US 5,293,663 A · Fluid cleaning system

Abstract

A fluid cleaning system for removing meat particles from a rotating roll of a meat stripping machine with a minimum amount of pressurized fluid and water by sequentially opening and closing individual groups of fixed fluid nozzles located closely adjacent the roll. An air manifold extends longitudinally along the roll and is formed with groups of nozzles, each group being supplied by its own air supply channel. The air supply channels terminate in an annular air distribution chamber which is connected to a source of pressurized air. A disc, formed with at least one opening, is rotated within the chamber for sequentially opening at least one of the supply channels while maintaining the other supply channels closed from the pressurized air source. The roll and disc are driven by the same motor but at different speeds. Since only one group of nozzles is connected to the source of pressurized air at any one time, the supply of pressurized air is less than that required to supply all nozzles at the same time. The nozzle groups produce high velocity, momentary bursts of air longitudinally and circumferentially along and against the rotating roll to dislodge and remove the meat particles from the roll as the roll rotates past the nozzles while stripping skin and particles from a piece of meat. A water supply line also may be connected to each of the air supply channels through a ball check valve to supply a small quantity of water sequentially into the air supply channels for subsequent discharge with the pressurized air against the roll being cleaned.

Claims21

Dependent claims

A cleaning system for removing particles from a rotating roll, said system including:

a manifold formed with a plurality of fixed fluid discharge nozzles extending in a generally axial direction along the roll for directing streams of a pressurized fluid against the rotating roll;
a plurality of fluid supply channels having inlet openings, each of said channels communicating with a selected group of nozzles of said manifold nozzles, for selectively supplying pressurized fluid to each of said selected nozzle groups;
fluid control means for sequentially opening and closing the fluid supply channels whereby only certain of said supply channels are open at the same time and are being supplied with fluid for subsequent discharge through their respective nozzle groups for impingement against the rotating roll, said control means including a rotating disc which sequentially opens and closes the fluid supply channels as it rotates past the fluid inlet openings of said supply channels;
and
drive means for rotating the roll and the disc at different speeds.

2 more elements

An apparatus for cleaning a rotating working member including a plurality of fixed fluid discharge nozzle means extending along the rotating member for directing pressurized fluid against the working member;

a plurality of air supply lines connecting each of the nozzle means to a source of high pressure air;
a rotating control member cooperating with the air supply lines remote from the nozzle means, for sequentially opening and then closing certain of the air supply lines while maintaining certain others of said air supply lines closed to permit high pressure air to be sequentially supplied to only certain of the nozzle means at a given period of time for subsequent impingement against the working member;
a plurality of water supply lines adapted to be connected to a source of pressurized water, each of said water supply lines being operatively connected to a respective one of the air supply lines;
,and check valve means for operatively connecting each of the air supply lines to a respective water supply line to permit a quantity of water to flow into each of the air supply lines when the rotating control member closes the air supply lines from the source of high pressure air, whereby said water is subsequently discharged from the nozzle means by the high pressure air against the rotating working member when the rotating control member opens the respective air supply lines to the source of high pressure air.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Fluid cleaning system

Life of this patent

Fluid cleaning system

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims21