Description:FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
THE PATENT RULES, 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(See Section 10 and Rule 13)
Title of invention:
A SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR SALINE TREATMENT OF FOOD ITEM

APPLICANT:
SIDDHI VINAYAK AGRI PROCESSING PVT. LTD.
An Indian entity having address at:
E/1/18, HERMES HERITAGE PHASE-2, SHASTRI NAGAR, YERWADA PUNE 411006 Maharashtra India

The following specification describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS AND PRIORITY
The present application claims no priority from any of the patent application(s).
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present subject matter described herein, in general, relates to a salinity system, more particularly relates to a system and method for saline treatment of the food item.
BACKGROUND
Raw nuts are regarded by the majority of people as not palatable or appetizing; instead, people prefer to roast them, either with their shells or after being deshelled or skinned, frequently with salt. In order to improve their taste and appearance while maintaining qualities, certain nuts are treated in several ways for human consumption. These treated nuts further can be utilized for decoration or as fillers in the confectionery and baked goods industries.
Production of salted nuts involves many crucial steps, some of which is preparing saline solution of appropriate concentration and dipping the nuts in saline water solution. The intended taste and texture to the nuts are imparted by the saline water solution.
The current production industry follows a manual way of dipping the nuts in the saline solution. The traditional process includes preparing the saline solution in a tank manually, wherein the concentration of saline solution is set as per the requirement. The procedure entails manually mixing the water with salt until homogenization in a tank.
According to the process specifications, a perforated bucket containing nuts is submerged in the prepared saline solution and held there for a predetermined amount of time. Further, this perforated bucket is removed manually for draining out the saline solution from the perforations to obtain salted nuts.
However, the traditional approach requires a lot of labor efforts and creates a bottleneck in an online process. Also, the conventional method lacks uniform salting of nuts and complete utilization of saline water. Besides, the dipping salt for certain time is not feasible for scalability. A further limitation of manual salting is the fact that the salt that has adhered to the nuts will drop off and drain off as a result of the uneven dispersion of salt on the nuts.
Thus, there is a long felt need for developing an automated system and continuous process for saline solution preparation, dispensing, dipping and dewatering of the nuts with minimal amount of human intervention.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
The principal object of the invention is to provide a system enabled for saline treatment of a food item that automates the process of the salting food item, thereby minimizing human intervention.
Another object of the invention is to provide a continuous method enabled for saline treatment of the food item for uniform distribution of salt on/in food item.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a system and method enabled for saline treatment of the food item, wherein the used saline solution is recirculated in the system.
SUMMARY
This summary is provided to introduce concepts related to a system and method for saline treatment of the food item. This summary is not intended to identify essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor it is intended for use in determining or limiting the scope of the disclosed subject matter.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter, a system and method for saline treatment of the food item are described herein.
In one embodiment, a system for saline treatment of a food item is disclosed. The system comprises of a first tank enabled for mixing fresh water and salt to obtain a first saline solution, wherein the amount of fresh water and the salt are controlled such that the first saline solution of desired concentration is obtained based upon inputs received from a first set of sensors associated with the first tank. Further, the system comprises of a second tank in connection with the first tank, wherein the second tank is enabled for mixing the first saline solution with fresh water to obtain a second saline solution, wherein the amount of fresh water and the first saline solution are controlled such that the second saline solution of desired concentration is obtained based upon inputs received from a second set of sensors associated with the second tank. Further, the system comprises of a dip tub unit configured for dipping a food item in the second saline solution, wherein the second saline solution is transferred to the dip tub unit via a conduit connected to the second tank. The dip tub unit comprises of a plurality of perforations externally built on one side of the dip tub unit for de-watering the second saline solution from the dip tub unit. The dip tub unit further comprises of a screw flight unit arranged in the dip tub unit for propelling the food item dipped in the second saline solution toward the plurality of perforations. The dip tub unit further comprises of a plurality of steps engraved internally on the dip tub unit for uniform mixing of the food item with the second saline solution.
