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EP-4740737-A1 - OVEN DEVICE FOR OBTAINING PANETTONE WITH A FLAT TOP DURING BAKING

EP4740737A1EP 4740737 A1EP4740737 A1EP 4740737A1EP-4740737-A1

Abstract

Oven device (D) for obtaining panettone or other similar baked products provided with a flat top, wherein said device is suitable for moving a lid (3) against the opening of a mold (4) filled with dough in order to prevent the dough from overflowing from the top of said mold during baking.

Inventors

  • CAMPISI, Federico
  • DE ANGELIS, Daniela
  • MALERBA, Giorgia

Assignees

  • Fabula S.r.l.

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20251106

Claims (9)

  1. Device for installation in the cooking chamber of ovens used for baking panettone and the like, wherein said device (D) comprises: - a supporting structure (1) comprising one or more pairs of vertical rods (1a) between which a plate (1b) disposed in vertical position is supported at the top by means of supporting means (M1); - an air piston (2) comprising a cylindrical liner (20) that hangs vertically from said plate (1b); wherein said liner (20) extends between a horizontal lower wall (20a) and a horizontal upper wall (20b) and accommodates a plunger (21) inferiorly supporting a respective stem (21a) that protrudes from said liner (20) through a through hole formed on the horizontal lower wall (20a); wherein, in said liner (20), said plunger (21) generates the presence of an airtight upper compartment (V1) and of a lower compartment (V2), on whose walls a vent valve (23) and a vacuum breaker valve (24) are provided; - a flat horizontal lid (3) mounted at the end of said stem (21a) of the air piston (2) and thus suitable for making alternate vertical travels in parallel direction; - one or more cup springs (22) engaged in said liner (20) in said lower compartment (V2) and suitable for preventing the plunger (21) from sliding freely downward, inside the liner (20), under the weight of the lid (3) mounted on said stem (21a); - at least one mold (4) for panettone or the like provided with an upper opening (4a) and disposed inferiorly to said lid (3), in a condition in which said mold (4) can be alternately disposed in a closing position, when said lid (3) is brought in contact against said upper opening (4a), and an opening position, as long as said lid (3) remains in a raised position with respect to said upper opening (4a) of the mold (4).
  2. The device according to claim 1, wherein said supporting means (M1) for said plate (1b) comprise a crossbar (1c) supported by said vertical rods (1a, 1b).
  3. The device according to claim 1, wherein said supporting means (M1) for said plate (1b) comprise a horizontal wall with continuous or grilled structure supported by said vertical rods (1a, 1b).
  4. The device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said device (D) comprises guiding means (M2) suitable for guiding the alternated vertical travels of the lid (3).
  5. The device according to claim 4, wherein said guiding means (M2) comprise said vertical rods (1a) and corresponding perforated fins (3a) projecting on the perimeter of the lid (3), wherein said perforated fins (3a) are suitable for being slidingly mated with said vertical rods (1a).
  6. The device according to claim 4, wherein said guiding means (M2) comprise two or more columns mounted on the inside of said vertical rods (1a) and respective holes provided in useful positions on the lid for slidingly accommodating said columns.
  7. The device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said lid (3) is provided at its lower flat surface with one or more recesses extending beyond the upper surface of said lid (3).
  8. The device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said device (D) comprises multiple molds (4) arranged in such a way as to suffer the simultaneous interference of said lid (3) when closed.
  9. Oven (F) for baking panettone and the like comprising a device (D) according to the preceding claims that is disposed inside the cooking chamber.

Description

The present invention relates to an oven device for obtaining panettone or other similar baked goods with a flat top. As it is well known, panettone, pandoro, and similar baked products are invariably provided with a rounded top, similar to a dome. Whereas such a morphological configuration of panettone and similar baked products is justified by the desire to respect a traditional shape that many consumers are fond of, on the other hand it is a limitation for the modernization and characterization of the appearance of these products. Otherwise said, when compared to each other, the panettone that are currently produced by different producers have very little originality to the point that even the most discerning consumers can only tell the difference in their origin by looking at the respective cardboard boxes and transparent protective bags because both the boxes and the bags are provided with graphics and brands designed to let consumers make an informed choice about the origin and quality of all the panettone available on the market. Starting from such an observation, consideration was given to the marketing potential of producing panettone with an unconventional shape that allows them to be immediately recognized as unique among all the panettone that continue to reproduce the traditional shape. In particular, it was considered that the morphological and visual characterization of an unconventional panettone may derive from the decision to replace the traditional dome-shaped top with a perfectly flat top. In fact, a panettone with such a kind of structure would definitely look more compact and less slender than a panettone with a traditional configuration, making it instantly recognizable on the market when compared to all the other kinds of panettone. In view of the above, the main purpose of the present invention is to devise a device that is capable of producing a panettone with a perfectly flat top wall during baking in an oven. A further purpose of the present invention is to ensure that the device is mounted in the baking chamber of a traditional oven and operates perfectly, according to the cyclical modes that will be described below, without requiring an external supply of electrical or pneumatic energy, and exploiting the temperature variations that occur inside the oven during the heating and cooling steps that are typical of a baking process. In any case, in order to better illustrate the peculiarities of the present invention, reference should be made to the methods that are currently used to bake a traditional panettone. The dough of such a panettone is poured into molds that are essentially bucket-shaped, and therefore have no lid. The rising of the dough during baking causes an increase in the volume of the dough such that part of the dough comes out of the opening of the respective mold to finally assume the dome-shaped top profile. By virtue of the technology in question, once it is placed inside the baking chamber of a traditional oven, the innovative device is capable of moving a lid that abuts against the upper opening of an underlying panettone mold and remains in such a position for the entire baking process. It is easy to understand that, as long as the lid is held in closing position, the provision of the lid prevents the dough loaded into the mold from rising freely out of the mold, and ensures that the dough is forced to suffer the interference of the flat inner surface of the lid, resulting in a panettone that can be defined as "flat-topped." Once the baking process is completed and the oven is turned off, the device according to the invention automatically enables the raising of the lid and the consequent removal of the mold from the oven, in preparation for the final extraction of the product from the mold. The main purpose of the present invention has been achieved in accordance with the characteristics listed in the attached independent claim 1. Advantageous embodiments of the invention appear in the dependent claims. For greater clarity, the description of the invention continues with reference to the attached drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only and are not limiting, wherein: Fig. 1 is an axonometric three-quarter view of the device in question;Fig. 2 is a section of Fig. 1 with plane A-A;Fig. 3 is the same as the previous one, except for it shows the device in question with the lid in raised position. With reference to Fig. 1, the device according to the invention (D) comprises a supporting structure (1) from which an air piston (2) hangs vertically, said air piston (2) being suitable for enabling the alternate travels of a horizontal lid (3) with respect to an underlying mold (4) for panettone or similar baked products, so as to alternately move said lid (3) between an operating position, wherein it abuts against the upper opening (4a) of the mold (4), and an idle position, wherein it frees the upper opening (4a) of the mold (4). In the preferred embodime