Adjustable Counter-Support for Fish Fillet Cutting Gap
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fish filleting devices struggle to completely separate fish fillets from the bone structure without leaving ventral fins, requiring manual rework and increasing effort and costs.
Innovation Solution
The device features controllable counter-support arrangements that adjust the cutting gap size during processing, allowing the circular knives to cut through the skin of the fish fillets from the inside out, ensuring that ventral fins remain attached to the bone structure while the fillets are completely separated.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the circular knife cuts through the fish fillet from the outside in, then the cutting process is simple, but ventral fins remain attached to the bone structure requiring manual rework
Solution Approach 1:
The counter-positioning arrangement is made dynamically adjustable during the cutting process. It can be moved between a first position (for standard cutting) and a second position (for ventral fin separation), enabling the system to adapt its geometry to achieve different cutting objectives without manual intervention
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the geometric parameter of the cutting gap by repositioning the counter-positioning arrangement. This parameter change transforms the cutting path from a standard external cut to an internal cut through the ventral fin, enabling automated fin removal
2Device complexity
If the cutting gap size is fixed, then the device structure is simple, but it cannot accommodate variable fish sizes and cutting requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The counter-positioning arrangement is designed with dynamic positioning capability, allowing it to be moved between at least two distinct positions during the cutting process. This dynamic adjustment enables the device to adapt to different fish sizes and cutting requirements while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure
Solution Approach 2:
The counter-positioning arrangement is divided into separable components (counter-positioning arrangement and second support element) that can be independently positioned and adjusted, enabling flexible configuration for different cutting scenarios
3Device complexity
If manual rework is performed to remove ventral fins, then cutting equipment remains simple, but labor effort and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The filleting device performs the ventral fin removal function automatically through its adjustable counter-positioning mechanism, eliminating the need for manual rework. The system serves itself by incorporating the fin removal capability into the automated cutting process
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the ventral fin removal function from the manual post-processing stage and integrates it into the automated cutting process itself, thereby eliminating the harmful effect of manual rework while maintaining device simplicity
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach results in yield-optimized fish fillets without ventral fins, reducing manual rework and associated costs by enabling automated fin removal during the filleting process.
Implementation Method 1
each flank knife unit comprises a rotatably driven circular knife
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a device (10) designed and configured for processing decapitated fish (11), namely for cutting the fish fillets, preferably already processed by a belly knife assembly and a back knife assembly, from the flank bones, comprising a transport device (12) designed and configured for transporting the fish (11) tail-first in the transport direction T, wherein the transport device (12) has an endlessly circulating transport conveyor (13) with at least one transport saddle (14) for receiving and fixing a fish (11), a flank knife assembly (15), wherein the flank knife assembly (15) has two flank knife units (16, 17) which are opposite each other on both sides of the transport conveyor (13) in the area of a transport saddle guide (18), and each flank knife unit (16, 17) comprises a rotatably driven circular knife (19, 20) and a counter-position arrangement (21, 22) for the circular knife (19, 20).wherein the circular knife (19, 20) is arranged at a distance from the counter-position (21, 22) to form a cutting gap S, and at least one control device for moving the flank knife units (16, 17) relative to the transport conveyor (13) from a waiting position to a working position and back, the control device being characterized in that the counter-positions (21, 22) are designed and configured to be controllable during the processing process for changing the size of the cutting gap S. The invention further relates to a filleting device with such a device (10) and a corresponding method.