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AssigneeHormel Foods Corporation
InventorsWilliam D. Young, Kent L. Simonson
Estimating the term…
An apparatus for removing skin from a torso of an animal using a rotatable drum having a circumference. A gripper is positioned at a point on the circumference of the rotatable drum adapted to engage a portion of the skin causing the torso of the animal to rotate as the rotatable drum rotates. A sharp blade is positioned near the point on the circumference of the rotatable drum for cutting the skin from the animal. A dull blade is spaced a dull blade gap distance away from the circumference of the rotatable drum and a setback distance away from the sharp blade opposite from the gripper, the dull blade adapted to contact the skin of the animal as the animal rotates. An adjustment arm is coupled to the dull blade for controlling the dull blade gap distance. A controller is coupled to the adjustment arm for automatically adjusting dull blade gap distance in accordance with a predetermined profile for the dull blade gap distance which varies around the torso of the animal.
An apparatus for removing skin from a torso of an animal, comprising:
A method of removing skin from an animal having a torso using an apparatus having a rotatable drum having a circumference, a gripper positioned at a point on said circumference of said rotatable drum adapted to engage a portion of said skin causing said carcass of said animal to rotate as said rotatable drum rotates, a sharp blade positioned near said point on said circumference of said rotatable drum for cutting said skin from said animal, a dull blade spaced a dull blade gap distance away from said circumference of said rotatable drum and a setback distance away from said sharp blade opposite from said gripper, said dull blade adapted to contact said skin of said animal as said animal rotates, comprising the steps of:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.