annular rotary knife blade and energy operated rotary knife

专利摘要:
ROTATING KNIFE AND ANNULAR ROTATING KNIFE BLADE A two-part rotary knife blade (2300, 3300) for an energy operated rotary knife. The knife blade (2300) includes a carrier portion (2302, 3302) and a blade portion (2350, 3350), the blade portion configured to be received in a nested relationship by the carrier portion and being releasably attached to the carrier portion by an attachment structure (2370, 3370). The attachment structure (2370, 3370) including a plurality of projections (2372, 3372) extending from one of the outer wall (2354, 3354) of the blade portion (2350, 3350) and the inner wall (2304 , 3304) of the carrier portion and a plurality of sockets (2374, 3374) disposed on the other of the outer wall of the blade portion and the inner wall of the carrier portion, each of the plurality of projections being received in a respective different from the plurality of sockets to secure the blade portion to the carrier portion.
公开号:BR112014001915B1
申请号:R112014001915-0
申请日:2012-07-24
公开日:2020-10-27
发明作者:Nicholas A. Mascari；Jeffrey A. Whited；Terry J. Thompson
申请人:Bettcher Industries, Inc；
IPC主号:

专利说明:

Technical field
[0001] The present disclosure relates to a rotary knife operated by energy. Historic
[0002] Energy operated rotary knives are widely used in meat processing facilities for meat cutting and trimming operations. Power operated rotary knives are also used in a variety of other industries, where cutting and / or trimming operations need to be carried out quickly and with less effort than would be the case if traditional cutting or trimming hand tools were used, eg, long knives, scissors, tweezers, etc.
[0003] By way of example, energy operated rotary knives can be effectively used for such diverse tasks as taxidermy and cutting and trimming of elastomeric foam or urethane for a variety of applications, including vehicle seats.
[0004] Power operated rotary knives typically include a cable assembly and a head assembly attachable to the cable assembly. The head assembly includes an annular blade housing and an annular rotary knife blade supported for rotation by the blade housing. The annular rotary blade of conventional energy operated rotary knives is typically rotated by a drive assembly that includes a flexible rod drive assembly extending through an opening in the cable assembly. The rod drive assembly engages and rotates a pinion gear supported by the head assembly. The flexible rod drive assembly includes a fixed outer case and a rotating inner drive shaft that is driven by a pneumatic or electric motor. The gear teeth of the pinion gear engage the matched gear teeth formed on an upper surface of the rotary knife blade.
[0005] By rotating the pinion gear through the drive shaft of the flexible rod drive assembly, the annular rotating blade rotates within the blade housing at a high RPM, in the order of 900 - 1900 RPM, depending on the structure and characteristics of the drive assembly including the motor, rod drive assembly and a diameter and number of gear teeth formed on the rotating knife blade. Conventional energy-operated rotary knives are disclosed in U.S. Pat. USA No. 6, 354, 949 to Baris et al. , 6, 751, 872 for Whited et al., 6,769,184 for Whited and 6,978,548 for Whited et al, all of which are assigned to the assignee of the present invention and all of which are incorporated herein in their respective totalities by reference. summary
[0006] In one aspect, the present disclosure relates to an energy-operated rotary knife comprising: an annular rotary knife blade including a wall defining a knife blade support surface; a blade housing including a wall defining a blade housing supporting surface; and a blade support structure - blade housing arranged between the knife blade support surface and the blade housing support surface, the blade support structure - blade housing supporting the knife blade for rotation with respect to to the blade housing on a knife blade central axis, the blade support structure - blade housing including an elongated undulating support strip that extends circumferentially around the knife blade central axis between the blade support surface knife and the blade housing support surface. In an exemplary embodiment, the elongated undulating support strip comprises a plurality of undulating bearings arranged in spaced relation and a flexible separator cage to position the plurality of spaced undulating bearings.
[0007] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to a support structure for use with an energy operated rotary knife including an annular rotary knife blade rotating on a central axis and an annular blade housing, the support structure disposed between a knife blade support surface and a blade housing support surface to rotatably support the knife blade with respect to the blade housing, the support structure comprising: an elongated undulating support strip having a plurality of corrugated bearings arranged in spaced relation and a flexible separator cage to position the plurality of spaced corrugated bearings, the corrugated support strip extending circumferentially between the knife blade support surface and the housing support support surface blade, the separator cage forming at least a portion of a circle and each of the plurality of the undulating bearings extending r additionally from the separator cage and adapted to contact the knife blade support surface and the blade housing support surface.
[0008] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to a method of supporting an annular knife blade for rotation about a central axis in a blade housing of a rotary knife operated by energy, the method comprising: aligning a blade of knife and blade housing so that a knife blade bearing surface is in radial alignment with a blade housing bearing surface, the knife blade bearing surface and the blade housing bearing surface defining a passage cancel; and routing an undulating support strip along the annular passage so that the strip extends circumferentially around the central axis of the knife blade between the knife blade support surface and the blade housing support surface forming at least least a portion of a circle on the central axis.
[0009] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an energy-operated rotary knife comprising: a head assembly including a gearbox assembly, an annular rotary knife blade, a blade housing and a support structure blade - blade housing; the blade housing coupled to the gearbox assembly and including an annular blade support section defining a support surface formed on an inner wall of the annular blade support section; the annular rotary knife blade including a body and a blade section extending axially from the body, the body including a first axially spaced top and bottom end and a radially spaced inner wall and outer wall, the section blade extending from the lower end of the body, the outer wall defining a knife blade support surface and a set of gear teeth, the set of gear teeth being axially spaced from the upper end of the body and from the knife blade support surface; the blade support structure - blade housing arranged between the knife blade support surface and the blade housing support surface; and a gearbox assembly gear kit, the gear kit including a transmission gear having a plurality of gear teeth that join with the knife blade gear teeth set to rotate the knife blade with respect to the blade housing.
[0010] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an annular rotary knife blade for rotation about a central axis in an energy operated rotary knife, the rotary knife blade comprising: an annular rotary knife blade including a body and a blade section extending axially from the body, the body including an axially spaced upper and lower end and a radially spaced inner and outer wall; the blade section extending from the lower end of the body; and the outer wall defining a knife blade support surface and a set of gear teeth, the set of gear teeth being axially spaced from the upper end of the body and axially spaced from the knife blade support surface .
[0011] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an energy-operated rotary knife comprising: a gearbox assembly including a gearbox housing and a gearbox; a blade housing coupled to the gearbox housing; and an annular rotary knife blade including an upper end and an axially spaced lower end, the lower end defining a cutting edge of the blade, the knife blade still including an outer wall defining a set of gear teeth, the set of gear teeth gear being axially spaced from the upper end of the knife blade, the knife blade rotating about a central axis with respect to the blade housing; the gearbox comprising a gear set including a pinion gear and a transmission gear, the pinion gear engaging and rotating the transmission gear and the transmission gear engaging and rotating the knife blade on the central axis; and the transmission gear comprising a double gear including a first gear engaging and being rotated by the pinion gear on a rotary axis of the transmission gear and a second gear engaging the knife blade gear teeth assembly to rotate the knife blade on the central axis, the first and second gear of the transmission gear being concentric with the rotary axis of the transmission gear.
[0012] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to a gear set supported in a gearbox housing of a rotary knife operated by energy to rotate an annular rotary knife blade on a central axis, the gear set comprising: a pinion gear and transmission gear, characterized by the fact that the pinion gear engages and rotates the transmission gear and the transmission gear is configured to engage and rotate an annular rotary knife blade; and characterized by the fact that the transmission gear comprises a double gear including a first gear engaging and being rotated by the pinion gear on a rotary axis of the transmission gear and a second gear configured to engage an annular rotary knife blade, the first and the second gear of the transmission gear being concentric with the rotary axis of the transmission gear.
[0013] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an annular blade housing for an energy-operated rotary knife, the blade housing comprising: an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner wall defining a supporting surface of blade housing, the blade housing further including a cleaning port having an inlet and outlet opening, the outlet opening being on the inner wall and in fluid communication with the blade housing supporting surface.
[0014] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an energy-operated rotary knife comprising: an annular rotary knife blade including a wall defining a knife blade support surface; an annular blade housing comprising an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner wall defining a blade housing supporting surface on the inner wall; a blade support structure - blade housing arranged between the knife blade support surface and the blade housing support surface, the blade support structure - blade housing supporting the knife blade for rotation with respect to blade housing on a knife blade central axis; and the blade housing further including a cleaning door extending radially between the inner wall and the outer wall, the cleaning door including an inlet and an outlet opening, the outlet opening being on the inner wall and in communication of fluid with the blade housing support surface.
[0015] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an annular blade housing for an energy-operated rotary knife, the blade housing comprising: an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner wall defining a supporting surface of blade housing, the blade housing further including a blade housing plug opening extending between and through the inner wall and outer wall, one end of the blade housing plug opening on the inner wall crossing a supporting surface of blade housing to provide access to the blade housing support surface through the blade housing plug opening and a blade housing plug configured to be releasably attached within the blade housing plug opening.
[0016] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an energy-operated rotary knife comprising: an annular rotary knife blade including a wall defining a knife blade support surface; an annular blade housing comprising an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner wall defining a blade housing supporting surface; a blade support structure - blade housing arranged between the knife blade support surface and the blade housing support surface, the blade support structure - blade housing supporting the knife blade for rotation with respect to blade housing on a knife blade central axis; and characterized by the fact that the blade housing still includes a blade housing plug opening extending between and through the inner wall and outer wall, one end of the blade housing plug opening on the inner wall crossing a surface of blade housing support to provide access to the blade housing support surface through the blade housing plug opening and a blade housing plug configured to be releasably attached within the blade housing plug opening.
[0017] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an annular blade housing comprising: an inner wall and an outer wall, a section of the inner wall defining a blade housing supporting surface, the housing supporting surface blade being axially spaced from the first and second opposite ends of the inner wall, the blade housing still including a projection at one of the first and second ends of the inner wall, the projection extending radially internally with respect to the wall section internal area defining the blade housing support surface.
[0018] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an energy-operated rotary knife comprising: an annular rotary knife blade including a wall defining a knife blade support surface; an annular blade housing comprising an inner wall and an outer wall, the inner wall defining a blade housing supporting surface; a blade support structure - blade housing arranged between the knife blade support surface and the blade housing support surface, the blade support structure - blade housing supporting the knife blade for rotation with respect to blade housing on a knife blade central axis; and characterized by the fact that the blade housing still includes a projection on one of the first and second ends of the inner wall, the projection extending radially internally with respect to the section of the inner wall defining the blade housing supporting surface.
[0019] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an annular rotary knife blade for rotation about an axis of rotation on an energy operated rotary knife, the rotary knife blade comprising: an annular carrier portion including a first end and an axially spaced second end, an outer wall and a radially internally spaced inner wall respectively extending between the first end and the second end, the carrier portion including a set of gear teeth and a knife blade support surface; an annular blade portion including a first end and an axially spaced second end, an outer wall and an internally radially spaced inner wall extending respectively between the first end and the second end, and a cutting edge at the second end of the blade portion , the blade portion configured to be received in a relationship housed by the carrier portion; and an attachment structure for releasably securing the blade portion to the carrier portion, the attachment structure including a plurality of projections extending from one of the outer wall of the blade portion and the inner wall of the carrier portion and a plurality of sockets arranged on the other of the outer wall of the blade portion and the inner wall of the carrier portion, each of the plurality of projections being received in a respective different from the plurality of sockets to releasably secure the blade portion to the carrier portion.
[0020] In another aspect, the present disclosure relates to an energy-operated rotary knife comprising: a two-piece ring rotary knife blade rotating on an axis of rotation and defining a knife blade support groove, the blade knife including an annular carrier portion, an annular blade portion and an attachment structure; a blade housing including an inner wall defining a blade housing supporting surface; and a blade support structure - blade housing arranged between the knife blade support surface and the blade housing support surface; the knife blade carrier portion including an axially spaced first end and second end, an radially internally spaced outer wall and an inner wall extending respectively between the first end and the second end, and a set of gear teeth; the blade portion of the knife blade including a first end and a second end axially spaced, an outer wall and an inner wall radially spaced internally extending respectively between the first end and the second end, and a cutting edge at the second end of blade portion, the blade portion configured to be received in a relationship housed by the carrier portion; and the knife blade attachment structure for releasably securing the blade portion to the carrier portion, the attachment structure including a plurality of projections extending from one of the outer wall of the blade portion and the inner wall of the carrier portion and a plurality of sockets disposed on the other of the outer wall of the blade portion and the inner wall of the carrier portion, each of the plurality of projections being received in a respective different from the plurality of sockets for releasably securing the blade portion to the carrier portion . Brief description of the drawings
[0021] The above and other features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent to one with skill in the technique to which the present disclosure relates by considering the following description of the disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which the similar numerals reference, unless otherwise described, refer to similar parts throughout all drawings and where:
[0022] Figure 1 is a schematic front perspective view of a first exemplary embodiment of an energy operated rotary knife of the present disclosure including a head assembly, a cable assembly and a drive mechanism, the head assembly including a gearbox assembly, an annular rotary knife blade, a blade housing and a blade holder - blade housing or support structure and the cable assembly including a handpiece and a handpiece retaining assembly;
[0023] Figure 2 is a schematic exploded perspective view of the energy operated rotating knife of Figure 1;
[0024] Figure 2A is a schematic exploded perspective view of a portion of the energy operated rotary knife head assembly of Figure 1 including the rotary knife blade, the blade housing and the blade support structure - blade housing. blade that, in an exemplary embodiment, includes an elongated undulating support strip that securely and rotatively supports the blade of the rotary knife with respect to the blade housing;
[0025] Figure 2B is a schematic exploded perspective view of the handle assembly of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1 including the handpiece, the handpiece retaining assembly and a drive shaft hitch assembly supported by the assembly. handpiece retention;
[0026] Figure 2C is a schematic exploded perspective view of a portion of the power operated rotary knife head assembly of Figure 1 including the gearbox assembly, a steel assembly and a frame body, the assembly of gearbox including a gearbox and gearbox housing;
[0027] Figure 3 is a schematic top plan view of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0028] Figure 4 is a schematic bottom plan view of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0029] Figure 5 is a schematic front elevation view of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0030] Figure 6 is a schematic rear elevation view of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0031] Figure 7 is a schematic right side elevation view of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1, as seen from a front end or blade of the energy operated rotary knife;
[0032] Figure 8 is a schematic section view obtained along a longitudinal axis of the handle assembly of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1, as seen from a plane indicated by line 8-8 in Figure 3;
[0033] Figure 8A is an enlarged schematic section view of a portion of the cable assembly shown in Figure 8 that is within a dotted circle labeled Fig. 8A in Figure 8;
[0034] Figure 9 is a schematic perspective section view along the longitudinal axis of the handle assembly of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1, as seen from a plane indicated by line 8-8 in Figure 3:
[0035] Figure 10 is a schematic top plan view of an assembled combination of the rotary knife blade, the blade housing and the blade support structure - blade housing of the energy operated rotating knife of Figure 1;
[0036] Figure 11 is a schematic rear elevation view of the assembled combination of the rotating knife blade, blade housing and blade support structure - blade housing of Figure 10, as seen from a plane indicated by line 11 -11 in Figure 10, with a blade housing plug removed from the blade housing:
[0037] Figure 12 is a schematic side elevation view of the assembled combination of the rotating knife blade, blade housing and blade support structure - blade housing of Figure 10, as seen from a plane indicated by line 12 -12 in Figure 10, with a blade housing plug removed from the blade housing;
[0038] Figure 13 is a schematic enlarged section view of the assembled combination of the rotating knife blade, the blade housing and the blade support structure - blade housing of the energy operated rotating knife of Figure 1 as seen from a plane indicated by line 13-13 in Figure 10;
[0039] Figure 14 is a schematic perspective view of the elongated undulating support strip of the blade support structure - blade housing of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0040] Figure 15 is a schematic section view of the undulating support strip of Figure 14 obtained transverse to a longitudinal axis of the strip, as seen from a plane indicated by line 15-15 in Figure 14, to show a view in schematic section of an elongated separator cage of the undulating support strip in a position where no undulating bearings are located;
[0041] Figure 16 is a schematic top plan view of a short portion of the undulating support strip of Figure 14 obtained along the longitudinal axis of the strip, as seen from a plane indicated by line 16-16 in Figure 14, to show a schematic top plan view of the elongated separator cage of the undulating support strip in a position where an undulating bearing is located;
[0042] Figure 17 is a schematic section view of the short portion of the wavy support strip of Figure 14, as seen from a plane indicated by line 17-17 in Figure 14, with the wavy bearing removed to show a view in schematic section of an elongated separator cage pocket;
[0043] Figure 18 is a schematic perspective view of a method of releasing the rotating knife blade reliably to the blade housing using the blade support structure - blade housing on the energy-operated rotating knife of Figure 1, showing the alignment of the elongated undulating support strip with a defined annular passage between the blade of the rotary knife and the blade housing;
[0044] Figure 19 is a schematic section view of a method of releasing the rotating knife blade reliably to the blade housing using the blade support structure - blade housing on the energy-operated rotating knife of Figure 1, showing the partial insertion of the elongated undulating support strip in the annular passage between the blade of the rotating knife and the blade housing;
[0045] Figure 20 is a schematic section view of a method of releasing the rotating knife blade reliably to the blade housing using the blade support structure - blade housing on the energy-operated rotating knife of Figure 1, showing the completion of the insertion of the elongated undulating support strip in the annular passage between the knife blade and the blade housing;
[0046] Figure 21 is a schematic section view of a method of releasing the rotating knife blade reliably to the blade housing using the blade support structure - blade housing on the energy-operated rotating knife of Figure 1, showing the attachment of the blade housing plug to the blade housing after insertion of the elongated undulating support strip in the annular passage between the knife blade and the blade housing;
[0047] Figure 22 is an enlarged schematic top plan view of a portion of the annular rotary knife blade of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0048] Figure 23 is the schematic enlarged bottom plan view of the portion of the annular rotary knife blade of Figure 22;
[0049] Figure 24 is a schematic section view of the blade of the annular rotary knife of Figure 22, as seen from a plane indicated by line 24-24 in Figure 22;
[0050] Figure 25 is a schematic top plan view of the blade housing of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0051] Figure 26 is a schematic bottom plan view of the blade housing of Figure 25;
[0052] Figure 27 is a schematic right side elevation view of the blade housing of Figure 25;
[0053] Figure 28 is a schematic rear elevation view of the blade housing of Figure 25 showing a blade housing plug opening of a blade housing mounting section;
[0054] Figure 29 is a schematic section view of the blade housing in Figure 25 as seen from a plane indicated by line 29-29 in Figure 25;
[0055] Figure 29A is an enlarged schematic section view of a portion of the blade housing of Figure 25 that is within a dotted circle labeled Fig. 29A in Figure 29;
[0056] Figure 30 is a schematic top plan view of the blade housing plug that is removably attached to the blade housing of Figure 25;
[0057] Figure 31 is a schematic front elevation view of the blade housing plug of Figure 30 as seen from a plane indicated by line 31-31 in Figure 30;
[0058] Figure 32 is a schematic left side elevation view of the blade housing plug of Figure 30 as seen from a plane indicated by line 32-32 in Figure 30;
[0059] Figure 33 is a schematic front perspective view of the gearbox assembly of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0060] Figure 34 is a schematic top plan view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0061] Figure 35 is a schematic bottom plan view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0062] Figure 36 is a schematic front elevation view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0063] Figure 37 is a schematic rear elevation view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0064] Figure 38 is a schematic right side elevation view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0065] Figure 39 is a schematic longitudinal section view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33, as seen from a plane indicated by line 39-39 in Figure 36;
[0066] Figure 40 is a schematic longitudinal perspective section view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33, as seen from a plane indicated by line 39-39 in Figure 36;
[0067] Figure 41 is a schematic exploded perspective view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0068] Figure 42 is a schematic exploded side elevation view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0069] Figure 43 is a schematic exploded front elevation view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0070] Figure 44 is a schematic exploded top plan view of the gearbox assembly of Figure 33;
[0071] Figure 45 is a schematic exploded rear view in perspective of the power operated rotary knife head assembly of Figure 1 showing the gearbox assembly, the frame body and the mounted blade combination, blade housing and blade support structure - blade housing;
[0072] Figure 46 is a schematic rear elevation view of the gearbox housing of the power operated rotary knife gearbox assembly of Figure 1;
[0073] Figure 47 is a schematic front bottom perspective view of the gearbox housing of Figure 46;
[0074] Figure 48 is a schematic longitudinal section view of the gearbox housing of Figure 46, as seen from a plane indicated by line 48-48 in Figure 46;
[0075] Figure 49 is a schematic rear perspective view of the frame body of the energy-operated rotary knife head assembly of Figure 1;
[0076] Figure 50 is a schematic rear elevation view of the frame body of Figure 49;
[0077] Figure 51 is a schematic bottom plan view of the frame body of Figure 49;
[0078] Figure 52 is a schematic front elevation view of the frame body of Figure 49;
[0079] Figure 53 is a schematic exploded side elevation view of the drive mechanism of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1 extending from a drive motor external to the energy operated rotary knife to the blade of the rotary knife of rotary knife operated by energy;
[0080] Figure 54 is a schematic view, partly in side elevation and partly in section, illustrating the use of the energy operated rotary knife in Figure 1 to trim a layer of material from a product using the blade of the rotary style knife. "level blade", shown, for example, in Figure 24;
[0081] Figure 55 is a schematic enlarged view, partly in side elevation and partly in section, illustrating the use of the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1 to trim a layer of material from a product using the style rotary knife blade "level blade";
[0082] Figure 56 is a schematic section view of a "hook blade" style rotary knife blade and associated blade housing adapted for use in the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0083] Figure 57 is a schematic section view of a "straight blade" style rotary knife blade and associated blade housing adapted for use in the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1;
[0084] Figure 58 is a schematic flowchart for a method of securely and rotatably supporting the blade of the rotating knife with respect to the blade housing using the blade support structure - blade housing of the energy-operated rotating knife of Figure 1;
[0085] Figure 59 is a schematic perspective view obtained from above an exemplary alternative embodiment of a two-piece or two-part ring rotary knife blade of the present disclosure suitable for use on the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1, a rotating knife blade including a carrier portion and a blade portion of the two-part knife blade in a locked position or an assembled condition;
[0086] Figure 60 is a schematic perspective view obtained below the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 59;
[0087] Figure 61 is a schematic front elevation view of the blade of the rotating knife in Figure 59;
[0088] Figure 62 is a schematic top plan view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 59;
[0089] Figure 63 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 59 showing a locking engagement of a projection of the blade portion and a socket of the carrier portion;
[0090] Figure 64 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 59 in a region of the blade where there is engagement of a projection of the blade portion and in a first wider opening region of a socket of the carrier portion , the projection blade portion and the socket carrier portion being part of a knife blade attachment structure to releasably secure the blade portion to the carrier portion, the first wider opening region defining a projection receiving aperture to accept a projection of the blade portion;
[0091] Figure 65 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife in Figure 59, characterized by the fact that the projection of the blade portion in the socket of the carrier portion moved from the first widest opening region of the carrier portion socket (as shown in the sectional view of Figure 64) for a second transition or tapered region of the socket, the second tapered region of the socket changes between the first widest opening region and a third narrower locking region (shown in the section view of Figure 66);
[0092] Figure 66 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife in Figure 59, characterized by the fact that the projection of the blade portion into the socket of the carrier portion moved from the second tapered region of the socket of the portion carrier (as shown in the sectional view of Figure 65) to a third narrow locking region of the socket, the third narrowest locking region defining a locking region to lock a projection of the blade portion so that the blade portion and the carrier portion are in assembled condition or locked position;
[0093] Figure 67 is a schematic top perspective view of the rotating knife blade of Figure 5 9 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned below the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with relation to the carrier portion when assembled;
[0094] Figure 68 is a schematic bottom perspective view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 59 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned below the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with respect to the carrier portion when assembled;
[0095] Figure 69 is a schematic front elevation view of the blade of the rotating knife in Figure 59 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned below the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with respect to the carrier portion when assembled;
[0096] Figure 70 is a schematic bottom plan view of the knife blade carrier portion of Figure 59 showing a plurality of sockets of the knife blade attachment structure, in an exemplary embodiment, the plurality of sockets being four;
[0097] Figure 71 is a schematic top plan view of the blade portion of the rotating knife blade of Figure 59 showing a plurality of projections of the knife blade attachment structure, in an exemplary embodiment, the plurality of projections being four projections ;
[0098] Figure 72 is a schematic bottom plan view of the blade portion of Figure 68;
[0099] Figure 73 is a schematic section view of the blade portion of Figure 71 obtained through a plurality of projections as seen from a plane indicated by line 73-73 in Figure 71;
[00100] Figure 74 is a schematic perspective view obtained above a second alternative exemplary embodiment of a two-piece or two-part annular rotary knife blade of the present disclosure suitable for use in the energy-operated rotary knife of Figure 1, the rotating knife blade including a carrier portion and a blade portion of the two-part knife blade in a locked position or an assembled condition;
[00101] Figure 75 is a schematic perspective view obtained below the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 74;
[00102] Figure 76 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 74 showing a locking engagement of a projection of the blade portion and a socket of the carrier portion;
[00103] Figure 77 is a schematic top perspective view of the rotary knife blade of Figure 7 4 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned above the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with relation to the carrier portion when assembled;
[00104] Figure 78 is a schematic bottom perspective view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 7 4 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned above the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with relation to the carrier portion when assembled;
[00105] Figure 79 is a schematic sectional view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 74 in a region of the blade where there is engagement of a projection of the blade portion and in a first wider opening region of a socket of the portion carrier, the projection blade portion and the socket conveyor portion being part of a knife blade attachment structure to releasably secure the blade portion to the conveyor portion, the first widest opening region defining a projection receiving opening to accept a projection of the blade portion;
[00106] Figure 80 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife in Figure 74, characterized by the fact that the projection of the blade portion in the socket of the carrier portion moved from the first widest opening region of the carrier portion socket (as shown in the sectional view of Figure 79) to a second transition or tapered region of the socket, the second tapered region of the socket changes between the first widest opening region and a third narrower locking region (shown in the section view of Figure 81);
[00107] Figure 81 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife in Figure 74, characterized by the fact that the projection of the blade portion in the socket of the carrier portion moved from the second tapered region of the socket of the portion conveyor (as shown in the sectional view of Figure 80) to a third narrow locking region of the socket, the third narrower locking region defining a locking region to lock a projection of the blade portion so that the blade portion and the carrier portion are in assembled condition or locked position;
[00108] Figure 82 is a schematic perspective view obtained above a third exemplary alternative embodiment of a two-piece or two-part ring rotary knife blade of the present disclosure suitable for use on the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1, the rotating knife blade including a carrier portion and a blade portion of the two-part knife blade in a locked position or an assembled condition;
[00109] Figure 83 is a schematic perspective view obtained below the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 82;
[00110] Figure 84 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 82;
[00111] Figure 85 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 82 showing a locking engagement of a projection of the carrier portion and a socket of the blade portion;
[00112] Figure 86 is a schematic top perspective view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 82 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned above the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with respect to the carrier portion when assembled;
[00113] Figure 87 is a schematic bottom perspective view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 82 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned above the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with respect to the carrier portion when assembled;
[00114] Figure 88 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 82 in a region of the blade where a projection of the conveyor portion is engaged and in a first region of wider opening of a socket of the portion of blade, the blade portion socket extending through a central wall of the blade portion from an inner wall through an outer wall of the blade portion, the projection carrier portion and the blade portion socket being part of a knife blade attachment structure for releasably securing the blade portion to the carrier portion, the first wider opening region defining a projection receiving aperture to accept a projection from the carrier portion;
[00115] Figure 89 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife in Figure 82, characterized by the fact that the projection of the carrier portion in the socket of the blade portion moved from the first widest opening region of the blade portion socket (as shown in the sectional view of Figure 88) to a second transition or tapered region of the socket, the second tapered region of the socket changes between the first wider opening region and a third narrower locking region ( shown in the section view of Figure 90);
[00116] Figure 90 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 82, characterized by the fact that the projection of the carrier portion in the socket of the carrier portion moved from the second tapered region of the socket of the carrier portion (as shown in the sectional view of Figure 89) to a third narrow locking region of the socket, the third narrower locking region defining a locking region to lock a projection of the blade portion so that the blade portion and the portion carrier are in mounted condition or locked position;
[00117] Figure 91 is a schematic perspective view obtained above a fourth exemplary alternative embodiment of an annular rotating two-part knife blade of the present disclosure suitable for use in the energy operated rotary knife of Figure 1, the knife blade rotating including a carrier portion and a blade portion of the two-part knife blade in a locked position or an assembled condition;
[00118] Figure 92 is a schematic perspective view obtained below the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 91;
[00119] Figure 93 is a schematic sectional view of the rotating knife blade of Figure 91 showing a locking engagement of a projection of the blade portion and a socket of the carrier portion.
[00120] Figure 94 is a schematic top perspective view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 91 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned above the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with respect to the carrier portion when assembled;
[00121] Figure 95 is a schematic bottom perspective view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 91 in a disassembled condition with the blade portion aligned above the carrier portion to schematically illustrate how the blade portion would be received or housed with respect to the carrier portion when assembled;
[00122] Figure 96 is a schematic sectional view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 91 in a region of the blade where a projection of the blade portion is engaged and in a first wider opening region of a socket of the portion carrier, the projection blade portion and the socket conveyor portion being part of a knife blade attachment structure to releasably secure the blade portion to the conveyor portion, the first widest opening region defining a projection receiving opening to accept a projection of the blade portion;
[00123] Figure 97 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 91, characterized by the fact that the projection of the blade portion in the socket of the conveyor portion moved from the first widest opening region of the carrier portion socket (as shown in the sectional view of Figure 96) to a second transition or tapered region of the socket, the second tapered region of the socket changes between the first widest opening region and a third narrower locking region (shown in the section view of Figure 98);
[00124] Figure 98 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 91, characterized by the fact that the projection of the blade portion in the socket of the carrier portion moved from the second tapered region of the socket of the portion conveyor (as shown in the sectional view of Figure 97) to a third narrow locking region of the socket, the third narrower locking region defining a locking region to lock a projection of the blade portion so that the blade portion and the carrier portion are in assembled or locked position; and
[00125] Figure 99 is a schematic section view of the blade of the rotating knife of Figure 91 in the assembled condition as installed in a blade housing of a rotary knife operated by the corresponding energy correctly configured in the present disclosure. Detailed description "First exemplary design - 100" energy-powered rotary knife " Overview"
[00126] The designers of rotary knives operated by energy are constantly challenged to improve the design of such knives with respect to multiple objectives. For example, there is a desire to increase the rotational speed of the rotary knife blade from an energy operated rotary knife. Generally, increasing the rotational speed of the blade reduces the operator effort required for cutting and trimming operations. There is also a desire to reduce the heat generated during the operation of the energy operated rotary knife. A source of the heat generated is the blade support interface - blade housing, that is, the heat generated at the support interface between the rotating knife blade and the fixed blade housing. Reducing the heat generated during the operation of the energy-operated rotary knife will tend to increase the service life of several knife components. In addition, reducing the heat generated during the operation of the knife will tend to reduce the undesired "cooking" of the product being cut or trimmed. If sufficient heat is generated in the blade support region of the rotating knife and blade housing, the dislodged parts or fragments of a product being cut or trimmed (eg, small parts or fragments of fat, cartilage or dislodged meat during trimming or cutting operations) in the vicinity of the support region can become so hot that the pieces "cook". The cooked materials tend to clog the blade and the support region of the blade housing resulting in even more undesirable heating.
[00127] There is still a desire to reduce the vibration of an energy operated rotary knife during operation for the purposes of improved operator ergonomics and, consequently, improved operator productivity. There is also a desire to increase the service life of the components of an energy operated rotary knife. Areas of potential improvement include the design of the rotating knife blade, the blade housing, the blade support interface - blade housing or support structure that supports the knife blade for rotation in the blade housing, and the gear that rotates the rotary knife blade in the blade housing.
[00128] Many conventional power operated rotary knives include a so-called split ring annular blade housing. A split ring or split annular blade housing is one that includes a split across a diameter of the blade housing. The split allows for the expansion of a circumference of the blade housing for the purpose of removing a blade from the rotating knife that needs to be sharpened or at the end of its life and inserting a new blade from the rotating knife. A split ring blade housing has several inherent disadvantages. Due to the split, a split ring blade housing is weaker than a blade housing without a split. In addition, the split, which defines a discontinuity along the rotational path of the knife blade, is often a collection point for fragments of meat, fat, cartilage and / or bones that are created during a cutting or trimming operation. The accumulation of such a fragment or debris in the division region can generate heat and / or potentially result in increased vibration from the energy operated rotary knife, both of which are undesirable results.
[00129] Additionally, a split ring blade housing requires the operator to adjust the circumference of the blade housing as the blade of the rotating knife wears out. Considering the large loading forces applied to the blade when cutting and trimming the meat, wear will occur between the blade support structure and the corresponding support structure of the blade housing that supports the blade for rotation within the blade housing. In some energy operated rotary knives, the blade support structure - blade housing includes a portion of an outer radial surface of the rotating knife that serves as a blade support structure and a portion of a radial inner surface of the housing blade that serves as the matching or matched support structure of the blade housing. In such energy operated rotary knives, an outer radial surface of the blade and a corresponding inner radial surface of the blade housing will wear out over time resulting in a gradual detachment of the blade from the rotating knife within the blade housing.
[00130] In certain energy-operated rotary knives, the blade support structure - blade housing comprises a cord extending internally from the blade housing that extends into a support groove formed on a radial outer surface of the knife blade rotating to support the blade for rotation in the blade housing. Again, the blade support groove and the blade housing support cord will wear out over time resulting in the rotary knife blade being detached within the blade housing. As the blade of the rotary knife becomes looser within the blade housing, the energy operated rotary knife will typically experience increased vibration. An inexperienced operator can simply accept the increased vibration of the energy operated rotary knife as a necessary part of using such a knife and will reduce his productivity when cutting or trimming at a slower pace, turning the knife off, taking additional time between cuts, etc.
[00131] An experienced operator can recognize that a potential solution to the problem of increased vibration is to adjust, that is, reduce the circumference of the blade housing, ie, reduce the effective diameter of the blade housing, to consider blade wear and blade housing support interface. Such adjustment of the circumference of the blade housing is a trial and error technique that requires the operator to find adequate operating clearance. The operating clearance can be seen as finding an appropriate balance between providing sufficient blade support clearance - blade housing, that is, having the blade housing support diameter sufficiently larger than the corresponding matched support blade diameter. knife so that the knife blade freely rotates in the blade housing while, at the same time, not having too much play that would cause the knife blade to overplay and / or vibrate in the blade housing.
[00132] However, even for an experienced operator, adjusting the circumference of the blade housing can be problematic. If the operator fails to properly adjust the circumference of the blade housing, i.e., find an adequate operating clearance, the energy operated rotary knife may not function properly. If the operator's adjustment leads to insufficient operating clearance, the knife blade will not rotate freely in the blade housing, that is, the knife blade will tend to join in the blade housing thus generating heat and a tendency to increase blade wear rotary knife, blade housing and transmission gear components, all unwanted results. Depending on the degree of joining, the blade of the rotating knife may be stuck inside the housing. On the other hand, if the operator adjusts the circumference of the blade housing so that the operational clearance is very large, the knife blade will be loose in the blade housing. This can result in excessive knife blade movement within the blade housing and conductor problems from excessive vibration of the energy operated rotating knife during operation.
[00133] Furthermore, even if the operator succeeds in adjusting the blade housing to an acceptable circumference, adjusting the circumference of the blade housing necessarily requires the operator to cease cutting / trimming operations with the energy operated rotary knife during the trial and error adjustment process. The adjustment process results in downtime and lost operator productivity. Finally, since the wear of the rotating knife blade and the blade housing support interface is in progress as the energy-operated rotary knife continues to be used for cutting and trimming operations, adjusting the circumference of the blade housing undertaken by the operator is only a temporary correction as additional wear occurs.
[00134] The present disclosure relates to an energy-operated rotary knife that addresses many of the problems associated with conventional energy-operated rotary knives and design objectives of the energy-operated rotary knife. An exemplary embodiment of an energy operated rotary knife of the present disclosure is schematically shown generally at 100 in Figures 1-9. The energy operated rotary knife 100 comprises an elongated cable assembly 110 and a head assembly or head portion 111 removably coupled to an advanced end of the cable assembly 110. The cable assembly 110 includes a handpiece 200 which is attached to the head assembly 111 by a handpiece retaining assembly 250.
[00135] In an exemplary embodiment, the head assembly 111 includes a continuous annular rotary knife blade generally in the form of a ring 300, a continuous annular blade housing generally in the form of a ring 400 and a blade holder - blade housing or support structure 500. Ring, as used herein, means generally ring-like or generally ring-shaped in configuration. Continuous ring, as used herein, means a similar ring or ring-shaped configuration that is continuous over the ring or circular crown, that is, the ring or circular crown does not include a split extending across a diameter of the ring or crown Circular. Head assembly 111 further includes a gear box assembly 112 and a frame or frame body 150 for attaching the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400 to the gear box assembly 112.
[00136] The blade of the rotary knife 300 rotates in the blade housing 400 on a central axis of rotation R, In an exemplary embodiment, the blade of the rotary knife 300 includes a support surface 319 and a driven gear 328. Both the groove of support 319 and driven gear 328 are axially spaced from an upper end 306 of a body 302 of the blade 300 and the other. The blade of the rotating knife 300 is supported for rotation in the blade housing 400 by the blade holder - blade housing or support structure 500 of the present disclosure (best seen in Figures 2A and 14). The blade support structure - blade housing 500 advantageously supports both the blade of the rotating knife 300 for rotation with respect to the blade housing 400 and releasably fixes the blade of the rotating knife 300 to the blade housing 400.
[00137] In an exemplary embodiment, the blade support structure - blade housing 500 includes an elongated undulating support strip 502 (Figure 14) having a plurality of spaced undulating bearings 506 supported in a flexible separator cage 508. The strip elongated undulating support 502 is arranged in an annular passage 504 (Figure 13) formed between the opposing support surfaces 319, 459 of the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400, respectively. The blade support structure - blade housing 500 defines a plane of rotation RP (Figures 7 and 8) of the blade of the rotating knife 300 with respect to the blade housing 400, the rotating plane RP being substantially orthogonal to the central axis of the blade of the rotary rotary knife R.
[00138] In an exemplary embodiment, the plurality of the wavy bearings 506 comprises a plurality of the generally spherical bearings. The plurality of rolling bearings or housings 506 are in undulating contact and hold against the opposing supporting surfaces 319, 459 of the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400 to support the knife blade 300 for rotation with respect to the blade housing 400 and fix the knife blade 300 with respect to the blade housing 400. The flexible separator cage 508 rotatably supports and locates the plurality of corrugated bearings 506 in a spaced relationship within the annular passage 504. The flexible separator cage 508 does not functions as a support structure or provides a support surface with respect to the blade of the rotary knife 300 and the blade housing 400. The function of rotatingly supporting the blade of the rotary knife 300 with respect to the blade housing 400 is exclusively provided by the corrugated roller bearing of the plurality of 506 spaced bearings. This corrugated roller bearing can be contrasted with the rotating knives operated by energy using a sliding support structure. For example, Pat. USA No. 6,769,184 to Whited, discloses a sliding support structure comprising a blade housing having a plurality of circumferentially extending sections of radially spaced cord that extend and support against a supporting groove or groove of a knife blade US Order Published Pub. No. 2007/0283573 to Levsen, which reveals a sliding support structure comprising an annular bushing having an elongated bushing body arranged along a groove in a blade housing and in contact with the opposing support surfaces of a rotating knife blade and the blade housing.
[00139] As can be best seen in the sectional view of Figure 13, the flexible separator cage 508 is configured to travel in the annular passage 504 without substantial contact with the knife blade 300 or the blade housing 400 or opposite supporting surfaces 319, 459 of knife blade 300 and blade housing. In fact, it would not be desired for the flexible separator cage 508 to be in contact with or in support engagement with the rotary knife blade 300 or the blade housing 400 as this would result in undesirable sliding friction. The blade support structure - blade housing 500 rotatably supports the knife blade 300 with respect to the blade housing 400 via the corrugated roller bearing provided by the plurality of bearings 506 of the corrugated support strip 502 supporting against opposite surfaces support 319, 459 of the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400.
[00140] The rotational speed of a specific blade of the rotary knife 300 on the energy-operated rotary knife 100 will depend on the specific characteristics of a drive mechanism 600 (shown schematically in Figure 53) of the energy-operated rotary knife 100, including an engine external drive 800, a flexible shank drive assembly 700, a gear set 604 and a rotary knife blade diameter and gear 300. In addition, depending on the cutting or trimming task to be performed, different blade sizes and styles of the rotating knife can be used on the energy operated rotating knife 100 of the present disclosure. For example, rotary knife blades in various diameters are typically offered ranging in size from about 3.55 cm (1.4 inches) in diameter to more than 17.78 cm (7 inches) in diameter. The selection of a blade diameter will depend on the task or tasks being performed.
[00141] Increasing the rotating speed of the rotary knife blade of an energy-operated rotary knife is an important goal for designers of energy-operated rotary knives. The undulating bearing structure of the blade support structure - blade housing 500 of the present disclosure results in reduced friction, less heat generated and less surface wear than would be the case with a sliding or lap support structure. Due to the reduced friction and heat resulting from an undulating bearing structure, the blade support structure - undulating blade housing 500 allows for the increased rotational speed of the rotary knife blade 300 compared to the sliding support structures revealed or used in the rotating knives operated by previous energy.
[00142] By way of example only and without limitation, the following table compares the blade rotational speed of the two energy-operated rotary knives of the present disclosure versus the previous assignee versions of those same models of energy-operated rotary knives. Clearly, it should be appreciated that the increase in blade rotational speed will vary by model and will be dependent on the specific characteristics of each specific model and blade size.

