U.S. patent application number 10/852968 was filed with the patent office on 2004-10-28 for rotary knife having suction adapter.
This patent application is currently assigned to Bettcher Industries, Inc.. Invention is credited to Niederhauser, Martin, Whited, Jeffrey A..
Application Number | 20040211067 10/852968 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 32228905 |
Filed Date | 2004-10-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040211067 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Whited, Jeffrey A. ; et
al. |
October 28, 2004 |
Rotary knife having suction adapter
Abstract
A rotary knife having a ring blade that defines a closed loop
cutting surface for cutting material which the ring blade contacts
during rotation. Materials cut using the blade such as meat cut
from a carcass or trimmed from a piece of meat are suctioned away
from the blade. The material is drawn into a blade housing which
supports the ring blade. A housing body has a wall that defines a
housing interior into which material separated by the cutting
surface of the ring blade moves as it is cut. Alternate blade
designs facilitate use of the knife for applications involving the
separation of a spinal cord and possibly dangerous BSE material
from a slaughtered animal.
Inventors: |
Whited, Jeffrey A.;
(Amherst, OH) ; Niederhauser, Martin; (Entlebuch,
CH) |
Correspondence
Address: |
WATTS, HOFFMANN CO., L.P.A.
P.O. BOX 99839
CLEVELAND
OH
44199-0839
US
|
Assignee: |
Bettcher Industries, Inc.
|
Family ID: |
32228905 |
Appl. No.: |
10/852968 |
Filed: |
May 25, 2004 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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10852968 |
May 25, 2004 |
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10289635 |
Nov 7, 2002 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
30/123 ;
30/276 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B26B 25/002 20130101;
Y10T 83/04 20150401 |
Class at
Publication: |
030/123 ;
030/276 |
International
Class: |
B25F 003/00; B26B
011/00 |
Claims
1. A rotary knife comprising: a) a ring blade comprising a closed
loop cutting surface for cutting material which the ring blade
contacts during rotation of the ring blade; b) a housing that
supports the ring blade and includes a housing body having a wall
that defines a housing interior into which material separated by
the cutting surface of the ring blade moves as it is cut, said
housing body including a bearing surface that is defined by a wall
portion of the housing body for rotatably supporting the ring
blade; c) a drive assembly mounted to a knife handle for providing
motive power to rotate the ring blade during operation of the
rotary knife; and d) a source of suction in fluid communication
with said housing interior; e) said ring blade having a blade body
including a drive gear at one end that engages the drive assembly
and a cutting surface at an opposite end, said elongated body
including an interior surface bounding a passageway in fluid
communication with the source and that extends between the cutting
surface and the drive gear for moving material cut by the cutting
surface through the blade body and into blade housing.
2 The apparatus of claim 1 additionally comprising a suction tube
that engages the housing body to create a suction region in
passageway of the blade body to attract material that is cut during
operation of the rotary knife into the passageway.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the elongated blade body has a
first inner wall portion having a generally cylindrical wall
surface of a first diameter, a second inner wall portion that forms
a concave surface that extends into the blade body to form a
concave surface of greater diameter than said first diameter and
that curves inwardly near a cutting surface to form a inner surface
having a reduced cutting surface diameter that is less than the
first diameter.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the blade body has an
additional wall portion that forms a convex surface that widens
outwardly from the generally cylindrical wall surface to a diameter
of said gear.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the elongated blade body has a
first inner wall portion having a generally cylindrical wall
surface of a first diameter, a second inner wall portion that meets
the first wall portion and widens outwardly from said first wall
portion to a region of the gear; and includes an outer surface
having raised cutting surfaces.
6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the raised cutting surfaces are
formed form a spaced array of flutes that extend outwardly from the
outer surface of said elongated blade body.
7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the flutes are elongated raised
portions that extend away from the blade body and include an
undercut portion that define cutting surfaces that engage material
as the blade rotates.
8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the source of suction
comprising a flexible tube for removing material from the blade
housing and additionally comprising a bracket attached to the
handle that orienting said flexible tube in the region of said
knife.
9. The apparatus of claim 8 additionally comprising a sleeve
through which the flexible tube extends for orienting and routing
the tube away from the vicinity of the blade.
