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EP-4321029-B1 - CUTTING DEVICE POR SPLITTING AN ANIMAL CARCASE IN HALVES AND ROBOT INCORPORATING SUCH CUTTING DEVICE

EP4321029B1EP 4321029 B1EP4321029 B1EP 4321029B1EP-4321029-B1

Inventors

  • JANÉ LÓPEZ, Francisco Javier
  • CAÑELLAS GARRIGASAIT, Jordi

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20220401

Claims (14)

  1. Cutting tool (1) for cutting a meat piece carcase (30) into two halves, wherein the carcases (30) are suspended hanging from their legs, wherein the cutting tool (1) is adapted to be coupled to a robot (20), and wherein the cutting tool (1) comprises: - a frame (3), - means for cutting the carcase in two halves by means of a longitudinal cut, - a means of actuating the cutting means of the carcase, - means for guiding the carcase during the cutting process, comprising: - a follower mechanism of the inner side of the carcase, configured to follow the inner side of the carcase during the cutting process, and - a follower mechanism of the outer side of the carcase, configured to follow the outer side of the carcase during the cutting process. characterized in that said frame (3) is configured to be connected to a robot arm, and in that the outer follower mechanism of the carcase comprises at least the following elements: - an upper tilting arm (14) for supporting one or more upper outer side rollers (16), where the upper tilting arm (14) tilts with respect to a common articulation axis (15) disposed at a point of the frame (3), - one or more upper outer side rollers (16) for upper guidance of the dorsal part of the carcase, wherein one or more upper outer side rollers (16) is/are disposed at the free end of the upper tilting arm (14), - actuating means (17) for rotating the upper tilting arm (14), - a lower tilting arm (18) for supporting one or more lower outer side rollers (20), wherein the lower tilting arm (18) tilts with respect to the same common articulation axis (15) of the frame (3), - one or more lower outer side rollers (20) for lower guidance of the dorsal part of the carcase, wherein one or more lower outer side rollers (20) is(are) disposed at the free end of the lower tilting arm (18), and - additional actuation means (21) for rotating the lower tilting arm (18).
  2. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 1, wherein the inner follower mechanism of the carcase comprises at least the following elements: - an arm (8) articulated at its upper end to a point on the frame (3), - a first actuating means (7) for actuating the articulated arm (8), - an inner side support (10), which is articulately fastened at the lower end of the articulated arm (8), - a second actuating means (11) for rotating the inner side support (10), - one or more inner side rollers (12) connected to the inner side support (10), where the one or more inner side rollers is(are) configured to guide the ventral part of the carcase (30).
  3. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 2, wherein one or more elements of the outer carcase guiding mechanism and one or more elements of the inner carcase guiding mechanism are disposed on either side of the frame (3), to allow the carcase cutting means to pass through.
  4. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 2, wherein the inner side support comprises an extended portion extending in a direction opposite to where the one or more inner side rollers are disposed.
  5. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 1, wherein the means for cutting the carcase into two halves are disposed on the front of the frame (3) and the actuating means for the cutting means are disposed on the rear of the frame (3).
  6. A cutting tool (1) according to claim 1, wherein the means for cutting the carcase (30) into two halves comprise a motorized saw disc (5).
  7. A cutting tool (1) according to claim 6, wherein the means for actuating the cutting means comprise a motor (4) for rotating the saw disc (5), a coupling and a transmission for transmitting movement and force from the motor (4) to the motorized saw disc (5).
  8. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 1, wherein the articulation axis (15) common to the upper (14) and lower (18) tilting arms is disposed in a lower part of the frame (3) and the upper (14) and lower (18) tilting arms are disposed in the articulation axis (15), so that one arm (14, 15) rotates on the inside and the other on the outside.
  9. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 2, wherein the articulated arm (8) has two parts spaced apart from each other by a certain distance through which the cutting means of the carcase pass.
  10. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 2, wherein four inner-side rollers are provided, arranged in pairs, wherein two inner-side rollers are disposed at the same height and the other two inner-side rollers are disposed at a different height on the inner-side support by respective fixing points.
  11. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 1, wherein four outer-side rollers, arranged in pairs, are provided, wherein each pair of rollers is disposed at the same height, and wherein the pair of upper rollers is disposed at a point near the free end of the upper tilting arm and the pair of lower rollers is disposed at a point near the free end of the lower tilting arm.
  12. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 1, wherein it further includes a laser or optical artificial vision system, configured to provide, before the cutting process is carried out, specific measurements or coordinates of the anatomy of each carcase (30), to position and adjust the movements and force of the different parts of the cutting tool (1).
  13. Cutting tool (1) according to claim 1, further comprising at the top of the cutting tool (1) a fixing flange (2) for fixing the cutting tool (1) to a free end of a robot arm, and wherein the fixing flange is disposed inclined with respect to the longitudinal axis of the frame (3) of the cutting tool (1).
  14. Robot (20), comprising a support base on which one or more articulated arms are disposed, characterized in that the robot (20) comprises, mounted at its upper free end, the cutting tool (1) defined in any one of the preceding claims, and wherein the robot (20) presents a spatial movement of its free end with six degrees of freedom.

