The structure of a beater (stirring element) attached to a food mixer and a method for operating said mixer.

Abstract

To provide a structure of a beater (stirring element) that can complete a mixing process using only a single beater when stirring dough such as for cookies, and a method of operating a mixer equipped with the beater.SOLUTION: As for multiple stirring branches that make up the beater, the shape of one stirring branch end face that faces a stirred foodstuff when the beater is rotating and the shaped of the other stirring branch end face behind the end face are different, the one stirring branch end face consists of a straight line perpendicular to the direction of beater rotation, and the other stirring branch end face consists of a curve with a predetermined curvature relative to the direction of beater rotation. The direction of the beater rotation is set in the mixer at the time of mixing in accordance with the type of the foodstuff to be stirred.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention mainly relates to the structure of a beater (stirring bar) attached to a food mixer, and more specifically to the structure of a beater used to mix baked goods such as cookies and pound cakes, or dairy products such as butter and cream, and to a method of operating a mixer equipped with such a beater. [Background technology]

[0002] In the food manufacturing industry, large vertical mixers such as those shown in the attached Figure 6 are widely used. In the figure, a denotes the mixer body, which includes the rotary drive unit such as the electric motor and reduction gear mechanism, and the control unit such as the various electronic circuits and operation panel that control the mixing operation, b denotes the stirrer that directly performs the action of stirring and kneading the ingredients, c denotes the container (bowl) that contains the ingredients to be stirred, such as cream, dairy products, or cake batter, and d denotes the bowl support arm that supports the bowl.

[0003] Incidentally, the reason why such large commercial food mixers are called "vertical mixers" is because the agitator b is driven by a vertical (vertical) rotating shaft by the mixer's rotary drive unit. Stainless steel is mainly used for the materials used for each part of such food mixers, due to its strength, corrosion resistance, and hygiene for food and ingredients.

[0004] In this mixer, the stirrer b is used to crush and break the ingredients to be stirred, and then stir and knead them, and various shapes are used. That is, the stirrer with the optimal shape is selected depending on the type of ingredients to be stirred, the purpose of mixing, or the application, and is attached as an attachment to the rotating shaft of the rotary drive unit of the mixer main body a. The stirrer b shown in Figure 6 is mainly used for kneading and whipping dairy products, and is a stirrer commonly called a "whipper."

[0005] Incidentally, when the ingredients to be mixed in a mixer are cookie dough, cake dough, etc., they need to be hit (i.e., "beated") against the ingredients to be mixed and kneaded evenly throughout, so a mixer with a shape generally called a "beater" is used. The outline shape of a beater disclosed as prior art is shown in Figure 2 of the attached drawings in Patent Document 1 or Figure 18 of the attached drawings in Patent Document 2.

[0006] As shown in these drawings, the beater has multiple stirring tines, which can be considered its skeleton, and these stirring tines are broadly divided into those with angular prism structures and those with rounded cylindrical structures. This is because it is necessary to create a unique flavor and texture for each ingredient being mixed, so it is important to select a beater with stirring tines of a structure appropriate for each type of ingredient being mixed.

[0007] For example, when the ingredients to be mixed are butter, sugar, or dairy products, beaters with prismatic stirring rods are generally considered to be suitable, while when mixing and kneading powders such as flour, such as cookie dough or cake dough, beaters with cylindrical stirring rods are generally considered to be suitable.One reason for this is that the amount of air mixed into the ingredients during mixing varies depending on the structure of the stirring rods, changing their specific gravity and subtly affecting the texture of the mixed product.

[0008] Therefore, in the food manufacturing industry, it was necessary to use multiple beaters with different blade shapes suited to the type of ingredients to be mixed, based on past experience, and to use the appropriate beaters each time depending on the type of ingredients to be mixed.As a result, when mixing, for example, cookie dough or pound cake dough, where dairy products such as butter and milk and sugar are first mixed and mixed, and then powders such as flour are added and mixed, it was necessary to change multiple beaters with different blade shapes during the mixing process, which made the mixing process complicated and caused problems.

