FORM - 2
THE PATENTS ACT, 1970
(39 of 1970)
&
The Patents Rules, 2003
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
(See Section 10 and Rule 13)
DOUGH GREASING DEVICE
HINDUSTAN UNILEVER LIMITED, a company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act, 1913 and having its registered office at Hindustan Unilever Limited, Unilever House, B.D. Sawant Marg, Chakala, Andheri (East), Mumbai - 400 099, Maharashtra, India
The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed.

FIELD OF INVENTION
The present invention relates to a bread processing device, particularly to a device for depositing a thin layer of greasing material onto the surface of a dough before depositing the dough into a baking pan.
The invention has been developed primarily for use in dough for making bread and will be described hereinafter with reference to this application. However, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited to this particular field of use.
BACKGROUND AND RELATED ART
Typically a bread making process includes mixing wheat flour with water, salt, yeast and other ingredients to form a dough mass. Dough of desired weight is divided from the dough mass and moulded. The moulded dough is placed in a baking pan for final proofing and baking. The process of de-panning removes the baked loaf from the baking pan, the baked loaf is then cooled and packed. During the final proofing stage the dough rises and expands and sticks to the sides of the baking pan. Releasing the baked bread adhering to the walls of the baking pan during the de-panning process leads to breakage damages. Greasing material applied at the interface of the dough and the surface of the baking pan provides for easy removal of the baked loaf and reduces breakage and production losses.
It is known to apply greasing material either to a surface of baking pan or onto the surface of a moulded dough. Application of the oil onto the baking pan by any known techniques results in a considerable surface of the baking pan not touched by the dough to be greased, this unused greasing material burns during the baking operation causing an unpleasant smell and may affect the flavour of the bread. An additional problem with the presence of unused greasing material during the baking process is the chemical breaking of the greasing material under heat and formation of carbon residue that deposits on the surface of the baking pan. Carbon residue deposit interferes with the ease of release of the baked product from the pan and further adds to the problem of breakages.

To overcome the problems associated with the greasing of the baking pan it is known in the art to provide the greasing material onto the dough surface in an attempt to reduce the levels of unused greasing material applied for the purpose of easy de-panning.
One such attempt was done in US2636470 {Rhodes, 1953). This patent discloses a dough greasing device having a plurality of separate and endless cooperating chain grease conveyor for carrying the greasing material from the reservoir onto the dough surface. This application teaches the uniform application of grease onto the entire dough surface. One limitation of this application is that the chain grease conveyor may become contaminated due to dough ingress and reduces the proper distribution of greasing material and is also difficult to clean.
It was found that the prior art devices carried a higher amount of the greasing material from the reservoir that dripped out from the conveyor and was wasted it was also found that the excess grease deposited on the surface of the dough remained on the baked loaf. Thus there is an unmet need for providing further reduced amount of greasing material on the dough surface while still providing the benefits of easy removal of the baked loaf from the baking pan and the baked loaf has further reduced amounts of unused greasing material on the surface.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a dough greasing device that provides for effective and easy de-panning of the baked product.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a dough greasing device that provides for minimizing the number of baked product lost due to breakage during the de-panning process.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide for a dough greasing device that reduces the formation of the carbon residue on the surface of the baking pan due to the deposition of unused greasing material.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a baked product having an improved flavour.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a dough greasing device that provides for reduced utilisation of the greasing material.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a dough greasing device that is simple in construction, in operation and in maintenance.
The present inventors have found that a dough greasing device having a wiping means contacting the conveyor belt carrying the greasing material above the greasing material level provides for a uniform and thin layer of the greasing material onto the dough surface. The inventors have surprisingly found that the dough greasing device according to the invention provides significant reduction in the amount of the greasing material utilised and deposited on the dough surface while still providing the benefits of easy removal of the baked bread from the baking pan.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the first aspect, the present invention provides a dough greasing device comprising:
a. a reservoir comprising a greasing material;
b. a surface positioned outside and adjacent to the reservoir adapted for
supporting a dough;
c. a pair of rollers spatially separated from each other and positioned
adjacent the walls of the reservoir and one roller of the pair of rollers is
connected to a driving means;
d. an endless conveyor belt running between the pair of rollers in operation;
e. a top surface of a portion of said endless conveyor belt inside the reservoir
and below the greasing material level contacts a supporting means
connected to a wall of the reservoir and said endless conveyor belt carries

