US4341803A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method for producing dry fruit chip
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1981-02-05
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Granted: 1982-07-27
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Expires: 2001-02-05
Abstract
Abstract A method for producing dry fruit chips in which starting fruit chips having an adjusted water soluble sugar concentration are freeze-dried to reduce the moisture content to a predetermined moisture content range, the freeze-dried fruit chips are microwave-dried to further reduce the moisture content to a second predetermined range and the microwave-dried fruit chips are vacuum-dried to still further reduce the moisture content to a range suitable for ready eating as snack fruit.
Inventors
- 👤 Daikichi Koshida
- 👤 Ko Sigisawa
- 👤 Junji Majima
- 👤 Ryuichi Hattori
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-06 05:19
CPC Classifications
A; A23; A23B; A23B7/00; A23B7/005; A23B7/01; A23B7/02; A23B7/024
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 6
Claim 1
Independent Claim
131 words
A method for producing dry fruit chips for ready eating as snack fruit comprising the steps of freeze-drying fresh fruit chips having a predetermined volume and an adjusted water-soluble sugar concentration in the range of 6-25% by weight to reduce the moisture content in said fresh fruit chips to 15-60% by weight so as to maintain the predetermined volume of said fruit chips, microwave irradiation-drying said freeze-dried fruit chips under vacuum to thaw the remaining moisture content and to uniformly disperse the water-soluble sugar concentration throughout said freeze-dried fruit chips and to further reduce the moisture content to 10-40% by weight, and vacuum-drying said microwave-irradiation dried fruit chips to still further reduce the moisture content to below 5% by weight so as to produce dry fruit chips having a moderate hardness.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
131 words
A method for producing dry fruit chips for ready eating as snack fruit comprising the steps of freeze-drying fresh fruit chips having a predetermined volume and an adjusted water-soluble sugar concentration in the range of 6-25% by weight to reduce the moisture content in said fresh fruit chips to 15-60% by weight so as to maintain the predetermined volume of said fruit chips, microwave irradiation-drying said freeze-dried fruit chips under vacuum to thaw the remaining moisture content and to uniformly disperse the water-soluble sugar concentration throughout said freeze-dried fruit chips and to further reduce the moisture content to 10-40% by weight, and vacuum-drying said microwave-irradiation dried fruit chips to still further reduce the moisture content to below 5% by weight so as to produce dry fruit chips having a moderate hardness.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
43 words
The method for producing dry fruit chips for ready eating as snack fruit as set forth in claim 1, in which said fresh fruit chips are chips of one member selected from the group consisting of apple, peach, melon, apricot, persimmon and papaya.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
42 words
The method for producing dry fruit chips for ready eating as snack fruit as set forth in claim 1, in which said water soluble sugar is one member selected from the group consisting of monosaccharides, disaccharides, trisaccharides, tetrasaccharide, polysaccharide and sugar alcohols.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
61 words
The method for producing dry fruit chips for ready eating as snack fruit as set forth in claim 3, in which said monosaccharides include glucose, arabinose, xylose, galactose and fructose, said disaccharides include sucrose, lactose, maltose and cellobiose, said trisaccharides include raffinose and malt tricose, said tetrasaccharide is stachyose, said polysaccharide is dextrin and said sugar alcohols include sorbitol and mannitol.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
93 words
The method for producing dry fruit chips for ready eating as snack fruit as set forth in claim 1, in which said freeze-drying is conducted under the conditions of vacuum of 0.1 torr and rising temperature up to 30° C., said microwave irradiation-drying is conducted under the conditions of vacuum in the range of 15-30 torr and rising temperature up to 30° C. with the microwave output of 4.5 KW and said vacuum-drying is conducted under the conditions of vacuum in the range of 10-30 torr and rising temperature up to 50° C.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1985-07-26 | 1986-01-25 | 1986-07-27 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1989-07-26 | 1990-01-25 | 1990-07-27 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1993-07-26 | 1994-01-25 | 1994-07-27 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |