Sopes Forming Machine Elliptical Chain Drive and Rotary Press
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing machines for forming sopes or similar food products lack efficiency in high-volume production, as they either require uniform dough sheets, do not utilize pre-cooked dough, or are not designed for continuous conveyor systems with automated formation of raised edges.
Innovation Solution
A sopes dish forming machine utilizing an elliptical chain drive and rotary press system, where partially cooked gorditas are transformed into sopes on a conveyor belt with female and male forming dies, ensuring efficient formation and additional processing capabilities, and featuring leveling arms to maintain horizontal alignment and facilitate easy ejection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional forming machines are used for sopes, then the production process can be performed, but the production efficiency is low and cannot meet high-volume production requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a continuous conveyor system where gorditas are continuously fed, formed, and discharged through an integrated forming station. The conveyor belt moves products through the forming process without interruption, and the dies are designed to continuously form raised edges as products pass through, eliminating batch processing and maximizing production efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual forming operations with an automated mechanical forming system. The forming station uses mechanically actuated dies that automatically press and form the raised edges of sopes as they pass on the conveyor belt, eliminating the need for manual intervention and significantly increasing production speed and consistency.
2Adaptability or versatility
If pre-cooked gorditas are used as input, then production flexibility is improved, but existing machines cannot properly form the raised edges on pre-cooked dough
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the physical parameters of the forming process to accommodate pre-cooked gorditas. The dies are designed with specific pressure, temperature, and contact time parameters that are optimized for forming raised edges on pre-cooked dough, which has different mechanical properties than raw dough. This allows the machine to successfully form sopes from pre-cooked gorditas while maintaining quality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent accepts pre-cooked gorditas as input, which have already undergone the cooking process that sets their structural properties. The forming machine is designed to perform the raised edge formation as a subsequent operation on these pre-prepared items, allowing the cooking and forming processes to be decoupled and optimized independently.
3Productivity
If manual or batch processing is used, then equipment complexity is low, but the production rate is insufficient for high-volume output
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the forming process into discrete functional zones along the conveyor belt: a feeding zone, a forming zone with dies, and a discharge zone. This segmentation allows each zone to be optimized independently and enables the system to handle high-volume production through modular design, where the complexity is distributed across multiple simple, specialized components rather than one complex unit.
Data Source
AI summary
Improvements a machine that turns gorditas into sopes. The machine uses an elliptical chain drive that transports the sopes. The gorditas travel horizontally where the gorditas are turned into sopes as they continue along the linear travel of the elliptical chain drive. The holder is a female pocket that accepts the gorditas and provides support at the sides of the sopes. A rotary press placed along the travel of the gorditas as they become sopes. The rotary press is synchronized to rotate and press into holders. The machine include leveling arms or pads that level the female pocket with the gorditas is loaded, pressed and ejected. The forming machine flips the sopes out of the female holder after the sopes has been formed with a central pocket.