Fruit cutting device and method

Abstract: A cutting device (10) for cutting an objection such as a citrus fruit includes a cutting assembly and an outer casing (12) about the cutting assembly. The casing is generally cylindrical having a central axis, and has open ends. The cutting blade assembly (16) includes a first cutting blade extending radially outward from the central axis to a sidewall of the casing (12), the first cutting blade (20a) cutting the fruit in a manner so as to completely sever one portion thereof from another. The cutting assembly further includes a second cutting blade (22-24) extending outwardly radially from the central axis toward the sidewall of the casing, but not reaching the sidewall, the second cutting blade cutting the object in a manner so as to partially sever one portion of the object from another.

Description: This invention relates to cutting devices and systems, and particularly cutting systems for cutting and segmenting fruit. The invention has particular application to fruit having a skin, wherein segments of the fruit without the skin are required. In the food industry, there is a considerable need for prepared fruit dishes comprising, for example, oranges and grapefruit, which have been peeled and cut into a number of segments. The peeling and segmenting of fruit such as oranges and grapefruit is labor intensive in that it requires a considerable amount of time to peel an orange, remove the undesirable center core, and thereafter segment the remainder of the orange. Preparing of an orange and cutting it into segments in this way is a multi-step operation, and a relatively long period of time is required to peel and cut the fruit in this way. Swiss Patent No. 248168 describes a fruit cutter having an outer casing supporting a cutting assembly. The outer casing has sidewalls, a top end for introducing the fruit and a lower end through which the cut fruit exits. The cutting assembly comprises cutting members extending in the casing, the cutting members cutting the fruit into completely severed portions. It is therefore of benefit and advantage to this particular industry to have a device which efficiently mechanically removes the skin from fruit, and cuts it into segments with minimal loss of the fruit itself, at the same time maintaining a high output of the final product. Summary of the Invention According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a cutting system for cutting an object, the device comprising: a cutting assembly; an outer casing about the cutting assembly, the casing having a side wall, a first end, a second end and a substantially central axis extending between the first and second ends, the first and second ends being open to permit passage of the object through the outer casing; the cutting assembly comprising a first cutting member extending within the side wall of the outer casing, the first cutting member cutting the object in a manner so as to completely sever one portion of the object from another; characterized in that the cutting assembly further comprises a second cutting member extending within the side wall of the casing thereof, the second cutting member cutting the object in a manner so as to partially sever one portion of the object from another. Preferably, the cutting device includes a coring blade for removing a core of the object, and the outer casing is generally in the form of an open ended cylinder, the central axis comprising the axis of the cylinder, and the coring blade is also of generally cylindrical form and coaxial with the outer casing, the coring blade having a sharpened upper edge. Preferably, the first cutting member comprises a pair of blades extending radially outwardly from the coring blade to the inner surface of the casing, one end of each of the pair of blades extending radially outwardly from the coring blade to the inner surface of the casing, one end of each of the pair of blades having its upper edge level with the upper edge of the coring blade, an other end of each of the pair of blades having its upper edge level with the contacting the upper edge of the casing, while the second cutting member comprises at least one blade extending radially outwardly from the coring blade, one end of said blade having an upper edge level with the upper edge of the coring blade, the other end of said blade having an upper edge which extends downwardly away from the upper edge of the outer casing, said blade having its other end a predetermined distance from the inner surface of the casing. According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a process for