A frozen fruit cleaning machine self-cleaning spray arm
By introducing a backwashing component and pressure sensor control into the self-cleaning spray arm of the frozen fruit washing machine, the filter box is automatically monitored and cleaned, solving the problem of spray arm clogging, improving cleaning efficiency and system stability, and reducing the need for manual maintenance.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Filing Date
- 2025-07-30
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-07
AI Technical Summary
The spray arms of existing frozen fruit washing machines are prone to clogging due to the deposition of impurities in the water, which affects the cleaning effect and efficiency. In addition, the filter box needs to be cleaned frequently by hand, which increases costs and downtime risks.
A self-cleaning spray arm for a frozen fruit washing machine was designed. It uses a backwashing component and a pressure sensor to control the valve, automatically monitors and starts the backwashing process, and uses a three-stage filtration unit and a booster pump to ensure the filter box is clean and reduce clogging.
It achieves automated filter box cleaning, reduces nozzle clogging, improves cleaning efficiency and system stability, and reduces manual maintenance costs and equipment downtime risks.
Smart Images
Figure CN224463303U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This utility model belongs to the field of cleaning machine technology, specifically relating to a self-cleaning spray arm for a frozen fruit cleaning machine. Background Technology
[0002] Frozen fruits (such as frozen blueberries, strawberries, and raspberries) are prone to accumulating contaminants such as snow, mud, pesticide residues, microorganisms, and packaging debris on their surfaces during harvesting, transportation, and storage. If these contaminants are not thoroughly removed, they not only affect the sensory quality of the frozen fruit (such as appearance and taste) but may also introduce food safety hazards (such as excessive microbial levels and chemical residues). Therefore, efficient and low-damage cleaning technology has become one of the core requirements of the frozen fruit processing industry.
[0003] Currently, frozen fruit cleaning mainly relies on spray cleaning technology, which uses high-pressure water jets to impact the fruit surface and utilizes hydrodynamics to remove contaminants. Compared to soaking cleaning (which easily leads to the fruit absorbing water and swelling, and loss of nutrients) and drum friction cleaning (which easily causes mechanical damage), spray cleaning has advantages such as high cleaning efficiency, low energy consumption, and minimal damage to the fruit, and has been widely used in large-scale frozen fruit processing production lines.
[0004] Existing washing machines rinse frozen fruit using spray arms. Although spray washing technology is relatively mature, the following technical bottlenecks still urgently need to be addressed in practical applications:
[0005] Because the water used in the existing spray arm and the water in the washing machine are recycled, the washing water inevitably contains fine particles (such as mud, ice crystal fragments, packaging fibers, etc.). After these particles enter the spray arm with the water flow, they easily deposit at the nozzle inlet, causing partial or complete blockage of the water outlet. Nozzle blockage will directly reduce the washing coverage and pressure stability, resulting in incomplete cleaning of the frozen fruit surface (contaminant residue > 0.5g / kg), while also increasing system energy consumption (the water pump power needs to be increased to maintain the flow rate).
[0006] To address the aforementioned technical issues, existing technologies have added a filter box at the inlet of the spray arm to filter the cleaning water discharged from the washing machine's drain outlet. However, after prolonged use, the filter unit inside the filter box can become clogged due to excessive accumulation and retention of impurities, resulting in low water pressure for rinsing frozen fruit and reduced cleaning efficiency. Furthermore, frequent manual shutdowns for cleaning the clogged filter box (each session takes 10-15 minutes) not only reduce production efficiency (daily processing capacity decreases by 20%-30%) but also increase labor costs and the risk of equipment downtime. Utility Model Content
[0007] To address the above problems, the purpose of this utility model is to provide a self-cleaning spray arm for a frozen fruit washing machine, thereby solving the problems mentioned in the background art.
