Patents by Inventor Albert Hartmann

Albert Hartmann has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 12617573
    Abstract: In order to ensure that portions are visually appealing, i.e., centered, have uniform slice spacing in a longitudinal direction and do not differ too much in a transverse direction, and in particular do not rest on a sealing edge of a trough belt in its trough, the corresponding portion arrangement on a packaging element is, as is known, determined directly in a packaging machine from above by means of a camera and if a deviation from a target arrangement is too great, production parameters in upstream units of the packaging machine are adjusted, i.e., across a gap between a portioning belt and the packaging machine. According to the disclosure, the actual arrangement of the portion is determined from below the packaging element, in particular the trough, and through said the packaging element by means of radar radiation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2024
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2026
    Assignee: Multivac Sepp Haggenmüller Se & Co. KG
    Inventors: Albert Hartmann, Bernhard Klaus
  • Publication number: 20260097903
    Abstract: The disclosure relates to a product conveying device for food products, comprising a product conveyor unit which is designed to receive at least one food product on a receiving section thereof and to convey it substantially along a conveying direction from a product receiving side of the product conveying device to a product discharge side of the product conveying device, and a drive unit having a drive element rotatable about a drive axis. The drive element is operatively connected to a driven element of the product conveying unit and is arranged to drive the driven element in rotation about a driven axis thereof in order to move the receiving section of the product conveyor unit in or against the conveying direction, wherein the drive axis of the drive element is substantially parallel, preferably coaxial, to the driven axis of the driven element.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 3, 2025
    Publication date: April 9, 2026
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMÜLLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventors: Matthias ROTTMAR, Albert HARTMANN
  • Publication number: 20260027744
    Abstract: A method for diagnosing an operational malfunction in a slicing machine comprises: displaying, using a display device of a user interface of the slicing machine, an operational malfunction area selection view, which includes multiple possible operational malfunction areas for the malfunction and a prompt to select at least one operational malfunction area, selecting, using an input device of the user interface, the at least one operational malfunction area, displaying, using the display device, an operational malfunction type selection view, which includes multiple possible operational malfunction types for the malfunction and a prompt to select at least one operational malfunction type from the multiple possible operational malfunction types, and selecting, using the input device, the at least one operational malfunction type, and displaying, using the display device, at least one operational malfunction resolution suggestion based on the at least one operational malfunction area and/or the at least one oper
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 25, 2025
    Publication date: January 29, 2026
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMÜLLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventors: Julian RIEBLINGER, Tom STACHEL, Albert HARTMANN, Markus WÄGELE, Mario GERBER
  • Publication number: 20250222614
    Abstract: A slicing machine for slicing foods comprises a feed unit adapted to feed a product caliber along a feed direction and a cutting unit adapted to cut the product caliber into slices. The cutting unit comprises a blade and the cutting unit is configured to perform a run-out movement in order to make one or more blank cuts, during which the blade is moved along a direction substantially parallel to an axis of rotation of the blade from a slicing position to a blank cutting position in which, during a respective rotation of the blade about the axis of rotation, no slice is cut off from the product caliber. The feed unit is adapted, while the one or more blank cuts are being made, to move the product caliber away from the cutting unit against the feed direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 6, 2025
    Publication date: July 10, 2025
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMÜLLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventor: Albert HARTMANN
  • Patent number: 12311568
    Abstract: In order to prevent a slice from being separated from each log during the last cut in the case of multiple portions produced in parallel, that is to say there is no unproductive cut in the last cut, as is required, for example, in EP 2942165 B1, the basic idea is to already provide an unproductive cut for at least one log during the first cut for the simultaneously produced portions, wherein a distinction must be made in the following procedure whether or not separately controllable portioning belts are present per lane and whether the portion lengths should be the same or not despite different numbers of slices.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2024
    Date of Patent: May 27, 2025
    Assignee: MULTIVAC Sepp Haggenmüller SE & Co. KG
    Inventors: Tobias Enderle, Albert Hartmann
  • Publication number: 20250073938
