Patent GB-1443623-A (GB)
Title: Compact breading machine
IPC: A23P1/08
Filed: 1974-07-08
Abstract: 1443623 Compact coating machine SAM STEIN ASSOCIATES Inc 8 July 1974 [10 April 1974] 30134/74 Heading A2A A machine for coating a food product comprises, firstly, an endless open mesh wire conveyor belt 20 which is supported on a conveyor frame 32 which is in turn supported in a batter reservoir 21. The belt 20 passes over a pulley-equivalent or cross rod 22, beneath a submerger wheel 23, over a cross rod 24, over a drive pulley 25, then inwardly and downwardly over a curving plate 26 and beneath a counter weight 27 which is suspended by oscillatable arms 28 from pivot points 29 and the return run of the conveyor passes beneath cross rods 30 and 31 back to the first pulley equivalent 22. As the top run of the liquid coating belt 20 rises out of the liquid batter it passes under a slotted discharge of a small air blower 38, the slot being shown at 39. The blower 38 is supported at 38a on the conveyor or frame 32. Thus, a downwardly directed air curtain sweeps the excess liquid batter of the top of the product. The machine also comprises a dry-coating unit which includes a breading material storage hopper 42 having an inclined bottom 43 between two parallel side walls 42a, a short end wall 44 and a partial top wall comprising a slider plate 45. A continuous open mesh wire conveyor belt 46 has a breading material elevating run travelling upwardly toward the left as viewed in Fig. 1 close to the bottom wall 43, passing over an idler pulley equivalent 47, then horizontally in a product-advancing run horizontal and close to slider plate 45, over drive pulley 48 and downwardly around belt reverser 69, over an idler pulley equivalent 49, near the product take away point, then turning upwardly on the elevating run again. A "pumping" slot 50 is formed by a roof 51 which is spaced above and parallel to the slanting bottom wall 43 and has a side wall the two side walls of the hopper 42. The level of the breading material in the hopper 42 is normally above the entrance to the slot 50 so that the movement of the belt 46 piles up the breading material against the pulley equivalent 47 and forces it upwardly through the open mesh belt at 46a. Means is provided for splitting the upper portion of the flow of breading material which is pushed upwardly through the space at 46a. This means is a V-shape, bent bar splitter 63 which diverges from a nose 63 on which is welded to two support rods 64 which are rigidly secured between support plates 60. Two side plows 65 are provided for moving substantially all the laterally diverted breading material laterally inwardly from both sides on to the top of the product travelling along the conveyor belt 46. In use the pieces of food product are placed on conveyor 20 inside the batter reservoir 21 and carried beneath submerger wheel 23 and air discharge slot 39 to fall over pulley 25 onto the breading layer beneath the splitter 63. As the product is carried by conveyor 46 the side plows 65 spread excess material over the top of the product where the material is flattened by tamper plate 66. The product then falls over drive pulley 48 onto a take-away conveyor 76 which carries it over a drive pulley 77 as a finished breaded product. The foods products may comprise fish, meats and bakery products.