Rotating Drum Parboiled Rice Processing for Crack-Free Water Absorption
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional parboiled rice manufacturing apparatuses face challenges in producing high-quality rice without increasing overall size, as they often require multiple dedicated pieces of equipment and large tanks for soaking and drainage, which can lead to surface cracks in rice grains and inefficient water usage.
Innovation Solution
A compact parboiled rice manufacturing apparatus that uses a rotating drum with integrated heating, agitation, steam supply, water addition, and drying mechanisms, allowing for pressurized steam-boiling, water absorption, and drying within the same drum, eliminating the need for separate tanks and drainage equipment, and ensuring even treatment and quick processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If the amount of water added is increased to accelerate the speed of water absorption of rice grains, then the water absorption speed is improved, but a crack may appear in the surface of each rice grain to degrade the appearance quality
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary pressurized steam-boiling treatment before water addition treatment. This preliminary treatment gelatinizes starch at the surficial portion of each rice grain, forming a toughened gelatinized layer that prevents cracking during subsequent water absorption. The preliminary action creates a protective structure that enables faster water absorption without compromising appearance quality.
2Ease of manufacture
If a piece of dedicated equipment is used for each treatment in the manufacturing method, then the treatment process is improved, but the overall size of the apparatuses increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple dedicated treatment equipment (pressurized steam-boiling treatment equipment, water addition treatment equipment, and drying equipment) into a single integrated apparatus. The drum serves as a common chamber where pressurized steam can be introduced for gelatinization, water can be added for moisture treatment, and drying can be performed by removing excess water. This merging reduces the overall apparatus size while maintaining the effectiveness of each treatment process.
Solution Approach 2:
The drum in the patent is designed as a multi-functional vessel that can perform multiple treatment operations. By introducing pressurized steam, the drum performs gelatinization treatment; by adding water, it performs water addition treatment; and by removing excess water, it performs drying treatment. This universal design eliminates the need for separate dedicated equipment for each treatment, thereby reducing overall apparatus size.
3Ease of manufacture
If two large tanks are used for soaking treatment as pretreatment of pressurized steam-boiling treatment, then the soaking process is improved, but large drainage treatment equipment is required and the overall size does not necessarily decrease
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the soaking treatment function into the same drum used for pressurized steam-boiling treatment and drying. Instead of using separate large tanks for soaking, the drum itself serves as the soaking chamber by controlling water addition and removal. This integration eliminates the need for separate soaking tanks and associated drainage equipment, thereby reducing overall apparatus size while maintaining effective soaking treatment.
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
This solution enables efficient production of high-quality parboiled rice with good appearance and reduced size, as it allows for uniform water absorption and drying within the drum, preventing surface cracks and minimizing equipment requirements.
Implementation Method 1
subjecting the rice grains subjected to the atmospheric steam-boiling treatment to pressurized steam-boiling treatment with pressurized steam
Implementation Method 2
in order to gelatinize starch of each rice grain to the center through the pressurized steam-boiling treatment
Implementation Method 3
rice grains need to be subjected to water absorption as pretreatment of pressurized steam-boiling treatment
Implementation Method 4
drying the processed raw material inside the drum
Data Source
AI summary
An object of this invention is to provide a parboiled rice manufacturing apparatus capable of efficiently manufacturing good-quality parboiled rice without increasing the overall size of the apparatus.A parboiled rice manufacturing apparatus according to this invention includes a drum which has a raw material hatch provided at a peripheral surface and is disposed to be rotatable about a horizontal axis, a heating unit which is disposed inside the drum and heats an interior of the drum, an agitation unit which is disposed inside the drum and agitates a raw material charged through the raw material hatch into the drum, a steam supply unit which supplies steam into the drum, a pressure adjustment unit which has a valve allowing communication of the interior of the drum with outside air and allows increase of pressure inside the drum with steam supplied from the steam supply unit by closing the valve at the time of processing of the raw material through the pressurized steam-boiling treatment, a water addition unit which is disposed inside the drum and adds water to the raw material inside the drum, and a drying unit which dries the raw material by reducing the pressure inside the drum.