EP2942167B1 - Multiple type food processing device and method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a multi-grade food processing apparatus having at least two food slicing apparatuses adapted to produce respective partial portions. The present invention further relates to a process for processing food, with which various partial portions are produced and combined into a multi-sort portion.

A generic food processing device is known from US 2004/0016331 A1 in which a cutting and conveying system is disclosed which creates multi-portion portions. For this purpose, a first cutting machine and a second cutting machine are provided, wherein sensors are arranged after each cutting machine, each of which determines the length of the partial portions. Their signals are sent to a controller which then controls via the lap conveyor motors and stacker motors to balance different portion lengths. After the individual machines each scales are provided, with portions whose weight is unacceptable be discharged via waste conveyor.

From the AT 385 939 B is the juxtaposition of several slicing machines known, with a central control for the intermittent switching on a drive of the common conveyor belt and for switching on the Schnittgutwagenantriebe and the depositing devices and optionally the variable conveying paths of the depositing device is provided.

The EP 2 420 362 A1 discloses a multi-lane food slicer, wherein each lane may have its own product scanner, and an individual product feeder is provided, ie, the speeds at which the products are supplied to the cutter may be varied individually taking into account the scanner data. Furthermore, a stacking device is disclosed which stacks portions of different tracks of the slicing apparatus into a total portion. The total portion may be a "mixed total portion", eg of cheese and sausage slices.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a food processing apparatus and a method for processing foods which enable an increase in the quality of the multi-portion portions, in particular with regard to their weight and / or composition, and at the same time are efficient.

According to the invention, a food processing device is provided which has at least two food slicing devices which are each designed to produce partial portions, in each case a sensor arrangement which is designed to determine at least one property of the partial portions produced by one of the food slicing apparatuses, and a combination device which comprises at least the respective one Food slicing devices is arranged downstream, and is designed, the partial portions to combine into a multi-sort portion, according to the invention a control device is provided which is adapted to control the operation of the food slicing on the basis of the properties of the respective Teilportionen to adapt the weight of the Teilportionen, namely to match, so that with great accuracy the target weight of Mehrsortenportion can be achieved.

Thus, by processing information relating to the partial portions, an adjustment of the operation of the individual food slicing apparatuses is achieved, so that a property, in particular the weight, of the partial portions can be adapted, and consequently a multi-sort portion can be obtained, which due to the concerted properties of the partial portions , can reach the target weight with great accuracy. By contrast, in the food processing devices known in the prior art, the tolerances in the weight of the partial portions add up, so that the weight of the multi-portion portions can only be controlled relatively inaccurately.

In the following, the multi-variety portion can always be a preliminary multi-portion portion, which is supplemented by further partial portions, or a completed multi-variety portion, which is further processed, in particular packaged.

The food slicing apparatuses used in the food processing apparatus according to the present invention are, in particular, slicers slicing food products in the form of food bars, food sticks or naturally shaped foods. Food bars are for example cheese bars, sausage sticks or ham bars, which are characterized by a substantially uniform outer shape. Other food products to be sliced up by the food slicing machine include, for example, a ham loaf or a naturally shaped cheese having a non-uniform external shape.

Advantageously, the sensor arrangement is arranged downstream of at least one of the food processing devices. Thus, the weight or another property, for example the density and / or the volume, of the already cut partial portions can be determined. Alternatively, the sensor arrangement may be arranged upstream of at least one of the food slicing apparatuses, whereby a property of the future partial portion may be determined prior to slicing thereof. Also conceivable are combinations of food processing devices where one of the food slicing devices a downstream sensor arrangement and one of the food slicing apparatuses has an upstream sensor arrangement.

Advantageously, at least one pre- or advantageously downstream sensor arrangement is a balance, the property determined by this sensor arrangement being the weight of the respective partial portions. In one embodiment, all of the aforementioned sensor arrangements may be scales. For example, the balance may be associated with the tray conveyor of the food slicing apparatus so that the weight of the portion portions may be determined continuously during the slicing operation. Alternatively, the balance may be arranged downstream of the storage conveyor, so that in each case only the weight of the already completed partial portions can be determined. Furthermore, alternatively, the balance may be assigned to the feed of the food separation device, and the weight of the partial portions determined by evaluating the residual weight of the not yet cut food product.

