An apparatus for preparing fruit includes a main housing with a cutting area containing a cutting assembly and a drive assembly, a removable cup assembly for inserting the fruit into the apparatus, and a removable drawer and tray for removing cut pieces of fruit from the apparatus after a cutting op
An apparatus for preparing fruit includes a main housing with a cutting area containing a cutting assembly and a drive assembly, a removable cup assembly for inserting the fruit into the apparatus, and a removable drawer and tray for removing cut pieces of fruit from the apparatus after a cutting operation. The apparatus includes a rinsing assembly for cleaning the fruit and the cutting assembly, and a deflector configured to route cut pieces of fruit into the tray and waste material through a disposal outlet. The cutting assembly is configured to perform one or more cutting operations depending on the type of fruit detected in the cup assembly: wedging for apples, lemons, limes, and pears, and cutting/peeling for oranges and grapefruits. The apparatus quickly prepares various fruits for consumption without requiring an operator to touch the cut pieces of fruit.
대표청구항▼
1. An apparatus for preparing a unit of fruit, comprising: a housing including a cup receptacle;a cup assembly received in the cup receptacle and adapted to support the unit of fruit after the unit of fruit is placed therein in substantial alignment along a first axis;a drive assembly including a la
1. An apparatus for preparing a unit of fruit, comprising: a housing including a cup receptacle;a cup assembly received in the cup receptacle and adapted to support the unit of fruit after the unit of fruit is placed therein in substantial alignment along a first axis;a drive assembly including a lance located within the housing and aligned with the first axis, the lance being rotatable about the first axis and reciprocally movable along the first axis relative to the cup assembly such that the lance is operable to impale the unit of fruit and retain the unit of fruit while in the housing;a first sensor located in the housing and adapted to sense a dimension of the unit of fruit as the lance moves the unit of fruit along the first axis;a controller operatively connected to the first sensor and adapted to determine a cutting operation for the unit of fruit, based on the sensed dimension;a cutting assembly located in the housing and operatively connected to the controller, the cutting assembly adapted to perform the determined cutting operation on the unit of fruit while the lance retains the unit of fruit, thereby to create consumable cut pieces of fruit; andan opening formed in the housing where the consumable cut pieces of the unit of fruit are retrievable by a user. 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a portion of the housing is transparent, so that the performing of the cutting operation is viewable from outside the housing. 3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cup assembly further comprises: at least one gripping arm moveable between a first position configured to permit insertion or removal of the unit of fruit from the cup assembly and a second position configured to engage the unit of fruit to retain the unit of fruit within the cup assembly. 4. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the cup assembly further comprises: a clutch mechanism configured to retain the at least one gripping arm in the second position until the lance of the drive assembly impales the unit of fruit. 5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cup assembly further comprises: a plurality of spray nozzles directed at the unit of fruit supported in the cup assembly. 6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the cup receptacle further comprises: a U-shaped pipe including a plurality of flow outlets directed at the unit of fruit supported in the cup assembly. 7. The apparatus of claim 6, further comprising: a rinsing assembly configured to receive water and mix the water with peracetic acid to form a cleaning fluid, the cleaning fluid being directed to the plurality of spray nozzles and the plurality of flow outlets. 8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the rinsing assembly includes at least one venturi for mixing the peracetic acid into the water. 9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cup assembly is removable from the cup receptacle to enable a user to place the unit of fruit therein, in alignment along the first axis. 10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first axis is vertical and the consumable cut pieces of fruit fall by gravity toward the opening. 11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drive assembly further includes a bridge member including a first set of drive gears configured to actuate translation of the lance along the first axis and a second set of drive gears configured to actuate rotation of the lance around the first axis. 12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the first set of drive gears is configured to translate the lance with respect to the bridge member as the bridge member translates such that the lance translates twice as far as the bridge member within the housing. 13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the lance further comprises a plurality of spaced toothed pinions configured to engage the first set of drive gears and the second set of drives gears, the spaced toothed pinions configured to enable independent or simultaneous rotation and translation of the lance. 14. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the lance of the drive assembly further comprises: a holding spike including at least two prongs extending away from the first axis; anda tip having at least two prongs configured to rotate into alignment with the prongs of the holding spike during impaling of the unit of fruit, and rotate out of alignment with the prongs of the holding spike after the unit of fruit has been impaled to securely hold the unit of fruit on the lance. 