Apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like

Abstract: An apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like includes a nozzle (4) having a material-discharging end (3) for discharging meat serving as a material; a material-supplying device for intermittently supplying a substantially fixed amount of the material into the nozzle (4); a braking member (7) for braking the release of a sheep intestine fitted over the nozzle (4) from the material-discharging end (3); a rotation-imparting device (8) for rotating the nozzle (4); a determining device (10) for determining the position of a twisted portion occurring in the sheep intestine which contains the material discharged from the material-discharging end (3) and is released from the material-discharging end (3); a removing device (11) for removing from a vicinity of the material-discharging end (3) the sheep intestine containing the meat and released from the material-discharging end (3); and a controlled-pusher device (13) for pushing a trailing end of the sheep intestine fitted over the nozzle toward the material-discharging end (3) in a controlled state.

Description: The present invention relates to an apparatus for manufacturing foodstuffs such as sausages, cheeses, and mentaiko (seasoned and salted walleye pollack roe) by sealing a fixed amount of a raw material into a casing and by twisting the casing stuffed with the material to form a chain of linked products. Conventional apparatuses of this type are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 3140509, Japanese Patent Publication No. 353/1966, Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 33916/1971, Japanese Patent Publication No. 13329/1989 (corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 4539796), Japanese Patent Publication No. 58696/1991 (corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 4602402), Japanese utility Model Application Laid-Open Nos. 117475/1991, 28081/1992, and 68683/1992, U.S. Pat. No. 4021885, Japanese Patent Publication No. 50294/1984 (corresponding to U.S. Pat. No. 4091505), and so on. The apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3140509 is arranged such that during the process of forming a twisted portion of a sausage, a holding member holds an outer peripheral portion of a stuffed casing drawn out from a nozzle. According to this apparatus, a twist can take place at any position between a tip of the nozzle and a holding position, with the result that the twisting position can possibly vary. In addition, although a deflecting member of this apparatus is so arranged as to cause the stuffed casing to be directed downward during the process of forming a twisted portion, there are problems in that this deflection member hampers the advance of the stuffed casing during a stuffing process, and that breakage is liable to occur in the stuffed casing. In addition, deflection rollers of the apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 353/1966 also have similar problems to those of the aforementioned deflecting member, and are not necessarily satisfactory. With the apparatus disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 33916/1971, the stuffed casing is held by a hook and a roller during the process of forming a twisted portion of a sausage so as to stop the rotation of the stuffed casing. With this apparatus as well, a twist can take place at any position between the tip of the nozzle and the holding position in the same way as the apparatus disclosed in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 3140509, with the result that the twisting position can possibly vary. Meanwhile, Japanese Patent Publication No. 58696/1991 discloses an apparatus in which, constantly during the stuffing process, a pushing member is continuously pushed against an intestinal tract by a pneumatic cylinder, and the advancing speed of the pushing member by means of the pneumatic cylinder is controlled by the speed of consumption of a shirred portion of the intestinal tract. According to this apparatus, since the working pressure of the pneumatic cylinder constantly acts on the intestinal tract and excessively compresses the shirred portion, there is a possibility of the casing becoming difficult to be drawn out from the nozzle. In addition, with the apparatus disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 117475/1991, an intestine feeding collar, which advances by being pushed by a spring member, constantly pushes the intestine. With such an arrangement, there is a risk of the spring pressure of the spring member excessively compressing the shirred portion. Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 28081/1992 discloses an apparatus in which a bellows is extended by air sent in intermittently. According to this apparatus, since the extending system is based on pneumatic pressure, it is difficult to control the position and speed of the operation of extending the bellows as desired. Hence, it is difficult to push the intestine at a rate commensurate with the amount of consumption of a sheep intestine by the intestine feeding collar. The apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4021885 is arranged such that the casing stuffed with a material is pulled out of the nozzle by a transport conveyor in synchronism with stuffing and twisting cycles of a stuffing machine. Hence, with this apparatus, it is difficult to maintain a fixed twisting position of the stuffed casing. Therefore, the length between the twisted positions (link length) is liable to vary, so that this apparatus is not suitable to connection to a looping apparatus which is operated in synchronism with a fixed-amount stuffing machine. With the apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 50294/1984, since the outside diameter of the sheep intestine is not uniform, it is difficult to make uniform each link length which has been stuffed in a fixed amount and twisted. In addition, the position where the twist takes place is difficult to fix, so that there is the likelihood that the tendency toward the