10. A rotary knife comprising: a) a ring blade comprising a cutting
surface surrounding a blade opening for cutting material which the
ring blade contacts during rotation of the ring blade; b) a blade
housing having a housing body that defines an interior
throughpassage into which material separated by the cutting surface
of the ring blade moves as it is cut, said blade housing body
including a bearing surface for engaging the ring blade to allow
the ring blade to rotate with respect to the blade housing; c) a
handle assembly including a head member which extends outwardly
from the handle assembly for supporting the blade housing; and d)
an adapter having an adapter throughpassage for connecting a vacuum
source to the blade housing interior throughpassage; e) said blade
opening, blade housing interior throughpassage and adapter
throughpassage forming a combined knife throughpassage having a
constriction of least cross section at the blade opening near the
cutting surface that reduces the pressure in a region of the
cutting surface to attract materials into and through the knife
throughpassage.
11. The knife of claim 10 wherein the ring blade comprises an
elongated blade body that has a generally cylindrical blade
throughpassage having a diameter that is greater than a diameter at
the constriction at the blade opening.
12. The knife of claim 11 wherein the adapter throughpassage is
generally cylindrical and has a diameter that is greater than a
diameter of the generally cylindrical blade throughpassage.
13. The knife of claim 10 wherein the blade includes a blade body
that widens outwardly to a region of the drive gear of said blade
body.
14. The knife of claim 10 wherein the adapter throughpassage is
generally cylindrical and of a uniform cross section.
15. A method for suctioning a spinal cord from an animal carcass
with a rotary knife having a handle and a drive system supported by
the handle comprising: a) connecting a blade housing having a blade
housing body that defines a generally cylindrical body
throughpassage to the handle; b) rotatably supporting a ring blade
comprising a closed loop cutting surface that circumscribes an
opening having a diameter less than a body throughpassage diameter
for cutting material and gear teeth for rotating the ring blade to
a bearing surface of the housing body; c) attaching a suction tube
to a coupling body wall portion of the housing body spaced from the
ring blade; d) rotating the ring blade and applying suction to the
suction tube to move meat cut by the ring blade into the
throughpassage of the blade housing body and subsequently into the
suction tube as a user manipulates the closed loop cutting surface
relative the carcass.
16. The method of claim 15 wherein the ring blade includes an
elongated ring blade body having an outer surface with raised
cutting surfaces and additionally comprising moving the blade from
side to side to separate material from the carcass for subsequent
removal through the opening circumscribed by said cutting
blade.
17. The method of claim 15 wherein the suction tube is ridgid and
additionally comprising connecting a flexible tube to the suction
tube for routing material away from said knife.
18. A cutting blade for use with a rotary knife comprising an
elongated blade body having gear teeth at one end for rotating said
blade and a closed loop cutting surface at an opposite end and
defining a throughpassage bounded by a first inner wall portion
having a generally cylindrical wall surface of a first diameter, a
second inner wall portion that forms a concave surface that extends
into the blade body to form a concave surface of greater diameter
than said first diameter and that curves inwardly near the cutting
surface to form a inner surface having a reduced cutting surface
diameter that is less than the first diameter.
19. The cutting blade of claim 18 wherein the throughpassage of the
blade body is bounded by an additional wall portion that forms a
convex surface that widens outwardly from the generally cylindrical
wall surface to a diameter of said gear.
20. A cutting blade for use with a rotary knife comprising an
elongated blade body having gear teeth at one end of said body for
rotating said blade and a cutting surface at an opposite end and
further having a first inner wall portion having a generally
cylindrical wall surface of a first diameter, a second inner wall
portion that meets the first wall portion and widens outwardly from
said first wall portion to a region of the gear teeth; said body
having an outer surface having raised cutting surfaces.
21. The cutting blade of claim 20 wherein the raised cutting
surfaces are formed from a spaced array of flutes that extend
outwardly from the outer surface of said elongated blade body.
22. The cutting blade of claim 21 wherein the flutes are elongated
raised portions that extend away from the blade body and include an
undercut portion that define cutting surfaces that engage material
with which the blade comes in contact as it rotates.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application is a continuation-in-part
application having subject matter in common with U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 10/289,635, filed Nov. 7, 2002, from which
priority of the present application is claimed.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention concerns a rotary knife having a ring
blade supported by a blade housing. An attachment to the blade
housing provides suction to the blade housing interior to remove
material as the blade cuts the material from a product.
