Abstract:
Apparatus for extracting oil from the peel of whole citrus fruit includes a frame and a plurality of parallel horizontal rolls including toothed projections for piercing the outer surface of the whole fruit. Each of the plurality of rolls is rotatably supported via a rotatable shaft that is mounted to the frame. A plurality of motors are secured to the frame, each of the plurality of motors are mechanically coupled to a corresponding shaft of the rolls, wherein each motor independently rotates the shaft and roll. The apparatus also includes a controller for individually controlling the rotational speed of each of the rolls.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    The field of the invention relates to devices for the extraction of oil from fruit.  
           [0002]    There is currently an increasing world-wide demand for oils derived from the peels of citrus fruits. This is particularly so for lemon oil. Generally, these oils have been obtained by one or more mechanical operations performed on the rind or peel of the particular fruit. One particular type of device used to extract oils from whole fruit is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,070,959, incorporated by reference. This patent discloses an apparatus that utilizes a large number of horizontal parallel rollers. The rollers include thin metal rings having sharp teeth. During operation, whole fruit travels over the rollers and moves into and out of adjacent troughs between the rollers.  
           [0003]    The trough region between adjacent rollers within a group of rollers, is generally referred to as the working region, since this is the area where the teeth of the rollers puncture the exterior surface of each whole fruit in a substantially uniform manner. The oils present within the cells in the peel or rind are released when pierced and agitated by the rollers.  
           [0004]    As described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,070,959, the rollers are driven by a series of drive chains and sprockets. The horizontal rollers are arranged into groups or series. FIG. 2 of U.S. Pat. No. 4,070,959 shows rollers driven in groups of four. Individual drive chains engage the four adjacent rollers. While each roller within a group is driven in the same direction, the next adjacent roller rotates at a progressively lower rate. This speed differential produces penetration of the teeth into the rind or peel.  
           [0005]    There is a disadvantage, however, when using groups of rollers to pierce the exterior surface of whole fruits. The pocket or trough formed between the last roller of one group and the first roller of the next group is what is referred to as a non-working pocket. This non-working pocket between the adjacent group of rollers results from the higher speed roller trying to pull the fruit out of the pocket faster than the slower roller is trying to pull it in. In a standard machine having forty rollers, when groups of four rolls are employed, there are 9 non-working pockets.  
           [0006]    Attempts have been made to increase the efficiency of these types of machines by using groups of 8 rollers instead of four rollers. A standard 40 roller machine using groups of 8 rollers has only 4 non-working pockets.  
           [0007]    Machines employing large numbers of rollers within a group, however, are undesirable in certain aspects. For example, it is often desirable to change the speed differential between adjacent rollers within a group as the condition of the fruit changes (i.e., ripe fruit vs. non-ripe fruit). This has been accomplished by mechanically adjusting the drive chains on alternate sprockets on the machine. While this operation can be performed relatively quickly in machines using groups of 4 rollers, the procedure and devices necessary for groups of 8 rollers are much more complex. It could take a mechanic several hours to make the needed changes in a machine having groups of 8 rollers. This creates costly downtime that reduces the overall throughput of the machine.  
           [0008]    Thus, there is a need for an machine that increases the efficiency of oil extraction. In addition, there is a need for a machine that requires little or no downtime when adjustments are made to the rotational speeds of adjacent rollers. It is also desirable to have a machine that can form various groupings of rollers depending on the job requirement.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0009]    In one aspect of the invention, an apparatus for extracting fruit oil includes a frame and a plurality of horizontal rollers including toothed projections for piercing the outer surface of the fruit. Each of the rollers is rotatably supported via a shaft mounted to the frame. A plurality of motors are secured to the frame. One of each of the plurality of motors is mechanically coupled to a shaft of one of the rollers. Each motor independently rotates the shaft and roller attached to that motor. The apparatus also preferably includes a controller for controlling the rotation of the rollers.  
