Dishwashing unit for granule dishwashing machine

AREA OF INVENTION

The present invention relates to a dishwashing unit, and more specifically to a dishwashing unit for granule dishwasher machines.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Granule dishwasher units or granule potwasher units are known per se. These dishwasher units use specially designed plastic granules or the like that are thrown with high impact together with a clean liquid and/or water towards the dish to be cleanded in order to clean the dish. EP-Bl-O 169 847 discloses such an apparatus and method.

Before the first use, the granule dishwasher machine is filled with an amount of the plastic granules. While the dishwasher machine is used, the plastic granules are exposed to wear and small pieces of the plastic granules will wear off. As a result, the amount of granules decreases and the washing effect deteriorates.

With maintenance of the granule dishwasher machines, granules may be added continuously or at frequent intervals. This may take place when the granule dishwasher machine is located in institutional kitchens, such as schools, hospitals, nursing homes etc., where the staff handling the dishwasher machine is experienced and competent .

Another group of granule dishwasher machine users are restaurants. Granule dishwasher machines used in restaurants may in many instances be not very well maintained, due to both the lack of experience and competence of the staff, but also due to the usage pattern of the granule dishwasher machines. The granule dishwasher machines in restaurants are sometimes used throughout the

day, seven days a week, whereas the granule dishwasher machines in institutional kitchens may be used once or twice a day, five days a week. In restaurants, the staff often dishes the dish twice in the granule dishwasher machine when the dishwashing efficiency deteriorates.

Another problem with granule dishwasher machines is that the users of the granule dishwasher machines may install a detergent dispenser. The installation of the detergent dispenser may cause problems with the granule dishwasher since the detergent dispenser is sometimes not installed correctly, the sensor monitoring the detergent dispensing is located in a wrong position, added holes cause leakage in the granule dishwasher etc. Other problems with the detergent dispenser may be that erroneous detergents may be used, such as a foaming detergent, causing the cleaning efficiency of the granules to decline.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to mitigate, alleviate or eliminate one or more of the above- identified deficiencies and disadvantages singly or in any combination.

According to an aspect, there is provided a dishwashing unit for a granule dishwasher machine, the unit comprising a dishwashing detergent, wherein the dishwashing detergent is enclosed in a container further comprising plastic granules.

The amount of plastic granules arranged in the container may correspond to the wear of plastic granules during the use of the dishwashing detergent contained in the container.

According to an embodiment, the container may be made of a dissolvable material. The dishwashing detergent may be provided in a solid form or in liquid form.

According to another embodiment, several separate containers comprising detergent and plastic granules may be

arranged in an envelope, wherein the separate containers are made of dissolvable materials having different dissolution time. The container may be made of a starch material . In a further embodiment, the unit may be formed as a solid detergent tablet having the plastic granules incorporated inside the tablet, and wherein the tablet is arranged in the container. The unit may be formed as a mixture of granulated detergent and plastic granules arranged in the container.

In another aspect, there is provided a cleaning product for use in a granule dishwashing maching, comprising a dishwashing detergent and plastic granules, where the dishwashing detergent and the plastic granules are arranged in a container.

In a further aspect, there is provided a detergent tablet for use in a granule dishwashing machine comprising plastic granules, where the detergent tablet is arranged in a container. In a still further aspect there is provided a granule dishwasher product for use in a granule dishwashing machine comprising a dishwashing detergent and plastic granules, where the dishwashing detergent and the plastic granules are arranged in a container. In a yet further aspect, there is provided a method of producing a dishwashing unit as mentioned above.

In a still yet further aspect, there is provided a use of a dishwashing unit as mentioned above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of embodiments of the invention with reference to the drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a block diagram of a first embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a diagram similar to Fig. 1 of a second embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 3 is a diagram similar to Fig. 1 of a third embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 4 is a diagram similar to Fig. 1 _of a fourth embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

The principles of granule dishwashing or pot washing machines and methods are based on the use of specially developed plastic granules together with water and detergent. Before use, plastic granules are provided into the dishwasher machine; detergent is provided by a dispenser as the need arises; and water is supplied via water pipes connected to the dishwasher machine. A forceful flow of water and plastic granules is directed at high pressure over the pots through specially designed nozzles. When the plastic granules impact at burnt and dried up food remains at high speed, the pots are literally scoured clean. This scouring action results in truly clean pots and pans. Food remains vanish without soaking or scrubbing by hand. Detergent may be supplied under the control of a sensor that measures the conductivity of the washing water. Low conductivity is normally an indication of the need to add more detergent to the cleaning process and high conductivity is normally an indication that no more detergent should be added. Some kinds of food may, however, contribute to the conductivity of the washing water and provide the sensor with erroneous information.

The mechanical treatment with the plastic granules, may be followed by a washing cycle with only water. During

the water flushing, any remaining granules are rinsed off the pots and the pans.

