JP2008017810A - Method for removing both ends of bean sprout - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for removing both ends of bean sprouts, mechanically cutting and removing root parts and sprout parts from bean sprouts. <P>SOLUTION: This method for removing both ends of bean sprouts comprises a bean sprout separating process of removing with a bean sprout separating device 1, and a bean sprout arranging process of arranging the length direction of bean sprouts in one direction with a bean sprout arranging device which supplies bean sprouts to grooved plates 31 and 32 formed with vertical grooves 33 in parallel and given with vibration including vertical components, and puts bean sprouts supplied onto the grooved plates 31 and 32 into the vertical grooves 33 to arrange the length direction of bean sprouts in one direction. Furthermore, the method comprises a both ends-removing process of removing both ends of bean sprouts with a device for removing both ends of bean sprouts, having a cutting conveyor 42 which is arranged through facing the blade parts of a plurality of cutters 43 each other followed by rowing, and repeats movement to the feed direction and stoppage, and a transfer conveyor 48 having a transfer bar 47 continuously moving on the upper side at a speed slower than feed of the cutting conveyor 42, and cutting and removing root parts and sprout parts from bean sprouts by relative displacement between both the conveyors 42 and 48. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method for removing both ends of a bean sprout by mechanically cutting and removing both ends of a root part and a bud part from the bean sprout.

Currently, the bean sprouts that are distributed as commodities have had their shells, follicles, buds, etc. removed from the harvested sprouts, but the roots and buds after removal of the follicles remain attached. . There are many cases where the root part is slightly darkened, and the bud part is darkened soon after a while, and it is desirable to remove the root part and the bud part. It is difficult to remove only the bean sprouts, and the bean sprouts have been accepted in the market in this state, and it is costly to remove the root part and the bud part, so they are distributed without removing them. It is common.
Therefore, when using these bean sprouts as a high-class food, the root part and the bud part are removed by hand one by one.

As described above, it is desired to provide a bean sprout in which a slightly darkened root portion and a bud portion having a defect of darkening soon after a while have been removed. The present applicant has previously proposed a technique shown in Patent Document 1 as a technique for mechanically removing the root part from the bean sprout, but this technique can remove only a part of the bud part. Further, as shown in Patent Document 2, a technique for mechanically removing the root part and the bud part from the bean sprout has been proposed. This seems to be one way to provide bean sprouts with the root and buds removed, but based on this idea it has not been possible to completely remove both ends of the bean sprout. .
JP-A-10-136959 JP 2003-310229 A

  An object of the present invention is to provide a practical method for removing both ends of a bean sprout that effectively removes both ends of the bean sprout mechanically.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention is a bean sprouting process for separating and removing ungrown bean sprouts and short bean sprouts from harvested bean sprouts, and a bean sprouting process for aligning the length direction of bean sprouts selected in the sorting step. And a method for removing both ends of the bean sprout by mechanically removing the root part and the head part from the bean sprout by the both end excision step of excising both ends of the sprout aligned in the sprout aligning step.

  Also, in the method for removing both ends of bean sprout according to the present invention, the bean sprout sorting step is performed by supplying sprouts to be sorted on a grid conveyor that moves by forming a grid at a predetermined interval. This is carried out by transporting together with a belt conveyor arranged at a small distance from the same mesh conveyor, leaving sprouts of a predetermined length or longer on the grid conveyor, and separating and removing those having a predetermined length or less on the conveyor. be able to.

  Further, in the method for removing both ends of bean sprout according to the present invention, the bean sprouting step is performed by supplying the bean sprout on the grooved plate on which the vertical grooves are formed in parallel and given vibration including the vertical component. Even if the bean sprouts supplied on the attached plate are placed in the longitudinal groove, the lengths of the sprouts can be aligned.

  Further, in the bean sprouts removal method according to the present invention, the both end cutting step is performed by cutting the plurality of cutters having blades formed on both side edges with each other while keeping a space between the blades of adjacent cutters. A sprout is supplied on a cutting conveyor that is horizontally arranged and moved face-to-face with the front and back facing each other, and has a plurality of transfer bars while maintaining a small gap between the cutting conveyor and the cutting conveyor. It can be performed by moving the conveyor at a speed different from that of the cutting conveyor and cutting and removing the root portion and the bud portion from the sprouts by relative movement between the cutting conveyor and the transfer conveyor.

  In the method for removing both ends of bean sprouts according to the present invention, the both end cutting process is performed in an endless transfer conveyor in which the cylindrical bean sprouts containing both ends are arranged in a row and the running path is up and down. Even if the bean sprouts are placed vertically in the bean sprout container, the end of the bean sprouts is also provided at the bottom receiving member arranged at a distance from the lower end of the container in each of the upper and lower travel paths of the conveyor. It can be carried out by cutting the bean sprout end exposed between the lower end of the container and the bottom receiving member with a cutter.