nonuniformity of each link length is further increased. In addition, this apparatus is arranged such that the twisted portion is retained in the vicinity of the nozzle, but since there is a possibility of the variation of the link length becoming large, this apparatus is not suitable for retention of twisted portions on a stable and reliable basis. With the apparatus disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 50294/1984, there are cases where the value of sliding resistance at the time of the drawing out of the casing from the nozzle varies. Accordingly, since the link length in the case of the sheep intestine, in particular, is determined by the value of sliding resistance at the time of the drawing out of the sheep intestine from the nozzle, there is a likelihood that the nonuniformity of each link length is further increased. As such, with this apparatus, since there is the possibility that the link length varies, the reliable retention of the twisted portions can possibly become difficult. FR-A-2342663, upon which the precharacterising portion of appended claim 1 is based, discloses an apparatus in which meat is discharged continuously from a rotating mandrel. A rotatably mounted holding element intermittently nips and deflects the resulting sausage against a supporting surface so as to form a twist in the sausage. The present invention has been devised in view of the above-described problems, and its object is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like which makes it possible to substantially fix the position of occurrence of a twist, which therefore makes it possible to substantially fix the weight of each material between the twists and substantially fix the number of twists at twisted portions, thereby making it possible to hinder the twisted portions of each link from being untwisted. Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like in which, by making it possible to omit a conventional fixed guide, resistance applied to a casing having a material filled therein and released from a material-discharging end of a nozzle can be reduced, and therefore the breakage of the casing can be favorably reduced. Still another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like in which, by making it possible to maintain a fixed sliding resistance of a casing fitted over a nozzle, a product configuration and resiliency (hardness) can be fixed and made uniform, and also the breakage of the casing can be reduced. A further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like which can be used for both artificial casings and casings made of natural intestines, such as the intestines of sheep and the intestines of hogs, and which can be used for both an apparatus in which the nozzle is rotated continuously and an apparatus in which the nozzle is rotated intermittently. A still further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like which is capable of attaining automation and labor saving in the stuffing operation. A further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like which is capable of continuing the material-filling operation without stopping the operation of the apparatus even if the casing breaks, and which is therefore capable of continuously performing the looping operation and the operation of suspending the chain of linked sausages from a smoking stick following the material-filling operation. In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like, comprising: a nozzle having a material-discharging end; material-supplying means for supplying material into said nozzle; rotation-imparting means for continuously rotating said nozzle; and determining means for determining the position of a twist occurring in the casing which contains the material discharged from said material-discharging end and which is released from said material-discharging end; characterised in that the material-supplying means intermittently supplies a substantially fixed amount of a material into said nozzle; a braking member is provided for braking the release of a casing fitted over said nozzle from said material-discharging end; and in that the determing means includes clamping means for clamping the casing released from said material-discharging end, the determining means being operated substantially in synchronism with the intermittent supply of the material by the material supplying means. The determing means according to an embodiment includes detecting means for detecting the intermittent supply of the material by the material-supplying means and clamping means for clamping the casing released from the material discharging end on the basis of a detection signal from the detecting means. In the apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like in accordance with the present invention, a substantially fixed amount of a material is intermittently supplied to the nozzle from the material-supplying means, and the material is discharged intermittently from the material-discharging end of the nozzle which is rotated. The material discharged from this material-discharging end is received in the casing fitted over the nozzle, and a portion of the casing which continues from and is pulled by that portion of the casing containing the material is released from the material-discharging end against a braking force applied by the braking member. At this time, the determining means determines the position of a twist occurring in the casing released from the material-discharging end, with the result that desired twists are consecutively formed in the casing released from the material-discharging end. The other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the invention when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments and may be implemented by appropriately combining the embodiments, and that various other modifications are possible within the scope of the appended claims. Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a front elevational view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention; Fig. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a material-supplying means in accordance with the embodiment shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a valve of the material-supplying means in accordance with the embodiment shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 5 is a detailed cross-sectional view of a determining means in accordance with the embodiment shown in Fig. 1; Fig 6 is a front elevational view of the determining means shown in Fig. 5; Fig. 7 is a detailed cross-sectional view of a water supplying means shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 8 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of a controlled-pusher means in accordance with the embodiment shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 9 is an explanatory diagram of the operation during the discharging of meat, as viewed from a side of the determining means in accordance with the embodiment shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the operation during the discharging of meat, as viewed from the front of the determining means in accordance with the embodiment shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 11 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when the discharging of meat is stopped, as viewed from the side of the determining means in accordance with the embodiment shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 12 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of another embodiment of a controlled-pusher; Fig. 13 is a front elevational view of another embodiment of the determining means of the present invention; Fig. 14 is an explanatory diagram of the operation when the discharging of meat is stopped, as viewed from the side of the determining means of the embodiment shown in Fig. 13; Fig. 15(a) is a front elevational view of still another embodiment of the determining means of the present invention when the discharging of meat is stopped; Fig. 15(b) is a side elevational view of the determining means of the embodiment shown in Fig. 15 (a); Fig. 16 is a side elevational view of a further embodiment of the determining means of the present invention when the discharging of meat is stopped; Fig. 17 is a timing chart of the operation of the material-supplying means and the determining means of the present invention; Fig. 18 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of still another embodiment of the controlled-pusher means; Fig. 19 is a partial detailed explanatory diagram of the operation of the controlled-pusher means of the embodiment shown in Fig. 18; Fig. 20 is an explanatory diagram of a further embodiment of the controlled-pusher means; Fig. 21 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the controlled-pusher means of the embodiment shown in Fig. 20; Fig. 22 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the controlled-pusher means of the embodiment shown in Fig. 20; In Figs. 1 to 11 an apparatus 1 for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like comprises a nozzle 4 having a material-discharging end 3 for discharging meat 2 used as a material; a material-supplying means 5 for intermittently supplying a substantially fixed amount of meat to the nozzle 4; a braking member 7 for braking the release of a natural casing, such as a sheep intestine 6, as a casing fitted over the nozzle 4 from the material-discharging end 3; a rotation-imparting means 8 for rotating the nozzle 4; a determining means 10 for determining the position of a twisted portion 9 occurring in the sheep intestine 6 which contains the meat 2 discharged from the material-discharging end 3 and which has been released from the material-discharging end 3; a removing means 11 for removing from the vicinity of the material-discharging end 3 the sheep intestine 6 containing the meat 2 and released from the material-discharging end 3; and a controlled-pusher means 13 for pushing a trailing end 12 of the sheep intestine 6 fitted over the nozzle 4 toward the material-discharging end 3 in a controlled state. The braking member 7 has an annular configuration and is inserted over the nozzle 4 in the vicinity of the material-discharging end 3. The sheep intestine 6 is fitted by being shrunk over the outer peripheral surface of the nozzle 4 in such a manner as to be released from the material-discharging end 3 after passing through an annular inner peripheral surface of the braking member 7 and the outer peripheral surface of the nozzle 4. At the time of this release, the braking member 7 operates in such a manner as to brake the releasing of the sheep intestine 6 from the material-discharging end 3 on the basis of its sliding resistance. As shown in Fig. 3, the material-supplying means 5 is comprised of a valve 21; a transmitting mechanism 24 for transmitting a rotational force and a reciprocating force to a partition wall 22 of the valve 21 and a piston 23; an unillustrated electric motor whose output rotating shaft is coupled to rotating shafts 25 and 26 of the transmitting mechanism 24 via a belt, a gear and the like; and an unillustrated material-supplying pump communicating with an input port 27 of the valve 21. The material-supplying means 5 operates in such a manner as to intermittently discharge a fixed amount of meat to the port 47 twice per rotation of the partition wall 22 (corresponding to two reciprocations of the piston 23). In other words, the material-supplying means 5 discharges a fixed amount of meat to the port 47 when the piston 23 moves in the direction of C, and stops the discharging of the meat to the port 47 when the piston 23 moves in the direction of B (see Fig. 17). The rotation-imparting means 8 shares the unillustrated electric motor of the material-supplying means 5. As shown in Figs. 5 and 7, in addition to this electric motor, the rotation-imparting means 8 comprises toothed cylinders 51 and 52, and a transmission mechanism constituted by an unillustrated belt, a gear and the like for imparting the rotation of the output rotating shaft of the electric motor to these toothed cylinders 51 and 52. It should be noted that the