CA2234237A1 - Head meat recovery - Google Patents

Abstract

Apparatus for recovering meat from the head (10) of a slaughtered animal is disclosed. A jaw support (15) clamps and supports the head by clamping the jaw (12). Cheek pullers (20) having clamps (21) engage with and hold the cheeks (13) of the animal head (10) in the vicinity of the mouth. A drive arrangement (30) has a lateral drive (31) for moving the cheek pullers (21) outwardly away from each other and has a posterior drive (33) for moving the cheek pullers (21) in the posterior direction (A) so as to pull tissues from both the jaw (12) and the skull (11). A jaw separation means (40) comprises a snout ring (42) to be fitted to the snout of the skull (11) and a drive (33) moves the snout ring (42) so as to move the skull (11) relative to the jaw (12) with an at least partially arcuate path of movement so as to continue to open the mouth wider as or after the cheek meat (13) is removed from the animal head (10).

Description

HEAD MEAT RECOVERY
This invention relates to recovery of meat from the head of a c~ ght~red animal, such as ~ lghtered cattle.
In an abattoir, the recovery of meat such as the cheek meat and papillae from cattle S heads is generally a manual operation in which an operator cuts along the surfaces of the bones of the skull and jaw and through co~ eeli. g tissues. The operation is labour intensive and frequently much of the meat recovered is in the form of ~elalively small pieces which have low value. Frequently also substantial amounts of meat remain ~tt~çh~d and are not recovered.
In US patent specification 4,543,689 there is desclibed an app~al~ls for recovering head meat from a cattle skull. The skull (with the lower jaw already removed) is located and held on a table. Two sets of projections are engaged ~,vith opposite sides of the skull and are hydraulically moved l~alwardly to pull the cheek meat ~om the skull. Some pl~lin~inEly cuts to tendons f~cilit~te removal of the meat. This appa~ s requires subsl~llial pr~l;".m~y 15 work in sepal~ling the jaw and it is doubtful that any additional meat to what is recovered by purely manual methods will be recovered using this appa~ s.
It is an object of the present invention to provide apparal~ls for use in effectively recovering meat from the head of a sl~llght~red animal in a partially meçh~niced manner.
It is a plere,l~d object to provide appElalLls cnabling recovery of greater amounts of 20 head meat.
It is a further prt;rt;l,ed object to provide appElallls enabling recovery of meat in identifi~ble portions so that the meat has a higher saleable value.
Acco~Jh~g to the present invention there is provided appElalLls for recovering meat from the head of a sl~nghtered animal, the appa-~ s in~ din~ a jaw support for supporting W O 97/05782 PCTIAU9~1~D188 the head of a 5lo~ghtered animal, cheek pullers for eng~gine with and holding the cheeks of the animal head in the vicinity of the mouth, and a drive &~ gr~ ~-l for moving the cheek pullers outwardly relatively away from each other and also relative to the animal head held by the jaw support in the posterior direction so as to pull tissues from both the jaw and the skull.
The jaw support p.ercl~bly co.. ~.ises a support r.. c.. be~ and a jaw support clamp operative to clamp the jaw against the support ~l~embcr to restrain the jaw against movement.
The jaw support is plcÇc~bly arranged to support the jaw so that the muzzle of the animal head is directed upwardly. In this embo-1im~nt,- the jaw support may be &--~ged to support and hold the jaw at an angle to the vertical so that the skull tends to fall away from the jaw 10 and thereby open the mouth.
The appa~al~ls preferably further inr.ludes a mouth opel"ng projection, the projection in use passing through the jaw from the underside of the jaw towards the skull so as to contact the surface of the palate of the skull when the jaw is held by the jaw support wl,e~
the skull will be pushed away from the jaw by the projection and held so that mouth remains 1~ open.
Each cheek puller may comprise a cheek clamp for positioning at a ~ pec,liv-e one of the opposite sides of the mouth, each cheek clamp coll.lJ.;sing two clamp jaws, one of the clamp jaws being located against the inside papillae and the other clamp jaw being located against the outside muscle surface. The jaw support may be selectively ~ol ~ t?~!e about a 20 transverse axis enabling seleclivc rotational movement of the head to present the cheeks at a substantially fixed location regardless of the size of the animal head.
