Slicing machine, system and process

Abstract

The invention relates to a slicing machine (1), in particular a slicer, for slicing foodstuffs, comprising: a feed unit (20) which is designed to feed at least one product caliber (K) along a feed direction (10), a cutting unit (7) and a control unit (1*) which is designed to control at least the feed unit (20) and the cutting unit (7), wherein the control unit (1*) is designed to be in signal communication with a processing device (200) separate from the slicing machine (1), wherein the processing device (200) is designed to process the product caliber (K) before slicing by the slicing machine (1), and wherein the control unit (1*) is further designed toto obtain at least one dimension and / or weight and / or density of the at least one product caliber (K) or data representative thereof from the separate processing device (200) and to control the feed unit (20) and / or the cutting unit (7) based on the at least one dimension and / or weight and / or density. Furthermore, the invention relates to a system (300) and a method.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a slicing machine, in particular a slicer, for slicing food, comprising a feeding unit which is configured to feed at least one product caliber along a feeding direction, a cutting unit which is configured to slice the at least one product caliber, and a control unit which is configured to control at least the feeding unit and the cutting unit.

[0002] It should be noted at this point that the slicing machine according to the invention is designed to slice foodstuffs, particularly in the form of so-called product calibers, into slices from which preferably shingled or stacked portions can be formed. The product calibers can be made, for example, from sausage, cheese, whole meat, pressed meat, and the like. The feeding unit can be designed, for example, as an endlessly circulating belt conveyor or the like. Preferably, the cutting unit is arranged downstream of the feeding unit with respect to the feeding direction. The cutting unit can include a knife which can be driven to rotate about a rotational axis. By means of the knife, the slices can be cut from one end of a respective product caliber facing the cutting unit.

[0003] If the product calibers are made from whole meat, such as bacon or smoked ham, it is known to press the product calibers before slicing them by means of a processing device in the form of a pressing device, for example in a transverse and / or vertical direction of the product caliber, in order to ensure that the product caliber has a cross-section that is essentially constant or at least as constant as possible in the longitudinal direction during the subsequent slicing by the slicing machine. This ensures that slices of approximately the same thickness cut from the product caliber by the slicing machine also have essentially the same or at least similar weight.After pressing through the pressing device, at least one product caliber can be transferred to the feeding unit of the slicing machine, for example manually, automatically or semi-automatically.

[0004] In the prior art, the feeding unit of the slicing machine often incorporates a scanning device, for example an optical one, which is configured to determine at least one or more external dimensions and / or the volume of the product caliber as parameters of the product caliber. Furthermore, a weighing device can optionally be arranged on the feeding unit of the slicing machine, by means of which the weight of a given product caliber can be determined. From the one or more external dimensions and / or the volume and the weight and / or density of the respective product caliber, a control unit of the slicing machine can determine the required slice thickness to be cut, so that a slice ideally has a predetermined target weight or at most a predetermined deviation from the predetermined target weight.

[0005] A disadvantage here is that such scanning devices, like volumetric or X-ray scanning systems, can be not only expensive but also prone to maintenance issues. Therefore, it is generally desirable to equip the slicing machine with as few sensors as possible, such as scanning, weighing, or other measuring devices. However, it must also be ensured that the slicing result achievable with the machine is not unduly affected or even worsened.

[0006] It is therefore an object of the invention to remedy this, in particular by providing a slicing machine which has as few detection units as possible, such as sensors or the like, for determining product caliber parameters and / or other properties of the at least one product caliber.

[0007] This problem is solved according to the invention by a slicing machine of the type mentioned at the outset, in which the control unit is configured to be in signal communication with a processing device separate from the slicing machine, wherein the processing device is configured to process the product caliber before slicing by the slicing machine, and the control unit is further configured to obtain at least one dimension and / or a weight and / or a density of the at least one product caliber or data representative thereof from the separate processing device and to control the feeding unit and / or the cutting unit on the basis of the at least one dimension and / or the weight and / or the density.

