Basket System for High Pressure Pasteurization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current high pressure pasteurization processes are limited in scale and efficiency for processing large quantities of food, requiring a method and apparatus to enhance processing capacity and reduce cycle time.
Innovation Solution
A cylindrical basket system with a dividing member and robotic handling system that allows for horizontal loading and unloading of products, enabling efficient transfer and processing in high pressure pasteurization vessels, utilizing two robots to simultaneously load and unload baskets, thereby optimizing vessel utilization and reducing cycle time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional high pressure pasteurization processes are used, then food products can be pasteurized with minimal heat treatment, but the processing scale is limited and cycle time is long
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the pasteurization process into multiple parallel vessels, allowing simultaneous processing of multiple batches. Each vessel can be independently loaded, processed, and unloaded, enabling parallel operation that increases overall processing capacity while reducing the total cycle time through concurrent operations.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements preliminary loading of baskets into vessels before pressure application. The baskets are prepared and positioned in advance, and the vessels are sealed and pressurized in a coordinated sequence, allowing the pasteurization process to begin immediately without idle time, thus reducing cycle time while maintaining high processing capacity.
2Productivity
If high pressure pasteurization is applied to large quantities of food, then processing capacity increases, but product stress and damage may increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses individual baskets containing smaller portions of food products, which are then placed into larger vessels. This segmentation allows high processing capacity through parallel processing of multiple baskets while limiting the amount of product subjected to stress at any one time, reducing overall product damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The basket serves as an intermediary container between the food products and the high-pressure vessel. The basket distributes and supports the products during pressurization, preventing direct contact between the products and the vessel walls, thereby reducing mechanical stress and damage while enabling efficient processing of large quantities.
3Productivity
If manual handling methods are used for loading and unloading, then operational simplicity is maintained, but labor intensity is high and efficiency is low
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses self-contained baskets with integrated handles and structures that facilitate automated gripping and manipulation. The baskets are designed to be easily captured, lifted, and positioned by robotic systems without complex manipulation, enabling automated handling that improves efficiency while keeping the device complexity manageable through standardized, self-service components.
Solution Approach 2:
The basket design incorporates universal features such as standardized dimensions, integrated handles, and compatible sealing mechanisms that allow the same basket type to be used across multiple vessels and handling operations. This universality enables a single robotic system to perform multiple functions (loading, unloading, positioning) without requiring complex specialized equipment for each operation.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system enables efficient processing of large quantities of food with minimized stress on products, reducing cycle time and increasing vessel utilization, while maintaining the freshness and nutritional characteristics of the food products.
Implementation Method 1
HPP is based on the Le Chatelier principle which states that a system at equilibrium adjusts when subjected to a stress and that actions that have a net volume increase will be retarded and actions that have a net volume decrease will be enhanced. HPP utilizes isostatic or hydrostatic pressure which is equal from every direction.
Implementation Method 2
HPP is based on the Le Chatelier principle which states that a system at equilibrium adjusts when subjected to a stress and that actions that have a net volume increase will be retarded and actions that have a net volume decrease will be enhanced.
Implementation Method 3
Isostatic compression transfers pressure instantly and uniformly throughout the pressure medium providing a non-thermal process alternative for the pasteurization of temperature-sensitive foods. The basis for using the HPP process as a pasteurization method is based on the assumption that the product also follows the isostatic rule, which states that isostatic pressure is instantly and uniformly transmitted throughout the pressurized medium and the enclosed food product.
Implementation Method 4
The baskets are then oriented vertically. The basket is loaded into the high pressure pasteurization vessel. The product is subjected to high pressure pasteurization. The basket is removed from the high pressure pasteurization vessel and the basket is oriented horizontally.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus for high-pressure pasteurization utilizes a basket (40) for holding food packages (95). The basket (40) is transported on a cart (60) from a loading station (90), to the high-pressure pasteurization processing apparatus (10) and back to an unloading station (100). Two robots (17, 18) are utilized to reduce cycle time of the high-pressure pasteurization vessels (11).