[00143] There are also significant advantages when using the flexible separator cage 508 to support and locate the plurality of the wavy bearings 506, as opposed, for example, when using only a plurality of the wavy bearings, such as bearings, inserted in a gap or passage between the blade of the rotary knife and the blade housing. The flexible separator cage 508 facilitates the insertion and removal, as a group, of the plurality of corrugated bearings 506 in and from the annular passage 504. That is, it is much easier to insert the corrugated support strip 502 in the annular passage 504, as opposed to trying to insert individual undulating bearings in the annular passage 504 in sequential order one at a time, which would be time consuming and fraught with difficulty. This is especially true in a meat processing environment where a loose or lost undulating bearing could fall into a cut or trimmed meat product. Similarly, removing the plurality of wavy bearings 506 as a group via removing wavy support strip 502 is much easier and less likely to loosen or lose wavy bearings than individually removing wavy bearings from annular passage 504 .
[00144] Additionally, from the point of view of friction, the bearing and cost bearing, using the plurality of 506 corrugated bearings supported in a spaced relationship predetermined by the flexible separator cage 508, is more efficient and effective than use a plurality of undulating bearings freely arranged in a gap or passage between the blade of the rotary knife and the blade housing. For example, the separator cage 508 allows the plurality of corrugated bearings 506 to be adequately spaced to provide sufficient corrugated roller bearing to the blade of the rotary knife 300, considering the application and characteristics of the product or material to be cut or trimmed with the knife. energy operated rotary 100, while at the same time avoiding the need to have more undulating bearings than required for proper rotary knife blade bearing 500 and application being carried out with the 100 energy operated rotary knife.
[00145] For example, if the individual corrugated housings are tightly packed in a ratio of one adjacent to the next in annular passage 504, more corrugated housings than needed for most applications would be provided, thus unnecessarily increasing the cost. In addition, having more undulating bearings than needed would also increase the total friction due to the friction between each pair of adjacent undulating bearings in contact. If, on the other hand, the individual corrugated housings are freely packed in the annular passage 504, there is no control over the spacing between adjacent corrugated housings. Thus, there may be instances where a large gap or space may occur between two adjacent undulating bearings resulting in insufficient bearing bearings in a specific region of the annular passage 504, considering the cutting forces being applied to the rotating knife blade 300 during an application or specific cutting or trimming operation.
[00146] As can be best seen in Figure 2, a mounted combination 550 of the rotary knife blade 300, the blade housing 400 and blade support structure - blade housing 500 is releasably attached as a unitary structure to the assembly of gearbox 112 by frame body 150 thus completing head assembly 111. For brevity, the assembled combination 550 of rotary knife blade 300, blade housing 400 and blade support structure - blade housing 500 will now be called the blade combination - blade housing 550. The cable assembly 110 is releasably attached to the head assembly 111 thus completing the energy-operated rotary knife 100. As used herein, a front or distal end of the operated rotary knife for power 100 is an end of knife 100 that includes the blade - blade housing combination 550 (as seen in Figure 1), while a rear or proximal end of the energy operated rotary knife 100 is an end of knife 100 which includes cable assembly 130, and specifically, an enlarged end 260 of an elongated central core 252 of handpiece retention assembly 250 (as seen in Figure 1).
[00147] Head assembly 111 includes frame 150 and gearbox assembly 112. As best seen in Figure 2C and 33, gearbox assembly 112 includes gearbox housing 113 and a gearbox gears 602. Gearbox 602 is supported by gearbox housing 113. Gearbox 602 includes gear set 604 (Figure 41). The gear set 604 includes, in an exemplary embodiment, a pinion gear 610 and a transmission gear 650. Gear box 602 includes gear set 604, together with a bearing housing assembly 630 which rotatably supports the pinion gear 610 and a bearing bearing assembly 660 which rotatively supports the transmission gear 650.
[00148] The transmission gear 650 is a double gear that includes a first bevel gear 652 and a second spur gear 654, arranged in a stacked relationship, on an axis of rotation DGR (Figure SA) of the transmission gear 650. The shaft of the DRG rotary drive gear is substantially parallel to the blade axis of the rotating rotary knife R. The first bevel gear of transmission gear 652 joins with pinion gear 610 to rotate drive transmission gear 650 on the transmission gear shaft of the DGR rotation. The second spur gear 654 of the transmission gear engages the driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300, forming a wraparound gear drive, to rotate the knife blade 300 about the axis of the rotation blade R.
[00149] Gear set 604 is part of drive mechanism 600 (shown schematically in Figure 53), some of which is external to the energy-operated rotary knife 100, which provides motivating energy to rotate the rotary knife blade 300 with respect to to the blade housing 400. The drive mechanism 600 includes the external drive motor 800 and the flexible rod drive assembly 700, which is releasably attached to the cable assembly 110 by a drive shaft hitch assembly 275 ( Figure 2B). The gear set 604 of the energy operated rotary knife 100 transmits the rotary energy from a rotary drive shaft 702 of the flexible rod drive assembly 700, through the pinion and transmission gears 610, 650, to rotate the blade of the rotary knife 300 with respect to blade housing 400.
[00150] The frame body 150 (Figures 2C and 49) of the head assembly 111 includes an arched mounting pedestal 152 at a front or forward end of the frame body 150. The arched mounting pedestal 152 defines a seating region 152a for a mounting section 402 of the blade housing 400 so that the blade - blade housing 550 combination can be releasably attached to the frame body 150. The frame body 150 also defines a cavity or opening 155 (Figure 49 ) which slidably receives the gearbox housing 113, as the gearbox housing is moved in an advanced direction FW (Figures 3, 7 and 45) along the longitudinal axis LA towards the frame body 150. When the gearbox housing 113 is fully inserted into the frame cavity 155 and attached to the frame body 150 by a pair of threaded fasteners 192, as shown schematically in Figure 53, the gear of t transmission 650 of gear set 604 engages and joins with the driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300 to rotate the blade 300 on its axis of rotation R.
[00151] The frame body 150 releasably couples the blade - blade housing combination 550 to the gearbox housing 113 to form the head assembly 111 of the 100 energy operated rotary knife. handle 110 is attached or mounted to head assembly 111 by handpiece retention assembly 250 (Figure 2B) to complete the energy operated rotary knife 100. The elongated center core 252 of handpiece retention assembly 250 extends through of a central full hole 202 of the handpiece 200 and thread into the gearbox housing 113 to secure the handpiece 200 to the gearbox housing 113.
[00152] The cable assembly 110 (Figure 2B) extends along a longitudinal axis LA (Figures 3, 7 and 8) which is substantially orthogonal to the central axis of rotation R of the rotating knife blade 300. The handpiece 200 includes an internal surface 201 that defines the central central hole 202, which extends along the longitudinal axis of the LA cable assembly. Handpiece 200 includes an external contoured handle or external clamping surface 204 which is held by an operator to properly handle the energy operated rotary knife 100 for trimming and cutting operations.
[00153] In an exemplary embodiment, handpiece 200 and elongated center core 252 of cable assembly 110 can be made of plastic or other material or materials known to have comparable properties and can be formed by molding and / or machining. Handpiece 200, for example, can be made of two more molded plastic layers, an inner layer comprising a rigid plastic material and an outer layer or clamping surface comprised of a more flexible resilient plastic material that is more malleable and easier to pick up for the operator. The gearbox housing 113 and the frame body 150 of the head assembly 111 can be made of aluminum or stainless steel or other material or materials known to have comparable properties and can be formed / shaped by casting and / or machining. The blade and blade housing 400 can be manufactured from a degree of temperability of alloy steel or a degree of temperability of stainless steel, or other material or materials known to have comparable properties and can be formed / shaped by machining, forming, casting , forging, extrusion, metal injection molding and / or electrical discharge machining or other suitable process or combination of processes. Rotary knife blade 300
[00154] In an exemplary embodiment and as best seen in Figures 2A and 22-24, the rotary knife blade 300 of the energy operated rotary knife 100 is a single piece continuous annular structure. As can best be seen in Figure 24, the rotary knife blade 300 includes the body 302 and a blade section 304 extending axially from the body 302. The knife blade body 302 includes an upper end 306 and an end lower 308 axially spaced from the upper end 306. The rotating knife blade body 302 further includes an inner wall 310 and an outer wall 312 radially spaced from the inner wall 310. A substantially vertical upper portion 340 of the outer wall of the body 312 defines the knife blade support surface 319. In an exemplary embodiment of the energy operated rotary knife 100 and as best seen in Figures 13 and 24, the knife blade support surface 319 comprises the support groove 320 that extends radially internally on the outer wall 312. In an exemplary embodiment, the knife blade support groove 320 defines a generally concave support surface, and more specifically icically, a generally arched support face 322 in a central portion 324 of the support groove 320. As can be seen in Figure 24, the knife blade support groove 320 is axially spaced from an upper end 306 of the body of knife blade 302. Specifically, a section 341 of the vertical portion 340 of the outer wall of the body 312 extends between the knife blade support groove 320 and the upper end 306 of the knife blade body 302. Stated otherwise , the outer wall of the knife blade body 213 includes the vertical section 341 that separates the knife blade support groove 320 from the upper end 306 of the knife blade body 302. When viewed in three dimensions, the vertical section 341 defines a cylindrical portion of uniform diameter of the outer wall of the knife blade body 312 which separates the knife blade support groove 320 from the upper end 306 of the knife blade body 302.
[00155] The outer wall 312 of the body 302 of the rotary knife blade 300 also defines the driven gear 328. The driven gear 328 comprises a set of straight gear teeth 330 extending radially externally in a stepped portion 331 of the outer wall 312 The blade gear 330 is a spur gear which means it is a cylindrical gear with a set of gear teeth 328 that is parallel to the gear axis, ie, parallel to the axis of rotation R of the rotary knife blade 300 and a profile of each gear tooth of the gear tooth assembly 328 includes a radially outer tip or surface 330a (Figure 13) and a radially inner root or surface 330b. The cogwheel root 330b is sometimes referred to as a lower area, while the cogwheel tip 330a is sometimes referred to as an upper area. The root 330b is radially closer to the axis of rotation R of the blade 300, the root 330a and the tip 330a are radially spaced by a looser working depth of a gear tooth from the gear tooth set 330. The driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300 is axially spaced and disposed below the support groove 320. That is, closer to the second lower end 308 of the knife blade body 302. The outer wall of the knife blade body 312 includes the vertical portion 340 separating the gear tooth assembly 330 from the upper end 306 of the knife blade body 302. When viewed in three dimensions, the vertical portion 340 defines a cylindrical portion of uniform diameter of the outer wall of the knife blade body 213 which separates the knife blade support groove 320 from the upper end 306 of the knife blade body 302. The driven gear 328, in an exemplary embodiment, defines a plurality of teeth 332 wraparound gear wheels.
[00156] The spur gear set 330 of the knife blade driven gear 328 is axially spaced from the upper end 306 of the body 302 and the lower end 308 of the body 302 and is axially spaced from the arched support groove 320 of the body 302. In addition, driven gear 328 is also radially offset internally with respect to the upper vertical portion 340 of the outer wall of body 312 which defines blade support groove 320. Specifically, the set of straight gear teeth 330 is arranged radially internally of an outermost extension 343 of the outer wall 312 of the knife blade body 302. As can be seen in Figures 13 and 24, the upper vertical portion 340 of the outer wall of the body 312 defines the outermost extension 343 of the outer wall 312 Correspondingly, the upper vertical portion 340 of the outer wall 312 extends radially externally over the set of gear teeth 330 and forms a cog cover 349. The cog cover 349 is axially spaced and overlaps the cog assembly 330 and works to further protect the cog assembly 330.
[00157] This rotary knife blade configuration 300, characterized by the fact that the set of gear teeth 330 are both axially spaced from the upper end 306 of the knife blade body 302 and internally offset from the outermost extent 343 of the outer wall of the blade body 312 is sometimes referred to as a "blind cog" configuration. Advantageously, the driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300 of the present disclosure is in a relatively protected position with respect to the knife blade body 302. That is, the driven gear 328 is in a position in the knife blade body 302 where it is less likely to damage the set of gear teeth 330 when handling the blade of the rotary knife 300 and, during the operation of the rotary knife operated by energy 100, there is less ingress of debris, such as small pieces of fat, meat, bone and cartilage generated during cutting and trimming operations in the region of gear teeth.
[00158] Conceptually, the respective gear tips or radially external surfaces 330a of the gear teeth set 330, when the knife blade 300 is rotated, can be seen as forming an imaginary first cylinder 336 (shown schematically in Figure 24 ), Similarly, the respective radially internal roots or surfaces 330b of the gear teeth set 330, when the knife blade 300 is rotated, can be seen as forming a second imaginary cylinder 337. A short portion extending radially or horizontally 342 of the outer wall 312 of the blade body 302 extends between the radially outer surfaces 330a of the driven gear 328 and the vertical upper portion 340 of the outer wall 312 of the blade body. A second substantially vertical lower portion 344 of the outer wall 312 of the blade body 302 extends between a bottom surface 345 of the driven gear 328 and the lower end 308 of the blade body. As can be seen in Figure 24, the lower vertical portion 344 of the knife blade body 302 results in a projection extending radially 348 adjacent to the lower end 308 of the blade body 302.
[00159] The axial spacing of the transmission gear 328 from the upper end 306 of the knife blade body 302 advantageously protects the gear tooth assembly 330 from the damage it would be otherwise exposed if, as is the case with blades conventional rotary knife set, the gear teeth set 330 is positioned at the upper end 306 of the blade body 302 of the rotary knife blade 300. Additionally, debris is generated by the energy operated rotating knife 100 during cutting / trimming operations . The debris generated includes the pieces or fragments of bone, cartilage, meat and / or fat that are dislodged or broken from the product being cut or trimmed by the 100 energy operated rotary knife. The debris can also include foreign material, such as dirt , dust and the like, in or near a cutting region of the product being cut or trimmed. Advantageously, the spacing of the gear teeth set 330 of both axial ends 306, 308 of the knife blade body 302, prevents or mitigates the migration of such debris in the region of the knife blade driven gear 328. The debris in the region of knife blade driven gear 328 can cause or contribute to numerous problems including blade vibration, premature wear of driven gear 328 or matched transmission gear 650, and "cooking" of debris.
[00160] Similar advantages exist with respect to the axial spacing of the blade support groove 320 from the upper and lower ends 306, 308 of the blade body 302. As will be explained below, the blade body of the rotary knife 302 and the blade housing 400 are configured to provide radially extending projections or covers that provide a type of labyrinth seal to inhibit the entry of debris into the regions of knife blade driven gear 328 and the blade support structure - blade housing 500. These labyrinth seal structures are facilitated by the axial spacing of the knife blade transmission gear 328 and the blade support groove 320 from the upper and lower ends 306, 308 of the blade body 302 of the rotating knife blade 300.
[00161] As can best be seen in Figure 24, on the rotary knife blade 300, the second end 308 of the knife blade body 302 changes radially internally between the body 302 and the blade section 304. The second end 308 of the body 302 is defined by a step or recess extending radially internally 308a. The blade section 304 extends from the second end 308 of the body 302 and includes a blade cutting edge 350 at an inner lower end 352 of the blade section 304. As can be seen, the blade section 304 includes a wall inner 354 and a radially spaced outer wall 356. The inner and outer walls 354, 356 are substantially parallel. A bridge portion 358 at the forward end of the rotary knife blade 300 extends between the inner and outer walls 354, 356 and forms the cutting edge 350 at the intersection of the bridge portion 358 and the inner wall 354. Depending on the specific configuration of the blade section 304, the bridge portion 358 can generally extend radially or horizontally between the inner and outer walls 354, 356 or can taper at an angle between the inner and outer walls 354, 356.
[00162] The inner wall of the rotating knife blade body 310 and the inner wall of blade section 354 together form a substantially continuous 360 blade inner wall extending from the upper end 306 to the cutting edge 350. As can be seen in Figure 24, there is a hump region slightly protruding internally 346 from the inner wall 310 of the blade body 302 in the region of the support groove 320. The protruding region 346 provides an increased width or thickness of the blade body 302 in the region where the support groove 320 extends radially internally in the outer wall of the blade body 312. The inner wall of the knife blade 360 is generally frustro-conical in shape, converging in a declining direction (labeled DW in Figure 24) , that is, in a direction proceeding away from the driven gear 328 and towards the cutting edge 350. The inner wall of the knife blade 360 defines a CO cutting opening (Figures 1 and 54) of the fac the energy operated rotary 100, that is, the opening defined by the blade of the rotary knife 300 that the cut material, such as a cutting layer CL1 (Figure 54), passes, as the energy operated rotary knife 100 trims or cuts a product P. Blade housing 400
[00163] In an exemplary embodiment and as best seen in Figures 25-29, blade housing 400 of the energy operated rotary knife 100 is a single piece continuous annular structure. The blade housing 400 includes the mounting section 402 and a blade support section 450. The blade housing 400 is continuous over its perimeter, that is, different anterior split ring annular blade housings, the blade housing 400 of the present disclosure has no division along a diameter of the housing to allow expansion of the circumference of the blade housing. The blade support or support structure - blade housing 500 of the present disclosure secures the blade of the rotary knife 300 to the blade housing 400. Correspondingly, removal of the knife blade 300 from the blade housing 400 is accomplished by removing a portion of the blade structure - blade housing 500 of the energy operated rotary knife 100. The blade support structure - blade housing 500 allows the use of the continuous annular blade housing 400, as there is no need to expand the circumference of the blade housing for removing the blade of the rotary knife 300 from the blade housing 400.
[00164] The continuous annular blade housing 400 of the present disclosure provides numerous advantages over the previous split ring annular blade housings. The single-piece continuous annular structure provides greater strength and durability for blade housing 400 as compared to previous split ring annular blade housings. In addition to greater strength and durability of blade housing 400, the fact that a circumference of blade housing 400 is not adjustable eliminates the need and prevents the operator from adjusting the circumference of blade housing 400 during operation of the rotary knife operated by energy 100 in an attempt to maintain adequate operating clearance. This is a significant improvement over previous annular split ring blade housings. Advantageously, the combination of the rotary knife blade 300, the blade housing 400 and the blade support structure - blade housing 500 of the energy-operated rotary knife 100 provide adequate operating clearance of the rotary knife blade 300 with respect to the housing blade 400 over the useful life of a rotary knife blade.
[00165] As can best be seen in Figure 25, in the blade housing 400, the blade support section extends around the entire 360 ° (360 degrees) circumference of the blade housing 400. The mounting section 402 extends radially externally from the blade support section 450 and subtends at an angle of approximately 120 °. Stated differently, the blade housing assembly section 402 extends approximately 1/3 of the path around the circumference of the blade housing 400. In the region of the mounting section 402, the mounting section 402 and the 450 blade holder overlap.
[00166] Mounting section 402 is both axially thicker and radially wider than blade support section 450. Blade housing mounting section 402 includes an inner wall 404 and a radially spaced outer wall 406 and a first upper end 408 and a second axially spaced second lower end 410. At the forward ends 412, 414 of the mounting section 402, there are tapered regions 416, 418 that change between the upper end 408, lower end 410 and outer wall 406 of the mounting section and the corresponding upper end, lower end and outer wall of the blade support section 450.
[00167] The blade housing assembly section 402 includes two mounting inserts 420, 422 (Figure 2A) that extend between the upper and lower ends 408, 410 of the mounting section 402. The mounting inserts 420, 422 define the threaded openings 420a, 422a. The blade housing assembly section 402 is received in the seat region 152a defined by the arched mounting pedestal 152 of the frame body 150 and is attached to the frame body 150 by a pair of threaded fasteners 170, 172 (Figure 2C). Specifically, the pair of threaded fasteners 170, 172 extends through the threaded openings 160a, 162a defined in a pair of arched arms 160, 162 of the frame body 150 and threaded into the threaded openings 420a, 422a of the mounting inserts of the blade housing 420, 422 for releasably securing blade housing 400 to frame body 150 and thus coupling blade housing 400 to gearbox assembly 112 of head assembly 111.
[00168] The mounting section 402 further includes a gear recess 424 (Figures 25 and 28) that extends radially between the inner and outer walls 404, 406. Gear recess 424 includes an upper clearance recess 426 that does not extends the entire length to the inner wall and a wider lower opening 428 that extends between and through the inner and outer walls 404, 406. The upper clearance recess 426 provides the clearance for the pinion gear 610 and the first bevel gear axially oriented 652 of gearbox transmission gear 650. Bottom opening 428 is rated to receive the second spur gear extending radially 654 of gearbox transmission gear 650 and thus provide the interface or union of the second spur gear 654 and driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300 to rotate the knife blade 300 with respect to the blade housing 400.
[00169] The mounting section 402 of the blade housing 400 also includes a blade housing plug opening 429 that extends between the inner and outer walls 404, 406. The blade housing plug opening 429 is generally in shape oval in cross section and is rated to receive a 430 blade housing plug (Figures 30-32). The blade housing plug 430 is removably attached to the blade housing 400 by two screws 432 (Figure 2A). The screws 432 pass through a pair of countersunk openings 434 extending from the upper end 408 of the mounting section 402 to the lower portion 428 of the gear recess 424 and threaded a pair of aligned threaded openings 438 of the plug blade housing 430.
[00170] As can best be seen in Figure 29A, the blade support section 450 includes an inner wall 452 and a radially spaced outer wall 454 and a first upper end 456 and a second lower end axially spaced 458. The support section of blade 450 extends over the entire 360 ° circumference of blade housing 400. The blade support section 450 in a region of the mounting section 402 is continuous and forms a portion of the inner wall 404 of the mounting section 402. As can be seen in Figure 29, a portion 404a of the inner wall 404 of the mounting section 402 of the blade housing 400 within the dotted lines extending horizontally IWBS constitutes both a part of the inner wall 404 of the mounting section 402 and a portion of the inner wall 452 of the blade support section 450. The dotted lines IWBS substantially correspond to an axial extension of the inner wall 452 of the blade support section 450, i.e. that is, the IWBS lines correspond to the upper end 456 and the lower end 458 of the blade support section 450. A substantially vertical portion 452a of the inner wall of the blade support section 452 adjacent to the first upper end 456 defines the housing support surface blade blade 459. In an exemplary embodiment of the energy operated rotary knife 100 and as best seen in Figures 13 and 29A, the blade housing support surface 459 comprises a support groove 460 that extends radially internally to the inner wall 452. The support groove 460 is axially spaced from the upper end 456 of the blade support section 450. In an exemplary embodiment, a central portion 462 of the blade housing support groove 460 defines a generally concave support surface, and, more specifically, a support face generally arched 464.
[00171] In an exemplary embodiment of the energy operated rotary knife 100, the knife blade support surface 319 is concave with respect to the outer wall 312, i.e., the knife blade support surface 319 extends on the wall outer edge 312 forming the support groove 320. It should be appreciated that the knife blade support surface 319 and / or the blade housing support surface 459 may have a different configuration, e.g., in an alternative embodiment, the knife blade support surface 319 and the blade housing support surface 459 could, for example, be convex with respect to their respective external and internal walls 312, 452. The plurality of the wavy bearings 506 of the support structure of blade - blade housing 500 would clearly have to be configured properly.
[00172] Although other geometric shapes can be used, the use of the arched support faces 322, 4 64 for the support grooves 320, 460 of both the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400 is well suited for use with the energy operated knife 100 of the present disclosure. Due to the unpredictable and variable load direction, the plurality of bearings 506 and arcuate support faces 322, 464 allows the rotary knife blade 300 and blade housing 400 to be mounted in such a way as to allow for working or operational clearance. This helps to maintain, as far as possible, the theoretical ideal of a single point of contact of the undulating bearing between a given bearing of the plurality of bearings 506 and the arched face of the rotating knife blade 322 and the theoretical ideal of a single point of contact. corrugated bearing contact between a given bearing of the plurality of bearings 506 and the blade housing support face 464. (Clearly, it is understood that a single corrugated bearing contact point is a theory, as the deformation between a bearing and a groove of support necessarily causes bearing deformation and the support groove resulting in a small contact region as opposed to a contact point.) Nevertheless, the support arched face configurations 322, 464 provide the reduced friction torque produced in the support region. Due to the cross sections of the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400 of the energy operated rotary knife 100, there is a tendency for both the inner groove or blade support groove 320 and the outer groove or outer groove of the blade housing 460 to flex and bend while in use. An arched support groove design with a radius slightly larger than the sphere of the plurality of bearings 506 will allow the balls to move along an arc defined by the annular passage 504 and still contact the respective support grooves 320,460 at their respective points , thus maintaining low friction even during the folding and arching of the blade of the rotary knife 300 and the blade housing 400. The arched shape of the blade and support groove of blade housings 320, 460 also helps to compensate for manufacturing irregularities within the rotary knife blade 300 and blade housing 400 and thus helps to maintain the theoretical ideal of the single support contact point between a bearing of the plurality of bearings 506 and the respective support grooves 320, 460, as discussed above, thus reducing friction.
[00173] A radially internal wall 440 (Figures 2A, 30 and 31) of the blade housing plug 430 defines a support groove 442 which is a portion and is continuous with the supporting groove 460 of the blade housing 400. As the portion 404a of the inner wall 404 of the mounting section 402 of the blade housing 400 within the horizontally extending dotted lines IWBS, a portion of the inner wall 440 of the blade housing plug 430 that would be within the dotted lines extending horizontally IWBS of Figure 29 is both a part of the inner wall 440 of the blade housing plug 430 and a part of the inner wall 452 of the blade holder section 450. Thus, when the blade housing plug 430 is inserted into the plug opening blade housing 429 of blade housing 400. The blade housing support groove 460 is substantially continuous over the entire 360 ° circumference of blade holder section 450.
[00174] As can be better seen in Figure 13, when the blade is fixed and supported within the blade housing 400 by the blade support structure - blade housing 500, in order to prevent the entry of meat, bone pieces and other debris on the driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300, a projection or driven gear cover extending radially outwardly 466 at the lower end 458 of the blade support section 450 is axially aligned and overlaps at least a portion of the surface of bottom 345 of the knife blade driven gear cog assembly 328. The projection or driven gear cover 466 defines the lower end 458 of the blade support section 450. The driven gear cover 466 overlaps or connects a gap between the first and second imaginary cylinders 336, 337 (Figure 24) formed by the driven gear 328 of the rotating knife blade 300. As can be seen in Figure 13 , due to the radial projection 348 of the knife blade body 302 and driven gear cover 466, only a small radial gap gap exists between the radially extending end 467 of driven gear cover 466 of the blade housing 400 and the portion vertical bottom projection 344 of the outer wall 312 of the knife blade body 302. Advantageously, the combination of the knife blade radial projection 348 and the blade housing cover 466 forms a type of labyrinth seal that inhibits ingress of debris in the regions of the driven gear 328 and the support groove 320 of the rotating knife blade 300.
[00175] As can be best seen in Figure 13, the inner wall of the blade support section 452 of the blade housing 400 includes a first protrusion extending radially outwardly 470 which is located axially below the blade housing support groove 460. The inner wall of the blade support section 452 also includes a second protrusion extending radially externally 472 which forms an upper surface of the driven gear cover portion 466 and is axially spaced below the first protrusion extending radially outwardly 470 The first and second protrusions 470, 472 provide seating regions for the horizontally extending portion 342 of the outer wall of the knife blade 312 and the bottom surface 345 of the gear tooth assembly 330, respectively, to support the cutting blade. knife 300 when knife blade 300 is positioned in blade housing 400 from axially above and the support strip curls n 502 of the blade support structure - blade housing 500 was not inserted in a passage 504 (Figure 13) between the blade of the rotary knife 300 and the blade housing 400 defined by the opposing arched support faces 322, 464 of the knife blade support 320 and blade housing support groove 460. Clearly, it should be understood that without the insertion of the undulating support strip 502 in passage 504, if the energy operated rotary knife 100 is inverted, that is, upside down from the orientation of the energy operated rotary knife 100 shown, for example, in Figure 7, the blade of the rotary knife 300 would fall from the blade housing 400.
[00176] As is best seen in Figures 25, 27 and 29, the right tapered region 416 (as seen from the front of the rotary knife operated by energy 100, that is, looking at the blade housing 400 from the perspective of an arrow labeled RW (designating a rear direction) in Figure 25) of the blade housing assembly section 402 includes a cleaning port 480 for injecting the cleaning fluid to clean the blade housing 400 and the knife blade 300 during a cleaning process. Cleaning door 480 includes an inlet opening 481 on the outer wall 406 of mounting section 402 and extends through outlet opening 482 on the inner wall 404 of mounting section 402. As can best be seen in Figure 29, a portion of the outlet opening 482 in the inner wall of the mounting section is congruent and opens in a region of the support groove 460 of the blade housing 400. the outlet opening 482 in the inner wall of the mounting section 404 and radial gap G (Figure 13) between blade 300 and blade housing 400 provides fluid communication and cleaning fluid injection in the support groove regions 320, 460 of knife blade 300 and blade housing 400, respectively, and the gear 328 of the knife blade 300. Blade support structure - blade housing 500
[00177] The energy operated rotary knife 100 includes the blade holder - blade housing or support structure 500 (best seen in Figures 2A, 13 and 14) which: a) attaches the knife blade 300 to the blade housing 400 ; b) support the knife blade for rotation with respect to the blade housing on the rotary axis R; and c) defines the rotary plane RP of the knife blade. As previously noted, advantageously, the blade support structure - blade housing 500 of the present disclosure allows the use of a continuous housing of a single annular blade 400 piece. Additionally, the blade support structure - blade housing 500 provides less friction between knife blade 300 and blade housing 400 compared to previous energy-operated rotary knife designs.
