Multi-Nozzle Coextrusion for Marbled Meat Substitute Products
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for producing marbled and structured food products, particularly meat substitutes, are discontinuous, complex, costly, and limited in flexibility, unable to precisely create fine and coarse structures, and require manual work steps.
Innovation Solution
A device with multiple nozzles and housings for continuous production of marbled and structured food products, allowing for the injection of additional mass flows into a base mass flow, combined with a structuring device to create defined structures, and a mixer for swirling the additional mass flows to achieve a lifelike marbling effect.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If manual work steps are used to incorporate secondary mass into base mass, then marbling structure can be created, but productivity is very low and costs are high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical work with an automated extrusion system. A coextrusion device with multiple nozzles injects secondary mass flows into a base mass flow continuously, creating marbling structures without manual intervention. This substitution of manual mechanics with automated fluid mechanics enables both high precision marbling and continuous high-volume production.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements continuous production through continuous extrusion of base mass and secondary mass flows. The coextrusion process operates without interruption, with masses constantly fed through the nozzles and extruded to form marbled products. This eliminates the discontinuous batch processing of manual methods, dramatically increasing hourly output while maintaining marbling quality.
2Productivity
If conventional coextrusion devices are used, then production can be continuous, but precisely defined fine structures and marbling cannot be produced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the extrusion system into multiple independent nozzles (at least two nozzles) that can be positioned at different locations and angles within the extrusion head. Each nozzle can deliver secondary mass flow to create specific marbling patterns. This segmentation allows precise control over the placement, size, and distribution of fat structures throughout the meat substitute product during continuous production.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by enabling different nozzles to inject secondary mass with varying parameters (flow rate, positioning, angle) to create heterogeneous marbling structures. Some regions receive finer injections for delicate marbling, while others receive larger injections for coarse fat structures. This localized control of injection characteristics achieves precise structural definition throughout the product while maintaining continuous operation.
3Adaptability or versatility
If manual processes are used to adjust distribution and volume ratios, then some control is achieved, but the process remains complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic control through independently adjustable nozzles that can vary their secondary mass flow rates, positions, and injection angles in real-time during continuous production. This dynamic adjustability allows operators to change marbling patterns, fat distribution, and volume ratios without stopping the production line or changing physical components. The system adapts to different product requirements through controlled parameter changes rather than manual reconfiguration, simplifying the overall process while maintaining high versatility.
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
Enables continuous production of marbled and structured food products with high flexibility, precision, and cost-effectiveness, mimicking natural meat structures with minimal mechanical stress, and allowing for easy cleaning and hygiene compliance.
Implementation Method 1
The movement of the base mass and the additional mass in the housing also causes a deflection of the individual strands (relative to the main flow direction from inlet to outlet), which leads to an attractive, lifelike marbled structure in the cross-section of the food product.
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a device (1) and a method for producing marbled and structured foodstuffs (2), in particular meat substitutes, comprising: a first housing (3) with an inlet (4) for a base mass flow (5), at least one, in particular several nozzles (7a, 7b, 7c) for injecting several additional mass flows (6) into the base mass flow (5) and an outlet (8) for the marbled base mass flow (5), which has a marbled structure of the additional mass in the base mass, and a second housing (30) with an inlet (40) for the marbled base mass flow (50) and an outlet for the structured foodstuff (2) and with a structuring device (180) for producing a defined structure of a further additional mass in the marbled base mass,wherein the structuring device (180) comprises at least one opening (160) for the marbled base mass flow (50) for producing at least one base mass strand (500) and a plurality of inlets (70a, 70b, 70c) for further additional mass flows (9) for producing a plurality of additional mass strands (90).