Patent Publication Number: US-2021169268-A1

Title: Automatic apparatus for the production and cooking of tortillas or similar products

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to machines for producing and cooking tortillas automatically. More specifically, the present invention relates to an automatic tortilla dispensing and cooking apparatus. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The tortilla is one of the most important foods in Mexico. Its consumption dates from pre-Hispanic civilizations, that used the metate as an instrument for grinding the nixtamal and they also used a hot flat surface to cook tortillas manually. Currently, industrial processes are used for the grinding, forming, cooking and storage of tortillas. There are a large number of establishments in urban and rural areas where it is possible to purchase tortillas, whether they are convenience stores, self-service stores or establishments specifically dedicated to their production and sale. The product is acquired in a fully cooked form, either hot or cold, and is a food that is rarely fully made at home today. Due to the industrialization of the tortilla making processes, it is possible to perceive a deficiency in flavor, texture and consistency in tortillas made in an industrial way, compared to tortillas made in a traditional way. The present invention solves this problem with an apparatus that emulates the traditional tortilla cooking process by means of a compact mechanism that manipulates the tortilla in a cooking process similar to a human hand. 
     Automatic tortilla production machines have been developed since the beginning of the 20th century. Currently there is a great variety of said machines in terms of the formation and production capacity of tortillas, although the way of cooking is maintained either on a griddle, commonly referred to as a “comal,” or in an oven system. The traditional way of cooking tortillas is using a comal, for this reason the machines that use ovens to make tortillas simply differ in the traditional result. The machine described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,533 is an example of a large capacity automatic machine that uses an oven system and consists of a system for making tortillas that includes a sheeter, a roller/heater, and an oven. In such a system, the tortillas are cut into an oblong shape on the sheeter and the roller/heater kneads the tortillas into a round shape and conductively heats the tortillas simultaneously on the top and bottom surfaces, gelatinizing the food product and sealing in moisture. The tortillas are then cooked in an oven. Tortilla marks and grooves are avoided because the heater/roller has continuous top and bottom belts that have continuous surfaces. 
     In turn, the machine described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,508,025 is designed with a system of concentric griddles that allow the cooking of each side of the tortilla based on gravity and rotary movements, which fulfills the objective of resembling the process traditional cooking, but it takes up a lot of space and consumes large amounts of energy due to the number of hot surfaces and moving parts. 
     Recently, a new type of tortilla machine has emerged, aimed at the home appliance market. Patent application US 2015/0044340 A1 is an example of this type of machine, which includes a system that opens tortilla dough capsules to later form the tortilla and cook it completely automatically. The system of the aforementioned application seeks to facilitate the preparation of freshly made tortillas at home, but its cooking design, composed of two hot surfaces to cook both sides of the tortilla simultaneously, does not allow obtaining a tortilla with characteristics similar to those of a tortilla made in a traditional way. Additionally, the capsules of patent application US 2015/0044340 A1 comprise non-preformed mass, which means that the apparatus of said application requires a pressing system, which obviously increases the cost of the apparatus and its dimensions. On the other hand, the cooking system is different from that of the present invention. 
     The patent application MX/a/2016/009369 belonging to the applicant of the present invention describes a packaging and dispensing device for tortillas that describes an automatic dispenser for pre-formed tortillas contained in a cartridge, but the cartridge comprises different separate elements for its correct operation such as a belt connected to the engine and a traction cylinder. On the other hand, the present invention comprises a cartridge with a coupling system and integrated elements in a compact and integral way, while eliminating some separate elements such as the band. In addition, the patent application MX/a/2016/009369 is completely silent with respect to the cooking system and/or a cartridge shaft integrated in the cartridge housing and it is also completely silent with respect to the fact that the cartridge is removable, that is, The present invention allows the cartridges to be removed in such a way that once the preformed tortillas in one of the cartridges has been depleted, another cartridge can be quickly mounted to a base to continue tortilla production. 
     In addition, taking into account migratory movements and the globalization of markets, the number of consumers looking for a high quality tortilla, but at the same time with that traditional touch has increased internationally, mainly in the North American market, therefore that the present invention is a perfect solution for that market and its consumers. It is important to note that there are also products similar in appearance, ingredients and elaboration processes to the Mexican tortilla, such as chapati, roti, naan, pita, etc., which are consumed in other parts of the world and due to their similarity, said products can also be prepared and/or cooked using the apparatus described in the present invention. 