[00178] The lower friction provided by the blade support structure - blade housing 500 advantageously allows the energy operated rotary knife 100 of the present disclosure to be operated without the use of an additional source of lubrication by the operator. Previous energy operated rotary knives typically included a lubrication reservoir and bellows-type manual pump mechanism, which allowed the operator to inject edible food grade grease from the reservoir into the blade support region - blade housing for the to provide additional lubrication to the support region. When cutting or trimming the meat product, lubrication in the nature of grease / grease typically occurs as a natural by-product or as a result of cutting / trimming operations, that is, as the meat product is cut or trimmed according to the rotating knife blade cuts through grease / grease. As the cutting / trimming operations continue and the rotating knife blade rotates inside the blade housing, the fat / grease from the meat product can migrate, among other places, in the blade support region - blade housing.
[00179] In the energy operated rotary knife 100, the fat / grease may migrate in the annular passage 504 (Figure 13) defined by the opposing arched faces 322, 464 of the rotating knife blade 320 support groove and the support groove blade housing 460 as per knife 100 is used for meat cutting / trimming operations. However, on previous energy operated rotary knives, this naturally occurring lubrication would typically be supplemented by the operator when using the pump mechanism to apply additional lubrication to the blade region - blade housing in an attempt to reduce blade support friction - blade housing, make a blade spin easier and reduce heat.
[00180] In an exemplary embodiment of the 100-operated rotary knife, there is no grease reservoir or hand pump mechanism to apply the grease. The elimination of the need for additional lubrication, clearly, advantageously eliminates such components associated with the supply of lubrication (grease reservoir, pump, etc.) in previous energy operated rotary knives. The elimination of the components will reduce the weight and / or reduce the maintenance requirements associated with the lubrication components of the energy operated rotary knife 100. The lower friction between the knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400 decreases the heat generated due to the friction between the rotary knife blade 300, the blade support structure - blade housing 500 and the blade housing 400. Reducing the heat generated in the blade support region - blade housing has numerous benefits including mitigating the above problem mentioned of "cooking" of the dislodged fragments of the trimmed meat, cartilage, fat and bone that migrated in the blade support region - 504 blade housing. In the previous energy operated rotary knives, the friction contact between the blade and the blade housing , under certain conditions, would generate enough heat to "cook" the material in the blade support region - blade housing. The "cooked" material tended to accumulate in the blade support region - blade housing as a sticky accumulation of material, an undesirable result.
[00181] Additionally, the lower friction provided by the blade support structure - blade housing 500 of the energy operated rotary knife 100 has the additional advantage of potentially increasing the service life of one or more of the knife blade 300, the housing of blade 400 and / or gearbox components 602. Clearly, the service life of any component of the energy operated rotary knife 100 is dependent on the proper operation and maintenance of the energy operated knife.
[00182] As can be best seen in Figures 14-17, the blade support structure - blade housing 500 comprises an elongated undulating support strip 502 which is circumferentially routed through the annular passage 504 over the axis of rotation R of the blade 300. A rotary knife support assembly 552 (Figure 13) of the energy operated rotary knife 100 includes the combination of the blade support structure - blade housing 500, the blade housing support groove 460, the groove knife blade support 320 and the annular passage 504 defined between them. In an exemplary alternative embodiment, a plurality of the elongated undulating support strips can be used, each similar, but shorter in length, than the elongated support stripe 502. Using a plurality of the shorter elongated support strips in place of the stripe only the longest elongated support strips 502 can be advantageous so that the shorter elongated strips are less difficult and less expensive to manufacture. If a plurality of the elongated support strips were used, such strips would be sequentially inserted into the annular passage 504 head to tail or spaced apart. The plurality of the elongated support strips may include the slightly enlarged end portions so that two adjacent support strips do not travel together or limit an overlapping extent of the two adjacent support strips.
[00183] In an exemplary embodiment, the central portion 462 of the blade housing support groove 460 defines, in cross-section, the substantially arched support face 464. Similarly, the central portion 324 of the blade support groove of knife 320 defines, in cross section, the substantially arched support face 322. As can best be seen in Figures 14-17, the elongated undulating support strip 502, in an exemplary embodiment, comprises the plurality of spaced undulating bearings 506 supported for rotation in the flexible separator cage 508. In an exemplary embodiment, the flexible separator cage 508 comprises an elongated strip of polymer 520. The elongated strip of polymer 520 defines a longitudinal axis of SLA strip (Figure 16) and is generally rectangular when viewed in cross section. Strip 520 includes a first vertical SVA axis (Figure 15) that is orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of SVA strip and a second horizontal SHA axis (Figure 15) orthogonal to the longitudinal axis of SLA strip and first vertical SVA axis. The first vertical axis of the SVA strip is substantially parallel to a first inner surface 522 and a second outer surface 524 of strip 520. As can be seen in Figure 15, the first inner surface 522 and the second outer surface 524 are generally planar and parallel . The second vertical axis of the SHA strip is substantially parallel to a third surface above or above 526 and a fourth bottom or bottom surface 528 of the strip 520.
[00184] Each of the plurality of bearings 506 is supported for rotation in a respective different support pocket 530 of range 520. The support pockets 530 are spaced along the longitudinal axis of the SLA range. Each of the strip support pockets 530 defines an opening 532 extending between the first inner surface 522 and the second outer surface 524. Each of the plurality of support pockets 530 includes a pair of spaced support arms 534, 536 extending in the opening 532 to contact and rotatively support a respective bearing of the plurality of bearings 506. For each pair of the support arms 534, 536, the support arms 534, 536 are mirror images of the other. Each pair of support arms 534, 536 defines a pair of generally arched boundary support surfaces that rotatably support a bearing of the plurality of bearings 506. Each pair of support arms 534, 536 includes an extension portion 538 that extends externally from strip 520 beyond the first planar inner surface 522 and an extension portion 540 that extends externally from strip 520 beyond the second planar outer surface 524.
[00185] The plurality of bearings 506 of the elongated undulating support strip 502 are in undulating contact and provide the bearing bearing between the knife blade support groove 320 and the blade housing support groove 460. At the same time, while supporting knife blade 300 for less friction rotation with respect to blade housing 400, the elongated undulating support strip 502 also works to secure knife blade 300 with respect to blade housing 400, that is, the support 502 prevents knife blade 300 from falling out of blade housing 400, regardless of the orientation of the energy operated rotary knife 100.
[00186] When the undulating support strip 502 and, specifically, the plurality of bearings 506 is inserted in the passage 504, the plurality of bearings 506 supports the knife blade 300 with respect to the blade housing 400. In an exemplary embodiment, the The plurality of bearings 506 is classified so that their radii are smaller than the respective radii of the arched support surfaces 464, 322. In an exemplary embodiment, the radius of each of the plurality of bearings 506 is 1 mm or approximately 0.099 cm ( 0.039 inch), while the radii of the arched support surfaces 464, 322 are slightly larger, on the order of approximately 0.106 cm (0.043 inch). However, it must be recognized that in other alternative embodiments, the radii of the plurality of bearings 506 may be equal to or greater than the radii of the arcuate bearing faces 4 64, 322. That is, the radii of the plurality of bearings 506 may be in a general variation between 0.051 cm (0.02 inch) and 0.178 cm (0.07 inch), while the radii of the arched supporting surfaces 464, 322 can be in a general variation between 0.076 cm (0.03 inch) and 0.152 cm (0.06 inch). As can best be seen in Figure 13, when the undulating support strip 502 is inserted into the radial annular gap G, the plurality of bearings 506 and a central portion 509a of the separator cage 508 is received at the annular passage 504 defined between the opposite surfaces support 319, 459 of the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400. The annular passage 504 comprises part of the annular gap G between the opposite outer wall 312 of the blade body of the rotary knife 302 and the inner wall 452 of the blade holder of the blade housing 450. In an exemplary embodiment, the annular gap G is in a range of approximately 0.102 - 0.127 cm (0.04 - 0.05 inch) and is arranged between the vertical inner wall portion 452a of the blade support section 450 of blade housing 400 and the vertical outer wall portion border 340 of outer wall 312 of body 302 of knife blade 300, adjacent or in the region of opposite supporting surfaces 319, 459.
[00187] As can be seen in Figure 13, the annular passage 504 is generally circular in cross section and receives the plurality of bearings 506 and a central portion 509a of the separator cage 508 of the elongated undulating support strip 502. When positioned in the passage ring 504, the elongated undulating support strip 502 and, specifically, the separator cage 508 of the undulating support strip 502, substantially forms a circle or portion of a circle within the annular passage 504 centered on an axis that is substantially congruent with the axis of the rotary knife blade of rotation R. As the separator cage 508 of the undulating support strip 502 is vertically oriented in the gap G, the cage 508 includes the above and rear portions 509b extending from the central portion 509a. As can be seen in Figure 13, the upper and rear portions 509b of the separator cage 508 extend axially slightly above and slightly below the plurality of bearings 506. When positioned in the annular passage 504, the elongated undulating support strip 502 forms substantially a circle or a portion of a circle within the annular passage 504 centered on an axis that is substantially congruent with the axis of the rotating knife blade of rotation R, while the separator cage 508 substantially forms a cylinder or portion of a cylinder with the gap G centered on the rotary knife blade axis of rotation R.
[00188] As can be seen in Figure 13, the separator cage 508, in cross section, is rectangular and is oriented in a perpendicular position within the gap G, the separator cage 508 can be seen as substantially forming a cylinder or a partial cylinder within gap G centered on the blade axis of the rotating knife of rotation R. The plurality of bearings 506 travel within the annular passage 504, which is substantially circular in cross section and is centered on the axis of the blade of rotation R.
[00189] To minimize friction, it is not desirable for the flexible separator cage 508 to be in contact with or in support engagement with the rotating knife blade 300 or the blade housing 400 as this would unnecessarily generate the sliding friction. What is desired is for the rotary knife blade 300 to be exclusively supported with respect to the blade housing 400 via the corrugated roller bearing provided by the plurality of the bearings 506 of the corrugated support strip 502 supporting against the opposite arched support faces 322, 4 64 of the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400. Correspondingly, as can be best seen in the sectional view of Figure 13, the flexible separator cage 508 is configured to travel in the annular passage 504 and in the annular gap G without substantial contact with the knife blade 300 or the blade housing 400 or the opposing supporting surfaces 319, 459 of the knife blade 300 and blade housing 400. In an exemplary embodiment, a width of the upper and lower portions 509b of the separator cage 508 is on the order of 0.076 cm (0.03 inch) and, as previously mentioned, the annular gap G is on the order of 0.102 - 0.127 cm (0.04 - 0.05 inch). Thus, when the undulating support strip 502 is inserted into the annular passage 504, a clearance of approximately 0.013 - 0.025 cm (0.005 - 0.010 inch) exists between the separator cage 508 and the vertical outer wall portion 340 of the outer wall 312 of body 302 of knife blade 300, adjacent to opposite supporting surfaces 319, 459. Depending on the specific length of the separator cage 508 and circumference of the gap G, the ends 510, 512 of the separator cage 508 can be spaced slightly ( as shown in Figure 14), may be in contact or may overlap slightly.
[00190] It should be appreciated that when the blade of the rotating knife 300 is rotated by the drive set 604 at a specific desired RPM, the separator cage 508 also moves or translates into a circle along the annular gap G, although the rotational speed of the separator cage 508 within the G gap is less than the RPM of the rotary knife blade 300. Thus, when the energy operated rotary knife 100 is in operation, the elongated undulating support strip 502 crosses through the annular passage 504 forming a circle on the axis of the rotating knife blade R. Similarly, when the energy operated rotary knife 100 is in operation, the separator cage 508, due to its movement or translation along the annular gap G on the axis of the rotating knife blade R, can be considered to form a complete cylinder within the G gap. Additionally, when the rotating knife blade 300 is rotated, the plurality of bearings 506 both rotate relative to each other. o to the separator cage 506 and also moves or translates along the annular passage 504 on the axis of the knife blade of rotation R as the separator cage 508 moves or translates along the annular gap G By fully inserting the undulating support strip 502 into gap G, the mounted blade - blade housing combination 550 (Figures 9 and 10) is then ready to be attached, as a unit, to the frame body 150 of the mounting head 111.
[00191] Corrugated support strips of suitable configuration are manufactured by KMF Germany and are available in the United States through International Customized Bearings, 200 Forsyth Dr., Ste. E, Charlotte, NC 28237-5815. Attach knife blade 300 to blade housing 400
[00192] The blade support structure - blade housing 500 is used to either fix the blade of the rotary knife 300 to the blade housing 400 or to rotatively support the blade 300 inside the blade housing 400. To insert the strip of elongated undulating support 502 of the blade support structure - blade housing 500, the passage 504 formed between the radially aligned opposite arched support faces 322, 464 of the blade support groove 320 and the blade housing support groove 460, the blade housing plug 430 is removed from the blade housing plug opening 429 of the blade housing 400. Then, the undulating support strip 502 is routed between the knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400 in the annular gap G and through passage 504. Then, the blade housing plug 430 is inserted into the blade housing plug opening 429 and plug 430 is attached to the blade housing 400. The blade - housing combination blade 550 then ready to be attached to the arched mounting pedestal 152 of the frame body 150.
[00193] As can be seen in Figures 18-21 and in the flowchart established in Figure 58, a method of fixing the rotary knife blade 300 to the blade housing 400 for rotation with respect to the blade housing 400 on the blade axis of the rotation R is generally shown at 900 in Figure 58. Method 900 includes the following steps. In step 902, remove the blade housing plug 430 from the blade housing plug opening 429. In step 904, position the blade of the rotating knife 300 in the blade housing 400 in a perpendicular position so that the blade 300 is supported by the blade housing 400. Specifically, the knife blade 300 is positioned in the blade housing 400 in a perpendicular orientation so that the horizontal extension portion 342 of the outer wall 312 of the knife blade 300 and the bottom surface 345 of the assembly gear toothed blade blades 330 are arranged on the respective first and second projections 470, 472 of the blade housing 400. In this perpendicular orientation, the blade housing support groove 460 and the knife blade support groove 320 are substantially radially aligned so that the annular passage 504 is defined between the blade housing support groove 450 and the knife blade support groove 320.
[00194] In step 906, as shown schematically in Figure 18, position the first end 510 of the flexible separator cage 508 of the undulating support strip 502 in the blade housing plug opening 429 so that the first end 510 is tangentially aligned with the gap G between the blade 300 and the blade housing 400 and the bearings 506 of the undulating support strip 502 are aligned with the annular passage 504 between the opposing arched faces 322, 464 of the blade 300 and blade housing 400 In step 908, advance the flexible separator cage 508 tangentially with respect to the gap G so that the bearings 506 of the undulating support strip 502 enter and move along the passage 504. That is, as shown schematically in Figure 19, the separator cage 508 is advanced so that the separator cage 508 is effectively threaded through the passage 504 and gap G. The separator cage 508 is oriented in a position u perpendicular so that the cage fits into the gap G between the knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400.
[00195] In step 910, continue advancing the flexible separator cage 508 until the first and second ends 510, 512 of the separator cage 508 are substantially adjacent (Figure 20), that is, the separator cage 508 forms at least one portion of a circle within passageway 504 and gap G (like the circle C formed by the separator cage 508 schematically shown in Figure 2A). The longitudinal extension of the separator cage 508 of the elongated strip 502 along the longitudinal axis of the SLA strip is sufficient so that, when the strip 502 is installed in the passage 504, the first and second end 510, 512 of the separator cage strip 508, if not in contact, are slightly spaced as shown, for example in Figures 2A and 14. That is, the perpendicular strip cage 508, when installed in passage 504, forms at least a portion of a cylinder within passage 504 and gap G. In step 912 and as shown schematically in Figure 21, insert the blade housing plug 430 into the blade housing opening 429 and secure the blade housing plug to the blade housing 400 with the fasteners 432.
[00196] As the rotary knife blade 400 is rotated by the gear set 604, the elongated undulating support strip 502 will travel in a circular route or travel path within the gap G, that is, the plurality of spaced bearings 506 move. it will be in a circle through the annular passage 504. However, because the individual bearings are also rotating inside the separator cage 508 as the separator cage 508 moves in a circular route in the G gap, the rotational speed or angular speed of the separator cage 508 is significantly less than the rotational speed or angular speed of the blade of the rotary knife 300 with respect to the blade housing 400.
[00197] It should be appreciated that not all matched or collaborative surfaces supporting the rotary knife support assembly 552 including the plurality of bearings 506 of the elongated undulating support strip 502, the rotating knife blade support groove 320, the blade housing support groove 4 60 and blade housing plug support groove 446, as described above, are in contact at any given time, as there are necessarily working or operational gaps between the rotating knife blade support strip 300, the blade housing 400 and the blade housing plug 430 which allows the blade 300 to rotate relatively freely within the blade housing 400.
[00198] These working or operational clearances cause the blade of the rotating knife 300 to act in some way related to a seesaw within the blade housing 400, that is, as a region of the blade 300 is rotated or moved upward within the blade housing 400 during a cutting or trimming operation, the diametrically opposite portion of the blade (180 ° away) is generally rotated or moved downward within the blade housing. Correspondingly, the matched support surfaces specific to the rotary blade support assembly 552 in contact at any specific location on the rotary knife blade 300, the blade housing 400 or the elongated support strip 502 will change and, at any given time, they will be determined, at least partially, by the forces applied to the blade of the rotating knife 300 during the use of the energy operated rotary knife 100. Thus, for any specific portion or region of a support surface of the support assembly rotating blade 552, there may be periods of non-contact or intermittent contact with a matched support surface.
[00199] Removing the blade from the rotating knife 300 from the blade housing 400 involves the reverse of the procedure discussed above. That is, the blade housing plug 430 is removed from the blade housing 400. The blade of the rotary knife 300 is rotated with respect to the blade housing 400 until the adjacent ends 510, 512 of the separator cage 508 are visible within the opening. blade housing plug 429. A small instrument, such as a small screwdriver, is used to contact and direct or force one end of the separator cage 508, say, the first end 510 of the separator cage 508, tangentially away from gap G. Rotation of the blade of the rotating knife 300 is continuous until a sufficient length of the separator cage 508 is extending tangentially away from the gap G and through the blade housing plug opening 429 so that the end 510 of separator cage 508 can be gripped by the operator's fingers. The separator cage 508 is then pulled from the gap G. Once the cage 508 has been completely removed from the gap G between the rotary knife blade 300 and the blade housing 400, the blade housing 400 is inverted and the knife blade rotary 300 will fall from blade housing 400. Cutting profile of the blade combination - blade housing 550
[00200] The friction or drag experienced by the operator as the rotary knife operated by energy 100 is manipulated by the operator moves through a product P, as schematically illustrated in Figures 54 and 55, is dependent, among other things, on the shape of cross section or configuration of the blade combination - blade housing 550 in a CR cut region of the assembled combination 550. As can be best seen in Figure 3, the CR cut region of the blade combination - blade housing 550 is approximately 240 ° of the entire 360 ° periphery of the combination. The CR cutting region excludes approximately 120 ° from the periphery of the blade - blade housing combination 550 occupied by the mounting section 402 of the blade housing 400.
[00201] As can be better seen in Figures 54 and 55, the combination of blade - blade housing 550 is configured and contoured to be as smooth and continuous as practical. As can best be seen in Figure 54, a LI layer of the material is cut or trimmed from a product P being processed (for example, a layer of tissue, for example, a layer of meat or fat trimmed from an animal carcass) while move the energy-operated rotary knife 100 in a cutting direction CD so that the rotary knife blade 300 and blade housing 400 move along and through the product P to cut or trim the layer of material L1. As the energy operated rotary knife 100 is moved by the operator, the blade edge 350 cuts through layer L1 forming a cutting portion CL1 from layer LI. The cutting portion CL1 moves along a displacement path of cut or trimmed material PT through the CO cutting opening of the blade - blade housing combination 550 as the energy operated rotary knife 100 advances through product P.
[00202] A new outer surface NS layer (Figure 55) formed as the LI layer is cut from product P. The cutting portion CL1 of layer L1 slides along the inner wall 360 of the rotary knife blade 300, while the new outer surface layer NS slides along respective outer walls 356, 454 of blade section 350 of knife blade 300 and blade support section 404 of blade housing 400.
[00203] A smooth transition between the outer wall of blade section 356 of knife blade 300 and the outer wall of blade support section 454 of blade housing 400 is provided by the radially extending portion of driven gear cover 466 of the blade housing 400 and recess extending radially 308a from the lower end 308 of the rotary knife blade body 302. The proximity of the radially extending end 467 to the driven gear cover portion 466 provides a labyrinth seal to prevent the entry of foreign materials in the region of the knife blade driven gear 328 and the region of the blade support structure - blade housing 500. Finally, the combination of blade - blade housing 550 in the CR cutting region is modeled to size possible to reduce the drag and friction experienced by the operator when handling the energy-operated rotary knife when performing cutting or trimming operations. Gear set 604
[00204] The drive mechanism 600 of the energy operated rotary knife 100 includes certain components and assemblies internal to the energy operated rotary knife 100 including gear set 604 and driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300 and certain components and assemblies external to the energy operated rotary knife 100 including the drive motor 800 and the flexible rod drive assembly 700, which is releasably coupled to the knife 100, via the drive shaft hitch assembly 275.
[00205] Within the power operated rotary knife 100, the drive mechanism 600 includes gearbox 602 comprising gear set 604. In an exemplary embodiment, gear set 604 includes pinion gear 610 and gear gear transmission 650. The transmission gear 650, in turn, engages the driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300 to rotate the knife blade 300. As previously noted, the transmission gear of the gearbox 650, in an exemplary embodiment , is a double gear that includes a vertically or axially oriented upper bevel gear 652 and a horizontally or radially oriented lower bevel gear 654. The upper bevel gear of the transmission gear 652 engages and is rotatably driven by pinion gear 610. A lower gear of the transmission gear 654 defines a plurality of driven gear teeth 656 which are mated teeth wraparound gear s that mate with the wrench teeth 332 of the rotary knife blade driven gear 328 to rotate the rotary knife blade 300. This combination of gear between the transmission gear 650 and the rotary knife blade 300 defines a gear drive surrounding the straight gear 658 (Figure 8A) to rotate the blade of the rotary knife 300.
[00206] In the engaging gear drive, the rotary knife gear teeth 332 of the rotary knife blade 300 and gear teeth 656 of the straight gear 654 of the transmission gear 650 are surrounding a circle and the contact between any pair of gear teeth occurs at a substantially single instantaneous point. The rotation of the transmission gear 650 and the knife blade driven gear 328 causes the location of the contact point to move through the respective tooth surfaces. The movement through the respective gear tooth faces is an undulating type of contact, with substantially no slip involved. The surrounding tooth shape of rotary knife blade gear teeth 332 and spur gear teeth 656 result in very little wear of the respective joint gear teeth 332, 656 versus a gear structure, characterized by the fact that the connecting gear teeth contact with a sliding motion. The path traced by the contact point is known as the line of action. A property of the surrounding tooth shape is that if the gears are connected correctly, the line of action is straight and passes through the step point of the gears. In addition, the wraparound gear drive 658 is also a spur gear drive which means that an axis of rotation DGR (shown in Figures 8 and 8A) of the transmission gear 650 is substantially parallel to the axis of rotation R of the knife blade 300. Such a straight drive with parallel axes of rotation DGR, R is very efficient in transmitting the driving forces. The rotary knife blade teeth spur gear arrangement 332 and spur gear teeth 656 also advantageously contribute to reducing the wear of coupling gears 332, 656 compared to other more complex gear arrangements.
[00207] The pinion gear 610 comprises an input rod 612 and a gear head 614 that extends radially externally from the input rod 612 and defines a set of tapered gear teeth 616. The input rod 612 extends in a rear RW direction along the longitudinal axis of the LA cable assembly and includes a central opening 618 extending in a forward FW direction from a rear end 629 (Figure 41) to a forward end 628 of the rod inlet 612, the central opening 618 ending in the gear head 614. An internal surface 620 of the inlet rod 612 defines a cross-shaped female socket or connection 622 (Figures 37 and 40) that receives a married male drive connection 714 (Figure 53) of the rod drive assembly 700 to rotate the pinion gear 610 on an axis of rotation PGR that is substantially congruent with the longitudinal axis of the LA cable assembly and crosses the axis of the knife blade of rotation R.
[00208] The pinion gear 610 is supported for rotation on the axis of the pinion gear of the PGR rotation (Figures 8 and 8A) by mounting the bearing housing 630, which, in an exemplary embodiment, includes a larger sleeve bushing 632 and a smaller sleeve bushing 640 (Figure 42). As can best be seen in Figure 41, an advanced boundary surface 624 of gear head 634 of pinion gear 610 includes a central recess 626 which is substantially circular in cross section and is centered on the pinion gear axis of rotation PGR. The central recess of pinion gear 626 receives a cylindrical reward portion 642 from the smallest sleeve bushing 640. The smallest sleeve bushing 640 functions as a thrust bearing and includes an enlarged annular head 644, provides a head support surface of pinion gear 614 and limits the axial path of pinion gear 610 in the forward direction FW, i.e., the path of pinion gear 610 along the pinion gear axis of rotation PGR, in the forward direction FW.
[00209] Sleeve bushing 640 is supported on a hub 158b (Figures 49 and 50) of the frame body 150. Specifically, hub 158b extends at the rear from an internal surface 158a of an advanced wall 154a of a central cylindrical region 154 of the frame body 150. Hub 158b of the central cylindrical region of frame body 154 includes a smooth surface 158c that interacts with a smooth surface 648 (Figure 2C) formed in a central opening 646 of the sleeve bushing 640 to prevent rotation of the sleeve bushing 640 as the pinion gear 610 rotates on its axis of rotation PGR.
[00210] In an exemplary embodiment, gear head 614 of pinion gear 610 includes 25 tapered gear teeth and, on the front border surface 624, has an outer diameter of approximately 2.14 cm (0.84 inches) (measured through the gear from the top of the gear teeth) and a root diameter of approximately 1.83 cm (0.72 inch) (measured through a base of teeth). The tapered gear teeth 616 taper from a larger diameter on the front boundary surface 624 to a smaller diameter away from the front boundary surface 624.
[00211] The largest sleeve bushing 632 of the pinion gear bearing housings assembly 630 includes a central opening 634 that rotatively receives and supports the pinion gear inlet rod 612. The largest sleeve bushing 632 includes a enlarged forward head 636 and a cylindrical rear body 637. The cylindrical rear body 637 of the largest sleeve bushing 632 is supported within a forming cavity 129 (Figures 39 and 48) of the forward U-shaped section 118 of the housing of the gearbox 113, while the extended forward head 636 of the sleeve bushing 632 fits into an advanced forming cavity 126 of the U-shaped forward section 118 of the gearbox housing 113.
[00212] A smooth surface 638 (Figure 41) of the extended forward head 636 of the largest sleeve bushing 632 interacts with a smooth surface 128 of the U-shaped forward section 118 of the gearbox housing 113 to prevent rotation of the bushing sleeve 632 inside the gearbox housing 113. The cylindrical body 639 of the largest sleeve bushing 632 defining the central opening 634 provides the radial bearing housing for the pinion gear 610. The enlarged head 636 of the sleeve bushing 632 also provides a thrust bearing surface for the rear collar 627 of gear head 614 to prevent axial movement of pinion gear 610 in the rear direction RW, i.e. the path of pinion gear 610 along the gear axis pinion of PGR rotation. Towards the rear RW. Alternatively, instead of a pair of sleeve bushes 632, 640, the bearing housings 630 for pinion gear 610 may comprise one or more roller or bearing assemblies or a combination of roller / bearing assemblies and roller bearings. mango.
[00213] The transmission gear 650, in an exemplary embodiment, is a double gear with axially aligned gears including the first bevel gear 652 and the second spur gear 654, both rotating on an axis of the transmission gear of the DGR rotation (Figure 8 and 8A). The axis of the transmission gear of the rotation DGR is substantially orthogonal and intersects an axis of the pinion gear of the rotation PGR. In addition, the axis of rotation of the DGR transmission gear is substantially parallel to the axis of the knife blade of rotation R. The first gear 652 is a bevel gear and includes a set of 653 bevel gear teeth that mate with the set of gear teeth. tapered gear teeth 616 of gearhead 614 of pinion gear 610. As the pinion gear 610 is rotated by the rod drive assembly 700, the tapered gear teeth 616 of pinion gear 610, in turn, engage the tapered gear teeth 653 of the first gear 652 to rotate the transmission gear 650.
[00214] The second gear 654 comprises a spur gear including a set of gear teeth 656. Spur gear 654 engages and drives the driven gear 328 of the knife blade 300 to rotate the knife blade on its axis of rotation R. Due to the straight gear 654 of gearbox 602 and driven gear 328 of knife blade 300 having axes of rotation DGR, R which are parallel (i.e., a straight gear drive) and because gears 654, 328 comprise a drive of gear 658, there is less wear on the respective gear teeth 656, 332 than on other gear drives, characterized by the fact that the rotation axes are not parallel and characterized by the fact that a non-gear gear drive is used . In an exemplary embodiment, the first gear 652 includes 28 bevel gear teeth and has an outer diameter of approximately 2.34 cm (0.92 inch) and an inner diameter of approximately 1.67 cm (0.66 inch) and the second gear 654 includes 58 spur gear teeth and has an outside diameter of approximately 3.17 cm (1.25 inches) and a root diameter of approximately 2.95 cm (1.16 inches).
