CA2263926C - Method for cutting and cleaning of farmed fish and equipment for carrying out the method - Google Patents

Abstract

A method for gutting and cleaning of farmed fish and a device for the implementation of said method consisting of a feed trough (1), and guides (2) for positioning the fish belly up in gutters (3) on conveyor belts (4). Two separate and parallel conveyor belts (4), the longitudinal far side of which can be tipped upwards towards the operators (51-3, 71-3). A return gutter (6) provided between the conveyor belts in their last section (4) and a flushing box (8) for flushing of the fish and of the conveyor belts (4) before said conveyor belts return via a washing trough (9) to complete the cleaning operation.

Description

?CA 02263926 l999-02- 18ABC021098INT98045F101520253035PUVNO96/D0232u7—1n- 19m1METHOD FOR CUTTING, GUTTING AND CLEANING OF FARMED FISH ANDEQUIPMENT FOR IMPLEMENTING THE METHOD.The present invention relates to a method for cutting,gutting and cleaning of farmed fish and a device necessaryfor implementing the method. The device receives the wholefish after the fish has bled to death and is ready forcutting, gutting and cleaning.Killing of the fish is effected by bleeding, and thefish is let out in a tank of water where it bleeds to death.Subsequently, the fish is taken up on benches where it isgutted. The fish is then either sent from the gutting benchvia a conveyor belt to the cleaning area, or cleaning iseffected directly on the gutting bench. This is for thepersonnel an unsuitable and non-rational way of working. Inaddition, such working conditions present a health hazardfor the personnel as a result of the inappropriate workingposture and the resulting strain injuries.The known artConveyor belts has been known from car productionassembly lines for several decades, and is rather advanced.However, the development of machines for cutting, guttingand cleaning of fish, which vary in weight, shape and size,is less advanced, and has been heavily relying on manualprocessing.DE 268 759 and FR 1 435 117 both show production lineswith conveyor belts for fish processing. None of the patentsmention that the conveyor belt move during the processing ofthe fish. DE 268 759 shows an apparatus where the conveyorbelt transports the fish into a wash drum and back out ofthe drum. FR 1 435 117 describes a conveyor belt arrangedfor moving fish between separate workstations, where thefish is to be taken off the conveyor belt for each operationon the fish. Swedish patent SE 192 745 describes a machineorganizing the fish on a conveyor belt with their headsleading, in order to thread a string through the fishes’heads in a transverse manner.The object of this invention is to provide a moreeffective and work-environment friendly work station for theAMCK;r; jX§ET?CA 02263926 2000-05-08processing of farmed fish.According to the invention there is provided anapparatus for gutting and cleaning of fish, comprising oneor more conveyor belts running mostly horizontally alongseveral work stations for operators along the conveyor belt,with a feed trough for the conveyor belt, characterized bya) "U"—shaped gutters arranged on the work surface of theconveyor belt to receive and keep the fish in its abdomen—upposition from the feed trough and to stabilize the fish inits abdomen—up gutting position, said "U"—shaped gutterscomprising rows of pairs of inverted "Y"—profile elementshaving "Y"—base plates wherein the inverted "Y"—profileelements are arranged with the "Y"—base plates parallel tothe conveyor belt and attached standing perpendicularly outfrom the work surface of the conveyor belt; andb) several working stations arranged along the conveyor beltarranged for sequential operations on the fish, where theseoperations are to be performed on the fish lying in the "U"-shaped gutters on the conveyor belt which is to becontinuously moving past the operators.Additionally, the invention provides a method forgutting and cleaning of fish, comprising the use of one ormore conveyor belts running mostly horizontally alongseveral work stations for operators along the conveyor belt,using a feed trough for the conveyor belt, comprising thesteps of:a) feeding the fish into "U"—shaped gutters on the worksurface of the conveyor belt, receiving and keeping the fishin its abdomen-up position from the feed trough andstabilizing the fish in its abdomen—up gutting position,said "U"—shaped gutters comprising rows of pairs of inverted"Y"—profile elements having "Y"—base plates wherein theinverted "Y"—profile elements are arranged with the "Y"—baseplates parallel to the conveyor belt and attached standingperpendicularly out from the work surface of the conveyorbelt; andb) sequential gutting and cleaning operations on the fish ?CA 02263926 2000-05-082alying in the "U"-shaped gutters on the conveyor belt whichis continually moving past the operators.This is achieved by sending the fish into a feed trough.From the feed trough the fish