Edible meat processing device and edible meat processing system

Abstract

The edible meat processing device is provided with a first robot arm and a meat separator. The first robot arm is provided with a tool including a scraper at the front end part. The meat separator is provided separately from the first robot arm, is inserted into the cut of the workpiece expanded by the blade, and peels the meat from the workpiece by moving up and down relative to the workpiece.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an edible meat processing device and an edible meat processing system. Background Art

[0002] There is known a meat processing device that uses meat as a workpiece and automatically performs conveyance and processing. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a meat processing device having a plurality of conveyors for conveying the workpiece. In this document, the workpiece conveyed by the conveyor is put into a cut forming station (Japanese: 筋入れステーション).

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent Literature

[0005] Patent Document 1: International Publication No. 2009 / 139031 Summary of the invention

[0006] 1. Technical issues to be resolved

[0007] In the processing station provided in the meat processing apparatus as disclosed in Patent Document 1, the workpiece conveyed by the conveyor is processed while being placed flat on the ground. In the processing station, multiple types and shapes of composite processing can be performed using the same hardware by changing the software.

[0008] The complex processing of such a processing station is a processing using a relatively small force of the robot arm, so it is difficult to perform a process requiring a large force, such as peeling the meat from the workpiece. Therefore, in order to peel the meat from the workpiece in the existing processing station, for example, the meat needs to be peeled while being gradually cut with a cutter, which increases the processing time, or the knife-shaped cutter needs to be placed in a straight line with respect to the round bone, thereby reducing the yield rate.

[0009] Furthermore, since the workpiece is processed in a horizontal position at the processing station, it is difficult to bring the tool close to the back side (ie, the side facing the ground) of the workpiece.

[0010] At least one embodiment of the present disclosure is completed in view of the above situation, and its purpose is to provide an edible meat processing device and an edible meat processing system that can efficiently implement processing that requires relatively large force.

[0011] (II) Technical solution

[0012] (1) In order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, an edible meat processing device of at least one embodiment of the present disclosure comprises: a first robot arm, which has a tool including a scraper at the front end; and a meat separator, which is separately arranged from the first robot arm and is used to be inserted into the incision of the workpiece extended by the scraper, and to peel off the meat portion from the workpiece by moving up and down relative to the workpiece.

[0013] According to the method of (1) above, insert a meat separator into the part where the incision of the workpiece is extended by using a scraper provided at the front end of the first robotic arm. In this way, by moving the workpiece up and down relative to each other with the meat separator inserted, a relatively large force can act between the workpiece and the meat to be peeled off, and the meat can be efficiently peeled off from the workpiece. In addition, since the scraper is provided at the front end of the first robotic arm, by changing the posture of the first robotic arm, the workpiece can be approached from various angles. Therefore, this device can be applied to workpieces of various shapes.

[0014] In another method (2), in the method of (1) above,

[0015] The tool is a multi-functional tool including a cutting tool, and the cutting tool forms an incision on the workpiece whose incision is extended by the scraper.

[0016] According to the method of (2) above, the tool provided at the front end of the first robotic arm is configured as a multi-functional tool having the functions of a scraper and a cutting tool. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently perform composite processes such as forming an incision on a workpiece in a state where the incision has been extended by the scraper.

[0017] In another method (3), in the method of (1) or (2) above,

[0018] It further includes a second robotic arm, which is separately provided from the first robotic arm and has a clamping portion for holding the workpiece at the front end.

[0019] The first robotic arm processes the workpiece held by the clamping portion using the tool.

[0020] According to the method of (3) above, the workpiece to be processed is held by a second robotic arm separately provided from the first robotic arm. The first robotic arm processes the workpiece held by the second robotic arm, so that various composite processing operations can be flexibly performed by changing the postures of the two robotic arms.

[0021] In another method (4), in the method of (3) above,

[0022] The second robotic arm peels off the meat part by moving the workpiece while fixing the meat separator inserted into the incision.

