CA1323147C - Automatic animal processing - Google Patents
Automatic animal processingInfo
- Publication number
- CA1323147C CA1323147C CA000616497A CA616497A CA1323147C CA 1323147 C CA1323147 C CA 1323147C CA 000616497 A CA000616497 A CA 000616497A CA 616497 A CA616497 A CA 616497A CA 1323147 C CA1323147 C CA 1323147C
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- head
- carcass
- brisket
- cutting
- stretching
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Expired - Fee Related
Links
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- Processing Of Meat And Fish (AREA)
Abstract
ABSTRACT
An apparatus for automatically processing an animal carcass.
Suspension means suspends the carcass in an inverted position with the spine inclined upwardly towards the neck with the spine located beneath the carcass and so that the diaphragm is approximately vertical. A cutting assembly moves into the abdominal cavity adjacent to the diaphragm, and a cutting means cuts the diaphragm around the periphery. A brisket shearing means cuts the brisket with a shearing action along the brisket from the abdomen and towards the neck end of the brisket. The reaction member is pivotally movable relative to the brisket about a rear end to generally follow the contours of the brisket. Head holding means locates and clamps the head against movement, and stretching means stretches the neck of the carcass so as to spread the atlas joint, and a cutting blade moves along the line of the jaw and through the atlas joint so as to sever the head. Splitting support means is movable lengthwise along the carcass, an opposed pair of rolling or sliding spine tracking means carried by the splitting support means straddles, locates and restrains the spine against lateral movement while cutting means splits the carcass at the tracking means.
An apparatus for automatically processing an animal carcass.
Suspension means suspends the carcass in an inverted position with the spine inclined upwardly towards the neck with the spine located beneath the carcass and so that the diaphragm is approximately vertical. A cutting assembly moves into the abdominal cavity adjacent to the diaphragm, and a cutting means cuts the diaphragm around the periphery. A brisket shearing means cuts the brisket with a shearing action along the brisket from the abdomen and towards the neck end of the brisket. The reaction member is pivotally movable relative to the brisket about a rear end to generally follow the contours of the brisket. Head holding means locates and clamps the head against movement, and stretching means stretches the neck of the carcass so as to spread the atlas joint, and a cutting blade moves along the line of the jaw and through the atlas joint so as to sever the head. Splitting support means is movable lengthwise along the carcass, an opposed pair of rolling or sliding spine tracking means carried by the splitting support means straddles, locates and restrains the spine against lateral movement while cutting means splits the carcass at the tracking means.
Description
_TOMATIC ~NIMAL HEAr) REMOVAL
This invention relates to the handlin~! of animals and~ in particular, to apparatus for autornatic processing of animals as in abattoirs, boning plants, etc, In Austra1ian Patent Specification Nos, 35,992/84 and 19,034/88, an animal processing line is described which includes an animal lead up race, capture and stun assembly, and hock and horn removal stations located after the animal has bee~l s-tuck. The carcass is -then ready for manual or automatic dressing and bonin~
operations.
An operation usually carried out manually in processing of an animal carcass is removal oE the head, The carrying out of this process manually requires substantial skill and s-trength and also requires a process operator thereby adding to the processing cost, 15 In Australian Patent Syecification No. 57,413/86 there is described an apparatus for automatically breaking or dislocating the neck of a suspended carcass, particularly a sheep carcass. However even if this apparatus were to be adapted for use with removing the head, there would be substantial loss or downgrading of saleable meat from the neck of the carcass as a result of a substantial part of the neck ; being removed with the head. Also, the head is relatively unrestrained leading to poor repeatability oE the precise cut. Also the head would fall away from -the apparatus so that further processing of the head~ may need to rectify potential problems with handling to achieve the required orien-tation and dealing with contamination of the fallen head, It is an objec~ of the present invention to provide an automatic carcass; processing apparatus capable of automaticaIly locating and removing an animal head from a carcass with accuracy and minimal~loss or downgrading of saleable meat.
According to the present invention there is provided an apparatus for automatlcally~ processing an animal carcass so as to remove the animal ~head from the remainder of the carcass, the apparatus including ~ head~ holding means, the head holding means ~cDmprlsing ;locating means ~ for locating in use the animal head in a generally desired~ position,~ and clamping means for clamping ~he head against ~movement~, the apparatus Purther including stretching means . . ~ ~ . , .