           [0010]    In a second, separate aspect of the invention, an apparatus includes a frame and plurality of horizontal rollers including toothed projections for piercing the outer surface of fruit. Each roller is supported on a rotatable shaft mounted to the frame. Each shaft further includes at least one sprocket mounted to one end thereof. A plurality of motors are secured to the frame. Each motor includes a drive shaft having a sprocket mounted thereon. A drive chain mechanically couples the sprocket on each of the motors to the corresponding sprocket on one of the rotatable shafts mounted to the frame. Each roller is thus independently driven by a separate motor. The apparatus also includes a controller for controlling the rotational speed of the motor, and in turn, the rotational speed of each roller.  
           [0011]    In yet another aspect of the invention, in a method of extracting fruit oil, the whole fruit is loaded onto a plurality of rotatable horizontal rollers. Each of the rollers is rotated to puncture the fruit peel to release the fruit oil. The rotational speed of each of the rollers is preferably controlled according to a pre-programmed set of instructions.  
           [0012]    Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide an improved machine for extracting oil from fruit. Other objects and advantages will appear below. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0013]    [0013]FIG. 1 is a left side view of the present apparatus for extracting oil from the peel of citrus fruit.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 2 is a front view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, illustrating the arrangement of the motors and rollers.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 3 is a side view of the apparatus taken along the line  3 - 3  of FIG. 2.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 4 is a top view of the apparatus taken along the line  4 - 4  of FIG. 2.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 5 is a partial plan view, in part section, illustrating the plurality of horizontal rollers.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 6 is a sectional side elevation of the apparatus shown in FIGS.  1 - 5 .  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 7 is a sectional elevation showing details of the mounting of the toothed rings on the shaft.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 8 is similar to FIG. 7, showing details of the parts on an enlarged scale.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 9 shows a portion of one of the toothed rings on a still larger scale.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 10 shows one of the washer spacer disks employed between each pair of toothed rings.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 11 shows one of the washers which encircles its corresponding disk.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 12 schematically shows two motors connected to a controller.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 13 shows one preferred sequence of driving the rollers of the apparatus. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0026]    Turning now to the drawings, FIG. 1 illustrates a side view of the apparatus  2  for extracting oil from the peel of fruit  4 . The apparatus  2  includes a frame supporting structure  6 . The frame  6  includes two side walls  8  that support a plurality of parallel horizontal rollers  10 . The rollers  10  are mounted on a rotatable shaft  12  that traverses the two side walls  8  of the frame  6 . The shaft  12  is rotatable via two bearings  14  mounted within the two side walls  8 .  
         [0027]    As can be seen in more detail in FIGS. 2 and 4, the shaft  12  extends through the side walls  8  and is held in place by end nuts  16 . On one of the side walls  8 , the shaft  12  projects enough to hold at least one sprocket  18 . This sprocket  18  is referred to as the roller sprocket  18  since it drives the rotation of its corresponding roller  10 . While only one sprocket  18  is necessary, additional sprockets  20  can also be located on the shaft  12 . For example, FIGS. 2, 4, and  5  show two sprockets  18 ,  20  on the shaft  12 . One sprocket  18  is used for driving the roller  10 , while the other sprocket  20  is used to monitor the rotational speed of the roller  10 .  
         [0028]    Referring now to FIGS. 1 through 4, a motor  24  is located beneath the sprocket  18 . Preferably, there are a plurality of motors  24 . The motors  24  are each preferably mounted to the frame  6 , and more preferably, to one of the side walls  8 . The motors  24  are connected via a power cord  26  to a power source  28 . Each motor  24  includes a drive shaft  30  that projects outwardly from one of the side walls  8 . A motor sprocket  34  is attached to a coupling  32  on the drive shaft  30 . The motor sprocket  34  thus rotates with the drive shaft  30  of the motor  24 .  
         [0029]    Any number of motors and corresponding rollers  10  may be used. Preferably, the motor  24  is a servomotor although other types of motors may be used as well. If a servomotor is used, it can be either AC or DC powered. Although even a single motor linked to the rollers (through a transmission capable of varying individual roller speed) may be used, in the preferred design, multiple motors are used, with each motor separately driving a roller.  
         [0030]    A drive chain  36  mechanically connects the motor sprocket  34  to the roller sprocket  18 . The drive chain  36  is preferably a chain comprising individual links. Most preferably, the drive chain  36  connects vertically adjacent rolls  10  and motors  24 . In this regard, each roller  10  is mechanically connected to a motor  24  that is located directly below the roller  10 . As an alternative to the drive chain  36  drive system, the motors  24  can be linked to drive the rollers directly, via, e.g., a shaft coupling, or via gears or other equivalents. In this regard, the motors  24  can be mounted on the same axis as the rollers  10 . Another alternative drive system may employ hydraulic motors to drive the rollers  10 .  
