High-efficiency drying apparatus for ptecticus tenebrifer

Abstract

The present invention provides a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies, which can increase site space utilization by continuously stacking horizontal conveyors in a zigzag pattern inside a drying tower, increase drying capacity by enabling rapid heat transfer and evaporation within the tissue of the material to be dried during drying, and significantly improve drying efficiency through dehumidification and air circulation of the drying space. To this end, the present invention comprises a drying tower with a sealed structure, wherein a drying line is installed inside to continuously transport black soldier fly larvae in a zigzag pattern by stacking horizontal conveyors for transporting black soldier fly larvae in multiple layers, and an input section for introducing black soldier fly larvae is provided at the leading end of the drying line and an output section for discharging black soldier fly larvae to the outside is provided at the trailing end of the drying line; a drying unit for drying black soldier fly larvae transported along the drying line by emitting radiant heat by installing near-infrared lamps at predetermined intervals on the upper side of the horizontal conveyors stacked in multiple layers; and an air conditioning unit for inhaling hot air generated inside the drying tower during the drying of the black soldier fly larvae, conditioned it to a dry state, and sending it to the drying tower to circulate the internal air of the drying tower.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies, and more specifically, to a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies that can increase site space utilization by constructing a drying line in a zigzag pattern from top to bottom inside a drying tower, increase drying capacity by enabling rapid heat transfer and evaporation within the tissue of the material to be dried during drying, and significantly improve drying efficiency through dehumidification and air circulation of the drying space. Background Technology

[0002] The black soldier fly is a type of fruit fly, and its larvae possess an exceptional ability to decompose organic waste, such as food waste, during their growth process; therefore, they are being mass-produced to process food waste in an environmentally friendly manner.

[0003] These black soldier fly larvae are processed and provided as feed for chickens, fish, and other animals as a protein source before emerging as adults.

[0004] Published Patent Application No. 10-2023-0027631 (published Feb. 28, 2023) discloses a black soldier fly drying device.

[0005] The configuration includes an input section into which a drying object, including a black soldier fly larva or pupa, is introduced; a conveying section for conveying the drying object from one side to the other; a tunnel section that surrounds the conveying section from the outside; a drying section for drying the drying object as it is conveyed along the conveying section; and a collecting section for collecting the dried drying object.

[0006] According to the above technical configuration, a rod or rod-type infrared heater is provided in the drying section, and as the object to be dried fed through the input section is transported along the transport section, drying is performed by the radiant heat emitted from the infrared heater, and the dried object is collected through the collection section.

[0007] However, conventional black soldier fly drying devices have a problem in that drying takes place inside a tunnel section as the material to be dried, fed through the input section, is transported along a straight-line transport section until it is collected through the collection section; consequently, the overall length of the drying device increases depending on the drying capacity, leading to reduced site efficiency.

[0008] Furthermore, conventional black soldier fly drying devices have multiple steam outlets along the length of the upper surface of the tunnel section to discharge steam generated as the object to be dried is dried. In this case, not only is a significant off-odor generated around the drying device, but there is also a problem that drying efficiency is reduced due to excessive humidity inside the tunnel section. The problem to be solved

[0009] The present invention has been devised to solve the problems of the aforementioned prior art and provides a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies, which can increase site space utilization even if the drying line is long by constructing a drying line continuously in a zigzag pattern from the top to the bottom inside the drying tower.

[0010] In addition, the present invention provides a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies that can significantly increase drying capacity and drying efficiency by preventing surface hardening of the cuticle layer of black soldier fly larvae through a low-temperature drying process by continuously constructing a drying line in a zigzag pattern inside a drying tower to secure the length of the drying line, thereby lowering the drying temperature and enabling rapid heat transfer and evaporation within the tissue.

[0011] Furthermore, the present invention provides a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies that can significantly increase drying capacity and drying efficiency, such as by removing moisture from hot air containing steam generated in the drying space and circulating the moisture-removed dry air back into the drying space to prevent leakage of hot air to the outside, thereby suppressing the generation of off-odors. means of solving the problem

[0012] To solve the above problem, the present invention comprises a drying tower with a sealed structure in which a drying line is installed internally to continuously transport black soldier fly larvae in a zigzag form by stacking horizontal conveyors for transporting black soldier fly larvae in multiple layers, and an input section for introducing black soldier fly larvae at the leading end of the drying line and an output section for discharging black soldier fly larvae to the outside are respectively provided; a drying unit for drying black soldier fly larvae transported along the drying line by emitting radiant heat by installing near-infrared lamps at predetermined intervals on the upper side of the horizontal conveyors stacked in multiple layers; and an air conditioning unit for inhaling hot air generated inside the drying tower during the drying of black soldier fly larvae, conditioned it to a dry state, and sending it to the drying tower to circulate the internal air of the drying tower.