[0008] This utility model provides a self-cleaning spray arm for a frozen fruit washing machine, comprising: a main arm body, fixedly installed on the washing machine frame, with a hollow water flow channel inside, forming a water channel with a water tank through an inlet pipe; a sub-arm body, including at least two sub-arm bodies, evenly distributed along the working surface of the washing machine and extending radially, each sub-arm body communicating with the water flow channel of the main arm body through a connection interface; multiple nozzles, evenly installed on the sub-arm bodies; a filter box, installed in series on the inlet pipe, with a filter unit inside for filtering the water entering the main arm body; and a backwashing assembly installed between the main arm body and the inlet pipe, the backwashing assembly comprising: a spare pipe, installed in parallel between the main arm body and the upstream section of the inlet pipe; and a backwashing pipe, connected in series between the spare pipe and the downstream section of the inlet pipe, for cleaning the filter box. Backwashing is performed; a wastewater pipe, branched and connected to the inlet pipe near the inlet end of the filter box, is used to discharge wastewater from the backwashing filter box; a valve assembly includes a first valve installed on the spare pipe, a second valve installed on the backwash pipe, a third valve installed near the inlet end of the inlet pipe, a fourth valve near the outlet end, and a fifth valve installed on the wastewater pipe; pressure sensors include a first pressure sensor and a second pressure sensor, the first pressure sensor being installed on the upstream section of the inlet pipe near the water tank, and the second pressure sensor being installed on the downstream section of the inlet pipe near the main arm; a control unit, electrically connected to the first pressure sensor, the second pressure sensor, and each valve, is used to control the operating status of each valve in the valve assembly based on the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor and the second pressure sensor.
[0009] Preferably, when the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor and the second pressure sensor exceeds a preset threshold, the control unit controls the first valve, the second valve, and the fifth valve to open, and simultaneously controls the third valve and the fourth valve to close, so as to start the backwashing process.
[0010] Preferably, a booster pump is provided at the connection between the backwash pipe and the spare pipe. The control unit is electrically connected to the booster pump. When the pressure difference exceeds a preset threshold, the control unit synchronously starts the booster pump to adjust the pressure of the backwash water flow.
[0011] Preferably, an emergency filter is installed in the middle of the spare tube.
[0012] Preferably, the filtration unit is a three-stage filtration unit, including a pre-filter stainless steel screen, a medium-efficiency activated carbon filter layer, and a high-efficiency PP cotton screen.
[0013] Preferably, the control unit further includes a timing module. When the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor and the second pressure sensor exceeds a preset threshold, the control unit controls the timing module to start, keeps track of the backwashing duration, and automatically shuts off the backwashing process after the preset backwashing time is reached.
[0014] Preferably, both the second valve and the fifth valve are one-way check valves.
[0015] The beneficial effects of this utility model are: by monitoring the pressure difference between the upstream and downstream of the water inlet pipe in real time through a pressure sensor, when ΔP exceeds the preset threshold, the control unit automatically starts the backwashing process, which can remove impurities such as fruit residue and fiber trapped in the filter box without manual intervention. This not only improves the automation level of the system, but also extends the service life of the spray arm.
[0016] The parallel and series combination design of the backup pipe and the backwash pipe forms a backwash channel independent of the main water supply path, ensuring that the backwash process does not affect the normal water supply of the main boom. At the same time, wastewater is discharged in a directional manner through the wastewater pipe to prevent secondary pollution. Attached Figure Description
[0017] Figure 1 This is a first-view structural diagram of the present invention;
[0018] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the second-view structure of the present invention;
[0019] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the third-view structure of this utility model;
[0020] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the fourth-view structure of the present invention;
[0021] Figure 5 This is a cross-sectional structural diagram of the present invention;
[0022] Figure 6 This is an enlarged cross-sectional view of section A in this utility model.
[0023] In the diagram: 1. Main boom; 2. Washing machine frame; 3. Water inlet pipe; 4. Water tank; 5. Split boom; 6. Nozzle; 7. Filter box; 8. Spare pipe; 9. Backwash pipe; 10. Wastewater pipe; 11. First valve; 12. Second valve; 13. Third valve; 14. Fourth valve; 15. Fifth valve; 16. First pressure sensor; 17. Second pressure sensor; 18. Emergency filter; 19. Pre-filter stainless steel screen; 20. Medium-efficiency activated carbon filter layer; 21. High-efficiency PP cotton filter. Detailed Implementation
[0024] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solution of this utility model, the present utility model will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The description in this part is only exemplary and explanatory, and should not be used to limit the scope of protection of this utility model in any way.
