Abstract:
A material reduction apparatuses and methods suitable for performing cutting operations on a variety of materials, including food and nonfood products. The apparatus includes a machine having a cutting head, an impeller adapted for rotation within the cutting head about an axis thereof, means disposed on the cutting head for reducing the size of a material forced therethrough by the impeller, and an electric motor unit disposed in-line with the axis of the impeller. The electric motor unit supports the cutting head and impeller and has a shaft coupled to the impeller to rotate the impeller within the cutting head. The apparatus further includes means physically coupled to the electric motor unit for supporting the machine within a duct in which the machine is entirely enclosed. The supporting means includes arms that extend from the electric motor unit.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/708,693, filed Oct. 2, 2012, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention generally relates to methods and equipment for reducing the size of a material. 
     Various types of equipment are known for slicing, dicing, shredding, granulating, comminuting, or otherwise reducing the size of materials. A widely used line of comminuting machines is commercially available from Urschel Laboratories, Inc., under the name Comitrol®, aspects of which are disclosed in patent documents including U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,660,778, 4,610,397, 4,657,190, and 5,201,469, whose contents are incorporated herein by reference. Comitrol® machines are adapted to uniformly comminute a wide variety of products at high production capacities, for example, food products including fruits, vegetables, dairy products, and meat products, as well as nonfood products including chemicals and pharmaceuticals. 
     A known configuration for a Comitrol® machine is depicted in an exploded view in  FIG. 1 . The machine is represented as comprising an impeller and cutting head assembly  10 , a feed hopper  12  through which material is fed to the impeller and cutting head assembly  10 , an electric motor  14  and drive belt  16  that rotates a spindle  22  on which the impeller is mounted for rotating the impeller within the cutting head, an upper enclosure  18  surrounding the assembly  10 , and a lower enclosure  20  through which comminuted material drops from the assembly  10 . As evident from  FIG. 1 , the depicted configuration is adapted to be mounted with a table that supports the motor  12 . Material is delivered through the feed hopper  12  to the assembly  10  as the impeller rotates within the cutting head. The impeller includes paddles that force the material through uniformly spaced knives mounted on the cutting head parallel to the impeller axis. The spacings between the knives determined the size of the resulting comminuted product. 
     Various other configurations of Comitrol® machines, including their drive systems, cutting heads and impellers, are also available beyond those represented in  FIG. 1 . As a nonlimiting example,  FIG. 2  (in which the same reference numerals used in  FIG. 1  are used to denote the same or functionally equivalent elements) represents the impeller and cutting head assembly  10  as comprising a larger impeller  24  and cutting head  26  than what is shown in  FIG. 1 . The paddles of the impeller  24  force material through uniformly spaced separators mounted on the cutting head  26  perpendicular to the axis of the impeller  24 , and then through knives mounted on the cutting head  26  parallel to the impeller axis. The spacings between the separators and between the knives determine the size of the resulting comminuted product. 
     While configurations of the types represented in  FIGS. 1 and 2  have performed extremely well for use with a wide variety of materials and applications, machines having the capabilities of the Comitrol® and adapted for additional applications and installations are desirable. 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a material reduction apparatus and method suitable for performing cutting operations on a variety of materials, including food and nonfood products. 
     According to a first aspect of the invention, an apparatus includes a machine comprising a cutting head, an impeller adapted for rotation within the cutting head about an axis thereof, means disposed on the cutting head for reducing the size of a material forced therethrough by the impeller, and an electric motor unit disposed in-line with the axis of the impeller. The electric motor unit supports the cutting head and impeller and has a shaft coupled to the impeller to rotate the impeller within the cutting head. The apparatus further includes means physically coupled to the electric motor unit for supporting the machine within a duct in which the machine is entirely enclosed. The supporting means comprises arms that extend from the electric motor unit, and at least one conduit is within at least one of the arms and couples the machine to the surroundings exterior of the duct. 
     Additional aspects of the invention include methods of using the apparatus described above to reduce the size of a material. Such methods include introducing a material into the impeller while rotating the impeller to comminute the material with the size reducing means, and causing the comminuted material to flow under the force of gravity downward and around the electric motor unit and the arms supporting the machine within the duct. 
     A technical effect of the invention is that the apparatus is a versatile unit that can be installed in-line in a wide variety of applications for which material comminution is desired. In particular, by locating the cutting head and impeller in-line with the motor, the apparatus can be installed in a duct allowing the apparatus to be installed within a continuous process. 
