US2671550A - Slicing device - Google Patents

Description

D. SCHULTZ SLICING DEVICE March 9, 1954 4 Sheets-Shea*l l Filed Sept. l0. 947

nventor DA v/D SCHULTZ March 9, 1954 D. scHULTz 2,671,550

sLIcING DEVICE Filed Sept. l0. 1947 4 sheets-sheet 2 ZSnDenfor DAV/.D SCHULTZ Gtornegs D. SCHULTZ SLICING DEVICE March 9, 1954 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Sept. 10. 1947 i Snventor DA v/D SCHUL TZ .law/4 iIIIIIIII (Ittornegs D. SCHULTZ SLICING DEVICE March 9, 1954 4 sheets-sheet 4 Filed Sept. l0, 1947 Snventr DA VID SCHULTZ Gttomegs Patented Mar. 9, 1954 UNI-'TED STATES- PATENT QFFICE s-LIoING DEvIoE David schulte, Seattle, Wash: Applicants septemer 10, 1947eseria1fN0;vlvaziz '7" Claims. 1

ri'his`inventionrelatestoimprovementsinibeanslicing machines, or related devices employed in cutting string beans lengthwise'vn preparatory to packing them incans or cartons fory cold storage or other purposes'.` String; beans sliced longitudinally i'nto thin strips` may generally' be packed more readily and confipactlyvr than beans cut transversely into short'sections; Moreover, tenderization of the: beans by cooking themV is tl-ierebyi facilitated this Way, so.v that large beans which otherwisel would be toughv and stringy and which, therefore, would often be discarded as: cull's,4` mayf compare favorably withv the' smaller, moreY tender beans Consequently, the advantages of. packing longitudinally sliced beans haveV caused thi'sl style? to be adopted by many packers of' food- Commonly, the stemfandi stringi endsl of the bean are` rstclipped om thebeans blanched, andv then passed endWise-through' a slicingP mech= anism comprising parallel" rotating cutting disks bearingA against' a. rotating roll or drum, the' beans passing between such disks= and rolle In order toorient the' beans for conveying; them.' iny the proper" spatialf relationship or alignment'y to thel cutting mechanism,Av it is' common' to em"- ploy" an endless conveyor belt onto Which the'y beans' are deposited' by dropping. them between' closely spaced partitions exteriding-y lengthwise ofthe belt. Because the beans areflong rela-A tive tothe partitionspacing, their general align-f ment is determined by that oi" theil partitions;l and in travelling on the belt to the cuttingfsta'f tion, they automatically become presented; end- Wise to the cuttingv disks.

The beans are rst deposited` inta' heapfwitti" haphazard orientation over thea partitions by means of'. aA deWater-ing conveyor beltf'moving" out of a Wash tank containing a. supply of beans'. Hereto'fore the operation-v of' sifting the beans, or causing them-to'drop into thespaces. between: fixed partitions onto.L the conveyor belt to` be carried to the cutting.- statiom` was amanual process' requiring swinging; all the beans@ until4 their individual alignmentpermitted: them'- toy drop betweenv partitions.- This? requiredlthe i oon-- stant. attention of an? operator in= order to main-I tain an even distribution` ofbeans depositedvon' the' belt for delivery at more or less constant, rate tothe slicing mechanism,A anditheaworkA Wasf tedious; Another related problemi presented' in"` former' machines centered around? the slicing". mechanism itselfi` wherein' thereI was; difficulty" withicl'oggin'g of th'ei mechanism'. by beanibecming fedbetweentiiesever"-aiisiitferfdmcst 2vv adding another impediment to the uniform uninterrupted output rate` of the machine;

Objects of thepresent invention concern improving the operationand reliability` ofJ beanislicing: machines, such that their outputmay be more rapid and uniform, and theyy Willt not require thev constant attention ofk an operator as before; Specifically it isl an object to im prove the operation ofV the slicing mechanismf and to provide automatic sifting or aligning means by Which the former` manual operation may be eliminated.

@ther-4 objects, and various features and operational aspects of my improved machine, will becomeA apparentupon considering, the following description based on` thev accompanying draw ings.

Figure 1 is a side elevation' viewof` one formV of my machine, and Figure 2 isa fragmentary plan vievv` ofthe same machine.

