Bag opening apparatus and method

An apparatus for packing of products comprising:

• a) a product information acquisition stage arranged to acquire information relating to at least one of the height, width, length, volume, shape, and weight of individual products on a product packing line, wherein the product information acquisition stage comprises any of
• i) a digital camera system which sees individual meat cuts,
• ii) a system which directs at least one beam or line from a scanning laser over individual meat cuts with deflection and/or reflection of laser light on the meat cut being seen by a camera system, and
• iii) a series of horizontal and vertical beams across the conveyor path at different heights or spacings through which the meat cuts pass;
• b) a bag supply system arranged to supply bags sequentially as individual products on a conveyor approach a packing apparatus;
• and
• c) a bag opener arranged to automatedly take up a bag from the bag supply system as each individual product approaches the bag opener, and to subsequently machine open a mouth of each bag to a variable extent of lift in a direction at approximately right angles to a major plane of the unopened bag and to a variable degree of width opening in a direction approximately in a major plane of the unopened bag, based on information relating to at least one of the height, width, length, volume, shape, and weight of the product acquired at the upstream product information acquisition stage;
• wherein the bag opener is arranged to move repeatedly between
• i) a position out of the product stream in which the bag opener takes up a bag from the bag supply system, and
• ii) a position in the product stream for receiving a product in the bag after opening of the mouth thereof;
• the bag opener comprising a frame carrying spreader fingers, the frame moveable between a first position, in the product stream, and a second position out of the product stream, whereby when the frame is in the second position, the spreader fingers can enter a bag out of the product stream, spread to pick up the bag, and bring the bag into a position in the product stream wherein the product can enter the bag.