[0025] This utility model relates to a self-cleaning spray arm for a frozen fruit washing machine. It mainly includes a main arm 1 fixedly installed on the machine frame 2, with a hollow water flow channel inside. The main arm 1 forms a water channel with a water tank 4 via a water inlet pipe 3. It also includes at least two branch arms 5, evenly distributed and extending radially along the working surface of the washing machine. Each branch arm 5 is connected to the water flow channel of the main arm 1 via a connection interface. Multiple nozzles 6 are also provided on each branch arm 5 for rinsing the frozen fruit. A filter box 7 is installed on the water inlet pipe 3 to filter the water entering the main arm 1, reducing the chance of clogging and extending the service life of the spray arm. During use, the water inlet... A water supply pump is installed on the side of pipe 3 near water tank 4. The water supply pump can transport water from water tank 4 to water inlet pipe 3, and then into main arm body 1 through water inlet pipe 3, and finally spray it out through nozzle 6. In order to save water resources, the water inlet of water tank 4 is connected to the drain outlet of the washing machine through a circulation pipe, which can pass the water in the washing machine into water tank 4 for storage and recycling. In order to avoid the accumulation of mud or other impurities in water tank 4, a pre-filter is also connected in series in the circulation pipe, mainly a stainless steel filter screen, which can perform preliminary filtration on the water discharged from the washing machine, such as the branches and leaves carried by frozen fruit. The above is an introduction to the existing self-cleaning spray arm of the frozen fruit washing machine.
[0026] As can be seen from the above, the existing self-cleaning spray arms of frozen fruit washing machines have the following defects during use. Although the water discharged from the washing machine is filtered using the filter box 7 and the pre-filter, the washing water inevitably contains fine particles (such as mud, ice crystal fragments, packaging fibers, etc.). These particles, after entering the spray arm with the water flow, easily deposit at the inlet of the nozzle 6, causing partial or complete blockage of the water outlet. Experimental data shows that in unfiltered washing water, particles with a diameter >50μm account for 10%-15%, and the clogging rate of nozzle 6 increases significantly with the extension of operating time (>30%). Clogging of nozzle 6 directly reduces cleaning coverage and pressure stability, resulting in incomplete cleaning of the frozen fruit surface (contaminant residue > 0.5g / kg). It also increases system energy consumption (requiring increased pump power to maintain flow). To address these issues, existing technologies add a filter box at the spray arm inlet to filter the cleaning water discharged from the washing machine's drain. However, after prolonged use, the filter unit inside the filter box can become clogged due to excessive impurities, leading to low water pressure for rinsing the frozen fruit and reduced cleaning efficiency. Furthermore, clogging of filter box 7 requires frequent manual shutdowns for cleaning (each session takes 10-15 minutes), which not only reduces production efficiency (daily processing capacity reduced by 20%-30%) but also increases labor costs and equipment downtime risks. Based on these problems, this invention adopts the following improvement method to solve them.