[0013] The above-described horizontal conveyor is configured such that the conveyor belt is formed in a breathable mesh form, a rotating brush is installed at the lower end of the horizontal conveyor to rotate in the reverse direction in contact with the conveyor belt so as to shake off black soldier fly larvae remaining on the conveyor belt, and a scattering prevention cover is installed at the end of the horizontal conveyor to prevent black soldier fly larvae shaken off by the rotating brush from scattering and escaping from the drying line.

[0014] The above drying section consists of a pretreatment section that transmits radiant heat of 60 to 80°C into the tissue of the black soldier fly larva introduced into the drying line to kill the black soldier fly larva, and a drying section that transmits radiant heat of 40 to 60°C into the tissue of the black soldier fly larva in a killed state to dry the black soldier fly larva.

[0015] The above air conditioning unit comprises a hollow enclosure, a partition wall that divides the interior of the enclosure into two sides with an open bottom end to allow communication between the partitioned spaces, a cooling air passage pipe installed through the enclosure and the partition wall and through which outside air forcibly blown by a blower fan passes, a heat exchanger in which cooling fins are arranged at regular intervals on the outer surface of the cooling air passage pipe to absorb moisture from the surrounding air and air-conditioned it to a dry state, an intake pipe installed in communication between the drying tower and the partitioned space on one side of the enclosure to forcibly draw in hot air generated inside the drying tower through an intake fan and draw it into the partitioned space on one side of the enclosure, a supply pipe installed in communication between the partitioned space on the other side of the enclosure and the drying tower to send the air air-conditioned to a dry state by the cooling fins back into the drying tower, and a drain installed on the bottom surface of the enclosure to discharge condensate generated during the air conditioning process to the outside.

[0016] The above-described drying tower is configured such that suction ports connected to the suction pipe are formed at predetermined intervals on one side wall, and supply ports connected to the supply pipe are formed on the other side wall facing the one side wall of the drying tower, wherein the supply ports are positioned diagonally opposite to the suction ports so that dry air supplied through the supply pipes diffuses within the drying tower.

[0017] And the above-mentioned input section consists of an inclined conveyor for transporting black soldier fly larvae from the floor to the height of the drying tower, and a vibrating conveyor for receiving black soldier fly larvae from the inclined conveyor, spreading the larvae evenly during transport, and feeding them into the horizontal conveyor. Effects of the invention

[0018] According to the present invention, by stacking horizontal conveyors in multiple stages inside the drying tower to configure the drying line in a zigzag pattern, the space utilization of the site can be increased.

[0019] In addition, according to the present invention, by stacking horizontal conveyors in multiple stages inside the drying tower to construct a drying line of sufficient length, the drying temperature is lowered to prevent surface hardening of the cuticle layer of black soldier fly larvae, thereby allowing rapid heat transfer and evaporation within the tissue, which has the effect of increasing drying capacity and improving drying efficiency.

[0020] Furthermore, according to the present invention, moisture is removed from the hot air containing steam generated in the drying space to circulate it into dry air, and by sending it back to the drying space for circulation, leakage of the hot air to the outside is prevented, thereby suppressing the occurrence of off-odors and having the effect of significantly increasing drying capacity and drying efficiency. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0021] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the overall configuration of a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the side structure of a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies according to the present invention. Figures 3 and 4 are diagrams illustrating the structure of a horizontal conveyor of a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies according to the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating the air conditioning unit of a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies according to the present invention. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0022] Terms and words used in this specification and claims shall not be interpreted as being limited to their ordinary or dictionary meanings, but shall be interpreted in a meaning and concept consistent with the technical spirit of the invention, based on the principle that the inventor can appropriately define the concept of the terms to best describe his invention.

[0023] Therefore, the configurations described in this specification are merely one preferred embodiment of the invention and do not represent all of the technical ideas of the invention; thus, it should be understood that various equivalents and modifications that can replace them may exist at the time of filing this application.

