Abstract: A hub and belt assembly for driving a poultry de-feathering machine includes multiple bearing heat dissipating hub that includes bearing isolators or spacers associated with each of the drive shaft bearings. The bearing isolators trap vapors, including water and the like that may accumulate from operation of the hub and belt assembly, and prevent this vapor from contacting the bearings.

Abstract: This invention relates to a hub and belt assembly for driving a poultry de-feathering machine and more particularly to a multiple bearing heat dissipating hub driven by a serrated timing belt. The hub assembly incorporates seals along a drive shaft to reduce wear caused by dirt. The timing belt synchronizes multiple picking hubs and reduces the friction driving required. The combination of a heat dissipating hub and the placement of seals along the drive shaft within the hub minimize maintenance and replacement.

Abstract: The invention relates to a device for processing poultry carcasses or parts thereof, comprising a conveyor having supports for retaining the carcasses or parts thereof, which conveyor is provided with means for leading the supports in a supply direction past at least one processing installation. The device further comprises a skinner for skinning the carcasses or parts thereof, which skinner is provided with skin gripping means for gripping the skin and means for moving the skin gripping means relatively with respect to the carcass and substantially perpendicular to the supply direction during skinning.

Abstract: The invention is a method and apparatus for removing feathers from a carcass, and more specifically is a method and apparatus for removing feathers from the wing tips of poultry. The method and apparatus comprises at least one wing tip puller which further comprises upper and lower wing guides and a pinch roller adjacent said wing guides where the upper and lower wing guides are designed to receive a wing therebetween and the wing guide is further designed to laterally present the wing tip to the pinch roller.

Abstract: An apparatus for removing skin from a torso of an animal using a rotatable drum having a circumference. A gripper is positioned at a point on the circumference of the rotatable drum adapted to engage a portion of the skin causing the torso of the animal to rotate as the rotatable drum rotates. A sharp blade is positioned near the point on the circumference of the rotatable drum for cutting the skin from the animal. A dull blade is spaced a dull blade gap distance away from the circumference of the rotatable drum and a setback distance away from the sharp blade opposite from the gripper, the dull blade adapted to contact the skin of the animal as the animal rotates. An adjustment arm is coupled to the dull blade for controlling the dull blade gap distance. A controller is coupled to the adjustment arm for automatically adjusting dull blade gap distance in accordance with a predetermined profile for the dull blade gap distance which varies around the torso of the animal.

Abstract: A hand-held, motorized depilating device, introducing a novel mechanical design to provide improved depilating coverage and hair plucking efficiency, without requiring the user to pass the device over the same given skin, area numerous times. The hair-plucking assembly is rotatable about a shaft and includes at least two disc assemblies, each comprising a pair of complimentary discs, mounted on a hub, and having radially extending arms which terminate in a flattened peripheral portion, which when pressed against a corresponding portion forms a trap for the hair. At least one of the radially extending arms is bent so that the associated hair trap lies in a different predetermined plane than the other hair-traps associated with that disc assembly. This staggered arrangement results in improved depilating coverage.

Abstract: The invention is a method and apparatus for removing feathers from a carcass, and more specifically is a method and apparatus for removing feathers from the wing tips of poultry. The method and apparatus comprises at least one wing tip puller which further comprises upper and lower wing guides and a pinch roller adjacent said wing guides where the upper and lower wing guides are designed to receive a wing therebetween and the wing guide is further designed to laterally present the wing tip to the pinch roller.

Abstract: An apparatus for removing skin from a torso of an animal using a rotatable drum having a circumference. A gripper is positioned at a point on the circumference of the rotatable drum adapted to engage a portion of the skin causing the torso of the animal to rotate as the rotatable drum rotates. A sharp blade is positioned near the point on the circumference of the rotatable drum for cutting the skin from the animal. A dull blade is spaced a dull blade gap distance away from the circumference of the rotatable drum and a setback distance away from the sharp blade opposite from the gripper, the dull blade adapted to contact the skin of the animal as the animal rotates. An adjustment arm is coupled to the dull blade for controlling the dull blade gap distance. A controller is coupled to the adjustment arm for automatically adjusting dull blade gap distance in accordance with a predetermined profile for the dull blade gap distance which varies around the torso of the animal.