cutting and segmenting a substantially spherical shaped fruit having a skin or peel at an outer periphery thereof, the process comprising: providing a cutting assembly having a first cutting member and a second cutting member; locating the uncut fruit above the cutting assembly; forcing the fruit over the cutting assembly to segment the fruit, the first cutting member completely severing the fruit into substantially two halves; characterized by: the second cutting member partially severing the fruit whereby adjacent segments remain connected to each other at or near the outer periphery of the fruit. The present invention therefore preferably comprises a mechanism which mechanically cuts fruit into a number of segments, discarding the center core and the akin, while retaining the valuable edible part of the fruit, and segmenting it in a manner which is effective and labor efficient. Brief Description of the Drawings Figure 1 is a perspective view, partially cut away, of a fruit cutter. Figure 2 is a plan view of the fruit cutter shown in Figure 1. Figure 3 is a section of the fruit cutter through line A-A of Figure 2. Figure 4 is a section of the fruit cutter through line B-B of Figure 2. Figures 5a to 5e show a piece of fruit which has been cut by the cutter shown in Figures 1 to 3, Figure 5a showing the fruit prior to cutting. Figure 5b showing two halves of the fruit after passing through the fruit cutter, Figures 5c and 5d illustrating schematically in sideview and planview respectively the partial cuts made by the fruit cutter to each half of the fruit, and Figure 5e being a schematic plan view of the cut fruit. Figure 6 is a sideview of a fruit cutting system of the invention utilizing the fruit cutter illustrated in Figure 1 to 4. Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments With reference to the accompanying drawings, the fruit cutter will now be described. With reference to Figures 1 to 4, there is shown a fruit cutter 10, comprising a generally cylindrical outer casing 12, a generally cylindrical coring blade substantially coaxial with the casing, and a radial cutting blade assembly 16 in the annular space 18 defined between the outer casing 12 and the coring blade 14. The casing 12 may be comprised of any suitable material such as metal, aluminum or plastic. The radial cutting blades 16 comprise a pair of slicing blades 20a and 20b which are more or less diametrically opposed to each other on the coring blade 14. The cutting blade assembly 16 further comprises two pairs of scoring blades 22a, 22b, 24a, 24b, the scoring blades being approximately equi-spaced between the slicing blades 20 so as to divide each of the spaces between the slicing blades 20a and 20b into three substantially equal segment areas. Thus, segment area 26, 28 and 30 are defined by blades 20a, 22a, 22b and 20b, while segment areas 35, 34 and 36 are defined by blades 20a, 24a, 24b and 20b. It is to be noted that the slicing blades 20a and 20b extend from the coring blade to the perimeter of the outer casing 12, but scoring blades 22a, 22b, 24a and 24b extend radially outwardly from the coring blade into the annular space 18, but do not reach the outer casing 12. The distance between the remote end 38 of each scoring blade and the outer casing 12 is designed or calculated according to need, and the fruit being cut, as will be fully described hereunder. All of the blades in the fruit cutter 10, namely, coring blade 14, slicing blades 20a and 20b, and scoring blades 22a, 22b, 24a and 24b, have highly sharpened upper edges 40. Further, as best seen in Figures 1, 3 and 4, the upper edge of the coring blade 14 is below the upper edge 42 of the outer casing and has a scalloped or serrated surface. The slicing blades 20 in the cutting blade assembly 16 extend upwardly, namely, at an angle relative to the horizontal, while the scoring blades 22 and 24 extend downwardly at an angle relative to the horizontal. The slicing blades 20a and 20b in the present embodiment have the upper edge thereof flush with the upper edge 40 of the coring blade 14 and the upper edge 42 of the casing 12. The scoring blades 22a, 22b, 24a and 24b extend downwardly from the coring blade 14 at substantially the same but opposite angle as the slicing blades 20a and 20b, although, as already mentioned above, the remote ends 38 of the scoring blades do not reach the outer casing 12. In use, the fruit cutter 10 may be used to cut various fruits, but this particular embodiment will be described with respect to a citrus fruit such as an orange, lemon or grapefruit. Reference is now made to Figures 5a to 5d, which