Decoupled drive units for gathering and over-spreading

A method for producing sausage-shaped products, like sausages, on a clipping machine, the clipping machine comprises a filling tube for feeding the filling material into the tubular or bag-shaped packaging casing stored on the filling tube and being closed at its first end, gathering means for gathering the filled packaging casing and for forming a plait-like portion thereto, the gathering means including a first displacer unit and a second displacer unit, and a clipping device having a first and a second closing tool being reversibly movable between an opened position and a closed position, for applying at least one closure means to the plait-like portion and closing said closure means when the closing tools are in their closed position, a common drive means for commonly reversibly driving the gathering means for performing the gathering movement, and the clipping tools for applying said closure means on the plait-like portion and closing said closure means, a single drive means for reversibly driving the second displacer unit for executing a movement in axial direction for forming the plait-like portion, a control unit for controlling the common drive means and the single drive means, and at least a first sensor and a second sensor which are coupled to the control unit, the first sensor being associated with the common drive means and the second sensor being associated with the single drive means,

• wherein a discharge device is provided for discharging the sausage-shaped product just produced, from the clipping machine,
• wherein a third sensor is provided associated with the discharge device, and coupled to the control unit, and
• wherein the third sensor is adapted to detect the position of the discharge device relative to the clipping machine,
• the method comprises the steps of:
• filling a predetermined portion of filling material into the tubular or bag-shaped packaging casing stored on the filling tube,
• gathering the filled packaging casing by radially moving the gathering means from an opened position into a closed position, and applying and closing at least one closure means to a plait-like portion formed by the gathering means, by commonly driving the gathering means and the clipping tools by the common drive means, and
• moving the second displacer unit in axial direction for forming said plait-like portion on which the at least one closure clip has to be applied, by the single drive means at least approximately independently from said common drive means,
• controlling the movement of the single drive means by the control unit, at least partially independently from the common drive means.