rotation-imparting means 8 in this embodiment is so arranged as to simultaneously rotate the braking member 7 together with nozzle 4 as well. The unillustrated transmitting mechanism is arranged such that the braking member 7 and the nozzle 4 undergo four revolutions per reciprocating motion of the piston 23, i.e., undergo two revolutions while the material is being discharged, and undergo two revolutions while the discharging of the material is being stopped in the ensuing step. It should be noted that in this embodiment the braking member 7 and the nozzle 4 are constantly rotated by the above-described rotation-imparting means 8. Still alternatively, an arrangement may be provided such that the braking member 7 is secured on the housing 63 and the braking member 7 itself does not rotate. As shown in Figs. 5 and 6, the determining means 10 in this embodiment is comprised of a detecting means 71 for detecting the intermittent supply of the meat 2 by the material-supplying means 5; a clamping means 72 for clamping the sheep intestine 6 released from the material-discharging end 3 on the basis of a detection signal from the detecting means 71; and a bending means 73 for bending the sheep intestine 6 released from the material-discharging end 3 similarly on the basis of the detection signal from the detecting means 71. The determining means 10 determines the position of the twisted portion 9 in synchronism with the intermittent supply of the meat 2 by the material-supplying means 5. As shown in Fig. 1, the detecting means 71 is comprised of a detecting element 75 secured to the rotating shaft 25 and a sensor 76 attached to the apparatus frame 55 to detect the approach of the detecting element 75 optically or magnetically, for instance. When the detecting element 75 is rotated by the rotation of the rotating shaft 25, the sensor 76 detects the approach of the detecting element 75 occurring each time the rotating shaft 25 undergoes one revolution, thereby issuing a detection electrical signal. The detecting element 75 is mounted on the rotating shaft 25 so that the occurrence of this detection electrical signal indicates a start of the stopping of the meat discharge in the valve 21, i.e., the arrival of the piston 23 at the top dead center. An adjusting device may be provided to allow the timing of occurrence of the detection electrical signal by the detecting means 71 to be adjusted mechanically or electrically. The detecting element 75 may be mounted on the rotating shaft 26 instead of being mounted on the rotating shaft 25. Furthermore, instead of the detecting means 71, an oscillator may be provided in a controlling device 104, which will be described later, for generating by itself an electrical signal corresponding to the detection electrical signal generated from the detecting means 71. The electrical signal from this oscillator may be used in the same way as the detection electrical signal generated from the detecting means 71. As shown in Fig. 6, the clamping means 72 is comprised of a pair of clamping plates 87 and 88 which are mounted rotatably on the cover 70 in face-to-face relation with each other via pins 81 and 82, notches 85 and 86 being formed in distal-end clamping portions 83 and 84, respectively; a pair of links 91 and 92 coupled rotatably to the other ends of the clamping plates 87 and 88 via pins 89 and 90, respectively; and a horizontal member 95 rotatably coupled to the links 91 and 92 via pins 93 and 94. The distal-end clamping portions 83 and 84 of the clamping plates 87 and 88 are disposed in an immediate vicinity of the material-discharging end 3, i.e., at a position which is 0 - 50 mm, preferably 0.1 - 10 mm, more preferably 0.1 - 5 mm, spaced apart from the material-discharging end. The bending means 73 is provided with a pressing plate 97 having a bent pressing portion 96 at a distal end thereof. Furthermore, the clamping means 72 and the bending means 73 have in common a pneumatic cylinder device 103 and the controlling device 104. The pneumatic cylinder device 103 has a piston rod 102 to which a central portion of the horizontal member 95 and an upper end of the pressing plate 97 are attached by means of a nut 100 and a screw 101. The pneumatic cylinder device 103 is covered with a cover 106 and is disposed on a base 105 mounted on top of the housing 63. The controlling device 104 receives a detection electrical signal from the sensor 76 and actuates the pneumatic cylinder device 103 on the basis of this reception. In the determining means 10 thus arranged, while the meat 2 supplied through the nozzle 4 by the material-supplying means 5 is being discharged from the material-discharging end 3 and is being filled in the sheep intestine 6, the pneumatic cylinder device 103 is not operated. Hence, the clamping plates 87 and 88 do not clamp the sheep intestine 6 released from the material-discharging end 3, nor does the pressing plate 97 press the sheep intestine 6 released from the material-discharging end 3, so that the clamping plates 87 and 88 and the pressing plate 97 are located at a nonclamping position and a nonpressing position, respectively, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10. At this time, as for the sheep intestine 6, a sheep intestine 114 into which the meat is being filled is rotated by being dragged by the rotation of the nozzle 4, with the result that the twisting of two revolutions is replenished to the twisted portion 9 at the tip of the sheep intestine 114 being filled by the two revolutions of the nozzle 4 discharging the meat, thereby forming a complete twisted portion 9 which has undergone four revolutions. Next, when the controlling device 104 receives the detection electrical signal from the sensor 76, the pneumatic cylinder device 103 is actuated by the controlling device 104, and its piston rod 102 is extended. As a result, the clamping plates 87 and 88 are rotated about the pins 81 and 82, respectively, and the pressing plate 97 is moved toward the sheep intestine 6 released from the material-discharging end 3. Finally, as shown in