Patent ID: 8272927

Claim:
An automated skinning apparatus for removing skin from a poultry carcass that hangs from a moving support, the skinning apparatus comprising: a. a first elongated, planar support wall and a second elongated, planar support wall, the second support wall parallel to, and spaced laterally apart from, the first support wall; and b. a neck skinner mounted to the first support wall laterally intermediate the first support wall and the second support wall, the neck skinner comprising: i. a rotatably-driven gripper having a plurality of elongated fins extending radially therefrom, at least one fin comprising an essentially flat surface at an outer end; and ii. a pinch block laterally intermediate the gripper and the second support wall, the pinch block having an arcuate surface terminating in a tapered lip in a close-clearance relationship with the gripper for trapping and pulling poultry skin into a pinch point defined therebetween.