The present invention relates to a methodology, and a machine implementing the method itself, to produce alimentary pasta in different formats and types, as well as, consequently, an innovative and original type of alimentary pasta which can be made using the method (and the related implementation machine) just mentioned.

As is known, in the world of alimentary pasta there are essentially two macro-categories of product: the so-called "egg pasta", which can be made in particular formats known as "lasagna" or "tagliatelle" and the like, or egg-free pasta, which can be made in a wide range of formats with the most disparate names (spaghetti, bucatini, penne, macaroni, paccheri, torciglioni and so on): depending on the consistency of the dough, which derives from both preparation recipe and from the possible presence (or absence!) of the egg, the forming techniques of such categories of alimentary pasta can change significantly.

The variability of flavour, consistency and processing possibilities of alimentary pasta (depending on its preparation ingredients) influences not only the production and "shaping" of the individual elements of alimentary pasta, but also their performance during cooking and their own possibilities and preparation modes: for example, egg-free pasta is generally formed by drawing/extrusion through appropriate machine, wherein, moreover, the surface roughness of the passage elements of the machine itself influences the ability to retain sauces or dressings (associated outside the pasta during cooking).

As a result of the drawing, the alimentary egg-free paste (which therefore, at the finished product stage but not "ready to eat", has a noticeable dryness and therefore are not edible) can then be cooked, usually reconstituting it in a large quantity of boiling water and after this it can be associated/mixed with different types of sauce or dressing.

The known technique just described, although being rather widespread, presents some drawbacks not only at the level of the finished product (and in particular at the level of packaged egg-free pasta and ready to cook but not yet at a stage such that it can be directly consumed) but also at the level of production modes and related production machine.

Indeed, on the one hand, egg-free paste, mainly produced by drawing, do not lend themselves to take closed three-dimensional conformations, precisely because of the geometry typical of a die (or an extruder if you prefer): what has just been observed is reinforced by the fact that the forms of "closed" alimentary pasta such as ravioli, tortelli and the like - i.e., that define a delimited volume of containment for a filling, which is usually much heavier, more solid and "dry" than a sauce to put outside the pasta - they are made with machine which are substantially different from the dies (e.g., they are known for the production of closed and filled alimentary paste, special multiple molds that combine two layers of alimentary pasta wherein an adequate quantity of carefully discretized filling was previously inserted in such a way that each single element of alimentary pasta contains more or less the same weight of filling).

It is therefore necessary to observe a poor operational flexibility in terms of production methods and machine, which at industrial level translates into a considerable difficulty (or even a real technical impossibility!) to adapt or re-convert production lines to make alimentary paste belonging to different macro types...with consequent generation of economic/managerial disadvantages and therefore with the worsening of the technical/economic efficiency indexes of a given production site.

Furthermore, at the level of the finished product, it should be noted that in general, while the so-called "egg" pasta has extremely rapid cooking times, the egg-free pasta requires a significantly greater amount of time (and heat) and water to reconstitute it: if we also consider the fact that after the actual cooking of the pasta generally it is necessary to prepare a sauce and the mixture of this sauce with the reconstituted pasta, we understand that even at the level of the final consumer there are some operational limitations that make the product unsuitable for the various situations that can occur even daily (e.g., shortage of water or time or sauces/dressings available at the time of cooking).

In the light of what has been observed, the object of the present invention is to provide a method (or methodology if desired) and a machine implementing the method itself, which is able to overcome the drawbacks just presented and which is, at the same time, able to overcome the operational limits of the State of the Art referred to above.