a part of the greasing material above the level of the greasing material in
operation; and, f. a further portion of the endless conveyor belt outside the reservoir contacts
the dough and transfers the greasing material onto the dough surface in
operation; wherein a wiping means positioned above the greasing material level contacts the conveyor belt carrying the greasing material.
According to a second aspect, the present invention provides for a method for providing a layer of greasing material on a dough by the dough greasing device of the first aspect including the steps of:
a. rotating a rafter connected1 to a driving means;
b. displacing a portion of an endless conveyor belt running over a pair of
rollers below a greasing material level inside a reservoir comprising the
greasing material;
c. aligning the portion of the endless conveyor belt below the level of the
greasing material by contacting a top surface of the portion of the endless
conveyor belt with a supporting means;
d. carrying a part of the greasing material by the portion of the endless
conveyor belt below the greasing material level;
e. moving the portion of the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the
greasing material above the level of the greasing material;
f. contacting the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the greasing
material with a wiping means positioned above the greasing material level
and removing a part of the greasing material;
g. moving the portion of the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the
greasing material outside the reservoir;
h. transferring the greasing material from the portion of the endless conveyor
belt carrying the greasing material onto a dough placed on a surface. i. repeating steps (b) to (h).

For avoidance of doubt by wiping means is meant a means for removing a part of the greasing material absorbed and carried on the portion of the endless conveyor belt above the greasing material level. Any suitable means for wiping, scraping or absorbing excess grease from the endless conveyor belt can be used as a wiping means according to the present invention.
The term "comprising" is meant not to be limiting to any subsequently stated elements but
rather to encompass non-specified elements of major or minor functional importance. In
other words the listed steps, elements or options need not be exhaustive. Whenever the
words "including" or "having" are used, these terms are meant to be equivalent to
"comprising" as defined above.
Except fn the operating and comparative examples, or where otherwise explicitly
indicated, all numbers in this description indicating amounts of material ought to be
understood as modified by the word "about".
It should be noted that in specifying any range of concentration or amount, any particular
upper concentration can be associated with any particular lower concentration or amount.
The terms weight percent, percent by weight, % by weight, wt%, and the like are
synonyms that refer to the concentration of a substance as the weight of that substance
divided by the weight of the composition and multiplied by 100.
The recitation of numerical ranges by endpoints includes all numbers subsumed within
that range (e.g. 1 to 5 includes 1, 1.5, 2, 2.75, 3, 3.80, 4, and 5).
As used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms "a", "an", and
"the" include plural referents unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for
example, reference to a composition containing "a compound" includes a mixture of two
or more compounds. As used in this specification and the appended claims, the term "or"
is generally employed in its sense including "and/or" unless the content clearly dictates
otherwise.
For a more complete understanding of the above and other features and advantages of the invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description of preferred embodiments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
According to the first aspect, the present invention provides for a dough greasing device having a reservoir, a surface, a pair of rollers, a driving means, an endless conveyor belt, a supporting means and a wiping means.
Reservoir:
The dough greasing device includes a reservoir comprising a greasing material. The reservoir may be of any known shape examples include but are not limited to cylindrical, square or rectangular. The material of construction of the reservoir is preferably of a non-reactive rustproof food grade metal preferably stainless steel example; SS 304 grade. The length of the reservoir is preferably 0.15 meters to 1.5 meters more preferably from 0.4 meters to 1 meter. The reservoir is preferably removably mounted on a height adjustment means. The height adjustment means preferably adjusts the distance between the surface for supporting the dough and the reservoir depending on the diameter of the dough to be greased. It is preferred that the reservoir is removable from the height adjustment means for periodic cleaning.
The reservoir comprises a greasing material. The greasing material may be manually added into the reservoir or by means of a pump.
Greasing material:
The greasing material is preferably selected from a food grade mineral oil, vegetable oil, edible triglyceride or emulsions thereof. Preferably the greasing material is an edible triglyceride more preferably a liquid vegetable oil. It is preferred that the vegetable oil is a palm oil, soybean oil or their derivatives. It is preferred that the greasing material has a high smoke point of 230°C to 260°C. It is also preferred that the greasing material does not form fat crystals at temperatures above 10°C. It is preferred that the greasing material has a viscosity range of 0.5 cps to 100000 cps and most preferably the viscosity of the greasing material is in the range of 5 cps to 5000 cps.