show various diagrammatic illustrations of a citrus fruit before, during and after passing through the fruit cutter 10. In Figure 5a, there is shown a whole orange 50, with its core or axis 52 vertically aligned. The orange 50 is brought down on the fruit cutter 10 so that the base 54 of the core 52 is over the coring blade 14. Further downward pressure of the orange 50, either manually or automatically operated by a machine, causes the orange to be passed downwardly through the outer casing 12 of the fruit cutter 10, and over the radial cutting blade assembly 16. As the orange passes over the radial cutting blade assembly 16, the core 52 of the orange is separated from the remainder thereof by the coring blade 14, producing a disposable core 56 (as shown in Figure 5b). This core 56 typically comprises stringy white matter of the orange, disfavored for eating purposes, and is therefore removed. The coring blade 14 may direct the disposable core 56 to a location where it can be automatically carried off without being manually separated from the remainder of the orange 50. Downward movement of the orange 50 over the slicing blades 20a and 20b results in two orange halves 58 and 60. Each orange half will comprise the skin or outer peel 62, the flesh or eating portion 64, and a hollowed out area 66 corresponding to the disposable core 56 which has been removed by the coring blade 14. The effect of the scoring blades 22a and 22b, and 24a and 24b, will now be described. As the orange passes through the casing 12 of the food cutter 10, it is subjected to the cutting action of the scoring blades. The scoring blades extend outwardly from the coring blade 14 to a distance which slices a part of the orange, extending from the radial inner portion outwardly therefrom, but does not sever completely one portion of the orange from another. The action of the scoring blades 22 and 24 can be appreciated with particular reference to Figure 5a of the drawings. In Figure 5a, the staggered vertical lines 68 and 70 indicate the outermost extreme or remote end 38 of the scoring blades 22 and 24. Thus, as the orange moves downwardly, as shown by arrow 72 in Figure 5a, the scoring blades 22 and 24 will cut the orange in all areas between the staggered vertical lines 68 and 70, leaving that part of the orange outside of these boundaries intact. If reference is made to Figure 5e of the drawings, there is shown a schematic or diagrammatical plan view of the orange after it has passed over the radial cutting blade assembly 16 through the outer casing 12. Superimposed upon the cut orange is a plan view of the fruit cutter 10 in ghost lines. It is noted that slicing blades 20 cut the orange completely in half, while coring blade 14 removes a hollowed out area 66 corresponding to the core 52 of the orange. The scoring blades 22 and 24 result in cuts 74a and 74b in orange half 58 and 76a and 76b in orange half 60. The cuts 74 and 76 extend through the flesh or eating portion 64 of the orange and reach approximately the inside surface 78 of the skin 62. Thus, the total effect of the fruit cutter 10 and the radial cutting blade assembly 16 is to: 1. slice the orange in half; 2. remove the center and usually inedible core 56 for disposition; 3. partially segment each half of the orange into approximately three equal sections by cutting only a part of the skin 62, and most of the fruit flesh 64. The only portion of each half of the orange not cut by the scoring blades 22 and 24 is the horizontal extremity or equator of the orange, namely, that portion of the skin falling outside of the area defined by staggered vertical lines 68 and 70 in Figure 5a. Having passed through the fruit cutter 10, half orange 58 comprises three segmented fruit portions 80a, 80b and 80c, and orange half 60 comprises three segmented fruit portions 82a, 82b and 82c. With reference to Figures 5c and 5d, half orange 58 is shown in side and plan view wherein the segmented fruit portions 80a, 80b and 80c have been parted from each other, showing the effects of the scoring blades 24 extending through the flesh of the orange, but generally leaving the skin 62 intact. The scoring blades 22 and 24 are dimensioned so that the distance between end 38 and the casing 12 is equal to or slightly greater than the thickness of the skin. Thus, depending upon the fruit being cut, the scoring blades will have varying lengths according to need. It is to be noted that the fruit cutter 10 described above is one particular embodiment only, and that any arrangement of radial cutting blade assemblies 16 may be used. Thus, for example, there