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EP-4593667-B1 - BULK FOOD DISPENSER WITH ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL

EP4593667B1EP 4593667 B1EP4593667 B1EP 4593667B1EP-4593667-B1

Inventors

  • HENDERSON, ERIC T.
  • LITTRELL, Carl
  • BRAMLEY, ALISTAIR
  • DONADIO, Nicolas
  • TEOBALDO, EMANUELE
  • GUTIERREZ QUINTANILLA, Luis Rene
  • LOPEZ SOTO, David Rodrigo

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20230829

Claims (7)

  1. A dispenser for stored product comprising: a hollow housing (22) having a cavity (24) configured to retain product; an outlet (52) provided at a lower portion of the housing with a proximal portion (48) adjacent the cavity and a distal portion (50) spaced from the proximal portion; a gate (62) disposed between the cavity and the distal portion or disposed at the distal portion; an actuator (100) coupled to the gate to selectively position the gate between a closed position and an open position, wherein in the closed position product disposed within the cavity cannot move to the outlet and in the open position product falls by gravity from the cavity to the outlet; and an environmental control unit to control an environmental control apparatus (112) to modulate temperature or oxygen content within the dispenser; characterised in that the dispenser further comprises: a moisture displacement apparatus (116) that includes a chamber (120) adjacent the cavity, in fluid communication with the cavity, and configured to retain an inert substance adapted to absorb moisture in the housing.
  2. The dispenser of claim 1 further comprising a biasing element to bias the gate in a closed position.
  3. The dispenser of claim 1 or 2 wherein the environmental control apparatus includes an oxygen displacement apparatus (114).
  4. The dispenser of claim 3 wherein the oxygen displacement apparatus comprises (a) a vacuum operably connected to the dispenser apparatus and effective to remove all or substantially all of the air (oxygen) present in the dispenser, (b) a system for delivering an inert gas to the dispenser apparatus, or both (a) and (b).
  5. The dispenser of any of the preceding claims further comprising an agitator (130) in contact with the product or associated with the gate such that when the gate is in an open position and the agitator is activated, movement of the product from the cavity to the outlet (52) is assisted.
  6. The dispenser of claim 5 wherein the agitator includes a wheel (134) rotatably attached to a rear of the housing within the cavity and having a plurality of pins (136) extending from the wheel toward a front of the assembly, the wheel being positioned adjacent the proximal portion of the outlet (52).
  7. The dispenser of claim 6 wherein the agitator includes at least one micro-vibrator (132) positioned on an external portion of the housing adjacent the gate such that activation of the micro-vibrator transmits vibrations to the gate and to product in contact with the gate to assist movement of the product from the cavity to the outlet (52).

Description

This disclosure relates to a dispensing apparatus and, more particularly, to a gravity feed food dispenser that includes environmental control to ameliorate the ingress of oxygen and/or moisture into the dispenser. The apparatus allows food that is present in the apparatus to flow under gravity to an outlet from which the product is dispensed. BACKGROUND Gravity fed bins for dispensing bulk materials are used to dispense a wide variety of materials having a range of sizes and aggregate make-ups as diverse as hardware components, e.g., nuts and bolts, to food, e.g., pastas, cereals, nuts, coffee (either beans or ground), dried soup mixes, candies, spices, and the like. Generally, the bins have an upper enclosed portion suitable to contain the product and to prevent handling or touching by the consumer with an outlet or chute at its lower end utilized to dispense the product. Depending on the product to be dispensed, gravity fed dispensing apparatuses are not suited for all types of products because they do not readily fall toward and through the outlet. In addition, when the product to be dispensed is a food product, there is a desire to maintain the freshness of the food product. In this regard, it is known that oxygen and moisture may have a negative effect on food products causing oxidation of fats and staleness of the food product. Accordingly, there is a need to provide environmental control systems for the dispensing apparatuses to combat the negative effects of oxygen and moisture. Relevant prior art can be found in US 6883686B2. The following description will describing the dispensing apparatus in terms of dispensing a food product and thus mention of a dispensing apparatus will refer to a food product dispensing apparatus unless specifically noted otherwise. SUMMARY Aspects and embodiments of the present invention are set out in the appended claims. These and other aspects and embodiments of the invention are also described herein. According to the invention the bulk food dispensing apparatus (the dispensing apparatus or dispenser) includes a housing defining a cavity, an opening having a proximal portion adjacent the cavity and a distal portion spaced from the proximal portion that defines an outlet, from which product is dispensed, usually into a consumer supplied receptacle. A gate is associated with the opening and is configured to be actuated between a closed position and an open position such that in the open position, food product within the cavity moves through the opening. In some instances, more than one gate may be provided. In this instance, there may be an interior gate located at or near the proximal portion of the opening and may be an exterior gate located at or near the distal portion of the opening and spaced from the interior gate. The exterior gate is configured to be actuated between a closed position and an open position such that in the open position, food product disposed between the interior gate and the exterior gate will pass through the outlet and into a provided receptacle for containing the food product. The dispensing apparatus may be provided with an agitator such that when the agitator is activated it assists the food product to move from the cavity toward and through the opening. In some instances, the agitator may be in contact with the food product (directly or indirectly), and/or may be associated with each or all the gates such that when the gate is or the gates are in an open position, the agitator is activated and operates to assist the food product to move from the cavity toward and through the opening. According to the invention the described bulk food dispensing apparatus includes an environmental control apparatus that includes a moisture displacement apparatus (may be referred to as the displacement apparatus). In an example not according to the invention, an oxygen displacement apparatus may include a vacuum operably connected to the dispensing apparatus and effective to remove all or substantially all of the air (oxygen) present in the apparatus. Alternatively or additionally, the oxygen displacement apparatus may include a system for delivering an air (oxygen) displacement substance (typically an inert gas) to the dispensing apparatus to displace the ambient air (containing oxygen) in the apparatus, thereby lessening oxidation of the stored food product. It will be appreciated by the skilled artisan that oxygen displacement apparatus will also be effective at removing moisture from the dispensing apparatus. According to the invention, the moisture displacement apparatus includes a chamber separated from the cavity but in fluid communication with the fluid cavity so that air in the cavity passes in and out of the chamber. The chamber is provided with a moisture absorbing material such as silica to remove and absorb moisture that may be present in the cavity. The chamber is provided with a sealable opening to facilitate insertion and removal of the moist