In another embodiment, a method for saline treatment of the food item is disclosed. The method comprises a step of introducing salt and fresh water from an inlet pipeline in a first tank to obtain a first saline solution. The method comprises a step of transferring the first saline solution to a second tank via a primary channel of a transfer pump, followed by addition of fresh water in the second tank to obtain a second saline solution of desired concentration. The method further comprises a step of dispensing the second saline solution from the second tank into a dip tub unit for salting of the food item. Further, the method comprises a step of feeding food item from the vibratory hopper in the dip tub unit containing second saline solution, followed by continuous rotation of the dip tub unit for uniform salting of the food item via a three-phase induction motor. The method further comprises of a step of separating the salted food item from the second saline solution via a plurality of perforations placed on at least one side of dip tub unit.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
The detailed description is described with reference to the accompanying Figures. In the Figures, the left-most digit(s) of a reference number identifies the Figure in which the reference number first appears. The same numbers are used throughout the drawings to refer like features and components.
Figure 1 depicts a system 100 for the saline treatment of the food item in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
Figure 2 depicts a detailed view 200 of a first tank and/or a second tank of the system 100, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
Figure 3A, 3B & 3C depicts a detailed view 300 of a dip tub unit with arrangement of screw flight unit and steps in the dip tub unit of the system 100, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
Figure 4 depicts a method 400 for the saline treatment of the food item, in accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Reference throughout the specification to “various embodiments,” “some embodiments,” “one embodiment,” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in various embodiments,” “in some embodiments,” “in one embodiment,” or “in an embodiment” in places throughout the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.
The words "comprising," "having," "containing," and "including," and other forms thereof, are intended to be equivalent in meaning and be open ended in that an item or items following any one of these words is not meant to be an exhaustive listing of such item or items or meant to be limited to only the listed item or items. It must also be noted that, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Although any methods similar or equivalent to those described herein can be used in the practice or testing of embodiments of the present disclosure, the exemplary methods are described. The disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the disclosure, which may be embodied in various forms.
Various modifications to the embodiment may be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and the generic principles herein may be applied to other embodiments. However, one of ordinary skill in the art may readily recognize that the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the embodiments illustrated but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features described herein. The detailed description of the invention will be described hereinafter referring to accompanied drawings.
In accordance with an embodiment of the present subject matter, a system 100 and a method 400 for saline treatment of the food item is described herein.
The food items which are treated in accordance with this invention may be edible nuts which include but not limited to peanuts, cashews, almonds, walnuts, filberts, macadamia nuts, pecans, and the like. Particularly preferred are peanuts.
Referring to figures 1, the system 100 comprises of two tanks 101, 103 including a first tank 101 for preparation of saline solution and a second tank 103 for adjusting the concentration of saline solution. Here, the first tank 101 is enabled for mixing fresh water and salt to obtain a first saline solution. The amount of fresh water and the salt are controlled in such a manner that the first saline solution of desired concentration is obtained.
The first tank 101 is used to prepare a first saline solution with the desired concentration, preferably one that is saturated, approximately at saturation, or higher than that required to dip food items. Referring to figure 2, the first tank 101 is equipped with a salt feeding hopper 102, level sensor 203A, freshwater inlet 201 with a solenoid valve, agitator 205 and a conductivity sensor 204A. The salt feeding hopper 102 herein stores the salt used for preparing the first saline solution
Referring to figure 1, the system 100 further comprises of second tank 103 in connection with the first tank 101. The second tank 103 herein is enabled for mixing the first saline solution with fresh water to obtain a second saline solution. Based on the requirement, the concentration of saline solution can be customized or changed.
Referring to figure 2, the second tank 103, having a similar arrangement as that of the first tank, is also equipped with a level sensor 203B, the conductivity sensor 204B, freshwater inlet 202 with a solenoid valve, agitator 205 and a dispensing pump 116. The agitator 205 in the first tank 101 and the second tank 103 aids in proper mixing of the components to prepare homogenized first saline solution and second saline solution.
Here, the preparation of second saline solution in the second tank 103 is carried out via an addition of fresh water into the first saline solution to adjust the concentration as per requirement.
In one of the embodiments, a display screen is placed on the system 100 to select the concentration of the saline solution as per user requirement. In another embodiment, the system 100 may have a pre-set value for limiting the concentration of the saline solution. Further, the dispensing pump 116 is placed on one end of the second tank 103 to transfer the second saline solution of desired concentration.
Referring to figure 2, the system 100 further comprises of the first set of sensors and the second set of sensors including at least a conductivity sensor 204A, 204B and a level sensor 203A, 203B. The sensors 204A, 204B, 203A, 203B used herein regulates the flow of the first saline solution from the first tank 101 by controlling the flow rate of the transfer pump 115.