[00215] The transmission gear 650 is supported for rotation by mounting the bearing housing 660 (Figures 39-43). The bearing housing assembly 660, in an exemplary embodiment, comprises a bearing assembly 662 which supports the transmission gear 650 for rotation on the rotating axis of the transmission gear DGR. The bearing housing assembly of the transmission gear 660 is attached to a projection extending downwards 142 (Figures 47 and 48) of the forward U-shaped section 118 of the gearbox housing 113. As can be seen in Figure 39, the bearing assembly 662 includes a plurality of bearings 666 between an inner groove 664 and an outer groove 668. The outer groove 668 is attached to the transmission gear 650 and is received in a central opening 670 of the transmission gear 650 The inner groove 664 is supported by the fastener 672. A threaded end portion of the fastener 672 is threaded into a threaded opening 140 (Figures 41 and 47) defined in a trunk 143 of the projection extending downwards 142 of the forward section inverted U-shape 118 from gearbox housing 113. Fastener 672 secures bearing assembly 662 to gearbox housing 113. Alternatively, instead of a bearing assembly, the 660 bearing housing assembly may comprise one or more sleeve bearings or bushings. Gearbox housing 113
[00216] As best seen in Figures 2C, and 33-44, gearbox assembly 112 includes gearbox housing 113 and gearbox 602. As can best be seen in Figures 41-48, the gearbox housing 113 includes a generally cylindrical rear section 116 (in the rear RW direction away from blade housing 400), an inverted U-shaped section 118 (in the forward direction FW towards blade housing 400 ) and a generally rectangular base section 120 arranged axially below the forward section 118. The gearbox housing 113 includes the cavity or opening of the gearbox 114 that defines a complete hole 115 extending through the gearbox housing 113 from a rear end 122 to a forward end 124. The full hole 115 generally extends along the longitudinal axis of the LA cable assembly. The advanced inverted U-section 118 and the cylindrical rear section 116 combine to define an upper surface 130 of the gearbox housing 113.
[00217] The gearbox housing 113 also includes a generally rectangular shaped base 120 that extends downwardly from the forward U-shaped section 118, ie, away from the top surface 130. The rectangular base 120 includes a front wall 120a and rear wall 120b, as well as a bottom wall 120c and an upper wall 120d, all of which are generally planar. As best seen in Figures 47 and 48, extending radially internally in the front wall 120a of the rectangular base 120 there are the first and second arched recesses 120e, 120f. The first arcuate recess 120e is an upper recess, that is, the upper recess 120e is adjacent to a bottom portion 141 of the forward U-shaped section 118 and, as best seen in Figure 43, is offset slightly below the upper wall 120d of rectangular base 120. The second arcuate recess 120f is a lower recess and extends through the bottom wall 120c of rectangular base 120.
[00218] The bottom portion 141 of the forward U-shaped section 118 includes a downward extending projection 142 (Figure 47). The downwardly extending projection 142 includes a cylindrical stem portion 143 and defines a threaded opening 140 extending through the projection 142. A central axis through the threaded opening 140 defines and coincides with the axis of rotation DGR of the transmission gear. transmission 650. The upper and lower arched recesses 120e, 120f are centered on the axis of the transmission gear of the rotation DGR and the central axis of the threaded opening 140.
[00219] The full hole 115 of the gearbox housing 113 provides a receptacle for the pinion gear 610 and its associated bearing bearing assembly 630 while the upper and lower arched recesses 120e, 120f provide the clearance for the transmission gear 650 and its associated bearing housing 660 assembly. Specifically, with respect to the bearing housing assembly 630, the cylindrical body 637 of the largest sleeve bushing 632 fits within the cylindrical cavity 129 of the forward U-shaped section 118 The extended forward head 636 of the sleeve bushing 632 fits into the forward cavity 126 of the forward section 118. The cylindrical cavity 129 and the forward cavity 126 of the forward U-shaped section 118 are both part of the complete orifice 115.
[00220] With respect to the upper and lower arched recesses 120e, 120f, the upper recess 120e provides the clearance for the first bevel gear 652 of the transmission gear 650 as the transmission gear 650 rotates on its axis of rotation DGR through the first gear taper 652 being driven by pinion gear 610. The wider lower recess 120f provides clearance for second gear 654 of transmission gear 650 as spur gear 654 collaborates with driven gear 328 to rotate the rotary knife blade 300 over its axis of rotation R. As can best be seen in Figures 39 and 40, the projection extending downwards 142 and trunk 143 provide the seating surfaces for the bearing assembly 662, which supports the transmission gear 650 for rotation within rectangular base 120 of the gearbox housing 113. A cleaning door 136 (Figures 47 and 48) extends through the bottom portion 141 of the advanced inverted U-section 118 and a portion of the base 120 of the gearbox housing 113 to allow the flow of cleaning fluid injected into the complete hole 115 of the gearbox housing 113 from the proximal end 122 of the housing gearbox 113 to flow in the upper and lower arched recesses 120e, 120f for the purpose of cleaning the transmission gear 650.
[00221] As can be seen in Figures 39 and 40, an internal surface 145 of the section at the rear cylinder 116 of the gearbox housing 113 defines a threaded region 149, adjacent to the proximal end 122 of the gearbox housing 113. A threaded region 149 of the gearbox housing 113 receives a matched threaded portion 262 (Figure 2B) of the elongated center core 252 of the handpiece retaining assembly 250 to secure the handpiece 200 to the gearbox housing 113. As seen in Figures 38-44, an outer surface 146 of the cylindrical rear section 116 of the gearbox housing 113 defines a first portion 148 adjacent to the proximal end 122 and a second larger diameter portion 147 disposed ahead or in a forward direction FW of the first portion 148. The first portion 148 of the outer surface 146 of the cylindrical rear portion 116 of the gearbox housing 113 includes a plate urality of keys extending axially 148a. The plurality of keys 148a accept and inter-adjust with four ribs 216 (Figure 2B) formed on an internal surface 201 of a distal end portion 210 of the handpiece 200. The plurality of keys collaboration 148a of the gearbox housing 113 and the four ribs 216 of the handpiece 200 allow the handpiece 200 to be oriented in any desired rotational position with respect to the gearbox housing 113.
[00222] The second larger diameter portion 147 of the outer surface 146 of the section at the rear cylinder 116 of the gearbox housing 113 is configured to receive a spacer ring 2 90 (Figure 2B) of the handpiece retaining assembly 250. As can be seen in Figure 8A, spacer ring 290 finds and sustains against a stepped recess 147a defined between the rear cylindrical section 116 and the inverted U-shaped section 118 of the gearbox housing 113. That is, an upper portion 134 of the inverted U-shaped section 118 is slightly radially above a corresponding upper portion 132 of the section at the rear cylindrical 116 of the gearbox housing 113. A bottom or proximal surface 292 (Figure 2B) of the ring spacer 290 acts as a stop for an axially stepped collar 214 of distal end portion 210 of handpiece 200 when handpiece 200 is attached to the housing gear housing 113 through elongated central core 252 of handpiece retention assembly 250.
[00223] The second larger diameter portion 147 of the outer surface 146 also includes a plurality of braces (seen in Figures 41 and 46). The plurality of keys in the second portion 147 are used with respect to an optional thumb support (not shown) that can be used in place of the spacer ring 2 90. The thumb support provides an externally angled extending support surface for operator's thumb. The plurality of keys of the second portion 149 is used with respect to the optional thumb support to allow the operator to select a desired rotational orientation of the thumb support with respect to the gearbox housing 113 just in accordance with the plurality of keys 148a of the first portion 148 allows the operator to select a desired rotational orientation of handpiece 200 with respect to gearbox housing 113. Frame body 150
[00224] Also part of the head assembly 111 is the frame or frame body 150, best seen in Figures 45 and 49-52. The frame body 150 receives and removably supports both the gearbox assembly 112 and the blade combination - blade housing 550. In this way, the frame body 150 is releasably and operably coupled to the gearbox assembly. 112 to the blade combination - blade housing 550 so that gear set 604 of gearbox assembly 312 operatively engages driven gear 328 of rotary knife blade 300 to rotate knife blade 300 with respect to blade housing 400 on the rotation axis R.
[00225] The frame body 150 includes the arched mounting pedestal 152 arranged in an forward portion 151 (Figure 2C) of the frame 150, the central cylindrical region 154 and a rectangular base 180 (Figure 48) arranged below the central cylindrical region 154 The arched mounting pedestal 152 of the frame body defines the seating region 152a (Figures 22C and 51) to receive the mounting section 402 of the blade housing 400 and attach the blade - blade housing combination 550 to the frame body 150. The central cylindrical region 154 and rectangular base 180 of the frame body 150 define the cavity 155 (Figures 45 and 49) which slidably receives the gearbox housing 113. The frame cavity body 155 is comprised of a upper socket 156 defined by the central cylindrical region 154 and a horizontally extending lower opening 190 defined by and extending through the central rectangular base 180.
[00226] The central rectangular base 180 of the frame body 150 includes a bottom wall 182 and a pair of side walls 184 that extends upwards from the bottom wall 182. As is best seen in Figures 49 and 50, a pair of hubs 186 extends internally from the pair of side walls 184. The boundary surfaces at the rear 187 of the pair of hubs 186 each include a threaded opening 188. The horizontally extending bottom opening 190 defined by the rectangular base 180 includes two parts: a generally rectangular portion 190a extending to the rear from the pair of cube surfaces 187; and an advanced portion 190b extending through the rectangular base 180 to the seat region 152a of the frame body 150.
[00227] To fix the gearbox assembly 112 to the frame body 150, the gearbox assembly 112 is aligned and moved towards a proximal end 157 of the frame body 150. As can be best seen in Figure 45 , the socket 156 defined by the central cylindrical region 154 of the frame body 150 is configured to slide the advanced U-shaped section of the gearbox housing 113 and the rectangular portion 190a of the opening horizontally extending 190 of the opening. rectangular base 180 is configured to receive slidably the rectangular base 120 of the gearbox housing 113. The upper surface 130 of the gearbox housing 113 is received slidably within the inner surface 158 of the central cylindrical region 154 of the body frame 150.
[00228] When the gearbox assembly 112 is fully inserted into the frame body 150, the front wall 120a of the base 120 of the gearbox housing 113 meets the boundary surfaces at the rear 187 of the pair of hubs 186 of the rectangular base 180 of the frame body 150. In addition, the horizontally extending openings 121 of the gearbox housing base 120 are aligned with the horizontally threaded openings 188 of the pair of hubs 186 of the rectangular base of the frame body 180. A pair of threaded fasteners 192 (Figure 45) passes through the openings 121 of the gearbox housing base 120 and is threaded into the threaded openings 188 of the pair of hubs 186 of the rectangular base of the frame body 180 to release reliably the gearbox assembly 112 to the frame body 150. The openings 121 of the gearbox housing base 180 are partially threaded to prevent the fasteners 192 from falling out of the openings 121 when the gearbox housing 113 is not coupled to the frame body 150.
[00229] The openings 121 of the gearbox housing base 120 include countersunk end portions 121a (Figure 45) for receiving the enlarged heads of the pair of threaded fasteners 192 so that the enlarged heads of the fasteners 192, when tightened on the frame body 150, are flush with the rear wall 120b of the base 120. The threaded fasteners 192 include the narrow body portions relative to the enlarged heads and larger threaded portions in diameter so that the fasteners 192 remain captured within their respective openings. gearbox housing 121 when gearbox housing 113 is not coupled to the frame body 150. The relative movement between the gearbox assembly 112 and the frame body 150 is restricted by the threaded interconnection of the gearbox housing gears 113 to the frame body 150 via the threaded fasteners 192 and the front surfaces of the rectangular base 120 of the housing of gearbox 113 and the rectangular base 180 of the frame body 150.
[00230] Additionally, the frame body 150 reliably receives the combination of blade - blade housing 550 and thus operatively couples the combination of blade - blade housing 550 to the gearbox assembly 112. As can be best seen in Figures 51 and 52, the arched pair 160, 162 of the frame body 150 defines the arched mounting pedestal 152. The mounting pedestal 152, in turn, defines the seat region 152a which reliably receives the cross section mounting 402 of the blade housing 400. Specifically, the arched mounting pedestal 152 includes an inner wall 174, an upper wall 176 extending radially in the forward direction FW from an upper end of the inner wall 174 and a lower wall or protrusion 178 extending radially in an advanced FW direction from a lower end of the inner wall 174.
[00231] When the blade housing assembly section 402 is correctly aligned and moved in engagement with the arched mounting pedestal of the frame body 152: 1) the outer wall 406 of the blade housing assembly section 402 supports against the inner wall of mounting pedestal 174 of frame body 150; 2) the first upper end 408 of the blade housing assembly section 402 holds against the upper wall of the mounting pedestal 170 of the frame body 150; and 3) a radially internally staggered portion 406a of the outer wall 406 of the blade housing assembly section 402 supports against an upper face and an advanced face of the radially externally projecting mounting pedestal 178 of the frame body 150.
[00232] The respective threaded fasteners 170, 172 of the frame body 150 are threaded into the threaded openings 420a, 422a of the mounting inserts 420, 422 of the blade housing assembly section 402 to secure the blade - blade housing combination 550 to the frame body 150. Assuming that the gearbox assembly 112 is coupled to the frame body 150, when the blade-blade housing combination 550 is attached to the frame body 150, the second straight gear 654 of the gear transmission 650 of gearbox assembly 112 engages and connects with driven gear 328 of the rotary knife blade 300 of the blade combination - blade housing 550. Thus, when the gearbox assembly 112 and the combination of blade - blade housing 550 are attached to frame body 150, gear set 604 of gearbox assembly 112 is operatively engaged with driven gear 328 of the knife blade rotary 300 to rotatively drive the blade 300 into the blade housing 400 on the axis of the rotation blade R. Like the threaded fasteners 192 of the gearbox housing 113 that secure the gearbox housing 113 to the frame body 150, the threaded fasteners 170, 172 of the frame body 150 include the narrow bodies and larger threaded portions in diameter so that the fasteners remain captured in the partially threaded openings 160a, 162a of the arcuate arms 160, 162.
[00233] To remove the blade - blade housing combination 550 from the frame body 150, the pair of threaded fasteners 170, 172 of the frame body 150 is unscrewed from the threaded openings 420a, 420b of the housing mounting inserts blade 420, 422. Then, the blade combination - blade housing 550 is moved in the forward direction FW with respect to the frame body 150 to disengage the blade combination - blade housing 550 from the head assembly 111.
[00234] An advanced wall 154a of the central cylindrical region 154 of the frame body 150 includes a projection 198 that supports a steel assembly 199 (Figure 2C). The steel assembly 199 includes a support body 199a, inclined spring actuator 199b and a rod 199c with a steel member 199d affixed to the bottom of the rod 199c. The support body of the steel assembly 199a is attached to the projection 198. When the driver 199b is pressed by the operator, the rod 199c moves downwards and the steel member 199d engages the blade edge 350 of the knife blade 300 to straighten the blade edge 350. Handpiece 200 and handpiece retaining assembly 250
[00235] Cable assembly 110 includes handpiece 200 and handpiece retaining assembly 250. As can be seen in Figure 2B, handpiece 200 includes inner surface 201 and outer clamping surface 204. The surface inner part 201 of the handpiece 200 defines the central opening extending axially or full hole 202. The outer clamping surface 204 of the handpiece 200 extends between an enlarged proximal end portion 206 and the distal end portion 210. One face front or wall 212 of the handpiece 200 includes an axially stepped collar 214 that is spaced at the rear and serves as a reinforcing surface for a spacer ring 290 of the handpiece retaining assembly 250. The inner surface 201 of the handpiece 200 defines the four ribs 216, as previously described, which allows handpiece 200 to be oriented in any desired rotational position with respect to gearbox housing 113. A radial opening notched 220 on the front face 212 of the handpiece 200 receives an optional actuation lever (not shown). The optional drive lever, if used, allows the operator to drive the energy-operated rotary knife 100 by rotating the lever towards the clamping surface 204 thereby engaging the drive mechanism 600 to rotate the blade of the rotary knife 300.
[00236] The handpiece retaining assembly 250, best seen in Figures 2 and 2B, releasably secures the handpiece 200 to the gearbox housing 113. The handpiece retaining assembly 250 includes the elongated center core 252 extending through the central opening 202 of the handpiece 200. The elongated core 252 threads into the threaded opening 149 (Figure 48) at the proximal or rear end 122 of the gearbox housing 113 to secure the handpiece 200 to the housing of gearbox 113.
[00237] Handpiece retaining assembly 250 also includes spacer ring 290 (Figure 2B). When handpiece 200 is being attached to the gearbox housing 113, the spacer ring 290 is positioned on the second cylindrical portion 147 (Figure 48) of the outer surface 146 of the section at the rear cylinder 116 of the gearbox housing 113. Spacer ring 290 is positioned to meet the stepped recess 147a defined between the second largest portion 147 of the outer surface 146 of the rear cylindrical portion 116 and the forward U-shaped section 118 of the gearbox housing 113. When the handpiece 200 is attached to the gearbox housing 113 by the elongated center core 252, the spacer ring 290 is sandwiched between the handpiece 200 and the stepped recess 147a of the gearbox housing 113.
[00238] As can best be seen in Figure 2B and 8, the elongated central core 252 of the handpiece retaining assembly 250 includes an inner surface 254 and an outer surface 256 extending between a small diameter end portion distal or forward 264 and the proximal or extended rear portion 260. The inner surface 254 of the elongated central core 252 defines a complete hole 258 extending along the longitudinal axis LA of the cable assembly 110. The elongated central core 252 also includes a threaded portion 262 on the outer surface 256 at the forward reduced diameter end portion 264. The outer surface 256 of the elongated core 252 includes an radially externally staggered recess 265.
[00239] When the elongated central core 252 is inserted through the central full hole 202 and the threaded portion 262 of the core 252 is threaded into the threaded opening 149 of the gearbox housing 113, the handpiece 200 is attached to the gearbox housing gears 113. Specifically, handpiece 200 is prevented from moving in the forward axial direction FW along the longitudinal axis of the LA cable assembly through spacer ring 290. Bottom surface 2 92 of spacer ring 2 90 acts as a stop for the axially stepped collar 214 of the distal end portion 210 of the handpiece 200 to prevent movement of the handpiece 200 in the forward direction FW. Handpiece 200 is prevented from moving in the axial direction at the rear RW along the longitudinal axis of the LA cable assembly by the radially externally staggered recess 265 of the elongated central core 252.
[00240] As can be seen in Figure 8, the stepped recess 265 of the elongated central core 252 holds against a corresponding internally stepped recess 218 of the handpiece 200 to prevent movement of the handpiece 200 in the rear RW direction. As previously mentioned, spacer ring 290 can be replaced with an optional operator thumb support. In addition, a strap attachment clamp (not shown) can be arranged between the spacer ring 290 and the gearbox housing 113. The strap attachment clamp, if used, provides an attachment point for a wrist strap optional operator (not shown). Drive shaft hitch assembly 275
[00241] The elongated center core 252 of the handpiece retention assembly 250 includes the proximal or rear rear portion 260. The extended end portion 260 supports a drive shaft engagement assembly 275 that engages a first coupling 710 (Figures 1 and 53) of an outer case 704 of the rod drive assembly 700 to secure the outer case 704 of the rod drive assembly 700 to the cable assembly 110 and thus ensure the operative engagement of a first male connection 714 of the shaft internal drive 702 inside the female socket 622 of the pinion gear input rod 612. The internal surface 254 of the elongated central core 252 also includes an internally stepped recess 266 (Figure 8) that provides a stop for a distal portion 711 of the first coupling 710 of rod drive assembly 700.
[00242] As best seen in Figure 2B, the extended rear end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252 of the handpiece retention assembly 250 defines a slot generally U-shaped 68 that partially extends through the portion of end 260 in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal axis LA of cable assembly 110. The rear end portion 260 also defines a central opening 270 (Figure 8) which is aligned and part of the full hole 258 of the elongated central core 252. The opening center 270 ends at internally stepped recess 266. An end wall 272 of the rear end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252 includes a peripheral cutout 274. Peripheral cutout 274 is best seen in Figures 2, 2B and 6.
[00243] Arranged in the U-shaped slot 268 of the elongated central core 252 there is a drive shaft hitch assembly 275 (best seen in the schematic exploded view in Figure 2B) that reliably engages or engages the stem drive assembly 700 to the cable assembly 110. The drive shaft hitch assembly 275 includes a smooth surface hitch 276 and a pair of inclined springs 278 inserted into slot 268. The smooth surface hitch 276 of the drive shaft hitch assembly 275 includes a central opening 280 which is substantially equal to the size of the opening 270 of the enlarged end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252.
[00244] The coupling 276 is movable between two positions in a direction orthogonal to the longitudinal axis LA of the cable assembly 110: 1) a first locking position, characterized by the fact that the opening 280 of the coupling 276 is compensated from the opening 270 defined by the enlarged end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252; and 2) a second release position, characterized by the fact that the opening 280 of the coupling 27 6 is aligned with the opening 270 defined by the enlarged end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252. The inclined springs 278, which are trapped between the peripheral recesses 281 in a lower portion 282 of the engagement 276 and the enlarged end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252 inclines the engagement 276 to the first locking position.
[00245] When the latch 276 is in the first locking position, a lower portion 286 of the latch 276 adjacent to the latch opening 280 extends into the opening 270 of the extended end portion 260 of the core 252. This can be seen schematically, for example example, in Figure 6. The movement of the coupling 276 with respect to the enlarged end portion 260 is limited by the engagement of a retaining pin 284 extending through a radially extending channel 283 formed in the coupling 276. The retaining pin 284 connects the U-shaped slot 2 68 of the extended end portion 260 and extends through channel 283. Channel 283 restricts and limits an extent of radial movement of the engagement 276 with respect to the extended end portion 260 of the central core elongated 252. Drive mechanism 600
[00246] As can be best seen in the schematic illustration of Figure 53, the knife blade 300 is rotationally driven in the blade housing 400 by the drive mechanism 600. Within the energy operated rotary knife 100, the drive mechanism 600 includes gearbox 602 supported by gearbox housing 113. Gearbox 602, in turn, is driven by the flexible rod drive assembly 700 and drive motor 800 which are operatively coupled to gearbox 602. The flexible rod drive assembly 700 is coupled to the cable assembly 110 by the drive shaft hitch assembly 275. A portion of the flexible rod drive assembly 700 extends through the elongated central core 252 of the workpiece retaining assembly 250 and engages the pinion gear 610 to rotate the pinion gear on its axis of rotation PGR and thus rotates the blade of the rotary knife 300 on its axis rotation R.
[00247] As can best be seen in Figures 1 and 53, the drive mechanism 600 includes the flexible shaft drive assembly 700 and the drive motor 800. The stem drive assembly 700 includes an internal drive shaft 702 and an outer case 704, the inner drive shaft 702 being rotatable with respect to the outer case 704. Attached to an end 706 of the outer case 704 there is the first coupling 710 which is adapted to be releasably attached to the end portion in the extended rear 260 of the elongated central core 252 of the handpiece retention assembly 250. Attached to an opposite end 708 of the outer case 704 there is a second coupling 712 which is adapted to be releasably attached to a coupling 802 of the drive motor 800.
[00248] When the first coupling 710 of the rod drive assembly 700 is affixed to the handpiece 200, the first male drive connection 714 disposed at one end 716 of the internal drive shaft 702 engages the female socket or connection 622 of the driving rod pinion gear input 612 to rotate pinion gear 610 on the PGR rotation pinion gear shaft. The rotation of the pinion gear 610 rotates the transmission gear 650, which in turn rotates the blade of the rotating knife 300 on its axis of rotation R. When the second coupling 712 of the rod drive assembly 700 is received and affixed to the drive motor coupling 802, a second drive connection 718 disposed at an opposite end 720 of the internal drive shaft 702 engages a matched socket or connection 804 (shown on the dotted line in Figure 53) of the drive motor 800. The engagement of the second drive connection 718 of the internal drive shaft 702 and connection of the drive motor 804 provides for rotation of the internal drive shaft 702 by the drive motor 800.
[00249] In the first locking position of the coupling 276 of the drive shaft coupling assembly 275, the lower portion 286 of the coupling 276 extends in the opening 270 of the enlarged end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252 engages the first coupling 710 from the stem drive assembly 700 to secure the stem drive assembly 700 to the cable assembly 110 and ensure the matched engagement of the first male drive coupling 714 of the drive shaft 7 02 to the female socket or connection 622 of the input shaft of the pinion gear 612. In the second release position, the coupling 276 is moved radially so that the opening 280 of the coupling 276 is aligned with and coextensive with the opening 270 of the enlarged end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252, thus allowing removing the first coupling 710 from the stem drive assembly 700 of the handpiece 200.
[00250] The drive motor 800 provides the motivating energy to rotate the knife blade 300 with respect to the blade housing 400 on the axis of rotation R via a drive transmission that includes the internal drive shaft 702 of the shaft assembly. drive 7 00 and gear set 604 of gear box 602. The drive motor 800 can be an electric motor or a pneumatic motor.
[00251] Alternatively, the rod drive assembly 700 can be eliminated and the gear set 604 of gearbox 602 can be directly driven by an air / air motor or an electric motor arranged in the complete hole 258 of the elongated central core 252 of the handpiece retention assembly 250 or in the full hole 202 of the handpiece 200, if a different handpiece retention structure is used. An air / pneumatic engine rated to fit within a handpiece of an energy operated rotary knife is revealed in U.S. Non-Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 13 / 073,207, filed March 28, 2011 , called "Energy Operated Rotating Knife with Disposable Blade Holder Assembly", inventors Jeffrey Alan Whited, David Curtis Ross, Dennis R. Seguin, Jr. and Geoffrey D. Rapp (proxy protocol BET-019432 US PRI). Serial non-provisional patent application No. 13 / 073,207 is hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference. Attach the rod drive assembly 7 00 to the cable assembly 110
[00252] To fix the rod drive assembly 700 to the handpiece 200, the operator axially aligns the first coupling 710 of the drive shaft assembly 700 along the longitudinal axis LA of the cable assembly 110 adjacent to the opening 270 defined by the portion flared end 260 of the elongated center core 252 of the handpiece retention assembly 250. The operator places his thumb on the portion 288 of the coupling 276 accessible through the peripheral cutout 274 of the flared end portion 260 and slides the coupling 276 radially internally to the second release position. When the coupling 276 is in the release position, the operator moves an advanced portion 711 (Figure 53) of the first coupling 710 into the complete hole 258 of the elongated central core 252.
[00253] After the forward portion 711 of the first coupling 710 is received in the elongated central core 252 of the handpiece retention assembly 250, the operator then releases the coupling 276 and continues to move the first coupling 710 still in the full hole 258 of the core center 252 to engagement 276 (which is tilted radially externally by inclined springs 278) to be pressurized into a radial fixing groove 722 formed on an outer surface of the first coupling 710 of the stem drive assembly 700. When engagement 276 extends in the fixing groove 722 of the first coupling 710, the first coupling 710 is attached to the elongated central cable mounting core 252 and the first male drive connection 714 of the inner drive shaft 702 is in operative engagement with the female socket or connection 622 of the pinion gear input rod 612.
[00254] To release the stem drive assembly 700 from the elongated central cable assembly core 252, the operator positions his thumb on the portion 288 of the coupling 276 accessible through the peripheral cutout 274 of the extended end portion 260 of the elongated central core 252 and slides the engagement 276 radially internally to the second release position. This action disengages the engagement 276 from the fixing groove 722 of the first coupling 710 of the drive shaft assembly 700. At the same time, the operator moves the first coupling 710 in the axial direction at the rear RW out of the full hole 258 of the elongated central core 252 and away from the cable assembly 110. This will result in the first male drive connection 714 of the drive shaft 702 being disengaged from the female connection 622 of the pinion gear input rod 612. Rotary knife blade styles
[00255] As previously mentioned, depending on the cutting or trimming task to be performed, different sizes and styles of the blades of the rotary knife can be used in the 100 energy-operated rotary knife of the present disclosure. Likewise, as previously mentioned, rotating knife blades in various diameters are typically offered ranging in size from about 3.05 cm (1.2 inches) in diameter to more than 17.78 cm (7 inches) in diameter. The selection of a blade diameter will depend on the task or tasks being performed. In addition, different styles or configurations of the rotating knife blades are also offered. For example, the rotating knife blade style 300 schematically illustrated in Figures 1-53 and discussed above is sometimes referred to as a "level blade" style rotating knife blade. The term "smooth surface" refers to the profile of the blade section 304 and, specifically, to an angle of cut CA (Figure 24) of the blade section 304 with respect to a CEP plane that is congruent with a cutting edge 350 of the blade 300. The CA angle of blade section 304 with respect to the cutting edge plane CEP is relatively large. As can be seen in Figure 24, the angle of cut AC, that is, the angle between the blade section 304 and the CEP plane, as measured with respect to the inner wall of blade section 354 is an obtuse angle, greater than 90 °. This large obtuse AC cutting angle is referred to as a "shallow" blade cutting profile. As can be seen in Figure 55, the inner wall 360 is in a generally smooth, frusto-conical shape. As product P is being trimmed or cut by the level blade 300, the layer of cut material CL1 moves easily along the inner wall 360 of the level blade 300. The level blade 300 is specifically useful for trimming thicker layers of the material to be cut. from a product, for example, trimming a thicker layer of fat or meat tissue from a piece of meat, as the rotary knife operated by energy 100 is moved over the product in a sweeping motion. This is true, as the even thicker layers of the cut or trimmed material will flow with minimal drag or friction over the inner wall 360 of the leveled blade 300.
[00256] Another blade profile is shown on the "hook blade" style rotary knife blade which is schematically illustrated in 1000 in Figure 56. Here, the cutting angle CA with respect to the CEP plane defined by the cutting edge 1050, it can be the same or slightly larger or smaller than the AC cutting angle of the rotating knife blade 300 (see Figure 24). However, the inner profile of the hook blade 1000 is less planar and more V-shaped than the inner profile of the leveled blade 300. That is, as the inner surface of the blade curves radially internally as it moves from the section blade 1004 to body section 1002. This internal curvature of the inner surface of the hook blade 1000 results in a less smooth and more curved travel path for the cut or trimmed material, as compared to the level blade 300. Thus, the hook blade 1000 is specifically useful for trimming the relatively thin layers of material from a product, for example, trimming a thin layer of fat or meat tissue from a relatively large flat piece of meat, as per the energy-operated rotary knife 100 is moved over the product in a sweeping motion. To trim the thicker layers of material from a product, the hook blade 1000 would not be as efficient, as the curved displacement path of the cut or trimmed material layer would result in the energy-operated rotary knife 100 experiencing more drag and resistance during cutting or trimming. In this way, more effort would be required by the operator to move and manipulate the energy operated rotary knife 100 to make the desired cuts or shavings.