[0024] Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of a high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0025] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the present invention comprises a drying tower (100) having a sealed structure in which a drying line (20L) for continuously transporting black soldier fly larvae in a zigzag shape is installed inside a horizontal conveyor (20) for transporting black soldier fly larvae by stacking them in multiple layers, an input section (10) for introducing black soldier fly larvae at the leading end of the drying line (20L), and an output section (30) for discharging black soldier fly larvae to the outside are respectively provided at the trailing end of the drying line (20L); a drying section (50) for drying black soldier fly larvae transported along the drying line (20L) by emitting radiant heat by installing near-infrared lamps (51) at predetermined intervals on the upper side of the horizontal conveyor (20) stacked in multiple layers; and a drying section (50) for absorbing hot air generated inside the drying tower (100) during the drying of black soldier fly larvae to circulate the air inside the drying tower (100) in a drying state and sending it to the drying tower (100) to circulate the air inside the drying tower (100). It is configured with an air conditioning unit (60).

[0026] In the above technical configuration, the drying tower (100) is constructed as a steel frame structure with an outer wall finished with sandwich panels, etc., and is constructed as a sealed structure.

[0027] Inside the drying tower (100), horizontal conveyors (20) for transporting black soldier fly larvae are stacked in multiple layers, and a drying line (20L) is installed so that black soldier fly larvae falling from the end of the upper horizontal conveyor can be received from the lower horizontal conveyor and transported in a zigzag pattern.

[0028] Additionally, the drying tower (100) is provided with an input section (10) for introducing black soldier fly larvae at the front end of the drying line (20L) and an output section (30) for discharging black soldier fly larvae to the outside at the rear end of the drying line (20L).

[0029] The drying section (50) is configured to dry black soldier fly larvae inside the drying tower (100), and near-infrared lamps (51) are installed at predetermined intervals on the upper side of the horizontal conveyor (20) to emit radiant heat to the black soldier fly larvae being transported along the drying line (20L) to dry them.

[0030] The air conditioning unit (60) sucks in hot air generated inside the drying tower (100) during the drying of black soldier fly larvae, airs the air to a dry state with moisture removed, and sends it back to the drying tower (100).

[0031] According to the above technical configuration, black soldier fly larvae introduced through the input section (10) of the drying tower (100) are continuously transported in a zigzag pattern along the drying line (20L) composed of a horizontal conveyor (20) and discharged outside the drying tower (100) through the discharge section (30).

[0032] At this time, inside the drying tower (100), as the black soldier fly larvae are transported along the drying line (20L), drying is performed by near-infrared lamps (51) installed at predetermined intervals on the upper side of the horizontal conveyor (20).

[0033] The air conditioning unit (60) can improve drying efficiency by drawing in hot air from inside the drying tower (100) generated during the drying process, conditioned it into dry air from which moisture has been removed, and sending it into the drying tower (100) for circulation.

[0034] Unexplained symbols 1, 2, 61, and 62 will be described later as an inclined conveyor, a vibrating conveyor, a suction pipe, and a supply pipe, respectively.

[0035] Next, referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the above horizontal conveyor (20) has a conveying belt in the form of a breathable mesh, and a rotating brush (21) that rotates in the reverse direction in contact with the conveying belt is installed at the lower end of the horizontal conveyor (20) so as to shake off black soldier fly larvae remaining on the conveying belt, and a scattering prevention cover (25) is installed at the end of the horizontal conveyor (20) so as to prevent black soldier fly larvae shaken off by the rotating brush (21) from scattering and escaping from the drying line.

[0036] In the above technical configuration, the horizontal conveyor (20) is formed such that the conveying belt is in the form of a breathable mesh, allowing for smooth release of moisture during the drying process of the black soldier fly larvae.

[0037] The rotating brush (21) is configured to prevent black soldier fly larvae from sticking to the conveyor belt and being lost due to mucus or the like during the drying process. By rotating in the reverse direction in contact with the conveyor belt at the lower end of the horizontal conveyor (20), it is possible to shake off black soldier fly larvae stuck to the conveyor belt.

[0038] The scattering prevention cover (25) is installed facing the end of the horizontal conveyor (20) to guide black soldier fly larvae scattered by the rotating brush (21) to collide with it and fall onto the lower horizontal conveyor.

[0039] According to the above technical configuration, even if mucus leaks from black soldier fly larvae during the drying process and sticks to the conveyor belt, it can be brushed off by the rotating brush (21) and recovered to the lower horizontal conveyor by the scattering prevention cover (25), thereby reducing the loss of black soldier fly larvae.