[0023] According to the method of (4) above, by fixing the meat separator inserted into the incision extended by the scraper of the tool while moving the workpiece held by the second robotic arm, a large force can act between the two. Therefore, the peeling of the meat part from the workpiece can be reliably performed.

[0024] (5) In another way, in the way of (4) above,

[0025] The tool separates the meat part from the workpiece by cutting the stripped meat part.

[0026] According to the way of (5) above, by cutting the stripped meat part with a tool as described above, the meat part stripped from the workpiece can be simply separated.

[0027] (6) In another way, in the way of (1) or (2) above,

[0028] The first robotic arm has more than 6 axes.

[0029] According to the way of (6) above, by setting the number of axes of the first robotic arm to more than 6 axes, it is possible to cope with flexible movements such as approaching the workpiece at various angles with the tool provided at the front end, and various processing operations can be performed.

[0030] (7) To solve the above technical problems, an edible meat processing system according to one way includes:

[0031] A conveyor line for conveying the workpiece;

[0032] At least one processing station for processing the workpiece conveyed by the conveyor line; and

[0033] The edible meat processing device according to the way of (1) or (2) above.

[0034] According to the way of (7) above, by combining the above edible meat processing device with a processing station for processing the workpiece conveyed by the conveyor line, it is possible to realize an edible meat processing system that can widely cope with processing operations where there is insufficient force and it is difficult for the tool to approach in existing processing stations.

[0035] (III) Beneficial effects

[0036] According to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an edible meat processing device and an edible meat processing system that can efficiently perform processing operations that require relatively large force. Description of the drawings

[0037] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of an edible meat processing system according to one embodiment.

[0038] Figure 2 It is a view showing from the side Figure 1 of the edible meat processing device.

[0039] Figure 3 It is schematically showing Figure 1 the structure of the edible meat processing device.

[0040] Figure 4 is an enlarged view of a tool provided at the front end of a first robotic arm provided in Figure 3 .

[0041] Figure 5 is a flowchart showing the operation process of a meat processing apparatus according to an embodiment.

[0042] Figure 6A is an operation explanatory diagram corresponding to each step of Figure 5 .

[0043] Figure 6B is an operation explanatory diagram corresponding to each step of Figure 5 .

[0044] Figure 6C is an operation explanatory diagram corresponding to each step of Figure 5 .

[0045] Figure 6D is an operation explanatory diagram corresponding to each step of Figure 5 .

[0046] Figure 6E is an operation explanatory diagram corresponding to each step of Figure 5 .

[0047] Figure 6F is an operation explanatory diagram corresponding to each step of Figure 5 .

[0048] Figure 6G is an operation explanatory diagram corresponding to each step of Figure 5 . Detailed Embodiments

[0049] Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative arrangements, etc. of the structures described as embodiments or shown in the drawings are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention thereto, and are merely illustrative examples.

[0050] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a meat processing system 1 according to an embodiment, Figure 2 is a schematic view showing the meat processing apparatus 10 of Figure 1 from the side. The meat processing system 1 is a system for automatically performing the conveyance and processing of a workpiece 2 that is edible meat. The workpiece 2 is edible meat including a bone part and a meat part, and may be the meat of pigs, cows, horses, etc., or the meat of fish, chickens, etc.

[0051] The meat processing system 1 includes a conveyance line 3, at least one processing station 7, and at least one meat processing apparatus 10.

[0052] The conveyor line 3 is a structure for conveying the workpiece 2 to be processed, and has a conveyor 4 that can convey the workpiece supplied from a supply unit (not shown) disposed on the upstream side to a processing station 7 or a meat processing device 10 disposed on the downstream side. The conveyor 4 receives the workpiece 2 from the supply unit at the inlet 5 located on the uppermost upstream side. Near the inlet 5, pretreatment areas 6 where operators can be positioned are provided on both sides of the conveyor 4. In the pretreatment areas 6, pretreatment can be appropriately performed on the workpiece 2 at a stage prior to processing by the downstream processing station 7 and the meat processing device 10.