[0009] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-245375 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2010-75097 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0010] The present invention aims to solve these problems by providing a beater structure that allows the mixing process to be completed using only a single beater in a large vertical food mixer, mainly when stirring and kneading dough for baked goods such as cookies, and a method of operating a mixer equipped with this beater. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] A first aspect of the present invention is Beaters (stirring bars) attached to food mixers 1 The structure is The beater 1 is attached to the rotation shaft of the mixer body via a center shaft 12, and has a plurality of stirring blades 11 having a columnar structure extending in a substantially vertical direction for kneading and stirring the ingredients to be stirred. In the horizontal cross section of the columnar structure, the end face of one stirring branch 11 that faces the food material to be stirred when the beater 1 rotates has a different shape from the end face of the other stirring branch 11 that is located behind the end face of the one stirring branch 11, the one end surface is formed of a straight line perpendicular to the rotation direction of the heater 1, and the other end surface is formed of a curve having a predetermined radius of curvature R, The radius of curvature R is R=L / 2 or more, where L is the width of the stirring blade 11 perpendicular to the rotation direction. It is characterized by: [Effects of the Invention]

[0014] According to the present invention, which is equipped with the above-mentioned solutions, it is possible to use only a single beater when stirring and kneading dough for cookies, pound cakes, etc., thereby simplifying the mixing process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The following describes the best mode for implementing the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0016] (1) Beater (stirring bar) structure based on the present invention The structure of the beater 1 according to the present invention is shown in the attached Fig. 1. As mentioned above, the beater is figuratively shaped like a fishbone, with the multiple stirring blades 11, which make up the skeleton, directly responsible for kneading and stirring the ingredients. The beater 1 is attached to the rotating shaft of the rotary drive unit of the mixer body via a center shaft 12.

[0017] In beater 1, stirring blade 11 has a columnar structure extending in a substantially vertical direction, and a horizontal cross section of this columnar structure (cross section AA in Fig. 1) is shown in attached Fig. 2. As is clear from Fig. 2, the end face of stirring blade 11 that faces the food material to be stirred when beater 1 rotates in the direction a in the figure (counterclockwise on the paper) is a linear flat surface (hereinafter, such an end face will be referred to as a "rectangular end face").

[0018] On the other hand, the end face of stirring blade 11, which is the back face of the square end face, is configured with a curve having a predetermined radius of curvature R (hereinafter, such end face will be referred to as a "rounded end face"). It goes without saying that when beater 1 rotates in the direction b in the figure (clockwise on the paper), such a rounded end face becomes the end face of stirring blade 11 that faces the food material to be stirred.

[0019] The radius of curvature R of the round end face is when the width of the stirring blade 11 perpendicular to the rotation direction is L. R=L / 2 It is preferable to set it to the above value, and based on experience in implementing this invention, the value in the above formula is generally considered to be suitable. For example, if the width of the stirring blade is L = 10 mm, it is preferable that the curvature of the rounded end face is about R = 5 mm. For reference, the appearance of the square and rounded end faces of the beater 1 is shown in the attached photograph in Figure 3. Incidentally, the upper photograph shows the square end face, and the lower photograph shows the rounded end face.

[0020] Incidentally, when a mixing bar (columnar structure) moves through a material to be mixed, such as a fluid, the movement of the material to be mixed (fluid) at the front end face (longitudinal side face of the column) is expected to generally follow a flow as shown in the attached Figure 4. In the figure, Figure 4(a) shows the case of a square end face, and Figure 4(b) shows the case of a round end face.

[0021] In general, the drag force F that a cylindrical structure such as a square pillar or a cylinder placed perpendicular to the flow of a fluid experiences from the fluid is approximated by the following equation: F=(drag coefficient C)×(fluid density ρ)×(fluid velocity v) 2 ×(front projected area S)÷2 The food material to be stirred is regarded as a fluid, and the drag force F that each of the square and round end faces of the stirring blade 11 receives from the fluid is applied to this and an analogy is made.

[0022] For both square and round end faces, it is assumed that the fluid density ρ and fluid velocity v of the mixed material are the same. Furthermore, as is clear from Figure 4, the forward projected area S of both the square and round end faces is the same (S = L × column length (mixing branch length)). Therefore, the drag force F acting on each of the square and round end faces is determined only by the difference in the drag coefficient C specific to each end face.

[0023] According to materials compiled by the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers, the drag coefficients in the longitudinal direction of a square cylinder and a circular cylinder moving through a fluid have the following values: For cylinders, C=0.7~1.2 For rectangular columns, C=1.1~2.0 In other words, the square end faces of the stirring blades 11 experience 1.5 to 2 times greater resistance from the food being stirred than the round end faces, and at the same time, according to the law of action and reaction, the food being stirred also experiences a similar resistance from each end face of the stirring blades 11.

