Device for separating the outer layers of food portions

Abstract

Device for separating the outer layers 2 from food portions 3, in particular for skinning poultry parts, with a separating device 20, which has a rotatably driven transport roller 16 for advancing the food portions 3 in a feed direction 17 and a blade 24 pointing in a feed direction 17, and with a hold-down device 5 for pressing the food portions onto the transport roller 16, characterized in that the blade 24 of the knife holder device 8 has a recessed contour 41 on its underside.

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a device for separating the outer layers of food portions according to the preamble of claim 1.

[0002] Such devices are used in the food industry, primarily for skinning poultry, for example, for skinning breast pieces or legs with or without bones. The poultry piece, for example, is gripped skin-down by the transport roller and pressed against the blunt blade. The skin is clamped by the wedge-shaped gap between the blade and the transport roller and pulled along the edge of the blade by the transport roller, separating the meat from the skin. The skin is transported away in the gap between the knife holder device and the transport roller, and the skinned piece of meat is transported away above the blade.

[0003] The knife holding device 8 is suspended at four mounting points (A, B) on the two inner walls of the device for separating the outer layer of food portions 19. For this purpose, the knife holding device 8 has an arm plate 23 at each of its two outer ends, at the front end (A) of which the arm plate has a horizontal elongated hole 22 open on the front end face and slightly larger in width than the mounting pins 21.

[0004] At each rear end (B) of the arm plate 23, there is a bore 30 extending transversely to the feed direction, on the lower side of which a cutout 32 is provided with a width less than the locking rod diameter. In the area of ​​the arm plates 23 of the knife holding device 8, the locking rod 30 has a sufficiently wide flattened portion 31 so that the rear cutouts 32 on the arm plates can engage the aligned flattened portion 31 of the rod 30. By rotating the rod by 90°, the key-lock principle is activated, and the knife holding device 8 is fixed in the separating device 20.

[0005] In summary, the knife holding device 8 is suspended in the device for separating the outer layer 19 by picking it up by two handles that are attached to the top side of the arm plates 23 and sliding it diagonally from above, transversely to the feed direction 17, with the two cutouts 22 facing forward, onto the two receiving pins A and then placing it on the locking rod 30 of the bearing points B. Using a lever, the locking rod 30 can be turned until the flats 31 of the rod fit into the cutouts in the arm plates 32 and the knife holding device 8 rests in its final position on the rod 30. By turning it back, the rod diameter closes the cutouts 32 in the arm plates 23, whereby the knife holding device 8 is fixed for production.

[0006] The two pins 21 arranged horizontally and transversely to the feed direction at location A are each preloaded with a spring. If the spring preload force is exceeded, the pin suspension is designed in such a way that they can only deflect upwards. The knife gap (s) can be simultaneously adjusted vertically using an adjusting device (not shown), preferably by means of a toggle lever eccentric mechanism. The adjusting device serves as a travel-limiting stop for the adjusted knife gap, counteracting the spring force for the vertical lower position of the suspension pins.

[0007] At the bearing points B of the device for separating the outer layer of food portions (19), there is a horizontal, continuous, and transversely positioned, rotatable rod 30, which can accommodate and lock the knife holder device using the key-lock principle. The bearing rod 30 simultaneously serves as the frame-mounted pivot point of the knife holding device 8 when the knife gap changes (s). Horizontal and vertical force components generated during processing are diverted via the locking rod 30 at the bearing point B to the frame of the device for separating the outer layer 19.

[0008] A detailed description of the suspension device for the knife holding device is shown in detail in patent DE000004025600A1.

[0009] The knife holding device 8 essentially consists of four components: the base plate 33, the suspension arms 23, the blade stops 42, the blade clamping plate 25 and the blade 24.

[0010] The base plate 33 has an arcuate contour on the side facing the transport rollers 16, which, together with the transport roller, forms an initially narrow, then widening channel 40 for the removal of the skin 10 after the skinning process. The position of the blade cutting edge (a) in front of the vertical cutting plane transverse to the feed direction 17 is adjusted by means of adjustable stops 42 on the top side of the base plate 33, the support side of the blade 24.

[0011] The adjustable stops 42 serve the purpose of easy repeatability with the best position of the blade edge (a) for skinning when changing the blade. Furthermore, the stops 42 absorb the horizontal cutting forces during skinning, thus relieving the clamping plate tension.

[0012] The clamping plate 25 and blade 24 are placed on top of the base plate 33, with the holes for the standard screws determining the clamping plate position. The screws clamp the clamping plate 25 onto the base plate 33 and clamp the blade 24 in place.