Fig. 11, the distal-end clamping portions 83 and 84 of the clamping plates 87 and 88 clamp the sheep intestine 6 released from the material-discharging end 3, while the pressing portion 96 of the pressing plate 97 presses the sheep intestine 6 released from the material-discharging end 3. By virtue of the clamping and pressing which are synchronized with the intermittent supply of the meat 2 by this material-supplying means 5, the rotation of the sheep intestine 6 on the side thereof released from the material-discharging end 3, i.e., the sheep intestine 114 for which the filling of the meat has been completed, is reliably prevented. Consequently, the twisted portion 9 is formed reliably in the vicinity of the material-discharging end 3, with the result that the position of the twisted portion 9 is determined accurately. At this time, the sheep intestine 6 which has not yet been released from the material-discharging end 3 and still remains fitted over the nozzle 4 is rotated by being dragged by the rotation of the nozzle 4. Hence, an incomplete twisted portion 9 which has undergone two revolutions is formed at the trailing end of the filling-completed sheep intestine 114 by the two revolutions of the nozzle 4 from which the discharge of the meat is being stopped. Thereafter, the above-described operation is repeated, and the meat-containing sheep intestine 6, in which the completely twisted portions 9 which have undergone four revolutions are formed, is manufactured consecutively (see Fig. 17). Although the ease of twisting is determined by the producing center of the sheep intestines 6, the type of meat 2, and the like, in a case where twisting can be easily effected, the determining means 10 may be formed without using the bending means 73. As shown in Fig. 8, the controlled-pusher means 13 is comprised of an intestine-pushing collar 140 fitted over the nozzle 4; a connecting member 142 which has one end 141 engaged with the intestine-pushing collar 140 and is disposed movably in the same direction as the direction in which the nozzle 4 extends; a screw shaft 147 which is threadedly engaged on another end 143 of the connecting member 142 and whose opposite ends are rotatably supported on a housing 146 via bearings 144 and 145, respectively; a servo motor 148 whose output rotating shaft is connected to one end of the screw shaft 147 and is disposed in the housing 146; a driver 149 for operating the motor 148; and a controlling device 150 for controlling the driver 149. The controlling device 150 has a storage means 150A for storing a pushing program in advance. In the controlled-pusher means 13 thus arranged, the driver 149 operates the motor 148 in a state in which the operation is controlled by a pushing program stored in the storage means 150A. Referring to Fig. 8, the pushing program may be formed as shown in a movement chart 161, a movement chart 164, or a movement chart 165. In the movement chart 161, one end 141 of the connecting member 142 is moved continuously at a fixed speed from a position 162 toward a position 163. In the movement chart 164, the end 141 of the connecting member 142 is moved from the position 162 toward the position 163 in such a manner that the end 141 is first moved by a large distance and, as necessary, at a fast speed so as to move the sheep intestine 6 toward the braking member 7 by a large distance immediately after the filling start, and the end 141 is then stopped for a fixed period each time the end 141 is advanced a fixed distance at a fixed speed. In the movement chart 165, the end 141 of the connecting member 142 is moved in such a manner that the end 141 is first moved from the position 162 toward the position 163 by a large distance and, as necessary, at a fast speed in the same way as in the movement chart 164, and the end 141 is then returned a fixed distance to separate the intestine-pushing collar 140 from the trailing end 12 of the intestine 6 each time the end 141 is advanced a fixed distance at a fixed speed. It should be noted that each pushing program is formed in such a manner that when the end 141 of the connecting member 142 reaches the position 163, the end 141 automatically returns to the position 162. Further, as shown in Fig. 8, in the sheep intestine 6 fitted over the nozzle 4, if the length L of an unshirred portion 171 occurring behind the braking member 7 becomes longer than it is necessary, the resistance of the sheep intestine 6 at the time of its release from the material-discharging end 3 increases, which possibly results in the breakage of the sheep intestine. Therefore, it suffices if the pushing program is prepared from the viewpoint of ensuing that the length L of the unshirred portion 171 located forwardly of a shirred portion 172 does not become longer than it is necessary, and that, conversely, the sheep intestine 6 is not pressed excessively against the braking member 7. In addition, the apparatus 1 for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like in this embodiment further comprises an operation box 241. Provided in this operation box 241 are the driver 149, the controlling devices 104 and 150, and a controlling device for the erupted-meat detecting means which receives signals from the proximity switch 232 and a photosensor 261 (which will be described later) and instructs the starting and stopping of operation of the electric motor of the material-supplying means 5. As shown in Fig. 12, the controlled-pusher means 13 may further comprise a photosensor 251 disposed on the housing 63 and serving as a detecting means for detecting the unshirred portion 171 which has undergone a change in the form of the sheep intestine 6 fitted over the nozzle 4 in the vicinity of the braking member 7, so as to press the trailing end 12 of the sheep intestine 6 via the intestine-pushing collar 140 on the basis of a detection signal from the photosensor 251. That is, in a case where the unshirred portion 171 of the sheep intestine 6 is not being detected by the photosensor 251, and the shirred portion 172 of the sheep intestine 6 