[0053] The relatively upstream side of the conveyor 4 including the pretreatment areas 6 is constituted by a single channel, but the conveyor 4 is configured to branch into a left channel 4L and a right channel 4R midway, and the workpiece 2 conveyed from the upstream side is distributed to either the left channel 4L or the right channel 4R by a switching unit 8. Corresponding processing stations 7 and meat processing devices 10 are respectively arranged in the left channel 4L and the right channel 4R. The workpiece 2 processed by the processing station 7 and the meat processing device 10 is carried out to the outside via a carry-out channel.

[0054] The processing station 7 receives the workpiece 2 from the conveyor 4 and performs meat processing by a multi-axis robot (not shown) equipped with meat processing tools. The meat processing performed at the processing station 7 is carried out using a relatively small force, for example, like existing meat processing devices for forming incisions in workpieces (for example, refer to Japanese Patent No. 4961613, Japanese Patent No. 4867050, Japanese Patent No. 5788076, Japanese Patent No. 5788077, or Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2022-170894, etc.).

[0055] In addition, in the present embodiment, a structural example in which two processing stations 7 are respectively provided along the left channel 4L and the right channel 4R is shown, but the number of processing stations 7 provided in each channel is not limited. In addition, each processing station 7 may have the same structure as each other or may have different structures from each other.

[0056] The meat processing device 10 is a device for performing a processing operation that requires a greater force than the processing station 7. In the present embodiment, as an example of such a processing operation, a meat peeling operation from the workpiece 2 which is meat including a bone part is described as an example, but other operations may also be targeted. As Figure 2 shown, the meat processing device 10 receives the workpiece 2 conveyed by the conveyor 4 located in the upper stage, peels the meat part from the workpiece 2 and separates it. The meat part separated from the workpiece 2 is carried out to the outside by the carry-out conveyor 11 located in the lower stage (in addition, the remaining workpiece 2 from which the meat part has been separated returns to the conveyor 4 and is thus conveyed to other processes on the downstream side).

[0057] In addition, the edible meat processing system 1 may also be provided with a controller for controlling each of the above structures. The controller is one or more computing devices. The processor included in the computing device may be a CPU, GPU, MPU, DSP, or a combination thereof, etc., or may also be implemented by an integrated circuit such as a PLD, ASIC, FPGA, or MCU. The computing device may also appropriately include a memory such as a ROM, RAM, or flash memory.

[0058] Next, the specific structure of the edible meat processing device 10 will be described. Figure 3 Schematically represents Figure 1 The structure of the edible meat processing device 10 Figure 4 Is provided at Figure 3 An enlarged view of the tool 22 at the front end 20 of the first robotic arm 14

[0059] The edible meat processing device 10 includes a device main body 12, a first robotic arm 14, a second robotic arm 16, and a meat separator 18.

[0060] The device main body 12 is a structure fixed to the ground where the edible meat processing device 10 is provided, and its structure is not limited.

[0061] The first robotic arm 14 is a multi-axis robot provided on the device main body 12 and is movable based on a control signal from a controller (not shown). The first robotic arm 14 has the following robotic structure: having more than six axes, and configured such that the tool 22 mounted on the front end 20 can approach the workpiece 2 at an arbitrary angle or posture.

[0062] The tool 22 provided at the front end 20 of the first robotic arm 14 includes at least a scraper 22a. In the present embodiment, as Figure 4 Illustrated, the tool 22 is configured as a multi-functional tool, and in addition to the scraper 22a, it also includes a cutter 22b for forming a cut on the workpiece 2. Thus, by using the tool 22, a cut can be formed on the workpiece 2 by the cutter 22b, and the cut can be simultaneously expanded by the scraper 22a.

[0063] In addition, the cutter 22b is mounted on the main body of the tool 22 via a tool holder 22c. Inside the tool holder 22c, a vibration unit (not shown) for driving the cutter 22b is housed.

