In big kitchens, i.e. institution kitchens and professional kichens, are used rather big pots which may have a capacity from 20 litre to as much as 400 litre. Such big pots sizes are required as a result of an increasing demand of large scale production of food in public institutions as well as in larger professional kitchens. So far there have not to any appreciable extent excisted useable mechanical auxiliary implements for use in connection with big pots of the type in question. Consequently, the labour connected with prepa¬ ration of food has become highly fhysical exacting and - as seen from a labour enviromental point of view - often become direct injuriously, which has also been demonstrated by a generally noticeable increase of labour injuries of the kitchen personal. In particular the labour in connection with stiring in big pots and cleaning of the same which are the most physical exacting, but also lifting operations of larger hot food portions causes problems with back injuries, burnings and scaldings.

The invention has for its purpose to provide a combination device of the introductory mentioned type and by means of which the said working problems in big kitchens in a simple manner may be relieved.

According to the invention the combination device is characterized in being constructed to be mounted cantilever either between side posts at each side of said food process¬ ing positions, e.g. big pots, which side posts comprise ele¬ vating means for a height-displaceable supporting beam for a stiring device being displaceably along the supporting beam, said elevating means being driven by a common motor placed in a drive tunnel which is preferably arranged between upper end portions of said side posts, or on an appartus column being displaceably arranged between rails being mounted in the floor and the ceiling along said food processing posi- tions, said apparatus column comprising both elevating means

for the stiring device and displacement means for the appa¬ ratus column.

In a simple manner it may hereby be possible to a very considerable extent to mechanize most of the fhysical exact- ing working operations in a big kitchen, because the combination device or the "kitchen-robot" according to the invention may take over hitherto manual working operations such as stiring etc. in the big pots. In particular, for installation in exsisting big kitchens it is advantageously that the device according to the invention is constructed to cantilever floor mounting so that the device hereby requires a minimum of building changings, i.e. that the combination device without further adaptions may be mounted at an excisting row of big pots which even not need to be of uniform size.

Preferably, the drive means of the stiring device comprise such control means that the stiring and/or whiping tools of the stiring device may operate in varying heights in said food processing positions, i.e. in big pots of varying sizes. That means that the combination device for use as well for stiring in big pots as for cleaning thereof may cary out a movement cycle harmonized in accordance with the conditions so that any position in the big pots or any inner wall portion thereof may be processed by the actual tool which may comprise various stiring hooks, whisks, brushes and scrapers. Furthermore the device may comprise suiteable sluicing means, e.g. a high-pressure cleaner with adjustable nozzle, which may be moveable along the inner wall of a pot in the respective food processing positions. By way of example said control means may comprise simple program pushbuttons with visual marking of the actual functions and with a suiteable timer.

For optimum utilization of the combination device according to the invention this comprises in connection with the stiring device such arranged lifting means that these may

also be common for the food processing positions, and pre¬ ferably the supporting beam is provided at least at one end with an extension projecting therefrom past said food processing positions. In a simple manner is hereby obtained a possibility to have a unloading position at one end of a row of pots so that the lifting implements of the combinati¬ on device by way of example may be used for lifting up insertion baskets with stock bone from a pot and unload them on a truck placed in said unloading position.

Appropriately, the elevating means of the side posts consist of vertical sliding guides for carrying bracket portions of the supporting beam, which carrying bracket portions being connected with an endless driving system, preferably in the form of roller chains which at the top and at the buttom, respectively, of the side posts are let over sprocket wheels of which the uppermost sprocket wheels in the respective side posts are drive connected with a commo drive motor by means of a drive shaft stretching between the side posts.

For use at the production of larger portions of food which should be kept as deep-freeze the combination device according to the invention may furthermore comprise a cooling device being provided with a height-displaceable cooling member being adapted to be lowered into a transport container with foodstuffs, e.g. suops, in order to quickly coling down thereof - preferably before freezing down larger portions of suops.

In the following the invention is described in more details with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which:-

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a combina- tion device according to the invention - shown mounted in a big kitchen in connection with three food processing positions,

Fig. 2 a plane partial view - partial in section - of the combination device according to the invention shown in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 shows an embodiment of a brush implement for the combination device according to the invention,

Fig. 4 shows an embodiment of a scraber implement for the combination device according to the invention.

Fig. 5 shows an embodiment of a sluicing implement for the combination device according to the invention,

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a combination device according to the invention, and

Fig. 7 is a plane view of the combination device shown in Fig. 6 - as seen from above.

