Volumetric Metering Shuttle for Shredded Cheese
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for metering and depositing food products like shredded cheese into trays face challenges due to varying bulk density, contamination, and inefficiencies in in-line shredding, leading to inaccurate portion sizes and assembly line inefficiencies, especially when dealing with small portion sizes and continuous high-speed operations.
Innovation Solution
An automated system that transports shredded cheese or other particles along a conveyor into a shuttle, where they are collected under gravity, allowing for controlled and repeatable metering into receptacles, which then deposit the product into trays, ensuring consistent volume and avoiding the issues associated with in-line shredding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If in-line shredding is used to process cheese, then the cheese can be shredded continuously at high speed, but the bulk density varies over time causing inaccurate portion sizes
Solution Approach 1:
The cheese is shredded before being placed on the conveyor belt, allowing the bulk density to stabilize. This preliminary shredding action separates the shredding process from the metering process, ensuring that the cheese reaches a consistent density state before portioning occurs, thereby resolving the bulk density variation issue while maintaining continuous high-speed operation
Solution Approach 2:
The system separates the shredding function from the metering function into distinct stages. The cheese is shredded in a dedicated station, then transported separately on a conveyor belt to the metering station. This segmentation allows each process to be optimized independently, maintaining productivity while ensuring measurement accuracy
2Productivity
If in-line shredding is used, then continuous processing is achieved, but debris falls into the process line contaminating sealing surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The shredding operation is extracted from the continuous processing line and placed in a separate, enclosed station. This isolation prevents debris generated during shredding from falling into the process line and contaminating sealing surfaces, while the separated design allows continuous operation to proceed uninterrupted
3Productivity
If in-line shredding is used, then the cheese can be processed immediately, but clogging of shredders causes process delays
Solution Approach 1:
The shredding operation is extracted from the continuous flow and placed in a separate station with independent access. This allows the shredder to be cleaned, maintained, or replaced without interrupting the overall process, eliminating downtime caused by clogging while maintaining immediate processing capability
4Productivity
If the cheese block is shredded in-line, then the process is direct-coupled, but assembly line inefficiencies occur due to ongoing adjustments
Solution Approach 1:
The process is segmented into distinct functional stations (shredding station, conveyor transport, metering station) that can operate and be adjusted independently. This segmentation eliminates the need for ongoing adjustments to affect the entire line, as each station can be optimized separately without causing assembly line inefficiencies
5Ease of manufacture
If commercially available equipment is used for transporting small particles, then the equipment is available, but it is physically too large and cannot accurately deposit small amounts of particles
Solution Approach 1:
The metering system uses a conveyor belt with discrete spacing positions that correspond to individual portion sizes. This segmented approach allows precise control over the amount of cheese deposited, enabling accurate placement of small particle amounts using a scaled-down version of the conveyor principle rather than attempting to adapt large commercial equipment
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 provides accurate and repeatable metering of small amounts of particles, improving process efficiency by maintaining consistent portion sizes and reducing contamination and assembly line inefficiencies, while allowing for the incorporation of additives to enhance handling characteristics.
Implementation Method 1
collecting the particles as they fall under the operation of gravity from the end of the conveyor into the accelerating shuttle
Data Source
AI summary
A method and apparatus are provided for the volumetric metering and depositing of a food product comprising a plurality of particles or flowable particles. The plurality of food particles are transported upon a discharge conveyor having a first rate of speed, the plurality of particles arranged uniformly from passing beneath a product leveling device. When the plurality of particles reach the end of the discharge conveyor, the particles fall from the end of the conveyor under the operation of gravity and are deposited in a shuttle while the shuttle travels at a second rate of speed from a position at least partially below the conveyor to collect the falling particles in cells or receiving receptacles. The relationship between the first rate of speed of the conveyor and the second rate of speed of the shuttle define a metered amount of particles collected in each of the receiving receptacles.