Patent GB-745397-A (GB)
Title: Combination dough handling, proofing, moulding and panning machine
IPC: A21C13/02
Filed: 1953-05-29
Abstract: 745,397. Endless conveyers; shoots. UNION MACHINERY CO. May 29, 1953, No. 14979/53. Class 78 (1). [Also in Group V] In dough handling apparatus a proofer conveyer and a panner conveyer are driven in timed relation by a single drive means witli means for varying the speed of the panner conveyer independently of the proofer conveyer to suit differently sized pans, e.g. for different types of bread rolls, and movable fingers are adapted to engage and stop the pans on the panner conveyer for receipt of dough lumps and to release them to index further movement thereof, the fingers also being driven by the single-drive means. As shown, Fig. 2, dough balls D from a dough divider R roll down a shoot 20 at the end of which they are arrested by a chain mesh curtain 32 which allows one ball at a time to pass into the grooves 24 of a drum 22 rotated to feed the balls to compartments 28 of a conveyer C formed by a pair of chains 30 to which cross-bars carrying fingers 26, Figs. 2 and 11, are secured, supports 38 being hinged about a transverse axis to the cross-bars and provided with pins 44 normally engaging tracks (not shown) to maintain the supports in the plane of the conveyer. Drum 22 is provided with annular grooves through which the fingers 26 pass, the drum and conveyer being driven in timed relation from a motor 118 provided with a Reeves pulley 114 so that their speed can be varied together, whereby the dough balls are successively picked up by the fingers and deposited on the supports 28. Either three or four dough balls may be transferred simultaneously to a proofer conveyer P also driven from motor 118 comprising a pair of sinuouslytravelling chains 134 between which are suspended recessed trays 48 by a dumping device consisting of a stepped plate 500 or 502, Fig. 11, which when in operative position is in line with the tracks for pins 44. In the preferred form, four balls are always delivered and only one plate 500 is provided in fixed position having four steps, pins 44 projecting to that side to varying lengths in groups of four so that the pins of four successive supports 28 leave the ends of the four steps simultaneously to deposit four dough balls into a tray 48 beneath. To vary the number of balls pins 44 are arranged to project to varying lengths in groups of four on one side and in groups of three on the other side, plates 500 and 502 having four and three steps respectively and being mounted on shafts 510, 514 adapted for simultaneous movement in the same direction to bring either plate 500 or plate 502 into the operative position. Since it is necessary for a tray 48 to be positioned to receive a group of dough lumps whether it be three or four in a group the speed of the chains 134 is adapted to be varied simultaneously with change-over of the plates 500 and 502, e.g. by a driving connection including a sliding dog clutch 564 adapted to connect either of two sprocket connections 552, 554 with a driving shaft 558. The movements of the clutch and plates 500, 502 are simultaneously effected by linkage &c. from a handle 526. As the dough balls drop from the supports 28 they are aligned with the recesses 132 of a tray 48 by a shoot 40 provided with guides 130. Trays 48 travel continuously through the proofer in either direction (to give a long or short proofing time), controlled by re-arrangement of a chain connection (Fig. 4, not shown) in the drive, to pairs of dumping rollers 176, 180 which successively engage vanes 174, on the trays, to impart a 360 degree rotation to the tray to dump the dough balls. The dough balls are received in a shoot 188 closed at its lower end by a movable gate 192, Fig. 5, carried by arms 194 from a shaft 196. A crank on one end of shaft 196 is connected by a link 202 to a rocking lever (Fig. 4, not shown) rocked by a cam driven in timed relation with the proofer conveyer chains 134, the rocking lever having a resilient connection with link 202 to prevent a dough ball being squashed between gate 192 and the shoot 188. The cam is timed to open gate 192 a short time after each tray 48 is dumped to ensure all the dough balls are aligned at the bottom of the shoot. Guide partitions 190 are provided in the shoot to align the dough balls laterally to register with guide partitions 288 through which the balls drop upon release from the shoot, to guide them through a pair of flattening rollers 218, 220 driven independently of the proofer conveyer by a separate motor 310. The spacing of the partitions 288 are adjustable along rods 290 and the spacing of the rollers is adjustable by a knob 242 arranged to operate simultaneously two screwed rods 234 engaging slidable threaded bosses 230 supporting roller 218, so that either hamburger or frankfurter rolls can be produced, shoot 188 also being interchangeable for this purpose. As shown in Fig. 5, frankfurter rolls are produced by adopting a narrow spacing of rollers 218, 220 and a wide spacing of guides 288. The resultant sheets of dough are peeled off the rollers by plates 292, 294 and led down to a conveyer belt 186, driven in timed relation with the rollers, and each sheet is rolled up by passing under a curling mat 420 suspended removably from the framework by a rod 426. The rolls J now pass under a plate 428 adjustable towards and away from belt 186 by a hand operated screw 450 engaging a nut 446 linked to two pairs of bellcranks 430 carried by shafts 434, 432 in a housing M, the ends of the rolls being engaged by lateral guide plates 460. The rolls are thus rolled along between belt 186 and the plates 428 and 460 to mould them to the desired form. At the end of belt 186 the rolls are straightened (if askew) by spring clips 429 and roll down a shoot 320 closed by a movable gate 462 carried by arms 464 on shaft 466 to form a transverse line. Gate 462 is opened in synchronism with gate 192 by a link 472 connecting crank 470 on shaft 466 with the crank on shaft 196 so that by suitably adjusting the speed of belt 186 a line of frankfurter rolls can be released simultaneously to fall into a corresponding line of recesses V in a dough pan N carried between guides 392 by a pair of continuously travelling belts 350, Figs. 5 and 6, driven in timed relation with the proofer conveyer, the pan being stopped below shoot 322 in the desired position by a pair of fingers 334, engaging that line of recesses in the pan. Link 472 includes a resilient connection so that if hamburger rolls, which do not need moulding after passage between rollers 218, 220, are being produced gate 462 can be lifted out of the way, Fig. 1. Housing M is also raised out of the way above its shelf 432 so that its shelf 434 is lifted on a bracket 438, Fig. 1, and rests on stays 440. Belts 350 are inclined laterally towards each other by running over supports 366, Fig. 6, to allow for the pans being warped. Fingers 334 are carried by cranks 326 simultaneously operable by a bar 340 engaged by a rocking lever 418 to engage and release successive lines of recesses V. Resilient connections between the cranks and bar 340 are afforded by slots 338 in the bar and springs between the cranks and the bar avoid jamming and allow both fingers to reach the bottom of a recess even if the pans are warped. Lever 418 is rocked in timed relation with the proofer conveyer by an associated lever engaging a cam 406, Fig. 11, and Fig. 4 (not shown), geared to driving-shaft 558. In Fig. 11, cam 406 is loose on driven shaft 536 driving chains 30 and is driven through bevel gears 538, 540 and one or other of the sprocket connections 552, 554. Since the trays for hamburger and frankfurter rolls are of different size, the guides 392 are simultaneously adjustable toward and away from one another by levers 394, Fig. 1, on shafts 396 simultaneously rotatable in opposite directions by a handle 404. Also, the speed of belts 350 is adjustable with respect to that of the proofer conveyer by a Reeves pulley (Fig. 4, not shown) around which a belt 376, Fig. 1, is adjustably tightened by a pulley 380 movable by a handle 388 settable in a number of positions.