Method, device and system for measuring poultry slaughtering products

The non-contact laser rangefinder measures the distance of poultry slaughtered products in multiple locations, which solves the problems of restricted orientation and insufficient hygiene in the existing system, and realizes multifunctional and accurate measurement of poultry slaughtered products parameters.

CN119255708APending Publication Date: 2025-01-03MAREO POULTRY MEAT PTE LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
CN202380042327.2
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Applications(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Priority Date
2022-05-30
Filing Date
2023-05-24
Publication Date
2025-01-03

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Existing poultry slaughter product measurement systems have problems in practice with limitations in orientation and insufficient hygiene, and measurement data are difficult to use for a variety of purposes.

Method used

Using a non-contact rangefinder to position the conveying track defined by the conveying device, maintain poultry slaughtered products through multiple continuous carriers, and use a laser rangefinder to measure distances at multiple locations to determine product parameters to achieve product profile accurate measurement.

Benefits of technology

It realizes effective, sanitary and multifunctional measurement of poultry slaughtered products parameters, can be used for various purposes, and improves the accuracy and flexibility of measurement.

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Abstract

The invention provides a method for measuring slaughtered poultry products (2) using a measuring device (12) positioned stationary along a transport trajectory defined by a transport device (4) having a plurality of continuous carriers (6), each for holding a slaughtered product, the conveying device, in use, conveys the slaughter product held by a carrier of the plurality of successive carriers past the measuring device (12) in a conveying direction (8) along a conveying trajectory (10). The method comprises: a) measuring, using a non-contact range finder (16) of a measuring device (12), the distance (d) between the range finder and the slaughtered product at at least three different positions (l1, l2, l3) on the slaughtered product (2); and b) determining parameters of the slaughter product according to the distance measured in step a).
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Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for measuring poultry slaughter products. The present invention also relates to an apparatus and a system for measuring such poultry slaughter products. The present invention also relates to a computer program and a computer readable storage medium.

[0002] WO2017 / 188812A1 relates to a system and method for measuring the position of the shoulder joint of a carcass portion of poultry after slaughter. The shoulder joint is the joint that connects the wings of the poultry to the main body in live poultry. The position of the shoulder joint indicates the overall size of the carcass portion. The position is measured by a mechanical contact member that engages the shoulder joint.

[0003] Although the known systems and methods function satisfactorily in practice, they can be further improved.

[0004] It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved method, device and system for measuring poultry slaughter products. It is therefore another object of the present invention to provide a method, device and system for measuring poultry slaughter products held by a carrier of a conveying device, which has fewer restrictions on the orientation of the poultry slaughter products during measurement. It is another object of the present invention to provide a method, device and system for measuring poultry slaughter products, wherein the measurements are performed in a more hygienic manner. It is another object of the present invention to provide a method, device and system for measuring poultry slaughter products, wherein the measurement data are such that they can be used for more purposes.

[0005] One or more objects are achieved by a method and / or device and / or system according to the invention. The invention provides a method for measuring poultry slaughter products, the method using a measuring device stationarily positioned along a conveying track defined by a conveying device, the conveying device having a plurality of continuous carriers, each carrier for holding a slaughter product. The conveying device, in use, conveys the slaughter product held by a carrier of the plurality of continuous carriers past the measuring device in a conveying direction along the conveying track. The method comprises the following steps:

[0006] a) using a non-contact distance meter of the measuring device to measure the distance between the distance meter and the slaughtered product at at least three different locations on the slaughtered product; and

[0007] b) determining parameters of the slaughtered product based on the distance measured in step a).

[0008] The invention also provides an apparatus as defined in claim 13 and a system as defined in claim 14 .