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.
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1323t~7 for stretching the neck of the carcass so as to spread the atlas joint, and cutting ~neans comprisirlg a C~lt ting blade which is selectively movable along a cut line located below and generally along the line of the jaw and through the atlas joint so as to sever the head from the remainder of the carcass.
The locating means preferably comprises a cradle engageable with the head, the cradle being movable generally along the longitudinal direction of the head so as to position the cradle in the desired relative longitudinal position before clamping. The carcass is supported preferably in an inverted posi-tion with the spine located beneath the carcass and the head hanging downwardly, the locating means being operative to reLatively engage with the back of the hanging head, the locating means including sensing means for sensing the presence of the back of the head upon contact being made with the back of the head. The clamping means is preferably operative to clamp the head above the cut line, the clamping means including a jaw clamp for urging the head into the cradle to loca-te and clamp the head against movement.
The stretching means is preferably operative to move the head holding means relatively away from the remainder of the carcass until there is a predetermined reaction against further stretching of -the head away from the carcass. The str-etching means may include a reaction sensor mounted to the head holding means, the reac-tion sensor being located so~as to be contacted by the crown of -the head whereby upon stretching of the neck the crown of the head acts against the reaction sensor wlth a Eorce sensed by the reaction sensor.
The cutting blade p~referably comprises a shear blade movable from the ~throat~ region~generally along the jaw line, the shear blade being opera-tively associated with a shear reaction blade carried by the head holdin~ means, the shear reaction blade being located during the cutting operation adiacent~the crown oE the head and behind the spread atlas joint.
At the head removal station, -the equipment can be thoroughly cleaned ~and/or~ sterilized for reuse so as -to prevent cross contamination of carcasses. ~ ~To this end, the design of such equipment t~akes irlto~account~the need for thorough cleaning.
Possible and~preferred~; features of the present invention will , . . . .
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13231~7 no~ be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawin~s. Howe~er it is to be understood that the features illustrated in and described with re~erence to the drawings are not to be construed as li~litin~ on the scope of the invention, In the drawings:
FIGS. I and 2 show an apparatus whereby the head of a carcass may be automaticaly removed, In an abattoir live animals are brought ~rom holding yards, separated and isolated, immohilized7 stunrled and stuck. After bleeding and removal of hocks and horns, manual hide preara-tion rnay -take place. While the carcass is inverted, hide is released from the legs and under body to depend at the carcass sides in preparation for further removal automatical]y at a later stage along the l:ine as is described in Patent Specification No. W0 89/05584. The legs are then shackled and the shackles are engaged with overhead rails so that7 with a suitable drive, which may be similar to existing chains, the carcass is drawn upwardly to an elevated position for further processing, Manual operations continue to prepare -the carcass for ~; head removal, hide removal and evisceration, This may include severing the head hide; removal oE the muzzle; recordal of tooth number; removal of the tongue; and complete the clearing of the oesophagus7 trachea and ar-teries from the thoracic cavity. The tongue and then the head may be passed to a separate conveyor to be separately processed. ~ Head removal may be an automatlc operation 25 u-tilising apparatus as is described in Specification No. W0 89/05584.
Also at the rear end of the carcass, a series of manual operatlons may be calrled out to~prepare for altchbone cutting, hlde removal, ~ evisceration and splitting. This may include rumping; mark and strip the tail; remove tail bu~; remove the pizzle and erector muscles;~ clear and pull;the rectum and bung (sphlnc-ter); and bag the anus. ~ ~
utomatlc operatlons ~may beg~n aEter the manual preparation steps and sta-tions~ enabling ~this are described in Patent Speciflcation No. ~WQ~8~9/05584~. After most processes7 the carcass i5 spllt~ by~ a ~sultable~ means~ such as a band saw or rotary saw.
Inspection may ~be undertaken~ at ~various s-tages with condemned carcasses ejected~from ;~the lirle.~ Trimming may proceed~with further s~ection ~a cer ~a~cas~ tt~o~ Ca-casses requl~rln~ lurther : ~: : :, :
trimming may be ejected from the L-ine to enahle furt'rler processing.
