Integrated compact food process line and process

An integrated food process line comprising:

• a multiplicity of food-product carrying trays for holding and carrying food product;
• a plurality of operative cells, each having a track forming a horizontal circuit for defining a pathway for a series of said trays to travel in laps around such pathway, said cells defining enclosed centers;
• said cells including mounting structure to stack together in vertically-stacked combinations, multi-variously as desired, to form a tower, wherein said enclosed centers cooperatively define a hollow core for said tower;
• a drive system for said trays disposed externally of said cells for motivating said trays in laps around the respective tracks in which a respective series is situated in and for causing transfer of food product from a given tray in one level to a corresponding tray in another level;
• an assortment of delivery systems for associating with one or more cells, including any of raw food-product delivery from a supply thereof, dust-material delivery from a supply thereof, breading material delivery from a supply thereof, batter delivery from a supply thereof, thermal delivery from a source or supply thereof, refrigerant delivery from a source or supply thereof, and/or packaging-material delivery from a supply thereof;
• a corresponding assortment of cell/delivery-system coupling systems which afford a variety of tower constructions any one of which can process an infeed of food product through a sequence of operations including combinations of any of cooking, pre-dusting, batter application, breading, frying, freezing, and/or packaging.