EP1938932B1 - Machine for cutting restiform foods into slices and cutting method - Google Patents

Abstract

The machine has a feed device (1) with which a goods strand is conveyed from a supply region to a cutting plane. A cutting device has a cutting unit that is rotatable in the plane. Plates are conveyed from the cutting plane by an evacuation device. The cutting unit is arranged between two guiding devices (6V) that are limited by sides lying opposite to the cutting unit. The thickness of one of the guiding devices that lie in a feed direction (3) behind the cutting unit, in which opposite lying sections form a counter blade, is smaller than 5 millimeters. An independent claim is also included for a method for cutting a strand-shaped food in to slices and for automatic arranging the cut slices.

Description

introduction

The invention relates to a machine for cutting strand-like food into slices, with a feed device with which a Gutsstrang from a feed to a cutting plane is to be conveyed, a cutting device whose cutting member is rotatable in the cutting plane, and a Abtransporteinrichtung with which the the Gutsstrang successively cut off slices are conveyed away from the cutting plane, wherein the cutting member between two opposing sides of this adjacent and parallel to the cutting plane aligned guide means is arranged and the guide means having mutually corresponding openings which form a maximum conveying cross section for the Gutsstrang, wherein viewed in the feed direction, opposite portions of the edges of the openings each form a counter-blade for the cutting member. Moreover, the invention relates to a cutting method, which is executable by means of an aforementioned machine.

State of the art

Cutting machines of the aforementioned type are well known. Thus, for example, cutters have a built on the feed side in the chamber walls frame-shaped guide device, which has a width of about 10 mm to 20 mm. On the opposite side of the knife there is also a guide means in the form of e.g. plastic frame approximately the same width as the first guide means. The knife and also the existing between the two guide cutting gap have a thickness or width of more than 3 to 4 mm, due to the need to cut with the knife located in a chop strand bone and therefore to ensure sufficient rigidity. The slices cut from the chop strand have the same upright orientation on the discharge side as the strand in the feed area, i. an area of the feed device is also the case.

Due to the large width of the cutting gap and the large thickness of the knife, the cutting quality in the known machines can be improved. In particular, there is often an offset between the front and the rear cut, which adversely affects the appearance of the cut slices, ie a chop. However, this is not relevant as long as the cut surfaces of the subsequently cut off slices After the cutting process again directly and congruent with each other in contact, as is the case with a stacked arrangement of the case. The shortcomings in the cutting quality, ie in particular the geometrical inaccuracy of the cut or of the resulting disks, become problematic only when a shingled storage, ie a horizontal arrangement, of the disks is desired. This is increasingly required today, for example, in ready-packed chips or fillets, as presented in self-service counters. The cutting quality becomes very important even when discs with a precisely predetermined weight must be produced with low tolerances.

task

The invention has for its object to provide a machine and a method for cutting string-shaped food into slices, especially fresh meat such as schnitzel meat or fillet pieces, in which a high geometrical inaccuracy and thus a high weight accuracy of the cut slices can be achieved, so that they can be packaged in self-service (SB) packaging units in a visually attractive manner in geschindelter arrangement of the discs.

solution

Starting from a machine of the type described above, this object is achieved according to claim 1.

The very small thickness of the guide device according to the invention leads to a significant reduction in the force required for the advance of the strand-shaped food. The feed forces are relatively high, especially in the case of fresh meat, which has a comparatively high coefficient of friction in combination with the materials used in the region of the guiding device, which inevitably leads to relatively large deformations in the area of the food strands in connection with the furthermore very great flexibility and deformability arise in the emerging disc. As the thickness of the guide device decreases, the feed force which is to be applied by the feed device during feed, and thus possibly deformations in the region of the resulting slice, likewise decreases. With the aid of the machine according to the invention, disks with high geometrical inaccuracy can also be produced for this reason. On the one hand meet the requirements for weight-accurate cutting for SB packaging and on the other hand also ensure a high optical quality in a frayed presentation in a sales packaging.

According to the invention, it is proposed that the rear guide device viewed in the feed direction consists overall of a plate having the opening for the Gutsstrang with constant thickness. In departure from the hitherto customary design of the guide device as a frame with a thickness exceeding the frame height measured perpendicular to the feed direction, the rear guide device used according to the invention now has a substantially greater height of the frame legs, than their thickness extending in the feed direction. The production of sheet metal is also very easy and inexpensive.

A development of the cutting machine according to the invention also consists in that viewed in the feed direction against the cutting element counter blade has the same or a slightly smaller distance from the axis of rotation of the cutting member, as or as viewed in the feed direction behind the cutting element counter blade. This height equality of the counter-cutting edges, according to the invention, means that both counter-cutting edges become effective at virtually the same time, resulting in a very good cutting quality. However, it is also within the scope of the invention if a slight height offset, i. Waste in the feed direction, which is typically in the range to about 1 mm.

