Patent ID: 8316761

Claim:
Apparatus for producing so-called soft ice cream comprising a refrigerated feeding tank ( 12 ) for a liquid mixture ( 11 ) suitable for the preparation of soft ice cream, a group for pasteurising the mixture and a whipping cylinder ( 50 ), characterised in that said group for pasteurising the mixture comprises a heating device ( 20 ) for providing an amount of heated mixture equal to at least one portion of product, where said heating device ( 20 ) is connected with a duct to a pre-cooling device ( 30 , 30 ′) for said amount of heated mixture, which in turn is connected with a duct to and a storage tank ( 40 , 40 ′) having a top side and a bottom side for storing the heated mixture at a constant temperature, wherein said pre-cooling device ( 30 ) comprises a cylindrical chamber ( 31 ), a heat exchange means positioned around the cylindrical chamber ( 32 ) and a cylindrical rotor ( 33 ) having an outer diameter substantially equal to the inner diameter of said cylindrical chamber ( 31 ), in which said rotor ( 33 ) carries a helical groove ( 34 ) that forms said liquid mixture into a spiral shaped configuration on the inner surface of cylindrical chamber ( 31 ).