[00257] As can also be seen, the shape of the blade body of the rotary knife 1002 is also different than the body 302 of the level blade of the rotary knife 300. Correspondingly, the shape of a blade support section 1450 of a blade housing 1400 is also modified correspondingly to the shape of the blade support section 450 of the blade housing 400 when used on the energy operated rotary knife 100. That is, the shape of a specific rotary knife blade selected to be used in the energy operated rotary knife 100 will sometimes require modification of the associated blade housing to the energy operated rotary knife 100. However, the blade support structure - blade housing 500 and gear set 604, as discussed above, are used to support and drive the blade 1000. Additionally, as discussed above, the driven gear 1030 of the knife blade 1000 is spaced axially below the support groove io 1020.
[00258] A more aggressive blade profile is shown on the "straight blade" style rotating knife blade which is schematically illustrated in 1500 in Figure 57. The cutting angle CA is less than the cutting angles of the knife blades rotary 300 and 1000. In fact, the AC cutting angle of the knife blade 1500 is an acute angle of less than 90 ° with respect to the CEP plane defined by the cutting edge 1550. The AC cutting angle of the straight blade 1500 is very " pronounced "and more aggressive than level blade 300 or hook blade 1000. A straight blade is specifically useful when making deep or sharp cuts on a product, ie making a deep cut on a meat product for the purpose of removing the connective tissue / cartilage adjacent to a bone.
[00259] As can also be seen, the shape of the knife blade body 1502 is also different than the 302 blade body of the flat rotating knife 300. Correspondingly, the shape of a 1950 blade holder section of a blade housing 1900 is also modified correspondingly to the shape of the blade support section 450 of the blade housing 400 when used on the energy operated rotary knife 100. However, the blade support structure - blade housing 500 and blade set gear 604, as discussed above, are used to support and drive blade 1000. In addition, as discussed above, driven gear 1530 of knife blade 1500 is spaced axially below the supporting groove 1520.
[00260] Other styles, configurations and blade sizes of the rotating knife exist and can also be used with the 100 energy operated rotary knife. The blade structure - blade housing 500 of the present disclosure and the other features, characteristics and attributes, as described above, the energy operated rotary knife 100 can be used with a variety of styles, configurations and blade sizes of the rotary knife and corresponding blade housings. The aforementioned examples are the typical blade styles (smooth, hook and straight surface), however numerous other styles and blade combinations of the blade styles can be used, with an appropriate blade housing, on the 100 energy operated rotary knife. present revelation, as would be understood by one with skill in the technique. It is the intention of the present application to cover all such blade styles and sizes of the rotary knife, together with the corresponding blade housings, which can be used on the 100 energy operated rotary knife. Second exemplary realization - 2300 two-piece rotary knife blade
[00261] In the first exemplary embodiment of the energy operated rotary knife 100, the annular knife blade 300 was integral, i.e., the body 302 and the blade section 304 of the knife blade 300 comprised a single unitary structure. When in use, the blade of the rotating knife 300 should typically be sharpened after 5-10 hours of use. The length of time between sharpening will depend on a number of variables including the application, that is, the nature of the product being cut or trimmed, the operator's ability to use the rotary knife, for example, a skilled operator will avoid gouging the blade on the bones of the carcass when trimming or cutting meat or fat from a carcass, and the care and maintenance provided for the energy-operated rotary knife, including the rotary knife blade. Each sharpening of the knife blade 300 removes material from the blade section 304, thereby decreasing an extension of the blade.
[00262] While numerous times that knife blade 300 can be sharpened will depend on the application of cutting / trimming, operator skill, the maintenance / cleaning regime of the energy-operated rotary knife, the skill of the person performing the sharpening operation, etc., in most cases, the 304 blade section will reach the end of its service life while the body is still suitable for use. Generally, repeated sharpening of the blade section 304 will decrease an extension of the blade section to a point where the knife blade 300 is no longer suitable for use on the 100 energy operated rotary knife. For example, if an axial extension of the blade blade section 304 is reduced by repeated sharpening to a point where the blade edge 350 is axially regular with or axially above the bottom surface 458 of the blade support section 450 of the blade housing 400, the rotary knife blade 300 it will no longer be suitable for use. When repeated sharpening of knife blade 300 has reduced blade section 304 to a point of wear, blade body 302, including driven gear 328 defined by body 302, will typically still be suitable for use and, in fact, the blade body 302 can have many hours of life remaining. However, because knife blade 300 is a unitary structure, the entire blade 300 must be discarded by the wear of blade section 304, although body 302 may have many hours of life remaining.
[00263] In an exemplary alternative embodiment of the present disclosure and as generally shown in Figures 59-73, a 2300 ring rotary knife blade comprises a two-piece or two-piece structure including a carrier portion 2302 and a blade portion 2350. In an exemplary embodiment, both the carrier portion 2302 and the blade portion 2350 are one piece continuous ring pieces. The 2300 two-piece knife blade is schematically shown as a straight-style blade, but the concepts discussed here referring to a two-piece blade are equally applicable to smooth-surface and hook style rotary knife blades.
[00264] The knife blade 2300 extends axially between an upper end 2300a, defined by an upper wall 2365 of the blade portion 2350, and a lower end 2300b, defined by a lower or distal end 2366 of the blade portion 2350. The lower end 2366 of the blade portion 2350 defines a cutting edge 2368 of knife 2300. Knife blade 2300 is adapted for use on an energy operated rotary knife, such as an energy operated rotary knife 100, although it should be appreciated. that structural changes to the other matched components of the energy-operated rotary knife 100 (e.g., blade housing 400) will be required to accommodate the specific configuration of the 2300 two-part knife blade. As used on an operated rotary knife by energy 100, the blade of the two-part rotating knife 2300 will rotate about a central axis or axis of rotation R '(Figure 59) of knife blade 2300 (similar to the axis of rotation R of the blade of the rotary knife 300). The two-piece knife blade 2300 includes a support groove 2320 that defines a rotary plane RP "(Figure 63) of knife blade 2300 (similar to the rotary plane RP of rotary knife blade 300).
[00265] The blade portion 2350 is releasably fixed or affixed to the conveyor portion 2302. The conveyor portion 2302, which includes a driven gear that can be formed, for example, in a gear mill machining operation, is more more expensive to manufacture than the blade portion 2350. In an exemplary embodiment, the carrier portion 2302 is manufactured from a degree of temperability of alloy steel or a degree of temperability of stainless steel, or other material or materials known to have comparable properties and can be formed / shaped by machining, forming, casting, forging, extruding, metal injection molding and / or electrical discharge machining or other suitable process or combination of processes. In an exemplary embodiment, the blade portion 2350 is manufactured from alloy steel or stainless steel, or other material or materials known to have comparable properties and can be advantageously formed in a steel stamping operation or other suitable process or combination of Law Suit.
[00266] The carrier portion 2302 will have a longer service life than the less expensive blade portion 2350. Thus, when the blade portion 2350 is worn and the carrier portion 2302 still has life remaining, the worn portion of the blade 2350 is unlocked and removed from the carrier portion 2302 and a new blade portion is installed or attached to the carrier portion 2302. In this way, multiple relatively cheap 2350 blade sections can be used for a given carrier portion 2302 thus providing an overall total cost lower for the blades of the rotary knife over the expected life of the conveyor portion 2302, as compared when using and discarding the blades of the single-piece rotary knife.
[00267] As can best be seen in Figures 59-63, which show the axial alignment of the blade portion 2350 and the carrier portion 2302, the carrier portion 2302 carries or supports the blade portion 2350 in a housed relationship. As can be seen in Figure 63, a central portion 2364 of the blade portion 2350 is disposed within the axially shorter carrier portion 2302. The blade portion 2350 is releasably attached to the carrier portion 2302 via a locking attachment structure by twist 2370 (Figures 62-65) which provides a secure attachment between the blade portion 2350 and the carrier portion 2302. In addition to the overall lower overall blade cost discussed above, the nesting ratio of the central portion 2364 of the blade portion 2350 within of the carrier portion 2302 and the attachment structure 2370 provide additional advantages. The configuration of the attachment structure 2370 is such that the rotation of the rotating blade 2300 in the blade housing 400 tends to increase an attachment tension between the blade portion 2350 and the conveyor portion 2302. Viewed from the central axis of rotation R of above the knife, the drive mechanism 700 of the energy operated rotary knife 100 is configured to rotate knife blade 2300 in the counterclockwise rotational direction (shown as CCW in Figures 59 and 62). The attachment structure 237 0 is configured so that the blade rotation of the rotating knife 2300 in the CCW counterclockwise direction tends to tighten the attachment structure 2370 thus tightening and still securing the attachment between the blade portion 2350 and the carrier portion 2302.
[00268] Furthermore, due to the relationship between the blade portion 2350 and the conveyor portion 2302, as best seen in Figure 63, when knife blade 2300 is in a mounted state 2399, a contact area between the boundary surfaces of the blade portion 2350 and the carrier portion 2302 are large. The assembled state 2399 of knife blade 2300 being schematically illustrated in Figures 59-63 and 66, while a disassembled state 2398 of knife blade 2300 is schematically illustrated in Figures 67-69. When in the assembled state 2399, the housed configuration and large surface contact area between the blade portion 2350 and the carrier portion 2302 provides strength, stability and durability to the mounted knife blade 2300. In the overlapping region 2364 of the blade portion 2350 and the carrier portion 2302, the respective blade walls and carrier portions 2350, 2302 are radially aligned, thus providing a double wall for strength and rigidity of the knife blade 2300. Conveyor portion 2302
[00269] As best seen in Figures 61, 63 and 69, the carrier portion 2302 includes an inner wall 2304 and a radially spaced outer wall 2306, a first end or top surface or top wall 2308 and an axially spaced bottom surface or second end or bottom wall 2310. The inner and outer walls 2304, 2306 are radially spaced by a central wall 2316 (Figure 63). The carrier portion 2302, when viewed axially or vertically, includes an upper region 2311 and a lower region 2312 separated by a knee or transition region 2313 between the upper region 2311 and the lower region 2312. In the upper region 2311 of the carrier portion 2302, a generally cylindrical surface 2314 is defined by the inner wall 2304, while in the lower region 2312 of the carrier portion 2302, a generally frustro-conical surface 2315 is defined by the inner wall 2304. The cylindrical surface 2314 is substantially centered on and coaxial with the axis of the rotation R 'of knife blade 2300. Frustro-conic surface 2315 converges in an upward direction UP' (Figure 69), ie, fro-conic surface 2315 converges proceeding in a direction to the upper surface 2308 of carrier portion 2302 and is generally coaxial with the axis of rotation R 'of knife blade 2300.
[00270] A portion of the outer wall 2306 that is axially spaced from the top surface 2308 of the carrier portion 2302 and also axially spaced from the upper end 2300a of the rotary knife blade 2300 defines a supporting surface 2319 for the blade 2300 In an exemplary embodiment, the support surface 2319 defines the support groove 2320 which projects radially internally into a generally cylindrical portion 2340 of the outer wall 2306 of the upper region 2311 of the carrier portion 2302. The support groove 2320, in one embodiment exemplary, includes an arched support surface 2322 in a central portion 2324 of the support groove 2320. The support groove 2320 of the conveyor portion 2302 is configured and functions similarly to the support groove 320 of the rotating knife blade 300, as previously described. That is, the support groove 2320 of the knife blade 2300 is part of the rotary knife support assembly 552 of the energy operated rotary knife 100.
[00271] Axially spaced in a declining direction DW '(Figure 69) from the support surface 2319 there is an externally staggered portion 2331 of the outer wall 2306 of the carrier portion 2302. The staggered portion 2331 of the outer wall 2306 defines a driven gear 2328 of the knife blade 2300. In an exemplary embodiment, the driven gear 2328 defines a spur gear comprising a set or a plurality of surrounding gear teeth extending radially 2330, as the plurality of gear teeth 330 of the knife blade 300. A radial outer surface 2330a of the plurality of gear teeth 2330 defines a cylindrical outer periphery 2336, this is shown schematically on the dotted line in Figure 61. In Figure 61, for clarity, the cylindrical outer periphery 2336 is shown positioned above its true location that would be along the radial outer surface 2330a of the plurality of gear teeth 2330. One step o u recess generally extending horizontally or radially 2334 extends from the lower end of driven gear 2328. recess 2334 inhibits ingress of bone, fat, cartilage and other debris into driven gear 2328 and the supporting groove 2320 during cutting and trimming operations with the energy operated rotary knife 100 using the rotary knife blade 2300. As can be seen, the driven gear 2328 is axially spaced from the bottom surface 2310 of the conveyor portion 2302.
[00272] As can best be seen in Figure 68, which shows the carrier portion 2302 and the blade portion 2350 in the disassembled state 2398, and Figure 70 which shows a schematic lower plan view of the carrier portion 2302, inner wall 2304 in the region lower 2312 of the carrier portion 2302 includes four cavities or sockets 2374. Sockets 2374 define the recesses in the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion and extend from a bottom wall 2310a defining the bottom surface 2310 of the carrier portion 2302 radially in the inner wall 2304 of the conveyor portion 2302. Sockets 2374 are part of the 2370 twist-lock attachment structure of knife blade 2300. The 2370 twist-lock attachment structure releasably secures the blade portion 2350 to the carrier portion 2302 in a hosted configuration (Figure 63). The recesses defined by sockets 2374 have a longitudinal extension, as measured along the knee 2313 of the carrier portion 2302, that is, generally parallel to the knee extension 2313 and generally parallel to the upper surface 2308 of the carrier portion 2302. In an exemplary embodiment , the inner wall 2304 in the lower region 2312 of the carrier portion 2302 includes four sockets 2374a, 2374b, 2374c, 2374d, spaced peripherally in 90 ° increments. The four sockets 2374 each include a first wider opening region 2376, a second tapered region 2378 and a third narrow locking region 2380.
[00273] The first wider opening region 2376 is defined by a lower surface 2376b and an axially spaced upper surface 2376a. The lower surface 2376b defines a projection receiving opening 2376c of socket 2374. The projection receiving opening 2376c forms a portion of the bottom wall 2310a of the carrier portion 2302. The upper surface 2376a extends substantially parallel to the knee 2313 of the wall inner portion 2304 of the carrier portion 2302. A spacing between the bottom surface 2376b and the top surface 2376a, as measured along the inner wall 2304, is a maximum in the first widest opening region 2376. The second tapered region 2378 is defined by a lower surface 2378b and an axially spaced upper surface 2378a that extends substantially parallel to the knee 2313 of the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302. In the second tapered region 2378, the spacing between the lower surface 2378b and the upper surface 2378a, as measured along inner wall 2304, tapering and narrow, proceeding from the first open region a wider 2376 towards the third locking region 2380. Finally, the third locking region 2380 is defined by a lower surface 2380b and an axially spaced upper surface 2380a that extends substantially parallel to the knee 2313 of the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302. In the third locking region 2380, the spacing between the lower surface 2380b and the upper surface 2380a, as measured along the inner wall 2304, is a minimum for socket 2374.
[00274] The respective lower surfaces 2378b, 2380b of the tapered regions and locking 2378, 2380 of socket 2374, define a meat surface 2379. The spacing between the upper and lower surfaces 2376a, 2376b, as measured along the inner wall 2304 of carrier portion 2302 is a maximum in the first wider opening region 2376 of socket 2374. In the second tapered region 2378 and third locking region 2380, the spacing between the top and bottom surfaces, 2378a, 2378b and 2380a, 2380b generally tapers or narrow, as measured along the inner wall 2304 of the conveyor portion 2302, as the meat surface 2379 proceeds in a direction towards the respective upper surfaces 2378a, 2380a of the second tapered region 2378 and third locking region 2380. Thus, the surface of meat 2379 extends from the projection receiving opening 2376c of the first wider opening region 2376 to an end of t terminal 2381 of socket 2374 in the third locking region 2380.
[00275] It should be understood that the plurality of sockets 2374, in the exemplary embodiment of the two-piece blade of the rotating knife 2300 schematically shown in Figures 59-73, is configured as indentations or cavities extending in the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302 , but not extending all the way to the outer wall 2306 of the carrier portion 2302. However, it should be appreciated that the present disclosure contemplates that the configuration of the carrier portion 2302 and the blade portion 2350 can be reversed, that is, the the carrier portion 2302 may include the plurality of projections and the blade portion 2350 may include the matched plurality of the sockets. In the knife blade 2300, the sockets 2374 of the carrier portion 2302 are configured as indentations or cavities that extend from the inner wall 2304 to the central wall 2316 of the carrier portion 2302. However, in other exemplary embodiments contemplated by the present disclosure, the plurality sockets can comprise the openings that pass completely through the internal to the external wall of the carrier portion or blade portion, depending on which part is configured to include the plurality of sockets. For example, on the two-piece blade of rotating knife 4300, shown schematically in Figures 82-90, a blade portion 4350 includes a plurality of sockets 4374. Each of the plurality of sockets 4374 of the blade portion 4350 extends from an inner wall 4352 through an outer wall 4354 of the blade portion 4350, i.e., sockets 4374 extend completely through a central wall 4356 and the inner and outer walls 4352, 4354 of the blade portion 4350.
[00276] When the blade portion 2350 is moved relative to the carrier portion 2302 so that a matched projection 2372 of the blade portion 2350 enters the projection receiving opening 2376c of socket 2474 and the blade portion is twisted or rotated relative to the conveyor portion 2302 so that the projection 2372 moves from the first widest opening region 2376 (shown schematically in Figure 64) through the second tapered region 2378 (Figure 65) in the third locking region 2380 (Figure 66) , the flesh surface 2379 of the sockets 2374 contacts and guides the projections 2372 along an LPT locking displacement path (Figure 70) so that: a) the blade portion 2350 is axially driven or moved in an upward direction UP '(Figures 63 and 69) against the carrier portion 2302; b) the blade portion 2350 is fixed or attached to the carrier portion 2302; and c) knife blade 2300 is transformed from disassembled condition 2398 to assembled condition 2399. Blade portion 2350
[00277] As best seen in Figures 69 and 71-73, the blade portion 2350 includes an inner wall 2352 and a radially spaced outer wall 2354. The blade portion further includes a first end or upper wall 2365 and a second end axially spaced bottom 2366. As can best be seen in Figure 63, the top wall 2365 of the blade portion 2350 defines the upper end 2300a of the knife blade, while the lower end 2366 of the blade portion 2350 defines the lower end 2300b of the blade knife blade 2300. The blade portion 2350 includes a generally upper cylindrical region 2355a and a generally frustro-conical lower region 2355b having a knee or transition region 2355c between the upper region 2355a and the lower region 2355b. As can be seen in Figure 63, the inner and outer walls 2352, 2354 are substantially parallel and the knee 2355c extends horizontally or radially through the inner and outer walls 2352, 2354. The inner and outer walls 2352, 2354 are separated radially through a central wall 2356 defining a thickness of the blade portion 2350.
[00278] The inner wall 2352 defines a generally cylindrical surface 2360 in the upper region 2355a and a generally frustro-conical surface 2361 in the lower region 2355b. The cylindrical surface 2360 is substantially centered on and coaxial with the axis of rotation R 'of the knife blade 2300 (similar to the axis of rotation R of the rotary knife blade 300). The frustro-conical surface 2361 converges in the upward direction UP '(Figures 63 and 69) and is generally coaxial with the axis of rotation R' of knife blade 2300. The outer wall 2354 defines a generally cylindrical surface 2362 in the upper region 2355a and a generally frustro-conical surface 2363 in the lower region 2355b. The cylindrical surface 2362 is substantially centered on and coaxial with the axis of rotation R 'of the knife blade 2300. The frustro-conical surface 2363 converges in the upward direction UP' (Figure 69) and is generally coaxial with the axis of rotation R ' of knife blade 2300. When knife blade 2300 is in assembled state 2399, blade portion 2350 and carrier portion 2302 are in a housed relationship or configuration, i.e., a portion of cylindrical surface 2362 of outer wall 2354 within of the overlapping region 2364 (Figure 63) of the blade portion 2350 confronts and fits comfortably within the cylindrical surface 2314 of the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302, a portion of the frustro-conical surface 2363 of the outer wall 2354 within the overlapping region 2364 of the blade portion 2350 confronts and fits comfortably within the frustro-conic surface 2315 of the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion, and the knee 2355c in the outer wall region 2354 of the blade portion 2350 confronts and is adjacent to the knee 2313 of the carrier portion 2302. Thus, as a result of the nesting configuration, there is a large area or region of contact between the boundary surfaces of the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302 and the outer wall 2354 of the blade portion 2350.
[00279] The lower or distal end 2366 of the blade portion 2350 defines the cutting edge 2368 of the blade portion 2350. The lower end 2366 includes a bridge portion 2367 which connects the inner and outer walls 2352, 2354. The cutting edge of blade 2368 is defined at an intersection of the bridge portion 2367 and the inner wall 2352.
[00280] As best seen in Figures 67 and 71-72, the blade portion 2350 includes a plurality of projections 2372 that extend externally from the frustro-conical surface 2363 of the outer wall 2352. Like sockets 2374 of the carrier portion 2302 , projections 2372 are part of the 2370 twist blade attachment structure of knife blade 2300. In an exemplary embodiment, the number of projections is four, that is, projections 2372a, 2372b, 2372c, 2372d. The four projections 2372 are peripherally spaced on the outer wall 2354 in 90 ° increments. In an exemplary embodiment, the projections 2372 are formed by stamping or punching completely through the blade wall 2356 (Figures 63 and 73) of the blade portion 2350. This approach leaves a cavity or opening 2373 (Figure 73) in the blade central wall 2356 where each of the 2372 projections is formed. As would be understood by those skilled in the art, other techniques can be used to properly form the 2372 projections. As can best be seen in Figures 64 and 73, each of the plurality of projections 2372 includes a generally planar end wall 2390.
[00281] The projections 2372 extend radially externally from the frustro-conical surface 2363 of the outer wall 2354 of the blade portion 2350 and, thus, an acute angle A (Figure 73) of the projections 2372 with respect to the axis of rotation R 'of the knife blade 2300 should be greater in magnitude than an acute angle B of the frustro-conic surface 2363 of the outer wall 2354. The angle B of the frustro-conic surface 2363 will vary depending on the intended use and configuration of the knife blade. In an exemplary embodiment, characterized by the fact that the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300 is a straight blade style rotary knife and is a small diameter rotary knife blade, the acute angle A of four projections 2372 is approximately 60 ° +/- 10 ° and the acute angle B of the friction-conical surface 2363 is approximately 21 ° +/- 10 °. Typically, a small diameter rotary knife blade would be a rotary knife blade having an internal diameter of approximately 7.62 cm (3 inches) or less. Each of the projections 2372 is classified to be received in the opening region 2376c of any of the four sockets 2374 and when the blade portion 2350 is properly positioned and then rotated or twisted with respect to the carrier portion 2302, the projections 2372 and, specifically , the end wall 2390 of the plurality of projections 2372, each moves along and supports against the flesh surface 2379 of the sockets 2374 as the projections 2372 cross along the LPT path from the first widest opening region 2376 through the second tapered region 2378 to the third locking region 2380 to secure the blade portion 2350 to the carrier portion 2302. 2370 twist lock attachment structure
[00282] As previously mentioned, the conveyor portion 2302, which can be machined from stainless steel or similar steel alloy, is more expensive to manufacture than the 2350 blade portion, which can be stamped from stainless steel or similar steel alloy. The carrier portion 2302 and the blade portion 2350 are releasably attached via the twist lock attachment structure 2370 which allows the blade portion 2350 to be securely attached to the carrier portion 2302 so that the knife blade 2300 can be used on the 100 energy operated rotary knife. The 2370 twist lock attachment structure also allows blade portion 2350 to be removed from carrier portion 2302 when blade portion 2350 reaches end of life, so can be replaced with a new blade portion and the knife blade 2300 can continue to be used on the energy operated rotary knife 100 through multiple portions of the replaced blade.
[00283] Advantageously, the attachment structure 2370 is configured so that, since knife blade 2300 is driven for rotation in blade housing 400, the forces resulting from rotation of knife blade 2300 tend to tighten the attachment between the portion blade 2350 and the carrier portion 2302. As previously mentioned, a direction of rotation of knife blade 2300 on rotary knife 100 is in the CCW counterclockwise rotational direction when viewed from the center axis of blade R 'axially above the upper end 2300a of knife blade 2300. To affix blade portion 2350 to carrier portion 2302, one direction of rotation of blade portion 2350 relative to carrier portion 2302 is in the clockwise rotating direction CW (Figure 62) when viewed from the central axis of the blade R 'axially above the upper end 2300a of the blade 2300.
[00284] Attachment structure 2370 includes the plurality of projections 2372 extending radially externally from the outer wall 2354 of the blade portion 2350 and the matching plurality of sockets 2374 formed on the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302. The structure of annex 2370 provides the movement of the plurality of projections 2372 with respect to the plurality of sockets 2374 between a release position, where the blade portion 2350 is capable of being moved axially away from the carrier portion 2302 and the locking position, where the blade portion 2350 is attached to the carrier portion 2302. In an exemplary embodiment, there are four projections 2372a, 2372b, 2372c, 2372d and four matched sockets 2374a, 2374b, 2374c, 2374d. Clearly, it must be recognized that the number of projections and matching sockets can be greater than or less than four.
[00285] As previously discussed, each socket 2374a, 2374b, 2374c, 2374d in the plurality of sockets 2374 includes three adjacent regions 2376, 2378, 2380 allowing the twist lock functionality of the 2370 attachment structure. Each socket, generally referred to as a socket 2374, includes the first widest opening region 2376, the second tapered region 2378 and the third narrowest locking region 2380. The respective upper surfaces 2376a, 2378a, 2380a of the three regions 2376, 2378, 2380 are aligned and substantially parallel to the knee 2355c of the blade portion.
[00286] In contrast, the respective lower surfaces 2378b, 2380b of the tapered and locking regions 2378, 2380, define the flesh surface 2379 which generally tapers towards the upper surfaces 2378a, 2380a thus reducing the spacing between the respective upper and lower surfaces , as measured along the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302, when moving from the first opening region 2376 through the second tapered region 2378 to the third locking region 2380. The flesh surface 2379 extends from the opening of projection receiving 2376c from the first widest opening region 2376 to the terminal end 2381 of socket 2374 in the third locking region 2380. Each of the sockets 2374 comprises a recess 2375 extending radially in the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302, the recess 2374e having a longitudinal extension RLE (Figure 70) that is substantially parallel to the first and second and ends 2308, 2310 of the carrier portion 2302.
[00287] To fix the blade portion 2350 to the carrier portion 2302, the blade portion 2350 and the carrier portion 2302 are axially and rotatably aligned so that each projection 2372a, 2372b, 2372c, 2372d of the plurality of projections 2372 is received in a respective socket 2374a, 2374b, 2374c, 2374d of the plurality of sockets 2374. Specifically, the carrier portion 2302 is positioned above the blade portion 2350. The carrier portion 2302 is moved in the downward direction DW '(Figures 63 and 69) with respect to the blade portion 2350. The carrier portion 2302 is aligned and rotated with respect to the blade portion so that each projection 2372a, 2372b, 2372c, 2372d is received in the projection receiving the opening region 2376c defined by the lower surface 2376b of the first wider opening region 2376 of its respective socket 2374a, 2374b, 2374c, 2374d.
[00288] Then, after proper alignment, to secure the blade portion 2350 to the carrier portion 2302, the blade portion 2350 is rotated with respect to the carrier portion 2302 in the direction of clockwise rotation CW (when viewed from above) to locked position, characterized by the fact that knife blade 2300 is in assembled condition 2399. As blade portion 2350 is rotated with respect to carrier portion 2302, each of the projections 2372a, 2372b, 2372c, 2372d of the plurality of projections 2372 moves along the cam surface 2379 and along an LPT locking displacement path (Figure 70) within a respective socket 2374a, 2374b, 2374c, 2374d of the plurality of sockets 2374. As determined by a projection 2372 it moves along the LPT locking travel path in a socket 2374 from the first widest opening region 2376 to the third narrow locking region 2380, the projection 2372 is axially displaced by the s meat surface 2379 (defined by the lower surfaces 2378b, 2380b of the tapered regions and locking 2378, 2380) so that the outer wall 2354 of the blade portion 2350 and the inner wall 2304 of the conveyor portion 2302 are axially driven towards each other and the blade portion 2350 is attached to the carrier portion 2302. Figures 64-66 schematically illustrate, in sectional view, the movement of a representative projection 2372 within a socket 237 4 along the LPT locking travel path from the first widest opening region 2376 (shown in Figure 64 - unlocked position), second tapered region 2378 (shown in Figure 65 - partially locked position), third locking region 2380 (shown in Figure 66 - locked position - mounted condition ). As can be seen in the progression of Figures 64-66, as the torsion lock attachment of blade portion 2350 to carrier portion 2304 occurs, blade portion 2350 is axially driven for full engagement with carrier portion 2304 in the nesting configuration illustrated in Figure 63.
[00289] As can best be seen in Figures 65 and 66, as the blade portion 2350 is rotated or twisted in the CW clockwise direction with respect to the carrier portion 2302, when viewed from above, the generally planar end wall 2390 of each of the plurality of projections 2372 supports against and travels along the flesh surface 2379 in the second tapered region 2378 and third locking region 2380 of the respective sockets 2374. According to the end wall 2390 of the projections 2374 it travels along the meat surface 2379 , the blade portion 2350 is propelled in the axial direction upwards UP '(Figures 63 and 69) in a configuration housed with the conveyor portion 2302, that is, the locked position or mounted condition 2399.
[00290] To release the blade portion 2350 from the carrier portion 2302, that is, to move the knife blade 2300 from an assembled condition 2399 to a disassembled condition 2398, the process is reversed. That is, the blade portion 2350 is rotated with respect to the carrier portion 2302 in the direction of CCW counterclockwise rotation (when viewed from above) to the release position. When moving from the locking position to the release position, each of the projections 2372a, 2372b, 2372c, 2372d of the plurality of projections 2372 moves along an RPT release travel path (Figure 70) within a respective socket 2374a, 2374b, 2374c, 2374d of the plurality of sockets 2374 which is opposite the LPT locking displacement path. As a given projection 2372 moves along the RPT release travel path from the third narrow locking region 2380 to the first wider opening region 2376, the projection 2372 tends to move along the flesh surface 237 9 of socket 237 4 so that the outer wall 2354 of the blade portion 2350 and the inner wall 2304 of the carrier portion 2302 tend to move away from each other. When each of the projections 2372a, 2372b, 2372c, 2372d of the plurality of projections 2372 is in the first wider opening region 2376 of their respective sockets 2374a, 2374b, 2374c, 2374d of the plurality of sockets 2374, the blade portion 2350 can be axially moved away from the conveyor portion 2302 to thereby complete the release of the blade portion 2350 from the conveyor portion 2302 and thus achieve the disassembled condition. Alternative exemplary achievements - two-piece blades of the rotating knife
