Fruit press

Claim 1

In an apparatus for deliquifying compressible material comprising a frame, at least one vertically operable hydraulic cylinder dependingly mounted on said frame and having a depending platen, with opposing sides and opposing ends, the improvement comprising: (a) A rigid table beneath said platen; (b) A permeable endless conveyor having a surface overlying said table; (c) Rigid, permeable side means, one on either side of said platen, and substantially coextensive therewith and comprising a plurality of vertically spaced slats, each of said side means having an inner face; (d) Screen means substantially covering the inner face of each of said sides; (e) Indexing means mounted to said frame and each of said sides to index said sides toward and away from each other; (f) Rigid, vertically extending restraining means, one at either end on said platen and transverse to said side means and substantially coextensive with said platen; (g) Means vertically movably mounting each of said restraining means; (h) Said conveyor means, side means, restraining means and platen when brought together forming a substantially sealed rigid container within which said mass may be compressed to release juice substantially only through said side means and said conveyor means while maintaining the non-liquid portion of said mass in single compacted form.

Claim 9

An apparatus for deliquifying compressible materials comprising: (a) A frame; (b) At least two square platens; (c) Indexing means mounted on said frame mounting said platens for vertical indexing movement; (d) An endless conveyor mounted on said frame beneath said platens and comprising a plurality of slats closely spaced so that liquids but not solids will readily pass therebetween; (e) A collecting table rigidly supporting said conveyor; (f) A pair of parallel sides mounted on each side of each platen comprising a plurality of vertically spaced slats; (g) Screen means covering the inner faces of each of said sides; (h) A rigid, substantially rectangular solid gate mounted between the ends of each pair of sides, a single gate being located between each pair of platens; (i) Indexing means mounted to said frame and each of said sides to index said sides toward and away from each other; (j) Indexing means mounted to said frame and each of said gates to index said gates from a first position wherein each gate is substantially touching said conveyor to a second position wherein each gate is substantially above said conveyor; k. Said sides in their inwardly indexed position and said gates in said lowered position forming with said conveyor and said platens in their lowered position a plurality of substantially sealed compartments allowing substantially only escape of liquid through said sides and said conveyor to said table.

Claim 10

An apparatus for deliquifying compressible materials comprising: (a) A frame; (b) At least two square platens; (c) Indexing means mounted on said frame mounting said platens for vertical indexing movement; (d) An endless conveyor mounted on said frame beneath said platens and comprising a plurality of slats closely spaced so that liquids but not solids will readily pass therebetween; (e) A collecting table rigidly supporting said conveyor; (f) A pair of parallel sides mounted on each side of each platen comprising a plurality of vertically spaced slats; (g) Screen means covering the inner faces of each of said sides; (h) A rigid, substantially rectangular solid gate mounted between the ends of each pair of sides, a single gate being located between each pair of platens; (i) Indexing means mounted to said frame and each of said sides to index said sides toward and away from each other; (j) Indexing means mounted to said frame and each of said gates to index said gates from a first position wherein each gate is substantially touching said conveyor to a second position wherein each gate is substantially above said conveyor; k. Said sides in their inwardly indexed position and said gates in said lowered position forming with said conveyor and said platens in their lowered position a plurality of substantially sealed compartments allowing substantially only escape of liquid through said sides and said conveyor to said table.