Food product slicer and associated belt tensioner
AssigneeIllinois Tool Works Inc.
InventorsMatthew W. BIRD, Sumuk MANJUNAATH, Austin RUTLEDGE
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A food product slicer includes a base, a knife mounted for rotation relative to the base, the knife having a cutting edge, a carriage mounted to the base for reciprocal movement back and forth past the cutting edge of the knife and a drive assembly for moving the carriage. The drive assembly includes a movable belt and a component fixed to the belt for movement therewith, wherein the component is linked to the carriage such that movement of the component with the belt causes movement of the carriage. The component is configured to operate as a belt tensioner that includes a non-linear path through which a portion of the belt passes to tension the belt.
Claims15
A food product slicer, comprising:
- a base;
- a knife mounted for rotation relative to the base, the knife having a cutting edge;
- a carriage mounted to the base for reciprocal movement back and forth past the cutting edge of the knife;
- a drive assembly for moving the carriage, wherein the drive assembly comprises a movable belt and a component fixed to the belt for movement therewith, wherein the component is linked to the carriage such that movement of the component with the belt causes movement of the carriage, wherein the component is configured to operate as a belt tensioner that includes a non-linear path through which a portion of the belt passes to tension the belt.
A food product slicer, comprising:
- a base;
- a knife mounted for rotation relative to the base, the knife having a cutting edge;
- a carriage mounted to the base for reciprocal movement back and forth past the cutting edge of the knife;
- a drive assembly for moving the carriage, wherein the drive assembly comprises a movable belt and a component clamped to the belt for movement therewith, wherein the component is linked to the carriage such that movement of the component with the belt causes movement of the carriage, wherein a configuration of a clamping engagement of the component onto the belt is such that the belt is tensioned by the clamping engagement, and such that a release of the clamping engagement of the component onto the belt reduces tension of the belt.
A method of tensioning a belt in a food product slicer that includes a carriage mounted for reciprocal movement back and forth past a cutting edge of a knife, the method comprising:
- linking the carriage for movement with the belt by clamping a component onto the belt in a manner that forces part of the belt to follow a non-linear path thereby simultaneously tensioning the belt as the part of the belt takes on the non-linear path.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.