[0008] Since, according to the invention, the product caliber parameters, in the form of at least one dimension and / or the weight and / or the density of the at least one product caliber, are already detected at the processing device, particularly upstream of the slicing machine, the slicing machine preferably no longer requires any detection units, such as sensors or the like, for detecting these product caliber parameters. As a result, a slicing machine can be provided which can preferably be operated without complex, maintenance-intensive, and particularly costly scanning devices, such as a volumetric scanning device and / or an X-ray scanning device.

[0009] It is to the inventor's credit that he recognized that, provided the slicing machine and the separate processing device are part of the same production line, the product caliber parameters in the form of at least one dimension and / or the weight and / or the density of the product caliber are often already recorded at the processing device upstream of the slicing machine, and therefore redundant recording of these product caliber parameters at the slicing machine can be dispensed with.

[0010] From at least one external dimension and / or the weight and / or the density of the respective product caliber, the control unit of the slicing machine can determine a slice thickness to be cut, which is required so that a slice cut from the at least one product caliber has at best a predetermined target weight or at most a predetermined deviation from the predetermined target weight.

[0011] The cutting machine can be positioned at a predetermined distance, for example several meters, from the processing device during use, or it can be located directly on or next to the processing device.

[0012] According to one embodiment, the at least one dimension can be a width in a lateral direction and / or a height in a vertical direction and / or a length in a longitudinal direction and / or a volume of the at least one product caliber. In principle, it may be sufficient for the control unit to receive only one or a part of the aforementioned dimensions from the separate processing device. This is the case, for example, when only one of the dimensions, such as the width, varies between successively sliced ​​product calibers, while the other dimensions, such as the height and / or length, remain constant. This can be the case, for example, with cheese wheels or blocks, which are often divided into several pieces, particularly pieces of unequal width but equal length, by corresponding longitudinal cuts before being sliced.

[0013] According to a particularly preferred embodiment, the separate processing device can be a pressing device configured to press the at least one product caliber in the width direction and / or the height direction and / or the length direction. For example, if a product caliber in the form of bacon or smoked ham or the like is pressed by the pressing device to predetermined external dimensions and / or a predetermined volume, the processing device in the form of the pressing device can transmit this data to the control unit of the slicing machine, so that this data does not need to be acquired again by the slicing machine itself.

[0014] Alternatively, the separate processing device can be, for example, a dividing device, in particular a cheese dividing device, which is configured to divide the at least one product caliber into two or more parts before slicing it longitudinally, as described above. Furthermore, the separate processing device can be a peeling device, for example, a sausage peeling device, which is configured to remove a casing such as a skin or other packaging from the at least one product caliber. The peeling device can preferably be configured to determine at least one length of the at least one product caliber.

[0015] If the separate processing device is the press described above, the press, according to a further embodiment, can comprise a transverse press unit configured to press the product caliber in the width direction, and / or a vertical press unit configured to press the product caliber in the height direction, and / or a longitudinal press unit configured to press the product caliber in the longitudinal direction. The press can be configured to press the product caliber in at least one dimension, i.e., direction, but also, if desired, in at least two or all three spatial directions, which can also be referred to as "3D pressing." The aforementioned press units can preferably be designed as press dies.

[0016] According to a further development, the control unit and / or the pressing device can be configured to determine at least one dimension of the product caliber from a position of the transverse pressing unit and / or the vertical pressing unit and / or the longitudinal pressing unit when the at least one product caliber has reached a predetermined pressed state. In other words, an end position of the pressing units, in particular the press ram, can be used to determine the at least one dimension. It is conceivable that the pressing device is configured to transmit position data to the control unit, corresponding to the respective end position of one or more of the pressing units, and that the control unit is configured to determine the at least one dimension of the product caliber from this position data.On the other hand, the pressing device itself can also be set up to determine at least one dimension from the end position or end position of one or more of the pressing units and to transmit at least one dimension, preferably directly, to the control unit of the slicing machine.

