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US 5,861,185 AGranted
Ultrasonic forming of confectionery products
AssigneeMars, Incorporated
InventorRoberto A. Capodieci
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
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AssigneeMars, Incorporated
InventorRoberto A. Capodieci
Estimating the term…
The invention provides for the manufacture of food products. In one preferred form, methods and apparatus are provided for cutting individual confectionery products from a slab or strip of product material into a product with a particular silhouette. In another form, the invention provides methods and apparatus for both cutting and forming individual confectionery products from strips or ropes. The process can be used for simply forming products from pre-cut segments or other blanks of confectionery material, including imparting a relatively precise texture, finish or detail to such products. The products may, but need not, be subsequently enrobed in chocolate or another coating. In still other embodiments, the confectionery material may comprise grains of a puffed cereal. In some instances, a matrix of plasticizable material holds the grains together and the confectionery material may also include, in addition to the puffed cereal, candied fruit bits, dry fruits, nuts, or the like. In some cases, the puffed cereal may be held together by surface contact between adjacent grains instead of being held by the matrix.
A method of forming individual pieces of confectionery product having a characteristic shape and surface finish, said method including the steps of creating an ultrasonic product forming tool having node and ant-inode portions, forming a cavity in the vicinity of said anti-node portion, said cavity having a desired interior shape, surface finish and being defined in part by margins forming at least one cutting edge portion, positioning said forming tool adjacent a continuously advancing strip of confectionery stock moving along a given path, energizing said forming tool so as to cause said cavity surface and said cutting edge to vibrate through a given amplitude at an ultrasonic frequency, and periodically moving said forming tool into contact with and through an end portion of said advancing strip of confectionery stock so as to simultaneously cut said stock into individual pieces, and form each individual piece into a finished confectionery product having a shape and surface finish corresponding to that of said forming tool, and separating each of said pieces thus formed from said strip of confectionery stock.
A flashless molding method for forming a plurality of substantially identical, individual finished confectionery products each having a given finished volume from a continuous supply of a confectionery product feedstock having a given cross-sectional area, taste, consistency and eating characteristics, said method comprising the steps of advancing said continuous supply of confectionery product feedstock, providing a cutting and forming tool having a cutting edge portion and a cavity of a given volume and having interior surfaces of a desired shape and texture, imparting an ultrasonic vibratory motion to said cutting and forming tool, periodically forming sections of said feedstock to the shape and texture of said cavity inner surface and cutting said sections to a length such that, given said cross-sectional area of said feedstock, the volume of each of said cut sections will equal said given volume of said cavity, and whereby said individual finished confectionery products will be substantially flash-free.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.