  Further, in the bean sprouts removal method according to the present invention, the both ends cutting step is a state in which the length direction is horizontally aligned with the storage compartment in the conveyor provided by arranging a plurality of storage compartments in the front-rear direction. The bean sprouts that are received in the storage compartment are aligned with the protruding end portions that are protruded from both side portions of the storage compartment by end alignment members that are spaced from both sides of the conveyor, This can be done by cutting the aligned protruding ends on both sides with a cutter.

  According to the method for removing both ends of bean sprouts according to the present invention, ungrown bean sprout and short bean sprout pieces are separated and removed from the harvested bean sprout, and the bean sprout of a predetermined length or more is selected, and then the selected predetermined length By aligning more bean sprouts so that the length direction is the same, by excising both ends of the bean sprouts whose length direction is aligned, the root part and the bud part are effectively removed from the sprouts after harvesting, and It can be removed efficiently.

  In the method for removing both ends of bean sprout according to the present invention, the bean sprout sorting step, the bean sprouting step and the both end excision step are carried out by the above-described mesh conveyor and a belt conveyor arranged below the same mesh conveyor at a small interval. Bean sprout sorting step, sprout aligning step by grooved plate with vertical grooves formed in parallel and given vibration including vertical component and multiple cutters with blades formed on both side edges End cutting process by relative movement between the cutting conveyor and a transfer conveyor arranged with a small gap above the cutting conveyor, a transport conveyor having a cylindrical sprouts container open at both ends, and an end of bean sprouts The both ends cutting process using the bottom receiving member that receives the section, the conveyor provided side by side with the storage section, and the sprouting of both sides of the storage section By combining both end portions cut process using the end aligning member aligning the ends as appropriate, it can be reliably both end portions removing the sprouts.

  According to the method for removing both ends of bean sprouts according to the present invention, it is not necessary to grow bean sprouts in a special way, such as growing so that the root parts are aligned. By combining the bean sprout sorting step, the bean sprinkling step and the both end excision step in this order, it is possible to obtain bean sprouts with both ends removed mechanically without waste.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the method for removing both ends of bean sprouts of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings. In the method for removing both ends of bean sprouts according to the present invention, the bean sprout sorting step for separating and removing ungrown bean sprout and short bean sprout pieces from the harvested bean sprout, the bean sprout aligning step for aligning the length direction of the bean sprout sorted in the same sorting step , And a both-end excision process for excising both ends of bean sprouts arranged in the same bean sprouting process, and after describing the pretreatment process, the bean sprouts sorting process, bean sprouting process, both-end excision process The embodiments will be described in this order.

(Pretreatment process)
The harvested bean sprouts contain considerable unwanted materials such as shells, straws, fine roots, etc., and it is preferable to remove them before carrying out the method for removing both ends of bean sprouts according to the present invention. Various methods including washing with water may be adopted to remove unnecessary materials such as shells, straws and fine roots from the harvested bean sprout, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-136959 related to the applicant's application, It is preferable that fine roots are removed and purified effectively by the apparatus shown in JP-A-11-318410.

(Selection process)
The bean sprouts that have undergone the pretreatment are subjected to a bean sprout selection step in which ungrown bean sprouts and short bean sprouts are separated and removed. An example of a sorting apparatus for performing the bean sprouting process is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the bean sprout sorting apparatus 1 has a vertical bar 2 attached between support bars 3 and 4 with an equal interval between adjacent ones. Further, an endless bar conveyor 6 is provided in which a large number of horizontal bars 5 orthogonal to the length direction of the vertical bars 2 travel along the length direction of the vertical bars 2. The bar conveyor 6 has two endless chains 11 that are stretched over chain wheels 9 and 10 that are disposed at both ends of shafts 7 and 8 that are disposed at intervals, and these two endless chains. The horizontal bar 5 is attached at both ends with a space between the adjacent ones. The vertical bar 2 and the horizontal bar 5 have a circular or circular cross section, a circular shape such as a circle or an ellipse at least in the upper half, and a shape in which the bean sprout is not caught. A hanging piece 5 ′ is provided on the lower surface of the horizontal bar 5 at predetermined intervals. The hanging piece 5 ′ is fitted between the vertical bars 2, and the lower end of the hanging piece 5 ′ is small between the belt conveyor 15 described later. It is configured to move with a gap.

  The bar conveyor 6 is configured such that the upper travel path travels from the right to the left in FIG. 1 by the shaft 8 driven and rotated by the motor 12, and when the bar conveyor 6 travels, the horizontal bar 5 Is configured to be transported while forming a grid crossing the vertical bar 2 in the upper travel path. Thus, the bar conveyor 6 provided with the vertical bar 2 and the horizontal bar 5 constitutes a square conveyor which is moved by forming a square in the sprouts sorting apparatus of the present invention.

  Below the grid conveyor, a belt conveyor 15 is disposed at a small distance from the grid conveyor. In other words, the belt conveyor 15 is composed of rollers 13 and 14 arranged at a distance from each other and an endless belt stretched around the rollers 13 and 14. The rollers 14 are driven and rotated by a motor 16. The belt conveyor 15 is configured to travel from the left to the right in FIG. The traveling speed of the belt conveyor 15 is slower than the traveling speed of the bar conveyor 6, and due to the difference in speed between the two, ungrown bean sprouts and sprouts having a predetermined length or less surely fall from the square conveyor onto the lower belt conveyor 15. Configured to be separated.