Finished carcasses may be fed off onto a storage line when carcasses are washed, inspected, etc. on their way to chiller rooms of the usual character. Tnspection is undertaken as usual with those carcasses tha~ require it bein~ ejected for a rewash.
Decontamination may be undertaken with grading bein~ performed when necessary, The front leg may be releaseù to allow the carcass ha1t to hang frorfl its back le~. The removed shackle might be fed back to the head of the line automatically.
In the following description, there is set 0~1t a par-ticular preferred structure for a processing sta~ion where heads are removed. The a~tual placement of this station along a processing line o~ -the above described character rnay be varied according to particular objectives.
To improve the hide pulling cycle time and reduce the forces generated on the forequarter of the carcass by pulling the hide over the head, it is advantageous to remove the head before hide removal and head skin at a separate station. For head removal, the carcass i5 preferably suspended by the four legs, inclined head down approximately 30 to the hori~ontal in order to reduce the effect of the bulging of the hump behind the neck on some animals. The inclined angle of carcass may be set at 30 to maintain uniformity through processing stages.
In its operation, the carcass is located cen-trally over the head removal mechanism, which is described below and the cutting cycle is triggered. FIGS, 1 and 2 illustrate the features of such a mechanism.
The f1rst operation of the auto cycle is to operate head holding means 12 to locate and hold the head and position the cuttin~
means 151. This is achieved by the activation of two limit switches 152 and 153 mounted on the cutting means 151. When the auto cycle begins the cutting means~l51 swings up through an arc ~mtil the back of~ the head lO~is sensed by switch 152. This ensures tha-t the head is in can-tact with the head Iocating means 13 shown as head cradle 154. The unit then rises vertically until the backhane is sensed by ; swi-tch~ 153, ~pasit~ioning ~-the crawn of the head 10 in frant o the shear reaction blade l55.~
It is essential~ to clamp the head firml~ by clamping means 14 .
' ':'''' ',, ' ' . : , ",~ , ", ' ' , ' . . ' ,, 13231~7 to ensure a successful cut, If the head lO is allowed to rolL as the shear b1ade 156 passes through, then the cutl:ing efEiciency is reduced as the drawing action oE the blade 1S6 relative to the hea(l 10 is negated, causing the b]ade 156 to stall, The clamping means 14 may operate in two sta&eS:
(I) When the head 10 is in position relative to the cuttin~
means 151, the neck bails 157 swing by any c~nvenient mean~ in thc direc-tion of arrows A through 90 to ensure the neck 11 is contained centrally, Simul-taneously the jaw clamp 158 swings down onto the head 10 by action of any suitable means (not shown~, pushing the head 10 firmly into the ~ee shaped cradle 154.
(2) W~1en neck bails 157 and jaw clamps 158 are in posltion, the cutting means 151 pulls down by operation o stretching means 15 until the crown 16 o~ the head 10 pulls back up hard against the shear reaction blade 155, This action, while ensuring that the crown 16 of the head 10 is located a~ainst the reaction blade 155, also puts the neck 11 in tension to spread the atlas joint to aid the cutting action of the blade 156. Proof of the neck stretching is provided by a reaction sensor 17 such as a pressure switch or limit switch mounted on the reaction blade face, Then when the neck 11 of the carcass has been s-tretched, the head transfer clamps 159 lock onto -the side of the head 10 to prevent any rocking motion of the head during cutting.
The cutting blade~ 156 and reaction blade 155 co-operate -to describe a scissor action with the cutting blade ~ollowing the line of the jaw 9 to shear the head through the atlas joint. Any sui-table means may be used to actuate the blade 156, The aim of cutting close to the jaw 9 is to leave as much saIeable meat on the carcass as possible, and minimise the amount of trimming from the head 10 on the head processing line. FolIowing the removal of the head 10, -the head transfer clamps 159 swing the severed head out to -transfer it to the head processing line, The mechanism then resets for the next carcass.