BACKGROUND ART
[0003] U.S. Pat. No. 4,170,063 to Bettcher discloses a knife having
a removable blade. The '063 patent is assigned to Bettcher
Industries, Inc., the assignee of the present invention. The '063
patent discloses a hand knife having a ring-like rotary blade that
is supported by a handle that extends normal to an axis of rotation
of the blade. The blade of the knife is rotatably supported in a
housing that surrounds a part of the blade. The blade can be
removed for sharpening or replacement of the blade. Other
representative United States patents relating to rotary knives that
are assigned to the assignee of the present invention are U.S. Pat.
Nos. 4,439,924, 4,516,323, 4,509,261, and 6,655,033.
[0004] Published German Utility Model DE 295 12 854 U 1 entitled
"Rotating Cutter with Suction Removal for Meat or Fat" concerns a
rotary knife. Meat parts that have been cut from meat are removed
by a suction apparatus. The disclosed suction removal apparatus
includes a tubular connecting piece, one end of which exhibits an
outside diameter that essentially corresponds to the inside
diameter of a ring-shaped blade housing and a second end of which
is configured for connection of a hose.
[0005] As depicted in FIG. 2 of this German Utility Model a
connecting piece is coupled to a blade housing to provide a
connection between the blade housing and a hose coupled to a
connecting container. The connecting piece is fastened in the blade
housing by means of two screws. The connecting piece exhibits slots
through which the screws pass. The screws are loosened somewhat so
that the connecting piece is no longer clamped by the screws and
can then be separated from an outlet opening of the blade
housing.
[0006] The rotating blade knife disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 10/289,635 has been used with success in
removing tissue at risk for BSE (Bovine Spungiform Encephalopathy)
from slaughtered animals. In the removal of BSE-risk material, the
knife loosens BSE-risk material from the animal carcass and draws
it into a suction channel before the risk material the is
completely cut off the carcass by the cutting blade and sucked away
via the suction channel.
[0007] To remove the BSE-risk material, the rotating blade knife is
directed along the spinal canal from the top to the bottom, whereby
the risk material that has been loosened by the vacuum suction is
cut by the moving blade. In practice, the greater the vacuum
pressure, the more effective the device is at removing the risk
material. However, in practice there are limitations in the vacuum
systems.
[0008] One of the major problems with the removal of spinal cords
in pork is the fact that when a hog is split lengthwise along the
backbone, the cut is often off center with respect to the spinal
cord cavity due to the smaller size of the cavity as compared to
beef animals, causing sections of the spinal canal to be closed.
Such off center cuts effectively prevent portions of the spinal
cord in such closed sections of the spinal canal from being drawn
into the suction channel.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] The invention concerns a rotary knife having a ring blade
that defines a closed loop cutting surface for cutting material
which the ring blade contacts during rotation. Materials cut using
the blade, such as meat cut from a carcass or trimmed from a piece
of meat, are suctioned away from the blade.
[0010] One embodiment of a circular cutting blade includes a
reduced cross section in a region a blade cutting surface. This
causes an increase in removal velocity and negative pressure at the
entrance point of the blade. The increase in the negative pressure
causes a greater pull on the spinal cord and the BSE-risk material.
The knife can cut further into the dorsal ganglia to extract more
BSE-risk materials, including dorsal root ganglia.
[0011] One alternate circular cutting blade is designed to have a
portion that will go into a hollow section of the spinal canal for
suctioning away the spinal cord. On an outer surface this alternate
circular cutting blade includes a series of cutting or milling
blades around the outer diameter of the blade. These outer cutting
or milling blades will cut open closed sections of the spinal canal
as the blade is moved along the canal thereby permitting more
complete removal of the spinal cord.