[0013] The bevel of the clamping plate 25 above the blade 24 is intended to minimize harmful product compression in the flow.

[0014] The pre-tensioned springs (not shown) act on the pins at location A and, when the specified force is exceeded, yield vertically, and the gap (s) for hide 2 between the transport roller 16 and the blade 24 adjusts accordingly. Due to the flexibility of the pre-tensioned spring, the knife gap (s) can adjust depending on the hide thickness. On the one hand, this limits the forces acting on the transport roller bearings and knife holder device, and on the other hand, it prevents the hide from being unnecessarily crushed, thus increasing its tear resistance.

[0015] In known devices, a feed-supporting hold-down roller 37, which is equipped with elastic star wheels 26, is used as the hold-down device 5.

[0016] The fingers 27 of the wheels 26 act on the respective food portion 3 in an uncontrolled manner, whereby an open piece of skin 2 enters the gap (s) between the blade 24 and the transport roller 16 and the skinning takes place.

[0017] To prevent the skin 3 from tearing during the drawing-in process, the finger-shaped, elastic pressure wheels 26 of the pressure roller 37, mounted to one another with spacer rings 27, yield or provide sufficient clearance so that the food portion 7 is not overly clamped by the pressure roller 37. In particular, pieces of meat with skin closed around the periphery require this clearance for complete skinning.

[0018] When skinning poultry legs with skin that is closed around the perimeter, a problem has arisen in practice that complete skinning can only be achieved reliably if the pieces of meat are placed in an aligned position. With throughput rates of up to 12,000 pieces per hour, manual alignment is impractical and very expensive, and therefore time-consuming. Description of the invention

[0019] It is therefore an object of the invention to further develop a device of the type mentioned at the outset in such a way that a better separation of the outer layers from the food portions is possible.

[0020] This object is achieved according to the invention by the device having the features of claim 1. Advantageous developments of the invention are the subject of the dependent claims.

[0021] The invention is based on the idea of ​​avoiding the tearing of the skin by optimizing the blade contour 41 in the area of ​​the feed, as well as the shape of the transport roller teeth and the influence of the pressure device.

[0022] The skin must be able to withstand the force required for skinning. If this force is too great, the skin will tear or break off, resulting in incomplete skinning. The tear can occur in the area of ​​the blade cut 41 or at the transport roller teeth 35, which run across the entire width of the roller. As a result, the piece of meat must be sorted and reprocessed.

[0023] With the realization that the shape of the blade and the toothed roller teeth must be considered together, on the one hand for good grip and on the other hand to maintain the necessary tensile strength of the skin.

[0024] A significant improvement in tensile strength was already achieved earlier by changing the tooth shape of the transport roller 16 from straight to spiral 35. The blade still had a consistently smooth surface at the narrowest point to the toothed roller.

[0025] With the invention recited in claim 1, the previously described flat blade is provided with a wave-like profile structure 41 over its entire length. The profile structure extends from the blade edge to the transition to the base plate 33 of the blade holding device 8 and thus at least beyond the narrowest point (a) to the transport roller 16. This makes the narrowest gap (s) to the transport roller 16 variable according to the intended cut. This means that the crushing of the skin at the tooth tips 35 varies in intensity. This increases the tensile strength in the less crushed skin areas.

[0026] The pressure roller 37, equipped with elastic star wheels 26 and driven by an electric motor 14, influences the poultry parts to be skinned as they pass through. The position of the cutting plane running centrally through the roller drive shaft 29 is currently parallel to, approximately one-quarter of the transport roller diameter in front of, the transport roller cutting plane (not shown).

[0027] With many pieces, a small amount of skin could enter the blade gap without interference, and skinning would still occur without interference. A pressure roller 37 influences all pieces in an uncontrolled manner during the process, increasing the probability of complete skinning.

[0028] With the invention mentioned in claim 2, the pressure roller position is shifted backward by approximately half the diameter of the transport roller (d). The influence of the pressure roller 37 on the poultry parts 3 is reduced, and their freedom of movement during skinning is increased. Tests have shown a significantly improved skinning result. Skin tears were no longer observed.

[0029] The invention is explained in more detail below using an exemplary embodiment schematically illustrated in the drawing. In the drawings: Fig. 1: A device for skinning poultry parts in cross section Fig. 2: Excerpt from Fig. 1, Blade holding device in cross section Fig. 3: Excerpt from Fig. 1, Separator in longitudinal section Fig. 4: Detailed view of the separating device according to Fig. 2 in cross section Fig. 5: Blade in bottom view and cross sections through the wave contour

[0030] The device 19 shown in the drawing is used for skinning cut poultry parts 3, in particular chickens.