         [0031]    As best shown in FIGS. 1 through 5, the motors  24  and the rollers  10  are preferably staggered within the frame  6 . Accordingly, the drive mechanism (which includes the motor  24 , drive shaft  30 , motor sprocket  34 , roller sprocket  18 , and shaft  12 ) alternates on either side wall  8  for each adjacent roller  10 . This staggered configuration is used because the individual motors  24  are larger than the diameter of each roller  10 . Of course, if smaller motors  24  are employed, the staggered distribution is not necessary.  
         [0032]    In one aspect of the invention, a tachometer sensor  40  may be used to monitor the rotational speed of the rollers  10 . The tachometer sensor  40  is a tachometer pick-up that is fixed via a bracket  42  to the side wall  8  of the frame  6 . The bracket  42  is preferably mounted directly above the sprocket  18 . A plurality of tachometer sensors  40  can be mounted to the side walls  8 , with each tachometer sensor  40  mounted adjacent to a corresponding roller  10 . A tachometer target  41  is preferably attached to a second sprocket  20  on the shaft  12 . The sensor  40  senses the target  41  every time it passes by. The tachometer sensor  40  includes a communication line  44  which then reports the rotational speed data to a monitor, display, or controller  70 , as shown in FIG. 12. Alternatively, the tachometer pick-up  40  may be placed on or within the motor  24 . In this design, there is no need for second sprocket  20 .  
         [0033]    Referring to FIG. 1, the apparatus  2  includes an inclined pan  46 . The inclined pan  46  is located beneath the rollers  10 . The inclined pan  46  collects the oil extracted from the fruit and a discharge port, where the oil is collected. One or more spray heads may be used to aid in the extraction of citrus oil from the fruit  4  as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,470,344, incorporated herein by reference.  
         [0034]    As shown in FIGS. 5 through 8, each toothed roller assembly includes a shaft  12  encircled by a large number of very thin rings  50 . The rings  50  have sharp pointed teeth  52  around the circumference. The inner concentric circular opening  54  in each toothed ring  50  is large enough to receive the cylindrical portion of the shaft  12 . As best shown in FIG. 8, spacer disks  56  are positioned between toothed rings  50 . A washer  58  encircles each of the spacer disks  56 . The thickness of the washers  58  are preferably slightly less than the thickness of the spacer disks  56 , and the inside diameter  60  of the washers  58  is greater than the outside diameter  62  of the spacer disks  56 . Accordingly, the washers  58  are free to move radially to a limited extent to prevent accumulation of unwanted materials between toothed rings  50 . The toothed rings  50  and washers  58  are clamped between tapered blocks  64 ,  66  and turn with the shaft  12 .  
         [0035]    During operation of the apparatus  2 , adjacent toothed rolls form bights between them for reception of whole fruit  4 . The sharp teeth  52  of the rings  50  punctures the outer surface of each fruit  4 , releasing the oil contained within the peel.  
         [0036]    With reference now to FIG. 12, a controller  70  is in communication with each of the plurality of motors  24  via communication lines  72 . The controller  70  sends control signals to each of the motors  24 . The control signals modulate such aspects as rotational speed, rotational direction, and rotational profile of each roller  10 . The rotational profile can include motion such as indexing, acceleration, deceleration, and the like. While FIG. 12 only shows two motors  24 , the controller  70  can be used to control any number of motors  24 , and hence, any number of rollers  10 . It is preferable that the controller  70  be able to independently control each of the motors  24 . Thus, each individual roller  10  can have a different rotational speed, depending on the signal delivered to each motor  24 . In this manner, the speed differential for each adjacent roller  10  can be precisely controlled.  