may be only one scoring blade in each half only, thereby dividing an orange into two segmented fruit portions only. On the other hand, three or more scoring blades may be used thereby providing four or more segmented fruit portions. Clearly, the number of scoring blades chosen for any one embodiment will depend upon the size of the segment required, the size of the fruit and such other pertinent factors as may be appropriate. In addition, there may be more than two slicing blades, thereby completely severing the fruit into more than two portions. Again, the number of slicing blades will depend upon the size of the fruit, the number of segments required, and the object of producing a fruit portion which can be further processed in an expedient and efficient manner. It may well be that certain fruits do not require core removal, in which case, the coring blade 14 may be omitted. The fruit cutter 10 can be integrated as one of several such devices in a fruit cutting system. Furthermore, the fruit cutting system may also be integrated, either automatically or in a manual mode, for the complete treatment of a fruit, such as an orange, which is cut, peeled and segmented most effectively with a minimum number of steps. The fruit cutting system is described below with reference to Figure 6. In Figure 6, there is shown a fruit cutting system 200. The system comprises a rotating turntable 202 mounted on a shaft 204 driven by a motor 206 with index control, to be described in further detail below. Six equispaced fruit cutters 10 are mounted in the rotating turntable 202. Each fruit cutter 10 is of substantially the same structure and configuration as described above with reference to Figures 1 to 5, with the upper edge 42 of each cutter 10 being flush with the upper surface 200 of the turntable 202. Associated with the turntable 202 is a punching device 210 comprising a pneumatic cylinder 212 having a shaft 214, and a push block 216 at one end of the shaft 214. The shaft 214 and push block 216 may be raised or lowered, according to well known and conventional methods. In use, an orange, or other fruit to be cut, is placed in a fruit cutter 10, in a manner described above, and generally with the axis or core of the fruit being parallel to the vertical axis. The turntable 202 is rotated until the fruit cutter 10 is located immediately below the punching device 210, whereupon the motor 206 is indexed or programmed to stop. At the moment of stoppage, the punching device 210 is pneumatically activated, causing the shaft 214 and push block 216 to move downwardly towards the fruit. The push block 216 contacts the fruit and forces it through the cutting blade assembly 16. The two halves, each of which is partially segmented, are removed, either manually or automatically for further processing. As soon as the fruit has been pushed through the cutting blade assembly 16, the motor 206 is once more activated and the turntable 202 rotates until the next sequential fruit cutter 10, loaded with fruit, passes below the push block 216. The process described above is repeated. The fruit cutters 10 may be manually loaded by a person sitting at a different location to the position of the fruit cutter 10 subjected to the push block 216. In addition to the two partially segmented halves of the fruit produced by the fruit cutter 10, if a coring blade 14 forms part of the fruit cutter 10, the non-edible disposable core will also be ejected from the fruit cutter 10 and disposed of. The turntable 202 may have any number of fruit cutters 10 located therein, each fruit cutter having a cutting blade assembly suitable for the fruit being cut. In addition, the fruit cutting system 200 may comprise several punching devices 210 appropriately spaced from each other so that, when the motor stops, a cutting device 10 will be located below the push block for cutting of fruit. The fruit is held in the fruit cutter 10 by the blades which serve as a holder for the cutting process. Since the blades are so sharp, movement of the fruit prior to cutting, when properly located on the cutting blade assembly will be substantially reduced or nonexistent. The invention is not limited to the precise details of construction described above. For example, the fruit cutting system may comprise any suitable means which effectively causes fruit to be loaded in a fruit cutter 10 in an automated fashion for cutting. Thus, instead of the table 202 rotating, a series of fruit cutters 10 may be provided either in a circle or linearly, and a moving pushing device 210 located serially over the fruit cutters 10 for cutting the fruit.