[0027] like Figure 1-6 As shown, a self-cleaning spray arm for a frozen fruit washing machine adds a backwashing component to the above-mentioned structure. This component is used to backwash the filter box 7 when it becomes clogged, which not only improves the washing effect of the frozen fruit but also further reduces the probability of nozzle 6 clogging. The backwashing component includes a spare pipe 8 installed in parallel between the main arm body 1 and the upstream section of the water inlet pipe 3, a backwashing pipe 9 connected in series between the spare pipe 8 and the downstream section of the water inlet pipe 3 to form an independent backwashing circuit, and a wastewater pipe 10 branched off and connected to the front side of the inlet end of the filter box 7 in the water inlet pipe 3. Figure 2As shown, the end of the wastewater pipe 10 is connected to an external waste liquid collection device via a threaded interface. To ensure accurate backwashing timing, a pressure sensor, a control unit, and a valve assembly are also included. The pressure sensor comprises a first pressure sensor 16 installed upstream of the inlet pipe 3 near the water tank 4, and a second pressure sensor 17 installed downstream of the inlet pipe 3 near the main arm 1. The first pressure sensor 16 detects the water pressure at the inlet of the inlet pipe 3, and the second pressure sensor 17 detects the water pressure at the outlet of the inlet pipe 3. The valve assembly includes a first valve 11 installed on the spare pipe 8, a second valve 12 installed on the backwash pipe 9, a third valve 13 installed near the water tank 4 end of the inlet pipe 3, a fourth valve 14 near the outlet end, and a fifth valve 15 installed on the wastewater pipe 10. The control unit is electrically connected to the first pressure sensor 16, the second pressure sensor 17, and each valve. The control unit controls the operating status of each valve in the valve assembly based on the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor 16 and the second pressure sensor 17. Specifically, when the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor 16 and the second pressure sensor 17 exceeds a preset threshold, the control unit controls the first valve 11, the second valve 12, and the fifth valve 15 to open, and simultaneously controls the third valve 13 and the fourth valve 14 to close, thereby initiating the backwashing process. When water in the water tank 4 enters the inlet pipe 3, it flows along the spare pipe 8 into the backwash pipe 9 and the main arm body 1, respectively. The water passing through the backwash pipe 9 enters the filter box 7, washing away the impurities attached to the filter unit in the filter box 7 (the filter unit adopts a three-stage filter unit, including a pre-filter stainless steel screen 19 for intercepting large particulate impurities, a medium-efficiency activated carbon filter layer 20 for adsorbing organic matter and odors, and a high-efficiency PP cotton filter screen 21 for filtering fine particles). Figure 5 As shown, there are three wastewater pipes 10, which are located sequentially on the side of the three filter layers near the water tank 4. When the fifth valve 15 on all three wastewater pipes 10 is open, wastewater enters the wastewater pipe 10 and is discharged through it. In order to avoid affecting the efficiency of frozen fruit cleaning, another part of the water transported through the backup pipe 8 enters the main arm body 1 to rinse the frozen fruit. At the same time, an emergency filter 18 is also installed on the main and backup pipes 8. The emergency filter 18 can filter the water passing through the backup pipe 8 to prevent unfiltered water from clogging the nozzle 6. The emergency filter 18 has a simple structure, such as particle filtration and chemical adsorption.
[0028] To control the backwashing duration, a timing module is installed on the control unit. When the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor 16 and the second pressure sensor 17 exceeds a preset threshold, the control unit activates the timing module to time the backwashing duration. The backwashing process automatically shuts off after the preset backwashing time (e.g., 30 seconds to 2 minutes) is reached, and the operation of supplying water to the main boom 1 via the inlet pipe is resumed. If the pressure difference still exceeds the preset threshold after backwashing the filter box 7 using this technical solution, it may indicate that the nozzle 6 is clogged or other problems have occurred, requiring manual shutdown for inspection and repair.
[0029] Furthermore, to improve the backwashing efficiency of the filter box 7, a booster pump is installed at the connection between the backwash pipe 9 and the spare pipe 8 to increase the pressure of the backwash water flow (e.g., 0.5-1.0 MPa), thereby enhancing the flushing effect on the filter box 7. During the backwashing process, when the backwashing duration reaches the preset time, the control unit controls the first valve 11, the second valve 12, and the fifth valve 15 to close, and controls the third valve 13 and the fourth valve 14 to open, thus shutting down the backwashing process. If the backwash pipe 9 and the wastewater pipe 10 are contaminated... If the water flow suddenly stops, the pressure in the pipeline will reverse instantly, which may cause the water or sediment that has entered the filter box 7 to be sucked back into the backwash pipe 9 and the wastewater that has been discharged from the wastewater pipe 10 to flow back into the inlet pipe 3 and the filter box 7, causing secondary blockage or pollution. In order to solve the above problems, the second valve 12 and the fifth valve 15 are both one-way check valves to ensure that the water flow can only flow in the set direction (for example, backwash pipe 9 to → filter box 7, filter box 7 to → wastewater pipe 10). When the flow reverses, the valves will automatically close to block the backflow impact.
