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US 5,256,434 AGranted
Method of processing live crabs
AssigneeTaiyo Oil Company, Ltd.
InventorTerrence N. Conway
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method, system and apparatus are disclosed for sorting, cryogenically freezing and wrapping soft-shelled blue crabs.
Claims18
A method of vacuum packing live or fresh crab mounted on a deformable crab holding tray having a depression for receiving each crab, said method comprising the steps of:
- providing a magazine assembly having recesses formed therein which receive and firmly support the deformable tray including the depression;
- placing the assembly in a vacuum chamber whereby during vacuum wrapping the tray is restrained by the magazine against unwanted movement which would otherwise cause the tray to deform and thereby damage the fragile crab and/or the deformable tray;
- placing a flexible sheet material over the crab and tray;
- and,
- applying at least a vacuum so that the sheet is wrapped tightly over the crab and tray.
2 more elements
A method of processing live or fresh soft-shelled crabs comprising the steps of:
- sorting the crabs by size;
- placing the sorted crabs in trays;
- cryogenic freezing of the sorted crabs in the trays to a temperature between -10.degree. F. to 15.degree. F. and without any intervening cooking step;
- and
- wrapping the frozen crabs in a sheet material by tightly wrapping the sheet material over the trays and crabs.
2 more elements
A method of processing live or fresh soft-shelled crabs comprising the steps of:
- sorting the crabs by size;
- and
- freezing the sorted crabs without any intervening cooking step;
- said sorting step includes using sorting trays, each having at least a depression of a predetermined size for receiving a separate crab, and the trays being visually coded to represent different sizes of crabs so as to be easily identified by sorters and packers, and wherein said depression is configured to snugly receive therein a crab's shell and folded crab claws so that the crab belly is exposed;
- and
- said freezing step includes applying a cryogenic refrigerant onto the crab's belly.
3 more elements
A method of vacuum packing live or fresh crabs comprising the steps of:
- placing the crabs in trays;
- placing the trays in a magazine for supporting the trays;
- placing the magazine in a vacuum chamber;
- and
- placing a flexible sheet material over the crab and tray while in the vacuum chamber, and applying a vacuum in the vacuum chamber so that the flexible sheet is wrapped tightly over the crab and tray.
2 more elements
A method of processing fresh soft-shelled crabs comprising the steps of:
- placing the crabs on a moving conveyor and manually sorting the crabs according to size;
- removing crabs of predetermined size from the conveyor and removing undesired parts from the crabs;
- mounting the sorted crabs in color coded trays according to size and with the crab's belly and claws facing upwardly to be exposed;
- passing the crab filled trays through a refrigerant station during which cryogenic refrigerant is sprayed onto the bellies of the crabs;
- and
- wrapping sheet material over the crabs and trays.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.