Figure 3 isa fragmentary longitudinal sectional View of themachineshowing in crosssecf tion the slicing mechanism@ and' the end' of the conveyor belt' feed-ing beans into such? mechl anism.`

Figure 4 is a fragmentary detail view of one speciesof device'for sifting the beansto cause'T Figurey 6 is a'y fragmentary side' elevation view" of a modiiied machine illustrating a' diii'erent` form oithe same species of sifting device. Figure '7 isa fragmentary cross-sectional view of the same;` taken along the linel T-l of Figure 6;. andl Figure 8 is a fragmentary plan view oit' the same.`

Figure 9 isaf fragmentary' planlview of the imLl proved? slicing.r mechanism; shown in Figure 3E and? FigureJ 10f shows a modified` form of ther cutting;l disks illustrated.' in Figurer 9.

Figure l-l illustrates al still diiferentform off the sam-e species of siftingi device;. closelyf re# lated tothe formshoWnin Figure-1l.

Figure 1721- is ai. fragmentary pian view;l aridf Figure afragmentary side elevationvievv` o' an; alternative: formiV of; tne: machina having a2 different' species of siting device employing? ifelcien)cable`` paralleli bar-skier siftingl the beans; Figure 14 is' a fragmentary' view in crossse'cr ti'omof: pari-,fl of the d ving medianismfor the bars taken :atlo'ng4 the line [4i-wl 4 of Figure"- lil-i1 and Figure is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of support and guide mechanism for the bars.

Figures 16 and 1'7 are fragmentary plan and end elevation views, respectively, of a third species of sifting mechanism cooperable with the conveyor belt delivering beans to the slicing mechanism.

In al1 forms of the machine illustrated, beans to be sliced are dumped into a wash tank 'I' co-ntaining water, as shown in Figure l, from which they are extracted at a substantially uniform rate by a dewatering belt B, which carries them upwardly and deposits them onto the dynamic sifting mechanism S, with its line of motion as shown. Such mechanism includes a series of parallel spaced strip means, adjacent ones thereof being movable oppositely lengthwise of a belt I8 on which the beans are deposited from the sifting mechanism in general alignment with the belt. By such belt the beans are carried upwardly (the belt being sloped for convenience in allowing any remaining water to drain from them down the belt) to the end of the belt run over which they pass endwise into the slicing mechanism C. The beans thus sliced drop onto a final conveyor F which transports them away from the machine. From the time the beans enter the tank 'I' until they are transported away by the conveyor F, they need not be touched by hand, which saves operating personnel and adds to the sanitary aspects of the process.

As shown in Figure 1, the machine comprises a frame 2E] supporting the several elements already referred to, and others including a geared drive motor 22 interconnected by chain and sprocket drives severally to the dewatering belt B, to the endless transport belt I4 of the bean aligning mechanism, and to the shaft 24 carrying slicing disks 26. Belt B may be constructed of screen mesh to enable water to drain from the beans while they are carried upwardly from the wash tank. A drain plate 28 serves to catch the dropping water and return it to the tank. A suitable framework is provided to support the pulleys 30 and 32 -carrying the belt B, including a pair of inclined sections of channel iron 34 extending between pulleys on either side thereof. The angle irons 34 may be Supported to tilt about a horizontal axis by pivot means such as shaft 36, enabling the entire belt assembly to be swung into substantially horizontal position after the sifting mechanism is removed, when it is desired to take the dewatering belt out of the tank T, or to disassemble the apparatus.

The action of the belt in the tank keeps the beans agitated to facilitate cleaning them, and because of the uniformly spaced cleats carried by the belt, beans are extracted from the tank positively at a substantially uniform rate. Upon reaching the upper end of the dewatering belt B the beans are dropped onto the sifting device,

including a latticework or grid of strip means.

overlying the conveyor belt I3. In the machine of Figure 1, the strip means of such grid comprises the runs or stretches of endless round belt I0 wound in sinuous manner about groups of sheaves, I4 and I6, as illustrated diagrammatically in Figure 5. The sheaves of these groups are arranged in rows at the respective ends of the upper stretch of the conveyor belt I8. Beneath and in registry with the several stretches of belt I 0 are partitions 42 overlying the belt I8.