Referring to figure 1, the outlet of the first tank 101 is connected to the transfer pump 115. Here, the transfer pump 115 is set apart into a pair of channels including a primary channel 107 and a secondary channel 108. The primary channel 107 conveys the first saline solution from the first tank 101 to the second tank 103, while the secondary channel 108 conveys at least part of the first saline solution back to the first tank 101.
Herein, the transfer pump 115 is placed on a variable frequency drive to control the dispensing rate of the primary channel 107 and secondary channel 108. The set concentration required for the second saline solution is maintained by varying the flow rate of the transfer solution by changing the frequency of the transfer pump 115.
Since the concentration is an intensive property of a solution, the conductivity sensors 204A, 204B installed in the first and second tanks 101, 103, respectively, constantly monitor the concentration of salt in the first and second saline solutions.
The conductivity sensors 204A and 204B works by continuously measuring the electrical conductance of the first and second saline solution, respectively, enabling them to measure the ionic concentration in the first and second saline solution. The conductivity sensors 204A and 204B are pre calibrated for the conversion of conductance to the concentration of the solution.
The inputs are provided to the controller by the conductivity sensor 204A and 204B. The salt feeding hopper 102 is a screw-based feeder, whose working can be supervised by controlling the revolution per minute of the screw. The controller on the basis of the inputs, guides the revolution per minutes of the screw, thereby controlling the feeding rate of salt in the first and second saline solution.
If the concentration is less in the second tank 103, then the solenoid valve on the freshwater inlet 202 is closed. In such cases, the frequency of the transfer pump 115 is increased, elevating the rate of addition of the first saline solution into the second tank 103, thereby increasing the concentration of the second saline solution in the second tank 103. On attaining the desired level of the saline solution, the freshwater addition begins, and the operating frequency of the transfer pump 115 is varied based on inputs received from the conductivity sensor 204B.
In case the concentration of the second saline solution becomes high, the frequency of the transfer pump 115 is decreased, and the freshwater inlet valve 202 is opened to dilute the second saline solution. The amount of the saline solution in the first tank 101 and the second tank 103 is continuously monitored by the level sensor 203A, 203B. On attaining the full capacity of the tanks 101, 103, the level sensor 203A, 203B provides signal to Programmable Logic Controller (PLC). Based on the inputs received from the level sensor 203A, 203B, the controller closes the solenoid valve on the transfer pump 115 and solenoid valve on the freshwater inlet 201, 202.
Here, the advantage of using two tanks over a single tank is to achieve a high amount of accuracy in maintaining concentration of the saline solution. Also, it is easier to control the salinity of solution in two tanks. Therefore, to adjust the concentration of salts two tanks are applied in the invention.
The level sensor 203A, 203B is configured for real-time measuring the amount of saline solution in the first tank 101 and second tank 103. Once the level of the tank is reached at most, the level sensor 203A, 203B provides a signal to the controller which in turn shuts off the solenoid valve on the freshwater inlet 201, 202 in the first tank 101 and second tank 103.
Referring to figure 1, the system 100 further comprises of a dip tub unit 104 for dipping the food item in the second saline solution. The second saline solution is transferred to the dip tub unit 104 via a conduit 105 and the dispensing pump 116 from the second tank.
Furthermore, the dip tub unit 104 is fed with the food item stored in a vibratory feeder hopper 110. The food item is fed up with a capacity, till the food item is fully soaked in second saline solution.
In one of the embodiments, the food items are subjected to the preliminary treatment such as peeling, starch treatment, gelatin treatment prior to salting. Herein, the dip tub unit 104 is continuously rotated by a three-phase induction motor 109, is connected to a variable frequency drive. The rotational speed of the dip tub unit 104 can be controlled by adjusting the frequency of the drive.
Referring to figure 1, the dip tub unit 104 has a plurality of perforations externally built on one side of the dip tub unit for de-watering the second saline solution from the dip tub unit 104. Further, the salted food item inside the dip tub unit 104 can move to the next equipment for further processing.
Referring to figure 3A, 3B & 3C, the dip tub unit 104 further comprises of a screw flight unit 301 arranged on the periphery of the dip tub unit 104 and steps 302 internally engraved on the dip tub unit 104. The steps 302 are preferably in triangular shape for uniform mixing of the food item with the second saline solution.
Referring to figure 3B, the screw flight unit 301 herein propels the food item dipped in the second saline solution towards the plurality of perforations 106 while rotation, whereas the triangular steps 302 provide tumbling action to the food item during soaking. The secondary saline solution is filled in the screw flight unit 301 with level up to the height of the screw flight unit 301.