The~ head cradle l54 centralises the head 10 for clamping and ensures that the jaw line is approximately parallel with the cutting blade 156. The ~ap 160 between the guides 161 and 162 prevents the bridge of the muæzle from rotating, Ram 163 operates to raise the unit~ on arm 166 up guide~rails 164 and 165, The cutting means 151 is : . .
pivotally mounted on arm 166 at 167 whereby the ang:le of cutting rneans 15l is adjustable. A stretchirlg means 15 cornprises a ram 168 enab:Ling the captured head. l() to be drawn downwar(lly so as to stretch the neck 1l. ~dditi.onal rams (not shown) operate the clamps and cutting blade.
I-t is to be understood that variolls alterations, modificatiolls and/or additions may be made -to the fea~ures of the possible and preferred embodi.rnent(s) of the invention as herein described without departing fro~l the spirit and scope of the invent:ion.
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.
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This invention relates to the handlin~! of animals and~ in particular, to apparatus for autornatic processing of animals as in abattoirs, boning plants, etc, In Austra1ian Patent Specification Nos, 35,992/84 and 19,034/88, an animal processing line is described which includes an animal lead up race, capture and stun assembly, and hock and horn removal stations located after the animal has bee~l s-tuck. The carcass is -then ready for manual or automatic dressing and bonin~
operations.
An operation usually carried out manually in processing of an animal carcass is removal oE the head, The carrying out of this process manually requires substantial skill and s-trength and also requires a process operator thereby adding to the processing cost, 15 In Australian Patent Syecification No. 57,413/86 there is described an apparatus for automatically breaking or dislocating the neck of a suspended carcass, particularly a sheep carcass. However even if this apparatus were to be adapted for use with removing the head, there would be substantial loss or downgrading of saleable meat from the neck of the carcass as a result of a substantial part of the neck ; being removed with the head. Also, the head is relatively unrestrained leading to poor repeatability oE the precise cut. Also the head would fall away from -the apparatus so that further processing of the head~ may need to rectify potential problems with handling to achieve the required orien-tation and dealing with contamination of the fallen head, It is an objec~ of the present invention to provide an automatic carcass; processing apparatus capable of automaticaIly locating and removing an animal head from a carcass with accuracy and minimal~loss or downgrading of saleable meat.
According to the present invention there is provided an apparatus for automatlcally~ processing an animal carcass so as to remove the animal ~head from the remainder of the carcass, the apparatus including ~ head~ holding means, the head holding means ~cDmprlsing ;locating means ~ for locating in use the animal head in a generally desired~ position,~ and clamping means for clamping ~he head against ~movement~, the apparatus Purther including stretching means . . ~ ~ . , .
~ ' '' :
.
; ~ ' " '' . : , .
1323t~7 for stretching the neck of the carcass so as to spread the atlas joint, and cutting ~neans comprisirlg a C~lt ting blade which is selectively movable along a cut line located below and generally along the line of the jaw and through the atlas joint so as to sever the head from the remainder of the carcass.
The locating means preferably comprises a cradle engageable with the head, the cradle being movable generally along the longitudinal direction of the head so as to position the cradle in the desired relative longitudinal position before clamping. The carcass is supported preferably in an inverted posi-tion with the spine located beneath the carcass and the head hanging downwardly, the locating means being operative to reLatively engage with the back of the hanging head, the locating means including sensing means for sensing the presence of the back of the head upon contact being made with the back of the head. The clamping means is preferably operative to clamp the head above the cut line, the clamping means including a jaw clamp for urging the head into the cradle to loca-te and clamp the head against movement.
The stretching means is preferably operative to move the head holding means relatively away from the remainder of the carcass until there is a predetermined reaction against further stretching of -the head away from the carcass. The str-etching means may include a reaction sensor mounted to the head holding means, the reac-tion sensor being located so~as to be contacted by the crown of -the head whereby upon stretching of the neck the crown of the head acts against the reaction sensor wlth a Eorce sensed by the reaction sensor.
The cutting blade p~referably comprises a shear blade movable from the ~throat~ region~generally along the jaw line, the shear blade being opera-tively associated with a shear reaction blade carried by the head holdin~ means, the shear reaction blade being located during the cutting operation adiacent~the crown oE the head and behind the spread atlas joint.