Claims: A cutting device (10) for cutting an object, the device comprising: a cutting assembly (16); an outer casing (12) about the cutting assembly (16), the casing (12) having a side wall, a first end, a second end and a substantially central axis extending between the first and second ends, the first and second ends being open to permit passage of the object through the outer casing; the cutting assembly (16) comprising a first cutting member (20) extending within the side wall of the outer casing (12), the first cutting member (20) cutting the object in a manner so as to completely sever one portion of the object from another; characterized in that; the cutting assembly (16) further comprises a second cutting member (22, 24) extending within the side wall of the casing (12) thereof, the second cutting member (22, 24) cutting the object in a manner so as to partially sever one portion of the object from another. A cutting device as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the outer casing (12) is generally in the form of an open ended cylinder. A cutting device as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the outer casing (12) is comprised of aluminum. A cutting device as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the outer casing (12) is comprised of plastic. A cutting device as claimed in Claim 1 further comprising a coring blade (14) for removing a core of the object. A cutting device as claimed in Claim 5 wherein the outer casing (12) is generally in the form of an open ended cylinder, the central axis comprising the axis of the cylinder, and the coring blade (14) is also of generally cylindrical form and coaxial with the outer casing (12), the coring blade (14) having a sharpened upper edge. A cutting device as claimed in Claim 6 wherein the upper edge of the coring blade (14) is located below an upper edge (42) of the casing. A cutting device as claimed in Claim 7 wherein the first cutting member (20) comprises a pail of blades (20a, 20b) extending radially outwardly from the coring blade (14) to the inner surface of the casing (12), one end of each of the pair of blades (20a, 20b) having its upper edge level with the upper edge of the coring blade (14), another end of each of the pair of blades (20a, 20b) having its upper edge level with and contacting the upper edge (42) of the casing. A cutting device as claimed in Claim 7 or 8 wherein the second cutting member (22, 24), comprises at least one blade (22a, 22b, 24a, 24b) extending radially outwardly from the coring blade (14), one end of said blade (22a, 22b, 24a, 24b) having an upper edge level with the upper edge of the coring blade (14), the other end of said blade (22a, 22b, 24a, 24b) having an upper edge which extends downwardly away from the upper edge (42) of the outer casing (12), said blade (22a, 22b, 24a, 24b) having its other end a predetermined distance from the inner surface of the casing (12). A cutting device as claimed in Claim 1 wherein the first cutting member (20) and second cutting member (22, 24) have cutting edges at angles other than normal to the central axis. A cutting device assembly (200) comprising: a table (202); a plurality of cutting devices (10) according to Claim 1 mounted in the table; at least one punching member (210) located above the table surface and over the first end of the outer casing of the cutting assembly; and driving means for actuating the punching member (210) whereby the punching member forces the object through the first end, over the cutting assembly and out of the casing (12) through the second end, wherein the table and punching means are movable relative to each other to permit the punching means to drive an object through a series of cutting devices (10) in rapid succession. A cutting device assembly as claimed in Claim 11 wherein the table (200) is circular and cutting devices (10) are arranged equidistantly from each other on the circular table, and the means for driving (206) rotates the table so as to locate the cutting devices (10), in succession, below one or more punching member (210). A cutting device assembly as claimed in Claim 12 wherein the punching device (210) comprises a pneumatically activated air cylinder (212) having a piston (214) and a push block (216), the cylinder being actuated to drive the piston (214) and push block (216) towards the first end of the cutting device (10) to push the object therethrough. A process for cutting and segmenting a substantially spherical shaped fruit having a skin or peel at an outer periphery thereof, the process comprising: providing a cutting assembly having a first cutting member and a second cutting member; locating the uncut fruit above the cutting assembly; forcing the fruit over the cutting assembly to segment the fruit, the first cutting member completely severing the fruit into substantially two halves; characterized by: partially severing the fruit whereby adjacent segments remain connected to each other at or near the outer periphery of the fruit. A process as claimed in Claim 14 wherein the fruit is a citrus fruit having a central core along its longitudinal axis, and the fruit is forced over the cutting assembly (16) with the longitudinal axis substantially parallel to the direction of movement over the cutting assembly (16). A process as claimed in Claim 15 further comprising removing the central core of the fruit with a coring blade 14 located in the cutting assembly (16). A process as claimed in Claim 14 further comprising the step of removing an edible portion of the fruit from the skin or peel thereof by scooping the edible portion, whereby the scooping cuts the fruit at or near the point at which the partially severed segments are connected.

Inventors: LIN THOMAS, LIN, THOMAS
Applicants: LIN THOMAS, LIN, THOMAS LIN, THOMAS
Application year: 1991
Main classification: B26D3
IPC codes: B26D3, B26D1, A23N4