[0024] That is, in the case of the square end face of the stirring bar 11, the flow of the food material to be stirred is subjected to a large drag force at the end face, so its movement is suppressed and it is further expelled to both sides of the square end face. Therefore, if air is contained in the food material to be stirred, the air will also move along with the flow of the food material to be stirred.

[0025] On the other hand, in the case of a rounded end face, the drag force on the food being stirred is relatively small, so the flow flows smoothly along both sides of the rounded end face, just like a laminar flow that occurs along the surface of a smooth object moving through a fluid. Therefore, it can be inferred that the air contained in the food being stirred moves as if it is squeezed out of the flow of the food being stirred by the smooth flow of the food being stirred.

[0026] Furthermore, when powder such as wheat flour is added to the food material, the powder particles, which are contained in the fluid and have become colloidal, move together with the smooth flow of the food material, and are presumably further incorporated into the food material. In other words, it is thought that the powder becomes even more easily mixed into the food material.

[0027] For reference, the results of a demonstration test on the change in specific gravity of the ingredients being mixed due to the shape of the mixing blade end faces of square and round beaters are shown below. The test procedure involved mixing and kneading a 1.35 kg block of unsalted butter as the ingredients to be mixed until it became a paste, and after putting the butter block into the mixer, mixing was carried out for one minute at a mixer rotation speed of 320 rpm. This test was carried out three times, and the specific gravity of the ingredients being mixed was measured each time after mixing was completed.

[0028] (Results of specific gravity measurement) [Round end face] [Square end face] First measurement 0.977 0.960 Second measurement 0.941 0.929 3rd measurement 0.902 0.864 Average 0.940 0.918

[0029] As can be seen from the measurement results in the table above, it is clear that mixing with the square end faces of the mixing blades reduces the specific gravity of the ingredients being mixed, meaning that air can be incorporated into the ingredients being mixed. It was also confirmed that when mixing is performed using square end faces, the bowl containing the ingredients being mixed in the mixer vibrates more violently. This means that mixing blades with square end faces exert a greater drag force on the ingredients being mixed during mixing and kneading.

[0030] (2) How to use a mixer using the beater of the present invention Next, the specific operation and manipulation method when attaching the beater 1 to a large vertical mixer for food ingredients and stirring and kneading dough for baked goods such as cookies will be described below.

[0031] (2-1) First step First, a 1.35 kg block of unsalted butter (temperature of the ingredients to be mixed was approximately 13-15°C) was placed into the bowl of the mixer body, and the mixing process was started. In this case, the rotation direction of the beater 1 was set so that the square end face of the mixing blade 11 faced the ingredients to be mixed, in order to incorporate more air into the ingredients to lower their specific gravity and improve the texture of the mixed product. In other words, the mixer was set so that the beater 1 rotated in the direction a (counterclockwise) shown in Figure 2 attached hereto.

[0032] (2-2) Second step After adding the butter block, the mixer was rotated at 320 rpm and mixed for 1 minute, confirming that the block of butter had turned into a paste, after which 675 g of granulated sugar, 10 g of salt, etc. were added to the bowl. After adding the additional ingredients, the rotation direction and speed were maintained as described above, counterclockwise at 320 rpm, and the mixing process continued for 4 minutes and 30 seconds after adding the additional ingredients.

[0033] (2-3) Third step After the second mixing step was completed, 1.935 kg of wheat flour was added, and the rotation direction of the mixer was changed. Specifically, to facilitate the incorporation of powdery materials such as wheat flour into the ingredients, the rotation direction of the beater 1 was changed to direction b (clockwise) as shown in Figure 2 so that the rounded end faces of the rotating blades 11 faced and abutted against the ingredients. After changing the rotation direction, the rotation speed was set to 120 rpm, and the mixing process continued for 1 minute and 20 seconds.

[0034] (3) Comparative evaluation and sensory evaluation of the mixed product The cookie dough stirred and kneaded by the mixing process described above was used to form and bake the finished cookie confectionery (baked confectionery), as shown in the attached photograph in Figure 5.

[0035] For comparison, the photograph in the same figure also shows examples of cookies baked from dough that was stirred and kneaded using a beater with only a conventional square end face (hereinafter referred to as a "square beater") and a beater with only a round end face (hereinafter referred to as a "round beater"), after performing the same mixing process.

