Abstract:
A horizontal meat slicer includes a frame and a lower conveyor belt having forward and rearward ends, the lower conveyor belt operative to receive a meat product thereon and transport it into and through the device. An upper pressing conveyor belt includes forward and rearward ends, the upper pressing conveyor belt and the lower conveyor belt cooperating such that meat product is compressed between the lower conveyor belt and the upper pressing conveyor belt. At least one bandsaw blade is rotatably mounted on the frame, a cutting section of the bandsaw blade traveling between the upper belt and lower belts. Finally, at least one drive device such as a motor is operatively connected to each of the conveyor belts and the bandsaw blade to drive them to pull the meat product through the device and cut the meat product via the cutting edge of the bandsaw blade.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This continuation-in-part application claims priority to the filing date of related patent application Ser. No. 10/339,867 filed on Jan. 11, 2003, in turn to related patent application Ser. No. 09/699,713 filed on Oct. 30, 2000 and to related provisional application Ser. No. 60/162,039 filed Oct. 28, 1999. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Technical Field  
         [0003]     The present invention relates to meat slicing machines and, more particularly, to a horizontal meat slicing machine which includes upper and lower conveyor belt mechanisms which cooperate to transport meat product through the machine, at least one generally horizontal slicing blade interposed between the upper and lower conveyor belts for slicing meat product transported therethrough and height adjustment mechanisms for the blade and upper conveyor belt which will permit various types of cuts to be made in different types of meat products.  
         [0004]     2. Description of the Prior Art  
         [0005]     The cutting and processing of meat products can be a very hazardous occupation due to the various blades and saws which must be used. Each year, thousands of man-hours are lost to injuries sustained by meat packing plant workers, which causes great loss to the meat packing company, let alone the physical damage the employee suffers. Therefore, it has long been a desire of the meat packing industry to invent and use processing devices that substantially lessen or eliminate the possibility of injury to operators of those devices.  
         [0006]     Two of the most dangerous devices are the bandsaw meat cutter and the butterfly slicing machine, due to the need for an operator of the machine to manually feed the meat product being cut into the device to contact the cutting blade. Obviously, if the operator is pressing the meat product into contact with the rapidly rotating blade, one slip is all that is needed to result in extremities being severed from or horrific cuts being made to the operator&#39;s body. Various devices have been proposed in the prior art to feed the meat product into contact with the cutting blades, but each of these includes at least one inherent shortcoming which does not fully address the problem presented. There is therefore a need for a horizontal meat slicer which automatically feeds the meat product into contact with the cutting blade without requiring the operator to manually press the meat product into contact with the cutting blade.  
         [0007]     Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an improved horizontal meat slicer.  
         [0008]     Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved horizontal meat slicer which includes at least one rotating cutting blade operative to cut meat product being fed into the device.  
         [0009]     Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved horizontal meat slicer which includes upper and lower conveyor belts which feed the meat product through the slicer and substantially prevent accidental rotation of the meat product during the cutting process.  
         [0010]     Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved horizontal meat slicer which includes a bandsaw type blade for cutting the meat product.  
         [0011]     Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved horizontal meat slicer which includes a generally circular meat slicing butterfly blade operative to partially sever the meat product thereby butterflying the meat product for further processing.  
         [0012]     Finally, an object of the present invention is to provide an improved horizontal meat slicer which is relatively simple and inexpensive in construction and is safe and effective in use.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0013]     The present invention provides a horizontal meat slicer that includes a frame and a lower conveyor belt having forward and rearward ends, the lower conveyor bolt mounted on the frame for receiving a meat product thereon and transporting it into and through the device. An upper pressing conveyor belt includes forward and rearward ends, the upper pressing conveyor belt mounted on the frame spaced from and above the lower conveyor belt, the upper pressing conveyor belt and the lower conveyor belt cooperating such that when a meat product on the lower conveyor belt is transported into the device, the meat product is compressed between the lower conveyor belt and the upper pressing conveyor belt. A rotating blade is mounted on the frame, the rotating blade having a cutting edge interposed between the lower conveyor belt and the upper pressing conveyor belt such that as the meat product is moved past the cutting edge of the rotating blade, the meat product is cut by the cutting edge of the rotating blade. Finally, at least one drive device such as a motor is operatively connected to each of the conveyor belts and the rotating blade to drive each of the conveyor belts and the rotating blade to pull the meat product through the device and cut the meat product where the cutting edge of the blade contacts the meat product.  
