Rice ball forming device

Abstract

To easily adjust the height at which an upper die starts to descend to the thickness of a rice ball according to the specifications of the rice ball. [Solution] The device comprises an upper mold 26c that compresses cooked rice fed into the forming hole 26a of the forming table 26 from above, a support 30a that supports the upper mold 26c, a forming drive unit 30b that raises and lowers the upper mold 26c via the support 30a, and uses the upper mold 26c to compress the cooked rice in the forming hole 26a and form it into a rice ball, a forming thickness adjustment shaft 30c that moves the support 30a up and down to change the height at which the upper mold 26c starts to descend and adjusts the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c, an operation panel 11 that sets the specifications of the rice ball to be formed, and a control unit CPU that controls the forming thickness adjustment shaft 30c so that the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c corresponds to the thickness of the rice ball set on the operation panel 11.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a rice ball forming device. [Background technology]

[0002] The rice ball forming device is a device that puts cooked rice weighed to a specified weight, or cooked rice weighed to a specified weight and topped with ingredients, into a forming hole and compresses it vertically using forming molds (upper and lower molds) to form it into a rice ball.

[0003] The rice ball forming device adjusts the thickness of the rice ball formed by changing the height of the upper mold (the height at which the descent begins) according to the specifications of the rice ball, such as the weight of the cooked rice and the type and weight of the ingredients, ensuring that the rice ball has the same fluffy texture even if the specifications change.

[0004] In this case, if the structure is such that the height of the upper mold is adjusted at the mounting part of the upper mold, it is necessary to remove each part of the device body and then reattach each part after adjusting the height of the upper mold, making the work of adjusting the height of the upper mold a time-consuming and labor-intensive and complicated task.

[0005] Therefore, a technology that avoids such complication and enables easy adjustment of the height of the upper die is disclosed in Patent Document 1. Patent Document 1 describes a device that includes a height adjustment mechanism that adjusts the height of the upper die by vertically moving a support that supports the upper die, and an operating unit that operates the height adjustment mechanism, and the height of the upper die can be easily adjusted by operating the operating unit. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2015-029466 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] However, with the above-described rice ball forming device, it is necessary to manually operate the operating unit to adjust the height of the upper mold each time the formed thickness of the cooked rice changes.

[0008] In a rice ball forming device, the thickness of the formed rice ball needs to be changed frequently depending on the specifications of the rice ball, such as the weight of the cooked rice and the type and weight of the ingredients, so the task of frequently operating the operating unit becomes extremely cumbersome.

[0009] In addition, since the height of the upper mold must be adjusted by operating the operating unit to match the molding thickness according to the specifications of the wide variety of rice balls, there is a risk of making an error in adjusting the height of the upper mold.

[0010] The present invention has been made in light of the above-mentioned technical background, and aims to provide a rice ball forming device that can easily adjust the height at which the upper mold starts to descend to the desired thickness of the rice ball according to the specifications of the rice ball. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] In order to solve the above problem, the rice ball forming device of the present invention described in claim 1 comprises a forming table having a forming hole into which cooked rice weighed to a predetermined weight, or cooked rice and ingredients weighed to a predetermined weight, is poured; an upper mold that compresses the cooked rice in the forming hole from above; a support body that supports the upper mold; a forming drive unit that raises and lowers the upper mold via the support body and compresses the cooked rice in the forming hole with the upper mold to form a rice ball; a forming thickness adjustment unit that moves the support body up and down to change the height at which the upper mold starts to descend and adjusts the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold; a setting unit that sets the specifications of the rice ball to be formed; and a control unit that controls the forming thickness adjustment unit so that the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold becomes a thickness of the rice ball corresponding to the specifications set in the setting unit. The forming thickness adjustment unit includes a forming thickness adjustment shaft that is screwed into a support base that constitutes the support body, a motor that rotates the forming thickness adjustment shaft to move the support body in the vertical direction, and a height detection unit that detects the height of the support body moved by the motor, and the height detection unit includes a turntable that is attached to the rotation shaft of the motor and has notches formed at regular intervals in the circumferential direction, a sensor that detects movement of the notches due to rotation of the turntable, and a calculation unit that measures the rotational displacement of the turntable from the movement of the notches detected by the sensor and calculates the height of the support body. It is characterized by:

[0012] The rice ball forming device of the present invention described in claim 2 is characterized in that, in the invention described in claim 1, the specifications of the rice ball set by the setting unit include at least the weight of cooked rice.

[0013] The rice ball forming device of the present invention described in claim 3 is characterized in that, in the invention described in claim 2, the rice ball specifications set in the setting unit further include at least one of the type of cooked rice, the type of ingredients, or the type and weight of the ingredients.

[0016] Claim 4 The rice ball forming device of the present invention described above is characterized in that, in the invention described in claim 1 above, the forming table is a rotating body that rotates intermittently in the horizontal direction, and the forming holes are formed at regular intervals around the circumferential direction of the forming table.

[0017] Claim 5 The rice ball forming apparatus of the present invention described in Claim 4 In the invention described above, the forming hole formed in the forming table has a triangular shape in a plan view.