At the head removal station, -the equipment can be thoroughly cleaned ~and/or~ sterilized for reuse so as -to prevent cross contamination of carcasses. ~ ~To this end, the design of such equipment t~akes irlto~account~the need for thorough cleaning.
Possible and~preferred~; features of the present invention will , . . . .
:: .
.
:
.
-; ~: - .
13231~7 no~ be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawin~s. Howe~er it is to be understood that the features illustrated in and described with re~erence to the drawings are not to be construed as li~litin~ on the scope of the invention, In the drawings:
FIGS. I and 2 show an apparatus whereby the head of a carcass may be automaticaly removed, In an abattoir live animals are brought ~rom holding yards, separated and isolated, immohilized7 stunrled and stuck. After bleeding and removal of hocks and horns, manual hide preara-tion rnay -take place. While the carcass is inverted, hide is released from the legs and under body to depend at the carcass sides in preparation for further removal automatical]y at a later stage along the l:ine as is described in Patent Specification No. W0 89/05584. The legs are then shackled and the shackles are engaged with overhead rails so that7 with a suitable drive, which may be similar to existing chains, the carcass is drawn upwardly to an elevated position for further processing, Manual operations continue to prepare -the carcass for ~; head removal, hide removal and evisceration, This may include severing the head hide; removal oE the muzzle; recordal of tooth number; removal of the tongue; and complete the clearing of the oesophagus7 trachea and ar-teries from the thoracic cavity. The tongue and then the head may be passed to a separate conveyor to be separately processed. ~ Head removal may be an automatlc operation 25 u-tilising apparatus as is described in Specification No. W0 89/05584.
Also at the rear end of the carcass, a series of manual operatlons may be calrled out to~prepare for altchbone cutting, hlde removal, ~ evisceration and splitting. This may include rumping; mark and strip the tail; remove tail bu~; remove the pizzle and erector muscles;~ clear and pull;the rectum and bung (sphlnc-ter); and bag the anus. ~ ~
utomatlc operatlons ~may beg~n aEter the manual preparation steps and sta-tions~ enabling ~this are described in Patent Speciflcation No. ~WQ~8~9/05584~. After most processes7 the carcass i5 spllt~ by~ a ~sultable~ means~ such as a band saw or rotary saw.
Inspection may ~be undertaken~ at ~various s-tages with condemned carcasses ejected~from ;~the lirle.~ Trimming may proceed~with further s~ection ~a cer ~a~cas~ tt~o~ Ca-casses requl~rln~ lurther : ~: : :, :
trimming may be ejected from the L-ine to enahle furt'rler processing.
Finished carcasses may be fed off onto a storage line when carcasses are washed, inspected, etc. on their way to chiller rooms of the usual character. Tnspection is undertaken as usual with those carcasses tha~ require it bein~ ejected for a rewash.
Decontamination may be undertaken with grading bein~ performed when necessary, The front leg may be releaseù to allow the carcass ha1t to hang frorfl its back le~. The removed shackle might be fed back to the head of the line automatically.
In the following description, there is set 0~1t a par-ticular preferred structure for a processing sta~ion where heads are removed. The a~tual placement of this station along a processing line o~ -the above described character rnay be varied according to particular objectives.
To improve the hide pulling cycle time and reduce the forces generated on the forequarter of the carcass by pulling the hide over the head, it is advantageous to remove the head before hide removal and head skin at a separate station. For head removal, the carcass i5 preferably suspended by the four legs, inclined head down approximately 30 to the hori~ontal in order to reduce the effect of the bulging of the hump behind the neck on some animals. The inclined angle of carcass may be set at 30 to maintain uniformity through processing stages.
In its operation, the carcass is located cen-trally over the head removal mechanism, which is described below and the cutting cycle is triggered. FIGS, 1 and 2 illustrate the features of such a mechanism.