     The Other aspects and advantages of this invention will be better appreciated from the following detailed description. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIGS. 1 and 2  represent two configurations of COMITROL® machines known in the prior art. 
         FIGS. 3 through 6  schematically represent various views of a comminuting machine adapted for installation entirely within a duct in accordance with an embodiment of this invention. 
         FIG. 7  schematically represents a modified configuration of the comminuting machine of  FIGS. 3 through 6 . 
         FIG. 8  schematically represents a pair of comminuting machines of types represented in  FIGS. 3 through 7  and installed in side-by-side ducts. 
         FIG. 9  schematically represents an in-line pair of comminuting machines of types represented in  FIGS. 3 through 7 . 
         FIG. 10  schematically represents another modified configuration of the comminuting machine of  FIGS. 3 through 7  and installed as a tabletop unit. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIGS. 3 through 10  schematically represent various nonlimiting configurations of machines within the scope of the invention. For convenience, consistent reference numbers are used throughout  FIGS. 3 through 10  to identify the same or functionally equivalent elements.  FIGS. 3 through 9  represent machines similar to those represented in  FIGS. 1 and 2  with various modifications that allow the machines to be installed in a continuous process. 
       FIGS. 3 through 6  represent a machine  30  that is entirely installed within a duct  32 . The duct  32  may be any enclosure, for example, a portion of a material processing system, pipe, duct, hopper, or other equipment. As such, it will be understood that the duct  32  may be any shape suitable for the intended application. The machine  30  is represented as comprising an impeller and cutting head assembly  34  that includes an impeller  36  mounted for rotation within a cutting head  38  of the impeller and cutting head assembly  34  about an axis thereof, a feed inlet  40  through which a material can be fed to the impeller and cutting head assembly  34 , an electric motor  42  mounted directly beneath the impeller and cutting head assembly  34  and adapted to rotate the impeller  36  within the cutting head  38 , and a lower tapered outlet  44  through which comminuted material drops from the duct  32 . The motor  42  can have various performance capabilities, including a range of power levels (e.g., up to 10 HP or more), and output speeds of up to and exceeding 3000 rpm. 
     The impeller  36  and cutting head  38  are represented in  FIGS. 3 through 6  as having a similar configuration to that of  FIG. 2 , though it should be understood that various other configurations for the impeller and cutting head assembly  34  are also possible, including but not limited to the assembly  10  represented in  FIG. 1 . As with the description of the machine represented in  FIG. 2 ,  FIG. 4  shows the impeller  36  as equipped with one or more paddles  46  that force material through uniformly spaced separators  48  mounted on the cutting head  38  perpendicular to the axis of the impeller  36 , and then through knives  50  mounted on the cutting head  38  parallel to the impeller axis. The spacings between the separators  48  and between the knives  50  determine the size of the resulting comminuted product. As evident from  FIGS. 3 and 4 , material is delivered to the impeller and cutting head assembly  34  of the machine  30  through the feed inlet  40  as the impeller  36  rotates within the cutting head  38 . The material may be a solid in various forms, including powders, granules, capsules and larger masses, as well as liquids, pastes, slurries, etc. The flow of the comminuted or otherwise processed material is radially outward from the cutting head  38 , and thereafter into a preferably annular-shaped passage  52  defined by and between the duct  32  and an outer casing  54  of the motor  40  wherein the material proceeds downward and around or past the motor  40  and the arms  60 , preferably under the force of gravity. 
     As evident from  FIGS. 5 through 7 , the machine  30  is directly driven by a spindle  56  coupled to an output shaft  58  of the electric motor  42 . Though certain existing Comitrol® machines are also available in direct-driven versions, these machines are not configured or adapted for installation within a duct through which comminuted material flows. Instead, existing direct-driven Comitrol® machines rely on a support frame or stand and comminuted material exits through a discharge chute surrounding the cutting head. In contrast, the impeller and cutting head assembly  34  is represented in  FIGS. 3 and 4  as entirely supported by the motor  42 , and the machine  30  (including its motor  42 ) is sufficiently compact to be entirely enclosed and supported within the duct  32 . The support system for the machine  30  is represented in  FIGS. 3 and 4  as including sets of arms  60  that extend radially outward from the casing  54  of the motor  42  to engage the wall of the duct  32 . As will be discussed below, the arms  60  can be configured and sized to have various lengths and shapes adapted for the particular duct  32  or other enclosure in which the machine  30  will be installed. Furthermore, the arms  60  constitute the only support means for the machine  30  within the duct  32  and are configured to support the machine  30  to allow cut product to flow around the arms  60  as the product passes through the duct  32 . For example, the arms  60  are represented in 3-5 and 8-13 as having uppermost surfaces that are curved or multiple facets defining a generally downward curve to promote the flow of cut product around and past the arms  60 . 
