Co-forming apparatus for food patty molding machine
AssigneeFormax, Inc.
InventorScott A. Lindee
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A co-forming apparatus for molding dual-ingredient food patties in a molding machine of the kind having a mold plate disposed intermediate two mold covers and driven cyclically between a fill position and a discharge position; first and second food ingredients are pumped through first and second fill passages, in one or both mold covers, into separate parts of a mold cavity in the mold plate when that plate is in its fill position. A tubular separator piston in the second fill passage moves into and out of the mold cavity, in synchronism with the cyclic mold plate movement, to maintain separation between the first and second parts of the mold cavity during filling.
Claims17
Co-forming apparatus for the molding station of a food patty molding machine of the kind comprising:
- a mold plate, including a mold cavity, movable along a given path between a fill position, in which the opposite sides of the mold cavity are covered by first and second mold covers, and a discharge position, in which the mold cavity is clear of the mold covers;
- mold plate drive means for cyclically driving the mold plate between its fill and discharge positions;
- a first fill passage, through one of the mold covers, aligned with the mold cavity fill position;
- and first pump means for pumping a first food ingredient through the first fill passage into a first part of the mold cavity;
- the co-forming apparatus comprising:
- a second fill passage, through one of the mold covers, aligned with the mold cavity fill position;
- second pump means for pumping a second food ingredient through the second fill passage into a second part of the mold cavity;
- a tubular separator member movably mounted in the second fill passage;
- and separator drive means for driving the separator member between a separator fill position in which the separator extends into the mold cavity fill position and separates the second part of the mold cavity from the first part, and a separator discharge position in which the separator member is clear of the mold plate.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.