         [0014]     The present invention addresses and corrects many of the disadvantages found in the prior art. For example, the use of a rotating blade for cutting improves the quality of the cut being made, as the cut dynamics do not rely solely on the motion of the meat product to make the cut. Furthermore, the use of the upper and lower conveyor belts substantially eliminates the concern of the meat product accidentally twisting or rotating during the cutting process due to the “sandwiching” of the meat product therebetween. Also, as the present invention contemplates the use of both bandsaw-type blades and circular butterfly slicing blades, several variations of cutting the meat product can be performed by the present invention. It is therefore seen that the present invention provides a substantial improvement over those devices found in the prior art.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0015]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the horizontal slicer of the present invention;  
         [0016]      FIG. 2  is a side elevational view of the present invention showing the height adjustment of the upper conveyor belt;  
         [0017]      FIG. 3  is an end elevational view of the present invention;  
         [0018]      FIG. 4  is a detail perspective view of the band saw blade assembly of the present invention;  
         [0019]      FIG. 5  is a detail perspective view of one of the blade guide blocks guiding the band saw blades;  
         [0020]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the horizontal slicer of the present invention;  
         [0021]      FIG. 7  is a detail top plan view of the alternative embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0022]      FIG. 8  is a side elevational view of the alternative embodiment of the present invention.  
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0023]     The horizontal meat slicer  10  of the present invention is shown best in  FIGS. 1-5  as including a frame  12  on top of which is mounted a generally horizontal lower conveyor belt  14 . As shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , belt  14  would preferably have a length of approximate seven to nine (7 to 9) feet, a width of approximately 12 to 18 inches and be constructed of a flexible rubber compound which is simple to clean and is durable in construction. Movably mounted above lower conveyor belt  14  and extending generally parallel therewith is an upper pressing conveyor belt  16  which extends parallel with and is adjustably spaced from lower conveyor belt  14 . The upper pressing conveyor belt  16  is preferably mounted underneath a housing  18  which prevents accidental touching of the upper conveyor belt  16 , thus preventing injury. Upper conveyor belt  16  and lower conveyor belt  14  cooperate to “sandwich” meat product placed therebetween and secure the meat product from movement during the slicing process other than the forward movement dictated by the rotation of lower and upper conveyor belts  14  and  16 . It should thus be noted that lower and upper conveyor belts  14  and  16  move at the same speed with the lower conveyor belt  14  rotating in a counterclockwise direction from the vantage point of  FIG. 1  while upper conveyor belt  16  rotates in a clockwise direction from the same vantage point.  
         [0024]     The height of upper conveyor belt  16  may be adjusted in various ways, however, a preferred adjustment method is shown in  FIG. 2  as including an upper conveyor belt mounting structure  20  which includes arms  22   a ,  22   b ,  22   c , and  22   d . The arms  22   a - d  are pivotably mounted on the frame  12  and furthermore are operatively connected to a rotatable threaded rod  24  which extends and retracts thus pivoting arms  22   a - d  and raising and lowering upper conveyor belt  16  and housing  18  accordingly. It is also contemplated and preferred that the upper conveyor belt  16  be mounted with tensioning devices operatively connected between the upper conveyor belt  16  and the frame  12  that act to draw the upper and lower conveyor belts  14  and  16  towards one another thereby pressing the meat product therebetween and securing it from twisting or rotation thereof. An important consideration is that the upper and lower conveyor belts  14  and  16  cooperate to substantially compress the meat product  100  between the upper and lower conveyor belts  14  and  16  to prevent rotation of the meat product  100  during the cutting thereof. In order to effectively press the meat product  100  between the upper and lower conveyor belts  14  and  16 , the upper conveyor belt  16  must apply a significant downwards force on the meat product  100 . It should be noted that the substantial downwards force applied by the upper conveyor belt  16  to the meat product  100  is far in excess of the downwards force applied by other upper pressing conveyor belts found in the prior art, such as those used in connection with rolls and bread, and the application of such a substantial amount of downwards force to rolls and/or bread would compress the rolls and/or bread to the point where they were unusable and unsalable. However, this substantial degree of downwards force is necessary for the proper functioning of the present invention and therefore is desirable for use in connection with the present invention.  