In an embodiment, the sensor assembly may be a scanning device disposed upstream of at least one of the food slicing apparatus. By means of the scanning device, the internal composition of the food rod to be cut can be determined, which allows conclusions to be drawn about the weight of the portion to be sliced, since the scanning device can for example determine the density distribution within the food product and its volume, from which in particular the weight of the cut slices can be determined. A control device therefore knows the expected partial portions and their properties.

Advantageously, the control devices and the food slicing devices are designed such that the operation of at least one of the food slicing devices is controlled by adjusting the slice thickness of the food slices produced. Thus, by increasing the thickness of at least one of the food slices of a partial portion or by evenly increasing the thickness of all the slices of a partial portion, the weight of the partial portion can be increased or reduced by correspondingly reducing the slice thickness or slice thickness.

A partial portion has, in particular, at least one food slice, wherein in preferred embodiments a partial portion has at least two food slices.

As an alternative or in addition to the variation of the slice thickness of the produced food slices of the partial portions, the control device and the food slicing apparatuses can be designed such that the operation of at least one food slicing apparatus is controlled by adjusting the number of food slices to a partial portion. Thus, by adding or omitting a food slice to a partial portion, the weight of the partial portions can be adjusted.

According to the invention, a food processing device is furthermore provided, which has at least two food slicing devices which are each designed to produce partial portions, and a combination device which is arranged at least downstream of the respective food slicing devices and is designed to combine the partial portions into a multi-sort portion, wherein according to the invention a control device is provided, which is designed to synchronize the timing of the cutting operation of the respective food slicing devices. The synchronization of the cutting operations is achieved in particular by a synchronization of the loading operations, d. H. new food products are being added to several food slicers at the same time. It can thereby be achieved that loading-related pauses can be reduced and that desired partial portions can be combined with one another in the subsequent combination device or that a buffer device in the form of a jam section can be saved since the partial portions generated at the same time or in a temporal context are each directly combined and processed further can be. At least can be reduced by the synchronization, the buffer capacity of optionally provided buffer devices, or buffer capacities are no longer mandatory. Existing buffer capacity can be better utilized and consequently the throughput of the device can be increased.

In particular, the control device is designed to synchronize in each case the cutting end and / or the cutting start of the cutting process of the respective food slicing devices. In other words, the slicing process of the partial portions is started and / or terminated at the same time, or at least coordinated with one another in terms of time. Furthermore, the loading operations on the food slicing apparatuses can be synchronized.

According to the invention, there is further provided a food processing apparatus comprising at least two food slicing apparatuses each designed to produce partial portions and a combination apparatus at least downstream of the respective food slicing apparatuses and arranged to combine the partial portions into a multi-sort portion Buffer device is provided between at least one Lebensmittelaufschneidevorrichtung and the combination device, which is adapted, based on a control signal of a control device, to retain and release partial portions.

The buffer device makes it possible, for example, for a partial portion of a food slicing device to be retained, while the other food slicing device produces a further partial portion which is matched to the first partial portion, in particular its weight. After the further partial portion has been produced, the buffer device can release the first partial portion so that the two partial portions in the combination device can be combined together to form a desired multi-sort portion. In particular, the buffer device comprises the single-stroke area in front of the combination device.

In one embodiment, a buffer device may be provided behind each of several food slicing devices or behind each food slicing device, so that respective partial portions may be retained and released to produce desired multi-variety portions by combinations of suitable partial portions.

Advantageously, the control device is designed to determine the residence times of the respective partial portions in the buffer device. In particular, this residence time may correspond to the time until a further partial portion, which has been matched to the first partial portion, has been produced in a further food slicing device.

In one embodiment, in the food processing apparatus according to the invention, a sensor arrangement is further provided, which is designed to determine a property of the partial portions, wherein the control device is designed to control the buffer device and possibly the Eintaktbereich based on the properties of the respective Teilportionen to retain the Teilportionen or in a single-pass range. Thus, a combination of partial portions occurs in particular with desired properties in the combination device. In particular, the control device is designed to control the buffer device on the basis of the weight of the respective partial portions. Advantageously, the control device can control a plurality of buffer devices which are respectively arranged downstream of the individual food slicing devices. The control of the buffer device can either take place so that newly generated partial portions are combined with buffered partial portions or that buffered partial portions are combined with one another.

In one embodiment, the control device is provided in one of the food slicing apparatuses and configured to control a control apparatus arranged in the other food slicing apparatus. Preferably, this control takes place downstream in the conveying direction or production direction, d. H. the food slicing apparatus that generates the first portion portion controls the food slicing apparatus that generates the second portion portion, which is then combined with the first portion portion, and accordingly, other food slicing apparatus may follow. In other embodiments, however, a reverse control can also take place, namely, that the downstream in the production direction food slicing device controls the upstream food slicing device. This is e.g. relevant if loading is to be expected on a food slicing device. At an upstream food slicing device then only the actually required partial portions are generated.