[0009] The effect of the method, device and system according to the invention is that, using a contactless distance meter, the parameters of a slaughtered product can be determined in an effective and relatively easy manner. Due to the contactless nature of the measurement, the measurement is also more hygienic. Furthermore, the at least three distances measured can be used for various purposes, since using these measurements the profile of the product passing the measuring device can be determined, which profile can, for example, provide information about the dimensions of the product or the state or quality of the product. Furthermore, since the measurement is contactless, the correct orientation of the slaughtered product during the measurement may be less relevant.

[0010] The carrier can be, for example, a holder for the front half of the poultry, such as so-called cones, or a hook for hanging the slaughtered poultry. The carrier can be rotatably arranged in such a way that the orientation of the poultry slaughter product can be changed during its transport. In one embodiment, the conveying device is arranged to pass the poultry slaughter product in a vertical orientation, preferably head down, past the measuring device.

[0011] In one embodiment, said step a) of taking measurements is performed using a laser rangefinder. Thus, the non-contact rangefinder of the measuring device may be or at least include a laser rangefinder. The laser rangefinder may be configured as a point laser measuring instrument or a line laser measuring instrument, and / or may use a red laser beam, thus having a wavelength in the range of 630 nm to 670 nm.

[0012] The measured distances at at least three different positions can be measured continuously in time by a non-contact distance meter. Therefore, in a related embodiment, the step a) comprises: as the slaughtered product passes through the measuring device during transportation by means of the conveying device, the distance is continuously measured at the at least three different positions on the slaughtered product. Therefore, the non-contact distance meter of the measuring device can be configured to continuously perform at least three distance measurements on the same poultry slaughtered product passing through the measuring device. As a result of the movement of the slaughtered product through the measuring device combined with the performance of continuous measurements, multiple measurements located on the same line can be performed. The number of measurements on a product can depend on the measurement frequency of the measuring device and the speed at which the poultry product passes through the measuring device in the conveying direction. Therefore, in an embodiment, the number of measurements on a product can range from tens to thousands of measurements. The higher the number, the more accurately the profile of the product can be measured, because any interpolation between two consecutive measurements plays a smaller role in the determined parameters. Therefore, in an embodiment, the conveying device can be operably connected to a control unit of the measuring device so as to provide information related to the speed of the carrier to the control unit. In an embodiment, the carrier speed can be given and set in the control unit, for example in the case where this speed is constant over time.

[0013] Alternatively, the at least three distances may be measured simultaneously by a non-contact distance meter configured to measure at least three different points on the product, such as in the case of a line laser measuring meter.

[0014] In one embodiment, step a) may be triggered by the measured distance being below a predetermined upper distance threshold. In such an embodiment, the measuring device may continuously perform measurements, wherein the upper distance threshold triggers the measurement of step a), which may be the distance between the distance meter and a certain position on the carrier. The upper distance threshold may further form a base value, with which the measured distance may be compared for the purpose of determining the parameter.

[0015] In one embodiment, for step b), the parameter is a size-related parameter related to the size of the slaughtered product. The size-related parameter is preferably related to the cross-sectional area of ​​the slaughtered product, preferably to the cross-sectional area of ​​the slaughtered product parallel to the conveying direction. The larger the cross-sectional area, the larger the size. Using such a laser rangefinder, the measured multiple distances form a very suitable basis for determining such size-related parameters related to the cross-sectional area of ​​the slaughtered product. Alternatively, the parameter may be a functional parameter, such as a quality-related parameter.

[0016] In one embodiment, said step b) comprises determining a dimension-related parameter which at least partly depends on a predetermined reference parameter which is related to the dimension of the carrier holding the slaughtered product, preferably to the cross-sectional area of ​​the carrier holding the slaughtered product. In such an embodiment, said reference parameter can be subtracted from the mentioned dimension-related parameter determined during step b), so that a parameter related to the dimension, preferably the cross-sectional area, of the poultry slaughtered product itself can be determined thereby. Such a predetermined reference parameter related to the carrier can be determined by passing an empty carrier through a measuring device and performing a measurement similar to the measurement of step a) and thereby determining said predetermined reference parameter.