[0017] In principle, the control unit and / or the processing device can be configured to determine the weight of at least one product caliber by evaluating its external dimensions, particularly its volume, given a known material, especially a known density. However, according to a further embodiment, it is proposed that the separate processing device include a weighing device configured to determine the weight of the at least one product caliber.

[0018] In order to be able to transmit further product caliber parameters, in particular apart from the at least one predetermined dimension, weight and / or density, from the separate processing device to the slicing machine, the separate processing device can include a further detection device which is configured to determine at least one further product caliber parameter, in particular a temperature and / or a strength and / or a hardness of the product caliber, wherein the control unit can furthermore be configured to also obtain the at least one further product caliber parameter or data representative thereof from the separate processing device.

[0019] Due to the interaction described above between the control unit of the slicing machine on the one hand and the separate processing device on the other, the slicing machine can preferably be free of a scanning device, in particular a volumetric scanning device and / or an X-ray scanning device, and / or a weighing device for the at least one product caliber. If a scanning device and / or a weighing device is arranged on the separate processing device, which is not strictly necessary, at least the redundant provision of a scanning device and / or a weighing device can be avoided.

[0020] To ensure seamless transmission of product caliber parameters and / or the relevant data between the separate processing device and the control unit, the separate processing device and the control unit of the slicing machine can preferably be connected wirelessly or via at least one data link. Communication can therefore be wireless or wired. Furthermore, it is conceivable to provide an external server and / or storage device that the control unit of the slicing machine and / or the separate processing device can access, so that the slicing machine and the processing device do not necessarily have to be directly connected via data transmission.

[0021] It should also be added that the slicing machine may further comprise a gripper unit with at least one gripper which is designed to grip the at least one product caliber at its end facing away from the cutting unit.

[0022] Additionally or alternatively, the slicing machine may also include a portioning unit in a manner known per se, which is configured to form portions from the slices cut by the slicing unit, each portion being able to comprise one or more slices.

[0023] Furthermore, it should be added that the slicing machine may include a conveying unit which is designed to convey the slices cut by the cutting unit along a conveying direction, in particular for further processing by a packaging machine.

[0024] According to another point of view, the invention relates to a system comprising the cutting machine according to the invention described above and the processing device separate from the cutting machine.

[0025] Regarding the advantages and effects of the system according to the invention, reference is made to the advantages and effects of the slicing machine according to the invention, whereby all statements made in relation to the slicing machine also apply to the system and vice versa.

[0026] According to yet another aspect, the invention relates to a method for slicing foodstuffs using a slicing machine, in particular according to the invention, or a system according to the invention, comprising the following steps: Feeding, by means of a feeding unit of the slicing machine, at least one product caliber along a feeding direction, Slicing, using a cutting unit of the slicing machine, of at least one product caliber into slices, and Control, by means of a control unit of the slicing machine, at least of the feeding unit and the cutting unit, wherein the control unit is in signal communication with a processing device separate from the slicing machine, which processes the product caliber before slicing by the slicing machine, and the control unit receives at least one dimension and / or weight and / or density of the at least one product caliber or representative data from the separate processing device and controls the feeding unit and / or the cutting unit on the basis of the at least one dimension and / or weight and / or density.

[0027] With regard to the advantages and effects of the method according to the invention, reference is made to the advantages and effects of the slicing machine and / or the system according to the invention, whereby all statements made with regard to the slicing machine and / or the system also apply to the method and vice versa.

[0028] According to one embodiment, the at least one dimension can be a width in a lateral direction and / or a height in a vertical direction and / or a length in a longitudinal direction and / or a volume of the at least one product caliber.

[0029] The invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawing and an exemplary embodiment. The drawing depicts: Fig. 1a an embodiment of a slicing machine according to the invention in perspective view, Fig. 1b the slicing machine according to Fig. 1a in side view, Fig. 2a a schematic view of an embodiment of a system according to the invention, comprising a slicing machine according to the invention and a processing device separate from the slicing machine, Fig. 2b an embodiment of the machining device in the form of a press device, according to a sectional side view, and Fig. 2c the pressing device according to Fig. 2b according to a sectional front view.