[0012] Alternate exemplary embodiments of the invention are
described with a degree of particularity in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a rotary cutting knife
constructed in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the
invention;
[0014] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a distal end of
the rotating blade cutting knife shown in FIG. 1;
[0015] FIG. 3 is a plan view of a distal end of the knife 10 shown
in FIG. 1;
[0016] FIG. 4 is a view as seen from the plane defined by the line
4-4 in FIG. 3;
[0017] FIG. 5 is a plan view of an adapter that engages the knife
and connects to a tube for routing severed material away from the
knifes cutting blade;
[0018] FIG. 6 is a view as seen from the plane defined by the line
6-6 in FIG. 5;
[0019] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a
cutting blade used with the knife of FIG. 1;
[0020] FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the first embodiment of the
cutting blade;
[0021] FIG. 9 is a section view as seen from the plane defined by
the line 9-9 in FIG. 8;
[0022] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a
cutting blade used with the knife of FIG. 1;
[0023] FIG. 11 is a plan view of the second embodiment of the
cutting blade of FIG. 10;
[0024] FIG. 12 is a top plan view of the second embodiment of the
cutting blade of FIG. 10;
[0025] FIG. 13 is a section view of the second embodiment as seen
from the plane defined by the line 13-13 in FIG. 12;
[0026] FIG. 14 is a view of the cutting blade of FIG. 11 as seen
from the plane defined by the line 14-14 in FIG. 11;
[0027] FIG. 15 is a view of the cutting blade as seen from the
plane defined by the line 15-15 in FIG. 11;
[0028] FIG. 16 is a perspective view of an alternate adapter for
engaging a blade housing;
[0029] FIGS. 17 and 18 are side and top views of the adapter of
FIG. 16;
[0030] FIG. 19 is a section view as seen from the plane defined by
the line 19-19 in FIG. 17; and
[0031] FIG. 20 is a perspective view showing an exemplary
embodiment of the knife in use.
EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS FOR PRACTICING THE INVENTION
[0032] FIGS. 1 and 2 depict a rotary knife assembly 10 having a
ring blade 12 that cuts material with which it comes in contact.
The ring blade 12 has a closed loop cutting surface 14 (FIG. 9) for
cutting material that the ring blade contacts during use of the
knife 10. In accordance with one use of the rotary knife, the blade
12 is used to separate a spinal cord from the carcass of an animal
after the animal has been slaughtered. Another application of the
rotary knife is to clean meat or fat from an animal that has been
partially processed using other knives. In this application, the
meat that is removed is collected and processed into a consumable
meat product.
[0033] FIG. 20 is a depiction of a use of the knife 10 for removing
a spinal cord 22. from a animal carcass. The spinal cord 22 is cut
away from a cavity or canal 23 spaced between the animal's
vertebrae 24. By skilled manipulation of the cutting surface 14,
the user can separate the spinal cord from the carcass in one
piece. Removal of the spinal cord 22 is desirable because it is
BSE-risk material.
[0034] The rotary knife depicted in FIG. 1 has a handle assembly 20
that is manipulated by a user and which supports a blade housing 30
at a distal end. The blade housing 30, in turn, rotatably supports
the ring blade 12. The blade housing 30 has a housing body having
an inner wall 34 (FIGS. 2 and 4) that defines a generally
cylindrical housing interior into which material separated by the
cutting surface 14 (FIG. 9) of the ring blade 12 moves as it is
cut. The blade housing 30 includes a circumferential bearing
surface that is defined by the wall 34 at an engagement end where
the blade 12 engages the housing 30. The bearing surface supports
the ring blade 12 while allowing the ring blade to rotate with
respect to the blade housing 30.
[0035] A notch (not shown) in the body wall 34 allows the bearing
surface to be expanded outwardly for separating the ring blade 12
from the blade housing 30. Should the ring blade need to be
sharpened or replaced, the bearing surface is expanded and the ring
blade slips out of the housing through an expanded or widened
opening in one end of the blade housing 30.
[0036] At an end of the blade housing 30 spaced from the bearing
surface, the housing body defines a coupling portion for coupling
the housing to a suction tube 52 (FIG. 1) that withdraws material
from the blade housing interior away from the ring blade 12.
[0037] FIG. 2 illustrates components of a distal portion of a drive
assembly 60 that provides motive power to rotate the ring blade 12.