         [0025]     It should be noted that the belts on each of the lower conveyor belt  14  and upper pressing conveyor belt  16  are generally free of openings extending through the belt to prevent transfer of portions of the meat product  100  through the belt during the processing of the meat product  100 . This is necessary to ensure that the meat product  100  is generally prevented from rotation of the meat product  100  during the cutting process and, more importantly, to facilitate the cleaning and sterilization of the present invention by restricting the dislodging of meat product debris from the meat product  100 .  
         [0026]     The cutting device of the present invention is a rotating blade which may be of several different types. The rotating blade is used to ensure quick and accurate cutting of the meat product as the meat product is moved through the horizontal meat slicer  10 .  FIGS. 2-5  best disclose a first embodiment of the cutting blades of the present invention, which bears a passing resemblance to a bandsaw type of cutting device. The band saw blade cutting assembly  26  is shown best in  FIG. 2  as including a first blade support wheel  34  also known as a drive wheel, a second blade support wheel  36 , a drive motor  37  connected to the first blade support wheel  34  and a tension adjustment mechanism  42 . Extending around the first blade support wheel  34  and second blade support wheel  36  are one or more bandsaw blades  38   a  and  38   b , shown best in  FIGS. 2 and 3 . Each bandsaw blade  38   a  and  38   b  is mounted on the wheels  34  and  36  on one or more blade steps  40   a  and  40   b . It should be noted that the present invention may be used with a single band saw blade  38   a  or with multiple band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  depending on the intended cuts to be made to the meat product, all of which fall within the intended broad scope of this disclosure. Also, for clarity purposes the blade steps  40   a  and  40   b  are shown only on first blade support wheel  34 , specifically in  FIG. 6 , but is to be understood by reference to  FIG. 2  that both the first blade support and second blade support wheels  34  and  36  may each include blade steps similar to that described in connection with first blade support wheel  34 . In the preferred embodiment, the blade steps  40   a  and  40   b  would consist of concentric disks having progressively smaller diameters, each of the blade steps  40   a  and  40   b  supporting one of the saw blades  38   a  and  38   b . The band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  extend around the outer circumference of each of the wheels  34  and  36  and the lowermost sections of the band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  extend generally horizontally between first blade support wheel  34  and second blade support wheel  36  between lower and upper conveyor belts  14  and  16 . When the drive motor  37  is engaged, it drives first blade support wheel  34  to rotate, and the band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  rotate with the first blade support wheel  34  and the second blade support wheel  36 , and thus are ready and positioned to cut meat product being propelled through the horizontal meat slicer  10  via lower and upper conveyor belts  14  and  16 .  
         [0027]     A blade tension adjustment device  30  is shown best in  FIG. 4  as providing an adjustment mechanism for the tensioning of band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b . It has been found that such tensioning may be necessary in connection with the blades encountering the meat product due to the stresses placed on the band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  during the cutting process. The tension adjustment device  30  used in the present invention would preferably operate by shifting the position of the related band saw blade  38   a  and  38   b  relative to its normal travel position, thereby increasing the tension on the saw blade. During the cutting of various types of meat product, such tension adjustment devices are quite necessary to insure proper cutting of the meat product. Finally, it has been found to be advantageous to provide blade guides  46 , shown best in  FIG. 5 , which are positioned on opposite sides of the conveyor belts  14  and  16  adjacent the travel location of the band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  for guiding the band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  and properly positioning the band saw blades to insure accurate cutting of meat product being fed through the horizontal meat slicer  10  of the present invention. In the preferred embodiment, the blade guide would be constructed of a Teflon coated material which would be long lasting and durable.  