[00291] In Figures 74-99, three alternative exemplary embodiments of the blades of the ring rotary knife 3300 (Figures 74-81), 4300 (Figures 82-90), 5300 (Figures 91-99) are schematically shown, each knife blade comprising a two-piece or two-part structure including a carrier portion and a blade portion. Each of the blades of the rotating knife 3300, 4300, 5300 includes a 3370, 4370, 5370 twist lock attachment structure that releasably couples the carrier portion to the blade portion. The blades of the rotary knife 3300, 4300, 5300 are generally similar in structure and function to the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300 and the preceding discussion and description of the two-piece blade of the 2300 rotary knife are incorporated with respect to the description of each of the following two-piece blades of the 3300, 4300, 5300 rotary knife.
[00292] The attachment structures 3370, 4370, 5370 of the respective two-piece blades of the rotary knife 3300, 4300, 5300 differ in structure from the 2370 attachment structure of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300. Correspondingly, the following discussion of the 3300, 4300, 5300 rotary knife blades will focus on the respective attachment structures 3370, 4370, 5370. Each of the 3300, 4300, 5300 rotary knife blades is configured to be used on an energy operated rotary knife of the present disclosure, such as, for example, the energy operated rotary knife 100, although it should be appreciated that structural changes to the other matched components of the energy operated rotary knife 100 (eg, blade housing 400) will be required to accommodate the specific configuration, size and / or diameter of the 3300, 4300, 5300 two-part knife blades. In an exemplary embodiment of the 3300, 4300, 5300 rotary knife blades, both the carrier portion and the portion the blade ones are continuous one-piece annular pieces. Each of the two-part knife blades 3300, 4300, 5300 is shown schematically in Figures 74-99 as the level style rotary knife blades, however the concepts presented here are equally applicable to the straight and hook style rotary knife blades . 3300 rotary knife two-piece blade
[00293] With reference to Figures 74-81, the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 3300 includes the carrier portion 3302 and the blade portion 3350. The blade of the rotary knife 3300 is schematically shown in the assembled condition 3399 in Figures 74-76 and in the disassembled condition 3398 in Figures 77 and 78. The blade of the rotary knife 3300, in the assembled condition 3399, extends from an upper end 3300a to a lower end 3300b and rotates on an axis of rotation R ", similar to axis of rotation R 'of the two-piece blade of rotating knife 2300. The carrier blade portion 3302 includes an inner wall 3304 and an outer wall 3306, radially spaced by a central wall 3316. The carrier portion 3302 extends axially between a first end or top surface 3308, defining the upper end 3300a of knife blade 3300, and a second end or bottom surface 3310. The carrier portion includes an upper region 3311, adja close to the upper surface 3308 and a lower region 3312, adjacent to the bottom surface 3310.
[00294] As can be better seen in Figure 76, in the upper region 3311 of the carrier portion 3302, a generally cylindrical portion 3340 of the outer wall of the carrier portion 3306 includes a support surface 3319. The support surface 3319, similar to the surface of support 2319 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300, functions as the support surface for the blade of the rotary knife 3300 and defines a rotary plane RP "of the blade 3300. In the lower region 3312 of the carrier portion, a stepped portion 3331 of the wall outer 3306 defines a driven gear 3328 including a plurality of gear teeth 3332, similar to the gear teeth 2332 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300. The inner wall 3304 of the carrier portion 3302 includes a frustro-conical portion 3315 that serves as a nesting surface or support for an outer wall 3354 of the blade portion 3350.
[00295] The blade portion 3350 of the two-piece blade 3300 includes an inner wall 3352 and the outer wall 3354, the inner and outer walls 3352, 3354 radially spaced by a central wall 3356. The blade portion 3350 extends between a first end or upper wall 3365 and a second end or lower wall 3366. The lower end 3366 of the blade portion 3350 defines a cutting edge 3368 of the blade 3300 and further defines the lower end 3300b of the knife blade 3300. The inner walls and outer edges 3352, 3354 of the blade portion 3350 are generally parallel and frustro-conical, converging in a direction proceeding towards the lower end 3300b of knife blade 3300 and generally centered on the blade axis of rotation R ". As may be better seen in Figure 7 6, when the blade of the rotary knife 3300 is in assembled condition 3399, an upper region 3364 of the blade portion 3350 is received and supported in relation to housed in the carrier portion 3302. A contact area 3369 between the outer wall 3354 of the blade portion 3350 and the inner wall 3304 of the carrier portion 3302 is generally frustro-conical, extending both axially and radially and converging in one direction proceeding in the direction to the lower end 3366 of the blade portion 3350.
[00296] The 3370 attachment structure of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 3300 includes the releasable fastening elements matched to both the 3350 blade portion and the 3302 carrier portion. In an exemplary embodiment, the 3370 attachment structure includes a plurality of projections 3372 extending radially externally from an outer wall 3354 of the blade portion 3350 and a plurality of sockets 3274 formed in an inner wall 3304 of the carrier portion 3302. In an exemplary embodiment, the number of projections 3372 and sockets 3374 is six.
[00297] As best seen in Figure 79, each of the 3372 projections of the 3350 blade portion is angular and generally S-shaped and includes: a) an arched base portion 3391 that extends radially away from a general OWE extension of the outer wall 3354 of the blade portion; b) a medium portion of extension 3392 that generally extends parallel to the general extension OWE of the outer wall 3354; and c) a generally planar end wall 3390 that is generally orthogonal to the middle portion 3392 and the general OWE extension of the outer wall 3354.
[00298] The configuration of the plurality of projections 3372 and, specifically, the configuration of the middle portion 3392 which extends generally parallel to the outer wall 3354 of the blade portion 3350 provides increased strength and stiffness of the projections 3372 along a line of action of support parallel to the general OWE extension of the external wall 3354. That is, compared to, for example, the angled projection 2372 (Figure 73) of the two-piece blade of the rotating knife 2300, the S-shaped configuration of the plurality of 3372 projections of the 3300 two-part rotary knife blade provides greater strength and rigidity of the 3372 projections as the 3372 projections hold against and travel along a surface of meat 3379 of the 3374 sockets when the 3350 blade portion is rotated in a CW clockwise direction with respect to the conveyor portion 3302 for moving the blade of the rotary knife 3300 from a disassembled condition 3398 (Figures 77 and 78) to an assembled condition 3399 (Figures 74 - 76).
[00299] The attachment structure 3370 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 3300 still includes the plurality of sockets 3374 formed on the inner wall 3304 and extending on the central wall 3316 of the conveyor portion 3302. Each socket 3374 is located in the lower region 3312 of the carrier portion 3302 and includes a first wider opening region 3376, a second tapered region 3378 and a third locking region 3380. The first wider opening region 3376 includes an upper surface 3376a, defining an opening region 3376c ( 77) of socket 3374, and a lower surface 3376b spaced from the upper surface along the inner wall 3304. The second tapered region 3378 includes an upper surface 3378a and a lower surface 3378b. The third locking region 3380 includes an upper surface 3380a and a lower surface 3380b. The upper surfaces 3378a, 3380a of the tapered and locking regions 3378, 3380 define the cam surface 3379. The cam surface 3379 generally proceeds towards or converges towards the lower surfaces 3378b, 3380b thus reducing the spacing between the respective upper and lower surfaces. bottom, as measured along the inner wall 3304 of the conveyor portion 3302, when moving from the first opening region 3376 through the second tapered region 3378 to the third locking region 3380. Each of the sockets 3374 comprises a recess 3374a extending radially on the inner wall 3304 of the carrier portion 3302, the recess 3374a having a longitudinal extension RLE '(Figure 77) which is substantially parallel to the first and second ends 3308, 3310 of the carrier portion 3302.
[00300] To fix the blade portion 3350 to the carrier portion 3302, the blade portion 3350 is positioned above the carrier portion 3302. The blade portion 3350 is moved in the declining direction DW "(Figure 76) with respect to the carrier portion 3302 The blade portion 3350 is aligned and rotated with respect to the carrier portion 3302 so that each projection 3372 is received in a respective projection receiving opening 3376c defined by the upper surface 3376b of the first wider opening region 3376 of its respective socket married 3374. Then, after proper alignment, to secure blade portion 3350 to carrier portion 3302, blade portion 3350 is rotated with respect to carrier portion 3302 in a direction of clockwise rotation CW (when viewed from above) to the locked position, characterized by the fact that the knife blade 3300 is in the assembled condition 3399. As the blade portion 3350 is rotated with respect to the carrying portion dora 3302, each of the projections of the plurality of projections 3372 moves along the flesh surface 337 9 and along a locking displacement path LPT '(Figure 77) within a respective socket of the plurality of sockets 3374.
[00301] As a given projection 3372 moves along the LPT 'locking displacement path in a socket 3374 from the first widest opening region 3376 to the third narrow locking region 3380, the 3372 projection is axially dislodged by the surface of meat 3379 (defined by the upper surfaces 3378a, 3380a of the tapered regions and locking 3378, 3380) so that the outer wall 3354 of the blade portion 3350 and the inner wall 3304 of the conveyor portion 3302 are driven axially towards each other and the blade portion 3350 is attached to carrier portion 3302. Figures 79-81 schematically illustrate, in section view, the movement of a representative projection 3372 within socket 3374 along the LPT7 locking displacement path from the first region widest opening 3376 (shown in Figure 79 - unlocked position), to the second tapered region 3378 (shown in Figure 80 - partially positioned locked), to the third locking region 3380 (shown in Figure 81 - locked position - mounted condition). As can be seen in the progression of Figures 79-81, as the twist lock attachment of the blade portion 3350 to the carrier portion 3302 occurs, the blade portion 3350 is axially driven for full engagement with the carrier portion 3302 in the nesting configuration illustrated in Figure 76.
[00302] As can be better seen in Figures 80 and 81, as the blade portion 3350 is twisted in the CW clockwise direction with respect to the conveyor portion 3302, as seen from above, the generally planar end wall 3390 of each da plurality of projections 3372 supports against and travels along the surface of meat 3379 in the second tapered region 3378 and third locking region 3380 of the respective sockets 3374. As the end wall 3390 of the projections 3372 travels along the surface of meat 3379, the blade portion 3350 is driven in the axial declining direction DW "(Figure 76) in a configuration housed with carrier portion 3302, that is, locked position or mounted condition 3399. 4300 rotary knife two-piece blade
[00303] Referring to Figures 82-90, the two-piece blade of the rotating knife 4300 includes the carrier portion 4302 and the blade portion 4350. The knife blade 4300 is schematically shown in assembled condition 4399 in Figures 82-85 and in disassembled condition 4398 in Figures 86 and 87. Knife blade 4300, in assembled condition 4399, extends from an upper end 4300a to a lower end 4300b and rotates on an axis of rotation R "', similar to the axis of rotation R 'of the two-piece blade of the rotating knife 2300. The carrier blade portion 4302 includes an inner wall 4304 and an outer wall 4306, radially spaced by a central wall 4316. The carrier portion 4302 extends axially between a first upper end or surface 4308, defining the upper end 4300a of knife blade 4300 and a second end or bottom surface 4310. The carrier portion includes an upper region 4311, adjacent to the surface and from above 4308 and a lower region 4312, adjacent to the bottom surface 4310.
[00304] As can be better seen in Figure 85, in the upper region 4311 of the carrier portion 4302, a generally cylindrical portion 4340 of the outer wall of the carrier portion 4306 includes a support surface 4319. The support surface 4319, similar to the surface of support 2319 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300, functions as the support surface for the blade of the rotary knife 4300 and defines a rotary plane RP "'of the blade 4300. In the lower region 4312 of the conveyor portion, a stepped portion 4331 of the outer wall 4306 defines a driven gear 4328 including a plurality of gear teeth 4332, similar to the gear teeth 2332 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300. The inner wall 4304 of the carrier portion 4302 includes a frustro-conical portion 4315 which is adjacent and extending upward from the bottom surface 4310 of the carrier portion 4302. The frustro-conical portion 4315 serves as a nesting surface or support for an external wall 4354 of the 4350 blade portion.
[00305] The blade portion 4350 of the two-piece blade 4300 includes an inner wall 4352 and the outer wall 4354, the inner and outer walls 4352, 4354 radially spaced by a central wall 4356. The blade portion 4350 extends between a first end or upper wall 4365 and a second end or lower wall 4366. The lower end 4366 of the blade portion 4350 defines a cutting edge 4368 of the blade 4300 and further defines the lower end 4300b of the knife blade 4300. The blade portion includes an upper region 4357 and a lower region 4358, the upper and lower regions 4357, 4358 separated by a slight discontinuity or knee 4359 extending orthogonally through the blade portion 4350, generally orthogonal to the axis of rotation R "'and generally parallel to the rotary plane RP "'of the 4300 rotary knife blade. The internal and external walls 4352, 4354 of the 4350 blade portion are generally parallel and frustro-conical, converging going in one direction proceeding towards the lower end 4300b of knife blade 4300 and generally centered on the blade axis of rotation R "'. As can be best seen in Figure 85, when the blade of the rotating knife 4300 is in the assembled condition 4399, an upper region 4364 of the blade portion 4350 is received and supported in relation to that housed in the conveyor portion 4302. A contact area 4369 between the outer wall 4354 of the blade portion 4350 and inner wall 4304 of the carrier portion 4302 is generally frustro-conical, extending both axially and radially and converging in a direction proceeding towards the lower end 4366 of the blade portion 4350.
[00306] The 4370 attachment structure of the two-piece blade of the rotating knife 4300 includes the releasable fastening elements matched to both the 4350 blade portion and the 4302 carrier portion. In an exemplary embodiment, the 4370 attachment structure includes a plurality of projections 4372 extending radially internally from an inner wall 4304 of the carrier portion 4302 and a plurality of sockets 4374 formed on the central wall 4356 of the blade portion 4350. That is, as best seen in Figure 84, each of the plurality of sockets 4374 passes completely through the blade portion 4350 passing from the inner wall 4352 through an outer wall 4354, defining an opening or passage through the blade portion 4350. In an exemplary embodiment, the number of projections 4372 and sockets 4374 is six .
[00307] As best seen in Figure 88, each of the 4372 projections of the carrier portion 4302 is generally cylindrical in shape and includes: a) a 4394 cylinder extending radially and generally orthogonally away from a general IWE extension of the wall internal 4304 of a lower region 4312 of the carrier portion; and b) a cylindrical outer wall 4395 defined by cylinder 4394. As can be seen in Figure 88, when the two-piece blade of the rotating knife 4300 is in assembled condition 4399, the 4394 cylinders of the projections 4372 also extend through sockets 4372 and they generally extend orthogonally to a general extension OWE' of the outer wall 4354 of the blade portion 4350. The plurality of projections 4372 can, for example, be spot welded to the inner wall 4304 of the carrier portion 4302.
[00308] The attachment structure 4370 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 4300 still includes the plurality of sockets 4374 extending through the central wall 4356 of the blade portion 4350. Each socket 4374 is located in the upper region 4357 of the portion of blade 4350 and includes a first wider opening region 4376, a second tapered region 4378 and a third locking region 4380. The first wider opening region 4376 includes an upper surface 4376a and a lower surface 4376b spaced from the upper surface along the inner and outer walls 4304, 4306. The lower surface 4376b defines an opening region 4376c of socket 4372. The second tapered region 4378 includes an upper surface 4378a and a lower surface 4378b. The third locking region 4380 includes an upper surface 4380a and a lower surface 4380b. The lower surfaces 4378b, 4380b of the tapered and locking regions 4378, 4380 define a cam surface 4379. The cylindrical wall 4395 of the cylinders 4394 defining the projections 4372 of the conveyor portion 4302 travels along and supports against the cam surface 4379 of the sockets 4374 when the blade portion 4350 is rotated in a CW clockwise direction with respect to the carrier portion 4302 to move the blade of the rotating knife 4300 from a disassembled condition 4398 (Figures 86 and 87) to an assembled condition 4399 (Figures 82-85 ).
[00309] The meat surface 4379 generally proceeds towards or converges towards the upper surfaces 4378a, 4380a thereby reducing the spacing between the respective upper and lower surfaces, as measured along the outer wall 4354 of the blade portion 4350, when moving from the first opening region 4376 through the second tapered region 4378 to the third locking region 4380. Each of the sockets 4374 comprises an opening 4374a extending radially through the inner and outer walls 4352, 4354 of the blade portion 4350, the opening 4374a having a longitudinal extension RLE "(Figure 87) which is substantially parallel to the first and second ends 4365, 4366 of the blade portion 4350. In an exemplary embodiment, the meat surface 4379 is ratcheted 4379a, that is, it includes a plurality of rounded L-shaped projections (Figure 84) for a locking effect. When the 4350 blade portion is rotated or twisted with respect to the po conveyor section 4302 in the CW clockwise direction, to move the blade of the rotating knife 4300 to the mounted condition 4399, the ratchet 4379a of the meat surface 4379 allows the movement of the blade portion 4350 with respect to the conveyor portion 4302. However, the ratchet inhibits movement of the cylinder walls 4395 along the cam surface 4379 of the sockets 4374 in the CCW counterclockwise direction thus mitigating any tendency of the 4350 blade portion to unwind or rotate in the CCW counterclockwise direction during assembly of the blade portion 4350 and the conveyor portion 4302 or during a blade operation of the rotary knife 4300 on an energy-operated rotary knife, such as the energy-operated rotary knife 100.
[00310] To fix the blade portion 4350 to the carrier portion 4302, the blade portion 4350 is positioned above the carrier portion 4302. The blade portion 4350 is moved in the declining direction DW "'(Figure 85) with respect to the carrier portion 4302. The blade portion 4350 is aligned and rotated with respect to the carrier portion 4302 so that each projection 4372 is received in a respective projection receiving opening 4376c defined by the upper surface 4376b of the first wider opening region 4376 of its respective married socket 4374. A length of the 4394 cylinders defining the projections 4372 is configured so that the 4394a cylinders are classified to fit in the 4376c openings of the 4374 sockets and, as best seen in Figure 88, are long enough to extend completely through the central wall 4356 of the blade portion 4350 and just beyond the inner wall 4352 of the blade portion 4350. Then , after proper alignment, to secure blade portion 4350 to carrier portion 4302, blade portion 4350 is rotated with respect to carrier portion 4302 in a direction of clockwise rotation CW (when viewed from above) to the locked position, characterized by the fact that knife blade 4300 is in assembled condition 4399. As blade portion 4350 is rotated with respect to carrier portion 4302. Each of the projections of the plurality of projections 4372 moves along the surface of meat 437 9 and along an LPT locking travel path "(Figure 86) within a respective socket of the plurality of sockets 4374.
[00311] As a given projection 4372 moves along the LPT "locking displacement path" in a 4374 socket from the first wider opening region 4376 to the third narrow locking region 4380, the 4372 projection is axially displaced by the surface of meat 4379 (defined by the lower surfaces 4378b, 4380b of the tapered regions and locking 4378, 4380) so that the outer wall 4354 in the upper region 4357 of the blade portion 4350 and the inner wall 4304 of the conveyor portion 4302 are axially driven to the other and the blade portion 4350 is attached to the carrier portion 4302. Figures 88-90 schematically illustrate, in section view, the movement of a representative cylindrical projection 4372 within a socket 4374 along the LPT locking travel path "from the first widest opening region 4376 (shown in Figure 88 - unlocked position), to the second tapered region 4378 (shown in Figure 89 - partially locked position), to the third locking region 4380 (shown in Figure 90 - locked position - mounted condition). As can be seen in the progression of Figures 88-90, as the torsion lock attachment of blade portion 4350 to carrier portion 4302 occurs, blade portion 4350 is axially driven for full engagement with carrier portion 4302 in the nesting configuration illustrated in Figure 85.
[00312] As can be best seen in Figures 89 and 90, as the blade portion 4350 is rotated or twisted in the CW clockwise direction with respect to the carrier portion 4302, the generally cylindrical wall 4395 of each of the plurality of projections 4372 supports against and travels along the meat surface 4379 in the second tapered region 4378 and the third locking region 4380 of the respective sockets 4374. As the cylindrical wall 4395 of the projections 4374 travels along the meat surface 4379, the blade portion 4350 is propelled in the declining axial direction DW "'(Figure 85) in a configuration housed with the carrier portion 4302, that is, the locked position or mounted condition 4399. 5300 rotary knife two-piece blade
[00313] With reference to Figures 90-99, the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 5300 includes the carrier portion 5302 and the blade portion 5350. The blade of the rotary knife 5300 is shown schematically in assembled condition 5399 in Figures 91-93 and in the disassembled condition 5398 in Figures 94 and 95. The blade 5300, in the assembled condition 5399, extends from an upper end 5300a to a lower end 5300b and rotates on an axis of rotation R "", similar to the axis of rotation R 'of the two-piece blade of the rotating knife 2300. The carrier blade portion 5302 includes an inner wall 5304 and an outer wall 5306, radially spaced by a central wall 5316. The carrier portion 5302 extends axially between a first end or top surface 5308, defining the upper end 5300a of knife blade 5300, and a second end or bottom surface 5310. The carrier portion includes an upper region 5311, adjacent to the surface ie from above 5308 and a lower region 5312, adjacent to bottom surface 5310.
[00314] As can be better seen in Figure 93, in the upper region 5311 of the carrier portion 5302, a generally cylindrical portion 5340 of the outer wall of the carrier portion 5306 includes a bearing surface 5319. The bearing surface 5319, similar to the bearing surface support 2319 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300, functions as the support surface for the blade of the rotary knife 5300 and defines a rotary plane RP "" of the blade 5300. In the lower region 5312 of the carrier portion, a stepped portion 5331 of the outer wall 5306 defines a driven gear 5328 including a plurality of gear teeth 5332, similar to the gear teeth 2332 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300. The inner wall 5304 of the carrier portion 5302 includes a frustro-conical portion 5315 that serves as a nesting surface or support for an outer wall 5354 of the blade portion 5350.
[00315] The blade portion 5350 of the two-piece blade 5300 includes an inner wall 5352 and the outer wall 5354 radially spaced by a central wall 5356. The blade portion 5350 extends between a first end or upper wall 5365 and a second end or lower wall 5366. The lower end 5366 of the blade portion 5350 defines a cutting edge of the blade of the rotary knife 5300 and also defines the lower end 5300b of the blade 5300. In an exemplary embodiment, the inner and outer walls 5352, 5354 they are substantially parallel and frustro-conical in configuration, converging in one direction proceeding towards the lower end 5300b of knife blade 5300 and generally centered on the axis of the blade of rotation R "". As can be best seen in Figure 93, when the blade of the rotary knife 5300 is in the assembled condition 5399, an upper region 5364 of the blade portion 5350 is received and supported in relation to that housed in the conveyor portion 5302. A contact area 5369 between the outer wall 5354 of the blade portion 5350 and inner wall 5304 of the carrier portion 5302 is generally frustro-conical, extending both axially and radially and converging in a direction proceeding towards the lower end 5366 of the blade portion 5350.
[00316] The attachment structure 5370 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 5300 includes the releasable fastening elements matched to both the blade portion 5350 and the carrier portion 5302. In an exemplary embodiment, the attachment structure 5370 includes a plurality of projections 5372 extending radially externally from an outer wall 5354 of the blade portion 5350 and a plurality of sockets 5374 formed on the inner wall 5304 of the carrier portion 5302. In an exemplary embodiment, the number of projections 5372 and sockets 5374 is six.
[00317] As best seen in Figure 97, each of the projections 5372 of the blade portion 5350 is generally V-shaped and includes: a) a lower rib 5396 extending radially externally in a direction generally parallel to the rotating plane RP " "(Figures 93 and 99) of blade 5300; and b) an upper rib 5397 which extends generally orthogonally away from a general extension OWE "of the outer wall 5354 of the blade portion; and c) an upper or generally planar end wall 5397a defined by the upper rib 5397 which is also generally orthogonal to the general extension OWE' of the outer wall 5354. The V-shaped projections 5372 of the 5350 blade portion can advantageously be manufactured as extruded "shoulders" formed in the steel embossing comprising the 5350 blade portion.
[00318] The configuration of the plurality of projections 5372 and, specifically, the configuration of the lower rib 5396 that supports and reinforces the upper rib 5397 provides the increased strength and stiffness of the projections 5372 along a line of support parallel to the overall extension OWE "of the outer wall 5354. That is, compared to, for example, the angled projections 2372 (Figure 73) of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 2300, the V-shaped configuration of the plurality of 5372 projections of the rotary knife blade two-piece 5300 provides greater strength and rigidity of the 5372 projections as the 5372 projections support against and travel along a 5379 cam surface of the 5374 sockets when the 5350 blade portion is correctly aligned and rotated in a CW clockwise direction with with respect to the carrier portion 5302 to propel the blade of the rotary knife 5300 from a disassembled condition 5398 (Figures 94 and 95) to an assembled condition 5399 (Figures 91- 93).
[00319] The attachment structure 5370 of the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 5300 still includes the plurality of sockets 5374 formed on the inner wall 5304 and extending on the central wall 5316 of the carrier portion 5302. Each socket 5374 is located in the lower region 5312 of the carrier portion 5302 and includes a first wider opening region 5376, a second tapered region 5378 and a third locking region 5380. The first wider opening region 5376 includes an upper surface 5376a, defining an opening region 5376c of the socket 5374 and a lower surface 5376b spaced from the upper surface along the inner wall 5304. The second tapered region 5378 includes an upper surface 5378a and a lower surface 5378b. The third locking region 5380 includes an upper surface 5380a and a lower surface 5380b. The upper surfaces 5378a, 5380a of the tapered and locking regions 5378, 5380 define the meat surface 5379. The cam surface 5379 generally proceeds towards or converges towards the lower surfaces 5378b, 5380b thus reducing the spacing between the respective upper and lower surfaces. bottom, as measured along the inner wall 5304 of the carrier portion 5302, when moving from the first opening region 5376 through the second tapered region 5378 to the third locking region 5380. Each of the sockets 5374 comprises a recess 5374a extending if radially in the inner wall 5304 of the carrier portion 5302, the recess 5374a having a longitudinal extension RLE '"(Figure 94) which is substantially parallel to the first and second ends 5308, 5310 of the carrier portion 5302.
[00320] To secure the blade portion 5350 to the carrier portion 5302, the blade portion 5350 is positioned above the carrier portion 5302. The blade portion 5350 is moved in the declining direction DW "" (Figure 93) with respect to the carrier portion 5302. The blade portion 5350 is aligned and rotated with respect to the carrier portion 5302 so that each projection 5372 is received in a respective projection receiving opening 5376c defined by the upper surface 5376b of the first wider opening region 5376 of its respective married socket 5374. Then, after proper alignment, to secure blade portion 5350 to carrier portion 5302, blade portion 5350 is rotated with respect to carrier portion 5302 in a direction of clockwise rotation CW (when viewed from above) ) to the locked position, characterized by the fact that the knife blade 5300 is in the assembled condition 5399.
[00321] As the blade portion 5350 is rotated with respect to the carrier portion 5302, each of the projections of the plurality of projections 5372 moves along the meat surface 5379 and along an LPT locking displacement path "" (Figure 94) within the respective socket of the plurality of sockets 5374. According to a given projection 5372 it moves along the LPT locking displacement path "'in a socket 5374 from the first region of the widest opening 5376 to the third region narrow locking 5380, the projection 5372 is axially displaced by the cam surface 5379 (defined by the upper surfaces 5378a, 5380a of the tapered regions and locking 5378, 5380) so that the outer wall 5354 of the blade portion 5350 and the inner wall 5304 of the carrier portion 5302 are propelled axially towards each other and the blade portion 5350 is attached to the carrier portion 5302. Figures 96-98 schematically illustrate , in sectional view, the movement of a representative projection 5372 into socket 5374 along the LPT '"locking displacement path from the first widest opening region 5376 (shown in Figure 96 - unlocked position), to second tapered region 5378 (shown in Figure 97 - partially locked position), third lock region 5380 (shown in Figure 98 - locked position - mounted condition). As can be seen in the progression of Figures 96-98, as the twist lock attachment of the blade portion 5350 to the carrier portion 5302 occurs, the blade portion 5350 is axially driven for full engagement with the carrier portion 5302 in the nesting configuration illustrated in Figure 93.
[00322] As can be best seen in Figures 97 and 98, as the blade portion 5350 is rotated in the CW clockwise direction, as seen from above, with respect to the carrier portion 5302, the upper planar wall generally 5397a of each of plurality of projections 5372 supports against and travels along cam surface 5379 in the second tapered region 5378 and third locking region 5380 of the respective sockets 5374. Depending on the end or upper wall 5397a of projections 5372 travels along the surface of meat 5379, the blade portion 5350 is driven in the axial declining direction DW '"' (Figure 93) in a configuration housed with the carrier portion 5302, that is, the locked position or mounted condition 5399. In Figure 99, the two-piece blade of the rotary knife 5300 is schematically shown in section view as mounted in a properly configured blade housing 5400 of an energy operated rotary knife, such as the energy operated rotary 100 of the present disclosure.
[00323] As used herein, the terms of orientation and / or direction, such as, front, rear, forward, rear, distal, proximal, distally, proximally, top, bottom, inward, outward, internally, externally, horizontally, horizontally, vertically, vertically, axially, radially, longitudinally, axially, radially, longitudinally, etc., are provided for convenience and generally relate to the orientation shown in the Figures and / or discussed in the Detailed Description . Such guidance / direction terms are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure, this application and / or the invention or inventions described therein and / or any of the claims attached hereto. In addition, as used herein, the terms understand, understand and understand must specify the presence of the declared resources, elements, integers, steps or components, but do not prevent the presence or addition of one or more resources, elements, integers, steps or components.
[00324] What has been described above are the examples of the present disclosure / invention. It is clearly not possible to describe each conceivable combination of components, assemblies or methodologies for the purposes of describing the present disclosure / invention, but one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that many additional combinations and permutations of the present disclosure / invention are possible. Correspondingly, the present disclosure / invention is intended to admit all such changes, modifications and variations that are within the spirit and scope of the attached claims.

