Method for independent portion formation from food slices in multiple lanes

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for slicing a plurality of food bars as defined in the preamble of claim 1.

[0002] The generic method is known from so-called high-performance slicing devices, such as those described in EP 2 420 364 A1. These so-called "slicers" slice stick-shaped or other-shaped food bars, such as sausage, cheese, ham, cured ham, or the like, with a very high cutting performance, for example, up to 1,000 cuts per minute or more. The food bars are transported by a controlled drive through a stationary cutting plane, where the cut is made by a rapidly moving, usually rotating, cutting blade. The slice thickness results from the feed distance of the food bar between two cuts. Accordingly, with a constant cutting blade rotation speed, the slice thickness is controlled by the feed speed of the food bar.The cut slices are usually combined into portions with a constant number of slices and / or with a precise weight and packaged. Often, the caliber of the food bar varies from one food bar to another, or the cross-section varies within a food bar. In both cases, this leads to undesirable variations in the length and / or width of individual portions, for example, in shingled products.

[0003] It was therefore the object of the present invention to provide a method which does not have the disadvantages of the prior art.

[0004] The object is achieved by a method for slicing several food bars according to claim 1.

[0005] The present invention relates to a method for simultaneously slicing multiple food bars into food slices. Such food bars, for example sausage, cheese, or ham, typically have a length of between 100 and 3,500 millimeters. These food bars are placed in the slicing device and transported continuously or intermittently parallel to one another in the direction of a rotating cutting blade by means of a transport means that is usually part of the support for the food bars. Each food bar can be transported in an individual lane in the direction of the cutting blade. The cutting blade can be a circular or sickle blade, for example. This cutting blade at least temporarily separates food slices from the front end of each food bar.The separated food slices fall onto a storage table, where they are grouped into portions and then transported away. This storage table has one storage lane per food bar, which are cut in parallel.

[0006] After the respective portion has been configured, it is removed from the storage table and placed, for example, in a package. This can be done individually for each lane or for all storage lanes simultaneously.

[0007] According to the invention, the storage table is now provided such that each storage track can be moved relative to the support of the food bars so that each portion has a specific shape and / or size. Each storage track can be moved as a whole by moving the frame of each storage track, and / or a transport means, for example a conveyor belt, in particular an endless conveyor belt, and / or one or more conveyor belts, in particular an endless conveyor belt, which is part of the storage track and which moves relative to the frame, can be moved such that the respective portion has the desired shape and / or size and / or height. The positional shift is preferably completed before the next slice to be deposited lies completely on the respective track of the storage.

[0008] Preferably, each delivery lane is controlled so that all portions have the same length. This can be achieved by moving the conveyor belt(s) of each delivery lane, in particular in and / or against the direction of removal of the finished portion.

[0009] Preferably, the movement of the frame and / or the transport means takes place according to a specific speed profile.

[0010] The position of each delivery lane is controlled so that all portions have the same width. To achieve this, the delivery lane is moved perpendicular to the direction of transport of the finished portion.

[0011] Preferably, each delivery lane is controlled based on the trajectory of the cut slice in the respective conveyor lane. This ensures portions of uniform size, particularly length, because the individual food slices vary in their trajectory.

[0012] According to a preferred embodiment of the method according to the invention, at least one parameter of the food bar, for example the temperature, the surface hardness and / or the density, is measured and the position of the respective deposition track is controlled individually for each track depending on this parameter.

[0013] The cutting blade rotates around a rotational axis and / or orbits around a rotational axis. Preferably, the distance of the respective conveyor track from the rotational axis is taken into account when controlling the position of the respective deposition track.

[0014] Preferably, the food bar is scanned before or during slicing so that its shape, surface contour, and / or density are known. These values ​​are preferably determined based on the extent of the food bar in its transport direction and are preferably stored. Scanning can be performed, for example, using a radiographic scanner, in particular an X-ray scanner.

[0015] Preferably, the local contour and / or the local density of the food bar are determined.

[0016] Preferably, the height and / or width of the food bar is measured, in particular the local height and / or width of the food bar.

[0017] Preferably, each portion contains the same or a different number of food slices. Alternatively or additionally, each portion has substantially the same weight.

