CA1058953A - Apparatus and method for cutting stuffed sausage casing - Google Patents

Abstract

APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR
CUTTING STUFFED SAUSAGE CASING
ABSTRACT
An apparatus and method for cutting stuffed sausage casing into individual lengths in the area of a linkage is described. Chilled casing which is stuffed with sausage meat and linked at predetermined points is guided through the apparatus, a forked blade is positioned over a first linkage and the casing is advanced towards a cutting zone. The forked blade is pivotally mounted on a carriage assembly which is slidably moveable along the direction of the chilled casing.
The casing is cut in the area of the linkage by cooperation of a cutting blade with the forked blade in the cutting zone. The carriage assembly is then withdrawn from the cutting zone and the forked blade pivoted forward and upward out of the way of the casing. The forked blade is drawn over the surface of the casing until a second linkage is contacted.

Description

~)5~g53 Tllis illV~`nt:iOIl r~LI~tes to the procluc~ion of skinless frcsh ancl frc~ tro~en iausage. More partic~ rly, it relates to an app.lr;ltus alld n~etllod ror producing frcsh skinless sausage whereby 3 cellulos. C;lSillg iS stur~od with sausagc Illeat, the casing twist~
in~ed at poillCs alollg its lengtll to produc~ a serLes oE individual ~ ;
sausage lell~-t1ls allc~ the c~l~in~ subs~cluel~tLy removecl from the formed sausage atter coagullt-ing a protein slcin on tlle surface of the meat mi~cur~ illside tll~ celLulose casing.
This application is particularly concerned with an apparatus ancl methocl Eor CUtCillg the cas-ings at the twist between ~ ;
the links after a chilling stage and inmlediately prior to removal of the cellulose casing from the individual sausage. It is presently known in the art how to produce skinless sausages by stuffing a '~ sausage meat mixture into a cellulose casing and separating the meat into individual lengths along the casing by twist-linking the casing at various points depending on the length of the sausage ~ -desired. Such stuffed and twist-linked lengths of casing are then ~ ~
~; ` immersed in a solution of over 2% food grade acid ~o coagulate the ; ~ -pro'tein on the sausage surface forming a skin and provide a firm ; 20 sausage structure when the casing is eventually re~oved. This ! ' :, length of stuffèd and twist-linked casing is then passed through a ~;1 brine solution, the solution being from 2 F to 15 F after washing free of the acid residue where the twist-linked sausage is cooled to the temperature'where the sausage is rigid. The chilled, linked ;
j sausage is removed from the brine bath after a suitable cooling time, `~
, usually~5 minutes or more. The surface of the linked sausage is Jl, washed with warm water to defrost the casing to assist in the easy ' removal of the casing from the sausage meat. The stuffed and twist-linked strand of sausage is then fed into a cutting apparatus whereby the casing is cut between lndividual sausage lengths at the point of twist-linking and the sausage is passed on to a stripping device whereby the casing is removed and the skinless sausage is passed on to the packing operation. -~

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1~515 953 T11e a1plicant ha9 ~ound a novel met11od and apparntus for cuttlng the st--~fe(1, twl-31:-LL1lked ~tra1lc1s of sau&agc into ~ ;~
indlvid~ l llnk~ whic11 con-;titl1tc an improvc111ent over the cuttlng devices prose1ltly known in tlle art. Since thc twist-linked casing must be fed into the cutting apparatus at a fairly rapid rate in order to sati~fy con~11crci.ll operations it must be appreciated ;~
thac any appara~l1s designcd ~or this purpose must provide a quick, positive cut 1t the dcsired point alon~ the length and at the same time pcrmit u1linterruptcd flow of the casing along its feed path -latO the CUtti11g and pccling apparatus.
; 10 While various attempts have been mnde in the prior art to provide a commercially practicable cutting apparatus in the ; ;;
production of fresh skinless sausa~e which would meet this criterion, they rrequently call for a relatively expensive and complicated design which is subject to jamming. One such apparatus is described in Canadian Patent No. 777,084 of William Allen et al wheréin a cutting apparatus is described whereby the stuffed casings are cut by the interaction of cooperating cutting knives mounted on cams.
When there is even slight stretching of the carrier chains due to '':' ' ~ , , ". ~ " ......
temperature changes or mechanical stress, jamming of the apparatus occurs o'r cutting of the sausage links is màde at the wrong point, herebyidestroying the sausages. ; -~
In the applicant's copending Canadian application Serial -No. 229,986 filed June 24, 1975, an apparatus and method is described - :whereby a pair of cooperating blades are lifted out of the path of ~ an advancing length of chilled casing stuffed with sausage meat and ii llnked to define individual sausage lengths, by the pivoting of the ~i' blades upwardly and outwardly by the advancing casing itself. The s cooperating blades are returned into the path of the oncoming ~ stuffed casing in an area defined by ~he linkage between individual ;i .:
sausage lengths and cut the casing by means of the cooperating blades ; which continue the forward advancement of the individually cut ;; ~
, sausage lengths. ~ -:.~