[0040] Next, the above drying section (50) consists of a pretreatment section that transmits radiant heat of 60 to 80°C into the tissue of a black soldier fly larva introduced into a drying line (20L) to kill the black soldier fly larva, and a drying section that transmits radiant heat of 40 to 60°C into the tissue of a black soldier fly larva in a killed state to dry the black soldier fly larva.

[0041] According to the above technical configuration, radiant heat of 60 to 80°C is transmitted into the tissue of the black soldier fly larva in the pretreatment section, thereby killing the black soldier fly larva in a short time and reducing the activity of the black soldier fly larva attempting to escape from the horizontal conveyor (20).

[0042] Furthermore, by preventing surface hardening of the cuticle layer of the larva during the dying process, it is possible to transfer radiant heat of 40 to 60°C, thereby promoting heat transfer and evaporation within the tissue during the low-temperature drying process of drying black soldier fly larvae.

[0043] Next, referring to FIG. 5, the above air conditioning unit (60) comprises a hollow housing (63), a partition wall (64) that divides the interior of the housing (63) into two sides with an open bottom end to allow communication between the partition spaces, a cooling air passage pipe (66) installed through the housing (63) and the partition wall (64) and through which outside air forcibly blown by a blower fan (65) passes, a heat exchanger (68) for absorbing moisture from the surrounding air and conditioned to a dry state by conditioned air with cooling fins (67) arranged at regular intervals on the outer surface of the cooling air passage pipe (66), a suction pipe (61) installed in communication between the drying tower (100) and the partition space on one side of the housing (63) to forcibly suck in hot air generated inside the drying tower (100) through a suction fan (69) and suck it into the partition space on one side of the housing (63), and air conditioned to a dry state by the cooling fins (67) installed in communication between the partition space on the other side of the housing (63) and the drying tower (100). A supply pipe (62) for sending water back into the interior of the drying tower (100) and a drain (not shown) installed on the bottom surface of the enclosure (63) for discharging condensate generated during the air conditioning process to the outside are provided.

[0044] According to the above technical configuration, a heat exchanger (68) having cooling fins (67) arranged at regular intervals on the outer surface of an air passage pipe (66) maintains a cold state by external air forcibly blown by a blower fan (65), and as hot air inside the drying tower (100) introduced through the intake pipe (61) comes into contact with it, condensation occurs, and the air is conditioned into dry air with moisture removed.

[0045] Therefore, the hot air generated during the drying process of the drying tower (100) is air-conditioned inside the housing (63) and sent back into the drying tower (100) through the supply pipe (62), thereby helping to improve drying efficiency by aiding evaporation within the tissue of the black soldier fly larva.

[0046] Furthermore, by ensuring that the internal air of the drying tower (100) is not discharged to the outside and undergoes a circulation process, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of an odor during the drying process of black soldier fly larvae.

[0047] Next, referring to the aforementioned FIGS. 1 and 2, the above-described drying tower (100) has suction ports (101) formed at predetermined intervals on one side wall to which suction pipes (61) are connected, and supply ports (102) formed on the other side wall facing the one side wall of the drying tower (100) to which supply pipes (62) are connected, wherein the supply ports (102) are positioned diagonally opposite to the suction ports (101) so that air conditioning air in a dry state supplied through the supply pipes (62) is diffused inside the drying tower (100).

[0048] According to the above technical configuration, an intake port (101) is formed on one side wall of the drying tower (100) and a supply port (102) is formed on the opposite side wall. The positions of the supply port (102) and the intake port (101) are offset from each other, so that the air conditioning air introduced through the supply port (101) diffuses inside the drying tower (100), thereby allowing the inside of the drying tower (100) to be maintained in a drier state.

[0049] And the above-mentioned input section (10) consists of an inclined conveyor (1) for transporting black soldier fly larvae from the floor to the height of the drying tower (100), and a vibrating conveyor (2) for receiving black soldier fly larvae from the inclined conveyor (1) and evenly spreading the black soldier fly larvae during transport to feed them into a horizontal conveyor (20).

[0050] In the above technical configuration, the drying tower (100) in which the horizontal conveyor (20) is installed in multiple stacks maintains a considerable height, and since the worker cannot directly lift and feed the black soldier fly larvae to the top, the inclined conveyor (1) is used to feed the black soldier fly larvae from the bottom to the upper part of the drying tower (100).

