Extruded Rod and Coiled Fruit Snack with Peelable Coil
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for new and improved shapes and methods to prepare intermediate moisture food products that offer enhanced play value, particularly in the form of fruit snacks, which can be easily disassembled by peeling, and that can be manufactured using extrusion technology to create distinctively shaped products like a rod and coiled strand with equivalent weights and specific length ratios.
Innovation Solution
The development of a sweetened, intermediate moisture fruit composition using extrusion to form a central rod and coiled strand, where the coiled strand can be peeled away from the rod, with the rod and coiled strand having approximately equal weights and a 1:3 length ratio, utilizing a composition comprising 40% to 70% nutritive carbohydrate sweeteners, 10% to 30% starch, 0.1% to 5.0% gelling agents, 0.1% to 5.0% lipids, and 5% to 25% moisture, and featuring exterior fins for improved peelability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional fruit snack shapes (sheets, strips, bite-size pieces) are used, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but play value and consumer appeal are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The fruit snack is divided into two distinct segments: a central rod and a coiled strand wrapped around it. This segmentation creates a more complex shape that enhances play value by allowing children to peel the coil off the rod, while the manufacturing process uses standard extrusion technology to form each segment separately before assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from traditional two-dimensional flat sheets and strips to a three-dimensional structure with a central rod and a coiled strand wrapped around it. This dimensional change creates a more engaging shape that offers tactile interaction and peeling action, enhancing play value without requiring fundamentally new manufacturing equipment.
2Adaptability or versatility
If fruit snacks are designed to be easily disassembled for play value, then consumer appeal to children is enhanced, but structural stability during packaging and transport is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The fruit snack is segmented into a central rod and a coiled strand that can be peeled apart, providing easy disassembly for play value. The segmentation is designed so that each segment maintains its own structural integrity while allowing clean separation when desired.
Solution Approach 2:
The coiled strand is pre-formed and pre-assembled around the central rod in a stable configuration for packaging and transport. The peeling action required for disassembly is built into the design from the beginning, allowing the product to maintain its assembled structure during handling while enabling easy separation when consumed.
3Adaptability or versatility
If extrusion technology is used to create rod and coiled strand shapes, then distinctive product shapes with enhanced play value are achieved, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The complex rod and coil structure is manufactured by segmenting the process into separate extrusion steps: first extruding the central rod, then separately extruding and wrapping the coiled strand around it. This segmentation allows each component to be formed with standard extrusion precision, avoiding the need for highly complex single-step forming equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The coiled strand is pre-formed into its helical shape before being assembled around the central rod. This preliminary formation of the coil shape allows for controlled dimensional accuracy to be achieved through standard extrusion and coiling processes, rather than requiring complex real-time shaping during final assembly.
4Ease of operation
If moisture content is controlled to maintain pliability and textural properties, then product enjoyment is enhanced, but shelf stability and packaging requirements become more stringent
Solution Approach 1:
The moisture content of the fruit snack is carefully controlled within an optimized range that balances pliability and shelf stability. The extrusion and forming processes are designed to achieve the desired moisture distribution and texture while the product is still warm, locking in the pliable characteristics. The final packaging is then selected to maintain this moisture balance during storage, creating a stable equilibrium between textural enjoyment and shelf life.
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 solution provides a fruit snack with enhanced play value through easy disassembly and maintains desirable textural properties by controlling moisture content and composition, ensuring the product remains pliable and enjoyable while packaged.
Implementation Method 1
extrusion to form a central rod and coiled strand
Data Source
AI summary
Packaged food articles comprise at least one shaped food product disposed within sealed moisture resistant packaging. The shaped food products include an axially aligned center piece or rod as a core portion and at least one string wrapped around the periphery of the core piece. The shaped food piece is fabricated from a pliable or plastic food composition such as a sweetened intermediate moisture fruit or confection such as licorice. The center piece can be provided with a multiplicity of fins extending longitudinally about the exterior periphery of the core piece. The coiled string is peelably removable from the core piece. The combination of core piece and coiled string provide a child oriented wholesome food of enhanced play value. Methods for preparing the shaped food product are described.