Advantageously, the food slicing machines are connected via a communication device. In particular, the control devices in the food slicing machines are connected via the communication device. The communication can take place, for example, via a radio communication device or a wired communication device. Alternatively, it is also possible for the information regarding the properties of the respective partial portion to be stored directly at the partial portions, for example via a barcode or an RFID chip and in each case read by subsequent food slicing devices.

In one embodiment, the food slicing apparatuses are arranged downstream of one another in the production direction. In this way, based on properties of the partial portions produced in the direction of production upstream of the food slicing device the production of the partial portions are adapted in the at least one downstream food slicing device, or a synchronization of these takes place or the control of the upstream buffer device can be adapted.

In one embodiment, the food slicing apparatuses may be arranged in parallel in the production direction. In particular, the slicing operations of the respective food slicing apparatuses can then be synchronized in order to enable a simultaneous production of partial portions, so that buffer capacity can be saved. In addition, the properties of the partial portions produced by the respective food slicing apparatuses can already be determined by the food slicing apparatus upstream scanning devices, so that the control of the generation of the partial portions or loading operations can be coordinated.

In one embodiment, a scanning device is disposed upstream of at least one of the food slicing devices, wherein the scanning device is configured to detect characteristics of partial portions prior to their slicing operation, and wherein the controlling device is configured to take into account the determined characteristics in controlling the slicing operation of the other food slicing device.

Advantageously, the combination device is an insert which is designed to arrange the partial portion with another partial portion on a transport device or on a product carrier, in particular a tray, or a packaging. In particular, the partial portion is at least partially arranged on the other partial portion or vice versa.

In other embodiments, the combination device may be pick-and-place robots that place the portion portions produced by the food slicing devices in a product carrier or package. In this case, the pick-and-place robot can, in particular, select different partial portions which are arranged on a buffer in order to combine suitable partial portions into a multi-portion portion. For this purpose, with regard to each of the partial portions, information may be available which has been determined by at least one sensor arrangement before or after the food slicing devices.

In one embodiment, a transport device is provided in front of the combination device, which is designed to rotate the product carrier or packaging in addition to the transport or to move laterally to the transport direction. It can thus be achieved that a desired arrangement of the partial portions is achieved in a Mehrsortenportion that serves the clearer or more advantageous presentation or the more efficient or more advantageous packaging of Mehrsortenportion.

According to the invention, a method for processing foodstuffs is furthermore provided, wherein first a first partial portion is produced with a first food slicing device, subsequently or before a property of the first partial portions is determined, furthermore a second or further partial portion is produced with a second or further food slicing device, wherein the weight of the second and / or further partial portion is adjusted on the basis of the determined property of the first partial portion, and the first and second or at least one further partial portion is combined into a multi-sort portion.

The inventive method thus Mehrsortenportionen can be produced with exact weight.

In particular, the specific property is the weight of the first partial portion. Alternatively, the density and / or the volume can be determined.

The weight of the second and / or further partial portion can (subsequently) be adjusted by adjusting the slice thickness of the produced food slices. For this, the slice thickness of all slices of the second and / or further partial portion can be increased or reduced uniformly, or the slice thickness of only one food slice of the second and / or further partial portion can be increased or reduced.

In one embodiment, the weight of the second and / or further partial portion is adapted by adjusting the number of food slices of the second and / or further partial portions. This can also be done in combination with a variation of the slice thickness.

According to the invention, there is further provided a method for processing foods, which comprises producing a first partial portion with a first food slicing device, and generating a second portion portion with a second food slicing apparatus, synchronous to the production of the first portion portion or a subsequent portion portion of the first food slicing apparatus, and combining the first portion portion and the second portion portion into a multi-variety portion.

In particular, there is provided a method of processing foodstuffs comprising generating first portion portions with a first food slicing apparatus and synchronously generating second portion portions with a second or further food slicing apparatus in synchronism with producing the first portion portions, and combining the first portion portions and the second portion Partial portions to multi-portion portions includes. In other words, in particular, partial portions are produced at several food slicing devices between synchronous loading pauses. This can prevent a food slicing apparatus from having to be stopped while the other is being loaded. Instead, loading takes place synchronously. Again, the Mehrsortenportion may include additional portions in addition to the first and second portions. These additional partial portions may in particular be combined at the same time or in a temporal relationship with the first and second partial portions or may be added after combining the first and second partial portions to a preliminary multi-variety portion to produce a completed multi-portion portion.

