The invention relates to a process for removing the tail end of Brussels sprouts. A process for removing the tail end of Brussels sprouts has been described in Dutch patent application 7504554.

In this known process the Brussels sprouts are transported on the upper horizontal part of two parallel endless belts, which horizontal part is mounted above a number of rotating knives which can cut off the tail end of a Brussels sprout if the same is protruding through the gap between the two endless belts. In order to make sure that a Brussels sprout will have its tail end protruding through the gap between the belts, these belts are moving with different velocity thereby generating a rolling movement on the Brussels sprout. Otherwise there is provided an agitating member which will act on the Brussels sprout in order to change its position. In this way most of the Brussels sprouts will have their orientation changed so that at least once during the each Brussels sprout rests on the belts its tail end is protruding through the gap between the belts and cut off. With this type of process satisfactory results have been obtained although the cutting operation was relatively rough and in general the cut off part was larger than actually needed for the Brussels sprout being acceptable for consumption. Moreover in the last years the shape of the Brussels sprout has been changed in that new species have been developed which have a more round shape compared to the older specie which were more oval.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a process for cutting off the tail end of Brussels sprouts which has not the above mentioned disadvantages and which is better adapted to the shape of the actual Brussels sprouts.

This and other objects is achieved in that starting from stack of Brussels sprouts the following steps are taken:

one Brussels sprout at a time is separated from the stack and transferred to a longitudinal transport track,

- on the transport track the Brussels sprout is treated and manipulated such that it occupies a position in which the dimension of the Brussels sprout with the greatest length is positioned substantially perpendicular to the direction of the transport track,

near the end of the transport track the exact position and orientation of each individual Brussels sprout is defined by means of photographic detection, - each individual Brussels sprout is removed from the transport track by means of a gripper, the position and orientation of the gripper being defined by means of the detected position and orientation of the Brussels sprout to be removed, the gripper with the Brussels sprout is re-oriented and moved along a knife whereby the tail end of the Brussels sprout is cut off, and

- the Brussels sprout treated like this is removed form the gripper and collected in a receiving tray.

By handling each Brussels sprout in an individual way and using a cutting system which is adapted to the actual shape of each individual Brussels sprout the cutting process is optimized. More specifically the loss in weight is reduced to about 10% compared with the 30-40% as was normal with the prior art processes. Moreover the consumer receives a ready to cook product which compared to the Brussels sprouts obtained by the prior art processes is absolutely in perfect condition. This is because that the leaves during the cooking are still closed around the Brussels sprout with the result that after cooking the Brussels sprout is still intact. There are no loose leafs in the cooking vessel.

The invention also relates to a device for performing the process of removing the tail end of Brussels sprouts. Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will become clear from the following description of an embodiment of a device according to the invention, reference being made to the annexed drawings in which there is shown a perspective view of the cutting unit which can be used in the device according to the invention. The device for removing the tail end of a Brussels sprout according to the invention is composed of a number of sub units which will be named as follows, the separation unit, the transport and orientation unit, the detection unit and the cutting unit. Each Brussels sprout to be handled will pass through these four units before it will be laid down in clean condition in a receiving tray.

It is accepted that the Brussels sprouts are supplied as bulk goods in containers or the like and that in the separation unit one Brussels sprout at a time is separated from the stack of products and transferred to the transport and orientation unit. For that purpose a unit can be used as described in WO-A-2006-094837 which is incorporated by reference into this specification. Although the device described there is intended to be used with onions, the same type of device can be used with minor changes with respect to the dimensions so as to make it usable with Brussels sprouts. The Brussels sprout can first be brought into a storage bin as described in this earlier patent application and transported one by one upwardly . At the end of this upward movement each individual Brussels sprout will fall into a vertical chute which, having its upper end at the end of the upward movement path of the separation unit and its lower end just above one end of the transport and orientation unit. This lower end is provided with a valve so that a Brussels sprout arriving there can be withheld for some time until a transport set of the transport unit is in the right position as will be described later. At that time the valve can be opened and the Brussels sprout transferred to the transport and orientation unit. The transport and orientation unit can be of the type as described in Dutch patent specification 1025386. The transport device described in this specification is of the type to be used with onions, but with the same type of device and an adaptation of the dimensions it can also be used for transporting and orienting Brussels sprouts. Part of the transport and orientation unit is shown in the drawing reference number 10.

Basically the transport and orientation unit comprises a number of endless chains 11 , each of which is running over a number of wheels, one of which can be driven thereby moving the chains 11. The upper part of each chains is substantially horizontal and forms the so-called transport track, this is the part in which the Brussels sprouts are transported from the separation unit to the cutting unit thereby passing the detection unit.

Between each pair of adjacent chains there is provided a number of pairs of parallel axis 12, each of these axis carry two rollers 13 each having the general form of a truncated cone and the ends with the smaller diameter being directed towards each other. Four rollers on a pair of parallel axis form together a support for a Brussels sprout to be transported as described above. As shown in the drawing between each pair of chains there is a number of pairs of axis and each axis carries more than one pair of rollers, but basically the invention can be performed with only one pair of rollers on each axis. Each roller is free rotatable around the axis on which it is mounted. Otherwise each roller is connected to a chain wheel which is free rotatable mounted on the same axis and which in the upper transport track part extends below the chains 11. Under the transport track part of the chains there is mounted a number of endless chains cooperating with these chain wheels, which chains (not shown) can be driven so that during the movement of the chains 11 , the rollers are rotatably driven. The movements of these additional chains can be selected in such a way that either the rollers in each set of two pairs are driven in one direction, whereas the other pair of rollers on the adjacent axis are driven either in the same circumferential or in opposite circumferential direction. Moreover the circumferential velocity can be freely selected. The additional chains responsible for the rotating movement of the rollers are only active in the part of the transport track before reaching the detection unit. Once a set of rollers entering the detection zone the engagement between the additional chains and the chain wheels stops and the rollers are no longer rotating. IN this way it is obtained that the Brussels sprout is in a stable position upon entering the detection unit.