[0018] Claim 6 The rice ball forming apparatus of the present invention described in Claims 1 to 5 In the invention described in any one of the above, the rice maker further comprises a shape adjusting section that forms ingredient holes and constricted portions in the cooked rice, an ingredient placing section that places predetermined ingredients on the cooked rice that has passed through the shape adjusting section, and a folding means that folds the cooked rice on which the ingredients have been placed in the ingredient placing section, and the cooked rice folded by the folding means is fed into the forming holes of the forming table. [Effects of the Invention]

[0019] According to the present invention, the control unit controls the forming thickness adjustment unit to adjust the height at which the upper mold starts to descend so that the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold corresponds to the thickness of the rice ball set in the setting unit, making it possible to easily adjust the height at which the upper mold starts to descend to the thickness of the rice ball that corresponds to the rice ball specifications. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a cooked rice portioning and generating unit and a rice ball forming unit according to an embodiment of the present invention from the front. FIG. [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic plan view of a cooked rice portioning and generating unit and a rice ball forming unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 3] 1 is a diagram showing cooked rice shaped by a shape adjusting section that constitutes a rice ball shaping section according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 4] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a main part of a shape adjusting section constituting a rice ball forming section according to one embodiment of the present invention from the front. FIG. [Figure 5] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a plan view of a main part of a shape adjusting section that constitutes a rice ball forming section according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 6] 1 is a front view showing a folding section that constitutes a rice ball forming section according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 7] 1 is a plan view showing a folding section that constitutes a rice ball forming section according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the main parts of the rice ball forming unit when the height of the support is at its lowest. [Figure 9] 9 is a front view showing a part of the rice ball forming unit of FIG. 8. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. [Figure 11] 9 is a side view showing a part of the rice ball forming unit of FIG. 8. [Figure 12] FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing the main parts of the rice ball forming unit when the height of the support is at its highest point. [Figure 13] 13 is a front view showing a part of the rice ball forming unit of FIG. 12. FIG. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of FIG. 13. [Figure 15] 13 is a side view showing a part of the rice ball forming unit of FIG. 12. FIG. [Figure 16] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control system of the rice ball forming unit. [Figure 17] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of settings on a screen of an operation panel of the rice ball forming unit of the present embodiment. FIG. [Figure 18] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing another example of settings on the screen of the operation panel of the rice ball forming unit of the present embodiment. FIG. [Figure 19] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing yet another example of settings on the screen of the operation panel of the rice ball forming unit of the present embodiment. [Figure 20] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram showing yet another example of settings on the screen of the operation panel of the rice ball forming unit of the present embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0021] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings for explaining the embodiment, the same components are generally designated by the same reference numerals, and repeated description thereof will be omitted.

[0022] The rice ball manufacturing apparatus shown in Figures 1 and 2 is composed of a rice ball dividing and generating unit M1 that divides and generates rice into, for example, sheets, and a rice ball forming unit (rice ball forming device) M2 that receives the rice generated by the rice ball dividing and generating unit M1, transports it, and forms it into rice balls.

[0023] The cooked rice dividing and generating unit M1 has a first weighing conveyor 3, a transport conveyor 4, and a second weighing conveyor 5 arranged from upstream to downstream in the transport direction on a base 2a that can be moved by casters 1a. Also, above the first weighing conveyor 3 and the transport conveyor 4, a first sending unit 6a and a second sending unit 6b that form cooked rice into a sheet and send it out are arranged.

[0024] A lifter 9 is provided on the rear side of the base 2a (on the right side in FIG. 1) to raise and lower the cooked rice container 8 along a pair of vertical rails 7 extending in the vertical direction. The cooked rice container 8 is lifted by this lifter 9 to the position of a hopper 10 installed above, and an inverting part provided at the upper end of the lifter 9 turns it upside down toward the hopper 10, so that the cooked rice in the cooked rice container 8 is poured into the hopper 10.

[0025] The hopper 10 is provided with a loosening roller (not shown) for loosening the cooked rice that is put in, and further provided with a conveying roller (not shown) for transporting the cooked rice loosened by the loosening roller toward the first sending section 6a, and a conveying roller (not shown) for transporting the cooked rice loosened by the loosening roller toward the second sending section 6b.

[0026] An operation panel (setting unit) 11 is provided adjacent to the hopper 10 for setting the operation details of the device, such as the specifications of the rice balls to be formed and the number of rice balls to be produced, while viewing the screen. Details of the operation panel 11 will be described later.

[0027] The first sending section 6a is provided with a guide plate 12 that guides the cooked rice in the hopper 10 downward, and a pair of rollers, i.e., roller pair 13, that are arranged opposite each other and that rotate to send the cooked rice guided by the guide plate 12 downward. Therefore, the cooked rice in the hopper 10 is guided by the guide plate 12 to the roller pair 13, and is sent downward by the rotation of the roller pair 13. The roller pairs 13 may be arranged in multiple stages, one above the other.