  The small interval maintained between the mesh conveyor and the belt conveyor 15 is a predetermined length that causes ungrown bean sprouts to be separated and removed, and broken short bean sprouts to be dropped from the grid conveyor to the belt conveyor 15, but need not be separated and removed. The size of the bean sprouts is selected so that it does not fall on the belt conveyor 15 but is conveyed along with the travel of the bar conveyor 6 after coming into contact with the hanging piece 5 ′ provided on the horizontal bar 5. An appropriate value is selected for the size of the mesh depending on the dimension of the sprouts to be separated, but can be set to about 3 to 4 cm as an example.

Reference numeral 17 denotes a feed belt conveyor for discharging the selected sprouts after separating the ungrown bean sprouts by the grid conveyor. The endless belt 20 is wound around the rolls 18 and 19 attached to the shaft 8. Has been.
A gap 22 is formed between the belt conveyor 15 and the endless belt 20, and ungrown bean sprouts separated on the belt conveyor are dropped downward from the gap. Note that the sprouts to be sorted are supplied so as to be placed in a dispersed state on the right end of the drawing by a suitable hopper (not shown) on the grid conveyor.
Reference numeral 21 denotes an air outlet of the blower. By blowing air onto the mesh conveyor, the ungrown bean sprout and the short bean sprout that are caught or entangled with the vertical bar 2 and the horizontal bar 5 constituting the grid conveyor. It works to drop from the grid conveyor to the lower belt conveyor 15.

  The apparatus according to the present embodiment has the above-described configuration, and bean sprouts are sorted by this apparatus as follows. The harvested sprouts that should be separated and separated from ungrown bean sprouts are distributed from the hopper, etc., and supplied on the right-hand side of the square conveyor, on the square conveyor where the vertical bar 2 and horizontal bar 5 are formed. To be placed in a dispersed state. Due to the air blown from the air outlet 21 of the blower against the mesh conveyor, ungrown bean sprouts and broken short bean sprouts of a size that can pass through the mesh are dropped onto the belt conveyor 15 running below. To be separated. Even if a sprout having a length that does not require separation may enter the mesh, the belt conveyor 15 can be received at a small distance below the mesh conveyor, and the hanging piece 5 provided on the horizontal bar 5 can be received. Because 'is present, the whole is not depressed, and it is transported together with the mesh conveyor. In this way, ungrown bean sprouts and sprouts having a predetermined length or less are separated and selected, and the sprouts are discharged from the delivery belt conveyor 17 at the right end. Ungrown bean sprouts separated on the belt conveyor 15 are dropped and discharged from the gap 22 between the belt conveyor 15 and the endless belt 20.

(Bean sprouts process)
A bean sprouting step for aligning the length direction of the bean sprouts is performed on the bean sprouts having a predetermined length or less, such as ungrown bean sprouts, separated and selected by the bean sprouting step. An example of an apparatus for performing a bean sprouting process is shown in FIGS.
The apparatus shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 has two-stage grooved plates 31 and 32 arranged in series. These grooved plates 31 and 32 are formed with vertical grooves 33 arranged side by side as shown in FIG. 5B, and the bean sprouts placed thereon are shown along the vertical grooves 33. Are arranged in series so as to be sent from left to right. The interval between the vertical grooves 33 in the grooved plates 31 and 32 can be 1 to 3 cm, and the depth of the valleys can be 1 to 3 cm. In addition, the grooved plates 31 and 32, if necessary depending on the bean sprouts to be processed, are sent in the direction of sending the bean sprouts placed on the grooved plates 31 and 32, that is, from the left to the right in FIGS. It can be set as the structure inclined 30 degrees. Further, in order to transfer the bean sprouts on the grooved plates 31, 32, the grooved plate has a structure provided with water or air flow supply means for supplying a water flow or an air flow along the longitudinal groove 33 of the grooved plates 31, 32. The bean sprouts can be smoothly transferred on the 31 and 32, and shells, hair roots, wrinkles and the like that are separated from the bean sprouts and attached to the grooved plates 31 and 32 can be removed.

  The grooved plates 31 and 32 are supported by an arm 34 pivotally attached so as to be displaced in the horizontal direction indicated by an arrow 35 in FIG. 4, and are given from a vibration exciter 36 attached to the grooved plates 31 and 32. It vibrates with the horizontal component indicated by the arrow 35 by the generated vibration force. As the amplitude and frequency of the vibration having the horizontal component, appropriate values can be adopted depending on the bean sprouts to be processed. Therefore, the amplitude and the frequency of the vibration exciter 36 are variable. preferable. Due to the vibration having the horizontal component, the bean sprouts on the grooved plates 31 and 32 are moved in a direction along the longitudinal grooves 33 of the grooved plates 31 and 32, and the bean sprouts on the grooved plates 31 and 32 are in the process. The grooved plates 31 and 32 are aligned in such a way that they fall into the vertical groove 33 and the length direction is along the vertical groove 33.

