AU2016101953A4 - Improved frenching device and method of use - Google Patents

Abstract

Described herein is a Frenching device and method of use, the device comprising an automated means of Frenching utilising a stripping functionality to remove intercostal tissue matter between the rack bones. laa2

Description

IMPROVED FRENCHING DEVICE AND METHOD OF USE 2016101953 08 Nov 2016

TECHNICAL FIELD

Described herein is an improved Frenching device and method of use. More specifically, an automated 5 or semi-automated device is described to produce a so called 'French rack' or 'Frenched rack' with intercostal tissue substantially removed from the bone by the device.

BACKGROUND ART

Frenched racks and their production are described in detail in the applicant's patent, NZ585885, the 10 contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Summarising, the most common way to produce a Frenched rack currently is manually or by hand. On average, a skilled butcher can French up to six racks per minute. Depending on the number of butchers employed for this purpose, the labour cost of manual Frenching can be very significant. The hand process also introduces inherent vagaries of manual cutting including minor variations between cuts, 15 fatigue and potential for injury.

One automated art solution is described in the applicant's earlier patent which is a high pressure water based spray to remove intercostal tissue from between the bones. This method is effective but poorly accepted in industry as use of water can introduce microbes and therefore be detrimental to product shelf life and hygiene. 20 The applicant's patent NZ585885 describes a 'punching' method of Frenching using an automated device. A manual form of stripping in order to produce a French rack identified by the inventors involves initially cutting the intercostal muscle with a knife parallel to the ribs and then tightly wrapping string around an individual rib at the desired Frenching depth. The string is then quickly pulled toward the rib tip thereby 25 removing the meat from the rib bone and leaving a clean bone.

The methods and devices noted above provide options for Frenching however other methods may also be possible or at least offer the public a choice as described further herein.

Further aspects and advantages of the improved Frenching device and method of use will become apparent from the ensuing description that is given by way of example only. 30

SUMMARY

Described herein is a Frenching device and method of use, the device comprising an automated means of Frenching utilising stripping functionality to remove intercostal tissue between rack bones. 1

In a first aspect there is provided a device for Frenching a rack, the device comprising: 2016101953 08 Nov 2016 (a) at least one retention means that at least partially retains at least one meat cut incorporating rack bones and intercostal tissue between the rack bones; and (b) at least one stripping member that interacts with intercostal tissue in the rack; 5 and wherein, in use, the at least one stripping member acts to at least partially strip the intercostal tissue from the rack bones.

In a second aspect, there is provided a method of Frenching at least one meat cut, the method comprising the steps of: (a) at least partially retaining in position at least one meat cut incorporating rack bones and 10 intercostal tissue between the rack bones via at least one retention means; (b) at least partially stripping the intercostal tissue from the rack bone or bones via at least one stripping member that interacts with the intercostal tissue in the rack.

Advantages of the above based on the inventors work comprises: • Avoidance or minimisation of the need for manual labour; 15 • Increased safety to workers by minimising contact between the operator and moving parts or sharp edges; • Avoidance of the need for additional potentially contaminating materials such as water; • Potentially complete avoidance of the need for complex sensing and processing equipment; • The ability to French one or multiple bones in a single stripping action; • The ability to at least partially automate the Frenching process; • The ability to more cleanly and consistently remove intercostal tissue than art devices.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further aspects of the Frenching device and method of use will become apparent from the following 25 description that is given by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 illustrates a scissor style stripping member;

Figure 2 illustrates the interaction between the scissor style device of Figure 1 with a French rack; Figure 3 illustrates a prototype rig for retaining a meat cut in position ready for stripping; 30 Figure 4 illustrates a comb embodiment of two stripping members; and

Figure 5 illustrates a finished meat cut post stripping using the comb of Figure 4. 2

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 2016101953 08 Nov 2016

As noted above, described herein is a Frenching device and method of use, the device comprising an automated means of Frenching utilising stripping functionality to remove intercostal tissue matter between the rack bones. 5 For the purposes of this specification, the term 'about' or 'approximately' and grammatical variations thereof mean a quantity, level, degree, value, number, frequency, percentage, dimension, size, amount, weight or length that varies by as much as 30, 25, 20,15,10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, or 1% to a reference quantity, level, degree, value, number, frequency, percentage, dimension, size, amount, weight or length. 10 The term 'substantially' or grammatical variations thereof refers to at least about 50%, for example 75%, 85%, 95% or 98%.