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'l`lle l)rescnt apparat-1S alld metllod arc clirected to improvemcnts whereby tl~e caslng is advanced towards a cutting ~one by means of a forwarclly moving forked blade posit-loned over a linkage on tl~e casing and then cutting tlle caslng in the area of the linkage by the cooperation of a cuttinjg blade in the cutting ~. . :, ~
~one with the forked blade. Advancement of the length of casing -` throu~h the apparatus is controlled by tlle forwardly moving forked blade rather than by a separately operated conveyor guide system.
This provides a more controlled sequence of operations and yields ~ greater accuracy in cutting on the linkage area over long production --` 10 runs.
It is one aspect of this invention to provide a new and ~ - `
~ improved apparatus for cutting linked stuffed sausage casing in the i -1 area of the casing linkage. ~-It is another aspect of this invention to provlde a new and improved method for cutting linked stuffed sausage casing in '1 the area of the casing linkage.
The present invention therefore provides an apparatus fo-r cutting linked stuffed sausage casing into individual lengths in the area of a linkage which apparatus comprises~
a. A passage for guiding a chilled casing to a;cutting ~, zone in said apparatus, said chilled casing being stuffed with sausage meat and linked at predetermined points along~its length to define individual sausage lengths ~ -therebetween;
b. A rail guide positioned above said passage and lateral ! therewith;
l ~`. `, c. A carriage assembly mounted on said rail guide and ~ -~
slidably moveable thereon along the direction of said ;

passage said carriage assembly including a forked blad~
~-, 30 tangentially pivoted thereon with respect to said passage. `

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~0~8953 , d. ~le;~ r a~va~ sai(l carriage assembly along said raiL guide towllrds sa:i~l cuttlng zone, said forked blade ., - bcin~ positiollccl .Ln tllc patl~ saicl cililled caslng wl~cn s.l:icl b:l.a(le i~ p:ivoted o~l thc~ fully downward posltion .~ , whcr~by s~lkl lorl~ed blade may be wedged over a linkage '- ;
~ on ~.I:id cllillod C.lSillg ancl p~l:L said casing towards said cutti.ng zone wllen said carriagc assenbly advances towards . " .- ~.
said cutting zone;
e. Means ~or withdrawing said carri.age assembly from said .'~
.: cutting zone, said Eorked blade being pivoted Eorward ` .
;- 10 and upward out of the way of said casing when said `, ' casing assembly is so withdrawn;
'. : f~ A cutting blade in said cutting zone and means for raising '.' :
',~ said cutting blade to cooperate with said forked blade ;.
;ll when said carriage assembly is in said cutting zone to ': thereby cut said chilled casing in the area of said linkage.
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,~ : The present invention also provides a method for cutting .,~ linked stuffed sausage casing into iadividual lengths in the area ,.. :. ,.~:
of a linkage, which method comprises~
a. guiding a chilled casing along a passage towards a cutting .`~
.l; 20 zone, said chilled casing being stuffed with sausage meat aDd linked st predetermined points along its length to ,"
define individual sausage lengths therebetween; ':, ~:
b. positioning a forkèd blade over a first linkage~on~said' ,' chilled casing and advancing said chilled casing towards ; said cutting zone by means of said Eorked blade, said I forked blade belng pivotally mounted on a carriage assembly ,~
-,~ slidably moYeable along the direction of said chilled casing; : .,.
."; c~ cutting said chilled casing in the area of said linkage , .,~
~~ by the cooperation of a cutting blade with said ,forked "~ 30 blade in said cutting zone;
',' d. withdrawing said carrlage assembly Erom said cutting ... ~, , : :
zone and pivoting said forked blade forward and upwards :
,; out of ~he way of said chilled casing and drawing said , ' 4 ,.:~ :
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~5~ 3 fork~ul bLadc ovo~ c sllrfacc Or saL(I casing until a scc(~ llcagc is ~ontnc~cd by sald forked bLade.
lll tll~ dr;lwillgs:
I:igure 1 is a g~llcral perspective view of the cutting appar;lcus of tllc prese(lL illvell~ion;
Figure 2 is a cut-away elevati.ln sllowing the carria~e axsembly in tl~e cut~ing ~one and clot~ed Line illustrative of the carria~e assembly in the intermediate po~ ion;
Figure 3 is a cut-away illustration sllowing the carriage assen~bly in the withdrawn position; `
Figure 4 is a view along line 4-4 oE Figure 2 particularly : ~ .
; illustrating the gripping plates, forked blade and blade, skirt, ' and Figure 5 is a view along line 5-5 of Figure 2 particularly . . . -.
illustrating the gripping plates, pivot pins and forked blade in `

