Launching system for robotic sausage loading machine

A food product handling device for de-linked tubular food products, the handling device comprising:

• a metering hopper configured to receive and deliver de-linked tubular food products;
• a singulator configured to orient the de-linked tubular food products into a single-file line in a direction of an elongation of the de-linked tubular food products with little or no overlap and to allow only one unit of the de-linked tubular food product to move through the singulator at a time;
• a launcher configured to supply randomly and loosely oriented de-linked tubular food products from the metering hopper to the singulator;
• and
• a pick belt conveyor configured to receive the de-linked tubular food products from the singulator into respective product compartments positioned along said pick belt, and to transport the de-linked tubular food products to a loading machine;
• and
• a product sensor positioned to sense product before it is delivered to said pick belt, such sensor configured to provide a signal to a controller for the pick belt, such that the controller is configured to provide an indexing of the pick belt to receive de-linked tubular food product into respective product compartments as the de-linked tubular food product is delivered and to operate the pick belt in a nearly continuous motion movement.