15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the lance further comprises a locking base coupled to the tip and the housing further comprises a locking receptacle configured to receive the locking base so that the second set of drive gears can rotate the lance with respect to the tip. 16. The apparatus of claim 15, further comprising: a second sensor located adjacent the bridge member and operatively connected to the controller, the second sensor adapted to sense when the bridge member is in a position where the locking base is received in the locking receptacle. 17. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cutting assembly further comprises a peeling blade for cutting faces from the unit of fruit, a coring blade for removing the core of the unit of fruit, a vertical segmenting blade for making vertical cuts through the unit of fruit, and a horizontal segmenting blade for making horizontal cuts through the unit of fruit. 18. The apparatus of claim 17, further comprising: a third sensor located adjacent the cutting assembly and operatively connected to the controller, the third sensor adapted to sense when the cutting assembly is in a pass through position configured to permit free passage of the unit of fruit past the cutting assembly along the first axis. 19. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cutting device further comprises a wedging blade configured to cut consumable wedges from the unit of fruit. 20. The apparatus of claim 19, further comprising: a third sensor located adjacent the cutting assembly and operatively connected to the controller, the third sensor adapted to sense when the cutting assembly is in a pass through position configured to permit free passage of the unit of fruit past the cutting assembly along the first axis. 21. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a drawer located adjacent the opening and adapted to hold a tray for collecting the consumable cut pieces of fruit. 22. The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising: a fourth sensor located adjacent the drawer and operatively connected to the controller, the fourth sensor adapted to sense the presence of a tray in the drawer prior to the cutting operation. 23. The apparatus of claim 21, further comprising: a deflector assembly configured to route the consumable cut pieces of fruit to the tray and also configured to route waste material to a disposal outlet. 24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the deflector assembly further comprises: a deflector including a funnel-shaped body and an opening, the opening configured to rotate about a deflector axis between communication with the tray and communication with the disposal outlet. 25. The apparatus of claim 24, further comprising: a fifth sensor located adjacent the deflector and operatively connected to the controller, the fifth sensor adapted to sense the location of the deflector to determine whether the opening of the deflector is in communication with the tray or the disposal outlet. 26. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising: a rinsing assembly including a plurality of spray nozzles disposed throughout the housing and configured to deliver various fluids to the unit of fruit or an interior of the housing. 27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the rinsing assembly further comprises: a primary water supply and a plurality of venturi configured to mix one or more of the various fluids: peracetic acid with water to form a cleaning liquid for cleaning the unit of fruit or the interior of the housing, and ascorbic acid with water to form a liquid configured to prevent browning of consumable wedges of fruit. 28. The apparatus of claim 27, further comprising: a sixth sensor located adjacent the rinsing assembly and operatively connected to the controller, the sixth sensor adapted to sense whether adequate water pressure is being supplied to the rinsing assembly to spray the various fluids through the spray nozzles. 29. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the rinsing assembly further comprises: a manual rinsing wand coupled to the housing and configured to be inserted into the interior of the housing through the cup receptacle when the cup assembly is removed, the manual rinsing wand operable to spray a directed flow of various fluids into the housing to remove stuck waste materials in the housing. 30. The apparatus of claim 29, further comprising: a pair of buttons operatively coupled to the controller and configured to stop all movement of the cutting assembly and the drive assembly when actuated to permit the manual rinsing wand to be used without interference from the apparatus. 31. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the opening defines a position within the housing adapted to hold a tray, the tray sized and shaped to collect the consumable cut pieces of fruit while in the position, the position and the tray being complementary in shape so as to accurately locate the tray in the position. 32. The apparatus of claim 31 further comprising: a fourth sensor associated with the opening and operatively connected to the controller, the fourth sensor adapted to sense the presence of the tray at the position and to relay a corresponding signal to the controller, to assure that the tray is in the position prior to initiation of the cutting operation.
Zettle,Jeffrey J.; Smith,David A.; Hodge,Donald E.; Schaper,Eric; Evers,Peter T., Container lid including venting and denesting features, and container having such a lid.
Paterson Douglas F. (Colorado Springs CO) Meissner Konrad (Lafayette CA) Redd William V. (Broomfield CO) Oliver Anthony D. (Rye CO) Lipford Michael S. (Pueblo CO) Perry Don A. (Manitou Springs CO) Sc, Pear processing method and apparatus.
Paterson Douglas F. (Colorado Springs CO) Meissner Konrad (Lafayette CA) Redd William V. (Broomfield CO) Oliver Anthony D. (Rye CO) Lipford Michael S. (Pueblo CO) Perry Don A. (Manitou Springs CO) Sc, Pear processing method and apparatus.
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