relation to the stuffed casing.
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The apparatus shown generally as 1 in Figure 1 includes a support frame 2 which is mounted on rail guide 3 and a pneumatic support system 4 which includes a pneumatic cylinder 4a shown in `~

broken lines for purposes of illustration. A trough 5 is located :

20 through the apparatus for directing a length of stuffed casing (no~
. ; , sho~n) periodically linked along its length from the inlet end 5a ;~ ~ to the outlet end 5b.

-. A set of gripping plates 6 which are spring mounted by : -.
means Of pivot pins 7a and 7b to move away from each other when the stuffed casing is moving forward towards outlet end 5b to .
permit freedom of travel for the advancing casing. Should the -! casing tend to draw back towards inlet end Sa the gripping plates - will move towards each other to gently hold the casing in position.

The gripper plates 6 are biased to a closed position by the sausage casing and gripper bias spring 8. A hold down tongue 9 is spring ~ ' ~ :.'.
:j;' ' :'~'' ~ 5 ,' ~.

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~ i8~5~3 biased dowllw.lr(lly by m~;lns o~ sprlllg 10. The i~old down tongue 9 is permitt~d Lo rLsc and drop in alld out of the depressions on the sausage casillg c~ sed by tllc rcspective linkages by means of the ,,' free motion o~ lost ~notlon slot 11.
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carri~lge ass~mbLy 12 is mounted on guide rails 3a~ 3b, "'~
~- and 3c being shown in broken construction to more clearly illustrate '~ the features of tl~e apparatus. In Figure 2 the carrlage assembly :' 'l 12 is shown in thc -intermediate positlo~ along the guide rails in the dotted line conEiguration. A stuffed casing 13 having , periodic linkages 14 is shown positioned in trough 5. The positioning ,; 10 of the carriage assembly 12 along guide rails 3 is controlled by ~ pneumatic cylinder 4a by means of pneumatic piston 15.
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,~ Carriage assembly ]2 includes a forked blade 16 which is ~,, pivotally connected to assembly 12 by pivot pin 17. In the position .. :: ~
of the carriage shown in Figure 1 the carriage is at the end of its ~`
forward travel and a~cutting opPration has been completed. An '~ -operating sequence can mo,st easily be described by beginning at ''~
that point. A cyllnder operating switch 18`is activated by the ` ,~
upward~travel of cutting blade 19 in a'manner to be explai~ed below ;''`
or by starting the apparatus manually to commence operatiions.
Activation of switch 18 causes the pneumatic cylinder 4a to~draw~ "~
piston~l5 towards the~cylinder and thereby draw the carriage assembly ' ';;
12 towards the inlet end~oE the apparatus or left hand side as shown in the drawings. As carriage assembly 12 moves to the left it activates travel control switch 20. As the carriage assembly 12 is drawn towards the left forked blade 16 is pushed forward and upward by the stuf`fed - ~
casing and pivoted on the assembly 12 4y means of pivot pin 17. -~ ;
The direction of pivoting is;illustrated in~the dotted`line illustration '~of assembly 12 in Fi'gure 2 and indicated by the arrow. As the ; .,, ; assembly 12 is drawn to the left past switch 20 in the pivoted ~ 30 position it will depress~switch 20 which causes the speed of travel '~
'', of assembly 12 to be slowed considerably. This slowing down is done ij - :~
,i to,permit the forked blade 16 to more easily detect a depression -~
, cau8ed by a linkage 14, '~
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~589~ii3 1 :
, W~ . Lillk;~ e(t.~ rorl<e~ bladc l~ drops into positio~ Oll Lllc lillk~"~,c by tllc l~o~(:c Or carri.lge assembLy spring 21. A ~nml~ t- 22 Oll a.~s~ Ly L~ :i9 tiLted forward by the downward dropping of [orkcd bLade 16 and closes of~ pneumatic ;~
cylinder switcll 23~ The cLo~ing of this SWitCil by the cam plate 22 ~ ;~
is best scen in Figure 3 wllere the switch is sllown in broken lines.
en switcl~ 23 is closed pneumatic cylinder 4a pushes piston 15 ~ ;~