[0028] Below the roller pair 13, a frame portion 14 is provided into which the cooked rice sent from the roller pair 13 is introduced, and below this frame portion 14, a cutter 15 is provided which divides the cooked rice sent downward from the frame portion 14 into predetermined amounts. Furthermore, below the cutter 15, an opening / closing plate 16 is provided which cooperates with the frame portion 14 and the cutter 15 to divide the cooked rice into sheets of a predetermined thickness and drop them onto the first weighing conveyor 3.

[0029] A first pair of rollers 17, one on the left and one on the right, is arranged in the second sending-out section 6b. In addition, a second pair of rollers 18, one on the left and one on the right, making a total of two stages, is arranged below the first pair of rollers 17. Furthermore, a loosening roller 19 is arranged directly below the second pair of rollers 18. Therefore, cooked rice sent downward through the first pair of rollers 17 and the second pair of rollers 18 falls while being loosened by the loosening roller 19.

[0030] A shutter 20 is disposed on the path along which the cooked rice falls, opening and closing the path. The cooked rice is then placed on top of the cooked rice that has been transported from the first weighing conveyor 3 to the transport conveyor 4.

[0031] Here, cooked rice of a target weight is produced in the first sending unit 6a and weighed by the first weighing conveyor 3. Furthermore, cooked rice of a weight corresponding to the difference (deficit weight) between the target weight and the weight measured by the first weighing conveyor 3 is produced in the second sending unit 6b, and is placed on the cooked rice produced in the first sending unit 6a on the transfer conveyor 4, and then weighed by the second weighing conveyor 5. Therefore, if the weight of the cooked rice produced in the first sending unit 6a is the target weight, cooked rice will not be supplied from the second sending unit 6b.

[0032] The cooked rice portion generation unit M1 of this embodiment has the capacity to produce approximately 3000 pieces of cooked rice weighed to a predetermined weight per hour.

[0033] Downstream in the conveying direction of the cooked rice dividing and generating unit M1 is located the rice ball forming unit M2 for forming the cooked rice into a predetermined shape (for example, a triangle). The cooked rice is then transported from the transport conveyor 4 to the second weighing conveyor 5, where it is taken from the cooked rice dividing and generating unit M1 into the rice ball forming unit M2. The weight measured by the second weighing conveyor 5 is used to detect the weight of the ingredients to be placed on the cooked rice in a subsequent process.

[0034] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the rice ball forming unit M2 includes a shape adjusting unit 21 that forms ingredient holes (holes for placing ingredients) and constricted portions (portions where the rice density is reduced so that the folded rice does not stick together) in the sheet-like cooked rice that has been weighed to a target weight in the cooked rice dividing and generating unit M1, an ingredient placing conveyor (ingredient placing unit) 22 that is an area where predetermined ingredients such as mentaiko (spicy cod roe), salmon fillets, pickled plums, and dried bonito flakes are placed on the cooked rice that has passed through the shape adjusting unit 21, and an ingredient placing conveyor 22. The machine is equipped with a checker 23 that checks the presence or absence of ingredients in the cooked rice that has passed through and the total weight (weight of the cooked rice with ingredients placed on it), a transport conveyor 24 that transports the cooked rice with ingredients placed on it, a folding section (folding means) 25 that folds the cooked rice transported by the transport conveyor 24, a forming table 26 that has formed therein forming holes 26a that are triangular in plan view and that compress the cooked rice folded by the folding section 25 to form rice balls, and a removal mold 27 that removes the formed rice balls.

[0035] The weight of the ingredients is then calculated by subtracting the weight measured by the second weighing conveyor 5 from the total weight of the cooked rice measured by the checker 23, and if the calculated weight of the ingredients is within a predetermined range (i.e., if the ingredients are in a specified amount), the cooked rice is transported to the folding process, and if it is outside the predetermined range (i.e., if the ingredients are insufficient or excessive compared to the specified amount), the operation of the rice ball making device is stopped.

[0036] The rice ball forming section M2 is equipped with an injection mold 26b that injects the cooked rice folded in the folding section 25 into forming hole 26a of forming table 26, and forming molds 26c, 29 that are triangular in plan view and that compress the cooked rice in forming hole 26a in the vertical direction to form rice balls. The forming molds are made up of an upper mold 26c that compresses the cooked rice in forming hole 26a from above by moving up and down, and a lower mold 29 that supports the cooked rice injected into forming hole 26a from below to prevent it from falling.

[0037] Forming holes 26a formed in forming table 26 may be round or bale-shaped in plan view, for example. In this case, forming dies 26c and 29 that compress the cooked rice in forming holes 26a to form the rice balls also have a round or bale-shaped shape in plan view.

[0038] The forming table 26 is a rotating body that rotates intermittently in the horizontal direction by a motor (not shown), and a plurality of forming holes 26a (eight in this embodiment) are formed at regular intervals around the circumferential direction of the forming table 26. The throw-in mold 26b, forming molds 26c and 29, and removal mold 27 are arranged in this order along the direction of rotation of the forming table 26.

[0039] The shape adjustment unit 21 is integrated with the cooked rice dividing and generating unit M1 described above, the ingredient placement conveyor 22 is installed on a stand 28, and the transport conveyor 24, folding unit 25, forming table 26, feeding mold 26b, forming molds 26c, 29 and removal mold 27 are installed on a base 2b that can be moved by casters 1b.