The greasing material may preferably be a mixture of vegetable oil, mineral oil, lecithin, and antioxidants. A preferred greasing material composition includes soybean oil or its derivatives, food grade mineral oil with a high smoke point and antioxidants such as tertiary butyl hydroquinone (THBQ). It is also preferred that the greasing material further includes an emulsifier. Emulsifiers may be selected from lecithin or monoglycerides. Emulsifiers further improve the release benefits of the baked loaf from the baking pan.
Supporting means:
The dough greasing device includes a supporting means connected to a wall of the reservoir. The supporting means contacts a top surface of a portion of an endless conveyor belt inside the reservoir and below the greasing material level. The length of the supporting means is preferably not less than the width of the conveyor belt. Preferably the length of the supporting means is 0.2 meters to 0.7 meters. Preferably the supporting means is a support roller. Preferably the dough greasing device of the present invention includes two supporting means.
Pair of rollers:
The dough greasing device includes a pair of rollers spatially separated from each other and positioned adjacent the walls of the reservoir and one roller of the pair of rollers is connected to a driving means. The speed of rotation of the roller connected to the driving means is 16 rotations per minute to 1400 rotations per minute preferably 60 rotations per minute to 240 rotations per minute. Preferably the roller connected to the driving means is mounted on a flang bearing.
The other roller of the pair of rollers is preferably mounted on a height adjustment means fixed to a wall of the reservoir. The height adjustment means is preferably movable in an upward and downward direction by means of a nut and bolt arrangement.

Idler roller:
The dough greasing device of the present invention preferably includes an idler roller. The idler roller is preferably positioned outside and adjacent a bottom of the reservoir for providing the conveyor belt with sufficient taut in operation.
Endless Conveyor belt:
The dough greasing device includes an endless conveyor belt running between the pair of rollers. The endless conveyor belt is preferably made of any absorbent material preferably fabric still preferably a canvas material.
In operation, the rotation of the roller connected to the driving means displaces a portion of the endless conveyor belt inside the reservoir below the greasing material level and a top surface of the portion of the endless conveyor belt below the greasing material level contacts the supporting means. A further portion of the endless conveyor belt outside the reservoir contacts the dough transfers the greasing material onto the dough surface in operation.
The endless conveyor belt may be of any suitable length preferably it is of such length that the further portion of the endless conveyor belt outside the reservoir and contacting the dough has suitable taut and the portion of the conveyor belt inside the reservoir and below the greasing material level has sufficient slack. The width of the conveyor belt is preferably 0.2 meter to 2 meters preferably 0.25 meter to 0.6 meter.
Wiping means:
The dough greasing device includes a wiping means positioned above the greasing material level contacts the conveyor belt carrying the greasing material. Preferably the wiping means is juxtaposed adjacent the roller connected to the driving means. Preferably a further wiping means is positioned to contact the conveyor belt intermediate the surface of the greasing material and the roller connected to the driving means. Preferably the wiping means is selected from a roller, brush comprising bristles or a scrapper. Preferably the wiping means is a brush. It is preferred that the wiping means juxtaposed adjacent the roller connected to the driving means is a brush. Preferably the