for~Jard again to advance the carriage assembly 12 to the right in the direction of the arrow shown in F-igure 3. As the carriage ~ -assembly 12 advances, tlle ~orked blade 16 wllich is wedged with link~age 14 pulls the length of stuffed casing along with it. It might be noted that unlike some sausage cutting apparatus of the prior~art the present apparatus does not provide a separate mechanical , means for advancing the length o stuffed casing. The casing is advanced by being pulled along periodically by the advancing carriage `
assembly 12.
~ ~ ~ ; Should the length of stuffed casing tend to draw itself i~ ~ back towards the left or inlet end of the apparatus due to the ,. ~:
force of ltS own welght or other causes when it is not being held `j~ by forked blade 16, the gripping plates 6 will tend to draw together 20-~ to gently ~rip the casing and hold it in position. As can be seen ln Figure 1, gripping plates 6 are slightly levelled at the forward end beyond the directional arrows to provide a more restricted ~ ~passage for the casing. The gentle spring action on pivot plns - ~ 7a and 7b still permit free forward movement of the casing when it i is being pulled forward by the carriage assembly 12 but the notched -: .,: ..
walls 6a of the gripping plates 6 tend to draw the~plates together , when the casing is moved towards the inlet end of the apparatu3.
'.1 Returning to the description with particular reference to ,~
Figs. 2 and 3, it can be noted that as the carriage assembly 12 ;
advances to the right from the position shown in Fig. 3 it travels ' to the end of guide rails 3a and 3b until it reaches the position ~"' ~ :,.... .
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~L'ff3f~f6~ff~35~f shown in soli~f~ I il10.~ i~l l''i~ . '~. 'I'lle forlc~d b1.~dc pulls the length of sa~lsage c;lsil~ lo~ wi~ll iL lln~ii. wllcn tl~c carr-iagfe assembly 12 is ~ .
at the rorw.lrd ri~l\c l~uld po~ , tlle [orkecl b'Lade 16 has pu'lled the '~
casing ulltil linl;a~c 1~ osirioned oll Ille cutting zone 24. Wl'len carriage ~sr~ml)ly '1~ rcacllc~f tlle rlgllc lland cnd of the guide rails 3a --~
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and 3b it activntes cutting switcll 25 which operates blade pneumatic - cylinder 26 ~nd causes the cylinder to advance blade piston 27. The ' , '~ advancement of piston 27 raises cutting blade 19 into the cutting zone '; 24 where it cooperates with Eorked blade '16 to cut the casing in the ~ ~
area of linkage 14. fi~len blade 19 reaches its cutting position, blade ' - ' piston 27 impurges on air cylinder operating switch 18 which signals~
for the withdrawal of carriage assembly 12 to the left hand side. As :, , ` carriage assembly 12 moves'to the left it releases switch 25 which '~ -csuses cutting blade 19 to drop back down out of the cutting zone. It 1~ ; must be pointed out that when carriage assembly 12 enters the cutting '~
`f zone, slotted plate 31 of cam plate assembly 22 impurges on stop plate 32 `-,f~ ~ thereby moving cam plate assembly backwards to open switch 23 as shown in Fig. 1. If switch 23 is~not opened the carriage assembly 22 will not be able to move backward when switch 18 :Ls activated. The sausage 'f I , , :, ~ casing to the rightof the cutting area is now a single sausage length Btill enveloped in its cas'ing. This sausage length is then discharged from the outlet end 5b of the apparatus where the casing is re;noved and the sausage length handl6d in a manner well known'in~the art and not'of concern for the purpose of describing'the present apparAtU6.
As;the carrlage assembly 12 moves to the left, the forked ~ blade 16 is pivoted~upward and away from the stuffed sausage casing ''~ by the presAnce of the casing itsAlf. The blade gAntly rests on j the upper surface of the casing a6 it is drawn towards the position ;,-shown in broken lines in Fig. 2. In order to avoid the danger of 30 damaging the casing when the forked bIade 16 is drawn back over it, the carriage assembly 12 is equipped with a blade sklrt 28 which -~
is shown in Fig. l and in broken lines in Fig. 4. Blade skirt 28 ., . .: .
is a plastic serip that i6 fixed to carriage assembly 12 at its upper ; ~ ' , end and runs longitudinally along forked blade 16 on the side which ' 1;