[0040] 3(a), the constricted portion R1 formed in the cooked rice R by the shape adjusting unit 21 is a constriction with two recesses at the front side in the conveyance direction of the cooked rice. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the shape adjusting unit 21 that forms such a constricted portion R1 comprises a transport conveyor 21a that transports the sheet-like cooked rice R, a constricted portion forming unit 21b that sandwiches the cooked rice R on the transport conveyor 21a from both sides in the conveyance direction to form the constricted portion R1, and an ingredient hole forming unit 21c that forms ingredient holes R2 for placing ingredients in the cooked rice R on the transport conveyor 21a.

[0041] As shown in these drawings, the constriction forming section 21b is composed of a first forming plate 21b-1 formed with a protrusion 21b-1a that restricts the front side of the sheet-like cooked rice R in the conveyance direction and recesses a predetermined position, and a second forming plate 21b-2 that restricts the rear side of the sheet-like cooked rice R in the conveyance direction. The first forming plate 21b-1 and the second forming plate 21b-2 are each attached to a rotating shaft 21d that faces horizontally and is parallel to each other, so that they can rotate. They rotate and move back and forth between a non-contact position where they do not come into contact with the cooked rice R, and a recess forming position where they form a recess in the cooked rice R so that the cooked rice R is sandwiched from both sides between the first forming plate 21b-1 and the second forming plate 21b-2.

[0042] As described above, the ingredient hole forming portion 21c presses the cooked rice R from above to form ingredient holes R2, and is composed of a shaft 21c-1 and a pressing portion 21c-2 formed at the tip of the shaft 21c-1 and having a larger diameter than the shaft 21c-1.

[0043] Then, when the sheet-like cooked rice R reaches directly below ingredient hole forming section 21c, the conveying operation of transport conveyor 21a is stopped. Next, first forming plate 21b-1 pivots from the non-contact position to the depression forming position, and then second forming plate 21b-2 pivots from the non-contact position to the depression forming position, forming constricted sections R1 in two places in the cooked rice R. Then, with first forming plate 21b-1 and second forming plate 21b-2 in the depression forming position, ingredient hole forming section 21c descends and presses cooked rice R from above, forming ingredient holes R2.

[0044] Once the constricted portion R1 and ingredient hole R2 are formed in the cooked rice R in this manner, the first forming plate 21b-1 and the second forming plate 21b-2 rotate to a non-contact position, the ingredient hole forming portion 21c rises, and the conveying operation of the conveying conveyor 21a resumes.

[0045] In this embodiment, the constricted portion R1 is formed in two places, but it is sufficient to form the constricted portion R1 in at least one place. Also, as shown in Figure 3(b), the constricted portion R1 may be formed on the front side and the rear side in the conveying direction of the cooked rice.

[0046] As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the folding section 25 includes a center plate 25-1 located in the center and two side plates 25-2 connected to either side of the center plate 25-1 via hinges 25b, allowing them to pivot freely relative to the center plate 25-1. The center plate 25-1 corresponds to the two constrictions R1 described above in the cooked rice. The two side plates 25-2 also correspond to the outer portions of the two constrictions R1. This structure allows the two side plates 25-2 to rise using the center plate 25-1 as a fulcrum and pivot above the center plate 25-1 so that their free ends approach each other.

[0047] Therefore, when the sheet-like cooked rice R with the constricted portion R1 formed thereon is placed on the plates 25-1, 25-2 of the folding section 25, both sides of the cooked rice R rise up with the position of the hinge 25b, i.e., the position of the constricted portion R1, as the folding position, and then the cooked rice R is folded at the position of the constricted portion R1 so as to fall toward the center.

[0048] The folded cooked rice is then fed by the aforementioned feeding mold 26b into forming hole 26a, which is triangular in plan view and formed in forming table 26, and compressed vertically by forming molds 26c and 29 to form the shape of forming hole 26a, i.e., into a rice ball, and then removed from forming hole 26a by removal mold 27. The rice is then sent from rice ball forming unit M2 to a rice ball packaging unit (not shown) where it is packaged and becomes a final product.

[0049] Next, Figure 8 is an oblique view showing the main parts of the rice ball forming unit when the height of the support is at its lowest, Figure 9 is a front view showing part of the rice ball forming unit of Figure 8, Figure 10 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 9, Figure 11 is a side view showing part of the rice ball forming unit of Figure 8, Figure 12 is an oblique view showing the main parts of the rice ball forming unit when the height of the support is at its highest, Figure 13 is a front view showing part of the rice ball forming unit of Figure 12, Figure 14 is a cross-sectional view of Figure 13, Figure 15 is a side view showing part of the rice ball forming unit of Figure 12, Figure 16 is a block diagram showing the control system of the rice ball forming unit, and Figures 17 to 20 are explanatory diagrams illustrating settings on the screen of the operation panel of the rice ball forming unit of this embodiment.

