Patent ID: 7392635

Claim:
A system for enclosing at least one target product in a covering material, comprising: an elongate product chute having an outer surface and opposing ingress and egress end portions with an interior cavity extending therethrough; an elongate breech loading chute having a primary chute body with opposing ingress and egress end portions, the primary chute body being disposed above and generally rearward of the product chute, the primary chute body sloping downwardly in a direction of product travel; wherein, in operation, the elongate breech loading chute is configured to introduce at least one product into a product travel path associated with the product chute; an automated product stop member associated with the primary body of the breech loading chute, wherein, in operation, the product stop member is configured to controllably and serially trap, then release, target products at desired times; a product pusher mechanism having a pusher head that is configured to controllably and automatically advance into and retract from the product chute to thereby advance a product through the product chute and out of the discharge end portion of the product chute; and a clipper mechanism disposed downstream of the product chute, the clipper mechanism configured to apply at least one clip to a covering material that encloses a target product after at least a portion of the target product exits the product chute, wherein the breech-loading chute primary body merges into a substantially horizontally disposed receiving member positioned beneath the egress portion of the breech loading chute primary body, wherein the product chute is releasably mounted to a frame that holds the breech loading chute primary body and receiving member in cooperating alignment with the product chute, and wherein the receiving member comprises an aperture that allows the product pusher mechanism to extend and retract therethrough so that the pusher head is positioned upstream of the egress portion of the breech loading chute primary body in the receiving member when in the retracted configuration.