' rests on the upper surface of the casing. When blade 16 is in the downward position on a linkage area of the casing the leading edge29 ..... . , . ~
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~58~53 ,.
~L b~ld~ ~hil~ .'X .~ d~ low ~lle ~orked blacle so ~hClL as the ~arri.l~ .ls~ml~lY l> travcl~ to th~ lcft and the bLade 16 rid~:s over ~he stuf.e~ g, Lll~` b ~adc sklrt 28 contact6 the casing instead of the fork~d bla~c L6. In Fig. 4, tile forked blade is shown in tront view with tl~c blade slcirt 28 illustrated in broken lines.
~hen th~ blade is in tllo clownward position over a linkage in the ~:asing, the leading edge 29 i5 just sliKIl~ly below tile base of the ork ~ormation. Wllen the bLade is plvoted, the blade skirt 28 extends to the tips of the ~orked bklcle as indicated by the brokcn i line~. Fig. ~i als( ~hows tllC cam pLntc asscmbly 22 wll-icll Ls geared ; 10 to support bracket 30 for mountlllg swltcll 23. Cam plate assembly 22 includes a slotted plate 31 (Fig. 1) to allow an area of free play in the pivoting of the forked blade 16 before the cam assembly is moved up to cut off switch 23.
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In Fig. S the operation of gripping pla~es is particularly '~
illustrated. In the drawing, stuffed casing 13 is shown as travelling in the direction towards us. When forked blade 16 is in the downward position in a linkage and pulling the length of casing forward, the gripping plates 6 are opened and their inner walls are in the position illustrated by the broken lines. The 20 ; trough 5 is shown in simplified form since at this point the length ' casing is guided by the gripping plates, like forked blade and the hold down tongue (Fig. 1). When the forked blade is pivoted upward and outward as illustrated in Figo 5, the leading edge 29 of blade skirt 28 extends down to the tips of the fork points.
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Since it is important that the length of casing be held ~ during this stage, the walls of the gripping plates 6 come together ! by the action of pivot pins 7b to connect with the surface of the , ~ , .
casing, as shown ln the solid line for the gripping plate walls ~ ~
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in the drawing.
f 30 Considering now the operation of the apparatus for cutting(a length) of stuffed casing into individual lengths of sausage, a length of stuffed casing i5 passed into the apparatus at the trough :
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iL~5B~S3 inLet el~d '~ r~ bril~ k. ~ e ~itu?;led cusLIl~; has been twist-~ ked periocli~ LIy alollg its lell~tll ~o (Ic~ine Lndividual SauRage len~tll~; bctweell the link;ll~es. Tn order to start the operation the ` lellgtll of~ cas in~ mllsl: be fcd tllrougll trou~h 5 to a polnt where the leadin~ end of tlle casin~- extellcls to th~! CUtti~lg ~one and the carriage as~3ent~sly e~;tellcls to the right as sllown in Fig. I with the forked blade 16 positionecl immediate~Ly allead of tlle casing. When the apparatus is ~witched on, tlle cylLndcr 4a draws carrlage assembly 12 to the left.
As the carriage assembly draws back, the i~orked blade 16 is pivoted upwardly and outwardly ou~ ol~ the way oE the stuEfed casing 13 and rides on top of the casing as shown in the broken line illustration of the carriage assembly in Fig. 2. When the forked blade 16 is in , the overriding position, the blade skirt 28 extends down below the ~
blade points to protect the surface of the casing in a manner as - ?
illustrated in Fig. 4. While the carriage assembly 12 is drawing back to the left, the leng~h of stuffed casing 13 is held in place by ehe coming together of gripping plates 6 in the manner previously ~ -~
described.
When the carriage assembly proceeds to the left after having ;~ 20 been slowed down by the action of travel control switch 20, the forked blade 16 eventually reaches another linkage in the casing.
' ~ The blade is pivoted down into position on the Iinkage in the manner shown in Fig. 3 and in this position- blade skirt 28 is left out of the way of the edge6~0f forked bl~ade 16. As the blade pivots forward, ;;
pneumatic cylinder switch 23 is activated by means of cam plate assembly 22 which sequels the carriage assembly to move forward to the right and brlng the linkage into the CUttiDg zone. When carriage ~ -~,;; , , .
assembly 23 reaches the cutting zone it impurges upon and activates cutting switch 25 which causes cutting~ blade 19 to rise and cooperate with forked blade i6 to cut the casing at the linkage.
When cutting blade l9 is in the raised position it activates :~ switch 20 which in turn sequels pneumatic cylinder 4a to withdraw carriage assembly 12 to the lef t . As the carriage assembly moves to .J;,' ~ ' ' ' ' .
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the :Lel~ iL rul~ u~s ~iwi~ u cnu:i~ Lbc cllttil~ b~acle 19 to drop downw;lrds out ol tlle Clltti~ .one. ~i the carriage assembly 12 is withdrawll, loll;ed bLnde L() i~i p:i.votcd upw.lrclly and outwardly out oi :
the way of tlle casillg. The series of steps may be repeated throughout the lengtll o~ th~ casing as tlle secluence of steps is determined by the location of a l-inkage ln the casing durin~ the leftward travel of the carriage assembly. -~
The cut sausage length o~ stuEred casing is discharged through the outlet end Sb of the apparatus where it may be sprayed with warm :~
water to partially defrost the casing and then passed to a means for stuffing the casingfrom~he sausage length.
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Claims (4)