[0030] The Fig. 1a and Fig. Figure 1b shows a slicing machine 1 according to an embodiment in the form of a multi-lane slicer 1 for simultaneously slicing several product calibers K on each of a lane SP1 to SP4 next to each other and depositing them in shingled portions P from several slices S with a general flow direction 10* through the slicer 1 from right to left.

[0031] Fig. Figure 1b shows a side view of slicer 1 with product caliber K inserted, omitting covers and other parts attached to a base frame 2, so that the functional parts, especially the conveyor belts, are more clearly visible. The longitudinal direction 10 is the feeding direction of the product calibers K to a cutting unit 7 and thus also the longitudinal direction of the product calibers K lying in slicer 1.

[0032] In this arrangement, several, in this case four, product calibers K lying side by side on a feeder 4, with projections 15 of the feeder 4 rising from a support surface as spacers between them, can be fed to a cutting unit 7 of the slicer 1 with a knife 3 rotating about a rotational axis R, for example a sickle knife 3, by a feeding unit 20, from whose front ends the rotating knife 3 with its cutting edge 3a can cut off a disc S with each revolution about the rotational axis R.

[0033] For cutting the product caliber K, the feeder 4 is located in the Fig. 1a shown, inclined cutting position with low-lying cutting-side front end and high-lying rear end, from which it can be folded down about a pivot axis running in its width direction, the first transverse direction 11, which is located near the cutting unit 7, into an approximately horizontal loading position, as shown in Fig. 1b is shown.

[0034] The rear end of each product caliber K located in the feed unit 20 is positively held by a gripper 14 or 14a-d by means of gripper claws 16. These grippers 14 or 14a-14d, which can be activated and deactivated with respect to the position of the gripper claws 16, are attached to a common gripper unit 13, which can be moved along a gripper guide 18 in the feed direction 10.

[0035] In this system, both the feed of the gripper unit 13 and the feeder 4 can be driven in a controlled manner, but the specific feeding speed of the product calibers K can be achieved by a similarly controlled, so-called upper and lower product guide 8, 9, which engages the top and bottom of the product calibers K to be cut in their front end areas near the cutting unit 7.

[0036] The leading ends of the product calibers K are each guided through a product opening 6a-d of a plate-shaped cutting frame 5. The cutting plane 3'' runs directly in front of the front, downward-sloping end face of the cutting frame 5. The knife 3 rotates within this plane with its cutting edge 3a around the axis of rotation R, thereby cutting off the excess product caliber K from the cutting frame 5 as a disc S. The cutting plane 3'' runs orthogonally to the upper run of the feeder 4 and / or is spanned by the two transverse directions 11, 12 to the feed direction 10. The inner circumference of the product openings 6a-d serves as the counter-edge for the cutting edge 3a of the knife 3.

[0037] Since both product guides 8, 9 can be driven in a controlled manner, in particular independently of each other and / or possibly separately for each track SP1 to SP4, these determine a - continuous or clocked - feed rate of the product calibers K through the cutting frame 5.

[0038] The upper product guide 8 is displaceable in the second transverse direction 12, which runs orthogonally to the surface of the upper run of the feeder 4, to adapt to a height of the product caliber K in this direction. Furthermore, at least one of the product guides 8, 9 can be designed to pivot about one of its deflection rollers in order to be able to change the direction of a guide belt of the product guide 8 and / or 9 that rests against the respective product caliber K to a limited extent.

[0039] The discs S, which are positioned at an angle in space during separation, fall onto a conveying unit 17 that begins below the cutting frame 5 and extends in the direction of flow 10*, and which in the illustrated embodiment comprises several conveying units 17a, 17b, 17c arranged one behind the other in the direction of flow 10*, of which the first conveying unit 17a in the direction of flow 10 can be designed as a weighing unit 17a and in particular also as a portioning belt.