is being detected, the controlling device 150 which receives a signal representing this state from the photosensor 251 does not issue a signal for operating the motor 148 to the driver 149. As a result, since the motor 148 is not operated, the intestine-pushing collar 140 remains stopped. Meanwhile, in a case where the unshirred portion 171 of the sheep intestine 6 is being detected by the photosensor 251, the controlling device 150 which receives a signal representing this state from the photosensor 251 issues a signal for operating the motor 148 to the driver 149. As a result, since the motor 148 is operated, the intestine-pushing collar 140 moves in such a manner as to push the trailing end 12 of the sheep intestine 6 toward the material-discharging end 3. In the controlled-pusher means, there are suitable applications in the respective methods of controlling the operation of the connecting member 142. The operation of the chart 161 in Fig. 8 is suitable for a case where the overall lengths of the sheep intestines 6 used are substantially fixed. The operation of the chart 161 in Fig. 12 and the operation of the charts 164 and 165 in Figs 8 and 12 have no risk of pressing the sheep intestine 6 to an excess since the connecting member 142 is advanced intermittently. The retracting motion of the connecting member 142 in the operation of the chart 165 makes it possible to make uniform the shirring density of the shirred portion of the sheep intestine 6 and prevent the braking of the trailing end 12 of the sheep intestine 6 by the intestine-pushing collar 140. Desirable values are individually given for each step with respect to the moving distance and moving speed in each chart. The photosensors 251 and 252 detect a change in the form of the sheep intestine 6. The change in the form of the sheep intestine 6 referred to in the present invention includes changes from a shirred portion to an unshirred portion, from an unshirred portion to a shirred portion, from a portion of a large amount of shirr to a portion of a small amount of shirr, and from a portion of a small amount of shirr to a portion of a large amount of shirr, respectively. The change in the form referred to in the present invention also includes a change from a shirred portion or a unshirred portion toward the nozzle 4 side, and a change from the nozzle 4 side toward a shirred portion or an unshirred portion. The photosensor 252 can be replaced by the photosensor 251. The photosensors 251 and 252 may be replaced by other sensors such as electrostatic sensors, displacement sensors, or the like. The determining means comprised of the clamping means and the bending means may be formed as shown in Figs. 13 and 14. In this embodiment, a clamping means 270 is provided with a fixed plate 272 secured to the cover 70 by means of screws 271 and a movable plate 274 attached to the piston rod 102 and having a V-shaped notch 273 formed therein. A bending means 275 is provided with a pressing plate 277 secured to the movable plate 274 by means of nuts 276. A chute 278 in this example has a pair of side walls 279 and 280 opposing each other and approaching each other toward lower ends thereof, and a bottom plate 281 extending substantially in parallel with the pressing plate 277. In the above-described embodiment, although the fixed plate 272 having a straight upper edge is used, it is instead possible to provide a fixed plate having a V-shaped notch at an upper edge thereof. Thus the shapes of the fixed plate 272 and the movable plate 274 can be respectively selected appropriately, as desired. A determing means 320 of this example shown in Fig. 15 is formed in a manner similar to that of the aforementioned clamping means 72 except that it has holding members 321 and 322 respectively secured to the clamping plates 87 and 88. Accordingly, the determining means 320 operates in the same way as the clamping means 72. The holding members 321 and 322 prevent the rotation of the meat-filled sheep intestine 6 and reliably cause the twisted portion 9 to undergo twisting of two revolutions when the sheep intestine 6 is clamped by the clamping plates 87 and 88. In addition, the holding members 321 and 322 operate in such a manner as to prevent the wild movement of the meat-filled sheep intestine 6. In a case where the determining means 320 is thus arranged by the clamping means 72 alone, it is preferable to juxtapose a preventing means for preventing the rotation of the meat-filled sheep intestine 6, but the preventing means may not necessarily be provided. It should be noted that, as the removing means, it is possible to use a removing means 335 which is arranged as follows: As shown in Fig. 16, a roller is provided rotatably between both side walls of the chute 329, and the roller 330 is, by an electric motor 331 mounted on the side wall, rotated continuously or rotated intermittently in synchronism with the discharging of the meat from the material-discharging end 3 in such a manner as to rotate only during the discharging of the meat, thereby promoting the transfer of the meat-filled sheep intestine 6 in the downward direction. The removing means may be embodied by a transporting means in which a casing, e.g., a cellulose casing or a collagen casing, which contains the meat and is released from the material-discharging end 3, is transported consecutively along the axial direction of the nozzle 4. It is possible to adopt a controlled-pusher means 710 which is formed, as shown in Figs. 18 and 19. In this controlled-pusher means 710, a sensor (proximity sensor) 701 corresponding to the photosensor 252 is attached to the connecting member 142, a sensor (proximity sensor) 702 corresponding to the photosensor 251 is attached to the outer side of the cover 106, and a detecting element 703 is attached to the intestine-pushing collar 140. The excessive pushing of the sheep intestine 6 by the intestine-pushing collar 140 is detected by the sensor 701, as shown in Fig. 18, and the predetermined interval between the cylinder 66 and the distal end of the intestine-pushing