Other

Cooling & Applied Technology, Inc.

John Bean Technologies Corporation

Ace Incorporated

Ace Specialties, Inc.

Andrew C Estes

Jay Koch

Jeremy B Estes

Michael E Miller

Travis W Arterbury

Ray W Balaster

Mark A Moody

Kyle A Stobaugh

Kurt R Danzy

An automated chicken deboner system and method. The system includes a conveyor system to move the front-half of the chicken through the different deboning stations, including a loading station where the bird is placed on a cone, a press station to align the front half of the chicken on the cone, a skin cutter station to cut the skin and fat located at the base of the neck of the chicken, a wing cutter station to remove the wings, a scapula cutter station to separate the breast meat from the scapula, a wishbone cutter station to separate the breast meat from the wishbone, a breast plow station to separate the breast meat from the ribs, a wishbone paddle station to further separate the breast meat from the wishbone, a breast removal station to completely remove the breast meat, and a tender cutter station to remove the two tenders.

Automated chicken deboner system and method

A support for carrying a front-half of a chicken through a deboning process, including an upper portion, a lower portion, and a base for attaching to a conveyor belt. The upper portion includes a first shelf and a second shelf for resting under the shoulder knuckles of the front-half of the chicken and a protrusion positioned between the first shelf and the second shelf for spreading the shoulder knuckles. The lower portion of the support has two sections for resting under the breast meat of the front-half of the chicken. The first section of the lower portion of the support slopes downward and outward from the upper portion, while the second section of the lower portion slopes downward and inward from the first section.

Support for carrying a chicken through a deboning process

An auto-cleaning marination filter for a poultry injector system including an outer housing having a liquid inlet and outlet, a screen that allows passage of liquids and impedes passage of solid particles, and a wiper surrounded by said screen for removing solid particles attached to the screen by reverse flow of the liquid through a gap in the wiper.

Auto-cleaning marination filter for poultry injector system

A reciprocating poultry chiller auger including a bearing, such as a simple cylindrical bearing, mounting the shaft of an auger-type poultry chiller for both rotation of the shaft and for linear reciprocating motion of the shaft along its axis. The shaft may be reciprocated backward and forward along the axis of the shaft by, for example, a hydraulic cylinder that alternately pushes and pulls the shaft so that it slides linearly in a reciprocating fashion within the bearing. The reciprocating motion of the auger provides agitation of the chilled water in the poultry chiller thus improving contact and heat transfer from poultry carcasses into the chilled water.

Reciprocating poultry chiller auger

A vacuum transfer system having a weighing hopper mounted via at least one load cell to a frame. The weighing hopper is provided with an inlet connected via a product line to a product inlet hopper and a sliding outlet gate. An actuator valve is operatively connected to the weighing hopper and to a vacuum source. A controller is operatively connected to the actuator valve and also controls the opening and closing of the sliding gate. The product line comprises a flexible pipe section and a rigid pipe section pivotally mounted to the frame at a pivot disposed substantially vertically below the center of the flexible pipe section. In operation, the operator keys into the controller a target rate of product transfer and a target weight of product in the weighing hopper. The actuator valve applies vacuum to the weighing hopper in order to transfer the product from the inlet hopper to the weighing hopper. When the preset target weight of product in the weighing hopper is reached, the actuator valve bleeds off the vacuum in the weighing hopper before the load cells weigh the product contained in the weighing hopper. Release of the product is delayed until the release of the product results in an actual rate of product transfer equal to the target rate of product transfer. The product is released by opening the sliding gate. The load cells are zeroed after each cycle in order to minimize any drift in the weight measurements.

Vacuum transfer apparatus having load isolation weighing system including a rigid pipe section pivotally mounted to a support frame

A counter flow, re-circulating, externally refrigerated auger type chiller. The chiller has a tank that is semi-cylindrical in shape so that the walls of the tank conform closely to the circular cross section of the auger. By minimizing the gap between the walls of the tank and the outer edges of the rotating auger, the counter flowing chilled water is forced to flow in the helical path determined by the auger. This assures a longer residence time for the chilled water in the auger, more thorough and more intimate contact between the poultry carcasses and the chilled water, and thus more efficient transfer of heat from the poultry carcasses to the chilled water.