Advantageously, in each case the cutting end and / or the cutting start of the cutting process of the second food slicing device is synchronized with the cutting process on a first food slicing device, wherein in particular the loading processes are synchronized.

In particular, in each case the cutting end and / or the cutting start of the cutting process of the second partial portion is synchronized with the generation of the first partial portion or the subsequent partial portion. In the same way, loading processes at the individual food slicing devices are coordinated with one another.

According to the invention, a method for processing foodstuffs is furthermore provided, in which first partial portions are produced with a first food slicing apparatus, and with, before, at the same time or subsequently, a second partial portion a second or further food slicing apparatus is generated, at least the first sub-portions are buffered in response to a control signal, one of the buffered first sub-portions is selected in response to a control signal, and the selected first sub-portion and the second sub-portion are combined into a multi-sort portion. Thus, by combinations of suitable partial portions a preliminary or completed Mehrsortenportion with suitable properties, in particular suitable weight, can be generated. Of course, in addition to the first and second partial portions, the multi-variety portion may also comprise further partial portions. In particular, selecting one of the buffered first sub-portions is dependent on their weight, wherein it is determined that the weight of the first sub-portion combines with the weight of the second sub-portion to the desired weight of the multi-variety portions.

In one embodiment, the selection is made by a pick-and-place robot. These are, in particular, a delta robot, which can pick up and move partial portions with a gripper. These partial portions are stored, in particular, on other partial portions. In particular, the first partial portion is stored on the second partial portion. Alternatively, a gantry robot can also be used, or the selection process can be carried out manually, the function of the control signal indicating to the responsible worker which of the buffered first partial portions he should select.

In another embodiment, the selection is made by dispensing the buffered first subportion from the buffer to a depositor where the first and second subportions are combined. In particular, the depositor deposits the first partial portion at least partially on the second partial portion. The inserter is, in particular, a device with conveying tracks arranged one above the other, in particular conveyor belts, which are guided towards one another such that the partial portions of the upper conveyor track are deposited in the insert on the partial portion of the lower conveyor track.

In one embodiment, a property of the partial portions is determined in each case, wherein the partial portion are retained or released based on the property of the respective partial portions, so that a combination and thus an allocation of partial portions with desired properties. This produces a multi-variety portion with desired properties.

In particular, the properties of the first partial portions are respectively determined prior to their slicing process, wherein these determined properties are taken into account when producing the second partial portion or a subsequent partial portion of the second or further food slicing device.

In one embodiment, the first and / or second partial portions are twisted prior to combining in addition to transport or offset laterally to the transport direction. Thus, multi-variety portions can be produced with a desired arrangement of the individual partial portions.

The combining of the multi-variety portions can take place at different locations, namely on a portioning belt, in a buffer or inlay, in the packaging or with the robot when inserted into the packaging. The properties of the partial portions which determine the properties of the multi-portion portions are, in particular, the weight, the slice thickness, the number of slices, the portion type of the portion portions, for example stacked, shingled or folded, or the portion shape of the portion portion, for example circle, pitch circle, oblong, angular, etc.

The design of the partial portions and / or Mehrsortenportionen can be done on a display device in which the arrangement of the individual slices of the respective partial portions, and the arrangement of the partial portions on or next to each other can be determined to a Mehrsortenportion, taking into account the food product types and their production form also becomes. The number of slices of a partial portion can also be selected in addition to their position positions. After the graphic selection of the design of the partial portions and the multi-portion portion, the necessary values for the partial portions are calculated or derived, ie in particular the movement of the depositing conveyor of the insert is determined, so that the individual panes of the partial portion are suitably arranged. Furthermore, the control of the inserter or pick-and-place robot for the combination of the partial portions is calculated or derived to a multi-sort portion. The food slicing apparatuses and associated conveying equipment are coupled via a formatting device that allows the combining of the partial portions.

In particular, the aforementioned control device is a feedforward control, i. H. a higher-level control for all individual machines, namely in particular several food slicing devices, or other facilities, such as loading or dispensing facilities for z. Pasty products, cutlery, or the like, tray dispensers, underleavers or sealing and packaging machines. The aforementioned devices are integrated in particular via clock pulses and operated optimized according to the invention.

