This invention relates to a method of producing shaped edible articles, eg articles of confectionery having a distinctive shape such as an animal shape.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of producing shaped edible articles, comprising repeatedly effecting the steps of:

(a) dispensing at least one volume of shape-sustaining edible material through a dispensing nozzle onto a support surface;

(b) effecting relative movement between said nozzle and said support surface so as to form a shaped edible article from said at least one volume of shape-sustaining edible material; and

(c) effecting relative movement between said support surface and said nozzle; whereby to form a multiplicity of shaped edible articles on said support surface, wherein:

(i) during steps (a) and (b) to form each shaped article, a portion of the material being dispensed is caused to adhere to the outside of the dispensing nozzle so that it does not form part of the shaped edible article being formed at that stage; and

(ii) such adherent portion of the material is detached from the nozzle during the next succeeding step (a) to define a visible feature on the next succeeding shaped edible article.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of producing shaped edible articles, comprising repeatedly effecting the steps of:

(a) dispensing at least one volume of shape-sustaining edible material through a dispensing nozzle onto a support surface;

(b) effecting relative movement between said nozzle and said support surface so as to form a shaped edible article from said at least one volume of shape-sustaining edible material; and

(c) effecting relative movement between said support surface and said nozzle; whereby to form a multiplicity of shaped edible articles on said support surface, wherein:

(i) the relative movement in step (b) is effected in at least three consecutive stages such that each stage includes relative movement in a direction which is different to that in the adjacent stage(s), and/or

(ii) more than one volume is dispensed during step (a), and step (b) is effected between dispensing of successive volumes and/or during dispensing of at least one of said volumes.

The flow of edible material through the nozzle may be split during deposition of the or at least one of the volumes being dispensed in step (a).

The nozzle may dispense more than one edible material, for example an edible filling material within an outer shape-sustaining edible material in the or at least one of the volumes dispensed in step (a).

Where more than one volume is dispensed in step (a), the volumes dispensed may be the same or different. The dispensing rate through the

nozzle may be varied at any stage during dispensing of the or any one or more of the volumes.

At least one relative separating movement between the nozzle and the support surface is preferred during formation of the edible article.

In a first series of embodiments, said relative movement in at least one of said consecutive stages comprises relative movement in at least two directions. One of said directions is preferably in the direction of separation of the nozzle and the support surface. Thus, in at least one of said consecutive stages, the nozzle and the support surface may be relatively moved together or apart. Said relative movement may include one stage (preferably a first stage) in which said relative movement is effected in one longitudinal direction, another stage (preferably a second stage) in which said relative movement is effected in an opposite longitudinal direction and a further stage (preferably a third stage) in which said relative movement is effected in the same longitudinal direction as in said one stage. Preferably, in said another stage, relative separating movement between the nozzle and the support surface is effected as well as relative movement in said opposite longitudinal direction. Said relative movement in said further stage may be shorter than said relative movement effected in said one stage. In said further stage, relative movement may further include relative movement of the nozzle and the support surface towards each other.

The method according to said first series of embodiments can be used to produce shaped edible articles having a duck-like form, with a tail of the duck preferably being formed by means of said adherent portion of the material according to said first aspect of the present invention.

In a second series of embodiments, in step (a) first, second and third volumes are dispensed, and relative movement in step (b) is effected during dispensing of the first and third volumes, and between dispensing of the first and second volumes. Preferably, the relative movement effected during dispensing of the first and second volumes involves separating movement between the nozzle and the support surface, preferably accompanied by relative longitudinal movement. Preferably also, the relative movement during the dispensing of the third volume is a relative longitudinal movement between the nozzle and the support surface and a relative separating movement. The flow through the nozzle may be divided laterally with respect to the direction of the relative longitudinal movement during or after dispensing of the third volume.

The method according to said second series of embodiments can be used to produce shaped edible articles having a rabbit-like form, with a tail or paws of the rabbit preferably being formed by means of said adherent portion of the material according to said first aspect of the present invention. In the case where the paws are to be defined by the adherent portion, the latter is laterally divided during or after dispensing of the third volume.

In a third series of embodiments, during dispensing of at least one of the volumes during step (a), relative movement in step (b) is effected by effecting relative longitudinal movement between the nozzle and the support surface in one direction and, during such longitudinal relative movement, effecting a series of relative lateral movements (preferably apart and together movement) so as to form a serpentine shape. This can be used in the formation of an shaped article having the form of an

animal with a serpentine body or tail, with a tip of the tail preferably being formed by means of said adherent portion of the material according to said first aspect of the present invention.

Also according to the present invention, there is provided a method of producing shaped edible articles which comprises a combination of the above defined methods according to said first and second aspects of the present invention.

