Comestible treating apparatus

Claim 1

A TREATING APPARATUS COMPRISING A LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING CABINET HAVING A FEED END AND A DISCHARGE END AND HAVING OPENINGS FORMED ADJACENT SAID FEED END AND SAID DISCHARGE END, CONTINUOUS CONVEYOR MEANS HAVING LONGITUDINALLY SPACED SUCCESSIVE VERTICAL RUNS ADVANCING IN OPPOSITE VERTICAL DIRECTIONS, MEANS FOR INTERMITTENTLY ACTUATING SAID CONVEYING MEANS FOR PREDETERMINED INCREMENTS TO DEFINE TRANSPORT PERIODS AND INTERVENING REST PERIODS, A PLURALITY OF TRAYS, SUPPORT MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID CONVEYORS AND RELEASABLY ENGAGING THE UNDERFACES OF SAID TRAYS AT SPACED POINTS ALONG OPPOSITE SIDES THEREOF FOR CARRYING SAID TRAYS IN VERTICALLY SPACED HORIZONTAL POSITIONS, MEANS AUTOMATICALLY ACTUATED DURING EACH REST PERIOD FOR TRANSPORTING A TRAY THROUGH SAID FEED OPENING INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH THE CORRESPONDING TRAY SUPPORT MEANS, MEANS AUTOMATICALLY ACTUATED DURING EACH REST PERIOD FOR ADVANCING A TRAY FROM SAID CONVEYOR THROUGH SAID DISCHARGE OPENING MEANS AUTOMATICALLY ACTUATED DURING EACH REST PERIOD, FOR SHIFTING SAID TRAYS FROM SAID CONVEYOR MEANS AT THE END OF ONE OF SAID VERTICAL RUNS TO SAID CONVEYOR MEANS AT THE NEXT SUCCESSIVE RUN, A TRAY SUPPORTING PLATFORM ADJACENT THE FEED OPENING OF SAID CABINET, AND MEANS RESPONSIVE TO THE DEPOSITION OF A TRAY UPON SAID PLATFORM FOR ACTUATING SAID CONVEYOR.