Patent ID: 8869668

Claim:
A product cutter comprising: a plurality of blades to cut an elongated product into a plurality of cut product portions of generally equal lengths, the plurality of blades including a pair of outer blades and at least one inner blade positioned between the outer blades; a conveyor to move the elongated product to the blades; a cutting adjustment assembly configured and arranged to adjust distances between the plurality of blades while maintaining the cut product portions in generally equal lengths, such that one of the at least one inner blade is held stationary in relation to the conveyer during activation of the cutting adjustment assembly while the remaining blades of the plurality of blades are synchronously moved with a single adjustment that positions the plurality of blades in relation to each other to cut the product in the generally equal lengths; wherein the cutting adjustment assembly further comprises an adjustment wheel; a gear set in rotational communication with the adjustment wheel such that when the adjustment wheel is rotated the gear set rotates; a plurality of adjustment shafts rotationally coupled to the gear set, each adjustment shaft having at least one outer threaded portion; and a plurality of adjustment members, each adjustment member having a first end that is threadably engaged with an outer threaded portion of an associated adjustment shaft, at least two of the adjustment members having a Second end coupled to an associated blade; the gear set further including, a first gear having a first diameter, the first gear rotationally coupled to the adjustment wheel, a second gear having a second diameter, the second gear rotationally engaged to the first gear, and a third gear having a third diameter, the third gear rotationally engaged to the second gear, the first diameter of the first gear being different than the second diameter of the second gear and the third diameter of the third gear, further the second diameter of the second gear being different than the third diameter of the third gear; and the plurality of adjustment shafts further including, a first adjustment shaft rotationally coupled to the first gear, the first adjustment shaft having at least two spaced first and second outer threaded portions, a second adjustment shaft rotationally coupled to the second gear, the second adjustment shaft having at least two spaced third and fourth outer threaded portions, and a third adjustment shaft rotationally coupled to the third gear, the third adjustment shaft having at least two spaced fifth and sixth outer threaded portions; and a frame configured and arranged to hold at least the plurality of blades and the cutting adjustment assembly.