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention consists of an automatic apparatus for the production and cooking of tortillas, which essentially consists of: 
     a cartridge, which contains pre-formed circular tortillas that are not fully cooked, a cartridge attachment system and an automatic cooking system consisting of two parallel griddles or also called comales, each griddle configured to cook each side of the tortilla and dispense the tortilla into a container after completing a cooking cycle using a specific movement of the comales. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       The present invention will be better understood by referring to the detailed explanation of the present description when read in conjunction with the accompanying figures, where: 
         FIG. 1  is a rear perspective view of the tortilla making and cooking apparatus without an inserted tortilla cartridge; 
         FIG. 2  is a rear perspective view of the inserted cartridge of the tortilla making and cooking apparatus; 
         FIG. 3  is a side view of the apparatus of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a view from the rear of the apparatus of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a top view of the apparatus of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of a flat cartridge containing partially cooked tortillas for dispensing; 
         FIG. 7  is a side sectional view showing the internal parts of the flat cartridge of  FIG. 6  and the distribution of partially cooked tortillas; 
         FIG. 8  is a side view of the flat cartridge showing a flat cartridge engagement mechanism; 
         FIG. 9  shows the engagement of a cartridge shaft that rewinds films within the flat tortilla cartridge; 
         FIG. 10  shows the linear distribution of the partially cooked tortillas that are inserted into the flat cartridge; 
         FIG. 11  shows the flat cartridge of  FIG. 6  pushing the films causing the partially cooked tortilla to come out; 
         FIG. 12  shows a perspective view of another preferred embodiment of a cylindrical cartridge; 
         FIG. 13  shows a side view of the cylindrical cartridge of  FIG. 12 ; 
         FIG. 14  shows a side sectional view of the cylindrical cartridge of  FIG. 12 ; 
         FIG. 15  shows a perspective view of the cylindrical cartridge of  FIG. 12  simulating the way in which a partially cooked tortilla is ejected; 
         FIG. 16  shows a side sectional view of the cylindrical cartridge of  FIG. 12  attached to a manual feeder; 
         FIG. 17  shows a perspective view of the apparatus for the production and cooking of tortillas of the present invention directly connected to the cylindrical cartridge; 
         FIG. 18  shows a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the flat cartridge; 
         FIG. 19  shows a side sectional view showing the internal parts of the flat cartridge embodiment of  FIG. 18  and the distribution of the tortillas; Y 
         FIG. 20  shows a film rewind cartridge shaft coupling within the preferred embodiment of the flat tortilla cartridge of  FIG. 18 . 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the tortilla production and cooking apparatus  50  of the present invention is shown, which comprises a base  27 , a cooking system  2 , and a machine structure  3 . The base  27  is configured to receive a flat cartridge  1  which contains raw, partially cooked tortillas  21  or similar products, the flat cartridge  1  being placed manually by a user on the base  27 . The flat cartridge  1  is mechanically attached to the cartridge drive motor  5  by means of a cartridge coupling  16 , wherein one end of a motor coupling  7  is frictionally inserted into cartridge coupling  16 , while another end of motor coupling  7  is coupled to a cartridge drive motor  5 , the Cartridge drive motor  5  is attached to a side portion of the machine frame  3  through a cartridge motor bracket  4 . When rotating, the cartridge drive motor  5  causes the motor coupling  7  and the cartridge coupling  16  to rotate, cartridge coupling  16  forms part of the cartridge shaft  15 . 
     The cooking system  2  is coupled to a lower griddle shaft  52  (see  FIG. 4 ), one end of the lower griddle shaft  52  being coupled to a griddle motor  23  through a mechanical coupling  14  and the other end coupled to a griddle support  6  by means of a pillow block (not shown) which allows the rotation of the cooking system  2  on its own axis, the griddle support  6  being fixed to the machine structure  3 . The cooking system  2  is configured to receive a tortilla  21  and cook it on both sides after the tortilla  21  is dispensed from the flat cartridge  1 . 
     The comal motor  23  can be selected from any of a direct current (DC) motor, an alternating current (AC) motor, a stepper motor, a servo motor, or any other suitable motor. 
