Method for operating a slicing machine, and slicing machine for spaced storage of slices of product

A method for operating a slicing machine for cutting slices from a product to be sliced, wherein the slicing machine comprises:

• a cutting device comprising a circular blade that rotates on a cutting plane about an axis of rotation and is driven by an electric circular blade motor;
• a carriage that carries a support plate for placing the product to be sliced, and that can be displaced at a carriage speed vs, parallel to the cutting plane;
• and
• a chain of a chain frame that is driven by an electric chain frame motor for transporting away the cut slices of the product at a transport speed vT, and that is for depositing the cut slices on a receiving table or a conveyor belt,
• wherein a number n≥2 of strands of the product to be sliced are placed parallel to one another on the support plate with their strand axes aligned in a direction of the cutting plane before commencement of the slicing operation, so that a number of n slices of product are cut from then strands of the product to be sliced in one carriage stroke,
• the method comprising:
• providing an instantaneous carriage speed vs(t) of the carriage as a specifiably controllable function of a time t, the instantaneous carriage speed being decreased, by a carriage speed change amount Δvs, after each complete cutting of a single slice of the product from the corresponding strand of the product to be sliced during a subsequent time interval of duration Δt to a required reduced instantaneous carriage speed vs(t)=vs −Δvs;
• and
• once the time interval of duration Δt has elapsed, increasing the instantaneous carriage speed vs(t) of the carriage back to the carriage speed vs(t)=vs,
• or the method comprising:
• providing an instantaneous transport speed vT(t) of the chain frame as a specifiably controllable function of the time t, the instantaneous transport speed being increased, by a transport speed change amount ΔvT, after each complete cutting of a single slice of the product from the corresponding strand of the product to be sliced during the subsequent time interval of duration Δt to a required increased instantaneous transport speed vT(t)=vT+ΔvT;
• and
• once the time interval of duration Δt has elapsed, decreasing the instantaneous transport speed vT(t) of the chain frame back to vT(t)=vT, and
• wherein the method further comprises:
• immediately prior to or after placement of the n strands of the product to be sliced onto the support plate, sending information comprising:
• the number n, a width of the strands of the product to be sliced, and a desired distance between the successively cut slices on the chain frame to a control device,
• wherein the control device:
• calculates from the sent information:
• a beginning and an end of each time interval of duration Δt, the required reduced instantaneous carriage speed vs(t)=vs−Δvs of the carriage or the required increased instantaneous transport speed vT(t)=vT+ΔvT of the chain frame;
• and
• controls the respective carriage or the chain frame of the slicing machine accordingly.