Fish fillet bone extracting method

Abstract

To provide a plate for suppressing a fish fillet, a method for pulling out a fish fillet bone and a plate for placing a fish fillet, capable of surely pulling out only the bone by preventing lifting of a fish meat and preventing positional deviation of the bone caused by positional deviation of the fish meat when pulling out the bone by a chuck for pulling out the fish fillet bone.SOLUTION: A fish meat contact piece 71 for pressing the fish meat Y is provided, a Cut 74 is formed on the fish meat contact piece 71, the holding parts 61A and 61B are positioned on the Cut 74 in a state of grasping the bones X by the holding parts 61A and 61B, and the fish meat Y is pressed by the fish meat contact piece 71 when pulling out the bones X by moving the holding parts 61A and 61B in the longitudinal direction of the bones X.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention is for accurately removing small bones and pin bones from fish, especially from half of a fish that has been filleted. How to debone fish fillets Regarding. [Background technology]

[0002] Currently, the salmon market in Japan has an annual demand of over 400,000 tons. While the majority of salmon produced in Japan is wild-caught, which generally meets the Japanese preference for "natural products," issues such as parasites mean it is not suitable for "raw consumption." This industry structure has led to an increase in imports, and considering that processed products for "raw consumption" generally have higher added value than processed products for "cooked consumption," the result is a situation in which it is difficult for Japanese producers and processing companies to reduce the added value in terms of profits. Salmon is one of the fish species that is particularly popular among Japanese people, and because it is difficult to increase wild catches due to resource constraints and other factors, and because it is unsuitable for eating raw, salmon farming is on the rise in Japan, and there is hope for a partial shift from imported to domestically produced products. The salmon processing process consists of removing the scales, cutting the head, filleting, skinning, and removing the pin bones. Currently, the steps of removing the scales, cutting the head, filleting, and skinning can be automated using existing seafood processing machinery, regardless of the size of the salmon. However, the process of removing the upper nerve bones (small bones or pin bones) from salmon is still done manually, which requires a great deal of labor. Although equipment has been devised to automatically remove the pin bones, various issues remain. This is explained with reference to the literature. Patent Document 1 describes a device that removes pin bones from fish fillets by clamping them between a set of rotating belts that wrap around the fish. However, because there are individual variations in the shape of fish and the position of bones, if the bones are misaligned with respect to the belt, the boneless part may get clamped between the belts, resulting in the bones being left behind. Patent Document 2 has a mechanism for pin bones protruding from a fish fillet by clamping and removing the pin bones with a specific clamping member. However, if the pin bones are buried or if the pin bones are misaligned with the clamping member due to individual differences in the fish fillet, the pin bones may not be removed properly or some may be left behind. In Patent Document 3, a rotating roller is pressed against a fish fillet and rotated in the opposite direction to the direction of travel of the fish fillet. The roller has a net-like structure that allows bones to pass through, and the pin bones are pulled out by passing the bones through the net; however, the pin bones must protrude from the fillet. Patent Document 4 describes a structure in which a roller is pressed against a fish fillet to protrude the pin bones, and while maintaining this state, the pin bones are pulled out using a claw-like jig. However, because there are individual variations in the shape of the fish and the position of the bones, if the bones are misaligned with the position of the jig, some of the bones may be left behind. As mentioned above, these devices are limited to targeting bones that are inserted perpendicularly to the surface of the fish, and because the fish is held down with the boning device to protrude the pin bones, they have the problem of deforming the fish. Furthermore, a common problem with these devices is that they do not remove the bones after identifying their location, but rather remove the bones from positions where bones are likely to be found, which can result in bones being left behind or the fish around the bones being touched, potentially damaging the fish and resulting in the fish fillets being discarded. For this reason, salmon deboning is still primarily done manually, and these issues mean that automation is not currently possible. In Patent Document 5, the position of bones is confirmed using an image, but there is variation in the size and shape of fish fillets, and in the position and direction of bones, making it difficult to deal with this using only a normal camera and a direct-acting robot, and there is a problem in that it is not possible to measure the position of the bone in three dimensions, recognize the direction in which the bone is inserted based on that measurement, and then remove the bones by moving in three dimensions along that direction.As a result, there are cases in which the fish is damaged when bones are removed forcefully, or some bones are left behind, and there is insufficient provision for recovery from this, so it is not a fully automated system. As such, Patent Documents 1 to 4 have proposed devices for automatically removing bones from fish fillets. However, these devices are limited to targeting bones that are inserted perpendicularly to the surface of the fish, and have the problem of deforming the fish by pressing down on it or lifting it from below to bring it into contact with the deboning device. Furthermore, a common problem with these devices is that they do not remove the bones after identifying their locations, but instead remove the bones from locations where bones are likely to be found, which can result in bones being left behind or the fish being damaged by touching the fish around the bones. This can sometimes result in fish fillets being discarded. Therefore, deboning salmon is mainly done by hand, and due to these issues, it is not currently possible to automate the process. In recent years, it has become difficult to secure workers in the back yards of major cities, and there is also a shortage of skilled workers, so production areas are being asked to carry out advanced processing, including boning. However, it is becoming increasingly difficult to secure skilled workers in production areas as the workforce ages, and there is a demand for mechanization and automation of production area processing plants. Furthermore, the boom in Japanese food is accelerating all over the world, and the demand for frozen sashimi fillets and frozen sushi toppings is increasing year by year. However, rather than just removing the bones without damaging the fish, the fish may come into contact with the flesh around the bones, which may in some cases damage the flesh.Furthermore, in response to the recent increase in demand for boneless fillets, there is also a demand for deboning small fish such as horse mackerel and sea bream, and a fully automatic deboning system that can accommodate a variety of fish types and sizes is required, but there is still no system that can solve this problem. In this situation, the present applicant has already proposed a fish fillet deboning system that can recognize the position of each bone in a fish fillet and remove only the bones without damaging the fish flesh around the bones (Patent Document 6). According to the fish fillet deboning system proposed in Patent Document 6, the position of each bone in the fish fillet can be recognized, and only the bones can be removed without damaging the fish flesh around the bones. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 4955036 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-61404 [Patent Document 3] Special Publication No. 07-063300 [Patent Document 4] Patent No. 4078281 [Patent Document 5] Patent No. 6006568 [Patent Document 6] Patent No. 6950994 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] As disclosed in Patent Document 6, by using a fish fillet bone removal chuck, it is possible to remove only the bone without damaging the fish flesh around the bone, compared to the methods of Patent Documents 1 to 5. However, in the process of clamping the bone and tightening the chuck, the bone may slip out of place, and if it slips out too much, the bone may protrude from the chuck. If the bone protrudes from the chuck in this way, it cannot be grasped. The reason for the bone slipping out of place is that the fish flesh is attached around the bone, and when trying to grasp the bone, the fish flesh is clamped together with the bone, causing the fish flesh to move during the process of tightening the chuck. Therefore, the present applicant has already proposed a fish fillet boning chuck that can prevent the bones from shifting and can reliably remove only the bones without damaging the fish flesh around the bones, an articulated robot that operates this fish fillet boning chuck, and a fish fillet boning system that includes this articulated robot. However, when removing bones with the fish fillet boning chuck, the fish may be lifted in the direction of bone removal, and the bone may not be removed within the range of movement of the fish fillet boning chuck. Also, when the fish is lifted, the position of the fish may be slightly shifted, and the position of the bone may be shifted.