[0051] The vibrating conveyor (2) is equipped with a vibrating device and evenly spreads the black soldier fly larvae supplied from the inclined conveyor (1) during transport and feeds them into the horizontal conveyor (20).

[0052] According to the above technical configuration, the selected black soldier fly larvae are fed into the inclined conveyor (1) by a worker and, after passing through the drying line (20L) consisting of a vibrating conveyor (2) and a horizontal conveyor (20) and being dried, are discharged to the outside of the drying tower (100) through the discharge section (30), thereby reducing the number of workers and improving productivity.

[0053] The above description is provided as an example to aid in understanding the present invention and is not intended to limit the invention. A person skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains may implement the invention with various modifications within the scope of the claims. Explanation of the symbols

[0054] 1 : Inclined conveyor 2: Vibrating conveyor 10: Input section 20: Horizontal conveyor 20L: Drying line 21: Rotating Brush 25: Shatterproof cover 30: Discharge section 50: Drying section 51: Near-infrared lamp 60: Joint Department 61: Suction pipe 62: Supply pipeline 63: Hull 64: Bulkhead 65: Blower fan 66: Air passage pipe 67: Cooling fins 68: Heat exchanger 69: Suction fan 100: Drying tower 101: Intake port 102: Supply port

Claims

Claim 1 A high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies, comprising: a drying tower with a sealed structure in which a drying line is installed internally to continuously transport black soldier fly larvae in a zigzag form by stacking horizontal conveyors for transporting black soldier fly larvae in multiple layers, and an input section for introducing black soldier fly larvae at the leading end of the drying line and an output section for discharging black soldier fly larvae to the outside are respectively provided; a drying section for drying black soldier fly larvae transported along the drying line by emitting radiant heat by installing near-infrared lamps at predetermined intervals on the upper side of the horizontal conveyors stacked in multiple layers; and an air conditioning section for inhaling hot air generated inside the drying tower during the drying of black soldier fly larvae, conditioned it to a dry state, and sending it to the drying tower to circulate the internal air of the drying tower, wherein the drying section comprises a pretreatment section that kills the black soldier fly larvae by transferring radiant heat of 60~70℃ into the tissue of the black soldier fly larvae introduced into the drying line, and the aforementioned in a killed state A high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies, characterized by being composed of a drying section that dries black soldier fly larvae by transferring radiant heat of 40 to 60°C into the tissue of the black soldier fly larvae. Claim 2 A high-efficiency drying device dedicated to black soldier flies, comprising: a drying tower with a sealed structure in which a drying line is installed internally to continuously transport black soldier fly larvae in a zigzag pattern by stacking horizontal conveyors for transporting black soldier fly larvae in multiple layers, and an input section for introducing black soldier fly larvae at the leading end of the drying line and an output section for discharging black soldier fly larvae to the outside are respectively provided; a drying unit for drying black soldier fly larvae transported along the drying line by emitting radiant heat by installing near-infrared lamps at predetermined intervals on the upper side of the horizontal conveyors stacked in multiple layers; and an air conditioning unit for circulating the internal air of the drying tower by drawing in hot air generated inside the drying tower during the drying of the black soldier fly larvae, conditioned it to a drying state, and sending it to the drying tower to circulate the internal air of the drying tower, wherein the air conditioning unit comprises a hollow housing, a partition wall dividing the interior of the housing into two sides with an open bottom end to allow communication between the partitioned spaces, and external air forcibly blown by a blower fan installed through the housing and the partition wall A high-efficiency drying device for black soldier flies, characterized by comprising: a cooling air passage pipe through which air passes; a heat exchanger in which cooling fins are arranged at regular intervals on the outer surface of the cooling air passage pipe to absorb moisture from surrounding air and conditioned it to a dry state; a suction pipe installed in communication between the drying tower and a partition space on one side of the enclosure to forcibly suck in hot air generated inside the drying tower through a suction fan and suck it into the partition space on one side of the enclosure; a supply pipe installed in communication between the partition space on the other side of the enclosure and the drying tower to send back the air conditioned to a dry state by the cooling fins into the drying tower; and a drain installed on the bottom surface of the enclosure to discharge condensate generated during the conditioned process to the outside. Claim 3 delete Claim 4 delete Claim 5 delete Claim 6 delete

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