edible decorating sheet within the cutting chamber;
- transforming the spatial positions into corresponding positions within a laser cutting tool coordinate system to thereby align the laser cutting tool with the edible decorating sheet;
- steering the laser beam along a circuit of cutting locations defined in the laser cutting tool coordinate system to form, by laser ablation of the edible decorating sheet, a separation channel therein, thereby cutting one or more edible decorations from the edible decorating sheet while leaving the selected non-adhesive releasable backing intact;
- and
- after cutting the one or more edible decorations from the edible decorating sheet, cutting the portion of the selected releasable backing sheet supporting the edible decorating sheet from the web to form a freestanding sheet of non-adhesive releasable backing carrying the one or more edible decorations.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.