The runs or stretches of belt IIJ are parallel to the line Olmevement of the. conveyomr transf Cil , partitions 42.

port belt I8, alternate runs travelling in opposite directions as a result of the serpentine manner in which the belt is wound on the pulleys I4 and I6. For convenience, the pulleys I4 are positioned in rows-except for the last pulley I4 in one row which is offset to provide clearance for the returning stretch of belt-on a horizontal supporting plate 40 extending transversely of the machine across the upper end of the conveyor belt I8. The row of sheaves I6 at the other end of the conveyor belt I8 are similarly supported. From the pulley I4' the belt passes over a guide pulley and around a main pulley 38 connected to the geared drive motor 22 by suitable chain and sprocket means, and thence over another guide pulley and back to the adjacent pulley I4.

Beneath the parallel runs or stretches of belt IIJ, overlying the conveyor belt I8, the series of partitions 42 forming parallel channels or troughs denne pockets into which drop beans passing the belt IIJ. The spacing of the partitions is much less than the lengths of beans to be sliced, in order that the beans dropping through the latticework of belt run I0 will be carried by belt I8 through such pocket in general alignment with the direction of its movement. If desired, a further partition may be added between each pair of adjacent belt stretches to divide the spaces into still narrower channels. Preferably, however, the belt stretches should not be closer than half the length of a long bean.

In Figure 5 the action of the belt IIl is demonstrated in sifting the beans onto the transport belt IS with the desired orientation. Since the beans are deposited by the dewatering belt B onto the latticework of the sifting belt runs in haphazard or random orientation, only a fraction of the beans will immediately be in the proper alignment to drop into the spaces between the Others will at rst become suspended on the latticework with varying orientation. For example, a bean may assume position a in Figure 5. In position a the bean rests on two adjacent runs of belt I0. However, because of the opposite motion of these runs, the position of the bean will soon shift from a to b, and nally to c. It will be evident, therefore, that this bean, or any beans not immediately dropping between the partitions, will be swung by the opposite movement of the sifting elements on which its ends rest until it is oriented generally parallel with the runs of belt IIJ in common with other beans.

Consequently, as fast as the beans are deposited on the belt system I0 they are sifted into the spaces between partitions 42 and are thereafter maintained by the partitions substantially in alignment with their direction of movement effected by transport belt I 8. Different alignment may be desired with other types of machines for cutting diiferent vegetables or other objects, and, in this respect, the sifting mechanism is not necessarily limited to the arrangement shown, in its alignment relation to the conveyor belt. Suitable retaining plates 44 are provided at the sides of the conveyor belt I8 to prevent beans dropping over the edge should they accumulate, or bounce sidewise, before dropping into the spaces between partitions. The upper end of the conveyor belt I8 and the pulley 46 over which it travels, as well as the cutting mechanism, are covered by a hood 48 which keeps the mechanism clean and incidentally assists in guiding beans 50 into the cutting zone, for which latter purposethe lhood supports curved parallel q hood 48, may be lifted upwardly away fromthe" end of the transport belt |58' by= pivoting it about a hinge joint 54 secured to the` supporting plate lll. To permit this movement, pinion gear G, comprising part of the disk drive mechanism, is'

readily disengageable from the drive gear 5U connected to the geared drive motor 22 by'chain'- and Sprocket mechanism, they pinion geary 26 being secured on shaft 24'y to`v rotatev the cutting disk' assembly.

A principal feature of my improved cutting mechanism includes the use of washers or spacer disks 60 between the cutting disk-s 26. In addition, improvedcutting action is obtained by enti-- ploying an elongated stationary backing or cutting block 52, in place of a roll' which was formerly used. This block has paralleli grooves 62 spaced at intervals equalv to the spacing of the cutting disks 25, to receive their cutting edges. The upper edge of the block. 52 is beveled', is positioned close to the peripheral surface of the belt |8 as it rounds the pulley 40, and extends widthwise of the belt, toA deflect beans from: the belt into the space between the cutting disks and the block 52. By fillingA the central portlon of the cutting roll with the. washers B0' accumula.- tion of bean shreds between thecutting disks is avoided, which otherwise must be' removed from time to time to maintain the apparatus iniproper. operation. In Figure the cutting edges' ofl the disks 26 are tapered very gradually'radiallysubstantially from the peripheral edge of the washers llto the outer edgeof thecuttingdisks.. Cut bean shreds slip between; the disks and fall more freely therefrom when this construction-.is used thank in the workable but less practical disk construction of Figure 9, wherein the cutting edge tapers abruptly. Another useful, purpose served by the washers 00 is` to give4 mechanical. support to the relatively thin' cutting disks to preserve their spacingv andalignment.