The f1rst operation of the auto cycle is to operate head holding means 12 to locate and hold the head and position the cuttin~
means 151. This is achieved by the activation of two limit switches 152 and 153 mounted on the cutting means 151. When the auto cycle begins the cutting means~l51 swings up through an arc ~mtil the back of~ the head lO~is sensed by switch 152. This ensures tha-t the head is in can-tact with the head Iocating means 13 shown as head cradle 154. The unit then rises vertically until the backhane is sensed by ; swi-tch~ 153, ~pasit~ioning ~-the crawn of the head 10 in frant o the shear reaction blade l55.~
It is essential~ to clamp the head firml~ by clamping means 14 .
' ':'''' ',, ' ' . : , ",~ , ", ' ' , ' . . ' ,, 13231~7 to ensure a successful cut, If the head lO is allowed to rolL as the shear b1ade 156 passes through, then the cutl:ing efEiciency is reduced as the drawing action oE the blade 1S6 relative to the hea(l 10 is negated, causing the b]ade 156 to stall, The clamping means 14 may operate in two sta&eS:
(I) When the head 10 is in position relative to the cuttin~
means 151, the neck bails 157 swing by any c~nvenient mean~ in thc direc-tion of arrows A through 90 to ensure the neck 11 is contained centrally, Simul-taneously the jaw clamp 158 swings down onto the head 10 by action of any suitable means (not shown~, pushing the head 10 firmly into the ~ee shaped cradle 154.
(2) W~1en neck bails 157 and jaw clamps 158 are in posltion, the cutting means 151 pulls down by operation o stretching means 15 until the crown 16 o~ the head 10 pulls back up hard against the shear reaction blade 155, This action, while ensuring that the crown 16 of the head 10 is located a~ainst the reaction blade 155, also puts the neck 11 in tension to spread the atlas joint to aid the cutting action of the blade 156. Proof of the neck stretching is provided by a reaction sensor 17 such as a pressure switch or limit switch mounted on the reaction blade face, Then when the neck 11 of the carcass has been s-tretched, the head transfer clamps 159 lock onto -the side of the head 10 to prevent any rocking motion of the head during cutting.
The cutting blade~ 156 and reaction blade 155 co-operate -to describe a scissor action with the cutting blade ~ollowing the line of the jaw 9 to shear the head through the atlas joint. Any sui-table means may be used to actuate the blade 156, The aim of cutting close to the jaw 9 is to leave as much saIeable meat on the carcass as possible, and minimise the amount of trimming from the head 10 on the head processing line. FolIowing the removal of the head 10, -the head transfer clamps 159 swing the severed head out to -transfer it to the head processing line, The mechanism then resets for the next carcass.
The~ head cradle l54 centralises the head 10 for clamping and ensures that the jaw line is approximately parallel with the cutting blade 156. The ~ap 160 between the guides 161 and 162 prevents the bridge of the muæzle from rotating, Ram 163 operates to raise the unit~ on arm 166 up guide~rails 164 and 165, The cutting means 151 is : . .
pivotally mounted on arm 166 at 167 whereby the ang:le of cutting rneans 15l is adjustable. A stretchirlg means 15 cornprises a ram 168 enab:Ling the captured head. l() to be drawn downwar(lly so as to stretch the neck 1l. ~dditi.onal rams (not shown) operate the clamps and cutting blade.
I-t is to be understood that variolls alterations, modificatiolls and/or additions may be made -to the fea~ures of the possible and preferred embodi.rnent(s) of the invention as herein described without departing fro~l the spirit and scope of the invent:ion.
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Claims
1. An apparatus for automatically processing an animal carcass so as to remove the animal head from the remainder of the carcass, the apparatus including head holding means, the head holding means comprising locating means for locating in use the animal head in a generally desired position. and clamping means for clamping the head against movement, the apparatus further including stretching means for stretching the neck of the carcass so as to spread the atlas joint, and cutting means comprising a cutting blade which is selectively movable along a cut line located below and generally along the line of the jaw and through the atlas joint so as to sever the head from the remainder of the carcass.
2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the locating means comprises a cradle engageable with the head, the cradle being movable generally along the longitudinal direction of the head so as to position the cradle in the desired relative longitudinal position before clamping.
3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the carcass is in an inverted position with the spine located beneath the carcass and the head hanging downwardly, the locating means being operative to relatively engage with the back of the hanging head, the locating means including sensing means for sensing the presence of the back of the head upon contact being made with the back of the head.
