Patents
US 8535745 B2: Apparatus, systems and methods for manufacturing food products
- Granted
- 2013-09-17
- Filed
- 2011-02-28 application 13036847
- Type
- Utility · 9 claims
- Elsewhere
- Google Patents ↗ · USPTO patent document ↗ · USPTO Patent Center record ↗
Abstract
Apparatus, systems and methods are disclosed for manufacturing slices of sausages that appear to have been cut from a conventional round sausage log at an angle. An illustrative embodiment provides a manufacturing process for making portions to be finished into angled pet treats comprising: (a) providing a ground mix of proteinaceous material, flavor enhancers and preservatives to a forming chamber comprising: a fixed base surface, a fixed top surface, and a movable intermediate section insertable between said base and top surfaces, said intermediate section having a plurality of die cavities that each have a central axis oblique to the surface of said intermediate plate, said top surface having a plurality of feeder holes that overlap at least partially with said die cavities, (b) filling said plurality of die cavities via said feeder holes with said foodstuff, thereby forming a plurality of portions in shapes and dimensions that generally correspond to the shapes and dimensions of said die cavities, (b) moving said intermediate section containing said plurality of portions out of said chamber, (c) forcibly ejecting said portions with a plurality of longitudinal elements that reciprocate in and out of said die cavities along said central axis, thereby forming angled pet treats.
Source: PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 (ipg130917.xml).
Assignees
| Assignee | Type | Place | Also on furp.org | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Del Monte Corporation 16 patents | US company or organization | San Francisco, CA | DEL MONTE CORPORATION State business registration EXACT high confidence: identical full name and state DEL MONTE CORP SEC filer FUZZY low confidence: same name (legal endings aside), one of each nationally | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
Inventors
| Inventor | Place | Patents | Person page | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davor Juravic | Rancho Palos Verdes, CA | 11 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 | |
| Yomayra Alvarez | Long Beach, CA | 5 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 | |
| Oscar Ortiz | Hawthorne, CA | 11 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 | |
| Dwayne P. McDowell, II | Rancho Palos Verdes, CA | 5 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 | |
| Geoffrey Chase Thornhill | San Francisco, CA | 5 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 | |
| Mark Donatucci | Manhattan Beach, CA | 8 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 | |
| Franjo Baltorinic | Downey, CA | 3 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
CPC categories
| Subclass | Category | First group | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| A23K | Fodder | A23K40/25 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
| A23L | Foods, foodstuffs or non-alcoholic beverages, not otherwise provided for; preparation or treatment thereof | A23L13/65 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
| A23P | Shaping or working of foodstuffs, not fully covered by a single other subclass | A23P30/10 | PVGPATDIS, file of 2026-04-10 |
Cooperative Patent Classification, as currently assigned (one row per subclass).
Assignments and security interests
| Recorded | What | From | To | Reel/frame | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-05-25 | Assignment Assignment of assignor's interest | BIG HEART PET BRANDS, LLC signed 2016-04-30 | BIG HEART PET, INC. ORRVILLE, OH | 38810/86 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
| 2016-05-13 | Name change Change of name | BIG HEART PET BRANDS signed 2016-04-30 | BIG HEART PET BRANDS, LLC ORRVILLE, OH | 38687/149 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
| 2015-03-23 | Release of security interest Release of security interest | JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A. signed 2015-03-23 | BIG HEART PET BRANDS (F/K/A DEL MONTE CORPORATION) SAN FRANCISCO, CA | 35231/696 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
| 2015-03-23 | Release of security interest Release of security interest | JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A. signed 2015-03-23 | BIG HEART PET BRANDS SAN FRANCISCO, CA | 35231/235 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
| 2014-03-31 | Security interest Security interest Security interest | BIG HEART PET BRANDS signed 2014-03-06 | JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT NEW YORK, NY | 32565/323 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
| 2014-03-19 | Release of security interest Termination and release of security interest in patent rights | BANK OF AMERICA, N.A. signed 2014-03-06 | BIG HEART PET BRANDS F/K/A DEL MONTE CORPORATION SAN FRANCISCO, CA | 32479/915 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
| 2014-03-07 | Name change Change of name | DEL MONTE CORPORATION signed 2014-02-18 | BIG HEART PET BRANDS SAN FRANCISCO, CA | 32412/133 | ECORSEXC, file of 2026-09-25 |
| 2012-07-27 | Assignment New assignment | MCDOWELL, DWAYNE P., II signed 2011-04-19 BALTORINIC, FRANJO signed 2011-04-21 ALVAREZ, YOMAYRA signed 2011-04-25 ORTIZ, OSCAR signed 2011-04-25 DONATUCCI, MARK P. signed 2011-05-02 JURAVIC, DAVOR signed 2011-05-02 THORNHILL, GEOFFREY CHASE signed 2011-06-16 | DEL MONTE CORPORATION SAN FRANCISCO, CA | 28653/955 | ECORSEXC, file of 2026-09-25 |
| 2011-04-08 | Security interest Security interest Security agreement | DEL MONTE CORPORATION signed 2011-03-08 | JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NA, AS COLLATERAL AGENT NEW YORK, NY | 26100/771 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
| 2011-03-28 | Security interest Security interest Security agreement | DEL MONTE CORPORATION signed 2011-03-08 | BANK OF AMERICA, N.A. SAN FRANCISCO, CA | 26029/157 | PASDL, file of 2026-10-15 |
Documents recorded with the USPTO Assignment Recordation Branch that list this patent. A security interest is a lender’s claim on the patent as collateral; a release ends it.
USPTO bulk data: PatentsView granted patents, disambiguated (PVGPATDIS) for patents, assignees, inventors, places and CPC categories; the USPTO Patent Assignment Dataset (ECORSEXC) for assignments and security interests. Patents filed in the last 20 years. No claims or full text. Links to other records are by name (and state): EXACT means the identical full name and state; FUZZY means a looser name match, with the confidence shown.