Description

Object of the Invention The present invention relates to the technical field of slaughtering equipment, and in particular to a fully automated tool for cutting in half the carcase of a slaughtered animal, preferably of a bovine animal such as a cow; wherein the cutting tool is configured to be mounted on a robot. The present invention also relates to a robot comprising such a cutting tool. Background of the invention The term "bovine carcase" refers to the anatomical structure remaining after a live bovine animal has been slaughtered under standard slaughterhouse procedures, flayed (removing entire skin), eviscerated and its head detached. The classes of bovine carcases that can be identified post-mortem are essentially: steers, male calves, yearlings, young bulls, calves, heifers, cows and bulls. When processing a bovine carcase or of another type of animal of similar body structure, it is usually divided longitudinally along the entire length of the spine (i.e. along the symmetrical plane) into two halves, known in the jargon as right half-carcase and left half-carcase, to facilitate the subsequent processing of each of these two halves. Depending on the size and configuration of each type of animal slaughtered, the use of a cutting machine in two different halves is required, which is adapted to each type and size of piece. In large, highly automated animal-processing factories, bovine carcasses hang from a conveyor line hanging from the two legs and cutting into two halves of the cow carcass is carried out from top to bottom. The technology available today for cutting the carcase of a cow generally involves semiautomatic processing, and the employment of labor remains large and the degree of automation low. Some devices for cutting a bovine carcase into two halves are known in the state of the art. These cutting devices generally comprise a saw/blade disc or saws for the symmetrical division of the piece. However, these types of devices for cutting a bovine carcass into two halves known to date have the drawback of lacking guidance means on the dorsal and ventral side of the piece that are correctly adapted to the geometry of the carcase, so that the guidance of the piece is not efficient and the piece can move and be deflected, resulting in an imperfect cut. This guidance on both sides (dorsal and ventral) of the animal's carcass is essential in the cutting process, since there is a remarkable variability in the morphology and size of each carcass, and in addition the carcasses are hung and suspended only by their legs. The guidance thus provides the stability and precision necessary for the longitudinal cutting of the carcass to be optimal. It is therefore clear that there is a need for a tool for cutting in half a carcass of a slaughtered bovine animal, where the cutting tool is configured to be mounted on a robot, and also to have a robot comprising said cutting tool, which allow longitudinal cutting along the entire spine of the carcass with much more precision and which at the same time allows the piece of the animal to be correctly guided and supported during the cutting process from top to bottom, taking into account that there is great variability in the morphology and size of each carcass. US 5 655 960 A and US 4 507 822 A disclose cutting tools comprising the features of the preamble of claim 1. Description of the invention The first aim of the present invention is to solve the aforementioned drawbacks by developing a tool for cutting a meat carcase into two halves, preferably of a slaughtered bovine or other type of animal of similar body structure. According to this first object, the present invention relates to a tool for cutting a meat carcase piece into two halves according to claim 1, wherein the carcases are suspended hanging from their legs, wherein the cutting tool is adapted to be coupled to a robot, and wherein the cutting tool comprises: a frame, configured to be connected to a robot arm,means for cutting the carcase in two halves by means of a longitudinal cut,a means of actuating the cutting means of the carcase,means for guiding the carcase during the cutting process, comprising: a follower mechanism of the inner side of the carcase, configured to follow the inner side of the carcase during the cutting process, anda follower mechanism of the outer side of the carcase, configured to follow the outer side of the carcase during the cutting process. The great advantage that the cutting tool of the present invention achieves over the known ones is that it integrates two different guiding mechanisms in the cutting tool itself: an inner follower mechanism of the carcase capable of following the inner side of the carcase during the cutting process, and an outer follower mechanism of the carcase capable of following the outer side of the carcase during the cutting process. These followers on either side of the carcase optimize the accuracy of the cutting process and also eliminate any t