is placed by an operator ontoone of two longitudinal conveyor belts, in gutters, bellyup. As the fish passes the various work stations along thebelt, the various operations of gutting, removal of thekidneys and cleaning of the abdominal cavity are affected byoperators standing next to the processing line. When thefish reaches the end of the line, it is cleaned and flushedexternally.Further details of the invention will appear from thedescription of a preferred embodiment of the invention andfrom the claims.Fig. 1 is a schematic representation of the device.Fig. 2 is a lateral representation illustrating thevertical placement of the conveyor system for thefish through the device.Fig. 3 is a cross—sectional view of the device at the feedend.Fig. 4 illustrates the principle of the vertical walls ofthe gutter on the conveyor belt.Fig. 5 is a cross—sectional view of the conveyor system.When the fish has been thoroughly bled, it is fed intothe trough 1 from which it is then manually fed onto twoparallel conveyor belts 4, through four parallel guides 2,and is placed belly up in the separate gutters 3 of theconveyor belts 4. This operation is effected by a firstoperator 11. Fig. 3 illustrates how the gutters 3 arepositioned in two rows along the conveyor belt 4. Fig. 1shows that the operators can easily reach the fish in thegutters 3 on the conveyor belts 4 and the effectiveness isincreased in that two fish arrive at the same time in thegutters 3 in front of the operators, although slightlystaggered in relation to each other.Figure 3 also illustrates that the conveyor belts‘longitudinal far side, as seen from an operators side, are?CA 02263926 2000-05-082barranged to rise to a tilted transversal position from ahorizontal transversal position, in order to facilitate theoperators‘ working posture.The device comprises two entirely separate and parallelconveyor belts 4 running along the outer edges of thedevice, and the operators sit along each conveyor belt 4.This dual conveyor system removes the necessity of aconveyor belt of the same width as the device. The fish isfed onto the conveyor belts 4 from the trough 1 through the_ . m.4... ........................... ...........-..-... ............. ‘Q4?CA 02263926 l999-02- 18ABCO2l098INT98045F10152025303540PCT/N_096/CD2320740- 19983guides 2 by one single operator 11 so that each operator ofthe first pair of operators 51 always have a fish to processat any time. The first pair of operators 51 who finishgutting the fish and dispose of the guts down a chute 10positioned either next to the second pair of operators 5’ orin the middle of the device. The fish is then transported toa third pair of operators 53 who, with a knife, slit over thefish's throat and kidneys. The fish is then transportedfurther to a fourth pair of operators 71 who remove thefish's heart and kidneys with a kidney suction remover. Thefish is then transported to a fifth 7’ and a sixth 73 pair ofoperators who clean the fish's abdominal cavity of allblood, gut and fibre remnants with flushing and suctiondevices.Between the conveyor belts 4 a return gutter 6 isprovided where fish which is has not been satisfactorilycleaned can be placed and wait for later proper gutting andcleaning.At the delivery end of the device, a flushing box 8 isprovided for the fish and the conveyor belts 4. The conveyorbelts 4 bring the fish under a set of nozzles which flushthe fish in a normal way. Afterwards, the conveyor 4 receiveadditional flushing by a set of nozzles. None of thosenozzles is shown on the drawings. The return of the conveyorbelts 4, after passing the last roller, is effected via awashing trough 9 which further cleans the conveyor belts 4before new fish is placed in the gutters 3 at the level ofthe feed trough 1.The side walls of the gutters 3 are specially designedto allow the conveyor belts 4 to move from the horizontalplane to another plane, and to allow the fish to remainstable whenillustratedview of thebelt 4. The12. These Y-shaped elements 12 provide a U—shaped crossit is placed belly up in the gutters 3. This isin Figs. 4 and 5. Fig. 5 is a cross—sectionaltwo gutters 3 which are found on each conveyorside walls consist of inverted Y-shaped elementssection for each gutter 3, where the fish remains stable ina belly up position.Fig. 4 is a lateral view of a conveyor belt 4illustrating the principle of the flexible side wall design.+;._J-_J SHEET?CA 02263926 l999-02- 18ABC021098INT98045FPCF/N096/CD232“-10- msThe Y—shaped elements 12 which make up the side walls are4positioned at a certain distance from one another along theconveyor belt 4, providing a stable support for the fish,and allowing satisfactory flexibility for the conveyor belt5 4 to move into another plane or in a curve. This designprovides great flexibility for the conveyor belts 4.When several operators are placed to effect the sametype of work on some or all of the work stations, theeffectiveness of the system is further increased.!?~_.f.T.I‘£DED SHEET