  The apparatus according to the present embodiment has the above-described configuration, and the bean sprouts sent by this apparatus have the length direction of the grooved plates 31 and 32 in the conveyance process on the grooved plates 31 and 32. The vertical grooves 33 are aligned along the vertical grooves 33 and fall into the vertical grooves 33. The bean sprouts whose length direction is aligned in this way are sent out in the direction along the longitudinal groove 33 with the help of water flow or air flow, if necessary, with the length direction aligned from the right end of FIGS. It is.

  In addition, if the bent shape of the bean sprouts fed on the grooved plates 31 and 32 as described above is mixed, the bean may be conveyed while being mounted on the mountain portion between the vertical grooves 33. It is preferable to remove this. Therefore, although not shown in the figure, it is possible to provide means for removing bent bean sprouts such as chains, brushes, blades, etc., which are arranged in contact with the crest portions of the grooved plates 31 and 32 or keeping a crevice from the crest portions. preferable.

(Both ends excision process)
As described above, the bean sprouts whose length direction is aligned in the bean sprouting step are subjected to a both-end excision step of cutting and removing the root portion and the bud portion. Four examples of both-end cutting devices for performing the both-end cutting step are shown in FIGS. 5 to 15.
First, the both-end cutting device 40 shown in FIGS. 5 to 8 will be described.
The both-ends cutting device 40 has the cutting conveyor 42 comprised by arranging many cutters horizontally and connecting both ends by an endless chain. The cutting conveyor 42 is configured as an endless conveyor that is transported in the direction of the arrow 41. Next, the structure of the cutting conveyor 42 will be described with reference to FIGS. The cutting conveyor 42 has a large number of cutters 43, and each cutter 43 has a large number of angled blade portions 44, as shown in FIG. It has an elongated shape in which a blade portion 45 perpendicular to the direction 41 and a blade portion 46 parallel to the traveling direction 41 of the cutting conveyor 42 are formed. The cutters 43 having the blade portions 44, 45, and 46 formed in this way are arranged side by side with respect to the traveling direction 41 of the cutting conveyor 42, and both ends are connected to each other by an endless chain to constitute an endless cutting conveyor 42. is doing. A space is maintained between the blade portions of the adjacent cutters 43, and a gap is formed in which both ends of the sprouts to be cut enter, as will be described later.

  The both-end cutting device 40 includes a transfer conveyor 48 having a number of transfer bars 47 in addition to the above-described cutting conveyor 42. The transfer conveyor 48 has a structure in which both ends of a transfer bar 47 arranged side by side with an interval between them are connected by an endless chain. As shown in FIG. 7, the transfer bar 47 constituting the transfer conveyor 48 keeps a small gap above the cutter 43 constituting the cutting conveyor 42 and the upper surface of the cutter 43 (cutting conveyor 42). It is configured to be transported. Moreover, the both-ends cutting device 40 has the baseplate 49 arrange | positioned with the space | interval L below the cutting conveyor 42. As shown in FIG. The interval L between the cutting conveyor 42 and the bottom plate 49 is important in efficiently cutting both ends of the bean sprouts as will be described later.

  As described above, the both-end cutting device 40 has the cutting conveyor 42, the transfer conveyor 48, and the bottom plate 49, and the cutting conveyor 42 feeds and stops in the transfer direction indicated by the arrow 41. By repeating the operation, the transfer conveyor 48 is configured to be continuously fed in the transfer direction indicated by the arrow 41 at a speed slower than the transfer speed of the cutting conveyor 42. Although the bottom plate 49 is a stationary plate, it is preferably formed of an endless belt conveyor so that both ends of the sprouts cut and dropped by the cutting conveyor 42 are received and discharged.

The illustrated apparatus has the above-described configuration, and the operation of this bean sprout end removing apparatus will be described below.
3 and 4, the length direction is aligned in the direction along the longitudinal groove 33 of the grooved plates 31, 32 by the bean sprouting device, and both ends are cut from the end of the grooved plate 32. 40. In other words, the bean sprouts with respect to the both-end cutting device 40 are in a state in which the length direction is aligned in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface in FIG. 5, and the length of the bean sprouts is schematically illustrated in FIG. It is supplied in a state where the direction is aligned along the length direction of the cutter 43. In this double-sided cutting device 40, the cutting conveyor 42 repeats feeding and stopping in the transfer direction indicated by the arrow 41, and the transfer conveyor 48 is indicated by the arrow 41 at a speed slower than the transfer speed of the cutting conveyor 42. Since there is a relative movement between the cutting conveyor 42 and the transfer conveyor 48 due to the difference in moving speed, the sprouts on the cutting conveyor 42 are It is moved by rolling on the cutting conveyor 42. The bean sprout that is moved on the cutting conveyor 42 enters into the gap formed between the blades of the adjacent cutters 43, and in that state, the relative relationship between the cutting conveyor 42 and the transfer conveyor 48 is reached. The head portion and the bud portion that are moved by the movement and enter the gap are cut by the blade portion of the cutter 43.