[0064] The second robotic arm 16 is the same as the aforementioned first robotic arm 14, is a multi-axis robot provided on the device main body 12, and is movable based on a control signal from a controller (not shown). The second robotic arm 16 also has the following robotic structure: having more than six axes, and configured to be able to hold the workpiece 2 placed on the conveyor 4 using the clamping portion 26 mounted on the front end 24.

[0065] The meat separator 18 is a structure for peeling the meat portion from the workpiece 2 by inserting into the cut formed in the workpiece 2. As will be described later, when the meat separator 18 is inserted, the cut formed in the workpiece 2 is expanded by the scraper included in the tool 22 provided at the front end portion 20 of the first robotic arm 14, whereby the meat separator 18 is appropriately inserted into the cut. Further, in the meat separator 18, the pressing members 19 are disposed opposite to each other, and the pressing members 19 can be switched between a position where they retract from the meat separator 18 (retracted position) and a position where they press the workpiece 2 into which the meat separator 18 is inserted by approaching the meat separator 18 (pressing position) by the power from a drive source (not shown) (in Figure 3 , the case where the pressing member 19 is in the pressing position is illustrated).

[0066] Further, the aforementioned first robotic arm 14, second robotic arm 16, and meat separator 18 are separately provided with respect to the apparatus main body 12.

[0067] Next, the operation of the edible meat processing apparatus 10 having the above structure will be described. Figure 5 is a flowchart showing the operation process of the meat processing apparatus 10 according to one embodiment, Figure 6A to Figure 6F is related to Figure 5 the operation explanatory diagram corresponding to each step.

[0068] First, the workpiece 2 conveyed by the conveyor 4 is detected (step S1), and as Figure 6A shown, the workpiece 2 is gripped by the second robotic arm 16 (step S2). In step S1, the workpiece 2 on the conveyor 4 is identified by a detection sensor (not shown), whereby the workpiece 2 as the processing object of the meat processing apparatus 10 is detected and its posture is determined. In step S2, based on the detection result of step S1, the second robotic arm 16 is operated on the workpiece 2 placed on the conveyor 4 in a predetermined posture, whereby the workpiece 2 is gripped by the gripping portion 26 provided at the front end portion 24 of the second robotic arm 16.

[0069] In the present embodiment, the workpiece 2 is processed to be edible meat including the feet of livestock. In step S1, the shape of the workpiece 2 is recognized to determine the ankle portion of the workpiece 2, and in step S2, the second robotic arm 16 is operated so as to grip the determined ankle portion by the gripping portion 26.

[0070] Further, the workpiece 2 gripped by the second robotic arm 16 assumes a posture suitable for the processing to be performed in the next step S3 (in the present embodiment, as Figure 6B shown, it is a hanging posture).

[0071] Next, as Figure 6CAs shown, the workpiece 2 held by the second robotic arm 16 is processed using the tool 22 provided at the front end 20 of the first robotic arm 14 (step S3). The processing performed in step S3 is not limited, but in the present embodiment, as an example, a cut formation process using a cutting tool included in the tool 22 is performed on the workpiece 2 held in a suspended posture.

[0072] Next, as Figure 6D shown, a meat separator 18 is inserted into the cut of the workpiece 2 expanded by the scraper included in the tool 22 (step S4). As described above, the tool 22 is configured as a multi-functional tool and includes a scraper in addition to a cutting tool or the like used for processing in step S3. Therefore, in the processing in step S3, when using the tool 22, a cut formation process is performed using a cutting tool or the like, and at the same time, the cut formed in the workpiece 2 is expanded using the scraper. In step S4, the meat separator 18 is inserted into the cut expanded in this way by the scraper. At this time, in a state where the meat separator 18 is inserted into the cut of the workpiece 2, the pressing member 19 in the retracted position is rotated to the pressing position, whereby the posture can be stabilized by fixing the workpiece 2 in a manner sandwiched between the meat separator 18 and the pressing member 19.

[0073] In addition, in step S4, a step of preliminarily adjusting the position and posture of the workpiece 2 may be included so that the position of the meat separator 18 corresponds to the position of the cut of the workpiece 2 expanded by the scraper.