collar 140, i.e., the tailing end of the sheep intestine 6, is detected by the sensor 702, as shown in Fig. 18. Furthermore, a coil spring 705 having opposite ends secured to the intestine-pushing collar 140 and a spring bracket 704, respectively, is disposed between the intestine-pushing collar 140 and the spring bracket 704, and the spring bracket 704 is coupled to the connecting member 142. The connecting member 142 is moved in accordance with a pushing program which is stored in the storage means 150A in the controlling device 150 and which will be described below. That is, the motor is operated, and the connecting member 142 is first moved at a double speed from the initial position 162 shown in Fig. 18. As a result, the intestine-pushing collar 140 is moved toward the trailing end 12 of the sheep intestine 6. When the distal end of the connecting member 142 is being moved during the section from the initial position 162 to a position 715, if the sheep intestine 6 is pushed excessively by the intestine-pushing collar 140, as shown in Fig. 18. and the coil spring 705 is compressed to cause the sensor 701 to detect the detecting element 703 and issue a detection signal (hereafter referred to as an intestine-excessively-pushing signal), the connecting member 142 is moved continuously at the double speed up to the position 715, and after arrival at the position 715, the connecting member 142 is retracted at an ordinary speed up to a position 719. After arrival at the position 719, the connecting member 142 is stopped for a period in which a predetermined time duration, e.g., 4 seconds, and a time duration until the occurrence of eight detection signals from the sensor 76 are added together (hereafter, this period will be referred to as an intestine-excessively-pushing overcoming period). After the lapse of this period, the connecting member 142 is moved toward a position 716 at the ordinary speed, and then during the section from the position 716 to a position 720 the connecting member 142 is retracted at the ordinary speed. At the position 720, if the intestine-excessively-pushing signal is sent from the sensor 701 in the section from the position 719 to the position 716, the connecting member 142 is stopped for the intestine-excessively-pushing overcoming period. Meanwhile, if the intestine-excessively-pushing signal is not sent in the section from the position 719 to the position 716, the connecting member 142 is stopped for 4 seconds. Thereafter, the connecting member 142 is advanced and retracted to a position 717, a position 721, and a position 718. At the position 721, the connecting member 142 is stopped in the same way as described above, and after the connecting member 142 is stopped at the position 718, as shown in Fig. 19, the intestine-pushing collar 140 alone is made to advance as the coil spring 705 is extended. As a result, when the sensor 702 detects the detecting element 703, as shown in Fig. 18, and sends a detection signal, the connecting member 142 is moved from the position 71B to the initial position 162, and the operation of the material-supplying means 5 is concurrently stopped. The timing of initiating the retraction of the connecting member 142 to the initial position 162 and the timing of stopping the operation of the material-supplying means 5 can be individually adjusted by a timer. Subsequently, when a new sheep intestine 6 is fitted over the nozzle 4, the above-described operation is repeated. If the sensor 701 does not send the intestine-excessively-pushing signal during the movement at the double speed from the position 162 to the position 715, the connecting member 142 is continuously advanced at the double speed without stopping and retracting the connecting member 142 at the position 715. When the sensor 701 has sent the intestine-excessively-pushing signal in the section from the position 715 to the position 716, the connecting member 142 is continuously moved at the double speed up to the position 716. Upon arrival at the position 716, the connecting member 142 is retracted at the ordinary speed up to the position 720. After the connecting member 142 is stopped at the position 720 for the intestine-excessively-pushing overcoming period, the connecting member 142 is advanced, retracted, and stopped for a predetermined period so as to be brought to the position 717, position 721, and position 718, respectively. In the controlled-pusher means 710, the coil spring 705 is disposed between the intestine-pushing collar 140 and the spring bracket 704, but an arrangement may be alternatively provided such that, as shown in Figs. 20 to 22, an arm 731 is attached rotatably to the connecting member 142 via a shaft 730, a coil spring 733 is disposed between a pin 732 embedded in the connecting member 142 and one end of the arm 731, and the other end of the arm 731 is made to engage with the intestine-pushing collar 140, so as to push the sheep intestine 6 by the resiliency of the coil spring 733. In this case, as shown in Fig. 20, a sensor 734 corresponding to the sensor 701 may be attached to the connecting member 142 to send the intestine-excessively-pushing signal when the pushing of the sheep intestine 6 by the intestine-pushing collar 140 becomes excessive, and the arm 731 is rotated and one end thereof is moved away a predetermined distance from the sensor 734. Alternatively, an arrangement may be provided such that, as shown in Fig. 21, the movement of the connecting member 142 is stopped at the position 718, and the intestine-pushing collar 140 is subsequently advanced by the resiliency of the coil spring 733. Then, when the interval between the cylinder 66 and the distal end of the intestine-pushing collar 140 has become a predetermined interval as described above, as shown in Fig. 22, the approaching of the arm 731 is detected by the sensor 702, the connecting member 142 is moved to the initial position 162 on the basis of this detection, and the operation of the material-supplying means 5 is concurrently stopped. In the above-described determining means which is one