In one of the embodiments, the screw flight unit 301 may comprise single screw flight while in another embodiment it may comprise multiple screw flights for better mixing. In one embodiment, the screw flight unit 301 moves with 3-10 revolution per minute (i.e., 3-10 pitch), thereby the time for soaking is reduced to 1-2 minutes. Thus, the above-mentioned mechanism provides effective revolution and soaking process in limited time.
Referring to figure 1, the dip tub unit 104 is further equipped with a fines separator 111 for filtering out the unwanted particle from the saline solution to obtain a filtered saline solution. The fines separator 111 is placed with a vibrating equipment 112, wherein the vibrating element aids in efficient filtration.
The filtered saline solution from the fines separator 111 is collected in a hopper unit 113. The hopper unit 113 is equipped with a pipe 114 for recirculating the filtered saline solution from the hopper unit 113 to the second tank 103, thereby preventing wastage of the saline solution. The whole system herein operates in auto mode, without any human intervention.
The present invention also discloses a method 400 for saline treatment of food item. Referring to figure 4, the method 400 discloses a step of introducing 401 salt from a salt feeding hopper 102 in a first tank 101 to obtain a saline solution. Simultaneously, the solenoid valve on the freshwater inlet 201 opens and fresh water begins to pour in the first tank 101.
The concentration of salt and fresh water added in the first tank 101 and the second tank 103 is determined on the basis of inputs received from each of the first set of sensors 203A, 204A and the second set of sensors 203B, 204B.
The controller on receiving inputs operates the working of the solenoid valve of the freshwater inlet 205, primary channel 107, secondary channel 108 and screw rotation of the salt feeder hopper 102. Thus, the ratio of salt to water is adjusted by the first set of sensors 203A, 204A and the second set of sensors 203B, 204B to achieve desired concentration of saline solution.

Further, the method 400 comprises a step of transferring 402 the first saline solution to a second tank 103 via a primary channel 107 of a transfer pump 115, followed by addition of fresh water in the second tank 103 to obtain a second saline solution of desired concentration. The transfer pump 115 further conveys the first saline solution back into the first tank 101 via a secondary channel 108.
The method 400 further comprises a step of dispensing 403 the second saline solution from the second tank 103 into a dip tub unit 104 for salting of the food item. Further, the method 400 comprises a step 404 of feeding food item from the vibratory hopper 110 in the dip tub unit 104 containing the second saline solution.
The duration of soaking is controlled by adjusting the rotational speed of the dip tub unit 104, which rotates constantly while the food item and second saline flow forward. The continuous rotation for uniform salting of the food item is conducted by a three-phase induction motor 109.
Furthermore, the method 400 comprises a step of separating 405 the salted food item from the second saline solution via a plurality of perforations 106 placed on at least one side of dip tub unit 104. Simultaneously, the remaining second saline solution in the dip tub unit 104 is filtered via the fines separator 111 to recirculate the filtered saline solution in the second tank 103. The filtered solution from the fines separator 111 removal is fed back to the second tank 103, where the concentration is revived to the set concentration based on the concentration of the first saline solution.
Preferably, this process is being performed on a continuous basis. In a particular embodiment, advantageously when the process of the invention is being operated on a continuous basis, the food item is efficiently and uniformly salted.
In one embodiment, after the food items have been uniformly coated with saline solution as described above, the salted food item may be subjected to a further coating operation in which a dry coating of a seasoning mix may be applied.
The embodiments, examples and alternatives of the preceding paragraphs or the description and drawings, including any of their various aspects or respective individual features, may be taken independently or in any combination. Features described in connection with one embodiment are applicable to all embodiments, unless such features are incompatible.
Although implementations for a system 100 and method 400 for the saline treatment of the food item have been described in language specific to structural features and/or methods, it is to be understood that the appended claims are not necessarily limited to the specific features or methods described. Rather, the specific features and methods are disclosed as examples of implementations of a system 100 and method 400 for the saline treatment of the food item.
