GB977790A - Slicing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

977,790. Slicing machines. T. G. WERDER, and H. O. SCHUETZE Nov 11 1963, No. 44504/63. Heading A4C. A machine for slicing meat loaves 15 &c. comprises a feed carriage 14 having opposed chain conveyers 93, 96 between which loaves 15 are fed downwardly to be sliced by a spiral, rotary knife 26 located above a table 25 having a discharge port 25a through which slices 16a pass to be stacked on a vertically movable platform 40, means for intermittently driving the conveyers 93, 96 and lowering the platform 40 each time the knife 26 rotates beneath the carrier 14, and means including a cam 51 for axially moving the knife shaft 31 to vary the spacing of the knife 26 from the table 25 and hence the slice thickness, the latter means also serving to vary the magnitude of the incremental movements of the conveyers 93, 96 and platform 40 to substantially equal the knife 26 and table 25 spacing. The table 25 and knife 26 are continuously rotated together by a motor 35 and drive belt 37 to cut slices 16a which are stacked on the rake-like platform 40 which is successively lowered to a position in which the platform fingers 44 pass between spaced chains 45 of a discharge conveyer 18 which carries the stacks 17 past a check-weighing scale 19 to a packaging conveyer 20. A shear block 14a on the carrier 14 serves to hone the knife 26. The conveyers 93, 96 are driven from a rack 112 biased by a spring 122 acting through a pinion 114 to engage a cam 110 carried on the knife shaft 31, the drive shaft 115 acting through a one-way clutch 121 to incrementally drive a shaft 115a which, as shown in Fig. 9, in turn is geared to drive the conveyers 93, 96 and the platform 40. An intermediate drive shaft 120 for the platform 40 includes an electric clutch 142 which is normally engaged but which is automatically disengaged in dependence upon the setting of a slice counter 140 whereby simultaneous operation of a motor 141 acting through a chain drive 143 serves to rapidly lower the platform 40 so that a stack 17 is discharged, an electromagnet 148 being arranged to prevent rebound of the platform 40 and the latter being returned to its elevated position by a spring 155 in readiness to receive the first slice of the next stack 17. The control arrangement is such that rotation by means of a control knob 55 of the shaft 54 of the slice thickness adjusting cam 51 also serves by means of a stop block 136 threaded on the shaft 54 to limit movement of the rack 112 and hence the magnitude of the incremental movements of the conveyers 93, 96 and platform 40 whereby these movements are directly related to the selected slice thickness. During feeding of the loaf 15, the latter is gripped between the walls of an L-shaped trough 70, a spring 77 biased movable wall 71 and a spring 84 biased shoe 82.