[0040] The slices S can hit the conveying unit 17 individually and spaced 10* apart from each other in the direction of travel, or, by appropriate control of the weighing unit 17a, whose movement, like almost all moving parts, is controlled by a control unit 1* of the slicer 1, shingled or stacked portions P can be produced (see Fig. 1b) are formed. The portions P can be formed, for example, by a stepwise forward movement of the P of the weighing unit 17a, which in this case also serves as a portioning belt, in the direction of travel 10*.

[0041] In the illustrated embodiment, below the feed unit 20 there is a substantially horizontal residual conveyor 21, which begins with its front end below the cutting frame 5 and directly below or behind the discharge unit 17 and can transport residual material falling onto it to the rear with its upper run.

[0042] In Fig. Figure 2a shows a schematic view of a system 300 according to the invention, which comprises a slicing machine 1 and a processing device 200 separate from the slicing machine. The slicing machine 1, which is Fig. 2a is only shown schematically; its functionality can be compared to the above with reference to the Fig. 1a and Fig. The slicing machine 1 described in 1b corresponds to the feed unit 20 with the feeder 4, the knife 3 of the cutting unit 7 and the control unit 1* as well as the upper product guide 8, the lower product guide 9 and the gripper 14 are shown in this diagram. Fig. 2a is shown only schematically.

[0043] The also in Fig. 2a The control unit 1*, shown only schematically according to the invention, is configured to be in signal communication with the processing device 200, which is separate from the slicing machine 1. The connection can be wired, for example via a data connection line 230, or wireless. According to the invention, the processing device 200 is configured to process the product caliber K before it is sliced ​​by the slicing machine 1, preferably by pressing it. Alternatively, the processing device 200 can also be configured to cut the product caliber K by longitudinal cuts substantially parallel to the feed direction 10, which can be the case, for example, with cheese blocks, in particular so-called Euro blocks.Furthermore, the processing device 200 can, for example, be a peeling device which can be set up to remove a skin from the product caliber K, which may be necessary for salami or the like.

[0044] The processing device 200 can, for example, include a weighing device 202, which is located in Fig. 2a is also only shown schematically. The weighing device 202 can be configured to determine the weight of at least one product caliber K and then transmit it to the control unit 1*, so that the weight does not have to be determined again at the slicing machine 1, since it is already known from a previous processing step of the at least one product caliber K at the processing device 200.

[0045] Furthermore, the machining device 200 can also be used in Fig. 2a merely include a schematically indicated scanning device 204, which may be configured to determine at least one dimension of the product caliber, for example a width and / or a height and / or a length and / or a volume of the at least one product caliber K.

[0046] Furthermore, the processing device 200 can include a schematically illustrated further detection device 206, which can be configured to determine at least one further product caliber parameter, in particular a temperature and / or a strength / hardness, of the product caliber K, wherein the control unit 1* can also be configured to obtain the at least one further product caliber parameter or data representative thereof from the separate processing device 200.

[0047] With regard to the Fig. 2b and Fig. Section 2c now describes a preferred embodiment of the processing device 200, in which it is designed as a pressing device 200. The pressing device 200 can be configured to press at least one product caliber K in a width direction B and / or a height direction H and / or a length direction L. For this purpose, the pressing device 200 can include a transverse pressing unit 208, which can be configured to press the product caliber K in the width direction B. As in Fig. As can be seen by way of example in 2c, the transverse pressing unit 208 can comprise two oppositely arranged transverse pressing dies 208a and 208b, which can form oppositely arranged side walls of a pressing chamber P in which the product caliber K can be inserted and pressed to predetermined dimensions.

[0048] In the illustrated embodiment, the product caliber K is preferably a product caliber which, in its unpressed state (i.e., before pressing), has a cross-section that varies at least in the longitudinal direction L. Therefore, it is preferred to press the product caliber K through the pressing device 200 before slicing it by the slicing machine 1 such that it has a cross-section that is substantially constant in the longitudinal direction L. This ensures that slices S cut from the product caliber K of a predetermined thickness have an approximately identical or at least as identical a weight as possible. The product caliber K can, for example, be made from or consist of whole meat, such as bacon or smoked ham.