[0017] In one embodiment, at least two categories, preferably three or more categories, such as five categories, are defined in a continuous parameter range, and the method further comprises a step d): based on the parameters determined according to step b), determining to which of the at least two categories the slaughtered product belongs. These categories may represent different sizes, for example including "small", "medium" and "large" slaughtered products. In this way, the slaughtered product that has been measured can be assigned to one of these categories. For example, processing actions such as peeling, cutting and meat slice collection can then be adjusted to adapt to different categories, thereby improving the quality or effectiveness of the processing actions.

[0018] In one embodiment, step a) is performed using a plurality, preferably two or three, of said non-contact distance meters, preferably laser distance meters, preferably wherein each of the plurality of non-contact distance meters is oriented at a different angle with respect to the conveying direction with respect to the slaughtered product. In one embodiment, step a) is performed using at least two laser distance meters, a first of the at least two laser distance meters being oriented at an angle having a component in the conveying direction and a second of the at least two laser distance meters being oriented at an angle having a component opposite to the conveying direction. This may improve the accuracy of the measurement, or in other words, the accuracy of the determined parameters.

[0019] In one embodiment, the measuring device is positioned upstream of the processing device along the conveying trajectory, wherein the downstream measuring device is positioned downstream of the processing device along the conveying trajectory, the method further comprises the following steps:

[0020] a1) measuring the distance between the downstream distance meter and the slaughtered product using a downstream non-contact distance meter of the downstream measuring device at at least three different positions on the slaughtered product, the at least three different positions being preferably the same positions as for step a);

[0021] b1) determining the parameters of the slaughtered product according to the distance measured in step a1);

[0022] The method further comprises the following steps:

[0023] c) determining a quality-related parameter of the slaughtered product, which quality-related parameter is related to the performance of a processing action on the slaughtered product by the processing device, which quality-related parameter depends at least in part on the corresponding parameters determined in steps b) and b1).

[0024] By doing so, for example, it can be determined whether a machining action performed by the machining device has been performed as expected, or in other words, whether quality-related standards have been met. It can also be determined whether carrier-related properties, such as a possible rotation of the carrier during machining, function as expected.

[0025] Optionally, the quality-related parameter of step c) is determined at least in part based on a predetermined reference quality parameter, the predetermined reference quality parameter being related to the performance of a processing action of the slaughtered product by the processing device. The predetermined reference quality parameter may have been associated with an associated size-related parameter range. The parameters of steps b) and b1) may be size-related parameters. The parameters of steps b) and b1) may be related to a contour shape of the slaughtered product.

[0026] In one embodiment, a plurality of product processing actions are defined, such as cutting and peeling, wherein each of said actions is assigned to an associated size-related parameter range, the method further comprises the step of determining to which of said plurality of product processing actions the slaughtered product belongs, based on the parameters determined according to step b). This allows determining whether a particular action has been correctly performed, or for example whether it has been performed at all.

[0027] In one embodiment, the method further comprises: setting at least one processing parameter of a processing device upstream or downstream of the measuring device based on the parameter determined during step b). In this way, one or more settings of the processing device can be adjusted in advance so that a more optimal processing action can be performed, or such settings can be adjusted, for example, when it is determined downstream that a quality-related parameter related to a processing action of the processing device is below a certain threshold.

[0028] The invention also relates to a measuring device for measuring poultry slaughter products, wherein, during use, the measuring device is stationarily positioned along a conveying path defined by a conveying device, the conveying device having a plurality of consecutive carriers, each carrier for holding a slaughter product, the conveying device in use conveying the slaughter product held by a carrier of the plurality of consecutive carriers past the measuring device in a conveying direction along the conveying path, the measuring device comprising a control unit arranged for:

[0029] a) using a non-contact distance meter of the measuring device to measure the distance between the distance meter and the slaughtered product at at least three different locations on the slaughtered product;

[0030] b) determining parameters of the slaughtered product based on the measured distances.