As explained in the already mentioned Dutch patent specification 1025386, the movement of the rollers does agitate the Brussels sprout in such a way that it has the tendency to direct its longitudinal axis in a direction which is substantially perpendicular to the direction of the transport track, or the general direction of the chains 11. In this way all the Brussels sprout arriving in the detection unit will have the same orientation in so far that the orientation of the tail end is not fixed but can be twofold.

The detection unit (not shown) is provided in the end part of the transport track above the same and consists of a digital camera, one camera being provided for each set of four rollers provided on an axis as seen along the longitudinal direction of said axis. As soon as the set of four rollers in a stationary condition and carrying a Brussels sprout arrives at a defined position the camera will make a picture of the Brussels sprout and transfer it to a computer.

In the computer the picture of the Brussels sprout is analyzed in that its circumference is defined and based upon that the largest dimension of the Brussels sprout is defined which will be defined as the longitudinal direction of the Brussels sprout. At the same time the largest dimension of the Brussels sprout in the direction perpendicular to its longitudinal direction is defined and the tail end is defined based upon the general shape of the two ends of the Brussels sprout at the end of the longitudinal axis. The tail end is generally the not rounded end part of the sprout, which has commonly a more or less straight shape. As the Brussels sprout is generally not exactly oriented in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the transport track, the angle position of the Brussels sprout with respect to that direction is also defined. With these data it becomes possible to control a gripping device that will take the Brussels sprout from the set of four rollers and transport it through the cutting unit, before releasing it in a receiving tray.

In the cutting unit there are provided a number of gripping devices, one for each of the parallel transport tracks present in the transport unit, which are adapted to take the Brussels sprouts form the support rollers in the transport tracks.

Each gripping device as such comprises a gripper 16, which is mounted on a substantially vertical axis 15 which is rotatably mounted on a bracket 1 . The brackets 14 are mounted on a frame bar 21 which can be moved back and for along a sliding surface 17, which is under an angle with respect to the transport tracks so that by a movement of the frame bar 6 along the sliding surfaces 17 the grippers 16 are moving back and forth with respect to the transport track.

The gripper 16 itself comprises two claw-like members which are positioned apposite each other as commonly known in the art, and which can be moved towards each other in order to grip a Brussels sprout, and which can be opened so as to release a Brussels sprout. As the axis 15 is rotatably mounted in the bracket the angle orientation of the gripper can be adjusted to the actual angel position of the Brussels sprout on the Brussels sprout on the support rollers in the transport track. Moreover the bracket 14 is moveable with respect to the frame bar in a direction parallel to the length of the frame bar 21. This allows the gripper to be adjusted accurately with respect to the Brussels sprout so that the gripper acts on that part of the Brussels sprout with the largest diameter by movement of the gripper to the right position as detected in the detection unit.

The actuation of the different movements to be performed in the gripping unit will not be described in detail as this is obvious for the man skilled in the art. Basically the different movements can be obtained by means of hydraulic, pneumatic and/or electro-magnetic devices or combinations thereof.

Between the two sliding surfaces 17 there is mounted a bar 18 on which there are mounted a number of knife blades 20 which are oriented with their cutting edge in the direction of the sliding surfaces'! 7. The position of these knife blades is such that a Brussels sprout gripped by the gripper 16 and oriented in the right way will be removed from its tail end during the movement of the frame bar upwardly along the sliding surfaces 17.

The operation of the device is as follows.

After a Brussels sprout had been transferred to a set of support rollers 13 in the transport track it will be agitated in such a way by the rolling movement of these rollers that it occupies a position in which its longitudinal axis is substantially oriented in a direction perpendicular to the direction of the transport track. There might be a possible deviation of some degrees, but the main direction is like that. In the detection unit the exact configuration, position and orientation of the Brussels sprout is detected and the gripper is positioned in such a way that it will pick up the sprout from its set of support rollers in the optimal way, in which is the gripper is oriented in line with the possible orientation of the Brussels sprout and taking into account its actual shape. The gripper picks up the Brussels sprout and is taking a orientation such that the longitudinal axis of the sprout is exactly perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the transport track and its lateral position is corrected such that the tail end of the sprout will be exactly trimmed off from the Brussels sprout during the movement along the sliding surfaces. If needed and based upon detection by the detection unit the orientation of the Brussels sprout is reversed over 180° by rotation of the gripper over 180°, in order to have the tail end of the Brussels sprout exactly at the side of the cutting blade 20. By positioning and orienting the Brussels sprout in this way by means of a movement of the gripper the tail end can be removed with a very high degree of accuracy, so that the Brussels sprout is almost not damaged by that.

It is obvious that the invention is not restricted to the described embodiments as shown in the annexed drawings, but that within the scope of the claims modifications can be applied without departing from the inventive concept.