[0049] The transverse pressing unit 208 can further comprise opposing pressing force transmission rods, for example piston rods, 209a and 209b, which are designed to move the transverse pressing punches 208a and 208b respectively in the lateral direction B, i.e. towards and away from each other, in order to press the product caliber K in the lateral direction B.

[0050] Furthermore, the pressing device 200 can include a height pressing unit 210, which can be configured to press the product caliber K in the height direction H. The height pressing unit 210 can include a height pressing ram 212, which can be adjusted in the height direction H by means of a further piston rod 214 in order to press the product caliber K to predetermined dimensions in the height direction H in the pressing chamber P.

[0051] As further in Fig. As can be seen in Figure 2b, the pressing device 200 according to the illustrated embodiment further comprises a longitudinal pressing unit 216 with a longitudinal pressing ram 218, which is configured to press the product caliber K in the longitudinal direction L. For this purpose, the longitudinal pressing ram 218 can also be operationally connected to a further piston rod 220, by means of which the longitudinal pressing ram 218 is moved in the longitudinal direction L, i.e. in Fig. 2b can be moved towards and away from the product caliber K.

[0052] The piston rods 209a, 209b, 214 and 220, which can also be generally referred to as press force transmission rods, can each be connected to a corresponding press force generation unit, such as a servo motor or a fluidically actuated cylinder or the like, which, however, are located in the Fig. 2b and Fig. 2c is not shown.

[0053] During the pressing process, the product caliber K, in the illustrated embodiment, lies in a press channel, which can be defined by a base 222 of the press device 200 and the two transverse press rams 208a and 208b. Furthermore, the press device 200 can include a rear wall 224, which can be designed as a rigid rear wall and can serve as a counter-support during pressing by the longitudinal press unit 216.

[0054] It should be added that, for example, the longitudinal pressing unit 216, in particular the longitudinal pressing die 218, has a Fig. 2b may have the aforementioned elastic section not shown, which may be configured to adapt the longitudinal press ram 218 to a dimension of the press chamber P in the vertical direction H. The aforementioned section may, for example, be pre-tensioned in the direction of the vertical press ram 212 by means of a pre-tensioning unit, such as a spring.

[0055] According to a preferred embodiment, the control unit 1* and / or the pressing device 200 can be configured to determine at least one dimension of the product caliber K, for example the length in the longitudinal direction L, the height in the vertical direction H and / or the width in the horizontal direction B, from a position of the longitudinal pressing punch 218 or a position of the vertical pressing punch 212 or a position of the transverse pressing punches 208a and 208b, when these are in an end position in which the product caliber K has reached a predetermined pressed state.

[0056] The aforementioned dimensions can be transmitted from the processing device 200, i.e., in the present embodiment, the pressing device 200, to the control unit 1* and used accordingly for the cutting operation. Furthermore, the pressing device 200 and / or the control unit 1* can be configured to determine the volume of the product caliber K from the aforementioned dimensions and, optionally with the aid of a weight of the product caliber K recorded by the weighing device 202, to determine the density of the product caliber K.

[0057] With the system 300 according to the invention, it is therefore possible to detect product caliber parameters in the form of at least one dimension and / or the weight and / or the density of the product caliber K already at the processing device 200 upstream of the slicing machine 1, in particular the pressing device 200, and to forward them to the control unit 1* of the slicing machine 1 for further processing, so that redundant detection and thus redundant provision of corresponding sensors on the slicing machine 1 can be dispensed with.

[0058] From at least one external dimension and / or the weight and / or the density of the product caliber K, the control unit 1* of the slicing machine 1 can determine a slice thickness for the slices S to be cut, which is required so that a slice S cut from the product caliber K has a predetermined target weight or at most a predetermined deviation from the predetermined target weight, and control the feeding unit 20 and / or the cutting unit 7 accordingly.

