Method and apparatus for removing a portion of a food product with an abrasive stream

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10010106-B2
Application number	US-201514919845-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 22, 2015
Priority date	Apr 30, 2015
Publication date	Jul 3, 2018
Grant date	Jul 3, 2018

Abstract

A method and apparatus for causing attrition to an outer surface of a food product to provide a removed portion of the food product and a remainder of the food product. In a first aspect, an abrasive stream contacts the outer surface of the food product, thereby separating at least a portion of the outer surface of the food product from the remainder of the food product to provide the removed portion of the food product. In a second aspect, the apparatus includes a product positioner to position the food product in an attrition zone and a nozzle for discharging the abrasive stream into contact with the food product in the attrition zone. The abrasive stream can be food grade and can include a food grade fluid and a food grade abrasive, for example, air and salt, respectively.

First claim

We claim:

1. A method for causing attrition to an outer surface of a food product to provide a removed portion of the food product and a remainder of the food product, the method comprising:
sensing a position of the food product;
discharging an abrasive stream into contact with the outer surface of the food product, thereby providing a discharge of the abrasive stream, and thereby separating at least a portion of the outer surface of the food product from the remainder of the food product to provide the removed portion of the food product, wherein the abrasive stream comprises a fluid and an abrasive, wherein the outer surface comprises a peel;
substantially separating the abrasive and the removed portion of the food product from the remainder of the food product;
substantially separating the abrasive from the removed portion of the food product to provide a segregated abrasive; and
recycling the segregated abrasive to provide a recycle abrasive.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step:
positioning the food product into an attrition zone.

3. The method of claim 1 , comprising the step:
discharging the abrasive stream when the food product is in a discharge path of the abrasive stream.

4. The method of claim 2 , further comprising the step:
stopping the discharge of the abrasive stream when the food product has passed out of the attrition zone.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein a rate of kinetic energy imparted to the outer surface of the food product by the abrasive is at least 93 J/s.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein a sum of kinetic energy imparted to the outer surface of the food product by the abrasive is at least 2.0 J.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein a rate of momentum imparted to the outer surface of the food product by the abrasive is at least 0.80 g*m/s 2 .

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein a sum of momentum imparted to the outer surface of the food product by the abrasive is at least 0.018 g*m/s.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the abrasive is salt; and
wherein a point on the outer surface of the food product spends at least 11 milliseconds in contact with the abrasive stream.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the abrasive is potato starch; and
wherein a point on the outer surface of the food product spends at least 1000 milliseconds in contact with the abrasive stream.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein an average linear velocity of the abrasive stream is 38-115 m/s.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein a velocity pressure head of the abrasive stream at an outlet of a nozzle for discharging the abrasive stream is 200-620 kPa.

13. The method of claim 1 , wherein a shortest distance from an outlet of a nozzle for discharging the abrasive stream to the outer surface of the food product is 0.02-0.13 m.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the abrasive comprises a hardness at least as large as a hardness of the removed portion of the food product.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the abrasive comprises an average particle size of 20-20,000 μm, with an average sphericity of 0.5-1.0 and an average aspect ratio of 0.5-1.0.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the abrasive comprises salt.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid comprises air.

18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluid comprises water.

19. The method of claim 1 , wherein the abrasive is in fluid communication with a nozzle;
wherein the fluid is in fluid communication with the nozzle;
wherein the fluid passes through the nozzle to provide a fluid jet; and
wherein the fluid jet creates a force of suction to draw the abrasive into the fluid in the nozzle, thereby providing the abrasive stream.

20. The method of claim 1 , comprising:
introducing the abrasive into the fluid in a nozzle to provide the abrasive stream.

21. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least 70% by surface area of the outer surface of the food product is removed to a depth sufficient to remove the peel of the food product.

22. The method of claim 1 , wherein the abrasive stream does not substantially penetrate past the outer surface of the food product.

23. The method of claim 2 , wherein positioning the food product in the attrition zone comprises allowing the food product to fall into the attrition zone.

24. A method for causing attrition to an outer surface of a food product to provide a removed portion of the food product and a remainder of the food product, the method comprising:
sensing a position of the food product;
discharging an abrasive stream into contact with the outer surface of the food product, thereby providing a discharge of the abrasive stream, and thereby separating at least a portion of the outer surface of the food product from the remainder of the food product to provide the removed portion of the food product, wherein the abrasive stream comprises a fluid and an abrasive, and wherein the outer surface comprises a peel; and
substantially separating the abrasive and the removed portion of the food product from the remainder of the food product;
wherein a mass flow rate of the abrasive in the abrasive stream is controlled separately from a mass flow rate of the fluid in the abrasive stream.

25. A method for causing attrition to an outer surface of a food product to provide a removed portion of the food product and a remainder of the food product, the method comprising:
sensing a position of the food product;
discharging an abrasive stream into contact with the outer surface of the food product, thereby providing a discharge of the abrasive stream, and thereby separating at least a portion of the outer surface of the food product from the remainder of the food product to provide the removed portion of the food product, wherein the abrasive stream comprises a fluid and an abrasive, and wherein the outer surface comprises a peel; and
substantially separating the abrasive and the removed portion of the food product from the remainder of the food product;
wherein the abrasive comprises a hardness of at least 5 Mohs.

26. A method for causing attrition to an outer surface of a food product to provide a removed portion of the food product and a remainder of the food product, the method comprising:
sensing a position of the food product;
discharging an abrasive stream into contact with the outer surface of the food product, thereby providing a discharge of the abrasive stream, and thereby separating at least a portion of the outer surface of the food product from the remainder of the food product to provide the removed portion of the food product, wherein the abrasive stream comprises a fluid and an abrasive, and wherein the outer surface comprises a peel; and
substantially separating the abrasive and the removed portion of the food product from the remainder of the food product;
wherein the abrasive comprises starch.

27. An apparatus for causing attrition to an outer surface of a food product to provide a removed portion of the food product and a remainder of the food product, the apparatus comprising:
a product positioner to position the food product in an attrition zone;
a nozzle for discharging an abrasive stream into contact with the food product in the attrition zone, wherein the abrasive stream comprises a fluid and an abrasive entrained in the fluid;
a sensor to determine a position of the food product;
a remainder separator for substantially se

Assignees

• Frito Lay North America Inc

Inventors

• Bourg Jr Wilfred Marcellien
• Graham Stephen
• Ruegg Richard James

Classifications

• A23N7/00

  Peeling vegetables or fruit (devices for skinning onions A23N15/08; {peeling by non-mechanical means A23P}; peeling machines of the household type A47J17/00) · CPC title

• B24C3/10

  for treating external surfaces · CPC title

• A23L5/57

  Chemical peeling or cleaning of harvested fruits, vegetables or other foodstuffs (mechanical aspect A23N, A23P) · CPC title

• A23L7/00

  Cereal-derived products; Malt products; Preparation or treatment thereof (preparation of malt for brewing C12C) · CPC title

• A23N7/04

  Peeling asparagus ({A23N7/005 and} A23N7/01 take precedence) · CPC title