[0005] The present invention can prevent the fish from lifting up when removing bones with a fish fillet boning chuck, and can reliably remove only the bones, and can prevent the bones from shifting due to the shift in position of the fish. How to remove bones from fish fillets The purpose is to provide the following. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] Claim 1 The method for deboning fish fillets of the present invention described herein comprises: A fish fillet deboning chuck 60 is mounted on the tip of a first articulated robot 41 (51) arranged on one side of the fish fillet 21, and a fish fillet holding plate 70 is mounted on the tip of a second articulated robot 80 arranged on the other side of the fish fillet 21, and the fish fillet deboning chuck 60 can be adjusted in its pulling direction to match the orientation of the bones X, which vary, by the first articulated robot 41 (51), and the fish fillet holding plate 70 can be changed in its holding direction for the fish flesh Y by the second articulated robot 80, and the fish fillet is held by a pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B of the fish fillet deboning chuck 60. The fish fillet holding plate 70 is used together with the fish fillet deboning chuck 60 that grips and removes the bone X from the fillet 21, and has a fish body abutting piece 71 that holds the fish body Y, an attachment piece 72 that is attached to the second articulated robot 80, and a U-shaped piece 73 that is positioned between the fish body abutting piece 71 and the attachment piece 72, and a notch 74 is formed in the fish body abutting piece 71, and when the bone X is gripped by the clamping parts 61A, 61B, the clamping parts 61A, 61B are positioned in the notch 74, and when the bone X is pulled out by moving the clamping parts 61A, 61B in the longitudinal direction of the bone X, the fish body abutting piece 71 holds the fish body Y. A fish fillet deboning method using a fish fillet pressing plate (70) includes a fish body abutment piece moving step of moving the fish body abutment piece (71) near the bone (X), a bone clamping step of gripping the bone (X) with the pair of clamping parts (61A, 61B) after the fish body abutment piece moving step, a fish body pressing step of pressing the fish body (Y) with the fish body abutment piece (71) simultaneously with the bone clamping step or before or after the bone clamping step, a boning step of moving the clamping parts (61A, 61B) in the longitudinal direction of the bone (X) to pull out the bone (X) while the fish body abutment piece (71) is holding the fish body (Y), and a fish body abutment piece retracting step of retracting the fish body abutment piece (71) from the fish body (Y) after the boning step. After the boning step, the clamping units 61A, 61B are moved to the bone collecting mechanism unit 90, and the pair of clamping units 61A, 61B are opened to collect the bone X into the bone collecting mechanism unit 90, thereby performing a boning operation for one bone. The boning operation for the next bone X is performed by repeating the fish body contact piece moving step, the bone clamping step, the fish body holding step, the boning step, the fish body contact piece retracting step, and the bone collecting step. The bone collecting mechanism unit 90 is provided in the second articulated robot 80 that operates the fish fillet holding plate 70, and the bone collecting mechanism unit 90 is disposed on the upper end side of the fish fillet holding plate 70. It is characterized by: Claim 2 The present invention is characterized in that in the fish fillet holding plate 70 according to claim 1, a vacuum pipe for sucking the extracted bones X is connected to the bone collecting mechanism part 90. Claim 3 The present invention is Claim 1 In the method for deboning fish fillets described above, the bone collecting step is characterized in that the removed bones X are counted. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, when the clamping portion is moved in the longitudinal direction of the bone to pull out the bone, the fish body is held down by the fish body abutment piece, preventing the fish body from lifting up, ensuring that only the bone is removed and preventing the fish body from shifting position. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a process diagram showing a fish fillet deboning system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] A diagram showing the pallet used in the fish fillet deboning system [Figure 3] A diagram showing the work area of ​​the fish fillet deboning system [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a work location of a fish fillet deboning system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a work area of ​​a fish fillet deboning system according to a third embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 6] 6 is a perspective view of a main part of the boning chuck shown in FIGS. 3 to 5; [Figure 7] 7A and 7B are diagrams showing the operation steps of the boning chuck shown in FIG. 6; [Figure 8] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a main part showing another configuration of the boning chuck shown in FIGS. 3 to 5 . [Figure 9] Photographs showing the fish fillet holding plate shown in Figures 3 and 4 in use [Figure 10] Photographs showing a method for deboning fish fillets using the fish fillet holding plate shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. [Figure 11] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a fish fillet placing plate suitable for the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The present invention No. 1 The method for deboning fish fillets according to the embodiment of the present invention is ,fisha fish body abutment piece moving step for moving the fish body abutment piece to the vicinity of the bone; a bone clamping step for gripping the bone with a pair of clamping parts after the fish body abutment piece moving step; a fish body holding step for holding the fish body with the fish body abutment piece together with the bone clamping step or at a timing before or after the bone clamping step; a bone removal step for removing the bone by moving the clamping parts in the longitudinal direction of the bone while the fish body is held down by the fish body abutment piece; and a fish body abutment piece retracting step for retracting the fish body abutment piece from the fish body after the bone removal step. a bone retrieving step of moving the clamping parts to the bone retrieving mechanism part after the bone pulling step and retrieving the bone to the bone retrieving mechanism part by opening the pair of clamping parts; By A boning operation is performed for one bone, and a boning operation for the next bone is performed by repeating the fish body contact piece moving step, bone clamping step, fish body holding step, boning step, fish body contact piece retracting step, and bone collecting step, and the bone collecting mechanism is provided in a second articulated robot that operates the fish fillet holding plate, and the bone collecting mechanism is disposed on the upper end side of the fish fillet holding plate. According to this embodiment, When the clamping part is moved in the longitudinal direction of the bone to pull out the bone, the fish body contact piece holds down the fish body, preventing it from lifting up, ensuring that only the bone is removed and preventing the fish body from shifting position. This prevents the fish from lifting up, allowing for stable continuous deboning operations. In addition, bones can be reliably collected, and continuous deboning can be performed stably. Furthermore, since the bone collection mechanism is located close to the operating range of the fish fillet deboning chuck, the time required for continuous deboning can be shortened.