[0018] In the following, the invention is described with reference to Figures 1 - 4 These explanations are merely exemplary and do not limit the general concept of the invention. Figure 1 shows a cutting device. Figure 2 shows the cutting device according to Figure 1 in top view. Figure 3 shows an embodiment of the method according to the invention. Figure 4 shows further adjustment options for the storage tracks.

[0019] Figure 1shows a slicing device 5. The slicing device 5 has a cutting knife 11 that cuts a food product 2 into food slices 12. For this purpose, each food product 2 is transported by a conveyor 4, here two conveyor belts 4, continuously or intermittently in the direction of the cutting plane 6 of the knife 11. The lower conveyor belt 4 also serves as a product support. The cutting knife 11 is attached to a rotating knife holder 3 and preferably interacts with a cutting edge that is provided, for example, at the front end of a product support 4 and that together preferably defines the cutting plane. Between the knife 11 and the cutting edge there is a so-called cutting gap that should be as small as possible, but must be large enough that the knife does not touch the cutting edge. This gap must be adjusted regularly.This can be achieved by moving the knife and / or the cutting edge. After cutting, the food slices fall onto a deposit table 1 provided with a frame 25 and transport means 24, for example a conveyor belt or conveyor belt, on which they are each configured into a portion 14, in this case a stack. The transport means 24 can move relative to the frame 25 to form the portions and / or to transport the finished portion away. The finished portions 14 are then transported away from the cutting knife area and subsequently packaged, for example. The slice thickness results from the feed distance of the food product between two cuts. At a constant knife rotation speed, the slice thickness is controlled via the feed speed of the food product.According to the invention, the slicing device is designed such that, at least temporarily, several food bars are sliced ​​simultaneously. For this purpose, each food bar is transported along a transport path in the direction of the cutting blade. This transport can be carried out individually for each path / track. The slicing device can have a gripper for each feed path, which grips the rear end 13 of the food product 2 before or during slicing and stabilizes it during slicing, in particular towards the end of slicing, and discards the end piece that cannot be sliced. Each gripper is preferably provided on a gripper carriage (not shown), which moves the grippers back and forth, in particular parallel to the feed direction of the food product.

[0020] Figure 2shows a plan view of the slicing device. It can be clearly seen that the slicing device has several, here three tracks 8 - 10, along each of which at least one food bar can be transported. The tracks 8 - 10 can be designed as one conveyor belt or as several conveyor belts, in particular one conveyor belt per track. The conveyor belts can be advanced individually. Each conveyor track 8 - 10 is assigned a respective deposit track 16 - 18, the center axis of which is preferably collinear with the center axis of the respective conveyor track 8 - 10. Each deposit track preferably has at least one transport means, for example a conveyor belt, in particular an endless belt, or a plurality of conveyor belts, in particular endless belts, which can be driven per track independently of the other tracks.The transport means can be moved in and against the removal direction 19 of the portions (14), which is symbolized by the respective double arrow. Preferably, the timing of the drive, the acceleration, and / or the speed can be individually controlled.

[0021] Additionally, each storage lane has its own frame that can be moved in one or more directions, for example, in and against the direction of the portions' removal and / or at an angle, particularly perpendicular to it. This movement can also occur in two opposite directions. Furthermore, it is also conceivable for each storage lane to be moved up and down individually.

[0022] The transport means and / or frames are preferably moved in their position, in particular between two cuts, in such a way that portions with at least approximately similar shape and / or size are produced on all tracks.

[0023] Preferably, each food bar is analyzed, in particular scanned and / or weighed, before or during its slicing in order to determine its density, in particular its local density and / or its shape, in particular its local shape, preferably the cross-section or local cross-section.

[0024] In Figure 3 the cutting device is in accordance with Figure 2loaded with three food bars, each of which is transported in a track 8 - 10 in the direction of a cutting blade 11, which cuts off food slices from the front end, which then fall onto the deposit table 1. Based on the cross-section 7 shown, it can be seen that the food bars here are rectangular and each have a different height H. A person skilled in the art will recognize that the width BR of each food bar can also be different. A person skilled in the art will also recognize that the food bars can also have other cross-sections and that the cross-section of the food bars does not have to be constant over their entire length, relative to the direction of transport. The difference in the cross-sections of the individual food bars is taken into account when depositing the respective food slices, so that the portions 14 have a specific shape, here a uniform length L.Alternatively or additionally, a uniform width B may also be desired. To achieve this, the transport means of each delivery lane is driven individually, so that in this case, a different shingle spacing results depending on the respective cross-section size of the cut food slice. This can also or additionally be achieved by moving the respective delivery lane as a whole.

