Cross-cutting device

A cutting device for cutting pre-fabricated transverse seams of a plastic-film sleeve that is filled with food, whereby each transverse seam of the film sleeve to be processed and continuously fed separates one portion of food from the next portion, wherein the device comprises:

• (a) a rotatable cutting blade holder having an axis of rotation,
• (b) at least one cutting blade having a length comprising a cutting edge and a flat rectangular cross-section comprising a width and a thickness, wherein the width is greater than the thickness and the width is capable of elastically flexing in response to a force and
• (c) a rotatable roller having a roller surface located proximate to the rotatable cutting blade holder and an axis of rotation parallel to the axis of rotation of the rotatable cutting blade holder,
• wherein
• the rotatable cutting blade holder comprises:
• (a) (1) one flat support surface per cutting blade, wherein the flat support surface has a length aligned with the axis of rotation of the cutting blade holder accommodating the length of the cutting blade and a width extending in a nonradial transverse direction relative to the axis of rotation of the rotatable cutting blade holder and (2) at least one clamping device mounted on the rotatable cutting blade holder for clamping the cutting blade onto the flat support surface, and
• (b) at least one heating element per flat support surface positioned between the flat support surface and the axis of rotation of the rotatable cutting blade holder,
• wherein
• a first portion of the width of the cutting blade is clamped onto the flat support surface via the at least one clamping device, whereby the cutting edge of the cutting blade is fixed in a position parallel to the axis of rotation of the rotatable roller, and a second portion of the cutting blade comprising the cutting edge of the cutting blade projects beyond the flat support surface, wherein the first portion is greater than the second portion,
• the heating element is capable of applying heat to the first portion of the width of the cutting blade via contact between the first portion of the width of the cutting blade and the flat support surface,
• the rotatable cutting blade holder and the rotatable roller are configured to cause the cutting edge of each cutting blade of the rotatable cutting blade holder to strike the surface of the rotatable roller when the rotatable cutting blade holder is rotated, whereby the surface of the rotatable roller (4) engages with, and bears against, the cutting edge of each cutting blade during rotation of the rotatable cutting blade holder, whereby each cutting blade undergoes flexing along the width of the cutting blade in response to the engagement with the surface of the rotatable roller (4) and
• each cutting blade is capable of striking the roller surface of the rotatable roller at different locations on the roller surface when the knife holder is rotated about its axis of rotation.