Patents by Inventor Veldon M. Hix

Veldon M. Hix has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 5366749
    Abstract: A process for forming a snack product and a snack formed therefrom with discontinuous characteristics. The process includes forming a first highly cohesive dough and a second less cohesive dough matrix, combining the first and second discrete dough components into a composite dough sheet, cutting the dough sheet into a multiplicity of dough preforms, and frying the preforms to produce a snack with discontinuous characteristics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 19, 1993
    Date of Patent: November 22, 1994
    Assignee: Miles J. Willard
    Inventors: Bradley C. Frazee, Clifford A. Stubbs, Veldon M. Hix, Miles J. Willard
  • Patent number: 5192574
    Abstract: A process for producing expanded corn snack products. The products are preferably made in a fluted ring shape, and have an expanded, airy texture. The process for producing the products includes successive cutting steps wherein the corn is comminuted to a relatively narrow particle size distribution with most of the corn retained on a #40 or #60 mesh screen. The corn is comminuted by impelling whole cooked corn kernels against a blade and through a screen having a ratio of open area screen material of from about 1:1 to about 3:1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 1991
    Date of Patent: March 9, 1993
    Assignee: Miles J. Willard
    Inventors: Dewey R. Hunt, Veldon M. Hix, Miles J. Willard, Kyle E. Dayley
  • Patent number: 5100686
    Abstract: A process for producing expanded corn snack products. The products are preferably made in a fluted ring shape, and have an expanded, airy texture. The process for producing the products includes successive cutting steps wherein the corn is comminuted to a relatively narrow particle size distribution with most of the corn retained on a #40 or #60 mesh screen. The corn is comminuted by impelling whole cooked corn kernels against a blade and through a screen having a ratio of open area:screen material of from about 1:1 to about 3:1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 9, 1991
    Date of Patent: March 31, 1992
    Assignee: Miles J. Willard
    Inventors: Dewey R. Hunt, Veldon M. Hix, Miles J. Willard, Kyle E. Dayley
  • Patent number: 4994295
    Abstract: The invention comprises a dough preform which when fried, produces a snack chip product having a predetermined level of surface bubbling. The dough preform has outer dough portions having substantially less moisture than inner dough portion. The dough preform is made by a process that includes sheeting a dough having from about 30% to about 55% moisture, removing a portion of the moisture from the dough sheet, at a greater rate from the outer dough portions than from the inner dough portion and then frying the partially dried dough prior to any significant equilibration of moisture between the outer and inner dough portions. The moisture can be removed from the dough sheet or preform by heat, air movement or a combination of the two.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 1989
    Date of Patent: February 19, 1991
    Assignee: Miles J. Willard
    Inventors: David Holm, Veldon M. Hix, Miles J. Willard
  • Patent number: 4931303
    Abstract: The invention comprises a dough preform which when fried, produces a snack chip product having a predetermined level of surface bubbling. The dough preform has outer dough portions having substantially less moisture than inner dough portion. The dough preform is made by a process that includes sheeting a dough having from about 30% to about 55% moisture, removing a portion of the moisture from the dough sheet, at a greater rate from the outer dough portions than from the inner dough portion and then frying the partially dried dough prior to any significant equilibration of moisture between the outer and inner dough portions. The moisture can be removed from the dough sheet or preform by heat, air movement or a combination of the two.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 1988
    Date of Patent: June 5, 1990
    Assignee: Miles J. Willard
    Inventors: David Holm, Veldon M. Hix, Miles J. Willard
  • Patent number: 4889733
    Abstract: Dough pieces are dockered by a rotating flexible bristle brush to form dockering holes in the dough to prevent puffing during frying. The flexible bristles increase the point density of dockering holes in the dough while avoiding sticking or wrinkling of the dough during the dockering step.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 1988
    Date of Patent: December 26, 1989
    Inventors: Miles J. Willard, Kyle E. Dayley, Veldon M. Hix, David A. Holm
  • Patent number: 4889737
    Abstract: Dough pieces are dockered by a rotating flexible bristle brush to form dockering holes in the dough to prevent puffing during frying. The flexible bristles increase the point density of dockering holes in the dough while avoiding sticking or wrinkling of the dough during the dockering step. Upon frying a fried snack product having dockering holes is produced.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 20, 1988
    Date of Patent: December 26, 1989
    Inventors: Miles J. Willard, Kyle E. Dayley, Veldon M. Hix, David A. Holm
  • Patent number: 4879126
    Abstract: A deep-fat fried expanded snack product is made from a moist dough according to a technique which prevents undue distortion of the snack during frying. The dough can include cooked potato solids, masa, and/or one or more cereal flours, with a moisture content of about 35% to 60% at the time of frying. An amount of ungelatinized starch can be present in the dough when fried. In one embodiment, the dough is extruded as a pair of separate long, thin strands which are formed into a composite dough piece by adhering the strands by surface contact along the long dimension of the strands. The two adherent strands can be straight solid dough pieces in side-by-side contact, or the strands can be twisted together to form a braid. In another embodiment, a sheeted dough piece can be slit lengthwise along its center and partially through the depth of the dough piece to form the equivalent of a pair of adhering strands.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 1985
    Date of Patent: November 7, 1989
    Inventors: Miles J. Willard, Jane J. Arnold, Veldon M. Hix
  • Patent number: 4650687
    Abstract: A method for producing fried snack products of controlled shape comprises introducing dough pieces into a shallow depth of frying oil and allowing the dough pieces to travel unsupported through the oil while frying to a set shape. The shallow depth of the oil prevents the pieces from overturning in the oil while frying, so they form a controlled shape. In one embodiment, a two-layer sheeted dough is formed from dissimilar potato-based dough layers adhered and cut into layered dough pieces introduced into the shallow oil depth. The first layer is on the bottom and the second layer is at the top of each dough piece. The layered dough pieces maintain their original orientation in the shallow oil depth as they fry to form a fried potato skin product having a convexly curved upper layer and a concavely curved bottom layer. The dough pieces are partially fried in the shallow oil depth to set the curved shape, after which the partially fried pieces are finish-fried in a greater depth of frying oil.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 1986
    Date of Patent: March 17, 1987
    Assignee: Miles J. Willard
    Inventors: Miles J. Willard, Kyle E. Dayley, Veldon M. Hix, David A. Holm