Food product slicing apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10919170-B2
Application number	US-201715658973-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 25, 2017
Priority date	May 7, 2014
Publication date	Feb 16, 2021
Grant date	Feb 16, 2021

Abstract

A food product slicing apparatus includes a frame and upper and lower drive assemblies. The upper drive assembly includes a belt configured to engage an upper surface of a food product block to be sliced, a plate pivotally mounted to the frame, front and rear wheels supporting the upper belt, the front wheel rotatably mounted to the plate and a drive member engaged with the plate. When the drive member is engaged, the plate and the front roller pivot relative to the frame and to the rear wheel. The lower drive assembly includes a belt configured to engage a bottom surface of the food product block.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A food product slicing apparatus comprising:
a frame;
an upper drive assembly mounted on the frame and including an upper belt configured to engage a top surface of a food product block to be sliced, a front wheel at a front end of the upper belt, a rear wheel at a rear end of the upper belt, the rear wheel being rotatably mounted on the frame in a first position, plates pivotally mounted on the frame around a fixed in place pivot, the fixed in place pivot being spaced from the rear wheel, the front wheel rotatably mounted on the plates, and a drive member engaged with the plates;
a lower drive assembly mounted in a second position on the frame and including a lower belt, the lower belt configured to engage a bottom surface of the food product block, the upper and lower drive assemblies separated from each other by a distance,
wherein when the drive member is engaged, the drive member rotates the plates and the front wheel around the fixed in place pivot so that the plates and the front wheel rotate relative to the frame, relative to the rear wheel, and relative to the lower drive assembly, while the rear wheel remains in the first position mounted on the frame and while the lower drive assembly remains in the second position mounted on the frame, to vary the distance a front end of the upper drive assembly is from the lower drive assembly, while maintaining the distance a rear end of the upper drive assembly is from the lower drive assembly; and
a slicing station attached to the frame and downstream of the upper and lower drive assemblies;
wherein (1) the frame includes a rod, and further comprising a height adjustment assembly attached to the rod, the upper drive assembly mounted on the height adjustment assembly, the height adjustment assembly mounted within a housing slidably mounted on the rod, an actuator mounted in the housing, a pivot member rotatably mounted to the housing, the pivot member including a pin extending therefrom which mounts in a slot on the rod; or (2) the fixed in place pivot comprising a pivot shaft connected directly to and extending between the plates.

2. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the upper drive assembly includes a plurality of the upper belt, each respective upper belt having a respective front wheel at a respective front end which is rotatably mounted to respective plates pivotally mounted on the frame at a respective fixed in place pivot, a respective rear wheel at a respective rear end rotatably mounted on the frame, and a respective drive member engaged with the respective plates, wherein when the respective drive member engages with the respective plates, the respective plates and respective front wheel each pivot relative to the frame and to the respective rear wheel; and
the lower drive assembly includes a plurality of the lower belts.

3. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the drive member is one of pneumatic, hydraulic, screw drive and electronic.

4. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a plurality of output conveyors aligned with the slicing station and adapted to receive stacks of sliced food product from the slicing station.

5. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 4 , further comprising weighing scales oriented under the output conveyors.

6. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 5 , further comprising a packaging station to package the stacks of sliced food product, the plurality of output conveyors to move the stacks of sliced food product along linear paths from the slicing station to the weighing scales, to the packaging station.

7. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 4 , wherein the plurality of output conveyors comprises three output conveyors.

8. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein (1) the frame includes the rod, and further comprising the height adjustment assembly attached to the rod, the upper drive assembly mounted on the height adjustment assembly, the height adjustment assembly mounted within the housing slidably mounted on the rod, the actuator mounted in the housing, the pivot member rotatably mounted to the housing, the pivot member including the pin extending therefrom which mounts in the slot on the rod.

9. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the frame includes a second rod, the height adjustment assembly attached to both rods, the height adjustment assembly slidably mounted on the rods, a second pivot member rotatably mounted to the housing, the second pivot member including a second pin extending therefrom which mounts in a second slot on the second rod.

10. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a gripper attached to the upper belt.

11. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising a tray attached to the frame, the tray being pivotable relative to the upper drive assembly.

12. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 1 , wherein (2) the fixed in place pivot comprises the pivot shaft connected directly to and extending between the plates.

13. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the upper drive assembly further comprises a second pair of plates, the second pair of plates fixed in place, the pivot shaft connected directly to and extending between the second pair of plates.

14. The food product slicing apparatus of claim 13 , wherein the plates are disposed between the second pair of plates.

Assignees

• Formax Inc
• Provisur Technologies Inc

Inventors

• Fox Gage A
• Pryor Glen F
• Garcia-Perez Fernando
• Schmuker Jeff

Classifications

• B26D7/0625

  by endless conveyors, e.g. belts · CPC title

• Y10T83/6499

  Work rectilinearly reciprocated through tool station · CPC title

• B26D7/0616

  by carriages, e.g. for slicing machines · CPC title

• B26D7/30

  for weighing cut product · CPC title

• Y10T83/647

  With means to convey work relative to tool station · CPC title