权利要求:
Claims (12)
[0001]
1. Annular rotary knife blade, for rotation on a rotation axis (Rz) on an energy-operated rotary knife (100), the rotary knife blade (2300), characterized by the fact that it comprises: - an annular conveyor portion (2302 ) including a first end (2308) and an axially spaced second end (2310), an outer wall (2306) and an internally spaced radially inward wall (2304) extending respectively between the first end (2308) and the second end (2310), the carrier portion (2302) including a set of gear teeth (2330) and a knife blade support surface (2320); - a portion of annular blade (2350) including a first end (2365) and a second axially spaced end (2366), an outer wall (2354) and an inner wall radially spaced inward (2352) extending, respectively, between the first end (2365) and the second end (2366), and a cutting edge (2368) at the second end of the blade portion (2366), the blade portion (2350) configured to be received in a relationship housed by the carrier portion (2302) so that at least a portion of the facing surfaces of the outer wall (2354) of the blade portion (2350) and the inner wall (2304) of the carrier portion (2302) are in contact within an overlapping region (2364 ) of the blade portion (2350) of the carrier portion (2302); and - an attachment structure (2370) for releasably securing the blade portion (2350) to the carrier portion (2302), the attachment structure (2370) including a plurality of projections (2372) extending from a the outer wall (2354) of the blade portion (2350) and the inner wall (2304) of the carrier portion (2302) and a plurality of sockets (2374) disposed on the other of the outer wall (2354) of the blade portion (2350) and the inner wall (2304) of the carrier portion (2302), each of the plurality of projections (2374) being received in a respective different from the plurality of sockets (2374) to releasably fix the blade portion (2350) to the portion conveyor (2302), the plurality of projections (2372) extending from the outer wall (2354) of the blade portion (2350), the plurality of sockets (2372) is spaced from the first end (2365) and the second end (2366) of the blade portion (2350) and if the plurality of projections These (2372) extend from the inner wall (2304) of the carrier portion (2302), the plurality of sockets (2372) are spaced from the first end (2308) and the second end (2310) of the carrier portion (2302).
[0002]
2. Blade according to claim 1, characterized in that the knife blade support surface comprises a support groove (2320) extending radially in the outer wall (2306) of the carrier portion (2302).
[0003]
3. Blade according to claim 2, characterized in that the supporting groove (2320) is axially spaced from the first end (2308) of the carrier portion (2302).
[0004]
4. Blade according to claim 1, characterized in that the set of gear teeth (2330) is formed on the outer wall (2306) of the conveyor portion (2302) and is axially spaced from the first end (2308) of the carrier portion (2302).
[0005]
5. Blade according to claim 2, characterized in that the set of gear teeth (2330) is axially spaced from the supporting groove (2320).
[0006]
6. Blade according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the inner and outer walls (2352, 2354) of the blade portion (2350) are parallel.
[0007]
7. Blade according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized by the fact that the inner and outer walls (2352, 2354) of the blade portion (2350) include trunk-conical portions.
[0008]
8. Blade according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that each of the plurality of sockets (2374) includes a projection receiving opening (2376c) and a flesh surface (2379) extending to from the projection receiving opening (2376c), the plurality of projections (2372) and the plurality of sockets (2374) configured and positioned in relation to each other, so that when the blade portion (2350) is received in relationship housed by the carrier portion (2302) and the blade portion (2350) and carrier portion (2302) are suitably rotatable, each of the plurality of projections (2372) is received in a respective plurality projection receiving aperture of sockets (2374) and, by rotating the blade portion (2350) relative to the carrier portion (2302) in a direction of rotation to a locked position, each of the projections (2372) of the plurality of projections (2372) moves up along a displacement path within a respective socket (2374) of the plurality of sockets (2374) and is axially displaced by the flesh surface (2379) of the socket (2374) so that the outer wall (2354) of the blade portion ( 2350) and the inner wall (2304) of the carrier portion (2302) are pushed towards each other and the blade portion (2350) is attached to the carrier portion (2302).
[0009]
9. Blade according to claim 8, characterized in that the direction of rotation of the blade portion (2350) in relation to the carrier portion (2302) to move to the locked position is opposite in the rotational direction towards a direction of blade rotation (2300) on a rotating knife (100).
[0010]
10. Blade according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the plurality of projections (2372) extend from the outer wall (2354) of the blade portion (2350) and the plurality of sockets (2374) extends on the inner wall (2304) of the carrier portion (2302).
[0011]
11. Blade according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the housed relationship comprises an overlapping region (2364) of the blade portion (2350) and the conveyor portion (2302), the outer wall being (2354) of the blade portion (2350) and the inner wall (2304) of the carrier portion (2302) are radially aligned in contact with each other to provide a double wall.
[0012]
12. Energy-operated rotary knife, characterized by the fact that it comprises: - a rotary knife blade (2300), as defined in any one of claims 1 to 11, arranged to rotate on an axis of rotation (R '); - a blade housing (400) including an inner wall (452) defining a blade housing supporting surface (459); and - a blade housing-blade support structure (500) disposed between the knife blade support surface (2320) and the blade housing support surface (459).