Preferably the drive arrangement for moving the cheek pullers comprises a lateral drive which is selectively opcl~ble to move the cheek pullers outwardly away from each other so as to thereby pull the cheeks away from the skull and jaw, and a posterior drive for moving the cheek pullers relatively to the head in the posterior direction. The lateral drive is pl cr~lably op."uble to move the cheek pullers outwardly away from each other in a first stage of operation of the drive al~ and, in a second siml~lt~neollc or subsequent stage, the posterior drive is Gpel~.ble to move the cheek pullers relative to the head in the posterior direction.
The cheek pullers may be mounted by a support structure, the posterior drive being operable to linearly move the support structure relative to the animal head in the posterior direction. In this embodiment, the lateral drive may co~l~plise support arms having outer ends to which the cheek pullers are mollnte!l, the support arms being pivotally mounted to the 10 support structure and the lateral drive being operable to pivotally move the support arms selectively away from each other about their pivot conne~;lions to the support structure.
The app~aLI~s may include a jaw separation means operable to sepalale the skull from the jaw during and/or after the cheek meat is removed from the animal head. The jaw separation means preferably comprises a head clamp hll~nged to be fitted to the snout of the 15 skull and drive means for moving the head clamp so as to move the skull relative to the jaw held by the jaw support with an at least partially arcuate path of movement so as to continue to open the mouth wider as or after the cheek meat is removed from the animal head. The head clamp may comprise a snout ring which encloses the snout of the skull when the jaw is mounted by the jaw support. The snout ring may be mounted at the end of a support arm 20 which projects out above the animal head when sul,l)olled by the jaw support, the support ~ arm being movable downwardly to engage the snout ring around the snout.
In the pr~rel,~d embodiment, the drive means associated with the head clamp is operative to move the head clamp relative to the jaw with a linear conlponen~ of movement in the posterior direction. The drive means associated with the head clamp may be operative to W O 97/0~782 PCTIAU96/00488 effect the linear movement in the posterior di,.~ Lion for a predeL~.."i"ed dic~ re followed by a co",~;"ed arcuate and linear movement in the posterior direction. The support arm for the snout ring may be pivotally mounted to the support structure which mounts the cheek pullers wl,e. ~y, as the support structure is moved in the posterior direction the pulling force applied 5 to the snout through the support arm and snout ring together with the intact co"neclion of the jaw to the skull will open the mouth wider by arcuate movement of the skull relative to the jaw supported by the jaw support.
Possible and prtÇt;"~d features of the present invention will now be described with particular ~ nce to the acco~ Jallying drawings. However it is to be understood that the 10 features illustrated in and desc~ibed with reference to the drawings are not to be construed as limiting on the scope ofthe invention. In the dlawh~s:
Fig. I is a side view of a possible appalalus accolding to the invention;
Figs. 2a to 2d illustrate in side view a sequence of operations of the appalal~ls;
Fig. 3 is a pe~s~e.;li~re view of possible appa,~ s according to the invention (not 15 inrl~ltling the head clamp);
Fig. 4 is a view of the cheek clamps and an alternative mounli"g, and Fig. 5 is a pc. ~,e~ Li~e view of a head clamp.
The app~ al~lS accol di"g to the invention includ~c a jaw support 15 for supporting the head lO of a s~ ghtered animal. Cheek pullers 20 engage with and hold the cheeks 13 the 20 animal head 10 the vicinity of the mouth, and a drive a"~ P~ 30 moves the cheek pullers 20 outwardly away from each other and also relative to the animal head lO held by the jaw support 15 in the posterior direction A so as to pull the tissues from both the jaw 12 and the skull 1 1.