\n the present invention in all of its aspects and embodiments, it is preferred for there to be a multiplicity of said dispensing nozzles. The multiplicity of dispensing nozzles are preferably arranged so that the step of effecting relative movement includes simultaneous relative movement between all of the nozzles and said support surface.

The nozzles may be spaced apart and the dispensing may be so arranged that the materials dispensed during a dispensing step from at least two adjacent nozzles join together to define joined edible articles. Any number of edible articles may be joined together.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, said support surface is a moving surface which, in use, moves under the dispensing nozzle or nozzles which are also arranged to move in both directions longitudinally of the direction of movement of the surface. The nozzles also may be arranged to be moved laterally of the direction of movement of the support surface and/or towards and away from said surface.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Fig. 1 is a schematic view illustrating a method of producing shaped edible articles in the form of marshmallow ducks according to said first and second aspects of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of an apparatus suitable for producing a multiplicity of rows of shaped articles as illustrated in Fig 1 ;

Figs. 3(a) to 3(d) shows various ways in which shaped articles can be produced by appropriate design of the equipment and mode of operation;

Figs. 4(a) to 4(c) are front, back and side views of a shaped article in the form of a rabbit produced in accordance with both aspects of the present invention;

Fig. 5 is a schematic view showing how the apparatus can be used to form the rabbit shape of Figs 4(a) to 4(c);

Fig. 6 is a schematic view showing how the apparatus can be used to form shaped articles in the form of mythical serpents or so-called Loch

Ness monsters; and

Fig. 7 is a sectional view of a depositor head having a nozzle arranged to deposit an edible filling material within an outer, edible shape-retaining material.

Referring now to Fig 1 of the drawings, there is schematically illustrated a variable speed moving belt conveyor whose upper support surface 10 moves horizontally in the direction of arrow A under a depositor head 12 furnished with downwardly extending dispensing nozzles 14 (only one shown), each of which is arranged to deposit successively predetermined volumes of shape-sustaining edible marshmallow material 16 onto the upper surface 10 of the conveyor.

The depositor head 12 is mounted for movement along three mutually perpendicular axes relative to the upper surface of the conveyor 10. Thus, the head 12 is movable (a) horizontally both in the direction of movement A of the upper surface 10 of the conveyor and opposite to such direction, (b) horizontally in both directions perpendicular to the direction of movement A, and (c) vertically towards and away from the upper surface 10 of the conveyor. Relative movement between the depositor head 12 and the support surface 10 is controlled so as to cause each volume of material dispensed through each nozzle 14 to adopt the shape or outline of a duck. This is effected in three consecutive deposition stages which will now be described.

In all three deposition stages, the upper surface 10 is moved at a constant rate in the direction of arrow A. In the first deposition stage, the depositor head 12 is moved in the direction of arrow A but at a slower speed than the speed of the upper surface 10 to define the rear and back of the body of the duck. The centreline of the resultant deposit in this first deposition stage is indicated by line 18 in Fig 1.

At the end of this stage, the depositor head 12 is moved upwardly away from the upper surface 10 and is also simultaneously moved in the direction of arrow A but at an increased rate which exceeds the rate of movement of the upper surface 10. This is the second deposition stage and defines the front of the body, the neck and the rear part of the head of the duck. The centreline of the resultant deposit is indicated by line 20 in Fig 1.

Finally, in the third deposition stage, the depositor head 12 is moved in the direction of arrow A but at a slower rate than the upper surface 10

and is also simultaneously moved downwardly to a small extent towards the upper surface 10. This produces the remainder of the head of the duck and the beak. The centreline of the resultant deposit is indicated by line 22 in Fig. 1. At this stage, dispensing of the material through the nozzle 14 is ceased and the manifold 12 is moved downwardly towards the upper surface 10 in preparation for the first deposition stage to form the next duck. Such movement downwardly completes the beak of the duck and also severs the deposited material from a portion of the material which has emerged from the nozzle 14 but which remains adhering to the outside of the rim of the nozzle 14. This adherent portion of the material 16 then forms the tail 24 of the succeeding duck. The tail 24 is defined at the beginning of the first deposition stage described above.

It will be appreciated from the above that, taking into account the movement of the upper surface 10 of the conveyor, in order to produce each duck shape, relative movement between the outlet nozzle 14 and the upper surface 10 occurs in one direction during the first deposition stage, that relative movement in the opposite direction occurs during the second deposition stage, and that in the third deposition stage, relative movement takes place in the same direction as in the first direction and also with movement of the outlet nozzle 14 slightly towards the upper surface 10 to complete the duck shape.