  As shown schematically in FIG. 8, both ends of the bean sprout are cut at the part that has entered the gap formed between the cutters 43, but below the cutting conveyor 42 (cutter 43). Since the bottom plate 49 is arranged, the bean sprouts should cut off the stem portion of the bean sprouts even if the portion of the length L or more between the cutting conveyor 42 (cutter 43) and the bottom plate 49 cannot enter. Further, even if the bean sprouts whose ends are already cut out enter the gap formed between the cutters 43, the length of the sprouts cut off by the cutters 43 can be reduced. Thus, both ends are cut out like bean sprouts shown at the left end of FIG. 6 and discharged from the end of the cutting conveyor 42.

Next, the both-end cutting device 50 shown in FIGS. 9 to 11 will be described.
9 and 10, reference numeral 51 denotes a transport conveyor. The transport conveyor 51 includes two endless chain belts 54 wound around two chain wheels 52 and 53, and their chain. It is constituted by a bean sprout container 55 having a cylindrical shape attached to the belt 54 in a row in a running direction in a continuous state with the longitudinal direction being opened at both ends. The conveyor 51 is driven in the direction of the arrow by the rotation of the chain wheels 52 and 53.

  A bottom receiving conveyor 56 as a bottom receiving member is disposed on the traveling path above the transport conveyor 51 at a distance from the lower end opening of the bean sprout container 55, and the lower end of the bean sprouts protruding from the lower end opening of the bean sprout container 55 is disposed. It is configured to receive. The bottom receiving conveyor 56 is stretched around pulleys 57 and 58, and is configured so that vibration in the vertical direction or the horizontal direction is given by the vibration exciter 59. As shown in FIG. 11, a blade-shaped cutter 60 is disposed obliquely on the traveling path of the transport conveyor 51 downstream of the bottom receiving conveyor 56, and the blade of the cutter 60 is opened at the lower end of the bean sprouts container 55. And the bottom receiving conveyor 56. Reference numeral 61 denotes an end receiver that receives the end portion of the bean sprouts cut by the cutter 60, and reference numeral 62 denotes a lower end receiver that receives the lower end of the bean sprouts whose lower end portions are cut.

  At the position where the conveyor 51 turns around the chain wheel 52 and enters the lower traveling path, the reverse receiving member 63 is arranged along the reverse trajectory of the upper end of the container 55, and the upside down is reversed by the reverse. The bean sprout container 55 is configured to receive the lower end of the bean sprout. A bottom receiving conveyor 64 as a bottom receiving member is disposed at a position where the reverse receiving member 63 ends, and is configured to receive the lower end of the sprouts protruding from the lower end opening of the bean sprouts container 55. The bottom receiving conveyor 64 is stretched around pulleys 65 and 66, and is configured to be vibrated in a vertical direction or a horizontal direction by a vibrator 67. Downstream of the bottom receiving conveyor 64, similarly to the cutter 60, a blade-shaped cutter 68 is disposed obliquely on the traveling path, and the blade is appropriately disposed between the lower end opening of the bean sprout container 55 and the bottom receiving conveyor 64. It is facing the position of. In this way, the end that protrudes from the lower end opening of the bean sprouts container 55 and that is exposed on the bottom receiving conveyor 64 is cut by the cutter 68 at an appropriate position. It becomes the composition which is done. 69 is an end receiver that receives the lower end of the bean sprouts cut by the cutter 68, 70 is a bean sprout discharge conveyor with both ends removed, and 71 is a lower end receiver that receives the lower end of the bean sprouts cut at the lower end. .

  As shown in FIG. 10, a movable side plate 72 that is displaceable while being parallel to the side plate 73 is provided inside one side plate 73 constituting the bean sprout container 55, and the movable side plate 72 is connected to the connecting bar. The pressure plate 78 is connected via 74. A spring 75 is fitted to the connecting bar 74 and is positioned between the side plate 73 and the pressing plate 78 so as to separate the side plate 73 and the pressing plate 78 from each other. Reference numeral 76 denotes a cam plate, which is disposed beside the traveling path of the bean sprouts container 55. A cam roller 77 is pivotally attached to the pressing plate 78 so as to be rotatable about the vertical axis. The cam roller 77 is in contact with the cam plate 76 and is displaced in the direction of the arrow 79 in FIG. 2 according to the shape of the cam plate 76. The cam plate 76 is placed at the upper right position in FIG. 9 where the bean sprout to be processed is filled in the container 5 and at the lower right position in FIG. 10), the movable side plate 72 approaches the side plate 73 to widen the storage space of the storage container 5. However, the movable side plate 72 is cut at the position of FIG. The cam roller 77 is displaced so as to be separated from the side plate 73 by pressing and is disposed beside the container 55. As shown in (b), the container 55 is narrowed and the internal bean sprouts are gathered together to easily cut with a cutter.

