Multi-Piston Filling Unit for Confectionery Pattern Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing filling units for confectionery products, such as ice-cream, are complex to clean and inflexible, limiting their ability to produce various patterns and variants efficiently.
Innovation Solution
A filling unit with multiple dosing pistons in cylinders, a replaceable first filling nozzle with internal ducts of varying cross-sections, and a control system allowing independent piston movement, enabling flexible production of different confectionery variants with customizable patterns.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a dosing piston with external ducts is used to fill confectionery products, then the filling unit can achieve a uniform pattern in all cross-sections, but the dosing piston becomes complicated to clean and the design is fixed with limited flexibility
Solution Approach 1:
The filling unit is divided into multiple independent dosing pistons (at least two), each with its own cylinder and control system. This segmentation allows each piston to be controlled independently to create different patterns in the longitudinal direction, while simplifying the overall design by eliminating the need for complex internal ducts within a single piston.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention introduces dynamic control of the dosing pistons, where each piston can be independently actuated to deposit confectionery mass at different positions, times, and patterns. This dynamic control replaces the fixed, static pattern creation of traditional single-piston designs, enabling flexible pattern variation without mechanical complexity.
2Device complexity
If a single dosing piston with fixed duct configuration is used, then the device design is simplified, but the filling unit lacks flexibility to produce different patterns and variants
Solution Approach 1:
Each dosing piston is equipped with independent control mechanisms that allow dynamic adjustment of dosing parameters including position, timing, and amount of confectionery mass deposited. This enables the same apparatus to produce multiple patterns and product variants without physical reconfiguration.
Solution Approach 2:
The multiple dosing pistons serve universal functions by collectively capable of creating all pattern variations that would otherwise require multiple specialized single-piston designs. The system can produce different cross-sectional patterns and longitudinal patterns using the same set of independently controlled pistons.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple dosing pistons with independent control are used, then the filling unit can produce different patterns in longitudinal direction and multiple product variants, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The filling unit employs multiple independent dosing pistons, each with its own cylinder and control system, allowing segmented control of confectionery deposition. This segmentation enables complex pattern creation through coordinated action of simple, identical modular units rather than one complex unit.
Solution Approach 2:
The dosing pistons are arranged within a common fill housing structure, with each piston nested in its own cylinder that is connected to the fill housing. This nested arrangement allows multiple independent dosing mechanisms to occupy a compact space, managing complexity through spatial organization.
4Manufacturing precision
If a complex dosing piston with internal ducts is used, then uniform dosing can be achieved, but the cleaning process becomes time-consuming and complicated
Solution Approach 1:
By dividing the dosing function across multiple independent pistons without internal ducts, the design eliminates hard-to-reach internal passages that require lengthy cleaning procedures. Each piston presents simple, accessible surfaces for cleaning while maintaining dosing uniformity through independent control and coordination.
Data Source
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Figure 3a~4e
AI summary
There is disclosed a filling unit and a method for filling a confectionery mass, such as ice-cream, into a container or a mould. The filling unit (1) includes a fill housing (4) with a filling nozzle (2) and at least two dosing pistons (7,, 7"), each dosing piston (7',7") provided displaceably in a cylinder (8', 8") which is connected to the fill housing (4). In the fill housing (4), a valve (5,, 5") is arranged for each cylinder (8,, 8")· A mixing block (3) with internal ducts (15',15"), preferably an exchangeable one, connects each of the outlets (11,, 11") from the fill housing (4) with each their internal 10 duct in the filling nozzle (2), which can be exchangeable as well. This makes the filling unit very flexible as it can be used for a plurality of different variants with various patterns. The method includes confectionery mass being conducted from a filling nozzle (6,, 6") into at least one of the cylinders (8,, 8") while the dosing piston (7,,7") in the cylinder (8', 8") is retracted (A) into the cylinder (8,,8"), after which the confectionery mass is dosed down into the mould or container (12) by actuating the dosing pistons (7,,7"). The speeds of the pistons (7,, 7") are controlled independently of each other, providing that varying patterns can also be formed in longitudinal direction of the ice-cream/confectionery product. The movement of the filling unit (1) relative to the container or mould can be varied as well while the filling nozzle (2) is withdrawn from the mould or container (1) during the dosing of the confectionery mass, providing additional options for variation in patterns.