[0050] As shown in Figures 8 to 10 and 12 to 15, the rice ball forming unit M2 includes a support 30a that supports the upper mold 26c described above, a forming drive unit 30b that lowers the upper mold 26c to compress the cooked rice in the forming hole 26a and form it into a rice ball, and a forming thickness adjustment unit 30c that adjusts the forming thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c.

[0051] The support body 30a constituting the rice ball forming section M2 is a part that collectively supports the plurality of upper dies 26c, and has a support plate 30aa, two support pillars 30ab, and a support base 30ac.

[0052] A plurality of upper dies 26c (three in this embodiment) are arranged on the support plate 30aa so as to correspond in the vertical direction to some (three in this embodiment) of the molding holes 26a formed in the molding table 26. Each upper die 26c is detachably supported on the support plate 30aa by a bolt B1. This simplifies the configuration of the support plate 30aa compared to a structure in which a height adjustment mechanism is provided for each of the plurality of upper dies 26c, thereby reducing the weight of the support plate 30aa.

[0053] The support plate 30aa is supported by two support columns 30ab located on one end thereof and is detachably attached with bolts (not shown). By making the support plate 30aa detachable, the plurality of upper dies 26c can be replaced together with the support plate 30aa, making it easy to replace the plurality of upper dies 26c.

[0054] The two support columns 30ab are detachably attached to both longitudinal ends of the support base 30ac by bolts B2. A molding thickness adjusting shaft (molding thickness adjusting portion) 30ca, which constitutes part of the molding thickness adjusting portion 30c, is threadedly engaged with the longitudinal center of the support base 30ac. The heights of the multiple upper dies 26c can be adjusted collectively by rotating the molding thickness adjusting shaft 30ca and moving the support 30a up and down. This makes it easier to adjust the heights of the multiple upper dies 26c than when the heights of the multiple upper dies 26c are adjusted individually.

[0055] The two support columns 30ab are supported by support blocks 30ad through which the support columns 30ab pass so as to be movable up and down. As a result, even if heavy objects such as the support plate 30aa and the upper mold 26c are attached in a cantilevered manner to the support columns 30ab, the support columns 30ab are supported by the support blocks 30ad and can move straight up and down.

[0056] 8 to 10 and FIG. 11 described later show the state in which the height of the support 30a is set to the lowest, and FIG. 12 to 14 and FIG. 15 described later show the state in which the height of the support 30a is set to the highest.

[0057] Next, the forming drive unit 30b is a part that compresses the cooked rice that has been placed into the forming hole 26a formed in the forming table 26 by the upper die 26c from above and forms it into a rice ball by raising and lowering the upper die 26c via the support body 30a, and is equipped with a drive lever unit 30ba and connecting members 30bb and 30bc.

[0058] The drive lever 30ba converts the rotation of a rotary motor (not shown) into a vertical swing motion via a main shaft and a cam. The tip of the drive lever 30ba is rotatably connected to the lower end of the forming thickness adjusting shaft 30ca via connecting members 30bb and 30bc.

[0059] Therefore, when the tip of the drive lever part 30ba descends during molding, the molding thickness adjustment shaft 30ca descends, which causes the support body 30a to descend and the upper mold 26c supported by the support body 30a to descend, and the cooked rice in the molding hole 26a is compressed by the upper mold 26c. Also, when the tip of the drive lever part 30ba rises during molding, the molding thickness adjustment shaft 30ca rises, which causes the support body 30a to rise and the upper mold 26c to rise. The amount of vertical movement (length) of the drive lever part 30ba is the stroke length of the upper mold 26c. The stroke length of this upper mold 26c is fixed.

[0060] The connecting members 30bb, 30bc have a ball joint structure consisting of the connecting member 30bb, which is a ball stud formed integrally with the metal ball 30bb-1 and the round bar 30bb-2, and the connecting member 30bc, which is a socket that makes spherical contact with the metal ball 30bb-1. This ball joint structure allows the connecting member 30bb to freely rotate around the axis of the round bar 30bb-2. As shown in the figure, the connecting member 30bb is arranged vertically with the metal ball 30bb-1 on the lower side and the round bar 30bb-2 on the upper side, and the tip of the round bar 30bb-2 is connected to the lower end of the molding thickness adjustment shaft 30ca.

[0061] The connecting member 30bb and the molding thickness adjustment shaft 30ca are fixed with screws, so that when the molding thickness adjustment shaft 30ca is rotated to move the support 30a up and down, the connecting member 30bb rotates together with the molding thickness adjustment shaft 30ca, but the connecting member 30bc does not rotate.

[0062] Forming thickness adjustment unit 30c, which adjusts the thickness of the rice balls formed by upper die 26c, adjusts the thickness of the rice balls formed by upper die 26c by moving support 30a up and down to change the height (height at which upper die 26c starts to move down). This forming thickness adjustment unit 30c includes the aforementioned forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca that is screwed into support base 30ac that constitutes support 30a, motor 30cb that rotates forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca to move support 30a up and down, height detection unit 30cc that detects the height of support 30a moved by motor 30cb, and mounting plate 30cd on which forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca, motor 30cb, and height detection unit 30cc are mounted.

