Method and means for filling natural casing sausages

A machine for filling meat emulsion into elongated natural or artificial casings, comprising:

• a casing filling station including a stuffing tube for supporting a casing to be filled with meat emulsion;
• a casing hopper to serve as a reservoir for a plurality of shirred artificial casings mounted on the machine adjacent the casing filling station for delivery of shirred artificial casings for mounting on the stuffing tube;
• means on the machine for moving the casing hopper away from its position adjacent the casing filling station when natural casings are placed on a stuffing tube in the casing filling station;
• at least one sensor located in the machine to detect when the casing hopper is in its position adjacent the casing filling station;
• the sensor being operatively connected to a PLC to control longitudinal movement of the stuffing tube and to maintain the stuffing tube in a non-automatic extension mode, to hold a follower connected to the stuffing tube in a retracted position, and to maintain the casing hopper in its position adjacent the casing filling station, when a natural casing is placed on the stuffing tube with the stuffing tube in a partially retracted position and with a discharge end being upstream of the casing filling station;
• the PLC upon being actuated is adapted to cause the stuffing tube to extend through a chuck, and to cause a meat pump to start pumping meat through the stuffing tube when the position of the stuffing tube through the chuck is sensed, and to start the rotation of the chuck and the stuffing tube, and to start the operation of linking chains in a conveyor located downstream from the casing filling station;
• and
• a sensor on the machine adjacent a twister mechanism containing the chuck to detect the manual advancement of the follower in the proximity of the sensor to send a signal to the PLC to stop the operation of the casing filling station.

A machine for filling meat emulsion into elongated natural or artificial casings, comprising:

• a casing filling station including a stuffing tube for supporting a casing to be filled with meat emulsion;
• a casing hopper to serve as a reservoir for a plurality of shirred artificial casings mounted on the machine adjacent the casing filling station for delivery of shirred artificial casings for mounting on the stuffing tube;
• and
• a vertical pin rotatably connected to the casing hopper for rotating the casing hopper about a vertical axis away from its position adjacent the casing filling station.