, Claims:WE CLAIM:
1. A system 100 for saline treatment of a food item, comprising:
a first tank 101 enabled for mixing fresh water and salt to obtain a first saline solution, wherein the amount of fresh water and the salt are controlled such that the first saline solution of desired concentration is obtained based upon inputs received from a first set of sensors 203A, 204A associated with the first tank 101;
a second tank 103 in connection with the first tank 101, wherein the second tank 103 is enabled for mixing the first saline solution with fresh water to obtain a second saline solution, wherein the amount of fresh water and the first saline solution are controlled such that the second saline solution of desired concentration is obtained based upon inputs received from a second set of sensors 203B, 204B associated with the second tank 103; and
a dip tub unit 104 configured for dipping a food item in the second saline solution, wherein the second saline solution is transferred to the dip tub unit 104 via a conduit connected to the second tank, wherein the dip tub unit 104 further comprises:
a plurality of perforations 106 externally built on one side of the dip tub unit 104 for de-watering the second saline solution from the dip tub unit 104;
a screw flight unit 301 arranged in the dip tub unit 104 for propelling the food item dipped in the second saline solution toward the plurality of perforations; and
a plurality of steps 302 engraved internally on the dip tub unit 104 for uniform mixing of the food item with the second saline solution.
2. The system 100 as claimed in claim 1, wherein the food item is at least selected from peanuts, cashews, almonds, walnuts, filberts, macadamia nuts, pecans, and the like.
3. The system 100 as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first tank 101 and the second tank 103 are equipped with a pair of inlet pipeline 201, 202 for conveying fresh water in the respective first tank 101 and second tank 103.
4. The system 100 as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first tank 101 and the second tank 103 are equipped with a pair of agitators 205 for uniform mixing of the respective saline solution.
5. The system 100 as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first tank 101 comprises a transfer pump 115 enabled to convey the first saline solution from the first tank 101 to the second tank 103, wherein the transfer pump 115 is constructed with a pair of channel 107, 108 including a primary channel 107 and a secondary channel 108 and wherein the primary channel 107 conveys the saline solution from the first tank to the second tank and the secondary channel 108 conveys the saline solution back to the first tank.
6. The system 100 as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the first set of sensors 203A, 203B and the second set of sensors 204A, 204B include at least a conductivity sensor 204A, 204B and a level sensor 203A, 203B.
7. The system 100 as claimed in claim 6, wherein the conductivity sensor 204A, 204B is configured for real-time monitoring the concentration of the respective saline solution in the first tank 101 and the second tank 103, and wherein the level sensor 203A, 203B is configured for real-time measuring the amount of respective saline solution in the first tank 101 and the second tank 103.
8. The system 100 as claimed in claim 1, wherein the dip tub unit 104 is continuously rotated via a three-phase induction motor 109, and wherein the dip tub unit is further attached to a vibratory feeder hopper 110 for receiving the food item.
9. The system 100 as claimed in claim 1, wherein the dip tub unit 104 is equipped with a fines separator 111 in association with a vibrating element 112 for filtering out the unwanted particle from the second saline solution to obtain a filtered saline solution.
10. The system as 100 claimed in claim 9, wherein the dip tub unit 104 is equipped with a hopper unit 113 enabled for receiving the filtered saline solution from the fines separator 111.
11. The system 100 as claimed in claim 10, wherein the hopper unit 113 is equipped with a pipe 114 for recirculating the filtered saline solution from the hopper unit to the second tank.
12. A method 400 for saline treatment of a food item by enabling the system (100) as claimed in claim 1 comprising steps of:
introducing 401 salt and fresh water from an inlet pipeline 201 in a first tank 101 to obtain a first saline solution;
transferring 402 the first saline solution to a second tank 103 via a primary channel 107 of a transfer pump 115, followed by addition of fresh water in the second tank 103 to obtain a second saline solution of desired concentration;
dispensing 403 the second saline solution from the second tank 103 into a dip tub unit 104 for salting of the food item;
feeding 404 food item from the vibratory hopper 110 in the dip tub unit 104 containing second saline solution, followed by continuous rotation of the dip tub unit 104 for uniform salting of the food item via a three-phase induction motor 109; and
separating 405 the salted food item from the second saline solution via a plurality of perforations 106 placed on at least one side of dip tub unit 104.
13. The method 400 as claimed in claim 12, wherein the concentration of salt and fresh water to be added in the first tank 101 and the second tank 103 is determined on the basis of inputs received from each of the first set of sensors 203A, 204A and the second set of sensors 203B, 204B.
14. The method 400 as claimed in claim 12, wherein the transfer pump 115 conveys the first solution back into the first tank 101 via a secondary channel 108.
15. The method 400 as claimed in claim 12, wherein the second saline solution is filtered via a fines separator 111 to recirculate the filtered saline solution in the second tank 103.

Dated this 31st Day of March 2023

Deepak Pawar
Agent for the Applicant
IN/PA-2052