[0031] Furthermore, the present invention relates to a system for measuring poultry slaughter products, comprising:

[0032] a conveying device having a plurality of consecutive carriers, each carrier being intended to hold a slaughtered product, the conveying device, in use, conveying the slaughtered product held by a carrier of said plurality of consecutive carriers in a conveying direction along a conveying trajectory defined by the conveying device; and

[0033] - a measuring device according to the invention as described above, for measuring poultry slaughter products, wherein the measuring device is positioned stationary along a conveying path so that the slaughter products held by the carrier are conveyed past the measuring device;

[0034] The measuring device comprises a control unit arranged to:

[0035] a) using a non-contact distance meter of the measuring device to measure the distance between the distance meter and the slaughtered product at at least three different locations on the slaughtered product; and

[0036] b) determining parameters of the slaughtered product based on the measured distances.

[0037] In respective embodiments of the device and the system according to the invention, the control unit is arranged for carrying out the method according to the invention as described above.

[0038] The effects of the measuring device and system are the same or at least similar to those described above with respect to the method according to the invention. The embodiments of the method according to the invention apply in an analogous manner to the device and system according to the invention and vice versa.

[0039] The invention also relates to a computer program having instructions which, when executed, preferably by a computer of the device, are configured to cause a device for measuring poultry slaughter products, preferably a device according to the invention, to carry out a method according to the invention.

[0040] Finally, the invention relates to a computer-readable storage medium comprising the computer program according to the invention.

[0041] The effects of the storage medium and the computer program when executed are the same or at least similar to those described above with respect to the method according to the invention.

[0042] The invention is described hereinafter with reference to the attached highly schematic drawings, in which embodiments of the invention are shown and in which like reference numerals indicate like or similar elements.

[0043] Figure 1A An embodiment of a measuring system according to the invention is shown in a top view;

[0044] Figure 1B Another embodiment of a measuring system according to the present invention is shown;

[0045] Figure 1C A further embodiment of a measuring system according to the present invention is shown;

[0046] Figure 2A A more detailed 3D view shows Figure 1A Part of a measurement system;

[0047] Figure 2B A more detailed 3D view shows Figure 1A Part of a measuring system of a method of manufacturing a poultry slaughter product, wherein a poultry slaughter product has been provided on a carrier of the system;

[0048] Figure 3A express Figure 1A Distance measurement on an empty carrier of the system;

[0049] Figure 3B express Figure 1A distance measurement on a carrier of a system for holding poultry slaughter products;

[0050] Figure 3C Represents the cross-sectional area of ​​the poultry slaughter product itself;

[0051] Figure 4 Representation and Figure 3B and Figure 3C Compared to the cross-sectional area of ​​the poultry slaughter product itself at different states; and

[0052] Figure 5 A flow chart of an embodiment of a method according to the invention is shown.

[0053] Figure 1A A system 1 for measuring a poultry slaughter product 2 is shown. In the example shown, the product 2 is a forequarter, the wings of which have been removed. The system 1 comprises a conveying device 4, as is common in the handling of poultry slaughter products, having a plurality of continuous carriers 6, each carrier 6 being used as shown in FIG. Figure 2A and Figure 2B The holding device 6 is shown to hold slaughtered products 2. Figure 1A 6. The continuous carriers can be driven by a conveyor chain. The conveying device 4 conveys the slaughtered products 2 in a conveying direction 8 along a conveying path 10, which is defined by the conveying device 4, each slaughtered product 2 being held by one of the continuous carriers 6. The system also comprises a measuring device 12 for measuring the poultry slaughtered products 2. The measuring device 12 is positioned stationary along the conveying path 10 so that the slaughtered products 2 held by the carriers 6 are conveyed past the measuring device 12.

[0054] The carriers 6 may each have a poultry product holder body 20 which is rotatable about a horizontal axis of rotation, which is indicated by reference numeral 22 and which is perpendicular to the conveying direction 8. The rotation may be achieved by driving a gear 24 with a suitable drive method. The carriers 6 also have a support device 26 which is arranged to travel along a track 28 of the conveying device.