The drive assembly 60 is commercially available as part of a Model
Series II rotary knife sold by Bettcher Industries, Inc. The drive
assembly 60 includes a drive shaft 62 that is coupled to a gear 64
that engages gear teeth 66 of the ring blade 12. A user actuated
lever 59 extends outwardly from a bottom of the handle 20 (FIG. 1).
When the lever is pivoted toward the handle 20, a valve inside the
handle routes pressurized air through into the handle 20 routed
through an air hose 130 coupled to an air source external to the
handle to activate an air motor 61 (FIG. 4) mounted inside the
handle 20. A rectangular end 65 of the drive shaft engages an
output shaft of the air motor 61. The drive shaft 62 extends into
and rotates a pinion assembly 63 that supports the gear 64. With
the drive assembly 60 assembled, the gear 64 engages or meshes with
a gear 66 at one end of the blade 12. Selective activation of the
air motor by the user thereby causes the ring blade 12 to rotate.
Additional details of operation of the air motor are contained in
U.S. Pat. No. 6,655,033 which is assigned to the assignee of the
present invention and is incorporated herein in its entirety by
reference.
[0038] As seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the drive assembly 60 is supported
by the handle assembly 20 including a handle frame 68 and a head
portion 67 that extends from the frame member 68. The head portion
67 also supports the blade housing 30 in such a way that the gear
64 aligns with the gear teeth 66 of the blade 12. The frame 68 also
supports an interchangeable handle grip 71 (FIG. 4) that can be
removed from the frame 68. Different size grips are provided for
use by different individuals and are chosen to match the size of
the user's hand.
[0039] During assembly of the knife, the air motor 61 is inserted
into position within the handle assembly 20 from one end into the
handle frame 68 and a screw 73 having a throughpassage to
accommodate the drive shaft 62 is inserted into an opposite end of
the frame 68. The screw 73 has a threaded exterior surface that
engages an inner threaded surface of the handle assembly. With the
air motor 61 secured within the handle assembly 20, the drive shaft
62, a bearing 75 (FIG. 2) for the pinion assembly 63 and the pinion
and attached gear 64 are inserted into the handle frame 68. The
knife assembly 10 is completed by attaching the blade 12 and blade
housing 30 to the frame head portion 67 as described below. A
lubricant is supplied to the interface between the pinion 63 and
the bearing 75 by means of a fitting 116 (FIG. 2) which routes
lubricant into the frame member 68. The lubricant passes through a
hole 75a in the body of the bearing 75 to lubricate the bearing
interior.
[0040] The embodiment of the invention depicted in FIG. 1 includes
the flexible suction tube 52 that fits over an adapter 110 (FIGS. 2
and 4) that engages the blade housing 30 at an end removed from the
housing's bearing surface. A vacuum source (not shown) connected to
an opposite end of the tube 52 creates a suction inside the blade
housing 30 in the vicinity of the ring blade 12. The suction tube
52 has a smooth inner surface to allow the tube to be slipped over
the adapter 110. Suction applied by the tube 52 attracts material
cut by the blade 12 that enters the housing 30. In one use, the
knife 10 is used to cut meat so that meat trimmings pass through
the tube 52 into a collector or container for the material removed
from the carcass. A second use is to collect a spinal cord and
accompanying BSE-risk material from a carcass. This additional use
is illustrated in the FIG. 20 depiction. The suction tube 52 is
constructed from polyeurethane and has an inside diameter of
approximately 11/2 inches and is commercially available from a
number of sources.
[0041] The blade housing 30 is generally cylindrical in shape and
is machined to form the depicted housing shape. The housing 30 has
interior surfaces defined by the wall 34 that extends from a region
of the bearing surface where the housing supports the blade to a
top or coupling portion 50 of the housing 30 that engages the
adapter 110. An outer surface of the blade housing 30 between the
bearing and the coupling portion 50 has two cutouts 70 (FIG. 2)
machined into the housing 30 to increase the flexibility of the
housing. As noted above, the housing 30 is expanded outwardly to
allow the blade 12 to be removed from the housing 30.
