Abstract:
An electrically powered juicer comprising a housing enclosing a feed chamber for reception of fruit or vegetables to be juiced, a juice chamber having a juice outlet, a rotary cutter, a rotary juice filter separating the feed chamber from the juice chamber and a perforated juice velocity reducer supported in the juice chamber at an elevation above the juice outlet to reduce turbulence and splashing, particularly at high speeds of rotation.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS, IF ANY  
       [0001]     None  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION AND PRIOR ART  
       [0002]     The present invention relates generally to fruit and vegetable juicers of the type disclosed in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 6,050,180 issued Apr. 18, 2000, the full disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.  
         [0003]     Electrically powered juicers of this general type have a filter basket and grating disc which rotate at speeds which are now as high as about  5200  RPM. This and higher speeds of rotation which are contemplated provide more rapid and efficient juicing but necessarily impart more turbulence to the juice and consequent splashing from the juice outlet or spout. The present invention is directed to this problem.  
       OBJECT OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004]     It is the primary objective of the invention to provide a juicer of the above type in which splashing due to turbulence is at least significantly reduced or eliminated.  
       SUMMARY  
       [0005]     Disclosed herein is an electrically powered juicer comprising a housing enclosing a feed chamber for reception of fruit or vegetables to be juiced. The housing defines a juice chamber having a juice outlet and containing a rotary cutter, a rotary juice filter separating the feed chamber from the juice chamber. A perforated juice velocity reducer is supported in the juice chamber at an elevation above the juice outlet. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0006]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a presently preferred embodiment of a juicer in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0007]      FIG. 2  is an exploded perspective view of  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0008]      FIG. 3  is an elevational view of the cover;  
         [0009]      FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of taken along line  4 - 4  in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0010]      FIG. 4A  is a portion of  FIG. 4  to an enlarged scale;  
         [0011]      FIG. 5  is a top plan view of the filter with the inserted cutter;  
         [0012]      FIG. 6  is a sectional view of  FIG. 5  along the line  6 - 6 ;  
         [0013]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the underside of the cover, showing the helical design and shape which allows for more efficient pulp extraction;  
         [0014]      FIG. 8  is a detailed sectional view of the relationship between the cover, collection bowl, and the filter; and.  
         [0015]      FIG. 9  is a plan view of a velocity reducer plate. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0016]     A typical embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The fruit and vegetable juicer  10  comprises a base  20  having a power cord  22  leading to a motor  24  enclosed in the base  20 . The motor  24  has a drive shaft  26  which upwardly extends through a rotary filter support  28  and an exposed end of non-circular, preferably hexagonal cross section which may be rotated at speeds up to 5200 RPM. A finger grip nut  29  is threaded onto the upper end of the drive shaft to secure a filter and cutter to be described below thereto.  
         [0017]     The upper portion of the juicer  10  includes a collection bowl  30  supported on the base  20 . The collection bowl forms an annular juice chamber  32  having spaced inner and outer diverging annular walls  34   a  and  34   b  which extend upwardly from a bottom wall  34   c.  A passageway  36  extends through the outer annular wall  34   b  to a juice discharge outlet depicted as a spout  38 . The outer annular wall  34   b  has a lower upwardly and outwardly diverging portion  34   d  and a vertically extending upper portion  34   e  above the lower diverging portion  34   d.    
         [0018]     A cover  40  has a lower supporting edge  42  received in a supporting groove  39  formed at the upper edge of the collection bowl  30 . The cover  40  also has a feed chute  44  leading into a feed chamber  45  for receiving fruit and/or vegetables to be juiced. A food pusher  46  is shown which is guided by the feed chute  44  and a pulp discharge chute  48  is formed in the cover  40 . The base  20  is provided with at least one and preferably two latches  23   a,    23   b  which may be affixed to the cover  40  for retaining the cover  40  and collection bowl  30  in position on the base  20 .  
         [0019]     A rotary filter  50  is positioned inside the collection bowl  30  and has a bottom wall  52  with a central non-circular, preferably hexagonal aperture  54  which receives the end of the drive shaft  26 . The filter  50  has an upwardly and outwardly diverging finely perforated side wall  56  preferably of conical configuration which provides a sieve extending from the bottom wall  52  to a downwardly turned upper edge  58 .  
         [0020]     A cutter  60  in the form of a rotary plate having a central non-circular, preferably hexagonal aperture  62  which receives the complementary shaped end of the drive shaft  26  is positioned in the filter  50  adjacent the bottom wall  52 . The cutter  60  has a plurality of juicing teeth  64  extending upwardly from its upper surface which may be arranged in radially extending lines as shown.  
         [0021]     The cover  40  has a helical shape such that extracted pulp is centrifugally moved around the helical configuration to exit the cover  40  from the pulp discharge chute  48 . A more detailed discussion of the helical shape is provided below with respect to  FIG. 7 .  
         [0022]     Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 4 , the base  20  has a collection bowl supporting surface with upwardly extending flanges configured to secure the collection bowl  30 . The collection bowl  30  is stationary and positioned on the base  20 . The collection bowl  30  has a central opening  34   d  in its bottom wall  34   c  surface whereby the bowl may fit annularly around the filter support  28 .  
         [0023]     A pulp-extraction flange  34   f  below the pulp discharge chute  48  extends from the annular vertical wall  34   e  of the collection bowl  30  for preventing dried pulp from dripping along the outer surface of the collection bowl  30 .  
