Improvements in and connected with Gelatinizing and Drying Apparatus used in the Manufacture of Flaked Maize, Malt, and similar Substances.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 9th Dec., 1897
Complete Specification Left, 9th Sept., 1898-Accepted, 9th Dec., 1898
Improvements in and connected with Gelatinizing and Drying
Apparatus used in the Manufacture of Flaked Maize, Malt, and
similar Substances.
I, GEORGE FREDERICK ZIMMER, of 82, Mark Lane, in the City of London,
Consulting Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
The objects of this invention are to ensure more uniform and perfect gelatiniza-
tion and to prevent breakage of the flakes during manufacture:
Hitherto the gelatinizing apparatus has consisted of two worm conveyors one
above the other each worm revolving in a suitable casing.
The upper conveyor or steaming worm has hitherto been provided with a
number of steam jets for injecting steam into the lower portion of this conveyor
while the necessary water has been allowed to run into the worm by means of
a tap and hole in the lid or cover at the end of the said worm.
The second or lower worm which is steam jacketted is used for further cooking
the grits after they have been delivered from the upper worm.
The disadvantage of this apparatus is that the grits are not uniformly
gelatinized mainly because they are not throughly wetted before coming in
contact with the aforesaid steam jets.
Now according to this invention I apply steam and water to the gelatinizer
in the same way that is by means of jets of steam and water but instead of
injecting the steam at the feed end of the steaming worm I inject the steum
at the tail or discharge end and from thence to any required portion of the
length of the worm the water being injected at the feed end of the worm and
aloug any required portion of the length thereof. By this method of steaming
the grits are throughly soaked with water before coming in contact with the
steam which is throughly absorbed by the grits before it reaches the feed end
of the worm and so cannot escape from the feed orifice as has been hitherto
the case.
As some cereals require more water and less steam than others and vice versa
it is of the utmost importance to be able to regulate the supply of water and
steam to the steaming worm. I therefore attach to the casing of the said worm a
pipe which extends from one end to the other of the casing and communicates
with the interior of the worm casing by suitable branch pipes terminating in
suitable jet apertures. Suitable valves or cocks are inserted in the branch pipes
or in the main pipe by means of which I am able to inject water into a certain
portion of the worm and steam into the remaining portion.
The said valves are also so arranged that I can inject water into one portion of
the worm and then shut off both steam and water from the next portion and
inject steam into the third portion thereof.
A suitable branch pipe or discharge spout conveys the steamed grits from the

page_text: upper to the lower worm which spout I place at about one eight of its length
from the extreme end of the steaming worm instead of at the extreme end as
usual and at the extrome end of the steaming worm I provide an aperture closed
by a weighted airtight flap to act as a safety valve in case the delivery spout
becomes choked, I cover also the hand hole in the spout connecting the upper
and lower worms with an air-tight self closing door.
The lower worm which is steam jacketted has been hitherto provided with one
or more ventilating pipes connected to an uptake to carry off the vapour from
the inside of the worm casing to the outside of the building. I join on to the
ventilating shaft or uptake a branch pipe communicating with the feed spout
of the steaming worm so that the natural draught created by the vapour rising
from the lower worm acts as an exhaust to the feed pipe and draws away any
vapour which might otherwise escape and cause a nuisance.
After the gelatinized grits have been rolled into flakes they are dried and
to prevent them from becoming broken while drying. I construct the drying
apparatus as usual of two concentric cylinders of perforated metal the inner one
being capable of revolving as usual but instead of the outer cylinder being
fixed to the supporting columns as usual I attach about the lower third of the
said cylinder to the inner cylinder so as to rotate therewith.
The maize malt, being wet when entering the machine is not likely to break 2
but as it descends the drying machine it gradually becomes dry and brittle and
when it reaches the lower third it is carried round bodily with the rotating
portion of the outer cylinder and the inner cylinder without agitation, and risk
of breakage of the dried flakes avoided.