In order to further improve the cutting quality, in particular to reduce the cutting pressure of the knife penetrating into the food, the clear distance between the opposing guide means, at least in the counter-cutting sections, should be less than 2 mm, preferably less than 1.5 mm, more preferably be less than 1 mm. Excellent cutting results could be achieved, for example, with knives in the range between 0.5 mm and 0.8 mm, wherein the clear width of the corresponding openings in the guide means in this case, for example, only about 150 mm x 150 mm. A tailored to the dimensions of the food strand to be cut Öfmungsquerschnitt allowed due to the comparatively small free lengths of the knife within the opening cross section, the use of correspondingly thin blades. On the other hand is large-sized. Opening cross-sections in the range of about 300 mm x 300 mm, the use of such thin blades for reasons of strength or stability reasons hardly possible.

Advantageously, the front guide device considered in the feed direction consists of a total of the opening for the Gutsstrang having sheet of constant thickness, wherein at the lower edge of the opening over its width extending bridging element is connected, which has a gap region between a circulating conveyor belt or a covering circumferential Fördermiemchen feed device in the front deflection region, wherein the surface of the feed device includes a small angle with the surface of the bridging unit and the latter merges steadily into the surface of the counter-blade forming sheet. The bridging element, which slopes slightly in the direction of advance, prevents the Gutsstrang in the region of the deflection of the feed device is pulled down into the constricting gap forming there, whereby the continuity and uniformity of the feed movement would also be affected, as this increases the feed force required for all would.

The invention further ausgestaltend is provided that the feed device consists of a conveyor belt and a plurality thereof in the feed direction adjoining Förderriemchen, the cutting device facing away deflection roller is provided with interlocking elements for engagement in the underside of the Gutsstrangs. In this way, slippage between the example provided with teeth or spikes deflecting roller and the underside of Gutsstrangs vorzuschiebs be avoided and ensures sufficient uniformity in the feed motion. The avoidance of Förmschlusselementen in the region of the cutter facing deflection roller prevents that there Gutsstrang is drawn into the gap region between the front guide device and the deflection of the conveyor.

If the surface of the rear counter-blade is arranged higher than a deposition surface of the removal device formed by a circulating conveyor belt or revolving conveyor belt, it is achieved that the emerging disk does not maintain its alignment parallel to the typically approximately vertical cutting plane, but tilts in the feed direction and thus assumes a horizontal arrangement in the area of the removal device. With appropriate coordination of feed speed or cutting frequency and the speed of Abtransporteinrichtung can thus achieve a shingled or frayed arrangement of the finished discs. A tilting of the emerging discs or just cut slices, which is particularly important in a shingled storage of the discs, so is favored so that the disc is no footprint available, which could allow maintaining the upright position.

If necessary, the tilting of the cut slices can also be facilitated by the fact that the feed device falls in the direction of advance relative to the horizontal and the cutting plane is oriented perpendicular to the plane of the feed device, i. also includes an angle to the vertical.

The above-mentioned object is also achieved by a method according to claim 8.

While the small thickness of the "downstream" arranged counter-blade in relation to the thickness of the disc leads to a reduction of the required feed forces and overall equalizes the feed movement, the tilting of the discs is due to the support of the incipient blade, which is only slightly pronounced, supported by the counter-blade favors, whereby the fan-shaped or shingled arrangement of the disc stored can be reliably achieved.

An inventive embodiment of the above-mentioned method is that slices are cut off with a thickness greater than 10 mm, preferably greater than 12 mm. These are typically slices of pork schnitzel, pork tenderloin, beef fillet or lamb fillet which, for packaging in a self-service packaging unit, must also be cut very precisely, which is due to the low feed forces, i. the very exact feed and the cutting edges caused by the cutting quality is made possible.

embodiment

Figur 1.

eine perspektivische Ansicht auf eine Schneidmaschine von einer Vorschubeinrichtung aus gesehen,

Figur 2

eine perspektivische Ansicht der Schneidmaschine gemäß Figur 1 von der Abtransporteinrichtung aus gesehen,

Figur 3

wie Figur 2 jedoch aus einer anderen Perspektive und

Figur 4

einen Schnitt durch die Vorschubeinrichtung, die Führungseinrichtungen, das Schneidorgan und die Abtransporteinrichtung.

The invention will be explained in more detail with reference to an embodiment of a cutting machine, which is shown in the drawing. It shows:

FIG. 1

a perspective view of a cutting machine seen from a feed device,

FIG. 2

a perspective view of the cutting machine according to FIG. 1 seen from the removal facility,

FIG. 3

as FIG. 2 however from a different perspective and

FIG. 4

a section through the feed device, the guide means, the cutting member and the Abtransporteinrichtung.