     As indicated in  FIGS. 3 through 7 , the arms  60  are further configured to provide passages to the exterior of the duct  32 . In  FIGS. 3 ,  4 , and  6 , one of four arms  60  at the lower end of the motor  42  is identified as defining a conduit  62  for routing wires (not shown) to a connector panel  64  on the lower end of the motor  42 . The conduit  62  may be utilized to electrically couple the connector panel  64  to exterior equipment such as a power source and/or operation controls. Also in  FIGS. 3 ,  4 , and  6 , another of the four arms  60  at the lower end of the motor  42  and one of four arms  60  at the upper end of the motor  42  are identified as defining conduits  66  for providing cooling air flow through the interior of the motor casing  54  for the purpose of cooling the stator and rotor of the motor  42 . Furthermore,  FIGS. 3 ,  4 , and  5  identify at least one of the four arms  60  at the upper end of the motor  42  as defining conduits  68  fluidically connected to a cavity  70  between the impeller and cutting head assembly  34  and the upper end of the motor  42 . The cavity  70  is desirable to provide a thermal barrier between the assembly  34  and motor  42 , and particularly to protect the product being processed by the assembly  34  from the heat generated by the motor  42 . The conduits  68  can be employed to continuously drain any product that inadvertently enters the cavity  70  from the assembly  34  above. Alternatively or in addition, the conduits  68  can be used to pressurize the cavity  70  with a gas, for example, an inert gas, to generate a dry seal that deters ingress of product and other foreign material into the cavity  70 . The conduits  68  can also be used to pass a cleaning solution through the cavity  70 . 
     While  FIGS. 3 ,  4 , and  6  through  9  represent the machine  30  as being equipped with two sets of four arms  60 , additional sets containing fewer or more arms  60  are also foreseeable. In  FIG. 7 , the machine  30  is depicted as having arms  60  of different lengths being utilized. For example,  FIG. 7  represents that the lengths of the arms  60  can differ within a given set, for example, adapt the machine  30  to the internal cross-section of a duct  32  and/or to position the machine  30  toward one side of a duct  32 . One such configuration is represented in  FIG. 8 , in which two machines  30  are arranged in a side-by-side configuration with two separate ducts  32 .  FIG. 8  further represents the inclusion of feed hoppers  72  that are mounted on the ducts  32  and coupled to the feed inlets  40  of the machines  30 . 
       FIG. 9  represents one manner in which two machines  30  can be arranged in-line with each other, such that the material processed by the upper machine  30  serves as the input material to the lower machine  30 . As represented, the upper machine  30  is equipped with a larger impeller and cutting head assembly  34  similar to that shown in  FIGS. 2 through 4  and  8 , whereas the lower machine  30  is equipped with a smaller impeller and cutting head assembly  34  similar to that shown in  FIG. 1 , such that the upper machine  30  can be utilized as a precut unit and the lower machine  30  can be utilized as a finish-cut unit. Alternative in-line configurations can also be achieved with one or more of the machines  30  in combination with other and entirely different processing machines. 
     Finally,  FIG. 10  represents the machine  30  as being adapted for use as a tabletop unit. For this purpose, the machine  30  is contained within the duct  32  as in previous embodiments, but the duct  32  is adapted to be supported, for example, with supports  76 , on a surface of a table  74  or other suitable support structure. 
     A notable but nonlimiting use of a machine  30  of a type represented in  FIGS. 3 through 10  or otherwise within the scope of the invention is in an application in which pharmaceuticals rejected for cosmetic reasons can be diverted offline and comminuted for disposal or reuse. 
     While the invention has been described in terms of specific embodiments, it is apparent that other forms could be adopted by one skilled in the art. For example, the physical configuration of the machine  30  and its components could differ from that shown, the machine  30  could be installed in ducts and other passages different from those shown, and various materials could be processed with the machine  30 . Therefore, the scope of the invention is to be limited only by the following claims.