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined as follows:

1. An apparatus for cutting linked stuffed sausage casing into individual lengths in the area of a linkage, which apparatus comprises:
a) a passage for guiding a chilled casing to a cutting zone in said apparatus, said chilled casing being stuffed with sausage meat and linked at predetermined points along its length to define individual sausage lengths therebetween;
b) a rail guide positioned above said passage and lateral therewith;
c) a carriage assembly mounted on said rail guide and slidably moveable thereon along the direction of said passage, said carriage assembly including a forked blade tangentially pivoted thereon with respect to said passage.
d) means for advancing said carriage assembly along said rail guide towards said cutting zone, said forked blade being positioned in the path of said chilled casing when said blade is pivoted in the fully downward position whereby said forked blade may be wedged over a linkage on said chilled casing and pull said casing towards said cutting zone when said carriage assembly advances towards said cutting zone;
e) means for withdrawing said carriage assembly from said cutting zone, said forked blade being pivoted forward and upward out of the way of said casing when said casing assembly is so withdrawn;
f) a cutting blade in said cutting zone and means for raising said cutting blade to cooperate with said forked blade when said carriage assembly is in said cutting zone to thereby cut said chilled casing in the area of said linkage,

2. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 1 wherein said carriage assembly includes a blade skirt slidably positioned longitudinally along the axis of said forked blade, the leading edge of said blade skirt extending beyond the edge of said blade when said blade is pivoted forward and upward.

3. An apparatus as claimed in Claim 2 wherein said passage includes a pair of gripping plate on defining a portion of said passage and being inwardly pivoted away from said cutting zone whereby said gripping plate may grip said chilled casing when said carriage assembly is being withdrawn from said cutting zone.

4. A method for cutting linked stuffed sausage casing into individual lengths in the area of a linkage, which method comprises:
a) guiding a chilled casing along a passage towards a cutting zone, said chilled casing being stuffed with sausage meat and linked at predetermined points along its length to define individual sausage lengths therebetween;
b) positioning a forked blade over a first linkage on said chilled casing and advancing said chilled casing towards said cutting zone by means of said forked blade, said forked blade being pivotally mounted on a carriage assembly slidably moveable along the direction of said chilled casing;
c) cutting said chilled casing in the area of said linkage by the cooperation of a cutting blade with said forked blade in said cutting zone.
d) withdrawing said carriage assembly from said cutting zone and pivoting said forked blade forward and upwards out of the way of said chilled casing and drawing said forked blade over the surface of said casing until a second linkage is contacted by said forked blade.