[0063] The mounting plate 30cd consists of two plates 30cda positioned above and below, a rod 30cdb positioned between the plates 30cda to form a predetermined gap between them, and bolts B3 for fixing the plate 30cda to the upper and lower ends of the rod 30cdb. One side of the lower plate 30cda is supported by bolts attached to the upper ends of two support rods 30cde.

[0064] The motor 30cb is mounted on the mounting plate 30cd with its rotation shaft 30cba facing upward. In this embodiment, the motor 30cb is a brushless motor, for example, that can rotate in both forward and reverse directions and whose rotation amount can be controlled. However, various other types of motors can be used as the motor 30cb as long as they have these functions.

[0065] A disk-shaped drive gear 30ce is coaxially attached to the rotating shaft 30cba of the motor 30cb via a cylindrical cam bracket 30cca that is provided coaxially with the rotating shaft 30cba. The forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca is rotatably mounted on the mounting plate 30cd via a shaft collar 30cab. A disk-shaped driven gear 30cf, which is gear-coupled with the drive gear 30ce, is attached to the shaft collar 30cab coaxially with the forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca.

[0066] Therefore, when the motor 30cb rotates, the drive gear 30ce rotates in accordance with the direction and amount of rotation of the motor 30cb, and the driven gear 30cf rotates accordingly. This causes the forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca to rotate, and the support base 30ac, which is screwed onto the forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca, to move downward (FIGS. 8 to 10) or upward (FIGS. 12 to 14), thereby moving the support body 30a in the vertical direction and adjusting the height (height at which the upper mold 26c starts to move down).

[0067] The height detection unit 30cc is attached coaxially to the rotating shaft 30cba of the motor 30cb via a cam bracket 30cca and includes a signal cam (rotary disk) 30ccb with notches (not shown) formed at regular intervals around the circumference, a sensor 30ccd that measures the rotational displacement of the signal cam 30ccb from the movement of the notches due to the rotation of the signal cam 30ccb, and a calculation unit 30cce that calculates the height of the support 30a from the rotational displacement of the signal cam 30ccb measured by the sensor 30ccd. Calculating the height of the support 30a determines the height (height at which descent starts) of the upper mold 26c supported by the support 30a.

[0068] Here, when the forming drive unit 30b lowers the upper mold 26c via the support body 30a, the upper mold 26c descends (strokes) to a lower limit position corresponding to the height at which the upper mold 26c starts to descend, compressing the cooked rice placed in the forming hole 26a of the forming table 26 and forming it into a rice ball. As described above, because the stroke length of the upper mold 26c is fixed, if the height at which the upper mold 26c starts to descend is relatively high, the lower limit position, i.e., the position at which the cooked rice in the forming hole 26a is compressed, also becomes relatively high, and therefore the cooked rice is formed into a rice ball with a relatively thick formed thickness. On the other hand, if the height at which the upper mold 26c starts to descend is relatively low, the lower limit position, i.e., the position at which the cooked rice in the forming hole 26a is compressed, also becomes relatively low, and the cooked rice is formed into a rice ball with a relatively thin formed thickness.

[0069] 11 and 15, a movement range detection plate 31 is attached to the support base 30ac with bolts B4. The movement range detection plate 31 has a length that reaches the upper plate 30cda constituting the mounting plate 30cd when the height of the support 30a is set to its lowest position (FIG. 11). Two notches 31a, opening laterally, are formed at the top and bottom of the movement range detection plate 31, with a vertical width corresponding to the distance between the upper limit (FIG. 15) and lower limit (FIG. 11) of the allowable range of movement of the support 30a caused by the forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca. Meanwhile, a movement range detection sensor 32 is installed on the upper plate 30cda of the mounting plate 30cd. The movement range detection sensor 32 optically detects the lower notch 31a of the movement range detection plate 31, thereby restricting the movement of the support 30a caused by the forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca to a range that can be detected by the notch 31a.

[0070] This mechanism prevents the forming thickness adjusting shaft 30ca from moving the support 30a beyond the upper or lower limit of the allowable movement range of the support 30a. This prevents the support 30a from exceeding the upper limit of the allowable movement range and falling off the forming thickness adjusting shaft 30ca, or the support 30a from exceeding the lower limit of the allowable movement range and the lower limit position (the position where cooked rice in the forming hole 26a is compressed) when the upper mold 26c strokes becoming too low.

[0071] A block diagram of the control system for the rice ball forming unit of this embodiment is shown in Figure 16. As shown in the figure, the control system for the rice ball forming unit of this embodiment is composed of a control unit CPU that controls the overall operation of the device, the aforementioned motor 30cb that rotates under the control of the control unit CPU, a forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca that rotates with the rotation of motor 30cb and moves support 30a up and down (i.e., adjusts the height at which upper die 26c supported by support 30a starts to descend, thereby adjusting the thickness of the rice ball formed by upper die 26c), a signal cam 30ccb that rotates with the rotation of motor 30cb, a sensor 30ccd that measures the rotational displacement of signal cam 30ccb, a calculation unit 30cce that calculates the height of support 30a from the rotational displacement of signal cam 30ccb measured by sensor 30ccd and sends the calculated height to the control unit CPU, and an operation panel 11 that sets the operation details of the device, such as the specifications of the rice ball to be formed and the number of rice balls to be produced, and sends the set values ​​to the control unit CPU.

