Lamb Weston, Inc.

Conagra Foods Lamb Weston, Inc.

Other

Battelle Memorial Institute

Conagra Foods, Inc.

Centlgra Foods, Inc.

John C. Julian

John C Julian

Trent Robert Wetherbee

Gary Brockman

Kenneth J Stanley

Harlow Young

Gary D Cuddeford

Mark Alan Fow

Christopher M Smith

Darrell L Covert

Gary R Brockman

Samuel Monk

James R Skorpik

Jeffrey Schneider

Jerry L Sloan

Joe C Harris

David S Phelps

Jeffery J DeLapp

Lee A Wheeler

Jerome James Glantz

Mark A Fow

Jerome J Glantz

A vegetable knife includes a pulverizing coring pin for pulverizing a core of a vegetable, where the pulverizing coring pin can be a generally cylindrical tube. The pulverizing coring pin can define one or more pulverizing tubes that extend from a first end of the pulverizing coring pin to a second end of the pulverizing coring pin opposite the first end. The vegetable knife also includes at least one vegetable shaping blade that extends radially outwardly from the pulverizing coring pin, where the at least one vegetable shaping blade supports the pulverizing coring pin at a location generally central with respect to the vegetable knife. The vegetable knife may also include an outer flange for coupling the vegetable knife to a rotatable cutting assembly. The vegetable shaping blade can be connected between the outer flange and the pulverizing coring pin for supporting the pulverizing coring pin.

Vegetable knife having a pulverizing coring pin

Cutter for food products

Cut potato product

A food cutter assembly can include a spindle body defining an interior passage for receiving a food product. The food cutter assembly can also include a thrust disc connected to the spindle body. The thrust disc can include opposing surfaces extending radially from the rotational axis of the spindle body and a circumferential surface between the opposing surfaces. A cutting tool can be connected to an end of the spindle body for cutting the food product. The food cutter assembly can also include a housing for rotationally mounting the spindle body, where the housing includes a radial bearing to be positioned proximate to the thrust disc. The spindle body and the housing can define fluid passages extending from a port in the housing through the radial bearing to the spindle body and across the opposing surfaces and the circumferential surface to the spindle body.

Water bearing and food cutting assembly

A method for lubricating a radial bearing of a food cutter assembly is disclosed. The method can include receiving a supply of water at a housing for rotationally mounting a spindle body having a rotational axis, where the housing includes a radial bearing proximate to a thrust disc of the spindle body. The thrust disc can include opposing surfaces extending radially from the rotational axis of the spindle body and a circumferential surface between the opposing surfaces. The water can be directed through fluid passages extending from a port in the housing through the radial bearing to the spindle body and across the opposing surfaces and the circumferential surface to the spindle body. The spindle body may be rotated while the water is directed through the fluid passages to create a water film between the housing and the spindle body that reduces friction between the housing and the spindle body.

A method of converting a conventional atmospheric frying device to a vacuum frying device is provided. The method includes positioning a hood on top of a conventional frying device to provide an enclosure for drawing a vacuum within the modified devices. In addition, the method can include strengthening the existing vat so that it is capable of withstanding the forces associated with vacuum frying.

Vacuum frying device and method for using the same

A concave tapered food product includes a cross section and a second end having a shape defined by a generally concave arc and a generally convex arc. The concave tapered food product has a first side and a second side shaped by a longitudinal cut along the foodstuff. A cutter assembly for cutting a foodstuff to form the concave tapered food product includes a housing member. The cutter assembly also includes a curvilinear blade including a cutting edge for cutting the foodstuff, the cutting edge defining an arc along a first portion of the curvilinear blade and a foot positioned at an end of the curvilinear blade for supporting the curvilinear blade. The foot is configured for being received and secured in the housing member. The housing member is configured for at least partially enclosing the curvilinear blade.

Cutter assembly for concave tapered food product

This invention includes a system for cutting food products, such as potatoes, into proportional length pieces. In a one embodiment, the system includes a cutting assembly, sensors upstream of the cutting assembly and a programmable logic controller. The cutting assembly preferably includes a housing defining a passageway, at least two separately actuatable stops extendable into the passageway to provide an abutment to hold the food product in place, and at least two separately actuatable blades for slicing the food product into pieces. The controller cooperates with the sensors to determine the length of each food product and, based on a length determinative algorithm, selectively actuate one of the stops and at least one of the blades to determine how many times the food product will be sliced and location of the cut(s) relative to the leading end of the food product.

Proportional length food slicing system

Growing community of inventors

Richland, WA, United States of America

John C Julian