         [0028]     An alternative embodiment of the rotating blade of the present invention is shown in  FIGS. 6-8  as including a butterfly blade assembly  50  which includes a generally circular meat slicing butterfly blade  52  which is mounted on a drive motor  54  mounted on the frame  12 . The only differences between the alternative embodiment of  FIGS. 6-8  and the embodiment described and shown in connection with  FIGS. 1-5  are those connected with the substitution of the butterfly blade assembly  50  for the band saw blade cutting assembly  26 . The arrangement and design of the conveyor belts, conveyor mounts and drive mechanisms therefor are substantially identical.  
         [0029]     In this embodiment, the butterfly blade  52  of butterfly blade assembly  50  would preferably consist of a generally circular planar saw blade having saw teeth formed on the outer circumference thereof, the saw blade being concentrically mounted on the drive shaft  56  of drive motor  54  as shown best in  FIG. 8 . The blade  52  extends generally horizontally from the drive shaft  56  and is positioned such that the blade is interposed between the upper pressing and lower conveyor belts  16  and  14  and extends over a section of lower conveyor belt  14 , as shown best in  FIG. 7 . When drive motor  54  is engaged, the drive shaft  56  is rotated at a high rate of speed and butterfly blade  52  rotates therewith such that meat product encountering butterfly blade  52  is sliced in a plane defined by the blade  52 . The butterfly slicing blade  52  extends outwards into the travel area of the meat product  100  such that as the meat product  100  travels through the slicer via the lower and upper conveyor belts  14  and  16 , it encounters the blade  52 . Due to the offset of the blade  52  from the meat product  100 , the meat product  100  is only partially severed along the plane of the blade such that one section of the meat product  100  remains intact. The meat product  100  is then removed from the horizontal meat slicer  10 ′ and has been “butterflied” for further processing.  
         [0030]     The horizontal meat slicer  10  of the present invention is operated in the following manner. A meat product such as a pork butt or the like would be placed on the lower conveyor belt  14  and lower conveyor belt  14  would be engaged by a standard belt drive device (not shown) to commence to feed the meat product towards the blade assembly  26 . The control box  90  includes the on/off switch and other controls for the present invention, each of which would be understood by one skilled in the art. The meat product would then be engaged by upper conveyor belt  16  and lower and upper conveyor belts  14  and  16  would cooperate to compress the meat product between the belts thus preventing unintentional rotation of the meat product during the cutting process. The conveyor belts  14  and  16  would move the meat product into engagement with the band saw blade or blades  38   a  and  38   b  or the butterfly blade  52  which are rotating at a high rate of speed to ensure accurate, clean cutting of the meat product. As the conveyor belts  14  and  16  move the meat product forward, the meat product is cut in the planes defined by the horizontal locations of the band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  or the butterfly blade  52  and due to the compression provided by the lower and upper conveyor belts  14  and  16 , the meat product does not separate, thus ensuring continued accurate cutting along the planes defined by the band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  or the butterfly blade  52 . As the meat product moves entirely through the horizontal meat slicer  10  it has been cut horizontally along the locations of the band saw blades  38   a  and  38   b  or the butterfly blade  52  and as the end of upper conveyor belt  16  is reached, the meat product is moved into the removal area of the end of lower conveyor belt  14  for further processing.  
         [0031]     Regarding such further processing, various types of finishing devices could be included with the present invention, such as an interleaver  80 , dicer assembly  82  or a slitter  84 , the operation of which would be understood by those skilled in the art of meat processing.  
         [0032]     It is to be understood that numerous modifications and substitutions may be made to the present invention which fall within the intended broad description of the invention. For example, the precise design layout of the horizontal meat slicer  10  of the present invention may be modified so long as the intended functioning of the invention is not disrupted. Furthermore, the blade assembly  26  may be modified or changed as needed to permit the cutting of various sized and shaped meat products. Finally, although it is preferred that the structural elements of the present invention be constructed generally of stainless steel and the conveyor belts of a rubber compound, it should be noted that various types of materials for construction may be used so long as the functionality of the present invention is not diminished.  
         [0033]     There has therefore been shown and described a horizontal meat slicer which accomplishes at least all of its intended objectives.