Through the communication of the individual machines, a reduction of the dust requirement, d. H. the buffer requirement on the respective (tray) conveyor lines can be achieved, d. H. Jams between the individual stations or individual machines can be reduced. In particular, these stowage paths always arise in front of a station and serve as buffer zones. Product carriers in the form of trays are z. B. retained on a conveyor or braked and only then released again or moved further when the subsequent station, z. B. the depositor, is free, and this can be covered with one or more partial portions. Instead of the inserter, a pick-and-place robot can also be used.

Thus, the portion throughput is increased even with little space, and according to the invention, in particular, the target weight of the multi-variety portion can be achieved more accurately, resulting in a better production yield, since the give-away, d. H. the weight exceeding the target weight, can be reduced.

In one embodiment, the control device primarily controls the actuators associated with the inserts, i. H. acts mainly at the transfer points between the individual machines, when the partial portions are delivered from the portioning belt after the food slicing on an insert belt to the conveyor line. Thus, at the individual machines are advantageously also buffer sections for the partial portions. An insertion or transfer point can be understood to mean the end of the food slicing apparatus or the food processing apparatus which lies directly in front of the subsequent conveyor or the packaging machine.

In particular, information about the current state of partial portion production and production of multiple types of portions is determined at all insert points and in the control device saved. Thus, the expected production and the expected production process can be determined, with a derivation of the precontrol of the individual components, in particular the control of the food slicing machines, can be done.

Furthermore, a feedforward control of a buffer device in the form of a buffer path can take place. In particular, the cutting start and the cutting end of at least two food slicing machines are synchronized, whereby the length of the buffer device or jam section can be reduced. The control can concentrate in particular on subsequent combination devices in the form of inserts, wherein the control is in particular an on / off control. That is, in the food slicing machines, respectively, a pre- or post-run of partial portions, ie, a pre- or post-production until the buffer device is filled with partial portions to the respective insertion points. The requesting of additional partial portions, ie in each case precisely determined in their number of partial portions, thus takes place only when completing a batch. This can be done, for example, if the product type, the tray format or the like is changed. It would also be conceivable to request remaining partial portions if longer loading, setup, maintenance and / or cleaning breaks are to be expected.

In particular, the control device is a total system control that is based on targets that are required for the overall result, ie the properties of the finished Mehrsortenportionen. For this purpose, in particular the food slicing devices, the combination devices in the form of inserts and the buffer device, in particular in the form of jam sections, are controlled. Thus, based on the sensor values determined by the sensor arrangement, the control device monitors and controls in particular the conveying device for conveying the trays or jammed trays, which are in particular only partially filled with partial portions of different types, and supplemented by further partial portions in order to be completed ,

The control is preferably in the production direction, ie the upstream food slicing apparatuses control the downstream food slicing apparatus.

In the food processing device according to the invention, in particular, sensor arrangements can be arranged which determine information about finished multi-variety portions and individual portions, which are then processed by the control device. In particular, the control device has information about produced, conveyed and expected partial portions, the latter in particular through the use of scanning devices in front of the food slicing device.

In particular, weight control is enabled in a multi-grade food processor. This means that z. As the overweight or underweight of partial portions, which has arisen on the various food slicing machines, is detected, and can be compensated by one of the subsequent or parallel food slicing, z. B., by producing more or less or thicker or thinner slices. Alternatively, however, the control device may also control the upstream food slicing apparatuses in the event of expected inaccuracy of a partial portion of a downstream food slicing apparatus that may be determined, for example, by a scanning device, such that more or fewer or thinner slices are produced for the respective portion portion , so that when supplementing the wrong-weight partial portions later a Mehrsortenportion with the target weight is generated. Optionally, even a weight compensation is conceivable if it is no longer possible to produce a complete partial portion on a food slicing device, since the food product, in particular the food bar, is already fully cut open. In compensation then the weight of another partial portion can be compensated for example by increasing the number of slices.

In particular, as the basis for the control, the information obtained by scanning a food product and mathematically dividing it into portions can be used. The individual weights of the future partial portions flow into the total portion weight or are optimized so that the total multi-variety portion target weight is achieved as accurately as possible.

In particular, however, each individual food slicing machine may also have a downstream checkweigher for controlling the slicing operation and possibly a subsequent device, for example a rocker, for discharging partial portions which deviate greatly from the target weight. Less miss-weighted Sub-portions or provisional multi-portion portions are supplemented by correspondingly adapted individual portions to a multi-variety portion.