     With reference to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , it can be seen that the cooking system  2  comprises an upper griddle  11  and a lower griddle  12 , both griddles  11 ,  12  being joined together by means of fastening elements, such as, but not limited to, screws. The upper  11  and lower  12  griddles are configured to receive a partially cooked tortilla  21  and cook the upper and lower sides thereof. The upper  11  and lower  12  griddle surfaces are made of a non-stick material so that the tortilla  21  does not stick to the system  2  during the cooking process. The cooking system  2  also comprises an upper thermal resistance  8  and a lower thermal resistance  9 . The upper heating element  8  is fixed to the upper griddle  11 , while the heating element  9  is fixed to the lower griddle  12 . The function of both heating elements is to heat each of the upper  11  and lower  12  griddles to a suitable cooking temperature of between 190-240° C. and keep that temperature constant. Temperature control is performed by a microcomputer (not shown) electrically connected to heating elements  8 ,  9 . The microcomputer can be selected from any of, but not limited to, a processor, a controller, programmable logic circuits, etc. 
     As can be seen from  FIG. 5 , the apparatus for the production and cooking of tortillas  50  of the present invention further comprises a tortilla sensor  13 , which is electrically connected to the microcomputer. The tortilla sensor  13  is attached to an upper portion of the machine structure  3  and has the objective of detecting the presence of a partially cooked tortilla  21  that is dispensed from the flat cartridge  1 . The tortilla sensor  13  being an optical sensor. 
     The tortilla  21  is dispensed from the flat cartridge  1  by means of the action of the cartridge drive motor  5 , the cartridge drive motor  5  being controlled by the microcomputer. The microcomputer is configured to read the status of the tortilla sensor  13  and determines that the partially cooked tortilla  21  is being transported to the lower griddle  12 , identifying its presence through the tortilla sensor  13  and once the sensor  13  is no longer interrupted it is determined that the partially cooked tortilla  21  has completely come out of the flat cartridge  1 . 
     The microcomputer is also configured to control the cooking of tortilla  21 , through the following cycle: 
     detecting the presence of a partially cooked tortilla  21 , by means of the tortilla sensor  13 , and rotating the cooking system  2  by 45° to receive the partially cooked tortilla  21  and start cooking one of its faces; 
     rotate cooking system  2  to 0° to cook the underside of tortilla  21  for 10-15 seconds; 
     rotate 180° the cooking system  2  for 20-25 seconds, when the face of the tortilla is cooked, to place the upper face of the tortilla  21  in contact with the upper griddle  11 ; 
     rotate the cooking system  2  again to 0°, when the face of the tortilla is cooked, once again placing the lower face of the tortilla  21  in contact with the lower griddle  12  for 20-seconds; and tilting the cooking system  2  towards a tortilla container  10  to deposit a cooked tortilla  21 , where the cooked tortilla  21  slides under the action of gravity completing the cooking cycle. 
     The tortilla container  10  is placed in a lower portion of the machine structure  3  and as previously mentioned it aims to receive a cooked tortilla  21  from the cooking system  2 , wherein the cooked tortilla  21  slides into the container  10  through the action of gravity and rotation of the cooking system  2 . 
     Now, in  FIGS. 6 to 8 and 11 , a preferred embodiment of the flat cartridge  1  of the present invention can be observed in more detail, where the flat cartridge  1  is made up of a cartridge housing  19  which contains tortillas  21 , each tortilla  21  packed by a lower film  20  and an upper film  22 , wherein the lower film  20  and the upper film  22  are fused to a cartridge shaft  15  through a film edge  26  (see  FIG. 10 ), at where the cartridge shaft  15  is configured to transport a partially cooked tortilla  21  towards a cartridge slot  17 , by means of the action of the cartridge motor  5 , the cartridge slot  17  allows the exit of a tortilla  21  towards the cooking system  2 . The lower  20  and upper  22  film are further configured to act as an oxygen barrier and protection against microorganisms. The lower film  20  and the upper film  22  are hermetically joined by a seal  25  (see  FIG. 10 ) formed by the adhesion between both films. 
     It should be noted that the seal  25  can be selected from any of, but not limited to, plastic, wax paper, or a double-layered film consisting of paper and plastic, or any combination of the previously mentioned materials. 
