Sausage collating device and method for collating sausages to form sausage groups

• US 9,554,581 B2
• Filed: 01/28/2016
• Issued: 01/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Albert Handtmann Metallgusswerk GmbH & Company KG (Handtmann Beteiligungen GmbH)
• Original Assignee: Albert Handtmann Metallgusswerk GmbH & Company KG (Handtmann Beteiligungen GmbH)
• Inventors: Willburger, Peter, Fuergut, Michael, Heim, Michael
• Primary Examiner(s): PRICE JR, RICHARD THOMAS
• Application Number:
  US15/009,726
• Publication Number:
  US 20160219891A1
• Time in Patent Office: 369 Days
• Field of Search: 452 30- 32, 452 35- 37, 452 46- 48, 452/51, 198/418, 198/418.7, 198/418.8, 198/419.3, 198429-433, 198/426
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A22C 11/008 Conveying sausages in horizontal position conveying hanging sausages A22C15/001
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 2201/0202 Agricultural and processed food products
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 47/082 grouping articles in rows
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 47/088 cylindrical articles
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 47/841 Devices having endless travelling belts or chains equipped with article-engaging elements

Abstract

The invention relates to a sausage collating device and a method for collating sausages to form sausage groups of a predetermined number of sausages with a transport device for transporting spaced sausages and at least one accumulator element for accumulating the sausages, where the at least one accumulator element is for collating and is movable in the direction of transport of the transport device.

Claims

1. A sausage collation device for collating sausages to form sausage groups having a predetermined number of sausages, comprising

a transport device for transporting said sausages spaced apart from each other;

at least two accumulator elements for collating said sausages, where said at least two accumulator elements for collating are movable in a direction of transport T of said transport device; and

a control device including instructions for;

inserting a first accumulator element upstream a first sausage of a first sausage group,

inserting a second accumulator element downstream a last sausage of said first sausage group, and

pushing said first sausage group together between said first accumulator element and said second accumulator element.

2. The sausage collation device according to claim 1, wherein the at least two accumulator elements comprise at least two independently drivable accumulator elements.

3. The sausage collation device of claim 2, further comprising a first drive device with at least one accumulator element, and a second drive device with at least one accumulator element.

4. The sausage collation device according to claim 3, wherein said first and/or second drive device comprise a revolving conveying member on which said respective at least one accumulator element is arranged, where said revolving conveying member includes a revolving belt.

5. The sausage collation device according to claim 4, wherein said revolving conveying members run around more than two wheels, and where a length l of a section of said conveying members, in which said accumulator elements move parallel to said transport device, is adjusted by varying a position of at least two wheels of the more than two wheels.

6. The sausage collation device according to claim 1, wherein said at least two accumulator elements in their motion during collation run in the direction of transport T spaced from and preferably parallel to a surface of said transport device.

7. The sausage collation device according to claim 1, wherein said transport device is an accumulation roller belt.

8. The sausage collation device according to claim 1, further comprising a sensor device which detects an arriving sausage and transmits a corresponding signal to said control device.

9. The sausage collation device according to claim 8, wherein said control device calculates positions of successive sausages transported away and actuates a drive or drives of said at least two accumulator elements such that said second accumulator element engages between the last sausage of said first group and a first sausage of a subsequent group.

10. The sausage collation device according to claim 1, wherein said at least two accumulator elements are driven at varying velocity.

11. A method for collating sausages with a sausage collating device to form sausage groups having a predetermined number of sausages comprising:

conveying spaced sausages transverse to their longitudinal direction on a transport device and accumulating said sausages by at least two accumulator elements,

wherein said at least two accumulator elements are for collating and are moved at least temporarily in a direction of transport T of said transport device,

wherein a first sausage group is collated by moving a first accumulator element upstream of a first sausage of said first sausage group and by moving a subsequent second accumulator element downstream a last sausage of said first sausage group, and

wherein said subsequent second accumulator element pushes said first sausage group together between said first accumulator element and said subsequent second accumulator element.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein said at least two accumulator elements are independently driven accumulator elements.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein said first accumulator element is at least temporarily moved at a velocity V₁<

V_{transport device}, and

said subsequent second accumulator element is moved at least temporarily at a velocity V₂>

V_{transport device}, where said velocity V_{transport device} is the velocity of said transport device.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein after creating said first sausage group, said first accumulator element, in the direction of transport T and disposed upstream of said first sausage group, is driven at a velocity V₁>

V_{transport device} and is moved away from a region which sausage groups pass, and said subsequent second accumulator element, in the direction of transport T and disposed downstream of said last sausage of the first sausage group, is decelerated to velocity V₂<

V_{transport device} to create a subsequent sausage group, where a further subsequent accumulator element is inserted downstream of a last sausage of said subsequent sausage group.

15. The method according to claim 11, wherein when a distance between said first accumulator element and said subsequent second accumulator element substantially corresponds to a product of a sausage caliber and a number of sausages per sausage group, then velocities of said two accumulator elements are set to a velocity of said transport device.

16. The method according to claim 11, wherein two successive accumulator elements are attached to respective individually driven revolving conveying members, including conveyor belts, and each revolve on a closed path.

17. A method for collating sausages to form sausage groups having a predetermined number of sausages comprising:

conveying spaced sausages transverse to their longitudinal axes on a transport device having a velocity V_{transport device}; and

accumulating said sausages with at least two accumulator elements by pushing said sausages together between a first accumulator element and a second accumulator element of said at least two accumulator elements, wherein said at least two accumulator elements are driven at varying velocities and moved in a direction of transport T of said transport device.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein said first accumulator element moves in front of a sausage group at a velocity V₁, where V₁=30% to 90% of V_{transport device}.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein said sausages are pushed together by said second accumulator element, said second accumulator element positioned behind a sausage group and moving at a velocity V₂, where V₂=110% to 200% of V_{transport device}.

20. The method of claim 17, where accumulating said sausages includes:

retracting said first accumulator element and said second accumulator element so that a sausage group of said predetermined number of sausages is between the first and second accumulator elements, the first accumulator element in front of a leading sausage of said sausage group and the second accumulator element behind a last sausage of said sausage group;

moving said sausage group at a velocity equal to said V_{transport device};

moving the first accumulator element at a velocity V₁, where V₁=V_{transport device}; and

moving the second accumulator element at a velocity V₂, where V₂>

V_{transport device}.