The present invention relates to a frozen soft-serve confection dispensing machine where the soft serve confection is a flavored frozen soft-serve confection having a base selected from ice creams, frozen yogurts, sorbets and gelatos. The dispensing machine comprises one or more base hoppers, each base hopper being linked to a dedicated detachable base cartridge, a dedicated plurality of detachable flavour cartridges containing a flavour mix and a dedicated mixing chamber and storage slot associated with each detachable flavour cartridge. The detachable base cartridge and plurality of flavour cartridges are connected to one of the base hoppers. Control means are provided to enable a user to select a flavour mix from one of the dedicated flavour cartridges, and to cause the base and selected flavour mix to be mixed in the dedicated mixing chamber and then storing and refrigerating the mixture of the base and flavour mix in the storage slots to form a mixed frozen soft-serve confection for dispensing.

The present invention relates to a machine for the production of a liquid or semi-liquid food product in a first environment and the supply of said food product in a second environment, wherein the second environment is in a remote position with respect to the first environment.

An interactive frozen confectionery vending machine with a freezer enclosure, a delivery and toppings dispensing enclosure and a control system enclosure. A programmable control system allows a customer to select a frozen confectionery cup stored within the freezer enclosure and to select a hard and soft topping that are automatically dispensed into the cup and the cup is delivered to the waiting customer through a customer access door that closes after the transaction is completed. A centrally located gear motor rotates an arm that terminates in a cup. The cup receives a topping from a canister and then rotates to drop the topping into the frozen confectionery cup. A soft topping is pumped via flexible liquid topping delivery tubes into a dispensing arm located above the frozen confectionery cup. A standard payment system and touch screen allow the customer to pay for and select frozen confectionery and toppings.

There is described an apparatus for dispensing a food product from a container loaded into the apparatus. The apparatus comprises a first sensor for sensing electrically conductive material, wherein the first sensor is arranged to sense whether a first section of electrically conductive material has been removed from covering an aperture in the container to enable the food product to be dispensed by the apparatus through the aperture.

A method for filling a barrel of a frozen beverage dispenser to create a beverage. The method includes determining a target brix level for the beverage, determining a starting fill setting for a supply line that fills the barrel, and detecting a current condition within at least one of the supply line and the barrel. The method further includes calculating an adjusted fill setting by adjusting the starting fill setting for the supply line based on the current condition detected, and operating the supply line at the adjusted fill setting to fill the barrel such that the target brix level is achieved within the barrel.

An ice-cream vending machine with an insulated and refrigerated bottom half housing containing stacks of pre-portioned ice-cream supported by a plurality of circular platforms and a top half housing containing radially deposed topping storage bins, a topping retrieval mechanism, a centrally located stacked cup storage tube and a centrally located cup holding platform. The topping retrieval mechanism with a topping receiving cup is attached to a horizontally disposed telescoping arm The telescoping arm engages a radially disposed drive mechanism that allows the topping receiving cup to access a selected bin and deliver the topping to a portion of ice-cream. The ice-cream portions are retrieved one at a time from the refrigerated bottom half housing and delivered via an ice-cream delivery mechanism to a centrally located ice-cream cup.

A method for making ice cream including a basic flavor in which an additional flavor of a different type is inserted includes the following steps: preparing a container for processing the basic ice cream product; cooling and stirring a basic preparation inside processing container to make a basic ice cream product; preparing a hermetically sealed capsule containing an additional flavor; opening the capsule; simultaneously transferring a portion of the basic ice cream from the processing container to the serving container and the additional flavor from the open capsule to the serving container, wherein the simultaneous transferring step comprises a step of delivering the additional flavor into a first predetermined spatial region and a step of delivering the basic ice cream into a second spatial region which contains the first spatial region, so that the additional flavor is fed into the basic ice cream in the serving container.

A process for mass production of round portions of frozen confection. The portions are characterized by an artisanal hand-scooped appearance and distinctiveness, and surface melting characteristics comparable to the manually scooped product. These units are manufactured by hardening in molds that introduce particular features of shape and texture. Furthermore the mold composition allows preservation of subtle differences that result from variations in each portion's internal pressure when the confection expands during freezing.

Equipment for processing food creams, which comprises a tub (11) housed in a removable manner inside a containment structure (2) and comprising a side wall (15), which is provided at the top with an access aperture (20) for loading the cream and is closed at the bottom by a bottom wall (17) provided with an exit aperture (22), through which the cream is dispensed outside the tub (11); cooling means (21) operatively associated with the tub (11) to absorb heat from the cream; an obturator (23) operatively connected to the bottom wall (17) of the tub (11) and movable between a closed position, in which it occludes the exit aperture (22) of the bottom wall (17), and an open position, in which it leaves the opening of the exit aperture (22) free in order to allow the cream to come out of the tub (11); a mixing body (30), rotatably housed inside the tub (11) and provided with a thrust surface (31) tilted and facing towards the bottom wall (17) of the tub (11); moving means (32) mechanically connected to the mixing body (30) and operable, when the obturator (23) is in the open position, to make the mixing body (30) rotate in a first direction of rotation (R1) in which the thrust surface (31) pushes the cream to descend through the exit aperture (22) of the bottom wall (17) of the tub (11).

The present disclosure relates to a method for preparing an ice cream cone, formed by a cone-shaped wafer and a layer of chocolate arranged on the inner face and upper edge of said wafer, with ice cream inside the ice cream cone. Another object of the invention is the ice cream cone obtained from said process.