Device for the production of cheese with breakage-preventing dosing device

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a device for producing cheese from a curd / whey mixture with a dosing device, by means of which the curd / whey mixture can be filled into cheese molds in such a gentle manner that, due to the dosing of the curd / whey mixture by the dosing device, the inner structure or the inner structure of the curd is not destroyed and there is no inhomogeneous compaction of the curd / whey mixture.

[0002] When making cheese from a curd / whey mixture, a mixture of solid components - the curd - and liquid components - the whey - can be fed into a cheese-making device, which is why such processes are also known as "whey filling".

[0003] For this purpose, the cheesemaking device can comprise one or more straight, essentially vertically aligned portioning tubes with at least one inlet, through which cheese curd and optionally additional whey are fed to the respective portioning tube. The whey and curd can initially be present separately or as a mixture and fed to the inlet. The portioning tube serves to compact the cheese curd into a raw cheese by pressing it, for example by weight. The whey prevents or avoids the formation of air pockets in the curd, which forms a curd column in the portioning tube, allowing the production of a closed raw cheese with a minimal number of air pockets. Accordingly, such processes are used to produce hard semi-hard cheeses such as Gouda or similar cheeses.The lower the whey content of the curd / whey mixture, the more holes form in the cheese. Accordingly, the term "curd / whey mixture" in this context refers to a mixture of curd and whey, although the whey content can also be close to zero or even zero.

[0004] As already mentioned, the compaction of the curd can be achieved either solely through the weight of the curd column in the portioning tube or by additional measures that result in the compression of the curd in the portioning tube. To allow excess whey to drain from the portioning tube, the portioning tube can be perforated through which the whey can escape.

[0005] In order to be able to dispense the thus compacted curd / whey mixture in a metered manner at the lower end of the portioning tube and fill it into cheese molds located below the portioning tube, the portioning tube can have two closures at its lower end, spaced apart from one another in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube, which define a portioning chamber whose volume corresponds to the amount of curd / whey mixture required to produce one cheese portion. By alternately opening and closing the two closures, a defined amount of the curd / whey mixture can be filled from the portioning chamber into the cheese molds located below the portioning chamber, as is essentially known from DE 1 905 600 A1. A similar device is also disclosed in WO 2010 / 041940 A1.

[0006] The lower of the two closures of the portioning tube can, for example, be designed as a simple locking slide, whereas the closure above can be designed as a knife slide. Portioning takes place in such a way that the initially closed knife slide is opened, whereupon the curd column sinks down in its entirety in the portioning tube until it meets the closed locking slide. The knife slide is then closed again, whereby a defined amount of the compacted curd / whey mixture is separated from the curd column, which is then located in the portioning chamber. If the locking slide is now opened, the portion of the compacted and separated curd / whey mixture can fall from the portioning chamber under the force of gravity into a cheese mold located below the portioning tube.

[0007] However, due to the fact that the curd / whey mixture sags in the portioning tube as a result of the knife gate opening and hits the gate valve, this can lead to inhomogeneous compaction of the curd / whey mixture and / or destruction of the internal structure or microstructure of the compacted curd / whey mixture. A similar problem can arise if the separated portion of the compacted curd / whey mixture falls from the portioning chamber into the cheese mold as a result of the gate valve opening.

[0008] The invention is therefore based on the object of specifying at least one implementation with which the curd / whey mixture can be dosed, in particular portioned and / or filled, in a way that is gentler on the curd.

[0009] According to the present invention, this object is achieved by a device for producing cheese from a curd / whey mixture having the features of claim 1.

[0010] Because the dosing device comprises at least three slides spaced apart from one another in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube, the portioning chamber can be divided into at least two chamber sections - an upper chamber section and a lower chamber section - whereby the fall height of the curd / whey mixture can be reduced during dosing.

[0011] For example, if the dosing device comprises three slides spaced apart along the length of the portioning tube, all of which are initially closed, and then only the top slide, which may be a knife slide, is opened, the curd column initially only drops to the middle slide, which is also referred to as the separating slide. If the separating slide is subsequently opened, the curd column drops a second time, where it hits the closed bottom slide, which is also referred to as the blocking slide.

[0012] The curd column therefore does not drop from the knife gate onto the gate valve in one go; rather, the drop height between the knife gate and the gate valve is divided into two drop sections by the separating gate valve, thereby reducing the drop height of the curd column and thus counteracting uneven or inhomogeneous compaction of the curd / whey mixture.

[0013] Of course, the dosing device can also comprise more than one separating slide, which can be opened successively one after the other in order to allow the curd column to slide down piece by piece onto the locking slide in the portioning tube.

[0014] The position of the slide valve located downstream in the discharge direction can be changed in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube, whereby the distance between the slide valve located downstream in the discharge direction or the blocking slide valve and the cheese mold located below can be changed and, in particular, reduced when the blocking slide valve is moved downwards. Therefore, if the blocking slide valve is opened after it has been filled with the curd / whey mixture following the portioning chamber's filling, the portioned amount of curd will fall less far before being taken up by the cheese mold. In other words, the drop height between the blocking slide valve and the cheese mold can be reduced, which, in the desired manner, leads to less compaction and thus to a more gentle discharge of the curd / whey mixture as it falls into the cheese mold.

