Double lift tank wine press
AssigneeTherma Corporation, Inc.
InventorThomas A. Lorincz
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A wine making apparatus includes an engaging mechanism for engaging a fermentation tank, and a press mechanism for pressing the wine making ingredients in the tank against an inner surface of the tank. In a described embodiment a tank has a pair of forklift attachment points and a movable platform on a wine press mechanism is adapted for receiving the forklift attachment points. A lifting apparatus raises the platform and tank such that the contents of the tank are crushed by a relatively fixed plate above the tank. A pair of hydraulic rams are connected in series such that fluid output from one raises the other, thereby assuring that the platform and tank are evenly raised.
Claims40
A wine pressing apparatus, comprising:
- an engaging mechanism adapted to engage a tank;
- and
- a press mechanism coupled to said engaging mechanism for pressing contents of said tank against an inner surface of said tank;
- and wherein
- said press mechanism includes a perforated press plate for placement within said tank, whereby said contents of said tank can be pressed between said press plate and said inner surface of said tank.
A wine pressing apparatus, comprising:
- a frame;
- a perforated press plate affixed to said frame, said perforated press plate including a plurality of perforations distributed over a majority of a pressing surface of said press plate;
- a lifting mechanism for lifting a tank such that said tank moves relative to said press plate and further such that said press plate is caused to enter said tank as said tank moves upward.
A wine press mechanism, comprising:
- an open top tank;
- a press plate;
- a plurality of upright supports;
- and
- a lifting platform moveably coupled to said upright supports, said lifting platform for receiving said tank and further for raising said tank toward the press plate;
- and wherein
- said upright supports are spaced apart such that said tank can be placed between said upright supports;
- and
- said lifting platform and said press plate are positioned such that said tank can be placed on said lifting platform and under said press plate when said lifting platform is in a lowered position.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.