The term 'comprise1 and grammatical variations thereof shall have an inclusive meaning - i.e. that it will be taken to mean an inclusion of not only the listed components it directly references, but also other non-specified components or elements. 15 The term 'stripping' or grammatical variations thereof refers to a process of mechanically tearing tissue from bone as opposed to cutting the tissue from the bone.

The term 'Frenched rack' or 'French rack' grammatical variations thereof refers to a cut of meat derived from the a rib bone of a rib rack of an animal carcass, the meat cut at least partially comprising a rack and, when in a finished form, the meat cut has at least part of the intercostal meat removed between 20 the rib bones. The process of producing a French rack is termed 'Frenching' or to 'French'. The meat cut without Frenching may be termed the 'loin'. The term 'rack' refers to the rib cage and associated meat. The applicant's patent NZ585885 describes a Frenched rack in more detail, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

In a first aspect there is provided a device for Frenching a rack, the device comprising: 25 (a) at least one retention means that at least partially retains at least one meat cut incorporating rack bones and intercostal tissue between the rack bones; and (b) at least one stripping member that interacts with intercostal tissue in the rack; and wherein, in use, the at least one stripping member acts to at least partially strip the intercostal tissue from the rack bones. 30 In a second aspect, there is provided a method of Frenching at least one meat cut, the method comprising the steps of: (a) at least partially retaining in position at least one meat cut incorporating rack bones and intercostal tissue between the rack bones via at least one retention means; (b) at least partially stripping the intercostal tissue from the rack bone or bones via at least one 3 stripping member that interacts with the intercostal tissue in the rack. 2016101953 08 Nov 2016

The inventors have identified that mechanical punching of intercostal tissue from rack bones may not be ideal. Specifically, punching requires a high degree of precision in where the punch is made in order to achieve the desired level of tissue removal. The reality is that in a working environment, achieving this 5 accuracy may be difficult, particularly where a fine tolerance in sensing may be critical. Unexpectedly, the process of stripping tissue from the rack bones has proven surprisingly effective in removing the intercostal tissue.

Stripping as noted above refers to the process of mechanically tearing the tissue from the bone or bones. Tearing may refer to the tissue (mainly muscle/meat) being torn from the bones breaking the connective 10 tissue between the meat/muscle and bone. The inventors have found that this interface fails at a defined force, the force not being so high as to also break the bone or bones - that is, the connective tissues fails before bone breakage.

The at least one retention means may be a clamp or clamps that hold part or all of the backbone portion of the meat cut and/or part or all of the rib bone or bones. The clamp may for example be at least one 15 movable pad, plate, rod or bracket that compresses down on a part of the meat cut, retaining the meat cut between a fixed pad/plate/rod/bracket and the movable pad/plate/rod/bracket. The clamp as a whole may be stationary and the stripping member or members move relative to the clamp/retention means. Various art retention means already exist that may be incorporated into the device and methods described herein. The retaining means may hold only part of the meat cut. The retaining means may not 20 interfere with the meat cut bone or bones and intercostal tissue. This may be important to allow the stripping action to occur.

The at least one stripping member may have a shape that enables the intercostal tissue to be pierced, gripped or otherwise retained so as to provide interference between the at least one stripping member and the intercostal tissue. In one example, the at least one stripping member or a part thereof may 25 include a sharpened point able to pierce through a section of intercostal meat and, in doing so allowing the stripping member or a part thereof to abut the intercostal tissue in preparation for stripping movement. Alternatively, the at least one stripping member may grip the intercostal tissue via a mechanical linkage. In a further alternative, the at least one stripping member may frictionally abut one or both sides of the intercostal tissue. 30 The location of piercing, gripping or other engagement of the intercostal tissue may be approximately half-way between bones. The inventors have found that the accuracy is not that critical in that some variation from the true mid-point in the intercostal tissue may be tolerable without failure of the stripping process further described below. This lower accuracy requirement provides a significant advantage over the applicant's earlier punching process where accuracy was of more importance to 35 ensure the intercostal tissue was punched and not the bone or bones.