Abstract: The invention is directed to an appliance for the epilation of the human skin, having a housing to accommodate a motor and a drive mechanism for driving at least one clamping device (43) by which the user's hairs can be extracted. Moreover, a stimulus mechanism is to reduce the sense of pain during epilation. This mechanism includes at least one element (55) that is movable toward and away from the skin when the appliance is placed in epilating position on the user's skin. According to certain embodiments of the present invention, the at least one element (55) has a free end (56) and is arranged adjacent to the side of the rotary clamping device (43). In consequence, the user perceives at least subjectively a reduced sense of pain during epilation. Still further, a method for epilation and a method for the use of the appliance of the present invention are described.

Abstract: This invention relates to a hub and belt assembly for driving a poultry de-feathering machine and more particularly to a multiple bearing heat dissipating hub driven by a serrated timing belt. The hub assembly incorporates seals along a drive shaft to reduce wear caused by dirt. The timing belt synchronizes multiple picking hubs and reduces the friction driving required. The combination of a heat dissipating hub and the placement of seals along the drive shaft within the hub minimize maintenance and replacement.

Abstract: The invention relates to a device for processing poultry carcasses or parts thereof, comprising a conveyor having supports for retaining the carcasses or parts thereof, which conveyor is provided with means for leading the supports in a supply direction past at least one processing installation. The device further comprises a skinner for skinning the carcasses or parts thereof, which skinner is provided with skin gripping means for gripping the skin and means for moving the skin gripping means relatively with respect to the carcass and substantially perpendicular to the supply direction during skinning.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for removing a pin bone or pin bones from a fillet of fish. The apparatus of the present invention uses a rotating stack of individual disks that are engaged by a shaft, oscillate axially and are timed to alternately tilt in a rapid fashion so as to effect the action of multiple pairs of tweezers. The pin bone is disposed between a pair of tweezer or two adjacent rotating disks and pulled out of the fillet by the rotating disks. The rotating stack of individual disks operates at different speeds in an operation circle to enhance the operational efficiency.

Abstract: A hand-held epilating device capable of increasing plucking efficiency. The epilating device has a housing to be grasped by a hand of a user, and a plucking cylinder carrying at least one set of pinching elements for catching and pinching body hairs therebetween. The plucking cylinder has a longitudinal axis and is driven to rotate about the longitudinal axis to pluck the body hairs from the user's skin. The plucking cylinder is supported to the housing so as to effect a periodical movement relative to the housing within a plane parallel to the longitudinal axis. Thus, the area of the skin covered by the plucking cylinder can have increased chances of being in contact with the pinching elements as the pinching elements move periodically relative to the skin together with the plucking cylinder, thereby improving the plucking efficiency.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for removing pin bones from a fillet of fish. The apparatus of the present invention uses a plurality of spring-tempered sheet metal disks that each has a periphery that can be either non-linear or linear. The disks are assembled to form a stack of the disks aligned so that the peripheries form at least one "pinch-point," in which the periphery of two disks contact each other, to grip a pin bone. The stack of the disks is rotated and moved over the fillet. The pill bone is disposed between two adjacent rotating disks. As the gap between the disks closes to the pinch-point, the pin bone becomes wedged and is plucked out of the fillet as the wedged pin bone is pulled by the rotating disks.

Abstract: In accordance with this invention, there is provided apparatus for removing pin bones from fish fillets, the apparatus having a rotatable bone pulling cylinder and a puller plate defining a pin bone receiving space between the bone pulling cylinder and puller plate. The bone pulling cylinder has a cylindrical surface which is adapted to snag pin bones extending from a fish fillet disposed adjacent to the bone pulling cylinder and puller plate, and the puller plate has a forward portion profiled to have a radius of curvature which is commensurate with the radius of curvature of the cylindrical surface of the bone pulling cylinder.