In Figures 6 to 8 inclusive, I have'illustrated an` alternatesifting belt arrangement in which a plurality of separate belts are employed for the sifting. device, eachforming oneof` the belt runs or stretches supporting the beans. In this case, the belts 64 are carried by spaced groups of pulleys" (it and B8 respectively rotated bysliaftsv 'i0 and '|2, driven pulleys being arranged alternately with idler pulleys on any' single` shaft. The idler pulleys rotate freely: about suchshaft, and by employing aV crossed drivebelt 14# between drive pulleys 16 and '|8i interconnecting the shafts, thealternate belts 64 areV caused torun in opposite directions.

In both of the preceding alternate forms of the belt mechanism round belts are illustrated. However, it will be understood that V-belts, diamond belts, or belts of other cross-sectional shapes may be employed to accomplish the same general results. For instance, in Figure l1 the belt shown is at and thin, the narrow, upper edges of the belt eliminating any likelihood of the beans becoming balanced on a belt edge to prevent them from falling into the spaces between partitions 42. This type of belt may be used in the continuous, serpentine belt arrangement wound about pulleys 80 in the same manner as in Figure 5. Alternatively, such a belt type may be used for the separate belts arranged and driven as shown in Figure 6, previously described.

, 6'? It is pointed out that a iiat belt of' the type shown in Figure 1f1 could feasibly serve doubly,

both forv sifting the-beans, to cause themy to drop; into alignment on the conveyor belt I8', andI as Y Inf such case'l the belt would' bethin and wide, the lower' edgeof the belt lying in close proximity to the upper substitutes for the` partitions 4121.

guided" for lengthwise reciprocation in such par-V allel relationshipby being grooved tostraddle the partitions 42,. alternate bars being driven by cross pieces 84 and 861, respectively, secured to such bars atA one en'df. Drive mechanism by which the cross'vpieces StandV 86, and' hence the bars, arel reciprocated may=comprise-a crank disk 83, a crosshead 00' reciprocabl'e between parallel guiding strips 92, andfa'fconnecting' rodi Hinter-- connecting the crosshead and al crank pin mounted on the side ofthe'disk 88z Such disk is rotated by ashaft 96 driven by albeltilil-l connected to the geared motor 22 throughV suitable chain and sprocket drive mechanism.

As the crossheadi` 905 is reciprocated between the guides 92 the adjacent endsof-`apair oflinks |00 and |612 interconnecting' theA crosshead and shafts me', |06, respectively', journaled in the ends of crosspiece's 84, 86, areraisedY and lowered,

thereby intermittently drawing toward' each other and. spreading apart' the. crossv pieces 04' and 86. Thelength ofsuclfi` strokeisfenough to Swing beans resting on. the slides 821sufli`ciently to align the beans withl the transport belt I8, preferably being about equal to tlieispacingii be` tweenA the bars.y Pinion. gears |118-l andl ||0f are carried at the `ends vof each of` shafts |04 and. |06, respectively, which are engageable with station--v aryg'ear racks 2 and H4' positioned' adjacent to the ends ofthe crosspieces parallel tothe bars- 82. Consequently, whilel only one end ofthe shafts' |041` and |06' are' connected to` the links |00 and |02?, because of the-rotation ofthe-pinions in their respective gear racks and` thecoupling of shafts |04, |06, the opposite ends of such shafts, and hence, ofi tliecrosspieces, are-caused to movesynchronouslywiththe directly driven ends. Figure 14 shows the detailedfmanner in whichV the shaftsv limi and |06j are: received inithe upturned ends of the crosspieces. It also illus-- trates the useof'guides H6, |`|8 allowing travers ing movement of shafts |04', |05 whilerestraining them fromY movement vertically thereby preventing disengagementi of`V thepinions from the gearrack. Preferably, the upper surfaces of the bars 82 carry knobs orpins, or' arer knurled in order to increase the gripping action of the slides on the beans to assist in swinging them as the bars are reciprooated.