[0042] The housing 30 defines a bead B (FIG. 4) that defines a
bearing surface for rotatably supporting the ring blade 12. A
semi-circular gap 80 (FIG. 2) in the housing coincides with a
position of the gear 64 so that the gear meshes with the teeth 66
of the blade when the blade housing 30 is attached to the head
portion 67. During assembly of the knife 10, the blade housing 30
is attached to the head 67 by means of an arcuate mounting plate 84
(FIG. 2). The mounting plate 84 is a trapezoidal shaped metal plate
that has a bend that conforms generally to a radius of curvature of
the blade housing's interior wall surface. With the air motor 61
installed, the gear 64 extends into the gap 80 in the housing 30
and the plate 84 is connected to the head 67 by two screws 86a, 86b
that pass through the plate 84 and an appropriately aligned slot 89
in the wall 34 of the blade housing 30. The screws 86a, 86b thread
into openings 71 (one of which can be seen in FIG. 2) in the head
67 and are tightened by a screwdriver that is inserted into the
housing through openings 90 that extend through the housing wall
34.
[0043] The blade 12 is attached to the housing 30 after the housing
is attached to the head 67. To attach the blade 12, one must widen
a bottom diameter of the housing 30. To expand the opening at the
bottom of the housing 30 wide enough to slip the blade 12 into the
housing, the user tightens the screw 86a which passes through the
slot 89 while leaving the second screw 86b which extends through a
slot (not shown) loosely threaded into the head 67. The wall 34 has
three lands 91 (FIG. 2) that extend outwardly in a line along the
side of the housing 30. With the housing 30 attached to the head
portion 67 the user can insert a flat bladed screwdriver or the
like into a slot or recess between two adjacent lands 91 and pry
the screwdriver blade against the side of the head portion 67 to
enlarge or widen an opening surrounded by the bead B so that the
largest diameter part of the ring blade passes through the opening.
To affix the blade in place, the user releases the flat blade of
the screwdriver and the flexed wall 34 returns to its normal shape
and the bearing surface of the bead B fits into a groove 94 (FIG.
9) that extends circumferentially around the ring blade 12 in the
region of the gear teeth 66. With the blade 12 secured to the
housing 30, the second of the screws 86b is tightened to securely
hold the housing 30 in place against the head portion 67.
[0044] As best depicted in FIG. 2, an interior wall 34 of the
housing 30 has a knurled surface 34a. This surface 34a engages a
similarly knurled convex surface 84a of the arcuate plate 84 that
covers the gear 64. The frictional engagement between the arcuate
plate 84 and the housing 30 is increased due to the presence of
these conforming knurled surfaces 34a, 84a and this avoids
inadvertent loosening of the engagement between the blade 12 and
the housing 30 during operation of the knife 10.
[0045] First Blade Embodiment
[0046] The particular shape of a first embodiment of the blade 12
is seen in greater detail in FIGS. 7-9. The blade 12 (machined from
bearing steel, has inner and outer walls 100, 102 that define a
blade body of varying thickness in a region that extends between
the groove 94 that engages the housing bead B and the cutting
surface 14. The outer wall 102 tapers inwardly along two stepped
circumferential portions 102a, 102b.
[0047] The blade 12 has an elongated blade body 101 that defines a
throughpassage 101a to allow severed material to move away from the
region of the cutting surface 14. The throughpassage 101a is
bounded by a first inner wall portion 103 having a generally
cylindrical wall surface of a first diameter D1, a second inner
wall portion 104 that extends into the blade body 101 to form a
concave surface of greater diameter D2 than the first diameter D1.
Near the cutting surface 14, the concave surface curves back toward
a blade centerline to a cutting surface diameter D3 that is less
than the first diameter D1. The blade body 101 has an additional
inner wall portion 105 that forms a convex surface that widens
outwardly from the generally cylindrical wall surface 103 to a
radially inner side of the gear 66. Note, the diameter D3 is the
smallest diameter of the blade and use of this reduced diameter has
an advantage in creating adequate suction in the region of the
cutting surface 14. The small diameter creates a maximum air flow
toward the blade housing 30 (and the suction tube 52 and vacuum
source connected to the tube 52) in the region of the cutting
surface 14 and, hence, greatly enhances the sucking action of the
knife 10 in the vicinity of the cutting surface 14. Representative
dimensions for the three diameters D1, D2, and D3 are 0.77, 0.81,
and 0.69 inches respectively.
[0048] Adapter 110
[0049] The knife 10 is coupled to a vacuum source by the tube 52.