The revolving portion of the outer cylinder and the inner cylinder are sup- 2
ported on a suitable pivot or on ball or other bearings to reduce friction
In the hopper above the drying apparatus I provide a suitable stirring device
preferably constructed in the form of two curved rotating arms of unequal lengths
for the purpose of preventing arching of the material in the hopper.
In order to facilitate the passage of the hot air through the flakes while drying
I cover the cylindrical portion of the drying machine with a sheet metal mantle
from which I exhaust air and any small particles of brau which drop through
the perforations of the machine.
Dated this Eighth day of December 1897.
T. E. HALFORD,
11, Furnival Street, London, E.C., Agent for Applicant.
Improvements in and connected with Gelatinizing and Drying
Apparatus used in the Manufacture of Flaked Maize, Malt, and
similar substances.
I, GEORGE FREDERICK ZIMMER, of 82, Mark Lane, in the City of London,
Consulting Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what
manner the same is to be performed. to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement:
The objects of this invention are to ensure more uniform and perfect gelatiniza-
tion and to prevent breakage of the flakes during manufacture.
Hitherto the gelatinizing apparatus has consisted of two wornf conveyors one
above the other each worm revolving in a suitable casing.
The upper conveyor or steaming worm has hitherto been provided with a
number of ateam jets for injecting steam into the lower portion of this conveyor t

page_text: Fig. 6 is plan of hopper shewing stirring device.
The same letters denote the same parts in all the figs.
Now according to this invention I construct the gelatiniser of two suitable
receptacles ab in which rotate worms c d preferably paddle worms as shewn the
whole forming conveyors. The upper conveyor being commonly called the
steaming worm and the lower conveyor 6 the cooking worm by which names they
are hereinafter designated.
The grits to be gelatinised are fed into the steaming worm a through the
spout e and eventually discharged from the spout g.
I supply steam and water to the gelatinizer by means of jets of steam and
water but instead of injecting the steam at the feed end of the steaming worm
in the usual way I inject the steam at the tail or discharge end and from thence
to any required portion of the length of the worm and along any required portion
of the length thereof. By this method of steaming the grits are thoroughly
damped with water before coming in contact with the steam which is thoroughly
absorbed by the grits before it reaches the feed end of the worm and so cannot
escape from the feed orifice as has been thitherto the case.
As some cereals require more water and less steam than others and rice versa
it is of the utmost importance to be able to regulate the supply of water and
steam to the steaming worm.
I therefore attach to the casing of the said worm a pipe h which extends from
one end to the other of the casing and communicates with the interior of the
worm casing by suitable branch pipes i terminating in suitable jet apertures j.
Steam may be admitted to one end of the said pipe and water to the other end.
Suitable valves or cocks are inserted in the branch pipes or in the main
ripe or both by means of which I am able to inject water into a certain portion
of the worm and steam into the remaining portion.
The said valves are also so arranged that I am able to inject water into one
portion of the worn and then shut off both steam and water from the next portion
and inject steam into the third portion thereof.
A suitable branch pipe or discharge spout f conveys the steamed grits from
the upper worm a to the lower worm b which spout I place at about one eighth
of the length of the worm a from the extreme end thereof instead of at the
extreme end as usual and at the extreme end of the steaming worm I provide an
aperture or short spout g' closed by a weighted airtight flap 7 to act as a safety
valve in case the delivery spout becomes choked I cover also the hand hole in
the spout connecting the upper and lower worms with an airtight selfclosing
door m.
The lower worm 6 which is steam jacketted has been hitherto provided with
one or more ventilating pipes connected to an uptake to carry off the vapour from

page_text: the inside of the worm casing to the outside of the building. I join on to this
ventilating shaft or uptake a branch pipe communicating with the feed
spoute of the steaming worm so that the natural draught created by the vapour
rising from the lower worm acts as an exhaust to the feed pipe and draws away
any vapour which might otherwise escape and cause a nuisance.
I also place a hood o over the safety valve and delivery spout of the sleaming
worm and connect the said hood to the uptake by means of a suitable pipe p.