[0072] As mentioned above, the operation panel 11 is a functional unit that allows the user to set the specifications of the rice ball to be formed while viewing the screen. Examples of the screen for setting the specifications of the rice ball to be formed are shown in Figs. 17 to 20.

[0073] In these drawings, "Rice Settings" is where you set the weight and type of cooked rice that will be formed into the rice ball, which is one of the specifications of the rice ball, and "Ingredient Settings" is where you set the weight and type of ingredients that will be wrapped around the rice ball, which is another specification of the rice ball. Once these specifications of the rice ball are set, the height of the rice ball (thickness of the rice ball formed) that will be displayed corresponding to the specifications is displayed in the "Forming Height" window.

[0074] 16 receives the rice ball height corresponding to the rice ball specifications from the operation panel 11, it rotates the motor 30cb to move the support 30a upward or downward using the forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca, and calculates the height of the support 30a each time from the amount of rotation of the motor 30cb. In this way, the height of the support 30a (i.e., the height at which the descent of the upper mold 26c supported by the support 30a begins) is adjusted so that the height of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c becomes the height of the rice ball displayed on the operation panel 11.

[0075] For example, as shown in Figure 17, if "Rice Setting" is set to "Plain Rice A (100g)" and "Spicy Pollack Roe (10g)" is set in "Ingredient Setting," the "Forming Height" will be displayed as "35±0.00mm" (i.e., 35mm). Then, motor 30cb controlled by the control unit CPU rotates forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca, and the height of support body 30a is adjusted so that the forming height of cooked rice (formed rice ball thickness) in forming hole 26a compressed by upper mold 26c will be 35mm.

[0076] 18, when "rice setting" is set to "white rice B (95g)" and "spicy cod roe (10g)" is set in "ingredients setting," the set amount of cooked rice is reduced from 100g to 95g from the setting shown in Fig. 17, and therefore the "forming height" is displayed as "35-2.00mm" (i.e., 33mm).Then, the control unit CPU adjusts the height of the support 30a so that the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c is 33mm.

[0077] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 19, when "Rice Settings" is set to "White Rice B (95g)" and "Mentaiko - Extra (15g)" is set in "Ingredient Settings," the amount of mentaiko increases from 10g to 15g from the setting shown in Figure 18, and the "Forming Height" is displayed as "35 + 2.00mm" (i.e., 37mm).Then, the control unit CPU adjusts the height of the support 30a so that the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c is 37mm.

[0078] Then, as shown in Fig. 20, when "rice setting" is set to "white rice B (95g)" and "salmon fillet (15g)" is set in "ingredients setting," the type of ingredients changes from mentaiko to thick salmon fillet from the settings shown in Fig. 19, and therefore the "forming height" is displayed as "35 + 4.00mm" (i.e., 39mm).Then, the control unit CPU adjusts the height of the support body 30a so that the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c is 39mm.

[0079] Here, it is sufficient that the rice ball specifications at least be able to set the weight of the cooked rice. However, if it is possible to further set at least one of the type of cooked rice (for example, plain rice, fried rice, mixed rice, etc.), type of ingredients (for example, mentaiko, salmon fillet, pickled plum, bonito flakes, tuna mayonnaise, kelp, salmon roe, etc.), and type and weight of ingredients, more detailed settings will be possible. Note that the specifications of the rice ball are not limited to these, and other specifications may also be able to be set.

[0080] In addition, in this embodiment, the "forming height" on the screen of the operation panel 11 displays a predetermined numerical value corresponding to the set specifications of the rice ball, but it may also be changeable to any numerical value.

[0081] Next, the operation of the rice ball forming unit M2 having the above configuration will be described.

[0082] Once the rice ball specifications are set by operating the screen of the operation panel 11, the rice ball forming height (forming thickness) is displayed. If the height (current position) of the support 30a differs from the height corresponding to the rice ball forming height, the control unit CPU rotates the motor 30cb in either the forward or reverse direction to move the support 30a upward or downward using the forming thickness adjustment shaft 30ca, and calculates the height of the support 30a from the amount of rotation of the motor 30cb at that time. When the height of the support 30a (i.e., the height at which the upper mold 26c supported by the support 30a starts to descend) reaches a position where the height (forming thickness) of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c is the height (forming thickness) of the rice ball displayed on the operation panel 11, the control unit CPU stops driving the motor 30cb.

[0083] In this way, according to the rice ball forming section M2 of this embodiment, the control unit CPU controls the forming thickness adjustment axis 30ca to adjust the height at which the upper mold 26c starts to descend so that the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold 26c corresponds to the rice ball thickness set on the operation panel 11, making it possible to easily adjust the height at which the upper mold 26c starts to descend to a rice ball thickness that corresponds to the rice ball specifications.