[0055] The measuring device 12 comprises a control unit 14 arranged to measure the distance d between the distance meter 16 and the slaughtered product 2 at at least three different positions I1, I2, I3 on ​​the slaughtered product 2 using the non-contact laser distance meter 16 of the measuring device 12. Figure 3B, where the measured distance is indicated by a dotted line. The measurement indicated by I2 is the one being measured, while the previous measurement I1 has already been performed as the slaughtered product 2 passes the measuring device 12 during transport in the conveying direction 8 by means of the conveying device 4. The subsequent measurement I3 still has to be performed. The laser distance meter 16 is a point laser measuring meter, but can alternatively be a line distance meter, wherein the measuring plane is preferably oriented vertically, that is to say perpendicular to the conveying direction.

[0056] The control unit 14 is further arranged to determine a size-related parameter related to the size of the slaughtered product 2 from the respective distances d measured at the positions I1, I2, I3. The size-related parameter is related to the cross-sectional area A of the slaughtered product 2 parallel to the conveying direction 8. In practice, more measurements will be made on the same poultry slaughtered product 2. The number of measurements depends on the measuring frequency of the measuring device and the speed at which the poultry product passes the measuring device in the conveying direction. The control unit 14 is arranged to carry out the method according to the invention, which will be described below.

[0057] In a similar way to System 1 and Figure 1B In the alternative system 101 shown in , two such distance meters 116a, 116b are used with respective measuring devices 112a, 112b. The measuring devices 112a and 112b operate in the same manner as the measuring device 12. The two laser distance meters are oriented at different angles a1 and a2, respectively, with respect to the slaughtered product 2 and relative to the conveying direction 8. As shown, the first of the two laser distance meters 116a is oriented at an angle a1 having a component in the conveying direction 8, while the second of the at least two laser distance meters 116b is oriented at an angle a2 having a component opposite to the conveying direction 8. By doing so, a wider field of view can be obtained, which results in a higher measurement accuracy, in particular with respect to the forward-facing area and the rear-facing area (seen in the conveying direction) of the product to be measured.

[0058] An embodiment of the method according to the invention for measuring a poultry slaughter product 2 using the above-mentioned measuring device 12 comprises at least the following steps:

[0059] a) using the non-contact distance meter 16 (or, for example, 116a, 116b) of the measuring device 12 to measure the distance d between the distance meter 16 and the slaughtered product 2 at at least three different positions I1, I2, I3 on ​​the slaughtered product 2; and

[0060] b) Determining a parameter A of the slaughtered product 2 based on the distance d measured in step a).

[0061] See also Figure 5 , wherein optional method steps have been indicated by dashed lines.

[0062] The measuring device 12 may be arranged to measure the distance continuously, that means not only when the carrier passes the measuring device, wherein step a) is triggered by the measured distance d being below a predetermined upper distance threshold dT. Figure 3A As shown, the threshold value dT can be the distance to a predefined position on the carrier 6. In this way, it can be automatically detected when the carrier passes the measuring device 12, so that the measurement in the sense of step a) above can begin. As mentioned above, the parameter A can be a size-related parameter related to the cross-sectional area of ​​the slaughtered product 2 parallel to the conveying direction 8.

[0063] Step b) comprises determining a dimension-related parameter that depends at least in part on a predetermined reference parameter A1 related to the cross-sectional area of ​​the carrier 6 holding the slaughtered product 2. Figure 3A , where as a reference measurement an empty carrier 6 is measured by the measuring device 12. This means that the dimension-related parameter A can then be determined by subtracting the parameter A1 from the parameter A2, where the parameter A2 represents the measurement of the carrier holding a slaughter product 2, such as Figure 3B Thus, parameter A2 relates to the cross-sectional area of ​​the combination of the carrier 6 holding the slaughtered product 2 and the product 2 itself. Thus, the resulting parameter A obtained by subtracting A1 from A2 is related to the cross-sectional area of ​​the slaughtered product 2 itself, as Figure 3C shown.