Water flow for auger type poultry chiller

A structural system for an auger type poultry chiller in which the air header and structural system are integrated together. A hollow box beam on the longitudinal upper edge of the housing of the chiller provides structural strength and ridigity to the housing. The box beam is airtight and the box beam is connected to a source of pressurized air so that the box beam also serves as an air header. Air hoses connect a series of connectors along the length of the box beam to inlets on the bottom of the chiller housing to introduce pressurized air to the chilled water to prevent clumping of the chilled poultry carcasses. The strength of the box beam air header allows the supports for the auger to be mounted directly to the top of the box beam. In order to provide mounting connections without sacrificing the airtight integrity of the box beam, one or more tubes are run vertically through the box beam at points of attachment for the auger support structure. Bolts run through the tubes fasten the auger supports to the box beam. Desirably, the tubes are slightly oversized so as to allow some adjustment in the longitudinal and transverse placement of the auger support. Furthermore, the location of the auger support on the top of the box beam allows the vertical placement of the auger support to be adjusted by the placement of shims between the auger support and the top of the box beam.

Air header structural system for auger type poultry chiller

Apparatus and method for separating wings and attached breast from poultry carcasses comprising prescoring the flesh of the poultry carcass over the shoulder joint, separating the wing from the poultry carcass at the shoulder joint using a rotating cup knife having a broadly wedge shaped cutting edge, cutting along the scapula bone so as to separate tendons which tend to bind a portion of the breast meat to the poultry carcass and partially tearing the wing portion and attached breast portion including the 'eye' and the flesh in the vicinity of the wishbone from the poultry carcass. The apparatus comprises separate processing stations for accomplishing each of the separation steps. The apparatus is designed to be used in conjunction with a moving conveyor belt having mandrels upon which the front half of a poultry carcass is mounted.

Apparatus and method for separating wings and attached breasts from

The present invention is an approved apparatus for the removal of tenders from poultry carcasses. The apparatus of the present invention is used in conjunction with a conveyor having mandrels for receiving and supporting the eviscerated poultry carcass in the proper position for the removal of the tenders. A series of knives and plows partially separate the tender from the poultry carcass. The improved apparatus of the present invention employs fully automated gripping elements which are positioned so as to grip the partially severed tender and to remove the partially severed tender from the poultry carcass by tearing away the remaining connections. The gripper then releases the separated tender onto an auxiliary conveyor. The operation of the gripper mechanism depends on a timing sequence which is initiated by a trigger located on one or both grippers. The motions of the gripper are initiated by contact of the triggers with the shoulder bone of the poultry carcass.

Apparatus for removing tenders from a poultry carcass

The present invention relates to a device for lifting the skin and loading a poultry part into a skinning machine and, in particular, for loading a poultry breast fillet into a poultry breast fillet skinning machine. In the preferred embodiment, a pair of endless loop link chains travel around a path defined by respective pairs of vertically rotating sprocket wheels. The forward sprocket wheels are located at a slightly lower elevation than the rear sprocket wheels. Each of the links in the two link chains contains an outwardly projecting gripping finger. As the links pass over the sprocket wheels the gripping fingers tend to separate at their outer ends. As the links travel along the straight segments between the sprocket wheels, the gripping fingers tend to assume a more closely spaced relationship which pinches folds of skin on the poultry part. As the poultry part is carried into the mechanism, the slight rise in elevation toward the rear sprocket wheels causes the skin to be lifted up and away from the poultry part. The mechanism is thus able to initiate the skin separation process.

Loading device for poultry breast fillet skinner

A poultry breast fillet skinner includes a table, a lower conveyor supported on the table, an upper conveyor with means to allow the upper conveyor to be pressed down toward the lower conveyor so as to firmly grip the poultry breast fillet, and a wing disposed between the upper and lower conveyors which affects the separation of the skin from the poultry breast fillet. In the preferred embodiment the separation process is assisted by a pair of openings provided on the pointed ends of the projections of the wing. Pressurized air is expelled into natural pockets formed between the skin and the meat portion of the poultry breast fillet which assist in beginning the process of separating the skin from the meat portion of the poultry breast fillet.

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Russellville, AR, United States of America

Andrew C Estes