As noted above, the at least one stripping member may be moved to a point enabling interference with 4 the intercostal tissue. The at least one initial position of interference may be located towards the backbone end of the rib bone. The exact position may be determined by the preferred length of exposed bone dictated by consumer preference. The exact length of exposed bone may be important to determining the final product value hence this initial position of interference may be important. 2016101953 08 Nov 2016 5 At this point, the at least one stripping member may be drawn away from the backbone portion of the meat cut and towards the bone ending. The drawing action may be approximately in-line with the bone direction although, as may be appreciated, bone direction may not be straight - rib bones are generally curved and hence the direction of drawing may also vary. The extent of drawing direction variation may for example change based on bone length, animal species and so on. This drawing action in the 10 inventors' experience, effectively tears the connective tissue from the bone and, when drawing is complete, substantially all of the intercostal tissue may be removed from the bone.

The drawing force may be pre-set. As may be appreciated a drawing force that is too high may break bones resulting in product rejection or drop in value. Alternatively, a reduced force may not be sufficient to tear the intercostal tissue from the bone. In the inventors experience, a force of 50 to 600N may be 15 sufficient to achieve both objectives noted however this should not be seen as limiting since the force needed may vary depending on meat cut size, bone length, animal species and so on. The force may be 50, or 75, or 100, or 125, or 150, or 175, or 200, or 225, or 250, or 275, or 300, or 325, or 350, or 375, or 400, or 425, or 450, or 475, or 500, or 525, or 550, or 575, or 600N. Known methods may be used to achieve and control the above forces, one example being a pneumatic actuator and one or more force 20 limiting mechanical actuators.

In one embodiment, the at least one stripping member or a part thereof may have a V-shape. In this embodiment, the sharp end of the V pierces the intercostal tissue and the stripping member or part thereof is inserted into the intercostal tissue until the opposing sides of the V-shape member abut or are about the bone sides. 25 A single V-shape member may be used as the at least one stripping member, the meat cut in this embodiment being Frenched bone by bone. The stripping member may instead comprise multiple V-shape teeth all retained together in a common alignment. By taking this approach, multiple bones may be stripped at once, with multiple V-shape teeth piercing the intercostal meat between different bones and then stripping being completed of one or all of the pierced sections in a single drawing motion. The 30 common alignment noted may be achieved through use of a comb shape with a common base and V-shape teeth protruding from the common base. V-shape teeth may be useful as they effectively self align the bones - bones can have a varying position inside the intercostal tissue and by having the V-shape teeth sides abut or lie about the bone edges, bone movement may be minimised relative to the stripping member(s). In addition, should tissue removal be completed in a step manner i.e. one set of 35 tissue and then the next, the bones may move once their neighbour bone is free of intercostal tissue.

The V-shape teeth minimise bone movement even when a neighbouring intercostal tissue may have been removed. 5

The at least one stripping member may instead be formed as two opposing either single or multiple V-shape teeth. The opposing V-shape teeth may interlock about or around the same or alternating bones. This style of stripping member may be useful to enhance the interference between the intercostal tissue and stripping members. Opposing sided stripping members may also be useful to balance the drawing 5 force on the meat thereby providing a consistent force load thereby avoiding a rotational or torque force during drawing. 2016101953 08 Nov 2016

The at least one stripping member may, as noted above, use multiple V-shape teeth. Aligned or opposing V-shape teeth may overlap or otherwise mate together to have a scissor-like action optionally engaging around at least part of the bone circumference. The mating action may be biased to urge the 10 V-shape teeth apart thereby spreading the bone or bones during the drawing process so that an even strip is achieved. During the piercing step, the V-shape teeth may be moved against the bias action to a neutral or closer aligned location and, once pierced, the bias action may be engaged to urge the V-shape teeth apart and against the bone or bones.

The device and methods described may be partly or fully automated. For example, the striping member 15 or members may be integrated into an arm or arms that automatically detect and engage with a meat cut or cuts moving on a conveyer. Alternatively, in a semi-automated device, a person may load and/or unload the meat cut or cuts from the retention means while stripping occurs automatically.

The parts described above, including the retention means and stripping member or members, may in part or in full be manufactured from steel or aluminium. The materials used may be food grade. One 20 particular material may be stainless steel although other food grade materials with sufficient structural properties may also be used.