In parallel, the present invention aims at the realization of a range of edible products which can be commonly named and considered in the category of "alimentary pasta" - mainly of the "egg-free" type but also of the "egg" type - which has considerable advantages both in terms of production (e.g., but not limited to, the speed and repeatability of the production process, the reliability and maintainability of the machine, the variety of forms and/or formats and/or ingredients which constitute the finished product) and in terms of usability of the finished product by a final consumer (e.g., but not limited to, the speed and quality of cooking, the ease of preparation also by consumers who are not particularly experienced and the great variety of products available and marketable). Particularly, the present invention aims to devise a method, with related machine, and a range of types of pasta which can be classified in egg or egg-free "fresh pasta", which can be coupled in an extremely variegated manner (but always with the maximum reliability and repeatability of the production process) to dressings attributable to the type of product of the so-called "sauces", and particularly they can be coupled so to have such fresh pasta for cooking operations that do not include the contribution from external sources (e.g., culinary preparations made in parallel or preliminary to the actual cooking of the alimentary pasta) of sauces and similar dressings. Furthermore, the present invention intends to realize a wide range and variety of alimentary pasta ready for cooking, which can be cooked in an extremely short period of time and with a minimal or no addition of external ingredients (e.g., with the addition of extremely limited exogenous water compared to the total quantity of alimentary pasta subjected to cooking). These and other objects are achieved by a method, a machine implementing the method and a range of alimentary pasta products (which can be classified as "fresh pasta" and belonging e.g. to the macro type of "egg-free pasta" or, as also explained previously, to the macro type of "egg pasta") which can be obtained with such method and machine, having the characteristics illustrated in the appended claims and hereinafter illustrated in various exemplary but not limiting embodiments thereof, as well as in the enclosed drawings, wherein:

- figure 1 shows a general schematic view of a machine suitable to implement the method according to the invention;

- figure 1 a shows an localised magnification of a portion of the machine of figure 1 ; and

- figure 2 shows a partial sectional view of the localised magnification of figure 1 a.

With reference to the enclosed figures, the machine implementing the method according to the invention can be globally defined with the reference number "1 " and basically stars from the preparation (through the usual techniques of kneading and preparation) of a predetermined quantity of alimentary pasta and the conformation - obtained precisely with the alimentary pasta - of at least one cylindrical body 2: the cylindrical body usually defines a cavity 2a (with a more or less large section and with variable geometric characteristics) developing along a longitudinal axis 2b. Advantageously, the present method further comprises a step of preparing a predetermined quantity of an edible filler (whose nature will be detailed in greater detail later in the present description) and the consequent positioning of such edible filler in the cavity 2a: according to a further advantageous aspect of the invention, this positioning step/operation takes place simultaneously with the shaping step of the cylindrical body 2 so as to ensure a qualitatively and quantitatively perfect filling of the product obtainable by the invention.

Furthermore, the present method is based on a closure step of the cavity 2a in at least one and typically two successive points along the longitudinal axis 2b, so that the edible filler remains in and is completely delimited by the cavity 2a precisely following the above mentioned closure step of the cavity 2a.

At this point it should be noted that the implementation of this method is completed with further contemporaneous steps: in fact, the invention advantageously provides that the closure step of the cavity 2a is simultaneous with a step of obtaining a plurality of individually edible units from the cylindrical body 2 (which, at this point, can be considered as an intermediate semi-finished product in the time of carrying out the production method illustrated herein), and each of such individually edible units will in turn comprise:

- an outer casing composed of the alimentary pasta;

- a closed internal volume defined by the alimentary pasta and containing the edible filler.

From the operational point of view, the closure step of the cavity 2a and/or the (simultaneous) step of obtaining a plurality of individually edible units comprise a sub-step of deforming, by way of crushing or localised cutting, the cylindrical body 2 at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal axis 2b: the spatial orientation of such deformation, crushing and/or cutting actions can determine different conformations of the finished products and identifiable as "individually edible units": for example, cuts at a short distance from each other and at angles not perpendicular to the longitudinal axis 2b can give rise to products of the "penne" or "macaroni" type and the like, while cuts more perpendicular to the axis 2b and carried out at a greater relative distance can produce "bucatini" or similar structures of alimentary pasta.

In more details, it can also be seen how the step of shaping the cylindrical body 2 comprises a sub-step of extruding and/or drawing the alimentary pasta along the longitudinal axis 2b: therefore, the drawing, which, from the functional point of view is in fact a co-extrusion, allows to prepare a semifinished product with completely innovative characteristics, resulting different from both the traditional filled pasta (which does not have a geometrical/volumetric conformation with a predominantly axial development and which cannot be produced by drawing or extrusion) and from the traditional drawn pasta (which, instead, is empty inside, where it has drawn or extruded hollow shapes, or which cannot even present internal cavities, as it occurs e.g. in the case of spaghetti).

According to the invention, the step of positioning the edible filler in the cavity 2a simultaneously with the step of shaping the cylindrical body 2 (in alimentary pasta which can be "fresh" according to the current understanding in the technical field of food production of this kind and/or, always in the understanding of the person skilled in the art of this same field, of the "egg-free" type) includes therefore a sub-step of co-extruding or co-drawing the edible filler with the alimentary pasta.