4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 2 or 3 wherein the clamping means is operative to clamp the head above the cut line, the clamping means including a jaw clamp for urging the head into the cradle to locate and clamp the head against movement.
5. An apparatus as claimed in claims 1, 2 or 3 wherein the stretching means is operative to move the head holding means relatively away from the remainder of the carcass until there is a predetermined reaction against further stretching of the head away from the carcass.
6. An apparatus as claimed in 5 wherein the stretching means includes a reaction sensor mounted to the head holding means, the reaction sensor being located so as to be contacted by the crown of the head whereby upon stretching of the neck the crown of the head acts against the reaction sensor with a force sensed by the reaction sensor.
7. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3 wherein the cutting blade comprises a shear blade movable from the throat region generally along the jaw line, the shear blade being operatively associated with a shear reaction blade carried by the head holding means, the shear reaction blade being located during the cutting operation adjacent the crown of the head and behind the spread atlas joint.
2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the locating means comprises a cradle engageable with the head, the cradle being movable generally along the longitudinal direction of the head so as to position the cradle in the desired relative longitudinal position before clamping.
3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein the carcass is in an inverted position with the spine located beneath the carcass and the head hanging downwardly, the locating means being operative to relatively engage with the back of the hanging head, the locating means including sensing means for sensing the presence of the back of the head upon contact being made with the back of the head.
4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 2 or 3 wherein the clamping means is operative to clamp the head above the cut line, the clamping means including a jaw clamp for urging the head into the cradle to locate and clamp the head against movement.
5. An apparatus as claimed in claims 1, 2 or 3 wherein the stretching means is operative to move the head holding means relatively away from the remainder of the carcass until there is a predetermined reaction against further stretching of the head away from the carcass.
6. An apparatus as claimed in 5 wherein the stretching means includes a reaction sensor mounted to the head holding means, the reaction sensor being located so as to be contacted by the crown of the head whereby upon stretching of the neck the crown of the head acts against the reaction sensor with a force sensed by the reaction sensor.
7. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, 2 or 3 wherein the cutting blade comprises a shear blade movable from the throat region generally along the jaw line, the shear blade being operatively associated with a shear reaction blade carried by the head holding means, the shear reaction blade being located during the cutting operation adjacent the crown of the head and behind the spread atlas joint.
Applications Claiming Priority (3)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| AUPI604587 | 1987-12-23 | ||
| AUPI6045 | 1987-12-23 | ||
| CA000586845A CA1326335C (en) | 1987-12-23 | 1988-12-22 | Automatic animal processing |
Related Parent Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000586845A Division CA1326335C (en) | 1987-12-23 | 1988-12-22 | Automatic animal processing |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA1323147C true CA1323147C (en) | 1993-10-19 |
Family
ID=25643400
Family Applications (3)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000616497A Expired - Fee Related CA1323147C (en) | 1987-12-23 | 1992-09-21 | Automatic animal processing |
| CA000616498A Expired - Fee Related CA1327434C (en) | 1987-12-23 | 1992-09-21 | Automatic animal processing |
| CA000616499A Expired - Fee Related CA1334046C (en) | 1987-12-23 | 1992-09-21 | Automatic animal processing |
Family Applications After (2)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA000616498A Expired - Fee Related CA1327434C (en) | 1987-12-23 | 1992-09-21 | Automatic animal processing |
| CA000616499A Expired - Fee Related CA1334046C (en) | 1987-12-23 | 1992-09-21 | Automatic animal processing |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (3) | CA1323147C (en) |
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN110178883A (en) * | 2019-07-01 | 2019-08-30 | 刘树利 | A kind of poultry lower jaw separator |
-
1992
- 1992-09-21 CA CA000616497A patent/CA1323147C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1992-09-21 CA CA000616498A patent/CA1327434C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
- 1992-09-21 CA CA000616499A patent/CA1334046C/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CN110178883A (en) * | 2019-07-01 | 2019-08-30 | 刘树利 | A kind of poultry lower jaw separator |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| CA1327434C (en) | 1994-03-08 |
| CA1334046C (en) | 1995-01-24 |
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Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| MKLA | Lapsed |