One in the FIGS. 1 to 3 only partially shown cutting machine for cutting slices of rope-shaped foods, especially fresh meat, such as pork or pork fillets, comprises a feed device 1, which consists of a rotating conveyor belt 2 and a thereto in the feed direction (arrow 3) subsequent funding in the form of a plurality of two Following the conveyor belts 5 is a cutting device consisting of two largely congruent constructed and parallel spaced guide means 6V, 6A and between these guide means 6V, 6A extending and the gap between These guide means 6V, 6A almost filling the cutting member 7 in the form of a rotationally rotating in the direction of arrow 8 crescent-shaped knife with a front cutting edge. 9

As can be seen in particular FIG. 2 results in the cutting device, which also has a knife drive, not shown, but known from the prior art, a Abtransporteinrichtung 10 in the form of an endlessly circulating conveyor belt, on the upper shelf surface 11, the cut from the Gutsstrang discs come to rest.

The advancing device 1 furthermore has a feed plate 12 which can be moved in the feed device 3 and which can be provided on its front side with engagement elements for producing a form-locking connection with the end of the Gutsstrangs to be cut. The first in the feed direction 3 guide roller 4 of Riemchenfördermittels is provided with radially outwardly beyond the plane of the conveyor belt 2 protruding engagement elements in the form of teeth which engage the underside of the Gutsstrangs to be cut and prevent slipping in the way and evening of the feed motion cause. The second guide roller 4, which is arranged immediately in front of the first Fübrungseinrichtung 6, does not have such engagement elements in the form of teeth.

From the Figures 3 and 4 the structure of the two guide means 6V and 6A is clear: Both guide means 6V, 6A each consist in total of a metal sheet, each having an opening 13 which defines a maximum conveying cross section. The openings 13 have a rectangular shape with rounded corners 14. The thickness of the guide means 6V, 6A forming sheets is about 1 to 2 mm.

A trained between the two sheets guide gap 15 for the knife 7 has a width of 0.8 mm and is almost completely filled by the knife 7, which experiences a very good lateral guidance of the side surface of the sheets facing each other for this reason. Despite the very small 0.8 mm thickness of the blade 7 whose stability in conjunction with the relatively small cross section of the opening 13 (about 150 x 200 mm) is quite sufficient to cut bone-free meat.

In FIG. 4 For the sake of clarity, a Gutsstrang 16 is shown schematically, of which in the region of the Abtransporteinrichtung 10 some shingled arranged discs 17 are shown. The cutting edge 9 of the knife 7, located just within the cross section of Gutsstrangs 16, thereby forming a just emerging disc 17 ', which is already slightly tilted in its upper portion, so that a wedge-shaped gap to the cut surface of Gutsstrangs 16 forms.

FIG. 3 illustrates that portions of the guide means 6V, 6A counter-blades 19V, 19A for the front cutting edge 9 of the blade 7 form. This applies to first sections which are arranged parallel to the surface of the conveyor belt of the feed device 2 or the removal device 10, as well as to sections 18 'which are aligned perpendicular thereto, but also to the lower rounded sections 18 "located therebetween.

Out FIG. 4 As a result, a slight height offset 20 of less than 1 mm exists in each case in the lower horizontal region 18 between the counter-blades 19V and 19A. However, this can also be zero, so that the counter-blades 19V, 19A are at exactly the same height. A further height offset 21 exists between the cutting edge 19A in the section 18 and the surface 11 of the removal device 10. Both aforementioned height offsets 20 and 21 favor the tilting the discs 17 on the surface 11 of the Abtransporteinrichtung 10, which is important for the desired shingled tray.

Of the FIG. 4 can also be seen that between the blade 7 facing the deflection roller 4 for the Förderriemchen 5 and the guide means 6V forming sheet a strip-shaped, possessing the cross section of the shape of a wedge Überbrilckungselement 22 is present. Its surface 23 lies in a plane with the surface of the conveyor belt 5 and slightly lowered relative to this. The surface 23 of the bridging element 22 is further in a plane with which the counter-blade 19V of the guide device 6V is aligned, but there is also the possibility that the counter-blade 19V is slightly lowered relative to the bridging element 22. The bridging element 22 may be made of metal and be welded, for example, to the sheet metal of the guide device 6V, but may also consist of eg ^Teflon® and be otherwise fixed in its position. Throughout the course of the feed device 1 and the Abtransporteinrichtung 10 no height differences of the type may be present that the Gutsstrang 16 and the cut slices 17 would have to overcome a way to "up" because this would unduly hindered the feed and conveying movement and wasuneven , The shingled disc 17 are fed after the Abtransporteinrichtung 10 of a known packaging device in which they placed in a plastic or paper tray and, for example, in a protective atmosphere with foil welded and labeled.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1

feeder

2

conveyor belt

3

feed direction

4

deflecting

5

Förderriemchen

6V, 6A

guide means

7

knife

8th

direction of rotation

9

cutting edge

10

transporting device

11

surface

12

feed plate

13

opening

14

corner

15

gap

16

Gutsstrang

17.17 '.

disc

18, 18 ', 18 ".