Abstract: The invention is directed to a rotary cylinder (7) for an epilating appliance comprising several pairs of clamping members (8) arranged in an angularly offset relation to each other, and actuating members (22) serving to move the clamping members (8) in pairs into, and subsequently out of, relative clamping engagement in the area of a plucking zone of the epilating appliance. Further, at least one control member is provided for controlling the actuating members (22). According to the invention, each pair of clamping members (8) has associated to it a separate, individually movable actuating member (22).

Abstract: The invention relates to a device for removing fish bones from hist meat, or quills from killed poultry, comprising a cylinder provided with gripping means shaped as holes, a counter pressure element for achieving a squeezing function between the counter pressure element and the cylinder. The cylinder is mounted axially on the driving shaft for driving the cylinder. The cylinder is uncovered, i.e., it is not contained in any apparatus housing. The counter pressure element is designed with a lip, bearing against the rotatably driven element 22, at least by means of an edge. The invention further relates to a cylinder for a device of the above described type, which is provided with a plurality of recesses running across its envelope surface, substantially in its longitudinal direction. The recesses have at least one sharp edge formed along the joining line between the envelope surface and the inner surface of the recess. The invention also relates to a device incorporating the improved cylinder.

Abstract: A depilation apparatus having a number of disc-shaped pinching plates (19) provided on a drive shaft (7) and a number of thrust cogs (41) provided on an auxiliary shaft (21), by means of which cogs the pinching plates are each tiltable about a first and a second tilting axis (81, 91) from a catching position into a pinching position in which the relevant pinching plate (19) exerts a pinching force on an adjacent pinching plate (19) tilted into the pinching position. Each pair of pinching plates positioned next to one another (19a, 19b), (19b, 19c), (19c, 19a) has a unique thrust cog (41a, 41b, 41c), so that each pinching plate (19) is in cooperation with each of its two adjacent pinching plates (19) and the hair catching range of the pinching plates (19) extends over the entire depilation opening (3). The thrust cogs (41a, 41b, 41c) are provided on the auxiliary shaft (21) at mutual angles of 120.degree.

Abstract: A depilatory device for removing body hair, includes a pair of jaws adapted to sequentially traverse an opening in the housing when the hair-plucker body is driven by an electrical motor. The jaws of each pair are normally spaced apart in an open condition to receive a hair between them, but are movable towards each other to a closed condition to clamp the hair received between them. Camming elements carried by the housing move the pairs of jaws to their closed and open conditions as they sequentially traverse the housing opening.

Abstract: The invention relates to a depilation apparatus, in which a driving roller (3) and a drive roller (4) are provided with tooth means (5, 6) and form a roller pair, the rollers performing a rotary movement which is directed into the interior of the apparatus at the location where they interengage circumferentially. The driven roller (4) of each roller pair has teeth (5) along its entire circumference but the driving roller (3) has teeth only along part of its circumference, so that the rollers intermesh only during part of a revolution of the driving roller.

Abstract: A depilation apparatus is provided which comprises at least one pair of depilation rollers (3, 4; 5, 6) arranged at the location of an opening (2) in the apparatus for access to their circumferential surfaces, which rollers are rotatably supported, which are rotatable in opposite directions, and which cooperate circumferentially with one another, the depilation rollers being supported to project freely with one of their end portions and the opening in the apparatus at least partly exposing the freely projecting end portions of the depilation rollers.

Abstract: This invention relates to a hub and belt assembly for driving a poultry de-feathering machine and more particularly to a multiple bearing heat dissipating hub driven by a serrated timing belt. The hub assembly incorporates seals along a drive shaft to reduce wear caused by dirt. The timing belt synchronizes multiple picking hubs and reduces the friction driving required. The combination of a heat dissipating hub and the placement of seals along the drive shaft within the hub minimize maintenance and replacement.