GB683867A - Improvements relating to the skinning of fish - Google Patents

Abstract

683,867. Skinning fish. FISADCO, Ltd. May 4, 1951 [May 4, 1950], No. 10546/51. Class 28 (ii). A flat fish or a fillet only is mechanically skinned as it is gripped and drawn past a knife 18 which first automatically swings in to cut substantially vertically through the flesh to the skin as in Fig. 5 and then swings out to the required angle to cut between the flesh 22 and the skin. The fish passes from a belt conveyer 8 and over an intermediate roller 10 to the nip between a large roller 12 and a small grip roller 14. Roller 14 is supported bearing block 36 slidable in forks 38 carried on the shaft 26 of the roller 12. Fig. 4 shows the position of the machine ready to receive a fish; Fig. 5 shows the positions during skinning and Fig. 8 shows the knife assembly. When the tapering end of a fillet first enters the nip of the rollers 12, 14 its friction resistance first retards the rotation of 14 whereby shaft 26 begins to turn clockwise against the pull of a spring 44 until the bottom one of the forks 38 engages a stop 62, Fig. 6 (not shown), which causes roller 14 to turn again towards the roller 12 to draw the skin between them. When the cut off skin has passed between the rollers and the resistance to rotation of the rollers thereby ceases the shaft 26 reverts to the position in Fig. 4. The knife is reciprocated endwise to give a slicing action by a cam track 88, Fig. 1 (not shown). In operation, the first entry of the fish slides the roller 14 away from the roller 12. This sliding is permitted since the bearing blocks 36 of 14 can slide in forks 26 which are rigidly mounted on the shaft 26 of roller 12. The sliding pushes a roller 98 against a cam surface 96 which thereby depresses the roller 14 and knife 18 so that the knife turns inwards anticlockwise, to dig into the flesh of the fish. As the roller 14 is depressed it depresses the forks 38 which thus rock clockwise about 26 and thus rock cam roller 106 towards cam surface 104 as in Fig. 5. Thereupon 106 pushes lever 102 to rock clockwise about the knife shaft 76 whereby the knife edge is pivoted upwards to engage the fish at an angle to cut along the skin so separating the flesh therefrom. After the fish has been skinned, springs return the mechanism to position to receive the next fish as in Fig. 4. A handle 118 can be used to turn cam 114 to adjust the knife to suit various thicknesses of skin. The rollers 12 and 14 are kept clean by contact with serrated wheels. Specification 499,825 is referred to.