The generally cylindrical adapter 110 is constructed from aluminum
and is removably connected to the blade housing 30. As seen in
FIGS. 2 and 4-6 the housing 30 includes a flange 112 that overhangs
a groove 113. The flange 112 and groove 113 extend along a
semicircular arcate portion 50a that extends around only part of
the top portion 50 of the housing 30. The arcuate portion 50a is
spaced from the frame head 67 with the housing 30 coupled to the
frame 68. The adapter 110 has a corresponding groove 115 and lip
116 (FIG. 5) that mate with the flange 112 and groove 113 of the
housing 30. With the housing 30 spaced from the head 67, a user can
manually connect the adapter 110 to the housing 30 by sliding the
adapter lip 116 into the groove 113 of the housing 30. The combined
adapter/housing is then attached to the head 67. As seen in the
section view of FIG. 6, in one embodiment of the knife 10, the
adapter 110 has a necked down interior defined by a minimum
diameter portion 117. Both above and below this necked down
interior diameter 117, the interior flares outwardly along portions
118, 119. In use, the tube 52 slips over the adapter 110 and is
secured in place by a hose clamp 118. Further details of the
operation of the adapter 110 are found in German patent DE 102 17
195 C1.
[0050] An alternate adapter 110' for use with the present knife is
depicted in FIGS. 16-19. The adapter 110' has an interconnection
with the housing identical with the interconnection of the adapter
110. A cylindrical throughpassage 119 however for sucking materials
away from the knife is uniform along the length of the adapter 110'
In the illustrated embodiment this diameter is 0.9 inches.
[0051] Attached to the knife 10 at an end of the handle assembly 20
removed from the blade housing 30 is a generally cylindrical hose
guide 120 (FIG. 1) supported by a bracket 122 that extends
outwardly away from the handle 20. A collar 124 supports the
bracket 122 and fits over a handle assembly portion 126. The collar
124 slides over the end portion 126 and is secured to the frame by
two set screws 128 at ninety degrees with respect to each other
(only one of which is seen in FIG. 1). The guide 120 is sized to
allow the hose to be slipped through the guide before the hose is
attached to the adapter 110. The guide 120 prevents the suction
tube 52 from getting in the way as the user manipulates the knife.
The guide keeps the tube 52 from rubbing against the users hand and
prevents the tube 52 from exerting a twisting force that would
impede proper operation of the knife. The guide causes the tube 52
and a flexible air hose 130 to approach a region of the handle
assembly 20 along generally parallel paths so that any torques they
exert against the user as he or she manipulates the knife are of
the same direction.
[0052] Alternate Blade 150
[0053] FIGS. 10-15 illustrate an alternate cutting blade 150 for
use with knife 10. The blade 150 has an elongated blade body 151
that includes a first, lower inner wall portion 152 (FIG. 13)
having a generally cylindrical wall surface of a first diameter and
a second inner wall portion 154 that meets the first wall portion
and widens or flares outwardly from said first wall portion to a
region of the gear 66. As seen most clearly in FIGS. 10 and 11, the
blade 150 has flutes 160 (integral with the blade body) that form
cutting surfaces in addition to a cutting surface 162 at a bottom
of the blade 150. The flutes or splines 160 have an undercut
portion 164 that bites into the animal tissue with which it comes
in contact as the blade rotates. This design blade has particularly
utility with cutting a pork spinal cord out of a slaughtered pig or
hog. The flutes 160 are brought into contact with the relatively
narrow spinal cord cavity to widen the cavity as the spinal cord is
removed. As seen in the plan view of FIG. 15 and the elevation view
of FIG. 11, the flutes 160 are wider at the top and taper down to a
thinner portion near the cutting surface 162. At the top, the
flutes 160 extend outwardly away from the generally cylindrical
outer surface 165 of the blade 150 a distance of 0.06 inches. The
flutes 160 taper inwardly and at their end near the cutting surface
162 they are not quite flush with the outer surface of the blade
but extend only 0.01 inches.
[0054] While alternate exemplary embodiments of the invention have
been described with a degree of particularity, it is the intent
that the invention include all alterations and modifications from
the alternate embodiments falling within the spirit or scope of the
appended claims.
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