length of the wiping means is equal to the width of the endless conveyor belt. The wiping means is preferably positioned to contact the endless conveyor belt at an angle of not more than 90°.
Driving means:
The dough greasing device includes a driving means connected to one roller of the pair of rollers. The driving means is preferably a motor. The motor may preferably be an electrical, pneumatic or a hydraulic motor.
Surface:
The dough greasing device includes a surface positioned outside and adjacent to the reservoir adapted for supporting a dough. The surface is preferably positioned transversely below the reservoir. The surface may be fixed or moving. The surface is preferably a conveyor belt.
Height adjustment means:
Preferably the reservoir is mounted on a height adjustment means for varying the distance between the portion of the endless conveyor belt outside the reservoir carrying the greasing material and the surface for supporting the dough. Preferably the height adjustment means a leg having a nut and bolt arrangement or is a slideable leg extension. When the height adjustment means is a nut and bolt arrangement the height of the reservoir mounted on the height adjustment means is controlled by rotating the nut by a known amounts of rotations. Preferably the height adjustment means provides for adjusting the distance between the portion of the conveyor belt carrying the greasing material and the surface for supporting the dough from 0.02 meters to 0.2 meters.
According to a second aspect the present invention provides for a method of greasing a dough including the steps of rotating a roller connected to a driving means; displacing a portion of an endless conveyor belt running over a pair of rollers below a greasing material level inside a reservoir comprising the greasing material; aligning the portion of the endless conveyor belt below the level of the greasing material by contacting a top surface of the portion of the endless conveyor belt with a supporting means;

carrying a part of the greasing materially the portion of the endless conveyor belt below the greasing material level; moving the portion of the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the greasing material above the level of the greasing material; contacting the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the greasing material with a wiping means positioned above the greasing material level and removing a part of the greasing material; moving the portion of the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the greasing material outside the reservoir; transferring the greasing material from the portion of the endless conveyor belt carrying the greasing material onto a dough placed on a surface.
The dough greasing device is primarily meant for the purpose of providing a layer of greasing material on a dough surface and disclosed device are designed for this purpose. Accordingly, the dough greasing device is primarily meant for dough, but with appropriate modifications, it can be made fit for use for providing a greasing material on other baked products.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
For better understanding, the invention will now be described by way of non-limiting embodiments of dough oiling device, reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a front (plan) view of a first preferred embodiment of the dough oiling device;
Figure 2 is an isometric view of a portion of the dough greasing device of Figure 1 showing the brush wiping means.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES
In all the figures, like numerals indicate like features.
Referring now to figure-1, the dough greasing device consists of a surface (1) supporting a dough (2). A reservoir (3) is mounted above the surface (1) on a height adjustment means (4a, 4b). A greasing material is filled inside the reservoir (3) to a greasing material level (5). A pair of rollers (6a, 6b) are placed spatially separated from each other and mounted adjacent the reservoir (3). A roller (6a) of the pair of rollers is connected to a driving means (not shown in this view) and the other roller (6b) of the pair of rollers is mounted on a height adjustment means (7) fixed on the wall of the reservoir (3). An endless conveyor belt (8) runs between the pair of rollers (6a, 6b). Supporting means (10a, 10b) is connected to the wall of the reservoir (3). Below the greasing material level (5) a top surface of a portion of the endless conveyor belt (9) contacts the supporting means (10a, 10b). With the help of the supporting means (10a, 10b) a portion of the endless conveyor belt is immersed below the greasing material level (5) and the endless conveyor belt carries a part of the greasing material above the greasing material level. A wiping means (12) positioned intermediate the roller connected to the driving means and the surface of the greasing material contacts a portion of the endless conveyor belt (11). The portion of the endless conveyor belt (11) also contacts another wiping (13) means juxtaposed adjacent the roller (6a) connected to the driving means. A pair of idlers (15a, 15b) positioned adjacent a bottom of the reservoir engages with the endless conveyor belt outside the reservoir (3) and maintains the endless conveyor belt in a taut condition. A portion of the endless conveyor belt (14) outside the reservoir (3) and carrying the greasing material in use contacts the dough (2) for transferring the greasing material to a surface of the dough (2).

