Retainer for poultry hocks
AssigneeVolk Enterprises, Inc.
InventorHenry Volk
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A device for retaining and trussing the hocks of poultry carcass in juxtaposition and proximal to the body during processing, packaging, shipping, storage, and/or cooking. The present invention, including hock retaining members, may be constructed of a unitary, plate-like member of resilient material and it includes two openings for fitting about and retaining the hocks, an anchor to be affixed to the poultry carcass, and a connecting means between the hock retaining members and the anchor. The connecting members provides a spring force to keep the hocks and thus the legs juxtaposed to the carcass and each other.
Claims20
A retainer for use with a poultry carcass having legs with hocks, the retainer comprising:
- a hock retaining means including a first opening for retaining a first hock and a second opening for retaining a second hock from the poultry carcass, the hock retaining means retaining the first hock and the second hock in proximal juxtaposed relationship to each other, wherein the openings include half-moon notches into which knuckles of the hocks fit;
- anchor means removably insertable into the poultry carcass,
- a plurality of end-points, each of which lies between two adjacent of the half-moon notches for fitting within dimples between the knuckles of the hocks, and
- connecting means between the hock retaining means and the anchor means,
- wherein the first opening and the second opening each have a width no more than approximately the width of the hocks,
- whereby the combination of the first opening and the second opening with the respective half-moon notches and end-points cooperate to secure the hocks within, but not through, the first opening and the second opening, thereby securing the hocks within the hock retaining means.
(canceled)
A substantially planar and unitary retainer for use with a poultry carcass with a first hock and a second hock wherein:
- the retainer is mounted to receive the first hock and second hock such that the first hock and the second hock are juxtaposed to each other,
- the first hock and second hock are each received into respective separate openings in the retainer,
- the openings include half-moon notches that are assigned to knuckles of the first hock and the second hock, and
- a plurality of end-points, each of which lies between two adjacent half-moon notches on the openings, fit within dimples between knuckles of the first hock and the second hock,
- wherein the openings each have a width no more than approximately the width of the hocks,
- whereby the combination of the openings with the respective half-moon notches and end-points cooperate to secure the hocks within, but not through, the openings, thereby securing the hocks within the hock retaining means.
(canceled)
(canceled)
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.