US 5,208,050 AGranted

Mixing orifice extruder

OwnerRobert J. Neyinventor

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

A frozen yoghurt or ice cream dispensing system is presented. This system costs a small fraction that of the state of the art dispensing system, yet it is more versatile and puts out a better product, than the state of the art systems. A pre-formed "hard" frozen single serving of the base confection and fresh flavoring additives are loaded into an extrusion cup. At the actuation of a hand crank, or a power drive switch, a rotating cutter/sweeper on a retractable shaft, penetrates the confection charge and chops, softens, and mixes it. After this cutter engages the bottom of said cup, a piston traverses the loading cup bore, and the charge is extruded through a multi-aperture orifice, at the bottom of the extrusion cup. Shearing and additional mixing occurs, during the interaction of the rotating cutter and the multi-aperture orifice. An automatic rinse cycle is also built into the device, to eliminate flavor mixing between various batches of confections, and to save labor.

Claims6

Dependent claims

A food mixing, chopping and extruding apparatus comprising:

a cylindrical cup having an extrusion orifice in its bottom wall, said extrusion orifice comprising a solid core centrally located in said bottom wall and supported by thin web-like members, the spaces between said web-like members forming individual extrusion apertures in close proximity to each other such that extrudate flowing from said apertures join together to form one integral stream;
a piston cooperating with said cylindrical cup and actuated by a press for pressurizing a food charge;
and a rotating cutter and agitator device coaxial with said extrusion orifice and mounted on a retractable drive shaft keyed to a drive barrel;
wherein the apparatus further comprises a spring biasing said drive shaft in the extended position and a torque-actuated detent mechanism to hold said drive shaft in the extended position, whereby torque produced by the resistance of the food charge on the rotating cutter and agitator device actuates said detent mechanism, holding said drive shaft in the extended position.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 07/363,132Filed 7 Jun 1989
Granted: 4 May 1993
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification7 codes

B01F 27/805
With stirrers rotating about a substantially vertical axis: wherein the stirrers or the receptacles are moved in order to bring them into…
A23G 9/045
Production of frozen sweets, e.g. ice-cream: of slush-ice, e.g. semi-frozen beverage
A23G 9/283
At the discharge end of freezing chambers: for filling containers with material
A23G 9/285
At the discharge end of freezing chambers: for extruding strips, cutting blocks and manipulating cut blocks