In the above-described bean sprout container 55, the bean sprouts whose length direction is aligned by the bean aligning apparatus shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 are supplied and stored in the length direction up and down.
The bean sprouts stored in the bean sprout container 55 in the longitudinal direction are in a state where the lower end portion protrudes from the bottom of the storage container 55, and the lower end of the protruding sprouts is spaced from the lower end opening of the storage container 55. It is conveyed while standing on the bottom receiving conveyor 56 that is arranged while being kept. When the cutter 60 is transported to the position where the cutter 60 is disposed, the movable side plate 72 is moved to the position shown in FIG. It is cut by the cutter 60 at an appropriate position that comes out of the lower end opening of the container 55 and is exposed on the bottom receiving conveyor 56. The bean sprouts in the storage container 5 whose lower end portion is cut by the cutter 60 are in a state in which the cut end portion is placed on the lower end receiver 62 disposed below the lower end opening of the storage container 55 after passing through the cutter 60. Be transported.

The conveyor 51 turns around the chain wheel 52 and enters the lower travel path, whereby the sprouts container 55 is turned upside down. A reversal receiving member 63 is disposed along the reversal trajectory of the upper end of the bean sprout container 55 in the reversing path of the sprout container 55, and the bean sprouts in the bean sprout container 55 are received by reversal. After being inverted, the lower end portion of the bean sprout that protrudes from the lower end opening of the bean sprout container 55 is conveyed in a state of being placed on the bottom receiving conveyor 64. In this state, when it comes to the position where the cutter 68 is disposed on the lower traveling path, it is exposed from the lower end opening of the bean sprout container 55 and exposed on the bottom receiving conveyor 64 as described for the upper traveling path. The lower end of the bean sprout is cut by a cutter 68 at an appropriate position.
The bean sprouts whose both ends are cut by the cutter 68 are discharged from the container 55 to the discharge conveyor 70.

  Next, the both-end cutting device shown in FIG. 12 will be described. In FIG. 12, reference numeral 81 denotes a conveyor constituting the bean sprout both ends removing device. The conveyor 81 is configured to travel from top to bottom in FIG. 12, and a plurality of conveyors 81 are provided by partition plates 82 that are set up in a direction orthogonal to the traveling direction and that are spaced from each other. Storage compartments 83 are formed side by side in the running direction of the conveyor 81. In this accommodation section 83, bean sprouts whose length direction is aligned in a direction parallel to the partition plate 82 are accommodated. Therefore, the length of the storage section 83 is only required to store the bean sprouts that are laid vertically to the running direction of the conveyor 81, and the interval between the partition plates 82 depends on the size and thickness of the sprouts to be processed. Select appropriate dimensions.

84 is a side plate erected on both sides of the conveyor 81, and the edge aligning member in the present invention is maintained on one side where the side plate 84 is cut and spaced from the side edge of the conveyor 81. An end support 85 is provided. Water supply means (not shown) is provided at the side edge of the conveyor 81 opposite to the end receiver 85, and the water flow 86 flows toward the end receiver 85 in the accommodation section 83 of the conveyor 81. Is configured to generate. A rotary cutter 87 is provided downstream of the end receiver 85 so that the blade is positioned between the side edge of the conveyor 81 and the end receiver 85. As in the case of the end receiver 85, an end receiver 88 is provided on the opposite side of the conveyor 81 downstream of the cutter 87 with a distance from the side edge. A water supply means (not shown) is provided at the side edge of the conveyor 81 opposite to the end receiver 88, and a water flow 89 flowing toward the end receiver 88 is passed through the accommodation section 83 of the conveyor 81. It is configured to generate.
A rotary cutter 90 is provided downstream of the end receiver 88 so that the blade is positioned between the side edge of the conveyor 81 and the end receiver 88.

Next, bean sprouts removal operation by the apparatus shown in FIG. 12 will be described.
The bean sprouts to be removed at both ends are aligned in the length direction by the bean alignment supply device shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, and the vertical grooves 33 are aligned in the length direction from the right end in FIGS. 12 is supplied in the length direction in the storage section 83 shown in FIG. 12 and is stored side by side in the length direction, and is conveyed by the conveyor 81 in the direction of the white arrow in FIG.
When the end receiver 85 is located, the sprouts in the storage compartment 83 are moved in the direction of the end receiver 85 by the water flow 86 supplied from the water supply means (not shown), and the sprouts in the storage compartment 83 are moved. The bean sprouts are in a state where the left end is in contact with the end receiver 85 and the left end is aligned.

