Food production apparatus, the production of food and novel food product

Food production apparatus comprising:

• (a) a supporting frame structure;
• (b) a conveyor system supported thereon, said conveyor system comprising a rotary table rotationally mounted on said supporting frame structure, said rotary table being adapted to convey material thereon at a discrete location along the circumference of said rotary table along a circular path past a plurality of work stations;
• (c) intermittent rotating means for intermittently rotationally moving said rotary table and hence said discrete location from one work station to the next, downstream, work station;
• (d) a dough sheet feeding mechanism, said mechanism having means thereon for intermittently loading a square-shaped sheet of dough at a diamond orientation onto a first said discrete location on said rotary table while said rotary table is stationary;
• (e) at least one foodstuff loading mechanism at one work station downstream from said dough sheet feeding mechanism, said foodstuff loading mechanism being operable to load foodstuff onto discrete regions of said sheet of dough while said sheet of dough is resting on discrete location on said rotary table and while said rotary table is stationary;
• (f) a loaded dough sheet folding mechanism at a work station downstream from said foodstuff loading work station, said loaded dough sheet folding mechanism being operable to provide a substantially-hexagonally-shaped, overlapped-folded, loaded sheet of dough at said work station, while said rotary table is stationary;
• (g) a loaded folded dough sheet rolling mechanism at a work station downstream from said loaded dough sheet folding work station, and operable to provide a generally-cylindrical, overlapped-folded, loaded, rolled dough product, while said rotary table is stationary;
• (h) discharging means at said loaded folded dough sheet rolling work station for discharging said product from said rotary table;
• and (i) means to synchronize the intermittent rotary movement of said rotary table with the sequential operation of said dough sheet feeding mechanism, with said foodstuff loading mechanism, with said loaded dough sheet folding mechanism, with said loaded folded dough sheet rolling mechanism and with said discharge means.

In a food production apparatus including a supporting frame, a plurality of stations disposed in seriatim with respect to said frame, said stations including a object of dough feeding station, at least one mechanism for loading foodstuff on said sheet of dough, a loaded sheet of dough folding station and a loaded, folded sheet of dough rolling station, the improvements in said sheet of dough rolling station comprising:

• a support tray for supporting said loaded, folded sheet of dough;
• means adapted to be mechanically actuated to grip a loaded, folded sheet of dough and for depositing said loaded, folded sheet of dough on said support tray;
• means adapted to be mechanically actuated to arrange said deposited loaded, folded sheet of dough properly on said support tray;
• means adapted to be mechanically actuated to release said loaded, folded sheet of dough;
• means adapted to be electronically actuated to provide a tuck in said loaded, folded sheet of dough;
• and fabric means operatively associated with means on said supporting tray, adapted to be mechanically actuated to roll said tucked-overlapped loaded, folded sheet of dough within itself, to provide said overlapped-folded filled rolled food product.

In a food production apparatus, including a supporting frame structure, a rotary table mounted for rotation thereon, a sheet of dough feeding station at a discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table, at least one mechanism for loading foodstuff on a sheet of dough at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table downstream thereof, a loaded sheet of dough folding mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table downstream thereof, a loaded folded sheet of dough rolling mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table downstream thereof, and discharge means at another discrete site along said circumference of the rotary table downstream thereof, the improvements comprising:

• a rolling tray provided with a transverse semi-cylindrical trough therein;
• a rolling fabric secured at one end to one longitudinal edge of said rolling tray, said rolling fabric passing over a pair of spaced-apart rollers on a movable carriage and being secured to the opposite longitudinal edge of said rolling tray;
• means to cause said carriage to roll across said rolling tray in an actuating direction towards said trough;
• a front crimp finger assembly adapted to be actuated by cylinder means to urge said front crimp finger forwardly upon a portion of the rolling fabric in sliding engagement with said trough;
• a rear crimp finger assembly adapted to be actuated to urge said rear crimp finger rearwardly across a portion of such rolling fabric in sliding engagement with said trough;
• and means to grip a folded, loaded sheet of dough and for releasing a rolled folded loaded sheet of dough.