[0064] This determination of parameter A may be performed in a similar manner using system 101 described above.

[0065] In one embodiment, the method may also have an optional additional step d) in which at least two categories C1, C2 are defined in a continuous parameter range. During such step d) it is determined to which of the at least two categories the slaughter product belongs based on the parameters determined according to step b).

[0066] Figure 1C An embodiment of a system according to the invention is shown, which has a poultry processing device 40. This can be, for example, a piece of meat collecting device. The measuring device 12 is positioned upstream of the processing device 40 along the conveying path 10. The system also has a downstream measuring device 12' positioned downstream of the processing device 40 along the conveying path 10. The device 12' also has a laser rangefinder 16' and a control unit 14' and operates in the same way as the device 12. In addition to the above steps a) and b), the method also comprises the following steps:

[0067] a1) using the downstream laser distance meter 16' of the downstream measuring device 12' to measure the distance d between the downstream distance meter 16' and the slaughtered product 2 at at least three different positions on the slaughtered product; and

[0068] b1) Determining parameters of the slaughtered product from the measured distances of step a1), preferably determining the mentioned size-related parameters.

[0069] The latter at least three different positions measured during step a1) are preferably identical to those of step a), or at least measured at the same vertical height, so that directly comparable cross-sectional areas of the poultry slaughter product can be determined in steps b) and b1). The method further comprises the following steps:

[0070] c) determining a quality-related parameter of the slaughtered product, the quality-related parameter being related to the execution of a processing action on the slaughtered product by the processing device, the quality-related parameter being at least partially dependent on the corresponding parameters determined in step b) and step b1). An example of such a quality-related parameter may be a parameter related to the presence or absence of a fillet on the poultry slaughtered product. After the fillet has been removed using the processing device 40, the cross-sectional shape of the poultry slaughtered product will be completely different from before. Figure 4 Such a shape with the pieces removed is shown in FIG, whose cross section is indicated by A3. The outer shape of the product before processing at the processing device is indicated by the dashed line. This shape will therefore be measured using the upstream measuring device 12. The profile, which is significantly reduced due to the collection of pieces, will then be measured using the downstream measuring device 12'. In this way, it can be determined, for example, whether the pieces have been correctly removed and / or what the size of the removed pieces must be, both of which constitute quality-related parameters.

[0071] Optionally, the determination of step c) may also depend on predetermined reference quality parameters related to the execution of a processing action on the slaughtered product by the processing device.Such predetermined reference quality parameters may be set, for example, using a plurality of measurements on the product that have also been manually reviewed.

[0072] In addition, the parameters determined during step b) can be used as input for processing parameters of processing devices upstream or downstream of the measuring device. For example, when the parameters indicate that the product in question is a "small" product, the cutter of the downstream cutting processing device can be adjusted for this. For example, when the parameters indicate that the meat slices are sometimes not completely removed from the carcass of a poultry slaughter product, a collecting tool of the upstream processing device, such as a scraper, can be adjusted, after which the parameters determined for a plurality of processed products are evaluated again, which may lead to another repetition of adjusting some tools of the upstream processing device.

[0073] The foregoing description provides embodiments of the present invention by way of example only. The scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims. One or more objectives of the present invention are achieved by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for measuring poultry slaughter products, the method using a measuring device stationarily positioned along a conveying path defined by a conveying device, the conveying device having a plurality of consecutive carriers, each carrier for holding a slaughter product, the conveying device in use conveying the slaughter product held by a carrier of the plurality of consecutive carriers past the measuring device in a conveying direction along the conveying path; The method comprises: a) measuring the distance between the distance meter and the slaughtered product at at least three different locations on the slaughtered product using the non-contact distance meter of the measuring device; as well as b) determining parameters of the slaughtered product based on the distance measured in step a).