Claims

[1] Slicing machine (1), in particular slicer, for slicing food, comprising: a feeding unit (20) which is configured to feed at least one product caliber (K) along a feeding direction (10), a cutting unit (7) which is configured to cut at least one product caliber (K) into slices (S), and a control unit (1*) which is configured to control at least the feed unit (20) and the cutting unit (7), characterized by , that the control unit (1*) is configured to be in signal communication with a processing device (200) separate from the slicing machine (1), wherein the processing device (200) is configured to process the product caliber (K) before slicing by the slicing machine (1), and that the control unit (1*) is further configured to obtain at least one dimension and / or weight and / or density of the at least one product caliber (K) or representative data thereof from the separate processing device (200) and to control the feeding unit (20) and / or the cutting unit (7) on the basis of the at least one dimension and / or weight and / or density. [2] Slicing machine according to claim 1, characterized by , that at least one dimension is a width in a lateral direction (B) and / or a height in a vertical direction (H) and / or a length in a longitudinal direction (L) and / or a volume of the at least one product caliber (K). [3] Slicing machine according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by, that the separate processing device is a pressing device (200) which is configured to press the at least one product caliber (K) in the width direction (B) and / or the height direction (H) and / or the length direction (L) of the at least one product caliber (K). [4] Slicing machine according to claim 3, characterized by , that the pressing device (200) comprises a transverse pressing unit (208) which is configured to press the product caliber (K) in the width direction (B), and / or a height pressing unit (210) which is configured to press the product caliber (K) in the height direction (H), and / or a longitudinal pressing unit (216) which is configured to press the product caliber (K) in the longitudinal direction (L). [5] Slicing machine according to claim 4, characterized by, that the control unit (1*) and / or the pressing device (200) is configured to determine at least one dimension of the product caliber (K) from a position of the transverse pressing unit (208) and / or the vertical pressing unit (210) and / or the longitudinal pressing unit (216) when the at least one product caliber (K) has reached a predetermined pressed state. [6] Slicing machine according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the separate processing device (200) includes a weighing device (202) which is configured to determine the weight of the at least one product caliber (K). [7] Slicing machine according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by, that the separate processing device (200) comprises a further detection device (206) which is configured to determine at least one further product caliber parameter, in particular a temperature and / or a strength / hardness, of the product caliber (K), wherein the control unit (1*) is further configured to also obtain the at least one further product caliber parameter or data representative thereof from the separate processing device (200). [8] Slicing machine according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the slicing machine (1) is free from a scanning device (204), in particular a volume scanning device and / or an X-ray scanning device, and / or a weighing device (202) for the at least one product caliber (K). [9] Slicing machine according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by, that the separate processing device (200) and the control unit (1*) of the cutting machine (1) are in signal communication with each other wirelessly or by means of at least one data connection line (230). [10] System (300) comprising the slicing machine (1) according to one of the preceding claims and the processing device (200) separate from the slicing machine (1). [11] Method for slicing foodstuffs using a slicing machine (1), in particular a slicing machine (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 9 or a system (300) according to claim 10, comprising the following steps: Feeding, by means of a feeding unit (20) of the slicing machine (1), at least one product caliber (K) along a feeding direction (10), Slicing, by means of a cutting unit (7) of the slicing machine (1), of the at least one product caliber (K) into slices (S), and Control, by means of a control unit (1*) of the slicing machine (1), at least the feed unit (20) and the cutting unit (7), characterized by , that the control unit (1*) is in signal communication with a processing device (200) separate from the slicing machine (1), which processes the product caliber (K) before slicing by the slicing machine (1), and that the control unit (1*) receives at least one dimension and / or weight and / or density of the at least one product caliber (K) or representative data thereof from the separate processing device (200) and controls the feeding unit (20) and / or the cutting unit (7) on the basis of the at least one dimension and / or weight and / or density. [12] Method according to claim 11, characterized by, that at least one dimension is a width in a lateral direction (B) and / or a height in a vertical direction (H) and / or a length in a longitudinal direction (L) and / or a volume of the at least one product caliber (K).

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