Apparatus and method for automatically recovering flesh from beheaded and eviscerated fish

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12376599-B2
Application number	US-202018249343-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 19, 2020
Priority date	Oct 19, 2020
Publication date	Aug 5, 2025
Grant date	Aug 5, 2025

Abstract

An apparatus for automatically recovering meat from headed and gutted fish comprises: a transport device for transporting the fish along a transport path in a transport direction; a measuring device for detecting an anatomy of the fish; and a detaching device for detaching the meat from a bone structure of the fish, wherein the detaching device comprises at least two circular knives which are spaced apart from each other on mutually opposing sides of the transport path to form a gap S; wherein: the detaching device comprises a control device to adjust a width of the gap S depending on the anatomy of the fish, the control device is configured to pre-adjust the width of the gap S before the meat is detached from the bone structure and wherein the control device is configured to vary the width of the gap S while the meat is being detached.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus for automatically recovering meat from headed and gutted fish, the apparatus comprising:
a transport device for transporting the fish along a transport path in a transport direction T;
a measuring device for detecting an anatomy of the fish;
a single circular knife drive unit;
a control unit electrically connected to the measuring device; and
a detaching device for detaching the meat from a bone structure of the fish, wherein the detaching device comprises at least two rotatingly driven and controllably moveable circular knives which are spaced apart from each other on mutually opposing sides of the transport path to form a gap S, the at least two circular knives driven by the single circular knife drive unit;
wherein:
the detaching device comprises a control device set up to adjust a width of the gap S depending on a height, length and/or width of the fish detected by the measuring device;
the control device is configured to pre-adjust the width of the gap S before the meat is detached from the bone structure and wherein the control device is configured to vary the width of the gap S while the meat is being detached from the bone structure;
the control device comprises a cam control, the cam control comprises a cam disc driven by a control drive unit for changing the position of the circular knives; and
the control unit actuates the control drive unit in such a manner as to adjust the circulation of the cam disc in a predetermined angular velocity profile.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the circular knives are set up to be adjustable synchronously with each other by the control device.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the circular knives are arranged relative to each other and/or are configured to be adjustable relative to each other in such a manner that the gap S is v-shaped.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the circular knives are configured and adapted as dorsal knives to perform a dorsal cut for detaching dorsal meat of the fish.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the transport device is configured and adapted to transport the fish tail-first along the transport path in transport direction T.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
a defined gap S is preset by the cam disc;
a variable gap S is formed automatically as a function of the height, length and/or width of the fish that is detected while the meat is being detached from the bone structure of the fish; or
a combination thereof.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
the cam disc is driven by the control drive unit and comprises at least one circumferential cam which is set up to control the gap S;
a static formation of the gap S is adjusted before the meat is detached from the bone structure of the fish;
a dynamic formation of the gap S is adjusted while the meat is being detached from the bone structure of the fish, in that in each case; and
at least one of the circular knives is operatively connected to the cam disc via a movably arranged circular knife receiving element.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the control drive unit comprises a servo drive.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the single circular knife drive unit is configured and adapted to drive the circular knives synchronously, wherein each of the circular knives is drivable by a separate drive means which is operatively connected to the single circular knife drive unit.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the control unit includes at least one computer unit with a memory unit and is configured and adapted to detect and/or process the height, length and/or width of the fish detected by the measuring device, and to actuate the control drive unit for adjusting the gap S according to the respective height, length and/or width of the fish.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising at least one input unit, configured to adjust a distance of at least one of the at least two circular knives to the transport path in order to adjust the width of the gap S before the meat is detached from the bone structure and/or to adjust the width of the gap S while the meat is being detached from the bone structure, and at least one output unit to output the adjustment of the distance entered by the input unit.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the input unit is configured and adapted to variably set the adjustment of the distance of the at least one of the at least two circular knives to the transport path, wherein the width of the gap S is adjustable by each of the at least two circular knives by a maximum of ±10 mm.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the input unit is configured to set cutting profiles depending on the fish species in order to adjust the width of the gap S according to the fish species before and/or during detachment of the meat from the bone structure of the fish, wherein variable adjustment of the gap S is set.

14. A method for automatically recovering meat from headed and gutted fish, the method comprising:
transporting the fish along a transport path in a transport direction T by a transport device;
detecting a height, length and/or width of the fish, by a measuring device;
detecting and/or processing the height, length and/or width of the fish measured by the measuring device, by a control drive unit electrically connected to the measuring device and a control device;
synchronously adjusting, by the control device to control a width of a gap S depending on the height, length and/or width of the fish, at least two rotatingly driven and controllably moveable circular knives which are spaced apart from each other on mutually opposing sides of the transport path to form the gap S;
detaching the meat from a bone structure of the fish by a detaching device, wherein the detaching device comprises the at least two rotatingly driven and controllably moveable circular knives;
changing the position of the circular knives by driving a cam disc which comprises the control device by the control drive unit; and
actuating the control drive unit by the control unit to adjust the gap S according to the respective height, length and/or width of the fish, by adjusting the circulation of the cam disc in a predetermined angular velocity profile;
wherein the width of the gap S is pre-adjustable by the control device before the meat is detached from the bone structure and wherein the width of the gap S is changeable by the control device while the meat is being detached from the bone structure.

15. The method according of claim 14 , the method further comprising adjusting the circular knives synchronously with each other substantially orthogonal to the transport path by the control device.

16. The method of claim 14 , wherein transporting the fish comprises transporting the fish tail-first along the transport path in transport direction T by the transport device.

17. The method of claim 14 , further comprising either:
pre-setting a defined gap S by the cam disc;
automatically forming a variable gap S by the cam disc while detaching the meat from the bone structure of the fish depending on the height, length and/or width of the fish; or
a combination thereof.

18. The method of claim 14 , further comprising the driving of the cam disc by the control drive unit and either:
statically adjusting the gap S before detaching the meat from the bone structure of the fish;
dynamically adjusting the gap S while the meat is being detached from the bone structure of the fish by at least one circumferential cam of the cam disc by moving the a

Assignees

• Nordischer Maschinenbau
• Nordischer Maschb Rud Baader Gmbh & Co Kg

Inventors

• Pagels Mirko
• Krahn Valeri
• GüTTE ULRICH

Classifications

• A22C25/08

  Holding, guiding, or conveying fish before, during or after its preparation (A22C25/06 takes precedence){; Devices for sizing fish; Automatically adapting conveyors or processing machines to the measured size (transport in general B65G)} · CPC title

• A22C25/16 Primary

  Removing fish-bones; Filleting fish {(combined with beheading, eviscerating A22C25/14; hand tools A22C25/006)} · CPC title