[0010] The present invention No. 2 The embodiment of the present invention is No. 1 In the method for removing bones from fish fillets according to the embodiment, a vacuum pipe for sucking the removed bones is connected to the bone recovery mechanism. According to this embodiment, the bones can be reliably recovered.

[0011] The present invention Third An embodiment of the present invention No. 1 In the method for deboning fish fillets according to the embodiment, the bone collecting step involves counting the removed bones. According to this embodiment, by counting the removed bones, it is possible to confirm that the bones have been removed. [Example]

[0012] FIG. 1 is a process diagram showing a fish fillet deboning system according to a first embodiment of the present invention. At the feeding location 1, fish fillets 21 (see FIG. 2) are placed on a pallet 20 (see FIG. 2). The pallet 20 on which the fish fillets 21 are placed at the feeding location 1 is moved by the conveyor 11 to the pallet meeting location 2. At the putting-in location 1, the markers 22 (see Figure 2) on the pallet 20 are read and sent to the system computer 13 via the communication line 12. This identifies the marker 22 information on the pallet 20 and the fish fillets 21. A suitable reading device and reading method for the marker 22 is contactless magnetic information reading, but other methods are also acceptable. When the pallet 20 moves from the putting-in location 1 to the merging location 2, new fish fillets 21 are placed on a new pallet 20 at the putting-in location 1 at almost the same time. Pallets 20 not carrying fish fillets 21 are preferably automatically supplied from a stocker capable of storing a plurality of pallets 20, but may also be supplied manually. The pallet meeting point 2 is also a retry input point, and is controlled so that the pallet 20 for retry from the retry conveyor 10 does not collide with the pallet 20 from the input point 1. When a pallet 20 for retry exists on the retry conveyor 10, the pallet 20 from the input point 1 and the pallet 20 from the retry conveyor 10 are alternately supplied to the meeting point 2 and moved to the work area 3.

[0013] The work area 3 has a first imaging step 3A, a second imaging step 3B, and a boning step 3C. In the first imaging step 3A, an image of the fish fillet 21 placed on the pallet 20 is taken, and the system computer 13 identifies an area where bones exist from the first image taken in the first imaging step 3A (bone area identification step 13A). In the second imaging step 3B, the region identified in the bone region identifying step 13A is imaged, and the system computer 13 identifies the position of the bone from the second captured image taken in the second imaging step 3B (bone position identifying step 13B). In the boning step 3C, the outer end of the bone identified in the bone position identifying step 13B is gripped by the fish fillet boning chuck 60, and the bone is removed by moving the fish fillet boning chuck 60. In this way, the fish fillets 21 loaded on the pallet 20 are deboned one by one at the work station 3. Details will be explained later with reference to FIG. 2 and subsequent figures.

[0014] After the deboning process 3C, the pallet 20 is moved to the inspection location 4. At the inspection location 4, X-rays or infrared rays are used to determine whether any bones remain (inspection process). The result of the determination, along with the information on the markers 22 read at the inspection location 4, is sent to the system computer 13 via the communication line 12, and the information on the markers 22 and the deboning result are identified. The determination result includes at least the number of times the same fish fillet 21 has been judged to be defective and the location of any remaining bones. The markers 22 are read at the non-defective product branching location 5, and if all of the predetermined number of bones have been removed, the pallet is moved from the non-defective product branching location 5 to the non-defective product storage location 7. The non-defective product storage location 7 is a group of non-defective product stockers that store pallets 20 carrying fish fillets 21 that have been judged to be non-defective. It is also possible to configure a system in which the pallets are always removed without being stored. The markers 22 are read at the non-defective product branching location 5, and if the pallet is defective, it is moved to the defective retry branching location 6. That is, the marker 22 read at the defect retry branching point 6 checks how many times the fish fillets 21 on this pallet 20 have been judged to be defective against a predetermined number of times, and if the predetermined number of times has been reached, the fish fillets are moved to the defective product storage area 8. The defective product storage area 8 is a defective product stocker that stores pallets 20 carrying fish fillets 21 that have been judged to be defective. It is possible to have a system in which the fish fillets 21 are always removed without being stored, or a system in which the fish fillets are moved to the defective product work area 16 by an operator 17. If the marker 22 read at the defect retry branching point 6 shows that the number of times the fish fillets 21 on this pallet 20 have been defective has not reached the predetermined number of times, the fish fillets are moved to the retry conveyor 10 and sent to the junction 2.

