Apparatus and method for molding food particles

#This invention relates to an apparatus and method of molding food particles into edible coherent products. More particularly, the invention involves compressing and baking food particles to yield shaped products such as pie shells.

#Illustrative of an edible product composed of pieces of food bonded together is the pasta-based product of U.S. Pat. No. 5,411,752 to Taylor et al. The patent discloses the formation of discrete pieces of cooked pasta with a binding composition into a desired shape. The pasta-based product is proposed as the base or shell of a pizza and as such may be garnished with tomato sauce, cheese, mushrooms, etc. U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,900 to Molinari also describes a shaped pasta product formed of cooked pasta. Zukerman discloses in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,711,295; 3,961,087 and 5,137,745 shaped food products composed of rice and other cereal grains.

#The prior art, however, fails to teach a simple apparatus and method for forming shaped products composed of food particles.

#For further clarification of the invention, the following description will refer to the appended drawings of which:

#FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of a simple embodiment of the apparatus of the invention, omitting the top molding plate; and

#FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic sectional view taken along the line 2--2 of FIG. 1, including the entire top plate.

#FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show the basic components of the apparatus of the invention, namely, bottom molding plate 10 positioned in ring 11 and top molding plate 12 positioned on ring 11. A table 13 is used to hold ring 11 in a fixed position. Molding plates 10,12 are connected to the piston rods of pneumatic cylinders 14,15, respectively, which can move plates 10,12 up and down. While bottom plate 10 has a flat molding face 16, top plate 12 has a molding face 17 with protrusion 18 that extends into the molding space when top plate 10 is seated on ring 11. The periphery of protrusion 18 is made smaller than the inside periphery of ring 11 so that the molded food product will have the form of a shallow pan with a turned-up edge. As previously explained, both plates 10,12 and ring 11 are preferably electrically heated by elements (not shown) embedded in, or attached to, the massive aluminum which usually forms plates 10,12 and ring 11. It is obvious that cylinder 14 would be anchored to the floor and cylinder 15 would be suspended from the ceiling or other overhead rigid structure.

#The description of the molding operation will refer to the sequential movement of plates 10,12 by cylinders 14,15 but the movements can be performed manually or by other known mechanisms. With bottom plate 10 positioned in ring 11 as shown in FIG. 2 to provide a shallow basin and with top plate 12 raised well above ring 11 (like phantom showing of top plate 12A), a measured amount of food particles is dropped on bottom plate 10. Thereupon, top plate 12 is brought down on ring 11 by cylinder 15 and pressed thereagainst for the desired baking period at the end of which top plate 12 is raised well above ring 10 by cylinder 15. Bottom plate 10 is pushed up by cylinder 14 to drive the molded food product out of ring 11. With face 16 of plate 10 flush with, or above, the top of ring 11, the molded food product is easily pushed off plate 10 and onto adjacent conveyor belt 19. Pneumatic cylinder 20 with its piston and arcked pusher 21 mounted on table 13 is illustrative of simple automatic means for displacing the molded food product from bottom plate 10.

#Having completed the formation and discharge of a molded food product, the apparatus is ready to repeat the operation. Bottom plate 10 is retracted by cylinder 14 in ring 11 to form the cavity or basin into which a measured quantity of food particles is again deposited and top plate 12 is brought down by cylinder 15 on ring 11, thus starting the next cycle of sequential plate movements to yield another unit of molded food product.