Abstract: Food is fed onto a weighing platform inside a dispensing chamber and carried by a parallelogram weighing support disposed outside the dispensing chamber and supported by four parallelogram arms from an upright frame, the platform being retained in a position to receive the food by a releasable electrically operated latch. When a weigh beam detects a weight set by a control circuit, it sends an electrical signal to the control circuit which causes feed to stop and provides a condition in which an electrical signal can be sent to the latch to release the weighing platform into a position in which a weighed portion of food can be discharged therefrom. In one embodiment, at least one switch is manually operated from outside the unit to cause the control circuit to apply the releasing signal to the latch either immediately or after an interval of time.

Abstract: Flowable food is fed by a vibrator unit to a weighing platform which is carried by a weighing support which moves downwardly as the food builds up on the platform, the weighing support and vibrator being temporarily stopped by stops at a location prior to a point corresponding to a preselected weight and thereafter being allowed to continue its weighing movement or discharge food therefrom as the case may be.

Abstract: A unit for weighing and dispensing portions of hot, fried, potato chips, comprises a casing in which are disposed a receptacle for receiving a supply of the chips, and a dispensing chamber opening into said receptacle and into which hot chips are fed by a vibrator unit coupled to a bottom wall of the receptacle, a heating element for maintaining chips hot while in the receptacle and in the dispensing chamber, the bottom wall of the receptacle being inclined upwardly in the direction of the dispensing chamber for allowing hot frying oil or fat to drain away in the opposite direction and into a collector, a weighing platform disposed inside the dispensing chamber and being hinged to a movable weighing support disposed outside the dispensing chamber and guided for vertical linear movement, the weighing platform being retained in a position to receive the hot chips and being released to permit it to hinge downwardly and discharge the hot chips therefrom in response to a predetermined amount of linear movement of