A horizontal char slicer for cutting a food product includes a frame housing having a heating housing and a cutting device located at a discharge end of the heating housing. The heating housing includes a heating element, and the cutting device has a generally horizontal cutting plane. A generally horizontal conveyor belt extends at least the length of the frame housing, between a heating inlet for delivering the food product through the heating housing to the cutting device. The horizontal conveyor belt also extends from the cutting device to an outlet of the frame housing. The horizontal conveyor belt transports the food product away from the cutting device. A finished-product conveyor also extends from the cutting device for transporting a finished-product away from the cutting device. The finished-product conveyor and the horizontal conveyor belt are configured to work in parallel downstream of the cutting device.

A method of processing a food object while the food object is being conveyed, comprises acquiring image data of the food object, cutting the food object into smaller food pieces, determining, based on the acquired image data, whether the food object contains undesired objects, and in case such undesired objects are detected, identifying which of the smaller food pieces contain the undesired objects.

This invention relates to a cutting apparatus for cutting food items conveyed on a conveyor including at least one conveyor belt. A cutter is arranged above a gap extending across the at least one conveyor belt. The cutter is positioned in relation to the gap such that the cutting path of the cutter extends through the food items and the gap and below the surface level of the at least one conveyor belt. The cutter is adapted to be connected to a control mechanism for operating crosswise movement of the cutter along the gap. The gap is formed between adjacent elongated supporting means such as rollers with a fixed internal arrangement, where the adjacent elongated supporting means and the cutter is adapted to be connected to a control mechanism for operating back and forth movement of the adjacent elongated supporting means and the cutter parallel to the conveying direction while maintaining the internal arrangement of the adjacent elongated supporting means and the cutter fixed.

A food processing system and method for cutting a food item into cut food item portions includes a conveyor, an imaging system, a cutting device, and a controller. The conveyor conveys the food item past the imaging system allowing the imaging system to image the food item and image data is obtained. The controller receives the imaging data and determines the location of defective areas on the basis thereof. Then a distribution of portion cuts over the food item dividing the food item into food item portions is determined on the basis of at least the determined location of defective areas and a desired portion size and/or weight. The cutting device cuts the food item according to the determined distribution of portion cuts.

A method carried out by a computing device may include: receiving a plurality of models each associated with a type of sub-primal cut, including a reference shape(s) for detection of a corresponding match characteristic by a corresponding scan type, and including a plurality of attribute characteristic value ranges; receiving a registered scan of a sub-primal cut including scans showing corresponding match characteristics; identifying attribute characteristics for the sub-primal cut using the registered scan; concurrently aligning reference shape(s) of each model to corresponding match characteristics and calculating a shape match values based on the alignment; determining a best model match for the registered scan using a plurality of attribute match values calculate based on the identified attribute characteristics compared to the attribute characteristic value ranges and the plurality of shape match values; and assigning a type of sub-primal cut to the sub-primal cut based on the best model match.

A volumetric portioning apparatus includes a valve assembly operable in a first position and a second position. The first position of the valve assembly allows a food product to flow from an input hopper through the valve assembly and into a portioning assembly. The second position allows the food product to flow from the portioning assembly, through the valve assembly and into an output receiver. The apparatus further includes an actuator coupled to the valve assembly. The actuator is operable to move the valve assembly from the first position to the second position. The apparatus further includes a knife element operable to automatically cut the food product in the valve assembly to prevent the food product from limiting movement of the valve assembly from the first position to the second position.

A cutting machine for cutting up meat strands whose cross section varies over a longitudinal extension into weight precise slices as fast as possible, and a method for slicing such meat strands. Two or more strands may be received adjacent to each other in a respective form tube and pushed against a separately adjustable stop plate, which is assigned to each form tube, independently from each other by a controlled longitudinal press plunger. The strands may be compressed in the longitudinal direction and a cross section of the form tubes may be reduced in a first transversal direction jointly and in a second transversal direction independently from each other. Thus, the respective meat strand may be transversally compressed to a constant cross section for slicing.

To slice meat loafs (100) with cross sections that vary across their longitudinal extension into accurately weighted slices (101), it is known to bring the loaf (100) into a defined shape with a uniform cross section across its length inside a forming tube (2) by means of pressing before it is sliced.

According to the invention, the pressing is performed in the longitudinal direction (L, 10) and the transversal direction (Q, 11) in a predefined order and in particular in multiple pressing steps (+Q, +L), which also comprise relieving strokes (Q, L) for the purpose of reducing the force exertion for pressing, on the one hand, and, on the other, for keeping the tissue structure of the loaf (100) intact.

A method of estimating weight of food objects, includes training an artificial neural network software module, and using the trained artificial neural network software module to provide a weight correlated data estimate for said food object based on a three-dimensional image of the food object.

A cutting machine comprising one or more form tubes that are divided in two in the longitudinal direction into a front form tube section and a rear form tube sectionat least across a portion of its circumference, so that the two form sections can be moved from a pressing position in which they are aligned with each other into a loading position in which they are not aligned with each other, and in the loading position the rear form tube section can be loaded with a new meat strand while the rest of the previous meat strand is still being cut into slices and moved in the front form tube section. The blade may be disposed to simultaneously cut slices from a plurality of form tubes and may be disposed for motion in the longitudinal direction as well as a direction transverse to the longitudinal direction.