[0084] The invention made by the inventor has been specifically described above based on the embodiments, but the embodiments disclosed in this specification are illustrative in all respects and are not limited to the disclosed technology. In other words, the technical scope of the present invention should not be interpreted restrictively based on the description of the above embodiments, but should be interpreted solely in accordance with the claims, and includes technologies equivalent to the technologies described in the claims and all modifications that do not deviate from the gist of the claims.

[0085] For example, in this embodiment, cooked rice and ingredients weighed to a predetermined weight are placed in the forming holes and compressed by upper die 26c to form a rice ball, but ingredients are not required, and it is also possible to place only cooked rice in the forming holes and compress it by upper die 26c. In this case, an option for "no ingredients" is provided in the "ingredients setting" on the screen for setting the rice ball specifications shown in Figures 17 to 20. It goes without saying that the types and amounts of ingredients are not limited to those shown in Figures 17 to 20.

[0086] Furthermore, the display format of the screen of operation panel 11 for setting the specifications of the rice ball is not limited to that shown in Figures 17 to 20. For example, if the height of the rice ball to be formed is predetermined in accordance with the set specifications of the rice ball and cannot be changed to an arbitrary height, the "forming height" does not need to be displayed on the screen. [Industrial Applicability]

[0087] In the above explanation, the rice ball forming unit of the rice ball manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is shown as an integrated unit that includes a shape adjustment unit that forms ingredient holes and constrictions in sheet-like cooked rice, an ingredient placement conveyor on which ingredients are placed, and a forming table that folds and compresses the cooked rice with ingredients placed on it to form rice balls, but each of these may also be separate. [Explanation of symbols]

[0088] 11 Operation panel (setting section) 21 Shape adjustment section 21a Transport conveyor 21b Neck forming part 21c Tool hole forming part 22 Ingredient placement conveyor (ingredient placement section) 24 Transport conveyor 25 Folding section (folding means) 26 Molding Table 26a Molding hole 26b Insertion type 26c Upper mold (molding mold) 27 Removal type 29 Lower mold (molding mold) 30a support 30aa support plate 30ab support column 30ac support stand 30ad support block 30b Forming drive unit 30ba driving lever part 30bb connecting member 30bb-1 metal ball 30bb-2 round bar 30bc connecting member 30c Molding thickness adjustment section 30ca Molding thickness adjustment shaft (molding thickness adjustment part) 30cab shaft color 30cb motor 30cba Rotating shaft 30cc detection unit 30cca cam bracket 30ccb signal cam (turntable) 30ccd sensor 30cce calculation part 30cd mounting board 30cda plate 30cdb rod 30cde support rod 30ce drive gear 30cf driven gear 31 Moving range detection plate 31a Notch 32 Moving range detection sensor B1~B4 bolts CPU control unit M1 Rice division generator M2 Rice ball forming section (rice ball forming device) R Rice

Claims

1. a forming table having a forming hole formed therein into which cooked rice weighed to a predetermined weight or cooked rice and ingredients weighed to a predetermined weight are poured; An upper mold that compresses the cooked rice in the forming hole from above; A support body that supports the upper mold; A forming drive unit that raises and lowers the upper mold via the support and compresses the cooked rice in the forming hole with the upper mold to form it into a rice ball; A forming thickness adjustment unit that moves the support member in the vertical direction to change the height at which the upper mold starts to descend and adjusts the forming thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold; a setting unit for setting specifications of the rice ball to be formed; a control unit that controls the forming thickness adjusting unit so that the thickness of the rice ball formed by the upper mold becomes the thickness of the rice ball corresponding to the specifications set by the setting unit; and The molding thickness adjustment unit is a forming thickness adjusting shaft screwed with a support base constituting the support body; a motor that rotates the forming thickness adjustment shaft to move the support body in the vertical direction; a height detection unit that detects the height of the support moved by the motor; Equipped with The height detection unit a rotating disk attached to the rotating shaft of the motor and having notches formed at regular intervals in a circumferential direction; a sensor that detects movement of the notch due to rotation of the rotating disk; a calculation unit that measures a rotational displacement of the turntable from the movement of the notch detected by the sensor and calculates a height of the support; Equipped with A rice ball forming device characterized by the above.

2. The specifications of the rice ball set by the setting unit are as follows: At least including the weight of cooked rice, 2. The rice ball forming device according to claim 1.

3. The specifications of the rice ball set by the setting unit are as follows: Furthermore, the information includes at least one of the type of cooked rice, the type of ingredients, and the type and weight of ingredients.

3. The rice ball forming device according to claim 2.

4. The forming table is a rotating body that rotates intermittently in a horizontal direction, The forming holes are formed at regular intervals in the circumferential direction of the forming table.

2. The rice ball forming device according to claim 1.

5. The forming hole formed in the forming table has a triangular shape in a plan view.

5. The rice ball forming device according to claim 4.

6. A shape adjusting part that forms a filling hole and a constricted part in cooked rice; an ingredient placement unit that places predetermined ingredients on the cooked rice that has passed through the shape adjustment unit; and folding means for folding the cooked rice on which the ingredients have been placed in the ingredient placement section, The cooked rice folded by the folding means is put into the forming holes of the forming table. The rice ball forming device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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