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Said step a) of taking measurements is performed using a laser rangefinder.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The step a) comprises: The distances are measured continuously at the at least three different positions on the slaughtered product as the slaughtered product passes the measuring device during transport by means of the transport device.

4. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: Step a) is triggered by the measured distance falling below a predetermined upper distance threshold.

5. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: For step b), said parameter is a size-related parameter related to the size of said slaughtered product.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein: The size-related parameter is related to the cross-sectional area of ​​the slaughtered product parallel to the conveying direction.

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the step b) comprises: A dimension-related parameter is determined, which dimension-related parameter at least partially depends on a predetermined reference parameter related to a dimension of a carrier holding the slaughtered product, preferably to a cross-sectional area of ​​the carrier holding the slaughtered product.

8. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: At least two categories are defined in a continuous parameter range, and the method further comprises the following steps: d) determining, based on the parameters determined according to step b), to which of the at least two categories the slaughtered product belongs.

9. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: performing step a) using a plurality, preferably two or three, of said non-contact distance meters, preferably laser distance meters, Each of the plurality of non-contact distance meters is oriented at a different angle with respect to the slaughtered product, preferably relative to the conveying direction.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein: Step a) is performed using at least two laser distance meters, a first of which is oriented at an angle having a component in the conveying direction and a second of which is oriented at an angle having a component opposite to the conveying direction.

11. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The measuring device is positioned upstream of the processing device along the conveying path, wherein a downstream measuring device is positioned downstream of the processing device along the conveying trajectory, The method further comprises the following steps: a1) using a downstream non-contact distance meter of the downstream measuring device to measure the distance between the downstream distance meter and the slaughtered product at at least three different positions on the slaughtered product; b1) determining the parameters of the slaughtered product according to the distance measured in step a1); The method further comprises the following steps: c) determining a quality-related parameter of the slaughtered product, said quality-related parameter being related to the execution of a processing action on the slaughtered product by the processing device, said quality-related parameter being at least partially dependent on the corresponding parameters determined in steps b) and b1).

12. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising: At least one process parameter of a process device upstream or downstream of the measuring device is set based on the parameter determined during step b).

13. A measuring device for measuring poultry slaughter products, wherein: During use, the measuring device is stationarily positioned along a conveying path defined by a conveying device having a plurality of consecutive carriers, each carrier being used to hold a slaughtered product, the conveying device conveying, in use, the slaughtered product held by a carrier of the plurality of consecutive carriers past the measuring device in a conveying direction along the conveying path, The measuring device comprises a control unit arranged to: a) measuring the distance between the distance meter and the slaughtered product at at least three different locations on the slaughtered product using the non-contact distance meter of the measuring device; b) determining the parameters of the slaughtered product based on the measured distance, Preferably, wherein the control unit is arranged to perform the method according to any of the preceding claims 1-12.

14. A system for measuring poultry slaughter products, the system comprising: a conveying device having a plurality of continuous carriers, each carrier being used to hold a slaughtered product, the conveying device, in use, conveying the slaughtered product held by a carrier of the plurality of continuous carriers in a conveying direction along a conveying path defined by the conveying device; and - a measuring device according to claim 13, for measuring poultry slaughter products, wherein the measuring device is stationarily positioned along the conveying path so that the slaughter products held by the carrier are conveyed past the measuring device; The measuring device comprises a control unit arranged to: a) measuring the distance between the distance meter and the slaughtered product at at least three different locations on the slaughtered product using the non-contact distance meter of the measuring device; as well as b) determining parameters of the slaughtered product based on the measured distance.

15. A computer program having instructions configured, when executed, to cause a device for measuring poultry slaughter products, preferably a device according to claim 13, to perform a method according to any one of claims 1-12.

16. A computer-readable storage medium comprising the computer program according to claim 15.

Citation Information

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