In operation, the rotation of the roller (6a) of the pair of rollers operatively connected to the driving means moves the endless conveyor belt (8) between the pair of rollers (6a, 6b) in a direction towards the roller connected to the means (6a). During one such complete rotation of the endless conveyor belt (8) between the pair of rollers (6a, 6b) a portion of the conveyor (8) adjacent the other roller (6b) travels inside the reservoir towards the supporting means (10a, 10b) and a top surface (9) of the portion of the endless conveyor belt below the greasing material level (5) contacts the supporting means (10a, 10b). The supporting means (10a, 10b) aligns the portion of the endless conveyor belt (9) below the greasing material level (7) and the moving endless conveyor belt carrier a part of the greasing material above the greasing material level and towards a roller wiping means (12) positioned to contact the conveyor belt carrying the greasing material (11) inside the reservoir and intermediate the roller connected to the driving means (6a) and the greasing material level (5). The portion of the conveyor belt (11) leaving the roller wiping means (12) contacts the brush wiping means (13) juxtaposed adjacent the roller connected to the driving means (6a). The portion of the conveyor belt leaving the brush wiping means moves towards the outside of the reservoir (3) and is maintained in a taut position by a pair of idler rollers (15a, 15b) positioned adjacent the bottom of the reservoir, the conveyor belt carrying the greasing material outside the reservoir (14) contacts a dough (2) supported on a surface (1) and transfers the greasing material to the surface of the dough (2). The portion of the conveyor belt after transferring the greasing material moves towards the other roller (6b) and then inside the reservoir (2).
Figure 2 is an isometric view of a portion of the dough greasing device of Figure 1 showing the brush wiping means (13). It can be seen that the brush wiping means (13) is juxtaposed adjacent the roller (6a) connected to driving means. The bristles (16) of the brush wiping means (13) are positioned to contact the roller (6a) connected to the driving means at an angle of 45°.

EXAMPLES
Evaluation of oil consumption using the comparative examples and dough greasing device according to the present invention:
In Example 1 according to the present invention, a dough greasing device as shown in Figure 1 was taken and used to determine the amount of oil consumed. A known volume of palm oil (a1) was used as the greasing material and filled manually into the reservoir of the dough greasing device. The amount of the palm oil (a1) added was recorded. An electrically driven motor was connected to one roller of the pair of rollers and was rotated at a speed of 200 rotations per minute. An endless conveyor belt made of canvas ran between the pair of rollers. A portion of the endless conveyor belt inside the reservoir was immersed below the level of palm oil and a part of the palm oil was absorbed and was carried above the palm oil level and the endless conveyor belt carrying the palm oil moved towards the roller connected to the driving means. A part of the palm oil absorbed by the portion of the endless conveyor belt was removed by a roller wiping means situated intermediate to the roller connected to the electric motor and the surface of the palm oil and was palm oil removed from the endless conveyor belt was collected inside the reservoir. A further part of the palm oil absorbed on the portion of the endless conveyor belt was removed by a brush wiping means placed juxtaposed adjacent the roller connected to the driving means. The brush wiping means was at an angle of 45° with the roller. The remaining palm oil on the conveyor belt was carried outside the reservoir and towards the dough placed on a moving conveyor belt. The dough was rotated by the movement of the endless conveyor belt and the surface of the dough was applied with the palm oil.
In a second Example 2 according to the present invention the dough greasing device similar to the Example 1 was used but had only the brush wiping means and no roller wiping means. All other features of Example 1 remained unchanged.

In a third Example 3 according to the present invention the dough greasing device was similar to the Example 1 but had only the roller wiping means and no brush wiping means. All other features of Example 1 remained unchanged.
In a comparative Example A the dough greasing device similar to the Example 1 was used but without the roller wiping means and the brush wiping means. All other features of Example 1 remained unchanged.
Each of the above described dough greasing device was operated for 3 hours and were used to provide a thin layer of palm oil on 500 units of moulded dough placed on the moving conveyor belt for supporting the dough. The volume of oil (in litres) consumed at intervals of 1 hour was measured . The total oil consumed was calculated by using the formula:
Total palm oil consumed at time (l) (in litres) = (Initial volume of palm oil taken in the reservoir, in litres) - (volume of palm oil remaining in the reservoir at time (l), in litres)
The data of volume of palm oil consumed is provided in Table 1. The weight (in grams) of each dough before oiling was recorded and the weight after applying the thin layer of the greasing material was also recorded and the difference between the two weights was used to determine the amount of palm oil applied on the dough. The average amount of oil deposited on the dough is provided in Table 2.