     The cartridge shaft  15  when rotating winds the lower film  20  and the upper film  22 , both films come out of the slot  17 , the film  22  slides on the upper part of the flat cartridge  1  and the lower film  20  slides on the lower part of the flat cartridge  1  (see  FIG. 7 ), which causes the tortilla seal  25  to come off when separating both films, in turn allowing the tortilla  21  to be ejected into the slot  17  as shown in  FIG. 11 . 
     Cartridge shaft  15  is inserted into a cartridge pivot  18  which forms part of cartridge housing  19 , the cartridge pivot  18  being configured to press-receive cartridge shaft  15  and rotate freely. The cartridge pivot  18  comprises a cartridge mechanical coupling  16  and a cartridge hole  24 , the cartridge mechanical coupling  16  is part of the cartridge shaft  15  and allows the motor coupling  7  to be joined to the cartridge shaft  15 , and said joint allows the rotation of the cartridge shaft  15  when the cartridge drive motor  5  is in motion, thus allowing the upper film  22  and the lower film  20  to be rolled up. 
     Cartridge hole  24  is configured to direct cartridge shaft toward cartridge pivot  18 , as well as ensuring that cartridge shaft  15  does not slip out of place. 
       FIG. 9  shows the cartridge shaft  15  properly coupled to the housing  19  through the cartridge pivot  18  which is located at one end of the housing  19 , while at the other end of the housing  19 , the cartridge shaft  15  it is secured to a cartridge coupling  16  through a latch  28 . The latch  28  prevents shaft  15  from slipping out of place once inserted. 
     The above configuration allows the flat cartridge  1  to be easily removed and/or placed and also allows the flat cartridge  1  to be securely fixed on the base  27  to avoid any inconvenience during the operation of the apparatus for production and cooking of tortillas  50  of the present invention. 
     The housing  19  can be made of plastic or any other suitable material. 
     Referring to  FIG. 10 , the arrangement of the tortillas  21  packed by the lower film  20  and the upper film  22  and joined by means of the seal  25  is shown. The seal  25  protects the tortillas against moisture, contaminating agents, microorganisms or others. agents. Seal  25  is configured to peel off using a film edge  26  that is fused to cartridge shaft  15 , where film edge  26  is pulled by cartridge shaft  15  thus detaching seal  25  as lower  20  and upper film  22  are wound by the cartridge shaft  15  and ejected towards the slot  17 . The partially precooked tortilla  21  once released from its seal  25  is transported towards the cooking system  2 . 
     Seal  25  can also contain an oxygen barrier, inert atmosphere, or be under vacuum. 
       FIGS. 12 to 16  show a preferred embodiment of a cylindrical cartridge  54  containing partially precooked tortillas  21 . The cylindrical cartridge  54  comprises a cylindrical cartridge cap  29  in a cylindrical shape, the cylindrical cartridge cap  29  being press fit to a cylindrical cartridge housing  34 . 
     The cartridge housing  34  comprises a cylindrical cartridge upper film  31  which is fused to a cartridge shaft  33  through a film edge  26 , the upper film  31  allowing the transport of the tortilla  21  into a cartridge slot  35 . The upper cylindrical cartridge film  31  is joined with a lower cylindrical cartridge film  32  in order to form a seal  25  thus containing a tortilla  21 . 
     The cylindrical cartridge  54  further comprises a cylindrical cartridge coupling  30  which is part of a cartridge shaft  33  and allows the motor coupling  7  to be connected to the cartridge shaft  33 , allowing the turning or rotation of the cartridge shaft  33  when the traction motor for cartridge  5  is in motion. 
     The cartridge shaft  33  when rotating, it winds the lower film  32  and the upper film  31 , both films come out of the slot  35 , the film  31  slides on the upper part of the cylindrical cartridge  54  and the lower film  32  slides on the lower part of the cylindrical cartridge  54  (see  FIG. 14 ), which causes the tortilla seal  25  to come off when separating both films, allowing the tortilla  21  to be ejected into the slot  35  as shown in  FIG. 15 . The cartridge shaft  33  it also comprises a cartridge pivot ( 18 ) that has a function similar to that described in  FIG. 9 . 