The loading pauses at the individual food slicing machines are recognized by the central control devices and can furthermore be predicted in particular by scanning the products, so that they can be taken into account in the overall production and taken into account in the timing of the individual food slicing machines by appropriate precontrol. For example, the buffer devices can be filled so that during the insertion of a new food product Mehrsortenportionen can be supplemented by partial portions of the buffer.

The sensor arrangement or control device according to the invention makes it possible, in particular, for the residence time of the respective partial portions to be calculated by following the course of the individual partial portions, that is to say d. that is, the residence times per section and per partial portion can be added up and displayed. On the basis of these data, the decision can then be made that if the partial portions remain too long, they are removed and thus not packed and reused.

The feedforward control via the buffer device in the form of a jam line enables other expensive components, such as sensors, to be dispensed with, since information from the individual machine controllers can be used. In particular, according to the invention it is made possible that trays or portions can be provided with desired additional partial portions at the insert points so that desired multi-portion portions are obtained.

In particular, a conveyor can be provided, which enables a turning or a track-parallel, lateral displacement of trays or partial portions before a subsequent station, in particular a loading. Thereby, the arrangement of the partial portions can be determined in a Mehrsortenportion.

Optionally, further switches may be provided, which are controllable by the control device, and which allow that partial portions can be discharged or certain areas, such. B. a buffer device, can handle, so that increased flexibility in the assignment of partial portions to each other or to product carriers or trays is possible. Furthermore, by such switches also a buffer zone be operated in a branch line, on which a rework takes place by hand.

Fig. 1

zeigt eine perspektivische Ansicht einer Lebensmittelverarbeitungsvorrichtung gemäß einer Ausführungsform der vorliegenden Erfindung;

Fig. 2

zeigt eine schematische Darstellung der Anordnung der Komponenten einer Ausführungsform einer erfindungsgemäßen Lebensmittelverarbeitungsvorrichtung; und

Fig. 3

zeigt eine schematische Darstellung der Anordnung der Komponenten einer weiteren Ausführungsform einer erfindungsgemäßen Lebensmittelverarbeitungsvorrichtung.

In the following the invention will be explained with reference to the exemplary embodiments shown in the following figures.

Fig. 1

shows a perspective view of a food processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2

shows a schematic representation of the arrangement of the components of an embodiment of a food processing apparatus according to the invention; and

Fig. 3

shows a schematic representation of the arrangement of the components of another embodiment of a food processing apparatus according to the invention.

In Fig. 1 an embodiment of a food processing device according to the invention is shown. The food processing device has the food cutting devices 1, 2, 3 arranged below one another, to each of which a sensor arrangement 4, 5, 6 in the form of a balance is arranged downstream. Furthermore, at least the food slicing device 3, a scanning device 7, in particular in the form of an X-ray scanner, upstream, the internal composition of the products passing through them, in particular food products, for. B. food bar, can determine.

In particular, the different food slicing devices 1, 2, 3 can each be supplied with food bars or other food products via a respective feeder 11, which is only shown for the food slicing device 3, which are then cut in the food slicing devices 1, 2, 3. In particular, the food slicing devices 1, 2, 3 are so-called slicers. The food slicing devices 1, 2, 3 each cut partial portions that are combined throughout the food processing device farther downstream to multi-variety portions.

After the slicing process, the weights of the respective partial portions are first determined by means of the scales 4, 5, 6. As an alternative or in addition to the scale 6, the scanning device 7 is provided as a sensor arrangement, which also makes it possible to determine the weight of the not yet cut portion portion by determining the density of the portion of the food bar or food product to be cut.

After the food slicing apparatus 1 has determined the weight of a partial portion produced by it by means of the balance 4, this information is used for the slicing operation of the food slicing apparatus 2 and / or the food slicing apparatus 3. In particular, when the food portion produced by the food slicing apparatus 1 is slightly underweight, the slab thickness of the partial portion produced by the food slicing apparatus 2 can be increased, or the weight of the food portion generated by the food slicing apparatus 3 can be increased. The weight of the partial portion produced by the food slicing apparatus 3 is adjusted in dependence on the partial portion previously produced by the food slicing apparatus 1 and then the partial portion produced by the food slicing apparatus 2.