When the bean sprouts whose ends are aligned on the left side are sent to the position of the cutter 87 as described above, the ends are cut at a position between the left edge of the conveyor 81 and the end receiver 85. When the accommodation compartment 83 containing the sprouts from which the end portion is removed on the left side comes to the position where the end receiver 88 is disposed, the water flow 89 supplied from the water supply means (not shown) causes the inside of the accommodation compartment 83 The bean sprout is moved in the direction of the end receiver 88, and the bean sprouts in the receiving compartment 83 are in contact with the end receiver 88, and the right end is aligned. When the bean sprouts whose ends are aligned on the right side are sent to the position of the cutter 90, the ends are cut at a position between the right edge of the conveyor 81 and the end receiver 88. The bean sprouts thus cut off at both ends are discharged from the conveyor 81.
It should be noted that the bean sprouts in the storage compartment 83 are appropriately sprung upside down such as plates and belts for pressing the sprouts in the storage compartment 83 from above so that the aligned state is not disturbed during the cutting operation by the cutters 87 and 90. It is preferable to provide a member.

Next, a bean sprout both ends removing apparatus according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 13 will be described.
Reference numeral 81 denotes a conveyor, 82 denotes a partition plate, and 83 denotes a storage compartment. Since these are the same as those in the embodiment of FIG. Reference numeral 100 denotes a sprout end aligning conveyor which hits an end aligning member according to the present invention, which is constituted by an endless belt 103 which is stretched around pulleys 101 and 102. The lower side of FIG. 13 is disposed obliquely so as to approach the side edge of the conveyor 81. A rotary cutter 87 having a blade positioned between the right edge of the conveyor 81 and the pulley 102 is disposed downstream of the bean sprouting end conveyor 100.

  On the left side of the conveyor 81, an end aligning conveyor 110 is disposed downstream of the cutter 87. The end alignment conveyor 110 is configured by an endless belt 113 that is looped around pulleys 111 and 112, and the side edge of the conveyor 81 on the running direction side (lower side in FIG. 13) of the conveyor 81 indicated by a white arrow. It is arrange | positioned diagonally so that it may approach. A rotary cutter 90 with a blade positioned between the right edge of the conveyor 81 and the pulley 112 is disposed downstream of the bean sprout end aligning conveyor 110.

  The bean sprouts removal apparatus shown in FIG. 13 has the above-described configuration, and the bean sprouts removal operation by this apparatus will be described below. For example, the bean sprouts whose length direction is aligned by the bean sprouting device shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 are supplied to the storage section 83 of the conveyor 81, stored sideways in the length direction, and conveyed in the direction of the white arrow. The When the sprouts end alignment conveyor 100 is sent to the place where the sprouts end protrudes from the right side edge of the conveyor 81, the sprouts end alignment conveyor 100 is inclined according to the inclination of the sprouts end alignment conveyor 100. Aligned to be in position. Thus, the right end portion of the sprouts protruding from the right side edge of the conveyor 81 at a substantially constant length is cut by the downstream cutter 87.

  When the section 83 containing the bean sprouts from which the right end portion has been removed as described above is sent to the place where the bean end aligning conveyor 110 is disposed, the end of the bean sprouts protruding from the left side edge of the conveyor 81 The parts are aligned so as to come to the position of the pulley 112 according to the inclination of the sprout end aligning conveyor 110. In this way, the left end portion of the sprouts protruding from the left side edge of the conveyor 81 at a substantially constant length is cut by the downstream cutter 90. The bean sprouts thus cut off and removed at both ends including the root portion and the bud portion are discharged from the conveyor 81.

As described above, the both-end cutting step has been specifically described based on the example of the both-end cutting device, but it goes without saying that the both-end cutting device used in the both-end cutting step of the present invention is not limited to these examples. .
For example, in the example shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the accommodation section 83 is described as having a horizontal structure, but the structure is inclined or inclined to the side by cutting the left and right end portions, respectively. It may be. An example of this will be described with reference to FIG. 14. The storage section 83 is constituted by a tray 120 that is open on the left and right sides, and the tray 120 is changed from the center part 121 in the width direction to (a) to (c) of FIG. 14. As shown, it can be tilted to the left and right sides. The tray 120 configured in this manner is inclined toward the end portion to be cut, and the end portion to be cut can be satisfactorily aligned so that the end portion can be easily brought close to the lowered side.

Moreover, in the above-mentioned example, although the cross-sectional shape of the accommodation section 83 is not particularly defined, as shown in FIG. 15, the bottom portion is (a) a V-shape 83-1, (b) a U-shape 83-2, (C) It can be configured as a quadrangle 83-3 or the like so that the sprouts accommodated can be easily aligned in the length direction.
Further, in the both-end removing device shown in FIG. 13, it is also effective to provide a water supply means for generating a water flow toward the both-end aligning conveyors 100 and 110 as in the case of the device shown in FIG.

