Systems and methods for making and applying strips of edible material

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11576395-B2
Application number	US-201314649443-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 30, 2013
Priority date	Dec 31, 2012
Publication date	Feb 14, 2023
Grant date	Feb 14, 2023

Abstract

A system and method are provided for making strips of edible material. Edible material is contained in a hopper having a discharge opening including a first side and a second side. A discharge shaping roller is positioned so that its surface is adjacent to the first side and said second side. Similarly, a cooling roller is also positioned so that its surface is adjacent to the first side and the second side. Edible material passes between the first side, the second side, the cooling roller, and the discharge roller to from a strip of edible material that is deposited on the cooling roller. The cooling roller then cools the strip of edible material and it is separated from the cooling roller by a blade. Once the strip is separated from the cooling roller it is deposited on a base of edible material such as a cookie or wafer.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A system for making a plurality of strips of edible material, said system including:
a hopper for a flowable edible material, wherein said hopper is heated and includes a base, and said base is divided into several strip-forming regions with each strip forming region including a plurality of discharge openings that are positioned across a width of the hopper, each opening defined by a first side and a second side, the first side and the second side of each opening being separated from each other by a distance representing a desired width of a strip of flowable edible material;
a discharge shaping roller, wherein said discharge shaping roller is heated and includes a discharge shaping roller surface adjacent to said first side and said second side such that a top surface of the flowable edible material is formed by the discharge shaping roller surface, and wherein said discharge shaping roller is positioned partially within an interior of the hopper and is configured such that said discharge shaping roller contacts the flowable edible material inside the hopper and keeps the flowable edible material in circulation inside the hopper; and
a cooling roller having a cooling roller surface adjacent to said first side and said second side, wherein the discharge shaping roller and the cooling roller rotate in a same rotational direction while in constant contact with the flowable material, wherein a radial distance between respective rotational centers of the discharge shaping roller and the cooling roller remains equal,
wherein said discharge shaping roller is separated from said cooling roller by a distance representing a desired height of said strips of flowable edible material, and wherein said flowable edible material simultaneously passes between each of said first sides, each of said second sides, said discharge shaping roller surface, and said cooling roller surface to form a plurality of strips of flowable edible material across a width of the cooling roller; and
said strips of flowable edible material adhere to said cooling roller surface, and said cooling roller cools said strips of flowable edible material to form cooled plasticized strips of edible material, further including a heated blade separating said cooled strips of edible material from said cooling roller to form separated strips of edible material; and
said flowable edible material is a suspension; and
each said separated strip of edible material is deposited such that each separated strip sits on top of a base of edible material.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the separated strips of edible material comprise barrier crème.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said base of edible material comprises a cookie.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein said discharge shaping roller is interlocking with the hopper.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein said system has a line rate of from 2.25 m/min to 3.0 m/min.

6. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a hopper vibrator.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein said hopper has a fully heated hopper body.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein said hopper is fully heat traced.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the discharge shaping roller and the cooling roller are configured to rotate in a counter clockwise direction.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the discharge shaping roller is rotated by a first motor and the cooling roller is rotated by a second motor.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the discharge shaping roller is configured to move the flowable edible material at a hopper outlet in a first direction and the cooling roller is configured to move flowable edible material at a hopper outlet in a second direction, wherein the first direction and second direction are different.

12. The system of claim 1 , wherein said discharge shaping roller circulates the flowable edible material inside the hopper by moving the flowable edible material in the same rotational direction as the discharge roller.

13. A method for making a plurality of strips of edible material, said method including:
providing a hopper for a flowable edible material, wherein said hopper is heated and includes a base, and said base is divided into several strip-forming regions with each strip forming region including a plurality of discharge openings that are positioned across a width of the hopper, each opening defined by a first side and a second side, the first side and the second side of each opening being separated from each other by a distance representing a desired width of a strip of flowable edible material;
providing a discharge shaping roller including a discharge shaping roller surface adjacent to said first side and said second side such that a surface of the flowable edible material is formed by the discharge shaping roller surface, wherein said discharge shaping roller is positioned partially within an interior of the hopper and is configured such that said discharge shaping roller contacts the flowable edible material inside the hopper and keeps the flowable edible material in circulation inside the hopper;
providing a cooling roller having a cooling roller surface adjacent to said first side and said second side wherein said discharge shaping roller is heated and is separated from said cooling roller by a distance representing a desired height of said strips of flowable edible material, wherein the discharge shaping roller and the cooling roller rotate in a same rotational direction while in constant contact with the flowable material, wherein a radial distance between respective rotational centers of the discharge shaping roller and the cooling roller remains equal; and
forming a plurality of strips of flowable edible material across a width of the cooling roller by passing said flowable edible material simultaneously between each of said first sides, each of said second sides, said discharge shaping roller surface, and said cooling roller surface; and
said strips of flowable edible material adhere to said cooling roller surface, and said cooling roller cools said strips of flowable edible material to form cooled plasticized strips of edible material, further including a heated blade separating said cooled strips of edible material from said cooling roller to form separated strips of edible material; and
said flowable edible material is a suspension; and
each said separated strip of edible material is deposited such that each separated strip sits on top of a base of edible material.

14. The method of claim 13 , further comprising, after depositing each separated strip of edible material on said base of edible material, melting at least a portion of said separated strip on said base of edible material and subsequently hardening said separated strip on the top of said base of edible material.

15. The method of claim 13 , wherein the forming the plurality of strips of the flowable edible material comprises circulating the flowable edible material inside the hopper.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the circulating comprises moving the flowable edible material in the same rotational direction as the discharge roller.

17. The method of claim 13 , wherein the forming the plurality of strips of the flowable edible material comprises rotating the discharge shaping roller using a first motor and rotating the cooling roller by using a second motor.

18. The method of claim 13 , wherein the forming the plurality of strips of the flowable edible material comprises moving the flowable edible material at a hopper outlet in a first direction and moving f

Assignees

• Mars Inc

Inventors

• Hanna Alex A
• Guinn Stuart Alan
• Ellis Rodger Dale
• Posey Joe Mark

Classifications

• A21D13/80

  Pastry not otherwise provided for elsewhere, e.g. cakes, biscuits or cookies · CPC title

• A23G3/343

  Products for covering, coating, finishing, decorating · CPC title

• A23G3/34

  Sweetmeats, confectionery or marzipan; Processes for the preparation thereof · CPC title

• A23G3/0059

  Casting fondant in bulk · CPC title

• A23P30/00

  Shaping or working of foodstuffs characterised by the process or apparatus (A23P10/00, A23P20/00 take precedence) · CPC title