Recot Inc.

Frito-lay, Inc.

Frito-lay North America, Inc.

The Texas A&m University System

Kevin C Cogan

Edward Leon Ouellette

Michael L Dickerson

Ajay Rajeshwar Bhaskar

Joseph H Gold

Robert M Echols

V N Mohan Rao

Pravin Maganlal Desai

Lewis Conrad Keller

David Ray Warren

Donald Vaughn Neel

Vn Mohan Rao

Gary Allan Semjenow

Gary R Nightingale

Peter H Gien

Lezley A Griffith

Robert R Petter, Jr

Bilal Moussa Kaafarani

Martin Morua

Tina T Dierl

David B Emerson

Wilfred M Bourg, Jr

Keith A Barber

Ronald N Bone, Jr

A novel separation screen, a separation apparatus utilizing the separation screen, and a method for product separation are disclosed herein. The separation apparatus includes a housing defining a separation chamber having an inlet and a plurality of outlet orifices. A separation screen, which is located within the separation chamber, has a plurality of openings having fixed, non-uniform sizes. The separation apparatus also includes an adjustable feed placement device located upstream from the separation screen to direct a feed stream to a selected region of the separation screen to achieve a desired size distribution in each of the product streams.

Separation apparatus with screen having fixed, non-uniform openings

With the process for producing potato based expandable pellets, an intermediary product is manufactured that is capable of being stored for up to about six months. These pellets can be later expanded into a food product, particularly a potato based snack product that has improved flavor qualities and increased oil pick up. To form the pellets, a potato meal is passed through a twin screw extruder at a relatively low extruder rotational speed, which increases the residence time and the volume of bed pack in the extruder while decreasing shear. The extrudate produced is then split into ribbons that are subsequently perforated. These ribbons are then formed into shaped pellets.

Process for producing expandable pellets

In the process of producing corn-based pellets, preconditioner steam and water addition, as well as extruder water or screw configuration and RPM, can be manipulated to precisely control the cook level, gelatinization, and moisture level of the meal during processing, and level of defects despite minor variation in the characteristics of the corn flour. Specifically, the preconditioner added steam-to-water ratio can be manipulated to effect cook, hydration, and partial gelatinization of the meal. In the extruder, lower extruder rotational speeds increase the residence time and increases cook. With the increase in residence time the volume of bed pack in the extruder increases. This can be reversed by adding water directly into the extruder, thereby decreasing the viscosity of the meal in the extruder. Product bulk density is changed by increasing and decreasing cook of the meal.

Process for expanded pellet production

The present invention discloses a replaceable blade cartridge and a compatible assembly for holding the cartridge wherein an old blade cartridge is slidably removed from the holding assembly and a new blade is slidably inserted into the holding assembly. Specifically, a replaceable blade cartridge for use in a compatible cutting head assembly of a centrifugal type slicer is disclosed.

Cutting head assembly with replaceable blade

Replaceable blade cartridge for a centrifugal type food slicer

Apparatus and method for slicing potatoes and washing or coating the potato slices wherein the slices exit a slicing mechanism and are directed between inner and outer spray rings that generate a pressurized water mist which washes the slices. The nozzles in the inner spray ring face the nozzles in the outer ring so that the pressurized water mist is formed in a predetermined area located between the rings. The high pressure water mist removes surface starch from the slices, and vibrating sieve arrangements disposed downstream of the slicing apparatus cooperate with a series of spray bars to further clean the slices. The apparatus of the invention is also used in a method of coating potato slices with a treating material.

Apparatus and method for slicing potatoes and washing or coating potato

An optical inspection machine has a discharge chute provided for receiving fragile articles thrown from a high speed belt in the course of ejecting such articles. The chute has an 'S'-shaped bottom with the top of the 'S' under the trajectory of the ejected articles, the mid portion of the 'S' positioned to receive the falling articles at a minimum impact angle, and the bottom of the 'S' discharging the sliding articles after being significantly decelerated due to the variable slope of the 'S'-shaped chute bottom. The inspection machine has another 'S'-shaped chute for receiving articles from an infeed conveyor and transferring them to the high speed belt while minimizing deceleration.

Discharge chute with variable slope bottom for fragile article sorting

An automated system for processing whole potatoes maintains a substantially constant mass flow of potatoes into an adjustable potato peeler that is capable or removing from the potatoes varying amounts of potato peel. Peeled potatoes are conveyed downstream of the peeler, while being electromagnetically inspected to determined the uniformity of peel removal, the presence of unacceptable material, and to identify oversized potatoes that exceed a predetermined size limitation. A diverter gate separates oversized potatoes and foreign materials from potatoes that have been identified as satisfactory.

Automated system for processing whole potatoes

An apparatus for dewatering a corn-water slurry which is inexpensive to build and operate. The device comprises an inverted conical unit having porous walls which permit the passage of water, debris and broken corn pieces therethrough but retains undamaged corn within the porous walls. The corn-water slurry is injected tangentially into the upper portion of the device and follows a generally downward spiral path, whereby the water is centrifugally removed through the porous wall structure, with the undamaged corn exiting through a lower exit port.

Corn-water slurry separator device

Growing community of inventors

Carrollton, TX, United States of America

Kevin C Cogan