GB630038A - Improved method and apparatus for mechanical opening of oysters and the like - Google Patents

Abstract

630,038. Opening oysters &c. FRADUA, S. LAYDA-. June 5, 1947, No. 14918. [Class 28(ii)] To open oysters &c. and retain the savoury fluid, in the concave half-shell the oyster is held by a descending clamp 1 in a housing 20 of a table while a cutter 6 then descends and bores a hole through the shell at the point of adhesion of the inside muscle holding the shell halves together. The upper shell can then be removed. Alternatively the muscle may be cut by a rotated spring blade 30 which also descends along a curved groove in the shell cutter 6 to project radially. A hand-operated counter-weighted lever 22 serves to lower the blade 30 into the hole after it is bored. A hand lever moves the clamp 1 down to a gripping position through a rack and pinion while a handwheel 7 is used to lower or raise the boring cutter 6. The cut shell half 19 may be lifted out along with the cutter as it is raised. Motor power is supplied through a bevel gear 13. In a simpler form without a rotated muscle cutting knife, Fig. 1 (not shown), a ring of shell is bored out and then lifted out by hand along with the adhering inside muscle. A spring ejector forces the cut ring of shell out of the peripheral boring tool. Fig. 9 shows the device mounted over a turntable 21 having a number of recesses each for an oyster.