    Abstract: A slicing machine, in particular a slicer, for slicing at least one product caliber into slices and for producing portions from the slices, comprises a cutting unit with a blade for cutting slices from the at least one product caliber, a feed unit for feeding the at least one product caliber to the cutting unit along a feed direction, and a control unit. The slicing machine further comprises a measuring device which is in signal connection with the control unit and is adapted to measure at least one dimension of the at least one product caliber in a height direction of the at least one product caliber in order to determine a first cut length, in particular automatically.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 5, 2024
    Publication date: March 6, 2025
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMÜLLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventors: Klaus BERNHARD, Albert HARTMANN
  • Publication number: 20250011025
    Abstract: In order to ensure that portions are visually appealing, i.e., centered, have uniform slice spacing in a longitudinal direction and do not differ too much in a transverse direction, and in particular do not rest on a sealing edge of a trough belt in its trough, the corresponding portion arrangement on a packaging element is, as is known, determined directly in a packaging machine from above by means of a camera and if a deviation from a target arrangement is too great, production parameters in upstream units of the packaging machine are adjusted, i.e., across a gap between a portioning belt and the packaging machine. According to the disclosure, the actual arrangement of the portion is determined from below the packaging element, in particular the trough, and through said the packaging element by means of radar radiation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 7, 2024
    Publication date: January 9, 2025
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMÜLLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventors: Albert HARTMANN, Bernhard KLAUS
  • Patent number: 12122615
    Abstract: In order to keep the overall length of an insertion feed unit small despite high variability, a vertical paternoster buffer is used as a buffer therein.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2022
    Date of Patent: October 22, 2024
    Assignee: MULTIVAC Sepp Haggenmueller SE & Co. KG
    Inventor: Albert Hartmann
  • Publication number: 20240335970
    Abstract: In order to prevent a slice from being separated from each log during the last cut in the case of multiple portions produced in parallel, that is to say there is no unproductive cut in the last cut, as is required, for example, in EP 2942165 B1, the basic idea is to already provide an unproductive cut for at least one log during the first cut for the simultaneously produced portions, wherein a distinction must be made in the following procedure whether or not separately controllable portioning belts are present per lane and whether the portion lengths should be the same or not despite different numbers of slices.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 4, 2024
    Publication date: October 10, 2024
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMÜLLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventors: Tobias ENDERLE, Albert HARTMANN
  • Patent number: 12053899
    Abstract: In order to reliably avoid collisions between components of a slicing machine, in particular between a blade and another component, a control run is carried out before the start of a slicing operation, during which the respective component that has a risk of collision or the respective counter-component is brought into a position closest to the other component and tested to see whether a collision occurs.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2022
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2024
    Assignee: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMUELLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventors: Dominik Marx, Timo Greeb, Christian Dersch, Albert Hartmann
  • Patent number: 11911925
    Abstract: A method is provided for automatically adjusting a cutting gap of a slicing machine for slicing strand-shaped product calibers from a food product into slices, wherein the slicing machine includes a blade motor for driving a blade about a blade axis, wherein the blade has a peripheral cutting edge which defines a blade plane, and a cutting frame with a counter edge for cooperation with the cutting edge. Under control by a controller and without contact of the blade to the food product to be cut, the method comprises: a) moving the blade along the blade axis in an approach direction to approach the cutting frame until contact with the cutting frame, b) stopping the approach movement of the blade, and c) moving the blade back in a spacing direction by a distance corresponding to a desired size of the cutting gap, measured in a direction of the blade axis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: February 27, 2024
    Assignee: Multivac Sepp Haggenmueller SE & Co. KG
    Inventors: Albert Hartmann, Alexander Kast
  • Publication number: 20230390954
    Abstract: The invention relates to a blade, in particular a slicer blade, for a cutting unit of a slicing machine, in particular a slicer, for cutting slices from a product strand with a blade base body, which has a rotation axis that extends in an axial direction. According to the invention, the blade base body has a plurality of channel-shaped recesses with a direction of progression, the channel-shaped recesses having a predetermined depth in the axial direction, and the direction of progression of each of the channel-shaped recesses being at least partially in a non-radial direction with respect to the rotation axis of the blade base body. The invention further relates to a cutting unit with such a blade and to a slicing machine comprising the cutting unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 1, 2023