[0015] Furthermore, the positional adjustability of the gate valve also reduces the drop height between the knife gate and the gate valve, so that the curd column falls less deeply after the knife gate valve has been opened. If the knife gate valve is not closed again until the gate valve has been moved downward toward the cheese mold, the same amount of curd / whey mixture can be separated from the curd column as with a stationary gate valve.

[0016] In the following, preferred embodiments of the device according to the invention will be discussed, whereby further embodiments can also be derived from the dependent claims, the description of the figures and the drawings themselves.

[0017] Thus, according to one embodiment, it can be provided that even in the embodiment of the device according to the invention in which the dosing device comprises at least three slides spaced apart from one another in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube, the position of the slide located furthest downstream in the dispensing direction, which is also referred to here as a "position-variable slide", can be adjusted or changed in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube to change the volume of the portioning chamber.

[0018] This means that not only can the portioning chamber be divided into several sections within the portioning chamber to reduce the drop height, but the drop height between the locking slide and the cheese mold below can also be reduced, allowing the entire dosing process to be carried out in a particularly break-free manner.

[0019] In order to be able to change the position of the most downstream slide in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube, a further embodiment can provide for the portioning tube to be telescopically designed in the region of the dosing device to change the volume of the portioning chamber. For this purpose, it would be conceivable, for example, to construct the portioning tube in the region of the dosing device from an elastic material that allows the lower end section of the portioning tube to be stretched longitudinally.

[0020] According to a further embodiment, the dosing device for changing the volume of the portioning chamber can have a tube section that is movable in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube, wherein this movable tube section and the lower end of the portioning tube are pushed into one another. For example, the movable tube section can accommodate the lower end of the portioning tube, or the movable tube section can be accommodated by the lower end of the portioning tube.

[0021] In such a telescopic design of the dosing device, the slider located furthest downstream is provided on the displaceable pipe section and is displaceable together with it in the longitudinal direction of the portioning pipe, whereby, on the one hand, the distance between the slider located furthest downstream and the slider located closest upstream, which can be a knife slider or a separating slider, and, on the other hand, the distance between the slider located furthest downstream and a cheese mold located underneath can be reduced as desired.

[0022] In the following, an embodiment of the device according to the invention for producing cheese from a curd / whey mixture will be explained by way of example with reference to the figures, in which: Fig. 1 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of an apparatus according to the invention for producing cheese from a curd / whey mixture in the initial state; and Fig. 2 the apparatus of Fig. 1 with the dosing device telescoped out.

[0023] The Fig. 1shows a schematic sectional view of an embodiment of a device 10 according to the invention for producing cheese from a curd / whey mixture. The device comprises a straight portioning tube 12, which serves to receive a curd / whey mixture. The portioning tube 12 is aligned essentially vertically and has an upper end (not visible) and a lower end 14. The portioning tube 12 is a tube that is open along its length and can preferably widen slightly towards its lower end 14 and is made, for example, of stainless steel or plastic. At its upper end, the portioning tube 12 is connected to an inlet (not visible here) for feeding the portioning tube 12 with the curd / whey mixture.

[0024] At its lower end 14, a dosing device 16 is provided, by means of which the curd / whey mixture or the curd column forming in the portioning tube 12 can be portioned and filled in a metered manner into a cheese mold 18 located below the lower end 14 of the portioning tube 12.

[0025] According to the invention, the dosing device 16 comprises three slides 20, 22, 24 spaced apart from one another in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube 12, which, when pushed in or closed, completely close the portioning tube 12 in a manner perpendicular to the cross-section of the portioning tube 12, and when pulled out or opened, release it across the entire cross-section. In this embodiment, the uppermost slide 20, or the one furthest upstream in the discharge direction A, is designed as a knife slide, since it can be used to separate defined portions from the curd column. In contrast, the slide 24 furthest downstream in the discharge direction A, as well as the slide 22 located between the two slides 20, 24, are designed as blocking slides, since these two slides 22, 24 serve merely as closure elements of the portioning tube 12.The middle slide 22 can also be referred to as a separating slide, since it allows the portioning chamber 26, which is formed between the two slides 20, 24 when they are pushed in, to be divided into two chamber sections 28, 30 - an upper chamber section 28 and a lower chamber section 30.

[0026] The position of the slide 24 located furthest downstream in the discharge direction A or the position of the blocking slide 24 can be changed in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube 12, as is particularly the case in the Fig. 2 is indicated by the vertically aligned double arrow. For this purpose, a pipe section 32 is provided at the lower end 14 of the portioning tube 12, which is displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube 12 and accommodates the locking slide 24 so that the latter can be displaced together with the displaceable pipe section 32 in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube 12.