The combination device 2 shown in Fig. 1 is constructed to cantilever floor mounting in connection with a number of food processing positions 4 of which three are shown in the form of tiltable big pots 6 being pivotally mounted between floor supported brackets 8 which in a known manner may comprise tilting mechanisms for the big pots 6 and various control panels etc. The combination device 2 comprise two side posts 10 which are secured to the kitchen floor and box-chaped upper girder 12 being mounted between upper end portions of the side posts 10. The latter are as suggested provided with internal elevating menas for a height-displaceable supporting beam 14 which in this way may be displaced in the height at that side of the side posts 10 which facing the big pots 6 , i.e. that the supporting beam 14 being parallel with the box-girder 12. Inside this is arranged a common drive motor for the elevating means in the side posts 10 since about the center of the box-girder 12 is placed a drive motor which by means of a common drive shaft is connected with upper sprockets wheels of endless driving

chains in each side posts 10 which furthermore are provided with vertical sliding guides for carrying bracket portions 16 for the supporting beam 14. The carrying bracket portions 16 project through vertical slots 18 in the cover of the side posts 10.

The supporting beam 14 comprises in a not shown manner a longitudinal chain path or a longitudinal toothed bar cooperating with a sprocket wheel of a as well not shown motor for a driving device 20 being mounted horizontally displaceable on the supporting beam 14, i.e. that the driving device 20 theeby may be placed in different heights and may be displaces along the food processing positions or along the big pots 6. The driving device 20 is provided with an individual drive motor 22 which via a socalled planetary gear operates a revolving implement spindle 24 around along a larger toothed rim.

The driving device 20 is displaceable in horizontal direction along the supporting beam 14 and because this at the same time is displaceable in the height the drive device 20 in practice may be placed in any working position above each of the big pots 6. To the right side of the big pots 6 is shown a section 28 which may represent an unloading position for a truck, or the section 28 may represent a combined floor scale an unloading position so that larger portions of food may be directly weighed out into tranport containers or trucks from the combination device 2.

In fig. 2 the combination device 2 is mounted with a whisk 30 which ofcourse may be substituted with a suiteable dough hooks or stiring hooks. In fig. 3 is shown a brush implement 32 which is adapted for cleaning the big pots 6. The same purpose serves the scaper implement 34 shown in Fig. 4. The combination device 2 according to the invention may further¬ more comprise a sluicing system to which the sluicing tool 36 shown in Fig. 5. belongs. The sluicing tool 36 is provided

with two nozzles 38 and 40 served by means of a turning tap 42. When this takes in the shown inclined position both the nozzles 38 and 40 are activated, while the respective nozzles 38 and 40 may be activated one at the time when the turning tap 42 point towards the nozzle in question.

As introductory mentioned the combination device according to the invention furthermore may comprise a separate cooling device which by way of example may be positioned on the right side posts 10, i.e. to the right of the unloading position 28. The cooling device may comprise a height- displaceable cooling member which may be lowered into a transport container with hot food portions, e.g. suops, which in preparation for freezing down should be quickly cooled down .

Furthermore, the implement spindle 24 as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2 maybe provided with a lifting hook 44 so that the combination device 2 may also be used for carrying out lifting operations, e.g. by the handling of insertion baskets with vegetables or stock bone for suops. By lifting operations a truch is placed in the unloading position 28. In stead of a permanent hook 44 may be used a loose lifting hook being mounted in the implement spindle 24 - or which may be secured at any suitable place to the driving device 20, e.g. to a frame portion thereof.

In a preferred embodiment the combination device according to the invention is constucted as shown in Figs. 6 and 7, i.e. that the device comprises a vertical apparatus column 50 being mounted between a floor rail 52 and an upper rail 54 which may be secured next under a ceiling - or the upper rail 54 may be secured to the ceiling. The stiring device itself is built in in a projecting bracket 56 which may be displaced up and down along the apparatus pole 50, i.e. in the height.

Preferably, the combination device according to the inven¬ tion is constructed to cantilever mounting, e.g. as shown in the drawing, however, ofcourse the combination device may be constucted as a mobile wheel supported or rail supported unit which may be adapted to be moved between groups of food processing positions or between individual food processing positions since. the said food processing positions be in the form of big pots as well as big pans ect. for use in big public kitchens as well as big private kitchens, i.e. also by factory production of food and foodstuffs.