example of the determining means and is arranged to determine the position of a twist occurring in the casing in synchronism with the intermittent supply of the material by the material-supplying means, the synchronous determination is not necessarily restricted, if a description is given in connection with the above-described example, to a method in which the determination is made always at a fixed timing and during a fixed period when the discharging of the material is being stopped, and should be construed to include a method in which the determination is made at an arbitrary timing during the suspension of discharge or during an arbitrary period during the suspension of discharge. Furthermore, the present invention can be effectively applied to an apparatus of a type in which, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3140509 or Japanese Patent Publication No. 353/1966, the nozzle is rotated only during the twisting process, and the rotation of the filled sheep intestine is prevented by a fixed guide. Further, the material-supplying means in the present invention is not limited to one which is provided with a rotary valve and a piston. As described above, in accordance with the present invention, the position of occurrence of twisting can be substantially fixed, so that the individual weight of the material between the twists can be substantially fixed, and also the number of twists at the twisted portion can be fixed, thereby making it possible to prevent the occurrence of untwisting. Further, since the conventional fixed guide can be eliminated, it is possible to reduce the resistance applied to the casing containing the material and released from the material-discharging end, and it is hence possible to favorably prevent the breakage of the casing. Furthermore, in accordance with the present invention, it is possible to provide an apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like which is capable of rendering the product configuration and resiliency (hardness) constant and uniform and of further reducing the breakage of the casings since the sliding resistance of the casing fitted over the nozzle can be set to a fixed level. Moreover, the apparatus of the present invention can be applied to both casings of natural intestines such as sheep intestines and hog intestines and artificial casings, and also can be applied to both types in which the nozzle is rotated continuously and in which the nozzle is rotated intermittently. In addition, it is possible to attain the automation of the stuffing operation and labor saving, and even if the casing becomes broken, the material-filling operation can be continued without stopping the operation of the apparatus. Hence, the looping operation and the smoking-stick suspension operation can be carried out continuously, following the material-filling operation.

Claims: An apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like, comprising: a nozzle (4) having a material-discharging end (3); material-supplying means (5) for supplying material (2) into said nozzle (4); rotation-imparting means (8) for continuously rotating said nozzle (4); and determining means (10,320) for determining the position of a twist (9) occurring in the casing (6) which contains the material (2) discharged from said material-discharging end (3) and which is released from said material-discharging end (3); characterised in that the material-supplying means (5) intermittently supplies a substantially fixed amount of a material (2) into said nozzle (4); a braking member (7) is provided for braking the release of a casing (6) fitted over said nozzle (4) from said material-discharging end (3); and in that the determing means (10,320) includes clamping means (72,270) for clamping the casing (6) released from said material-discharging end (3), the determining means being operated substantially in synchronism with the intermittent supply of the material by the material supplying means (5). An apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like according to claim 1, wherein said determining means (10,320) includes detecting means (71) for detecting the intermittent supply of the material (2) by said material-supplying means (5), the clamping means (72,270) being for clamping the casing (6) released from said material-discharging end (3) on the basis of a detection signal from said detecting means (71). An apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like, according to any preceding claim further comprising: controlled-pusher means (13,710) for pushing a trailing end (12) of the casing (6) fitted over said nozzle (4) toward said material-discharging end (3) in a controlled state. An apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like according to claim 3, wherein said controlled-pusher means (13,710) includes storage means (150A) for storing a pushing program in advance, and the trailing end (12) of the casing (6) is pushed in accordance with said pushing program. An apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like according to claim 3 or 4, wherein said controlled-pusher means (13,710) further includes detecting means (251,701,734) for detecting a form of the casing (6) fitted over said nozzle (4), and is so adapted to push the trailing end (12) of the casing (6) on the basis of a detection signal from said detecting means (251,701,734). An apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising removing means (11,335) for removing from a vicinity of said material-discharging end (3) the casing (6) containing the material (2) and released from said material-discharging end (3). An apparatus for manufacturing a chain of linked sausages or the like according to claim 1, wherein a driving mechanism for said material-supplying means (5) and a driving mechanism for said determining means (10,320) are provided separately and independently of each other.

Inventors: KASAI MINORU, NAKAMURA MINORU, KASAI, MINORU, NAKAMURA, MINORU
Applicants: HITEC CO LTD, HITEC CO., LTD.
Application year: 1993
Main classification: A22C11
IPC codes: A22C11