[0027] In the embodiment shown here, the movable tube section 32 accommodates the lower end 14 of the portioning tube 12, although it would also be possible for the lower end 14 of the portioning tube 12 to in turn accommodate the movable tube section 32. The dosing device 16 is thus designed to be telescopic in order to change the volume of the portioning chamber 26, as this proves advantageous for the curd-protective treatment of the curd / whey mixture, as will be explained in the following description of the operation of the device 10 according to the invention.

[0028] Thus, in the initial state according to Fig. 1First, all three slides 20, 22, 24 are closed, and the movable pipe section 32 is pushed upwards until the locking slide 24 rests against the lower end 14 of the portioning pipe 12. The portioning chamber 26 is thus divided by the three slides 20, 22, 24 and, in particular, by the separating slide 22 into an upper chamber section 28 and a lower chamber section 30.

[0029] In order to be able to fill the portioning chamber 26 successively with curd / whey mixture, the knife slide 20 is first opened, which causes the curd column above it to slide downwards until it hits the closed separating slide 22.

[0030] Subsequently, the separating slide 22 is opened, causing the curd column to slide further downward until it hits the locking slide 24. The curd column thus does not slide from the knife slide 20 to the locking slide 24 in one go, thereby preventing excessive and, in particular, inhomogeneous compaction of the curd / whey mixture due to impact with the locking slide 24.

[0031] After the curd column has slid down piece by piece to the locking slide 24 in the manner described above, the knife slide 20 can then be closed again, which results in a defined portion being separated from the curd column.

[0032] If the locking slide 24 were to be opened immediately, this would result in the separated curd portion falling from the portioning chamber 26 into the cheese mold 18, overcoming a relatively large fall height, which would undesirably result in a relatively strong and inhomogeneous compaction of the curd.

[0033] Therefore, before the locking slide 24 is opened, the movable pipe section 32 is first moved by approximately the height of the lower chamber section 28 according to Fig. 2 downwards before the locking slide 24 is subsequently opened. The already separated curd portion slides downwards within the portioning tube 12 or within the portioning chamber 26, whereby the fall height into the cheese mold 18 after the opening of the locking slide 24 can be reduced in favor of the curd-protecting treatment of the curd.

[0034] Contrary to the above description, according to which the knife gate 20 is already closed after the curd column has slid from the separating gate 22 onto the locking gate 24 and before the movable pipe section 32 has been telescoped downward, the knife gate 20 can also be closed only after the movable pipe section 32 has been telescoped out. In this case, the entire curd column resting on the locking gate 24 slides downward within the portioning pipe 12 when the movable pipe section 32 is moved downward. This results in a larger amount of curd / whey mixture being separated from the curd column when the knife gate 20 is closed.

[0035] Depending on whether the movable pipe section 32 is moved downwards first and then the knife gate 20 is closed or vice versa, different amounts of curd can be separated from the curd column and dosed.

[0036] For the sake of completeness, it should be noted at this point that in the embodiment shown here, the cheese mold for producing spherical cheese wheels has a concave shape, into which a matching concave lid can be inserted to produce a spherical cheese wheel. Of course, however, differently shaped cheese molds can also be used to produce other-shaped cheese wheels. List of reference symbols

[0037] 10Device for making cheese 12Portioning tube 14Lower end 16Dosing device 18Cheese mold 20Slider / knife slide 22Slider / separating slide 24Slider / locking slide 26Portioning chamber 28Upper chamber section 30Lower chamber section 32Movable tube section ADischarge direction

Claims

1. An apparatus (10) for producing cheese from a curd / whey mixture, said apparatus (10) comprising at least one portioning tube (12), which is in particular vertically oriented, for receiving the curd / whey mixture, wherein a metering device (16) for the portion-wise dispensing of the curd / whey mixture is provided at one end (14) of the portioning tube (12), in particular at the lower end (14) of the portioning tube (12), wherein the metering device (16) comprises at least three slide valves (20, 22, 24) spaced apart from one another in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube (12), wherein the at least three slide valves (20, 22, 24) can be actuated independently of one another, wherein those two slide valves (20, 24) which have the greatest spacing from one another define a portioning chamber (26) having a volume which corresponds to a quantity of the curd / whey mixture that is required for dispensing a cheese portion, characterized in that the at least three slide valves (20, 22, 24) completely close the portioning tube (12) in a manner perpendicular to the cross-section of the portioning tube (12) in the pushed-in state and release the portioning tube (12) over its entire cross-section in the pulled-out state.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the position of the slide valve (24) disposed the furthest downstream in the dispensing direction can be set in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube (12) to change the volume of the portioning chamber (26).

3. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the metering device (16) is configured as telescopic to change the volume of the portioning chamber (26).

4. An apparatus according to at least one of the claims 2 and 3, wherein the metering device (16) has, in order to change the volume of the portioning chamber (26), a tube section displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube (12), wherein the displaceable tube section and the lower end (14) of the portioning tube (12) are pushed into one another, wherein the slide valve (24) disposed the furthest downstream in the dispensing direction is provided at the displaceable tube section and is displaceable together therewith in the longitudinal direction of the portioning tube (12).