Hydro-cutter
AssigneeUniversal Frozen Foods, Inc.
InventorsClyde E. Foster, George R. Alcorn
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The present invention relates generally to a cutting system for vegetables, including potatoes, which includes a water system for moving the item to be cut along a tubular passageway and through a cutting mechanism. The system includes a water bypass arrangement which is controllable to provide a constant velocity so that the flow of product to the cutting knife is maintained at a desirable level. Alignment fingers may also be provided to prevent rotation of the uncut product and centering thereof as the cutting knife is approached. After the product is cut, the pieces pass into an outlet section where water from the bypass system may be injected to achieve, in the preferred embodiment, coil separation when the device is used for cutting helical strips of potatoes.
Claims11
A method for cutting a food product comprising the steps of:
- introducing the food product into a tapered tube with a water carrier, the tube having a gradually decreasing cross-sectional area;
- passing the food product from the tapered tube into an elongate, generally cylindrical tube having an axis, aligning the food product, while it is in the generally cylindrical tube, with a cutting knife, the cutting knife being a rotating cutting knife adapted to cut helical strips from the food product and the knife is rotated when food product is passed therethrough;
- passing the food product through the cutting knife to create a cut food product of a helical configuration and moving the cut food product into a chamber;
- and
- causing at least a portion of the carrier water to flow around the cutting knife and into the chamber.
A device for cutting a food product comprising:
- a feed tube which gradually decreases in cross-sectional area from an inlet to an outlet;
- a water pump for introducing water and food product into the tube inlet;
- a flow control system at the outlet of the tube including a generally cylindrical section having an inlet coupled to the tube outlet, an axis and an outlet;
- a cutting knife located adjacent the section outlet, the cutting knife being a rotating cutting knife arranged to cut helical strips from the food product;
- a chamber downstream of the knife;
- and
- water flow control means for causing at least a portion of the water entering the section to bypass the cutting knife and flow into the chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.