         [0037]    The precise control of the rollers  10  can reduce, the non-working pockets that were present in prior machines that use a pulley-type arrangement. The present machine  2  thus increases the overall number of working pockets for given number of rollers  10 . In addition, there is no down time necessary to make adjustments to the rotational speeds of adjacent rollers  10  within a group since these changes can be made on-the-fly electronically via the controller  70 . In addition, a virtually unlimited number of variations can be set up with relative ease. For example, the apparatus  2  can be set with three groups of seven rollers  10 , two groups of six rollers  10 , and one group of seven rollers  10 , all with varying speed differentials and group speeds.  
         [0038]    Preferably, the controller  70  can be pre-programmed with a variety of configurations including a number of variables. The variables can include: the number of rollers  10  in a group, the roller speed (rpm) of each roller  10  within a group, and the speed differentials between different groups of rollers  10 , and the speed differential between adjacent rollers  10  within a group. The controller  70  can also advantageously switch between different pre-programmed sets of instructions based on one or more parameters. The parameters can include, for example, fruit variety, fruit condition, fruit throughput, and fruit oil extraction yield. In this regard, the machine  2  can quickly change to optimize any given parameter based on process conditions. The machine  2  is well suited for extracting oil from the peel of whole citrus fruit, especially of lemons and similar fruit. However, it may also find uses in other applications.  
         [0039]    The controller  70  can be any number of devices capable of sending individual control signals to the plurality of motors  24 . Preferably, the controller  70  is a computer or CPU. The pre-programmed set of instructions can be stored in the computer or CPU in ROM or RAM. Even more preferably, software is employed that contains the pre-programmed set of instructions, or is capable of creating, modifying, storing, or downloading the pre-programmed set of instructions. It is also preferable that the controller  70  include an input device  74  used to input different pre-programmed sets of instructions. Such input device  74  can include a keyboard, a disk drive, CD-ROM, DVD drive, tape drive, or the like.  
         [0040]    In one application of the apparatus  2 , the rollers  10  can be controlled to significantly increase the throughput of the apparatus  2 . As has been described herein, work is done on the fruit  4  while the fruit  4  is in the trough between adjacent rollers  10 . While fruit  4  is transferring from one position on the bed of rollers  10  to another position, no real work is being done. In this application of the apparatus  2 , the entire apparatus  2  is loaded with fruit  4 . The controller  70  is pre-programmed with instructions to provide a rolling “differential” under the fruit  4 . “Differential” refers to the different rotational speeds between adjacent working rollers  10 . In this method of operation, the differential across the entire apparatus  2  would start low and increase over time. The rollers  10  are driven in groups to limit maximum and minimum roller speeds. Preferably, the location of the non-working pockets (i.e., the space between adjacent groups of rollers  10 ) can be controlled to progress beneath the bed of fruit  4  so that all fruit  4  is worked evenly.  
         [0041]    [0041]FIG. 13 shows one example using the rolling differential sequence described above. A series of nineteen rollers  10  are shown that rotate in the direction of the arrows on each roller  10 . The nineteen rollers  10  are divided into groups of eight. It should be understood that there are a virtually infinite number of differential sequence combinations that can be employed and that the one described herein is merely one example. The rotational speed of each roller  10  is shown below each roller  10  (in revolutions per minute). In this sequence, about 45 seconds are required to remove a high percentage of oil from the fruit  4 . This compares with the roughly 75-90 seconds it takes in conventional sequences wherein the fruit  4  starts at one end of the apparatus  2  and travels the length of the apparatus  2  to the other end. The non-working pockets  80  are shown between adjacent groups of rollers  10 . In this example, nine settings of five seconds each are used to work the fruit  4 . In the first three settings, the differential remains relatively low within the groups of rollers  10 , at about 10%. The next three settings have a higher differential of about 12%. Finally, the last three settings have a differential of about 15%.  
         [0042]    In this method of fruit oil extraction, the fruit  4  remains stationary in between the rollers  10  while the fruit  4  is being worked on. The fruit  4  moves across the rollers  10  only when the fruit  4  is unloaded from the apparatus  2 . This differential sequence is particularly useful in the extraction of fruit oil from crisp fresh fruit  4 . It is known, for example, that crisp fresh fruit  4  requires a lower roller  10  speed differential to avoid damaging the fruit  4 . As the fruit  4  is worked, however, the differential can be increased without damaging the fruit  4 .  
         [0043]    While embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. The invention, therefore, should not be limited, except to the following claims and their equivalents.