Butchering – Carcass subdivision
Reexamination Certificate
2001-08-09
2003-05-06
Jordan, Charles T. (Department: 3644)
Butchering
Carcass subdivision
C452S153000, C452S155000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06558243
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of separating the meat of a poultry with bones and an apparatus for use in such method consisting; a first process step for separating the hollowed body of a slaughtered poultry and the like into the lower half body including the thighs and part of the back and the upper half body including the breast inclusive of the ribs and the remaining part of the back, and a second process step for ripping off the thighs from the separated lower half body.
2. Description of the Related Art
Traditionally, a first process step for separating the hollowed body of a slaughtered poultry and the like into the lower half body including the thighs and part of the back and the upper half body including the breast inclusive of the ribs and the remaining part of the back is called a halving process. The ripping-off of the thighs from the lower half body of a slaughtered poultry separated in the halving process has been performed in an automated process as needed.
The halving process of the hollowed body of a slaughtered poultry is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No.5-15299. The process of separating the upper half body from the lower half body of a slaughtered poultry cited in the disclosure is, as shown in
FIG. 6
, a method in which the body hanging down from a conveyer
52
with its legs
53
clamped to the conveyer is separated by lateral cutting into a lower half body
50
including part of the back and the legs
53
and an upper half body
55
including the breast
54
inclusive of the ribs and the remaining part of the back. The process comprises following steps:
(a) a step wherein the body of the slaughtered poultry is allowed to take an attitude in which the legs
53
is ahead of the remaining upper half body
55
of the slaughtered poultry in the transfer direction A and the upper half body
55
is off to the lower rear.
(b) a step wherein forces directed substantially downward are exerted to both sides of the upper half body
55
to tilt it downward against the legs
53
, and the position of the lateral cutting plane is set to be below the thighs
51
above the breast
54
, and
(c) a step wherein the body of the slaughtered poultry is separated into the lower half body hanging down from the conveyer
52
and the upper half body
55
.
Thus, the separation is performed passing the step a, b, and c. Step (a) is performed by a guide means
56
, the cutting position is determined in step (b), and the cutting is done with a pair of horizontal cutter
90
in step (c).
In the above mentioned method of separating the upper half body
55
from the lower half body
50
, the separation is intended by the use of the guide means
56
, so the method contains following problems:
(1) in order to make a space for the cutting between the keel part of the breast bone and the thighs to separate the lower half body from the upper half body, guides are necessary to exert forces to the lower half body and upper half body in the opposite direction, or a device equivalent to the guide.
(2) it is not sure that the space for the cutting is formed even if the operation cited in item(1) is done and a keel part of the brest bone may be cut off.
(3) that is, the guide as cited in item(1) is necessary to be provided preparatory to the cutting.
A leg processor for processing a lower half body is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Publication No.7-93861. According to the disclosure, as shown in
FIG. 7
, the lower half body
50
of a slaughtered poultry is introduced into the apparatus with the abdomen
50
b
upward and the head side
50
c
ahead, and a streak cut is made on the dorsal side
50
a
with a circular cutter
58
while the work is transferred held by the teeth
57
a
attached to a conveyer with teeth
57
.
Then, a pair of first fixed guides
59
is inserted between both thighs to make cuts with first knives
59
a
at both roots of the thighs(cut at the inner periphery of thigh) while preventing vertical and lateral moves of the work, succeeded by the cutting of the chords of the roots of the thighs with second knives
60
.
After this, each thigh is transferred to the succeeding step shown in
FIG. 8
, the ischium
61
is reversed by a reversing guide
63
as shown in FIG.
8
(A), as a result the head side
50
c
is situated at the rear side in relation to the transfer direction, and the work proceeds with the thighbones(femur) twisted at the hip joints. Each thighbone
62
a
is disarticulated by the reversing of the ischium(joint dislocation), and the ischium
61
is separated from the thigh
62
as shown in FIG.
8
(B).
In the leg processor, when the connective tissue in the region of the hip joint between the ischium and thigh is cut, a guide or the like is not fitted to the inner periphery of the ischium. Therefore, only the cut-in with the first knife at the root of the thigh is carried out without special consideration of the various shapes of curvature, which are different according to the size and form of the work, of the ischium part.
The cutting of the main chord(articular ligament) of each leg for separating each thigh from the hipbone is carried out with the second knife, but it is not always carried out at the most proper section for each sinew.
The connective tissue in the region of the hip joint (sinew at the ischium) and the articular ligament, which are different in cutting property, are cut with a cutter at the same section, which causes a lot of flesh to remain on the ischium contributing to the reduction of yields.
Further, the conventional thigh ripping apparatus(leg processor) is not provided with a rump skin cutting step (cutting of skin around the lower end part of hipbone). Therefore, the dorsal fat near the rump skin cutting part frequently remains on the bone when the thigh is ripped off from the ischium side to the ilium side. Also, the skin near the cutting part of the thigh is extended and becomes thin due to the stretching of the skin when ripped off, which contribute to the reduction of yields.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide, in the case of separating hollowed body of a slaughtered poultry ant the like into the lower half body including the thighs and a part of the back and the upper half body including the breast inclusive of the ribs and the remaining part of the back, a halving method in which the hollowed body is cut from the roots of the thighs through to the tail end of the ilia at the back side of the hollowed body while transferred suspended by the legs irrespective of large and small of the hollowed body without breaking the keel of the breast bone, and further a method of separating the meat of a poultry with bones and an apparatus for use in such method in which the ripping of the lower half body separated by the halving method is performed properly and with high yields owing to the exact ischium cutting which is the main cutting operation.
The present invention provides as a first step for carrying out the halving of the hollowed body a process step for separating the hollowed body of a slaughtered poultry into the upper half body and lower half body while the hollowed body is transferred suspended from the conveyer by the legs, which is characterized in that:
the peritoneum cutting is carried out to make a cut in the peritoneum between the keel of the breast bone and the thighs,
then the upper half body is raised up by a guide to cause the hollowed body to take a tilted attitude with the legs ahead of the breast, while the constricted part of the roots of the thighs is clasped obliquely from both the right and left side by a pair of guides, and
a cutter is inserted from the cut made in the peritoneum between the breast and thighs and the upper half body is separated from the lower half body by cutting through the hollowed body from the roots of the thighs to the tail ends of the ilia.
According to the present invention, a cutting plane is formed from the roots of the thighs through to th
Asaka Daisuke
Kouzu Shouzou
Minemura Takehisa
Alimenti Susan C.
Crowell & Moring LLP
Jordan Charles T.
Mayekawa Mfg. Co., Ltd.
LandOfFree
Method of separating meat of a poultry with bones and... does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Method of separating meat of a poultry with bones and..., we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Method of separating meat of a poultry with bones and... will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-3049521