         [0024]     The relationship between the cover  40 , collection bowl  30  and filter  50  shown in  FIG. 4  is illustrated in more detail in  FIG. 8 . The upper edge of the collection bowl  30  preferably is provided with an annular groove which engages and supports the lower edge of the cover  40 , and also receives, on a radially inwardly extending ledge, the arcuately down-turned upper edge  58  of the filter  50 . This enables the filter  50  to spin about its axis for extracting juice from fruits and vegetables. The down-turned upper edge  58  of the filter  50  provides clear flow of extracted pulp to the helical configuration shown in  FIG. 7 , in the cover  40  for expulsion of the extracted pulp. The above relationship facilitates separation of the juice from the pulp by preventing pulp from accumulating in the collection bowl  30 .  
         [0025]     In  FIG. 3  showing the cover  40 , the location of the feed chute  44 , with the food pusher  46  inserted is shown as being off-center from the central axis. The helical configuration of the interior of the cover  40  also shown in  FIG. 7 , begins at the lowest elevation of the underside of cover  40  and the elevation of that interior surface continually increases in a helical pattern until it reaches an apex. From the apex, the interior surface extends horizontally and then downward until it terminates at the pulp discharge chute  48 .  
         [0026]      FIG. 4  is a cross-section view of the juicer of  FIG. 1 , with the addition of a dried or reduced pulp receptacle. The motor  26  is located within the base  20  that in turn, includes the collection bowl support surface and flanges as illustrated in  FIG. 2 .  
         [0027]     The cross-section view in  FIG. 4 , together with  FIG. 7 , illustrate the design of the helical recess in the cover  40 . The helical configuration begins at the lowest elevation of the undersurface of the cover  40  and then increases in elevation, circumnavigating the feed chute  44  until the surface reaches its apex. At this point, the shape of cover  40  arcuately progresses from horizontal at the apex to near vertical at the distal end of the helical path. Following the helical flow path in the cover  40  the extracted pulp thus exits the at the pulp discharge chute  48  and may be gathered in a trash receptacle (unnumbered). The guide flange extending from the top edge of the collection bowl  30  aids in guiding the extracted pulp away from the outer surface of the collection bowl  30 .  
         [0028]      FIG. 5  illustrates a top view of the filter  50  with the cutter  60  placed therein. A plurality of radial rows of grating teeth  64  are formed around the top surface of the cutter  60 . The central aperture  62  of the cutter  60  and the central aperture  54  of the filter  50 , and, as noted previously, are preferably hexagonal in shape, but may be other configurations. These apertures match the exterior shape of the drive shaft  26  to provide a secure engagement between the structures.  
         [0029]      FIG. 6  illustrates a cross-sectional view of the filter  50  and cutter  60 , and further illustrates the shape of the downwardly turned upper edge  58  at the top of the filter  50 .  
         [0030]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view illustrating the helical shape of the underside surface of the cover  40 . Arrows depict the flow path of extracted pulp.  
         [0031]      FIG. 8  is a plan view of the velocity reducer  70  which, in the presently preferred configuration, comprises a circular flat disc having a central aperture  72  sized to receive the filter support  28  and a plurality of juice turbulence reduction perforations  74  preferably extending vertically through the disc and preferably arranged along generally radially extending lines as shown. As shown, in  FIGS. 4 and 9 , the perforations  74  are of circular cross-section and extend perpendicular to the parallel upper and lower surfaces of the disc but such is not essential. For example, the perforations  74  may be of any other suitable cross-sectional configuration such as oval or elongated slots and the flow passageways formed by the perforations may be circumferentially angled in the direction of rotation of the filter  50  and cutter  60  or opposite thereto and/or they may be angled inwardly or outwardly in a radial direction. Also, the perforations  74  may vary in number and/or size along adjacent lines.  
         [0032]     The velocity reducer  70  is supported at its lower outer edge on the wall of the juice chamber  32  which is angled with respect to the vertical as best seen in  FIG. 4A . As shown, this comprises an outwardly and upwardly diverging, preferably frusto-conical, outer wall  34   b  of the collection bowl  30  contacted by the lower outer edge of the velocity reducer  70  at an elevation such that the lower surface of the velocity reducer  70  is just above the passageway  36  which extends from the collection bowl  30  to the juice spout  38 . The velocity reducer  70  can be supported at this elevation in other ways as will be recognized by those skilled in the art.  
         [0033]     Juice extracted through the perforated wall of the filter  50  flows generally circumferentially in the juice chamber  32  alongside the rotating filter  50  and downwardly to the velocity reducer  70  where it is forced to pass through the perforations  74  or through the central aperture  72  between the velocity reducer  70  and the filter support  29  to the underside of the velocity reducer  70  and thence to the passageway  36  which extends to the juice spout  38 . Passage of the juice through the perforations  74  removes most, if not all, of the circumferential motion of the extracted juice before it is discharged at the spout  38  and thus minimizes splashing which otherwise occurs, particularly at increased speeds of rotation of the filter basket  50  and cutter  60 . Some circumferential motion of the juice along the bottom wall  34   c  of the collection bowl  30  may be desired to eliminate any accumulation of extracted juice in areas of the collection bowl  30  remote from the passageway  36 . For this purpose, the perforations  74  may be circumferentially angled with a component the direction of rotation of the filter  50  and cutter  60 .  
         [0034]     Persons skilled in the art will readily appreciate that various additional modifications can be made from the presently preferred embodiment thus the scope of protection is intended to be defined only by the appended claims.