The example of the bean sprout sorting apparatus which implements the bean sprout sorting process of the present invention is shown, (a) is a top view and (b) is a sectional view which meets the BB line of (a). The side view of the selection apparatus shown in FIG. The example of the bean sprouting apparatus which implements the bean sprouting process of this invention is shown, (a) is a top view, (b) is sectional drawing which follows the BB line of (a). The side view of the bean sprouting device shown in FIG. The side view which shows the example of the both-ends cutting device which implements the both-ends part cutting process of this invention. The top view which expands and shows the cutting conveyor and transfer bar in the both-ends cutting device of FIG. Sectional drawing which follows the BB line of FIG. Sectional drawing which follows the CC line | wire of FIG. The side view which shows the other example of the both-ends cutting device which implements the both-ends part cutting process of this invention. 10A is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA, and FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB. The top view which shows the arrangement | positioning state of the cutter 60 in FIG. The top view which shows the further another example of the both-ends cutting device which implements the both-ends part cutting process of this invention. The top view which shows the other example of the both-ends cutting device which implements the both-ends part cutting process of this invention. Explanatory drawing which shows the modification of the accommodation division in FIG. Explanatory drawing which shows the cross-sectional shape of the accommodation division in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 Sprout Sorter 2 Vertical Bar 3 Support Bar 4 Support Bar 5 Horizontal Bar 6 Bar Conveyor 7 Axis 8 Axis 9 Chain Wheel 10 Chain Wheel 11 Endless Chain 12 Motor 13 Roller 14 Roller 15 Belt Conveyor 16 Motor 17 Feeding Belt Conveyor 18 Roll 19 Roll 20 Endless belt 21 Air outlet 22 Clearance 31 Grooved plate 32 Grooved plate 33 Vertical groove 34 Arm 36 Exciter 40 Both ends cutting device 42 Cutting conveyor 43 Cutter 44 Inclined blade 45 Vertical blade 46 Parallel Blade portion 47 Transfer bar 48 Transfer conveyor 49 Bottom plate L Cutter-to-bottom plate spacing 50 End cutting device 51 Conveyor 52 Chain wheel 53 Chain wheel 54 Chain belt 55 Sprout container 56 Bottom receiving conveyor 57 Pulley 58 Pulley 59 Exciter 60 Cutter 61 End receiver 62 Lower end receiver 63 Reverse receiver member 64 Bottom receiver conveyor 65 Pulley 66 Pulley 67 Exciter 68 Cutter 69 End receiver 70 Discharge conveyor 71 Lower end receiver 72 Moving side plate 73 Side plate 74 Connecting bar 75 Spring 76 Cam plate 77 Cam roller 78 Press plate 81 Conveyor 82 Partition plate 83 Accommodating partition 84 Side plate 85 End receiver 86 Water flow 87 Cutter 88 End receiver 89 Water flow 90 Cutter 100 Sprout end alignment conveyor 101 Pulley 102 Pulley 103 Endless belt 110 Sprout End alignment conveyor 111 Pulley 112 Pulley 113 Endless belt 120 Tray 121 Center

Claims (6)

  Sprout selection process for separating and removing ungrown bean sprout and short bean sprouts from harvested bean sprout A method for removing both ends of bean sprout, characterized in that the root part and the bud part are mechanically removed from the bean sprout by a both-ends excision step of removing both ends of the bean sprout.   The bean sprouts sorting step is arranged in a dispersed state to supply sprouts to be sorted on a mesh conveyor that moves by forming a mesh of predetermined intervals, and is arranged below the same mesh conveyor with a small interval from the same mesh conveyor. The bean sprouts according to claim 1, wherein the bean sprouts are transported together with the belt conveyor, the bean sprouts having a predetermined length or more are left on the mesh conveyor, and the bean sprouts having a predetermined length or less are separated and removed on the conveyer. How to remove both ends.   In the bean sprouting step, the bean sprouts are supplied on the grooved plate formed with the vertical grooves formed in parallel and provided with vibration including the vertical component, and the bean sprouts supplied on the grooved plate are 2. The method for removing both ends of bean sprout according to claim 1, wherein the method is carried out by aligning the length direction of the bean sprout.   In the both-end cutting process, a plurality of cutters having blades formed on both side edges are horizontally arranged and moved horizontally with the blades facing each other with a gap between the blades of adjacent cutters. Bean sprout on the cutting conveyor, and move the transfer conveyor having a plurality of transfer bars at a different speed from the cutting conveyor while maintaining a small gap between the cutting conveyor and the cutting conveyor, The method for removing both ends of bean sprout according to claim 1, wherein the root part and the head part are cut and removed from the bean sprout by relative movement between the cutting conveyor and the transfer conveyor.   In the end cutting step, the cylindrical bean sprout storage containers with both ends opened vertically in the length direction are arranged in a row, and the sprout storage container in the end direction in the endless transfer conveyor with the traveling path up and down In each of the upper and lower travel paths of the conveyor, the palm is placed vertically, and the bottom receiving member arranged at a distance from the lower end of the container receives the end of the palm and conveys it, The method for removing both ends of bean sprouts according to claim 1, wherein the bean sprouts exposed between the lower end of the container and the bottom receiving member are cut with a cutter.   The bean sprouts in which the length direction is horizontally aligned are placed in the accommodation section of the conveyor provided in the conveyor in which the both-end cutting step is arranged side by side in the front-rear direction, and the bean sprouts received in the accommodation section. Is aligned with end alignment members arranged at intervals from both sides of the conveyor, and the aligned protruding ends are cut with a cutter on both sides of the conveyor. The method for removing both ends of bean sprout according to claim 1, wherein:

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