The parts may be sufficiently strong to not flex or distort in shape during operation. It may be useful to ensure that the V-shape teeth if used are sufficiently rigid as to not blend or distort during stripping.

The device and methods described above may be completed without the need for sensing equipment or 25 controllers/processors. As may be appreciated, this simplifies the device and method and may also reduce the cost and complexity of the device and method. Despite this, sensors could for example be used to detect the mid point of the intercostal tissue between bones and this sensed output manipulated in a processor that then provides a calculated output to the stripping member or members. Sensors, controllers and/or processors may be used optionally to add accuracy or enhanced information 30 about the device and its operation. More details on potential sensing, controlling and processing equipment is described in the applicant's patent NZ585855 incorporated herein by reference however the examples described should not be seen as limiting.

Advantages of the above based on the inventors work comprises: • Avoidance or minimisation of the need for manual labour; 35 · Increased safety to workers by minimising contact between the operator and moving parts or sharp edges; 6 • Avoidance of the need for additional potentially contaminating stripping action; 2016101953 08 Nov 2016 • Potentially complete avoidance of the need for complex sensing and processing equipment; • The ability to French one or more multiple bones in a single stripping action; • The ability to at least partially automate the Frenching process; 5 · The ability to more cleanly and consistently remove intercostal tissue than art devices.

The embodiments described above may also be said broadly to consist in the parts, elements and features referred to or indicated in the specification of the application, individually or collectively, and any or all combinations of any two or more said parts, elements or features.

Further, where specific integers are mentioned herein which have known equivalents in the art to which 10 the embodiments relate, such known equivalents are deemed to be incorporated herein as of individually set forth.

WORKING EXAMPLES

The above described Frenching device and method of use are now described by reference to specific 15 examples. EXAMPLE 1

The inventors constructed a scissor style device 1 that clamped around individual ribs 2 and stripped the intercostal tissue 3 (see Figures 1 and 2). Figure 1 shows the scissor style device 1 and Figure 2 shows 20 the same device la interposed with a second device lb opposing the first device la. The result is a stripping member 1 that pierces the intercostal tissue 3 via sharp endings 4 and, as each ending 4 is inserted further into the tissue 3, the V-shape 5 of the scissor 1 surrounds the rib bone 2 until the sides 6 of the V-shape 5 abut or lie about the bone 2 side. When the scissor style device 1 is drawn away towards the bone 2 ending, the intercostal tissue 3 is stripped from the bone 2 by interference. The 25 scissor type device 1 shown in Figure 1 may be biased (not shown) to an open position, the open position shown in Figure 1. During insertion into the intercostal tissue 3, the scissor endings 4 may be squeezed together against the bias and then released once in position so the bias action urges the scissor endings 4 against or about the bones 2. The way the scissor style device 1 surrounds the rib bone 2, especially when interposed with an opposing side scissor style device 1 provides a strong and tight fit around the 30 bone 2 thereby increasing the interference between the device 1 and tissue 3. In trials completed by the inventors, the final stripped produced gave an excellent result as shown in Figure 2. EXAMPLE 2 A further device 10 was manufactured as shown in Figure 3 and Figure 4. The device 10 in this Example 7 strips all of the rib bones 20 on a meat cut 30 at once as opposed to one bone 20 at a time as in Example 1. The device 10 uses two opposing rigid combs 40a, 40b best seen in Figure 4. The combs 40a, 40b comprise a series of V-shape teeth 50 linked together via a common base 60. The combs 40a, 40b also comprise a fold 70 about the common base 60 that is used to apply an even force across all of the 5 teeth 50. The comb 40a, 40b is manufactured from aluminium in the example shown, being 2mm thick aluminium although other materials and material thicknesses may be used. The inventors found that it was useful to have a thickness sufficient to avoid deformation or bending of the comb 40a, 40b or parts thereof during the stripping process to ensure the best end result. 2016101953 08 Nov 2016

The test 70 rig used includes a retention means 80 in the form of two opposing rigid bars one fixed and 10 one removable clamped about the rib bones 20 at a point above the beginning point of tissue removal. The V-shape teeth 50 on the combs 40a, 40b pierce the intercostal meat 90 about the centre of the intercostal portion 90 and are meshed together so they overlap around the bones 20. Once in position, the combs 40a, 40b are drawn towards the end of the bones 20 stripping the intercostal tissue 90 away from the bones 20. Figure 5 illustrates the meat cut 30 post stripping where it can be seen that the 15 intercostal tissue 90 has been cleanly removed from the bones 20.