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同族专利:

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公开号 | 公开日

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PL2736685T3|2021-02-08|

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US20130185944A1|2013-07-25|

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US20140283393A1|2014-09-25|

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CN103889669A|2014-06-25|

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AU2012286986B2|2016-09-22|

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US9227332B2|2016-01-05|

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ES2813525T3|2021-03-24|

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US8745881B2|2014-06-10|

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US20160167243A1|2016-06-16|

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CN103889669B|2016-06-29|

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BR112014001915A2|2019-04-02|

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WO2013016344A1|2013-01-31|

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EP2736685A1|2014-06-04|

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EP2736685A4|2016-02-17|

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EP2736685B1|2020-05-27|

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AU2012286986A1|2014-02-06|

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US9573283B2|2017-02-21|

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法律状态:
2019-04-16| B06F| Objections, documents and/or translations needed after an examination request according art. 34 industrial property law|

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2019-11-05| B06U| Preliminary requirement: requests with searches performed by other patent offices: suspension of the patent application procedure|

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2020-04-07| B09A| Decision: intention to grant|

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2020-10-27| B16A| Patent or certificate of addition of invention granted|Free format text: PRAZO DE VALIDADE: 20 (VINTE) ANOS CONTADOS A PARTIR DE 24/07/2012, OBSERVADAS AS CONDICOES LEGAIS. |

优先权:

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申请号 | 申请日 | 专利标题

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US13/189,938|US8726524B2|2011-07-25|2011-07-25|Power operated rotary knife|

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US13/189,938|2011-07-25|

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US13/556,008|2012-07-23|

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US13/556,008|US8745881B2|2011-07-25|2012-07-23|Power operated rotary knife|

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PCT/US2012/047989|WO2013016344A1|2011-07-25|2012-07-24|Power operated rotary knife|

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