The partial portions are fed via buffer devices 12, 13 to a conveyor 14. For each insert 15, 16, 17 are provided, which make it possible that the partial portions on the conveyor 14 and arranged thereon portion carriers, so-called trays, are arranged. Since the inserts 16, 17 already have at least a partial portion on the conveyor 14 or in the tray arranged thereon, the inserts 16, 17 constitute combination devices which make it possible to combine the partial portions into a provisional or completed multi-portion portion. For this purpose, the partial portions are arranged on top of one another, namely in particular congruent to one another, or offset, that is, partially arranged on one another. After the depositor 15, a buffer device 18 is provided on the conveyor 14, are buffered on the Teilportionen until the depositor 16, a further partial portion is fed, so that a provisional Mehrsortenportion is formed. After the insert 16, a buffer means 19 is provided, in which the partially finished Mehrsortenportionen be buffered until a more partial portion is added by the depositor 17 at a point of insertion to complete the Mehrsortenportion. After the depositor 17 leads the conveyor 14 in particular to a packaging machine 23, in which the Mehrsortenportionen be packaged.

A control device is provided, which is designed to control the operation of the food slicing device 1, 2, 3 on the basis of the weight of the respective partial portions in order to adjust the weight of the partial portions. Thus, partial portions are combined in the inserts 16, 17, which are matched in their weight, and thus a Mehrsortenportion can be obtained with high weight accuracy.

Furthermore, the buffer means 12, 13, 18, 19 and the associated Eintaktbereiche can be controlled so that only the partial portions are released to the depositors 15, 16, 17, which match in their weight to each other to obtain a Mehrsortenportion of high weight accuracy becomes.

Finally, it is also possible that the operation of the food slicing apparatus is synchronized so that the entire plant can be operated in cycles, whereby buffer capacity in the buffer means 12, 13, 18, 19 can be saved.

In Fig. 2 is one of the food processing device Fig. 1 similar Ausführform shown schematically. In particular, in Fig. 2 Furthermore, the feeders 20, 21 for the food slicing devices 1, 2 shown. Before the feeds 20, 21 and 11 can, as in Fig. 1 Shown only for the feeding device 11, scanning devices 7 may be provided so that in each case a property of food bars or food products, in particular of their future Teilportionen can be determined prior to slicing. This information is transmitted to a central control, which controls the food slicing device 1, 2, 3 accordingly.

Furthermore, in the embodiment according to Fig. 2 no buffer device provided directly after the first food slicing device 1. In other embodiments, however, a buffer device can be provided there so that food portions produced by the food slicing device 1 can be buffered. This can be particularly advantageous if the food slicing device 1 temporarily does not produce any partial portions, for example if the food slicing device 1 is reloaded or is being briefly maintained.

As in Fig. 2 shown, at the end of the conveyor 14, which is designed in particular as a conveyor belt, a further buffer means 22 may be provided before the finished Mehrsortenportionen the packaging machine 23 are supplied. In front of the inserts 16, 17, respectively, an upstream Eintaktbereich or Einschleusebereich is provided with the particular partial portions of the buffer devices 12, 13 can be retained or released, and in which the parts to be combined with each other are arranged one above the other on conveyor belts. The partial portions to be combined will be aligned as desired before the partial portion from the upper conveyor is deposited on the lower conveyor formed, for example, by the conveyor 14 so as to be arranged in a desired manner with respect to the other portion in a multi-sort portion located. Again, trays or other product carriers can be used. Furthermore, in the inserts an intermediate sheet of paper or plastic can be placed between the individual portions to separate the portions from each other.

In Fig. 3 a further embodiment of a food processing device according to the invention is shown. In this embodiment, the food slicing devices 1, 2, 3 are arranged in parallel, wherein they in turn upstream feed conveyor 20, 21, 11 and scales 4, 5, 6 are arranged downstream. The balances are adjoined in each case by the buffer device 24, 12, 13, which respectively lead to a provision region 24, 25, 26. In each case a plurality of partial portions are held in the staging areas 24, 25, 26, their properties, in particular their weight, being determined by the sensor arrangements in the form of scales 4, 5, 6 or scanning devices 7. For the staging areas 24, 25, 26, at least one advantageously several pick-and-place robots 27, 28 are provided which pick up partial portions and place them in a storage area 29. In this case, each partial portions are selected by the control device and combined so that a Mehrsortenportion is achieved with the desired target weight. In particular, the weight is determined for all partial portions of the food slicing apparatus 1, 2, 3, and the position of the partial portions is monitored up to the provision area, so that then the targeted gripping of the desired portions can take place. In the present embodiment, the staging areas 24, 25, 26 and the storage area 29 are formed by conveying means, in particular conveyor belts.