[0015] In this embodiment, a group of defective pallets carrying fish fillets 21 with remaining bones are shown as the defective product storage area 8. The defective product stockers in the defective product storage area 8 are transported to the defective product stocker storage area 15. The defective product work area 16 is where one pallet 20 is removed from the defective product stocker transported to the defective product stocker storage area 15 and placed, where the marker 22 on the pallet 20 is read and the defect information is displayed on the display 14. A worker 17 removes the remaining bones in accordance with the information displayed on the display 14. The defective product storage area 8 may also be used as the defective product work area 16.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of a pallet used in the fish fillet deboning system according to this embodiment. FIG. 2 shows a state in which fish fillets 21 are placed on a pallet 20. Preferably, three or more reference marks 23 are provided, and at least one of the position and tilt of the pallet 20 is measured. Although not shown, a measurement sensor capable of measuring the coordinates of the reference marks 23 is disposed above the pallet 20, and by measuring the coordinates of the reference marks 23 with the measurement sensor, the coordinates of the pallet 20 relative to the position of the measurement sensor can be determined. Even if the pallet 20 is moved to another work area 3, the position of the pallet 20 can be determined by similarly reading the reference marks 23 of the moved pallet 20 with the measurement sensor. Therefore, even if the stopping position of the pallet 20 shifts, the shape of the fish fillets 21 placed on the pallet 20 can be shared among all work areas by reading the reference marks 23 at all work areas where the reference marks 23 are located. If the stopping position of the pallet 20 does not shift at all work areas or the shift is within an acceptable range, there is no need to correct the coordinates using the reference marks 23. Therefore, if an environment can be created in which the work can be carried out in a way that prevents deviation of the stopping position of the pallet 20, it may be possible to eliminate this reference mark 23.

[0017] The markers 22 identify the pallet 20 and can also identify the fish fillets 21 placed on the pallet 20. In this embodiment, when the pallet 20 is carried into the work area 3, the markers 22 are read almost simultaneously with the reference marks 23, and the contents of the read markers 22 are sent to the system computer 13 via the communication line 12, which may be a LAN or wireless LAN. At the inspection area 4, the inspection results corresponding to the markers 22 on the pallet 20 are sent to the system computer 13. At the good product branching area 5, the system computer 13 determines from the marker 22 information whether the pallet should be sent to the defective retry branching area 6 or to the good product storage area 7. The same is true at the defective product work area 16, where the system computer 13 displays the inspection results corresponding to the markers 22 on the display 14.

[0018] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the working area of ​​the fish fillet deboning system according to this embodiment. In the first imaging process 3A, when the pallet 20 is carried in by the conveyor 11, the reference marks 23 and markers 22 are read, and the information is transferred to the system computer 13. The 3D sensor 36 measures height and brightness information in a line and captures the 3D coordinates of the entire fish fillet 21. If height information is not required, a 2D camera can also be used. The 3D sensor 36 is mounted on a rail 44 and performs measurements while moving along the rail 44. In this embodiment, it moves in a direction opposite to the movement direction 37 of the conveyor 11. Once measurement of the entire fish fillet 21 or a predetermined area is completed, the 3D information is transferred to the system computer 13, and a portion or group of portions of the fish fillet 21 where bones are likely to be present is identified. Alternatively, an image processing computer separate from the system computer 13 can be used to identify the bones through image processing, and the identified coordinates can be transferred to the system computer 13. Alternatively, instead of image processing, a machine-learned neural network can be used in the image processing computer, the system computer 13, or a computer attached to either. In this case, the captured images can be stored in memory, and the stored images can be further trained by machine learning to improve the accuracy of recognition. The likely bone-containing portions or groups of portions of the fish fillet 21 are then stored as coordinates representing these areas in memory managed by the system computer 13, along with information on the reference marks 23 and markers 22. Almost simultaneously with the completion of the three-dimensional measurement, the pallet 20 carrying the fish fillet 21 is transported to the second imaging process 3B.

[0019] In the second imaging process 3B, similarly to the first imaging process 3A, the reference marks 23 and markers 22 are read, and the information is transferred to the system computer 13. The articulated robot 38 is equipped with a light 39 and a camera 40 at its tip. The system computer 13 transfers the coordinates of a part or group of parts of the fish fillet 21 where bones are likely to be, which correspond to the marker 22 information and are further calibrated with the reference marks 23, to the articulated robot 38. Based on the transferred information, the light 39 and camera 40 mounted on the articulated robot 38 move to a place where bones are likely to be, and take an image. In the second imaging step 3B, image information is transferred to an image processing computer, which identifies bones or bone clusters in the fish fillet 21 and transfers the identified coordinates to the system computer 13. If a two-dimensional camera is used instead of the three-dimensional sensor 36 in the first imaging step 3A, a camera capable of simultaneously capturing height information can be used instead of the camera 40, or a height sensor can be added in addition to the camera 40, and the image information can be transferred to the system computer 13 as three-dimensional coordinates. As in the first imaging step 3A, depending on capital investment and production takt time, the image information can be transferred to the system computer 13 for image processing, or it can be processed using a machine-learned neural network instead of image processing. In this case, as in the first imaging step 3A, the captured images can be stored in memory, and the stored images can be further subjected to machine learning to improve recognition accuracy. The bones or bone clusters in the fish fillet 21 are then stored in a memory managed by the system computer 13, along with information on the reference marks 23 and markers 22. The recognized bones are stored in a memory managed by the system computer 13 as coordinates of the location of the bone that the fish fillet boning chuck 60 clamps to remove the bone. In addition to the coordinates, the direction in which the bone is inserted may also be stored in the memory. The direction in which the bone is removed is basically toward the head of the fish, but this may vary depending on the individual fish, or if the fish and bone are tightly entangled and it is difficult to remove the bone, it may be easier to remove the bone by pulling it along the direction in which the bone is inserted.

[0020] Almost simultaneously with the completion of image measurement, the pallet 20 on which the fish fillets 21 are loaded is carried into the boning process 3C. As in the first imaging step 3A and the second imaging step 3B, the reference marks 23 and markers 22 are read, and the information is transferred to the system computer 13. The articulated robot 41 is equipped with a fish fillet deboning chuck 60 at its tip. The system computer 13 transfers the coordinates of the bone part or parts of the fish fillet 21, which correspond to the marker 22 information and are further calibrated with the reference marks 23, to the articulated robot 41. Based on the transferred information, the fish fillet deboning chuck 60 moves to the part with the bone and removes the bones. This deboning step 3C is repeated a predetermined number of times. The results are transferred to the system computer 13, and after the deboning step 3C is completed, the pallet 20 is moved to the inspection step.