In order to ensure an optimal workability during co-extrusion or

(co)drawing, the alimentary pasta usable in this method is a fresh egg-free pasta defining at least one of, and preferably all, the following parametric intervals:

- a humidity by weight or volume between 25% and 45%; and/or

- a Bostwick consistency between 2 cm/30s and 23 cm/30s; and/or

- a refractometric residue between 7.5 Brix and 12 Brix.

At such quantitative parameters and in order to identify some embodiments of the invention (as will be seen later in the present description) the alimentary pasta usable in this method can also be qualitatively characterized in terms of constituent ingredients.

At the same time, in order to highlight the typical parametric differences between the "edible fillers" that can be successfully used in the present method and the typical known art of the pasta industry - especially where types of filled pasta are produced such as tortelli, ravioli and the like - it can be noticed that the edible filler is typologically definable as a so-called "sauce" and/or a "dressing" defining at least one of, and preferably all, the following parametric intervals:

- a humidity by weight or volume between 30% and 50%; and/or

- an optical refractometric residue between 10 Brix degrees and 30 Brix degrees.

By way of example only, two possible products which can be realised according to the invention can have, as an edible filler, a so-called "Ligurian/Genoese pesto" which is characterized by having a humidity (by weight or volume) equal to about 43% and an optical refractometric residue equal to about 20 Brix degrees... or a so-called cheese sauce containing Parmesan cheese which is characterized by having a humidity (by weight or volume) equal to about 38.5% and an optical refractometric residue equal to about 22 Brix degrees (n.b.: for the last type of edible filler, the optical refractometric residue is related to the aqueous part of the filler itself).

It should also be noted, with regard to the edible filler, that usually the so- called sauces or dressings are combined with the alimentary pasta outside the latter and, above all, are combined during the cooking of the pasta itself (generally, after the reconstitution of the pasta in boiling water): in the present invention, on the other hand, an innovative "preventive combination" mode is created wherein sauce or dressings are confined within the pasta itself.

The confinement of sauces and/or dressings inside the alimentary pasta allows different advantages both in terms of perfect combination of the ingredients and in terms of handling of the finished product: moreover, this same containment allows the finished product to carry a significant internal amount of humidity that can be used later during cooking to obtain better quality results and a preparation time significantly lower than the known technique of cooking pasta such as spaghetti or macaroni or similar products.

Following the steps described so far - which can be considered as "basic"

- the method can conveniently also include the following steps of:

- pasteurizing the individually edible units, e.g. for a time between 8 and 12 minutes at a temperature between 75°C and 90°C (and typically, according to an implementation form of this method, for a time equal to 10 minutes at a temperature of 85°C);

- lowering a temperature of the individually edible units, typically after having pasteurized the individually edible units; and finally

- packing predetermined partial quantities by weight or by volume of the individually edible units, typically after pasteurization and lowering of the temperature (or even, depending on the needs of the moment, freezing or deep-freezing of the individually edible units, if required by production requirements of the moment), and preferably after an adequate "rest" time of the finished products as dictated by the usual production technologies currently known.

It should also be noted that in the present method a step of compensating depressions inside the cylindrical body 2 in the forming step can appear: such internal depressions can be for example dictated by pressure and/or rate flow anomalies during the drawing and/or co-extrusion of the alimentary pasta, which can lead for example to a difference in the speed of extrusion between the alimentary pasta and the edible filler and consequently to a restriction of the drawn or co-extruded section of the alimentary pasta itself.

Operationally, such step of compensating the internal depressions is carried out by making periodic perforations n the cylindrical body 2, typically coming out from the forming head (as will be detailed later in the description): such perforations can be made manually or automatically, and they are able to rebalance the pressure inside the cylindrical body 2 with respect to an environmental pressure where the method is implemented.

Turning now to the machine object of the invention, it can be noted that the latter - indicated with the reference number 100 - in the enclosed figures - is fully fledged intended for the production of alimentary pasta (e.g., fresh alimentary pasta and/or egg-free pasta) and is suitable to realise the method described so far and claimed below.

From the structural point of view, the machine 100 comprises an accumulation and supply source of alimentary pasta 20 (which typically will contain alimentary pasta of one or more types among those mentioned in the present description or in the appended claims) and an accumulation and supply source of an edible filler 30 which can be associated with the alimentary pasta (similarly, this edible filler will be of one or more types among those mentioned in the present description or in the appended claims).

