A machine for the production of liquid, semi-liquid or pasty solid food products is described. The machine includes a working container provided with an internal stirrer and externally with heat exchange means, an inlet opening in fluid communication with means for feeding a base food mixture into the container, a first outlet opening for a finished food product and a second outlet opening or a washing liquid. The machine further includes an automatic device for washing the feeding means and the container, and the automatic device has a circuit and a pump for recirculating the washing liquid and means for heating the recirculated washing liquid. A method for cleaning a machine of the aforementioned type is also described.

Systems and methods have demonstrated the capability of rapidly cooling the contents of pods containing the ingredients for food and drinks. Some machines include a refrigeration system to cool food or drink in a pod. Some machines include an evaporator of the refrigeration system, the evaporator including an inlet port to receive refrigerant and an outlet port to discharge refrigerant. Some machines include a processor controlling the refrigeration system. In some examples, the refrigeration system is operable to apply a freezing cycle to the food or drink in which refrigerant flows through the evaporator exchanging heat from ingredients in the pod to the refrigerant causing a temperature difference between an evaporator inlet temperature and an evaporator outlet temperature.

Systems and methods have demonstrated the capability of rapidly cooling the contents of pods containing the ingredients for food and drinks.

A machine for making liquid or semi-liquid food products includes a processing chamber; a frame defining an opening to the chamber; a stirrer mounted inside the chamber; a cooling system including a heat exchanger associated with the chamber; a closing device connected to the frame and movable between a closed configuration occlude the opening, and an open configuration allowing access to the chamber through the opening. The closing device includes a door hinged to the frame. A retaining device acts on the closing device to maintain the closed configuration. The retaining device includes a rotary element, connected to one between the door and the frame and a stop provided on the other. The rotary element is rotatable between a retaining configuration, engaging the stop to stop the opening of the door, and a disengaged configuration, disengaged from the stop to allow opening of the door.

A pneumatically actuated valve includes a valve body an inlet duct connected to the valve body and an outlet duct connected to the same valve body, shut-off means acting to selectively interrupt or allow the connection between the inlet duct and the outlet duct, a control chamber associated with the valve body and including: a first deformable membrane and a second deformable membrane which are adapted to form a flexible wall delimiting a closed, sealed space inside the control chamber and which operate on the shut-off means;
the valve including a spacing element interposed between the first deformable membrane and the second deformable membrane to define an intermediate chamber between the first deformable membrane and the second deformable membrane, the intermediate chamber being without fluid sealing.

A control method for a viscous semi-liquid frozen or hot food dispenser comprising a stirring means configured to stir the food, a motor (50) configured to drive the stirring means to rotate, a refrigerating means or heating means configured to input cold energy or heat energy into the food, a rotation speed sensor (80) configured to detect a stirring speed, and a temperature sensor (13) configured to detect the food temperature, the control method comprising the steps of: a) refrigerating or heating the food by the refrigerating means or heating means; b) comparing the food temperature detected by the temperature sensor (13) with a target preset value of the food temperature, and determining to continue the refrigeration or heating, or to stop the refrigeration or heating and to keep stopping for a preset time; c) intervening by corresponding adjustment of the target preset value when a data set collected from the rotation speed sensor (80) shows that change trend of the rotation speed meets predefined intervention conditions; and d) returning to step a) for the next cycle. The control method for a viscous semi-liquid food dispenser is capable of controlling viscosity of food accurately and reliably to maintain consistence of the characteristics of the dispensed product and minimize the influence from the environment as much as possible.

A stick insertion device (1) for inserting a stick (11) into an ice cream product (3) extruded from an extrusion jet (7) and having a height seen in the extrusion direction (9) of the extrusion jet (7), and at least one end surface (5) which is substantially parallel to the extrusion direction (9) and into which the stick (11) is inserted with orientation substantially perpendicular to the extrusion direction (9), wherein the stick insertion device (1) comprises: a stick pusher (15), capable of making a linear and reciprocating movement, an actuator (17) with a first and a secondary outer position, used to activate the stick pusher (15), a servo mechanism (19) for controlling the actuator's (17) movement, a control unit (21), connected to the servo mechanism (19), characterised in that the stick insertion device (1) comprises at least one sensor (23) for measurement of the stick's (11) position in relation to the ice cream product's (3) height, horizontal position in relation to the ice cream products (3) end surface (5) and angle (65) in relation to the ice cream products (3) end surface (5), that the control unit (21) is connected to the at least one sensor (23) and the servo mechanism (19), that the control unit (21) is configured to control the servo mechanism's (19) stroke length based on signals from the at least one sensor (23), and that the control unit (21) is configured to control the servo mechanism's (19) start time and end time for the insertion of the stick (11) based on signals from the aforementioned at least one sensor (23).

An ice cream manufacturing apparatus, an ice cream manufacturing method, and an ice cream drawing method. An apparatus for manufacturing ice cream includes: a dasher positioned in a cylinder and agitating a liquefied original ice cream liquid and air input into the sealed cylinder; a dasher motor rotating the dasher; a motor RPM control means controlling a frequency of the dasher motor; a dasher motor load measuring means measuring a load of the dasher motor; and a controller determining a rotational speed change time of the dasher motor based on the load measured by the dasher motor load measuring means and controlling the motor RPM control means so as to change the frequency of the dasher motor to a predetermined frequency when the change of the rotational speed of the dasher motor is determined.

A frozen food product dispensing machine includes a housing, a freezer barrel disposed within the housing, a plurality of drawers, and a manifold comprising a plurality of inlets and one outlet. The plurality of drawers are disposed within and slidably coupled to the housing and configured to each support a liquid food product mix reservoir. The inlets are each fluidly coupled to one of the liquid food product mix reservoirs, and the outlet is fluidly coupled to the freezer barrel to supply liquid food product mix from all of the liquid food product mix reservoirs to the freezer barrel.

The present invention relates to an apparatus for producing edible ice products comprising: (a) a thermally insulated food grade material chamber; (b) at least one atomizing beverage nozzle (s) inserted in said thermally insulated chamber for spraying beverage droplets into said thermally insulated chamber; (c) at least one beverage valve(s), disposed between a beverage source and said atomizing beverage nozzle (s), for controlling the beverage flow rate into said chamber; (d) at least one gas expansion nozzle (s), inserted in said thermally insulated chamber, for expanding the gas in its liquid state to its gaseous state, and for jetting gas on said beverage droplets, in said thermally insulated chamber; (e) at least one gas flow regulator(s), disposed between a gas source and said gas nozzle (s) for regulating the gas flow rate into said gas expansion nozzle (s); (f) a controller for controlling said beverage valve (s) and said gas flow regulator (s); and (g) wherein said controller controls said beverage valve (s) and said gas flow regulator(s) for ensuring that said sprayed beverage droplets meet the jetted gas for freezing said droplets for forming a texture controlled edible ice product in said thermally insulated chamber.