Butchering – Sausage making – Sausage link handling
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-08
2001-08-21
Little, Willis (Department: 3643)
Butchering
Sausage making
Sausage link handling
C452S182000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06277018
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Strands of sausage are made on high speed machines by extruding meat emulsion into an elongated casing. The meat-filled casing is then twisted to create sausage links. The linked strand is discharged from the sausage making machine. Loops of sausage comprising a plurality of links are deposited on moving hooks of a conveyor. The ultimate length of a given strand is determined by the length of the casing being filled. When a casing has been filled, the sausage-making machine is stopped; the casing is tied off or closed to prevent any meat emulsion from exiting the rearmost end of the casing; a new casing is then placed in position to be filled; the machine is restarted, and the cycle repeats itself.
The linked and looped sausage strand or strands are periodically removed from the conveyor or otherwise transported to a food processing station which normally cooks, smokes or treats the sausage strand before packaging for final delivery to the consumer.
With sausage machines creating up to 30,000 sausages per hour, the handling of the production of even a single machine is a significant task. Any inefficiency in the process translates into increased cost of production which is reflected in the price of the products to the consumer.
It is therefore a principal object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus for producing and processing a strand of sausage or other foodstuff which is both economical and highly efficient.
A further object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for producing and processing a strand of sausage or other foodstuff which is substantially continuous and which will minimize any interruptions in either the production of the strand or its subsequent processing.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for producing and processing a strand of sausage which will closely coordinate the production and processing phases of the operation.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for producing and processing a strand of sausage which will allow the processing phase of the operation to continue even though the production phase is momentarily interrupted to replace casings.
These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An apparatus for producing and processing a strand of sausage or foodstuff has a sausage producing machine which produces a linked strand of sausage for deposit of loops of the strand on the hooks of a continuous conveyor. The conveyor picks up the loops of the strand at a loading station immediately adjacent the discharge end of the machine, and conveys the loops to a processing station for smoking or the like. The conveyor then moves the loops to an unloading station for removal of the strand from the conveyor, whereupon the conveyor downstream of the unloading station returns to the loading station to pick up additional product.
A conveyor take-up mechanism is located immediately downstream from the loading station to permit the conveyor to cease movement at the loading station (while the casing on the machine is being replenished) while the conveyor can continue movement in the processing area.
Sensors and controls interconnect the machine and the conveyor to coordinate the operational functions of each.
A method of producing and processing a strand of sausage or foodstuff involves producing a linked strand of material, depositing linked loops thereof on the hooks of a moving conveyor, controlling the coordinated activity of the production of the product with the movement of the conveyor; moving the product to and through a processing station, and thence to an unloading station, while periodically stopping the movement of the conveyor and the operation of the machine while continuing the movement of the conveyor through the processing area.
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Cody Daniel J.
Hamblin David
Hergott Steven P.
Holl Wendell J.
Nordby David C.
Little Willis
Townsend Engineering Company
Zarley McKee Thomte, Voorhees & Sease PLC
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