[0036] The photograph at the bottom of the figure shows a row of cookies baked from dough mixed using the three types of beaters. The cookie labeled "MIX" on the far right of the photograph was mixed and kneaded using beater 1 based on the present invention, the cookie labeled "Square" in the center of the photograph was mixed and kneaded using a square beater, and the cookie labeled "Round" on the far left of the photograph was mixed and kneaded using a round beater.

[0037] The three photographs at the top of the figure show enlarged cross sections of the three types of cookies. The top photograph shows the cookies made with a square beater, the right photograph shows the cookies made with a round beater, and the middle photograph, labeled "rounded corner beater," shows the cookies that were mixed and kneaded using the beater 1 according to the present invention.

[0038] As can be seen from these photographs, the cross-section of the cookies made using beater 1 (rounded beater) is relatively uniform. This is thought to be because the flour powder additives are uniformly mixed into the ingredients being mixed, resulting in a relatively smooth cookie dough.

[0039] When mixing is performed using the beater 1 according to the present invention, the ingredients are stirred and kneaded according to the operating procedure shown in (2) above. Also, when mixing is performed using a conventional square beater or round beater, the rotation speed and mixing time are the same as in the case of the beater 1, and the ingredients are stirred and kneaded according to the operating procedure shown in (2) (2-1) to (2-3) above.

[0040] However, in the case of the existing beaters, the beaters were not replaced during mixing, and the mixing process was continued consistently using only the square or round beaters that were initially installed. Therefore, in the case of these square and round beaters, the rotation direction of the mixer was not changed during the mixing process.

[0041] Incidentally, the Japan Food Research Laboratories (JFRC) guidelines stipulate that texture is the primary evaluation item for the sensory evaluation of baked goods such as cookies and pound cakes. In accordance with this, the sensory evaluation of the texture of cookies baked after mixing using the various beaters mentioned above is important.

[0042] Therefore, a sensory evaluation of the texture of the three types of cookies shown in the attached photograph in Figure 5 was conducted by multiple subjects (including the inventor of the present invention and those involved in the development). As a result, the results of the responses regarding the cookies in which the ingredients were stirred and kneaded using the beater 1 according to the present invention were that "slightly more force was required to break them compared to the other cookies."

[0043] This is thought to be because, as mentioned above, the powdered wheat flour additive is uniformly mixed into the ingredients being stirred, making the cookie dough smooth overall and the dough structure relatively dense, making the cookie less likely to crumble.

[0044] As described above, by using the beater according to the present invention and the method of operating a mixer equipped with the beater, it is possible to carry out the mixing process using only a single beater when stirring and kneading cookie dough or cake dough, which is expected to provide benefits such as simplification of the work and improvement of work efficiency.

[0045] It goes without saying that the embodiments of the present invention are not limited to the examples described above, and that the shape, arrangement, or material of each part constituting each example can be appropriately changed in accordance with the actual implementation without departing from the spirit of the present invention. [Industrial Applicability]

[0046] The configuration of the present invention can be used in various food manufacturing industries that require stirring and kneading of ingredients, including the dairy product manufacturing industry and the confectionery industry. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0047] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram showing the structure of a beater (stirring bar) according to the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the beater shown in FIG. 1 taken along the line AA. [Figure 3] 2 is a photograph showing the respective end faces of the square and round beater stirring blades shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the movement of the food material being stirred at each of the square and round end faces of the stirring bar. [Figure 5] 10 is a comparative photograph of cookies baked using dough stirred with various beaters. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a typical commercial vertical mixer for large ingredients. [Explanation of symbols]

[0048] 1...Beater 11...Stirring branch 12...Center axis a... Vertical food mixer body b...Rotor c...bowl d...bowl holding arm

Claims

[Claim 1] The structure of the beater (stirring element) 1 attached to the food mixer, The beater 1 is attached to the rotation shaft of the mixer body via a center shaft 12, and has a plurality of stirring blades 11 having a columnar structure extending in a substantially vertical direction for kneading and stirring the ingredients to be stirred. In the horizontal cross section of the columnar structure, the end face of one stirring branch 11 that faces the food material to be stirred when the beater 1 rotates has a different shape from the end face of the other stirring branch 11 that is located behind the end face of the one stirring branch 11, the one end surface is formed of a straight line perpendicular to the rotation direction of the heater 1, and the other end surface is formed of a curve having a predetermined radius of curvature R, The radius of curvature R is characterized in that R=L / 2 or more, where L is the width of the stirring blade 11 perpendicular to the rotation direction.

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