The machine 100 also comprises a forming head 40 circuitally connected with the two accumulation sources 20 and 30: such forming head 40 is able to define at least one cylindrical body 2 (or also, for greater production rate reasons, a plurality of cylindrical bodies simultaneously shaped through it) developing along a longitudinal axis 2b, which in turn will be defined by an outer casing of alimentary pasta circumscribed to the edible filler.

Advantageously, in the present machine 100 there are suitable closing means 50 of at least one cavity 2a (obtained during forming through the head 40) in at least one and preferably two successive points along the longitudinal axis 2b of the cylindrical body 2, in such a way that the edible filler remains completely delimited and confined in the cavity 2a.

Furthermore, the present machine 100 advantageously comprises suitable determining means 60 of a plurality of edible units, which are individually formed by segmentation from the cylindrical body 2.

As already seen in the description of the operating method, the determining means 60 can coincide with the closing means 50, so that the separation/segmentation of the individually edible units coincides with the closure of the internal cavities wherein to delimit the edible filler: it follows that each of these individually edible units will be provided with a closed (three-dimensional) cavity wherein an appropriate amount of edible filler will be stored and delimited.

From the functional point of view, it can therefore be noted that the closing means 50 coincide with the determining means 60 and are able to impose crushing and localized cuts to the cylindrical body 2 (or to the cylindrical bodies 2, in the event that the forming head 40 produces more than one of them) at predetermined intervals along the longitudinal axis 2b.

Going into the details of the forming head 40, it can be seen how the latter comprises a die or a co-extrusion head having a plurality of outlet ports 40a suitable to define a corresponding plurality of cylindrical bodies 2; then there are appropriate inflow means 70 respectively for the alimentary pasta and/or the edible filler connected to the respective accumulation and supply sources 20 and 30, as well as an appropriate flow confluence 80 suitable to determine a simultaneous co-extrusion of the alimentary pasta and edible filler adduced by the aforementioned inflow means 70 for the alimentary pasta and edible filler in each of the said outlet ports 40a.

In turn, the inflow means 70 comprise one or more annular dispensers 70a which are circuitally interposed between the accumulation and supply source 20 of the alimentary pasta and the forming head 40 and/or circuitally interposed between the accumulation and supply source 30 of the edible filler and the forming head 40 (with reference to the accompanying figures, it is possible, e.g., to see a single annular dispenser 70a circuitally interposed between the accumulation and supply source 30 of the edible filler and the forming head 40): such annular dispenser 70a defines a path at least partially circumscribed to the forming head 40 and has a plurality of radially recessed inlet derivations, e.g. according to a radially equispaced distribution with respect to a central axis of the forming head 40, in the forming head 40 itself.

Conveniently, the machine can be provided with a collection and advancement group 90 operating downstream of the forming head 40 and suitable to move one or more cylindrical bodies 2 and/or a plurality of individually edible units formed starting from said one or more cylindrical bodies 2 along an advancement direction 90a (such collection and advancement group 90 can be made with moving belts or mats or with towing devices also belonging to the known art, and the spatial course of such collection and advancement group 90 can be adapted to different work environments according to the needs of the moment).

Going back instead to the closing means 50 and/or to the determining means 60 (which as seen several times can structurally and functionally coincide), it can be seen that in the embodiment of the machine 100 illustrated in the accompanying figures these can comprise a working group mutually movable along a transverse working axis, and preferably perpendicular to said advancement direction 90a: such working group comprises in turn at least one deforming element 50a, which has a conformation suitable to locally impose a crushing and/or a localized deformation to a cylindrical body 2 in transit under the working group itself (and conveniently such crushing and/or deformation are able to put in contact opposite sides or points of the alimentary pasta constituting the cylindrical body 2) as well as at least one cutting element 60a which is placed near the deforming element 50a and in turn is able to segment or separate the cylindrical body 2 moving along the advancement direction 90a into two distinct parts (and conveniently separating it into at least two individually edible units at the localized crushing and/or deformation imposed by the deforming element 50a).

Advantageously, in order to simultaneously define the closure of the cavities 2a of two individually edible units during the production method described so far (and claimed hereinafter), the working group can comprise two deforming elements 50a positioned in opposite half-spaces and in a specular geometric condition with respect to a cutting element 60a: in this way, the cutting element 60a is interposed between the two deforming elements 50a.