Referring now to Fig 2, parts whic are similar to those of Fig. 1 are accorded the same reference numerals. The equipment illustrated in Fig 2 has depositor head 12 which comprises a depositor head manifold assembly incorporating a valve arrangement of the type described in GB- A-2164727. In such manifold assembly, there is provided a multiplicity

of outlet nozzles 14 which extend as a row perpendicularly of the direction of movement A of the upper surface 10 of variable speed conveyor 28. The equipment includes a controller 30 which is arranged to control the aforesaid movements of the manifold 12 relative to the upper surface 10 of the conveyor 28, the quantities of edible material 16 which are dispensed through the outlet nozzles 14 and the speed of movement of the conveyor to deposit the required shapes.

Fig. 2 also shows a first hopper 32 from which liquid coating chocolate is fed onto the surface 10 of the conveyor via primary and final feeders 34 and 36 respectively to form a layer on the surface 10 in advance of the deposition head 12. The thickness of this layer of chocolate is controlled by means of scraper gate 38 so that the marshmallow ducks are deposited onto such layer.

Downstream of the depositor head 12, there is provided a second hopper 40 from which liquid coating chocolate is fed via primary and final feeders 42 and 44 to provide a chocolate coating over the marshmallow ducks. The coated ducks are then transferred from the surface 10 of the conveyor 28 onto a wire mesh conveyor 46 fitted with a mechanical vibrator 48 which serves to remove surplus coating chocolate which drains through the wire mesh and into a collection bin 50 for re-cycling. A blower 52 serves to direct cold air onto the coated ducks to set the chocolate coating.

Referring now to Figs 3(a) to 3(d), various configurations of deposit are shown. In Fig 3(a), thirty outlet nozzles 14 are arranged in five groups of six, with each outlet nozzle in each group being sufficiently close to the adjacent one(s) that joined duck shapes are produced so that the

resulting article consists of a side-by-side row of six joined ducks which can be sold for separation at will by the purchaser.

In Fig 3(b), thirty six outlet nozzles 14 are arranged in six groups of six. In Fig 3(c), forty two outlet nozzles 14 are arranged in seven groups of six, whilst in Fig 3(d), twenty four outlet nozzles 14 are provided which are sufficiently separated to produce discrete duck shapes which can be sold individually if desired.

In Figs 4a to 4c, the rabbit shape illustrated therein is formed by three volumes 60, 62 and 64 defining the body, head and ears, respectively, of the rabbit, with a tail 66 or two front paws 68 being defined by an adherent portion of the preceding deposit as described below.

Referring now to Fig 5, the volume 60 together with the tail 66 or paws 68 is formed by depositing an appropriate quantity of the shape-retaining material onto the support surface 10 with nozzle 14 complete with adherent portion of material from the previous dispensing operation being moved at the same speed and in the same direction as the surface 10 but also away from the latter so that the net relative movement of the outlet end of the nozzle 14 is away from the surface 10 until it is disposed at P,. The nozzle 14 is then moved away from the surface 10 and at a slightly faster rate than the surface 10 so as to bring the outlet end of the nozzle 14 to point P ₂ at which it is then maintained relative to the surface 10. The volume 62, which is smaller than the volume 60, is then deposited so as to define the head of the rabbit. The volume 64 is deposited whilst the nozzle 14 is moved relative to the surface 10 longitudinally at a slightly slower rate than the rate of movement of the surface 10 and also away from the latter. Depositing of the volume 64

ceases when the nozzle has reached point P ₃ . During depositing of the volume 64, the dispensing rate is reduced so as to produce a tapered form to the volume 64. After the volume 64 has been deposited, a tapered dividing blade 70 is moved obliquely downwardly so as to separate the volume 64 laterally whereby to define the ears of the rabbit (see particularly Figs 4a and 4b) and also the paws 68 for the next succeeding rabbit to be formed. Alternatively, and as shown in dotted line in Fig. 5, an obliquely movable dividing blade 72 may be provided if a tail 66 is to be formed by the adherent portion instead of the paws 68.

The nozzle 14 may have a circular or an oval cross-section.

In Fig. 6, the serpent form is produced by depositing a single volume of material from the nozzle 14 whilst moving it longitudinally at a faster rate than the surface 10 and, at the same time, moving the nozzle 14 up and down relative to the surface 10. The material is dispensed at a rate which varies to produce the required cross-sectional area longitudinally of the deposited shape. A wire cutter 74 is used to cut the deposit from the nozzle 14 and to shape the head of the serpent.

Referring now to Fig. 7, the depositor head comprises a body 80 formed of two parts 80a and 80b connected together by a hinge 81 and securing screws 82. The body 80 has first and second adjustable inlet connectors

83 and 84 respectively for a shape-sustaining edible material and a filling material. The body 80 has a multiplicity of nozzles 14 (only one shown). Each nozzle 14 communicates with the inlet connectors 83 and

84 via a rotary valve member 86. The rotary valve members 86 for all of the nozzles 14 are connected to a common rotary spindle 88. Each

rotary valve member 86 is rotatably mounted in a respective PTFE valve cup 90 fixed in the body 80.