After the gelatinized grits have been rolled into flakes they are dried and to
prevent them from becoming broken while drying I construct the drying
apparatus as usual of two concentric cylinders of perforated metal the inner one
being capable of revolving as usual but instead of the outer cylinder r being
fixed to the supporting colunas for the entire length thereof as usual I attach
about the lower third of the cylinder r to the inner cylinder so as to rotate
therewith.
The inner cylinder q is provided with baffle plates one above the other the
upper baffle being annular and the lower one a disc so that the bottom of the
apparatus is the hottest is the hot air supply pipe.
The maize malt being wet when entering the machine is not likely to break
but as it descends the drying machine it gradually becomes dry and brittle and
when it reaches the lower third it is carried round bodily with the rotating
portion of the outer cylinder and the inner cylinder without agitation and the
risk of breaking the dried flakes avoided.
The revolving portions of the outer cylinder and the inner cylinder are sup-
ported on a suitable pivot or on ball or other bearings to reduce friction.
In the hopper we above the drying apparatus I provide a suitable stirring device
preferably constructed in the form of two curved rotating arms of unequal
lengths for the purpose of preventing arching of material in the hopper..
In order to facilitate the passage of the hot air through the flakes while drying
I cover the cylindrical portion of the drying machine with a sheet metal mantle.r
from which I exhaust air and any small particles of bran which drop through
the perforation of the machine by means of the pipe ..
I also provide a scraper y at the bottom of the inner tube to prevent accumula-
tion of broken bits of Hake and choking of the draught.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed I declare that what I
claim is:-
1. In gelatinizing apparatus used in the manufacture of flaked maize malt
and similar substances the method of and means for injecting steam into the
steaming worm at the discharge end thereof and for injecting water into the
said worm at the feed end thereof and also at points intermediate between the
feed and discharge ends thereof substantially as and for the purpose specified.
2. In gelatinizing apparatus used in the manufacture of flaked maize malt
and similar substances the device for regulating the supply of steam and water
to the steaming worm consisting of a pipe alongside the said worm steam being
admitted into the said pipe at one end thereof and water into the other end of
the said pipe branch pipes terminating in jet orifices inside the said worm
connecting the said pipe to the worm and suitable valves or cocks to regulate the
supply of steam and water to the said orifices substantially as and for the purpose
specified.
3. In gelatinizing apparatus used in the manufacture of flaked maize malt and
similar substances the construction and use of an airtight weighted flap covering
au orifice in the casing of the steaming worm or in a short spout attached thereto
the said orifice being situated between the discharge spout and the end of the
worm casing substantially as and for the purpose specified.
4. In gelatinizing apparatas used in the manufacture of flaked maize malt
and similar substances the combination with ventilating pipes and uptake for

page_text: carrying off vapour from the cooking worm of a ventilating pipe, or pipes, fitted
with a hood, or hoods, if necessary, to carry off surplus steam and vapour from
the steaming worm substantially as herein before specified.
5. In drying apparatus used in the manufacture of flaked maize malt and
aimilar substances constructing the outer cylinder in two portions whereof the
upper portion is secured to the supporting columnus and the lower portion is
attached to the inner cylinder in such a manner as to rotate therewith substan-
tially as herein before specified and for the purpose stated.
6. In drying apparatus used in the manufacture of flaked maize malt and
similar substances the combination of an inner rotating cylinder having bafflo
plates therein with an outer cylinder the lower portion of which
16 attached to the inuer cylinder 80 18 to rotate therowith, 13
stirring device in the feed hopper scraper to prevent clogging of
the lower portion of the inner cylinder, mantle surrounding the
cylindrical portion of the apparatus and a means for exhausting the air from the
said mantle all substantially as and for the purpose specified.
U
7. Apparatus for gelatinizing and drying flaked maize malt and similar sub-
stances constructed as hereinbefore specified.
T. 0th day of Cantanha 1908
T. E. HALFORD,
11, Furnival Street, London, E.C., Agent for Applicant.