W O 97/05782 PCTIAU96tO0488 Some manual operations may be carried out on the head 10 before or when the head is mounted by the jaw support 15 or before during or after the cheek pullers 20 are Pn~ged and operated. Such ope.~lions can have a relatively modest labour demand cG~ alt:d to current manual Op~;l alions. For eAan,ple, such tasks may indude:
(1) A small cut may be formed under the eye during meat removal, particularly on old animals with c-sl~ified bones. However, this cut is not required on most beef heads since the outward force applied through the cheek pullers 20 folds the muscle-bone comle~ilion backwards to weaken and peel the meat off the head.

(2) The caudal end of the m.~"./Jo~lis may be severed from the parietal and 10 temporalbonesurfaces.

(3) An inside cut may be made, for example, a strai~ht cut severing the muscle tissue beside the distal surface of the hyoid bones with the point of the knife peneLI~lh~g th m.pte~ygoideus me~in~i~ at the distal surface of the pc~ ic~ r part of the palatine bone and extend the knife in the anterior direction until the end of this cavity is reached. The knife 15 is inserted again into the previous position with the blade facing in the posterior direction. A
similar cut is made to clear the muscle tissue from the r....~;nder of the hyoid and palatine bones with the knife cut se~llllg the parotid gland from the jaw 12.