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMUELLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventor: Albert HARTMANN
  • Publication number: 20230001601
    Abstract: In order to reliably avoid collisions between components of a slicing machine, in particular between a blade and another component, a control run is carried out before the start of a slicing operation, during which the respective component that has a risk of collision or the respective counter-component is brought into a position closest to the other component and tested to see whether a collision occurs.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 30, 2022
    Publication date: January 5, 2023
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMUELLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventors: Dominik MARX, Timo GREEB, Christian DERSCH, Albert HARTMANN
  • Publication number: 20220411203
    Abstract: In order to keep the overall length of an insertion feed unit small despite high variability, a vertical paternoster buffer is used as a buffer therein.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 27, 2022
    Publication date: December 29, 2022
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMUELLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventor: Albert HARTMANN
  • Patent number: 11511450
    Abstract: In order to reliably detect, without supplying electric current or any other type of energy to a gripper, whether a rear end of a product caliber is in a grippable position close to a gripper base body and/or gripper claws are extended into the product caliber, i.e., are activated, a signal transmitter may be moved into an activated position via a purely mechanical operative connection between a sensing element, which detects the approach of the product caliber to the gripper base body in a contacting manner, which position can be detected by a sensor arranged far behind the gripper at a base frame of the machine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 15, 2021
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2022
    Assignee: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMUELLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventor: Albert Hartmann
  • Patent number: 11459724
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for producing a sealing base in the ground in which by injection of a curable grouting compound a plurality of sealing elements is produced in a first soil layer, which elements adjoin one another or overlap, wherein the plurality of sealing elements forms a solid base plate following curing of the grouting compound. It is provided according to the invention that in a second soil layer, which lies beneath the first soil layer for the solid base plate, a gel base is created by injection of a sealing gel, and that the solid base plate and the underlying gel base form the sealing base. The invention further relates to a correspondingly produced sealing base.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 4, 2022
    Assignee: BAUER Spezialtiefbau GmbH
    Inventors: Dominik Hartmann, Albert Hartmann
  • Publication number: 20220024064
    Abstract: In order to detect if and when a blade contacts a front surface of a cutting frame, a no-load torque of a blade motor or of the blade itself is measured when the blade approaches the cutting frame in an axial direction and checked for an increase.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 21, 2021
    Publication date: January 27, 2022
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMUELLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventors: Albert HARTMANN, Alexander KAST
  • Publication number: 20210323186
    Abstract: In order to reliably detect, without supplying electric current or any other type of energy to a gripper, whether a rear end of a product caliber is in a grippable position close to a gripper base body and/or gripper claws are extended into the product caliber, i.e., are activated, a signal transmitter may be moved into an activated position via a purely mechanical operative connection between a sensing element, which detects the approach of the product caliber to the gripper base body in a contacting manner, which position can be detected by a sensor arranged far behind the gripper at a base frame of the machine.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 15, 2021
    Publication date: October 21, 2021
    Applicant: MULTIVAC SEPP HAGGENMUELLER SE & CO. KG
    Inventor: Albert HARTMANN
  • Publication number: 20210214911
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for producing a sealing base in the ground in which by injection of a curable grouting compound a plurality of sealing elements is produced in a first soil layer, which elements adjoin one another or overlap, wherein the plurality of sealing elements forms a solid base plate following curing of the grouting compound. It is provided according to the invention that in a second soil layer, which lies beneath the first soil layer for the solid base plate, a gel base is created by injection of a sealing gel, and that the solid base plate and the underlying gel base form the sealing base. The invention further relates to a correspondingly produced sealing base.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 10, 2019
    Publication date: July 15, 2021
    Applicant: BAUER Spezialtiefbau GmbH
    Inventors: Dominik HARTMANN, Albert HARTMANN
  • Publication number: 20160250767
    Abstract: A slicer blade which cuts foodstuff slices from a foodstuff block. The slicer blade thereby rotating about its rotation axis. The main body of the slicer blade is at least partially, preferably entirely, made of a plastics material.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 15, 2014
    Publication date: September 1, 2016
    Inventor: Albert Hartmann