[0074] Next, as Figure 6E shown, the meat portion is peeled from the workpiece 2 by moving the meat separator 18 relative to the workpiece 2 in the vertical direction (step S5). In the present embodiment, in a state where the meat separator 18 inserted into the cut expanded by the scraper is fixed relative to the apparatus main body 12, the workpiece 2 held by the holding portion 26 provided at the front end 24 of the second robotic arm 16 is moved by operating the second robotic arm 16. Thereby, a large force can act between the meat portion engaged with the meat separator 18 fixed to the apparatus main body 12 and the workpiece 2, and the meat portion can be effectively peeled from the workpiece 2.

[0075] Next, as Figure 6F shown, by operating the first robotic arm 14, the meat portion peeled in step S5 is cut off and separated from the workpiece 2 using the tool 22 provided at the front end 20 of the first robotic arm 14 (step S6). In step S5, the meat portion is peeled from the workpiece 2, but a part of the meat portion is still connected to the workpiece 2. Therefore, in step S6, the connected portion is cut using the cutting tool included in the tool 22, thereby separating the meat portion peeled from the workpiece 2.

[0076] In addition, as Figure 6GAs shown, the separated meat part is carried out to the outside via the carry-out conveyor 11 located in the lower stage.

[0077] As described above, according to the above-described embodiment, in the tool 22 included in the front end portion 20 of the first robotic arm 14, the meat separator 18 is inserted into the portion where the cut of the workpiece 2 is extended by using the scraper. In this way, by relatively moving the workpiece 2 up and down in the state where the meat separator 18 is inserted, a relatively large force can act between the workpiece 2 and the peeled meat, and the meat can be efficiently peeled from the workpiece 2. In addition, since the tool 22 including the scraper is provided at the front end portion 20 of the first robotic arm 14, by changing the posture of the first robotic arm 14, the workpiece 2 can be approached from various angles. Therefore, this device can be applied to workpieces 2 of various shapes.

[0078] Explanation of reference numerals

[0079] 1 Edible meat processing system

[0080] 2 Workpiece

[0081] 3 Conveyor line

[0082] 4 Conveyor

[0083] 4L Left channel

[0084] 4R Right channel

[0085] 5 Inlet part

[0086] 6 Processing area

[0087] 7 Processing station

[0088] 8 Switching part

[0089] 10 Edible meat processing device

[0090] 11 Carry-out conveyor

[0091] 12 Device main body

[0092] 14 First robotic arm

[0093] 16 Second robotic arm

[0094] 18 Meat separator

[0095] 19 Pressing member

[0096] 20 Front end portion

[0097] 22 Tool

[0098] 24 Front end portion

[0099] 26 Clamping portion

Claims

1. An edible meat processing device, characterized in that, Comprising: A first robotic arm having a tool including a scraper at its front end; and A meat separator, which is separately provided from the first robotic arm and is used to insert into a cut of a workpiece expanded by the scraper and strip a meat portion from the workpiece by moving relatively up and down with respect to the workpiece.

2. The edible meat processing device according to claim 1, wherein The tool is a multi-functional tool including a cutter, and the cutter forms a cut in the workpiece whose cut is expanded by the scraper.

3. The edible meat processing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein It further comprises a second robotic arm, which is separately provided from the first robotic arm and has a clamping portion for holding the workpiece at its front end, The first robotic arm processes the workpiece held by the clamping portion using the tool.

4. The edible meat processing device according to claim 3, wherein The second robotic arm strips the meat portion by moving the workpiece while fixing the meat separator inserted into the cut.

5. The edible meat processing device according to claim 4, wherein The tool separates the meat portion from the workpiece by cutting the stripped meat portion.

6. The edible meat processing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein The first robotic arm has 6 or more axes.

7. An edible meat processing system, characterized in that, Comprising: A conveyor line for conveying the workpiece; At least one processing station for processing the workpiece conveyed by the conveyor line; and The edible meat processing device according to claim 1 or 2.

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