Again, again, the capacity of the buffer means 24, 12, 13 can be saved if the generation of the partial portions in the food slicing devices 1, 2, 3 is synchronized.

Furthermore, the staging areas 24, 25, 26 also form buffer devices, with the pick-and-place robots 27, 28 representing combination devices that are designed to grasp and combine the partial portions released by the control device on the staging areas 24, 25, 26.

The pick-and-place robots are in particular delta robots, each having bendable arms 30 and grippers 31.

The completed multiple-variety portions may be buffered in a buffer device 22 prior to being packaged in the packaging machine 23.

In particular, no scales downstream of the food slicing devices need to be provided, but the determination of the properties of the partial portions can be carried out exclusively by scanning devices upstream of the food slicing apparatuses which can already determine the properties of the future partial portions prior to slicing so that the control of the food slicing apparatuses as feedforward already precedes Portionserzeugung or portion transfer to the conveyor line done.

Claims (17)

1. Food processing device comprising:

   at least two food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) which are adapted to each produce partial portions,

   a respective sensor assembly (4, 5, 6, 7) which is adapted to determine at least one property of said partial portions produced by one of said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3), and

   a combination device (16, 17, 27, 28) which is disposed downstream of at least each food slicing device (1, 2, 3) and adapted to combine said partial portions to a multi-type portion,

   characterized in that
   a control device is provided which is adapted to control the operation of said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) based of said properties of said respective partial portions in order to adjust the weight of said partial portions to another, whereby with great accuracy the target weight of the a multi-type portion can be obtained.
2. Food processing device according to claim 1, wherein said sensor assembly (4, 5, 6) is disposed downstream of at least one of said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3).
3. Food processing device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said sensor assembly is a scale (4, 5, 6) and wherein said property is the weight of said respective partial portions.
4. Food processing device according to claim 1, wherein said sensor assembly is a scanning device (7) disposed upstream of at least one of said food slicing devices.
5. Food processing device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said control device and said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) are adapted such that the operation of at least one of said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) is controlled in that the slice thickness of the food slices produced is adjusted.
6. Food processing device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said control device and said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) are adapted such that the operation of at least one of said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) is controlled in that the number of food slices of a partial portion is adjusted.
7. Food processing device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said control device is provided in one of said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) and adapted to control a control device which is arranged in said other food slicing device (1, 2, 3), wherein said food slicing machines (1, 2, 3) are in communication via a communication device.
8. Food processing device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) are disposed downstream or parallel of each other in the direction of production.
9. Food processing device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein a scanning device (7) is disposed upstream of at least one of said food slicing devices (3) which is adapted to determine properties of partial portions prior to their slicing operation, wherein said control device is adapted to take into account said properties determined when said slicing operation of said other food slicing device (1, 2) is controlled.
10. Food processing device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said combination device is a loader (16, 17) which is adapted to arrange said partial portions with another partial portion on a transport device or on a product carrier or a package.
11. Food processing device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein said combination device is a pick and place robot (27, 28) which arranges said partial portions produced by said food slicing devices (1, 2, 3) in a product carrier or in a package.
12. Food processing device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein a transport device is provided upstream of said combination device and in addition to transporting is adapted to rotate said product carrier or package or to respectively displace it laterally relative to said direction of transport.
13. Method for processing foods comprising:

    producing a first partial portion with a first food slicing device (1),

    determining a property of said first partial portion,

    producing a second or further partial portion with a second or further food slicing device (2, 3),

    wherein the weight of said second and/or further partial portion is adjusted based on said property determined of said first partial portion, and

    combining said first and at least one further partial portion to a multi-type portion.
14. Method according to claim 13, wherein said property is the weight of said first partial portion, and wherein the weight of said second and/or further partial portion is adapted in that the slice thickness of the food slices produced is adjusted.
15. Method according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the weight of said second and/or further partial portion is adapted in that the number of food slices of said second and/or further partial portion is adjusted.
16. Method according to one of the claims 13 to 15, wherein a respective property of said partial portions is determined and wherein said partial portions are retained or released based on said property of said respective partial portions, so that a combination of partial portions with desired properties occurs.
17. Method according to one of the claims 13 to 16, wherein the respective properties of said first partial portions are determined prior to their slicing operation, and said properties determined are taken into account during the production of said second partial portion or a subsequent partial portion by said second food slicing device (2, 3).

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