Overhang rail transport system
AssigneeMarel Meat B.V.
InventorsJan Johannes Meerdink, Franciscus Theodorus Henricus Johannes Van Der Steen, Adriaan Ebergen, Ronald Kranenbarg
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A system and a method for automatic transfer of carcass parts suspended from a first carrier to being suspended from a second carrier. The carcass parts may be a half carcass that may have been eviscerated and cleaned. The first carrier may be an industry standard gambrel or a single carrier or a Marel DeboFlex carrier, for example a Euro Carrier. The second carrier may be a single carrier, for example a Euro Carrier, or a Marel DeboFlex carrier.
Claims22
An overhang rail transport system, comprising:
- a first processing section comprising multiple spaced apart first carriers for conveying carcass parts of a four-legged slaughter animal, where each of the first carriers comprises a free end for extending through an opening in a leg part of one of the carcass parts causing the carcass parts to be at least freely hanging,
- at least one second processing section comprising multiple spaced apart second carriers where each of the second carriers comprises a free end for engaging with the leg part of one of the carcass parts causing the carcass part to be at least freely hanging, wherein the overhang rail transport system further comprises:
- a transfer zone positioned between the first processing section and the at least one second processing section,
- a control device for automatically controlling movement of the first and the second carriers so that upon arrival at the transfer zone the first and the second carriers are synchronized in movement such that:
- a first carrier amongst the first carriers moves in a first direction carrying the carcass part through the opening in the leg part and at least one empty second carrier moving in a second direction meet with their respective free ends facing each other, the transfer zone being arranged such that during movement of the first and the second carriers:
- a relative horizontal distance between the free end of the first carrier and the free end of the second carrier decreases,
- the second carrier engages with the carcass part, followed by
- a weight of a carcass part load being transferred from the first carrier to the second carrier.
A method for transferring a carcass part from a first carrier to a second carrier of an overhang rail transport system, which overhang rail transport system comprises:
- a first processing section comprising multiple spaced apart first carriers for conveying carcass parts of a four-legged slaughter animal, where each of the first carriers comprises
- a free end for extending through an opening in a leg part of one of the carcass parts causing the carcass parts to be at least freely hanging,
- at least one second processing section comprising multiple spaced apart second carriers where each of the second carriers comprises a free end for engaging with the leg part of one of the carcass parts causing the carcass part to be at least freely hanging,
- a transfer zone positioned between the first processing section and the at least one second processing section,
- wherein the method comprises:
- automatically controlling movement of the first and the second carriers so that upon arrival at the transfer zone the first and the second carriers are synchronized in movement such that a first carrier amongst the first carriers moves in a first direction carrying the carcass part through the opening in the leg part and at least one empty second carrier moving in a second direction meet with their respective free ends facing each other, the transfer zone being arranged such that during movement of the first and the second carriers a relative horizontal distance between the free end of the first carrier and the free end of the second carrier decreases and the second carrier engages with the carcass part, followed by a weight of a carcass part load being transferred from the first carrier to the second carrier.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.