Area

19V, 19A

against cutting

20

height offset

21

height offset

22

Überbrfickungselemeztt

23

surface

Claims (9)

1. A machine for cutting string-shaped food into slices (17), comprising a feed device (1) by means of which a product string (16) can be conveyed from a feeding area to a cutting plane, a cutting device, the cutting element of which can be rotated in the cutting plane, and a removal device (10) by means of which the slices (17), which have been successively cut from the product string (16), can be conveyed away from the cutting plane, wherein the cutting element is arranged between two guide devices (6V, 6A), which adjoin said cutting element from two opposite sides and the guide devices (6V, 6A) have openings (13), which correspond with one another and which form the maximum conveying cross section for the product string (16), wherein, viewed in feeding direction (3), sections (18, 18', 18") located opposite one another of the edges of the openings (13) in each case form a counter cutter (19V, 19A) for the cutting element, characterized in that the thickness of the guide device (6A), which, viewed in feeding direction (3), is located downstream from the cutting element, which collectively consists of a metal sheet comprising a constant thickness, which encompasses the opening (13) for the product string (16), is less than 5 mm and in that the front guide device (6V), viewed in feeding direction (3), also collectively consists of a metal sheet comprising a constant thickness, which forms the opening (13) for the product string (16).
2. The machine according to claim 1, characterized in that the counter cutter (19V), which, viewed in feeding direction (3), is located upstream of the cutting element, has a smaller or the same distance from the axis of rotation of the cutting element than or as, respectively, the counter cutter (19A), which is arranged downstream from the cutting element.
3. The machine according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the clearance between the guide devices (6V, 6A) located opposite to one another, at least in the sections (18, 18', 18") forming the counter cutters (19V, 19A), is smaller than 2 mm, preferably smaller than 1.5 mm, more preferably smaller than 1.0 mm.
4. The machine according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a bridging element (22), which extends across the width of the lower edge of the opening (13), is connected thereto, said bridging element (22) covers a gap area between the feed device (1), which encompasses a rotary conveyor belt or a rotary conveying strap (5), in the front deflection area of said feed device (1), wherein the surface (23) of the feed device (1) is arranged so as to be slightly higher than the surface of the bridging element (22) or so as to be sloping in feeding direction at an incline relative thereto and the surface (23) of the bridging element (22) in turn steadily passes into the surface of the metal sheet, which forms the counter cutter (19V).
5. The machine according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the feed device (1) consist of a conveyor belt (2) and of a plurality of conveying straps (5), which connect thereto in feed direction (3), the guide roller (4) of which, which faces away from the cutting device, is provided with form-fit elements for engaging with the bottom side of the product string (16).
6. The machine according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the surface of the rear counter cutter (19A) is arranged so as to be higher than a surface (11) of the removal device (10), which is formed by a rotary conveyor belt or by rotary conveying straps (5).
7. The machine according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the feed device (1) slopes relative to the horizontal, viewed in feed direction (3), and that the cutting plane is oriented at right angles to the plane of the feed device (1).
8. A method for cutting string-shaped food into slices and for automatically arranging the cut slices, wherein a product string (16) of the food is conveyed in a feeding area of a cutting machine to a cutting plane by means of a feed device (10) and successive slices (17) are cut from the product string (16) by means of a cutting device, wherein, in response to the production of a slice, the product string (16) is supported by one counter cutter (19V, 19A) arranged upstream of and by one counter cutter (19V, 19A) arranged downstream from a cutting member of the cutting device, with said counter cutter (19V, 19A) being formed by sections (18, 18', 18") of a guide device (6V, 6A), one of which is located upstream of and one of which is located downstream from the cutting element in each case, wherein the cut slices (7) are accommodated by a moved depositing surface (11) of a removal device (10), characterized in that the guide device (6A), which, viewed in feeding direction (3), is located downstream from the cutting element, which collectively consists of a metal sheet comprising a constant thickness, which encompasses the opening (13) for the product string (16) and the front guide device (6V), viewed in feeding direction (3), also collectively consists of a metal sheet comprising a constant thickness, which forms the opening (13) for the product string (16), wherein a produced slice (17) is supported by the counter cutter (19A) arranged downstream from the cutting element only in a partial area of its thickness and in that that slices (17) are deposited in a shingled arrangement on the surface of the removal device (10).
9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that the slices (17) are cut with a thickness of greater than 10 mm, preferably greater than 12 mm.

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