Abstract: De-headed and unshelled shrimp are automatically processed by apparatus including a feed station, an uncurling station, a cutting station, a flattening or spreader station, a cleaning station and a pair of endless conveyor belts which are supported on guides to form a generally V-shaped trough for receiving the shrimp and continuously moving it from the feed station and through the other stations. The uncurling station includes a plurality of leaf members which resiliently engage the underside of the shrimp as it passes thereunder and cause it to be uncurled to a substantially horizontally extended position prior to entering the cutting station. At the cutting station a rotating cutter blade cuts through the belly of the shrimp to the point at which the alimentary canal is located.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for processing a de-headed and unshelled shrimp including a conveyor for conveying the shrimp through the various stations of the apparatus, namely, an uncurling station, a cutter station, a spreader station and a cleaning station. The uncurling means at the uncurling station includes a pair of holding blocks adapted to provide a gripping action to the sides of the shrimp as they pass therebetween and a rotating brush member adapted to contact the underside and tail of a shrimp while the gripping action of the blocks is being applied thereto to thereby cause the shrimp to assume a substantially horizontally extended position. The next station is the cutter station which has a cutter means mounted thereat which is comprised of a rotating cutter blade mounted above the travel path of the shrimp for cutting through the belly of the shrimp to the point at which the alimentary canal is located.