[0021] The reason why an articulated robot 38 is used in the second imaging step 3B is that, because the fish fillet 21 has a three-dimensional shape, highly accurate measurements can be made by positioning the lighting 39 and camera 40 in positions that follow the shape. For example, by measuring at a position perpendicular to the surface of the fish fillet 21, the entire surface is in focus and image distortion is reduced. The reason why an articulated robot 41 is used in the boning step 3C is that, although the bones in the fish fillet 21 generally point toward the head of the fish, there is some variation. Because the bones are entangled in the flesh of the fish, they can be removed smoothly by removing them in the direction in which they are facing. To remove bones in various directions, a fish fillet boning chuck 60 is mounted on the articulated robot 41, and the outer end of the bone is grasped by the fish fillet boning chuck 60.

[0022] Another advantage of attaching the camera 40 is that by using the image from the camera 40 and adjusting the focus with a mechanism that moves the camera 40 back and forth, when the focus is achieved, the distance between the camera 40 and the target image, for example, the bone to be removed, becomes constant, and this makes it possible to determine the distance to the fish fillet deboning chuck 60, allowing the fish fillet deboning chuck 60 to be accurately guided to the position of the bone. Instead of using the camera 40 to adjust the focus and measure the distance, it is also possible to change the camera 40 to a three-dimensional sensor 36, or to add a height sensor separate from the camera 40, and obtain three-dimensional coordinates.

[0023] Although not shown in the figure, the reference marks 23 and markers 22 are also read during the inspection process, and the information is transferred to the system computer 13. Then, X-ray or infrared images are used to determine whether or not there are any remaining bones in the fish fillets 21. The acquired images are transferred to an image processing computer (not shown), which determines whether or not there are any remaining bones in the fish fillets 21, and the results are transferred to the system computer 13. Due to capital investment and production takt time constraints, the images may be transferred to the system computer 13 instead of the image processing computer for processing. Instead of image processing, processing can also be performed using a machine-learned neural network. In this case, the captured images are stored in memory, and the stored images can be further trained on machine learning to improve recognition accuracy. If the determination results indicate that there are remaining bones, the read markers 22 are queried with the system computer 13 via the communication line 12 to determine how many times the same fish fillet 21 has been inspected, and the number of inspections (hereinafter referred to as the defect coefficient) is incremented by one. The defect coefficient is set to 0 when a new fish fillet 21 is placed on the pallet 20. The coordinates of the locations of the remaining bones are transferred to the system computer 13 as coordinates calibrated by the fiducial marks 23. Instead of transferring the coordinates to the system computer 13 as coordinates calibrated by the fiducial marks 23, the coordinates of the remaining bones may be transferred to the system computer 13 and converted by the system computer 13 into coordinates calibrated by the fiducial marks 23. When transferring the coordinates to the system computer 13, the number of remaining bones is also transferred.

[0024] When the defective coefficient of the pallet 20 brought into the work area 3 shown in FIG. 1 is found to be 1 or greater by reading the markers 22, the pallet 20 can skip the first and second imaging steps 3A and 3B, and can be deboned in the deboning step 3C based on the calibrated coordinates of the remaining bones from the system computer 13. At this time, if it is determined that the fish fillets 21 loaded on the pallet 20 may have shifted relative to the pallet 20 during transport on the retry conveyor 10 or other means, the work can be carried out without skipping the first and second imaging steps 3A and 3B, or the first imaging step 3A can be skipped and the work can begin with the second imaging step 3B. In this case, deboning is carried out using the coordinates of the bones newly measured in the first and second imaging steps 3A and 3B, rather than using the coordinates of the remaining bones stored in the system computer 13.

[0025] The articulated robot 80 is equipped at its tip with a fish fillet holding plate 70 and a bone recovery mechanism 90. The fish fillet holding plate 70 is used together with a fish fillet boning chuck 60 that uses a pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B to grab and remove bones X from the fish fillet 21, and operates in conjunction with the fish fillet boning chuck 60. The system computer 13 transfers the coordinates of the bone X portion or group of portions of the fish fillet 21, which correspond to the information from the markers 22 and are further calibrated by the reference marks 23, to the articulated robot 80. The fish fillet holding plate 70 moves to the portion where the bone X is located based on the transferred information. This boning process 3C is repeated a number of times equal to the determined number of bones X.

[0026] A vacuum pipe (not shown) that sucks the extracted bone X is connected to the bone recovery mechanism 90. In this way, the bone X can be reliably recovered by sucking the bone X together with air. Furthermore, a bone detection unit (not shown) that detects the extracted bone X is provided, and by counting the extracted bone X, it is possible to confirm that the bone X has been removed. By confirming that the bone X has been removed, it is possible to quickly respond to any bone X that has been left behind. Note that the bone detection unit can be, for example, an infrared sensor, and the bone detection unit can be provided in the vacuum pipe. By providing the bone recovery mechanism 90 together with the fish fillet holding plate 70 at the tip of the articulated robot 80, the bone recovery mechanism 90 is positioned close to the operating range of the fish fillet boning chuck 60, thereby shortening the time required for continuous bone X removal operations. The bone recovery mechanism 90 is preferably disposed on the upper end side of the fish fillet holding plate 70, so that the tip of the fish fillet boning chuck 60 can be inserted therein, and the pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B can be opened to receive the bones X. The bones X received in the bone recovery mechanism 90 are sucked into the vacuum pipe together with air. By providing a brush material in the bone recovery mechanism 90, the fish meat Y and the like adhering to the pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B can be removed.

[0027] FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram showing a work location of a fish fillet deboning system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, in order to reduce the number of processes while balancing investment amount, work takt time, production volume, etc., the first imaging process 3A remains the same as in embodiment 1, and the second imaging process 3B and the boning process 3C are carried out in the same location. In process 3D, the second imaging process 3B and the boning process 3C are carried out by the same articulated robot 51. In other words, the lighting 39, camera 40, and fish fillet boning chuck 60 are mounted on a single articulated robot 51.