(4) The meat may be also cleared from the inside of the jaw 12 by placing a knife steel between the m.p~erygoideus m~inlis (sweet meat) and the insides of the jaw bone to 20 clear the lower jaw area.
These manual tasks can help recovery of large portions of idF...l;r.s~le meat in subsequent use of the appa, ~lus.
The jaw support 15 is arranged to support the jaw 12 so that the muzzle is directed upwardly. The jaw support 15 comprises a jaw support clamp 16 which, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, inrl~ld~c a jaw support hook 17. After the head 10 has been hung on the hook 17 by passing the point of the hook through the jaw 12 from the underside, the hook 17 is retracted back towards the support arm 18 by which the hook is mollnted so as to clamp the jaw 12 and hold it firmly against the support arm against movement. The jaw 12 is S held at an angle to the vertical so that the skull 11 tends to fall away from the clamped jaw 12 and open the mouth. A mouth opening piojecling shaft 19 is also provided on the support arm 18 below the jaw support hook 17, the shaft 19 c~ ling so as to pass through the jaw 12 from the underside of the jaw. The shaft 19 is adjusL~le in the length. Alternatively, the projection 19 may be pivotally or otherwise adjustably mounted to the support a~n 18 to be 10 movable up or down to adjust the position of contact on the palatine process of maxilla (hard palate). In either case it p-ujeL:s towards the skull 11 so that in use it is fixed to extend towards and to contact the surface of the palate when the jaw 12 is clamped so that the skull I l will be pushed away from the jaw 12 and held firmly with the mouth open (see Fig. 2b) thereby sc~i~tin~ later location of components ofthe appa.alus relative to the head 10.
The cheek pullers 20 comprise cheek clamps 21 which may be positioned by an operator or positioned a~lloll~alically at the sides of the mouth. Each clamp 21 has two clamp jaws 22, one of which is located against the inside papillae and the other against the outside muscle surface of the cheek 13. To f~~ilit,s,te alltolnstic location of jaw clamps 22, the jaw support 15 may be movable, e.g. to rotate heads from small animals about a ho.izol.lal 20 transverse axis, so that the cheeks 13 are located in positions enabling automatic cheek clamp location regardless of the head size. When positioned as desired, the operator can activate a clamping mechanism 24 so as to close the .~e~,Li~e clamp jaws 22 together so as to firmly grasp the cheeks 13 of the animal head 10. In the possible al l ~n~ illustrated in Figs. 1, 3 and 4, the cheek clamp jaws 22 are mounted by ~s~,ccli~e support arms 25 which are movable by hydraulic or pnr,llm~tiG rams 26 to open and close the jaws 22.
The drive a"~ng~.l,e,.l 30 for moving the cheek pullers 20 relative to the animal head 10 is ope~uble to move the cheek pullers 20 laterally oulw~Jly away from each other in a 5 first stage of movement and, in a second subsequent stage, is operable to move the cheek pullers 20 in a posterior direction A relative to the head, although if desired the lateral and linear posterior movements may be at least partially .~imlllt~neous.
The drive alJnn~ l 30 in~llJdes a lateral drive 31 which is selectively operable to move the cheek pullers 20 Oulwa~dly away from each other so as to thereby pull the cheeks 10 13 away from the skull 11 and jaw 12. This can enable visual inspection of the progress of the operation and, by apl)lyil-g tension to the tissues being pulled away from the head, can effect separation from the head and also, where needed, can assist separation from the head where an operator needs to make manual cuts if the tissues are not pulling effectively from the bones. During the movement of the cheek pullers 20, if the rl~ ..ped tissues 13 are not 15 peeling or pulling cleanly away from the head, the atten~l~nt operator(s) can make minim~l cuts with a boning knife where the cla"")cd tissues are not readily sep~alh~g from the head.
For c~ ple~ with older anim~l~ calcification on the cheek bones near the eyes can lead to strong adherence of the cheek tissues so that making cuts along the surface of the cheek bones during the pulling operation can help to ensure that the maximum meat is being 20 separated from the head.
In addition to the lateral drive 31 for moving the cheek pullers 20 away from each other, the drive arrangement 30 also inch1des a linear posterior drive 33 for moving the cheek pullers 20 relatively to the head 10 in the posterior direction A. In the illustrated embodim~nts the cheek pullers 20 are mounted by a support structure 35 which is linearly moveable relative to the head 10 in the posterior direction A, the linear posterior drive 33 bein~ arranged to move the support structure 35. In the illustrated arr~nePm~nt where the head 10 is mounted so that the muzzle is dhG.,Ied upwardly, the linear posterior drive 33 is operable to move the cheek pullers 20 in a downwards direction so as to pull or peel or strip 5 the tissues 13 held by the pullers from the jaw 12 and the skull 11.
The lateral drive 31 comprises clamp support arms 32 which are provided with the cheek clamps 21 at their outer ends, the support arms 32 being pivotally mounted at pivots 36 to the support structure 35 and the lateral drive 31 being operable to pivotally move the clamp support arms 32 selectively towards and away from each other about their pivot 10 conl~e~Lions 36 to the support structure. In addition to tnabling outward movement of the cheek clamps 21, this lateral movement also enables sideways adjl-~tm~nt to accommodate di~lenl sized animal heads before the clamps 21 are eng~ged with the cheeks 13.
The drive ~,~nge".~..l 30 may include any suitable drive means for effecting the desired movements. For example, hydraulic rams, oil da.,lpened pnellm~tic rams, electric ball 15 screw drive units, electric tooth belt drives, pnellm~tic actuators with ball screw brakes, or pnellm~tic actuators with separate hydraulic speed control units can be used as desired.
The app~alus includes a jaw separation means 40. The jaw selJ~alion means is ope,ablc to sep~le the skull 11 from the jaw 12 during and/or after the cheek meat is stripped from the head. This will enable the edible product from the back of the jaw 12 to be 20 recovered.
