NZ314351A

NZ314351A - Cutter with two parallel reciprocating blades: Cutter attached to robotic arm

Info

Publication number: NZ314351A
Application number: NZ31435194A
Authority: NZ
Inventors: Denis Malone; Greg Brooking; Richard Wong
Original assignee: New Zealand Meat Res & Dev Cou
Priority date: 1994-07-19
Filing date: 1994-07-19
Publication date: 2000-02-28

Abstract

A cutting tool, for an industrial robot, comprises two parallel adjacent cutting blades 13 reciprocally movable in the same plane, each beside the other, a motor, e.g. an air motor, which drives the blades and means to attach the tool to an arm 10 of the robot. Each blade comprises a first portion 13a closest to the motor which provides a first part of the cutting edge of the cutting blade and a second blade portion 13b extending from portion 13a in the same plane as but cranked relative to portion 13a. The blades may be reciprocally movable with a rotary action and portion 13b of each cutting blade may be formed with a shark tooth cutting edge.

Description

\ 314 351 PATENTS FORM 5 PATENTS ACT 1953 Number Dated May 25, 1993 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION A CUTTING TOOL We. NEW ZEALAND MEAT RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL, of the New Zealand Meat Producers Board, a body corporate established by the Meat Export Control Act 1921-22, of 110 Featherston Street, Wellington, New Zealand do hereby declare the Invention for which we pray that a Patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement The invention compnses a cutting tool for use in carcass dressing by an industrial robot in a meat works or similar Currently in a meat works animal carcasses are dressed manually by meat workers, which is labour intensive Our New Zealand patent specification 247697 discloses a carcass dressing method usmg an industrial robot The present invention provides a cutting tool for use in carcass dressing in a meat works or similar usmg an industrial robot In broad terms the mvention compnses a cutting tool fot equipping to a robotic arm of an industrial robot, the cutting tool being manipulatable and operable under control of the industrial robot, comprising two parallel adjacent cutting blades reciprocally movable in the same plane each beside the other and a motor which drives the cutting blades, the cutting blades each compnsing a first blade portion closest to the motor which provides a first part of the cutting edge of the cutting blade and a second blade portion extending from the first blade portion in the same plane as but cranked relative to the first blade portion which provides a second part of the cutting edge of the cutting blade, the cuttmg blades and motor being formed as a unit attachable to the robot arm, and means to attach the cutting tool to the robot arm The invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings by way of an example, wherein Figure 1 shows a preferred form cutting tool of the invention for manipulation by an industrial robot, and Figure 2 shows a robotic arm of an industrial robot making a front Y-cut on a carcass suspended in inverted position 2 314 351 eferring to Figure 1, the cutting tool comprises two parallel adjacent cutting blades 13 and a motor within the cutting tool body unit 14 which drives the cutting blades 13 The motor may be connected to the cutting blades through a gearbox within the cutting tool body unit 14 The motor is controlled by a robotic arm such as that indicated at 10 in Figure 2. When the motor is operated, the cutting blades 13 reciprocate back and forth together in a cutting action. In the preferred form the cutting blades move with a rotary reciprocal action as indicated by the arrows in Figure 1 This has been found most effective for cutting through the pelt of an animal carcass It is also preferred that the cutting blades 13 are cranked as shown, comprising a first cutting edge portion 13a and a second cutting edge portion 13b which has shark tooth shaped teeth The shark tooth teeth point back towards the first blade portion 13a as shown.

In use the robot having the cutting tool of Figure 1 mounted to the end of the robotic arm inserts the cutting tool through an initial puncture made through the pelt of a carcass The robot then energises the motor to cause the cutting blades 13 to operate, and the robot arm moves the cutting tool upwardly to make for example a front Y-cut as shown in broken lines in Figure 2 In the preferred form cutting tool the motor is an air motor but it could alternatively be an electric or hydraulic motor for example. 314351 u ^rhe foregoing describes the invention including a preferred form thereof. Alterations and modifications as will be obvious to those skilled in the art are intended to be incorporated in the scope hereof as defined in the following claims. 314351 4fea7

Claims

WHAT WE CLAIM IS

1 A cutting tool for equipping to a robotic arm of an industrial robot, the cutting tool being mampulatable and operable under control of the industrial robot, comprising two parallel adjacent cutting blades reciprocally movable in the same plane each beside the other and a motor which drives the cutting blades, the cutting blades each compnsing a first blade portion closest to the motor which provides a first part of the cutting edge of the cutting blade and a second blade portion extending from the first blade portion in the same plane as but cranked relative to the first blade portion which provides a second part of the cutting edge of the cutting blade, the cutting blades and motor being formed as a unit attachable to the robot arm, and means to attach the cutting tool to the robot arm
2 A cutting tool as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cutting blades are reciprocally movable in the same plane beside each other with a rotary action
3 A cutting tool as claimed in either of claim 1 or claim 2, wherein said second blade portion of each cutting blade is formed with a shark tooth cutting edge, the teeth of which point back towards the first blade portion of the cutting blade
4 A cutting tool as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the motor which drives the cutting blades is an air motor
5 A cutting tool for equipping to a robotic arm of an industrial robot, substantially as illustrated in Figure 1 of the accompanying drawings and descnbed herein with reference thereto

5

END OF CLAIMS

'INTELLECTUAL. Pirorc

CFtu

1 2 NOV 1999

-Seceived