Claims (10)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. Apparatus for gutting and cleaning of fish, comprising one or more conveyor belts running mostly horizontally along several work stations for operators along the conveyor belt, with a feed trough for the conveyor belt, characterized by a) "U"-shaped gutters arranged on the work surface of the conveyor belt to receive and keep the fish in its abdomen-up position from the feed trough and to stabilize the fish in its abdomen-up gutting position, said "U"-shaped gutters comprising rows of pairs of inverted "Y"-profile elements having "Y"-base plates wherein the inverted "Y"-profile elements are arranged with the "Y"-base plates parallel to the conveyor belt and attached standing perpendicularly out from the work surface of the conveyor belt; and b) several working stations arranged along the conveyor belt arranged for sequential operations on the fish, where these operations are to be performed on the fish lying in the "U"-shaped gutters on the conveyor belt which is to be continuously moving past the operators.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, additionally comprising two or more parallel guides arranged lengthwise and parallel to the conveyor belt for an operator to feed fish in its abdomen-up position, from the feed trough, into the "U"-shaped gutters on the conveyor belt.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the conveyor belts' longitudinal far side, as seen from an operators side, are arranged to rise to a tilted transversal position from a horizontal transversal position, in order to facilitate the operators' working posture.

4. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the work stations comprise equipment for slitting;
gutting; throat, kidney and heart cutting and removal; and abdominal cavity cleaning by flushing and suction.

5. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, additionally comprising a flushing box at the end of the horizontal path of the conveyor belt to complete the internal and external cleaning of the fish, and a washing trough arranged under the flushing box for further cleaning of the conveyor belt.

6. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, additionally comprising chutes arranged between the work stations and/or between the conveyor belts for disposal of the fish guts from the fish gutting and cleaning.

7. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, additionally comprising a steel gutter fitted between the conveyor belts for temporary storage of fish which is not finished gutting or cleaning.

8. Method for gutting and cleaning of fish, comprising the use of one or more conveyor belts running mostly horizontally along several work stations for operators along the conveyor belt, using a feed trough for the conveyor belt, comprising the steps of:
a) feeding the fish into "U"-shaped gutters on the work surface of the conveyor belt, receiving and keeping the fish in its abdomen-up position from the feed trough and stabilizing the fish in its abdomen-up gutting position, said "U"-shaped gutters comprising rows of pairs of inverted "Y"-profile elements having "Y"-base plates wherein the inverted "Y"-profile elements are arranged with the "Y"-base plates parallel to the conveyor belt and attached standing perpendicularly out from the work surface of the conveyor belt; and b) sequential gutting and cleaning operations on the fish lying in the "U"-shaped gutters on the conveyor belt which is continually moving past the operators.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that the conveyor belts' longitudinal far side, as seen from the operators' side, are raised to a tilted transversal position from a horizontal transversal position, in order to facilitate the operators' working posture.

10. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that the operations at the work stations comprise slitting;
gutting; throat, kidney and heart cutting and removal; and abdominal cavity cleaning by flushing and suction.