[0025] Since the trajectory path of a slice of food changes, for example, with its density, with its surface and / or core temperature and / or with the distance of the respective food bar from the axis of rotation of the cutting blade and / or with the area with which the cutting blade penetrates or penetrates the respective food, at least one of these parameters is also determined and taken into account when moving the respective deposit track to achieve a desired portion shape.

[0026] After the portion has been completely deposited on the deposit table 1, it is transported away from the deposit area, and a new portion can be deposited in the respective lane. For this purpose, the conveyor belt 15 is provided, which can be a single-piece or multi-piece design.

[0027] Figure 4shows another preferred embodiment of the present invention. Again, the three depositing tracks 16-18 are shown by way of example. As symbolized by the arrows 20-23, each depositing track 16-18 can be individually changed in its vertical position. Alternatively or additionally, each depositing track can be individually rotated about at least one axis of rotation 21-23, in particular in order to achieve portions with a consistent shape. The axis of rotation 22 extends parallel to the transport direction of the deposited portions. The axis of rotation is at an angle, preferably at a right angle, to this. The axis of rotation 21 has at least one vertical component and is preferably provided vertically. The rotation is carried out in particular by a motor and particularly preferably regulated / controlled by a control system.Preferably, a detection means is provided which detects the shape of a portion and / or the position of a portion on the respective storage track and accordingly effects rotation about at least one rotation axis 21 - 23 and / or a height adjustment. List of reference symbols:

[0028] 1Deposit table, deposit track 2Food bar, food product 3Knife holder 4Support surface 5Slicing device 6Gripper 7Cross section 8Conveyor track 9Conveyor track 10Conveyor track 11Knife, cutting knife, circular knife, sickle knife 12Food slices 13Rear end of the food product 14Portion, food portion consisting of several slices 15Conveyor belt 16Deposit track 17Deposit track 18Deposit track 19Discharge direction 20Vertical adjustment 21Rotation about a vertical axis 22Rotation about an axis parallel to the direction of travel of the product 23Rotation about an axis at an angle to the direction of travel of the product 24Means of transport of the deposit table track, endless belt, endless belt 25Frame of the conveyor belt, roller as part of the frame

Claims

1. Method for slicing several food bars (2), which Are different from each other. cross-sections (7), each food bar (2) being transported on a support (4) in a conveyor track (8 - 10) in the direction of a cutting blade (11), which cuts off food slices (12) from the front end of each food bar, which then fall onto a depositing table (1) and are formed there into a portion (14). configured, wherein the depositing table (1) has one depositing track (16 - 18) per food bar (8 - 10), wherein the position of each storage track relative to the support (4) and / or the cutting blade (11) can be individually controlled so that each portion (14) has a specific shape and / or size (L), each depositing track (16 -18) having a frame (25) and a transport means (24) and the frame (25) being moved to change the position of each depositing track, characterized in that the position of each depositing track is controlled so that all portions have the same width by moving the depositing track transversely to a removal direction of the finished portion.

2. Method according to one of the claims 1, characterized in that the change in position takes place according to a specific speed profile.

3. Method according to one of claims 1 - 2, characterized in that the position of each deposit track is controlled in such a way that all portions (14) have the same length (L).

4. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that that each delivery track is controlled depending on the trajectory of the cut-off disk in the respective conveyor track.

5. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that in that at least one parameter of the food bar (2) is measured and the respective depositing track (16 - 18) is controlled as a function of this parameter.

6. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cutting blade rotates or revolves about an axis of rotation and in that the distance of the respective conveyor track from the axis of rotation flows into the control of the position of the respective deposit track.

7. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the food bar is scanned before or during slicing.

8. Method according to claim 7, characterized in that the local contour and / or the local density of the food bar is determined.

9. Method according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that the height (H) and / or width (BR) is measured.

10. Method according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each portion has the same number or a different number of food slices.

11. Method according to claim 10, characterized in that each portion has essentially the same weight.