In still another alternative form of sifting mechanism, elongated screws are employed in place of the belt or bars of the preceding embodiments of my invention. This is illustrated in Figures 16 and 17, in which the beans are dedeposited on a grid formed of parallel, high pitch screws |20. The screws are suitably journaled at their ends in cross members |22 and may be driven by a series of intermeshing gears interconnecting the screws. In the case illustrated the screws are all convoluted in the same sense,

so that when they are rotated in opposite directions by the intermeshing gears {24 and 126 the portions of the beans contacting them will be moved oppositely to swing the beans. However, it will be appreciated that alternate screws convoluted oppositely will achieve the same effect if rotated all in the same directions. Screws having an outer diameter of three quarters of an inch may be spaced at center line intervals comparable to the spacing of the belts and slide bars in the respective forms previously described.

While in the illustrated embodiment the cutting mechanism, the conveyor belts, and the sifting mechanism are driven from a common source of power, namely, the geared drive motor 22, in some cases it may be desirable to employ independent drive means for one or more of the several moving parts. It may be desirable for speed of the dewatering belt D to be less than the speed of the conveyor belt feeding the beans to the cutting mechanism because the beans are all moved lengthwise in the latter instance. Moreover, in reciprocating the bars 82 to sift or shake the beans into the spaces between partitions, a faster rate may be permissible or desirable when beans run smaller, than when larger beans are processed. Moreover, other mechanisms for swinging the beans to cause them to drop between the partitions, and other arrangements of the partitions, may be employed within the principles set forth herein, the methods indicated being the preferred examples. For instance, instead of having oppositely moving members as the sole supports for the beans during sifting, it will be possible to space a greater distance apart members all moving in the same direction and to add a high partition midway between them, whichl is substantially as high as the level of the moving members, to operate with them in supporting the beans. Thus, the sifting mechanism may comprise alternate moving members and stationary members, so that only one end of a bean may be moved, by the moving member, in swinging the bean into the proper orientation. These and other variations and additions will be evident to those skilled in this art, and the invention is thus to be interpreted without limitation to the particular forms of construction herein illustrated for explanatory purposes.

I claim as my invention:

1. In combination, generally planar conveyor means, and bean orienting means operable to align and deposit beans in generally parallel relation on said conveyor means, said orienting means including a grid composed of spaced parallel strip means generally parallel to the movement of said conveyor means, the spacing of said strip means being appreciably less than the length of beans to be sliced, and sheaves rotatable about axes disposed transversely of the plane of said conveyorv means, engaging said strip means and moving adjacent strip means in opposite directions lengthwise.

2. The combination defined in claim l, in which the strip means comprise moving belt stretches.

3. The combination dened in claim 2, in which the belt stretches constitute succeeding sections of a continuous belt, the sheaves are arranged in two groups spaced apart lengthwise of the conveyor means, and the belt is passed in a sinuous pattern between and about the sheaves of such groups.

4. The combination defined in claim l, in which the strip means comprise stretches of flat belt.

5. The combination dened in claim 1, in which the strip means comprise moving belt stretches arranged in pairs, the two belt stretches of each pair being disposed in adjacent relationship and being integrated into a single continuous belt.

6. In a machine for slicing string beans or similar articles, conveyor means operable to carry beans deposited thereon to a slicing station, and bean orienting means operable to align and deposit beans in generally parallel relation on said conveyor means for presentation endwise at said slicing station, said orienting means including a grid composed of spaced parallel moving belt runs generally parallel to the movement of said conveyor means, the spacing of said belt runs being appreciably less than the length of beans to be sliced, and means operable to support and drive alternate belt runs in opposite directions.

'7. In combination, generally planar conveyor means and bean orienting means operable to align and deposit beans in generally parallel relation on said conveyor means, said orienting means including a grid composed of spaced parallel moving belt runs generally parallel to movement of said conveyor means, the spacing of said belt runs being appreciably less than the y length of beans to be sliced, and means operable to support and drive alternate belt runs in opposite directions.

DAVID SCHU'LTZ.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 553,315 Packer Jan. 2l, 1896 1,341,238 Mason May 25, 1920 1,931,114 Olney Oct. 17, 1933 2,160,693 Anstice May 30, 1939 2,192,518 Eissmann Mar. 5, 1940 2,221,699 Buck Nov. 12, 1940 2,333,576 Kerr Nov. 2, 1943

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