Cutting apparatus for processing elongated vegetable products and the like

A rotating drum bean snipper comprising a support structure, an outer drum member mounted to said support structure for rotation on a substantially horizontal axis of rotation with a lower half and an upper half of the drum and having a plurality of axially spaced and circumferentially extended openings, said openings being selected and adapted to receive the end of the bean while maintaining the support of the main body of the bean, means for rotating said drum to carry the beans from the lower half of the drum upwardly into the other upper half of the drum, said beans falling downwardly from the upper half of the drum into the lower half of the drum, the ends of the beans moving downwardly into the said slots and protruding outwardly, and an inclined orienting member located substantially in the upstream lower quadrant in spaced relation to the cutting drum, said orienting member is a plate, and having an adjustable support for said plate secured to said support structure for adjusting the angle of said plate.

A rotating drum bean snipper comprising a support structure, an outer drum member mounted to said support structure for rotation on a substantially horizontal axis of rotation with a lower half and an upper half of the drum and having a plurality of axially spaced and circumferentially extended openings, said openings being selected and adapted to receive the end of the bean while maintaining the support of the main body of the bean, means for rotating said drum to carry the beans from the lower half of the drum upwardly into the other upper half of the drum, said beans falling downwardly from the upper half of the drum into the lower half of the drum, the ends of the beans moving downwardly into the said slots and protruding outwardly, and an inclined orienting member located substantially in the upstream lower quadrant in spaced relation to the cutting drum, said orienting member is a paddle wheel having a plurality of substantially radial plate-like members, a first drive unit is provided for rotating of said main drum, a second drive unit is provided to rotate said paddle wheel independently of said drum whereby the rotation of said drum and said paddle wheel can be optimized for passage of beans through said drum.

A rotating drum bean snipper apparatus comprising a rotating drum having an outer surface with circumferential openings to receive the end of a bean and having the opposite ends of the drum defining a bean inlet end and bean discharge end respectively, said drum rotating about an inclined substantially horizontal axis and having a lower half and an upper half, a plurality of cutting knife sets secured to the exterior of said drum, said knife sets including a knife unit spanning the drum and coupled to engage each of said slots, said knife sets being circumferentially spaced and located substantially over the complete lower half of said drum and including a knife set at each end of the lower half of the drum and a plurality of intermediate knife units distributed throughout the lower half of the drum, bean declustering knife units mounted within the upper end of said rotating drums, a rotating paddle wheel secured within said drum and including four equicircumferentially spaced paddle members, each paddle members having a continous plate like member essentially extending throughout the length of the drum, the outer edge of each paddle member being notched to carry the mass of beans upwardly into the separating knife units.