[0030] It should be noted that, in this document, the terms “comprising,” “including,” or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.
[0031] This article uses specific examples to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of this utility model. The above examples are only for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of this utility model. The above description is only a preferred embodiment of this utility model. It should be noted that due to the limitations of textual expression, there are objectively infinite specific structures. For those skilled in the art, several improvements, modifications, or changes can be made without departing from the principles of this utility model, and the above technical features can also be combined in an appropriate manner. These improvements, modifications, changes, or combinations, or the direct application of the inventive concept and technical solution to other situations without modification, should all be considered within the protection scope of this utility model.
Claims
1. A self-cleaning spray arm for a frozen fruit washing machine, comprising: The main arm (1) is fixedly installed on the frame (2) of the cleaning machine. It has a hollow water flow channel inside and forms a water channel with the water tank (4) through the water inlet pipe (3). The split arm (5) includes at least two split arms (5), which are evenly distributed and extend radially along the working surface of the cleaning machine. Each split arm (5) is connected to the water flow channel of the main arm (1) through a connection interface. The nozzle (6) is provided in multiple ways, and the multiple nozzles (6) are evenly installed on the split arm body (5); The filter box (7) is installed in series with the water inlet pipe (3) and has a filter unit inside for filtering the water entering the main arm body (1). The feature is that it further includes a backwashing assembly installed between the main boom body (1) and the water inlet pipe (3), the backwashing assembly comprising: The spare pipe (8) is installed in parallel between the main boom body (1) and the upstream section of the water inlet pipe (3); The backwash pipe (9) is connected in series between the spare pipe (8) and the downstream section of the inlet pipe (3) for backwashing the filter box (7); Wastewater pipe (10) is branched and connected to the front side of the inlet pipe (3) near the inlet end of the filter box (7) to discharge wastewater from the backwash filter box (7); The valve assembly includes a first valve (11) installed on the spare pipe (8), a second valve (12) installed on the backwash pipe (9), a third valve (13) installed near the inlet end of the inlet pipe (3), a fourth valve (14) near the outlet end, and a fifth valve (15) installed on the wastewater pipe (10). The pressure sensor includes a first pressure sensor (16) and a second pressure sensor (17). The first pressure sensor (16) is installed in the upstream section of the water inlet pipe (3) near the water tank (4), and the second pressure sensor (17) is installed in the downstream section of the water inlet pipe (3) near the main arm body (1). The control unit is electrically connected to the first pressure sensor (16), the second pressure sensor (17), and each valve, and is used to control the operating state of each valve in the valve assembly according to the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor (16) and the second pressure sensor (17).
2. The self-cleaning spray arm of a frozen fruit washing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: When the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor (16) and the second pressure sensor (17) exceeds a preset threshold, the control unit controls the first valve (11), the second valve (12) and the fifth valve (15) to open, and at the same time controls the third valve (13) and the fourth valve (14) to close, so as to start the backwashing process.
3. The self-cleaning spray arm of a frozen fruit washing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: A booster pump is provided at the connection between the backwash pipe (9) and the spare pipe (8). The control unit is electrically connected to the booster pump. When the pressure difference exceeds a preset threshold, the control unit synchronously starts the booster pump to adjust the pressure of the backwash water flow.
4. The self-cleaning spray arm of a frozen fruit washing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: An emergency filter (18) is installed in the middle of the spare tube (8).
5. The self-cleaning spray arm of a frozen fruit washing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: The filtration unit adopts a three-stage filtration unit, including a pre-filter stainless steel screen (19), a medium-efficiency activated carbon filter layer (20), and a high-efficiency PP cotton screen (21).
6. The self-cleaning spray arm of a frozen fruit washing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: The control unit also includes a timing module. When the pressure difference between the first pressure sensor (16) and the second pressure sensor (17) exceeds a preset threshold, the control unit controls the timing module to start, to time the backwashing duration, and automatically shuts off the backwashing process after the preset backwashing time is reached.
7. The self-cleaning spray arm of a frozen fruit washing machine according to claim 1, characterized in that: Both the second valve (12) and the fifth valve (15) are one-way check valves.