[0028] A new advantage of this embodiment is that after deboning, the fish can be checked using the lighting 39 and camera 40, and if it is determined that the bones are still present, the fish can be deboned again. One method for determining whether the bones are still present is to capture an image of the area near where the bones should be and process the image to confirm the presence of the bones. Another method is to ensure that the area around the tip of the fish fillet boning chuck 60 is visible in the field of view of the camera 40, and then capture an image of the area around the tip of the fish fillet boning chuck 60 after deboning and process the image to confirm the presence of the bones. That is, if there are bones around the tip of the fish fillet boning chuck 60, it can be determined that the bones have been removed. Therefore, if previously removed bones remain around the tip of the fish fillet boning chuck 60, an accurate determination cannot be made. Therefore, it is necessary to remove the bones from the fish fillet boning chuck 60 after each deboning. The bones can be removed by removing them from the tip of the fish fillet boning chuck 60 and then cleaning it. Furthermore, after cleaning, it is also possible to confirm the presence of the bones using an image. Furthermore, in Example 1, if the fish fillet 21 moves for some reason when the pallet 20 moves from the second imaging step 3B to the boning step 3C, a discrepancy may occur with the coordinates of the bones sent to the articulated robot 41 in the boning step 3C, and the boning may not be performed properly. However, as explained above, this problem can be solved by controlling the robot to recognize the bones again and perform boning again. Furthermore, in Example 2, it is possible to control the fish fillet boning chuck 60 to remove the bones while checking the position of the bones, thereby realizing a boning system with improved reliability. Furthermore, in Example 2, if the remaining bones in the fish fillet 21 after boning are checked every time all bones are removed, the inspection step can be omitted.

[0029] As in Example 2, a further advantage of attaching the camera 40 is that by using the image from the camera 40 and adjusting the focus using a mechanism that moves the camera 40 back and forth, when the focus is achieved, the distance between the camera 40 and the target image, for example, the bone to be removed, becomes constant, which makes it possible to determine the distance to the fish fillet deboning chuck 60 and accurately guide the fish fillet deboning chuck 60 to the position of the bone. A sensor that obtains height information can be used instead of the camera 40, or a height sensor can be added separately from the camera 40 to obtain three-dimensional coordinates.

[0030] In this embodiment, similarly to the second embodiment, the articulated robot 80 is equipped with the fish fillet holding plate 70 and the bone collecting mechanism 90.

[0031] FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a work area of ​​a fish fillet deboning system according to a third embodiment of the present invention. In Example 3, the first imaging step 3A remains the same as in Example 1, and the second imaging step 3B and the boning step 3C are carried out at the same location, but in step 3E, the second imaging step 3B is carried out by an articulated robot 38, and the boning step 3C is carried out by an articulated robot 41. That is, the lighting 39 and the camera 40 are mounted on the articulated robot 38, and the fish fillet boning chuck 60 is mounted on the articulated robot 41.

[0032] The advantage that Example 3 has over Example 2 is that the fish fillet boning chuck 60 and the removed bones can be freely confirmed using the lighting 39 and the camera 40. For example, in Example 2, even if only half of the removed bone is captured due to the positions of the camera 40 and the fish fillet boning chuck 60, the camera 40 can be moved freely, so that the entire bone can be captured and the shape of the entire bone can be confirmed.

[0033] Another advantage is that in Example 2, the lighting 39 and camera 40 move to a location where the bones are present, and after capturing the image, the fish fillet deboning chuck 60 moves to the bones. In Example 3, however, once the lighting 39 and camera 40 capture an image of the bone-containing area, the fish fillet deboning chuck 60 can be moved to the vicinity of the bones at approximately the same time. This reduces the movement time of the articulated robot 38 from when the bones are recognized to when they are deboned. Example 3 uses two articulated robots 38 and 41, but this can also be achieved with one robot and a dual-arm robot with two arms. As in Examples 1 and 2, a sensor that captures height information can be used instead of the camera 40, or a height sensor can be added separately from the camera 40 to capture three-dimensional coordinates.

[0034] Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the main part of the boning chuck shown in Fig. 3 to Fig. 5, Fig. 6(a) shows a state in which a pair of clamping parts is open, and Fig. 6(b) shows a state in which the pair of clamping parts is closed. Also, Fig. 7 shows the operation process of the boning chuck shown in Fig. 6. The boning chuck 60 has pressing portions 62A and 62B at the front ends of the pair of clamping portions 61A and 61B for pressing the fish meat Y (see FIG. 7) located around the bone X (see FIG. 7). One pressing portion 62A is disposed on both sides of the front end of one clamping portion 61A, and extends further toward the other clamping portion 61B than one clamping surface 63A of one clamping portion 61A. The other pressing portions 62B are arranged on both sides of the front end of the other clamping portion 61B, and extend further toward the one clamping portion 61A than the other clamping surface 63B of the other clamping portion 61B. The one clamping surface 63A has ridges 64A formed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the bone X to be clamped. The other clamping surface 63B has ridges 64B formed in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the bone X to be clamped.

[0035] 6(a), when the pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B are open, a cubic frame is formed by one pressing portion 62A, a ridge portion 64A located between one pressing portion 62A, the other pressing portion 62B, and a ridge portion 64B located between the other pressing portion 62B. Note that the front surface of one pressing portion 62A protrudes further forward than the ridge portion 64A located between one pressing portion 62A, and the front surface of the other pressing portion 62B protrudes further forward than the ridge portion 64B located between the other pressing portions 62B. Also, as shown in Figure 6(b), when the pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B are closed, the ridge portion 64B formed on the other clamping surface 63B is positioned between the ridge portion 64A formed on one clamping surface 63A. In this way, the one-side clamping surface 63A and the other-side clamping surface 63B are formed with ridges 64A, 64B in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the bone X to be clamped, so that the bone X can be securely grasped and the bone X can be prevented from slipping out of the pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B during the extraction operation.

