Plug for closing the gullet of a slaughtered animal and device f

Details Plug for closing the gullet of a slaughtered animal and device f Plug for closing the gullet of a slaughtered animal and device f

1995-09-20

1997-07-01

Little, Willis

Butchering

Modelling

Visceral cavity closure

138 89, A22C 2100

Patent

active

056430760

DESCRIPTION:

BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention lies in the field of slaughtering animals in a slaughterhouse. One of the operations during the slaughtering process is the removal of the head of the animal, whereby the gullet is severed. The stomach contents of an animal suspended from the hind legs will hereby move downward through the gullet and could there cause bacteriological infection of meat parts, work-floor and following locations, such as de-boning tables and conveyor belts.
Hygienic slaughter is mandatory in most countries. The possibilities heretofore have however been very limited up to the present. For example the gullet can be at least more or less closed off by means of an elastic ring. A drawback of this known method is that it is time-consuming and does not guarantee a reliable closure of the gullet.
From CH-A-436 009 a plug is known, which is designed to be introduced into the wind pipe of a slaughtered animal. After introducing such prior art plug the wind pipe is sufficiently closed to prevent the entrance of rinsing water.
The prior art plug consists of a plurality of parts and has therefore a rather complicated structure which makes the plug relatively difficult to produce and therefor expensive.
The invention has for its purpose to provide a plug adapted to ensure an effective and rapid closure of the gullet. It is a further purpose of the invention to design a plug in a way such that it can be readily manufactured at low costs.


SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

For this purpose the invention generally provides a plug as stated in claim 1. Claims 2-7 give alternatives.
The use of biodegradable material has the advantage that after the slaughtered animal has been processed the plug no longer has to be removed. Considered suitable as starch are in principle all normal commercial starches, for example grain starches based on maize, wheat, rice, barley etc., tuber starches based on potato, tapioca etc., and other starches. The starches can have an increased amylose content and/or and increased amylopectin content. A starch derivative can be prepared on the basis of chemical, physical and/or biotechnological treatments.
Biodegradable materials, in particular those based on starches or derivatives thereof, display a quite strong moisture-absorbing, for example hygroscopic character. As a result the plug can be difficult to insert into the moist gullet as it adheres rapidly to the inner wall thereof. It is therefore advantageous to embody a plug such that the moisture-absorbing, for example hygroscopic, properties are limited at least on the outer surface, so that in any case insertion can take place without difficulty. In this respect a plug of biodegradable material is therefore recommended, the outer surface of which is subjected to a treatment to reduce the moisture-absorbing, for example hygroscopic, properties thereof.
Such a treatment can be based on arranging a coating layer, consisting for example of a powder, an optionally biodegradable lacquer, glycerine or other suitable material, or on the action of a gas, such as nitrogen, oil, water or another liquid with a suitable temperature.
Given in claims 9-15 are specifications of devices with which a plug can be inserted into the gullet.


BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be elucidated with reference to the annexed drawings. In the drawings:
FIG. 1 shows a partially broken away perspective view of a device for inserting a closing cone in a gullet in the phase in which the device is inserted into the gullet;
FIG. 2 shows a view corresponding with FIG. 1 in the phase where the plug is transported by the guide segments in order to be inserted into the gullet;
FIG. 3 shows partially in schematic side view, partially in cross-section an insertion device in the phase where a cone-shaped plug is at the point of moving apart the guide segments;
FIG. 4a shows a longitudinal section through a cone-shaped plug in a first embodiment;
FIG. 4b shows a top view thereof;
FIG. 5a shows a side view of a variant;
FIG. 5b shows the top vie

REFERENCES:
patent: 3918444 (1975-11-01), Hoff et al.
patent: 4241735 (1980-12-01), Chernon
patent: 4563182 (1986-01-01), Stoy et al.
patent: 4981465 (1991-01-01), Ballan et al.
patent: 5207827 (1993-05-01), Tokare
patent: 5453044 (1995-09-01), Abler et al.

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