     A manual feeder  36  is attached to the griddle support  6  and to the machine structure  3  and its function is to receive tortillas so that they can be heated or cooked by the cooking system  2 . 
     It should be noted that the manner of detaching the seal on the cylindrical cartridge  54  is similar to that described in  FIG. 10 , with the only thing that changes is the reference number for the upper and lower film for the present embodiment. 
     As can be seen from  FIG. 10 , the partially precooked tortilla  21  is fed into a manual feeder inlet  37  which directs the tortilla  21  towards the cooking system  2 . 
     Now, referring to  FIGS. 18 to 20 , a preferred embodiment of a flat cartridge  71  can be observed, wherein the flat cartridge  71  is made up of a cartridge housing  55  which comprises a cartridge cap  62  attached to the housing of cartridge  55 . 
     The cartridge cap  62  integrates a removable flange  68  at one end, the removable flange  62  being configured to be manually detached by a user along a dotted line of holes  69 , which allows the tortilla  21  to exit through a slot  70 , when the tortilla making and cooking apparatus  50  is in operation. 
     The housing  55  contains tortillas  21 , each tortilla  21  is packed by a lower film  64  and an upper film  63 , wherein the lower film  64  is fused to a cartridge shaft  56  through a film edge  26  (see  FIG. 10 ), wherein the cartridge shaft  56  is configured to transport a partially cooked tortilla  21  into a cartridge slot  70 , when the cartridge motor  5  is operating, the cartridge slot  70  allows a tortilla  21  to exit into the cooking system  2 . The bottom  64  and top  63  film are further configured to act as an oxygen barrier and protection against microorganisms. The lower film  64  and the upper film  63  are hermetically joined by means of a seal  25  (see  FIG. 10 ) formed by the adhesion between both films. 
     It should be noted that the seal  25  can be selected from any of, but not limited to, plastic, wax paper, or a double-layered film consisting of paper and plastic, or any combination of the previously mentioned materials. 
     As the cartridge shaft  56  rotates, it winds the lower film  64  and the upper film  63 , both films come out of the slot  70 , the upper film  63  slides over an upper portion of the flat cartridge  71  and passes over a nearby double-walled reinforcement  66  to the removable flange  68 , while the lower film  64  slides between a lower portion of the flat cartridge  71  and a tortilla base  65  (see  FIG. 19 ), which causes the tortilla seal  25  to come off when separating both films, in turn allowing the tortilla  21  to exit towards the slot  70 . The double wall reinforcement  66  is adapted to withstand the tension of the upper film  63  and prevent the tortillas  21  from accidentally exiting the flat cartridge  71  once the flange  68  is removed and ensuring that the exit of the tortillas  21  is solely by the action of the motor  5  when it is operating. 
     The cartridge shaft  56 , which comprises a tubular shape, is supported at one end by a pull plug  59  and at the opposite end by a guide plug  57 , the pull plug  59  and the guide plug  57  form a pivot  61  and  62 , said pivots are snap fitted to a cartridge shaft  56 . Pull plug  59  and guide plug  57  are snap inserted into housing  55  as can be seen from  FIG. 20 , allowing the plugs to rotate freely. A cartridge mechanical coupling  60  is part of the pull plug  59  and allows the motor coupling  7  to be attached to the cartridge shaft  56 , and said joint allows the rotation of the cartridge shaft  56  when the cartridge drive motor  5  is in motion, thus allowing the upper film  63  and the lower film  64  to be rolled up. 
     The above configuration allows the flat cartridge  71  to be easily removed and/or placed and also allows the flat cartridge  71  to be securely fixed on the base  27  to avoid any inconvenience during the operation of the tortilla production and cooking apparatus  50  of the present invention. 
     The double-walled backing  66  and the tortilla base  65  are integral with the housing  55  and are manufactured from a single folded and glued cardboard section. 
     It should be noted that, although in the present description, it has been explained that the product is a raw, partially cooked or fully cooked tortilla, one skilled in the art will understand that the present invention is not limited to a tortilla, and other products can be cooked similar, such as, but not limited to chapati, roti, naan, pita, among others. 
     It is noted that in relation to this date, the best method known to the applicant for putting the aforementioned invention into practice is the one that is clear from the present description of the invention.