[0031] The device has a transport device which has a first conveyor belt 1 for transporting the poultry parts 3, a second conveyor belt 6 for transporting the skinned poultry parts 7 and a third conveyor belt 9 for transporting the skin 10 away.

[0032] The device 19 also has a separating device 20 to which the poultry parts are transported by means of the first conveyor belt (1). The separating device 20 has a motor-driven, rotatable transport roller 16, onto which the poultry parts are advanced in a feed device 5, and a cutting unit 8 with a blade 24 pointing counter to the feed direction, which is arranged above the transport roller 16. Between the transport roller 16 and the blade 24 there is a gap 40 through which the separated skin 10 is transported away, while the skinned poultry part 7 is advanced over the top of the blade 24 to the second conveyor belt 6 in the feed direction 17.

[0033] For pressing the poultry parts 3 onto the transport roller 16, a hold-down device 5 is provided, which is arranged in a fixed position during the processing of the poultry parts, but can be lifted upwards for maintenance purposes.

[0034] This hold-down device 5 has a motor-driven rotatable shaft which is fixed in position during the processing of the poultry parts and onto which elastic, star-shaped wheels (26) with spacer rings (27) are fitted.

[0035] As in Fig. 2, the rotation axis lies approximately half a transport roller diameter d horizontally behind the rotation axis of the transport roller 16.

[0036] The force exerted by the finger-shaped pressure wheels 26 on the product currently being skinned is reduced. Round and irregularly shaped pieces with closed skin, such as poultry legs, in particular, require space to rotate during skinning. If the pressure wheels 26 are too tightly held, the skin will tear off, resulting in incomplete skinning.

[0037] With the position shown, an optimal distance for skinning was found. In summary, the following can be stated: The invention relates to a device 19 for separating the outer layers of food portions, in particular for skinning poultry parts, comprising a separating device 20 having a rotatable, driven transport roller 16 for advancing the food portion 3 in a feed direction 17 and a cutting unit 8, wherein the cutting unit has a blade 24 arranged at a distance above the transport roller 16 and pointing counter to the feed direction 17, and a hold-down device 5 for pressing the food portion 3 onto the transport roller 16.

[0038] According to the invention, the blade 24 has a wave contour on the underside Fig. 5, whereby the gap between the blade and the transport roller circumference is variable and of different sizes depending on the respective cutting plane AA, BB.

[0039] In interaction with the wave cutting contour 50 and the spirally arranged 35 teeth on the circumference of the transport roller 16, the crushing of the skin 10 to be separated by the variable gap 40 varies in size in the cutting plane under consideration, whereby the tear strength of the skin in the cutting plane under consideration is partially increased.

[0040] The outer layer 2 is separated by gripping a piece of skin in the wedge-shaped gap 41 between the blade underside 24 and the transport roller 16, and the poultry part is separated from the outer layer 2 in one go. The separated skin 10 is removed in the gap 40 between the blade holding device 8 and the transport roller 16. A defined, concurrent, air-assisted cleaning roller 15 peels off the skin 10 adhering to the transport roller 16, which then falls onto a conveyor belt 9 or a container 11 placed underneath for removal from the machine 19.

[0041] The skinned poultry part 7 located on the upper side of the knife holding device 8 lacks the conveying effect of the skin 2 after skinning. However, it is located in the area of ​​influence of the pressure device 5 with the elastic star-shaped pressure wheels 26. The part gripped by the wheels 27 / 26 is pushed over the knife holding device 8 and then falls onto a conveyor belt 6 for transport out of the device to separate the outer layer of food portions 19. QUOTES CONTAINED IN THE DESCRIPTION

[0000] This list of documents submitted by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the convenience of the reader. This list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions. Cited patent literature

[0000] DE 000004025600A1

[0008]

Claims

[1] Device for separating the outer layers 2 from food portions 3, in particular for skinning poultry parts, with a separating device 20 which has a rotatably driven transport roller 16 for feeding the food portions 3 in a feed direction 17 pointing blade 24, and with a hold-down device 5 for pressing the food portions onto the transport roller 16, characterized by that the blade 24 of the knife holder device 8 has a recessed contour 41 on its underside. [2] Device according to claim 1 characterized by that the contour 41 has a wave-shaped shape 50. [3] Device according to claim 2 characterized by that the contour I, II, III is arranged in a sequence, or in a sequence interrupted by a certain distance. [4] Hold-down device 5 characterized bythat the horizontal, transverse to the conveying axis of rotation of the pressure roller 37 is arranged approximately half a transport roller diameter d in the feed direction 17, behind the axis of rotation of the transport roller 16.

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