[0036] When the pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B are closed, the other pressing portion 62B protrudes outward from one outer surface 65A of one clamping portion 61A, and the other pressing portion 62A protrudes outward from the other outer surface 65B of the other clamping portion 61B. This is because the thicknesses at the front ends of the pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B (the thickness from one clamping surface 63A to one outer surface 65A and the thickness from the other clamping surface 63B to the other outer surface 65B) are thin, and the opening angle of the pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B is large.

[0037] Figure 7(a) is a side view of the main part showing the state in which the bone removal chuck is placed on the bone X to be removed, and Figure 7(b) is a view of the main part as seen from the direction of arrow D shown in Figure 7(a). As shown in FIG. 7(a), the articulated robots 41 and 51 place the boning chuck 60 near the bone X. The boning chuck 60 is positioned so that the longitudinal direction of the bone X is perpendicular to an imaginary plane defined by a cubic frame formed by one pressing portion 62A, a ridge portion 64A located between the pressing portions 62A, the other pressing portion 62B, and a ridge portion 64B located between the other pressing portions 62B (see FIG. 7(a)), and the bone X is positioned within the imaginary plane (see FIG. 7(b)).

[0038] Fig. 7(c) is a side view of the main part showing the state in which the boning chuck is pressed against the fish body, and Fig. 7(d) is a view seen from the direction of arrow D shown in Fig. 7(c). Figs. 7(c) and 7(d) show the state in which the pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B are slightly closed after the boning chuck 60 has been moved in the longitudinal direction of the bone X. As shown in FIG. 7(c), the articulated robots 41 and 51 move the boning chuck 60 in the longitudinal direction of the bone X, and the pressing parts 62A and 62B press the fish body Y. When the pressing portions 62A and 62B are pressed against the bone X in the longitudinal direction, the pair of clamping portions 61A and 61B are in an open state. In this way, by pressing the fish meat Y located around the bone X, it is possible to prevent the bone X from shifting, and even if the bone X shifts, it will not fall outside the cubic frame. Therefore, as shown in Figure 7(d), the bone X is located within the cubic frame. Furthermore, the bone X can be exposed from the fish body Y by pressing the pressing parts 62A, 62B against the bone X in the longitudinal direction, or by slightly closing the pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B after pressing them against each other.

[0039] FIG. 7(e) is a side view of the main part showing the state in which the bone has been grasped and pulled out by the clamping portion, and FIG. 7(f) is a view of the main part as seen from the direction of arrow D shown in FIG. 7(e). From the state shown in Figures 7(c) and 7(d), the pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B are closed to grasp the bone X with the clamping parts 61A, 61B, and the bone X is extracted by pulling out the clamping parts 61A, 61B in the longitudinal direction of the bone X.

[0040] As described above, by pressing the fish meat Y located around the bone X, it is possible to prevent the bone X from protruding from between the pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B, and by pressing the pressing parts 62A, 62B against the bone X in the longitudinal direction, it is possible to expose the bone X from the fish meat Y, and it is possible to reliably extract only the bone X.

[0041] Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the essential parts showing another configuration of the boning chuck shown in Fig. 3 to Fig. 5, Fig. 8(a) shows a state in which a pair of clamping parts is open, and Fig. 8(b) shows a state in which the pair of clamping parts is closed. The same components as those in Fig. 6 are given the same reference numerals and their explanations will be omitted. In this embodiment, when the pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B are closed, the other pressing portion 62B does not protrude outward from one outer surface 65A of one clamping portion 61A, and the one pressing portion 62A does not protrude outward from the other outer surface 65B of the other clamping portion 61B. According to this embodiment, by increasing the thickness of the front ends of the pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B (the thickness from the one clamping surface 63A to the one outer surface 65A and the thickness from the other clamping surface 63B to the other outer surface 65B), the strength of the pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B can be increased. The cubic frame may have a slight gap that is narrower than the bone X. That is, there may be a gap between one pressing portion 62A and the other pressing portion 62B. Furthermore, this cubic frame may be formed when pressing the fish meat Y. 6 and 8 show the case where one clamping portion 61A is provided with a pair of pressing portions 62A and the other clamping portion 61B is provided with a pair of pressing portions 62B, but it is also possible to provide a pair of pressing portions 62A only on one clamping portion 61A and not provide any pressing portions 62B on the other clamping portion 61B. In this case, a cubic frame is formed by one pressing portion 62A, a ridge portion 64A located between one pressing portion 62A, and a ridge portion 64B of the other clamping portion 61A.

[0042] Figure 9 is a photograph showing the fish fillet holding plate shown in Figures 3 and 4 in use, with Figure 9(a) showing the plate positioned near the bone, Figure 9(b) showing the plate holding the fish flesh, and Figure 9(c) showing the plate just before the bone removal chuck starts to remove the bone. Figure 10 is a photograph showing a method for deboning fish fillets using the fish fillet holding plate shown in Figures 3 and 4, where Figure 10(a) shows the state after the fish body contact piece moving step, Figure 10(b) shows the state before the bone clamping step after the boning chuck has been moved to the bone position, Figure 10(c) shows the state after the bone clamping step and after the fish body holding step, Figure 10(d) shows the state during the bone removal step, and Figure 10(e) shows the state during the bone recovery step after the fish body contact piece retracting step.

[0043] 9, the fish fillet holding plate 70 has a fish body abutment piece 71 that holds down the fish body Y, an attachment piece 72 for attachment to the articulated robot 80, and a U-shaped piece 73 that is positioned between the fish body abutment piece 71 and the attachment piece 72. The U-shaped piece 73 prevents interference between the fish fillet boning chuck 60 and the fish body abutment piece 71, and allows the angle of the fish body abutment piece 71 to be adjusted.

[0044] 10, a notch 74 is formed between the fish body contact pieces 71, and when the clamping portions 61A, 61B are gripping the bone X, the clamping portions 61A, 61B are positioned in the notch 74. In this embodiment, the notch 74 is formed between one fish body contact piece 71, but the fish body contact piece 71 may be made up of multiple pieces, and the notch 74 may be formed between the multiple pieces. In the fish fillet holding plate 70 of this embodiment, the fish body contact piece 71 is deformed to conform to the surface shape of the fish body, and when the clamping portions 61A, 61B are moved in the longitudinal direction of the bone X to pull out the bone X, the fish body contact piece 71 holds down the fish body Y. In this way, when the bone X is pulled out by moving the clamping parts 61A, 61B in the longitudinal direction of the bone X, the fish body Y is held down by the fish body abutment piece 71, preventing the fish body Y from lifting up, ensuring that only the bone X is extracted and preventing the fish body Y from shifting position.