For use with a food production apparatus including a supporting frame structure, a rotary table mounted for rotation thereon, a dough sheet feeding station at a discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table, at least one foodstuff loading mechanism for loading foodstuff on a sheet of dough at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table at a site downstream thereof, a dough sheet folding mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary conveyor at a site downstream thereof, a loaded, folded dough sheet rolling mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table at a site downstream thereof, and discharge means at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table, the improvement wherein:

• said dough sheet feeding apparatus at said dough sheet feeding station is in the form of a pair of dough trays adapted to be rotated in opposite directions, each said rotatable dough tray being divided into a plurality of equal sectors;
• means for lifting a single sheet of dough from each of said dough trays and for depositing said lifted sheet of dough onto one of a respective pair of adjacent tiltable trays secured to said rotary table;
• and a plurality of equally-spaced-apart lugs depending from the bottom of each of said dough trays, said lugs being adapted to abut an oscillating rod end of an indexing pneumatic cylinder, so as to stop the rotation of each said dough tray at an exact predetermined position.

For use with a food production apparatus including a supporting frame structure, a rotary table mounted for rotation thereon, a dough sheet feeding station at a discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table, at least one foodstuff loading mechanism for loading foodstuff on a sheet of dough at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table at a site downstream thereof, a dough sheet folding mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary conveyor at a site downstream thereof, a loaded, folded dough sheet rolling mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table at a site downstream thereof, and discharge means at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table, the improvement wherein:

• said foodstuff loading mechanism includes a cheese slicing and spreading mechanism including a storage facility for said cheese;
• a transversely-slidable cheese slicing wire;
• a manually-operable depth gauge associated with said cheese slicing wire;
• and a cheese loading tray associated with said cheese slicing wire;
• whereby slices of cheese of a selected thickness are sliced by sliding movement of said cheese slicing wire across stationary said cheese.

For use with a food production apparatus including a supporting frame structure, a rotary table mounted for rotation thereon, a dough sheet feeding station at a discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table, at least one foodstuff loading mechanism for loading foodstuff on a sheet of dough at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table at a site downstream thereof, a dough sheet folding mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary conveyor at a site downstream thereof, a loaded, folded dough sheet rolling mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table at a site downstream thereof, and discharge means at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table, the improvement wherein:

• said dough sheet folding mechanism comprises a dough sheet folding apparatus associated with a well in said rotary table which includes:
• a pair of arms, each arm being hingedly connected at a respective shoulder thereof to the lower surface of said rotary table adjacent an associated radially extending edge of each said well, and arm each being hingedly connected at an elbow thereof to an associated forearm, said elbows being adapted to be urged upwardly, to cause said forearms to be extended upwardly above said well and then to be folded downwardly atop an associated tiltable tray secured to an associate said well.

An improved tuckrolling apparatus for a machine for the manufacture of overlapped-folded, filled, rolled food products, comprising:

• a supporting frame structure, a rotary table mounted for rotation thereon, a sheet of dough feeding station at a discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table, at least one mechanism for loading foodstuff on a sheet of dough at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table downstream thereof, a loaded sheet of dough folding mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table downstream thereof, a loaded folded sheet of dough rolling mechanism at another discrete site along the circumference of said rotary table downstream thereof, and discharge means at another discrete site along the circumference of the rotary table downstream thereof, the improvements comprising:
• a rolling tray provided with a transverse semi-cylindrical trough therein;
• a rolling fabric secured at one end to one longitudinal edge of said rolling tray, said rolling fabric passing over a pair of spaced-apart rollers on a movable carriage and being secured to the opposite longitudinal edge of said rolling tray;
• means to cause said carriage to roll across said rolling tray in an actuating direction towards said trough;
• a front crimp finger assembly adapted to be actuated by cylinder means to urge said front crimp finger forwardly upon a portion of the rolling fabric in sliding engagement with said trough;
• a rear crimp finger assembly adapted to be actuated to urge said rear crimp finger rearwardly across a portion of such rolling fabric in sliding engagement with said trough;
• and means to grip a folded, loaded sheet of dough and for releasing a rolled folded loaded sheet of dough.