The first inlet connector 83 communicates with a first passage 92 in each valve cup 90. A passage 94 through each valve member 86 serves to provide communication between the passage 92 and the nozzle 14 in the illustrated rotary position of the valve member 86. Rotary movement of the valve member 86 away from this position closes the valve.

The second inlet connector 84 communicates with a second passage 96 in each valve cup 90. A passage 98 in the valve member 86 communicates with a cranked pipe 100 which extends within the passage 94 so as to terminate coaxially within the latter at a location adjacent the nozzle 14. Thus, the shape-sustaining edible material from the first inlet connector 83 can be supplied to the nozzle 14 via the first passage 92 and the passage 94 surrounding the pipe 100 under the control of the valve member 86. The filling material can be supplied from the second inlet connection 84 via the second passage 96, passage 98 and pipe 100 to be dispensed through the nozzle 14 in a condition in which it is laterally surrounded by the shape-retaining material. During a dispensing step, the shape-retaining material may be dispensed without edible material during an initial stage and a final stage so that the edible material becomes completely encapsulated in the deposit. The flow rates can be set by individual adjustment of the inlet connectors 83 and 84.

In a typical example, a marshmallow composition comprises (by weights- Sugar 38.94%

Mylose syrup ⁽¹⁾ 36.33%

Gelatin 5.74%

Water 19.0%

Corn starch ⁽²⁾ 4.07o

( ⁽¹⁾ a mixture of dextrose, fructose, maltose, trioses and higher sugars having a dissolved sugar content of 80 to 82 wt%) ⁽²⁾ added subsequently as a coating to prevent stickiness)

The above ingredients, except for the corn starch, are mixed and cooked in a continuous cooker and whipped to incorporate air until the desired density (about 0.30 g/cm ³ ) is achieved. The aerated marshmallow composition is then in a suitable form for depositing as described above. After deposition, the corn starch is added as a coating to prevent the shaped articles from sticking together.

In alternative embodiments, instead of dispensing an edible marshmallow material, other edible shape-sustaining, caramel-based, fudge-based, toffee-based or chocolate-based compositions are employed. Examples of some of such compositions are as follows:-

Caramel Mallow Composition

Ingredient Amount (kg) Total solids (wt%)

Water 18.000 0.00

Invert 3.000 77.00

Glucose 50.243 100.00

Sugar 26.000 80.50

Skimmed Milk Powder 3.000 96.00

Gelatine 1.600 96.00

Salt 0.100 100.00

Flavour 0.001 100.00

Final moisture content required 22.00 wt%

Batch wt (kg) 101.944

Evaporation Loss (kg) 1.944

Yield (kg) 100.00

The gelatine is dissolved in 4 kgs of the water. All of the remaining ingredients are emulsified with the remainder of the water (14 kg) and cooked to 1 14°C. The gelatine dissolved in the water is then added and the resultant mixture whipped to a density of 0.2 g/cm ³ , at which stage the composition is in a suitable condition for depositing to form the desired shaped articles.

Fudge Composition

Ingredient Batch wt (kg) Total solids (wt %)

Water 21.000 0.00

Glycerol monostearate 0.300 100.00

Invert Sugar 3.000 77.00

Granulated Sugar 51.699 100.00

Glucose (42 DE) 26.000 80.50

Skimmed Milk Powder 3.000 96.00

Molasses 1 .000 78.00

Fat 12.000 100.00

Salt 0.100 100.00

Flavour 0.001 100.00

Final moisture content required 9.00 wt%

Batch wt (kg) 1 18.100

Evaporation Loss (kg) 18.100

Yield (kg) 100.00

The milk powder is hydrated in the water at 60°C and the fat (melted), GMS, salt, sugar and molasses are added. The resultant mixture is then emulsified whilst heating to 75°C. The glucose is then added and the mixture cooked to 122°C, followed by cooling to 90°C, addition of the flavouring, and then mixing to give a clear appearance. A grainy appearance is then allowed to form, at which stage the fudge composition is in a suitable condition for depositing to form the desired shaped articles.

As far as chocolate compositions are concerned, plain, milk or dark chocolate compositions may be employed either in solid or in aerated form as desired. Such chocolate compositions will normally be heavily tempered and cooled so that they are capable of retaining their form after deposition. Low fat chocolate compositions and chocolate-flavoured compositions are also suitable.

The resultant shaped articles may have any one or more of the following coatings applied: starch chocolate/chocolate-like compounds flavour chocolate flakes non-pareil vermicelli sugar (coloured or uncoloured) dextrose nut (eg dessicated coconut, hazelnut).