Still with reference to the accompanying figures, it can be seen that the machine 100 can be provided with an routing group 90b interposed between the forming head 40 and the closing means 50 and/or the determining means 60: such routing group 90b is suitable to receive a plurality of cylindrical bodies 2 coming out from the forming head 40 and to rout them, e.g. by means of a series of tracks or dividing elements arranged side by side and suitably oriented, in a condition of mutual parallelism towards the closing means 50 and/or determining means 60. Object of the present invention is also a alimentary pasta-based product realised with the method (and implemented by the machine) according to what has been described so far and/or according to what is claimed hereinafter.

The aforementioned product includes, from a structural/constitutive point of view, a cylindrical body 2 of alimentary pasta of the "egg-free" type and e.g. of the "fresh pasta" type, and such cylindrical body 2, in turn, defines a cavity 2a, and it extends along a longitudinal axis 2b; a predetermined quantity of an edible filler is then present and positioned inside the cavity 2a and advantageously such cavity 2a is closed at at least one and preferably two successive points along the longitudinal axis 2b, so that the edible filler it is completely delimited in the cavity 2a itself.

Given the structural conformation indicated above, it can be seen that at the level of possible embodiment variants of the product, the alimentary pasta which can be used to define the cylindrical body (2) can comprise:

- soft wheat alimentary pasta; and/or

- durum wheat alimentary pasta; and/or

- alimentary pasta derived from cereals, preferably rice and/or corn and/or barley and/or hulled wheat and/or quinoa and/or khorasan kamut wheat; and/or - alimentary pasta deriving from legumes, preferably soya and/or beans. Similarly, always at the level of components or constituent ingredients of the edible filler, the present invention can comprise by way of example these possibilities of choice:

- a sauce or dressing based on tomato; and/or

- a sauce or dressing based on dairy products in liquid or creamy form; and/or

- a sauce or dressing based on foods of vegetable origin; and/or

- a sauce or dressing based on dried fruit; and/or

- a sauce or dressing based on edible oil; and/or

- a sauce or dressing based on spices or aromatic substances.

In terms of descriptive physical/chemical parameters of the products obtainable according to the invention, it can be noted that the products themselves can have an overall humidity content which makes them suitable for cooking and/or for consumption with a preparation method comprising the following steps:

- prepare a predetermined amount of food product, typically in the form of a plurality of individually edible units, in a cooking vessel;

- add to the food product an amount of reconstitution water in a proportion by weight or volume comprised between 200 ml and 300 ml of water per 500 g of food product; and

- heat the food product at an average temperature not higher than 100 °C for an overall time not exceeding 3 minutes.

The invention enables achievement of important advantages.

First of all, it should be noted that the peculiar constructive architecture of the production machine described above (and claimed hereinafter) allows to implement an innovative and original method of producing "egg-free" pasta and/or "fresh pasta" which ensures a very high yield combined with the fact of making a completely new type of food product available: such method is also extremely efficient and allows obtaining a considerable production yield, a very fast adaptability to different types (or production cycles) of the product and a very wide possibility of combining different types of outer casing of pasta with equally different types of sauce or internal dressing to be enclosed within the casing itself.

Likewise, it should be noted that the method according to the invention makes possible the production of alimentary pasta which maintains a considerable structural coherence both during production (also during pasteurization) and during the subsequent storage, transport, sales exposure and consumption/cooking steps... all this despite the fact that this new type of food product has a significant water/humidity content: in other words, the present invention allows to obtain an product which is innovative in terms of characteristics and composition without, however, the logistical, production and preparation drawbacks which the characteristics of this same product would imply.

It should also be noted that the product obtained with the method (and the related implementation machine) of the invention also offers considerable advantages to the consumer/end user, both in terms of the aforementioned variety of product range, and in terms of ease, speed and "safety" of preparation: this innovative type of pasta, having already in it the sauce or dressing, can in fact be prepared in extremely short cooking times and with an extremely limited supply of cooking water compared to the traditional cooking techniques of the "egg-free" pasta.

Finally, it should be noted that the present invention allows to achieve low production costs and great application flexibility, possibly even outside the macro-category of products of fresh pasta or even being able to be applied to the macro-category of products of egg pasta.