The washing cycle may end with a final rinse with clean water. The water rinse may take place at a high temperature. The time, flow and temperature of the rinse water are controlled to ensure a hygienic result.

Depending on the amount of remaining plastic granules and the supplied detergent, the quality or the efficiency of the dishwashing may vary. The plastic granules are mechanically worn during use, and in one embodiment, after roughly 2000-2500 dishes, the amount of granules may be reduced by up to 30% .

The detergent, which may be a low-foaming detergent, can be provided in various forms; such as solid in a single piece, solid in granulated form, solid in powder form or liquid form. Examples of low-foaming detergents are Suma™ Base 3M4 or Suma™ unison special G4 from Johnson Diversy and TC9005 or TC9020 Aluminium from Dabotexogen.

The plastic granules may be made of an acetal polymer, POM, polyoxymethylenoxide . This material has been approved to be used in contact with food and is not dangerous if ingested. Other plastic material can also be used as long as the material has been approved to be used in contact with food and the material is not dangerous to man. The plastic granules have been developed to have the right shape and to be sufficiently hard to remove all food remains effectively at the same time as being sufficiently soft so that they do not damage the pots.

According to a first embodiment, there is provided a dishwashing unit as shown in Fig. 1, wherein the detergent is provided in granulated or powder form 11 and contained in a container 10 of a dissolvable material, such as starch, together with plastic granules 12. The amount of each component of the dishwashing unit contained inside the container corresponds to the need of detergent for 5-8

dishes and the wear of the plastic granules during these dishes, respectively. The dishwashing unit should be of a suitable size to be handled and for that reason the amount of the included components can be either greater or smaller than only to cover the need of detergent for 5-8 dishes and replacing the wear of the plastic granules during these 5-8 dishes, respectively.

According to a second embodiment of the dishwashing unit shown in Fig. 2, the detergent is provided in granulated or powder form 21 and contained in a main enclosure 20 of a dissolvable material, such as starch, together with plastic granules, but both the detergent and the plastic granules are arranged in separate inner containers 23 arranged inside the main container. The inner containers may have various dissolution time so that the different components of the dishwashing unit are added to the dishing or cleaning process at intervals or at different points of time.

The dishwashing unit according to the first and second embodiment is simply thrown into the granule dishwasher when needed. Typically, a couple of dishwashing unit containers are added before the start of use of the granule dishwasher each day. Hot water dissolves the containers and the components are added to the cleaning process. As the dishwashing unit containers are consumed during the dishwashing process a sensor may indicate that the conductivity of the dishwater has decreased and more dishwashing unit containers are needed. The user of the granule dishwasher simply adds further dishwashing unit containers according to the need indicated by the sensor. According to a third embodiment of the dishwashing unit shown in Fig. 3, the detergent 31 is also provided in granulated or powder form and arranged in a enclosure 30 together with plastic granules 31, but the enclosure is made of a non-dissolvable material. In such a case the user

needs to open the enclosure 30 before the dishwashing unit is added to the granule dishwasher machine. Otherwise the handling of the dishwashing unit according to the third embodiment does not vary from the handling of the dishwashing unit according to the first or second embodiment .

According to a fourth embodiment shown in Fig. 4, the detergent is provided in liquid form 41 and contained in a main enclosure 40 of a dissolvable material, such as starch, together with plastic granules 42, but both the detergent and the plastic granules are arranged in separate inner containers 43 arranged inside the main enclosure 40. Similar to the second embodiment the inner containers may- have various dissolution time so that the different com- ponents of the dishwashing unit are added to the dishing or cleaning process at intervals or at different points of time. Alternatively, the main enclosure 40 may be mad of a non-dissolvable material as the enclosure 30.

According to a fifth embodiment (not shown on the drawings) the detergent is provided in solid form, shaped e.g. like a tablet having plastic granules incorporated inside the detergent tablet. The dishwashing unit tablet may be contained in a container of a dissolvable material, such as starch, or contained in a container of a non- dissolvable material. The handling of the dishwashing unit according to the fifth embodiment varies dependent on the material of the container.

Any other combination of the above-mentioned embodiments is also possible. The dishwashing unit is packaged in a "portion" container, corresponding to the need for 5-8 dishes as mentioned above, so that the user of the granule dishwasher easily can portion the dishwashing unit without having any special competence or skills. To further facilitate the handling of the dishwashing unit and the indication of the

need to add dishwashing units into the granule dishwasher, a sensor may be provided having means to indicate the need for more dishwashing detergent.

The dissolvable material of the containers for containing the dishwashing unit components can be any water dissolvable material that fulfills the need of the invention. Besides the above-mentioned starch containers, the containers can also be made of water soluble polymers from e.g. Monosol™ or Varuni Chemicals or a polyvinyl alcohol film from e.g. Lever Faberge.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown on the drawings, but can be supplemented and modified in any manner within the scope of the invention as defined by the enclosed claims.