Delijuice extraction cycle

Introduction

The Delijuice cycle is a citrus juicing system that separates peel and seeds to produce higher-quality juice and higher yield than other citrus processing systems. It handles fruit in the 6–9 cm range. A scotch yoke drivetrain drives the cycle.

The cycle has four steps, paired by stroke:

1. Fruit intake

Citrus is fed into the feed duct and rolls down until it rests on the feed synchronization spring in the vertical feeder duct.

• Forward stroke: Rollers on the fruit support assembly pull the feed sync spring open. One fruit drops onto the fruit support plate; the next fruit sits on top of it.
• Reverse stroke: The spring closes and holds the top fruit. The fruit support plate is pulled from under the bottom fruit so it drops into the peelers. The peeler bottom fingers are long enough to catch and stage the fruit for compression.

2. Compression

The fruit is peeled and a cylindrical plug is cut from its centre. The driven peeler moves forward and interlaces with the static peeler cup during the forward stroke. The fruit is compressed into the double-conical cavity between the two peelers. A plug cutter extending from the centre of the static peeler cup cuts the plug. Mature seeds (bitter oils and enzymes) are mostly in the centre; removing the plug keeps them out of the juice and opens a path for juice outflow.

As cavity volume becomes less than fruit volume, pressure rises and peeling starts. The wedge shape of each finger cuts longitudinal seams, creating “peel chips”. These are forced out through the gaps between peeler fingers into the peel bin. The chips also seal the gaps so pressure can build for juicing. The cylindrical plug is pushed into the slit sieve filter tube. At the end of compression, the central pin in the driven peeler passes the tip of the plug cutter so the plug is fully separated from the peel.

3. Juice outflow

Juice is squeezed from the fruit, collected, and sent to the spout. The two peelers squeeze the fruit and build pressure; with the spout at ambient pressure, juice flows out through the hole left by the plug cutter, through the slit sieve, into the juice collector, and out of the spout. The collector is diffuser-shaped (larger at the spout than at the entrance), which helps draw juice toward the exit.

Two compression springs move the plunger forward with the yoke. The plunger stops when the stroke limiters reach their end position. Inside the filter tube the plug is held between the plunger tip and the central pin. The gap is kept small to squeeze juice from the plug but never smaller than the seeds, so they stay intact.

4. Plug expulsion

On the reverse stroke, the yoke pulls the plunger drive rods back against the compression springs. The plunger retracts toward the plug cutter and ejects the plug from the filter into the peel bin. The bottom fingers of both peelers are cut short so the plug can fall through. Once the plug has dropped, the next fruit drops from the fruit support plate into the peelers and the cycle repeats.