TABLE 1: Evaluation of the amount of oil consumed with and without the wiping means.

Time interval Ex A Ex 2 Ex 3 Ex1
After 1 hour 3.56 2.99 2.48 1.91
After 2 hours 7.12 5.97 4.96 3.81
After 3 hours 10.68 8.94 7.45 5.71
It is clearly seen from the results in Table 1 that the dough greasing device according to the present invention having a wiping means (Ex 2, Ex 3, Ex 1) consumes significantly lower amounts of greasing material than the dough oiling device without the wiping means.
Table 2: Evaluation of the amount of oil deposited on a dough with and without the wiping means

For 500 units of moulded dough Ex A Ex 2 Ex 3 Ex1
Average weight before greasing (in grams) 398.82 398.6 396.62 395.60
Average weight after greasing (in grams) 399.94 399.7 397.67 396.63
Average oil applied on the dough (in grams) 1.12 1.1 1.05 1.03
It is clearly seen from the results on Table 2 that the dough greasing device according to the present invention having a wiping means (Ex 2, 3 and 1) provides reduced amounts of greasing material on the surface of the dough as compared to the dough greasing device without the wiping means (Ex A). It was also found that the dough greasing device according to the present invention provides the dough surface with a uniform thin layer of the greasing material and provides for bread loaf which are easier to depan.

We claim:
1. A dough greasing device comprising:
a. a reservoir comprising a greasing material;
b. a surface positioned outside and adjacent to the reservoir adapted for
supporting a dough;
c. a pair of rollers spatially separated from each other and positioned
adjacent the walls of the reservoir and one roller of the pair of rollers is
connected to a driving means;
d. an endless conveyor belt running between the pair of rollers in operation;
e. a top surface of a portion of said endless conveyor belt inside the reservoir
and below the greasing material level contacts a supporting means
connected to a wall of the reservoir and said endless conveyor belt carries
a part of the greasing material above the level of the greasing material in
operation; and,
f. a further portion of the endless conveyor belt outside the reservoir contacts
the dough and transfers the greasing material onto the dough surface in
operation;
wherein a wiping means positioned above the greasing material level contacts the conveyor belt carrying the greasing material.
2. A dough greasing device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the wiping means is juxtaposed adjacent the roller connected to the driving means.
3. A dough greasing device as claimed in claim 1 or 2 comprises a further wiping means positioned to contact the conveyor belt intermediate the surface of the greasing material and the roller connected to the driving means.
4. A dough greasing device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the wiping means is a roller, brush comprising bristles or a scrapper.

5. A dough greasing device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein wiping means juxtaposed adjacent the roffer connected to the driving means is a brush.
6. A dough greasing device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the length of said wiping means is equal to the width of the endless conveyor belt.
7. A dough greasing device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein said supporting means is a support roller.
6. A dough greasing device as claimed any one of the preceding claims wherein the other roller of the pair of rollers is mounted on a height adjustment means fixed to a wall of the reservoir.
9. A dough greasing device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein said surface is a conveyor belt.
10. A method for providing a layer of greasing material on a dough by the dough greasing device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims comprising the steps of:
a. rotating a roller connected to a driving means;
b. displacing a portion of an endless conveyor belt running over a pair of
rollers below a greasing material level inside a reservoir comprising the
greasing material;
c. aligning the portion of the endless conveyor belt below the level of the
greasing material by contacting a top surface of the portion of the endless
conveyor belt with a supporting means;
d. carrying a part of the greasing material by the portion of the endless
conveyor belt below the greasing material level;
e. moving the portion of the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the
greasing material above the level of the greasing material;

f. contacting the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the greasing
material with a wiping means positioned above the greasing material level
and removing a part of the greasing material;
g. moving the portion of the endless conveyor belt carrying a part of the
greasing materia! outside the reservoir;
h. transferring the greasing material from the portion of the endless conveyor
belt carrying the greasing material onto a dough placed on a surface. i. repeating steps (b) to (h).