[0045] As shown in Figure 9(c) , when the bone X is pulled out, the fish body contact piece 71 holds the fish body Y with a surface perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the bone X. Therefore, the contact area of ​​the fish body contact piece 71 with the fish body Y can be minimized, and the fish body Y can be prevented from lifting up.

[0046] The fish fillet deboning method according to this embodiment includes a fish body abutting piece moving step of moving the fish body abutting piece 71 to the vicinity of the bone X as shown in FIG. 10(a), a bone clamping step of gripping the bone X with a pair of clamping portions 61A, 61B as shown in FIG. 10(c) after the fish body abutting piece moving step, a fish body holding step of holding the fish body Y with the fish body abutting piece 71 at the same time as the bone clamping step or before or after the bone clamping step as shown in FIG. 10(c), and a fish body abutting piece moving step of holding the fish body Y with the fish body abutting piece 71 as shown in FIG. 10(d). The boning operation for one bone X is performed by a boning process in which the clamping parts 61A, 61B are moved in the longitudinal direction of the bone X while the fish body Y is held down by the piece 71, thereby extracting the bone X, a fish body abutting piece retracting process in which the fish body abutting piece 71 is retracted from the fish body Y after the boning process, and a bone collecting process in which the clamping parts 61A, 61B are moved to the bone collecting mechanism part 90 after the boning process and the pair of clamping parts 61A, 61B are opened to collect the bone X into the bone collecting mechanism part 90. The boning operation for the next bone X is then performed by repeating the above process, thereby preventing the fish body Y from lifting up and allowing continuous boning operations to be performed stably. The fish fillet placing plate 100 shown in FIG. 10 is fixed onto a pallet 20, and fish fillets 21 are placed thereon.

[0047] FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a fish fillet placing plate that is most suitable for the present invention. The fish fillet placing plate 100 has a placing surface 100u on which the fish fillet 21 is placed, which has a number of protrusions 101. By using such a fish fillet placing plate 100, it is possible to prevent the fish meat Y from shifting in position when the bones X are removed. Furthermore, the protrusion 101 is formed with a pointed top 102. Therefore, the pointed top 102 catches on the fish meat Y, thereby preventing the fish meat Y from being lifted up and also preventing the fish meat Y from shifting position. [Industrial Applicability]

[0048] The present invention accurately removes bones from filleted fish halves. [Explanation of symbols]

[0049] 1. Insertion location 2 Pallet meeting point 3. Workplace 4. Inspection location 5. Good product branching point 6 Bad retry branch location 7. Good product storage area 8. Defective product storage area 10 Conveyor 11 Retry Conveyor 12. Communication lines 13 System Computer 14 Display 15 Defective product stocker storage area 16 Defective product work area 17 Workers 20 palettes 21 Fish Fillet 22 Markers 23 Reference Mark 36 3D sensor 37 Direction of movement 38 Articulated Robot 39 Lighting 40 Camera 41 Articulated Robot (First Articulated Robot) 44 Rail 51 Articulated Robot (First Articulated Robot) 60 Fish Fillet Deboning Chuck 61A, 61B clamping part 62A, 62B pressing part 63A One side clamping surface 63B Other side clamping surface 64A, 64B ridges 65A One side outer surface 65B Other side outer surface 70 Fish fillet holder plate 71 Fish body contact piece 72 Mounting piece 73 U-shaped piece 74 Notch 80 Articulated Robot (Second Articulated Robot) 90 Bone Retrieval Mechanism 100 Fish Fillet Plate 100u mounting surface 101 Protrusion 102 Top X bone Y Fish meat

Claims

1. A fish fillet holding plate used with a fish fillet boning chuck that grasps and removes bones from a fish fillet with a pair of clamping parts, It has a fish body contact piece that holds down the fish body, A notch is formed in the fish body abutment piece, When the clamping portion is gripping the bone, the clamping portion is positioned in the notch, When the pinching portion is moved in the longitudinal direction of the bone to pull out the bone, the fish body is held down by the fish body contact piece. A fish fillet holding plate characterized by:

2. The fish body contact piece is deformed to conform to the surface shape of the fish body.

2. The fish fillet holding plate according to claim 1.

3. A method for deboning fish fillets using the fish fillet holding plate according to claim 1 or 2, a fish body contact piece moving step of moving the fish body contact piece to the vicinity of the bone; a bone clamping step of gripping the bone with the pair of clamping portions after the fish body abutment piece moving step; A fish meat holding process in which the fish meat is held down by the fish meat abutment piece at the timing of the bone clamping process or before or after the bone clamping process; a bone-pulling step of pulling out the bone by moving the clamping portion in the longitudinal direction of the bone while the fish body is held down by the fish body abutment piece; a fish body abutment piece retracting step of retracting the fish body abutment piece from the fish body after the bone removal step; Watered down by A method for deboning fish fillets.

4. a bone retrieving step of moving the clamping units to a bone retrieving mechanism unit after the bone retrieving step, and retrieving the bone to the bone retrieving mechanism unit by opening the pair of clamping units; have 4. The method for deboning fish fillets according to claim 3.

5. A vacuum tube for sucking the extracted bone is connected to the bone recovery mechanism.

5. The method for deboning fish fillets according to claim 4.

6. In the bone recovery step, the extracted bones are counted.

5. The method for deboning fish fillets according to claim 4.

7. The bone collection mechanism is provided on an articulated robot that operates the fish fillet holding plate.

5. The method for deboning fish fillets according to claim 4.

8. A fish fillet placing plate used together with the fish fillet holding plate according to claim 1 or 2, The surface on which the fish fillet is placed is provided with a number of protrusions. A fish fillet placing plate characterized by:

9. The protrusion has a pointed tip.

9. The fish fillet placing plate according to claim 8.

Images