Aspects of the Frenching device and method of use have been described by way of example only and it should be appreciated that modifications and additions may be made thereto without departing from the scope of the claims herein. 8

Claims (23)

1. WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

   1. A device for Frenching a rack, the device comprising: (a) at least one retention means that at least partially retains at least one meat cut incorporating rack bones and intercostal tissue between the rack bones; and (b) at least one stripping member that interacts with intercostal tissue in the rack; and wherein, in use, the at least one stripping member acts to at least partially strip the intercostal tissue from the rack bones.
2. 2. The device as claimed in claim 1 wherein the at least one retention means is a clamp or clamps that hold part or all of the backbone portion of the meat cut and/or part or all of the rib bone or bones.
3. 3. The device as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the at least one stripping member has a shape that enables the intercostal tissue to be pierced, gripped or otherwise retained so as to provide interference between the at least one stripping member and the intercostal tissue.
4. 4. The device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the at least one stripping member or a part thereof comprises a sharpened point able to pierce through a section of intercostal meat and, in doing so allowing the stripping member or a part thereof to abut the intercostal tissue in preparation for stripping movement.
5. 5. The device as claimed in claim 3 or claim 4 wherein the at least one stripping member location of piercing, gripping or other engagement of the intercostal tissue is approximately half-way between bones.
6. 6. The device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the at least one stripping member is moved to an initial point relative to the meat cut that enables interference with the intercostal tissue.
7. 7. The device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the at least one stripping member is drawn away from the backbone portion of the meat cut and towards the bone ending during a stripping action.
8. 8. The device as claimed in claim 7 wherein the drawing action is approximately in-line with the bone direction.
9. 9. The device as claimed in claim 7 or claim 8 wherein the drawing force varies from 50N to 600N.
10. 10. The device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the at least one stripping member or a part thereof may have at least one V-shaped tooth or teeth.
11. 11. The device as claimed in claim 10 wherein the sharp end of the V-shape tooth or teeth pierces the intercostal tissue and the stripping member or part thereof is inserted into the intercostal tissue until the opposing sides of the V-shape tooth or teeth abut or are about the bone sides.
12. 12. The device as claimed in claim 10 or claim 11 wherein a single V-shape tooth is used as the at least one stripping member.
13. 13. The device as claimed in claim 10 or claim 11 wherein the stripping member comprises multiple V-shape teeth all retained together in a common alignment.
14. 14. The device as claimed in claim 13 wherein the common alignment is achieved through use of a comb shape with a common base and V-shape teeth protruding from the common base.
15. 15. The device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the at least one stripping member is formed as two opposing either single V-shape tooth or multiple V-shape teeth, each tooth or set of teeth gripping a bone or bones about opposing sides of the bone or bones.
16. 16. The device as claimed in claim 15 wherein the opposing V-shape teeth interlock about or around the same or alternating bones.
17. 17. The device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the at least one stripping member comprises opposing sets of multiple V-shape teeth, the teeth aligned to overlap or otherwise mate together using a scissor-like action engaging around at least part of the bone circumference.
18. 18. The device as claimed in claim 17 wherein the scissor-like action utilises arm extensions, the arms biased to urge the V-shape teeth apart.
19. 19. The device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the device is partly or fully automated.
20. 20. The device as claimed in any one of the above claims wherein the at least one stripping member is designed to be sufficiently strong as to not flex or distort in shape during stripping.
21. 21. A method of Frenching at least one meat cut, the method comprising the steps of: (a) at least partially retaining in position at least one meat cut incorporating rack bones and intercostal tissue between the rack bones via at least one retention means; (b) at least partially stripping the intercostal tissue from the rack bone or bones via at least one stripping member that interacts with the intercostal tissue in the rack.
22. 22. A device for Frenching a rack substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Examples 1 and 2 and Figures 1 to 5.
23. 23. A method of Frenching at least one meat cut substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Examples 1 and 2 and Figures 1 to 5.