The jaw separation means 40 co.,.~,.lses a head clamp 41 which is operative to be fitted to the snout of the skull 11. The head clamp 41 comprise a snout ring 42 or the like which encloses the snout, e.g. when the jaw 12 is mounted on the jaw support 10 or after the jaw is cla---~,ed. The snout ring 42is lowered from above onto the snout. The snout ring 42 is mounted on the end of a support arm 43 which projects out above the head 10 when ~UppOl led on the jaw support 15 and which is movable dOW~Iwal ~lly to engage the snout ring around the snout. The snout ring 42 is generally rect~n~ r and has inwardly directed pins 44 to engage and grip inside the upper jaw.
The head clamp 41 has ~soci~ted drive means 33 operative to move the skull 11 relative to the jaw 12 which is cl&,.,ped and held in position with an at least partially arcuate path of movement so as to continue to open the jaws wider apart as or after the cheek meat is ,ped. Also the path of movement of the head clamp 41 relative to the jaw 12 inclllde~ a linear component of movement in the posterior direction A. The linear movement in the 10 posterior direction may be carried out firstly for a predetcll,l"led di~l~nre followed by a co",bined arcuate and continued linear movement. These two modes of movement will separate a beef skull 11 from the jaw 12 with minim~l force without breaking the bones and ,.,Ai.,~ .inp the connection of the muscle tissue to the jaw bone for f~ilit~tinp recovery.
To achieve the linear and arcuate movements, the support arm 43 for the snout clamp 15 ring 42 has a pivot 45 mounting the arrn to an upright ~lc~bel 46 which is mounted for movement with the support structure 35 which mounts the cheek clamps 21. With this arr~nee~n~nt and as illustrated in Figs. 2b to 2d, the snout clamp ring 42 is ~ne~eed with the snout while the support arm 43 is ho,i,ol,lal. As the support structure 35 is moved downwardly, the downward pulling force applied to the snout through the support arrn 43 20 together with the intact connection of the lower jaw 12 to the skull 11 will tend to open the mouth wider by arcuate movement of the skull. This arcuate movement will help ".~
tension on the tissues 13 being stripped from the head. As the skull 11 moves towards an inverted position and the tissue com~e~;lions with the clamped lower jaw 12 are weakened, broken and/or cut, the skull can drop away from the cl&lllped jaw. The downward linear CA 02234237 l998-04-07 W O 97/05782 PCT/A~'9~ 188 movement of the support structure 3~ and llle.el~,~ of the support arm 43 for the snout clamp 42 ring assists the linear downwards movement of the skull 11 and hence separation from the clamped jaw 12. At the end of the downward movement of the support structure 35, the support arm 43 is nearly vertical and can be l~tul~ed to a start position above the jaw 5 support 15 in the vertical position before being returned to the huli~olllal position for lo~veling onto the snout ofthe animal head to be processed.
Various modifications can be made to the apphlalus des-;lil,ed and illustrated herein without departing from the scope of the invention. For c;A~ le~ the jaw support 15 can be selectively moveable to hold the head in di~l~n~ positions for small and large ~nim~lc, 10 thereby enabling the cheeks and teeth to be presented to the cheek clamps 21 at the same position regardless of the size of the head. In an alternative embodiment, a V-shaped ",.,.llbel 14 having a notch facing the jaw is mounted by the support arm 18. When the jaw clamp 16 is operated, the tip of the jaw 12 enters the notch forcing the tip to rotate. On a very small head the cun~e of the tip of the jaw is greater per unit of length than on a large 15 head, thereby causing the head to be rotated to a greater degree. This autom~ti~lly locates small and large heads e,labling the cheeks 13 to be plesellled to the cheek damps 21 at the same position regardless of the size of the head. On a very large head, the weight and length of the head may prevent the jaw rotating to any degree.
In another modification, all components of the ~pal~t~ls below the head may be 20 positioned towards the back of the m~rhine to enable the head to be discarded to a side chute or into a floor level opening.
Also if desired, associated washing or sterilising appa,~ s may be provided for conlpol el~ls which may become cont~min~te-l such as the cheek clamps 12. For ~;A~",~Ie.
the cheek clamps 20 may be pivoted or rotated further outwardly or towards the back of the appdlaLLls after recovery Lh~ r~ulll of the ~ ped meat, and the clamps may be inserted into sterilising enclosures for hot water clPAnC;~e prior to re-use on the next head to be processed.
A summary of possible process operations involving use of the appalalLls described and illustrated herein may be as follows:
O~elaLo-. Tla~ IL the head 10 from a conventional chain and position onto the jaw support hook 17. Start m~r.hine cycle.
Machine: Close jaw clamp 16 to secure the lower jaw 12 and force the mouth open. Position cheek clamps 21 at the cheek and papillae surfaces. Close cheek clamps 21 and co~.. ~onre head meat strip cycle. Exert outward force on the cheek meat.
Operators: Knife cut separation of the muscle and lip tissue be~it~ p at the anterior section of the jaw 12 and skull 11. Both operators must press l~,e~ e foot switches for the m~,hine to exert downward force on the cheek meat. This operation only requires one foot switch to be pressed after the cheek clamp on the other side has been released. During the application of the downward force7 the operators strip the meat from 15 the head and jaw by knife cuts at the muscle/bone connection where peeling from the bone does not occur. Cutting of the muscle tissue may be also required at the back of the jaw opening and to sepa~a~e the stripped meat from the muscle tissue of the inside of the jaw.
Machine: Break skull 11 away from the jaw 12. Release cheek clamps 21.
Release jaw clamp 16.
Ope,~lor 1: Remove cheek meat 13 from machine. Remove skull 11 from m~.hine, Start m~hine wash/sterilise cycle.
Operator 2: Remove jawbone 12 from m~çhine and bone out edible tissue from the inside and back of the jaw 12.

The operator can use the appa~ s to sepal~le the papillae and cheek muscle prior to release from the cheek clamps. This can assist in preventing the papillae surface cont~ctin~
and cont~min~ting the cheek musde.
The appal ~ s of the present invention and the process of utili~ing that app&~ s can 5 enable an increase in the amount of meat recovered from a cl~llghtered animal's head since muscle tissue is removed from areas of the head that current practice does not achieve. The appa,~ s also can have a desirable ergonomic design so that the process operators are not required to carry out strenuous tasks. The labour requhe~lt~lls to recover the meat portions can be reduced colllpaled to current practices. The recovered meat value may be increased 10 since the meat retrieved from the head can be p~ese.lled in portions that are easily identifi~ble and this means that the meat has a higher value since it is not classified as low value head meat trim.

Claims

Claims 1. Apparatus for recovering meat from the head (10) of a slaughtered animal, the apparatus including: a jaw support (15) for supporting the head of a slaughtered animal, cheek pullers (20) for engaging with and holding the cheeks (13) of the animal head (10) in the vicinity of the mouth, and a drive arrangement (30) for moving the cheek pullers outwardly relatively away from each other and also relative to the animal head held by the jaw support (15) in the posterior direction (A) so as to pull tissues from both the jaw (12) and the skull (11).
2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 characterised in that the jaw support (15) comprises a support member (19) and a jaw support clamp (16) operative to clamp the jaw (12) against the support member (18) to restrain the jaw (12) against movement.
3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or 2 characterised in that the jaw support (15) is arranged to support the jaw (12) so that the muzzle of the animal head (10) is directed upwardly.
4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 3 characterised in that the jaw support (15) is arranged to support and hold the jaw (12) at an angle to the vertical so that the skull (11) tends to fall away from the jaw and thereby open the mouth.
5. Apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims characterised in that the apparatus further includes a mouth opening projection (19), the projection in use passing through the jaw (12) from the underside of the jaw towards the skull (11) so as to contact the surface of the palate of the skull (11) when the jaw is held by the jaw support (15) whereby the skull (11) will be pushed away from the jaw (12) by the projection (19) and held so that mouth remains open.

6. Apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims characterised in that each cheek puller (20) comprises a cheek clamp (21) for positioning at a respective one of the opposite sides of the mouth, each cheek clamp (21) comprising two clamp jaws (22), one of the clamp jaws being located against the inside papillae and the other clamp jaw being located 5 against the outside muscle surface.
7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 6 characterised in that the jaw support (15) is selectively rotatable about a transverse axis enabling selective rotational movement of the head (10) to present the cheeks (13) at a substantially fixed location regardless of the size of the animal head.
10 8. Apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims characterised in that the drive arrangement (30) for moving the cheek pullers (20) comprises a lateral drive (31) which is selectively operable to move the cheek pullers (20) outwardly away from each other so as to thereby pull the cheeks (13) away from the skull (11) and jaw (12), and a posterior drive (33) for moving the cheek pullers (20) relatively to the head (10) in the posterior direction.
15 9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 characterised in that the lateral drive (31) is operable to move the cheek pullers (20) outwardly away from each other in a first stage of operation of the drive arrangement (30) and, in a second simultaneous or subsequent stage, the posterior drive (33) is operable to move the cheek pullers (20) relative to the head (10) in the posterior direction (A).
2010. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 or 9 characterised in that the cheek pullers (20) are mounted by a support structure (35), the posterior drive (33) being operable to linearly move the support structure (35) relative to the animal head (10) in the posterior direction.
11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 10 characterised in that the lateral drive (31) comprises support arms (32) having outer ends to which the cheek pullers (20) are mounted, the support arms (32) being pivotally mounted to the support structure (35) and the lateral drive (31) being operable to pivotally move the support arms (32) selectively away from each other about their pivot connections (36) to the support structure (35).
12. Apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims characterised in that there is 5 provided a jaw separation means (40) operable to separate the skull (11) from the jaw (12) during and/or after the cheek meat (13) is removed from the animal head (10).
13. Apparatus as claimed in claim 12 characterised in that the jaw separation means (40) comprises a head clamp (41) arranged to be fitted to the snout of the skull (11) and drive means (33) for moving the head clamp (41) so as to move the skull (11) relative to the jaw 10 (12) held by the jaw support (15) with an at least partially arcuate path of movement so as to continue to open the mouth wider as or after the cheek meat (13) is removed from the animal head (10).
14. Apparatus as claimed in claim 13 characterised in that the head clamp (41) comprises a snout ring (42) which encloses the snout of the skull (11) when the jaw (12) is mounted by the 15 jaw support (15).
15. Apparatus as claimed in claim 14 characterised in that the snout ring (42) is mounted at the end of a support arm (43) which projects out above the animal head (10) when supported by the jaw support (15), the support arm (43) being movable downwardly to engage the snout ring (42) around the snout.
20 16. Apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 13 to 15 characterised in that the drive means (33) associated with the head clamp (41) is operative to move the head clamp relative to the jaw (12) with a linear component of movement in the posterior direction (A).
17. Apparatus as claimed in claim 16 characterised in that the drive means (33) associated with the head clamp (41) is operative to effect the linear movement in the posterior direction (A) for a predetermined distance followed by a combined arcuate and linear movement in the posterior direction.
18. Apparatus as claimed in claim 17 as appended directly or indirectly to claim 10 characterised in that the support arm (43) for the snout ring (42) is pivotally mounted to the support structure (35) which mounts the cheek pullers (20) whereby, as the support structure (35) is moved in the posterior direction (A), the pulling force applied to the snout through the support arm (43) and snout ring (42) together with the intact connection of the jaw (12) to the skull (11) will open the mouth wider by arcuate movement of the skull relative to the jaw supported by the jaw support.